in·san·i·ty

/inˈsanədē/

noun

• doing the same thing you have always done, but expecting, wanting, or needing completely different results (Chinni et al., 2019)

The modern age demands a modern education. We cannot continue to act in the same way and expect different results. It does, in fact, take a village. Educators cannot do this alone. We must come to the realization that ours is a societal issue, challenge and responsibility, not simply that which belongs to only those who educate. Therefore, we must engage all members of both our larger and local educational communities in our mission to realize our shared vision of modern schooling—one that we all know will best serve to prepare every student for these most extraordinary and uncertain times. The time is now.

LeaderShift 2020: Reinventing Our Schools for Extraordinary and Uncertain Times will inform and inspire using authentic anecdotes and an embedded collection of practical tools and resources to guide you and your educational community as you shift the paradigm of teaching, learning, and assessment in your schools.

LeaderShift 2020 lays out practical steps for educational communities to best position our students for lasting success in an unprecedented world. It provides a comprehensive strategic visioning and planning process that will require you and your community to understand the essential attributes of the exemplary modern learning organization, use specific protocol to engage stakeholders in a collaborative decision-making and goal development process, and formulate and execute a shared “2020 Vision” for your schools.

This book is different. LeaderShift 2020 offers a perspective that few can provide. It’s born out of a total of more than 100 years of practical educational leadership experience across our writing team. These “in-the-trenches” experiences have immersed us in every role and responsibility—from teacher to supervisor, to building principal, to district level administrator, to state-level administrator, to a university professor, to consultant and more. Collectively, our writing team has authored nearly 20 books; delivered thousands of keynotes; developed and implemented tens of thousands of workshops; consulted for thousands of schools, districts, ministries, DOEs, and corporations around the globe; led numerous state- and consortium-based ground-breaking projects; developed and directed various undergraduate and graduate courses and programs; and conducted too many research studies to count. The synthesis of our experiences and research—both formal and informal—has enabled us to identify what we believe to be the essentials of modern learning organizations.