The Adult Portrait

Each adult at 菠菜网lol正规平台 is a consistent, patient, reliable, safe and trustworthy ally for students. Adults build authentic relationships with students based on compassion, respect, care and trust. They listen to students and amplify and elevate student voices.

Adults are motivators, coaches and mentors. They understand the unique issues for students and their generation, and are able to empathize with students’ perspectives and experiences. They help and empower students to navigate complex systems (e.g., career paths, college admissions).

They model persistence and hard work. They recognize the hard work of others. They are “warm demanders,” expecting excellence from students while nurturing their growth.

All adults at 菠菜网lol正规平台 work to develop their own cultural awareness and cultural competence.Cultural competence can be defined as the ability to understand and respect values, attitudes, beliefs and customs that differ across cultures and to adapt appropriately to these differences. ¹¹ They are self-aware. They are willing and able to confront their own biases, interrupt beliefs and actions that lead to an inequitable system, and disrupt historic inequities and predictable patterns of achievement based on race and demographics in 菠菜网lol正规平台.

Adults engage in an active and ongoing practice of liberatory thinking.Liberatory thinking, as defined by the National Equity Project, means re-imagining those internal assumptions and beliefs about others that undermine productive relationships and actions.. ¹² and anti-racism, working within themselves, their community and the district to challenge racism with each decision made. They use data to make equitable, student-centered decisions.

Adults provide equal acknowledgment, protection and justice for all students and colleagues. They affirm students’ and adults’ diverse intersectional identities (including racial, linguistic, disability and gender identities). They empower, encourage and support students to be social justice leaders.

All educators at 菠菜网lol正规平台 understand mental health, child development, brain development and trauma-informed practices. Trauma-informed practices can be defined as recognizing, understanding and empathizing with the impact of trauma on an individual and those around them, and using practices that reduce anxiety and triggering associated with trauma..¹³ They are skilled at de-escalation and using restorative practices to repair harm. Adults possess the skills to support students and other adults to work through stress and build social-emotional resilience. 

Adults work on their own mental health, make time for self care and have a healthy work-life balance. They know how to seek help when struggling and how to support others who are unsafe (this includes knowledge of CPR and safety skills, as well as awareness of appropriate interventions and resources available for individuals experiencing mental health challenges). Adults are able to manage their own emotions in order to interact with others from a calm, centered place, and are driven to make the changes needed to reach their desired state. 

Adults are capable and competent. They possess core life and career skills (e.g. organization, time management), and know how to persevere through challenges. 

Adults feel a sense of belonging, worth and voice in their workplace. They are positive, hopeful, excited and passionate about their work, and share that passion and fun with other adults and students. 

All adults at 菠菜网lol正规平台 have a desire to continuously learn and grow. They hold a growth mindset for themselves and others, and are dedicated to becoming experts in their profession.

Adults are digitally curious. They are informed about current developments in technology and acquire the digital skills needed to fulfill their job function and to support students (e.g., digital collaboration platforms, basic principles of software development and coding, cybersecurity and interaction with AI Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of science that uses smart machines to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence.¹⁴).

Adults maintain mental adaptability. They adapt to changes in students, community, culture and the environment. Leaders and staff at all levels are open to feedback, including feedback from students and those working closely with students, and are willing to repair harm as needed. They model vulnerability and learning from mistakes, reflecting on the past and applying learnings to the future.

All adults at 菠菜网lol正规平台 possess social-emotional intelligence Social-emotional intelligence refers to a person’s ability to understand and manage interpersonal relationships. It includes an individual’s ability to understand, and act on, the feelings, thoughts, and behaviors of other people.¹⁵ and can understand and appropriately respond to people’s feelings. They have strong interpersonal communication skills, listen actively and work to stay present in a conversation.

Adults can synthesize large amounts of information into clear and insightful messages. They can engage in, and effectively facilitate, respectful discourse. They know how to give and receive feedback.

Adults can adapt their communication styles and use culturally-affirming language to best reach different audiences. They value and center multilingualism, and work to develop their own ability to communicate in multiple languages.

Teachers and instructional leaders hold deep knowledge of curriculum and instruction and are skilled in the subject(s) they are teaching.

They are knowledgeable about how students and adults learn and develop in different contexts. They understand individual learners’ needs and assets and how they intersect (e.g. students receiving special education services, English Language Learners), and use data to adapt teaching methods to meet those individual needs, enabling equitable access and inclusion for all learners. They provide appropriate scaffolding to increase access and support for all learners to meet the rigor of the standards, and provide ongoing feedback cycles and ways for learners to monitor their growth.

Teachers and instructional leaders act as guides, teaching students how to learn independently and in collaboration with others. They emphasize in-class discussion and hands-on practice over memorization as a way to process new information. They support other adults in their efforts to grow and learn.

They engage learners in co-designing engaging, interdisciplinary and relevant learning experiences that connect to learners’ interests and are grounded in real-world challenges and applications for authentic audiences. They use culturally responsive Culturally responsive teaching is a student-centered approach to teaching that acknowledges, values and nurtures the unique cultural strengths every student brings to the classroom.¹⁶ materials and methods that reflect diverse authors and perspectives.

Teachers and instructional leaders teach students the skills of entrepreneurship and leadership, including problem solving, innovation, strategic foresight Strategic Foresight is a structured and systematic way of using ideas about the future to anticipate and better prepare for change (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD).¹⁷, design processes, ethical decision-making, overcoming failure, teambuilding and communication. They integrate technology to prepare learners for the workplace and provide access to education in environments beyond the walls of the classroom.

All adults at 菠菜网lol正规平台 are resourceful, collaborative, and dedicated to continuously evolving in their thinking. They allow for debate and consider multiple perspectives. They embrace complexity and create space for imaginative approaches.

Adults have the ability to think divergently, critically, flexibly and analytically. They are able to generate and combine ideas and select appropriate solutions. They possess statistical analysis skills to make meaning of data, and can analyze large amounts of information, evaluate it for credibility and synthesize themes and key messages. They can discern how bias impacts the way information is presented and can model the skills of addressing bias for students. 

All adults at 菠菜网lol正规平台 invest in building and strengthening relationships within and across grade levels, departments, sites and offices, as well as with students, families and the community. They see collaboration with families and the community as essential to achieving the best outcomes for students.

They value and elevate unique histories and stories that represent the local community and affirm cultural identities.

Adults build and maintain a strong professional network and partnerships, sharing resources and collaborating with others to continue to grow in their profession.

Adults are aware of their potential impact on future generations. They possess a sense of responsibility to care for the global and local environment and resources. They see themselves as change agents and catalyze the community to proactively address local and global issues. They empower others to lead.

Adults model ethical online behavior in order to support students to develop as good digital citizens (e.g. not engaging in cyberbullying, not spreading disinformation).