Christmas Resolutions

As we are wrapping up 2016, most people are considering their New Year's resolutions. This is part of the fabric of Americana ... Ben Franklin in his Autobiography set out to become perfect through a New Year's resolution self-improvement plan. He writes, "It was about this time I conceived the bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection." His plan included working on 13 different virtues that he felt were weaknesses in his character. If he mastered one virtue each week for 13 weeks, then he surmised that he would become "morally perfect" in 13 weeks. While not as systematic, how many of us enter the new year with this mentality? If I just work on my weaknesses ... exercise more, eat healthier, be nicer, give more ... then I will become perfect (or at least a step closer to perfection).

While I am not against self-improvement, as a Christian the irony of New Year's resolutions for me comes with the timing. One week after Christians celebrate the gift of Jesus Christ at Christmas, we are embracing the deistic/humanistic perspective of trying to become perfect.

The main difference between Christianity and other world religions is the fact that Christians rely on faith over works; the Bible clearly states that salvation comes through belief in God's gift rather than our actions. That is the good news of the Gospel: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16); also, in John 6:40 "Everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life." We do not, as deists like Benjamin Franklin asserted, need to become perfect to earn our salvation.

So, should Christians have New Year's resolutions? Of course we should, but with a different understanding than Ben Franklin's attempt to achieve "moral perfection." We strive to follow Jesus, who did live a perfect life, out of an overflowing gratitude for the gift of salvation (Colossians 2:6-7). Christmas resolutions should challenge us to live more like Christ rather than self improvement.

In considering this topic, I went back to the source ... what commands did Jesus give us to live more like Him? The gospel writers recorded some direct commands from Jesus for us to consider as Christmas resolutions.

Jesus was asked what are the most important commands, and His answer begins with loving God.

"The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this ....

Love the Lord your God with all your heart 

and with all your soul 

and with all your mind 

and with all your strength." 

(Mark 12:29-30)

Loving God is the most important command as Jesus stated, but the vague "love God with your everything" has always perplexed me ... what does that exactly mean? How do I love God with my everything? How can I put that into a Christmas resolution?

Christ explained that loving God, in part at least, has much to do with obedience; Jesus states concisely, "If you love me, keep my commands" (John 14:15). So, this affirms that we need to take seriously Jesus's commands and resolve to follow them if we are to fulfill the "most important" command.

So if loving God means to obey his commands, let's explore in more details what Jesus commands. Here are 10 other commands of Christ to consider as Christmas resolutions.

1. Repent and believe (Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15; John 6:29; John 6:40) -- One of Christ's first commands and the beginning point for Christians.
2. Love your neighbor (Mark 12:31) -- Jesus follows up his answer of the "most important" command (loving God) with the second most important being, loving your neighbor as yourself. In John, he expands this to "love each other as I have loved you" (John 15:12).
3. Let your light shine (Matthew 5:16) -- implying that "light" = good deeds shown to others.
4. Go and be reconciled to your brother (Matthew 5:24).
5. Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:43; Luke 6:27-28)
6. Pray ... in private with the Lord's prayer as a model (Matthew 6:6: Luke 11:2) so that you won't fall into temptation (Luke 22:46).
7. Be a servant -- Jesus models servant-hood by washing his disciples feet and then commands them to wash each others feet (John 13:14).
8. Care for those who are hurting (even strangers) -- Jesus in a rare moment issues a direct command immediately after a parable; after the story of the Good Samaritan, Jesus says "Go and do likewise" (Luke 10:25-37).
9. Care for other Christians -- Jesus commands Peter to "take care of my sheep" (John 21:16).
10. Go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:15-16) -- the Great Commission to spread the gospel, make disciples, and baptize.

One of Jesus' first commands was to "follow me," and it is directed as much to us as it was to his first disciples. As you consider New Year's Resolutions, remember that Christmas should impact your resolutions and your life.

Look over the commands of Christ listed above ... love, reconciliation, giving, caring, serving, praying. Choose one of those as a resolution in 2017 ... and make it truly a Christmas resolution.

Strengths in School

Traditional schools are structured around a deficit-based educational model. Teachers identify weaknesses in students and work on those weaknesses. Focusing on weaknesses can be utilized to ensure a solid foundation for future academic and life success, however, as students get older, a shift needs to occur from a deficit-based model to a strengths-focused educational model.

A strengths perspective in education would see teachers identifying strengths in students and work with those students to enhance their strengths. Strengths in education can simply be a focus on the subjects in which a student naturally excels, and it can also include personal characteristics.

The shift from a deficit-model to a strengths-focus is needed if we want excellence in education. If we focus all of our attention in getting students to meet minimum standards in all areas, we will end up with graduates who are relatively well-rounded but who do not excel in anything ... and worse, we will be training them to "work on their weaknesses" and shoot for mediocrity, rather than enhancing their strengths to shoot for excellence.

Here is a great video by Marcus Buckingham about strengths in education and life ... 

The Truth About You

Before application, let me mention what a Strengths perspective in education is NOT.

1. A strengths perspective is NOT a fixed mindset.

Sometimes "strengths" are used to encourage a fixed mindset ... when a teacher or parent tells a student that he/she is really good at a subject, it is translated as "I don't have to work at that subject." It is important to maintain a growth mindset with a strengths perspective. I like using the term "gifts" when talking about the qualities or areas in which students naturally excel; however, to make gifts into strengths, it takes effort and focus on those specific gifts.

Gifts + Effort/Focus => Strengths

This formula dovetails with Ericsson's (1990) research that 10,000 hours are needed to become an expert at something. Whether you accept Ericsson's specific findings or not, the concept is the same ... in order to develop gifts into strengths, one needs to put effort and focus into those gifts.

2. Strengths is NOT independence

When you talk about strengths, some may assume that "strengths" is synonymous with independence. In the American society, a "strong" person is celebrated because he/she doesn't need to rely on others ... a rugged individualism; however, this is a fallacy in learning and life. In order to be successful, we need to be dependent upon others ... or rather interdependent. In a successful team, each person needs to excel in their area of strength and depend on others to excel in their respective area of strength. The metaphor of an orchestra is an apt one of interdependence; an orchestra performs a beautiful symphony only when each member of the orchestra plays his/her instrument with excellence. 

Application

1. Identify Strengths in Students

Student strengths (again, I like the term "gifts") need to be identified so that they can be fully developed. Here are a few of the many different tools that can be used to accomplish this first step:

• StrengthsQuest (www.strengthsquest.com) -- No "strengths" conversation can happen without mentioning Gallop's great work. The StrengthsFinder inventory is a fee-based service ($10 online / $20 book), but it provides a plethora of research and resources to use in education.
• Values in Action (viacharacter.org) -- This is a free inventory on character strengths and also provides great research and resources to use in education.
• Character Awards -- Schools do not need to use an online tool to identify gifts; many schools recognize honorable characteristics in students through awards. This is a great way to identify and celebrate character strengths so that students can focus on those areas throughout the year. Unfortunately, many of these award ceremonies happen at the end of the year, so students and teachers cannot focus on those throughout the year ... identify these early in the year and set goals to enhance and practice them.
• Discipline Specific Awards -- Similarly, each teacher/department could recognize students who excel in specific subjects. Celebrate these academic strengths and provide opportunities for these students to grow in their gifted areas so that they can develop into strengths. Allowing these students to take a MOOC (or other college/online course) in their identified area may inspire them to excellence.

2. Differentiate Learning and Assessment

The premise of differentiation comes from a strengths perspective. The question to students is no longer, "Are you smart?" but rather "How are you smart?" Educators differentiate to allow students to learn (and show how they have learned) in their area of strength. Differentiation is an important pillar in a strengths perspective in education. Whether you use Gardner's Multiple Intelligences or another model, continue to differentiate in pedagogy and assessment.

3. Promote Strengths

Educators, so often, focus on what students can't do or what students have done wrong. Imagine a school where the primary focus (not sole focus) is on what students are doing right. How can you celebrate what students are doing well?

• Highlight Excellence (aka use exemplars) -- when I taught high school English, I used to grade essays by highlighting excellent sentences/phrases ... I would literally use a highlighter, but before returning graded essays, I would also read excellent parts from a variety of student papers (exemplars). Focusing first on what was right helped set a positive tone before I taught a mini-lesson on ways to improve writing.
• Peer Assistance -- students with strengths in certain areas should be encouraged to help others in the classroom who struggle. This simple activity sends a powerful message of interdependence.
• Groups -- create groups from a strengths perspective. Once student strengths are identified place those with different strengths into groups to complement each other ... again a powerful message on interdependence.
• Recognition -- We recognize certain areas quite well (specifically athletics), but rarely celebrate school-wide academic or character strengths. Some organizations, like NHS and Jostens Renaissance Education, can help to promote these important areas, but you can also develop a recognition system that works for your school.  

We, as educators, are well-practiced in a deficit model of education ... identify weaknesses, set goals/activities to work on those weaknesses, and then provide opportunities for students to practice. Ironically, these same steps can be used effectively from a strengths perspective:

1. Identify academic and character strengths in students 
2. Set goals to develop those strengths
3. Provide opportunities for students to practice (it really feels like play) their strengths.

Using Kindness to Improve School Climate

In 2000, the movie Pay It Forward was released. In essence, this movie describes a middle school social studies teacher (Kevin Spacey) who challenges his students to make a difference in the world. One student embraces this assignment, and develops a system to change the world through kindness. He does three kind things for others and asks them to "pay it forward" so that the acts of kindness exponentially grow. While the movie is "ancient" (made before many of your students were born), the concept is timeless. Consider using this movie and concept to encourage kindness ... it will change your school climate.


Every school's climate can improve. and some schools' climate must improve. Recent research should inspire all educators to focus on school climate for student success.

In the November 2016 edition of the Review of Educational Research, a study by Berkowitz, Moore, Astor, and Benbenishty found that school climate has a significant impact on student success.

• Resource: A Research Synthesis of the Associations Between Socioeconomic Background, Inequality, School Climate and Academic Achievement
• NPR's Summary: How a Happy School Can Help Students Succeed

Trying to improve a school climate is a daunting task, and many attempts to do so have failed. However, utilizing kindness may be the golden ticket to improve a school's culture.

Most of the time a school's climate just evolves (or devolves) over time without intention. While a school's ethos is shaped by what the administration and staff decide to emphasize (i.e. commit resources toward), rarely does this happen intentionally. Some schools emphasize academics, some emphasize the fine arts or athletics, and others emphasize more of the "soft skills," like interpersonal communication, relationships, strengths, and spirituality; these areas of emphasis help to shape the school's climate. Regardless of the type of culture at your school, it can be improved through emphasizing kindness.

Kindness Improves Everyone (giver, receiver, observer)

Research demonstrates that acts of kindness boost three important chemicals in our bodies: Serotonin, Endorphin, and Oxytocin. Serotonin is a chemical that regulates our moods, and low Serotonin causes depression (anti-depressant drugs boost Serotonin); it is the first happiness chemical. The second, Endorphin, is the chemical most commonly associated with the high that we feel after we exercise, and it is the cause of the "helper's high" that we feel when we do something nice for someone else. The third happiness chemical is Oxytocin, also called the "hug hormone" because it causes the positive feeling when we hug, kiss, cuddle someone that we love. Wow ... that's a pretty potent chemical cocktail. The amazing thing is that these are all released through acts of kindness.

• Resource: The Science of Kindness (video)

We all know how good it feels to be on the receiving end of a gift, and we also know how good it feels to be the giver (after all, "it is better to give than to receive"). So it makes sense that these happiness chemicals increase for the giver and the receiver; what is so surprising is that the research indicates that these same chemicals increase for the observer also. When we see an act of kindness, it also makes us feel happy.

I had always thought that an anonymous act of kindness is somehow better than one done in front of a bunch of people. However, if observers can be positively impacted, then acts of kindness should be public, shared with others as a gift of happiness. This is especially true if we want to impact a school's climate; others need to see these acts of kindness, and we need to celebrate/promote these actions. If we do that, everyone benefits.

Kindness is Contagious

Promoting acts of kindness will help everyone feel good, but it will also begin to impact a school's climate because kindness is contagious. If someone does something nice for me, I want to do something nice for others.

• Check out this "kindness is contagious" video from Life Vest.

When one person does something nice, it can lead to others doing nice things. This "pay it forward" kindness can grow exponentially and truly impact a school's climate.

• Resource: "The Science of Giving: Why One Act of Kindness is Usually Followed by Another"

Getting Started

1. Start Small ... with Lollipop Moments

We often think that to make a big change we must do a big thing; this is not the case with changing a school climate. Start by doing small acts of kindness. It is amazing how handing out lollipops (or Otter Pops) changes someone's demeanor and can even change their life.

• Check out this Ted Talk from Drew Dudley on Lollipop Moments.

What small thing can you do to make someone smile tomorrow? Remember, it will positively impact you, the receiver, and others observing you.

2. Be Intentional ... not Random

The popular phrase is "random acts of kindness," but let me encourage you to be intentional rather than random, especially if you are going to change your school climate. Changing the school's climate in the right direction requires an intentional plan and a consistent implementation. Changing something as big as a school's culture takes time and a focused effort.

3. Start with Students ... not the Principal

Changing a school's climate should start with the students ... truly a grass roots movement. When a principal (like me) suggests acts of kindness, it sounds a lot like community service, which sounds a lot like detention ... so start with students. This is a great opportunity for student council or National Honors Society or a club; teachers can encourage and principals can support, promote, and celebrate, but it should come from students.

4. Promote It

We know that when others observe acts of kindness, it improves their happiness and inspires them to "pay it forward." Share what your school is doing on social media, through your school newsletters, and by shouting it from the rooftops. Also, participate in the Great Kindness Challenge on January 23-27, 2017 (greatkindnesschallenge.org).

Examples of School Kindness

SWAG (service with a grin) -- a few years ago a group of students came to me with a proposal for ways that students could serve during their study halls; they called it SWAG -- Service With A Grin. They created a Google document, shared with every staff member so that they could enter any tasks that they needed to be completed ... it included emptying trashcans, setting up a science lab, sweeping the gym floor, and updating bulletin boards. Students were able to view the document and could complete tasks if they had available time during their study halls.

Cleaning Lunch Tables -- Every school has a cafeteria with an employee tasked with cleaning tables. Our middle school students take on that job to "be a blessing" to those working in our food service. Each week a cleaning team, with spray bottles and rags in hand, wipe down the tables to get the cafeteria ready for the next group of students.

Welcome Committee -- So many students struggle to get going in the morning and are less than thrilled to be arriving at school. Why not have a welcoming committee to greet them, hold the door, and say "good morning" with a smile ... maybe even hand them a lollipop.



These are just a few ideas of ways to spread kindness at school. What does your school do?  How do you promote kindness at school?

"It is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love."                                                                                      -J.R.R. Tolkien

Small acts of kindness and love is something we need more in our schools and in our country.

More Kindness Resources can be found at

• Life Vest -- www.lifevestinside.com
• How Full is Your Bucket -- strengths.gallup.com/114079/Full-Bucket.aspx

This was originally a presentation at the LEAD conference in Denver 11/12/2016 (www.leadconferences.org).

Don't Legalize ... A Colorado Perspective

National media to social media has focused on the top of the ticket. However, thanks to the checks and balances of our federal government, I'm not convinced that my daily life will change much based on who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

But, let me tell you about one vote that has changed my work, my neighborhood, and my family ... that is the legalization of marijuana.

I never tell people how to vote; I just want people to be informed before they vote.

Four states are voting in November to legalize recreational marijuana (California, Arizona, Maine, and Massachusetts). You've watched the Colorado experiment closely and cited our research to support both sides of the issue ... but let me share my experience.

If my experience in Colorado is any indication, here are 10 things that will change when/if you legalize marijuana ...

1. Skunk families will move into every neighborhood.

You'd be surprised how many Coloradans believe this to be true; soon, they realize that the smell isn't from skunks. While this is a humorous start to the list, it does impact daily life: on countless occasions, I have had to close windows on a beautiful summer night because of the "skunk" smell coming from my neighbors, especially if you have kids and are concerned about second hand smoke.

2. Teen marijuana usage will increase ... even though the legal age is 21.

• Colorado now leads the nation in teen marijuana usage (http://www.denverpost.com/2015/12/17/fed-study-says-pot-use-by-youth-on-rise-in-colorado-leads-nation/). Btw, we don't lead the nation in test scores (Colorado ACT and SAT scores are below national average).
• Pre-legalization, 1 in 15 teens in Colorado tried marijuana recreationally, now it is 1 in 5.
• Teen marijuana use is 74% higher than the national average.
• Research is still out on the "gateway" drug effect, but it wouldn't surprise me if Colorado sees a spike in Heroin/Opioid addiction in five years due to the gateway effect.

3. Marijuana will negatively impact your high school.

It is amazing how accessible marijuana is for those underage. Students using marijuana are less motivated, less focused, and more inclined to drop out and give up ... these factors work against the factors that we know contribute to student success (curiosity, grit, hope).

• Middle and High School marijuana-related discipline problems have increased.
• http://www.denverpost.com/2013/11/11/pot-problems-in-colorado-schools-increase-with-legalization/ 

4. More college students will use marijuana.

Our future leaders are getting dumb and dumber ... A nicer way to say this is that brain development will diminish, but no matter how you say it, marijuana negatively impacts intelligence. The brain is still in optimal growth through age 25, and the impact of marijuana on the brain (especially on the teenage brain) is detrimental and permanent.

• Colorado college-age group now rank number one in the nation for marijuana use and 62% higher than the national average.
• http://denver.cbslocal.com/2016/08/31/studies-show-results-of-legal-pot-in-colorado/
• Marijuana usage has short and long term effects on the brain, especially for teens.
• https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana

5. State population will increase.

Colorado has seen a population surge with over 100,000 people moving to the state in the last 2 years (http://www.denverpost.com/2016/07/07/colorado-second-population-growth-2015/). Not all is attributed to the "marijuana migrants," after all Colorado is a beautiful state, but the marijuana impact can be felt. An increase in population can be positive; however, only if those moving into the state are positive contributors to the community. Of course an increase in population impacts housing ...

• Housing shortage ... definitely an owner/landowner market is driving the rental and housing market up.  http://www.denverpost.com/2016/05/19/colorado-population-growth-far-outstripped-new-housing-census-says/
• Housing prices soar, making home ownership inaccessible for many. https://newrepublic.com/article/123084/green-rush-and-denvers-housing-crisis
• Unfortunately, a number of young Colorado families or individuals just beginning their career are not able to afford to live in Colorado and are moving out.

6. Economy will grow ... at least some industries. 

• Of course, marijuana-related industries will grow, and any increase in population, if managed properly, will help the economy. The industries that will grow include drug counseling, rehab centers, poison control, emergency rooms, and hospitals.
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/02/12/colorados-legal-weed-market-700-million-in-sales-last-year-1-billion-by-2016/
• http://denver.cbslocal.com/2016/08/31/studies-show-results-of-legal-pot-in-colorado/
• Some industries will also move out of the state ... some due to the increased cost of living and some due to the negative effect of employees who use marijuana.

7. Marijuana-related medical emergencies will increase ... including ER visits, traffic accidents, calls to poison control centers, and hospitalization.

• Marijuana traffic deaths increased by 48%, and over 20% of all traffic deaths were marijuana related compared to only 10% six years ago.
• Marijuana-related hospitalizations increased 32%.
• Marijuana-related calls to the Rocky Mountain Poison Center increased 100%.
• Marijuana-related ER visits increased 49% (110,000 teen marijuana related ER visits in 2014).
• http://fortune.com/pot-marijuana-colorado/
• http://denver.cbslocal.com/2016/08/31/studies-show-results-of-legal-pot-in-colorado/

8. The homeless population will increase.

• Increase of 10,000 homeless from 2014-2015
• This is due to the housing/rental market, to "marijuana migrants," and to those who have lost jobs due to usage/addiction.
• http://www.ibtimes.com/marijuana-legalization-colorado-how-recreational-weed-attracting-people-spiking-2374204

9. The edibles industry will be out of control (and you will realize that this is an extra evil element of this industry).

• Edible marijuana has been largely unregulated so the product is made to look like candy (gummy bears, peach rings, cookies, chocolates) without marking on the product itself indicating that it is marijuana. This is unscrupulous marketing to kids and a messaging that this is harmless.

 

10. You will be impacted personally.

If you do not have to deal with a teenage son or daughter negatively impacted by marijuana, you will know someone going through this. If you work in middle and high schools, you will discipline/expel students for marijuana usage and experience a decrease in student focus, motivation, and overall interest in life.

I encourage you to watch this program before you vote ... "Insight -- Marijuana in Colorado: The State of High" (http://www.rmpbs.org/insight/).


You may doubt me ... but let's chat after a year. Maybe things will be different in your state.

Many of Colorado's problems have been self-inflicted as we passed the law without thinking about regulating the industry, and I'm sure that other states will learn from our mistakes. You're Welcome!

I'm not telling you how to vote ... just telling you my experience.

After a year, I'll repost and we can see how many of these 10 have come true in your state.

Crossing Borders with Students 6: Learn After the Trip

Reflection is essential for meaningful learning, especially following stretching life experiences like crossing borders. Many students are inspired to change some of their "American" beliefs and behaviors due to a cross cultural experience (e.g. materialism, waste, and American arrogance). However, upon return home, the American culture quickly rushes back to overwhelm them and convinces them to lead unchanged lives. Reflection and learning/discussion sessions following a trip helps to solidify the learning that occurs on a trip. In the introduction to this series on Cross Borders with Students, this point was summarized as follows:

Learn After the Trip. Due to students being homesick and eager to see their families, educational trips often end with little to no reflection on learning. Time should be set aside to debrief and reflect. Additionally, students should be challenged with "how now should we live" type of questions. The research, unfortunately, points to little change of behavior after returning from a "life-changing" international trip. Intentional reflection, discussion, and challenge by the team members and leaders help the lessons learned to stick with the students. 

Of course, reflection should occur throughout the cross cultural experience, as students will be observing and learning new things each day. This can be accomplished through individual journaling, conversations with team leaders and team members, and full group discussions each night. However, reflection and learning can be most powerful after the trip; setting aside specific time to challenge students and reflect on the experience is essential to facilitating this learning. As you plan a trip, don't forget learning after the trip.

I have found that simple, open-ended questions often lead to the best discussions and allow students to form their own conclusions about the trip.

1. Signature Photo -- Choose one picture that summarizes the trip for you and explain why.
2. Review the Trip -- Walk through the experience from the first day to the last, remembering and reflecting on what you learned.
3. Worldview Shift -- How do you see the world differently? What is one thing you learned through this experience?
4. Magic Wand -- If you had a magic wand and could change one thing about the trip, what would it be and why?
5. Highs and Lows -- When did you feel "high" and when did you feel "low" during the trip? or What was your favorite experience and your least favorite experience? 
6. How then shall we live? -- What do you want to do differently when you return home?  Challenge each other to commit to one thing and write it down for accountability.

Of course, these reflection activities can be used throughout the trip in journaling and group discussions, but revisiting them following the trip helps solidify the learning.

Structured Reflection Time

Learning after the trip requires some structured time because our natural inclination is to rush back home to see friends/family and return to our lives. This often happens with cross cultural trips ... they return without meaningful reflection, and the learning from the experience gets shoved aside as we are overwhelmed by American culture. Plan these reflection times/activities before your trip so that they don't get forgotten.

On the way home ... It is wise to build in time at the end of the trip to debrief, reflect, and recover from the experience. This can be done while still in the country (at a different location), in the airport (during an extended lay-over), or in an American city (but not your home city). I have seen each of these work well to encourage learning after the trip. Here are a few personal examples ...

• In the Country -- My primary research involved studying a team traveling to Vietnam; they spent most of their time in Ho Chi Minh City, but the final day was spent in a more Western hotel in Hanoi before flying home. Being "on their way home" allowed students to look back on their experience and reflect on their learning. They were able to rest and relax, and the Western hotel allowed them to begin the process of returning to American culture.
• In the Airport -- While not as advantageous as a fancy hotel, a reflection time can happen during extended lay-overs in the airport. One trip that I led to Cambodia had our team with a lay-over in Seoul, Korea for approximately 8 hours. The airport in Seoul has many luxuries that many airports do not have, like showers, excellent wi-fi, and comfortable seating areas that helped us relax and reflect. Although lay-overs in airports do provide the time needed to reflect, it does not facilitate reflection as much as an overnight stay in a hotel.
• In an American city -- Leading one trip to the Dominican Republic, I planned an overnight stay in Atlanta, our lay-over city. We were arriving in Atlanta in the evening and were schedule to leave an hour or two later; however, I was able to delay the return trip until the next day and secure hotel rooms for the night. We were able to reflect on the trip together, begin our transition back to American culture (including eating some unhealthy American food), share photos, get hot showers, and a good night sleep before returning home. While some "lay-over" cities may be more appealing than Atlanta, I would recommend not staying too long (everyone is ready to get home) and not becoming tourists. It would be tempting to see New York City if this was your lay-over city, but you want to stay focused on the carefully planned cross-cultural trip (e.g. the best thing about the trip to Rome shouldn't be seeing the Statue of Liberty).

Pair and Share -- Learning does not have to happen with the team; in fact, one thing that I learned through conducting my research is the therapeutic learning involved in sharing the experience with someone who did not attend the trip. In my phenomenological research, I am always surprised by how appreciative the students are just to share their experience with me. I am also shocked to hear that many students haven't shared the full experience with another. This has led to one of my "requirements" for the students in teams that I lead; I have students choose someone not attending the trip to be a "prayer partner" for them during the trip and a listener after the trip. Students need to find someone who is committed to spend an hour or two just listening as they share about the entire trip ... the full "day by day" experience (with pictures) and what he/she learned. These are powerful conversations that provide an opportunity for personal learning and reflection.

3-6 Months Following -- Often students return from cross-cultural trips committed to thinking and living differently; unfortunately, research has shown that 3 - 6 months following a trip little has changed. By reconnecting with the team after a few months, team members can challenge each other to continue in their commitment to live differently. As mentioned in the "how then shall we live?" point above, writing down one thing that each team member is going to do differently will help this reflection time. It is also a perfect time to reconnect and enrich friendships that were developed on the trip. Obviously, 3 months works well for high schools and colleges; early summer teams can meet after the school year begins.

Cross cultural trips can be such powerful learning experiences, but most trips let the learning fade away after the trip. Intentionally setting aside time for reflection can solidify this learning. If you cross borders with students, remember to continue to learn after the trip.

Crossing Borders with Students 5: Choose Team Leaders Carefully

One of the first steps in planning an international trip with students is choosing adult team leaders for the trip. This is an important first step; however, it is sometimes difficult to find individuals who want to give up their vacation time to lead a group of students. Unfortunately, this too often translates into trips being poorly led, i.e., getting stuck with leaders who "are available" rather than the best individual to lead the trip. It is not always the best to settle for those who volunteer, especially if they don't meet certain standards. When I began this series on Crossing Borders with Students, I briefly explained this point in the introduction. Here is the brief summary on the importance of team leaders ...

Choose Team Leaders Carefully. Just as the success in a classroom is closely tied to the strengths of a teacher, the success of an international trip depends on the leaders. Team leaders should have experience with travel to the country (or, at least, region) of the trip and success in working with students outside of the classroom. It is one thing to teach a class to students one hour a day, and it is quite another thing to spend 24 hours a day for a number of weeks in a foreign country with students. Poor team leaders can destroy an otherwise amazing trip for students; effective team leaders can make any trip an amazing learning experience for students.

Many teams will have multiple team leaders, depending on the size of the team. Ideally, each of the team leaders would be fully equipped to lead a team, as they will definitely impact the experience, but at least one of the team leaders should have the following qualities.

Travel Experience -- Team leaders should have travel experience to the specific country before leading. If they have never traveled to the country, then travel to the geographic region would be beneficial; if they haven't traveled to the country or region, they should, at the very least, have international travel experience. Team leaders should not be experiencing the full effects of "culture shock" while trying to lead a group of students through that same "culture shock" experience. I know that there will always be a first time someone travels to a foreign country, and there will be times when the team leaders will be learning right alongside of the students; however, that is not ideal. It would be worth the money to send a team leader on a weekend "vision trip" to help plan the trip. (The importance of this point can be lessened if the trip has excellent cultural guides established.)

Problem-Solving Ability -- Issues arise when you cross borders with students. Someone will get sick, something will get lost/stolen, a scheduled activity will get changed, and each member will experience culture shock (each at a different level). Team leaders must be able to problem solve, think on their feet, counsel students, and adapt to change without stressing out. Team leaders who cannot "roll with the situation" end up stressing out themselves, causing undue angst among the team members, and potentially ruining the trip. To be honest, some teachers (and adults) are wound too tightly to be a team leader on an international trip with students; their anxiety and stress because everything is not going exactly as planned will infect the students and poison the trip (okay ... that may be a little harsh, but I've seen a hyper-sensitive team leader "freak out" and take all the joy out of the experience). Team leaders need to relax, be willing and able to adapt to changing situations, and handle problems with grace and confidence (at least outwardly).

Experience with Students Outside of the Classroom -- Students are different outside of the classroom, and some adults don't like students outside of the classroom. Many teachers go into teaching because they are comfortable with the structured learning and control that they have over students. They don't enjoy spending time outside of school with students, in fact, they spend their nights and weekends avoiding places where they might run into students. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but these teachers probably are not the best candidates to lead a trip to a foreign country. However, the opposite is also true; many teachers love to connect with students outside of the classroom and enjoy spending time just hanging out and visiting with students. Coaches, obviously, have experience with students outside of the classroom in practices and rehearsals and they have experience with them on bus rides and potentially overnight trips. If  coaches enjoy this aspect of their jobs, they have the experience to be excellent team leaders. However, many teachers/professors go into the profession so that they can impact the students outside of the classroom and are excellent mentors and friends to students ... find those individuals to lead your trips.

As I mentioned, the success of the trip depends as much on the team leaders as success in the classroom depends on the quality of the teacher. Don't settle for whoever volunteers; be intentional and choose team leaders carefully.

Crossing Borders with Students 4: Involve Cultural Guides

Cultural guides are essential in crossing borders with students. This has become increasingly more apparent through my research of cross-cultural trips and through my personal experiences in leading teams. Often, the cultural guides (in addition to the team leaders) "make or break" the trip ... at least, in regards to student learning. Here is how I described this point in the introductory post to this "Crossing Borders with Students" series.

Involve Cultural Guides.  An ideal cultural guide is someone from the country (or one who has spent significant time in the country), who knows the local language, who also knows American culture, and has an educator mindset. It is best for the cultural guide to be a part of the entire trip, as cultural interpretation can be needed at any time, but an initial orientation and frequent check-ins may also work well.

My Research
In my dissertation research, I studied a college short-term mission (STM) trip to Vietnam. Unfortunately, this trip had inexperienced team leaders without a cultural guide in the country. The main task of this STM trip was to work at an orphanage for children with disabilities, definitely a powerful learning experience. Unfortunately, the director of the orphanage left shortly after the students arrived, leaving them without a cultural guide for their 6 week stay.

I realized the powerful impact of a cultural guide when speaking to the students after the trip. Many of them mentioned how relieved that they were when they met an American professor who was spending the summer in Vietnam as a Buddhist nun. She spent time with the students talking to them about the culture and religion of Vietnam, how it differs from America and the West, and what they should be looking for during their time in Vietnam. This short conversation made such an impact on the students and how they viewed the rest of their trip. She embodied an excellent cultural guide and helped to facilitate learning on the trip; she knew both the Vietnamese and American culture, she spoke the language, and she was an educator. These are the characteristics of effective cultural guides.

My Experience
I have been fortunate to have excellent cultural guides on the trips that I have led.  Here are three examples of effective cultural guides.

• Dominican Republic -- The organization that I use for these trips, Students International, has an excellent model for student trips, especially in regard to cultural guides. They have full time staff members (both American and Dominican) who stay with the team to educate students on culture and help navigate the visit. The students spend time working with local Dominican staff members in their occupation.  Additionally each work site has an intern who is a college student to help the STM team members at the work sites.
• Cambodia -- My trip to Cambodia was not with an organization, but we had an amazing cultural guide, one of my graduate school professors who was living and researching in Cambodia for two years. He was able to arrange housing for our team next door to his family and accompanied us to most of our educational site visits.
• Tijuana, Mexico -- Mexico doesn't seem too foreign to most people living in America, but one of my trips was to Tijuana. It was just a weekend trip, but what made it unique and an amazing learning experience is that we had a student who grew up in Tijuana serve as our cultural guide. Instead of staying on the "tourist track," we were able to go behind the scenes because of our cultural guide.  What a different learning experience as we were able to see what life in Tijuana, Mexico is really like.

The above examples demonstrate the variety of cultural guides; they can look differently ... people from the country or from America, college professors or college students.  However, they should all have the following characteristics.

Characteristics of a Cultural Guide
As I alluded to above, an effective cultural guide needs to have the following characteristics:

1. Experience Living in the Country -- While the cultural guide does not have to be from the country, he/she must have spent considerable time living in the country.
2. Knowledge of the Local Language -- In order to be able to truly navigate the culture, a guide must have a working knowledge of the local language.
3. Knowledge of American Culture -- Although guides can be from the country, effective cultural guides should have lived in American and have a strong knowledge of American culture. In order to understand what visiting students are experiencing, the guide must understand the American mindset.
4. Learning-Centric Mentality -- The best cultural guides are educators (or at least someone who thinks like an educator). A guide must keep learning as the main objective, and look for teachable moments to pause, share, and reflect on an experience.

College Profs Make Great Cultural Guides -- You probably guessed that I would think college professors (and K-12 teachers) can be great cultural guides for all of the reasons listed above ... as long as they have experience living in the country. Many colleges run their study abroad programs with this mindset; they will pay a professor to live overseas the entire year and host semester-long programs for their students. Additionally, these professors can teach online classes for the college when not hosting students in the country.

• American missionaries living in the foreign country would also be great cultural guides as many have support networks ... and they would love to meet with students to share their experiences and ministry.

Team Leaders Do NOT Make Great Cultural Guide -- It is true that team leaders, especially those who are educators, can also serve as a cultural guide for their trip; however, I would not recommend it. Team leaders need to deal with the trip logistics and group dynamics, and these aspects will suffer if the team leaders try to do too much. Ideally, cultural guides and team leaders are two different individuals ... now, experienced team leaders (as I will discuss in the next post) are equally important to the success of the trip.

Problems will arise. In addition to capitalizing on the teachable moments, cultural guides can help to adjust productively to problems because they have local knowledge to problem solve. For example, in Cambodia, our shuttle bus did not arrive to pick us up from the airport. Thankfully, our cultural guide was there to meet us and arranged, within minutes, alternate transportation on tuk-tuks (another cultural learning experience). Without a cultural guide, we would have spent hours figuring out an alternate plan. Things like this happen all the time on cross cultural trips ... transportation breaks down, a wallet is stolen, a student gets sick, weather changes plans, a tourist site is closed, etc. I have heard and experienced numerous stories of teams losing an entire day because of logistical problems. When you only have a few weeks in the country, and you've spent a lot of money for the trip, you don't want to sit in your room for the day when something comes up (as it inevitably will); you need a cultural guide to problem solve on the spot.

Cultural guides enhance learning and allow the trip to run smoothly. If you don't have a cultural guide, it would be worth the money to hire someone (with the above characteristics) to accompany the trip. Be intentional about involving effective cultural guide throughout the trip ... it will make the trip more meaningful.

Crossing Borders with Students 3: Learn Before the Trip

I firmly believe that when students cross borders, they automatically learn. However, this learning can be deepened if they learn before the trip. A few weeks ago I began this "Crossing Borders with Students" series with an overview on leading effective cross cultural trips for students. This is how I described this point from the first post.

Learn Before the Trip. I know most learning will happen on the trip; however, pre-trip learning is essential to optimize the learning on the trip. Although most instructors may focus on the culture/history of the country, equally important are lessons about culture shock (and reverse culture shock), cross cultural interactions, ethnographic techniques, and group dynamics. Learning before you go seems obvious for a school trip, but with the busyness at the end of the year, many summer trips leave with little or no preparation.

Of course, the pre-trip meetings must include the logistics for the trip, e.g., packing lists, travel plans, emergency numbers, passports, etc. Unfortunately, pre-trip meetings often don't go deeper than these logistics. I do think that trip leaders embrace the fact that students will automatically learn when they cross borders, so they take for granted the preparation needed to optimize learning. In order to deepen the learning experience for students, consider the following elements before you leave.

History/Geography
The best way to show that you respect the country and its people is to learn about them before you enter their country. This is difficult for "American-centric" students who think everyone else sees the world as we do; unfortunately, this is a product of our educational system in which most students do not have a clue about the history and geography of our immediate neighbors (Canada and Mexico) let alone countries further from home. (Quick Quiz -- What's the capital of Canada? a) Vancouver, b) Toronto, c) Ottowa, or d) Montreal).

Each country has its own amazing history; learn it before visiting it. In our information age, to have a perfunctory and superficial knowledge of the country's history only takes minutes with a Google search; however, the more you learn the richer your experience will be in the country. Of course each country's preparatory learning will look different. When I led a group to Cambodia, we spent most of our pre-trip learning time with its recent history (genocide of 1970s) to prepare my students for our visit to the killing fields and concentration camps of the Khmer Rouge. We also spent time in the 12th Century for our visit to Angkor Wat.

          

It is even more powerful if the students do their own research. Transform your students into "docents for the day" to teach the rest of the class about the country. They will become the experts of their specific docent site or topic and be able to answer questions that may come up during the visit.

Language
Do your best to learn the language before you visit. Purchase a travel phrase book for the country, or do your own research and write down phrases from this list of 101 Survival Phrases for Travel. Another way to show respect for the people of the culture/country is to learn their language ... even a few feeble attempts at simple greetings will be appreciated. Conversely, not attempting the language, presents you as a "rude American."

Ethnography
When students enter a country with a learning-centered perspective, they become junior ethnographic researchers. Make sure that you prepare them in research methods. This needs to be intentional; provide training in how to become field researchers ... observing, documenting, collecting cultural artifacts, ethno-photography, and reflecting. I am always amazed (and discouraged) when student groups are not trained in these methods; unfortunately, this leads to students missing out on so much learning. Ethnography is also an important life skill (albeit a "soft skill") that will allow you to "read a room," better understand the culture of a company or neighborhood, and be a better listener and friend.

On trips with students, I have students journal each day ... usually with prompts as simple as "what is one thing you learned today?" or as complex as "what did you see that showed the religious nature of the people?" It is best to provide these prompts in the morning at breakfast so that students can keep their eyes/ears out throughout the day.

In addition to journaling, I also use a technique called "signature photos" to wrap up the trip. This usually is done on our way home (on the plane, in the airport, etc) and involves looking through all the pictures from the trip, choosing a favorite one, and sharing how that picture is especially meaningful to the student. This is a great time of informally reflecting on the trip, and it often leads to further group bonding.

Missiology
Many Christian schools and colleges will couple cross cultural trips with missions, even if they don't label the trip a short term mission (STM) trip. A vital aspect of these trips is to have students evaluate the religion and the role of Christianity in the country. Additionally, one of the objectives of this trip should be for the students to evaluate God's missional call on his/her life. In order to do this well, pre-trip learning should include missiology. What a great opportunity to learn about Christian missions ... study the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), famous missionaries (especially to the specific country/region), the 10/40 window, unreached people groups, and missions organizations working in the field. Unfortunately, the American church loves its comfort and doesn't have a missions mentality ... even on STM trips!

In preparation for trips, my groups do the following things.

1. We read John Piper's book, Let the Nations Be Glad (at least chapters/excerpts), to build a missions mentality.
2. We watch this powerful video about missions (also with John Piper narrating) to start a discussion on our call to missions and unreached people groups.
3. We discuss what the Bible says about missions and what it means to be a "goer" and a "sender." It is my hope that students realize that Christians have to be one or the other in order to be obedient to God.
4. We debate the STM movement ... the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly American.

Other great pre-trip learning activities include Skyping with someone from the country, team bonding activities, eating at restaurants with authentic food from the country, learning about group dynamics, and discussing culture shock (and reverse culture shock). Including some of the above suggestions in your trip preparation will empower your students with the tools to learn more as they cross borders.

btw -- Ottowa is the capital of Canada.