A belief or practice of mine that has changed based on conversation is my feelings towards student discipline. When I began my career as an administrator I was very black and white in terms of dealing with student discipline referrals. However, through my learning about and many conversations regarding the restorative practices, i have come to realize that not every situation is black and white and a deeper understanding of the situation and child is needed. 

When I have gone into classrooms in the past I formed opinions based on what I saw happening - the tip of the iceberg. As I spoke to my director he would lead me towards thinking of our profession in terms of growth - not only for the teachers but also for myself. I learned to ask clarifying questions and really listen to their responses. At times through this process I would learn that the issue was not with the teaching but with a system we had in place that we needed to change. 

One practice that I changed as a result of a professional conversation was my grading policy. When I first started, I used grades the same way my teachers did when I was in school (100 point scale). In a conversation with a professor at the university, we got into the nitty gritty purpose of grades and I came to realize that the 100 point scale did not serve learning, so much as it served book keeping. After that conversation I began to develop a rubric-based approach, which I later discovered is Mastery-Based Grading. Getting into the nuts and bolts of the purpose of grading really helped shape my decision to change away from the traditional way of grading. 

I thought that a teacher was not teaching the phonics program that the district provided. Nevertheless, with conversations and frequent visits, I realized that the program was incorporated. 

My perspective on discipline changed after a conversation with an assistant principal. At the time that I was a teacher, there was a scholar who got into some trouble and he was suspended and for about a couple of days. And then on this return from suspension, there was a field trip. And several teachers, myself included, were adamant about this particular scholar not participating in the field trip because he had been suspended. But then my AP at the time made it clear that he had served his consequence for the infraction which was the suspension, so he cannot be held or held back from attending the field trip since he had already serve as consequence for the infraction that he committed.

I had a boss, not in education, that asked me what I contributed to the project. I was very unsure of myself on that project and only contributed what I felt comfortable with. So I didn't contribute much. I thought I wasn't good enough to contribute more. However, during our conversation she pulled out my strengths and what I could have done to help. This conversation changed how I thought of myself and that I have ideas that are good enough. I am much more confident and willing to stretch myself out of my comfort zone. I believe I am a better leader because of this conversation.

Going into a new school I found it difficult to bring some of the processes that I had set in place in my previous school. I was at the other school for the past four years and was able to work through processes slowly one year at a time. Now in my new school I have to view issues from a different lens. Sort of a start again , I have had to shift some thinking to ensure that I am supporting my new school but also learning the ‘culture’ to bring needed change hopefully by given it time. 

My belief that my effectiveness as an educator would diminish if I moved from teacher to administrator changed through a series of unrelated professional conversations. I was teaching as a new school where most of my colleagues were early-career teachers while I was in my 15th year. My colleagues and I would talk a lot and learn from each other. As we worked together, I noticed that my colleagues valued my feedback and implemented many things I shared. I also respected and valued their feedback and the collaborative relationships, so I was not focused on changing their practice. Yet, these conversations gave me a window into how I could broaden my contributions to my school community across many classrooms. 

A couple of years ago, we had a book club that focused on diversity and equity in our schools. We were able to have open and honest conversations about our experiences. Also, we were able to ask questions without the fear of judgement. This was an amazing opportunity that provided a lot of learning and understanding. Having this conversation with adults has allowed me to empathize with our students in a different way. I am also part of the minority but my experience is not that same as everyone else's. My mindset has definitely shifted for the better. 

I have a great board chair who is supportive and asks me thinking questions. It is through these conversations that I am able to see the good that is happening and areas of needing some improvement. We had one of those conversations today which reinforced to me the importance of going through this course and being in classrooms. This will allow me to better articulate what is happening throughout the school. 

Most of my beliefs have changed over the last 5 years. Having children, being married, owning property, and my career choice have all impacted my thoughts on most life issues. 

I've had multiple conversations with others about the cultural differences within the Hispanic community and within our community and those conversations have really been eye opening for me in understanding other's backgrounds and beliefs. 

Most of my beliefs have changed over the past,I would say ten years. I think just having my own family and just having experience each year, just the way I think and the way I might react to situations are just so different than ten years ago. We didn't have the experience. The importance of just communicating with staff members and parents and students has changed drastically. When I think of what I have done, what I might have done, the discipline situation ten years ago versus what I have do now is so different. And that's one thing that I can reflect on.

Going from being a classsroom teacher to a district administrator has drastically changed how I view things. I have attended many professional development sessions about effective instruction and best classroom practices. I am now able to lead the conversations about change rather than trying to implement into my teaching habits. 

A belief or practice of mine that has changed based on conversation is my feelings towards walkthroughs. When I began my career as an administrative supervisor, I only knew how to do walkthroughs one way. However, through my many conversations with building based principals regarding walkthroughs, I have come to realize that checklists, forms, and punitive evaluation systems can hurt rather than help teachers and students.