January 2023
Dear Friends,
You know by now that at R.E.A.L.® we’re big believers in the power of conversation. Yet in 2022, our org-wide resolution was to listen more – and talk less. So what did we hear?
One message was loud and clear: R.E.A.L.® is about so much more than class discussion. A sixth grader told us it’s about “becoming a civilized being.” A ninth grader said REAL skills are “not just for school but jobs and relationships.” An Academic Dean said “It’s re-centering humanity in education!” An industry leader said it’s “everything ChatGPT is not.”
So in 2023, we are embracing the idea - your collective idea – that R.E.A.L.® is not only about teaching conversation skills in Humanities classrooms. It's about building human-centered school cultures in a tech-centric world.
But, before we get too excited about 2023 – let’s reflect on 2022, beginning with wholehearted thanks.
- Thank you to the dozens of school leaders and hundreds of teachers in the R.E.A.L.® network. Change is never easy, but your vision, heart, and elbow grease have empowered your students and school communities to talk, trust, and listen to each other.
- Thank you, too, to association leaders, editors, and strategic partners. You helped us find our voice at conferences, in publications, on podcasts ... and we are infinitely grateful.
And then there are programmatic highlights worth celebrating! In 2022 we:
Said Hello to R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboards: this new tool offers mission-aligned data on class discussions. Instead of analyzing air-time ("how many times did you talk?"), R.E.A.L.® Dashboards empower teachers with meaningful metrics. Read on to check out examples from a 10th grade English class.
Said Good-bye to “One-and-Done!” PD: our PD now engages faculty all year round! This redesign began by training R.E.A.L® Trainers, who facilitated R.E.A.L.® Certification for new teachers last summer. That cohort of 130+ “Discussion Nerds” is now a thriving Professional Learning Community, engaging with Office Hours (Coaching), Study Seshes (Teacher Webinars), and Round Tables (Admin Webinars). Early feedback is in – and effusive: it feels like “teacher therapy;” it is “such a luxury to have someone supporting me – as Dept chair, I support everyone;” “it’s a chance to zoom out and reconnect with my why;” “there is so much laughter amidst deeply thoughtful points.”
Raised external profile of R.E.A.L® : thanks to association partners, we hit the conference circuit hard this Fall. Our sessions were diverse – teaching listening skills … drafting discussion philosophies … engaging Gen-Z learners …facilitating for polarity management – but at all ten events, someone said it was “the best [session / PD / workshop] ever.” This is a testament to prescient event organizers – and we are proud to be out in the world offering ideas that stick.
Built our internal team: behind the scenes, we’ve built a talented, mission-driven team! Emily Gromoll leads all-things-PD and comes to us as a former Department Chair and Instructional Coach; Molly Donovan heads up Comms after having served as Head of Communications at Carney Sandoe; Cotter Donnell directs School Partnerships with empathy and strategy given his previous role as an Associate Head; Oohaa Vennapusa takes care of ops with an efficiency she learned at Deloitte. Our intern program continues to thrive (and keeps us all grounded in Gen-Z life). Together, we are here to help and love nothing more than a great conversation – so please reach out.
Thank you for an incredible year. Here’s to 2023 – may it be full of real, and deeply human, conversations!
With gratitude and excitement,
Liza Garonzik
Founder, R.E.A.L.® Discussion
Thank you to our 21-22 school and association partners! We couldn't do it without you.
THIS YEAR'S PRODUCT HIGHLIGHT
R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboards
We partnered with our friends at Mission & Data to develop the R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboard: a tool to empower teachers with mission-aligned data about class discussions.
The R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboard displays responses to the R.E.A.L.® Student Survey (which students take every three discussions). It measures skill development, belonging, and sense of purpose while also capturing qualitative reflections about the discussion experience.
Instead of just measuring who talked (and who didn't), the R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboard gives teachers insight into the Conversation Culture in their classroom. Students respond to prompts such as: "I feel like my classmates listen to me when I talk." "I feel comfortable disagreeing with a peer's idea." "I know I can get my voice in when I have something to say." "I feel comfortable asking a question during discussion.
The R.E.A.L.® Discussion Dashboard is not an evaluation tool for teachers. It's for the kids, about the kids; the data catalyzes class-wide reflection, makes growth visible, and informs teachers' instructional strategies. Faculty say that it "makes my class feel like a team!"
THE WHOLE SCHOOL APPROACH
Building School-Wide Conversation Culture:
Girls Preparatory School (TN)
At GPS, empowering girls to use their voices is mission-critical – and has been for generations. As one faculty member said, "it's just what we do - it's why all of us teach here."
Head of School Megan Cover recognized the power of this commitment – especially in today’s world! - but wanted to develop a common language to codify, measure, and celebrate it. She wondered: What does it look like to teach discussion skills and inspire interpersonal confidence at each stage in the GPS journey? What does it look like to create a community where all voices are valued?
She and her team partnered with R.E.A.L. ® to realize these mission-aligned goals by:
Adopting the Conversation Lab model in grades 6-9, including certifying Humanities faculty in R.E.A.L®.: the first research-backed method for explicitly teaching and equitably assessing live conversation skills.
Training the full faculty and staff in R.E.A.L.® Skills for Life to build common language and facilitate skill transfer into STEM, advisory, extracurriculars.
Hosting R.E.A.L.® for a Parents' Evening, sharing programmatic impact and tips for building Conversation Culture at home.
The best part? Already, girls are reporting increased confidence, purpose, and skill-development. Faculty are excited by the growth they’ve seen – click to hear from Andy, a 9th grade English teacher – and proud to be defining what it means to teach human skills in a tech-centric world.
CROSS-DIVISIONAL ALIGNMENT
Norming Discussion in
Middle + Upper School:
Penn Charter (PA)
In 2021, Deb Borden, a veteran educator now directing PD at Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools (PAIS), organized a chance for PAIS members to “Train + Try” R.E.A.L.® Discussion.
Among the first to sign up was Nora Landon, English Department Chair at William Penn Charter School. She reflects that:
I had been searching for a common language for my Department to use to articulate Discussion standards across the middle and high school divisions -- an initiative that felt urgent after COVID and aligned to recent all-school DEI efforts. R.E.A.L.®'s emphasis on authentic feedback also complemented Penn Charter's values as a Friends (Quaker) school.
Penn Charter envisions R.E.A.L.® Discussion as a shared foundation for student conversation. The school's goal is to deploy R.E.A.L.® across 8th and 9th grade English - where faculty describe it as "transformational already!" -- but to certify the full English Department as R.E.A.L.® practitioners.
Nora has been taking it a step at a time, training more faculty every chance she has. This is budget-friendly and authentic – rather than the whole Department doing a one-and-done training, it becomes an ongoing source of conversation and reflection.
She says: “This has created a shared language for the whole department and is informing conversations about not just discussion, but assessment and curriculum design as well.”
We are excited for what’s ahead for Penn Charter – and inspired by Nora’s vision to make it happen!
