This morning, we welcome Jessica Vance, who has a professional teaching and
leadership background in both private and public international schools as an
IB PYP educator and PYP coordinator.
Her passion for student centered learning, collaboration and coaching stems
from the students themselves, finding inspiration in their natural curiosity.
Her journey and experience as an inquiry educator in IB schools and
place based education fuels her passion and global work in coaching
both teachers and leaders in their roles, as well as supporting schools
in implementing inquiry based learning.
Jessica understands the power of curiosity to guide next steps and
actively engage in reflective practice.
In her newest publication, Leading with a Lens of Inquiry, she outlines the ways
in which leaders need to support and facilitate teachers in the same ways in
which teachers engage with their students.
Welcome to Blooming Curious, Jessica Vance.
It's awesome to have you on Blooming Curious.
Thank you so much.
It's nice to be here.
Um, of course, getting to connect with you virtually is always a treat.
So it's been a minute.
So happy to be here, Edwina.
And isn't it wonderful having, you know, I'm, I'm a bit anti technology for many
reasons when it comes to kids, but I'm just loving the fact that we can connect
and you can connect with so many other like minded people across the world.
That's just, for me, an incredible, amazing thing that technology gives us.
Jess, let's start out.
I've just read out your very impressive bio, but I'd love to share,
I'd love you to share with us how your passion for inquiry started.
What started this journey for you that's led you to where you are now?
Yeah, so, you know, the best laid plans actually never come to be, right?
I started in a traditional school, um, at a private school, actually, in,,
Southern California, and,, my husband and I ended up moving to Austin,
Texas, and I found myself teaching, IB, which I didn't know what it was
at the time,, at an elementary school.
I remember being interviewed and the principal was like,
It's just best practice.
You'll love it.
And I didn't know what I was jumping into.
And boy oh boy did I jump head first and loved how non traditional it was.
My head was spinning with, you know, just the different approach and ways
to,, But figure out how do I unlearn all the things that I thought that I
knew about teaching, and relearn, , a different approach to my practice.
So started to teach in elementary classroom, grade
five, and then also grade three.
And, you know, I was always really inspired by leaders ever since I was a
student teacher and so knew that that was something that I eventually wanted to grow
into and, um, had the opportunity to be an IB coordinator at another IB school.
And so got to stretch my wings in that way.
And, um, again, just kind of.
Leading adults in the same way that I was facilitating learning in the classroom
just felt really natural and normal , my principal at the time, you know, I really
appreciate her feedback that first year.
She's like, I don't really have any feedback to give you.
And I said, you know, I was like itching for more, like, tell me
more, like, how can I get better?
What are things going to learn?
And she's like, you know, you just seem to really naturally fall into it.
And I think I just like I did with students in the classroom
is really attuned to adult learners and really became
curious to lead and learn alongside them.
And so, uh, have, you know, taken leadership and of course authored a
book because of that and have gotten to take authorship and consultancy and
leadership around the globe, which is, gosh, again, nothing I quite imagined
when I thought about being a leader.
I loved how you've, you know, you've explained how you just naturally fell
into this whole role, you know, I interviewed Claire Warden , a few weeks
ago, actually, and we were talking about curiosity, and she was saying,
about supporting those of us or those colleagues who, she said, some people
would, just naturally, like you just said yourself, you just naturally are
that way inclined and other people need more support, which is, I think, where
you coming in with your coordinator role.
So you're very much, Jess, you're very much the expert on inquiry based
learning and learning walls specifically.
And now I want to put my hand up and just say that I have
actually never used learning walls in the way that you do them.
I've always used floor books more for sharing the learning journey and planning.
But I'd love you to talk us through the process.
of learning walls and how educators that haven't used them, for
example, can get started in them.
Because if, you know, we, I think there's a distinction, right?
Between a learning wall and a display.
So I think many of us have done displays, but a learning wall
is something totally different.
And how do those learning walls connect to inquiry?
Yeah, so I'm currently writing this publication all about learning walls
because there's so many things to unpack and to be honest, Edwina, you know,
when I say that I follow the learners and attune to them, this was not my
original plan for my second book.
Um, but really, again, just listening to the questions and seeing where
they take us or have taken me.
So again, of course, lots to unpack that I'm excited to be able
to release later on this year.
But as it relates to learning walls, again, it came from my learners.
, I was working with a couple of first grade teachers, at the IB school.
And we're reflecting on a unit of inquiry, and they felt really frustrated that
students weren't making transdisciplinary connections, and they couldn't
figure out why they couldn't do it.
, and it was a really dynamic and very open minded team, to be honest, really
willing to take risks and try new things and honestly ask that question.
And so honestly, when they asked that question, I responded to
them in a question as I often do.
And I said, well, what would happen if we took all of the learning that you have
surrounding the classroom and instead of having a math wall or reading wall, a
science wall, we put it into one space.
So that way it drew us towards a wall and that we continue to use it as a tool.
This is not something so foreign to the I. B. If you have listeners who are familiar
with the I. B. There's usually an I. B. board or your I. B. unit of inquiry,
and I definitely had an I. B. unit of inquiry wall as well that I did not take
advantage of, and it was more display.
It was definitely not a learning wall.
And so, you know, , I, if somebody says what is a learning wall, how
is it different to a display, I'd say, you know, it's another tool
that we can use to leverage and document and celebrate and show that
we value the process of learning.
A display usually is that end product or that final piece of writing
or maybe some beautiful artwork.
Or a collection of photos, um, and it's usually a single handed effort, right?
Or maybe we grab some of our colleagues to help us staple
some of the artifacts up there.
But it's usually one vision, one direction.
, and there's nothing wrong with a display, but, , just like, uh, Reggio
Emilia,, research, says that space really is a third teacher, and it's
a missed opportunity for us to not leverage our walls as an opportunity
to be able to support and co construct the learning alongside, , our
little or big learners, if you will, throughout our units of inquiry.
So, I would say that's probably the qualifier of what it is or what it
isn't, and where the idea came from.
Again, always responding to learners.
You had asked though, how do you get started?
Yeah, so I'd say, um, and you know from facilitating learning together
and getting to engage with one another that setting an intention.
So what's your intention for this space?
Is it to be able to, focus on an entire unit of inquiry that lasts a
span of six weeks centered on a concept?
Are you really trying to, harness?
Uh, vocabulary.
And do you want to have tiered vocabulary wall that is still rooted in the
attendance of a learning wall, but is really something that's co constructed,
um, together alongside your learners?
As a school leader, , I create several different learning walls,
both with, administrators on the same team, school learning wall,
if you will, to document the school learning that we're doing together.
And then, , a couple of additional learning walls this year have bubbled up.
I've been doing some support work for our educational assistants this year.
So they have their own learning wall that's documenting the things
that we're unpacking together.
And then, The fourth wall in that space that I share is for
our grade level leaders and developing their leadership skills.
And so the walls interchange based off of the learning and
things that are unfolding.
So an intention is the first step.
, and how do you do that?
You know, I, I worked with a leader just last week and he printed off an email.
And then there was a teacher who grabbed an artifact from a provocation , and then
there's another , leader that I worked with who grabbed a sketch note and that
was going to be the start of their wall.
So the intention is set and then choosing an artifact to anchor and
build off of would be first two starts, I'd say, for your listeners.
Gosh, as you were talking there, my brain started racing and I kind of thought
about this almost a spider web on a wall.
I love that.
Where you would be connecting, right?
Because as you were saying about making cross curricular connections.
So you could really make it visible for students is how this unit of work actually
links to their English narrative or their persuasive text or whatever it is that
they're writing, as well as vocabulary, as well as perhaps even their art or
experiments or whatever it might be.
And as you've been talking, I've been sort of thinking, Oh, geez, that
would be a nice thing to start because very often, and I think this is where
inquiry is so powerful is that it makes these cross curricular connections.
So we're always, and I'm sure even there where you are, there's so
much to cover in the curriculum.
And so for me, inquiry does that.
It goes cross curricular and you can tick off multiple boxes with one thing, and
you can get through the curriculum so much easier and so much quicker when you
have these cross curricular connections.
And for young children, especially, they often don't see those connections.
Why do we have to do this?
You know, we're never going to do this in our lives.
And we're Adults, but yes, you actually are and I think just you speaking my
brain started racing and obviously this is a great way to make learning visible.
I think for teachers, having those learning walls in your staff room, for
example, it's not in a, it's not in a document, you know, online anymore.
It's not, and correct me if I'm wrong, so it's not like, , you've
got this policy in a file somewhere.
It's actually visible.
So educators would be able to see their journey and where the school,
the culture of the school, where they want to take The school as a whole.
So I think that's just mind boggling and I can't understand why we don't
do more of that, quite frankly.
Yeah, yeah, it's unlearning and relearning, right?
It's just, when we're just humans, right?
And we have that lizard brain and so when we get sick.
Um, and of course, teachers have a lot of things on their plate.
We're going to revert to the things that are habits or ways that we
experienced, teaching and learning.
So, of course, it's at no fault of, of teachers or leaders for not being able
to slow down the transaction of learning, if you will, and create a space to make
the thinking visible, of course, you know, I have to think about Ron Richard
and Mark Church and the work that they do with Project Zero and so forth.
Their publications.
So really, it's taking that idea of making and keeping our thinking visible.
And what happens when we do that?
How might we see these cross curricular connections?
And like you said, get to those deeper learning opportunities that we would
have missed if we were just ticking off the boxes of our curriculum,
and working smarter and not harder.
I love to, you know, nudge leaders to really anchor their learning wall
on their vision statement for their school, because if we're co constructing
a vision statement together, then we should be really living and breathing
that and working towards what that could look like and sound like.
So I love to nudge leaders to consider what that might look like as you are
Delving into PL together or exploring kind of different things, or even just
mandated things, if you will, from the district or from other government bodies.
How might you take that and think about it through the lens and the frame of
the things that you value as a school?
And, and, and I, again, I love that, that sentence stem of
what happens when we, right?
What happens when we put the learning and thinking on display?
How might we come together as a community of learners and what things may we have
missed because we kept it in a document or, you know, thrown it into some
spreadsheet that we have forgotten about?
That's very true.
Now, listen, I'm partway through.
your book here.
Oh, thank you.
And I have to say that I really liked the way that you propose that school
leaders tackle their leadership role, especially with regards to cultivating
a culture of curiosity and inquiry.
Could you share with us first, I think you have touched on it, but the catalyst
for your book or actually authoring the book, what made you think, well,
you know what, let me write a book.
Yeah, I think over the years, others that I coached or, led alongside
have always made some sort of really, positive claims or comments about the
way that I, facilitated learning or sat with them as they were planning
or reflecting on units of inquiry.
And I kind of just fluffed it off as like, well, doesn't everybody do this isn't what
we do as coaches and as we do as leaders.
, and the more that I heard that, the more I realized that it's not the norm, and
that while well intentioned, um, there are pressures that leaders feel, and
even coaches feel, and they get stuck in their own kind of rat race, if you will.
And so I actually had a friend of mine, who you probably know, Trevor McKenzie,
make a mention, and he said, you know, it might be worth writing about.
And I kind of, again, just said, oh, I don't really know,
I can't write anything about it.
Ended up sitting with a different colleague of mine at another school
who I was a leader with and we just started to just jot down stories and
then all of a sudden we realized we had a legal pad of paper of all these
different stories of all these different ways that we saw our leadership.
in a different lens and landscape.
So that was the start of just little seeds that people were planting.
And then of course, that imposter syndrome that we all have, um, and
just kind of pushing that to the side and just kind of seeing if
this might be something to explore.
And man, oh man, did I learn so much about myself through writing the book Edwina.
You think you do know.
Who you are.
And then you write a book, and you have to peel back all these layers and ask
yourself some really hard questions.
And then also, , I'll say it again, is I go back to the teachers and my learners
and I ask them specific questions.
What felt different for you?
What did this look like compared to other learning experiences?
Can you even get more, specific around that?
And so getting feedback from learners was a very vulnerable
experience to be able to ask for.
Because you don't always know what you're going to get.
But, hearing their feedback helped me reflect on the ways that perhaps I was
leading differently, and then also what I wanted to inspire other leaders to do.
And of course, I was inspired by other amazing leaders.
When we jumped on this call, I said I lead alongside a really amazing principal.
And, She's somebody that I continue to lead and learn alongside as well.
So being able to take all those little parts and pieces into the
writing was something that continued to make it grow into the publication
that you have in your hand.
I'm just thinking when we sit as teachers, sometimes you want to be led.
Sometimes I think teachers just want someone just to tell them.
This is the road you have to take.
And I think as teachers we do need that leading from the front, so to speak.
But at the same time, I think leaders also need to, as you've
just said, ask the questions.
How are you feeling?
How are you thinking about this?
How might we do this?
What do you think will happen?
When?
And I think perhaps, Maybe that needs to happen more often, especially, if
schools are on a journey, and they have an end point in mind, maybe they're
changing their culture, or they want to improve outcomes, whatever it might be.
Everybody has to be on the same page.
So I think, When you're leading from a position of asking rather than telling,
that could be really powerful for teachers because then they feel part of the team.
They feel seen and heard, which I think very often teachers don't.
We just had yesterday here in Western Australia, a teacher strike, for example,
I think that comes from not being seen and not being heard.
So, going forward for teachers to feel valued and validated is
something that, Is really important for education as a whole, yeah,
everybody wants to feel seen and that's probably why you're drawn to an inquiry
based approach to teaching, of course, and learning in the classroom space.
And as leaders, we need to model the model, right?
If our teachers are not feeling empowered, how do they know
how to empower their students?
If our teachers are not feeling curious.
How are they going to cultivate and create spaces of curiosity in their classroom?
So I think that phrase, model the model, although quite simplified,
is really something to hang our hats on and to consider that if we want
this for others, then we need to be, , acting in those spaces as well too.
And, it's a learner centered approach as well, right?
Inquiry is a learner centered approach to Teaching and learning, and so is
leading in this mindset, and yes, teachers definitely want to feel seen
and empowered and have that sense of agency, which oftentimes you know that
they don't, and we don't as educators.
And I, and I'd really say that it also needs to be something that's
looked at outside of education.
This should be a model that leaders all over should be leading, right?
Instead of tasking and telling, it's asking and facilitating and providing
opportunities for us all to be able to flex, , dispositions and competencies.
, I've been really, gosh, I can't get through it fast enough.
Adam Grant's newest publication, , Hidden Potential, , I just am underlining,
highlighting, , he even opens the book with what happens when we cultivate and
create spaces with competency development in mind in a kindergarten space, and
he shows the research behind that.
And I love that's how he starts the book and he's talking about the importance of
this and so developing competencies or giving opportunities for that competency
development for our teachers is.
Something that I am here for the long haul and is my passion.
Of course, it's the work that I get to do.
So I couldn't agree more.
And I think teachers really need that support, especially when it comes to
inquiry, because it's not something that you learn at university, and
coming back to your book, because you've actually adapted in the
book, Kath Murdoch's inquiry cycle.
And you use that very cycle that teachers use with students.
You use them as leaders with your teachers.
So that was very interesting because you actually taking teachers through that
inquiry cycle, through the tuning in, the finding out, the whole process, right?
Did that happen by accident or did you just think, well, let's just apply Cath
Murdoch's inquiry cycle , to teachers.
Yeah, it actually happened because I was, um, asked by my principal
to facilitate a parent information session on inquiry and, , IB.
And I had never led a parent information session and I knew I didn't want
to just, , tell because it just was going to feel like robotic and it's
not the heart of what inquiry was.
I knew I wanted the parents to feel it and within the IB and also
education, of course, there's so much jargon and language and I didn't
want that to take away the beauty and the amazing things that I saw in
the classroom and I knew was there.
So honestly, what I did is I took half Murdoch cycle and I thought about what
we were going to be unpacking and I would write down on little sticky notes
what activity or what thing it was.
And I placed it along the cycle and I had all these like little stickies on
this sheet of paper and just kind of noticed that that was a frame that could
help take the parents and experience inquiry in an hour, if you will.
But how that provided almost a safe hold, if you will, that's what I loved
about her cycle and I continue to love about it is it gives me an entry point
to figure out what should I be doing?
What kind of thinking do I need to be thinking about or guiding
or facilitating for learners?
So for me, it provides a structure of safety when, like you said, inquiry is
very ambiguous and it can go all these different places and it's really hard.
But it was with parents first and using it.
And so I continue to use it to this day.
, again, in all my coaching work with leaders or helping coaches design
professional development, I usually will say, you know, what kind of thinking
do you want your learners to engage in?
How might you create spaces for them to sort and make connections and collaborate?
And we referenced that cycle and we use that cycle as a frame for planning
professional development as well.
But that's where it came to be, uh, again, responding to the moment and
to the learners and what they needed.
And I hope that our listeners have picked up on what an inquiry person
does, because everything you say is actually a question, right?
How might you, why, how, where?
And that's how an inquiry specialist functions.
We function on questions.
That's the food that feeds us.
And it's how we get kids to think for themselves , is asking them to
consider the options, the opportunities, not telling them, but asking.
And I think that's how we get.
People thinking and collaborating and getting more involved in the whole inquiry
process, because so often, and I've even seen it in kids and um, one of my
colleagues was doing relief at a school and she was going, all these kids wanted
was for me just to give them the answer.
So what do I have to do to get the marks?
Well, , what learning is that, right?
If you only have to do something to get the marks, there's no depth to
that, because you're just going to be regurgitating what the educator says
so that you can get a certain grade.
And so, obviously There must be a culture there of we just feed you this
information and then you regurgitate it.
That to me is not education.
Anybody, you don't even have to have a degree in education, you can just
walk into a classroom, pick that up, read from a script, off you go.
That's not education.
That's not why kids are in our classrooms.
They're there for us to help them think.
question, find answers, find bias, all these kinds of things.
So, I think the questioning has to become a part of your culture.
You have to learn to ask questions all the time.
And so that's just come through for me so strongly with
you, that innate questioning.
That's inside you.
Yeah.
Shifting the question culture, right?
And that questions don't have to always have an answer.
But again, our human lizard brain is like searching for an answer, searching for
an answer to try to make that meaning.
So yeah, like unlearning what that is, , is tricky.
And of course, as an inquiry educator, you picked that right up.
I definitely think in questions you've nailed that one.
Yeah.
I think in questions too, all the time, which is not always a good thing though,
because sometimes you get into trouble.
As you do.
I remember in high school, my English teacher, as I approached the classroom,
wanting to jump out of the window, because it, Oh, you again, it's
me again, the one with questions.
With all your years of working with teachers and leaders,
Jess, what advice would you give both to teachers and leaders?
when leading and teaching with the lens of inquiry?
Because I'm very big on curiosity because I think And I see it every day.
We're losing our curiosity.
It's, it's apparent everywhere.
You see it in the media, you see it in our classrooms.
Obviously curiosity is innate in children.
And as they progress through schools, they become less and less curious to
the point where they're saying, you know, just give me the work so that I
can just finish it and get on with it.
But what advice would you give us and to leaders When they teach with this
lens of inquiry or that with this inquiry approach that we can better
nurture curiosity in our children, but also curiosity in our adults, in
our teachers, and even in our parents.
Yeah, gosh, that is quite the question, isn't it, Edwina?
, and I, of course, I probably will answer you in three questions.
Yes, just because there's a depth and complexity.
You know, I think when I first jumped to inquiry, because it was so overwhelming
and so new, Asking questions wasn't giving me answers fast enough, , because
I was looking for the thing, just like you said, is tell me this thing,
is this thing the inquiry thing now?
Is it now?
And in my experience, both as a classroom teacher, and then of course later and
facilitating learning for adults as well, , really I think about three questions, and
no matter where you are in your inquiry journey, As an educator in the classroom
or as a leader, these three questions tend to give us a depth and breadth to explore,
um, and differentiate quite naturally, and the first question is, where might we
create opportunities for collaboration?
And of course that could be in collaborative structures, a turn and
talk, the way that you're organizing your spaces or your rooms, like,
even just that question alone, if you're a listener, like, jot
that down and what comes to mind.
Thanks.
Right?
Because we know that inquiry happens together, and so how
might we do that together?
So where are we creating spaces for collaboration?
, how might we co construct understanding, uh, together is question number two.
And of course, constructivism comes to mind, I'm sure.
, how can we step back so that way our learners can step forward?
What are the different tools and structures that we have within our
tool belt that create those spaces for our learners to be able to walk
through, if you will, the inquiry cycle, or to utilize a thinking routine
for us to be able to lift up and visualize the thinking that we see.
To not jump in right away when there's a misconception that bubbles up, but
instead use that as a provocation for the next day or for the next week.
So that co construction piece again slows down the transaction of the
doing of the product that we often get stuck in, and then creates a different
intention for us to show up to the learning, to be that facilitator, to
observe, to ask questions, to notice.
And take in the learning that's unfolding before us.
And if our learners can't Then that right there is where we start, right?
That is the competency that we know that we need to develop.
I'd say that the campus that I currently serve on five years ago,
that co construction piece was hard.
They just wanted the answers.
Just tell me what to do, Jess.
Just tell me, is this what you want?
Is this what you want?
And you probably wouldn't be surprised.
I would not tell them the answer right away, but respond to them in a question.
And know that that's going to give them skills that they're going
to be able to take by far, wide and greater than me being there
that day giving them the answer.
Um, and then lastly, and this of course again is probably no
surprise, is how might we document evidence and artifact the learning?
And what does that tell us when we do that, right?
So is it a collection of sticky notes?
that have some questions on them, but instead of answering them, do we take a
look at the landscape of questions and how are our learners asking questions?
Is that a skill that we can develop with one another?
I love to take a look at questions as a data set and not answer them, but just
as kind of, you know, soaking them up.
What does this tell me that my learners know?
What don't they know?
What could they know?
Where could we go?
What are some other skills that we can focus in on one another across
the span of an academic year?
Of course, Learning Walls speaks to that, , and even within that
final question, like you hear the other two questions in there, right?
Collaboration and that co construction should be part of that
evidence and that documentation.
And I find that those three questions, especially if you are newer to your
practice, give you something to have as a checkmark, if you will,
if you're doing inquiry, right?
Okay, are my learners collaborating?
Are we creating spaces of co construction?
Do I know what that could look like and sound like, right?
And so I'd say, learners and teachers using those questions Would be a really
great start to be able to reflect on, you know, how has your week gone?
Where are you spending your time?
Is it a lot of tasking and telling, , and where there might be space to
be able to infuse some of those elements and values within your week.
It's not either or, it's both and more, right?
So we can still work within the system and use those values that
we see threaded throughout to be able to step towards more of an
inquiry mindset and inquiry practice.
Yes, I would agree with everything that you've just said.
Now, one of the other things is that, of course, As educators who want to
perhaps step into, and please God, please want to, into an inquiry culture
and inquiry mindset, one of the things that I've discovered was that kids
don't know how to ask questions.
Not open ended questions anyway, not deep questions.
very shallow questions.
Yes, those that require one answer that they're very good at, but questions
that really require some reflection and some thinking and some digging.
They honestly don't know how to do that.
And that's a challenge.
That's our fault, as I think as parents and as teachers, because I
think if you're starting an inquiry, the best place to start is with
questions and with learning how to ask good questions and simultaneously,
I think explicitly, teaching kids what good questions look like.
So very often we have this argument about, oh what about explicit instruction?
And people don't understand that the two actually dovetail.
Because as, Inquiry teachers, we do have to explicitly teach, especially
because these kids don't have an inquiry mindset, possibly, or those skills.
We have to explicitly teach them those skills and how to ask good questions.
So a perfect place to start, as you've just said, ask questions, have it in your
mind to constantly be asking questions, not just jumping over the answer.
Take a few seconds.
Silence is golden, they say.
Just take a few seconds and let it percolate away.
Jess, this has been an amazing chat with you.
Is there anything that you would like to leave listeners with , a little nugget.
All the other wonderful nuggets you've left us today.
Are there any other little nuggets you'd like to leave educators and leaders
Yeah.
You know, there's one other element and that is having a critical
friend and thought partner.
You know, I did say that inquiry is better together and we do it together, but I'd
say by far and away, my practice has grown Leaps and bounds because I brought in
critical friends and thought partners and they're not always people who, um, agree
with what it is that I'm sharing, right?
Who'll nudge me with a question or give me a little bit of feedback.
And so there's a handful of critical friends and thought partners who, , I
seek, you know, for advice to be able to like get their feedback on something that
I'm kind of putting together or, you know, even, you know, My principal definitely
is a really great thought partner.
I'll share some of the things that I've learned on a learning walk and,
, being able to have that perspective and her experience is really helpful.
, and so when you pull in that critical friend and thought partner, of course,
sometimes we just have to vent on our days, but really a critical friend and
thought partner is there to be able to be that other perspective and mirror
perhaps to ask you the questions, to help you sort things through.
And so, I couldn't do what I do alone.
Um, and.
You know, even in consultancy world, like I'm always reaching out and
reconnecting with my learners.
It's not let me close the door and get on the airplane and leave.
It's how is the learning impacting you now?
What are you realizing in your practice and kind of going back and continuing to
be those thought partners with one another is something that I really really value
about my consultancy and leadership.
It's something that I I really think that everyone can learn
from and continue to you.
Be able to be and remain curious, just as you've said, is quite critical for us all.
I think that is a great place for everybody.
And I think you have to put your ego aside, right?
Because so many people are so afraid of having someone in their classroom,
for example, but I think if you want to grow , as an educator, as a
practitioner, as a leader, You do need that feedback, that constant feedback
from a critical friend, as you say.
I think that's important for growth, isn't it?
Most definitely.
And you're right, you have to put yourself out there and be vulnerable.
And again, what happens when we do, right?
What are our blind spots, our biases that we didn't necessarily know?
, and every time I've done that, I've taken a risk.
I've always been surprised and I've always grown and stretched in some new ways.
So encouraging your listeners to, to do that as well too.
And that's what it's about, isn't it?
For people who are into inquiry, it's about growing and stretching and being
brave and putting your fears aside.
Because I believe inquiry gives you your mojo back.
So if, if you are someone who's stuck and you're bored and you perhaps are getting
quite negative about the profession, which I see a lot on social media.
I'm actually not even looking at that anymore because I think it's just, it's
awful how so many people are just so negative about a profession that has
such a profound impact on the future.
I think making yourself vulnerable and developing this inquiry
mindset and just saying, how can I, how can I ask questions?
How can I get kids excited about coming into my classroom?
And I think inquiry, because of its nature, because of its
messiness, it's not clear.
And it's exciting as an educator to be an inquiry practitioner is
really exciting because you just never know what you're going to get.
So for someone who gets bored really easily, which is what I do,
that's what keeps me going is the inquiry process, because you can
never get bored because you just never know what you're going to get.
So I would urge any educators listening, please adopt an inquiry mindset and reach
out to people to help you to nurture it.
And because you will, you'll get your mojo back.
You'll love your job.
Yeah, most definitely.
And it's not about perfection, but unfolding towards one another, and
a community that's really quite something and really quite beautiful.
So I couldn't agree more.
I think that's a beautiful note to end.
That really is a wonderful way to teach and a wonderful way to inspire
children to be curious, which is exactly what we need in our world
today is we need curious thinkers.
So Jess, I'd like to thank you so much for being on Blooming Curious today, and I
hope you'll come back again another time.
Anytime.
And thank you for being such an inspiration to myself and to all
the other educators and leaders out there who are thinking about changing
the way we do things for the better.
Thank you so much for having me.
It's a pleasure.
And I'd love to come back soon.
I'm sure you'll agree that having Jessica on the podcast today
was just an amazing experience.
I'm sure you are all inspired to give inquiry a go.
And if there's anything about this episode that you really appreciated.
Why not leave us a review.
Next week, we're going to talk all about questioning, how to ask questions
and the types of questions that are just great for an inquiry educator to
ask, to get kids curious and thinking.
So don't forget to subscribe and follow, and I'll see you all next week.
And until then stay blooming, curious.