My Educator’s Oath Revisited and My Oath as an Administrator

Today at our faculty meeting we discussed what we want a student after sixth grade to look like form a religious, social, emotional, academic perspective, and what skills should they have. This is a work in progress. However it got me thinking. I have said like many others that educators need to be constantly growing and learning, however how much do we need to grow in a year or two or three and so on and how is that growth measured.
In September I posted a blog about My Educator’s Oath, I thought that I would repost that now and update some of what I have done and areas that still need improvement as a way tracking my growth.

Blog post from Sept 8, 2010
A while ago I was reading a blog post from Mr. Rice entitled “My Educator's Oath" he ends his blog with the following "I challenge each of you to write your own educator’s oath. Forever consider it to be a work in progress. Revise it often. Throw it away and start over. As you evolve, it should too.

(Please note that the list is no particular order of importance since I believe that each point is important)

As an Educator I promise that I will:
1. Develop a close relationship with my students. I will know my students strengths and weaknesses and I will meet the needs of my students to the best of my ability and help each one realize and maximize his/her potential
2. I will love my students and treat each one fairly.
3. I will have a student centered classroom that engages students and pushes them to think and question.
4. I will incorporate technology in my classroom to help engage my students and bring the learning we do to life.
5. My classroom will be a safe place for students to learn and students will feel comfortable taking risks. Failure will be seen as a learning opportunity and not as a cause to be down on one's self
6. I will incorporate 21st Century skills and Differentiated instruction to meet the needs of more of my students
7. I will act as role model for my students and that my students will learn that I don’t know everything and it is OK to make mistakes and ask for help.
8. I will commit myself to always be growing and constantly learning
9. I will develop a PLN to help me grow.
10. I will be flexible and be willing to change and grow. I will also be flexible in my teaching approach knowing that at times I may need to change my lesson based on my students’ readiness.
End of Sept 8th post

Even though it has been only a little over a month since I have wrote my first educator’s oath, I am happy to say that through Twitter I have developed an amazing PLN and I am constantly learning. In that time I have joined EDU PLN and have started a group for Judaic Studies educators and I have become a member of Connected Principals. At the same time I haven’t incorporated technology as much as I wanted to in the classroom.

I realize know that my Educator’s Oath focused on my role as a teacher and yes student learning is the focus but as an administrator I need a oath that reflects my relationship with my teachers which in turn can effect student learning

MY OATH AS AN ADMINISTRATOR:
I promise that I will:
1. Work with each teacher to help them realize and maximize his/her potential
2. I will give my teachers the skills and empower them to take control of their own classrooms
3. I will help create Teacher Leaders
4. I will create open communication with my teachers and communicate clearly the mission and vision of the school
5. I will be supportive

Over the next few months I hope to look back of these oaths and see in what areas I have grown and in what areas do I still need to strengthen.

What’s your oath and how do you or will you measure your growth as an educator?