Stop. Right. Now.: The 39 Stops to Making Schools Better

Praise for Stop. Right. Now.

"Stop. Right. Now. is an exceptionally relevant book written for today’s educators. It lists ineffective practices (called Stops), justification surrounding the reasons for discontinuing the practice, and ideas about how educators can improve in that area. Jeff and Jimmy embrace the many things schools today are doing well and forge ahead with ideas of how to get better. This book is full of immediate, practical ways for our schools to improve without a strain on the system’s resources."

—Andrea Townsley,

school improvement consultant, Grant Wood AEA, #IAedChat moderator

"Every student needs us—parents and educators—to read and implement the changes in education that authors Jeff Zoul and Jimmy Casas ask us to in Stop. Right. Now. We are all challenged by this book to take action to be the champions of education change for our children, our educators, and society. The number one lesson you’ll get from this book is to think about the five pitstop areas of practices, program, processes, philosophies, and people with a new critical clarity. Each Stop is accompanied by a thoughtful ‘How Can Educators Do Better?’ that draws from the authors’ fifty-five years of collective work in public schools. Read this book to live your excellence by finding those things at your school that you will Stop. Right. Now. and bring change to schools for students."

—Denise Murai,

parent and community liaison, Honolulu, Hawaii; HundrED ambassador, HundrED.org

"Oftentimes the hardest part of our roles as educators is to get away from experiences and practices that we have spent so much time invested in. In Stop. Right. Now., not only are we given permission to step away from traditions and behaviors, we are also challenged to think why we should and, equally as important, what’s next and how can we do school better. This book will help you take inventory of what drives the teaching, learning, and leading within your classroom and school community. Powerful!"

—Craig Vroom,

principal, Innovation Campus, Hilliard City Schools, Ohio

Jimmy Casas and Jeff Zoul have written another beautiful book—one that speaks straight from the heart and is grounded in their wisdom as experienced and career educators. They point out many pitfalls in school practice while also giving practical solutions so that educators can improve their service to students. Read this book with an open mind. It is a coach’s manual for good practice and a rallying call for educators to not simply ‘stop’ but also rethink the ways we do school.

—William D. Parker,

executive director, Oklahoma’s Association of Secondary School Principals and Oklahoma’s Middle Level Educator Association

"Stop. Right. Now. offers readers thirty-nine culture killers coupled with an exceptional how-to guide to avoid common pitfalls. As educational disruptors, Jeff and Jimmy have laid out an incredible blueprint of implementable action items to immediately improve, enhance, and transform your school! Stop. Right. Now. is peppered with in-the-trenches authenticity that can only be cultivated through years of experience, reflection, and learning. This is a masterful book for all educators seeking to improve their craft. Read. Right. Now!"

—Hans Appel,

middle school counselor and creator of Award Winning Culture

"Stop. Right. Now. The 39 Stops to Making School Better empowers reflection and inspires conversation and future improvements among educators regarding an extensive list of ineffective educational practices and philosophies. Topics that are discussed range from learning and teaching to traditional school practices that impact the overall culture and relationships within classrooms and schools. Explanations about why changes must be made along with recommended specific changes provide potential questions, actions, and solutions to enhance overall student and teacher performance, persistence, pride, and professionalism. Educators who read this book will be inspired to prioritize topics from this book to guide focused continuous improvement, reflection, and collaboration."

—Dr. Erik Youngman,

director of curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, Libertyville District 70, Illinois

"With all the talk in education about all the new and innovative things educators should be doing, Jeff Zoul and Jimmy Casas make the case to Stop. Right. Now. In a field where educators feel like there is always another thing being added to their plate, there is a void in discussion around things that should stop. Zoul and Casas do a fantastic job filling this void. In their book, Stop. Right. Now., Zoul and Casas provide a thorough list of thirty-nine things educators can, and should, stop doing immediately. The thirty-nine Stops touch on everything from mindsets and attitudes, to instructional practices and hot-button topics such grading, honor roll, and teacher salaries. Written for the educator ready to take action, each Stop is explored by providing a clear overview, rationale for change, and guidance to improve. Stop. Right. Now. provides practical advice and ideas that can be put to good use by classroom teachers and school leaders. In a field that is so focused on going, Zoul and Cases make the case to Stop. Right. Now."

—Michael P. Kelly,

principal, Eyer Middle School, Pennsylvania

"Stop. Right. Now. is the book that all educators need to read. In our profession, we are great at coming up with new things to do, but we never take the time to identify practices that need to end. Thank you to the authors for amplifying this message so that we can transform education together."

—Dr. Nick Polyak,

superintendent, Leyden High School District 212, Illinois

"Stop. Right. Now. should be required reading for all leaders who want to make their schools better places for kids. One of the biggest hindrances to forward progress in our education system is the continued use of archaic practices ‘because that is how we do things around here.’ Jimmy and Jeff not only call out what some of these pitfalls are, they offer practical solutions for a better approach. This book is a resource I will be using with my principals this year and I am sure for years to come!"

—Kris Felicello,

assistant superintendent, North Rockland Central School District, New York; cofounder of The Teacher and the Admin Educational blog

"Stop. Right. Now. provides both teachers and administrators with thirty-nine opportunities to reflect on their school and classroom decisions in a way that is positive and action oriented. Schools have functioned based on certain assumptions and systems for decades. Casas and Zoul push us to ask ourselves why we continue to implement these systems and whether they are good for students, good for teachers, and good for the communities we serve. I plan to use this book to help launch discussions about teaching and learning, leadership, and school culture in my school community!"

—Kerry Gallagher, JD,

assistant principal for teaching and learning, St. John’s Preparatory School, Massachusetts

"Stop. Right. Now. is a purposeful and thoughtful book that cuts through the din in the education space. It is the straight talk education needs right now and reminds us of the importance of intentionality in all we do. Wherever you are on your path as an educator, your practice is sure to benefit from this important and convincing read."

—Laura Fleming,

educator and best-selling author of Worlds of Making and The Kickstart Guide to Making Great Makerspaces

Stop.

Right.

Now.

The 39 STOPS to Making Schools Better

Jimmy Casas

Jeffrey Zoul

Stop. Right. Now.

© 2018 by Jimmy Casas and Jeffrey Zoul

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing by the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. For information regarding permission, contact the publisher at books@daveburgessconsulting.com.

This book is available at special discounts when purchased in quantity for use as premiums, promotions, fundraisers, or for educational use. For inquiries and details, contact the publisher at books@daveburgessconsulting.com.

Published by Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.

San Diego, CA

daveburgessconsulting.com

Cover Design by Genesis Kohler

Editing and Interior Design by My Writers’ Connection

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018962681

Paperback ISBN: 978-1-949595-03-1

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-949595-04-8

First Printing: December 2018

Jimmy

I would like to dedicate this book to Dr. Dan Donder, Lucia Murtaugh, and William Andrekopoulos, former Milwaukee Public School administrators who first inspired me and then encouraged me to pursue a career in school leadership. I will forever be grateful for your sincere conversations, guidance, mentorship, and belief in me. I hope to honor your influence on me in my work with future generations of school leaders.

Jeff

I would like to dedicate this book to Bruce and Sally Campbell, two retired educators who were instrumental in my decision to become a teacher. Thank you for encouraging me to pursue the noble profession of education many years ago and for your ongoing love, support, and inspiration ever since.

CONTENTS

Introduction

ONE: Let’s Start … STOPPING

The Pitstop Areas

The 39 Stops

TWO: Let’s Stop

Stop #1: Making Assumptions

Stop #2: Ineffective Grading Practices

Stop #3: Taking Away Recess Time

Stop #4: Relying on the Same People to Lead

Stop #5: Assigning Meaningless Homework

Stop #6: Limiting Learning with Traditional School Calendars

Stop #7: Tolerating Gossip

Stop #8: Preparing Students for the Next Level

Stop #9: Administering Final Exams

Stop #10: Sifting and Sorting Kids

Stop #11: Using Low-Level Questions

Stop #12: Traditional Spelling Tests

Stop #13: Assigning Worksheets

Stop #14: Punishing Instead of Teaching

Stop #15: Relying Solely on Traditional Salary Schedules

Stop #16: Expecting Committees to Solve Problems

Stop #17: Holding Information-Only Staff Meetings

Stop #18: Trying to Do It All by Yourself

Stop #19: Selecting Leadership Team Members Based on Seniority or Position

Stop #20: Placing Pre-Service Teachers with Ineffective Teachers

Stop #21: Reviewing Excessively for Exams

Stop #22: Geography and Spelling Bees

Stop #23: Counting Down, Groaning, and Cheering

Stop #24: Supervising Instead of Connecting

Stop #25: Striving for Mere Compliance

Stop #26: Administering Surveys without Following Up

Stop #27: Focusing on What Students and Staff Are Not Doing

Stop #28: Honor Rolls

Stop #29: Complaining about Dress Codes

Stop #30: Celebrating Non-High School Graduations

Stop #31: Identifying Valedictorians

Stop #32: Suspending and Expelling Students

Stop #33: Making Excuses

Stop #34: Evaluating Staff Members

Stop #35: Insisting I Don’t Have Enough Time

Stop #36: Saying I Hate Change

Stop #37: Changing for the Sake of Change

Stop #38: Sporadically Celebrating Specific Populations

Stop #39: Doing What You’ve Always Done

THREE: Let’s Continue

Start. Stop. Continue.

Conclusion

Bibliography

More from Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.

About the Authors

INTRODUCTION

In 2016 we, along with our friend and colleague, Dr. Todd Whitaker, wrote Start. Right. Now., a book focused on four overarching behaviors of excellence and thirty-two specific actions educators can take immediately to begin—or continue—their journey of professional excellence. When we completed the book, though, we were still struggling to select a title. We had chosen the subtitle, Teach and Lead for Excellence, before we began writing, because we knew we were writing about what sets excellent teachers and school administrators apart from others, but we still needed a title. Finally, with the deadline approaching, Todd said, "Let’s just call it Start. Right. Now."

Like many of our educator friends around the world, we read dozens of books about education each year, and although we find many of them insightful, informative, and even inspirational, we do not always act on what we read. We hoped to communicate to our readers that they could—and should—act right away on what they read in our book. Thus Start. Right. Now. made sense as a title. It brought a sense of urgency to the importance communicated in our subtitle.

In the two years since Start. Right. Now. was published, we have realized something else that is equally urgent and important to education: As vital as it is to start doing certain things, there are just as many—if not more—things educators should stop doing in education. Stop. Right. Now. is the result of that epiphany.

Too often, educators start doing new things without first ensuring that by adding one more thing they aren’t overloading their plates—or their students’ plates. Although we argue in this book for rethinking the amount of time students and staff spend in school, there will never be enough time, no matter how we reallocate it. We therefore believe that educators need to carefully evaluate what they are doing and stop doing that which does not add exceptional value to their students. Time is a precious and limited resource. Educators don’t want to spend it on less meaningful tasks when there are more than enough critically important ones to fill their school days.

We have expected the very best from every educator with whom we have worked throughout our careers. Moreover, we have expected that same standard of excellence from ourselves. Yes, it is a high standard, but educators serve in the world’s most important profession, and nothing less than their very best every day will suffice. If educators are going to expect excellence from their students, themselves, and those with whom they work, they must always focus on the most critical work. At the same time, they must intentionally work to remove obstacles that limit success, deflate the morale of educators, and destroy the culture of schools. The vast majority of educators we know want to give their very best. They work well over forty hours every week, grade papers at night and on weekends, attend their students’ after-school events, and volunteer to serve on a number of extracurricular efforts. Going the extra mile and giving just a little