Persistently Curious and Consumed by Thoughts of Failure
Ranked first on the Thinkers50 list of most influential management thinkers, Amy Edmonson published a tome this past year (2023), Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well, which is a helpful lens through which to look and consider the intersection of psychology and reality, when it comes to failure. Martin Reeves interviewed her recently for Rotman Management (Winter 2024), framing his questions on concepts from her book. My pencil notations and underlinings got me thinking about Edmonson’s distinction of types of failure, as well as other elements of psychology and awareness that are worth contemplation by the independent and international school sector.
How to Interrogate Your School's Data
We think it's misleading to insist that, when schools are rich in data, quality decision-making will follow. However, an abundance of data is no crystal ball. To make quality decisions, there are principles to be followed, starting by the first question: what is the decision to be made, and why must it be made? The second question deals with the nature of the decision (e.g., is it the only decision of its kind, ever? Highly unlikely.). How one responds to those questions determines the subsequent actions. Among the subsequent actions is likely analysing the data that the school has to-hand.