What does it mean to be successful? I often ask others this question and according to the Success Index, a landmark study by Populace and Gallup, most Americans believe in a broader view of success focused on personal fulfillment. This means the majority of people believe that success is about finding meaning, purpose, and fulfillment in life, not simply achieving high test scores and receiving access to elite institutions.
As Todd Rose, President of Populace, shares in his book, Collective Illusions,
“We live in challenging times: there is enormous pressure to go along to get along, to stay silent, or to lie about our private beliefs in order to belong. But blind conformity is never good for anyone—it robs us of happiness and keeps us from fulfilling our potential, individually and collectively.”
Specifically in education, when louder and often more powerful people tout a narrow view of success (and create policies based on this), they drown out the silent majority. Instead of making these aspirations of fulfillment the driver of what we do in education, the legacy of No Child Left Behind and similar policies and practices still permeate our curriculum, leadership, and view of success in many schools. This week I am so excited to share an example of a broader view of success and new accountability models.
With Gratitude,
Katie
