Stepping into 2019

During this year I have had the opportunity to experience a variety of aspects of life here at Katikati College. From working with a great collaborate team of year 7/8 teachers, to assisting my HOF/Dean with restructuring and streamlining procedures around student leadership and planning, to being a part of the teachers item in the school LipSync competition and now stepping up to the challenge of the Deputy Principal role. 

I have seen, even over a very short time, huge change within the school structure and processes. The need for me to be able to sit back and 'ruminate' rather than 'react', is something I know I need to work on. With my role in the school in a constant flux and the re-imagining of the Learning Centre and structures/processes around it, the need for me to be more  rigid with my own thought/problem solving processes is important in order to fulfill my role.

Why I need to apply this:

The Ladder of Inference will help me draw better conclusions, or challenge other people's conclusions based on true facts and reality. It can be used to help me analyse hard data - carefully looking at the data that will be produced from the new Learning Support Register. I can also use it to help validate or challenge other people's conclusions and my own about events or problems as they arise.

The step-by-step reasoning process will help me to remain objective - and not to just focus on assumptions and, when working or challenging others, reach a shared conclusion without conflict.

The following steps will help me to challenge thinking using the Ladder of Inference:

1. Stop! It's time to consider your reasoning.

2. Identify where on the ladder you are. Are you:

• Selecting your data or reality?

• Interpreting what it means?

• Making or testing assumptions?

• Forming or testing conclusions?

• Deciding what to do and why?

3. From my current "rung", analyse my reasoning by working back down the ladder. This will help me trace the facts and reality that you are actually working with.

• At each stage, ask myself WHAT I am thinking and WHY. As I analyse each step, I

may need to adjust my reasoning. For example you may need to change some assumption or

extend the field of data you have selected.

• The following questions can help me work backwards (coming down the ladder, starting at the top):

1. Why have I chosen this course of action? Are there other actions I should have

considered?

2. What belief lead to that action? Was it well-founded?

3. Why did I draw that conclusion? is the conclusion sound?

4. What am I assuming, and why? Are my assumptions valid?

5. What data have I chosen to use and why? Have I selected data rigorously?

6. What are the real facts that I should be using? Are there other facts I should

consider?

4. With a new sense of reasoning (and perhaps a wider field of data and more considered

assumptions), you can now work forwards again – step-by-step – up the rungs of the ladder.

REMEMBER: 

Use the Ladder of Inference at any of stage of my thinking process.

• Is this the "right" conclusion?

• Why am I making these assumptions?

• Why do I think this is the "right" thing to do?

• Is this really based on all the facts?

• Why does he believe that?

When I am working through my reasoning, look out for rungs that I tend to jump - like to the top in severe reactive situations!
Focus on not making assumptions too easily.
Don't select only part of the data, get the whole picture before making conclusions.

Note my tendencies so that I can learn to do that stage of reasoning with extra care in the future.

Try explaining my reasoning to a colleague or friend. This will help me check that ymy argument is sound.