The 5 principles of highly effective teachers: Pierre Pirard at TEDxGhent

Summary

The speaker, a former CEO turned teacher, shares his insights on leadership and teaching. He emphasizes the importance of believing in one's team or students, setting ambitious goals, making those goals a priority, and planning strategically for success. Drawing from his own midlife crisis and transition from corporate to classroom, he highlights the transformative power of education and the role of teachers as leaders in guiding students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, towards achieving their potential.

Takeaways

• 😀 Leadership is crucial in both managing companies and teaching in a school, as it helps in guiding teams and students to achieve great results.
• 🎯 Successful leaders apply four basic principles: belief in their team's ability, setting goals and vision, prioritizing these goals, and careful planning to achieve objectives.
• 🌟 The speaker experienced a midlife crisis that led to a career change from CEO to a teacher in a challenging school environment.
• 🏫 The school in Molenbeek, Brussels, serves underprivileged children with low socioeconomic backgrounds, presenting unique teaching challenges.
• 🤔 The speaker questioned why some students achieved poorly in certain subjects but well in others, indicating the importance of teacher impact.
• 📚 Mrs. Anony, a successful teacher, emphasized the importance of believing in students' potential, setting ambitious goals, making these goals a priority, and planning purposefully for success.
• 🔑 A key to teaching is to invest in students' lives, as demonstrated by Mrs. Anony's proactive approach in engaging with students' families to support their learning.
• 📈 The speaker learned that teaching, like leadership, requires hard work, resilience, and a steadfast belief in students' capabilities despite setbacks.
• 🌱 The experience taught the speaker that teaching is not just about humor, authority, or content mastery, but also about restoring students' self-confidence and making school meaningful again.
• 💪 True leadership in teaching involves guiding students to success, ensuring they perform at their best and fulfill their potential.
• 🌍 Education is viewed as a powerful tool for change, with the speaker advocating for access to excellent education for all children, regardless of their background.

Q & A

What are the four basic principles of leadership mentioned in the script?

The four basic principles are: 1) Believe in your team's ability to achieve great results. 2) Set goals and develop a vision for the company. 3) Make the goal or vision the everyday priority of the employees. 4) Plan carefully and purposefully to achieve objectives.

What was the speaker's professional background before becoming a teacher?

The speaker had a background in managing companies for 25 years, focusing on making each quarter more profitable.

What prompted the speaker to change their career from a CEO to a teacher?

The speaker experienced a midlife crisis, which led to a desire to give more sense to their work and to make a difference in the lives of underprivileged children.

What challenges did the speaker face when they first started teaching?

The speaker faced challenges such as low student motivation, lack of basic knowledge among students, and the reality that teaching was not as easy as they initially thought.

How did the speaker's perception of teaching change after interacting with Mrs. Anony?

After learning from Mrs. Anony, the speaker realized that teaching, like leadership, requires believing in students, setting ambitious goals, investing in their lives, and planning carefully for their success.

What is the significance of the story about Sadya and the book by Barvel?

The story illustrates the principle of setting ambitious yet achievable goals for students and how it can motivate them to overcome their dislikes or difficulties, such as Sadya's aversion to reading.

What was the issue with Hannah's spelling deficiency and how was it addressed?

Hannah had a significant spelling deficiency. Mrs. Anony addressed it by setting a goal for Hannah to stay after school for additional practice and by personally convincing Hannah's parents of the importance of this extra help.

What was Mustafa's goal and how was it tailored to his interests?

Mustafa's goal was to be able to summarize a difficult article in 200 words every week. Mrs. Anony tailored the goal to Mustafa's interest in football by giving him articles related to the sport to help him concentrate and improve.

What is the secret to Mrs. Anony's success as a teacher according to the script?

Mrs. Anony's secret to success is a combination of believing in her students, setting ambitious and meaningful goals, investing in their lives, and planning carefully for their success, along with the understanding that hard work is required from both the teacher and the students.

How does the speaker describe the impact of education on changing the world?

The speaker quotes Nelson Mandela, stating that education is the most powerful weapon to change the world, and emphasizes the importance of ensuring access to excellent education for all children, regardless of their socioeconomic background.

What personal realization did the speaker have after their midlife crisis and change in career?

The speaker realized that leading as a teacher involves the same principles as leading in business, and that there is immense satisfaction in seeing students who were expected to fail succeed in life, such as opening their own businesses.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Transition from CEO to Teacher: Leadership in Business and Education

The speaker reflects on their 25-year career as a CEO, highlighting the importance of strong leadership through four basic principles: belief in team potential, setting goals and vision, prioritizing these goals, and careful planning. After a midlife crisis, the speaker shifts careers to become a teacher in a challenging school environment, realizing that the same leadership principles apply. The speaker's initial expectations of teaching are contrasted with the reality of low student motivation and lack of knowledge, prompting a deeper inquiry into the factors that lead to success in education.

05:00

🔍 The Impact of Belief and Goals on Student Success

The speaker delves into the varying outcomes of students under different teachers and identifies a key difference: the belief in students' potential and the setting of ambitious, measurable, and meaningful goals. Mrs. Anony, a successful French teacher, shares her teaching principles with the speaker, emphasizing the importance of believing in students, setting clear goals, making these goals a priority for students and their families, and planning backwards from the desired outcome. The speaker learns that effective teaching is about leadership, investment in students' lives, and adapting to their individual needs.

10:00

🌟 Embracing the Challenge: Lessons from a Transformative Teaching Experience

The speaker recounts the challenges and rewards of teaching in a difficult environment, drawing parallels between leadership in business and education. Despite the hard work and frequent setbacks, the speaker remains committed to the belief in their students' success. The speaker shares inspiring examples of students overcoming the odds, highlighting the transformative power of education and the role of teachers as leaders. The speech concludes with a call to action for leaders to ensure access to excellent education for all children, regardless of their socioeconomic background.

Keywords

💡Leadership

Leadership is the ability to guide, influence, and inspire individuals or teams towards achieving goals. In the context of the video, it is the common element between managing companies and teaching in a school, emphasizing the importance of strong leadership in both scenarios. The speaker shares that great leaders apply four basic principles, which are central to the video's theme of effective leadership in different settings.

💡Midlife Crisis

A midlife crisis is a period of emotional turmoil and introspection that many people experience in middle age, often questioning their purpose and direction in life. The speaker mentions a midlife crisis as the catalyst for a career change from a CEO to a teacher, highlighting the transformative power of such a crisis in leading to new paths and challenges.

💡Underprivileged

Underprivileged refers to individuals or groups who lack the same access to resources, opportunities, and privileges as others in society, often due to social or economic factors. In the video, the speaker describes teaching underprivileged children, emphasizing the challenges and the need for special attention and belief in their potential for success.

💡Vision

A vision is a clear and compelling image of the future that guides decision-making and actions. The speaker talks about setting goals and developing a vision for a company or educational objectives for students. It is one of the four principles of leadership mentioned, illustrating the importance of having a clear direction for success.

💡Motivation

Motivation is the drive or desire to achieve goals or complete tasks. The script discusses the low motivation of students and how it affects their learning outcomes. The speaker learns from a colleague that believing in students and setting ambitious goals can help increase their motivation and lead to better results.

💡Belief

Belief is the acceptance that something exists or is true, especially one without proof. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of believing in one's team or students' abilities to achieve great results. This belief is a foundational principle of leadership and teaching, as it influences the attitudes and self-perceptions of team members or students.

💡Goals

Goals are specific, measurable objectives that individuals or organizations aim to achieve. The speaker outlines the importance of setting ambitious, measurable, and meaningful goals for students, as part of the leadership principles that can lead to progress and success in education.

💡Investment

Investment, in the context of the video, refers to the commitment of time, effort, and resources into something with the expectation of a return. The speaker talks about investing in students' lives, such as visiting a student's home to convince parents about the importance of additional school time, illustrating the deep commitment required for educational success.

💡Planning

Planning is the process of organizing and making decisions about a project or situation in advance. The speaker mentions that great leaders plan carefully and purposefully to achieve their objectives. In education, this involves creating an efficient path to success for students, as demonstrated by the example of planning backward from a defined objective.

💡Progress

Progress refers to the act of moving forward or improving in some way. The video's narrative centers around the idea of student progress as a result of applying leadership principles in teaching. The speaker's journey from a CEO to a teacher is also a personal progress, as he learns and adapts to a new role with the aim of making a difference.

💡Education

Education is the process of acquiring knowledge, skills, beliefs, and habits, particularly through formal learning. The video emphasizes the power of education as a tool for change, with the speaker's personal story highlighting the transformative impact of education on individuals and society. The speaker's mission is to ensure access to excellent education for all children, regardless of their background.

Highlights

Leadership is crucial in both managing companies and teaching in a school, requiring strong belief in the team's ability to achieve great results.

Four basic principles of leadership: belief in team, setting goals, making the vision a daily priority, and careful planning.

Speaker's midlife crisis led to a career change from CEO to a teacher in a challenging school environment.

Teaching in Mullen Bake, described as the Bronx of Brussels, to underprivileged children aged 15 to 22.

Initial challenges faced in teaching, including low student motivation and lack of basic knowledge.

Observation that student performance varies greatly depending on the teacher, indicating the importance of teaching methods.

Mrs. Anony's effective teaching principles: belief in students, setting ambitious goals, making goals a priority, and purposeful planning.

Example of Sadyia's progress with reading, showing the impact of setting ambitious yet achievable goals.

The importance of involving students' families in their educational goals, as illustrated with Hannah's case.

Mustafa's case demonstrates the effectiveness of purposeful planning tailored to individual student's interests.

Mrs. Anony's secret to teaching success: hard work and perseverance despite challenges.

The realization that teaching is not just about humor, authority, or content mastery, but also about leadership and effect.

The speaker's commitment to the first principle of leadership: always believing in students' ability to succeed.

A quote on leadership emphasizing guiding others to success and ensuring everyone performs at their best.

The speaker's personal transformation from a CEO to a teacher and the profound impact on student success.

Nelson Mandela's quote on education as a powerful weapon for changing the world, highlighting the role of leaders in education.

A call to action for leaders to ensure access to excellent education for all children, regardless of their socioeconomic background.

Transcripts

[Music]

what is the common elements

between managing companies all over the

world and teaching in a school in in

Molen

bake Le ship in both job you need strong

leadership to manage

companies and to teach to kids who face

huge difficulties let let me tell you

how I came to that conclusion for for 25

years I've been managing

companies I've tried to make sure that

every single quarter was was more

profitable and and I really enjoy that

I've learned that strong leaders apply

four basic simple principle the first

one they

believe that their team can achieve

great

results and because they believe that

their team can great achieve great

results their team start to believe also

they can achieve great

results second thing they set goals

develop a vision for their

company third to make sure that this

goal this Vision become the everyday

priority of their people their

employee and last great

leaders they plan carefully and

purposefully to make sure they achieve

their objective I mean that's what great

leaders are doing and I've tried to do

that for 25 years I mean it's really a

tough

job four years ago I was in my mid-40s

and and I I fa what we call a midlife

crisis

uh midlife crisis is a very simple

concept I mean suddenly you realize that

living is not forever I mean it's a

little bit like a ghost curve you know

you at the top of the hill and suddenly

you see the end at the

Horizon and you ask yourself this basic

question what do I do now I mean which

track do I take to go down the hill I

mean do I take the same track or do I

take another the route to go down and

personally I felt the need to to give

more sense to what I was doing and so I

totally changed my professional career

from a CEO I became a teacher in Mullen

bake in what some magazine called the

Bronx of

Brussels I'm teaching the professional

section to kids or young adults between

15 to 22 years old mostly coming from

the marican

communities and those children are

coming from low social economical

backgrounds I mean they they are what we

call underprivileged

children I thought that teaching will be

great I mean you know you working what

20 hours per week you have plenty of

vacation you are sitting in front of

people eager to learn from

you well I'm not sure if there are

teacher in the audience today but you

know that the reality is slightly

different I mean the start of my career

was not easy I mean my colleague warned

me they told me Pier well don't put your

expectation too

high I mean their motivation is very low

they don't know

much what I thought they were testing me

or killing me but actually they were

right in my class none of my student

were capable to give me the results of

10% of 100 when I talk about Stockholm

they thought I was talking about a rap

singer and and Ja brell is the name of a

subway station in Brussels you

know and when I face the reality of this

new job I say but how is it possible

that kids who have spent 10 to 15 years

in a bench in a school in Belgium know

so little I mean kids who are far of

being

stupid they have a great sense of humor

good common sense I mean what what

happened to them I mean why are they in

this situation so I also realize that

those

kids who face disaster results in some

classes actually achieve very good

results in some other classes same kids

different results so actually there were

two type of teachers there were the

teacher where the students achieve very

poor results and the other one where the

teacher and the students achieve great

results so this really trigger my

attention so I went to talk to both my

colleague and to the first group of

colleague where the the kids achieve

poor results I asked them this very

simple question what can I do to make my

student

progress and the answer I receive we

always going in the same

direction well Pier what can we

do how do you want to teach to kids

where there's no books at all

where where the parents do not speak

French or flamish

friendly well let me tell you the truth

Pier that's what my colleague told me

there is very little that teachers or

school can

do they even talk to me about a Lost

Generation let me tell you today what

the other group of colleague told me the

one where the kids achieve great results

among those group there was one teacher

Mrs anony

and she she's a French

teacher and in her class the kids were

always

there with high

motivation and they have good grades so

I want to ask her this question but how

do you do it I mean what's your secret I

mean do you pay

them and Mrs anony is a great teacher so

she really took the time that day to

explain to me her principle of

teaching and she told me Pier if you

want your kids to progress you have to

apply four basic

principle the first one she say you have

to believe in

them you have to believe to make sure

that every single one of them can

achieve great results regardless where

he or she is coming from whether her

parents are rich or poor whether he was

called Muhammad or Jean and you need to

make sure that also they know that you

believe in them so they start also to

believe that they can achieve great

results once you deeply and truly

believe in them you have to set a goal

which is ambitious measurable meaningful

for your student and she gave me a great

example she tell me take sadya sadya

don't like

reading and Mrs Antony gave her a very

ambitious goal she said well sadya by

the end of the year by no by

you will read a book of barvel it's not

an easy one and you will do it in two

weeks time and you will enjoy

it by November I saw sadya finishing a

book of am Noto 122 pages and she was

eager to start a new

one so once you set the goal you need to

make sure that the goal that you have

given to your student become the

everyday priority of the student and

their family you need to invest in their

life she gave me another example Hannah

Hannah had a great deficiency in

spelling and because of that Mrs Antony

told her well you need to stay at school

every day after the normal school

time the parents of Hannan will not

allow this so Mrs Antony went to see the

parents of Hanan in her home discuss

with them convince them and told her it

was a right thing to do for Hannan Anan

is now spending every Tuesday and

Thursday at school and she's making

dramatic

progress the last principle that Mrs

Antony told me is probably the most

difficult one you have to plan

purposefully from from the objective

that you have defined you have to plan

backwards to create an efficient path to

success take Mustafa Mustafa is one of

my student I mean he's incapable to

concentrate for more than 2 minutes

unless you talk about football okay his

goal was to receive his goal was to be

able to summarize in 200 words a very

difficult article from the M

newspaper every week Mrs anony gave him

an article a little bit longer a little

bit more complicated so that Mustafa was

capable to see his own

Improvement on that specific day the 10

of October 2009 N Mrs anony probably

gave me the the

best speech lesson on teaching but on

leadership believe in your team set

goals like for Sadia invest in your

student like like for Hannan and plan

carefully like for

Mustafa but like every great

leaders Mrs Antony had also small secret

you know and I remember oh she almost

whispered to me that secret and she told

me

Pier you and your student will have to

work hard because it will not be

easy and she's right I'm working much

more than 20 hours per week you know

much more and I've learned so much in

those last four years I thought that

teaching had to do with I don't know

sense of humor Authority respect

mastering the content of your classes

your courses of course teaching has to

do with all this but for those kids who

have lost so much of self-confidence who

are so far behind where school do not

have meaning anymore teaching as leader

show outstanding effect I mean since

since then I've tried to to apply those

four principles it's not easy I fail

many times I mean sometime my vision is

too high it's not clear

enough sometime I come home very

frustrated because of the lack of

motivation of my student but there's one

thing I don't give up it's the first

principle I always believe they can

succeed there's a great quote on

leadership which said that true

leaderships lies in guiding others to

success in ensuring that everyone is

performing at their best doing the work

they are pledged to do and do it well

this is exactly what great teacher are

doing in

Mig they're probably the best leader

I've

met so so four years ago I've decided to

change my life you know I was in my

midli crisis and but I'm still

leading well there's a big

difference from my previous job as a CEO

there's no better feelings than the one

that you have when you feel and you see

one of your student who was supposed to

fail going to Upper School or open his

shop like like dunia just open a shop a

few weeks ago in Excel number 125 Ron I

told her I will make some advertising

for her okay so please go to

see Nelson Mandela say once that

education is the most powerful weapon

you can use to change the world so let's

make sure that in this country in 2013

all leaders will use this weapon so that

every children will obtain access to

excellent education regardless of their

social economical background thank

you