Rethinking Leadership

At the beginning of December, I had the opportunity to take my 10th and 12th grade English Language Learners to London for four days.  When my colleague told me he couldn't come on the trip after we had already booked, I felt a moment of panic.  How could I possibly lead a group of teenagers around a city I barely knew myself?  I had only been in London one other time and then I had stayed with a girlfriend and let her lead me.  After several sleepless nights trying to figure out the details of the daunting task ahead of me, I awoke one morning with some clarity.  Like the first rays of sun shining through after days of fog, I knew how I could lead the trip.  Simply don't lead.

That very morning, I brought my idea to the students and framed it this way: "Since this trip is about learning English, developing the skills necessary for travel in an English speaking country, and the chance to experience British culture, you will plan and lead our London travels.  If I do all the planning and leading, I'll learn a lot, but this is about your learning."  They were thrilled.  They thought I was the coolest teacher, because I let them plan the trip.  I told them we could visit any of the tourist attractions as long as they could justify why it would help them learn English and something about British culture or history.  They spent a few class periods researching and then presenting their ideas. They developed the itinerary.  They figured out how to get from one site to the next.  They seemed prepared and I impressed upon them that their research was not merely academic--I truly did not know how to get around and I was counting on them completely.

When we finally arrived at the airport a day and a half late due to snow at Heathrow, they switched in to full leadership mode.  Everyone had a role and took it very seriously.  The student responsible for getting us from the airport to the hotel had done his research well.  Although we missed the last Tube trip out of the airport at midnight, he knew there was also a train and led us through the airport to get to it.  The student responsible for getting us to Madame Tussaud's wax museum the next morning figured out the Tube lines and got us to the VIP entrance of the museum in record time.  The young man responsible for our first group dinner used his free time to visit the restaurant, organize a private room, and a set menu for our group.  The students granted the 'leader' for each event the right to ask the questions, figure out the transportation, and walk in front of the group.  Very impressive!  It was a privilege to travel with this amazing group of students from Bavarian International School.

The 3 minute video created by one of the talented students in the group captures the feel of the trip.  Enjoy!