Education Revolution: Dr Cheryl Lundy Swift Of Learning Without Tears On Innovative Approaches That Are Transforming Education
An interview with Eden Gold
Grace should be extended to your students, families, fellow educators, and yourself.
The landscape of education is undergoing a profound transformation, propelled by technological advancements, pedagogical innovations, and a deepened understanding of learning diversities. Traditional classrooms are evolving, and new modes of teaching and learning are emerging to better prepare students for the complexities of the modern world. This series will take a look at the groundbreaking work being done across the globe to redefine education. As a part of this interview series, we had the pleasure to interview Dr. Cheryl Lundy Swift.
Dr. Cheryl Lundy Swift is the host of Literacy Matters: Empowered Conversations where she interviews renown literacy researchers, authors, and practitioners to explore today’s early literacy landscape and to provide school leaders, teachers, and families practical solutions. Cheryl also serves as Learning Without Tears’ Director of Professional Learning and Academic Partnerships where she leads the curation of professional learning experiences for teachers and school leaders worldwide and partners with schools to provide practical literacy solutions. Cheryl is an award-winning educational leader, curriculum developer, motivational speaker, and facilitator; her unique mix of wit, grit, and passion ‘edutains,’ inspires, and equips school leaders, teachers, and families to help students reach their fullest potential.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share the “backstory” behind what brought you to this particular career path?
I wanted to be an attorney since I was nine years old. In college I was Vice President of the Oliver Hill Pre-Legal Society, and I worked at the Virginia State Bar during the summers of my second, third, and fourth year at University of Virginia. I was selected for an externship with the Attorney General’s Office during my third year but quickly discovered that I did not like it. I was distraught. I called one of my mentors in tears. He gave me sage advice and suggested that I wait to apply to law school until after I had worked in the private sector. I worked for almost four years before I discovered my calling while serving as a cheerleading coach for 10-, 11- and 12-year-old inner-city girls. I found myself just as concerned about their academics and showed up early to tutor and stayed late to guide families in educational decisions. I cried for six months because I did not want to be an educator, but it is the best decision that I ever made. It shouldn’t have been a surprise in hindsight, I loved “playing school” and pretending to be a teacher to my classroom of dolls and stuffed animals.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Educators have some of the most interesting things happen to them every day. The children and families that we serve bring us so much joy and really make things interesting. When I think about the most interesting thing that happened to me, I immediately connect to a lesson I learned from my grandmother who I affectionately called Ganny. She taught me to speak up. She would say, “You have not because you ask not.” With this lesson in mind, my supervisor and I wrote a letter to Ellen DeGeneres in hopes she would acknowledge our teachers, but happened was even more interesting and even more of a blessing. Ellen DeGeneres and Walmart gifted our entire 2017 graduating class of 2017, 4-year scholarships. Ellen flew the entire class to Los Angeles from New York. Some of our scholars had never even been to an airport much less on an airplane. The genuine joy and authentic gratefulness from our scholars still gets me weepy. It forever changed the lives of our students as well as the trajectory of their families. Almost all of them have graduated from college and many have even completed graduate school. There is so much possibility in inquiry.
Can you briefly share with our readers why you are an authority in the education field?
I consider myself an authority in the education field because I never let my knowledge rest. I am still learning and growing. I don’t know everything, and I don’t pretend to know everything. I view myself as a learner first, teacher second, leader third, parent fourth, and scholar fifth because that is the order I was able to serve in the respective capacities. I have more than 27 years of varied educational experience including classroom teacher, school leader, coach, executive, motivational speaker, curriculum developer, professional developer, and podcast host. I have had success with students, families, teachers, and school leaders. Some of that success has come after failing forward. My personal passion and mission are to help children reach their fullest potential. I think that supporting educators and families to help children become strong listeners, speakers, readers, and writers is one of the best ways to achieve that mission.
Can you identify some areas of the US education system that are going really great?
I think our US education system is at a tipping point. There are shifts that have been made that have put us on a better path — including moving to more science-based reading practices. In fact, 39 of the 50 states as well as the District of Columbia have passed laws and polices related to more science-based reading practices in schools. I had the pleasure of keynoting an address at the Alabama Reading Conference and it was inspiring to highlight schools and entire states that are doing great work in the literacy world including districts like Seaford Public Schools in Seaford, Delaware, or many districts in the state of Mississippi. In addition, the science-based literacy practices, I am glad to see that we are investing in on-going professional learning for teachers and school leaders, differentiating instructional approaches to ensure equity and access for all children, leveraging technology to better include all families including those who work non-traditional hours and who are non-English speakers, and increasing PreK initiatives.
Can you identify the key areas of the US education system that should be prioritized for improvement? Can you explain why those are so critical?
To support the US Education System, we must focus on providing adequate support and resources to those individuals within the profession. This starts at the very beginning with our universities preparing our future teachers and school leaders with a greater alignment to the differentiated needs of the classroom and providing PreK- 3rd grade teachers and school leaders the tools necessary to deliver high-quality science-based reading instruction. This shift must also continue as they move into their careers with demonstration of respect and salaries that align to the dedication and energy that they put into their work each day. If I am being honest, all the areas I mentioned in my previous response can always get better as well.
Please tell us all about the innovative educational approaches that you are using. What is the specific problem that you aim to solve, and how have you addressed it?
I feel incredibly honored to serve as a podcast host for Literacy Matters: Empowered Conversations. My aim is to help teachers, school leaders, and families understand how to translate literacy research into practical strategies they can use in the classroom, throughout their schools or district, or at home. Every month, I have a conversation with a thought leader who shares their research and/or experience to help new, novice and experienced teachers and school leaders make a difference in learning outcomes for children. This work has helped me hone my abilities to communicate more effectively about teaching and learning allows me to collaborate to solve school-based issues and concerns. For example, one of my guests, Leah Mermelstein and I created an Effective Explicit Instructional Model that can be used in any discipline.
In what ways do you think your approach might shape the future of education? What evidence supports this?
When I was a Principal, I often met with staff, students, family and community members at my conference table. It was at this table that I would remind them of the power of a conversation. A conversation can lead to better understanding, peace, an idea, forgiveness, change, inspiration, and love. My hope is that my conversations with thought leaders empower our listeners to do something to make a difference by improving their own teaching or the learning experiences of teachers. There is so much research that supports the power of story. According to research, stories are remembered up to 22 times more than facts alone.
How do you measure the impact of your innovative educational practices on students’ learning and well-being?
It’s hard to measure the influence of my work on students in a quantitative way. But in a qualitative way, the longest measuring tape in the world can’t record it! What I mean by that is that each day I do my best to put words and ideas into the universe about teaching and learning, and children, that I hope will be agents of change. With each podcast, each download, each share, each comment from listeners, my heart skips a beat. I think about some overworked principal in Chicago, a teacher in a rural town who craves collaboration with others, or a parent who is seeking support for their child, hearing one of these conversations, and feeling lighter, grabbing a pen and scribbling down something that was said. Or a teacher in a rural town, or a parent whose child just qualified for special services. So, I measure the impact like that. I’ve come to understand that it’s not enough to inspire — educators, schools, and classrooms need information. They need to know the What, the Why and the How. So, I book guests with an ear to visionaries who can talk in practical terms. And in every role in education I’ve had, I am only as good as my questions. My inquiry. Sitting beside a seven-year-old struggling to read, each question is designed to boost confidence in the child to see their potential, to envision the next step they might take. Same is true with Literacy Matters. I ask the questions not to give someone a platform to say something eloquent about what’s wrong, but to compel them to articulate what’s right, and what has been proven to work.
What challenges have you faced in implementing your educational innovations, and how have you overcome them?
With the podcast, I am as challenged as everyone to be heard amidst a vast chorus of education voices and choices. For lasting innovation to happen, enough people have to listen, learn, and act. So, we can never go fast enough in my opinion, in getting the podcast out to greater numbers, all over. And I’ve been in education long enough to know that alas it’s a Byzantine system. The entire system needs massive reflection and reinvention. It’s tough at times to live in this space between seeing glimmers of light and sky, of positive change in schools — and know that sometimes the system itself collapses down on itself. If I were Queen of the World in education, I’d make sure that every student had access to a high-quality education and that every educator was treated like and paid for the complex and sacred work they do every day.
What are your “5 Things I Wish I Knew When I First Started”?
1 . Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. (Don’t strive for perfection, strive for excellence.)
2 . Your students are some of your best teachers.
3 . Grace should be extended to your students, families, fellow educators, and yourself.
4 . Teaching positive habits of mind is as important as teaching content.
5 . Be open to observe, talk to, and learn from everyone!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
One of my favorite life lesson quotes is by Maya Angelou, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” I was educated in a rural area and I came from very humble beginnings. Back then, schools tracked students based upon their parents’ education. My mom and dad were high school graduates, so I was initially placed in “general education” classes. Students in these classes were not encouraged or expected to go to college. But my science teacher, Mrs. Boiling saw me and believed in me. She saw that I was not being challenged. One day she marched me down to the principal’s office and demanded that they put me in the comprehensive track, or she would quit. I remember the principal asking, “What if she doesn’t do well?” as if I wasn’t standing there. She said, “You don’t have to worry about that.” She vouched for me. She stood up for me. She did something above and beyond what was asked of her. I don’t remember all of the science concepts she taught me, but I remember feeling special, smart and capable.
We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂
I hate to cheat here. I would love to break bread with Oprah Winfrey. She has been a source of comfort and inspiration. My first year of teaching, I created the Cheryl Lundy show. It was actually a show about the books that we would read. Students would act as the characters from the books and even make commercials of things from the book. She is an incredible force of love, kindness, and hope.
My big, hairy audacious goal is to interview my literacy hero Levar Burton. I have also been trying my darndest to get LeVar Burton to be a guest on my show. LeVar Burton embodies one of my favorite quotes by Frederick Douglass, “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” I am on a relentless mission to make sure that more and more children are liberated by becoming proficient readers. LeVar, if you are ready for this, let’s do this!
How can our readers further follow your work online?
I am still learning and growing as it relates to social media, but this is where they can find me:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cheryllundyswift @CherylLundySwift
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SwiftSpeaking @SwiftSpeaking
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swifttalks/ and
https://www.instagram.com/literacy_matters_with_cheryl/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryl-lundy-swift/
Thank you so much for these insights! This was so inspiring!
About The Interviewer: Eden Gold, is a youth speaker, keynote speaker, founder of the online program Life After High School, and host of the Real Life Adulting Podcast. Being America’s rising force for positive change, Eden is a catalyst for change in shaping the future of education. With a lifelong mission of impacting the lives of 1 billion young adults, Eden serves as a practical guide, aiding young adults in honing their self-confidence, challenging societal conventions, and crafting a strategic roadmap towards the fulfilling lives they envision.
Do you need a dynamic speaker, or want to learn more about Eden’s programs? Click here: https://bit.ly/EdenGold
Education Revolution: Dr Cheryl Lundy Swift Of Learning Without Tears On Innovative Approaches That… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.