Last week I had the opportunity to visit Apple for a 2 day learning experience with a group of leaders from the Southern California. While I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures, nor post anything on social media about Apple Park or the work we did (they are top secret there!), I can share some big takeaways and reflections.

Apple is all about intentionality. From the way they designed their amazing park to meet the needs of their community, to the way they design and market their products, they have a clear and focused intention. Did you know that the Apple iPhone box was designed with a vacuum seal to create anticipation as you open it and to close in exactly 4 seconds when you place the cover back on top of the box? Even their buildings and workspaces are designed to encourage accidental and purposeful collaboration between different working groups.

All of this makes me wonder how we are intentional in education.

• When we build classes, design new learning spaces, or consider programs or applications, are we intentional?
• Do we have a clear focus on what we want and how we want to achieve our goals?
• When we decide to start something new, continue something, or stop something, do we have a purpose?
• Are we using our data (qualitative and quantitative) to help us make meaningful decisions?

Take a look at the graphic below, which shares growing and declining skills needed in the workforce by 2022, from the World Economic Forum. Apple agrees that these skills are critical to their work. Did you know that 50% of Apple employees do not have a college degree? They hire based on skills, abilities and products, and they don’t need to be linked to a certain degree. How are schools intentionally developing the skills on the growing list in our students?

Source: https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/datahub/Changes-to-expect-in-future-jobs/3815418-4775590-5wrddh/index.html

“Everyone should have the opportunity to create something that can change the world.”

I loved seeing this quote shared during my learning experience. It is my hope that education provides every student with an opportunity to create something impactful.  Now to ensure we are being intentional about those opportunities…

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Did you know that I wrote a book?  The Coach ADVenture: Building Powerful Instructional Skills That Impact Learning is available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I love interacting with readers via Twitter and my hashtag #CoachADV.