Scripting for Teacher Success!

SCRIPTING? WHY WOULD A TEACHER NEED TO LEARN A SCRIPT?

To have an enjoyable ride home, click on the 10-minute audio file above :)

Thank you for taking the time to hear about how “scripting” can help teachers increase their effectiveness both in and out of the class.

Have you ever gone to McDonald’s and “super-sized” your meal? Of course you have, but why? Were you thinking about “super-sizing” before you walked into the restaurant? It was probably the last thing on your mind. But all it took was the girl at the counter asking just one simple question: “Would you like to ‘super-size’ your meal?” Why do they ask that question? Well, it is no accident. Buy a Big Mac in New York and then buy another in California and you will hear the same phrase, “Would you like to ‘super-size’ your meal?” They have been carefully trained to do so using a script, because scripting works!

“Will that be a medium or large drink?” I ordered medium drinks for years (thanks to scripting!) until I finally asked if a “small” was an option. Apparently there is. “Would you like cheese on that hamburger?” Now that you mention it, cheese sounds pretty good! Do you think these small extra sales add up over the course of a year? Of course they do, which is why scripting is such an important and integral part of any business, big or small.

It is also how all professionals run their offices so successfully. Call any office to reschedule an appointment, and they will use almost the same script whether it is for a doctor, lawyer or dentist. They do this because scripting works, and it puts forth a type of professionalism and confidence for the person calling your office seeking help. It is this same scripting that is absent in education, but which could help us in so many ways if we were to adopt this simple, but effective, business protocol.

I understand that using a script, or “scripting,” will not be easy for many of the “that’s not the way I do it” teachers. For others, it may be an uphill learning curve, but remember, that while change is good it is not always easy. When calling home we have a message to bring, and we must have focus and direction to accomplish this. But how do we get there? We need to know how to communicate our idea to others. We need to know what to say. This is the role of a script.

We could use the popular “I’m sorry to be calling you” opening. Unfortunately, this immediately removes any authority from the teacher making him or her wrong for calling home, because they are beginning with an apology. Parents do not want to hear you are sorry. “If you are so sorry, then why are you calling me?” They want to know - they expect to know - you are the authority and that you need them to take you seriously.

Imagine if when ordering a Big Mac the window person says, “I’m sorry for asking, but would you like cheese on that?” And follows it up with, “Oh I’m sorry again, but would you like to super-size your meal?” Not quite the same as just coming out and asking.

We could use the, “Hi Mrs. Smith. This is Dr. Cubbin - Jimmy’s science teacher. I just want to begin by telling you that Jimmy is a great student and I really love having him in my class, but….” Anything negative you say after the but will sound like a lie, because you just said how great Jimmy is. Which is it, great, or is he difficult? Either way, you are coming across as disingenuous and even worse, weak.

Or we could use a script – to be memorized – to guide us through what to say with each call we make, until we own it. For those who have never used a script before, the process may seem phony and rehearsed. They would be half right – it is rehearsed, but never phony. Some might say, “I just say something different every time I make a call.” Too bad, because that’s not how other professionals make contact. For those of you who are just “winging it,” understand there are two types of phone calls: positive and negative. Positive calls are easy, though some teachers get too carried away and chat as if speaking with their high school BFF, wondering afterwards why the call took 45 minutes. Remember, not all calls to that particular parent will necessarily be positive or require a friendly tone. Negative calls, on the other hand, will have a consistency (negative) in their message and you had better be ready to have those words roll off your tongue to avoid wavering from the bad news you must now deliver.

I vividly remember my brother’s wedding. I was the best man and asked his best friend for advice on how to deliver a toast. He told me, “Prepare nothing – that will just make you nervous, have a couple of drinks to relax you, then just stand up and say what’s on your mind.” That was, without question, the worst advice I have ever received. I gave what was the worst best man toast ever. I still cringe thinking about it more than 30 years later.

Fast forward to my days in practice when, out of sheer desperation, I enlisted a management company that promised results beyond my greatest expectations. There was just one catch: to achieve this greatness, I would have to memorize (not just learn) scripted dialogue that my patients would first hear on the phone, then again in my office, and finally when I would examine them and follow it up with a report of findings. All scripted dialogue designed to effectively carry similar messages to many different patients. I rejected the idea outright at first, but I was caught between a rock and a hard place. I had already once failed miserably by not preparing any words of wisdom (the wedding toast). Now after burying myself in over $100,000 worth of debt, I could ill afford to make the same mistake twice, but I was adamantly opposed to learning scripted words that I just knew would sound stiff, insincere and dishonest. I just knew they would reek of “fake and “phony” (even though I was young and had no idea what I was talking about!) But my mind kept going back to the toast – the worst toast in the history of all mankind. That could not be repeated.

I received all the consultant’s materials and it was pages of script after script. This looked bad. I hated the idea of saying someone else’s words. I am, after all, a doctor! I’m a professional! I know it all! (Sound familiar teachers?) I studied long and hard to learn my trade and was one of the best in my class. But they never taught us what to say to the patients when they come to the office. Did your education professors provide a “script” for you in any of those great education classes?

I swallowed my pride and learned my lines. I learned them so well that I was almost unaware of what was happening. At first the lines seemed choppy and exaggerated – almost fake (even though they weren’t). But each time I said their words, they became my words. In a short period of time, my confidence grew and I began to own the words. They were not just words – they became my thoughts, my beliefs and what I wanted my message to be. It soon became very clear why I was paying this group several hundreds of dollars every month. They were right. They had seen other neophyte inexperienced doctors before and they knew what I needed.

Now I know many teachers will dig their heels in and stick to their guns, just like the new teacher of only two weeks whom I was trying to help when she interrupted me and said, “That’s not the way I do it.” Not the way you do it?? You’ve been a teacher for two weeks… you don’t have a way yet! If you choose not to take this opportunity to learn and grow, then so be it. But remember, scripting is like athletics. It is about practicing your words until you become an expert. Tiger Woods, though talented, would never be where he is today if not for repeating a swing taught to him over and over again. His practiced and rehearsed swing is his script.

Here are a few comments from the experts on scripts…

“Every script I’ve written expressed the things I most deeply believe.” ~ Michael Landon

“And when I’m on set, I’m just thinking about the script...” ~ Jennifer Lawrence

“I only sound intelligent when there’s a good script writer around.” ~ Christian Bale

“It’s difficult when you have to turn down a tremendous amount of money because you don’t like what the script is saying and you don’t have any money.” ~ Tim Robbins

“Even if you fall flat on your face, you’re still moving forward (using the script).” ~ Victor Kiam

And my favorite…. “When an actor comes to me and wants to discuss his character, I say, ‘It’s in the script.’ If he says, ‘But what’s my motivation?’ I say, ‘your salary’.” ~ Alfred Hitchcock  (Teachers might want to remember this one, especially when considering that something as simple as using a script when calling home will improve your skills and make you more valuable to your school and administration.)

Dr. Michael Cubbin,  School Goals Work

If you are interested in learning more about having a "Scripting PD”, contact me.

schoolgoalswork.com / schoolgoalswork@gmail.com / 631-664-7885