On Wednesday I had a meeting with a group of very experienced and influential educators to debrief on the Bammy Awards. They were extremely busy people, so I deeply appreciated that they took the time to come together and discuss their experience at the Bammy Awards. Since they were physically there, their feedback was particularly relevant.

As the meeting began, I saw the standard Oreo-cookie formula unfolding: Start with the positive, give ‘em the negative, close with the positive. As we shifted from the initial “positive” stage to the white of the cookie, I could feel the leader of the group struggling to be tactful and diplomatic. I felt badly about cutting her off mid-sentence, but thought I could ultimately make the experience less painful for all by reminding her that I’m a recovering New Yorker, with genetically adapted thick skin who prefers his criticism straight, no chaser. You could literally hear the tension dissipate as she expressed great relief at being freed to just speak candidly -- and for exactly one hour we did.

We covered some of the same issues we’ve been talking about online this week and I left with an invaluable list of things to work on to make next year’s Bammy Awards better. I thanked them profusely, followed with a thank you note and I thank them again now for their feedback. But what was most noteworthy about the meeting is that it was set up by *them* not me. This was how they chose to deliver feedback.

As I’ve spent this week responding to feedback, reviewing lessons learned and reflecting on all that has transpired, one pivotal question has surfaced: is social media an ideal vehicle for giving “constructive feedback?” Presumably most teachers would agree that it would be bad practice, perhaps even malpractice, to bring a student up in front of the entire school assembly to discuss where and how that student failed at a project. Most teachers, managers, trainers, parents, coaches and people committed to help others grow and improve embrace Vince Lombardi’s axiom, “praise in public, criticize in private.” This of course primarily applies to scenarios in which the intent is to be constructive. If the intent is to be destructive, then certainly the public spectacle wins hands down.

As we all know, being evaluated sits somewhere on the pleasure scale between a root canal and a colonoscopy. Being publicly evaluated heightens the experience. Perhaps this is why there was such an uproar when the LA Times decided to publish local teacher evaluations “to help” teachers and the community improve education.

Most people can tell the difference between constructive criticism and destructive criticism and most people also know that there are few things more cliché than destructive intent being labeled as “constructive criticism.”

The fact that Wednesday’s group of educators (all of whom have access to Twitter) chose to share their feedback with me directly and offline communicated to me unequivocally that they were committed to be constructive and wanted to help. In the New York neighborhood where I was raised, we would call them “stand-up guys.” They are a classy, caring group and I thank them again.

That said, let’s be clear: we are very interested in constructive feedback, no matter how harsh or stinging, painful or deflating, public or private. It’s the only way we can continually improve, so we park the ego and lean into it. However, we all know that there are those who simply don’t like awards, don’t like the Bammys, and don’t want the Bammy Awards to exist. There are also those who are basically okay with the Bammy Awards, but have a very different vision for how it should be executed, and there are hundreds of flavors in that box. So when I look at a post, the first question I ask is, what is the real intent?

I have little confidence that exchanging blog posts with those who see awards as the great Satan will be moved by any thoughts I might share, so I continue to watch those discussions from the bleachers.

In the case of this most recent “open letter” to the Bammys, I must tell you that I’m scratching my head. Justin, you and I have collaborated in the past, and we know how to reach each other. Certainly all concerns expressed here could have been taken up with us directly. The posting of another “open letter” was an interesting choice.

We’ve all seen the open letter used over time with constructive intent. However, the aim is typically to apply social pressure to recalcitrant individuals, groups, organizations, companies, institutions, etc.

The pivotal word here is “recalcitrant.” Not sure we qualify as recalcitrant people unless we count being committed to continue to honor educators across the community in creative and spirited ways. I apologize for my long-winded preface. With that, let’s look at a few of your points.

Most of the issues you raised have already been addressed, so I won’t rehash them. I think the point that really demands examination is the challenge to the “process.” What strikes me about the challenge is the assumption that *any* selection process is without flaws or biases. As you well know, popularity, name recognition, and money are how we select people for the highest offices in our nation. Yes, the Bammy Awards process is almost certainly imperfect. Fortunately, the stakes are a lot lower than selecting a senator or a president. That said, the notion that the selection process is simply about popularity just doesn’t add up. BTW…thanks for doing the math to make the point. Let’s just look at a few of the categories you laid out.

Middle school teacher: There are two highly connected educators in that category with 13,000 and 15,000 followers respectively. The Bammy Award did not go to either of them. It went to Megan Monsen. Perhaps you have heard of Megan Monsen before. I had not and would be surprised if many people have. In fact, Megan was self-nominated and apparently was advanced by two separate Academy panels who voted because of the pretty impressive ways that Megan is making a difference, which are documented here: http://www.bammyawards.com/index.php/component/content/article/56-middle-school-program/1000-megan-j-monsen

Substance: 1 Popularity: 0

The elementary school teacher category is another interesting place to check in. There were some amazing connected educators in this category including the author of the original open letter to the Bammys, Pernille, who has 11, 000 followers, and Erin Klien with 27,000. The Bammy Award went to Traci Blazosky, whom I couldn’t even find on Twitter, but is very involved across the education community as documented here:http://www.bammyawards.com/index.php/component/content/article/62-elementary-school-teacher-of-the-year/720-traci-lewisblazoski

Substance: 2 Popularity: 0

Finally, only one educator took home two Bammy Awards last Saturday. That was Jesse Hagopian, a teacher. He had a grand total of 700 Twitter followers, which is anemic by Twitter rock-star standards. Suggesting that Jesse’s 700 is the cause for his selection, while ignoring the well-documented ways in which he is making a difference, is a disservice to him. Indeed, he was also in Washington last week to testify before Congress. Pretty safe to say he was not invited to Capitol Hill because he has 700 Twitter followers. Jesse is an extraordinary educator, doing extraordinary work. (Google him.)

Substance: 3 Popularity: 0

I must tell you that I have been both surprised and pleased to see how well the system works. Though there is certainly the potential for connected educators to skew the results, the fact that the board of governors cast the deciding votes seems to neutralize that bias. The board of governors is not interested in popularity contests. They are committed to identifying people who are truly making a difference.

Are there cases where popularity has likely swayed the vote? Did Hilary Clinton win a Senate seat in New York in part because of name recognition? Let’s keep it real… of course. But to suggest that the Bammy Awards is just a popularity contest rigged in favor of connected educators doesn’t pass the smell test. Indeed, many of the most popular connected educators with the highest number of followers are not even among the finalists. Moreover, to sweepingly make this claim dishonors and trivializes both the tangible work being done by the honorees who were selected and the time taken by the dedicated educators and advocates on the board of governors who cast their votes.

But at some level, this whole discussion grossly misses the point. The aim of the Bammy Awards transcends the individual Bammy Award recipients. The main thrust of the Bammy Awarsd is around the getting together to celebrate the collective work being done across the entire field. It’s about celebrating the inherent interdependence we all have on each other. It’s about acknowledging all of the things that are right in American education.

I understand and accept that there are many other ways to honor educators, and I support any program that is making a positive contribution. If the Bammys are not for you, that’s fine; don’t participate, resign from the council of peers and support the programs that resonate with you. You are free to walk around the airplane.

However, here is the elephant in the room on the “open letter.” While some are using social media to flip the model, focusing on criticizing in public, every single day we are receiving dozens of heartfelt emails from educators at all levels of the education community who deeply appreciate the Bammy Awards, who loved the event and many who even loved the now controversial humor. The photos taken at the Bammy awards have now been shared by over 35,000 people in the last three days since they were posted. Many of these wonderfully supportive educators have told us that they are heartbroken and deeply disappointed about the discussion that has transpired on line. Do their views count too?

Why have we not heard from many of them you might ask? Like Wednesday’s educators they are not inclined to jump into the spectacle of rancorous public debate. For them “praise in public, criticize in private” is still a worthy principle by which to live, social media notwithstanding.

These days the vocal few often dominate the public impression of where any community stands. We are grateful to the people who are contacting us every single day to offset that perception and encourage us to persist, and so we will.

The notion that celebrating educators has to be either this way or that way is a false choice. Accepting this way AND that way AND maybe a few others is the path to reconciliation.

Finally, this has been an interesting week to say the least. As important as these discussions are, I’m acutely aware that time spent laying down pixels is time *not* spent actually “doing” some of the important work that truly makes a difference in education. While we have been counting Twitter followers and itemizing faux pas, there are some who have actually spent this week doing work that was really meaningful and productive. I’m jealous. Time to go back to work!

Please leave your comments at #bammyawards