John H. Zurn
Educational Author- School Consultant
John H. Zurn began his educational career as a teacher in the 1980’s. After ten years in the classroom, he was offered a position as Head of School at St. John’s Episcopal School in Olney, MD. For the next twenty-eight years, Mr. Zurn served as Head of School at three independent day schools in different parts of the country. In retirement, Mr. Zurn has put the lessons he learned about education, about schooling, and about democracy into his book.
Traits for Success
The Case for Character Education in American Schools
The author, a forty year educator, makes the case for emphasizing character education over more traditional measures of academic success in schools. He then presents a yearlong program, Traits for Success, that gives school parameters for establishing strong character education principles.
Traits for Success
Organization: I plan ahead. I have places for everything. I am ready to learn.
Attentiveness: I focus on important things.
Courage: I am willing to stand up for what is right. I challenge myself.
Generosity: I give of myself to others. I act with empathy.
Persistence: I keep trying in the face of adversity.
Positive Attitude: I can do it!
Flexibility:I try new ideas and different methods.
Independence: I can work confidently to solve my own problems.
Collaboration: I work cooperatively and confidently with others.
Responsibility: I can be counted on. I take charge of my learning. I am a kind, honest, compassionate, and respectful person.
Excerpts from the book, Traits for Success….
Nine Lessons I Learned From Forty Years in Schools
(Excerpt from Chapter One of the book, Traits for Success) 1. All students are bright and capable. Even the most intellectually challenged students had gifts to bring to the table. Though there are clearly students with greater intellect, success in the classroom...
What Went Wrong With American Schooling
(Excerpt from Chapter Two of the book, Traits for Success) Thomas Jefferson is often quoted as a Founding Father of American Education. [i] At the birth of our nation, Jefferson wrote extensively about the purpose of schools in an American democracy to educate its...
The Challenges Our Children Face Today
(Excerpt from Chapter Five, Traits for Success) It is time for parents and educators to take back control! We must keep the finance-driven technology gurus and the politically driven corporate masters from gaining an outsized influence over our children. We need to...
My Blogs….
How to Grade for Generosity
Social scientists in the past two decades have clearly stated that human values matter when it comes to defining and managing your measure of personal success. Brene Brown talks about the importance of vulnerability in defining success; Angela Duckworth speaks...
How to Grade for Courage
When our teachers first developed our list of Traits for Success, courage was not a part of it. Several years into the program, we began to understand the aspirational qualities of success in schools. We wanted our children to process that success is not...
How to Grade for Attentiveness
Attentiveness is about the choices a student makes. Is he or she paying attention to the things that are most important? Some students need to pay attention to teacher directions, others to the quality of their spelling work, still others to the quality of...