The Little Things

Teachers,
Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday.

The Little Things —
On April 26, 1986, Reactor 4 of the Ukrainian Atomic energy power plan in Chernobyl exploded, polluting the surrounding territory and all of Europe with radioactive particles. There are 211 control rods that regulate the reactivity of the core. As a safety measure, there must be 15 rods inserted into the core at all times. Through the 1600 channels carved in the 4 million lbs. of graphite run water that absorbed the intense heat produced by the nuclear fuel rods. The water absorbs the heat, boils, turns to steam and is used to turn turbines, creating power, and then returns as it cools back into water to restart the process. At the time of the explosion the reactor was due for maintenance. The reactor was slowed down and the emergency cooling system was shut down. Kiev requested to keep the reactor up because of extra power was needed. When the reactor was taken off the grid and slowed down, it had slowed to below the allowable limit because the operator wanted to slow it down manually and the cooling system was shut down. The operator "oversteered" the reactor by trying to regulate the "situation" and not the "process". When the engineers tried to bring it back up it was not going up fast enough, but they decided to go on with the experiments. This was the mistake.

Why? Because they violated the safety rules. They possibly violated the rules because they had done it before and since nothing happened, breaking the rules was reinforced. They did not have to worry about the rules and could act freely to finish the needed work. Safety rules are designed so the violator is not blown sky high but might find their life easier, but the likelihood of disaster increases. The violations had become habits and routine. The operators did these things because they had always done these things. They were of the opinion that the safety rules were designed much too narrowly for an experienced team. By the time they had finished their experiment and reduced the flow of water, the reactor was still too low and there were only 6-8 rods left in the core. When they realized they had made a mistake, they started shoving rods back into the core, but the built up heat in the core had bent the tubes and there were two explosions. It is the little things we need to do to keep everything in check. Keep an eye on the process and procedure and don't let a situation change everything. We may not think something is important, but in the big picture, it can be very important? So what the little things we need to keep track of?

Quote I’m pondering —
"The most valuable thing you can do is make a mistake. You can't learn anything from being perfect." Adam Osborne

What I’m watching —
Another Lex Prin Video
One more Lex Prin video. I love the way he says Halloweens and bless your colleague. Keep them coming Lex.

Favorite Article This Week —
Do You Know What Accountability Really Means
This article reminded me the difference between accountability and punishment. Short article, great information. Especially as we look for student accountability in our classrooms.

A Big Thank You —
Thank you First grade. Your idea of inviting parents every month to be a big part of the classroom has been a big success. so many parents come and participate in the activity with their student. We appreciate you inviting parents into our school to make them comfortable here. Thank you for all you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work. Have a wonderful weekend.