Almost September...

As we are getting ready for another school year, thoughts about what to focus on start to emerge. Evidence-based research in education is fundamental to helping teachers understand relevance. As a result, we will be looking at the work of John Hattie in his book Visible Learning for Teachers.
Part of our PLCs will look at Part 2 of his video outlining his work that you can find below and then focus on some of his specific slides. The answer is clear. Teacher Mindsets is where to begin. We need to acknowledge what we think about teaching and about the power of learning and through reflective practice on how much we haven't done will we be able to pull students beyond their own potential.
Once we understand that it is about our teaching and not about "those kids" will we be able to accept feedback, to clearly observe the process of learning and then to feel comfortable with breaking down the physical and emotional barriers that constrict us from sharing with others.
I am looking forward to this movement this school year.

http://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/media-speeches/guestlectures/pdfs/tgls-hattie.pdf

June

Can't believe that we are starting to plan for the next school year already! It seems like my head is spinning with all the various learning that took place this school year-let alone have to think about the next school year. We are starting to discuss class placements, student support checklists, at risk students and notification of this in the OSR and timetables. Along with all of this, we are discussing the topic of professional learning for our staff meetings as well as our PLCs. One of the clips I hope to show our staff is the one from Rita Pearson

This connects us all as educators- no matter what position we currently  hold. By grasping on our similarities we can continue to understand, to move forward and to support.

Secord and Model Schools

Secord is a Model School for Inner City. As such, we have participated in 5 Modules that enhance best practices. We have been able to work around these modules to build capacity in our staff. On May 8th, we will be hosting the MSIC cluster meeting here at Secord. To introduce how we have been able to put it all together, we have a video that we will show. Our teachers then will outline how they are able to work on incorporating best practices with intentionality in their own planning.

Bullying

Over the weekend, I spent my time talking to my 8 year old nephew who revealed a very scary truth...he was the victim of bullying that has been going on for a couple of weeks. In between his tears, he was able to tell me how he felt, words like lonely, sad, confused appeared in conversation. He just could not understand why a child would chose to make someone feel this way. And he never said a word to me, until this weekend. He suffered in silence, playing alone in the schoolyard. As an educator, I have witnessed these events and tried to educate to empower the bystanders and the victims to have a voice. I just could not believe that the very things I fight against every day were the same voices that are now attacking my nephew. How can I protect him when I am not at his school? Why couldn't people at his school see his sadness? I can't help but wonder how many other kids are suffering in silence...how many of them are just not telling... I think as a society we are beyond bullying awareness. We all know that there are bullies and that there will be bullies. What we need to do is shift our thinking and raise awareness for the power of victims and bystanders. Let's create an education program that focuses on the power of bystanders and what they can do. Instead of focusing our attention in hoping that bullying goes away, let's educate others to look within themselves to create a difference for those who have been silenced, for those who don't have the strength or the courage to end their own personal turmoil. Let's raise awareness on what we can do as an individual, as a group, as a school culture, as a society. Only then, when the voices get louder will they be able to yell "STOP!" and for that message to be heard.

Learning About Learning Goals

We have been on a journey towards understanding formative assessment this year at Secord. We have taken the Assessment As Learning process and broken it down into smaller parts so that we have enough time to think about the process, put it into practice and then reflect on its practicality. The teachers have made thinking visible at Secord by stating specifically what students are learning and the reasons why they are learning what they are. Based on our professional learning on the Boys Learning Strategy, we have come to a common understanding of the "so what?" the reasons why we learn. We are focusing our attention now on what the students are learning rather than what the students are doing. This change in thinking has allowed us to see the difference between a learning goal and a learning task. We are proud of the work that our teachers are doing at Secord. Our students are exposed to the purpose of their learning and this purpose allows them to "check-in" with themselves- to use their own metacognition to question..."If this is why I am learning this then how do I make sure that I am really learning?" Here is a celebration of our learning as a collective community.

Embracing the Present

On-line teaching and learning

A couple of summers ago, I had the pleasure of being asked to present at a Teacher-Librarian Summer Institute. I unfortunately had a date conflict and was unable to physically be there. I was however, still able to deliver the inservice via online learning to colleagues. Below is the presentation.