Changes in Practice (Week 32)

Can’t quite believe I am writing this last post, it wasn’t long ago that I struggled to see the end however at the same time feel like it was just yesterday I was attending the first MindLab session at Aorere College.

I am in the last collaborative group of teachers from my school to complete the MindLab postgraduate. I was very excited (and a little nervous) to start this journey based on the buzz that the rest of the staff had after each session. All of the new things they would bring to the table, talk about, try out was all very exciting - especially the technology/digital aspects.
Overall I have enjoyed the journey and the challenges to my practice it has made me think about however it was a little less hype or WOW factor as I had hoped. I wonder if it is because of hearing about the different aspects from colleagues during their journey and then doing some research at the time into what those different things are.

I am implementing some things learned through MindLab (trying to focus on only a couple at a time), these can be related back to the NZ PTC.

• Criteria 7: Promote a collaborative, inclusive, and supportive learning environment.

After completing the MindLab as part of a team of three I have a greater appreciation for the environment I am working in and the opportunity to do this together. Having others that can relate to the same school and current journey of the school that we can then relate the weekly MindLab topic to have been invaluable. As well as the discussions, completing assignments as a team and coming up with our inquiry was extremely helpful. These experiences have highlighted to me what the value of working in a collaborative, inclusive and supportive learning environment is. I have begun incorporating that into my practice more every day and in particular this term. Just because I am in a ‘single cell’ classroom doesn’t mean we can’t all work collaboratively and give students the opportunity to do so too. The other year 5 & 6 teacher and I are running rotations with our classes together this term. All students are mixed year levels, home classes and teachers. As teachers, we ‘roam’ between the classes and are using our physical classroom in different ways to provide opportunities for students to be creative and innovative.

• Criteria 5: Show leadership that contributes to effective teaching and learning.

Secondly, the Leadership paper opened my eyes to how complex any leadership role really is in terms of getting people on board when trying to make a shift in thinking. I remember this when being a leader of learning to my students and also when in a leadership role to my colleagues. At this stag, my leadership is being the Environmental Lead Teacher and starting up some new initiatives. I think this part of the course will stick with me when taking on leadership roles in the future, in particular being future thinking and technology based. I will bear in mind the impact different relationships and interactions have and the different groups of adopters into a new way of thinking.

Although I need to investigate further exactly what path I would go down, in the future I would like to continue studying (maybe after a little break) to work towards my Masters.

References:

Ministry of Education (nd). Practising teacher Criteria and e-learning . Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Professional-learning/

Interdisciplinary Map - Crossing Boundaries (Week 31)

I found the way Andrews (1990) defines interdisciplinary collaboration was helpful to me when trying to understand this concept. He describes it as "when different professionals, possessing unique knowledge, skills, organizational perspectives, and personal attributes, engage in coordinated problem solving for a common purpose" (cited in Berg-Weger &. Schneider, 1998). It spoke to me as it shows that at the end of the day so many professionals and experts are working in their area but we all have the same purpose or are wanting similar outcomes. The students/child are the purpose.

The connection that has the potential for further development in the near future is STEAM education. Developing a deeper understanding of our colleagues strengths (within syndicates) and how we could make this work I see as the first step. Creating a planning template that suits our strengths, school and students I see as being a worthwhile investment of time as opposed to one found online etc.

Finding a way to incorporate this into our school and our classroom programme in a way that staff are comfortable with. The main purpose of introducing STEAM into a primary classroom I believe is to make it clear to students where there are crossovers within the curriculum and the purpose - the why and how. Students have buy in when they are understanding the purpose of something and especially when it enables them to be creative and not restricted.

Challenges that we may face could be a few things:

• How to track and students progress when reporting to parents under ‘Reading, Writing, Maths’.
• Having a reporting system or progressions of the Key Competencies in place to help with this tracking and reporting process.
• The initial setup of the programme and the shift for all - parents, students, teachers.
• Following the setup can also include the student's articulation and new language that may need to be taught to get the quality or desired outcomes. Once these are established it is easier to dig deeper into the projects.

I believe the benefits outweigh these challenges in the long run:

• Allowing students to explore, be creative, innovative and have a voice.
• Students (and parents) will understand the purpose and understand the cross overs within the curriculum.
• Opportunities for students to develop their Key Competencies - skills, strategies that they require for this rapidly changing world...we are needing to set them up for jobs that don’t currently exist after all

Mulligan & Kuban (2015)  bring light to the most important part for STEAM to succeed - Collaboration! Positive workplace conditions are at the core for creating a collaborative and supportive environment. Without this environment, teachers are less likely to be willing to feel vulnerable through this time of change. Establishing teams that work well together is key to get the most out of STEAM - after all, no matter what discipline we are from we are here for the same reason - the students.

References:

Berg-Weger, M., &. Schneider, F. D. (1998). Interdisciplinary collaboration in social work education. Journal of Social Work Education, 34, 97-107.

Mulligan, L. M., & Kuban, A. J. . (2015). A Conceptual Model for Interdisciplinary Collaboration. Retrieved from http://acrlog.org/2015/05/14/a-conceptual-model-for-interdisciplinary-collaboration

Professional Online Interactions (Week 30)

Glenbrook School is in its first year of BYOD from years 5-8. This has transitioned from the year 4’s having a wider access to classroom devices last year and digital technology being used more in the curriculum.

In my year 5 & 6 class, I use a range of digital platforms such as Google Classroom however upon reflection for this post I have found that I am not using social media enough or in the most effective way. At the start of the year, my students created their own blogs through blogger.com and I linked them to the class blog. We created QR codes for parents, whānau to ensure they had easy access to see their child’s learning/progress.

The students love posting things on their blog and to be fair has mainly been used as a way to present writing. Through different professional development courses and conferences during the year, it has occurred to me that I should not limit the blogs to this only and what is posted doesn’t have to be ‘perfect’ - it is about the process.

In terms of how beneficial social media (blogging) has been to students learning, I think it would be more around the ‘how to’ of computers, blogging, software etc rather than in learning subjects itself. While this is, of course, useful and they have learned a lot through this exploration it hasn’t benefited the students learning in the way I predicted or initially hoped for.

I agree with Kathy Cassidy and it was a good reminder when she talked about technology being a huge part of students lives - they have grown up in this world, it is not all new to them. This fast-paced changing world is their normal. Why make them come to school and learn like we are in the ‘dark ages’?

The main barrier for this has been due to the ‘busy-ness’ of school work and life and not having the systems in place to ensure it is a regular session where students are uploading posts to their blog. Another challenge has been the audience. By not having a clear audience set up it makes it hard for the students to have a real purpose to what they are sharing, to give it meaning. Even though they get a buzz out of sharing their blog by not having a strong established audience it isn’t as powerful as what it could be.

Next year, I am teaching the same year level. In order to address the challenges, I faced this year I intend to set the precedent of students to take ownership for their learning and therefore blogging. By having a clear guideline of what is expected on their blogs I am hoping it will eliminate my workload of having to check each student's blog so regularly.

As well as this I will have parent information ready to go outlining to them what blogs are, how we will be using them and encouraging parents/whānau to comment on them in a positive manner.

The Influence of Law and Ethics (Week 29)

A dilemma that I and many others have in this ever-growing digital word is around social media and parents/students/colleagues. There are some fine lines that can easily become blurred with the simple click of a button. Although I find it easy to decline any friend or chat requests from students, I find it harder or more of a dilemma to decline parents. Does it or should it make a difference if their child is no longer in my class? If they are a board member and parent? What about colleagues? Is it ok to like or comment on posts on the school facebook page?

Henderson, Auld & Johnson discuss the four common ethical dilemmas that teachers need to consider when using social media. Consent, Confidentiality (Traceability), Boundaries, Recognizing and responding to illicit activities are all points or dilemmas to consider. The main dilemma I am finding at the moment is the confidentiality or traceability through the school facebook page. The school facebook page is run by the principal and two other teachers who mainly add photos of events and upcoming reminders. When I see photos of students or of events that I am proud of the students for my natural instinct is to ‘like’ it. I have to stop myself to think - will parents then ‘stalk’ me as I am now traceable on Facebook, will I offend any other parents if I haven’t ‘liked’ or commented on other posts that their child might be in? The questions are endless.

Glenbrook School has a clear policy as part of the ‘Staff Responsible Use Agreement’. It outlines clear guidelines to ensure Staff are acting appropriately and in a way that also protects ourselves from any backlash. “Teachers should be approachable but they are professionals and should maintain a professional distance” (CTT, 2012), by keeping that distance ensures we are maintaining our responsibility to the profession and upholding high professional standards. Social media has a vast audience all of differing opinions and perspectives. If I was to make a comment or ‘like’ something that was suggestive towards one perspective, while one party may agree, another may find it unprofessional and leave me open to misconduct. “The community has an expectation that a teacher will behave in a professional manner” (CTT, 2012), this is especially true in a small, close-knit community where information is shared through the grapevine very quickly.

Since the Glenbrook School Staff Responsible Use Agreement has been rolled out I have removed the two ‘friends’ I had that are parents and won’t be accepting any other parents whether their child is currently in my class or not. I have accepted colleagues that I know well and have built up a mutual trust with.

To ensure I manage this dilemma I often remind myself of the agreement I have signed during these after-hours dilemmas to double check that my actions are not going to have any repercussions. Although I am not an avid Facebook poster I also manage this to ensure my behaviour and conduct are not overstepping any boundaries and are of an appropriate manner. If I decided I wanted to be posting more controversial posts I would make the decision to keep my page 100% private and not have any professional colleagues etc as friends to prevent any breach of ethics etc.

At times I have observed colleagues often discussing their workplace and although they do not directly state where they work it is very easy to identify where and who they are talking about. I am often concerned where colleagues are asking for legal assistance and others quickly share their opinions. Do they realise this is opinion and not legally binding? Each school is different and each school may have different ethical and digital professional expectations. Would it not be easier and friendlier for the profession to set a very clear guide on what is and what is not acceptable for all? From policies to procedures, from a code of ethics to staff agreements? The Education Council is currently sharing its ideas around our new professional standards but the use of social media is still a grey area.

At this stage, I am quite happy to be more of an ‘observer’ on facebook until the profession can quite clearly draw lines between the black, white and the grey.

Resources:

Connecticut’s Teacher Education and Mentoring Program. (2012). Ethical and Professional Dilemmas for Educators: Facilitator’s Guide. Retrieved from http://www.ctteam.org/df/resources/Module5_Manual....

Henderson, M., Auld, G., & Johnson, N. F. (2014). Ethics of Teaching with Social Media. Paper presented at the Australian Computers in Education Conference 2014, Adelaide, SA. Retrieved from http://acec2014.acce.edu.au/sites/2014/files/attachments/HendersonAuldJohnson_EthicalDilemmas_ACEC_2014_0.pdf

Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness in my Practice (Week 28)

Cultural responsiveness is an expectation at Glenbrook School within our ethos, pedagogy and ethical activeness as New Zealand teachers. At our school, low level activities such as Kapa Haka, tikanga and te reo Māori lessons are compulsory for all. Te Aō Māori and reo is planned for from the Marautanga. Each day every class starts with a non-denominal karakia and waiata. Every child is expected to write, say and display their mihi. This is the front page of their Passport to Success. The belief of knowing where you come in order to know where you are going to is built into the cultural foundations of our school.

Tikanga of Te Aō Māori is linked to both Tainui and Ngati Te Ata kawa within our school, this gives respect to the whenua of where Glenbrook School lies. Small taonga such as the Glenbrook School manaia and blessing which take place for leavers and staff each year are treasured. The board is active using Haautu as a measurement to ensure strategic initiatives are in place. Our kaupapa is what is good for Māori as tangata whenua is good for all, it is part of our inclusive expectation as leaders and communities of practice. This can be described at Mauri oho.

Mauri ora is what we do as everyday practitioners. We lead learning as an action and this is driven by our Values, Vision, and Qualities of Learning. Evidence is gathered through our appraisal as teachers but more importantly, it is on display through our students both Maori and non-Maori. Our 2015 ERO Report identified that at Glenbrook School, non-Maori students were proud to be Maori, just as Maori were. Data indicates that our Maori students are above both the local and national averages. Macfarlane, Glynn, Grace, Penitito and Bateman (2008) highlighted through the Indigenous Epistemology that New Zealand Schools should adopt the Maori key competencies. These being taaritanga (thinking and making meaning), manaakitanga (caring relationships), whakawhanaungatanga (building and maintaining relationships), rangatiratanga (taking responsibility and control over one’s own learning) and whaiwaahitanga (inclusion- participating and contributing). These are similar to our own values of mana, ako, manaakitanga and whakawhanaungatanga.

Our whānau are fully engaged with our school by assisting, their manaakitanga, their trust and their beliefs in the school. Hui is a regular occurrence through both formal and informal korero. However, we have identified that our next strategic initiative is to accelerate the learning engagement with our whānau and especially our diverse whānau. Many of our parents want to assist more at home and assist at school but in depth, consultation has informed us that they do not understand how the modern learning works and what learning is actually taking place. We have in place open mornings, families involved in programmes such as Reading Together and Friends of the School but whānau want more formal assistance. In 2018 we aim to engage whānau learning through student-led workshops, which can be videos and referred to at a later date if whānau are working and cannot attend. The Senior Leadership Team and Lead Curriculum Teams are working on a variety of learning workshops to showcase where learning is visible and in action, ideas from core curriculum are transferred and where learning is multi-curriculum and focused on Qualities of Learning and Values. Each of these opportunities is expected to also role model our cultural practices as everyday expectations. Students get whānau points (house points) for correct pronunciation, correct tikanga and display of values, and they encourage their whānau to do so as well.

Due to a focussed approach within our structures and Spiral of Inquiry, students with cultural backgrounds are clearly identified. Their data is regularly analysed and through Student Progress Plans these students are tracked and supported to accelerate. More importantly, we know these students. We know who they trust most at school, what is important to them, what makes them sad and why they don’t like an area of learning. Our school is accountable and responsible to the second half our NZ curriculum but we are focused on the front half our curriculum where knowing our students, all that makes up our students, from where they mihi from, what they feel they can do to where we know we can take them, we realise their potential as learners.

References:
Macfarlane, A. H., Glynn, T., Grace, W., Penetito, W., & Bateman, S. (2008). Indigenous epistemology in a national curriculum framework? Ethnicities, 8(1), 

Contemporary Trends in NZ and Internationally (Week 27)

The US National Intelligence Council’s (2017), ‘Global Trends: The Paradox of Progress identifies ‘Technology is accelerating progress but causing discontinuities.' In education and our communities of practice this can be identified by those who can afford technology and have the technological capabilities, and those who do not. It is also enhanced by educational structures that weave digital competencies and growth mindsets into everyday school life and those who are brave enough to use the curriculum learners to use digital tools to evolve their key competencies rather than narrow it.

With digital growth comes opportunity and choice. In 2018, the Draft Digital Curriculum is expected to be implemented across all New Zealand schools. Most New Zealand Schools have been part of the School Network Upgrade Project or SNUP. Glenbrook School is a SNUP school and in 2017 adopted a Bring Your Own Device policy for all students in years 5-8. Students in years 3&4 have devices provided for by the school and students in years 0-2 have access to tablets. Students who could not afford devices in years 5-8 have devices provided for them at school.

The Board of Trustees ensured that policy and procedure was in place long before 2017. Communication and consultation with the community occurred throughout 2016 so there were no surprises for parents. Teaching staff are expected to participate in the Mindlab’s PostGraduate programme for digital capabilities and eight teachers will have successfully completed the programme at the end of 2017.

The use of online platforms, digital tools continues to increase with opportunities for students to explore and discover through coding, robotics, digital play and digital presentation tools. Glenbrook School has a balanced lens with digital. Whilst technology is an opportunity and creates choice, students need to play and discover with and without technology so that creativity and innovation may merge with educational accountability. At Glenbrook School, a focus on our Qualities of Learning allows for this balanced approach. Those Qualities of Learning are Collaboration: We work together, Thinkers - We use metacognition and problem solve, Self Managing: We are responsible for our learning, ourselves and others, Communicators: We are confident and effective communicators and Future Focused: We are preparing for our successful future selves.

Digital tools allow staff to share professionally with all communities of practices tools, resources, communication in a timely manner. It enables professionals, students, and whanau to be accountable and responsible as long as clear expectations and procedures are clear from the start. However, this can be difficult when contributing parties do not have the same understanding or expectations. From using shared tools or communication unprofessionally or beyond procedures or the Code of Conduct not being upheld within social media, technology also has the platform to bring our profession and professionals into disrepute. It is important that professionals, Boards of Trustees and school have clear and simple policies, codes of conduct and procedures in place so that infrastructure and practice are focused on educational outcomes and key educational competency outcomes. If staff can learn these within a team approach then model these deliberately with students, then technology can remain a way forward for positive opportunities to play, explore and discover.

References:
National Intelligence Council. (2017). Global trends: The Paradox of Progress. National Intelligence Council: US. Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/files/images/globalTrends/documents/GT-Main-Report.pdf

Current Issues in my Professional Context (Week 26)

Glenbrook School is a 140-year-old rural school with a decile rating of 7 which can be located in the Franklin, Auckland region. Whilst the immediate surrounding lands are farms and growers, the school serves students from the local town and beach areas. These families are a mix of large and small family groups, single parent families and a large group of students with special needs. There are 10% of Māori in the school and a Pasifika population of 4%. The majority of our population is Pakeha.

Glenbrook School has undergone a series of deliberate change over the last three years with the new principal. After extensive consultation with the community, the school identified four values at its core. Whakawhanaungatanga- At Glenbrook School, we work as a community together, Manaakitanga - At Glenbrook School, we care for people and the world, Mana- We are respectful, strong and resilient and Ako - We are all learners. These values have formed the foundation of its culture and high expectations.

The school’s strategic plan and initiatives have a simple and clear focus each year. This year it is has been to have authentic collaboration and collective responsibility. All communities of practice are focused with this simple purpose. All meetings, professional discussion are deliberately structured around success for this approach as a staff with a lens on writing. We are always asking ‘What is the purpose of this purpose?’. We know where we are going, we know what we need to succeed and have the support and facilitation to get there (Stoll 1998). The environment is professional and teachers are encouraged into pathways for leading learning, taking risks and sharing where to next.

The school is proactive rather than reactive so issues from socio-economic purposes are minimal. The school provides for students where necessary either financially, emotionally or in other areas of need. This is done with mana and dignity. Relationships and knowing our learners and their families ensure the school knows when and where to assist. Students that need assistance with stationery, lunches or trips are helped. Families that need counseling, parenting support or external agencies are sought and supported. Due to this proactive lens, very few issues arise and if they do they are dealt with immediately by leadership and confidentially. Our values and our ability to model those values underline to the culture of our school and this is the expectation from those that engage at our school.

The unknown factor for our school moving forward is population growth. Glenbrook is part of a Special Housing Association (SHA) and over the next few years, 800 new houses are being built. This will bring diversity and a shift in a community where rural living is valued and Calf Club days or running around in bare feet are part of our identity. The impact for the school is unknown but strategic analysis identifies a possible change in socioeconomic status, cultural beliefs, student needs and an understanding of rural purpose. Glenbrook School is on a journey of building the capabilities and skills of staff in preparation for it. This includes most teaching staff have completed Post Graduate study and there is a plan to assist staff through a Masters programme.  The leadership team is being coached by the principal in how to construct and deliver a strategic plan and initiatives so that they have the leadership skills to lead and build in others the skills to lead learning. Stoll‘s (1998), Norms for improving the school, are part of the collaborative approach Glenbrook School is on. Our interpretation of the Spiral of Inquiry has been used as a driver to shift our staff pedagogically so we trust, are vulnerable and have purpose to enhance the school culture and values. This enables clarity, purpose, and simplicity.

References:

Stoll. (1998). School Culture. School Improvement Network’s Bulletin 9. Institute of Education, University of London. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Understanding-school-cultures/School-Culture

My Practice within the Community (Week 25)

The communities of practice I belong to include the Glenbrook School Teachers Team, Glenbrook School Mindlab Team, Glenbrook School Senior Learners Team, Franklin EnvrioSchools Schools Team and I lead the Glenbrook Schools Environment Team. For the purpose of this reflection I am going to focus on the Glenbrook School Teachers Team.

These communities are identified as communities of learning as I actively participate them in as an educational professional, as a learner and as a leader of learning.

Wenger (2000) discusses such practices as they relate to joint enterprise, mutual engagement and a shared repertoire. Glenbrook School’s vision of ‘Realising Potential’ is the foundation of all active participation within the teams (shared repertoire).

Examples of activities of events that members of my community engage in are:

Staff meetings - every staff meeting is deliberately structured to discuss learners and learning as an action. Every fortnight our Professional Learning Network as a staff uses the Spiral of Inquiry (Kasser and Halbert, 2014) to drive our purpose.

Professional conversations - administration and expert advice are sought to assist staff as leaders of learning, in unpacking what visible learning (Hattie, 2012) is, how we can co-construct the learning process with students regardless of age so that we model and learn with students. The majority of discussions are focused on the students in front of us and how we know them as learners and what tools they need to identify for themselves how to articulate their learning so that is has purpose. These include professional conversations with Senior Leadership, our own communities, specifically identified experts, whanau, the students and informed by recent research.

The culture of the school thrives because it has been set up for teachers to take risks and be vulnerable with each other professionally and safely. We are encouraged to include students as part of their active and reflective journey so that learning as an action is modelled as it happens rather than as an outcome. Whole school data and staff analysis identified metacognition as the action that we would work on as a team.

This focus and priority approach has contributed to my sense of place and connectedness within each community of practice. The sense of achievement and belonging with small acts such as knowing the name of each student, and being able to understand how our school values are the pillars which hold our communities together. These values whakawhanaungatanga, ako, mana and manaakitanga, allow us to move in between each team with a common purpose - to ensure each student is able to realise potential through learning as an action. My own growth and emotive purpose within these communities continues to blossom. I feel I can try new things, find someone or a community to support my ideas which contribute to this lens. I am listened to and valued, encouraged and excited. Most of all I am empowered as a leader of learning within each community.

As I have grown from a beginning teacher in 2015 to an active member and some cases a leader or facilitator, each role has contributed towards my confidence, kete of knowledge but more importantly my mana as a leader. Each role such as facilitating the Reading Together Programme, leading the Arts in Choir, G-Factor, or STEM opportunities such as EPro8, or sports has increased opportunities to connect with community members and shape each member’s lens of Realising Potential. Participating in Mindlab within our Glenbrook School team has now added an academic lens and like the students and learners I work with each day, every community of practice moulds not only the potential of all of learners, but gives me the tools to actively construct with each community member their realisation of learning as an action and key to Realising Potential.

References:

Hattie, J. (2012). Visible learning for teachers: Maximizing impact on learning. London: Routledge.

Kaser, L., and Halbert, J. (2014). Guide to the six phases. noii website

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Wenger, E.(2000). Communities of practice and social learning systems. Organization,7(2), 225-246.