10 Norms of Improving Schools

Today I was thinking about this quote from Stoll and Fink:

'Schools are either getting better or they are getting worse, because the rapidly accelerating pace of change make standing still impossible'.

They wrote this in 1995.  If it applied then, how much more is it applicable in 2014!  

Louise Stoll writes about the culture of a school and identifies the 10 norms of improving schools
1. Shared goals—“we know where we’re going”
2. Responsibility for success—“we must succeed”
3. Collegiality—“we’re working on this together”
4. Continuous improvement—“we can get better”
5. Lifelong learning—“learning is for everyone”
6. Risk taking—“we learn by trying something new”
7. Support—“there’s always someone there to help”
8. Mutual respect—“everyone has something to offer”
9. Openness—“we can discuss our differences”
10. Celebration and humour—“we feel good about ourselves”
Stoll and Fink (1996)

Eighteen years later these norms are more important than ever. If educators develop and practice these 10 interwoven norms their school will improve. Unpacking how each of these will look in practice will be an interesting and valuable activity (exercise, experience) in some of the schools I work in. 

Thinking about Learning

I have listed all the learning phrases I can think of.  It's interesting to get teachers discussing their understandings of them. 
How is success achieved?  Thinking specifically about:

• Pedagogy
• Learning design
• Learning tools
• Key competencies
• Information literacy skills

Learning beyond the classroom

What does 'Beyond the Classroom mean in 2014? How can educators develop a range of learning behaviours virtually? What tools can be used and what are some ways this learning can be facilitated? This presentation shares some easy ways to use Google Drive. 
My goal is to prompt some meaningful discussion and eLearning exploration.  Achieving this depends on a teacher's starting point and whether their heart and head are open to new learning.   Are they willing to make changes to their teaching practice?

 

Beyond the Classroom from Lyn Ross

A learning tool

The class blog is a powerful learning tool both within and beyond the classroom.  It can be so much more than just a display space! It is an online community which can direct and support learning anywhere, anytime. 
In this video a teacher is discussing the class learning blog with her students.  Together they chose a virtual pet and added it to the blog.

Designing Learning and Blogging

I am a big fan of blogging!  Particularly educators using a class blog as a learning tool in the classroom.  Tapping into the motivational aspects of blogging can make a huge difference to student engagement and achievement.  Students really respond to the idea that their thoughts and ideas will be 'out there' for others to view and respond to if they choose.   By developing an online learning community students can continue learning after leaving the classroom.\
Some ideas for developing the use of a class blog:

Designing learning

Using the class blog

I was modelling to a class of predominantly Pasifika students.  They were learning more about their class blog and how to upload photos and videos. They had been talking about Maori games and leisure activities and the teacher asked my to upload a video showing Maori string games.

I showed how to embed the video below.  The students were asked to do they following (at school or home):

1. Make a loop of string or wool.
2. Watch the video below
3. Follow the video to complete a 'Jacob's ladder'.

Culturally Inclusive Facilitator Framework

My focus today is reviewing goals I set around the  Culturally Inclusive facilitator framework. My goals are:

Tangata Whenua

• To gain more understanding of Pasifika customs and stories.  
• Plan digital learning experiences for students around the stories of their culture

Two of my schools have high Pasifika rolls (80%), so learning about Pasifika cultures is of interest to me.

I found the resource Pasifika Digital Legends. This TKI website contains many stories retold by New Zealand students.

Another resource is a Virtual Learning Network group 'Maori and Pasifika Learners.

Principles of Effective Learning

These principles are compiled from an article by Julia Atkin. 

Every educator needs to reflect on how well their teaching practice and the learning environments they provide meet these principles.
As a facilitator how well do I embed these principles into my workshops?

Principles of Effective Learning

Changing practice

As a part of my professional inquiry I am looking for and planning ways I can change my facilitation practice.  I am trying out new ideas and changing the way I do things.  My main goal is to involve teachers more.   To be more transformational rather than transactional. 

I have used the 'discuss with people around you' technique a lot.  This works well in a conference workshop where teachers might be from different schools.  However, when I am facilitating a staff meeting for teachers from one school I want teachers to be thinking, discussing and co-creating - to put together planning and frameworks which are meaningful for their students and school community.  I feel that my facilitation skills in doing this successfully could be improved.

Getting teachers to co-create successfully is not always easy. I want teachers to include new ideas, not recreate the something that is pretty much the way they've always done things.  It's very important to set the scene well, provide new, relevant information for discussion and to pose thought-provoking questions.  Motivating teachers so they are compelled to contribute is also a major factor and often the culture of the school comes into play here.

I used group brainstorming (below) to get teachers to unpack the elements of effective pedagogy.  This followed a discussion about the pages related to effective pedagogy in the New Zealand Curriculum Framework.

eLearning Planning vs Teacher Hands-on Experiences

I'll start by saying that having meaningful eLearning planning docs in a school is essential - especially these: a vision for eLearning (related to the school vision); an eLearning strategic action plan to help you achieve your vision; a purchase or lease plan which provides a systematic, budget related plan for the acquisition of digital devices; a BYOD framework.

However equally important is individual teachers having a commitment to increasing eLearning in the classroom and beyond.  To achieve this teachers need to be given new ideas, they need to see examples and they need demonstrations of how these ideas can be integrated into learning areas.   They need to practice and build up their own IT skills.  They need to set goals, reflect, share and collaborate.

School leaders need to ask the  question 'In order for the school to achieve our eLearning vision and the desired graduate student,  what IT equipment and teacher practice is needed?'   How will we achieve this?

Achieving eLearning success across a school requires more than the usual eLearning action plan. It requires commitment to teacher PLD (practical ideas, hands-on, skill-building), scaffolding, mentoring, expectation and accountability.  Most of all the teacher needs to identify as a learner.