What I Have Learned So Far This Year

This week will mark the one-month moment in our school year. Hard to believe that a little over 30 days ago we were in our final stages of preparing for students and staff to return. The excitement, anticipation and eagerness is still with us today as it was just a few short weeks ago.

Putting time into perspective, it is hard to believe that one-ninth of the year has passed. You heard that correctly. Thirty days of teaching and learning have concluded. There is no "do-over" for the days and weeks that have passed. How have you made the most of your first month with students and staff? For me, it was full of learning and in many cases, reaffirming all that I believe when it comes to education. With that, it is time to reflect on what those 30 days have taught me. And, in 30 more days I will do the same.

Here is what I have learned so far this year:

1. It is All About Relationships. We were purposeful in how we welcomed our students back. We were intentional in how we established our school culture. And in the end we must sustain those relationships and come back to them each and every day. Our #1st3Days must be in existence all 180 school days of the year. It is how we are intertwined with each other that will set a tone for the direction we will go. (Resources - Sean Gaillard and Bethany Hill)

2. Personalized Learning and Blended Learning are Everywhere. What spent much of last year as a buzz term in education, personalization of teaching and learning for all students is truly taking form as we get into the second month of school. Both administrators and teachers are embracing the craft of ensuring each students academic experience is aligned with their style of how they are taught and how they best demonstrate mastery. Personalization is best practice and has rightfully taken its place in our schools. (Resources - Randall Sampson and Marcia Kish)

3. Homework is Out. Whether a social media revolution or Hattie's work has finally made it into mainstream academia, teachers are realizing that piling up hours of evening work for their students has very little value and in fact is as archaic as rows of desks in classrooms. For those that are well versed in the research, we know we need to move homework out of the students after school experience and instead focus on more impactful practices. We as educators who believe in this shift need to continue to share with your colleagues. (Resources - Connie Hamilton, Starr Sackstein, Samantha Althouse)

4. Space Matters. Three years ago I took on the task of revamping our Media Center in the middle school in which I serve. Having been furnished in the mid 90's, it was time to re-think the space that I considered the hub of our school. Seeking the input of our community, doing some research on higher educational settings and listening to professionals talk about their evolvement of their spaces, we completely overhauled the focal point of our building. Now, students and teachers clammer to head to a location that is open and inviting. With comfortable seating and a mindset of 21st century best practices, our teachers are also rethinking how the space in which they serve students needs to evolve as well. (Resources - Dwight Carter)

5. Instructional Feedback is Essential. This past week I found myself in a couple of tough conversations. I had stepped into a classroom and decided to stay for a while in an attempt to learn a little bit more about the co-teaching delivery that was taking place. While knowing the teachers had good intentions, I found myself a bit frustrated in what I was observing. I took some mental notes, reviewed the time I was in the room for 24 hours and then decided the next day that the teacher(s) and I would need to have a pretty straight forward conversation about best practices. It was time for some intentional feedback. In the end, there is work to be done. The positive is that the teachers are receptive to my involvement and are learners themselves. With this relationship, and an establish growth mindset, students will benefit. Even though it will take some time, I look forward to all parties growing through this purposeful conversations over time. (Resources- Neil Gupta and Jennifer Hogan.)

As you work through your year, make sure to take time and do some intentional reflection on the progress you are making in your own teaching and learning. Having taken some time off from blogging to start the year, I am re-energized to get back at it and tell our schools story in growing as leaders and learners.

Understanding Blended Learning

(courtesy thriftyfun.com)

For the past few years educators have worked tirelessly to ensure that students in today’s classrooms, the same students that are preparing for jobs that don’t even exit yet, are receiving instruction that incorporates devices, or computers, as part of their learning experience. As educators know, incorporating technology is simply, integration. 

As academic leaders we have been spending time and energy, and most significantly dollars, so that technology is a part of each classroom and so that teachers are being supported in their work. With these efforts we have seen results. The investment has been worth it.

For the most part, technology integration was the path that we knew best. We have given teachers support with devices, students or the schools, and we asked them to enhance the learning experience within the classroom walls. We have overcome the barriers.  And in the end we have had some great success.

With all of that said, we are now learning more and more about Blended Learning. For many, the shift is on and we have been hearing more and more about the differences from simply adding technology to how we use this technology within the learning. How are they different? Do we have to toss that all away and head in another direction?

(educationrethink.com)

Then answer is “No”. In fact, if you work in an environment in which teachers and the school community has embraced technology integration over time, you are that much closer to being successful at sharing with your stakeholders the Blended Learning model.

Our technology integration simply needs “tweaked”. 

Blended Learning by any definition is taking the classroom instruction (in all its forms including the use of devices) and adding an online component that supports what is being taught within the classroom setting.  Here are 7 Characteristics of the Hilliard City School Districts Learning Environment of Blended Learning. As you read them, see how they translate into your teaching and how they would apply in your classroom, school or district. And, see how which side of the equation you fall on. Integrated or Blended?

(courtesy Hilliard City Schools)

As you read the language of each, there is a resounding message of connectivity between the traditional classroom setting and the digital elements of the learning environment. Assuming you can uphold the intentions of what Blended Learning is intended to be, then the environments in which are created, and the experience both the teacher and student will partake in, the results will be astounding. 

Now that we are shifting away from integrated and into Blended, make sure to take the time to work with your colleagues. Welcome everyone to the table, have the conversations, share experiences, perspectives and areas of expertise. Know that there can be more than one path to the intended outcome. There has been so much positive accomplished already that we need to build upon on our success. Teachers and their embracing of technology in instruction is constantly on the rise and we should continue to build upon that momentum.

And, of course, ask questions. There is plenty to learn along the way.

Innovation 101

Defining innovation is no small task. For the past few years we as educators have been tossing this word around and observing how it sticks. As a middle school principal with a staff close to 100, I am doing the same. I, along with my teachers, am watching, listening, and learning what it is to be innovative in this era of education.

Being on the cutting edge of best practices, we continue to explore new methods to deliver content and measure student growth. Teachers are allowing students to take more ownership of the lessons themselves and outdated practices are diminishing.

As we talk about the responsibility for the teaching and the learning within the classroom, we are recognizing that it is a shared task by both the student and the teacher. And, more than ever before, we are connected in what we are doing as teachers and how we support each other with our work. Social media is, where access allows it, a part of our daily work and our daily interactions with both students and teachers alike. Embedding today's technology in schools and classrooms is becoming more common and someday, we hope, will be universal for all educators at all levels.

Innovation in your school may or may not look similar to my own. Here are some topics to explore when having conversations with your colleagues about what it might look like as you walk through classrooms in your building:

Bring in Blended Learning—An approach that is taking our academic landscape by storm, Blended Learning combines the formal learning model and the schoolhouse approach and adds an online element to deliver content and instruction. This practice fosters innovation as well, as it allows for an element of student control and speaks to choice and voice in the learning process.

Shift to Project-Based Learning (PBL)—Having focused questions and solid, well-crafted assessments, allowing for multiple solutions, and getting the community of learners involved are all essential elements to a great PBL lesson. For PBL to be most successful, teachers use inquiry combined with accountability.  Schools across the country are working with their teachers to better understand how Project-Based Learning can increase student achievement.

Make Reflection and Feedback a Part of the Lesson—If you are not talking about teaching and learning in the moment, then you are missing the mark. Having students share out what they are learning at the point of delivery and giving feedback speaks volumes  for a teacher’s desire to improve the student learning experience. We need to be giving and receiving as much feedback as possible to support growth. If you haven’t yet done so, it might be time to have this conversation with your colleagues and add this element into your instructional expectations.

Groups & Teams—Sometimes our role as educators is to match our students’ learning styles, abilities, and interests with others—forming the best groups possible to work toward an assignment or academic goal. Being innovative can be as simple as creating groups of learners in a new, timely, and more strategic way. Being innovative can also mean knowing the distinctions that are sometimes drawn between groups and teams, and choosing the right format for the circumstance. Where the term "group" might mean any collection of students—or teachers—with a shared interest or purpose, "team" is more often used when group members not only share a common goal but work together interdependently, and are mutually accountable for that goal.

Make It Personal—I have written about this before and will continue to beat the drum. This is more than just knowing where a student is starting their academic journey at the beginning of each year or each unit of instruction. This is about creating a pathway to success based on their life-experiences, learning goals, and personal abilities. We will continue to be innovative in how we reach today’s students if we are encouraging personalization with our students. In the same regard, we as leaders should implement this same mindset for our teachers through their professional development. Not all teachers need to hear the same message all of the time and we should personalize their learning as much as we do our students.

Lead by Example—Get in the trenches and show what you can do when it comes to being innovative. Whether as a teacher or administrator, if you are not modeling what it is we expect to see from others, then we are no further ahead then where we started. So, get out of your comfort zone and lead, making visible what innovation can look like for all the learners that you work with.

Today, innovation is defining education.  What is included above is nothing more than a partial list of what is taking place in schools everywhere. I would encourage you to grow this list with your own thoughts, ideas, and creativity to best work with teachers and students in your environment.

If we remain focused on developing critical thinkers and problem solvers, being creative and supporting innovation in instruction, then we will have our students (and our teachers) ready for tomorrow.

Written for the National Center for Literacy Education. Find out more by going to their website at www.literacyinlearningexchange.org