Week 32: Changes in Practice

Wow! What a roller coaster the last 32 weeks has been. I have felt many emotions ranging from pure terror to absolute delight (I received my highest tertiary grade ever!). I approached many assessments with thoughts of total inadequacy and wondering ‘How the hell am I going to do this?’ Fortunately, I have shared this journey with two amazing colleagues who have been with me all the way, sometimes dragging me along. We have all had our lows over this time and have been able to encourage and motivate each other.

The biggest thing that I have gained from this experience is how much more we achieve when we collaborate. Criterion 7 of the Practising Teacher Criteria (PTC) states that fully certified teachers promote a collaborative, inclusive, and supportive learning environment (Ministry of Education, n.d.). Having spent so much time over the 32 weeks collaborating with my colleagues it has made me very aware of how much collaboration could boost the learning of students in my classroom. I am more motivated to include collaborative activities in my planning and, while I have a fairly dysfunctional class this year, I have seen glimpses of it having a positive effect on students’ learning.

PTC Criterion 4 requires teachers to demonstrate a commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of professional personal practice (Ministry of Education, n.d.). Right at this moment, in all honesty, I have no desire at all to launch into further formal study such as The MindLab. I am drained. If I never have to write another essay I will be happy. I am, however, keen to further my knowledge of digital applications and devices that I can use in my classroom to further my students learning. I will achieve this by seeking out professional development that I can fit around a heavy workload. This may be attending webinars or undertaking online training courses to upskill. It will also involve participating in forums with like minded educators where ideas are shared.

As ICT leader at my school, my current focus is the new Digital Technologies curriculum coming in 2018 and working on how I can help my colleagues implement this curriculum successfully. We have a wide range of ability when it comes to ICT amongst the teaching staff and catering to everyone’s needs will be a challenge. Obviously I will need to spend some time getting my head around the requirements of the curriculum and this will involve attending consultation meetings held by the MInistry of Education and other professional development opportunities.

Thanks MIndLab for challenging me, for forcing me to reflect on my practice and for opening my eyes to new possibilities.

References

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

Week 31: Professional Context - Crossing Boundaries

My Current and Potential Interdisciplinary Connections

Who will I have interdisciplinary connection with?

The obvious choice for me is my fellow middle school teachers. We already plan some of our curriculum material together and it makes sense that I would collaborate with them to plan and teach in an interdisciplinary way. It seems so logical to present the curriculum in this way, having students relate their learning to real life situations.

As this is the year of our bi-annual school production, Term 3 is a manic term where normal learning has to fit in around production practises, creation of costumes and choreographing dance moves. Our topic for the term is “Colour My World” looking at the Arts. This term leads itself perfectly to an interdisciplinary approach covering all the curriculum requirements but combining this together in such a way that students can relate it to the real life scenario of putting on a production. As a team we can collaborate together planning tasks related to the production. This could occur at our fortnightly team meetings and through our use of collaborative documents in Google Docs.

Benefits of this interdisciplinary connection

• 4 heads generating ideas rather than 1
• students benefit from a more connected curriculum
• students get a more rounded understanding of the Arts as interlinked curriculum areas are taught together

Challenges of this interdisciplinary connection

• 2 members of the middle school team have only been in the team for 5 weeks and 2 weeks respectively so there is still some settling in occurring and we are still working out the new team dynamics
• parents except school to look a specific way so may take some persuading that their children are covering all areas of the curriculum

Week 30: Professional Online Social Networks

I am a frequent user of social media… potentially an addict if I’m honest. I am not a prolific poster but I am a prolific reader/lurker. I check on Facebook numerous times a day. I am a follower on Twitter (rarely a poster) appreciating the posts of educators such as Alice Keeler @alicekeeler and organisations like Edutopia @edutopia. I follow many on Instagram and have recently started using Snapchat. When I look at it, I am a follower not an initiator. A lot of my social media use is to keep myself informed of current practices and trends, to seek advice and search for resources. Being able to connect easily with fellow educators from around the world is a valuable tool (Melhuish, 2013).

In my classroom I use Blogger to operate a class blog which highlights what the students have been doing in class. I often wonder about the value of this as it has not received any comments this year from friends and whanau of my students. Is there a better forum I could be using to include parents and caregivers in our everyday classroom life? We have recently implemented Class Dojo as a behaviour management tool. The platform does have functions for including parent input and the ability for students to actively participate so my holiday task is to investigate this further. Some classes (Yr 7&8) at our school use Facebook but because of the age restrictions on Facebook the teacher does all the posting. I struggle to see the appropriateness of this as is it not promoting underage use of Facebook? The teacher justifies it, saying he is posting not the students. The jury is out for me on this one.

Last year my class of Year 3s and 4s took part in a number of Chapter Chats  which is effectively a book club where participating classes join together at a designated time to interact using Twitter, discussing the chapter read that week. My students enjoyed this but it took quite a bit of coaching about using Twitter, focusing on writing quality tweets that answered the questions posted. One of the challenges of this particular social media interaction was the pressure it put on students who struggle with writing and reading. They needed considerable support to interact and dealing with that together with the pressure of 28 students all tweeting simultaneously was a serious test of my wits.

I have often considered using social media to connect with other classrooms around the world… I think this would be an amazing experience for the students. They are quite sheltered when it comes to seeing that the world is a big place and I don’t think that they realise how different learning is in other parts of the world. Maybe another research task for the upcoming holidays...

References

Melhuish, K.(2013). Online social networking and its impact on New Zealand educators’ professional learning. Master Thesis. The University of Waikato. Retrieved from http://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstream/han…

Week 29: Influence of Law and Ethics

I consider myself an ethical person (my husband just commented ‘very’). For as long as I can remember I have always had a strong sense of right and wrong and have always done the right thing. This may in part be due to my christian upbringing from birth. When I became a teacher five years ago I didn’t really give a lot of thought to the ethical side of the profession, maybe because I didn’t see it being an issue for me. As I progress in my career I can see that we, as teachers, are going to be faced with more and more situations where our ethics are going to be tested. The more we move through the twenty first century the more challenges I think we will face.

In my five years in the classroom I haven’t really faced a major ethical situation/dilemma. There was a case in my second year where one of my Year 2’s sent me a friend request on Facebook but that was a no brainer - I hit decline quick smart. I did question why a seven year old was even on Facebook given the minimum age limit is thirteen.

I have a policy of not accepting friend requests from students and parents of students. To date I haven’t taught anyone over the age of nine so that hasn’t been a problem. As teachers we are constantly on display and potentially being judged. While we are on the job from 8 until 5 (yeah, I know that’s an understatement!), we are always conscious of anything that we do reflecting on us and our school. At the end of last term I took the last week as a week’s leave without pay to go on a cruise, which was a delayed honeymoon after getting married some two years prior. My principal quietly asked me not to post any pictures on Facebook until I had returned or the school holidays had started. Why? Am I not entitled to a holiday like anybody else? Or is it because I’m a teacher I can’t have holidays outside of the school holidays, even if it was without pay? I’m not friends with any parents from school but the degrees of separation are quite small in a smaller city and somebody is bound to be friends with one of my Facebook friends and would it then get back to parents and they question the Principal’s decision to grant this leave? I’m still not sure about this particular situation.

Hall (2001) talks about distinguishing between personal values and beliefs and professional obligations. I had a situation recently where two of my students were having a rigorous debate about the existence of God. Looking for someone to settle the argument they sought me out. Now, on a personal level I could have agreed with one and confirmed her belief that God exists based on my own christian beliefs but as a teacher I have an obligation under the Code of Professional Responsibility (Education Council, 2017) to ‘respect the diversity of the heritage, language, identity and culture of all learners’. I politely pointed out that I couldn’t settle the argument for them and they would have to agree to disagree and discuss it further with their families.

References

Education Council. (June, 2017). Our Code Our Standards: Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession. Retreived from https://educationcouncil.org.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf

Hall, A. (2001). What ought I to do, all things considered? An approach to the exploration of ethical problems by teachers. Paper presented at the IIPE Conference, Brisbane. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Developing-leaders/What-Ought-I-to-Do-All-Things-Considered-An-Approach-to-the-Exploration-of-Ethical-Problems-by-Teachers

Week 28: Cultural Responsiveness

As identified in Tātaiako - Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners (2011), culture has both a visible and an invisible element. The visible is the obvious signs and images that we link we a particular culture. The invisible is the values, morals and thought processes that accompany that culture. When researching what cultural responsive pedagogy was the definition I related to the most was Gay’s (2002, p.106) of “using the cultural characteristics, experiences and perspectives as conduits for effective teaching”. To me it’s about recognising each student as an individual who comes to school each day with strengths and capabilities that are influenced by their culture. It’s about getting to know the student and their whanau and developing a learning approach best suited to them.

My school aims to be culturally responsive in everything that it does. We have a team responsible for the Te Reo Maori curriculum area whose job it is to support staff develop their cultural pedagogy. This is a difficult task as the teaching staff are all at different stages of development and capabilities.

Communication

Our school takes pride in its communication with the school community. We feel it is important to keep whanau informed about what is happening in the life of the school and in the school life of their child. We do this through a number of forums.

The obvious methods of keeping parents informed of the progress of their child’s learning are school reports and parent interviews. These report on both academic and social progress. A new approach this year is more regular contact with the whanau of target students. These are students who are currently just below National Standard and we touch base with families via phone calls or emails monthly, reporting on progress and providing suggestions for what families can be doing at home to help boost the learning of their child.

Facebook is a  another form of communication where whanau can be kept up to date with what is happening in the life of the school. It is where we can share events such as Cultural Diversity Day. On this day our students from other cultures get the opportunity to wear their national dress, share food from their culture and perform dances, etc. Facebook also provides a means of contact, via Messenger, for those parents who have an aversion to face to face or telephone contact.

Learning Activities

I have been teaching for 4 years now and still find it difficult to integrate culturally responsive learning activities into my teaching program. Having been raised in a white, middle class family with limited exposure to alternative cultures I find that I have to make conscious effort to increase my knowledge. Our curriculum team does a fantastic job at supporting all staff but I still, at times, find it difficult. I struggle with not wanting to make mistakes and have a fear of offending someone by butchering things like pronunciation of the maori language. I have been reassured by colleagues with comments such as ‘at least you’re trying’ but I that doesn’t still well with me because how can I be responsible for teaching future generations something when I’m still learning the basics myself?

References

Gay,G. (2002). Preparing for culturally responsive teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(2),106-116

Ministry of Education (2011). Tātaiako: Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners. Wellington: Ministry of Education.  Available at www.minedu.govt.nz/theMinistry/EducationInitiatives/Tataiako.aspx

Week 27: Trends Influencing Education in NZ

One trend in education that has really grabbed my attention is the increased use of digital devices and technology in the classroom. It is something that appeals to the ‘tech girl/apple girl’ in me. I love my gadgets! I’d be lost without my iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch. All of these devices I use in my classroom everyday for some aspect of learning or teaching. Maybe I need to talk to the school about subsidising my next upgrade! 

The 2014 “Future-focused learning in connected communities” report identified that being digitally competent was a necessity for our students to become  successful, contributing members of the modern society. To achieve this students needs to have access to suitable technology regardless of  location, ability and financial means. The importance of digital technology is further emphasised by the introduction of Digital Technologies into the National Curriculum from Year 1 to 13 in 2018.

I am in the fortunate position in my school to be part of the ICT team and am currently the team leader. Keeping abreast with technological developments and sharing my knowledge is part of my job description. We are predominantly an Apple school with all teachers using Macbooks, classrooms having a mixture of Mac desktops and iPads and a pod of Macbooks available for classes to use via a booking system. We have, however, over the last eighteen months acquired a number of Chromebooks (130+ and rising), with classes from Years 3 to 8 having between 10 -16 devices using GAFE applications. In my classroom I am using Google Classroom to present more and more content and students are being introduced to a number of methods in which to complete their learning.

Flipped Learning

One digital learning trend that I would love to try is the use of flipped classrooms where direct instruction moves from the more traditional group learning sessions to individual, self-paced, learning sessions that take place outside of the classroom, ideally at home (Flipped Learning Network, 2014). Group sessions in class then become opportunities for practise, interactive discussion and clarification. One hesitation I had was the lack of access that some students may have outside of the classroom to the internet and/or devices. Peterson (2016) identified a number of workarounds for this situation. She suggested allowing students to access devices in the classroom before school, using the school library during break times or setting up a station where students can view the learning materials while others start the follow up activities. These are definite possibilities. Now I just need to work on the budget to go 1:1 devices in the class!

References

Digital Technologies and the national curriculum – what’s it all about? (n.d.) Retrieved June 15, 2016 from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Curriculum-areas/Digital-Technologies-in-the-curriculum

Flipped Learning Network (FLN). (2014) The Four Pillars of F-L-I-P™ Retrieved June 15, 2016 from https://flippedlearning.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/FLIP_handout_FNL_Web.pdf

Future-focused learning in connected communities (Rep.). (2014, May). Retrieved from https://education.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Ministry/Initiatives/FutureFocusedLearning30May2014.pdf

Peterson, J. (2016, January 14) Flipping the classroom when home access is a problem. Retreived June 15, 2017 from https://www.eschoolnews.com/2016/01/14/flipping-the-classroom-when-home-access-is-a-problem/

Week 26: Socioeconomic Factors, School Culture and Professional Environments

Socio Economic Factors

Our school is a decile 4 full primary catering for years 1 to 8. The roll is currently approximately 420 and still growing. The area is predominantly middle class but it is currently undergoing significant housing development that may have some effect on this. The current enrolment zone includes one of the 'exclusive' suburbs in the region.

Approximately 24% of students identify as Māori and about 5% of students are other ethnicities. These statistics closely reflect the 2013 census data for our community. It will be interesting to see what data the next census reveals as there seems to have been a recent influx of immigrants both to the community and the school.

School Culture

While I have only experienced a small number of schools in my short teaching career, I would have to say that our school has the most amazing culture. This can be attributed to every person within the school; management, teaching staff, support staff and students. In his sabbatical report, Gargiulo (2014) speaks about how the language we use can impact on relationships between teachers and students. Our school prides itself on its restorative practices and this is evident in the language we use both in the playground and in the classroom. This language is not only how we talk to students but also how the students talk to each other. These practices are so embedded in the culture of the school that the language comes naturally.

Our whakatauki, ‘Kaha i ngā wā katoa – Our Best Always’ is on the front walls of all our classrooms and is part of everything we do. Our students and staff display our school values; respect, helping others, taking responsibility, honesty and fairness, and these are explicitly taught throughout the year. At our fortnightly celebration assembly, we acknowledge students who have been seen displaying the school values and achieving other successes. At this assembly the Principal also introduces students who are new to the school announcing which of the four school whanau teams they are joining and the student leaders of these whanau greet the new students.

When I read through Stoll and FInk’s (cited in Stoll, 1998) 10 Norms of Improving Schools I was able to tick off each one as applying to our school. It struck me that all of these norms happen with minimal pressure from management.  

Professional Environment

When I started at this school two years ago I immediately noticed the staffroom atmosphere. I had come from a school where the staff room was very ‘clique oriented’. Teams did not really mix socially or professionally. At our school everyone is at ease with each other. It doesn’t matter where you sit or who you sit next to. Everyone is comfortable, open and honest. This flows through all levels of the school from management down.

We may appear to have a lot of staff meetings a week but they are all beneficial. Monday morning’s fifteen minute meeting is looking at what is coming up during the week. Tuesday afternoon alternates between curriculum meetings and team meetings. Friday afternoon is a chance to review the week, talk about challenges and celebrate successes. While staff collaborate together to plan inquiry units, there is the freedom customise it to suit your learners. We are all committed to providing the best learning and learning environments for our students. You will often see and hear professional conversations going on at all times of the day as staff share concerns, thoughts and ideas.

Education Review Office (2014, Jun 04) Bell Block School Report 04-06-2014. Retrieved May 28,2017 from: http://www.ero.govt.nz/review-reports/bell-block-school-04-06-2014/

Gargiulo, S. (2014). Principal sabbatical report. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Leadership-development/Professional-information/Principals-sabbatical-reports/Report-archives-for-2007-2014/Secondary-award-recipients-2014/Gargiulo-Salvatore

Stoll, L. (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