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Kim Cousin Challenging Topics, Communication Tools, Communication with Parents and Guardians, General, Genius Hour, Health & Safety, Learning About Your Students, Making a Difference Through Education, Use of Technology, Wellness

Gaming…safely?

We have been trained to watch for concerns of a child’s well being. This didn’t include cyber information. As a responsible teacher I’m drawing the attention of students to current events. During this time of sharing, my students have become more relaxed and open about their after school activities which include gaming for many.

When a child discloses information about their safety we are obligated to report this to children’s services. Write down the facts, call and make a statement, fairly straight forward.

When a child shares information about interactions in Gaming, what do you do? I make a judgement based on what the information is, then I write down the facts are that were shared, then what? I’m really not sure where we go from here. I call the family and have a conversation? I chat with the principal? I provide the student with avenues of help, help lines, internet safety….

This is a new world which effects all of our students. Access to our vulnerable young students is wide open on the internet especially with group gaming and social media. Education is a form of protection. When a child is doing something their family may not agree with, they are reluctant to share concerns and can easily become victims of online abuse. How do we help? Keep open communication lines with students and their family. We all want our children to be safe.

Deb Weston Advocacy for change, Advocacy for public education, Diverse Learning Needs

6 Reasons to Say No to EQAO

testing_cartoon

Large scale assessments, like EQAO testing, were developed to support standards-based education reform on the premise of setting high standards and establishing measurable goals in order to improve learning outcomes in education.

This blog highlights how EQAO testing does not achieve its goals and, in fact, hinders learning outcomes, especially in marginalized student populations.

1. EQAO testing is unfair to students with special education or English language needs

In EQAO testing, all students are treated equally. This means that students with low intellectual levels or learning disabilities are made to write the test. Students who have low levels of English knowledge are made to take the test. There are some exemptions for students which are hard to obtain and when students are exempt, students’ tests scores of zero are counted in their school’s overall scores. These barriers to learning result in lowering school’s test scores.

Treating students all the same does not differentiate learning needs. Students who cannot read or write, due to an exceptional learning need are made to take the test. For example, I had one student, who was non-verbal, sit in front of a computer for three hours unable to complete any part of the grade 3 EQAO  test. I have also had students who just came to Canada from a non-English speaking country, sit in front of their EQAO test paper with a blank look. Schools with many special education classrooms or high levels of English language learners have lower school scores, as these students, due to their circumstance, cannot complete the EQAO tests.

The bottom line is that EQAO testing is unfair for many students.

2. EQAO testing is unfair to students with low socioeconomic factors

In EQAO results, there is a direct link between low test scores and low socioeconomic factors. Socioeconomic status impacts language development which results in decreases in vocabulary, phonemic awareness, and an overall ability to read and comprehend text (Perkins, Finegood, & Swain, 2013). In addition, “The family stress model connects poverty with parental emotional distress that affects parenting, whereas the parental investment model involves a focus on basic needs that affects children’s language (Perkins, Finegood, & Swain, 2013, p. 1). The result of this disadvantage of poverty is that schools in areas with low socioeconomic status tend to have low EQAO test scores (Langois, 2017). Schools in wealthier areas tend to have higher EQAO scores than schools in lower socioeconomic areas. 

This is why real estate agents use EQAO test scores to sell residential property – to assess the socioeconomic status of a neighbourhood.

The bottom line is that EQAO measures socioeconomic status. 

3. EQAO does not honour education policy

Through the Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119, Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools, it is stated that there is a need for our “publically funded education system to support and reflect the democratic values of fairness, equity, and respect for all” (Ministry of Education, 2013).

The bottom line is that EQAO testing procedures do not “reflect the democratic values of fairness, equity, and respect for all.”

4. EQAO diverts schools’ resources and energy away from meeting students’ learning needs

EQAO testing focuses schools’ resources and energy on doing everything to increase test scores. In my years as a teacher, I find that EQAO takes over schools and students’ learning. Grade 3 and 6 teachers become obsessed with cramming curriculum into the year before the test. Some administrators direct teachers to only teach math and language, while students miss out on social studies and science. Redirecting learning turns teaching into test focused, score based tunnel vision.

This test focused, score based tunnel vision has other impacts on school practices. There is a great deal of documentation in the Ontario College of Teachers citing teachers and principals who have changed students EQAO test answers so their school will receive more favourable test score rankings.

Why do educators cheat? 

Cheating is a big problem in government testing. Teachers and principals alter students’ answers to get better results. Cheating happens internationally. Low test scores in the US have caused teachers and principals to get fired. High stakes testing puts great pressure on educators to produce good EQAO scores.

The bottom line is that EQAO highjacks teachers’ teaching and students’ learning.

5. EQAO is not a standardized, statistically measured test format

EQAO test results are very difficult to decipher and it is often unclear how the test scores really inform educators about student learning.  

Ontario’s Education Quality and Accountability Office, the source of the EQAO testing, does not cite any reliability or validity results that ensure the test questions are actually measuring the intended skills.  A test is valid if it measures what it is supposed to measure. The EQAO website does not cite checks of Test-Retest Reliability, Cronbach’s alpha for measuring of internal consistency, Convergent reliability, or Confirmatory Factor Analysis.

I wonder about the consistency or reliability of EQAO test marking. Reliability in testing means that two identical student answers would be marked the same or in other words, test marking would be consistent. I wonder if EQAO has sufficient test procedures, checks, and tests in place to ensure reliability.

Further, I wonder how much EQAO test scores are used to inform teacher practice. Some schools use the results by breaking down specific areas of need but this takes time meaning in order to do a proper job of this analysis, teachers would need to be released from their teacher duties to do this work. Further, it would be beneficial for teachers to have some knowledge of statistics in order to assess their school’s results.

Ontario students do participate in international testing PISA (Program for International Student Assessment), TIMSS (the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study), and PIRLS (the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) and Canada usually does well, ranking in the top 10. Note that some of the scores in the Asian countries do not reflect all students as poorer students or students with disabilities do not participate in this testing for many reasons. Canada still does well compared to those countries.

Finally, I also wonder why a statistically minded organization like EQAO uses the words “standardized” tests to describe their testing. To be standardized, these tests would have to be statistically normalized on a bell curve like CAT (Canadian Achievement Test) and CCAT (Canadian Cognitive Ability Test) tests.

The bottom line is that the EQAO test structure is not statistically reliable or valid.

6. EQAO testing costs offers questionable return on investment

In considering the above points, EQAO offers questionable return on the public’s investment. EQAO testing cost $30,000,000 in 2014. That’s a lot of money that the province could be using to fix schools.

My question: Do the EQAO test results merit $30 million dollars worth of data?

Overall, I do not see the value of EQAO testing. As a teacher, I have never used the scores – sometimes I never get to see the scores.

Let’s put our education dollars into areas where the funds can improve learning. The real estate agents will have to think of another way to sell residential listings.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston

References

Alphonso, A. (April 21, 2018). Government-commissioned report recommends Ontario should phase out Grade 3 EQAO test, Globe and Mail. Toronto. Downloaded from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-government-commissioned-report-recommends-ontario-should-phase-out/

Hassan, F. (February 6th, 2014). It’s time to scrap province-wide testing, Toronto Sun. Downloaded from https://torontosun.com/2014/02/06/its-time-to-scrap-province-wide-testing/wcm/dc995597-1dd0-4fa4-8afb-801a797611d3

Langois, H. (2017). Behind the Snapshot: Teachers’ Experiences of Preparing Students in Lower Socioeconomic Status Schools for the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test. University of Toronto, Ontario.

Ontario Education Quality and Accountability Office. (2013) Top Reasons Standardized Testing in Ontario and the United States Are Not Comparable, Education Quality and Accountability Office, Ontario. Downloaded from http://www.eqao.com/en/about_eqao/media_room/communication-docs/infographic-EQAO-US-Comparison-print-version.pdf

Ontario Ministry of Education. (April 22, 2013). Ministry of Education Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119: Developing and implementing equity and inclusive education policies in Ontario Schools, Ontario Ministry of Education. Downloaded from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/119.pdf

Perkins, S. C., Finegood, E. D., & Swain, J. E. (2013). Poverty and language development: Roles of parenting and stress. Innovations in clinical neuroscience, 10(4), 10.

Wong, A. (2016). Why would a teacher cheat? The Atlantic.

 

Michelle Fenn General

Intentionally Planning with Colleagues

Most educators are routine oriented which in the classroom is a necessity.  Routines bring us predictability and comfort.  My classroom planning was also routine.  I remember spending the majority of my Sundays planning for the week and getting annoyed and almost panicky when I had a social event interfere with my Sunday planning.  Once I had a child, I had to adapt and as I gained experience I realized that I was planning way more than was needed and had no flexibility in my program for arising student needs or interest.  I became involved in Instructional Rounds for Assessment for Learning with my school board and began to intentionally plan with the support of colleagues.  It gave me the opportunity to reflect on my practice and to have feedback with educators that shared the same growth mindset.  It shook my teaching world at the foundation and rejuvenated me as an educator.

It is easy to operate in a silo in education.  You can close your door, stay in your classroom and go directly to your car after school.  I don’t recommend teaching that way.  Not only will you burn out quickly, but your teaching practice will stagnate and you won’t have much work-life balance.  Plan with a colleague.  Make the time.

Yesterday I was able to plan with an NTIP teacher as her mentor.  She teaches Kindergarten.  I haven’t taught Kindergarten in almost 20 years so it was professional learning for both of us.  There is a perception that Kindergarten is incredibly different from the other elementary grades but when you plan intentionally for inquiry, you are thinking like a Kindergarten teacher.  Within a few hours we had planned overall expectations and specific learning activities for guiding the students through inquiry connecting literacy to coding and robotics.  We started with clustering Kindergarten Curriculum expectations from all four areas, decided specifically what to look for in the learning, what to do in order to help those students that might struggle and what evidence would be collected to document student learning.  This isn’t rigid planning.  There will be off shoots as students become engaged in different design experiences and take it into their own direction, but the plan will intentionally guide students to a specific areas of learning.  By the time we were finished the teacher had an overall idea of what would be happening in her classroom for about six weeks.  She still has work to do in terms of collecting resources and setting up learning experiences but the direction for the learning is clear.

Almost every educator speaks to not having enough time and especially don’t have time to meet with colleagues.  I have said it myself!  However, if teachers make the time at the outset and plan together, there will be more time in the long run. Time for ourselves as people.  We need to shift the balance of work and life so that we are our best selves in the classroom for students.  That’s just good for everyone.

Kelly.McLaughlin Advocacy for change, Challenging Topics, Eco Heroes, Field Trips, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Making a Difference Through Education, Questioning, Resources, Science, self reflection, Social Justice

David Suzuki’s message to us all

Today the grade seven and eights at our school were invited to attend the Eco Summit at Mohawk College. It was an exciting opportunity where we got to listen to motivated students from around Hamilton speak about the change they were making in their school community and beyond. Local poets, musicians and activists spoke as well about the changes we could be making and how the earth desperately needs our help.

I knew I had to prepare my students for in their mind what could have been a boring day listening to speakers. I needed to create an interest in them before they sat down in Mohawk’s auditorium. I shared with them a BBC article I had recently read about the key things we can do to keep the earth’s temperature from rising beyond what it can handle. I shared with them how we need to cut down and eliminate certain things or places such as Portugal (as I felt this summer) will be uninhabitable very soon.

I soon saw that this trip was a bit mature for some of our younger grade sevens and even for some of our eights. They did not quite have in them the interest in climate change. Only a few of our eights were brave enough to ask the student guest speakers some questions such as: how did you get your teachers or people in general to pay attention to your causes? How can we make a change? What is the most important issue facing us at the moment? Etc.

I did however find a few key takeaways in the main keynote address of the day. We were VERY fortunate to hear from David Suzuki via video conference. I wrote some notes regarding his message to our group today. Here are the main points:

  • we need to radically reduce our use of fossil fuels
  • we should research and read more about the blue dot agenda and we can do so by going onto bluedot.ca
    • once there, you can click take action
  • we can learn more by reading about the David Suzuki foundation
  • we can email the MP in our area and ask them to sign the MP pledge for environmental rights
  • anyone 18 or older needs to vote in the upcoming federal election for the most environmentally conscious leader
  • fight for the IPCC recommendation
  • it is important that we as educators offer solutions to our children without scaring them about the future
  • shift to what is called a biocentric view rather than what our world currently has, the human centric view
    • we need to see us a part of a web of living things
  • our students are the heroes of the future

 

That last point really stuck with me. Sure they may have been zoning off during David Suzuki’s talk or not listening to the inspirational music videos, but we cannot give up hope on our heroes of the future. Even if just a few of them take a stand, we can hope that they will be the change we need to see in this world. I encourage everyone to try to do some of the points as listed above. Also, a great read is this BBC article that challenges us to start making changes as well:

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45775309
Also, here is an amazing message to get a conversation started with your class about doing their part to make the world a more liveable place
https://youtu.be/B-nEYsyRlYo

Unless someone like you cares a whole lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s NOT. -Dr Seuss

Deb Weston Advocacy for change, Advocacy for public education, Social Justice

Barriers to Student Learning – Black Youth

Barriers 2
Illustration downloaded from http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/activities/political-cartoon/about.html

 

Education is one of the foundations of Canadian society. If you are wondering why your board is addressing issues of equity and inclusion recently, a policy/program memorandum has impacted the way Ontario public school boards are conducting their business of education.

Through the Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119, Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools, it is stated that there is a need for our “publically funded education system to support and reflect the democratic values of fairness, equity, and respect for all” (Ministry of Education, 2013).

The Ministry of Education recognizes factors such as race, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, gender, and class can create barriers to learning. There is evident that some groups of students continue to encounter discriminatory barriers to learning. Research shows that when students feel connected to teachers and other students, they do better academically (Goleman, 2006).

Please refer to Barriers to Student Learning – An Overview for a more details outlined in Through Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119.

So what does this mean to teachers?

School boards must seek out barriers to learning for all students. Teachers therefore must also address barriers to learning due to factors such as race, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, gender, and socioeconomic status.

Through Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119, school boards, and teachers, must address barriers to learning that fall within prohibited grounds of discrimination set out in the Ontario Human Rights Code.

There is significant evidence to show that Black youth face significant barriers to learning within their schools. School boards such as the Toronto District School Board and the Peel District School Board have identified barriers to learning for Black youth who face systemic discrimination and who do not feel connected to their teachers or their school communities.

In developing and implementing equity and inclusive education to address Memorandum Number 119 (2009) education policy within Ontario, the Peel District Board of Education (PDSB) has identified a part of their student community who is experiencing systemic barriers to learning. These barriers to learning are supported through research that shows that black male students feel excluded, have fewer opportunities, and experienced an achievement gap in their learning. Further, research also shows that these barriers to learning are rooted in systemic biases and in negative teacher and peer perception of Black males identity and ability (Peel District School Board, 2018). These biases result in an over representation of levels of suspension and expulsions and lower levels of representation in gifted programs and high school completion (Maynard, 2017).

System-wide, cultural responsive pedagogy and practices are being put into place to have Black male students feel more included in meaningful curriculum and instruction. This curriculum should be reflective of Black voices and help students see themselves within the lessons. This curriculum should address Black culture from all over the world, and not just from “Jamaica” (Peel District School Board, 2018).

In order to integrate the experiences of Black Canadians into the curriculum, the PDSB is providing instructional resources to be embedded into core courses and through inquiry as well as classroom resources to reflect the student body (Peel District School Board, 2018). Teachers and teacher librarians will play a critical role in building culturally responsive schools. Further, purposeful assessment and student voice will to integrated into school practices. This action plan is also embedding equitable and inclusive practices in board policies and programs while identifying and removing discrimination, biases, and system barriers to the success of Black male students. There has been a system wide leadership commitment to this initiative thus changing the board’s climate and the prevention of discrimination and harassment of Black male students’ board wide. To ensure accountability, the PDBS will be tracking the impact on data of expulsion and suspension rates, gifted student numbers, and graduation rates in Black male students ensure accountability and transparency.

In the next few blogs, I will further address some of the barriers to learning that students face based on their race, sexual orientation, disability, gender, and socioeconomic status.

If you would like me to address barriers to learning for a specific student group, please provide a suggestion below.

Collaboratively yours,

Deb Weston

Note that, although I do not have any direct experience with the barriers to learning addressed in this blog, I do identify as an educator who advocates for equity and for all students, especially when it comes to breaking down barriers to learning.

References

Caton, M. (January 31, 20198). Ontario Black Youth Action Plan aims to break down barriers, Windsor Star. Downloaded from https://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/ontario-black-youth-action-plan-aims-to-break-down-barriers

Goleman, D. (2006). Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships.-New York, NY: Bantam Dell, A Division of Random House.

Gordon, A. (October 2, 2017). Summit on barriers faced by Black male students comes to Toronto, Toronto Star. Downloaded from https://www.thestar.com/yourtoronto/education/2017/10/02/summit-on-barriers-faced-by-black-male-students-comes-to-toronto.html

Maynard, R. (2017). Canadian education is steeped in anti-black racism, The Walrus Magazine.

Ontario Ministry of Education. (2013). Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119: Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools, Government of Ontario. Toronto.

Peel District School Board. (2018). We Rise Together: The PDSB action plan to support Black male students. Peel District School Board of Education.

Kelly.McLaughlin Assessment, Constant Learning, Inquiry, Inspiring Teachers, Modern Learning, Professional Learning and Growth, Questioning, self reflection

Innovation Collaborative Inquiry

I am currently starting a really exciting journey which involves myself and a group of 10 teachers. We are choosing a topic that interests us and going on a year long journey to discover the answers to this question. We are currently thinking about our question having to do with student led learning and how can we get students to take the lead with their learning and how to make meaningful tasks that will inspire action.

We are meeting 3.5 days this year and we are able to work alongside these other teachers to discuss our findings and see how we can put this plan into action in the classroom.

The first meeting involved getting to know all the teachers. We did this by mingling with the crowd based on which card in the deck we had (all sixes went together, the tens went together..) and then we met up with the same suit cards and then we had a few different challenges after that. When we met with our random groups, we answered the question how have we seen or used innovation in our classroom. It was amazing the chats that we had when this question was posed to us. I felt happy explaining my students current inquiry projects where they research a question of their choice which they will then present to the group it relates to. I also shared about selecting meaningful projects that will somehow create change or an action in our school. We discussed all of our innovation ideas and then we were asked to go back to our seats.

A teacher across the room shared about something that someone had said to her that will change and solve all problems involving math: going gradeless. She mentioned there would be various levels in math like when children go to swimming lessons and they wouldn’t be able to move onto math level two until they finish level one. In a way it sounds like an IEP but it would be in place for all students.

The rest of the morning we had to find a group of people that had a common area of focus as us and that is how I ended up in the student led learning group where students guide themselves to tasks that they find to be meaningful and essentially are 21st century learning tasks. This group will meet next week to discuss our plans.

After going to this exciting learning opportunity, I went back to my class and made a self reflection for our drama haunted house that the students had just finished planning, creating, presenting and then cleaning up. I had them assess themselves using four words: not engaged, somewhat engaged, engaged and very engaged. I told them to circle which word best described their involvement before, during and after the haunted house. It was incredible to see that the word they had circled lined up with the way I would assess them. If they had done this same self assessment and I had put marks or levels on the page, I am not so sure they would have been as successful with their assessment.

I am excited to continue learning with my inquiry group and keep trying out things that we learn as a group. The gradeless self assessment was just one small thing that I know will come of this exciting learning opportunity. It is very fun being apart of a group of like minded people that are really hoping to see a positive change in our classrooms.

More to come!

Michelle Fenn Combined Grade Classes, Constant Learning, Genius Hour, Learning About Your Students, Learning in a Real Life Context, Math, Modern Learning, Professional Learning and Growth, Technology in school, The Global Competencies, Use of Technology

Introducing Coding without Robots

A few years ago when I started hearing about teachers doing coding and robotics in the classroom I dismissed it as a fad.  I didn’t understand the value of coding nor could I see how it tied to the curriculum.  However, I recognize as a professional learner my initial reaction to something radically new can sometimes be resistance.  I think that this is because I can’t see myself fitting “one more thing” into my classroom practice. I always have to give myself time to process, research, find the value and then finally accept it.  After I have tried a new practice with students and see the beneficial outcomes, I endorse it and then begin to share it widely with colleagues.

When I began the journey with coding and looked at code.org I tried it on my own and admittedly, understood very little. I went to more workshops and conferences but avoided the coding and robotics thinking that it just wasn’t my bag.  Then I had a colleague that dragged me in to the world of coding and robotics.  We worked together.  I’ve since become convinced that we need to teach all students how to code.  I have also figured out that you don’t need any robots to do it.  In fact, when you start-you don’t even need a computer.

coding 4         coding 2

 

The above picture is a coding game that I used recently with a grade one and two class.  Students placed their obstacles (rocks) on a grid.  They placed their “gemstone” or finish on a spot on the board and their “robot” (animal)  on another spot.  They wrote their code on a sticky note using arrows and then had their partner take their robot through the code to test it for “bugs”.  A big part of coding is knowing your left from your right and being able to write instructions that someone else can follow.  We started out the day coding one another to walk in a square using only: “forward” “turn left” and “turn right”.  It was amazing to see how much problem solving took place.  They were using positional language, procedural writing, clear communication, visualization and proportional reasoning.  Their thinking was exploding! The students were engaged in the learning and well on their way to being able to code something online.  From there we explored the Scratch Jr. app.  After a short look together at what the different “buttons/blocks” meant they were able to code independently.  As teachers we sometimes get bogged down in the fact that we don’t have the money to purchase the technology and shy away from trying things based on the fact that we don’t have “the stuff”.  However, laying the groundwork before introducing the technology piece to students is key.  We need to always consider the pedagogy before the technology.

 

Laura Bottrell General, Modern Learning, Play-Based Learning, Professional Learning and Growth

Play-Based in Primary

At the start of October, I began a full year assignment at a new school teaching Grade 1/2. After teaching Kindergarten last year, I am overjoyed at the opportunity to teach these grades. I am looking forward to “following” the early learning continuum from a Kindergarten environment into primary, and the opportunity to bring along my favourite aspects of Kindergarten.

As a teacher, I feel I’ve got a strong foundation in my knowledge of child development in the early years. I majored in the subject in University and I am also a Registered Early Childhood Educator. Kindergarten was my “place”. I was comfortable there. I could talk shop for hours about the research supporting play-based learning and child-directed inquiry. I truly stand behind the play-based curriculum and spent my year in Kindergarten challenging norms and pushing thinking. The potential in children that is unlocked in a play-based program is powerful, and I see it first hand.

Moving to primary, I don’t want to suddenly ignore that part of who I am as a teacher. I’m glad that there is beginning to be a shift toward more play in the primary grades, but it hasn’t fully or truly happened yet. This often makes for a rocky transition for our students, who sometimes move from a free-flow day to one with a lot of structure. Some of our students have never seen a worksheet, and are suddenly expected to sit quietly and complete them for extended lengths of time. Even just a comparison between the difference in how long we expect them to listen attentively between the two grades just doesn’t make sense. There needs to be a continuum.

I do believe that change is needed to ease this sudden shift in what we are expecting of our young learners. If Kindergarten is designed to be best for a six year old’s development, why do all of those considerations disappear when they enter primary only two months older? I don’t have these answers, and I don’t have control over this – but I do have control over how I teach.

My personal learning goal this year is to explore authentic, play-based learning and inquiry in primary. I have a lot of questions and things I am unsure of:

 

How do I ensure I teach to where they’re at, while simultaneously teaching them for where they’re heading?

What does this actually look like? Where does this fit in my daily schedule? How do I effectively combine play and inquiry with necessary instruction “must haves”, such as math talks/three-part lessons, small group instruction or the components of balanced literacy? 

How do I make sure I cover the necessary curriculum content?

How do I actually source the materials needed for an effective play-based environment in a primary hallway? My classroom certainly didn’t come equipped with blocks or loose parts!

How do I set up an environment that is conducive to independent inquiry? What materials will my students need access to, and what explicit teaching is needed to set them up for success here?

Aside from anecdotal and conferencing, how do I asses their progress? Obviously, pencil-paper assessments are necessary in many cases, but how can I assess in a more authentic way?

How do I ensure that my environment is meaningful and planned carefully enough that I know my students are exploring curriculum concepts in their play? I’m finding this gets trickier as the curriculum concepts increase in complexity. 

How do I support and justify a play-based environment to those who do not understand or agree?

 

Also on my mind, is that I want my play-based environment to be built around authentic play. There is a difference between learning centre rotations and actual play. Adult created and directed activities are fun but they are not true play. Play is self-chosen, open-ended, child-directed and does not come with instructions. This is the play that allows a child’s curiosity drive them to discover and do wonderful things. This is what I want happening in my Grade 1/2 classroom!

As I figure all of this out, I hope to share my experiences with you. Are there any other play and inquired based primary teachers out there? I’d love to hear from you!

 

Will Gourley General

Bygone day(s)

CC by 2.0 https://www.flickr.com/photos/10485077@N06/38017292926
https://www.flickr.com/photos/10485077@N06/38017292926 CC by 2.0

It’s October 31st, All Hallows Eve or Hallowe’en to most. The day is lit like the candles of a million pumpkins with anticipation and excitement in the classroom. For most of our students this day could not come at a better time because October 31st is a day that seems to be celebrated across many faith and cultural lines. It could also be that on this day students are able to express themselves in ways that they are not normally permitted. Or it could be the addition of treats or fun activities to accompany a full day of curriculum in the classroom that will happen between costume parades and crafts.

Although it might get overlooked, today also signifies that 20% of the school year has screamed past like a wizard on a Nimbus 2000.

For staff, there are a lot of reasons to get excited about days like Hallowe’en too. It is a great chance to join in the fun. Last year, our school staff dressed up as playing cards. We had fun making our costumes beforehand, enjoyed the camraderie, and took lots of photos for the yearbook. We were proud to wear them alongside of students. They are always thrilled when teachers show their school spirit at events like today. This year most of us transformed into emojis while others took the super hero route (see Wolverine Elvis -below right). It’s nice to let the inner child out in a world that needs to laugh and play more often.

photo by Cynthia Quirion
photo by Cynthia Quirion

For our students, their childhoods are incredible times of excitement and Hallowe’en tops many lists of favourite dates to celebrate being a kid. I asked my students why they wanted to dress up today and many replied that it was fun and that wearing a costume made them feel good.

On another side of our conversation came a message about how it was okay that some did not wear a costumes. It allowed us to discuss inclusion and respect even while everyone was not doing the same thing.

All of this fun and frivolity, got me thinking about how the world is constantly rushing its young through their childhoods and youth. To this end, I keep wondering for what? What’s even more frightening, is how quickly the world expects students to have it all figured out. We have students who are stressing about going to university already, and they haven’t even graduated grade 8. The horror of the future is the nightmare our youth face today. This is scary because it comes at a time when they are supposed to be enjoying, learning, and discovering their talents and life’s passions not worrying whether they will go to Med or Law or Engineering school.

So days like today are important reminders to us all that we may need to model having fun for our students too. While you’re at it, add a little time for laughter into the day too.

I hope you were able to relive some of the fun of your childhood to share with your students, but if hear any of you knocking at my door for candy, we’ll have to talk.

Arianna Lambert Constant Learning, Learning in a Real Life Context, Modern Learning

Creative Confidence

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the concept of creative confidence. At its core it’s about believing in your ideas and that you hold the ability to have a positive impact on the world.

I share with people all the time that I’m always amazed by kindergarten students. Whenever faced with a challenge, they somehow jump right in and offer solutions that they truly believe will work. They eagerly share solutions to everyday challenges without censoring themselves or second-guessing their ability to actually be a part of a change for the better. But what happens with these eager students as they move into higher grades? At what point do they start to censor themselves and display that creative confidence in a muted way? I’ve had students as young as those in grades 4 and 5 who no longer believed in their ideas and genuinely didn’t know what steps to take in order to solve a problem “in the right way”. How did they get there? How do we get them back? I wonder if the following elements that exist in Kindergarten classrooms might be key in answering these questions.

Play

If I haven’t mentioned it before, I have the two most amazing nephews in the entire world! I genuinely love watching them play. Sometimes in role as others or even just as themselves, they interact and problem solve on the fly. Issues come up when the other character doesn’t quite respond in the way one expects and they have to come up with a solution so that the game or activity continues. There’s the freedom to play anything and to try anything. The idea that you have to be good at playing just doesn’t exist. They just do it at home and at school. I wonder if we adopted the same idea for older students as they entered the classroom, what might the learning be like? What if tools were given and they were asked to interact with them in a way similar to play? What if there was no association with being good at something but the idea of just jumping in and trying it was valued. Would students engage more and worry less about the outcome? Would they embrace failure and try again, ultimately learning as they try again? How would our classrooms be different if this concept or idea was valued well after kindergarten?

Design

Kindergarten students are forever designing something for someone or something. They build homes for their figurines with blocks and use craft materials to build homes for animals. They also draw pictures to bring a smile to a loved-one’s face and some use tech to create. How might we keep this going as they age? It’s no secret that I’m going to say…dig deep into Design Thinking! It’s a creative framework that can be used in any discipline to allow students to hone their creativity as they work towards creating unique and innovative solutions for real-world problems. Consider the learning goals that you are working towards, connect them to a real-world problem and let students engage in the process. The more that they see themselves as creators of meaningful change in the world, the greater their creative confidence will be!  

Interdisciplinary Learning

I can’t help but be inspired by the interdisciplinary learning that happens in kindergarten. This reminds me of the learning that happens as adults. I joke that I don’t just do Math between 10:30 and 11:30 and often wonder why this is the case for our students. What if we were able to integrate subjects? What if students saw connections between the work that they were doing in Language and in Math? Or Social Studies and Science? Would they learn more easily learn the transferability of skills? I know that it’s a challenge when we have a specific number of minutes or hours of a specific course that have to be completed and even more so in Secondary Schools where subjects are taught by specialists. In what ways might we make a shift so that learning isn’t so siloed? I don’t have an answer but I wonder if when students see the connections between subjects, if they might just become more excited about approaching something new because they realize that they have a tool-kit from a variety of subject areas that can be meshed together to them as they go.

I’m working on my own creative confidence by playing more, designing new things at Future Design School and thinking about how I might be able to help others with interdisciplinary planning and learning for students. I’ll keep you posted on how things go!