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Deb Weston Curriculum Planning, Differentiated Instruction, Diverse Learning Needs, Learning About Your Students, Social Justice

Barriers to Student Learning – An Overview

Priviledge

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 Government of Ontario has established three core priorities in education:

  • high levels of student achievement
  • reduced gaps in student achievement
  • increased public confidence in publically funded education (Ministry of Education, 2013)

In “providing a high-quality education for all is a key means of fostering … diversity is affirmed within a framework of common values that promote the well-being of all citizens” (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).

Through Policy/Program Memorandum No. 119, all publically funded school boards are required to address equity and inclusive policies covering in three areas of focus including:

  • shared and committed leadership by the ministry, boards, and schools to eliminate discrimination through the identification and removal of biases and barriers
  • equity and inclusive education policies and practices to support positive learning environments that are respectful and welcoming to all
  • accountability and transparency with ongoing progress demonstrated and communicated to the ministry and the community (Ministry of Education, 2013)

The policy further goes on to state that “school board policies must be comprehensive and must cover the prohibited grounds of discrimination set out in the Ontario Human Rights Code. The code prohibits discrimination on any of the following grounds: race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, citizenship, ethnic origin, disability, creed (e.g., religion), sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, family status, and marital status” and the intersectionality that may occur within this list (Ministry of Education, 2013).

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. This policy will impact all ways Ontario teachers conduct their business of education.

In the next few blogs, I will 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

References

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

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. Downloaded from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/119.pdf

Kim Cousin Behaviour Management, Classroom Management, Constant Learning, Flexible Classroom, General, Health & Safety, Inspiring Students, Learning in a Real Life Context, Making a Difference Through Education, Mental Health, Mindfulness, Resilience, Teacher Wellness, wellness, Wellness, wellness

Mindful Pause, with or without Technology?

Everywhere I turn I see the effects of our technologically advanced world. Gains have been made in medical research, communication abilities, and advancements toward an easier life?
Some of the effects on individuals are now coming to light. Many people are connected to the internet 24/7. This is causing sleep disturbances, eye issues, addiction behaviours, and other physical ailments.

As a previous mental health professional I look at my present vocation in Education with that type of lens. I have practiced and taught Mindful strategies for many years now. I see the benefits of technology in the curriculum. I also observe the negative effects. I have noticed some educators looking for a researched solution to help calm, focus and ground their students. Some are now turning to all the apps, and internet connections to provide a quick and easily guided mindful activity. I think this may be counter productive to being present and in the moment. We are seeing the effects of this new age world and the fast pace it is changing. As educators we are up to date with the many changes or apprised to avenues in which to guide our charges.

When I guide a group through a mindful experience I eliminate as much technology or other electrical sources as possible. I then guide students into focusing on being present in their own body and mind through the use of many verbal scripts vocalized in a relaxed, quiet voice. These moments of taking a pause are valuable. We live in a busy, stressful society where a pause can assist in a healthy balance to our daily lives.

Links-
https://www.psychguides.com/guides/computerinternet-addiction-symptoms-causes-and-effects/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/virtual-addictions/201710/tips-mindful-technology-use

http://meditationscience.weebly.com/what-is-mindfulness-meditation.html

Mindfulness Meditation: Guided Practices

Kim Cousin Assessment, Constant Learning, Curriculum Planning, Differentiated Instruction, Diverse Learning Needs, Flexible Classroom, Inquiry, Inspiring Students, Learning in a Real Life Context, Math, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth

Education Acronyms

PLC, IEP, TPA,…. Just a few acronyms in the world of Ontario education. I managed to complete the expectations of those three letter words, this month.

WOW! Some may say, “What are you talking about?”, others may say,” HOW?!”

As a person who is a futuristic thinker, I am continuously planning, creating lists and maximizing my energy.  I plan each weekend to complete a portion of the upcoming expectations for the month. This past month, I spent time creating unit plans to ensure a smooth sail through the four Junior and intermediate Math classes I teach.  While knowing that IEP’s (Individual Education Plans), are due in early October and help me understand my students. I reviewed and updated these a few at a time.

Yes of course this is my TPA (Teacher Performance Appraisal) year. Things have changed since I graduated from Teachers College.  I was just as nervous as my first evaluation.  This one was much different because I have learned many new teaching strategies, and ways to interact with all the people we come in contact within our profession.  I look at each year with a lens of the time. October, pumpkins are in season.  Pumpkins are a great way to create a hands on unit in Math for all grades. If you are still learning about making the many connections to the Big Ideas, there are many units on the web.  This is a perfect topic to bring excitement into the class, being aware of all the variables from cleanliness, to the use of sharp objects, and social skill development for group work.  This TPA in my umpteenth year of teaching was successful. After I reviewed my assessment, I realized some things still need work.  I need to clearly connect to daily learning goals to guide the directions of my students and their exploration. I also want to find a way to create easily displayed information charts/word walls that can travel from class to class? Keeping abreast of recent research and data helps.  A specific focus is important  so ideas don’t become lost in the many theories of our closely connected world (www).

This year I’ve noticed my board is using Monthly meetings and PD (Professional Development) days to facilitate PLC’s (Professional Learning Communities).  To my advantage, our focus is on math.  The discussion and connections for all help create a purposeful direction in our teaching and learning.  The superintendents and lead teachers carefully create PD to learn from and directly effect board and school goals. As a team, we have each other to support our teaching and direction.  If communication is continuously supported in meetings, this assists in sharing and supporting each other and the growth of our students and programs. Some of my observations from these meetings are: Don’t get rid of the old…some strategies are still good. Things are changing quickly. It’s admirable to see colleagues rise to new and connected positions while keeping valuable connections.

At the beginning of the month, I was apprehensive about completing these monthly tasks.  Tah Dah…another successful month as an educator.

Links:

Learning for All: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/general/elemsec/speced/LearningforAll2013.pdf

Planning for Learning: 

http://www.etfo.ca/SupportingMembers/Resources/ForTeachersDocuments/Planning%20for%20Student%20Learning.pdf

TPA: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/teacher/pdfs/TPA_Manual_English_september2010l.pdffbclid=IwAR3rtRjDQ50iFr81Lb45e9SXuzhXJebIzEdjFhzqIFTNqtvnw_IMaGV-V3kspecific links

http://www.etfo.ca/SupportingMembers/Professionals/Pages/ALP.aspx

Pumpkin Unit Ideas:

Ultimate Collection of Pumpkin Math Ideas for K-12

Laura Bottrell General

Your Community as a Teaching Partner

Last year I had the pleasure of teaching in the smaller community of Dundas, Ontario. My school was located just a two minute walk from the charming, very walkable, downtown area. This got me thinking about how I can use the community as my main teaching resource.

As important as it is for children to build a sense of community within a classroom (Belonging and Contributing!), I believe it is equally as important to build this sense within the larger community. At a school where a wealth of enriching experiences was just a short walk from our classroom door, we decided to make this a large part of our program.

One of my favourite aspects of the year was the amount of walking trips that we went on. Since we obtained walking trip permission forms at the beginning of the year, we were able to take our class on adventures out in the community whenever it suited our programming. Here are all of the places we took our class last year:

Coffee Shop – When our children wanted to make a coffee shop in our dramatic play centre, we extended their learning by arranging a visit to a real one nearby where they got to go behind the counter and serve their own hot chocolate!

Animal Hospital – When an inquiry led us towards learning about veterinarians and pets, I connected with a friend who is a veterinarian who provided us with real life materials for our dramatic play centre. The next week, we went for an hour-long tour of the animal hospital and a “day in the life” experience!

Book Store – After a visit from an author, we walked to the local bookstore to look for and purchase a copy of her book for our classroom. This led to some great discussions about how books can be sorted and organized.

Dundas Museum – One day, while out for a walk, we watched construction crews use a crane to lift an antique steam hammer onto an installation on the front of the museum. We watched for nearly half an hour as they lowered the large machinery into place, and came back a few weeks later to confirm our hypothesis about what that machinery actually was and why they were putting it in the museum!

Community Park – When our outdoor learning program needed a little change of scenery! We also used the directions to the park as an opportunity for some learning about directions and maps.

Down Town Strip – After a discussion about places in the community one day, we took the class on a walk down the main strip of downtown. Equipped with clip boards and pencils, we invited the children to document what they saw. This led to some beautiful discussions and connections to familiar words, signs, logos and numbers they saw as they walked!

The Mail Box – A few times, we mailed letters or thank you cards to our special guests and walked to the community mail box to drop them off.

A Construction Zone – During our inquiry about structures, we extended the learning by walking to a nearby construction site and observing the workers for a short while. We were lucky that a foreman came over to answer all of our questions!

Our Neighbourhood – We made sure to go for a neighbourhood walk at least once a week, usually twice. We made observations about nature, house numbers, street signs, cars, architecture, and whenever possible, pointed out the students’ houses.

 

And, when we couldn’t walk, we took the bus for three trips to:

Community Theatre – I work and teach at a local theatre and arranged for my class to attend a matinee performance of our current show. For many, it was their first experience with live theatre. I was also able to take them on a backstage tour afterwards! I think there is a lot of value in showing your “real” side to students by sharing important parts of your life with them.

Butterfly Conservatory – To extend our inquiry about life cycles and insects.

Children’s Museum & Maker Space – This was our year end trip this year. We spent the day exploring the hands-on exhibits at The Museum in Kitchener, and also got to participate in two workshops: one about using colour in visual arts and another problem solving challenge to solve a puzzle by finding clues around the museum.

 

We also had a variety of rich experiences that came from people in the community that visited our classroom. Whether they were sharing knowledge, a new skill or facilitating an activity, each special guest that came to visit us brought with them something that enriched our classroom in a way that we couldn’t on our own. Between parents and other family members of our students, we had the following visitors:

 

A Musician and Sound Engineer – A father came in at the end of our music inquiry to play guitar for us and then make a recording of our “orchestra”, which we then shared with all of our families.

University Engineering Students – Arranged by an engineer parent, we had a workshop about engineering and each child got to design a robot that balances!

An Apiologist [A honey bee researcher!] – A mother came in and prepared a hands-on workshop about honey bees and how we can save them, as a compliment to our insect inquiry.

A Fisheries and Oceans Scientist – Another father came to teach us about fish and clams during our inquiry about the ocean!

Two Children’s Book Authors – A friend of mine came to read her book about math, and one of the children’s aunts came to read her children’s book as well! Both followed with a Q&A session about being an author.

A Visual Artist – One mother came every Wednesday to share a visual arts invitation with the children during play.

A Sushi Chef – We had a sushi day and children had the opportunity to make [allergy friendly] sushi, which led to some wonderful discussion about food from different cultures.

An Outdoor Learning Specialist – The owner of the natural playground company that designed our play space came every Friday to bring new outdoor learning opportunities for us. Some of our favourites were wood whittling, threading berries onto string for the birds, berry picking and making syrup from scratch by harvesting it from nearby maple trees.

A Violinist – A parent that played the violin came in to demonstrate the instrument, which allowed us to make great connections during our music inquiry.

A Children’s Music Artist – A neighbour to the school, and friend of a parent, was a locally famous children’s musician. He came in to sing and perform for our class!

 

The community was an integral part of our programming. It was such a powerful resource to have, and it really was at our finger tips – all we had to do was ask.

This year, I’ve moved on to a new town, new school and new grade. I know I was very lucky to spend a year in that wonderful community, and I only hope I can recreate the same experiences for my new class. More on that to come!

How do you make use of your local community in your teaching?

 

Kelly.McLaughlin Assessment, Report Cards, self reflection, Start of the year

Progress Reports

It is that time of year again! Progress reports are due in most boards this month. It is a hard task to think about what your students have done in just a month and a half of school.

I like to give students time to reflect on their learning skills as well as what they have done in each subject. Each year I create a survey for students to self evaluate themselves. Then, I include comments from this evaluation on their progress report. I like to use google forms to create the survey so all of their answers stay in my google drive.

For learning skills, my current grade eight class has made it quite challenging to comment on. They have good and bad days but it is important to set these students up for their next grade. Getting an “E” has to be true at all times since next year I am nervous about how their learning skills would measure up. I gave my students time to come check their current learning skills today and only one student came to my desk to see their mark. At my old school, the entire class used to line up to check their current learning skills. I feel that they may know they aren’t doing the best since they did not come to see their marks.

For math and literacy, progressing very well is very hard to receive as a level four is hard to achieve at all times. I have explained this to my class so that they will not be disappointed by the “progressing well” comment on their reports.

Other subjects we are just getting started on so the “progressing well” comment is hard to justify. “With difficulty” and “very well” also wouldn’t make sense since we have just begun. It is for that reason I find the progress reports timeline a bit challenging and I wish students had a bit more time to dive into each subject. It is hard to get students interested in their marks as well for the first time in my career so this thought makes me nervous for them in high school as well as for the rest of the year.

Is getting students interested in their marks something I can teach or is it just something students come to school with? I am hoping my students will gain that desire soon.

Deb Weston Homework, Math

The Fundamentals of Teaching Balanced Math

math

Balanced math programs are not something new. Balanced math programs have always taught the fundamentals of math.

Many years ago, the board I teach for released an excellent poster outlining their approach to balanced math. The poster consisted of the importance of teaching: attitudes to math, approaches to instruction/assessment, teaching through problem solving, purposeful practice, basic facts and operational skills, and purposeful use of resources. When I saw the poster I was thrilled to see math pedagogy that aligned with my own teaching practice.

I have taught math from grade two to university level. Regardless of the grade or level of math, I believe there are four fundamental pillars in math instruction:

  1. Real world applications: Math instruction needs to connect to the real world – here students see the purpose of learning math such as measuring the diagonals of a door to ensure it is squarely/correctly installed or calculating how much paint you need to paint a room.
  2. Problem solving: Math should be taught with problem solving – problem solving adds complexity in applying math facts and operations skills within context and especially when connected to the real world.
  3. Practice to develop automaticity: Practicing addition and multiplication facts is not the most exciting part of math but without knowing them, students have to use more of their working memory to figure out the facts. This use of working memory/executive function leaves less space for working on the math that is in front of the student.
  4. Manipulatives/hands-on math: Manipulatives are not just for primary or junior grades, all students need them to make sense of abstract math concepts. I used math manipulatives to teach grade 8 students how to solve algebraic equations. Once the students did this with the manipulatives, they could work out the problems on paper. Even when I took university math courses, I always drew pictures of the math problem so I could understand my task better.

Other boards of education are also promoting balanced math programs. These boards of education may give their math programs a different name, but essentially the programs are similar.

In 2018, jobs that require math pay more than jobs than do not require math. This is a key reason to learn math!

These jobs include scientist, engineer, technologist, electronics specialist, robotics engineer, economist, game designer, roller coaster designer, animator, pilot, sports announcer, professional photographer, financial planner/analyst, cryptographer, research analyst, accountant, lawyer, marketing researcher, real estate agent, software designer/tester, global warming specialist, professional cook, and math teacher.

Math is important to students’ lives. It helps students make sense of the world as well as ways to figure out practical things like managing their money, doing home renovations, and making sense of their cell phone bills.

Do math, teach math, explore math.

If you know of anymore resources to share, please comment below so I can check them out!

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston

More Information

Ford wants to get back to basics with math — but educators say balance is best

SEEING AS UNDERSTANDING: The Importance of Visual Mathematics for our Brain and Learning

York Region District School Board Comprehensive Math Program 

Peel District School Board Balance Math Instruction K-12 Program

Why is it important to study math?

Math Resources for Parents and Teachers

Queens University

Mathies

Peel District School Board Parent Guide to Learning Math Today

Peel District School Board Engage Math for Parents

Parents Guide to the Fundamentals of Math

Deb Weston Health & Safety

School Kiss and Ride Zone Safety for All

Kiss and Ride

School Kiss and Ride zone locations are designed to drop off and pick up children in vehicles before and after school. In some schools over 200 students are picked up and dropped off every day. In winter and on rainy days, this number increases relative to worsening weather conditions. In addition, parking lots are often located beside and as part of the Kiss and Ride drive through. Kiss and Ride lanes are designed to have up to 100 vehicles driving through during a 20 minute period.

It is important to keep all students and staff safe. Rules and guidelines are put in place to keep vehicles moving and to ensure the safe entry and exit of students from vehicles. Some of these rules include:

  • Drivers adhering to limiting speeds
  • Drivers, parents and students following school staffs’ instructions
  • Drivers not parking and waiting in the Kiss and Ride lane (It’s called Kiss and Ride NOT Kiss and Park)
  • Drivers yielding to pedestrian traffic
  • Drivers treating staff, students, volunteers, passengers, and other drivers with respect
  • Drivers not double parking beside the Kiss and Ride lane (students crossing between vehicles could be injured by other vehicles)
  • Adults making sure students fully exit or enter the vehicle before driving away from the Kiss and Ride lane
  • Ensuring all passengers, especially students, have seat belts on at all times while in the vehicle
  • Drivers remaining in the vehicle while in the Kiss and Ride lane so as to not block the flow of traffic
  • Drivers not parking in the Fire Route or School Bus zone
  • All people following directions of crossing guards and school staff acting as crossing guards
  • Drivers not idling vehicles in the Kiss and Ride lanes or Parking Lot zone areas

There rules and guidelines are put into place to prevent accidents. Students, parents, and school staff are injured every year. In February 2018, a student was and killed hit by a car as a result of vehicles inappropriately parking near a school (Maharaj, 2018). Another school closed their Kiss and Ride lanes after safety concerns became overwhelming (Milton Canadian Champion, 2013). As a teacher on Kiss and Ride duty, I have personally witnessed near missed of vehicles almost hitting children and adults.

Kiss and Ride Zones can also be a problem by exposing children and adults to high levels of pollution. A University of Toronto study (Adams & Requia, 2017) showed that Kiss and Ride school zones contain a “Halo of air pollution” due to idling vehicles nearby (Elliot, 2017).

Teachers need to be especially vigilant in keeping themselves safe while on duty in Kiss and Ride areas and in school parking lots. For the most part, teachers should use their common sense and professional judgement. Here are a few common sense suggestions to keep you safe from injury at the Kiss and Ride:

  • Do not help students in and out of vehicles – your arm could be injured if a vehicle drives away or you could injury a student while closing a vehicle door (think car doors closing on little fingers!)
  • Do not put your back to vehicles – you cannot see where they are or how they are moving
  • Teachers do not have to enter cross-walk zones if they feel unsafe – do not use your body to block a car
  • Do not put up with abuse from drivers and/or parents
  • Do not intervene in Kiss and Ride/Parking Lot disputes between drivers – you are there to supervise students, not adults
  • Use your professional judgement to consider reporting dangerous drivers or students not in seat belts to the administration

If you have any additional common sense suggestions in keeping all people safe in Kiss and Ride Zones, please share them with me and I will add them in this blog.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston

References

Adams, M. D., & Requia, W. J. (2017). How private vehicle use increases ambient air pollution concentrations at schools during the morning drop-off of children. Atmospheric Environment, 165, 264-273.

Elliot, J. (August 10, 2017). School drop-off zones expose kids to high levels of pollution: study, CTV News. https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/school-drop-off-zones-expose-kids-to-high-levels-of-pollution-study-1.3540552

Maharaj, S. (February 28, 2018) Scarborough student’s death sparks call for safer school zones, Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/4054718/duncan-xu-kennedy-public-school/

Milton Canadian Champion. (2013). Traffic issues bring safety blitz to Escarpment. Milton Canadian Champion. https://www.insidehalton.com/news-story/2885147-traffic-issues-bring-safety-blitz-to-escarpment-view/

Arianna Lambert agency, Challenging Topics, Equity, Gender Equity, Health & Safety, LGBTQ2S, Making a Difference Through Education, Professional Judgement, Social Justice

Drawing The Line

Each year, in Canada, approxScreenshot 2018-09-30 at 9.18.11 PMimately 460,000 women are sexually assaulted, although only a fraction of them report the assault to the police (1). In a day and age where this statistic holds true, it’s hard to imagine that our government is wanting to go back to a time where consent and gender identity aren’t being discussed in classrooms as a part of the Health Curriculum. Simply ignoring the very real issues that our students face in 2018 doesn’t make them go away, nor does it help to develop a society that is action-based and ready to implement change.

Earlier this year I was really excited to hear about ETFO’s and White Ribbon’s resource – Drawing The Line. Now I might be slightly biased as my brother is a contributing author but I was thrilled to see a resource that not only provided data-driven information for educators but also included a comprehensive guide for age-appropriate lessons for students in grades 1 to 8. I love that the guide addresses bystanders and offers students ways in which to respond to to sexual violence. Not only do the lessons connect to the Health and Physical Education Curriculum but expectations also in Language and the Arts are included in many of the lessons. This guide is truly a proactive approach to teaching students about healthy relationships and is one that every educator should read and implement in their classrooms. I know that in the past, ETFO was offering sessions on this resource and I hope that they continue.

Screenshot 2018-09-30 at 9.18.44 PM

With hotlines or tiplines being made available, it’s sad to say that we are in such a time where educators are somewhat in fear of teaching what we know to be essential for our students’ safety and healthy development. We need to be having these conversations because unless we do, nothing will change and perpetrators will feel empowered to continue. As you may already know, at the beginning of September, ETFO filed a legal injunction to pause the rollback of the 2015 Health curriculum. The union believes the government’s directive creates unsafe and unhealthy learning and working environments. In the meantime, how are you working to unpack these issues with students? They’re in the news and on the same social media platforms that students are interacting with. How will the work we do today impact the statistics in the future? In the next year, 5 or 10? If you haven’t already, please check out this resource as well as the other resources that ETFO has to offer.

1. Holly, Johnson, “Limits of a Criminal Justice Response” (University of Ottawa, 2012), https://books.openedition.org/uop/592?lang=en

Arianna Lambert Constant Learning, Making a Difference Through Education

New Year, New Role

Education has always had a huge place in my heart. On several occasions, my mom has recounted stories of me teaching my stuffed animals as a young child. This was even before my starting school and getting a taste of what being a part of the education system would be like. Although my path to the big question of what I want to be when I grow up – by the way, I’m still figuring that all out – veered in different directions, I find myself today in a place that I am truly enjoying within education.

A couple of years ago, I remember being asked the question of what I would do next in education and I always thought that I would never leave the classroom. I was excited to work with students on a daily basis. Discovery and laughter were two things that I could guarantee would happen daily. Over the past 9 years, my students have been the one thing that motivated me to become a better educator. Not merely for the sake of saying that I am a good educator but with a desire to take the time to grow in order to better meet the needs of the students that I had the privilege of serving. Never in a million years did I think that when presented with an opportunity to try something new, that I would start to consider it.

This past June I decided to take a leave and a leap with an amazing team at Future Design School. In August, I started my new role as an Education Lead and it’s been an amazing experience. Having the opportunity to work with educators across North America on creating exceptional learning experiences for students that empowers them to develop Future-Ready skills, is truly powerful.

So far in my new role, I’ve learned 3 things:

  • Enjoy the new learning
  • Learners are learners, whether they are children or adults
  • Take time to reflect

Enjoy The New Learning

I think this is the first time that I’ve taken such a big leap and jumped into something totally new. In the process of supporting educators in a variety of ways, I myself find it fulfilling to also be on my own journey of education on many levels. I love that there is always something new to uncover and that I have an opportunity to be apart of something fantastic that I too get to have an opportunity to help grow. I’m inspired daily to be part of a team who is passionate about transforming education and willing to share what they know with others. While I have worked with students around Design Thinking in the past, I’m understanding on a deeper level the “why” and reason for so much of the process. It’s amazing, the more I learn, the more I discover how much more growth there is to experience.

Learners Are Learners, Whether They Are Children Or Adults

I’m learning that scaffolding of any new learning is important for children AND adults. I know that this should be a simple concept for me to have realized a while ago but it has now become very clear. The definition of learning – the acquisition of knowledge or skills through experience, study, or by being taught – remains the same no matter the age of the individual. Being clear and explicit doesn’t change because of age. Nor does involving the learner in the learning change simply because of the demographic. Adults enjoy getting up in sessions and having the opportunity to talk through ideas with others. They love sharing their thoughts and experiences when designing learning experiences for their students. As educators we’re moving away from being the “sage on the stage” to the “guide on the side” and the same holds true when working with adults. I’m still learning about working with adult learners and know that best practices in the classroom are also keys to that work.

Take Time To Reflect

I think that I have always been a reflective person but I’m making the time to journal and reflect on my experiences even more. As a kinetic learner, I know that I learn best by actively doing, succeeding or failing and having opportunities to reflect, ask questions of others, and trying again. One thing that I am going to be working on this year is not being afraid of asking questions. I’m pretty confident in asking when I don’t understand something, however, I know that there are times when I am unsure and during these moments I’m a little more hesitant and sometimes like to figure things out. My goal this year is to learn as much as I can and I know that this requires that I be reflective and vulnerable in asking questions.

It’s a new year and a new role for me and I am really embracing it. Are you in a new role this year? If so, I would love to hear what you have been up to and your thoughts around starting something new. What prompted the change? What are your learning? Don’t be left out if you’re not in a brand new role, there’s always an opportunity to experience something new in education. Let’s start a conversation as we work towards growing as educators.

Will Gourley Constant Learning, Differentiated Instruction, General, Start of the year

Building blocks

This post is a follow up to Building upon balance. It also has a companion post titled Wyoming 1971 if you want a trip back in time that adds more context to my thinking.

In the 1980’s, if you wanted to attend a university program you needed to complete a 5 year high school school diploma. Grade 13. The big one. It was a make or break year for any and all of us with aspirations of a white collar middle-class jobs whether they be Engineering, Medicine, Law or Finance. That was it. There were no other jobs(sigh).

Grade 13 meant you could choose some of your courses. Some. You still had to take English and at least one Math course. I chose the easiest one, Functions and Relations, or so I thought. By mid-term I was on my way to a failing grade(60%) with poor results at every turn. I wondered why it wasn’t clicking? I had an 85% in Grade 12 Math so a decent mark should not have been out of the question. My teacher was good enough most days, my effort was only questionable some days, but scraping by was not going to get me into university. I ended up with a 51%.

I wondered why things had not come together? Then I realized that my grade 12 Math class had been nearly a year before. My school was on the semester system, and that meant if you took Math in Term 1, you might not be taking it again until a year later. At the bare minimum if I do the Math right, it meant 8 months of not keeping previously acquired skills sharpened if your course ended in January. I limped through the course, somehow graduated, went to university, and got kicked out 3 years later for academic underperformance. Could not practicing Math on a more frequent basis have contributed to my lacklustre results?

Like so many people I was mad at Math. I wasn’t good at it(cop out). I didn’t have a Math brain to solve for x or any other letters of the alphabet for that matter(fixed mindset). I used my Math skills for bargains, business, and family budgets(with a calculator). I did not take another Math class until 20 years later in teachers college. I rediscovered my love for Math after many hours of review and practice problems because I saw it not as problems and symbols on a page, but as a challenge and chance to be a problem solver. It was like working out for the first time and instead of my body waving the surrender flag, it was my brain most of the time. After a number of months, some, but not all of the concepts were returning. However, I had lost a lot of form and vocabulary. To put it another way, the blocks of my foundation were in bad shape and in need of a rebuild(still working on it).

A few years into the future I stood in front of my first Math class as a teacher. To no one’s surprise, the first few weeks were like peddling a bike with square wheels. It took a while to wear down the edges in order to build momentum. The students needed time to build up their brain muscles too. It had been nearly 3 months since their last Math lesson and although the blocks were formed, they were no longer as firmly fixed to their foundations for the time being. It was like a knowlege hemorrhage had happened over the summer. This made me wonder whether I could change the way Math and other subjects could be taught to reduce this from happening each year?

The following September, it became clear that there was some evidence supporting my observation that students were losing their academic edges over the summer break. I wanted to find out whether any academic studies were considerate of this and if there were ways to slow it down or stop it. In a study from 2016 titled Summer Math Loss, this occured much more frequently as a result of socio-economic factors, but that was not the issue at my school which by and large did not mirror the demographics mentioned in the article. However, the Harvard Study provided a practical solution that would help regardless of socio-economic status. Simply, share a little bedtime Math along with that last story of the night. From experience, I can say that a little Math conversation can go a long way. It could be a matter of planning a family fun day or saving for a new toy. It could also happen earlier in the day while driving somewhere by playing license plate Math. Whatever time of day it happened would add some rock solid reinforcement about remainders, ratios, and everyday numeracy. The article goes on to share 4 ways to overcome a “summer slump” that could be easily applied in all seasons.

If it can be done at home, then it can definitely be done in the classroom over the 10 months of learning each year. Teachers can now work at threading or interleaving concepts throughout the entire school year. When we shift from the teach, test, and move on model of instruction to the teach, apply, connect, assess, and revisit model our students’ abilities to acquire, apply and retain concepts will improve. I see the value in doing whatever it takes to help my learners succeed. On one hand a longer school day or year may be the answer. For others, it may still come in the form of more worksheets(please no). There is also the spiralled or interleaved approach that constructs the foundations of understanding block by block the whole school year long.

We have 9 months of incredible opportunities ahead of us. I hope you are already seeing the hard work you are pouring into your classrooms paying off and that the foundations are being strengthened for a growth filled year to come.

Note:

I started this post with the intention of arguing about why we need a more balanced school year because our students are not retaining what they have learned. I softened my stance after reading a few papers in the research(some are linked above). I wanted to share my experiences of losing my own skills when they went unused over time. It ended up as a reflection and a call to action, not to tear down the walls, but to strengthen them around our students as often as possible.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post. Please consider sharing it with others and commenting to keep the conversations going strong. Thank you.