#theexistingreality

[mattpitman]

Partnerships & unity.

It is so important that schools do not operate in isolation. 

Every opportunity provided to students should be one that increases their ability to contribute and connect with their community, whether that be through their family, friends or others, immediately or in the near future. Students, through their learning programs, should feel a deep connection with the world around them and the individuals and groups that make up that world. Leadership should seek out opportunities to create partnerships within the local community, and especially those individuals or organisations that are unique to the area.

Students shouldn’t feel like their school operates in a vacuum. Connecting with community groups, industry leaders, small business owners, charities and parents can provide a wealth of real-life learning experiences that bolster curriculum and develop engagement through participation. For parents and carers this provides a deep connection to their school. Make no mistake, it is their school too, they more than likely chose it after all. For staff this provides inspiration for further teaching and exploration. For the students it links knowledge to meaning, school to the real-world and develops an understanding of their community. For others, it stimulates interest in their lives, their profession, their work and creates a sense of importance, a sense of place, a sense of unity.

While building partnerships with organisations and creating partnerships between staff and parents will allow for diverse and engaging learning experiences, there is a bigger idea I would like to explore briefly. Students as partners. That might seem a bit odd as a blanket statement, but the traditional architecture of schooling positions students as a passenger on their own learning journey, a somewhat passive participant, reliant on the adult in the room to provide instructions, directions and to prescribe knowledge. If we are to redirect our focus from schooling and towards learning and growth, we need to completely rethink this role allocation within our communities. 

Students must be considered partners in their learning. They must be offered the opportunity to contribute to school decision making and we must recognise our students as knowledgeable, capable and the experts when considering context. It is after all, their life we are trying to positively influence. By openly and frequently acknowledging that students are more than just passengers, we create opportunities for dynamic and engaging provocation as well as the foundation required for student voice, agency and true leadership, the kind that does not need a formal position or a badge. This level of empowerment will lead to students who are engaged and connected to their learning as well as their school community. It’s time to shift the student-teacher relationship towards the student-teacher partnership, increasing purpose, motivation and outcomes of not just the students, but the teachers also.

Communities are drawn together by common interest. While most would argue that interest is the students, perhaps we should reframe and reconsider. I have written in previous blog posts that I believe that all students, parents, carers and staff are learners, each has the potential to share something. If this is to be believed then true learning communities are the collection of individuals who share a passion, dedication and commitment to being curious, creative and collaborative. This is the unity education should be focused on. We need to embrace the idea that we can all be teachers and we can all be taught. We need to provide parents, students, staff and others, the opportunity to demonstrate their mastery and share their experiences, discuss their differences and demonstrate their abilities.

It’s time to embrace the individual components that make us better together and create true unity through learning.

The evidence.

Department of Education and Training. (2020). Framework for Improving Student Outcomes. From https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/fiso/guidance

Epstein, J. L. (1996). Advances in Family, Community, and School Partnerships. Community Education Journal, 23(3), 10-15.

Henderson, A. T., Mapp, K. L., Johnson, V. R., & Davies, D. (2007). Beyond the bake sale: The essential guide to family-school partnerships. The New Press.

Matthews, K. (2016). Students as partners as the future of student engagement. Student Engagement in Higher Education Journal, 1(1).

Soohoo, S. (1993). Students as partners in research and restructuring schools. In The educational forum, 57(4), 386-393.

Workman, S. H., & Gage, J. A. (1997). Family-School Partnerships: A Family Strengths Approach. Young children, 52(4), 10-14.

Limbo.

This is 6 of 6 posts I am (slowly) writing based on what I have read, listened to, observed and ultimately, believe are the makings of a successful and sustainable learning community, I’m calling them collectively “Limbo”. At the end of the day I am just a passionate educator on my own learning journey and I may have everything completely wrong! Let me know what you think of each post and help me grow! I hope to have a new post each week but can’t help if life gets in the way…

The previous posts are linked below:

Limbo.

Innovation & growth.

Wellbeing & resilience.

Culture & shared language.

Global influence & entrepreneurship.

Thanks for reading.

Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Flummox.

There is a lot of confusion out in the world at the moment. We seem to be heading back to school in two weeks and I am worried that things will go back to how they were and much of the progress we have made in the past 2 months may be lost. I am grateful again, to live in this state (Victoria) and I feel the cautious approach was an educated way forward. As a science teacher I appreciate administering more tests, collecting more data, and conducting further analysis. But it seems that educated way of managing a serious pandemic might be lost in the Twitter feeds and Facebook posts of some others.

Either way, face to face or remote, continuous learning is so important. 

Education is so important. 

This weekend as I looked at the crowd forming outside Parliament House I thought: did our system let these people down? Who organised this random group? Are they just antagonists? A group of conspiracy theorists, anti-vaxxers and full-time Facebook posters?

Why haven’t they realised that is not Bill Gates’ house?

Education is so important.

Then there has been the absolute joke that stands for professional journalism. One Victorian newspaper in particular (no names, but I think you probably know), has had an absolute awful run of late; prediction disguised as fact and opinion disguised as policy. Those articles and those “journalists” are as dangerous as the virus. Dragging us further and further apart and away from the truth while masquerading as honest.

Why would you write and publish such rubbish?

Education is so important.

I am a bit of a “word nerd”. I love trying to bring back words that I subjectively believe do not get the frequency they deserve. The eye-rolls from my VCE students usually confirm that I am on to a winner. The word this week is: Flummox.

Flummox is to “confuse someone so much that they do not know what to do”.

Those protests, in my opinion, demonstrated a lack of critical thinking and autonomous thought. Adults who followed rather than determining their own path and who sort truth from their news feed. Future citizens need to be more equipped to deal with the onslaught of misinformation that has increasingly become the norm. I want citizens who ask before acting and question when flummoxed.

Looking at the confusion that is being created and the manner in which select “adults” are coping with it all, I can’t imagine what a young person is thinking as they try to digest everything that is thrown at them each day. Those protests and those articles, if nothing else, made me much more determined to ensure my students are constantly being challenged to question every time they join my classes online, face to face or otherwise.

3x

I recently stumbled across (while randomly reading), Kent Beck’s article “The Product Development Triathlon” on Medium. Kent has a lot of ideas floating around the internet but the concept in this article is his 3x model for product development: explore, expand and extract.

“Explore: Successful exploration is unpredictable, so the highest expected value strategy is to reduce the cost of experimentation and put a little investment into many, uncorrelated experiments. If you’re lucky, one of these experiments turns out to be unexpectedly successful, which leads to:

Expand: Unanticipated bottlenecks appear. All you have time for is to eliminate the next bottleneck just before it derails you. Once growth becomes routine, it’s time to:

Extract: now the shape of the problem and solution spaces are clear. One euro in equals three euros out. Playbooks emerge: here’s how you roll out the service in a new city.”

Doesn’t this look a little like the transition to remote learning?

As a sector we dabbled in online learning, flipping a classroom here, trying an app or two there, then...

Drastic changes occur rapidly as our experimentation takes off and becomes the predominant method of delivery and communication. Those who had experimented more were perhaps better off than those who didn’t so much. Throughout his period we’ve come to bottleneck after bottleneck and managed to keep our classes running and our heads above water. In many cases we have also improved and increased the quality of our pedagogy and developed robust, contemporary learning programs. We are now in...

Extract. The “shape of the problem” is clear. We must maintain the ground we have covered as we return to school.

It might actually be more accurate to call this period that is approaching “explore”. I feel more than ever we are ready to take bigger risks and challenge what a lesson looks like. Our mindsets have shifted from purely “does this address the curriculum?” to “does this benefit the learner?” We can’t risk returning to a predictable way of operating. We need to explore for our students sake.

Finally.

I recently observed a huge increase in a student’s result on a formative assessment task. At first I was sceptical, I did some quick Google checks to ensure there weren’t obvious signs of plagiarism, but the student had produced those responses and completed that task by themselves. A parent teacher phone call confirmed that the student had sat quietly and completed the task without any additional assistance. I asked a student what had changed and they replied:

“I don’t have to worry about other students any more. I can ask you questions whenever I want. Asking questions really helped. I wasn’t worried about not knowing the answer because we talked about it already and I knew what I needed to do this time”.

Remote learning has removed the “noise” for this student and allowed them to perform at a much higher level. 

I can’t and won’t say that remote learning works for everyone, but removing some of the “noise” created an environment of clarity, allowing this student to ask questions and avoid confusion. In the classroom, this particular student was so confused (flummoxed?) they likely didn’t know where to start. 

Is some of that confusion my fault, of course! I am on my own learning journey, consistently trying to be better. The key is reflection. This change up has definitely provided me plenty of opportunities to take stock and re-evaluate. To stop and realise. This reflection is essential as we head back towards that classroom again. The next two weeks will be dedicated to designing my own “return to school program” in order to cater for all of my students: those who have embraced online and those who are desperate to return.

This pandemic is a horrible thing, but for this student (and myself) it provided the environment they needed to succeed. I am hoping there are plenty more student success stories to come as we continue to provide continuous learning programs all over the country. As we continue to explore, expand and extract we are all redefining what teaching is and what education looks like in 2020 and beyond.

Flummox is to “confuse someone so much that they do not know what to do”.

To flourish is to “grow or develop successfully”.

Whether it’s online or offline, let’s get all students from flummox to flourish.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Haileybury Teachers of the Future: Science

Haileybury are a school community that explored online learning before all of this happened and are kind enough to share their expertise in these webinars. The Science team delivered a very insightful program this week and the Junior School team are lined up for Thursday 21st May @ 4pm. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gr6cFaK

Artificial Intelligence(AI) in K-12

(https://emma-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/paqab/71de919fd20c5e29fc83197664a59888/CoSN_AI_Report_2020_R8_4.24.pdf)

Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) released this fascinating report exploring the augmentation of learning with A.I. rather than replacing the teacher. Well worth a look!

HGSE: Education now

(https://www.gse.harvard.edu/education-now)

Harvard University Graduate School of Education have been offering some great webinars early (for Australia) on Thursday mornings covering a variety of topics. Upcoming this week is “Teaching to Navigate Challenge and Uncertainty," a conversation with Sarah Dryden-Peterson (Ed.D.’09) about preparing young people — and ourselves — to adapt to change, confront inequities, and strengthen our communities in a time of turmoil. All of the previous offerings are available on the website. I highly recommend last weeks episode which featured current students on the panel.

Game Changers Podcast

(https://soundcloud.com/user-127023293/season-1-epilogue)

Adriano and Phil wrap up the first series of the podcast and set the stage for the second series which releases this week.

Image: dictionary.com (https://www.dictionary.com/e/s/funny-words/#flummox)

[mattpitman]

Global influence & entrepreneurship.

Community engagement is key to an effective learning program, yet in a world that has become increasingly connected digitally, are our students really aware of their potential to influence? Are they aware of the connection between their actions, their words, their future and the wider world? Do they understand that they have the ability to not only influence their own future, but the future of those around them?

Often we speak of connection (and even more so recently in the middle of this horrific pandemic), as the ability to see and interact with each other despite physical distance. The wonders of modern communication are surely not something to discount, after all, where would we be without the technological pioneers and their revolutionary inventions today? How would school work currently here in Melbourne, if not for the immensely powerful technology we can hold in our hands?

But do our students understand connection beyond this? 

A global citizen is somebody who knows of, feels, and understands the connective tissue between themselves, others and the wider world. It is essential that curriculum is adapted to ensure students are given the opportunity to identify those links, to create new ones and to connect their current learning to the wider world. A textbook can supplement ideas in a classroom but it won’t create them outside of it!

Student agency is essential to this exploratory and interpersonal journey. How can we put the learner at the center if we haven’t asked what they want to learn? Asked what they are interested in? Students who are empowered to make decisions in their learning develop their creativity, some admittedly, out of necessity but many simply out of opportunity. Entrepreneurial mindsets are born out of this creativity, a penchant for problem solving and a keen eye for resources. We know this, yet choice and autonomy are consistently stripped away from programs in favour of timelines, schedules and the attainment of “key” knowledge. This type of learning doesn’t foster connection to the world, if anything it distances itself from it. If school doesn’t feel like “real life” then how can students begin to understand their influence within their world?

Creativity and resourcefulness are commonly highlighted as critical skills, but we need a new way of thinking through how we develop them. This doesn’t mean rethinking a few components, it requires rethinking everything. We need students at the center, middle and outside of learning. Teachers and leaders can model and actively demonstrate this entrepreneurial thinking by constantly redefining what their classroom looks and feels like. We need to change lesson plans out for brief outlines, allowing students the space to explore multiple ways of meeting their goals, not ours. We need learning objectives and assessment that is designed (from scratch!) to be interdisciplinary, reflecting practical skills that can be utilised across the whole lifespan, not just in third period.

This goes beyond team teaching, beyond open plan learning and beyond the traditional notions of school. I want to see learning communities where all students plan, create and run businesses. Where they grow, cook and sell products. Where they succeed but also fail and learn to accept that failure as a process not as a barrier. Where timetables aren’t labelled ‘science” or ‘mathematics’, they say things like ‘design’ and ‘explore’. Where learners go out into the community regularly, rather than bringing speakers in. Entrepreneurs and people of global influence don’t play by the rules and it is time learning followed by changing and breaking them. I’m not interested in traditional schooling and neither are a large majority of students.

Far too many students are attending school to simply open doors to future experiences. Schooling has been reduced to a stepping stone towards the rich experiences and all life has to offer. 

Why can’t learning be an experience now? 

Why do students have to wait to be and feel a part of their world? 

Like the study of an ecosystem, our students need to have an understanding of the interconnectedness of their immediate world, their community, the people, the places and the geography. They need to get out and analyse the support structures, the cycles and the processes within their world, how it works and what makes it ‘tick’. When students are offered a chance to connect with their community early, they can begin to truly understand their place within their world, sooner rather than later. In this environment, they can truly start to appreciate, expand and develop the ideas that will eventually shape and influence our world.

The evidence.

Foundation for Young Australians (FYA). (2015). Enterprise skills and careers education in schools: why Australia needs a national strategy.

Higgins, D., & Elliott, C. (2011). Learning to make sense: what works in entrepreneurial education?. Journal of European Industrial Training.

Maritz, A., Nguyen, Q., & Bliemel, M. (2019). Boom or bust? Embedding entrepreneurship in education in Australia. Education+ Training.

Solomon, G., Dickson, P. H., Solomon, G. T., & Weaver, K. M. (2008). Entrepreneurial selection and success: does education matter?. Journal of small business and enterprise development.

Wei, X., Liu, X., & Sha, J. (2019). How does the entrepreneurship education influence the students’ innovation? Testing on the multiple mediation model. Frontiers in Psychology, 10.

Limbo.

This is 5 of 6 posts I am (slowly) writing based on what I have read, listened to, observed and ultimately, believe are the makings of a successful and sustainable learning community, I’m calling them collectively “Limbo”. At the end of the day I am just a passionate educator on my own learning journey and I may have everything completely wrong! Let me know what you think of each post and help me grow! I hope to have a new post each week but can’t help if life gets in the way...

The previous posts are linked below:

Limbo.

Innovation & growth.

Wellbeing & resilience.

Culture & shared language.

Thanks for reading.

Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Wellbeing & resilience.

When I was a graduate teacher I was told something. Something that stuck with me and in amongst everything that is going on today, may be more relevant than ever before:

“You don’t need a degree to listen”.

Teachers, parents and the Education system itself, we all need to listen to our young people. Really listen to them. There is a common misconception that because of their age, school-aged students are incapable of solving their own problems. They need an adult to come in and provide solutions and clear a path for them. The students know that their teachers care, but they also know that the system wasn’t designed for them. They don’t fit the mould.

“Good teachers make good students”.

Somebody once said that casually at a PD day. It makes me cringe. Students are not things. We spend far too much time telling/showing/giving solutions rather than guiding and then we wonder why students withdraw when we don’t spoon-feed them the answer to a problem. 

They don’t fit the mould. 

We often speak of resilience as an essential component to being a capable and active citizen, yet reduce the opportunities for students to build it or to test their own because we have to move on to the next topic or prepare for an assessment. Strategies are designed to enable students to develop resilience built in and around the current system and I’ve seen first hand some fantastic programs and some incredible guest speakers come in for all of one day. That’s not enough! Schools need to get back to basics. We need to listen. To stop and sit down and really listen. A common question in job interviews for wellbeing positions in schools is “what do you think the biggest issues are for young people today?” Perhaps the biggest one: we’re not asking them!

We know that student resilience and wellbeing are essential for both academic and social development, and we know that creating safe, supportive and respectful learning environments is the responsibility of every single person in education. I have no doubt that most schools and educational institutions are safe places for students. But is the focus truly on wellbeing? Is the focus on building a skillset that will serve these students now and into their adult life? It should be noted, schools are not solely responsible for this, we share this responsibility with the whole community however, we need to shift our focus from what we want them to learn and on towards what they need to learn and embed wellbeing and resilience in the foundation rather than tacking it on to the old one.

Having knowledge and knowing a lot about a number of different topics is great, but that again is education and not learning. Education ticks boxes but learning destroys them. Our system is designed to put students in those very boxes, to label them and ship them off to the next instalment of their “education”. Within our current system, students don’t have time to reflect and set goals for their next endeavour, yet we cry out about a generation of young people with no resilience. We are still yet to embrace the fact that failure is ok and necessary for growth. This is well-known (they explained it in a Star Wars movie people!), but still not fully embraced within our system. 

I believe we need to take it one further and suggest, you only fail if you don’t take the time to reflect.

If your wellbeing framework is not based on community partnerships, then I feel you are likely in the right boat, but you’re missing a key piece of equipment. Partnering with parents and families is important, but partnering with the students is essential in changing the message. We need to accept that real life is not choreographed, some of it can be predicted, sure, but every day really is a new unknown and as such the most valuable skills are those that help you navigate that unknown landscape. Skills based in emotional intelligence, agency, problem solving and resilience. They are the skills that serve you in the unknown. They are the skills that increase your likelihood of success and increase your overall sense of wellbeing. To facilitate this environment, we need to support our students, to be there, but at a distance. To allow students the space to make their own decisions, to make mistakes and to voice their concerns.

I think about this model of support and liken it to an athlete swimming the English Channel. They have a support boat and a support team, people who are there for motivation, refuelling and should things go seriously wrong, medical and life-saving assistance. But for the most part the boat is just there, in the background, slowly moving along with the swimmer. If the swimmer needs something they can consult their team on the boat, otherwise they must attempt to solve their problems on their own. At no point and in an effort to ensure a greater chance of success does the team throw a line in and start towing the swimmer. The swimmer is on their own but not alone. Teachers and schools need to take on the role of the boat. Create a motivating environment without taking over the reigns. Set the scene but leave the investigation and detective work to the students. Will there be more mistakes with this kind of model, of course, but that is a requirement of learning and of building resilience. Wellbeing, self-confidence, empowerment and success rely on a radical change to the way our current system operates.

As it stands, students don’t see the relevance of schooling. I hear it all the time. More and more students are dropping out before completing year 12, and that is not necessarily a bad thing, many find success which is fantastic however, many also attribute that success to finally leaving school and focussing on “real” skills. The final years of schooling (not by any means exclusively) are incredibly stressful for students. Our dependance on testing and ranking is serving an antiquated purpose that is counter to the needs of our young people now and into the future.

A focus on wellbeing and resilience requires a new framework. The students know it. It’s time to listen. We don’t need wellbeing programs, we need a system designed with wellbeing embedded in its skeleton.

It is time to seriously consider the wellbeing and resilience of our students and accept that the current system is anything but current.

The evidence.

Department of Education, Skills & Employment. (2020). Student Resilience and Wellbeing. From https://www.education.gov.au/student-resilience-and-wellbeing#:~:text=Student%20resilience%20and%20wellbeing%20are,responsibility%20with%20the%20whole%20community.

McCrea, R., Walton, A., & Leonard, R. (2016). Developing a model of community wellbeing and resilience in response to change. Social Indicators Research, 129(1), 195-214.

Noble, T., & McGrath, H. (2014). Well-being and resilience in school settings. In Increasing psychological well-being in clinical and educational settings (pp. 135-152). Springer, Dordrecht.

Roffey, S. (2020). Circle Solutions for Student Wellbeing: Relationships, Resilience and Responsibility. SAGE Publications Limited.

Seligman, M. E. (2012). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Simon and Schuster.

Limbo.

This is 3 of 6 posts I am (slowly) writing based on what I have read, listened to, observed and ultimately, believe are the makings of a successful and sustainable learning community, I’m calling them collectively “Limbo”. At the end of the day I am just a passionate educator on my own learning journey and I may have everything completely wrong! Let me know what you think of each post and help me grow! I hope to have a new post each week but can’t help if life gets in the way...

The previous posts are linked below:

Limbo.

Innovation & growth.

Thanks for reading.

Image by 愚木混株 Cdd20 from Pixabay

[mattpitman]

The precipice.

Wow. What a week. 

I am not entirely sure where it was more chaotic, in my remote classroom or in the political arena. I gave my thoughts on all of that last week and I’m still very much in the same place. I’m feeling fortunate to live in Victoria, that is for sure. I can’t wait to stroll the busy streets of Melbourne again...

The chaos in the classroom is actually great though. The remote learning environment is a hive of activity. It has been well documented by many in the education sector that the energy and time commitment required of online/remote/continuous learning is substantially more than what many anticipated or had experienced in the classroom. But it’s also, so rewarding! 

There were days it used to feel like pulling teeth when asking for feedback, questions or concerns in the physical classroom, but online, it’s a rush of queries and challenging thoughts. Students are engaging with their content with an enthusiasm that I really didn’t anticipate, and the communication! Students are messaging and emailing ahead of time when they are unable to meet a specific task requirement and providing an alternative. Truly inspiring what can happen when you leave a young person to “fend” for themselves.

There are negatives of course. I am reminded of the distance every time I check in with my students via video conference, that the personal and social component is a large percentage of what makes teaching such a great profession. But while the social distance is substantial at the moment, it won’t be forever, and it will quickly change when it is appropriate and safe to return to schools. The pedagogy however, well that is a completely different story.

With all of this talk about going back to school, I find myself reflecting on this ongoing remote learning experience and how positive it has been for me personally. It has without a doubt changed the way I intend to teach when we return to the college grounds, and I am pretty excited about that. Rejuvenated perhaps is the right word. Much of what I have learned or intend to take back is probably old news, but it has energised me and that is what really counts.

With a looming date for the end of the State of Emergency in Victoria, I can’t help but think that we are on the precipice of great change again in education. This time it isn’t how - as in “how are we going to shift everything online in such a short period of time?”, but what - as in “what are we going to take back with us?”. 

I previously spoke about my experiences and reflected about my own re-working of practice and development of a model for my classes. Some of that is on this blog and also in a couple of LinkedIn articles (here: “You helped me. Thanks”, and here: “I watched my students learn from a distance. It was awesome”). I intend to keep my three lesson model when we return. Today though, I thought I would reflect on my biggest personal learnings and why I believe they will be held very tightly as I jump off this cliff and back into the physical teaching environment - whenever that may be.

1. Less instruction, more construction 

I see myself now as a facilitator, not a teacher. I do not belong at the front of the class as the “expert”. My primary role is to create an environment in which my students can become the experts. Online I don’t set tasks, I share tasks. Online I observe my students challenging, exploring and creating, while providing guidance and feedback where I can from a distance. I have said previously “put away your spoons, the students can feed themselves” and I meant it. Across this journey so far I’ve seen an increase in the quality of work from my strongest students to my lowest achievers, and to be honest those classifications mean nothing in the remote learning world. Where students have wanted to be involved, they have succeeded because this environmental change has supported their individuality.

Part of this I attribute to drastically reducing the amount of content rather than attempting to replicate and mimic the traditional classroom. I think all teachers facilitators would agree, that student feedback is some of the most meaningful. Especially, unprovoked feedback. A number of students have provided me with surprise thoughts, opinions and thanks across the last three weeks and it’s been incredibly meaningful and allowed me to be more productive in my role. They love the more focussed and reduced workload. They have time to work through the content and time to process its application to their world, rather than in service of an assessment task. The return to the physical classroom environment will be a drastic change to what has quickly become habitual, but I intend to maintain the quality over quantity mindset, freeing up time for discussion and conversation. Not all of the time allocated to the lesson has to be “on task”. Creativity, curiosity and critical thinking is not the stuff of textbook questions, it is more exploratory and I won’t be looking backward. 

Less instruction, more construction means less of my voice and more of theirs.

2. Blended, not mashed 

Technology and education have an interesting history. Sometimes it feels forced, other times it is a miracle classes were taught without it. This experience has demonstrated to me that my students are tech-savvy, but also select with the application of their abilities. Today’s young people thrive on choices. They are incredible when you want a video published on social media or a code written for gaming platform but when it comes to spreadsheets or word processing or conducting research on a fixed topic outside of that interest - they may be disengaged.

This experience has shown me the value of sharing a task and giving the students the room to engage with it. Technology used in this way is not forced or out of place, it is ingrained. This isn’t a PowerPoint to support a 40 minute lecture, it’s a recorded 5 minute video, followed by a research question, to formulate a response for the discussion forum and the basis for a class debate. I don’t envisage this classroom to have students in rows of chairs with books and pens. It’s students outside, in the hallway and on the floor, engaging with the content as they choose. This is taking the wins from the remote learning period and applying them to the strengths of the physical classroom.

This is not just lashing technology to the side of the lesson and hoping it stays attached. This is creating a lesson that is designed to give the students control of the pace and allow them to discover with more freedom.

Blended, not mashed means less information and more exploration.

3. Connection instead of direction

In my role as a House Leader it sometimes feels like I only contact parents and they only contact me with concerns or to schedule meetings and of course, at parent teacher interviews. Since moving to remote learning however, I have found that communication between parents, students and staff has been much more free flowing and spontaneous. Perhaps this is because many parents find themselves temporarily working from home also and the barrier of conflicting schedules has been removed. In any case, the level of parent, student and my own engagement is high. I love it.

While I would say I am fortunate to teach secondary education, and a lot of what I am talking about here is framed to that particular environment, the shared responsibility of parents, students and teachers in guiding a learner on their journey has never been more evident. Weekly updates of concepts, tasks and their application have been met with parent support and gratitude. Allowing those parents the intel they need to politely inquire or praise and congratulate their 17-18 year old child in the least intrusive manner possible. At my school we are currently in process of a 3-week parent-teacher interview cycle (via phone) and the conversations have reflected both the parents understanding that the learning is their child’s responsibility but the support is ours to share. Incredibly valuable and rewarding!

Connection instead of direction means less reporting and more supporting.

This is the precipice

Do we jump and be curious and adaptive? Or do we step backward and return to the safety of the land?

I don’t believe there is any long term benefit of returning to the “old way�� of doing things. The short term comfort in going back to what we “used to do” will not last. It might be uncomfortable initially, but all forward thinking and future focused movements are slow, painful and challenging for individual's but, the rewards are potentially huge for whole communities.

Going back to a pre-corona model of education would be to the benefit and comfort of certain teachers only. Students would suffer. 

So it is time to consider why we got into this game and whether we are ready to continue changing it.

Will you jump with me?

This is the precipice.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Educator Perspectives on the Impact of COVID-19 on Teaching and Learning 

(https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mattlukepitman_pivot-state-of-education-2020-white-paper-activity-6661744495702474752-1in6)

Pivot Professional Learning along with Education Perfect ran a series of fantastic webinars this week, highlighting the incredible effort of educators across Australia and NZ. Pivot also, in a massive effort, collected a ton of data and has put together this report. Definitely worth a read, very insightful stuff.

Continuous Learning Toolkit Vol. II | Leading Through Crisis 

(https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mattlukepitman_continuous-learning-toolkit-volume-ii-activity-6661169533031723008-sP68)

I continue to be unashamed in how much I love their podcast, but a close second to that is The Game Changers (Adriano & Phil) Continuous Learning Toolkit. This second volume presents a number of innovative and game-changing schools, their models, frameworks and stories. For any aspiring Game Changer this is a must read!

Future Agendas for Global Education: Executive Summary 

(https://issuu.com/4796376/docs/gef.agenda_eng)

Sold to me as “an excellent report that should be read by every school leader and educational policy maker” this summary is a long read but an engaging and inspiring one. Worth your time if you have it and if you don’t, make some!

[mattpitman]

Innovation & growth.

A fellow educator mid-staff briefing once said to me “enough with all of this change. Why can’t we just keep things the way they are?” It took me by surprise at first, (although I do tend to be overly optimistic more than I am pessimistic) this was an accomplished educator who had been somewhat of a mentor to myself, a caring, positive and enthusiastic teacher and I honestly thought he had been broken. Fortunately, this wasn’t the case and in time I came to understand what he meant and what he was really trying to say: 

“why are we doing this, when we haven’t done anything with the last thing yet”.

Innovation and growth have become popular terms within the educational lexicon, despite the fact there does seem to be some misunderstanding and misuse of these terms. Innovation in particular, is far too commonly used as a term and not as an action. A slap of paint on an old classroom, no matter how bright, is not innovation. Customisable furniture, a smart board or whiteboard tables are not innovation. Innovation is an act. Innovation is a willingness to try new things and accept that they may potentially fail. Innovation is creation. Innovation is using the resources at your disposal to bring learning to life. 

We seem to be far too concerned with the future and not enough with what is happening here and now. If we adjust and change the way we do things in the present, surely this will have an impact in the future. Yet we continue to talk about skill building for the future instead of building skills for now. One of the most troubling things about the future is, it is in the future. We can’t accurately predict what it will look like. So I pose this to anyone reading right now: learning shouldn’t be for the future, it should be for now. Students should be learning and living, not learning to live. If we truly want to create lifelong learners, then we need to create a passion for learning now. We should be facilitating experiences that build curious minds, creative thinkers and students who seek out their own experiences to learn. That is what growth is. I’m not saying planning for the future is foolish, more that only planning for the future is. We need to stop waiting for permission to act.

Education as it stands, isn’t about growth, it is about measurement. Education is focused on measuring everyone to the same predetermined standard. Learning is not the same as education and I truly believe we need to change the way we use these terms interchangeably. Learning is a personal journey, a canvas, an ever-evolving self-portrait, unique and individualised. When we create an environment in which students are adequately challenged at the appropriate level you start to see adaptation and growth. When students are able to overcome a problem using their own methods and through their own decision-making, this is the foundation for future growth. The more experiences we facilitate like these, the greater the chance we will develop a real and lasting passion for learning in our students.

So, constant adaptation is essential, that is where innovation links to growth. Which brings me back to my former colleague. Speak to any educator and I am certain they will be able to recount a strategy that was abandoned before it truly started or even worse, forgotten after staff contributed hours and hours to it. Adapting to a system that focuses on growth really is not that big of an innovation. In theory, it is actually quite simple. Stop limiting yourself and your staff to just looking at the ‘numbers’ and then moving on. Perhaps I am in the minority, but most of the strategies I have been a part of in schools have been focused on ‘the data’ aka some numbers. This, on its own, is not innovative or useful in measuring growth but is reflective of the old and in many cases, current way of doing things. George Couros said it best in his book the Innovators Mindset:

“when we are data-driven, we take the most human profession, teaching, and reduce it to simply letters and numbers. There is something inherently wrong with this approach because when teachers are driven by test scores, the students themselves get lost in the process.”

It is time to stop collecting data and start collecting evidence. Once you have the data (Vygotsky certainly had a lot to say about this in regards to the Zone of Proximal Development) graph, chart, group, collaborate, identify and plan. Don’t just look at the data, do something with it. Innovation that leads to growth is not about a data-driven culture, it’s about an evidence-based culture. Imagine if CSI handled “evidence” the way schools often do. They would be very short episodes and not because they were solving cases quicker! 

Use the evidence you have sourced from the data to plan lessons and programs that facilitate a student’s pathway towards their next successful endeavour, no matter how small or large that next step may be. Evidence identifies a learner’s current ability and assists with planning the path ahead. If you focus only on the data, you give the student an A and a B and then set them on their way. I’m not talking about spoon-feeding here, I’m talking about scaffolding. Scaffolding assists you to reach higher places, it doesn’t do the work for you.

Learning communities need to stop trying to be an innovative school. Instead they need to build the foundations required to become an innovative school. Shift your focus to growth over class averages, encourage your staff to try new things (and ensure you reflect on them regularly) and you will have the makings of an environment in which every teacher is an innovator and every young person is a learner.

What do you think?

The evidence.

Couros, G. (2015). The innovator's mindset: Empower learning, unleash talent, and lead a culture of creativity. Dave Burgess Consulting.

Department of Education, Skills & Employment (2019). The Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration. Carlton South: Australian Governments Education Council.

Hattie, J. T. H. (2005). What is the nature of evidence that makes a difference to learning? Paper Presented at the Australian Council for Educational Research Conference, Unknown. ACER.

Learning Creates Australia. (2020). The Learner’s Journey. From https://www.learningcreates.org.au/evidence

Masters, G. N. (2013). Towards a growth mindset in assessment. ACER Occasional Essays.

Shepard, L. A. (2019). Classroom assessment to support teaching and learning. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 683(1), 183-200.

Limbo.

This is 2 of 6 posts I am (slowly) writing based on what I have read, listened to, observed and ultimately, believe are the makings of a successful and sustainable learning community, I’m calling them collectively “Limbo”. At the end of the day I am just a passionate educator on my own learning journey and I may have everything completely wrong! Let me know what you think of each post and help me grow! I hope to have a new post each week but can’t help if life gets in the way...

The previous post, an introduction of sorts, titled “Limbo” is here.

Thanks for reading.

Image by Mote Oo Education from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Limbo.

It has been a while since my last post and reflection. The return to school three weeks ago was as expected, a mixture of excitement and anxiety. While it has been fantastic to be back in the classroom with the students, there is always the worry in the back of my head. We must not forget to be cautious and careful for the sake of those in our families and community who are vulnerable, yet we often do. As we look down on a new set of restrictions in Victoria it is obvious that in some ways we are forgetting. Becoming complacent. The virus is a part of our world now. Working with Year 11 and Year 12 students it is clear who has been exposed to the virus in a real, tangible sense and conversely who has not. Teenagers are such curious beasts. Unless it is impacting them specifically, in some cases, it may as well not exist.

There is a level of forget-fullness/select attention within staff also. It only took a few days for many to return to their comfort zone. Lots of chalk and talk. Written tests and lectures about summative assessment, ATAR scores and university entry. Tip of the iceberg-type stuff. Surface level stuff. The kind of thing celebrated at the end of the year in the media. Things that can be printed on certificates and presented at assemblies. All of that is education not learning.

We were so close during the lockdown but now it feels like we are in limbo. We haven’t quite gone all the way back but we are in a place between the old way of doing things and the new. There is still a desire to seek what lies underneath the iceberg we can see, but we just can’t seem to brave the cold water as of yet. There are as always those brave game changing educators who don’t wait for permission, but many of them have been swimming in those waters for a while now, trying their best to tempt us in. It really was by chance that the majority were forced in, pushed by the switch to remote learning like an older sibling in the backyard pool. It was predominantly unexpected and a massive shock to the system. As a result, we’ve collectively been dunked under the water, but instead of waiting for our bodies to adjust, we’ve quickly jumped out and run for the safety of the towel and the dry land we feel more stable and comfortable on. The water is still too cold and we haven’t been submerged for long enough to see clearly. Long enough to breach the barriers of our comfort zones. To see the future of learning and the change necessary to meet the needs of that future.

Although I haven’t posted in a while, I have been busy researching, reading, attending webinars and forums. There has been an influx of material linked to the future of education/learning/schooling recently and over the past few weeks I have been asking myself the same questions. What do I believe the future of learning looks like? What does it feel like? What does it sound like? 

My conclusion was the following broad areas of focus:

Culture & shared language

Partnerships & unity

Global influence & entrepreneurship

Innovation & growth

Wellbeing & resilience

Over the next few weeks I’ll post about each of these in detail, some longer than others and the focus will not only be my subjective thoughts but what I have been reading, watching, asking and learning. So this in a way is the introduction. Post 1 of 6. The focus of this series is the future and that future in this educator’s eyes, is on learning and not education. Education seems linked to the antiquated, yet learning seems creative, curious and optimistic, the same traits I’d hope I instil in my students. I’m not sure who reads this and honestly, it doesn’t matter all that much to me personally, I’m no expert. This blog simply presents me with an opportunity to push myself further and further out of my own personal and professional limbo. One more opportunity to explore the iceberg below the water. As a leader and a teacher, I feel I am definitely in the water at this stage and there are many in here with me. The best thing is, there is always room for more.

Who’s in?

Image by Mote Oo Education from Pixabay

[mattpitman]

Premiere.

Well, the countdown is now on to the first day of what is being called the “new normal” in education. Personally, I am not a fan of the use of “normal” in this case. What we used to have was “normal”. I want better than what we used to have...

A new reality for education. Meh. It’s getting there.

The point is, this is the premiere of the new educational landscape post-isolation. I say premiere because I miss new movies. What a first world problem to have. But I do. So I have been forced to look through my catalog of old movies. Some classics, some personal favourites and some randoms thrown in for fun.

The premiere of “new school” is much like what I imagine the premiere of a movie to be like for an actor or a director. You spend hours and hours trying to put something together that ticks all of the boxes, something that the community will get behind and support but ultimately, it could go either way. 

Will the premiere of “#school2020″ be a rousing success or a resounding flop?

The best way to look forward is in this case, is to look back at the astonishing remote learning period and the rapid adaptation of a whole system to maintain continuous learning. 

What better way to do that than with the help of the movies?

Apollo 13 🚀

In March we were stranded in an unfamiliar “space”, desperately contemplating “where to from here”. We looked at what we had on hand, what we had managed to pack from our offices and desks and started designing. Like the team at NASA we had to find a way to fit a “square peg in a round hole”. A way to keep the life in our learning programs. Many of us had a familiarity with the technology, the applications and the platforms, but never had we expected to completely rely on them. We had success early, but then faced a new challenge.

Groundhog Day ⏰

Like Phil Connors before us, we found ourselves in our own Punxsutawney, a repetitious environment characterised early on by hours of video conferencing, emails and quizzes. Every day we put in long hours to ensure we had differentiated our lessons, but each morning felt like waking up to the same tune on the alarm clock. As the weeks ticked over we found small successes in communicating with our students and like Phil, we learned the value of the little things. We come out of this remote learning period treasuring what we had before COVID-19, but understanding that there is greater work to be done. We came to appreciate the technology when it worked, but when it didn’t, well that was a different story.

Jurassic Park 🦖

When you have just managed to accept everyone into a lesson from the waiting room and then the internet drops out you start to feel a little agitated. It only happened a few times, but every one of them felt a bit like Dennis turning the power off and the letting the monsters out of the cage. When the video stream got a little bit laggy in the middle of a question and answer session, I felt a bit like the “blood sucking lawyer” sitting on the toilet about to be an entree. It was unpredictable at times, but we teachers adapt. “Life finds a way” and so do we, I wasn’t joking about the students being monsters though.

The Parent Trap 📱

I had the pleasure of contacting home quite often during this period. Quite a few students took a little while to warm up to the realities of learning remotely. It seemed like everything they had ever wanted; wake up late, watch TV at lunch, no more trains to catch. Unfortunately for some, the reality of being at home, surrounded by their creature comforts and their teachers confined to a box, was a little too tempting. Netflix seemed more valuable than studying the intricacies of Australia’s healthcare system. Like Hallie and Annie, they tried to pull a fast one on their parents using the tried and tested “I haven’t got any work to do” (at 11am? Nice try!) When the teacher came calling the truth came out and ultimately it brought teachers, parents and students a little bit closer albeit digitally.

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back 🌌

What a great movie... moving on...

The Dark Knight 🦇

Small gains locally didn’t stop the “jokers” claiming that quote/unquote “homeschooling” had to stop and young people had to return to school immediately. The educational discourse has been a little bit chaotic and like good old Bruce, we teachers find ourselves in a battle we can’t really win. There is inequity across this great nation of ours and many students need to return to school. Is it safe is a big question I can’t answer, but I was hopeful this whole ordeal would increase the overall respect for educators in general. I am no Batman, but it does feel like we are being chased back into the classroom. This, despite our actions over the past few months proving that things can be different. We found a way to maintain order despite the whirlwind of chaos. Speaking of...

The Wizard of Oz 🤖

We now find ourselves in an educational world of opportunity. There isn’t necessarily a Wizard to seek out (or a giant head) and grant our wishes but we can still work to create a brain (creative & critical thinking), a heart (empathy) and courage (resilience). It’s time for us to band together and head off down our yellow brick road to the brighter future beyond the chaos. Sure, there might be a wicked witch or two, hopefully no flying monkeys, but if anything, school staff have proved that they can band together and work through anything. Like the random group found across the road, educators have collaborated without anything more to connect them than a Twitter account, that’s incredibly impressive. Let’s carry some water just in case.

Back to the Future 🚙

We can’t afford to treat this future recklessly like Marty did with his. We need to realise our past mistakes, identify what has worked recently and attempt to create real change for our students future. There is no Delorean for our students. They need our help now. We can’t afford to be looking at our remote learning programs like Marty looking at his photo, watching the gains we have made fade away. We need to take drastic steps (maybe not as drastic as his) to ensure we are preparing our students for their future. There is no going back and there is no almanac. We need to do this together.

This is it.

It is almost time to premiere. There is a mixture of nerves and anticipation. The big question: what will the future hold for education?

Time to decide. 

Are you one of the directors of this new future? Or are you in the audience?

Action!

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

President Obama’s Message to the Class of 2020

(https://youtu.be/H8Ego3_43lQ)

“With so much uncertainty, with everything suddenly up for grabs, this is your generations world to shape”. A powerful message for young people everywhere from a truly inspirational leader.

Staff 2030: Future-Ready Teaching

(https://lnkd.in/gYSQYC2)

Essential reading for educators who want to be the directors of this new future.

Image by Sabine Lange from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Connect/disconnect.

Easter is such a reflective time.

In some ways I feel more connected than ever.

In others, so disconnected.

The computer/mobile phone screen has become like a portal to a land of fantasy. My parents live in that world, my brothers, friends and colleagues. They are all contained to the world inside the box. I am grateful for the technology that bridges that gap, but I also curse it quietly every now and then. Thank goodness for my partner, without her, I’d be much worse off. I can handle the distance from those not living with me for now. Though it does feel like it is building.

Where I feel connected the most is to my profession. Despite the physical distancing, the connection between educators who have never even met is so powerful during these strange times.

A brilliant webinar hosted by the Haileybury team was capped off by the Principal and CEO Mr Derek Scott who emphasised that online pedagogy and delivering an education from a distance was the focus short term, but mental health and wellbeing needed to be the focus for the long term. I couldn’t agree more. I worry about my students. How much distance can they handle? Young people (people in general really) are so social. They rely on it. It’s crucial to their wellbeing and development.

We might be slowly wrapping our heads around delivery of information, meetings, our home office and working with everyone else in our houses, but those are easy in comparison to managing wellbeing during this time.

As we reflect over the Easter period and into next week, let’s factor in time to plan to look after ourselves and others, not just tolerate, manage or work around them.

Let’s limit the disconnect.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Global Foresight Summit (https://www.globalforesightsummit.com/) 

What an incredible event to experience. Incredibly thought provoking.

5 Reasons You Should Seek Your OWN Student Feedback (https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/student-feedback/)

A brilliant reminder as we head into the unknown from one of my favourite blogs recently and I’ve just started on the podcast (very late to the game)

Evidence for Learning (https://evidenceforlearning.org.au/)

Safe at Home (https://jenfbuchanan.wixsite.com/stuckathome)

Two websites with an awesome collection of resources, two of many dedicated to sharing and growing the online efficacy of teachers

Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay

[mattpitman]

A first.

In late January, the beginning of the school year, I was exhausted. I had little motivation to be back at school.

Usually, I would come away from the summer school break feeling refreshed and eager to engage with another year of schooling. This time it was different.

It was a long, tough year for the whole school community last year, but that wasn’t it. I struggled to get out of bed because I didn’t want to be at work. I thought to myself: “I’m bored”. After that, I panicked.

Should I be doing something else?

Should I have made a move last year?

I was genuinely lost.

A conversation with some colleagues and friends highlighted that this was normal. I am coming up to my tenth year as an educator. The “ten year” slump it was labelled. A phenomenon that “every teacher” goes through. I had to find a reason to come to school each day and eventually everything would be fine.

Then along came COVID-19.

We all find ourselves in the midst of an extraordinary level of uncertainty. Anxiety and panic on one end of the spectrum and the perhaps, far too relaxed on the other. I find myself in the middle. Excitedly vigilant?

I’m obviously not excited about the horrible reality of this virus, but for its implications on the education system. The system that had me groaning as I rolled out of bed in the morning. This disastrous event has forced an antiquated system to be thrown on its head and as a result, there are so many exciting questions being asked in educational circles via social media at the moment.

What does a “class” look like now?

What does it “feel” like?

What are the roles and who is responsible for what, when and how?

Can we please cancel the ATAR for this year (or forever alternatively)?

Every single PD I have been to in the past, almost everyone agrees that “if they were in charge they would do things differently, they would make real changes”.

This is that opportunity.

This is the time for the innovators.

I have found my reason to be excited in the inspiring work of educators around the world who have adapted and who are challenging what education means to us right now. 

This is the time for an asynchronous, continuous and relevant (its the 21st Century!) education system that builds autonomy and embraces creativity, critical thinking and entrepreneurial mindsets. Students should, and can learn at any time and in any place. Traditional schooling won’t work at home.

Let’s stop trying to fit this new reality into the existing mould. Let’s rethink what attendance, timetables and curriculum looks like in this new educational landscape.

There is a real opportunity here. I hope we all take it.

Now I’m excited.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Traditional Learning at Strathcona:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mdennis-tech_continuous-learning-at-strathcona-activity-6652037211191685120-gESC

Warrnambool private school moves to remote learning from term two:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-6651369284591243264-BdlQ

Level Up! Haileybury X:

https://x.haileybury.vic.edu.au/levelup/

Continuous Learning Toolkit:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/philip-sa-cummins-50531185_a-school-for-tomorrow-continuous-learning-ugcPost-6650591871120867328-CeVi

The Game Changers Podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/game-changers/id1503430745

Image by Mudassar Iqbal from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Culture & shared language.

I am fascinated by the concept of perspective. Particularly, the reality that many people can belong to a common environment, yet see it so differently. In the teaching profession I see this mostly as a huge positive. Many minds, many methods, many possibilities. Teachers that are driven by passion, evidence and reflection are valuable commodities and every school would like to fill every classroom with one of these educators. There are thousands of them out there, but they can be elusive.

I once heard culture being compared to a fishing net. If your mesh size is too large, or your culture is not well defined, modelled and lived, you will not hold onto and retain your best. They will find a way out. I like to think however, that if you have a well-defined culture, driven by core values, that are understood, modelled and lived by all in your organisation, then you actually don’t need a net, you need a wall. Everyone is going to want to be apart of your team.

Schools with a values driven culture also have a shared language and the difference between an organisation that has a shared language and one that does not, is like comparing a film recorded to a VHS cassette to one in High Definition. One is high-quality and one is lower-quality, and the differences between them can be detrimental when considering the end product. Schools that develop a strong learner-based culture are focused on collaboration and embrace opportunities to collect evidence and reflect on their practice. They constantly provide feedback, receive feedback and communicate openly and honestly because they trust and support each other. This kind of culture doesn’t only retain high quality educators and leaders, it creates them.

Just because everyone starts off on the same page however, does not mean that they have to stay there, this is where perspective comes in. When you agree to creating an environment supported by foundational values you provide staff an anchor. The length and the space between the anchor and each of your teams is up to you, but the more freedom you provide the more variation in perspective you are likely to encounter. If everyone understands and shares the vision of the school, then this is more likely to be of benefit than burden. 

This is what I believe a contemporary school culture requires in order to be successful. You want to encourage an evidence-backed, risk-taking environment, in which educators use their talents and their experience to forge new ways forward, sideways and diagonally while always secured and informed by the values of the community. They do not move backwards, but they constantly look backwards. They evaluate where they came from, how they got to where they are and then use that to plan the way forward again.

You structure the journey by providing signposts and checkpoints for staff to meet and reflect on. These checkpoints can be the mandated curriculum, but you should tailor it to your organisational culture, so it is communicated in your shared language. Sequence and be clear with school-wide goals and in doing so, your staff, informed by culture and shared language will meet you there. 

Just like in Project-Based Learning programs, ask a ‘big question’ of your staff and give them the space to create, explore, design, question, research and problem-solve. Inside every passionate educator is a learner. We design innovative and engaging programs for our students, why not design an innovative and engaging workplace for your staff.

Perhaps this post is too focused on building staff culture, but I am big believer in role-modelling and if the staff do not ‘buy-in’, how can we expect students to engage? It is unfortunate, but some staff may not be a good fit for your school culture. The reality is, if you want a school culture in which the young people are perceived as learners and not just students, then this has to be explicit in everything that the school does.

Learners deserve teachers that are curious, creative, adventurous and that challenge them each and every day. A school community that is driven by the shared understanding that the future doesn’t happen to you, it is something you make happen, is a school that gives learners (both staff and students), the skills, knowledge and opportunities to make their future, reality.

The evidence.

Hall, P., & Simeral, A. (2017). Creating a Culture of Reflective Practice: Building Capacity for Schoolwide Success. ASCD.

Prokopchuk, J. (2016). Unpacking the impact of school culture: A principal’s role in creating and sustaining the culture of a school. SELU Research Review Journal, 1(2), 73-82.

Smith, B. S., & Squires, V. (2016). The role of leadership style in creating a great school. SELU Research Review Journal, 1(1), 65-78.

Stafford, F. (2017). Creating a collaborative learning culture. Australian Educational Leader, 39(2), 30.

Limbo.

This is 4 of 6 posts I am (slowly) writing based on what I have read, listened to, observed and ultimately, believe are the makings of a successful and sustainable learning community, I’m calling them collectively “Limbo”. At the end of the day I am just a passionate educator on my own learning journey and I may have everything completely wrong! Let me know what you think of each post and help me grow! I hope to have a new post each week but can’t help if life gets in the way...

The previous posts are linked below:

Limbo.

Innovation & growth.

Wellbeing & resilience.

Thanks for reading.

Image by Kathleen Bergmann from Pixabay

[mattpitman]

If I ran the circus.

“If I Ran the Circus” by Dr. Seuss was one of my favourite books as a child. 

My family has a bit of history with the circus, we spent a lot of time there and it was pretty great. It’s weird how childhood memories sneak up on you when you have time to just sit and think. I was reminded of this book and its story as I was looking through an online bookstore and for one of those unknown reasons, I found my way to Dr. Seuss. I wasn’t going to buy any, it just happened. Weird.

The story, for those who don’t know, is told from the perspective of Morris McGurk, a young boy who is daydreaming about what he would do with “his favourite place in the whole world”, the vacant block outside Mr. Sneelock’s Store. As Morris’ imagination begins to get out of control, poor Mr. Sneelock is, unknowingly, brought along for the ride, being asked to do more outlandish and risky things for the sake of “The Circus McGurkus”.

It starts off small, Morris imagining that Mr. Sneelock will be able to adapt his store to be more like a stand so he can sell balloons and pink lemonade, that’s a simple change that would allow him to continue to sell products like he always did. Now it is more specific to the increasingly rapid change of environment in the once-vacant lot. 

As Morris begins to think bigger and bigger, however, Mr. Sneelock goes from selling pink lemonade to having an arrow shot from his head, skating through a dangerous obstacle course and finally jumping into a fishbowl, a feat that everyone knows is a bad idea - it’s dangerous, against the advice of experts and puts Mr. Sneelock in harm's way for unnecessary reasons. The performances Mr. Sneelock was a part of earlier were completely fine and there was no need to make another change so hastily. Mr. Sneelock complies though, maintaining his composure and professionalism, as well as his glasses and pipe throughout all the toing and froing.

At the end of the story, Mr. Sneelock, apparently, hears all of Morris’ wild imaginative thoughts and finishes the book looking wide-eyed and panicked as Morris claims:

“Why! He’ll be a Hero!

Of course he won’t mind

When he finds he has

A big circus behind.”

It seems Mr. Sneelock has some huge expectations to fill in the changing world of the vacant lot and the change to the Circus McGurkus. In Morris’ imaginative opinion he will be willing to comply with whatever he is asked to do. This is reflected in particular, with the use of “he might help out” at the beginning of the book, and “of course he won’t mind” at the end.

Now am I the first to think these thoughts or analyse this story for social commentary, no I am not. But I present to you a dramatic retelling of the story. The players for this retelling of “If I Ran the Circus” are as follows:

In a surprising twist on the original tale, playing the role of Morris McGurk: Hon Scott Morrison MP AND Hon Dan Tehan MP - I’ve seen them both in a lot of things lately, will they be able to pull it off?

In an equally surprising twist, playing the role of Mr. Sneelock: All the teachers and educators of Australia - With so much being asked of them, will they all be able to keep up and perform at the highest level. We shall see.

Finally, playing the role of the Circus audience: The confused Australian public - just a good job with casting on that one.

Hopefully, you can see what I did there. 

I am disappointed about a lot of the news that has come out this week. I’ve seen so many innovative redesigns of learning programs and so many examples of educators going the extra mile for their students during this difficult time. I admit this hasn’t been a smooth transition for many and there most definitely is a digital divide in this country, but I also feel that the shortcomings of our outdated education system are not just a topic of internal conversation anymore, there is some action, especially on the ground-level. At the highest level though, as decisions have been made about the immediate future of teaching in this country, I am disappointed that educators have been generally left out of the discussion and I am worried the more I hear.

The Circus McGurkus was just the wild daydream of a small boy, but I can’t help but feel like this real life “circus” we find ourselves in right now, is any less ridiculous or outrageous than what was asked of old Mr. Sneelock. I just wish as an educator, that I felt supported by our regulators.

Perhaps I am just stretching and the comparison to one of my favourite stories growing up as a boy isn’t relevant to real life right now. But it definitely feels like we are being thrown through hoops without any say, just like Mr. Sneelock from Sneelock’s Store.

“Why! Teacher’s will do it!

They don’t have a choice

When they find that their Government

Left them no voice!”

I’m just disappointed.

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

Twitter (https://twitter.com)

What a ridiculously late suggestion, but it is the truth. I have never really used Twitter. I have an account, mostly to follow my brother as he followed the Milwaukee Bucks as a journalist in the US. This week I have made more of an effort to explore what is on offer and it has proven to be a vibrant community and an uplifting read every-time things seem to be dark and gloomy. I don’t have any specific people to follow, but it definitely felt as I read through a number of educators’ thoughts this week, like a cohesive and supportive community, and one that I am fortunate to be a part of. Sorry I am so late to the party, hopefully I can add some value in the future.

The Atlantic Daily: Four Leaders Who Acted Swiftly (https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2020/04/ardern-merkel-breed-newsom/610351/)

I really enjoy a lot of the articles in The Atlantic and this summary of Ardern, Merkel, Breed and Newsom was a fantastic and inspiring snapshot into four leaders who were not afraid to take the required action, even before their people understood the reasons why.

Image by Mystic Art Design from Pixabay

[mattpitman]

Get out of the way!

I think I have been giving my students too much to do.

Although, not now in remote learning mode. In fact, I’d say I’ve been able to adjust and reduce the content to the just the necessary components much better via my computer than I ever did in person. I initially dug myself a bit of a thought pit upon this realisation. As I thought about all the years and all the students I may have overloaded...

Was I a “bad teacher”? 

How did I end up here?

Well, my students are predominately in year 12 and they aren’t really hearing a consistent message from the Government. I can’t imagine how stressful that is. Parents are just as concerned and they have every right to be, but the one parent suggestion that I don’t like hearing in this current climate is “my child needs more work.” VCE or no VCE. ATAR or no ATAR. More work isn’t the solution to the perceived problem that is remote learning. 

I can see why this is the default line of thought though. All of us are trained to think of education in hours. Hours of class time lost, hours of study during school, hours of homework after school. We are mostly at home now and being in that environment is deceiving. 

No commute. 

No recess. 

No lunchtime. 

There are more hours than ever before.

The instinctual response is “more” however, our students, teachers and parents need less. Much less.

Yesterday I was able to witness my students participating in reflection activities remotely. It was the simplest offering I had ever put forth. Based on their needs, all 27 students chose their path and plan of action for the “session”. Some students elected to video conference for clarification and questioning regarding the weeks topic. Others worked at their own pace through online quizzes and case study questions. A small group decided their time would be better dedicated to catch up and completing work they hadn’t had a chance to finish yet. A smart independent decision for those students and one that was completely because of this environmental change. Instead of continuing through revision tasks above their current level because the person next to them was, or the rest of the class was, these individuals, while in isolation, made the choice that was best for them and their own learning progress. I’m sure they’ll get to the reflection tasks when they can and they’ll be better for it.

On the outside, some might be looking and thinking that’s not VCE. There’s too much choice. They’re not doing enough “hours” or “tasks”. But what are we really asking for with all of this work? 

Isn’t it enough that these students have demonstrated that in a week, in amongst all this other scary real-world stuff, they were able to learn, demonstrate and apply a key concept from the study design? What more do you want? They have taken control of some of the most controlled aspects of schooling; time and place and produced the same if not better result. Again, what more do you want?

Looking back now, and looking at these results in the past week. I know I have been flooding my kids with activities and I won’t be doing that ever again. It’s simple really: student agency. A lot of schools and evidently myself included wouldn’t have normally given students this much control and I can’t figure out why?

This quote from John Warren sums it up for me:

“The teacher’s task is to initiate the learning process and then get out of the way.”

The students are now in charge of their timeline. 

Work is still coming in. Learning is evident.

The students are in charge of their schedule.

Work is still coming in. Learning is evident.

For anyone who is still thinking this doesn’t sound like VCE.

All I’ll say is your right.

That’s a great thing.

Get out of their way!

Here’s a few things that have inspired me this past week as an educator and a leader:

HaileyburyX Podcast (https://soundcloud.com/haileyburyx)

I’ve gone a bit podcast crazy lately. Where I used to listen to a lot of comedy podcasts to unwind (and still do actually), I have come across some inspiring educational discussions and the HaileyburyX team have created something very worth your time here. Into Season 2 at the moment.

Eddie Woo - Teaching with Youtube (https://youtu.be/TlKXbjSpa0I)

In a new series on “WooTube” specifically for educators, the Master of Mathematics takes us through how he produces his instructional/classroom videos. Great for the current times we find ourselves in. Just found this yesterday as it cropped up on social media and it’s amazing.

Zhao Learning (http://zhaolearning.com/)

Not really sure what to say, too many great blog posts to pick one. Just go have a look for yourself.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay 

[mattpitman]

Embracing the world outside of the “room”.

A flurry of emails hit my inbox today. 

Tomorrow we head back to (online) school. The "online" is important, probably more important than the parentheses suggest. This is Term 2, but not as you or I know it. I am a little bit restless. This break hasn't really felt like a normal break. I haven't stopped thinking. For instance...

The room.

I like to imagine traditional teaching as being like a room. It has one door. A normal size door. When the door is closed, it's a sealed room, an exclusive club. You need a relevant qualification to enter, which you just obtained, so that's your entry requirement sorted. You're ready to enter the room and join the other professionals inside.

You can bring whatever ideas you want in with you, as long as they fit inside the door frame. If you can make your ideas fit the rigidity of the door frame, you can bring them in and share them with everyone already inside the room. Everyone inside loves ideas that fit inside the door. They feel familiar and they are probably proven to work. The big ideas though, the ones that don't fit, well they have to be modified or changed completely. Compromises have to be made, otherwise, they stay outside. It's ok, they will always be out there and you can probably go back and try again one day.

Sometimes the big ideas just don't suit the culture of the room anyway.

The door closes behind you for a number of years. You enjoy your time in the room, every day is different, challenging and exhausting.

Then one day, the room starts to shake. Only a little at first. The "worriers", all rooms have them, they start to panic but everyone else seems fine, so business as usual. The strangest thing happens though, the room doesn't stop shaking. Now it's actually shaking more...

...and more.

All of a sudden some of the calmer individuals are starting to murmur, the leaders of the room are constantly off in their nook, nobody knows what they are talking about, but everyone has their suspicions.

"There is talk of leaving the room!"

"No way, what would we do out there?"

"What we do here doesn't work outside the room!"

Then the leaders come out of their huddle and start to talk about leaving the room, locking the door and continuing business outside, remotely. The ideas inside the room still need to be shared after all. What do we do?

The reality.

We are all outside of the "room” now,  and from the looks of things, a lot of us feel confident that we can make things happen and develop a new continuous model of learning for our students. We are not allowed back in the room, so we shouldn't be hung up on remembering it right? 

Well yes and no. 

We all have fond memories and I can't wait to be back to face-to-face teaching, but we need to make sure that we challenge ourselves and trial as much as possible now, so we have the materials to drastically change the environment when we go back. We need to widen the door frame and take some of these big, awesome, innovative and empowering ideas back with us when we can. The room needs renovation!

After all that...

Good luck to everyone going back tomorrow or whenever you are returning to the "classroom". Embrace the big ideas, experiment and welcome the possibilities of the world outside of the room. Stop trying to fit this new world into the restrictive structure of the old one. It won’t work. It is not the same.

Schooling, teaching, and education are more than just you and the room. If you are planning on logging on and teaching and delivering content in the same way via video conference that you would in the classroom face to face, you are setting your students up to feel disempowered, disengaged and unenthused. Focus on the big, must-know things for now, and ensure you maintain a level of "manageable change" for both your students and yourself.

This is not the time for rigidity, I have found that I am using "as best you can" when replying to students questions a lot. That's all I am expecting at this stage. We are all in this together.

I've got some big plans for that room when we get back to it though. Time to start testing some of them out.

Good luck!

Image by DarkWorkX from Pixabay