Week 32- Practice- Changes in Practice Activity 8

Week 32 Reflective Practice.

The Mindlab journey has been useful and interesting for me because it has drawn together the part time study that I have been engaged in for the last 20 or so years. That study has been in education and in particular has become more centred on ICT/digital/online learning as it pertains to secondary school students.. I have been instrumental in my school by encouraging firstly the introduction of Moodle then in the last few years the introduction of Google Apps for Education (G + Suite). My initial idea of the Mindlab course was one which would have a heavy technological component but this was not necessarily the case. Technology played a part in my development over the course but the opportunity to revisit content which I had touched on in the past but did not totally absorb was a more valuable component of the course.  Also the opportunity to share learning ideas  with others was also valuable.

One of the aspects that I have been reflecting on has come from the reading by Osterman and Kottkamp  whereby they state that, “Often, behavioral changes resulting from successful reflection are at odds with the ongoing larger and organizational culture. This means that individuals undergoing personal change will likely be somewhat more at odds with the norms and assumptions of the culture than before. Thus reflective practice assumes that achieving and maintaining desired personal changes also means working for cultural changes, ones that will then buttress the new behaviors”

The Mindlab journey has meant that the above observation has become more true for me in my place of work. Taking back the ideas from the course and introducing them to my colleagues has been a challenge. However, I did introduce EdPuzzle to our literacy group and showed them how video clips can be used to enhance and work on vocabulary that is presented in film. It was good to get the positive feedback.

I have since left the school I was employed at when I started Mindlab but Criterion 4 of the Practising Teacher Criteria (Demonstrate commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of professional personal practice.) was something I tried to work on before I left. I did this by sharing some of my new learning with my department. Also because I was a head of a learning area I not only lead PD in my department but I did manage to lead two whole school PD sessions in my final term. Criterion 5 :(Show leadership that contributes to effective teaching and learning) was the impetus for this.

My next dream regarding your future professional development.

This is a challenging one. I am well over retirement age but still feel I have a lot to offer education especially in the area of leading teachers in online learning/digital upskilling. There is no doubt that this will become more of a feature in schools in the future. When I reflect where I have come personally in the last 10 years in terms of ICT/elearning practices I can only realise that the next 10 years are going to be even more interesting. I still like to be part of it in some way.

References

Osterman, K. & Kottkamp, R.(1993). Reflective Practice for Educators.California:Cornwin Press, Inc. Retrieved on 7th May, 2015 from http://www.itslifejimbutnotasweknowit.org.uk/files.

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

Week 31 Crossing Boundaries

Week 31 Crossing Boundaries

One of the potential interdisciplinary connections from my map which would serve as an important future goal is with the Years 7-8. This connection has been mooted for some time and it is with some urgency that it now needs to be addressed. The introduction of a Year 7-8 cohort has meant that here is an opportunity for students to have a more seamless transition from a junior school environment to Year 9. Traditionally this has been an issue for many students and schools. Students who were succeeding in the junior school environment found themselves struggling in Year 9 and teachers who were more used to the “siloed” approach of secondary school teaching found it difficult to motivate students who were anxious and lost in that new and untested environment. Taking these factors into account I would put my energies into this area rather than the other connections.

How might the joint planning, decision-making, and goal-setting take place?

Planning would need to start with meetings of staff with the Year 7-8 area, especially Year 8 teachers, and Year 9 and 10 teachers. It might also be a good idea to include any feedback from the students themselves. Also it would be a good idea to sound out schools which had already been through this process and invite staff from those schools to share with our staff.

One of the things which we would need to think about from the start is do we want collaboration/connections in just one area eg English. Do we want to start small with a couple of learning areas or do we want to think about connections across a wider range of subjects. Staff from the Years 7-8 would need to outline the curriculum they teach to as would the Year 9 and 10 teachers. A good understanding of the styles and format of what happens in each level would be very useful.

A useful approach I imagine at this level might be thematic. If Years 7-10 could work out a thematic approach which would be followed this would incorporate some form of interdisciplinary co-operation.

ACRLog. (2015). A Conceptual Model for Interdisciplinary Collaboration. Retrieved from http://acrlog.org/2015/05/14/a-conceptual-model-for-interdisciplinary-collaboration

American Association of Colleges of Nursing.(2016). Interdisciplinary Education and Practice. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/publications/position/interdisciplinary-education-and-practice

Berg-Weger, M., &. Schneider, F. D. (1998). Interdisciplinary collaboration in social work education. Journal of Social Work Education, 34, 97-107.