Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Networked Learning Communities of Practice - Learning Frontiers Group

This session was one of my favourite ones today, because of the specific case study from an amazing group of school leaders and students from Campbelltown Performing Arts College. 

The key message was that learning  needs to be co- created; connected; personalised; integrated. They are part of a community that has formed clusters of schools - teaching, learning and assessment based on the 4 principles  - I guess this is the IES communities of practice model?

It is clear that focussing on literacy and numeracy is not enough - what you can extrapolate from what you know is more imp than what you know.
What are we doing to prepare students for the future?

The idea that many students are un-engaged - not just disengaged - is problematic. Agency is the way to reverse that. Many schools fail to give the students agency over their learning - agency is much more than student voice - students with agency are 24/7 learners 

Passion projects - enigma missions - same name really - what youngest to learn!  Authentic problem solving, real world issue - a key theme was providing a community focus. This echoes the work of HPSS and Alfriston in Auckland.

What do we mean by engagement? I liked these definitions 
Academic engagement- commitment to all school work and study
Social engagements - outside of the normal curriculum often more impt 
Intellectual engagement -serious emotionalcognitive investment in learning 

Engaging learning is - 
Integrated - how do we harness the power of students' social contexts to deeply engage them in learning  
Connected - how can student learning result in valuable products and services - community project in second semester - real world contexts 
Co created - how does completely open and shared learning lead to engagement of all stakeholders - blog learning journal daily - opening up the classroom environment 
Personal - what happens to people like me ? 

Deepening engagement through inquiry - the need to be outward looking - are we achieving what we think we are achieving - use the technology to overcome  the tyranny of distance
The design thinking process essential.

Leadership and Governance Model  - leadership says 'yes, do it', a middle tier hub looks at what it might look like, working parties investigate how we do it. 

Technology enables  engagement in deeper learning to meet the 4 dimensions


Case Study - Campbell Performing Arts High School - Learning Frontiers 
The term brave has been used a number of times to describe staff who are changing pedagogy to engage students more actively in their learning.
What does this look like 

School Level - this is the action research/action learning model - empowering teachers and respecting expertise - research in our own context
- it's ok to fail 
- teacher collaboration - pedagogy not content
- evaluation all the way through 
- evidence based classroom practice 
- if our teachers can do it with our kids in their classroom, all teachers can 
- more regular feedback loops - if we're heading didn't he wrong path, we need to move on earlier
- identify promising practice early 

Teacher - Team Level
- plan develop collaborate team-teach integrated content
- connections across subject areas led to deeper classes - Eng/Science
- authentic nature of content
- partnership with local
- 3x3 subjects - self regulate; collaboration across learning areas

Student Level
- connects with and uses real world contemporary issues 
- supporting teachers to be better at what they do
- 3x3 Eng Mus Art 
- online one note - tracking across the subjects 
- personalised approach - build on student passions - foster individual talents
- can work in allocated cluster groups 


Co - creation 'voice and choice' - the best phrase yet!!

A great presentation - 








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