DFI - Week 1

Manaiaklani Digital Fluency Intensive  

Over the next 9 weeks, I am taking part in the Manaiaklani Digital Fluency Intensive, aka DFI. It is aimed at increasing teachers' digital fluency and confidence. 

We opened with the story of Maniaklani. It is a story that I have heard told many times over my years teaching at Glen Innes School, which is a part of the Manaiakalani cluster of schools in Tamaki.  It was refreshing to be reminded of the journey other educators have traveled before us and the "why" that collectively drives us all to support our tamariki to be the best they can be. Manaiakalani was the word gifted to this kaupapa. It means a hook from heaven. A hook to engage our learners. Digital technology is our hook. It brings a sparkle to our children's eyes and engages them in learning. 

Throughout the day we learned many tips and tricks to use  Google Apps (Drive and Docs) and Chrome to use ourselves and pass on to our learners back in the classroom. 

Organizing my Google Drive (a Marie Kondo moment!)

I've used folders and colour coding to organise and easily identify my files. 

I aim to name my files with many key words so that they are easily found using the search tool. 

I have used numbers/letters in a strategic way to get the folders into a sensible order.

 Voice typing in Google Docs rather than typing. 

For someone like me, that isn't the fastest typer or the best at spelling this will help save me valuable time. 

Just open a google doc, click on tools, voice typing and then select the New Zealand English option. 

The voice typing tool could be used in a classroom context to support children in their writing or to create more opportunities for children to increase their reading milage. 

Google Docs to collaboratively write and send emails.  

This is a building block new to docs in the last few weeks. Simply open a doc, go to insert, building blocks and then click on email draft.

 

It will open something that looks like this in your Google doc. It is then able to be shared and edited like a Google doc and when it is ready to be sent simply click the mail icon and it will open and send through your Google Mail. 

I am looking forward to learning more over the next 9 weeks of the DFI course and taking this learning with me back to my school to share with my colleagues and my learners.


Nga Mihi Nui

Better Start Literacy Approach - Maternity Leave PD!

Scrolling on my phone while on maternity leave with my second baby I discovered the Better Start Literacy Approach. 

Junior school literacy was on my mind as my oldest child was due to turn five in the new year and she was very keen to get started with learning to read and write. 

The Better Start Literacy Free Short Course presented early literacy in a way that is very different to how I was taught at University and from my own learning as a child. I am really interested to see how this might be able to be applied to my own five year old learning and that of my new entrant class back at school! 

Here is a link to the free short course offered by the University of Canterbury. 

Nga mihi! 

The Mind Lab: Certificate in Applied Practice (Digital and Collaborative Learning)

 In 2018, I took part in The Mind Lab by Unitec's post graduate programme, and gained a Certificate in Applied Practice (Digital and Collaborative Learning). To see my learning journey throughout my time at The Mind Lab look through my blog posts from 2018. In the course where grades didn't matter I am still proud of the grades I did achieve but more importantly I am proud of the journey I went on, and will continue to be on thought my teaching life as a life long learner! 

A key change in my professional practice!

In this reflection, I will be using 'Rolfe's model of reflection' to reflect on my Mind Lab journey over the past 32 weeks and critically evaluate one key change in my practice.

What?

The changes that I have begun to make for the last 32 weeks of my Mind Lab adventures are around my teaching pedagogy.  The explicit teaching of  21st century skills (or key competencies), and more specially using growth mindset (follow this link to view my teacher inquiry) teaching to raise achievement.  

These changes relate to my requirements at a teacher to meet the “Standards in the Teaching Profession” and in particular, standard 6 - Teaching;

Use an increasing repertoire of teaching strategies, approaches, learning activities, technologies and assessment for learning strategies and modify these in response to the needs of individuals and groups of learners. 

Provide opportunities and support for learners to engage with, practise and apply learning to different contexts and make connections with prior learning. 

Teach in ways that enable learners to learn from one another, to collaborate, to self-regulate and to develop agency over their learning.

So what?

I have used the "Reflective Practice Cycle for Educators" to critically evaluate this change in my practice.

Stage 1: Problem identification

I was driven to these changes by a desire to provide a learning for my year 1 and 2 learner that meet their needs, as learners from low socio-economic whanau. I believe it is important to teach our learners how to learn, to best support them to be successful, in life and in school.

In my teaching inquiry I wrote; 

Children from low socioeconomic families, like the learners I teach, are exposed to prolonged stress. Thompson writes, “the biological effects of stress undermine the ability of children to focus on their own thinking” (p. 44). When they are faced with challenges in their learning, they become disengaged, as they are unable to identify the strategies needed to continue learning. This adaptive response serves them poorly in school, where they much concentrate and cooperate to do well. However, the plasticity of child’s developing brain is an opportunity for these ways of thinking to be buffered or reversed when intervention happens early in a child’s development. 

Stage 2: Observation and analysis

Throughout this year I observed: 

Some learners (year 1 and 2)… 

• Become actively disengaged when faced with challenging learning (disruptive behaviours, avoidance strategies) 
• Are unable to select appropriate strategies to solve learning problems independently
• According to the ITL learning rubrics my learners mostly play alongside each other, sometimes cooperatively and they rarely play collaboratively (Microsoft, 2015)
• Come from low socio economic families

Some whanau… 

• Engaged positively with the implementation of Class Dojo with an uptake of (80% in the junior school)
• Would like their heritage languages and cultures to be acknowledged in the classroom
• Welcomed the introduction of play-based learning (evidenced by their positive verbal comments)

Stage 3: Abstract re conceptualisation

The learning theory that I found useful was the work of growth mindset guru, Carol Dewek. The core belief of Carol Dweck’s growth mindset, that a person who holds a growth mindset sees intelligence as changeable, that through hard work, dedication and time, new talents can be learnt and intellect can be expanded. 

Stage 4: Active experimentation

A new strategy that I have experimented with in my classroom this term is the use of picture books and videos to begin classroom discussion about growth mindset thinking. This has begun to create a shared language in our class about how we learn. 

We began our learning journey as a class this term by reading "My Fantastic Elastic Brain" by JoAnne Deak. This picture book teaches children that they have the ability to stretch and grow their own brains.

Now what?

Next year, I am going on an adventure with play-based learning in a new entrant class. Seagal Education shares that through play children are better able to understand abstract concepts, like growth mindset. The teacher plays a vital role in facilitating play that instills a growth mindset. I am looking forward to continuing my inquiry into teaching 21st century skills, like growth mindset thinking through play! 

Kia Kaha! 

Indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness!

In this reflection, I will be using 'Rolfe's model of reflection' to discuss my understanding of indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness. I will critically evaluate how my practice has been informed by indigenous knowledge and culturally responsive pedagogy. 

What? 

Being a culturally responsive teacher means viewing students strengths not their deficits, spending the time to get to know our learners and celebrate their all the experiences and knowledge that they bring to the classroom. In New Zealand, the disparity in achievement between maori and non-maori learners is vast. A non-culturally responsive teacher would see maori as the problem. A culturally responsive teachers see the barriers to learning, such as the environment, attitudes and school as problems. 

So what? 

I have critically evaluated my practice against the "Mauri" model. Mauro model is made up of three different states of being, Mauri Moe (being dead or asleep), Mauri Oho (being proactive or being awoken) and Mauri Ora (being actively engaged). 

The learning activities that I design for my learners sit within the Mauri Moe state, as they are largely based on stories and experiences that draw on my own "pakeha knowledge". I find creating activities that are draw on the cultural and indigenous knowledge of my learners challenging as they have life experiences and identities that are different from my pakeha world view. It is a learning journey. 

The goals, or expectations, that I have for my learners are sit within the Mauri Ora state of being, as they the same expectations that I have for all my learners. Expectations that is rooted in growth mindset thinking. That all learners can achieve success, in school and in life. 

Now what? 

My next step towards drawing on the indigenous knowledge of my learners it to open the lines of communication between school and our whanau. I think that the use of digital technology, using apps like Class Dojo, have the potential to remove some the barriers for our whanau. Engaging our whanau in the learning journey of their tamariki, allow for indigenous knowledge to be shared between whanau and school.Using the indigenous knowledge of the whanau in my school, I would be able to create learning experiences that celebrate the kete's of knowledge and experiences my learners bring to the classroom.

The beginning of this culturally responsive journey was to use Class Dojo to reach out to our whanau as part of our inquiry. As a school, this term we are learning about celebration foods. Using Class Dojo, I asked our whanau for recipes that they make as a part of a celebration, drawing on their indigenous knowledge. I received a range of recipes from the different cultures represented in my class, including on whanau who shared their Papa's Steamed Hangi recipe. They took photographs of the cooking process, brought in Steamed Hangi and talked to the class about the language surrounding Tongan celebrations.

Contemporary trends in education!

This week we were asked to examine a contemporary trend in New Zealand education using Rolfe's model of reflection.

What? 

The impact of digital learning, is the trend that I have chosen to look at. We were required to read the article Addressing Current and Future Challenges in Education Bill Dagget, from 2014, to identify "trends" that we will be facing in the next 2 years of our teaching practice. So here at the end of 2018, I can safely say digital learning is here and we have been living it for quite some time. The articles shares that as digital natives our learners know how to, communicate, collaborate, and solve problems using digital technology. Our kids are digital natives, they were born into a world filled with digital devices. The article shares that as teachers, it doesn't make sense for our learners to be coming to school to "power down" from their devices. 

So what? 

I think "digital learning" is arguably a trend we all should to have moved on from. Digital learning, is here. It's is constantly adapting, and bringing forward new trends and revealing the consequences of its presence on teaching and learning, and our lives. Bill Dagget's statement about digital natives being competent communicators, collaborators and problem solvers is simply not the truth for my learners. I see they communicating less and collaborating less, and having less experiences that develop the grit it takes to solve problems. These 21st century skills need explicit teaching. Bill Dagget's research shows that our learners are being exposed to technology from an increasingly younger age. 

Now what? 

Digital technology, is a trend that has been addressed at a local level for many years. As an example, the school where I teach has been using digital devices from year 5 up 1:1 for the past 7 years. As of this year, this trend has begun to be addressed at a national level by the introduction of the new digital technology curriculum that will be implement in all New Zealand schools from 2019. 

I think that the negative influences of this trend, have made way for a opposing trend in education in New Zealand. As our learners are spending and increasing amount of there time looking at devices from a younger age there has been a movement in junior classrooms towards a play-based learning approach, where learners come to school to "power down" and learn through hands on experiences and relationships. Play based learning develops our learners communication, collaboration and problem solving skills. 

Kia Kaha! 

Social media and the classroom!

I have used Jay and Johnson’s Model of reflective practice to structure this reflection (of describe, compare and critically reflect. 

Step 1 (Descriptive stage): The social media tools that I have used in my teaching practice range from using Google Docs to collaborate and share, getting inspiration from Pinterest, scrolling Twitter, connecting with families using Class Dojo and many more. This term I have experimented with the use of Class Dojo to engage with whanau. Here are some quick screenshot of some of the interactions that have been taking place using Class Dojo. 

Step 2 (Comparative stage): Social media can be used for a range of different purposes in the classroom. I am interested in how it can be used to connect with parents. Pakuranga Colleges’ Rosin Lamb, talks about the way that her school uses social media to connect with their parents. She shares that an awareness of the audience is important. My audience, the whanau, in my classroom are largely english second language and therefore social media that is rich in videos and photographs will be easiest for them to interact with. For whanau, it is important that social media is quick, easy and free. It needs to be accessed on a Smartphone, without using great amounts of data. Embracing Social Media (Magette, 2014), shares the importance of social media tools being free, accessible and easy to use by parents; Class Dojo fits into this category. Teachers are able to partner with parents by opening up communication. Magette (2014), suggests that teacher needs to use strategies that are going to get the most views and interactions from parents. A strategy such as using photographs (or handwritten signs held by children) rather than typed posts is proven to get more interaction from parents. Kathy Cassidy, a primary school teacher, uses social media to share her children’s learning using voice recordings, photographs and videos to share their learning with the world. 

Step 3 (critical reflection): Looking forward to next year, what I have read has confirmed what I already knew to be truth about social media and they way that it can be used within the classroom to communicate with whanau and share my students learning. I hadn’t thought about adapting the way that I use social media to fit with my audience, our school whanau. I am interested to learn ways in which I can effectively use social media to connect with whanau who largely only have access to smartphones and speak english as a second language.. 

Does anyone have any tips on how to connect with whanau using social media?