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This discussion forum is being moderated as an expression of servant leadership in teaching & learning. As a collaborative tool for brainstorming enriching experiences for students, teacher learning groups, and district learning teams, we can inspire and build experiences to help empower each of us to personal leadership in learning. Thank you, in advance, for your contributions and leadership to realizing outcomes for improving student achievement, equity and well-being.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

the Equity through pedagogy series: thinking classrooms - Revisited

2/19/2019

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Welcome back to Flipping the Focus.
1-Introduction
Part 1 of the "Equity Through Pedagogy" series took readers through an examination of pedagogical practice through the lens of the Thinking Classroom--in secondary Mathematics and English.

According to Dr. Peter Liljedahl (2017), Thinking Classrooms are defined as spaces “...not [only] conducive to thinking but [that] also [occasion] thinking...a space inhabited by thinking individuals as well as individuals thinking collectively, learning together, and constructing knowledge and understanding through activity and discussion”.

It's important to note that these classrooms go well beyond engagement in vertical spaces--that is, well beyond the Stage 1 elements described in the Part 1 post and summarized by the graphic (see right).

As you reflect upon the elements from Stages 2 to 4, note that these elements serve the conversations we can have with students and one another about refining teaching and learning.

​Altogether, the last nine elements relate to the 'glue' that connects all aspects of our pedagogical practice: 
Formative Assessment. 
The 14 Elements of a Thinking Classroom
The 14 Elements of a Thinking Classroom

"...these classrooms go well beyond engagement in
​vertical spaces..."

As we collaboratively and continuously explore instructional practices that support students and promote respectful and caring learning communities, these elements can guide us in our efforts to better knowing both our learners and the learning.

Let's consider knowing our students and their learning through the context of the interview that follows.
2-The Search for Flow through Thinking Classrooms
Have you ever found yourself in a state where you were so engaged with a task that nothing else mattered? Think back to that time: Were you neither overwhelmed nor just coasting along? If you felt that you were in that space of 'neither', then you were in flow. Flow results from the dynamic relationship between challenge and skill development (Liljedahl, 2016). As teachers, we have a significant role to play in helping students find flow and what to do, alongside their peers, in this space.

In Part 1 of this series, I mentioned that there are a number of educators, in Eastern Ontario, journeying into building Thinking Classrooms. One of these educators is Jaime DePippo (St. Mother Teresa HS, Ottawa, ON). Jaime has been very gracious in speaking with me about her practice, and I am privileged and thankful to Jaime for the opportunity to feature her experiences, here, on Flipping the Focus.

Below, you'll see a continuation of our previous conversation, beginning with Question #4 (previously published). The remainder of the post focuses on Meaningful Notes, ​Spiralling, and Getting Started with a Thinking Classroom.

"Communicating where a student is and where they are going, alongside assessment AS learning, moves student learning forward."

3-A Conversation with Jaime DePippo
Question 4: You explained earlier that students are building and showing autonomy through their "meaningful notes". What does this look like in practice? What are you and your students doing?

Answer:
I use a gradual release model with my students in Applied English and Mathematics.

-A template, that provides some constraints--largely, the space provided for creating notes (i.e., not taking notes)--is shared with students towards the end of a period of learning.

-Students are encouraged to take notes when they need to.

-On a day-to-day basis, exit tickets are used to provide students with feedback.

-Using exit tickets allows me to provide suggestions for next steps. Students can map the next steps into the ‘what’ that they could be writing down in their notes.

-Students are not bound to making meaningful notes only at specific times in their learning.

-I accomplish this by spiralling the curriculum. Through interleaving the content, students have multiple opportunities to revisit and bring greater depth and meaning to their notes.

[The conversation continues, below, with a closer examination of meaningful notes.]

Question 5: In Stage 2 of Dr. Liljedahl’s elements is "Meaningful Notes". "Level to the Bottom" is in Stage 3.

-How fluid/fl
exible might we be in moving between these Stages? For example, should educators seek to fully level with student thinking, then build meaningful notes?
-Simultaneously level and build notes?

Altogether, how might a teacher best coach their students towards building autonomy?


Answer: 
​
At the beginning of a semester, I provide students with a template for creating their own meaningful notes. Essentially, the templates have only the key headings for the concepts students are learning.

[As a side-note, having the templates is important for educators who are teaching through spiralling their curriculum. For the math courses I teach, there are typically 4 spirals (or cycles). The first two cycles tend to be the longest, and by the time we reach cycle 4, there is less new material--i.e., the complexity of the tasks and the interconnectedness of concepts increases towards and throughout the final cycle.

As far as student learning is concerned, students feel more successful when spiralling: there isn’t a need or a feeling that you have to attain mastery right away. One of the primary goals of spiralling is to continuously go deeper with critical thinking and problem solving.]

[Back to the beginning of the semester...]

As we work towards consolidating student thinking in relation to a learning goal/goals, I’ll do some checks for understanding, which can be a small number of individual questions or related task so that students can see how they’re doing. I also use exit cards frequently to gain a better understanding of what students have been taking away from their time thinking alongside their peers. It’s through the exit cards, that I can create another opportunity to provide feedback to students. 

Above all of this, it’s important to remember that consolidation doesn’t always occur at the end of the task--student readiness is important: the exit card is key in my formative assessment and mentally-preparing students for self-assessment. 

With this feedback, students can go back to their notes (template) and write down those things that are important--i.e., meaningful--to them. For example, some of my early feedback would include notes to (and conversations with) students to write down the things that are not as familiar to them, as well as what their next step(s) would be.

By the time we get to Cycle 2, I find that students require less prompting to making their own, meaningful notes: student autonomy is always growing, cycle-by-cycle.

Earlier, I mentioned that conversations are a vehicle for providing students feedback. These principles are still in effect when we’re working on some test items. For example, if there are aspects of a student’s work that are not shining through on a test, I’ll ask them to show me their notes. It’s through their meaningful notes that a conversation about learning opens up (or re-opens). It’s during these moments that you can really tell if a student knows what they’re doing and what our next steps will be. In fact, there has been many times where a student’s assessment of learning has been enriched through conversation.
Question 6: There are many ways that educators can create safe and productively challenging learning environments with their students—some that do not include a Thinking Classroom.

If asked by a teacher why they should consider trying a Thinking Classroom, what advice might you provide to them? On getting started?


Answer:
Students are capable, critical thinkers and problems solvers.  If we deprive our students of these opportunities, they will not grow.  Students need to be actively engaged in their learning.

In any subject, nowadays, the goal of the student experience is not to remember everything. The goal is to create critical thinkers and people with strong collaboration skills, as well as their other global competencies. These are the skills and competencies that students will need moving forward. As educators, we have a great opportunity to show students that anything is possible when they develop and use these kinds of skills. And because we’re our own worst critics, sometimes students need us to point out their strengths: it’s through their strengths that they can develop/use these skills and grow as learners.

All of this said, teachers and administrators should start by attending a workshop or spending time in the practice of other teachers who are practising a Thinking Classroom model for teaching and learning. Asking questions of teachers and students who have immersed themselves in a Thinking Classroom everyday is important.  Hear their feedback about what has changed: engagement, curiosity, achievement, perseverance, etc.

Beyond this, I would say start small; take your time; and seek support from and collaboration with another person. There’s a lot to be said about planning and teaching together. To get a sense of the dynamic that’s possible between students and students and teachers--all of this in relation to the task that’s assigned--there’s a lot to be gained by spending time in and with these types of classrooms. Based on that experience, I would then encourage teachers to try the model by incorporating the Stage 1 elements--good tasks, visibly random groups and vertical non-permanent surfaces/whiteboards. For good tasks, there are plenty of resources available. 3-Act Math Tasks are a great base for teaching through problem solving--examples including Kyle Pearce & Jon Orr and Dan Meyer.

Realistically, it’s tough work to practise a Thinking Classroom model on a consistent basis, but it’s very gratifying and rewarding for both teachers and their students to see and hear themselves growing in autonomy and experiencing success. It has been and continues to be for me.

And I’m still learning! So if you’re starting out, don’t feel like you have to include all the elements of the Thinking Classroom right away. Dr. Liljedahl suggests you start with the top gear (visual included, above), and master that before you move on to the next. It happens in stages: not all right away. Start with something that you find manageable and continuously reflect and challenge you and your students to go deeper. Do some of your planning, teaching and reflecting with someone you trust. For feedback, also have them help you with how you’re going to challenge yourself in going for next steps.
4-Final Remarks
Successful Classroom StrategiesAchieving Excellence in Applied Courses (AEAC, 2017/18)
As this post draws to a close, I am certain of the following: my experience in teaching and learning has been enriched due to the collaboration that was experienced in seeing this post through from start to finish. 

As you reflect upon the final question, below, I would like to encourage you to think about inviting others to share in your experience--e.g., co-planning, co-teaching, debriefing and reflecting towards next steps with Thinking Classrooms and spiralling your curriculum.

Evidence reported from a large number of districts' administrators, across Ontario, is showing that successful classroom strategies for improving student performance in Applied-level Mathematics courses includes co-planning and co-teaching, as well as spiralling and classrooms that include the use of vertical spaces (AEAC, 2017/18; see graphic, right).

Might you consider incorporating a Thinking Classroom into your pedagogical practice?
In closing, I can't help but to think of the conversations that can be inspired when we take collective action to improving student learning. As this blog is a means for readers to network and gradually change the context for how they teach and learn, we all benefit by drawing nearer to the perspectives shared here and shared beyond with our professional learning networks.
​
I am more than happy to collaborate with you and make our learning visible, here, in this blog and across Flipping the Focus' social media platforms, as well as your own. I
f at any time, you have questions or comments, please feel free to reach out to me at Flipping the Focus. 

Sincerely,

Chris Stewart, OCT
Education Leader at Flipping the Focus
CONTACT
BOOK CHRIS

5-References
AEAC Project Team, Ontario Ministry of Education, Student Achievement Division. (2019). Achieving Excellence in Applied Courses: Dialogue with Principals, School Teams and Board Leads (Rep.).

Liljedahl, P. (2017, October 17). Building a Thinking Classroom in Math. Retrieved fromhttps://www.edutopia.org/article/building-thinking-classroom-math

Liljedahl, P. (2016). Flow: A Framework for Discussing Teaching. Proceedings of the 40th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (Vol. 3, pp. 203-210). Retrieved from http://www.peterliljedahl.com/wp-content/uploads/PME-2016-Flow-and-Teaching-1.pdf


Thinking Classrooms: An Interview with Jaime DePippo [Online Interview]. (2019, January 23).

Thinking Classrooms: An Interview with Jaime DePippo - Part 2 [Online Interview]. (2019, February 18).
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developing through Assets: Initiating the School-based Flip to supporting Pl in mathematics

3/22/2015

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Welcome back to Flipping the Focus

In the last post, I shared some additional thoughts regarding digital leadership by sharing my developing experience with using the web-based, story-telling platform, Storify.  Also, mathematics teacher, Kyle Pearce (Ministry-funded 1:1 project, Tap Into Teen Minds) shared his experiences with the pdf annotation tool, GoodNotes.  You can access Kyle's comments, along with those made by others regarding other digital technology tools for the classroom, using the button provided (see right).
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Today's post takes us into the realms and intersections of educational leadership, teacher professional learning, and of course, flipping our role from teacher to facilitator-collaborator.  Throughout, I've inserted some prompts to consider information and/or to engage in reflection.  If there are parts of this post which you're connecting with, are curious about, and/or have challenged your thinking/beliefs, please feel free to help build our community of professional learning by leaving a comment (comment button located at the end of this post). 
TECH TOOLS


A) Taking Action: A Plan for Improving Mathematics Education
To get things started, let's consider the recently-released A) 2014-15 Mathematics Action Plan (Ontario Ministry of Education, January 2015) for improving Mathematics education in Ontario, some factors that have been identified as contributing to B) gaps in students' developing mathematical understanding, as well as some facets of C) educational leadership.  Altogether, these works might lend themselves to helping frame our thinking around how we can be further D) innovative to helping derive student-centred learning that impacts engagement in school and achievement.

1-TRY THIS
If you haven't yet had a chance to take a look at the Action Plan, I've posted it below for your perusal.
  • Take Action: Having reflected upon the plan, consider sharing what has resonated with you and/or connections you've made to practice by commenting to this post. 
According to Ontario's Deputy Minister of Education, "...increasing mathematics achievement will remain as the Ministry of Education's first student achievement priority."  Deputy Zegarac also asks that each school board in Ontario continues to work with the Ministry to "...go deeper with ... shared efforts through the ... Action Plan."

If you've been a part of system- and/or school-based collaborative inquiries, then we might be able to connect readily to one of the three areas of support listed:
increased in-service supports and professional pedagogical learning.  And as far as the various practices that can be used to provide such supports, it is recognized that there is no single, best practice to support the plan for improving student achievement.  In more detail, the increased professional pedagogical learning can be broken down into the following aspects: mathematics content knowledge for teaching, pedagogical knowledge, effective assessment, and deep knowledge of the mathematics curriculum.

Among the various conversations that I have had with other educators around the topic of professional learning in mathematics, it seems as though we are working towards deepening our shared understanding of the four aspects
through problem solving and communication in mathematics, as they are "central to doing and learning mathematics" (EduGAINS).  


Case Study: Junior Mathematics Study, Upper Canada DSB

For example and representative of Foundational Principle #4 (Support Collaborative Professional Learning in Mathematics) in the Upper Canada DSB, the Junior Mathematics Study serves to help focus professional educators' learning largely through the lens of what occurs 'at the student desk.' By supporting teacher learning through classroom inquiry, we are deepening our content, pedagogical, and curriculum knowledge concurrently.  Let's consider what activities constitute one cycle* of support for professional learning.

As schools gather together for a co-facilitated study day**, the day generally begins with a sharing of what inquiries are being explored and/or questions that have been arising within and across school teams to build in 'flow' from one cycle to another and to help the family of schools build capacity and strengthen relationships.


Typically, and following this opening exercise, with problem solving and communication in mind (as they relate to the lesson prompts being shared with students that day), educators take some time to read and/or view videos (research/expert-based), dialogue and discuss connections of research to practice.  With a broadened perspective coming from external frameworks, it's time to 'try on' some of the mathematics for ourselves.  During this time, educators reflect upon how they have tackled the problem (various ways) and to anticipate how their students might approach such a problem.  

Prior to any classroom experience, we review the rationale and importance of remaining within a descriptive mode of observation (City et al., 2009)--taking time to sit with pairs of students, documenting and allowing students some space to think mathematically.

The classroom experience, as facilitated by mathematics resource teachers, provides students and teachers an opportunity to consider the complexity of teaching and learning mathematics. Instructional moves, student voice, classroom community, assessment for learning, questioning, responsiveness, and helping students to consolidate their thinking to forming new knowledge and developing problem solving skills are a variety of pedagogical factors under consideration.


Following one or more classroom experiences on the study day, classroom experiences are debriefed--describing observations of student thinking, co-planning consolidation of student thinking, anchoring into curriculum, resources, and/or external frameworks. And as the end of the day of study draws to a close, the day is summarized and the group breaks into their school teams to reflect upon the day.  School teams will also think about their first follow-up half-day*** and consider what their 'in-between' work might be (e.g., consider how the group's study can be aligned with school-based practices) leading up to the their second, half-day*** of collaborative study.

Graphic: The Upper Canada DSB Junior Math Study Cycle
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Definitions:

*Cycle = One cycle is composed of one, full day of group study; followed by two half-days*** of study in each of the schools that form the group.  There are 6 cycles of study over the course of a year.

**Study Day (co-facilitated) = 4 to 5 schools meet at a host school site ((average of 3 teachers + administrator)/school).


***Half-days (co-facilitated) = Each school receives two, additional half-days of support for math study in their respective schools. The first half-day allows the school to engage in the group lesson from the Study Day. The second half-day is differentiated to provide opportunities for schools to engage in additional activities to help support professional and student learning in mathematics.


B) Factors Contributing to Gaps in Practice and Student Learning
The sustained support of collaborative professional learning in mathematics, as exemplified across nine district school boards (EOSDN: Eastern Ontario Staff Development Network), is critical to transferring learning into teacher practice (Professor Don Klinger, Queen's University).  

As a part of a presentation made to the Council of Directors of Education (i.e., on the day following the release of the
2014-15 Action Plan), Mary Jean Gallagher (Chief Student Achievement Officer, Assistant Deputy Minister, Student Achievement Division), brought forward "...hypotheses and supporting evidence regarding the causes contributing to declining mathematics performance, as measured by EQAO assessments in grades 3 and 6." The information provided was submitted by 110 knowledgeable others invited to share their expertise.  Based on 44 submissions, five themes emerged from an analysis made by Ministry staff.  The themes or "gaps" are as follows: Approach, Conceptual/Contextual, Engagement/Confidence, Measurement, and Curriculum/Resources.

2-TRY THIS
a) Take a moment to scroll through the following set of slides to familiarize yourself with the five themes ("gaps").
  • E.g., Upper Canada Connection: As evidenced by the success of the first year of our network of collaborative professional learning, I believe that we are engaging in a form of learning that has the potential to help professional educators work with/counter each of the gaps mentioned (above).
b) Try scrolling through the slides a second time. Think about how the professional learning and practice you're engaging in works to minimize these gap factors.
  • Take Action: Contribute your thinking by sharing through commenting to this post.
3-CONSIDER THIS
Alternatively, ...

  • is it possible that we might be able to see these factors as descriptions of assets...of partially-grasped ideas/plans in action? 
  • Through sustained professional learning and transferring learning to practice, do we see these factors as themes for the development of the "instructional core?"


C) Educational Leadership
Thus far, much has been said about system-directed professional learning in mathematics, but as indicated in the 2014-15 Action Plan and in Paying Attention to Mathematics (K-12), the "instructional core" is also strengthened when instructional leadership, at the school-level, helps to foster high-quality teaching and learning. Through effective leadership, aligning school goals with systemic direction can further support a professional learning model that can counter the "gaps"/move learning forward by describing assets gained working through these themes.

As of late, something that I've been wondering about is what it takes to effectively lead strengthening of the instructional core.  
  • What practices have the greatest impact on its improvement?  

Recently, our team of mathematics facilitators was reviewing some of Viviane Robinson's (Academic Director, University of Auckland Centre of Educational Leadership) work (pictured below) regarding leadership practices that impact the quality of teaching and learning.

The graphic, below, indicates 5 dimensions of student-centred leadership--"leadership that makes a difference to the equity and excellence of student outcomes."  Each of these dimensions impacts the development of high quality teaching and learning in schools. The second graphic depicts the effect size of each of these dimensions.  Readily observable is the relatively larger e
ffect size for "Leading teacher learning and development."  Viviane describes this dimension as "[l]eadership that not only promotes but directly participates with teachers in formal or informal professional learning."
  • A Note on Effect Size:  0.4 is representative of the average impact/effect that one would expect to occur from one year of schooling.

As per this definition, "Leading teacher learning and development" has a significantly greater impact on student learning outcomes than any of the remaining dimensions.


4-CONSIDER THIS
  • Is this what you would expect? Why or why not?
TRY THIS
  • Have you had experiences that confirm this or otherwise?  Consider sharing your expertise by commenting to this post.
  • For further reading about leadership that participates with teachers in professional learning, consider Principals as Co-learners: Supporting the Promise of Collaborative Inquiry
Graphic: Leadership Dimensions
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Graphic: Effect Sizes for the Five Leadership Dimensions
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Five Dimensions of Student-Centred Leadership (Robinson & Emstad)

D) Innovating Practice that Cultivates Student-Centred Learning

Giving consideration to going deeper with the provincial mathematics action plan to address the "gaps" identified and to the impact that leadership can have when leaders are not only promoting but directly participating with teachers, ...
  • What is it that we are doing/could be doing differently in our schools to help improve students' educational experience and achievement?
  • What can we innovate to meet the demands of transitioning to a practice that supports student-centred leadership and learning?  And these demands are real and important to pay attention to.  In fact, upon examination of a listing of Hattie's effect sizes, student-centred learning approaches (e.g., self-report grades, 1.44; acceleration, 0.88; meta-cognitive strategies, 0.69) seem to have an impact relatively greater to a variety of other approaches--approaches that we might categorize as being more teacher-driven. 

In a September 2014 interview with Professionally Speaking, Professor Emeritus at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education/University of Toronto, Michael Fullan, made a statement how project-based and flipped learning are strategies that could help students to further deepen their understanding.


In fact, there is a growing number of educators who are sharing their perspectives as to how flipped learning is not only transforming their practice but is resulting in increased student engagement, and in some cases, achievement (Bergmann & Sams, 2014; Flumerfelt & Green, 2013; Horn, 2013; Kim et al., 2014; McEvoy et al., 2014).
_______________________________________________________________________________

QUESTION
What is it about the flipped learning strategy that has educators and their students pushing the boundaries of teaching and learning and resulting in greater engagement and achievement?

________________________________________________________________________________

I believe the answer (as you might find through the references listed at the end of this post) lies in the manifestation of a shared and social endeavour (collaborative, purposeful learning)...a learning strategy that puts learning into the time and space of the student (autonomous, mastery learning)...and described by the Flipped Learning Network as ...


  • "... a pedagogical approach in which direct instruction moves from the group learning space to the individual learning space, and the resulting group space is transformed into a dynamic, interactive learning environment where the educator guides students as they apply concepts and engage creatively in the subject matter."  

The dynamic and interactive nature of this learning environment is supported when students and teachers blend on-line with face-to-face learning components.  The on-line component can involve video delivery of content and/or instruction; the face-to-face component, discussion feeding into and resulting from students engaging in collaborative problem solving. 

Ultimately, flipped learning has the potential to reinforce student-centred learning—learning where students can interact with content at their own pace, in their own place and time, and work towards deepening their understanding.  In my professional experience as a classroom teacher, I designed, implemented, sustained, and measured the outcomes of a flipped classroom model in a senior mathematics course (2013). Through the co-learning experience (i.e., with students), we refined the model so that it helped them to best meet their expectations of learning. For example, shortening instructional videos and providing templates for creating summaries were students' suggestions used in refining and renewing the process we were following.

E) Getting Started with Innovation
Alright.  Where to begin?  

The beginning or initiation might be to consider our own efficacy regarding planning and implementing a flipped classroom approach to differentiating the learning process for our students.

Sometimes, we need to have a variety of different types of experiences to feel that we can really impact student engagement and achievement by trying something new.  As described by Bandura (1977), there are certain kinds of professional learning experiences that we need to experience to help impact student learning (and our own).  These include vicarious, social persuasion, affective feedback, and mastery experiences.
  • vicarious experience = an experience that includes observing teachers and/or students 'trying on' something that is new to the observer
  • social persuasion = believing that one can try something new because others  are trying it and experiencing some success (builds collective efficacy)
  • affective feedback = experiencing positive and encouraging feedback from students and/or colleagues (e.g., a student describing how helpful a particular technique was to their learning)
  • mastery experience = an experience where, having had an opportunity to practice/develop (possibly) a particular pedagogical strategy, an educator senses that there is 'flow' to a lesson, students are engaged and learning.

Co-pioneer of Flipped Learning, Jon Bergmann, hosts a radio show called "The FlipSide."  Through the interviews that Jon conducts, various aspects of the flipped classroom are explored through the experiences of educators working through the model in their practice.  


5-CONSIDER THIS
Below, I've included links to three podcasts and excerpted descriptions of each of them.  This is but one way that we might readily, through this forum, gain some 'experience' (vicarious and/or social) with flipped learning.  For instance, you might be wondering about the successes and/or challenges associated with the strategy.

Take Action: 
  • Listen to any or all of the podcasts provided.
  • Having reflected upon these educators' experiences, consider sharing what has resonated with you and/or connections you've made to practice by commenting to this post.  
  • Consider commenting about mindset also.  Do you feel like there are some 'hurdles' that you'd have to clear before trying a flipped lesson, or do you feel like you'd be clearing 'hurdles' through the process of trying a flipped lesson? 

Podcast: http://www.jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WFLP.Kirch.cfm
  • "Crystal Kirch is a high school math teacher from Southern California who has transformed her classes with a flipped learning model over the last three years. She enjoys sharing her journey with other educators through her blog, Flipping With Kirch (flippingwithkirch.blogspot.com) handle is @crystalkirch."

Podcast: http://www.jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WFLP.Meyer.cfm
  • "Amanda Meyer has been teaching High School students in rural Minnesota for over ten years. She employs aspects of project-based learning, inquiry, and flipped learning in her Biology, Anatomy, and College Biology classes." 

Podcast: http://www.jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WFLP.avon.cfm
  • "Nicole Avon, twitter handle @AvonPhysics, teaches a Flipped Physics Class at Mars Area High School (site of FlipCon14), where she has been a teacher for 11 years."


In the "Take Action" activity (above), I provided a reflection prompt regarding how we might consider addressing challenges/clearing 'hurdles' with flipped learning.  Recently, I got together with a few colleagues who are currently teaching Intermediate Mathematics (Grades 7 to 10) and who had expressed interest in learning about the strategy of flipped learning.

During the course of our discussion, we covered such themes as pedagogical approach, engagement, measurement, and curriculum/resources--these themes just so happen to be ;) the gap factors associated with the Provincial Action Plan and/or, if you like, themes/assets to guide improvement of the "instructional core."

You can see these themes in the first column of the table that I've provided below--"Innovating Towards Student-Centred Leadership: Learning through the 'Flip.'" The table summarizes the discussion, next steps, and lead change agent(s) for each next step.

Table-Innovating Towards Student-Centred Leadership: Learning through the 'Flip'
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Upon examination of the discussion details (table, above and below), you can see that there are pedagogical and logistical challenges being highlighted.  Under "Next Steps," resolutions or next steps have been proposed to seeing that the achievement factors are able to further impact student learning.  Lastly, the final column lists those individuals who might have the most change influence to starting to move the learning (flipped) forward.  For example, if we consider student engagement, then there is a shared leadership amongst teachers, administrators, and parents to helping create, implement, and sustain a successful flipped learning model.
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6-CONSIDER THIS
If you take a second look at the final column of the table(s) above, you'll notice that teachers, administrators, and parents have a proposed role in helping to move learning forward.  But...we're missing one critical element, or rather 'group' element, to more fully understanding the complexity of teaching and learning--our students!


Take Action: Alright...please share a few, final thoughts.
  • One more time, take a look at the themes, discussion, and next steps for any or all parts of the table. Where would you/how would you incorporate student voice/choice/input/leadership/etc so that you could list "students" as a group responsible for leading/influencing change?  
  •  If there doesn't seem to be a part of the table that fits your thinking about incorporating student leadership, what 'part' would you devise and why? Explain how you incorporate student leadership.  

F) Some Concluding Thoughts
As this post has developed, we've had an opportunity to reflect upon improving the "instructional core" from a variety of perspectives--provincial-, system-, school-, and classroom-based perspectives--only to see the innovation of flipped learning fold back on/fold into where we started--an action plan for improving achievement in mathematics.  I believe that the development of this post and the mention of using a blended model of learning (i.e., flipped learning) is consistent with this plan: "...as far as the various practices that can be used to provide such supports, it is recognized that there is no single, best practice to support the plan for improving student achievement" (2014-15 Mathematics Action Plan).

So what will it take to move us forward? Even if it's just one of us?

There is a shared responsibility around leading the 'charge,' but it appears as though building momentum can come from the following:
  •  "increasing in-service supports and professional pedagogical learning" (Action Plan)
  • Let's add that the pedagogical learning is done through the lenses of problem solving and communication in mathematics (EduGAINS)
  • identifying and working with learning assets from the five themes: approach, conceptual/contextual, engagement/confidence, measurement, and curriculum/resources (Mary Jean Gallagher, Action Plan)
  • focusing leadership initiatives around teacher learning and development (Viviane Robinson)
  • To the leadership aspect, let's add that teacher learning and development is done through collaborative inquiry (Principals as Co-learners; sustained support to transfer learning into practice, Don Klinger-Queen's University)
  • Through effective leadership, let's cultivate innovation that puts student learning not only at the forefront but makes learning student-centred (Robinson, Hattie)
  • For culturing innovation, let's try a variety of approaches--inquiry-based, project-based, and flipped learning (Michael Fullan)
  • To see that flipped learning has an impact on student learning, we need to build our own efficacy...best done through collaboration and with support from others.  And as part of the group of 'others,' let's not forget our most important audience and contributing collaborators--our students
 
Thanks, in advance, for your participation with Flipping the Focus.


Sincerely Yours,


Chris Stewart, OCT
Program Resource Teacher-Mathematics
Upper Canada DSB, Brockville, ON



G) References & Further Reading
Bergmann, J., & Sams, A. (2014). Flipped learning: Gateway to student engagement (1st ed., pp. 21-38). Eugene: ISTE

City, E. et al. (2009). Instructional rounds in education: A network approach to improving teaching and learning. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Education Press.  

Flumerfelt, S., & Green, G. (2013). Using lean in the flipped classroom for at risk students. Educational Technology & Society, 16(1), 356-366. Retrieved January 27, 2015, from Academic Search Complete.

Hamdan, N., McKnight, P., McKnight, K., & Arfstrom, K. (n.d.). The flipped learning model: A white paper based on the literature review titled "a review of flipped learning". Retrieved from http://researchnetwork.pearson.com/wp-content/uploads/WhitePaper_FlippedLearning.pdf

Horn, M. (2013). The transformational potential of flipped classrooms: Different strokes for different folks. Education Next, 78-79.

Kim, S., Park, N., & Joo, K. (2014). Effects of flipped classroom based on smart learning on self-directed and collaborative learning. International Journal of Control and Automation, 7(12), 69-80. Retrieved January 27, 2015, from Academic Search Complete.


McEvoy, C. S., et al. (2014). Use of medical students in a flipped classroom programme in nutrition education for fourth grade school students. Health Education Journal, 1-9. Retrieved February 21, 2015, from hej.sagepub.com


Self-efficacy defined. (n.d.). Retrieved March 21, 2015, from http://www.uky.edu/~eushe2/Bandura/BanEncy.html 

What is Flipped Learning? (2014, March 12). Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://flippedlearning.org//site/Default.aspx?PageID=92



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"Exploring & Sharing Digital Leadership" Gets an update

2/10/2015

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Introduction
Welcome back to Flipping the Focus.

In a previous post, I wrote about Exploring & Sharing Digital Leadership.  In this post, I'd like to re-visit this topic with some news and an addition to a resource that will be helpful to teacher practice as follows:
  • Provide followers with a web-based 'capture' of some recent (Feb 7-15) professional learning that several Upper Canada DSB teachers and administrators took part in
  • An update to a shared, Google doc that provides a brief review of how teachers and students can interact with specific digital technologies to deepen learning

In the News: UCDSB Professional Learning
On Feb 7, UCDSB administrators, teachers, and Program staff took part in a Microsoft (MSFT) Education Summit hosted at Queen's University.  The day focused on introducing Onenote basics, delivering an overview of Office 365, and providing several break-out sessions hosted by those who have been trying out these digital technologies in their schools.

Below, I have captured a few tweets from the day and added some captions using a web-based tool called Storify.  With Storify, you can grab tweets, posts, pics, and more from the web, annotate, and organize them into a storyline.  Once complete, you can share your story via social media, embed on your website, and/or export.  

I'm happy to include this in this post so as to shed some light on the professional learning that was engaging for my colleagues and I, and I'm also pleased to be able to share some of my learning with what is a new web 2.0 tool for me--Storify!


This is, to me, part of the essence to Exploring & Sharing Digital Leadership.  Through     collaboration--sharing your own experiences with digital technologies and engaging in dialogue--we collectively stand to gain much towards helping our students.  As motivational speaker, J.D. Cunningham (LearnStyle) explained at the Education Summit (Kingston, Feb 7-15), we're augmenting the learning students are doing by helping them identify digital technologies that match their learning preferences (i.e., styles).

This forum, along with many other blogs, can be great ways that we can collaborate.  To account for the sharing of experiences, you can comment to this post (at the bottom of this post) and/or contribute to the shared, editable document (available here).  As far as dialogue is concerned, commenting back-and-forth through this forum is but one means; another, involves posting tweets to Twitter using the hashtag #diglead.  Questions and comments can also be directed to flippingthefocus@gmail.com--lots of ways to connect!

'Tapping into' GoodNotes: Sharing Digital Leadership
In an effort to extend my learning and ability to bring the learning of others about exploring and sharing digital leadership, I recently reached out to a new professional learning colleague, Kyle Pearce, to contribute to the shared, editable document that can support others in their journey to incorporating digital technologies into their practice.

Before going into his contribution, for which I am very thankful, I thought that I might take a moment to introduce Kyle to you.  Kyle is a Mathematics teacher from the Greater Essex County District School Board, Apple Distinguished Educator and Trainer, as well as a Google Certified Teacher.  In Greater Essex, he is also an Intermediate Math Coach and leading a Ministry-funded 1:1 iPad project called Tap Into Teen Minds.  
In his 1:1 iPad class, Kyle's students use an app called GoodNotes (created by Time Base Technology, Ltd.)--a great tool for annotating PDFs.  By clicking on the image below, you'll be taken to Kyle's comments.  In those comments, there is a link to a posting that he has created to provide some GoodNotes to teachers and students.

Table-Digital Tools to Deepen Teaching & Learning
Picture
GoodNotes - 4
Picture
Shared, editable Google Doc highlighting the various ways that digital tools can be used to deepen student learning

In Closing ...
I hope that you have found this post not only informative but helpful in your journey towards helping students deepen their learning through the effective use of technology.  If you have been using Storify, GoodNotes, and/or other apps/web 2.0/computer programs in your classroom to experiment with pedagogy and practice, I would love it if you could contribute to our learning community at Flipping the Focus.
There are several, easy ways to get involved:
  • contribute to the Google Doc featured (above) on an ongoing basis
  • join our Diigo (details in the January 2015 blog posts) group (badge, see above right)
  • add your name and a few other details to the Flipped PLN Finder registry
  • consider collaborating around flipping professional development through Flipped PL
  • participate as a guest blogger on Flipping the Focus.  Send your post to flippingthefocus@gmail.com along with a short bio, link to your site, etc.  Upon approval, your bio will be added to the side-bar (see right) and post made to this page.
  • leave a comment to this post (form, below)
Looking ahead, we'll reflect upon the growing number of contributions being made to Exploring & Sharing Digital Leadership along with their potential impact.  For late February, stay tuned for more details regarding Flipped PL--flipping components of professional learning for educators.

Sincerely Yours,

Chris Stewart
Program Resource Teacher-Mathematics
Upper Canada District School Board
Brockville, Ontario
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    I am passionate about leadership for learning and teaching and learning through inquiry. Through collaborative exploration of high-yield, pedagogical strategies, I have been able to further engage students to deepen their learning and fellow educators in continuously growing their practice--Flipped Learning, Thinking Classrooms, and culturing Student Voice as examples.  I hope that this site serves you well in your educational journey through teaching and learning by moving professional learning into your time ... your space. If you have questions or feedback, please feel free to contact me. Sincerely, Chris Stewart (OCT).

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