Interactions with my Professional Community
I loved focusing even more on my own Professional Development over the past couple of weeks working on Modules 4 & 5. I committed to connecting to my PLC daily over the past several days and found many new and exciting resources to use within my classroom, which has also created a Segway of connections with new PLC’s. I learned some new skills, read several interesting articles, and gathered a collection of feedback and ideas on techniques within the classroom that work for my subjects taught, as well as activities to try. I shared the PLC with fellow educators within my school and it has opened a whole new dialogue for us on how we will finish off the school year together and collaborate as much as possible. I love to collaborate, and it has allowed connections to develop with my colleagues and I feel like I am positively contributing to my school environment. I completely embrace what Blitz (2013) states the Internet has allowed for a great expansion of opportunities for teachers to collaborate “with each other and experts outside their schools – and even outside their districts – for learning, joint lesson planning, and problem solving.” (p.i) and the point that when teachers are willing to adapt their instructional practice, share with others and invite feedback, their school becomes a learning oriented and results-focused organization which ultimately has the greatest impact on their students (p. A-1).
I joined this PLC with the intention of assisting myself and fellow educators at my school as we often struggle with creative ideas for presenting and assessing curriculum, and I have been very excited to share everything I have found and can tap into the resources at my convenience at any time of day. As Blitz suggests, “flexibility is presented as the strongest advantage of online PLCs over the traditional face-to-face environment in facilitating teachers’ learning.” (p. i) Sometimes when my lesson plans don’t seem relevant, I have quickly gone here to find something else to use on a particular day.
My Journal
Sunday March 6th:
Today I took advantage of my PLC- Ontario Teachers Grade 7/8 – Resources & Sharing.
I have been struggling with the recent news of the struggles between Russia and the Ukraine and not knowing how to discuss this with my students. A wonderful educator and contributor to this PLC provided this amazing Google Slide presentation. I plan to use this after we return from March Break.
Another educator then provided this long list of resources found on other PLC’s: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1TuDblDodo_nMyXoKriwGWHr5ZTd4ZVsdh7xrrwgpT14/edit#slide=id.g7211cbe754c70ab7_0
Our school did a fundraiser for the Ukraine (UNICEF) initiating a “Hat Day” on the Wednesday before March Break to raise funds. It was very successful and it was wonderful to feel like we were able to help even a little bit, especially helping the children of Ukraine.
There was a bit of a debate within the post as to whether we as educators had to be careful with what was presented, as someone mentioned it was a political debate and their school suggested they wait to discuss. Once we instigated a fundraiser at our school, I knew it was time for a discussion however, I knew there would be so many students missing the last week of classes so I am waiting. But here is one educator’s thoughts:
“A political event? I respectfully disagree. Complacency left a lot of people on the wrong side of history during World War II. We teach kids to not be bystanders when conflict arises with bullying. How is this any different? Sometimes out of sake of convenience of dealing with parents in education we teach students that it’s easier to remain silent. Perhaps look at Russia’s actions through the lens of human rights and connect to curriculum and allow students to make their own assessments.”
I did ask the initial contributor how the discussion was received within their classroom. Here was the response:
“When I first had the discussion with Grade 7 students because they wanted to, I was hesitant to say too much. I invited them to ask questions instead of providing answers. Their questionings are completely authentic and were recorded on the second slide. If you decide to show them the slideshow before you open it ask them what they want to know about Ukraine. The thing I find very difficult is when a student presents some misinformation they saw on YouTube or heard their adult say in front of the class. Which is why I work hard to get them to ask questions first and keep questioning information even the sources I provide.”
Monday March 7th:
Classroom management: It’s a struggle at the best of times. Children have lost out on almost two years of proper social interactions due to lockdown and I want to support their interests in talking to each other and learning how to interact again. However, I also need to get through what I want to discuss with them within a class block. So I went to the PLC to see if there was an information or discussion on Classroom Management. Sure enough, there was and it was so helpful.
“I’ve done the “NOISE” strategy where I add a letter of the word on the board every time they continue to talk during a lesson. When the word is complete, they lose a recess.
I’ve also done the word “RESPECT” where the word is already written on the board and they are given an incentive of their choice (ex. 15 mins free time, DPA outside) – every time they talk, they lose a letter and once all the letters are gone, the incentive is off the table.
Also, I agree, the waiting out is frustrating, but it does work. I also created a visual cue for my class. I simply raise my hand and wait, then they respond with a hand up as well. I told them that when I see your hand up too, it means they acknowledge me, and they are also ready and waiting to learn.”
I shared my strategy that I shared with my students the first day and week of classes in September. I told them that I do not yell and that I work from a place of mutual respect. Yes, I have raised my voice to speak sternly however, when they are extra chatty and not listening respectfully, I sit back and wait. They know if I have gone silent that I am frustrated and those that tune into it right away, help pull everyone else back in and then we have silence and start again.
I had many thumbs up, likes and hearts so I appreciate that.
In Blitz’s (2013) article, it was stated that we need to understand “the unique characteristics of social interactions. There is a lack of nonverbal feedback, and the absence of natural means for regulating interactions that exists in face-to-face interactions”(p.12). I appreciate this but I also firmly believe there is a time and a place and I try to tell my students, listen, get your work done, and then you have time for social interactions with your classmates.
Book suggestion: https://www.amazon.ca/How-Talk-Teens-Will-Listen-ebook/dp/B003V1WW2O/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1541556049&sr=8-6&keywords=how+to+listen+so+kids+will+talk
Blog post: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/big-and-small-classroom-management-strategies-todd-finley Website article: https://www.whatihavelearnedteaching.com/4-strategies-behavior-toolkit/
Tuesday March 8th:
Today I found this incredible link called, “People Fixing the World” It’s an incredible website for innovations and it’s a podcast so it makes a great launching point for further questions, and I plan to use it for my Grade 7 Language class to get them motivated to write more.
The concept of app smashing was also suggested. Taking two apps and combining them together. For example, using Google slides and photo editors to make photo comics or google forms and google sites to make digital breakouts. Something else for me to learn. Fabulous.
There was a suggestion to a creative writing bundle for purchase on TPT. Happy to report I own this and so I will use this as an extension of this set of podcasts. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/2peasandadog/Category/Creative-Writing-318167
I have been inspired to use this in my classroom and shared it with fellow educators. The positive feedback confirmed that I was on the right path, and I look forward to sharing this with the students.
Wednesday March 9th:
My focus today has been all about my PLC’s focus on compiling videos and resources to promote empathy and kindness in the classroom. Everyone is struggling in some way, even if it is not obvious to others. Like an invisible backpack.
New resources that I need to learn how to use: EdPuzzle, Flipgrid, Witeboard,
Empathy can Change the World https://youtu.be/aU3QfyqvHk8
An entire presentation on Empathy – Explore/ Explain/ Apply/ Create/ (This was a view only document but I took a leap of faith and asked the contributor if there was a way to get a copy.) https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/15pkzXqiUGP00p0OWoXBfUb6wCNgKKJP_3_PAE8yvgSU/mobilepresent#slide=id.p
Explore: There is a link to the story “The Invisible Boy” by Trudy Ludwig – During the video there is a pause and a question that students are prompted to respond to on “Edpuzzle”.
Explain: There are three short stories called, “Each Kindness”, “My Secret Bully” and “Stand in my Shoes” and students are asked to “turn and talk”, “stop and jot”, and “ record a video” to explain what they learned. There is a Flipgrid to add responses.
Apply: A reflection on how these two videos invoke Empathy: https://youtu.be/uaWA2GbcnJU , https://youtu.be/cDDWvj_q-o8
Apply: Love Vest shows a Kindness Boomerang idea. https://youtu.be/nwAYpLVyeFU
Apply: Merriam Webster definition of “Empathy” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empathy
Apply: Inside the book of “Confessions of a Former Bully”, the author describes a toolkit of resources to help overcome being a bully. Students are encouraged to use the digital tool “Witeboard” to sketch options, or to draw options on paper and take a screenshot of their work
Create: Students are given options on how they will share creations of their ideas on how they can create an impact.
Extend: Additional resources for whole class discussions https://youtu.be/1Evwgu369Jw
I am thrilled to say that within a couple of hours of me asking the contributor if there was a way to get a copy of this document, she sent me a view only version that I could make a copy of – I cannot wait!! https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/15pkzXqiUGP00p0OWoXBfUb6wCNgKKJP_3_PAE8yvgSU/edit#slide=id.p
Thursday March 10th:
My opportunities today were focused on contributing to a shared resource that will help Grade 6-8’s with RESPONSIBLE ONLINE ACTIVITY, creating positive digital footprints and being very aware of the influence of social media, cyber bullying, and the inequalities that we face between gender, race, and other factors. We are hoping to align this with equity, inclusion, and diversity with a positive spin of celebrating differences. The moderator is a teacher from the District School Board of Niagara and will share a slide show once all the resources are compiled. I will be using the final presentation within my Grade 8 Religion class.
http://www.stopabully.ca/bullying-statistics.html
http://www.stopabully.ca/bullying-statistics.html
Here is my contribution: https://youtu.be/f8xyjKnDwog
And https://torontolife.com/life/skin-im-ive-interrogated-police-50-times-im-black/
Further investigation led me to finding this website: It’s a gold mine of resources. https://sites.google.com/hdsb.ca/msarcand7/equity?authuser=0
Friday March 11th:
Huge can of worms opened today. The topic of homework. Here is what one person contributed that I support: “I don’t believe in homework, it is my job to teach and work academically with the students, families need to have healthy positive relationships with their families and friends, something that can be stressed with homework. I also don’t know who is really doing the work when it’s done at home. If they don’t finish something in class, they can finish that but that’s about it. I also have a catch-up time at the end of the week when I can help so really, they have not much need to do anything out of class.”
Here’s another that I commented, “Amen” to.
“A very old argument. In my mind, it’s settled…in the context of sending work home specifically as “homework”. You can either send homework they can already do, serving no purpose, or you send work home they can’t do, creating stress at home and work avoidance, serving no purpose. You can’t assess anything sent home, since you can’t determine who completed it. Making it practically useless. You could track it for completion. Creating another make-work project for me. I don’t have time for that. My plate is full. So where does that leave us? Assigning work for the sake of assigning work? So for me, work at home is for people who didn’t complete something assigned in class or want to improve or refine an important task. However, I know full well the ones that do work at home aren’t usually the ones having academic difficulty.”
I found a second post where an educator was asking about Homework worksheets for Geography and History, and I found it so interesting and very intriguing to the comments on that post.
“Ya I definitely don’t assign any homework for history and geo. My program is primarily inquiry based with a heavy focus on asking effective questions. I like the teacher resource cabin for teacher lead lessons. Cause the kids (online) can use “doc-hub” or KAMI to edit the PDF as we do the lesson.”
Most discouraged using resources for homework but I will use these sources as work available in my online workspace for all students because it will be so effective for those that may be in isolation at home. I am very excited to add these resources to my repertoire:
and also found suggestions to investigate “Teacher-Guy”, https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Grade-7-Canadian-History-Powerpoints-New-France-British-North-America-3103195
I have spent a lot of time reviewing learning outcomes and assessments in my subjects to be taught and found creative ways in the curriculum to lighten the student’s workload or make it more interesting, so they are intrigued to work harder. This term I have added more opportunities to work in groups, practicing collaboration, rebuilding relationships that have become non-existent through lockdown after lockdown, and I have increased the number of oral presentations so that students can deepen their learning through teach backs, get more comfortable public speaking, and practice peer assessments as a way to combine assessments so students in future, won’t feel so overwhelmed.
This was my contribution: “We work together in class on assigned work. There is plenty of time given in class to do it, with support freely available from myself as well as many on IEP’s that can go to the Resource Room. If not done in class, it is to be done at home. I do not assign work specifically to be done at home, but many appear to be very distracted within the classroom and so the expectation is to complete it at home if that works better for them on a particular day. I have initiated random “homework” checks but that is, so students are motivated to use their classroom time more wisely and be proud and empowered to show me their amazing work.
I have also requested the Resource teachers and Guidance Counsellors to come into the class more often to speak to the students, reminding them of the resources and supports available within the school. My students need to understand that they have many people and resources available and cheering them on to be successful.
I did get several “likes” and “hearts” so I can see the trends shifting to the support of no homework and I like that too because my children are competitive dancers and the hours spent on extra-curricular make it so difficult to have hours a night for other homework. I have been trying to instill in them the benefit of just getting the work done in school. My 9-year-old has homework nightly and we often find ourselves focusing it on the Thursday night which is when the whole week is due. Ugh. My 17-year-old? Well, that’s an entirely different story of time management…
This is an area I will further research.
For me, this PLC has been a huge success. I can see from the “likes” from group members that my contributions are being received in a positive light. I am curious with myself if I would remove a post if I received negative comments as I shy away from confrontation mostly.
I need to continue making time and finding courage to interact more in this community instead of just being a “user”. It is nerve wracking and yet so empowering to be a “contributor”. I value with the potential for meaningful and immediate discussion especially because it is such a diverse and interesting group of educators that share this space. I know this group will be a valuable tool for me as I continue my journey and perhaps next year find myself teaching another subject or another grade entirely but for now I will refer to this 7/8 group daily.
My Final Thoughts on Connecting to my PLC’s:
Reflecting on what I spend a great deal focusing on within my chosen PLC, I understand that I connect strongly with a handful of educational concepts and philosophies.
I heavily connect to the concepts and theories within the Self-actualization model. This refers to personal purpose and the need for personal integration, and satisfying experiences for each individual learner (Eisner, 1974).
I also strive to present primarily Student-Centered or Learner-Centered designs within the classroom when presenting curriculum and will continue to connect with the Humanistic Curriculum approach to curriculum development. When the curriculum concepts focus on the learner and how they learn best all students within my classroom (Core, IEPs, ELL, ELD) I achieve what McNeil stated best, “how will one of more of the curriculum conceptions contribute to improved learning for all?” (McNeil, 2009, p.1 )
When I first tapped into these concepts in Module # 2, I reaffirmed my belief that every student is an individual and learns in their own unique way and as an educator I strive to appreciate their unique life experiences and have them come to realize their gifts as well.
I do also present often in a Subject-Centered Design Theory style, focused on specific courses as I recognize that I am also training these young minds to prepare for post-secondary education which is still heavily rooted in this design type. Because my PLC is geared towards Grade 7/8, many of the resources are leaning toward learner-centered designs however, there is a copious number of resources and materials within this community still focused on subject centered designs.
It is a slow and steady transition in the planning, instruction, and evaluation from subject specific to student centered however, I now have the tools, resources, and indeed the confidence to create or revise my personal plans and adjust instruction and assessments as I see fit with my students. I hesitate less to take risks because I now have a solid understanding of the ideologies, principle, and concepts within my curriculum frameworks. I have already experienced a shift in my students since starting this course as I have empowered them more to find interest in their learning processes.
Resources
Blitz, C. L. (2013). Can Online Learning Communities Achieve the Goals of Traditional Professional Learning Communities? What the Literature Says. REL 2013-003. Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic.
Eisner, E., & Vallance, E. (Eds.). (1974). Five conceptions of the curriculum: Their roots and implications for curriculum planning. In E. Eisner & E. Vallance (Eds.), Conflicting conceptions of curriculum (pp. 1-18). Berkeley, CA: McCutchan Publishing.
McNeil, J. D. (2009). Contemporary curriculum in thought and action (7thed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley. Pages 1, 3-14, 27-39, 52-60, 71-74.
Kathryn Featherstone 