Group items tagged

teams need to research, reflect, implement, redesign,

background section for the facilitator

Rick DuFour

Linda-Darling Hammond, Karen Seashore Lewis

My action research

read it on the Web,

we teachers were the people who held the ultimate solutions

we were the ones who generally had less opportunity for real input into policies and procedures that either allowed or threw up barriers to good teaching and learning.

The principal is the key

must understand the process

provide teachers with training and support.

personally offer appropriate feedback to teams on a regular basis, and allow teachers to be risk-takers.

about professional learning and growth

clear purpose and goal

Setting norms

Sharing teaching ideas

examine research and articles on instruction to broaden their knowledge base, and work together to develop and collectively implement new strategies.

voluntary or mandatory.

provide the necessary help in terms of support structures and incentives.

up to 3 years for professional learning teams to become ingrained

the culture of the school begins to shift and teachers begin to support one another as professionals. In fact, team members begin to take responsibility for the success of each other as teachers.

no "one size fits all"

Imagine that you have freedom to design your school to operate anyway you want it to, and that you will be provided with sufficient resources do implement the design.• What will your teachers be doing from the time they walk in in the morning until the time they leave in the afternoon? • What would you (the principal) be doing during the school day?• How would you like the school day to be structured?• What types of meeting rooms, student learning rooms, laboratories, classrooms, and other space would you like to have in this school?• What clerical positions would be needed? What would clerical staff responsibilities be with respect to facilitating teaching and learning?

teachers focusing exclusively on teaching and learning during the school day. The principal also takes a leadership role in the instructional process and involves teachers in helping him/her make instructional decisions.

The school day is structured so that teachers have two hours a day to work together to address student strengths and weaknesses and improve instruction. Teachers have comfortable and relaxed surroundings in which to work together. They have access to technology and a high comfort level in using it. School firewalls have been altered so that students in the school can access and create wikis, blogs, social bookmarks, rss feeds, and other digital tools when useful for learning.

Students who consistently disrupt learning for other students in class are temporarily placed with a smaller group of similar students within the school where trained teachers work with them in academics and behavior modification.

hands-on learning, projects and problem-solving.

clerical staff to handle non-instructional paperwork, and non-teaching staff monitors students at lunch, during class changes, and at other times when students are not engaged in instructional activities. This frees up extra time for teachers to meet with parents, attend IEP meetings, and prepare for classes.

Teacher leadership is viewed as a necessary role in the school.

Within minutes of arriving at Sahuarita Intermediate School, both Dr. Peggy George and I, we were greeted by two very poised 5th grade students who lead us to a classroom filled with evidence of constructivist learning- a fertile ground for nurturing the infinite thinking machine.

I wish I could share all of the great ideas and websites, I learned about during my visit to Sahuarita Intermediate School, but I think I will follow Jackie's philosophy of letting the students be the guides and leaders. Follow their evolving project pages at weewebwonders.pbwiki.com/ and see for yourself the evidence of student centered learning, and if that doesn't blow you away, brace yourself and visit their fantastic role model of self-directed learning by visting Dr. Gerstein's own learning space.

a backdrop of daily newspaper articles featuring stories of budget woes by surrounding Arizona schools, aging computers, inadequate bandwidth, and exhausted supplies where students are bringing in printer ink and paper from home to be able to continue using classroom printers.

Within minutes of arriving at Sahuarita Intermediate School, both Dr. Peggy George and I, we were greeted by two very poised 5th grade students who lead us to a classroom filled with evidence of constructivist learning- a fertile ground for nurturing the infinite thinking machine.

Two fifth grade boys huddled around an aging computer debating the plot of the digital story they were writing using Tikatok's online book publishing site. At other computer stations, students were exploring Tux Paint – an open source software. Others were using the forums in Think.com to critically analyze the potential of Web 2.0 sites for learning.

Tikatok's online book publishing site. At other computer stations, students were exploring Tux Paint – an open source software. Others were using the forums in Think.com to critically analyze the potential of Web 2.0 sites for learning

One classroom wall was lined with student created newspapers as evidence that the students had developed interviewing skills to learn more about each other. Another wall was lined with colorful 3-D representations of FIVE word questions that was to guide a self directed research project. In the middle of it all hung a student created hand painted Wordle that captured the essence of the type of learning that filled their day and avatars of the students who drove that learning. The avatars were enlarged versions that the students had traced and colored of the actual avatars these students use to safely participate in collaborative learning environments outside their classroom using a variety of Web 2.0 tools made available to them through their classroom wiki- Wee Web Wonders. Here are just five of the many web sites we saw student using during our visit with Dr. Gerstein and her incredible infinite thinkers.

One classroom wall was lined with student created newspapers as evidence that the students had developed interviewing skills to learn more about each other. Another wall was lined with colorful 3-D representations of FIVE word questions that was to guide a self directed research project. In the middle of it all hung a student created hand painted Wordle that captured the essence of the type of learning that filled their day and avatars of the students who drove that learning. The avatars were enlarged versions that the students had traced and colored of the actual avatars these students use to safely participate in collaborative learning environments outside their classroom using a variety of Web 2.0 tools made available to them through their classroom wiki- Wee Web Wonders. Here are just five of the many web sites we saw student using during our visit with Dr. Gerstein and her incredible infinite thinkers.

When the researchers checked in again eight years later, things had gotten even worse for the young adults who had attended a preschool with a heavy dose of skills instruction and positive reinforcement.  They didn’t differ from their peers in the other programs with respect to their literacy skills, total amount of schooling, income, or employment status.  But they were far more likely to have been arrested for a felony at some point and also to have been identified as “emotionally impaired or disturbed.” 

he children who had been taught with the skills-based approach were “more hostile and aggressive, anxious and fearful, and hyperactive and distractible” than children who had attended more developmentally appropriate kindergarten classrooms – and they remained so a full year later. 

The skills kids had lower expectations of themselves, worried more about school, were more dependent on adults, and preferred easier tasks.[16]

Those from the child-initiated preschools “actually mastered more basic skills by initiating their own learning experiences” and continued to do well as the years went by.  The middle-of-the-roaders fell behind their peers.  As for those from the academically directed group, their “social development declined along with mastery of first-grade reading and math objectives. . . . By fourth and fifth grades, children from academic pre-K programs were developmentally behind their peers and displayed notably higher levels of maladaptive behavior” – particularly in the case of boys.[17]

a tightly structured, traditionally academic model for young children provides virtually no lasting benefits and proves to be potentially harmful in many respects.

Start practicing these skills in  Pre-Kindergarten (4 year olds). Allow students to share an experience by recording (articulate, create) or  illustrate (create) a picture about it Then take the time to listen or view it (listening) as a class and talk about it as a group (share) . Ask students to give their opinions (reflect & respond). Record the students’ responses or let them dictate you while you type them directly into the blog. Kindergarten teachers incorporate a “blogger” center in their center rotation. The blogger writes (free or from a prompt). Share the blog entry and write comments to the authors as a class. Upload First graders insect reports (illustrations, PowerPoint, recording, etc). Extend the learning… don’t let it end with the presentation. Create an online research center for bugs. Upload any kind of traditional student work, then allow classmates to record or write comments Second graders can become science, history, etc. or classroom happening reporters…being on the lookout for “their” topic coming up in class or resources…collecting information…images… Allow each student in third grade  to become an expert of one of the curriculum areas or topic of their choice. They share their research and expertise with the rest of the class throughout the year on the blog Fourth graders are writing different book reports throughout the year. Find a way to use these reports to create a collaborative space on your blog. How can we get the students to “own” the learning that is taking place while they are learning and practicing to produce these “required” reports? Students divide into groups to become the knowledgeable about the state of Florida. They become responsible to inform others about their area. Allow different media of their choice to deliver that content. Make sure the feedback for their efforts on the blog does not get neglected. Repeated practice becomes routine. Incorporate reflection and feedback into the learning process. Fifth and sixth graders are old enough to have their own username and password AND be responsible with its use. Use the blog as a space to incorporate their interests. Teach them to make connections between the curriculum and these interests… Be proud to share them… Allow them to make mistakes…they are perfect learning opportunities… Students should be challenged by higher level thinking questions… use prompts and feedback in your comments to guide… given more freedom in choosing their creative outlet to present a point of view, experience or lead discussion in new directions. Bottom line: Involve students in their own learning. Let them become teachers, let them edit each other, let them learn the value of collaborative knowledge. Guide them through the process of becoming life long learners. Learning does not stop because the chapter or unit is over. Make them aware of the connections that are all around us. Share and collaborate on your blog. View your blog as your classroom’s Learning Space.

art of something greater than the weekly “Friday Folder” that is being sent home to show their learning progress (or lack thereof).

Depending on your students age, you can : have one classroom blog one username and password for all students students sign their comment with their first name or avatar name give each student their own username and password as “Subscribers” to post comments on your posts give each student their own username and password as “”Contributors” to add posts that will need to be approved by you create a blog for each one of your students, where they create their own space to document and reflect on their learning, receive comments from you, classmates or blog-pals around the world.

"I learn how to take in constructive criticism," says thirteen-year-old Tiranne

image quality, audio, editing, and content

Using tools such as the social-network-creation site Ning, teachers can easily develop their own networks, Mosea says. "It is better to create your own," he argues. "If a teacher creates his or her own network, students will post as if their teacher is watching them, and they'll tend to be more safe. "You can build social networks around the curriculum," Mosea adds, "so you can use them as a teaching resource or another tool." An online social network is another tool -- but it's a tool with an advantage: It wasn't just imposed by teachers; the students have chosen it.