PLP final reflections

Today we signed off on the PLP program and had our last Elluminate session. It has been an amazing past 15 months. Three of our team began the journey by taking part in the SLAV Web2.0 program. Here we had a few months to learn about the some of the different technologies that were becoming available to us. We were given the permission the take time to “play” with variousWeb2.0tools and consider how they might used to improve upon the learning opportunities we offer the students in out classrooms/schools.

Uploaded by McLeod

 

The offer to be part of the PLP program came after a few of us at WFC had taken part in this SLAV Web2.0 PD program. We had been introduced to some of these powerful tools and had begun to investigate how they might be best used in an educational setting but we were still trying to work out to best put our ideas into practice. Jenny Luca, upon reading Tania Sheko’s blog, contacted her and suggested that our school might like to be part of an Australian cohort.

From there on in it has been an amazing ride. There wasn’t a lot of time to prepare a proposal to take to our principal but we were very excited by the potential of the Powerful Learning Program being offered to us and we realised that our school could benefit from such exposure to 21^st century educational thinking. After explaining the proposal (and working out about the financing) he approved our participation. There were a few more discussions as we put forward a case for the teacher librarians being part of the program. There was an idea that it would be better for full-time classroom teachers to take part and it was suggested the T/Ls could observe and assist when needed. I remember arguing about our unique place in the school, that we were truly cross-curricular as well as working with staff and students from all year levels. It was finally agreed that we could be part of our school’s team.

Things moved quickly and in no time we were enjoying our first face-to-face meeting with the Australian cohort at Toorak College shortly afterwards. On one hand it seems like yesterday that we met up for that first time and discussed the program but a lot has happened since that meeting. 

Trying to go back to the beginning and reflecting on the reasons I initially wanted to be part of the program I came up with the following reasons for my enthusiasm. I was interested in exploring all sorts of ways the use the technologies available:

• to assist students with their learning
• to help students make sense of the multi-literacy world that they are part of
• to assist students make sense of, and sort through, the amazing amount of information available to them, in the most appropriate manner for them.

I saw the digital tools offering me a wide variety of options that would assist me in allowing students to learn in the most appropriate/best way for them. This did not necessarily mean that it was going to be the best, most comfortable, way for me but that was not the issue. The PLP offered me a way of learning and sharing ideas about technologies (digital tools) in an educational setting.

The Program went on to meet my interests and more. The access and connections we had to not only the theories, ideas but practical advice from not only the Australian cohort members but also the US school teams was such an amazing

The different Web2.0 tools that we used to connect to, communicate and collaborate helped me gain a better understanding of the tools but they also broadened my outlook and ideas. Although I had started to read blogs and write one myself, I had never really bothered with Twitter but it has become such a useful tool, one that offers a quick way to inform and keep informed. I had touched on wikis but the wikis I was introduced to, whilst being part of the PLP, have been a revelation, as has the willingness of so many educators to share their experiences and advice.

Nings have become a useful resource and I have become a co-administrator of one and a member of a number of others. The social bookmarking, using Delicious was a great way of finding and sharing useful sites and since then Diigohas become my bookmarking site of choice. It links to Delicious but also allows you to be part of interest groups and to leave note and comments on text. I may not have found or started using Diigo without the encouragement of PLP members. I have put links to many of the tools (blogs, wikis, nings etc.) as well as My Flickr and Vodpod, LibraryThing, all those  things I like to use/read in my sidebars. 

The willingness of other educators has to communicate and collaborate has made me much more aware about leaving comments and acknowledgements when I find interesting information shared with me. So the collaboration and communication parts of 21^stcentury learning has been an enormous part of my time in the PLP program. I cannot imagine a time in the future where I will not be online, sharing information, ideas and generally collaborating with others. My PLN is now so much larger than it was before the PLP program and is my source of inspiration, my support network and a community that continues to challenge me to keep learning and growing. 

The most amazing collaboration tool that we were introduced to must be Elluminate.I was quite nervous about my first session, not knowing how it worked and what it offered but what a fantastic opportunity it offered to us. The discussions, led by Will Richardson and Sheryl Nussbaum Beach, were thought- provoking and the energy coming from the comments (verbal and written) and conversations shared between the participants was truly exciting. Elluminate offers a very powerful option, with the presenters having the option to showcase many different presentations. The fact that all of the sessions can be recorded, allows participants to revisit the any of them whenever they want to, makes it a tool that create the opportunity for reflection and deep understanding.

21^stcentury learning also has a creative component. The blogs, wikis, Nings offer users the opportunity for sharing/publishing creative thinking and a platform to showcase innovative approaches to subjects/topics. This id the higher order thinking that we want our students to be involved in.

All of these tools are being investigated and used in all sorts of ways with students. Indeed I have blogged about the use (and usefulness) of a number of them. The members of the Whitefriars team have used various digital resources to engage students in their own learning. The students I have worked with responded well when challenged to try new ways to approach some traditional tasks. Their reflections and comments have been very positive. They rose to the challenges and produced some innovative and excellent resources. The worry (of some teachers) that the technology would be distracting did not come to fruition. When they were given a framework, a certain amount of choice in their approach, and help and guidance when required, the students simply became engrossed in what they were doing. An authentic feel, from knowing that their work was going to be shared with other students and beyond their own classroom situation, seemed to make them take a more responsible approach to their learning and they set their standards high. Seeing the teachers I worked with excited by the work the students were doing, and the students responding so well to their tasks, was the best part of the program. It was very affirming. The way the students (and their teachers) worked together was the most rewarding aspect of the journey.

More disappointing was the time that we realised that we could not participate in Elluminate sessions when we were at school but rather had to use our own mobile broadband or our internet at home. This also means that we cannot use this fantastic tool to link our students into real-time tutorials/discussions in the wider world. Skype is also unavailable to us at our school for other real-time connections. I have read about so many interesting projects conducted in other schools using these tools and it is disappointing that, at the moment, we cannot. There have been times when Nings could not be accessed and used properly by the students.

There are also some different ideas amongst staff about whether or not to use the internal (Sharepoint) options or to use the external web2.0 tools. One of the things that must be developed is a common approach to all the technologies available.

I have to the strong belief we need to develop very clear pathways and guidelines for teachers who want to participate in some of the newer and more innovative digital projects. We need to make it easy for people who want to try new/different approaches with their classes. It automatically follows that the infrastructure needs to be able to support their endeavours.

Control uploaded by Shareski

Other challenging times have come when teachers have not been open to hearing about new approaches, let alone try them. I tried not to be disappointed when my colleagues didn’t share my enthusiasm. I am always very aware that we all have different skills and interests, but there are many options that require little technical skill but offer very powerful learning opportunities. I try not to sound like an evangelist to these staff but I believe our focus should always be on how best to help our students learn and, if technology gives more students a greater range of alternative ways to learn and demonstrate that learning, then I believe that is what we, as educators, need to respond to the challenge. I wrote a post a while ago when I was reflecting on what teachers want from technolgy and what makes “good” technology. When I look around many schools don’t meet the requirements I came up with, making it harder to convince them to take it on board. Will Richardson made a comment that too much PD for educators is about teaching and not about them learning (which was the opposite of the previously mentioned SLAV program). They are out of practice when it comes to learning, especially new and different ideas. Some this means more consideration of the PD offered and taken up by our teachers. 

So, reflecting on the reasons I wanted to be part of the PLP program, I must say that it has opened my mind up to the tremendous opportunities we have to assist our students to develop their learning skills. It has reinforced that we all need to keep our minds open and be willing to constantly further our education and be challenged and not become too comfortable. Now that it is over it is a bit like the feeling you have when holidays or some celebration has finished. There is a feeling that what now but the community we have built up is still there and there are new challenges and projects already in the wings. We have been given the confidence to “get out there”, take part in the new world and, most of all, none of this ever has to be done in isolation, that there are plenty of people “out there” willing to join us on our journey. It is only the beginning!

Our reflections (put together on this blog by Tania Sheko and Marie Salinger) are here.

A slide set I like that looks at web2.0

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Change in schools: how are we approaching it?

I went home last night after the extremely interesting and energising day and I thought about change. We were talking about changing the culture within our schools. Why is it so difficult? Why is change so threatening to some? Why would you not want to grow professionally, increase your knowledge, improve on something? I wondered why, on the whole, the idea of change doesn’t seem to have the affect on me?
Change has always occurred, look back at history and the changes and developments that we applaud and celebrate. Look at the medical breakthroughs, no-one would would want to go back to a turn-of-the-century dentist and technology has been a huge catalyst in many of these changes.

A study of language shows that it is also constantly changing. Without people realising it, they to accept much of the change however often, when it is brought to their attention, they feel a little uncomfortable.  As a matter of interest the Macquarie Dictionary has a word of the year and in 2007 it was the following: 

pod slurping
noun the downloading of large quantities of data to an MP3 player or memory stick from a computer.

In this increasingly tech-savvy world we live in, it seems pod slurping really is the new memory bank for us busy bees. Why carry around vast reams of documents, or CDs or anything for that matter, when you can download absolutely everything!

Pod slurping has an inventive and sensuous appeal. The committee felt that the most important criterion for word of the year should be linguistic creativity and evocativeness, rather than simple worthiness or usefulness. Pod slurping also dips its lid to pod, a potent little word of our times.

Again many of the changes related to new words that related to technology. Another (the People’s Choice Award) for word of the year was:

password fatigue
noun a level of frustration reached by having too many different passwords to remember, resulting in an inability to remember even those most commonly used.

Password fatigue was the most popular word in the online voting, clearly registering a widespread dilemma of the online world.

I can certainly attest to conversations with colleagues about the sheer number of passwords they are required to remember. The way they deal with the problem has changed as their on-line presence has increased.

Getting back to being an agent for change within a school, there are a number of variables that must be checked if there is to be a change in the attitudes toward, and use of, technology. If technologies are going to be accepted the following must be looked at:

• Teacher training. Being a notebook (laptop) school, we have a lot of teacher training and development available to our staff, both within our school and externally, and have done for a long time.
• The bandwidth (Infrastructure). This is good, especially as teachers book classes to use the internet (max 15 class at any one time) Within the school things work well although you can always use more. Wireless also can be an issue at times.
• Software. We have a great variety available, some commercial, some freeware or shareware.
• Leadership. The principal and and other designated leaders in the school must be actively support any program if it is to succeed. They also need to help overcome hurdles and put pressure on staff when necessary.

We have been given an opportunity in the PLP to have the training and development. We have the infrastructure and the software available for us to be part of the program and to contribute. I have experienced a few glitches with Elluminate and will have to work on it but, apart from that, there are no hurdles that I can foresee that can’t be overcome (of course I could be wrong!) We also have a vast number of people in our community, who proved yesterday, that they are ready to help when we need it. The PLP cohort, with its reach far beyond Australian shores, is already supporting us. Thank you Web2.0!

I guess I am a “glass half full person” and am confident enough to think that (eventually) I will succeed at things. Maybe my librarianship training has helped because the sharing and communal approach to information (and sharing and building it) is second nature. I also have always enjoyed working through and having a go at things. I certainly don’t have to be perfect or an expert the first time I use some technology or even when in class, which is just as well! I am happy to use student knowledge when it comes to technology, after all it is only the tool I want to be used in learning about the skills I am teaching. Some of my best classes have been about me learning as much as my students. Roll on 21st century teaching and learning.

Uploaded to Flickr 6th Dec 2007 by Wonderlane http://flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/2090966628/

F2F meeting of PLP participants

Today we went to Toorak College, in Mt.Eliza, and really began the Powerful Learning Practice program, with a face-to-face meeting of all those involved in the Australian group and Will Richardson and Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach. They both encouraged and challenged us to come aboard on this journey that will officially last until next June.

Keynote Address. One of the keys to 21st century learning is flexibility, the ability to go with the flow when the unexpected happens. Another key phrase, mentioned in the morning sessions, was “adaptive expertise” and that it is how we manage to adapt to our situations that will determine our success. (I had a lot of trouble getting access on-line for the morning sessions, although trying many things. After lunch however, I was suddenly able to get onto the wiki and take part in the sessions talking about the tools we will need to use. As always you just never know!)

Also stressed to us was that we were going to be part  of a community of practices as opposed to a network. The ability to use the tools available is the easy part using them to explore learning is what we are all going to be focused on and the community will share their thoughts, findings about what worked, how, etc. The key to being part of the community is that everyone must contribute to the overall well-being and strength of our group/community. From their past experiences one-day programs did not work so they developed this sustained program that is embedded into the participant’s everyday teaching over a long period. Over this period,  we must all make it a regular task to take part in, comment on, share, etc. along our journey, everyone must be there to make it work.

Learning, technology, literacy and the 21st century

We tomorrow we have our first face-to-face session of the Australian group in the Powerful Learning Practice program. Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach and Will Richardson will introduce us to the concept and help us form the connections that we will develop to from part of a learning community.

I often like walking and thinking, and the past few weekends have been great weather for doing just that. I have also been reading many blogs that contain musings and comments about education as well as a few major articles in our daily newspapers, especially over the holidays and have been trying to

• What is 21st century learning?
• How does technology fit in?
• What is the role of the teacher today and in the future?
• What role/responsibility does the wider community have to play in the education of our young people?

I don’t have the answers but here are some of my random thoughts.