Measuring success has been something I've been thinking about as I read the last section of The Innovator's Mindset. I work in a jurisdiction that has a rigorous Diploma exam for grade 12 students. As it counts for 30% of the student's overall mark and greatly impacts acceptance into post-secondary institutions, success inherently includes the grades. Marks do matter and for me to pretend otherwise is reckless. Much of my assessment is geared around preparation for those exams. We write in a prescribed manner to ensure students are familiar with the expectations of the final and can do well on it. We practice multiple choice tests so that students are able to confidently interpret the sources and write the test. As a school we are constantly trying to find more ways to see that more students are able to earn a score in the excellent category.
So I've been thinking about how I balance this. Reading the last section of the book has challenged me. I have traditionally pushed back a bit against change...not because I am scared (but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't apprehensive at times), but because what I was doing was reflected in solid diploma exam scores. Changing that might cause those scores to drop...impacting not only students who might not get into their program or school or choice, but also impacting me by perhaps suggesting I was ineffective as a teacher. But how many students have I hurt by not incorporating other ideas and approaches? Balance. Yes, we are going to teach and practice the essay as long as it is part of the diploma exam. I think that the ability to present and defend your position is crucial, but there are so many other options than just the essay.
To quote George Couros "If you want to see the effectiveness of an educator, you do not look at what the teacher is doing but at the learners whom they serve." (Couros, G. (2015). The innovator's mindset: Empower learning, unleash talent, and lead a culture of creativity (p. 211). San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting). Students don't generally tell me that they 'get it' from writing an essay. But when they are given the freedom to explore ideas and concepts and make deeply personal connections, things start to matter more. Students have greater retention and can connect course content to real world situations. THAT is the measure of a successful learner. They understand why things matter and why it matters to them.
How do I serve my learners? How do I make sure that I am doing right by them? How do I ensure they are getting what THEY need? It's scary and daunting but invigorating as well. Yes, I will still need to make sure they have the skills for the diploma exam, but I can't stop there. I've started with more deliberate reflection (not for marks) by the students, but can I push that even more? Can I try to set my grade 12s up with blogs to help them to express their voice and understanding and make those connections. Will it help them to really "get why it matters" and look at the concepts through the eyes of citizens rather than just students? Can I find formats to really challenge and push their thinking as well as my own?
I have to say that rather than be intimidated by this (and I am), I'm actually quite excited about it. Being a part of this book study has forced me to confront my own fears and resistance to some kinds of change. It is through my reading here and being a part of the twitter 'verse that I'm pushing my own boundaries of what is comfortable. I still don't like change "just because". Sometimes we do what we do because it DOES work and it IS effective. But we can look critically and honestly at it. Change what needs to be changed and tweak what is good. I find that I am trying new ideas with my students and different approaches to demonstrating understanding and the marks aren't seeming to indicate a detrimental impact. The conversations and de-briefs seem to indicate a deeper understanding.
How do I share what I am doing? How do I contribute the cycle of success not only within the IMMOOC group, but among my colleagues here and in my PLN?
1. My class room is an open classroom where everyone is welcome to come in and see what I am doing. Some days are not that exciting (but I'm working on those days). Keeping my door open pushes me to ensure that more days are the days I want to share and want everyone to see.
2. I share ideas with colleagues. When I find something new, I share it. I like seeing how others use a resource, tool, app or idea and it inspires me. I found the tool canva.com a couple of weeks ago and used it for my grade 11 students to create infographics regarding the issues surrounding Arctic sovereignty. A colleague tried the same thing and then had another graphic design teacher use his fancy printer to print off the larger creations to share. We are now looking at how else we can use this tool to open up other ways of creating and evaluating understandings.
3. I try to be active on Twitter (although I could be better) and join in on various conversations regarding our practice. I can't speak enough about the #sstlap group and the many ways they have challenged me, pushed me and inspired me. I often say that if my colleagues think I'm doing innovative stuff, most of it (like almost all of it) comes from ideas and suggestions I got from Twitter. There is a world of innovative practice out there just waiting for us to explore. We want what is best for "our kids" and by our kids we don't just mean the ones that we teach. Our kids are society and we all win when they are successful. Let's share what works!
4. Keep blogging. Reading how George sees himself as a writer now is actually quite inspiring to me. I have to admit that writing is not my forte and I'm not sure I've found MY voice yet. But I will keep blogging and exploring ideas. I tell my students to practice, practice, practice to get better at their own writing. It's time I followed my own advice.
Ultimately, my takeaways from this book and book study have been that we need to make sure students are the centre of all that we do. If it is not helping them to be successful, if it is not challenging them, if it is not giving them opportunities to express their learning in a way that makes sense for them, then we need to look critically at why we are still doing it. How am I creating opportunities for my students to become better learners and not just consumers of content? How am I helping to build a culture of reflection within everything that we do as a community of learners (students AND teachers)?
Thank you, George, for sharing your passion for learning and for the encouragement found within the book (and your blog) for us to seek out the innovative ideas that we all have and the courage to implement them for the betterment of our students.