Get up and write! Well, this isn’t the saying that I abide by, but making the time to reflect and hammer away at the keyboard is something that I still consistently commit to doing. There are many reasons I continue to blog regularly, but the biggest is trying to add a practical lens to many of the ideas we either see or hear about on social media. During the past year, I attempted to connect more research to either further validate my thoughts or illustrate how educators were implementing proven strategies with an innovative angle into practice. An increase in the amount of job-embedded coaching work I did in schools over an extended period of time also influenced my thinking. There is nothing better in my opinion than to see either growth or success in schools where real challenges were overcome.
In my opinion, you don’t have to be a great writer to blog. Begin with a focus on your work and that of others you spend your days with as a starting point. Remember, the act of blogging is first and foremost you and the impact that it has on your growth and development. Another outcome is the impact that it has on readers near and far. Never discount how your ideas and experiences might positively influence the work of others. Back to the whole writing thing. If you ever doubt your ability fall back on a proofreader (thanks mom) on Grammarly as I do.
Here are my top posts of 2018.
Preparing Learners for the Fourth Industrial Revolution
Change isn’t coming. It’s already on our doorstep. You can’t run or hide from it. The revolution, or evolution depending on your respective lens, of our world, will transform everything as we know it. We must adapt, but more importantly, prepare our learners for a bold new world that is unpredictable. Welcome to the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It is characterized by a fusion of technologies that is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biological spheres marked by emerging technology breakthroughs in a number of fields, including robotics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, quantum computing, biotechnology, the Internet of Things, 3D printing, and fully autonomous vehicles. Education remains the key to the future. Don’t prepare students for something. Prepare them for anything!
Scaffolding Questions to Develop Deeper Understanding
The key to future-proofing school and learning is to empower all kids to think regardless of label or zip code. By using the Rigor Relevance Framework as a guide, we can begin by asking learners better questions with the goal being that they start to formulate questions on their own. With and without technology, it is crucial to create a thinking culture. Scaffolding questions enhance learning and aids in the mastery of concepts by systematically building on knowledge and relevance. The ultimate goal is to develop competent thinkers and doers who can not only use knowledge in new ways but also construct their own.
The Pivotal Role Movement Plays in Learning
Research has shown that movement in the form of brain breaks, recess, and physical education positively impacts learning. Don’t look at kids moving in class as a break or poor use of instructional time. Schools need to do more to ensure that movement is being integrated into all classes. The brain needs regular stimulation to properly function and this can come in the form of exercise or movement. Based on what is now known about the brain, this has been shown to be an effective cognitive strategy to improve memory and retrieval, strengthen learning, and enhance motivation among all learners. As research has shown, movement is an essential component of learning. If the goal is to help kids be better learners, then we have to be better at getting them up and moving in school.
Five Components of Good Feedback
Feedback is essential to improvement and growth. There is nothing more vital to our professional roles than a good discussion around evidence-based practice that paints a picture not only of what we are doing well but areas where we can either become much better or outright improve. However, for it to be effective, it must be delivered positively, timely, practical and specific, consistent, and delivered using the right medium.
To Improve Outcomes, We Need to Take a Critical Lens to Instructional Design
There is no perfection in education; thus there is always room for improvement. To get to where we want, and our learners need us to be, a routine audit of pedagogical practice is necessary. In this post, I identify five areas to look at when implementing any digital tool or innovative idea to determine whether or not improvements to pedagogy are changing. These include the level of questioning, authentic and/or interdisciplinary contexts, rigorous performance tasks, innovative assessment, and improved feedback. A question or two as a means to help self-assess where you are and if improvements can be made follows each of these areas.
Thanks to everyone who has made the time to visit my blog, read posts, and provide comments. Here’s to a fantastic 2019!
How do you make the most out of the money you have?
I
hope the question above gets you thinking. Educational institutions around the world spend billions of dollars on textbooks, curriculum, programs, technology, and professional development. I’m sure I missed some categories, but you get the point. Now, I am not saying that anything listed is not valuable. On the contrary, there is research, evidence, and practical needs that justify many of the purchases that are made in each category. My point is this. In times where the budget hammer comes down and critical decisions have to be made, what criteria do you use to make them?
As a principal one of my primary responsibilities was that of preparing a budget. Requests were made through a digital platform and had been done so years before I took the helm. One significant change I made was allowing my teachers, through their department chairs, to have more autonomy over this process. Once funds were allocated to each respective department, I then told them to spend as they saw fit. After all, why should I make these decisions if I am not the one actually teaching the kids or serving directly as a facilitator of learning? It made sense that the people who had the most day to day contact with students were empowered to make the best choices with the funds we had. There were a few times I had to intervene though when some of the decisions were questionable at best, but oversight is essential.
Big ticket items or those that were outside the realm of specific departmental needs followed a different process. Many of these fell within the categories listed at the beginning of this post. In this case, the teachers submitted wish list items while my leadership team and I consulted with students and staff alike to determine school needs. The goal was to make the budgeting process more collaborative. Leaders need to understand the positive impact that shared decision making and more autonomy have on culture. In many cases, those making the decisions think that is the case, but reality states otherwise. An article in Education Dive titled “Principals, teachers have different views on employee input” shared the following:
Most principals — 96% — think that teachers are involved in making important decisions about their schools, but that’s far more than the 58% of teachers who feel the same way, according to a new RAND Corp. American Educator Panel survey of both teachers and school leaders.
Just as teachers use strategies in the classroom to encourage participation from students who aren’t typically likely to volunteer their opinion or ask to be the first to give a presentation, principals will likely need to use multiple methods to ensure they are hearing from a broader cross-section of teachers.
The budgeting process and how money is spent represents one of the most significant decisions that have to be made each year. To build morale and culture, leaders need to relinquish some control and trust those who are tasked with educating kids.
Beyond school and district budgets all educators should be critical of how money is spent to improve not only student learning but also their own. All funds are precious, whether they originate from your school or out of your own pocket. Think about the supporting research and evidence of impact to guide your decision-making process.
When spending money on programs, curriculum, professional development, or technology consider these questions:
- Why invest in this product, service, or event?
- How will (or has) it improve learning outcomes?
- What criteria will be used to determine if it was a wise investment or to continue funding?
Spending any amount of money is a big deal. Engage in conversations at the district, school, or individual level to make the most out of what you have. When it is all said and done you want to be confident that the financial commitment either has or will continue to, positively impact learning outcomes for kids.
I have such fond memories of the time I had with both my grandfathers, albeit much too short as one of them was taken from us too soon. Each of them had such a great fondness for the outdoors, which influenced my decision to pursue degrees in marine environmental science and biology. William Sheninger, or “Pappy” as we called him, was always outside fixing things and my brothers and I would often hover around to see what he was doing. Robert Lewis, otherwise known as “Grandpop”, lived on the Jersey Shore and loved to fish in the surf. Each morning when we visited, he would be out there like clockwork. My brothers and I loved when he would catch sand sharks and place them in a nearby gully for us to observe.
Besides the outdoors, both of my grandfathers had an interest in making things in a world that had yet to experience the types of disruptive changes that we are now seeing thanks to the exponential evolution of technology. It was the late 1970’s and 1980’s after all. At the time I only viewed these activities as hobbies, but now see that the time they both invested was much more. Their passion manifested itself into unique creations that involved skill, knowledge, and patience to learn through doing. Much of what they were doing didn’t make sense as it was the complete opposite of what I was doing in school.
Pappy was the ultimate engineer as his day job was that of a master mechanic this comes as no surprise. He could take any broken tractor and either fix it entirely or design a whole new contraption. I remember him re-engineering one tractor so that we could use it to ride through trails we had created in the acres of forest behind our house. It was amazing how he could get almost anything to work no matter what condition it was in. His hands were always dirty. Beyond mechanical devices, he was still willing to put his knowledge and skills to help out my brothers and me. When my twin and I became fascinated with camping, he said let’s make a campsite. Pappy helped us raise and then level a site in the woods out back. He also helped us build a fire pit with old scrap metal to ensure that the hot coals wouldn’t spark any nearby debris. Even though he did not have a college degree, Pappy was one of the most brilliant people I have ever known.
Grandpop also made things with his hands, but his creations were much different than that of my other grandfather. During the day he was a certified life insurance underwriter for New York Life and had years of higher education beyond a bachelor’s degree. On evenings and weekends, he engaged in another job, but not one to make money. In the guest room of his house was a workstation where he made jewelry. One of the favorite stones he loved to work with was the Australian white/light opal. He also worked with amethyst since my grandmother loved the color purple. They had purple carpet for crying out loud. Grandpop would make necklaces, rings, and pendants all of which he would give to my grandmother and other family members. He was also fond of Cape May diamonds, which he collected on the beach in Ocean City, NJ. I remember scouring the beach with my brothers to locate these stones for him, after which we would use them to make some incredible jewelry.
With all the hoopla in regards to maker education and makerspaces I wanted to take a minute to share that this is not a new concept. Has it evolved – definitely! The process of making has been in our DNA since the dawn of human civilization to create tools for hunting and survival. For many of us who grew up before the Internet, we spent countless hours playing with popular toys such as LEGO’s, Lincoln Logs, Construx, and Erector Sets. It has also been the livelihood for many people and a focus on hobbies or passion projects. Now we have 3D printers, Arduino’s, Raspberry Pi’s, Little Bits, Makey-Makey’s and an array of other innovative technologies to unleash the maker in all kids. Regardless of the tool, the process is rooted in constructionism, which can be traced back to constructivism. Jonan Donaldson sums it up nicely:
Terms such as collaborative learning, project-based learning, metacognition, inquiry-based learning, and so on, might be new to some audiences, but they have a relatively long and well-documented history for many educators. The most widely-known and promising pedagogical approach is constructivism grounded on the work of Piaget, Vygotsky, and Bruner. Constructionism brings creativity, tinkering, exploring, building, and presentation to the forefront of the learning process.
It was Seymore Papert who developed the theory of constructionism. Donaldson goes on to write:
Constructionism, a theory developed by Seymour Papert, articulates a theoretical foundation for learning based on creativity, tinkering, exploring, building, and presentation. Papert had previously worked with Jean Piaget but felt that Piaget’s constructivism placed too much emphasis on the internal mental processes of learners. He insisted that learning occurs not only through learners constructing meaning but also through constructing real-world inventions which can be shared with others. He argues that the construction that takes place ‘in the head’ often happens especially felicitously when it is supported by construction of a more public sort ‘in the world’—a sand castle or a cake, a Lego house or a corporation, a computer program, a poem, or a theory of the universe. Part of what is meant by ‘in the world’ is that the product can be shown, discussed, examined, probed, and admired. It is out there.
The connections above to the maker movement are indiscernible. He goes on to share the following synopsis of constructionism penned by Kafai, Peppler, & Chapman (2009).
Constructionism is based on two types of construction. First, it asserts that learning is an active process, in which people actively construct knowledge from their experience in the world. People don’t get ideas; they make them. This aspect of construction comes from the constructivist theory of knowledge development by Jean Piaget. To Piaget’s concept, Papert added another type of construction, arguing that people construct new knowledge with particular effectiveness when they are engaged in constructing personally meaningful products.
When it is all said and done, the process of making is a powerful catalyst for meaningful learning. In some cases, it can be the identification of a problem followed by the development of a workable solution. How Pappy approached making is an excellent example of this. On the other hand, it can be the creation of meaningful products that are personal in nature, like what Grandpop created or how many kids have used building toys listed previously. Age is irrelevant. Making is and has been, in our DNA forever. Sure, the tools have changed, but the will to tinker, create, and invent hasn’t. The role of educators and schools is to seize on the opportunity inherent in this type of learning to unlock the potential in all of our kids not for grades, but instead the gratification of creating something that has meaning to the creator. There is no finer beauty in learning than making something that matters.
For more ideas, strategies, and resources related to maker education check out this Pinterest board.
Upon getting on Twitter in 2009, I was not only baffled about how to use the social media site but also about all the symbols associated with it. There was no apparent rhyme or reason to using these in any messages whether long or short. One of them was the hashtag (#). Before Twitter I referred to this as the “pound sign” on the telephone and only used it as such. I’d say that this is still one of the least understood elements of social media that either scares people off from using this tool or annoys the heck out of others resulting in a lack of embracement. Developing an understanding of the immense value that hashtags provide regarding communications, public relations, and branding can go a long way to facilitating great conversations about the great work happening in education and schools across the globe.
Let’s start by defining what a hashtag (#) is in the sense of social media. A simple search reveals this:
(on social media sites such as Twitter) a word or phrase preceded by a hash or pound sign (#) and used to identify categorized messages on a specific topic.
Back in 2013 Mashable provided the following description that adds more context as well as some great tips:
The pound sign (or hash) turns any word or group of words that directly follow it into a searchable link. This allows you to organize content and track discussion topics based on those keywords. Click on a hashtag to see all the posts that mention the subject in real time.
Spaces are an absolute no-no. Even if your hashtag contains multiple words, group them all together. If you want to differentiate between words, use capitals instead (#BlueJasmine). Uppercase letters will not alter your search results. Create a brand-new hashtag by merely putting the hash (#) before a series of words. Beyond simply organizing your tweets, Twitter hashtags can help you craft your voice while joining in a broader discussion. You can use multiple hashtags in one tweet, but don’t go overboard.
Once only specific to Twitter, hashtags can now be used on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and even Google+ for the few of us that are still active there. The key to success with hashtags is to know when to use them, the best examples to add to social media messages, how they can amplify work, and knowing which ones to follow. To begin check out the resource page curated by Jerry Blumengarten, otherwise known as Cybrary Man. He has some great lists that can help get you started. Following the simple advice above, my list of strategies to help you get the most out of hashtags is below.
- Get more eyeballs on your ideas and work by using a mainstream hashtag (i.e., #education, #edtech, #pedagogy, #teaching).
- Search hot topics and trends that are categorized by educators thought and leaders.
- Lurk on or join an established chat (see some examples HERE).
- Create a unique hashtag for your classroom, school, district, or organization to communicate information and share your story. Consistently add it to all messages to build a powerful brandED presence. For some great examples check out #ExploreWells and #gocrickets.
- Engage in an online book study or start your own.
- Educate your stakeholders on the why, how, and what, as it relates to hashtags. Don’t assume that they know what these are or how to use them.
- Follow conferences and events from afar. When at an event add the designated # to your messages that share not only the thoughts and ideas of presenters but also ones unique to you.
- Use your hashtag or those that you most engage with, across a diverse array of social networks. Don’t just put your eggs in the Twitter basket.
- Know that hashtags have a different impact depending on the social media site. One that is popular on Twitter might not have the same impact on say Facebook or Instagram.
I am sure there are many more thoughts out there on this topic, and I encourage you to share them in the comments below. Hashtags can occur anywhere in a message. Just don’t get crazy and add too many.
The best job on the planet is that of a parent. I can’t begin to explain how awesome it has been over the years watching my kids grow up and being actively engaged in their lives. Sure, there are some lows along the way, but the highs are what bring so much joy and purpose into our own lives. If you are a parent, you know exactly what I am talking about. I had always envisioned the types of activities my kids would participate in with sports being one of them. However, I never thought that parenthood would bestow the official role of “cheer dad” upon me in the case of my daughter, but I am so glad that it did.
For starters, I never realized the sheer athleticism that is needed to excel in competitive cheerleading. My daughter does all of these elaborate flips and stunts, often referred to as tumbling in the cheerleading world, that leave me in a state of awe every time I watch her. I know for a fact that if I attempted any of these moves, I would severely hurt myself. Equally as impressive are the team aspects of cheer. In a short period, she progressed numerous levels regarding the specific skills she could perform thanks to the dedication on her part and some phenomenal coaches. The coordination, agility, and strength that it takes to perform difficult routines that combine stunts, flips and dance are incredible. Loud and annoying music aside, competitive cheerleading has to be one of the most difficult and demanding sports out there.
My wife and I try to support our daughter the best we can as she loves this sport with a passion. One day when I was traveling, my wife purchased a contraption called an air track. It is a tumbling mat that simulates a bouncing floor similar to what the girls cheer on at the gym and competitions. We have it in a shed outside where my daughter and her friends can set it up and practice anytime they want. Here is where the learning aspect comes into play. Routinely my daughter will set up her iPhone on the fence to record herself as she tumbles away. She then watches the video to self-critique her form and reflect on what can be done to improve. The best part is that she is doing this all on her own thanks to intrinsic motivation. On many occasions, she will then take the video clips to her coach for feedback.
As impressed as I am with my daughter on her use of video in support of learning and mastering cheer skills, I am equally impressed with her coach. During private lessons, he will use his iPad to video and then review my daughter’s technique and what she has to do to improve. At the end of the lesson, he will then come up to me and go through various video clips showing where she started during the session and where she eventually ended up focusing on growth. He does the same during team practice. Video, captured either through a smartphone or tablet, has become an essential coaching tool to assist the girls with learning their routine.
The above story lays out how video can effectively be utilized to support learning. Various research studies have revealed how video can serve as a highly effective learning tool (Allen & Smith, 2012; Kay, 2012; Lloyd & Robertson, 2012; Rackaway, 2012; Hsin & Cigas, 2013). Cynthia Brame from Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching looked at these and many other studies as they worked to outline the following elements to consider to ensure effective implementation.
- Cognitive load
- Non-cognitive factors that impact engagement
- Features that promote active learning
For more details on the three elements listed above, please check out the entire article. I want to focus on number three, as the goal of video shouldn’t just be consumption and knowledge acquisition, but transfer and application through active learning. Cynthia Brame shares this:
"To help students get the most out of an educational video, it’s essential to provide tools to help them process the information and to monitor their understanding. There are multiple ways to do this effectively such as guiding questions, using interactive features that give students control, and integrating questions into the video. The critical thing to keep in mind is that watching a video can be a passive experience, much as reading can be. To make the most of video, we need to help students do the processing and self-evaluation that will lead to the learning we want to see."
I couldn’t agree more with the synopsis above. Just showing a video in class doesn’t cut it and is dismissive of the potential it can have as an educational tool. For video to really impact learning and outcomes, active use should be the goal. What is even more important is how learners are empowered to use their own devices to capture video as a means to showcase what they have learned (see an example here from one of my former students), reflect, and set actionable goals for growth. When aligned with knowledge taxonomy ask yourself how video is being used by kids to apply, analyze, evaluate, and create.
In the case of my daughter, I can say without a doubt that she uses it to support her learning and growth in cheer. Imagine then the possibilities for learners in our classrooms.
Perfection is something many people chase after. Educators are no different, but more on this later. In sports, there are only defined scenarios when perfection can be achieved. A pitcher can deliver a perfect game if he or she gives up no hits or walks and the fielders commit no errors. In bowling, a 300-game consisting of all strikes is also a sign of perfection. Outside of sports, it becomes even harder to meet stringent criteria to achieve this. For those of us that are married, we all strive to provide our spouse with a “perfect” diamond. The closest you can get to this designation is a “D” color, which is often referred to as a flawless and has no visible imperfections at 10X magnification. As great as our intentions might be this can prove to way out of our budgets.
For the most part, perfection is a fallacy. It is based more on set opinions and perception as opposed to established criteria such as the examples I provided at the beginning of this post. The fact of the matter is in the context of education there is no perfect lesson, teacher, administrator, school, program, curriculum, district, or organization. If we constantly chase or strive for perfection, then more often than not disappointment will follow. This is not to say that we shouldn’t attempt to be our best for those who we serve, most notably our learners. However, trying to accomplish the impossible day in and day out is not only unrealistic but also not a wise use of time and resources.
You can be good or great, but both of these distinctions are really in the eye of the beholder. A mindset shift is in order that requires us all to reevaluate how we approach professional practice. It is as simple as it is effective. Chase growth, not perfection. By consistently reflecting on where we are steps can be made to grow in an effort to get to where we want, and our learners need us to be. Chasing growth is attainable and leads to daily rewards that are more intrinsically motivated than extrinsic. The fact of the matter is that there is and always be room for improvement no matter your role in education or how well your school achieves.
Don’t put immense pressure on yourself to be perfect. You don't have to be. Instead, we should continuously strive to be the best iteration of ourselves.
As a school administrator, I remember always having the best intentions when it came to instructional leadership. During every summer, my team and I would reflect on the past year and establish a better vision and plan for how we all would collectively work to improve learning. In theory, we devised ambitious, yet attainable goals during these months, or so we thought. Then reality would strike. It began immediately upon school starting with meetings and more meetings. These were then followed by back to school nights and athletic events. Throw in constant emails, texts, paperwork, parent issues, and calendar notifications, and the reality of educational leadership manifested itself in the form of management, which often came at the expense of instruction and school culture.
Now I am not saying management is not essential. Effective school leaders can find a balance between the three. The challenge though is when the scale tips in the direction of management more time is spent here than is needed or wanted. Herein lies the rub. The digital age is both a blessing and a curse. The latter takes form when administrators feel they are a slave to email, their calendars, and paperwork in the way of digital documents. Ask any school leader if this is what he or she honestly signed up for and the answer is most often a no. Management fatigue can be grueling. It also takes an eye off the most critical job of any school leader – improving learning while developing a positive culture.
I will be the first one to say that it is easier said than done when it comes to creating a balance between management, instruction, and school culture. It was a significant point of contention for me that finally came to a head when I reflected on this question:
How does the time I am spending actually impact learning?
In reality, the majority of my time was not being spent on improving instruction or building up school culture. Without a good focus on these areas, it is quite difficult to improve learning outcomes. The question above helped me to evaluate better where the majority of my time had to be spent. If it’s important, you will find a way. If not, then you will make an excuse. Don’t try to find the time to become a leader of learning. Make the time by committing to a few changes that will create a healthy balance between management and leadership that impacts the learning culture. Below are eight ways to consider making this a reality.
- Commit to getting into classrooms more. First off, you can’t fix problems or issues with instruction if you don’t know about them. It is also impossible to give teachers valuable and needed feedback for the same reasons. One of the most instrumental changes I ever made as a principal was committing to getting in classrooms every day, whether for unannounced observations and non-evaluative walks and sticking to it.
- Build time into your calendar to write up observations. Here in lies another powerful way I broke free from the stranglehold my calendar had on me. By turning the tables per se, I blocked time after every observation to write it up and in this case being at the mercy of my calendar was a good thing as time was directly spent on developing suggestions to improve instruction and learning.
- Lead professional learning. Don’t ask others to do what you are not willing to do yourself. By planning and facilitating workshops and breakout sessions in your respective school or district, the chances of the specific strategy taking hold increase. Remember, you get what you model.
- Attend professional learning. I know full well how tough it is to get out of your building or district for a day. However, you really need this break from management responsibilities as well as to give your brain a needed push. It will also help keep you on the cutting edge of the latest strategies in education. Although difficult, you must resist the urge to check email and engage in work not related to the session. If need be, step out briefly to attend to this out of respect to the presenter. Be present at all times, not just physically.
- Cover classes. Better yet, teach a class. The former is a bit more manageable than the latter. During my first two years as an administrator, I taught a section of biology and wished I had continued to do so. Covering classes so teachers can observe their peers or attend professional learning not only gets you out of the office but provides you with an opportunity to connect with kids.
- Greet kids as they enter and leave the building. If you want this to work, then don’t plan meetings during this time and leave the device in your office. There is no easier way to build culture and relationships with those who you serve by sharing a smile, handshake, or works of encouragement to start and end the day.
- Eat lunch with the kids to get a pulse on culture. I loved spending my lunch in the cafeteria talking to my students. Not only did it give me a longer time to eat and relax but I also was able to receive Minecraft tips that I would later share with my son. The conversations also gave me valuable insight into what we could do to meet the needs of our kids better.
- Delegate. The role of a leader is to create more leaders. You cannot accomplish this if you do everything yourself. When it comes to delegation, management tasks should be the first ones that are delved out. Examples include meetings, testing schedules, and budget preparation. I had a role in all of this and more as an assistant principal but continued to be highly involved when I transitioned to the principalship. Once I began to delegate more of these responsibilities out it freed up more time to focus on all of the above items.
Don’t let the managerial aspects of leadership drag you down. Everyone has the same amount of time during the day. Go back to the original question I posed to determine how you are spending your time to be primarily a learning leader as opposed to a manager. Difficult choices have to be made. These are not them when it comes to lessening the burden of management. Yes, it will always be part of the job. Just don’t let it become the dominating component.
In education, a lesson makes or breaks a learner’s experience in a classroom. Planning takes time. I remember many nights and weekends when I spent countless hours developing a variety of activities that would keep my students engaged while also following the scope and sequence of the curriculum based on the standards that needed to be addressed. When it is all said and done, it is more about the experience than the lesson, but the latter is necessary to create the former. The key to strengthening learning and instruction consists of the right balance of two main components:
- Instruction (what the teacher does)
- Learning (what the student does)
Balance surely is important. There is a time for direct instruction, but many learners would tell you outright that this component of a lesson is not what they really crave or find meaningful. In Learning Transformed, Tom Murray and I examined research and evidence to conclude that kids want a learning experience that is personal, while educators want alignment with the real expectations placed on schools across the world. Finding common ground in this area at times poses quite a challenge. Any personalization necessitates a move from “what” to the “who” to emphasize ownership of learning. Sounds simple enough, right? Getting everyone on board becomes the challenge.
Making the shift to personal learning goes right back to finding the right balance between instruction and learning. Success in this area requires a shared vision, language, and expectations that not only make sense but also jive with curriculum, standards, and assessment. Enter the Rigor Relevance Framework. Now, I am not going to rehash the details of this tool as I have been writing about it for years, but I will provide an image of it below. The essence of the framework is quite simple as it allows for a lens for teachers and administrators to determine the level of thinking and relevant application that kids demonstrate while engaged in the process of learning. Instilling a purpose of learning while challenging all kids in the learning process is at the heart of a more personal approach.
Solid instruction should lead to great learning where kids are in the proverbial driver’s seat. The Rigor Relevance Framework unearths three critical shifts in practice that can lead to personal learning experiences for kids. As I love using images to articulate ideas and concepts, I will frame each shift with a question that will then be described in more detail using an associated image.
Shift 1: Are learners telling us what they know or showing that they actually understand?
Shift 2: Who is doing the work and thinking?
Shift 3: Who is asking the questions?
There is obviously more to consider when embracing and implementing the shifts listed above. A personal learning experience doesn’t sacrifice higher-level thinking and application just for the sake of relevance and meaning. Sound pedagogy lays the foundation with an added emphasis on scaffolding, innovative assessment, and improved feedback. Student agency and technology both play a huge role throughout by empowering learners through choice, voice, and advocacy. When these are combined to create effective blended learning activities in flexible spaces, the added elements of path, pace, and place further influence the personalization that will help kids flourish regardless of zip code or label.
However, it is the third shift that tells the tale as to whether a lesson or task supports rigorous and relevant learning to create a more personal experience for kids. If kids see and understand the purpose while being challenged, then they will be asking the questions. Better outcomes rely on transforming practice in a way that kids of the present and future can relate. Making learning personal is a means to this end.
