Summary - Pulling it All Together

Introduction

Two countries, 8 cities and 11 schools later I have seen some really innovative ideas, met some really dedicated educators, had a good chance to reflect on what we do at HSS, and considered where we are heading as a school and myself as a school leader. 

It is clear innovation is not just about fancy furniture, shared learning spaces and interconnecting classrooms. Truth is I didn't see a lot of them. Each school or school district's innovation addressed their particular need. To allow them as educators to better engage and teach their students in their school communities. Whether that be children from Jet-setting parents developing immersion language programmes so that their children can travel and be little global citizens or small country schools using technology to connect and collaborate their teaching and learning for the academic and social benefit of their schools. Whatever these schools did they had a clear direction, ownership and understanding of why they are doing it and how it fits into their schools vision for learning. They also have given 100% commitment to their project and overcome barriers. Too often when we introduce a new idea or innovation into the school we don't work hard to ensure all stakeholders have ownership (including students). We tend to cut corners so the full benefits of the project can be missed and we give up when barriers come to light. Often our answer is rather than working hard to implement an innovation to its full potential we water it down so it's not too much work for the 'Poor old Teacher." Clearly, in all the schools I visited commitment and hard work were evident in bucketfuls. 

Even though each school innovative Learning Environment was different and based on their needs they did share some factors/ principles that are key to being a true innovative Learning Environment in the 21st Century. 

Common Ground

Student agency is the biggest innovation evident in nearly all the schools I visited. Students owning and driving their learning. Students in a number of schools knew the schools learner qualities/ values well and had been given the opportunity to decide what they were and what they looked like in the classroom. This was most evident at the Ladysmith Nanaimo School District, Compass High School and at the Colorado Academy but most others had their values and learner qualities visually displayed around the school. It was impressive to see students tracking their learning, such as at Compass with their Learning Plan, and able to articulate and take responsibility for what they needed to do to graduate or complete a particular project. The teacher advisor had an important role in the schools where this was most effective.

I believe that many (dare I say most) NZ schools only pay 'lip service' to the concept of student agency because of two quite diverse reasons; either we are scared to let go of the reins just in case the student goes 'Off Task," or, when we do attempt to take the student-led / democracy type model we don't spend enough time embedding our model and the necessary skills into the student's learning so the students struggle to drive their learning as there are just too many choices and no structure to hang it on. We need to find something in between these two scenarios. 

All schools were doing some form of Inquiry model that involved explicit integration of subjects. Many used a Humanities (English, Social studies) and STEAM (Science, Technology, English, Arts and Maths) model of integration. The big focus was around student ownership and understanding of the inquiry process. In many of the schools the students understood the process well and were able to articulate where they were at. 

Relevant, authentic, and with a genuine audience, along with student-led are clearly the key words to engaging the 21st Learner. Understanding 'What's the point,' 'where is this heading?' ‘Who is this for?'  And 'why are we doing it 'are questions that sit in the front of the mind of our generation Y & Z students. 

At a number of schools an important part of their Inquiry process were opportunities for students to present to a genuine audience. Many of the schools had presentation nights, where not just parents but, other educators and members of the community could come along and share the learning with the students. In some schools student’s project "Made a difference" whether it be developing a outdoor habitat with the local community or working with International Charity organisation to raise funds for their cause. In most cases students had real ownership of the project and how it was presented as the ideas came from them. Teachers input was around questioning and reinforcing the process.

In most schools I visited the staff had invested a great deal of time getting to know their students. We talk often about the importance of relationships but in some of the schools I visited the school was such a consistent stabilising factor in the students’ lives that these very close relationships were vital. The student advisor concept was a great one for the secondary and middle areas and at primary level could be put in place for the 'At-risk' students to provide that extra person to look out for these students' needs and pay attention to their lives. 

I wasn't sure how it would be visiting the number of secondary and Middle schools that I did but when you consider I was looking at the big picture of education and with the Nelson Clusters Community of Schools (COS) just getting established it turned out a real highlight of the trip. The first thing that struck me was connections that exist between these areas of schooling. Many teachers had worked across the sectors and there appeared to be a lot of interaction between each sector. One of the reasons this happens in the school district model which is used in both the States and Canada is shown by the following. In Canada in particular the school districts think of education as a whole and look at the shared needs of all students across the district. This big picture, I feel, is more effective than the 'Island' model Tomorrows Schools created in NZ. Sharing resources, professional development, interventions as well as having big buying power as a single organisation. No doubt it would come with its risks as I could see at Douglas County School District and it would be a hard pill to take after 26 years of self-governance. We certainly wouldn't want to see a return to the local Department of Education model we had in the 80s. But managed the right way and governed and owned by the local school communities, I think it would be highly effective and really just the next step down the COS road.

A number of schools utilised the resources and people in their local communities extremely well to the point that they were features of their school.  Whether it be local artists working within the schools, Business partnering with the school on a particular project, sharing resources, skilled staff and assisting financially, linking with local councils to improve local environment or drawing on Tribal leaders to share stories of the past. All of these things helped weave the schools into the fabric of their community. I believe we do this sort of thing in New Zealand but not to the same depth and without the same two way commitment. We can do this better.

ELearning was as big as I was expecting it to be in the schools I visited. In many schools it didn't dominate the landscape but it did have an important role as a tool for learning. BYOD was surprisingly not a big feature of any of the schools I visited. Most schools provided the equipment. Apple products feature with iPads in the junior areas being popular and Mac Book Airs being a feature of senior primary, middle and secondary school. Many schools also use Chromebooks but I felt we were further down the Google track than most. 

The last shared observation is more an administration item but when I think about it I think if I was to implement it at HSS it would free up my time so I could put more energy and commitment into other areas. I'm talking about admin. Office structure. Most schools I visited, (all were a similar or smaller size than HSS, apart from the independent schools but their lower schools were around 300 -400) had full time office managers. They did a lot of the admin. work that I do currently and allowed the Principal and the management teams to get on and worry about Teaching and Learning, particularly around HR, which seems to occupy a great deal of my time. 

The Highlights Package

The following are a few individual highlights that stood out. I have only written brief summaries as a more full description is available under that school's post in the Blog:

Connected Schools - the idea of collaborating via AV is not new but the formalised structured approach at the School district in the Rocky Mountains in Canada was amazing and highly effective. This project has brought small vulnerable schools together to create larger cohorts of learners and in doing so impacted positively on these students' lives. 

Habitat - The children at Hampden Street enjoy tree planting but the day they finish do they really give those trees and why they planted them another thought?  I like how the Habitat at Castle Rock Elementary was owned by all the students and had a strong link with the local community. The project was embedded in the school culture and ethos.

Project X - This was a great way to build teachers understanding of what happens at various levels of schooling across the sectors. The 'Bus tours' across subjects proved highly effective at the Colorado Academy as did the 'Student for a day' project. These would both be useful ideas as we go about trying to understand what each of us do in the various sectors within our community of schools. 

Immersion Programmes - This was a very innovative and ambitious programme but the concept of having all students bilingual by the end of their schooling is amazing.  The understanding that it's a school responsibility to develop global citizens in our connected world is an important one and learning a second language is part of that as is connecting genuinely in some way to people/ students from other parts of the world. This is the vision for the Avenues World School and as they open schools across the globe I see exciting times ahead.

Student Interns - This concept would work best at Secondary but Compass High School's intern programme is successful because it gives relevance to students learning at an important time of their lives. However, relevance of learning is vitally important at all levels. 

Community Coordinator - A really innovative use of staffing at Sound View Academy. It addressed the real need to connect to their community and to keep a finger on the pulse outside the school in this volatile area. The role is a good one as it covers many bases and wouldn't come with the same stigma as a social worker for many parents. 

Links to OECD Principles and ILE Model

I started this journey motivated by the OECD report on Innovative Learning Environments so it's only fitting I return to this. The report identified seven transversal principles that underpin an ILE and also developed a ILE model (tense) of best practice. Below I will use these tools as a form of reflection of my journey.

1. Learners at the Centre - I felt all the schools I visited put their learners at the centre of what they are doing. The emphasis on student led learning, the importance placed on knowing each student as an individual not a reading group or a behaviour issue, and the emphasis on student's ownership of the learning process such as the inquiry model or the learner qualities showed me that the ILE I visited were student centred. The best example of this principle was the Learner Plans, intern programme and student advisors at Compass High School. These initiatives put their student at the centre and focused on the individual needs. They allow students to set challenging personal goals who then, with guidance of their advisor, are motivated to achieve them. The Ladysmith Nanaimo School District Community of Learners Project promotes self-directed and self -regulated learning. 
2. The Social Nature of Learning - Many of the schools I visited saw collaborative learning as a key part of their programmes. Students worked cooperatively in pairs or small group on in-class inquiry projects and some schools had large groups of students working cooperatively on large long term projects. A good example of this was an integrated technology project at Colorado Academy where students were converting an old school bus into a camper. The Connected Classrooms in the Canadian Rockies was a great example of how important the social nature of learning can be. With small cohort groups the connected classroom project has allowed students to collaborate with students of the same age from other schools on an almost daily basis via an audio visual connection. They also get the opportunity to get together on field trips or regular school visits to share their learning personally. Both the independent schools, Colorado Academy and Avenues World School have many spaces around the school that allow students to come together to collaborate. These include innovative seating, wifi, and wall whiteboards and whiteboard tables. They also had quiet areas where students knew they could go to study. 
3. Emotions are Integral to Learning - In many of the schools I visited student engagement and motivation was high. This was generally achieved through the innovative approach the school or schools were taking to cater for the particular needs of their learners. A great example of this was at Kumsheen High School where students were working with Ashcroft High School on a photography project. These students were reviewing photos from a recent joint field trip to Victoria, where they had utilised the skills of a professional photographer as an expert. The students were very proud of their work and were keen to share with the larger group the audio visual link which Ashcroft provided. The teachers very much took a back seat facilitator role. This student-led model was a hallmark of most of the schools I visited. Students were motivated and engaged as they were working on relevant and authentic topics they were interested in and they owned and drove their own learning. They also enjoyed being able to share their project with a genuine audience at Presentation nights. 
4. Recognising Individual Difference - Individualised learning was a feature of many of the schools I visited. The students were seen as individuals all at different stages of the learning journey and with individual needs created by their unique environment. I didn't see a great deal of students lumped together because they read at about the same level. Once again Compass High School's Learner plan was an individualised document designed by the student and the teacher advisor particularly for that student and his/her needs. The Ladysmith Nanaimo School District were adapting their Community of Learners project so it better reflected the values and needs of local First Nation People. This school's Inquiry model was not a linear stepped process and students can start where it suits them according to what they bring to the project (Prior knowledge/ understanding/ skills). At Sound View Academy the community coordinator has a key role linking with families and keeping a 'finger on the pulse' of the community. He ensures individuals are safe and barriers that might prevent a student from attending school are avoided. 
5. Stretching all Students - In a student-led environment the role of the teachers is critical to ensure students are stretching themselves and remain focused on their task. That role is not about cracking the whip but to activate/ motivate and inspire students to stretch themselves. At Colorado Academy I attended a Global Awareness Class where very motivated students were working hard on a City Design project. The motivation came from an engaging task and students being given the opportunity to share with peers and seeking their feedback. This school had a well-established buddy programme which saw upper school students buddied with lower school students which included some in-class support and pastoral support around the playground, including a shared Zoo trip at the end of the year. The student also serves as a positive role model. 
6. Assessment to Learning - Like NZ both the US and Canada are going through a transition when it comes to assessment. In the US the "No Student Left Behind" policy has led to an over-emphasis on the one-off test results and so this has made them quite high stakes. The formal standards testing is part of both countries' assessment programme, as is an emphasis on Grades (A, B, C etc), but this is changing. The Ladysmith Nanaimo School District are looking at not sending home grade based reports in Grade K to 9. This is a radical shift and has caused a stir amongst grade obsessed parents. Self and Peer Assessment are popular and effectively used in the Inquiry approach and with more of a student-led programme teachers have time to conference with individuals and so the focus is more on the more effective formative assessment.  Many students can articulate where they are at and what their next steps of learning are. 
7. Building Horizontal Connections - The importance of a relevant authentic curriculum is vital and a hallmark of most schools I visited. Student engagement was high as they drove their learning focusing on topics that were relevant to their world. Students understood and owned their schools inquiry model and this provided a framework for the students to explore their topics. Genuine integration of subjects was common place and students were given greater time to completing their Inquiry study at depth. Many schools used local community members/ business people/ cultural leaders as experts or guides for students as they worked through their inquiry. Ladysmith Nanaimo School District Community of Learners project did this well as did Castle Rock Elementary’s Habitat project. At Compass High School the Internship programme allows students to see how their study can lead to genuine outcomes in the 'real world.' The Avenue World School clearly has made the biggest step towards Global connections with their language and World Schools concept.

OECD Innovative Learning Environment Model

Looking at the four key areas in this model it clarifies how most of the schools I visited can be classified an Innovative Learning Environment. Many of the schools are innovative in all four areas and I feel to be true ILE they need to be, ie. The school may have a wonderful modern learning environment but if their teachers are not motivators or your curriculum is not relevant student engagement is not going to be high and learning outcomes will be poor.

On reflecting on my journey I have noted some key considerations for each of the four quadrants of the model:

Learners:

• Leading their own learning
• Has ownership of learning processes and key learner qualities
• Needs access to a variety of ways of learning - collaborative in groups, individually, peer learning, reciprocal learning and teacher directed.  
• Ability to set challenging personal goals and track and drive own achievement

 Content:

• Integrated subjects
• Relevant and authentic
• Connected to community
• Open ended, engaging and motivating
• A variety of Assessment tools used - self, peer, formative. 
• Inquiry based programmes with genuine opportunity to present to a real audience. 

Resources:

• eLearning tools to enhance learning 
• Local experts and resource people 
• Opportunities to engage and collaborate on a project with community.
• Opportunities to participate in projects that "Makes a difference "- locally, nationally or globally. 

Educators:

• Build strong relationships with students.
• Ability to adapt to a variety of roles - facilitator, activator, direct teacher, learner.
• Able to collaborate with other educators
• Creative use of staffing to create roles that target needs
• Professional development to share knowledge across the school and wider educational sectors.
• Flexibility and integration across sectors 

 

Implication for Schools:

Learner Qualities:

When the MOE released the revised curriculum in 2007 many schools got busy developing their own school curriculum that interpreted the National document and made it reflect the need of their schools. They developed learner qualities/ learner lights or whatever other creative name they could come up with. Hampden Street was one of them. Like most schools there was nothing wrong with the words we chose and for the most part the process we followed but we made two significant mistakes; We over complicated the process with too many words and complicated rubrics to explain them and secondly and most importantly, we didn't give students ownership. We needed to invest time ensuring students owned and understood the words and knew how they related to them as a learner. In a number of schools I visited, this process has been done well. Students helped decide what word best reflects their learning and place in the school and then students along with staff develop the descriptors that interpret the word. I like the idea of getting maybe syndicate groups and new staff together in the hall and’re-write' the descriptors for the Learner qualities. Then these are displayed in classes and frequently revisited by teachers and students. The Ladysmith Nanaimo School districts qualities were called the 'The Four Cs", maybe we should consider making our learner qualities something catchy also.

Inquiry Learning:

So many Schools in New Zealand talk up their Inquiry Learning process but in most cases it is something we do to students. The students don't own it and most can't articulate the steps and where they sit on the process. Students often struggle to see the relevance because they are not sure who the audience is and they feel it is being driven by someone else, the teacher.  The Inquiry models I saw were student owned and students could articulate where they were at and where they were heading. The presentation evenings and showcases gave students a genuine audience. Students need to be introduced to the model at a young age and build up a language of inquiry that can develop through their schooling. The teacher needs to step back and allow the students to decide on pathways through their Inquiry that is relevant to them. We need to ensure that the topics we choose to study are authentic and have a relevant context.  We also need to ensure  students have genuine opportunities to present their work to an audience, whether that is the class, radio station, a showcase, sharing with students at another school or by working with a local, national or global organisation, sharing their work and views. We also need to ensure we allow sufficient time to complete student Inquiries (after all, we are finding it hard to complete our teacher inquiries in our year long timeframes). We should consider three large Inquiries rather than trying to squash in four. With the assessment pressures, sports commitments and so on, dropping to three inquiries makes sense. We would just need to be smart and more explicit when showing our integration.

Sharing the Sector:

It has been great to hear the progress the Nelson Cluster has made on developing our community of schools (COS) in my absence. It sounds very exciting for our schools. However, it is vital that we take the time for teachers to understand what is going on at the various levels of schooling and a "Project X" type approach would be a great way to build understanding across the sectors. This would need to happen before starting to build anything new as a COS. To truly merge the 'islands' that our schools have become I think we need to live island life at each level before we can make too many judgements about what we need to develop.

Across Sector Collaboration:

The COS is a step in the right direction but I believe the idea of a functional community that has a single board and the power to support schools, provision professional development, assist with management recruitment, and use its size to better leverage bulk purchases etc would be the way forward for our schools. It would breakdown the "islands" and associated competition model created by Tomorrows Schools.

Connecting with the Community:

In Nelson we have so many talented people in so many different sectors of the community. The arts are so strong in our region but how do we draw on this talent. Although a full time 'Artist in Residence' may not be possible it could be something we share with other schools. We could rotate a variety of artists around our schools. This would give them exposure to our parents and school community and give the chance for our students to find inspiration from a genuine working artist. We also have so many innovative and successful businesses in Nelson. Looking for opportunities for public/private partnerships would give the business good exposure in our school community and in wider Nelson and would maybe provide us with the skills, knowledge and funding to aim big for some of our projects; Whether it be funding a programme like our Music programme or assisting with a larger building project. I believe with some commitment and energy we could make this a reality.

A Community Project:

I really like the idea of taking a community project that is a partnership with local community stakeholders that would really make a difference in the local area. A waterway improvement. A wetlands recovery, planting natives are just a few examples. A great way for students to make a genuine contribution to their community. Like any inquiry, students would need to own the concept and be able to feel they have had input into the planning and development.

Administration:

Even the toughest of tough schools in the Bronx of New York had administration support to a level that the Principals were able to focus solely on their roles as Leaders of learning. All personnel, finance, and general admin and most communications were dealt with by full time office staff with the Principal simply over-seeing and rubber stamping this work. I believe schools need to look at their office and, if budget allows, consider a higher degree of admin support. This would also allow for the employment of a highly skilled level of applicant who may be looking for full time work.

  

No Silver Bullet

Although I learnt a lot on my travels and have gained excellent knowledge of Innovative Learning Environments there were a number of areas where I didn't find the answers I was seeking and in some cases the schools were not as far down the track as HSS in particular areas.

Mathematics - Although did see a variety of Mathematics programmes I didn’t see anything that solved the issue of how do we make maths relevant and engaging whilst still covering  the key areas of mathematical fundamentals - basic facts, multiplication tables, fractions etc. Many school talked about integrating Maths (STEAM) but I neverhad the opportunity to see this in action. The Avenues had gone down the road of Singapore Maths but I'm not sure this very Asian, almost cultural, approach to maths would work in NZ schools. I'll be keeping an eye on the Avenues. Colorado Academy has revised their Maths programme but again I didn't see it in action. I will be in touch with Eric from CA to find out more. So no Silver bullet in maths.

eLearning - Apart from the Avenues World School, I didn't see any schools that would be as advanced in HSS in using eLearning as an effective tool to help learning. Our school would be better equipped than most (apart from 3D printers!).

Assessment - Most schools felt quite conflicted around assessment. They know the importance of the formative type assessment - feedback and of peer and self-assessment but are hamstrung by the need for National testing and the high stakes associated with this and with the traditional grade system. This is an area most are focused on resolving at the moment. I guess watch this space. So no Silver bullets for assessment.

Final Word

Many of the ideas I have come back with are not necessarily new to NZ and even to schools I have worked in. I imagine there will be teachers who will be saying "We do that at our school." We are very good at saying this but the two biggest differences I saw from many of the schools I visited on my tour compared to many NZ schools are commitment and student led learning. We have all done Inquiry Learning with our classes but most of the time it is something we have done to the students. They didn't own it and often didn't even understand it. Whatever these schools have done they have passionately committed to it. They saw it through to fruition and have reviewed and evolved their project. It is a little bit of a hallmark of many schools to move from one education fad to the next without going into any depth. We almost just tick the box. 

Many New Zealand schools are dragging their heels when it comes to allowing students to lead their learning. This has been at their peril as we see increased disengagement and poor behaviour. Teachers struggle to understand their role in a student-led environment and often fall back into the mission control mode/sage on the stage. Clearly this has to change and as a school Hampden Street is already down this path, but we need to identify what the student and teacher roles looks like at each level. 

Teaching can be a challenging job, no doubt about that and having worked in low decile schools in NZ and visiting some pretty tough schools overseas it takes a dedicated passionate person to work in these schools. They put up with a lot, work long hours, and don't receive a lot of thanks but do the job because they want to make their students' lives better. It was interesting to read HSS evaluation of Term two. There was some great stuff in there, however, when I read the lows from the term I noticed a number of negative things that made me think that at times we really need to take a deep breath and be grateful for what we have. Many of the things were so minor, some were situations that are out of our hands. Our schools are well provisioned, safe environments and although everything isn't perfect, they are a lot better than what many teachers face in some pretty tough schools around NZ and around the globe. It would be great if teachers could consider this before considering something a low. Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. To make a difference we need to focus on the big picture for better or for worse. 

This sabbatical has been fantastic both personally as I feel refreshed and relaxed, and professionally as I have a lot of time to reflect on my role and our school. I am now looking forward to getting back to work and leading the staff into an exciting and challenging time in education.