MaLE - Modern [affordable] Learning Environments

Summary:

Having now finished this post - and realising its length I thought a brief summary would be of use to clarify:

I have transformed a standard classroom into a MLE through the purchase of a range of 'trademe' furniture. This has been done with the following rationale:

• To provide flexibility of learning spaces and the maximisation of space
• To create a more culturally resonant environment at school that reflects 'home'
• To create a space that could be personalised to enhance ownership
• To create a space that would be distinct from the rest of the school so students can develop new behaviours easier regarding student agency

FULL TEXT

A confluence of ideas and inspiration led me to develop my very own MLE earlier this year....

Namely a few questions:

• 1. We were to have 35 intermediate age students in one class (to be taught by 1.6 teachers) - We've had this in the past and had mixed successes - How could I develop a programme where - in such a large number - the individual was still valued and accommodated for.

• 2. As part of our Learning and Change Network (LCN) I interviewed students from a range of levels last year about 'How they learn best' - How could I make these students thoughts and ideas come to life?

• 2a. One of our LCN change priorities was Student Agency - this has been a focus of mine in recent years and I have struggled to develop a sustained change in student behaviour when they move into the Intermediate class. There are lots of pros and cons of Intermediate Schools - I think one Pro is that students get to reinvent themselves should they wish to. Year 7s can be immersed in a completely new environment and teachers can mould behaviours from the outset. While I have the acute advantage of already knowing the students as they come into the Intermediate class, often the ability I have to change student behaviours (in terms of agency/ownership/accountability) is minimal despite a focus on this area. How could I make the students have a shift in focus, allowing some students to have a fresh start and all students to realise that expectations were different in the Intermediate school?

• 3. As part of my postgraduate study I became more and more aware of the dissonance between home and school for the majority of our students. How could I help students feel at home at school, understanding that they need to buy in to 'school' before they buy in to 'learning'?

I have been looking at the evolution of the MLE for the past few years and was sure that a MLE of my own making could be the solution to many of the questions raised above.

Origins

By tapping into the Edu Twittisphere, I was able to mould my own thinking from the plethora of knowledge and ideas out there - Especially the programme of "My Learning" from Emma Winders - http://my-learning.me . I thought of how individualising the classroom programme could possibly work with 1.6 teachers and 35 kids - Students would need to know their learning next steps and know how to problem solve, they would need to develop accountability and agency - or perhaps this would come as a result.

Students need their own timetables where they can pick and choose to attend learning sessions with either teacher - teacher tracking and monitoring must be tight to ensure that a) students know their next steps and b) reporting to parents could be accurate.

From there I decided I needed a place where students could select where they work and how they work in order to have a sense of self determination.

I had already asked our kind and capable caretaker to build a standing desk and some individual partitions as a result of my LCN interviews with students (where an overwhelming amount of students wished to work in a quieter less distracting environment). PHOTO

I sketched up a few plans and the end result was a classroom with these features:

• Bar stools and a make shift bar leaner - 

(Bar stools - very cheap from trademe, leaner was made from partitions (trademe) and an old used desk top cut in half, with some brackets ($3 @ mitre ten)

• A range of different shaped desks - to encourage collaborative learning

(very cheap from trademe)

• A set of carpet steps

(made from pallets (free), sheets of packing MDF ($5 from mitre ten) and free carpet (seconds from Parmars Flooring Centre, Petone) 

• A dining table 

(very cheap from trademe)

• Individual desks and some moveable partitions 

(exisiting and made by from cheap thin mdf, painted by students)

We also have access to a small break out room next door - this has been turned into 'The Lounge'  and features tables at one end for group work.

So....

1. Have I made a programme and environment that allows for individualisation?

Due to Technology (off site), school camp coming up,  tennis and swimming I decided to hold off on the student directed timetable - We are spending the entire term focusing on getting set up so we can start in Term 2. We are covering different aspects of the programme in depth (Including how to complete each week's 'Individual Learning Tasks', developing a culture of learning, and taking 100% ownership for everything we need to. We are working hard already to make this happen - I know that we have the facility to make this work - It will just be a case of pressing the Go button - I usually like to jump straight in the deep end,  in this instance I have chosen a more cautious approach in order to diminish the amount of students who may at first struggle with such a programme. The environment is set up - but I know that the environment matters little compared to how teachers use the  environment, We are now thinking about how best we can use the environment in order to make it as effective as possible in order to make accelerated student progress.

2. How could I make these students' [who I interviewed] thoughts and ideas come to life (regarding how they learn best)?

Many students wished to work independently - more than I would have thought. They also said they needed to be fully aware of the task requirement/learning that was to take place before they could work independently. Some students also knew that their peers often knew more than they did and while this meant that they weren't working independently, they were able to continue to receive help without having to go to the teacher.

I decided to get the above furniture in an attempt to create more flexible spaces - places where students could determine for themselves where they sit and with who, depending on their confidence and understanding of a given task.

Our existing class had standard tables for 4 or 6 persons, Students couldn't really choose to be alone even if It was the norm to move about freely within the class. By having a range of seating options, students will learn to make good choices about where they need to sit for specific learning tasks.

2a. How could I make the students have a shift in focus, allowing some students to have a fresh start and all students to realise that expectations were different in the Intermediate school regarding student agency?

Again, by using the above furniture, we have a different environment to any other in the school - this superficial change is helping (so far) to have shifted the students mind set around behaviour and as we progress through the year the aim to increase student agency will be made easier by students both being aware that they can change behaviours and not having to worry about as many behavioural issues distracting from learning.

Another advantage of having our 'own' furniture is that it can be personalised - over the course of the next term, some of our trademe furniture is to be painted by the students. We will give the students free licence (with the hope that some tables will have words like 'collaboration' written on them while others may have words like 'determination', 'focus' and 'discipline' - Well that’s the HOPE! It will be what ever our students wish it to be...)

3. How could I help students feel at home at school, understanding that they need to buy in to 'school' before they buy in to 'learning'?

The idea of having a dining table in class is entirely intentional, most students would be more familiar with working on a dining table at home than they would be a standard desk. This is hopefully bridging the gap between home and school for some of our students.

The lounge is another intentional decision to bridge the home-school gap - for 15 -20 minutes each day, most students silent read in the lounge area. This is the most 'silent' reading that we have had in recent years with relatively little teacher direction - this comes down to the changed environment leading to a change in personal expectation on behalf of the students. 

It is also hoped that the act of having a lounge at school will push some 'school' habits into the home and more students may feel comfortable reading on their couch at home (instead of watching the box).

As with any MLE - I am aware that it is not the furniture that is important but how the space is used, we will be working hard to ensure that we challenge the students to tell us how they believe the space can be used best for the individual learning of each student. 

It is set to be an interesting and innovative year! 

Thanks to the following for helping make the space possible:

Kath, Merv, Parmars Flooring Centre, & Mitre Ten


Annecdotal feedback (via email)

"Firstly, I have heard many kids talking excitedly about it (the MLE) and sharing it with their parents"

Hackschooling

Another posting based on an interesting clip - this one focuses on a TED talk by a 13year old boy who discusses the goals and ambitions of the youth of today.  

As our own school year draws to a close, I have been discussing the question "What goals or ambitions do you have for one year or ten years?" with many students who are setting off to college. Not one has mentioned the ambition of "Being Happy", although maybe some were saying this in a more ambiguous way "make friends", "have a good job" etc.

As educators, we do constantly focus on preparing students for the next step in education. ECC educators getting 4 year olds ready for college, Primary Educators getting students ready for college and college educators preparing teens for university and onward to a job / career. 

While I know that this ambition and goal setting is essential, I do wonder if we have to make sure that our students aged from 3-23 are enjoying what they are doing in the process. Not all learning can be 'fun' and nor would I want it to me but the unmeasurable and unquantifiable happiness within each student needs to be developed and fed to prepare our future generations to live in an increasingly competitive society....

Anyway - if you have eleven minutes;

 

John Hattie - Expertise of teachers is the most powerful impact on student achievement that we can control...

The Black Bruins

Powerful Clip.

1. What makes this clip sound familiar to issues faced in this country?
2. Why are these issues worldwide?
3. Who is getting it right?
4. Why aren't we doing that?
5. Why does the majority of the dominant majority fail to grasp the fact at 4:10 above?
6. How can we give students the experiences and confidence to be able to share their personal voice with the passion shown above?

The Busyness of business... and student motivation

The last few months have seen a lag in my own posting on this blog. It was something I was keen to avoid - the inconsistent blog is almost as frustrating as the forgotten blog.

I have made several posts but none have got past the draft stage as when I have finally got around to editing and revising my post I am no longer in the same line of thinking - other priorities have taken over my thinking.

The last post which is still as yet unpublished had at is focus the dilemma of working in the business instead of working on the business (or is it vice versa...).

It is a constant struggle for many teachers and principals - especially the non walking DP at a small primary school. It is impossible to find the time to keep abreast of latest professional readings, fully analysing teacher performance and planning appropriate professional development for myself and colleagues, working on latest school initiatives etc. while still maintaining an effective class programme, completing standard managment tasks and having a Life!

It was a subject that I explored with various Principals last year during the NAPP programme - ensuring that you have time to lead as well as manage. At this stage of the year and term, my priorities have unfortunately pushed leading and learning about leading to the rear as there is too much management to do.

Student Motivation

Another topic that I have wished to explore in more detail is the importance of child centered and stimulating content for students - especially so in the Intermediate years. This term my students have started to debate with great fervour (Topics such as "Are Zoos ethically wrong?""Should SPARC have given $36 mil to Team NZ?"and "Should all tap water contain Fluoride?"). It has been quite a while since I have had the complete student led intrinsic motivation in learning that matches our debate work. Student have got indepth and passionate about their subjects - the standard Intermediate indifference is not good present.

Students have also been looking at the Bob Dylan song - The Hurricane and African American Spirituals a spart of our Story Telling inquiry unit. They have got intensely focused and keen during these lessons also. undertaking own research after school hours, impressive!

So why?
Why are these topics capturing their attention so well?

I think it comes down to fairness. Children have a strong sense of fairness - and combined with students reaching an age where they are keen start to form and express their own opinion means students are motivating in these areas.

I am keen to keep exploring how Fairness can be brought into other curriculum areas or content knowledge and used as a motivator.

Education...

I found a link via twitter to a school in AKL called Willow Park School, I was in email contact with the principal about a tweet when he sent me to http://my-learning.me/ - A website and pedagogy being developed by a young teacher at his school. It has sent me on a continual train of thought about the current state of education and its government led direction. The website is well worth checking out - I have browsed several times and am always left thinking.
I also rewatched a Ken Robinson talk which calls for a paradigm shift in education.


I am not entirely sure that I have my thinking sorted on what I think I think I think about any of this - so in the interim I will complete a small task that I have been asking my own students to do lately - See, Think, Wonder.

I see an educator who has a completely different perspective on education than most educators. I see an educator who has a strong vision and understanding for what education should be about.

I think that most educators would agree with at least 80% of what is being said by Sir Ken. I think that most educators lose sight of what is important in the day to day busyness of the job. I think that is quite sad.

I wonder how parents and communities would respond if a drastically different education was given to their children (I am not wondering about charter schools!). I wonder how teachers could reignite passions that would be required to create and deliver a different educational experience for their children. I wonder how it would be possible for this little country in the south pacific to take a step into the unknown and lead, instead of follow global trends for a change...

Writing this brief post has forced me to think about education from a higher perspective - It has convinced me that i need to find out more about pedagogies such as My Learning and create something new for my tamariki...

ma te wa!

Technology and Teachnology

I recently read an article that stated technology in education is useless without up-to-date and evolving pedagogy that suits the current century. 

I agree with about 60% of this statement. Ideally, technology will open doors within classrooms to ensure that teachers have new ways of teaching and collaborating with students in innovative and creative ways. Ideally, teachers will have the skills in using technology and the confidence in their own knowledge (and self) to adapt to current pedagogies. Ideally, technology will evolve every classroom in overnight. (Ideally technology will work first time, every time!!)

Technology in education has the capacity to transform the way in which we teach and subsequently the way in which learners (teachers and students) learn.

For technology to be helpful to the curriculum and to teachers in general, firstly teachers must have an awareness of how to use technology and secondly, see the benefits of pushing the boundaries and trying new things.

The awareness  of how to use technology only comes about through use. This is where I depart from agreeing with the other 40% of the original statement. Teachers need to be encouraged to use technology. This will have two positive outcomes

1. Student engagement in the short term will increase
2. Teacher knowledge and confidence in using technology will increase 

These two benefits will happen regardless of pedagogy model. I do not believe that we can shift to current pedagogies without having the teachers on board and competent in using technology first.

So while I agree that technology enables an open and expansive curriculum and style of pedagogy - teachers are still the ones in charge of the class programme to varying degrees. teachers themselves need to see the value and options created by using technology.

My revised statement:

Curricular and pedagogy can be greatly enhanced using modern technology, teachers must lead this change through developing their own knowledge of and confidence with using such technology.