Dr Jeni Wilson

• Dr Jeni Wilson

Personalising LearningDay 2

• Virtual tour of schools• Role of the teachers• I dream a school….

Remember when…

• If you can’t handle learners being in control

• You are stuck in the “What about the VELS?” rut

• You want a recipe for “it”

To be perfectly blunt…this workshop is not for you if…

Spot the Difference

• Read all statements.• Individually select one you are not sure about• Find the ‘unsure’ statement on the large strips

and put in the middle of the table.• Read out one at a time. • Discuss the statement and teasing out

implications

More true than false

PL - It’s not all about…

• Teachers and Teaching• Classrooms, resources desks &

tables• Assessment of learning &

Standardised testing• Imposed topics• Content• Teacher as expert

• Passive learning

• Learners and learning• Use of spaces

• Using data for Individual progress

• Negotiated learning• Process & content• Everyone is a learner,

community involvement

• Active participation

‘Many schools are good schools, if only it were 1965.’ Stoll & Fink

• • ‘

Time for action…

‘We need to decide to give full service or lip service.’ Peter Block

• • ‘

What’s getting in your way?

FAQs- Workshopping• Planning• Timetabling• Assessment• Use of open

spaces• Goal setting• Student voice

• Children with special needs• Specialists• Teacher change* • Maintaining the

passion*• Parents*

• KIDS COME FIRST- assessment data analysis (SPA*) for planning workshops, independent tasks.

• Eg targetted workshops: time management, inferential comprehension

• Timetabling- teacher roles• Whole school focuses, Shared

inquiries/problem based learning/student records

• Share own personal inquiry

• *Student performance analysis

Planning

• Based on the idea that learning is more effective when learners are ready and motivated to learn

• All stakeholders deserve equal rights in decision making

• Enacts the power of ‘learning to learn’

STUDENT VOICE (concerns, issues and needs)

‘We must accept that those most often in touch with learners – the educators – may not always be the most well informed about what the learners really think’ …

It is more than simply listening to learners: it means engaging learners as concerned partners, coherent contributors and equal agents of change.’ Future lab, 2006.

From Informing to Empowering

• How ‘deeply’ are learners involved in making decisions and setting agendas?

• Are all learners heard?• Who is listening?• Do learners feel their voices are being listened

to?• What evidence is there of student voice?• What processes are in place to ‘hear’ and act

on voices?• How are new technologies being used to

‘hear’ and act on student voices?

Student Voice: Some questionsAdapted from Learner Voice, Futurelab 2006

Inform- Consult-Involve-Collaborate-Empower

• Feedback to teachers, Committees/school board membership

• PINS (Discovery1) Passions, interests, & needs• ICT: blogging, wikis etc• Multi-age/whole school electives• Personal Inquiries• Choosing assessment (when, how, what)

• HOW, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE THEY LEARN

Student Voice not just rubber stamping staff decisions

Decision Making Continuum

Focus of work & goalsQuestions askedWho to work with & group rolesWhat sources of infoHow to organise and record dataHow to presentWhat to do with dataReflection techniquesDeadlinesAssessment strategies

Home group meetings

Discovery/RE

Home group meetings

Discovery/RE

Specialists Home group meetings

Discovery/RE

Home group meetings

Discovery/RE

Literacy workshops

Literacy workshops

Specialists Literacy workshops

Literacy workshops

Literacy workshops

Literacy workshops

Specialists Mathsworkshops

Mathsworkshops

Mathsworkshops

Mathsworkshops

Specialisists Literacy workshops

Literacy workshops

*Each teacher roves, workshops, conferences (½ day per wk )

A Session Example

• Independent tasks(Rover)

• Conferencing

• Workshops

• Related to inquiry and goals (teacher & student)

• Bring goals, evidence of progress & set new goals & assessment criteria

• Focus on needs as discussed in conferences