Will we Embrace Distance Learning in a post-Covid-19 World?

I am reading an article about embracing distance learning by Jeb Bush in between Google Meets. Sometimes I feel like the meat in the Meet sandwich! (I could make a meme for that but I have to get to the next Meet...soon.)

I wonder lots about what will happen when we return to school.
I wonder if we will go back to "business as usual"?
I wonder what we can ditch in this golden opportunity to change.
Because if ever there has been an opportunity to change, it is now.

Jeb's 4 bullet points on what we should do now really struck me as a comprehensive place to start in the post-Covid-19 world. 

• Every district should make available a device and WiFi so every child can participate in online learning. The digital divide must be closed.
• Every district should practice and plan for distance-learning days every year. Distance learning isn’t just for pandemics; it’s also for times when schools would otherwise be closed — whether for snow, hurricanes or other emergency events.
• Every district should make sure teachers and other instructional professionals understand how to use distance-learning tools effectively.
• Every district must plan to virtually serve students with special needs, nonnative English learners and others who require more attention. This will be challenging. First steps should involve conducting an audit to identify which services can be delivered online, and then narrow the list of services that require unique solutions. Districtwide solutions should be considered, such as using a reading specialist to virtually support dyslexic students across the entire district, without being constrained to an assigned school.

1. Yes - we must close the digital divide. The Manaiakalani Education Trust has been front leaders in doing this. Learn from their model. It can be done.

2. Yes - distance learning isn't just for when close schools because of a pandemic. Even though this is an American article some NZ schools do have snow days, some schools are closed for emergencies. So we should learn from 2020 and always be prepared for this.

3. And yes - we should make sure teachers are digitally fluent. that is what The Manaiakalani Programme sets out to do with the Digital Fluency Intensives. Which by the way, are being delivered online right now. So that can be achieved as well.

4. But what about the last bullet point? Have we been able to virtually serve students with special needs? Many teachers I have contact with in this period has agonised over student sin their classes and how they are managing at home but they have not had any helpful guidance. Can we do an audit as suggested? The Manaiakalani Programme have a wealth of people to draw this information from and from a range of contexts, schools, geographical areas and across all demographics. I trust the way The Manaiakalani Programme researches and gathers data, so I would trust them and their findings for this particular point. 

Let's not go back to school and return to what we were doing before. Let's chuck out those awful worksheets. Let's look at our timetables again. Let's look at the way students were empowered and could design their daily timetable. Let's look at how engaged and motivated they were in things that interested them. Let's ask the students what worked for them and why.

Teachers have made huge inroads in delivering distance learning for their students by using the affordances of digital technologies. And they themselves have upped their digital fluency in doing so. 

So we need to harness what has happened and make our classrooms great again! (There's another meme in there too)

Distance Learning: It's about more than access

What has been your most profound change in lockdown? What are you most proud of? What do you regret?

I have worked with many teachers during the lockdown supporting them to deliver online learning and have been impressed by the adaptability of some teachers. Some teachers who had functional class sites transitioned quickly into the distance learning space picking up quickly on using Google Meets to connect with their class or groups. Some teachers had a very steep learning curve but they got there and were very proud of what they could do in a very short time. They were ready for April 15th when term 2 started.

As we moved through the weeks there was a whole lot of  'expert' advice coming from all directions. It was overwhelming. Teachers needed to be very secure in their belief in themselves, that they knew their students well, knew the curriculum and knew what the learners needed next.

A lot of the teachers I talked to were very conscious that 'hauora' was the number one consideration. They knew some learners and their parents were anxious for a variety of reasons. So they knew that by making regular contact and communications this would support those at home. And they did it with style and grace. Daily videos were created with the unique style and personality of the teacher shining through.

Ann Milne in her work about culturally sustaining pedagogies posted this on her blog recently and it struck me as good set of questions for teachers to reflect on.

Engage whānau. Engage learners. Let's ask them how online learning and distance learning was for them. Let's rethink what we do and make the changes while we have this opportunity to do so.

from Colouring in your VIRTUAL White Spaces - Ann Milne

DFI #9 - Computational Thinking

Today is day #8 of DFI.

Computational Thinking is such fun. Often when thinking about technology people think straight away 'computers'. And when the term computational thinking comes up the same - computers. Well that is not so.  If you are new to all of this then take a look at CS Unplugged. This resource does not need devices. Today Kerry took us through a comprehensive introduction to the New Digital Technology Curriculum - Computational thinking.

I used the Mihi Maker on Gamefroot. It works well online and plays well there too. But embedding this is problematic when embedding, hence my one finishes after the marae. Use your right arrow to make me move in the game.

Looking Forward to School

What is school going to be like when we all go back.? 

Can we go back to “business as usual". 

What can we learn from this disruption?

Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano's blog post really got me thinking about when we go "back" to school. Silvia says we should look "forward" - not in the sense of something happy to look forward to but to go forward in terms of teaching practice.

Her image of a bubble that she created in 2009. It actually looks like so many schools today.

from Langwitches blog 

The challenge for all of us going back to school is to make the most of this disruption and change. This is the best chance we have to make change.

So what would you get rid of? On my list are...

• round robin reading
• individual tasks
• worksheets
• iPads only used for games/distributed practise
• looooong drawn out teacher instructions (use your site!)
• glass ceilings on learning 

And hey - if you don't know what change is needed - ask the kids!

DFI Week 6 - Sites & Enabling Access

DFI continued online this week with the theme of enabling access with Google Sites. We explored many sites and evaluated them in terms of visual appeal and user experience. These sites were from across the clusters and provided a range of levels for us to look at.

Then we explored the sites we have made ourselves and provided feedback for each other. We used this exploration and feedback to work on our sites and develop them more. A large chunk of the day was for participants to work on their own site. Having this uninterrupted time is significant for time-poor teachers and allows for focused working time.

I loved exploring and seeing the use design elements that make a site visually appealing.  I love sites that use art from the students and photos as design elements. Here are 2 examples...
Room 8 Wesley Intermediate - home page with a photo as a header
Te Ana Ako (Waikowhai School 2018) - photos used a buttons

We worked in our regional groups connecting on Google Meet which enabled teachers to share their screen to trouble shoot. We covered a range of issues including using Incognito Window to test sites, publishing settings so everyone can view the site, changing sharing properties of Drive folders, creating buttons on one Google Drawing and downloading as a PNG...to mention a few.

The theory behind Just-in-time learning (JIT) has been played out dramatically since the lockdown was announced. Even in days like DFI with a set agenda and times, there are times where we are working in groups and this allow for some of that JIT learning to happen. The immediacy of connecting in a Google Meet means that participants can present their screen in Google Meet and we can deal with their particular issues and queries efficiently and to completion. This reduces frustration and learning is in short bursts without distraction.

I have enjoyed seeing the growth in confidence and capability of the teachers in DFI so far. The sites I viewed by our participants from Tairāwhiti today are coming together nicely. While many teachers instinctively use design elements well, they have worked really hard on making everything accessible today. This all bodes well in this lockdown and means that learners and their whānau can access sites and see everything on the site.

The Public Voices We Hear

Every day I listen to the Prime Minster's Press conference.

Each day starts with an update from Dr Ashley Bloomfield - the  Director-General of Health.  He explains things in layman's terms and is easy to understand. Apart from a break over Easter he has spoken to the nation and kept us informed. He engenders confidence and I am happy to have someone like him at the helm. He even put himself onto social media to answer questions from the public. He has become a household name.

The Prime Minster is equally easy to understand and her empathy for people comes thorough strongly. She is showing true leadership.

So where is the Education voice in all this?

Am I missing something here? Am I not looking in the right place?

We had one day with the Minister of Education last week updating what was being done in the education arena.

We always talk about parents being the biggest stakeholders in their children's education - so who is speaking to them?

I know that the Secretary of Education, Iona Holsted is communicating with Principals via email.  There is also information available here on the official MoE site. But I think a more human touch would build public confidence and ally the many fears people have.

But where was the public voice of Education today on the first day of term 2?
Where was the Secretary of Education or the Minister to talk to parents about their new role today?
Where is the message for the teachers and the extra care and attention they are taking in this uncharted territory of delivering remote learning?

In their absence I hope that Principals and BoT's are picking up the ball and working on communicating and reassuring people of the steps that are being taken to try to carry education on through this trying time.

The Minister did have a Q&A session live on Facebook tonight. But what happens if you are not a FB user? Or you do use FB but don't "like" the Minister?

I think being out in the public domain today would have been critical to making connections with the public, to be reassuring and to build confidence.

Are you ready? Remote Learning here we come!

In the two days we had before schools closing down St Mary's decided to go ahead with their scheduled staff meeting. And as some teachers had selected to work from home, a Google Meet was set up so they could join in. What a great opportunity to practise the coming reality of delivering #remotelearning when school resumes on 15th April.
With the announcement on Monday of the lockdown it made the theme of this staff meeting very relevant. Helen, the Principal, talked about the expectation in their school for how they are using sites to amplify and turbocharge learning. Most classes in this school already had sites set up. SOme had just started using them this year and some teachers have used them since joinung the cluster 2 years ago.
In the past week we had been discussing with school show they will deliver online learning using the Manaiakalani "Limit the Links" doc as the guideline. St Mary's set to last week and ensured every class had a class site and that all content was visible. Their class sites and blogs are all linked on the school site here.
During the week the year 4-6 classes practised using Google Meet to familiarise the student with this Google App. It also gave the teachers an opportunity to set up protocols with their learners for connecting online in a video conference.
So are they ready? Yes indeed. Combine this with effective practice, Digital Fluency Intensive participation, online support from facilitators of The Manaiakalani Programme and a strong collegiality, they sure are ready.

St Mary's staff meeting before lockdown 25th March

Helen, Principal of St Mary's Catholic Primary School - Gisborne