Can you identify what these people do?

1. Can you identify what these people do? Oscar Arias Sanchez Alex Rodriguez Steve Jenkins Cate Blanchette Margaret ‘Molly’ Tobin Brown Jet Li Slash Susan B Anthony Brian Cambourne Kevia McComb Costa Rican President Yankees Slugger American Children's author Australian Actor Titanic survivor and woman who was determined to break the rules of "high society” Chinese Actor/Martial Arts expert Guns N Roses/Rock Band Guitarist Women's Rights Activist Educator famous for ‘Conditions of Learning’ PS.184 4th Grade Student

2. COLLABORATIVE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING TEAMS Network 18 – CFN#11 – R.O.C.K.S. (Reflection, Outcomes, Collaboration, Knowledge, Standards) Session Two – Supportive conditions for collaborative professional learning Monday 21st December 2009 Presenter: Mr. Chris Lowrey AUSSIE Literacy Consultant chris.lowrey@aussiepd.editure.com

3. Overall Professional Learning Unit • Collaborative professional learning • Facilitating collaborative professional teams • Supportive conditions for collaborative professional learning • Using data • Team planning and reporting • Assessment as professional learning • Classroom walk through • Differentiated coaching • Professional learning showcase

4. Contents 1. Welcome/Vision 2. Transform your group into a team 3. What makes for a contented Professional Learning Team? 4. Instructional Rounds in Education – A Summary 5. Unpacking the process of instructional rounds- Categorization of our descriptive notes 6. ‘Team Learning Scenario Task’ 7. Next Steps - Looking together at practice to improve practice how to select the focus

5. 1. Our Vision Morning Our vision is to develop an effective learning community that is collaborative and respects each other personally by having a clear structure and positive attitude and working through a process of building understandings for conducting effective Instructional Rounds. By following a structure and working through processes of successful learning we aim to hone life long leaders who aspire to appreciate differentiation and aim to exceed expectations when considering academic goals. Afternoon Our vision is to share our school community experiences and be willing to enhance our teaching practice through networking and sharing our learning's transparently to grow both personally and professionally through the process of Instructional Rounds. We understand the need to collaborate ,to listen while others express their private thoughts and have ours respected reciprocally. The outcome of improving teaching practices will be at the forefront of our work and while accepting there will be __________, we aim to turn these into our next goals in order to develop outcomes and successful thinkers and achieve measurable results that inform practice in our schools.

6. 2. Transform your group into a team Using the ‘Triad Protocol’ participants discuss their results, new insights they have gained into their Professional learning teams 5 Mins – Introduction 2 Mins Forming groups 5 Mins X 3 – Participant A presents, B Discussant, C Silent, Note taking 5 Mins - Sharing three key points from groups, value adding 22 Mins

7. 3. What makes for a contented Professional Learning Team?

8. 4. Instructional Rounds in Education – A Summary • Using the ‘Fishbowl Protocol’. ……Participants break into groups of 1,2,3, share on Chapters 1-8 Chapter Summary • 7 Mins – Reading assigned chapter • 2 Mins Forming groups • 5 Mins X 3 – Participant A presents, B Discussant, C Silent, Note taking • 5 Mins - Sharing three key points from groups, value adding • 24 Mins

10. 5. Unpacking the process of instructional rounds- Categorization of our descriptive notes

11. INSTRUCTIONAL ROUNDS TEACHER LEARNING + STUDENT LEARNING = STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

12. Theories of Action • …………outlines the need for schools and teachers to have a theory of action that allows the vision for teaching and learning to be realized within the context of the individual school. The theory of action: • is the story line that makes a vision and strategy concrete • provides the map that carries the vision through the organization • The Theory of Action has three main requirements: 1. It is a statement of causal relationship that describes what I do and what constitutes a good result in the classroom 2. It is empirically falsifiable – it must be able to be disproved based on evidence of what is happening in the classroom 3. It is open-ended and needs to be further revised as more is learned about the consequences of actions

13. My Theories of Action • If we provide teachers at PS.22.5 time, resources and support in passing on knowledge gained from their Professional Learning Team they will spread their learning's among their team members. • If the Administration becomes involved in classroom instructional practices that teachers work so hard at it will validate their efforts and encourage them to look more deeply at assessment rather than merely satisfying District mandates. • If we truly follow the To/With/By model when teaching students they will likely take more ownership over their learning.

14. Your Theory of Action

15. Problem of Practice Identifying the problem of practice The identified problem of practice must be based on a current dilemma facing the host school and come from data, dialogue and current work within the school. It is grounded in some kind of shared evidence and is something that the host school has already been working on or think they might need to work on. When identifying a rich problem of practice, look for a problem that: • focuses on the instructional core • is directly observable • is actionable • connects to a broader strategy of improvement • has high leverage. • The more specific the problem of practice, the more specific and helpful the observational data and the recommendations in the next level of work will be.

16. My problem of practice • ‘All our assessment systems tell us that students are not comprehending what they read and unable to effectively analyze text. Teachers have begun using a workshop model to work with large group, smaller groups of students and conferencing individually for five years now yet test scores have not gotten better.’ • November 30th 2009 • ‘While teachers are using the workshop model the students in small groups are unable to name the strategy or skill they are working on. They also don’t appear to be using it when independently reading.’ • December 15th 2009

17. Your problem of practice

18. 6. Team learning scenario process Using the following tuning in protocol model…. • Introduction 5 minutes • Read presentation/ take notes 15 minutes • Participant discussion 5 minutes • Debriefing group sharing 5 minutes • Definition of Collaborative Professional learning 5 minutes (35 Minutes) In four groups select a reading from one of the school settings 5 Minutes • Fremont Elementary School • Peterson High School • Martin Middle School • West Grove Township school district • As you read jot down notes about the attributes of collaborative professional learning. 15 Minutes • Compare with a friend 5 Minutes • Share as a group 5 Minutes • Using your collective notes presenter types a definition of ‘Collaborative professional learning’ 5 Minutes (35 Minutes)

19. 7. Next steps – Making descriptive comments from classroom observations • Complete reading chapters of summary or read ‘Instructional Rounds’ • Continue taking your descriptive notes, try to view different classrooms over 5 or 6 sessions • Continue to look at a refine your ‘Theory of Action’ • How close are we to developing our problems of practice?

20. So until January 27th … ‘Throughout our ten-year study, whenever we found an effective school or an effective department within a school, without exception that school or department has been a part of a collaborative professional learning community.’ Milbrey McLaughlin