Authorisation Visit Q & A Session

1. Authorisation Visit Q & A Session Colegio Colombo Británico PrimaryYearsProgramme February 2010

2. Timetable? • We don’t know yet • It´s not up to us

3. Best learning engagements? Those which can provide evidence of the PYP pedagogical frame: • Inquiry • Constructivism • Conceptual Pedagogy

4. Evidence of Inquiry? • Students’ active participation • Teachers’ questioning to drive the inquiry and keep it open to different perspectives • Lively discussions among students • Evidence of transitions: Whole group openings which develop into Small group discussions which evolve into Whole group debriefing

5. Evidence of Constructivism? • Student engagement in building own meaning • Hands-on material to allow students to make connections • Social constructivism for collective construction: the importance of final debriefing

6. Evidence of Conceptual Pedagogy? • De-emphasising rote learning, memorisation, etc. • Being on the look out for opportunities to make conceptual connections • Privileging conceptual understanding: Working on knowledge and skills in way that is conducive to understanding concepts

7. Evidence of Differentiation? • Content = Tiering (levels) • Process e.g.: • Activities tailored to different learning modalities (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) • Learning engagements flexible enough to accomodate Multiple Intelligences • Product e.g.: • Performance assessment tasks for summative assessment of Units of Inquiry

8. How can you still be a PYP Teacher if you’re NOT involved in the Transdisciplinary Unit? • EVERYTHING WE DO IN SCHOOL IS PYP • Through the pedagogical model • Inquiry • Constructivism • Conceptual pedagogy • Through The Profile

9. Evidence of The Profile? • Vocabulary related to The Profile has become part of our students’ speech • Teachers take advantage of “teacheable moments” to link daily school life to The Profile • Obviously, displays as well

10. Difference Between Concept, Content & Skill? K.U.D: • To Know: Knowledge • To Understand: Concepts • To Do: Skills

11. How Did We Build Our Current POI? • MEN standards for the Sciences (Natural & Social) revised in mixed groups—several grade levels Goal: To distribute by grade levels • Sciences Standards (Natural & Social) revised in homogeneous groups—within the grade level Goal: To distribute by Transdisciplinary Themes • Units structured within grade levels (Central Idea, Concepts, Lines of Inquiry) Vertical & horizontal alignment required

12. Who Teaches P.S.E.? WE ARE ALL P.S.E. TEACHERS!

13. Who Teaches Language? WE ARE ALL LANGUAGE TEACHERS!

14. Who Is Responsible for Developing The Profile? WE ARE ALL “PROFILE DEVELOPERS”! ... And models!

15. Who Owns the Transdisciplinary Unit? ALL TEACHERS INVOLVED IN IT: • Driving (Concepts & Knowledge) • Supporting (Skills & Attitudes) • Advising (The Profile) ...AND ALL STUDENTS, OF COURSE! 

16. Why have discipline-specific units of inquiry? • To preserve the integrity and rigour of each discipline • The Sciences are the exception • To ensure that the PYP pedagogical frame pervades our school’s teaching practise • Because NOT EVERYTHING should be integrated into the trasdisciplinary unit: • Only natural connections • Only when it is conducive to higher-order learning

17. How Do We Use ICT? • As a tool and a resource • It is not a subject area—therefore, it has no fixed timetable • We use it as the need arises and time is booked as necessary

18. How Do We Use the Library? • As a tool and a resource • It is not a subject area—therefore, it has no fixed timetable • We use it as the need arises and time is booked as necessary

19. How has the PYP changed usas individual educators and as a school?