Barriers and Enablers

Are our learners engaging deeply with cluster-agreed transformative digital pedagogies:

learn, create, share?

As part of my own learning, I am focussing on helping school leaders in our learning cluster to consider this question.

It's nearly been a year since the journey as a cluster began. Trust is building and understanding around 'learn, create, share' is jelling for school leaders. It seemed a good time to use a tool to reflect on progress and look at next steps.

Image Credit: https://pixabay.com/en/cooperate-collaborate-teamwork-2924261/

In pairs, we identified the barriers and enablers that hindered or helped learners to engage deeply with 'learn, create and share'.  We talked about the points raised as part of our School Leaders Professional Learning Group.

Barriers

Some points are still baseline issues - not enough devices, inappropriate devices because of a BYOD policy, wifi issues. These are relatively simple fixes and we are moving towards the fixes. 

Other hindrances are specific to a class or teacher that can colour a perspective. Yes, the technical issue or expectation needs to be solved but it's not that big. 

I'm looking forward to seeing the trust level increase again and to seeing a deeper level of reflection about barriers as we come back to these over time. 

Perhaps, however for the trust to deepen we need to have the baseline or surface issues sorted before we can dig deeper. People need to see that the plan will work as we bring devices onstream early next year and as the technical issues are sorted through a deeper level of technical understanding. 

Enablers

We are already implementing a range of strategies that are enabling our learners to engage deeply with learn, create, share. We have weekly in-class facilitation that is helping pilot teachers to become confident and motivated to plan for learn, create, share - definitely an enabler. Connections for learners across schools via blog commenting is a great enabler that allows learner agency. 

What We Do

We also looked at what are we doing as school leaders that could make a difference - those deliberate leadership actions.  This is the part I am really interested in. What do school leaders do that will help to make a difference? Do leaders see that they can leader changes or do they see themselves as only managers who run the dailiness of a school? 

Some are recognising that requiring teachers to use learn, create, share (LCS) as part of their planning is an important strategy. Leading by example - using LCS themselves and talking about LCS with staff and whānau are noted as other examples of deliberate leadership actions.

Examples of Deliberate Leadership Actions

From our Schol Leaders PLG 

It will be interesting to see how these leadership actions change over time and whether there will be greater congruence across the primary secondary and intermediate school represented.