Reflection: Quality over Quantity

Sometimes we can be overloaded with information and advice on how to accelerate student achievement. A few questions that have helped me to filter through the information and really hone in what I think is essential in my journey, has brought a real sense on what is important for me. Quality over quantity.

Student Feedback: 
What are the three important things I would like my teacher to do help me learn?
Explain, one on one teaching, competition, interact, rewards
What helps me think for my learning?
Music, food, talking, space, breaking it down into easy steps/chunks, acknowledging progress

Points for educators to think about in response to student feedback

Quality of Professional Learning Conversations

Low Quality: 

• Considerable talk about student behavior
• Talk about teaching without connecting it to evidence of impact on the student's understanding of learning
• Talk about the data for the purpose of grouping students
• Talk about the data for the purpose of singling out teachers for for praise or criticism

High Quality: 

• Focus on student learning and engagement, surfacing challenging issues of practice
• Talk that uses evidence as a basis for collective inquiry into relationships between teaching and learning. Talk driven by a desire to learn
• Talk that uses data for the purpose of designing more effective teaching approaches and interventions
• Use data to learn about effective practice

What are some 'High Quality' learning conversations about particular students that I can lead in my department?

• Leading Partnerships
• Learners are active participants
• What are learners good at? Build on their strengths
• Who are they? See the learner
• Doing with them, not to them
• Setting goals and developing new relationships
• Ongoing sharing
• Celebrating successes
• Summarizing learning progress at key points in time to illuminate what has been learnt and inform future learning
• Parents and whanau would like more information about their child's progress, including how they can support their child's learning

Leadership of sticky change: Fullan

• Use the group to change the group
• Precision over prescription
• Feedback candor and autonomy
• See the forest and the tress
• Accountability as culture

Acceleration by design: 

Knowing your learners

• Tailoring teaching and assessments for individuals and groups
• Engaging with students' cultures and identities
• Adapting for students' literacy needs
• Adapting for students' attendance needs
• Involving whanau

Collaborating with students

• Providing choices for teachers, programs and assessments modes
• Being explicit
• Learning together with students
• Empowering students to take the lead in learning

Some ideas on involving students in their accelerated programs: 

• Speak with the students
• Breaking down into achievable steps - what is achievable?
• Looking at completing unfinished assessments
• Precise feedback
• Asking the student to come with work they are confident in completing