Create Significant Learning Environment

View my video with an English Specialist who describes her CSLE. Video Link

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After reading the book A New Culture of Learning I want to create a new significant learning environment in my work that reflects our current culture. This new culture will enhance learning since our students and teachers demand authentic learning otherwise they’ll just remain silent and run out the clock on our day long training. My innovation plan is changing as my job responsibilities grow. I’m no longer brought into the project at the last moment to make a video, I’m being counseled much earlier for guidance. This new access to guide the project will allow me to take the valuable tools I’m learning here and positively impact Klein ISD teachers.

There’s many ways of learning and the naturalistic perspective of learning is based on being active in a person’s learning. When juxtaposing this method to some Klein ISD classrooms it can be found that sometimes the standard is to sit and get, and rarely it can be hands on. We are a school district of over 51,000 students and nearly 5,000 educators. There is not a brush large enough to paint a picture of what our learning looks like. Just last week, I hopped around different classrooms and could see co-teaching, blended learning, station rotation, and many other teaching methods. Also, I realized that other teachers were telling students to put away their digital devices, stop collaborating, and stop daydreaming. Unfortunately upcoming state tests are coming up. We have a high level of urgency with standardized tests coming fast and furious. We can take this naturalistic perspective by allowing the student’s real lives inform our lesson plans. How is is our curriculum relevant to to an 8 year old, 12 year old, or an 18 year old? Let’s ask them, listen to their answers, and be amazed.

Considering the new era of learning it seem that, kids are only going to act on something when it is relevant to their own lives. They desire to learn more, but as educators we need a way to speak to their desires. Students have the imagination to see things differently and to overcome the constraint that might limit their potential learning growth. The new culture of learning is happening regardless of the educational talent level of the teacher. For example, I remember doing poorly on a Shakespeare assignment. Therefore, I went to blockbuster and watched the movie, got the Cliff Notes, and other context clues. Today, all of that contextual learning is happening on a palm held device that takes seconds to find the answer. Today’s new culture of learning is based on the student. In the book, A New Culture of Learning they point to a basketball player who has a passion to learn. This basketball player uses his imagination to develop his skills, but is constrained by his strength and height (Thomas 2014, p. 85).

Furthermore, the best example of how play combines passion, imagination, and constraint comes from the book, A New Culture of Learning, involves kids who re-edit the movie Mary Poppins to seem like a scary movie. This ability to play and show their imagination shows that just about any person can re-edit video. So, the emergent of imagination from the video editor takes a sweet family movie and makes it scary. I want to show this wonderful quote that highlights this ability to play. So moving forward, I think the constraint is the limited video that the video editor had. The movie is mostly cheerful, so the editor was constrained with his selection of video choices.

This quote has shifted my thinking to creating a significant learning environment that can enhance learning.“It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” Pablo Picasso. He’s widely regarded as one of the greatest painters ever. He says that he wasn’t limited by his ability but by his imagination. This artist is going to be a model for my teaching style. He was a passionate person and he had to overcome bad teaching strategies that hindered his creativity. I believe there should be no limitations when it comes to a way each individual student may learn. This is a great way to keep a student engaged in the learning. How many times will a student say “When will I ever need this?” If they have the context, then it’ll connect the student’s passions to the things they need to learn.

Next, Dr. Harapnuik brings a visual to today’s student center learning that is based off a diagram. This CSLE (Creating Significant Learning Environments) diagram describes the environment where students can learn in the classroom just like they do outside of school. (Harapnuik 2015) My job involves helping our experienced teachers help all teachers. We’re creating amazing classrooms and training teachers in our “Transform Academy.” Changing the way we train teachers allows us to creating a significant learning environment for our students.

Source: http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=849

Therefore, the CSLE is great for reminding the student to step back far enough and put all the pieces together. Thanks to technology, all the pieces have been in front of us. Like Professor Harapnuik went on to say, we have a diversity of learners who have a diversity of needs. (Harapnuik 2015) When I interact with my fellow educators, I try to bring the conversation back to what’s best for the student. It’s my job to build capacity with teachers. I make videos for teachers but I want them to have the desire to make their own videos. I think video creation with growing amount of media learning should be integrated into our learning. It’s not about the video, it’s about the content.

Additionally, when the student isn’t getting a lesson, failing a test, or not completing their work. It will be important that myself and others ask, “How can we help?” By asking this simple question we will be able to figure out a holistic way of thinking to the problem to find the right solution. Also, we have two schools at Klein labeled for kids who need a radical different learning environment. These two alternative schools have different tools in place to help their students graduate. They allow for flexible scheduling and self directed curriculum in a non-traditional environment. These aren’t bad kids, if you visit them you’ll see their awesome potential for learning and their great high school graduation rates. These alternative schools aren’t for the bad kids. They’re for exceptional kids who don’t perform like usual. That’s a good thing! We never would’ve invented flight if the Wright brothers were normal. Furthermore, it is imperative to know that we are being proactive as a district to create a wonderful learning environment. We were just designated as a District of Innovation. This will allow our district to continue our advance academics, innovative classrooms, and collectively working together to create a shared vision for the benefits of the students.

Recently, we had a “Girls in STEM” event. This event highlighted the new learning environment we want our classrooms to reflect. We brought in amazing guest speakers, had hands-on learning activities, and more. We focused on our young learners who will be in our system for another decade and our high school seniors who are ready to graduate. The people who pulled this sold out event together are the same dedicated administrators who pull together our learning environments. We have a collective commitment in Klein ISD that every student enters with a promise and exits with a purpose.

Professor Harapnuik says we have to start with the learner. That the needs of the learner become the measuring stick. Our courses need to be purposely built to create a create a significant learning environment that foster and facilitate deeper learning. In order for his sons to really grow as a downhill mountain bike racers they needed to learn in the right environment. They moved to North Vancouver. Where learning actually takes place not just memorization. He says we need to look at the end in mind and identify desired results, then determine acceptable evidence, then plan the instruction and learning events (2015).

My innovation plan is to innovate blended learning into Klein ISD that some of our teachers are already doing. Also, I’m involved with professional development to create training videos directed at teachers, or videotaping our paid speakers. My goal is to build capacity in our teachers to create their own fun videos and multimedia. Kids today are so tech savvy that they’re showing the teachers how to create digital learning projects. Our current culture is all about doing well on the tests but also it’s about creating a future. The classroom is no longer in control, the network is. (Harapnuik 2015) In my role as the Video Specialist for Professional Development it’s my job to create those significant learning environments for my audience. For instance, I was at an all-day training with teachers and the trainer said “If we hurry we can finish 30 minutes early.” The teacher asked “Why can’t we get this whole thing done in 30 minutes?” That was a very valid question! Why can’t we just learn and go? It’s because we have to sit and get instead of being hands on.

The fundamental idea I’ll take from, A New Culture of Learning, is that we should build capacity in our teachers. I am limited with what I can do and how many videos I can create. If I can teach others simple editing tips then they can make my power unlimited. It’s the same thing with teachers. They already know the answer, so why are they asking the students? If a teacher can teach a student to ask “Why?” then the student will become more engaged.

Moving on, I understand complex programs such as digital animation. I also understand simple programs like video editing. No longer is video editing someone with thousands of dollars of equipment. Today video creation is the next public speaking, with a little bit of practice anyone can do it. Every teacher in Klein ISD has a powerful laptop that is capable of creating a video message. Our laptops also include Windows Movie maker or Adobe Premiere Elements to use.

I just had an opportunity to meet with an English specialist named Misty Miller. I had made a few training videos for her but then she remembered a tool called Screencast-o-matic. This allows her to record her computer screen and her voice as she narrates a PowerPoint slide. In this video she demonstrates a lesson and her objective. Then she posts the video, an article, supporting documents, and more to our public teacher exchange website. In the post she helped her coworker Monte Bingham, he talks about a digital tool to help struggling readers. The post is under the general ELA (english language arts) team who reviewed the article. Monte and the ELA team is building capacity in teachers by showing how easy it is to use Screencast-o-matic to make their own digital lessons.

On page 19 of A New Culture of Learning, we have two elements, one is a massive information network with unlimited resources for teachers. The second is bounded and structured environment that allows for unlimited agency to build and experiment with things within those boundaries. The combination of the two makes the new culture of learning so powerful.

My main challenge will be me not being the project lead. My job involves helping those that need help. My job in Professional Development doesn’t require me to reach out to teachers and “cold call.” I want to build capacity in teachers so they can educated others. Right now I’m trying to get my name added to the summer professional development schedule for teaching blended learning. In my administration building we produce a lot of professional development. I assist when I can, but only when called upon to help. We’re more proactive this year when it comes to making videos and multimedia to teach teachers. I produce about two videos a week. We try to focus on creating video about the most important topics that get brought up a lot. That way it cuts down on phone calls to our trainers. They can watch a video and get a good understanding of the topic before a training session or before sending an email.

Our perspective on creating significant learning environments is reflected from the video from Dr. Tony Bates. It’s taking account of student differences and even differences in our teachers. It’s taking account of what skills we’re trying to develop, the support we give them from the professional development department. Dr. Bates says that learning is a dynamic growing thing. This was confirmed by my coworker Misty Miller who lead a session with a professional speaker about English writing assignments. After removing the teachers from the classroom, putting them in a training session, giving them a book by the speaker, and doing hands-on projects through the daylong training, the teachers still weren’t able to apply the lessons into their classroom. Misty said this was ok because in today’s digital age the answers are online. As Dr. Bates says, knowledge isn’t something you pour into somebody. Learning is a struggle. We need to do a better job of learning all the way through. The gardener isn’t successful until he can see the fruits of his labor. You have the work, the soil, the water, etc. The plant has to do the growing. Then we need to have assessments to see the fruit from that plant. (ChangSchool 2015)

It’s going to be quite easy to get everyone in our TLC building to think broadly and holistically about learning in Klein ISD. None of our teaching administrators are assigned to a specific campus or class. What’s going to be the challenge is to take the individual problems and think broadly. If we have a struggling reader, how do we change that without interrupting the learning environment for everyone? We have pullout sessions, small groups, co-teaching, and more to really change our Klein learning environments. One thing that helps our ability to think broadly is that we’re able to remove ourselves from a classroom and campus. This time allows for self reflection.

My perspective is broad enough to become a foundational perspective.

My learning philosophy is fluid just like my actions. I am a worker bee. It’s my job to help others. If they just need the minimum amount then I’ll do my best to give them that. During that time I’ll try to state my evidence of learning about creating significant learning environments and not let poor instruction be the norm. Sit and get isn’t effective. We’re conditioned as people to sit still and be quiet, but that doesn’t transfer to our actions. I’ve been very lucky to attend wonderful professional learning opportunities and today I can barely remember the name of the training. I remember the room and if I enjoyed it, but I don’t remember the lesson. With today’s explosion of information it’s now more important than ever to create significant learning environments where the learner shows results.

References:

Butterfield, J. (2017, February 15) Klein ISD votes unanimously to designate

itself a District of Innovation. Retrieved from

https://communityimpact.com/houston/education/2017/02/15/klein-isd-votes-unanimousl

y-designate-district-innovation/

ChangSchool (2015) Dr. Tony Bates on Building Effective Learning

Environments. [Video file] Retrieved 1 March 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xD_sLNGurA

Harapnuik, D. (2016, June). Creating Significant Learning Environments

(CSLE). Retrieved from http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=849

Klein ISD (2017).Klein ISD: 2016 Superintendent's Initiative, Transform

Academy. [Video file] Retrieved 27 February 2017, from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z3g1bG_ZA4

Harapnuik, D. (2015, May) Creating Significant Learning Environments (CSLE).

[Video file] Retrieved 27 February 2017, from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ-c7rz7eT4

Klein ISD (2014 August) Klein ISD Class Of 2013 Sets New Graduation Rate

Record. Retrieved from 27 Feb. 2017

https://www.kleinisd.net/default.aspx?name=cr.pr.bloghome&a=218

Wilkins, J. (2017, February 1) Klein ISD to Host First 'Girls in STEM'. Retrieved

from http://patch.com/texas/woodlands/klein-isd-host-first-girls-stem

Klein ISD (2017) Promise2Purpose Pathways. Retrieved 1 March 2017 from

www.promise2purpose.net