Dear Blake Community,
To help encourage conversations and dialogue about reflection and learning, our topic/question of the week is: Whether you are reflecting on the meaning of what you do or just in the "pencil lab" playing soft music, keep listening, because listening is the great teacher.
Hopefully everyone had a nice weekend. Our family had some low-key days, taking care of some holiday prep and relaxing with the kids. Sunday afternoon we enjoyed heading into Boston as a family to see The Nutcracker with Katie's mother.
In last week's blog update I shared that I have found myself to be in a reflective frame of mind since Thanksgiving. Reflection is one of our core values at Blake, and as you know, it is one that is near and dear to the vision I have for our students, staff, and myself. The end of the calendar year and with Term 2 now begun, we are presented with a natural opportunity to reflect. I believe, though, that it is critical to work this practice into all of our endeavors. It can be overwhelming to think about weaving this practice into our work, but from experience I have found that the scheduled practice has immense benefits in both the short term and long term. It may look different for our students and for each one of us, but the practice is what is important. Our mission statement guides our work and this practice of reflection is what will hold us accountable and guide that direction: Blake Middle School believes in a living mission statement, based on the concept that our community seeks and respects knowledge, integrity, character, wisdom, and the willingness to adapt to a continually evolving world. As we approach our last full week of school of 2014, I am sharing four articles that helped me truly take a step back and think about what it is that we want for our students and how we can get there (touching on reflection, the role technology, fostering creativity, and the importance of listening).
What Meaningful Reflection on Student Work Can Do For Learning
by Larissa Pahomov in MindShift
This post is an excerpt from Pahomov's book, Authentic Learning in the Digital Age: Engaging Students Through Inquiry, and highlights three characteristics of reflection to be meaningful: reflection must be me metacognitive, applicable, and shared with others. As one who tends to over-think, I particularly appreciated the framing/mindset of the question: 'How is this reflection going to help me in the future?' With each characteristic, Pahomov outlines the 'digital connection', and as we begin to think about digital portfolios as evidence of learning, the practice of reflection is critical.
"Metacognitive reflection, however, takes this process to the next level because it is concerned not with assessment, but with self-improvement: Could this be better? How? What steps should you take? As a result, metacognitive reflection can be used to develop resilience in the face of a challenge."
"...a student who has learned the value of metacognitive reflection will recognize frustration as a signal to pause and think through the situation instead of plowing ahead with the same approach or giving up entirely...Of course, there’s a danger of this metacognition turning into a kind of feedback loop: Am I reflecting adequately on my reflection? The better question to keep in mind is, How is this reflection going to help me in the future? "
"But if we are really seeking to take action based on our reflections, then we will likely need some help, and that means we have to own up about what needs work. To make students comfortable with this practice, the classroom has to become a place where each student is recognized as being on an individual path of improvement—and, an important point, no student has reached the end of the path, because there is no end."
Ubiquitous
post by Chris Lehmann (@chrislehmann)
I have shared this post by Chris Lehmann, founding principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, and believe that it is worth reading on a continual and frequent basis. His message is not that we should be using technology for the sake of using technology; rather, we must recognize the ubiquitous nature so that it becomes part of how we learn. I love the reference/analogy to the 'pencil lab' - "Gregg Betheil of the New York City Department of Education talks about how we don’t send kids to the “pencil lab,” but that is how we treat technology." This is critical for us to continue to keep in mind we move forward with our students.
"When technology is only something that is used when the teacher says so, it remains special, different and therefore not intrinsic to the learning that our kids do. But when it is ubiquitous, it becomes a part of who we are and how we learn. That is the pathway to helping students understand the world in which they live. When it is ubiquitous, students learn how to put it away when they want to or they need to. When it is ubiquitous, it is no longer special. That is the moment when we stop worrying about integrating technology and start concerning ourselves with learning."
How to Foster and Unleash a Creative Mindset in Your Students
by the Edudemic Staff in Edudemic
Building off of our school-wide theme of Creativity last year, this is a critical goal at all times for our students and ourselves. It is important for us to think about how we can establish and foster an environment for students to be creative and carry forth a creative mindset. The suggestions in the post are not the only methods, but they are some nice strategies to try.
Becoming a Listening Educator
by Shane Safir in Edutopia
Listening is an integral aspect of both teaching and learning and is important for all of us. We all have the need to be listened to, and we all can grow from the practice of listening to others.
"Learning to listen well -- to our students, parents, colleagues, and communities -- will help us to build deeper relationships and to personalize support for every child...Listening educators see the human experience as a complex text with listening as a form of close reading. They understand that every great lesson plan, parent conference, and teacher collaboration starts with a simple yet underutilized skill: listening. This is brave work that may not be rewarded in your evaluation, but it will exponentially increase your impact and set you apart as an educator."
The first three posts I have shared are important, but the last post is the first and most important step in the practice of reflection, learning, and growth. I want to listen, keep listening, and then listen some more. As I reflect upon my own learning in both my personal (father, husband, friend, brother) and professional (student, teacher, principal, colleague), I know that listening is what leads me to understanding - to myself and to others. Oftentimes this is what I need most - to be heard and allowed an opportunity to reflect - and I aspire to do the same for others. I look forward to the excitement and energy of the next seven days of school together and to renewing our work and commitments as a community in 2015.
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Take care.
Nat Vaughn