I am using Osterman and Kottkamp's Experiential Learning Cycle (2015, p.70) to reflect upon the changes in my practice since undertaking the Mindlab course.
Stage 1: Problem Identification
The problem I initially identified was how students were unmotivated to produce quality work, which I put down to having no audience for their writing. I planned to increase engagement by creating an audience for the students by publishing their stories online for parents to see, also with the hope that learning discussions would take place at home and strengthen what is happening at school.
As I look to my next independent stage of this inquiry, I have identified that there are still four children who have not found the processes undertaken during my inquiry beneficial, in that they are no more motivated to work harder, and that their work is not being discussed at home.
Stage 2: Observation and Analysis
My observations of students initially took place in my last years class room, with Year One students, and I now teach Year 3 & 4. I noted that when driven the students could produce a fantastic piece of writing which did not match their day to day work. School wide data showed the writing was our weakest core curriculum area, and this became the work-on for all staff.
Pre-inquiry survey of the children identified that six children did not enjoy writing which was approximately one quarter of my class. This number reduced as we worked on more self-driven topics, with the meaningful integration of digital technology. Most children were highly engaged in the publishing process, and would often tell me how much their parents enjoyed their work.
The insights gained through research and readings showed me the importance of student voice in selecting topics and writing genre, and through this self-regulation and engagement becomes more evident. Also important in student achievement is the home/school relationship and so the sharing of work became important, as did me talking to the parents about the benefits of the learning conversations they have at home.
Stage 3: Abstract Reconceptualization
Amongst the Code of Professional Responsibility is the Commitment to Families and Whanau, whereby teachers acknowledge the vital role played by the family/whanau in supporting their child's education. This includes engaging them with their child's learning and maintaining professional and respectful relationships. (p.14) While in the Junior Syndicate we did rely heavily on parental support for helping with the students foundational skills such as sight words etc, however I had not really previously considered the benefits that their input could have on the learning at a higher year level.
Kraft (2017) emphasised the importance of the home/school relationships on positive educational outcomes for children. I found that by having students reflect on their learning goal as a comment when publishing on Class Dojo, meant that parents comments often also reflected their learning. During parent/teacher interviews some parents commented on the usefulness of being able to discuss their child's learning goal.
Moving forward with the learners that I am yet to reach, it will be very important to include the family/whanau of these children in discussions about writing to get to the root of the problem, and determine ways that I can best meet their needs.
Stage 4:
During this inquiry I greatly changed the way I approached writing. Mostly in the junior syndicate we wrote fresh stories each day about new topics. With this inquiry I changed my whole approach as I was wanting a greater quality of work. The students planned in depth, wrote, recrafted and edited, then finally published. They added illustrations and voice recording and essentially created books for each piece of writing. The students were proud of their work and eager to show them off.
Also new for me was the depth of reflection possible for children at this age, and the positive results seen from their honest self-reflections on Class Dojo. Being a very reflective teacher myself, it has been enlightening to see how insightful children can be when considering their own work.
The greatest change for me has been handing over ownership to the students. I have taken a far less directive approach with the writing process which has created more self-motivated and engaged children. They have taken on the tuakana teina model with enthusiasm and regularly call on each other for assistance rather than always approaching me. The students appear to be taking more initiative and greater risks, and quite accepting when they accidentally delete their work off the ipad...
New Zealand
Education Council. (2017). Our Code, Our Standards. Retrieved from www.educationcouncil.org.nz
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