Week 19:​ ​ Contribution of Teacher Inquiry Topics to my Communities of Practice

Week 19:​

​Contribution of Teacher Inquiry Topics to my Communities of Practice

A Community of Practice “​provides an environment for people to connect, interact, build and extend the shared resources within shared learning goals. If a​ community of practice is cultivated and effectively operates it can result in improved practice.....” ​Cam​bridge, Kaplan, and Suter (2005).

Inquiry 1:
How would the use of the 21s​ t​ century technological tools/apps improve the quality of students’ writing?

Why this question: ​After a discussion with teachers at the beginning of the year, we came to the conclusion that our students are confident in sharing and discussion of ideas about a topic but struggle to transfer ideas on paper. On the other hand, our teachers need fresh ideas to motivate students to learn and hopefully by the end of the year we will witness an improved quality of student writing.
As we focus on our journey through this wonderful change, we will make sure to focus on how to:
-  Implement Technology Innovation in the Classroom
-  Develop a Growth Mindset in order to make change
-  Teacher Inquiry into Student Learning for improved outcomes

MINDLAB has opened my eyes to so many digital opportunities that we could use to motivate our learners. We are hoping that by using these, our inquiry question will be successfully achieved by the end of the year.
The barrier that we faced at the beginning of the year was we didn’t have devices to use. But we were grateful that our management team (who are also involved in this course) decided to purchase 6 ipads for each class in our team at the end of Term 2. Currently our classes are buzzing with enthusiasm because of the new apps, and although the number of devices is not enough for other classes, but it’s a starting point. Here’s hoping that we will get more in the coming years.

Community of Practice:
My community of practice consists of all the teachers in our team which includes 2 whanau leaders (who are also classroom teachers) and 5 classroom teachers. I also include our other school leaders as we meet regularly every week to share our classroom learning, teaching resources and many more.

Domain:
As mentioned in our previous assignments, our Samoan Bilingual Unit consists of NZ born Samoan and migrants from Samoa. Almost all of the students can speak in Samoan and English fluently apart from the new migrants whom can communicate mainly in Samoan and are now in their journey of learning English.

We have team meetings 2 hours a week to share our new knowledge, new tools and programmes with our teachers to improve classroom practice and shift student learning.
We also communicate through the school email and google doc when we share resources, researches and programmes appropriate for our learners.
We meet for an hour every week with our School Leadership team to update others with our learning journey and share suggestions and ideas to use in our teams.

Practice:
Working collaboratively as a team has already proven successful, so we will continue to share effective technological tools and apps during our team meetings to ensure our early adopters are updated and upskilled for the sake of the learners.
One of our teachers is now using Seesaw app in her class, we have heard that this app is very effective to communicate and update parents with what’s happening in the classroom. We will make sure to share this with the whole team so everyone can use it to connect learning with parents at home.
Part of our collaboration is to upskill teachers on using the Gibbs model to improve their reflection practice. By doing so we will reflect regularly on the effects of using the 21st century apps for learning. With an open mindset, we have to rest assured that the positives and challenges are both valued and steps will be in place to improve and inform the ‘where to next’ steps.
Through all these, I am hoping our teacher practice will continue to improve and student achievement will continue to shift.

Inquiry 2:
If we use the TPACK framework to plan our topic study, would that encourage teachers to apply/use more 21st technology in their practice?

Community of practice:
All the teachers in our team which includes 2 whanau leaders (who are also classroom teachers) and 5 classroom teachers.

Domain:
Since we are now putting more focus on utilizing technological devices and apps in our practice, in order to motivate and improve learning, we therefore need to change the way we plan. The TPACK model is appropriate as it encompasses ​the Content Knowledge (CK)​, ​Pedagogical Knowledge (PK)​ and Technological Knowledge (TK)​— the ​three forms of knowledge are not separate.

               

The intention of TPACK is to understand how to use technology to teach concepts in a way that enhances student learning experiences. It helps teachers to think more strategically about how they use technology in the classroom.

Practice:
Share and demonstrate how to plan using TPACK with the team ensuring technological apps are included.
Teachers need to continue searching for new and effective apps to motivate and enhance students’ learning experiences.
Reflect on the new planning model and suggest ways for improvement.

Reference:
Cambridge, D., Kaplan, S. & Suter, V. (2005). Community of practice design guide: A Step-by-Step Guide for Designing & Cultivating. Retrieved from ​https://net.educa use.edu/ir/library/pdf/NLI0531.pd realising the dream of a learning organisation.” (Wenger, McDermott, & Snyder, 2002, Preface, 
para. 2).

Wenger, E.(2000). Communities of practice and social learning systems. Organization,7(2), 225-246.

The TPACK Framework Explained (With Classroom Examples) Posted in ​Pro Tips​ | January 19, 2018. David Dockterman, Ed.D., and Lisa Blackwell, Ph.D. Growth Mindset in Context Content and Culture Matter Too. International Centre for Leadership in Education