MIT 2020 - Revisiting our Project

Dorothy encouraged us to revisit our MIT projects in light of pending lock down due to COVID19 framing it as a time of opportunity rather than a setback to the work we had already done.There was an acceptance/acknowledgement in the group that yes, things may need to change as the ideas that had been swirling and starting to take form during/since our weekend at Kuaotunu were more than likely no longer workable or relevant. 

My initial concern was centred around getting access to former Year 8 students. I hadn't really factored in that they were 'no longer my kids' and even with 'inside' help at one of the local colleges it was always going to be tricky to negotiate parental permission as well.

So gifted with time out from the main session, I literally had a meeting with myself to thrash out what direction I wanted to take my project - do I stick with figuring out a way to help Year 8s make confident transitions to secondary school/Year 9 OR do I find another path?

I went back to basics, trawled through notes and readings. The Key Competency of managing self still made sense. So too did the section on connectedness and inclusion in the ERO publication, Transition from Primary to Secondary
    

One of the most influential aspects of school environments is the extent to which students feel connected while they are at school (Jose and Pryor, 2010). Connectedness was defined in terms of students feeling that they: belonged, felt included (regardless of their ethnicity, ability, gender or sexual orientation), had a contribution to make to the school, were cared for by their teachers, were accepted by their friends, were physically and emotionally safe and were learning (Adolescent Health Research Group, 2009).


BING! BING! My epiphany:

1) Why not focus on my current cohort of students (both Year 7 & 8)?

2) What would they need to manage themselves/stay connected during an extended period of home lockdown and a switch to distance learning online?

3) How could I help keep the kids engaged with and connected to each other through this time?

What did I land on? I decided that my new project challenge will be to design:

an app/site page that provides a 'one stop' shop for students, teachers and whanau to access a toolkit for self-management and staying connected that is
based on Te Whare Tapa Wha*.

OK! Well, now to embrace the mantra: Fail Fast, Fail Forward! - time to get a prototype up and running!
*Te Whare Tapa Wha is a Māori model of health developed by Dr. Mason Drurie in 1982 that the students are familiar with.

Looking back at 2019! Moving forward to 2020!

As week 9 draws to a close, I find myself reflecting back over the last 12 months - it really is hard to believe that my third year as a classroom teacher is almost over! Humps and hollows, sidesteps and missteps aside, there have also been some triumphs. Here are a few of my personal highlights from 2019:

• By year end, all 6 Year 8 students in my target reading group made gains of at least 6 months in their reading ages- one student moved 2 years while two students made a shift of 12 months. It was a very satisfying to know that half the group would enter secondary school with a reading age of 11 years - the benchmark set for the students at the start of the year that would enhance their ability to access the Year 9 curriculum.
  
• Collaborating with team of Pt England staff (made of teachers and office personnel) to prepare and present to a PD session for staff about Tataiako, the Maori learners framework. It was an awesome opportunity to work together and produce practical steps our colleagues could implement based on the framework - the focus being to promote ways to empower those students who identify as Maori
  
• Embracing the opportunity to teach extension students in literacy. This really pushed me outside my comfort zone and required me to adapt to students who could unpack the deeper meaning in variety of texts. The students and I engaged in meaningful discussions across a range of topics. Students seized the change to grapple with a range of themes including stereotypes, race relations, family dynamics and climate crisis.

Now looking forward to the new year, I am excited by the prospect of new challenges including:

• Being part of the Manaiakalani Innovative Teacher (MIT) group for 2020. I am really interested in how we will apply the design thinking process to a rigorous teacher inquiry. I looking forward to meeting, working with and sharing ideas with educators selected from across the Manaiakalani outreach clusters.
  
• Continuing to develop my skills in teaching literacy, particularly writing
  
• Building my skills to teach Te Reo to Year 7 & 8 students

Farewell 2019 - thanks for the memories! Bring on 2020!