How can grasshoppers change
ICT practices?
July 5th – 7th 2011, ICT in the Classroom
Conference, Johannesburg, South Africa
By Lieve Leroy, VVOB Zambia
Case
• You attend a workshop, but upon returning to your own
workplace, you fail to implement the lessons learned.
• Your colleague just got his ICDL certificate, but still has a
classroom full of chalk and talk.
Ever
experienced
something like
this?
Outcomes
By the end of the session delegates will:
• Have reflected on capacity building in ICT, inclusive of
integration in class/work practices.
• Have exchanged good ideas and go home with a basket
of tips and tricks.
• Have a good understanding of the Grassroots approach
and have reflected on the duplicability of it.
Getting started
• Think of an ICT tool (Web 2.0) which inspired you during
the last year.
• What was the trigger that made you start using it?
 Speed dating set up
 Plenary
More questions
• Have you ever succeeded in motivating a/some
colleague(s) to use an ICT tool?
• What was the key to success?
 Think
 Pair
 Share
Our tool box to success
• Let’s make an inventory
Some guidelines
• ICT application in the classroom:
– requires staff development
– implies change, which might trigger resistance
• Highly effective ways of staff development are:
discussing, coaching, mentoring, observing and
developing others are highly effective
• comfort  risk  danger:
– Feasible but challenge
– Support (time, materials, coach)
– Confidence
Our tool box to success
• Reflect on the guidelines and relate those to our tool
box: how effective are our approaches
The reality: Zambia
The reality: Zambia
The reality: Zambia
Grassroots Zambia
“Learn to use & Use to learn“
• Based on Grassroots TU Delft, The Netherlands
• Done in Zambia, community schools and
colleges of education
Grassroots
• Staff at all levels can submit a proposal for a small scale
initiative to enhance the introduction of ICT, or
innovative methods of teaching at school/college
(bottom up)
• Expert support/guidance over the duration of the project
(technical and educational support)
• Reward for a successful implementation
• Dissemination in a good practices seminar and
publication of good practices
Why grassroots?
• Stimulate lecturers, with little or no experience with ICT,
to get a feeling for using ICT
• Increase the use of ICT in education in the institute
Why is it successful:
• Lecturer is the owner of the idea; feels empowered
• Stimulating creativity of lecturers
• Enthusiasm and commitment
• Stimulates peers; appealing concept
• Students are immediately benefiting
Process
Approval of
proposals
planning
• Fine tuning
proposals
• Feasibility
• Getting
started
implementation
• Guidance and
mentoring
• Meetings with
peers
Celebration/
dissemination
• Good
practices
• Reward
• Writing Tales
of the
Grasshoppers
In Zambia: two rounds
5 thematic groups:
• Find, search, collaborate
• Audi, visual and video learning
• Gadgets and tools
• Language and Mathematics
• Hands on ICT
“Those who make a
distinction between
education and
entertainment
don't know the
first thing
about either.“
-- Marshall McLuhan
Expert Groups
Agreement Working Together
The role of the mentor in grassroots is:
• Give feedback
• Give advice on how to balance responsibilities, set
professional priorities and action plans.
• Help to find technical/subject matter inputs and
resources.
• Empower participants to take responsibility for their own
project, experience and learning.
• Organise meetings with the ‘peer group’.
• Create linkages with colleagues from other institutions.
Getting started
• How would the concept of grassroots project
be transferable to your situation?
• Discuss your own challenges in the use of
ICT in your organisation/class.
Come up with a grassroots proposal to solve this
situation
• http://www.icto.tudelft.nl/en/ongoingprojects/grassroots/tu-delft-grassroots/
• http://grassrootszambia.webs.com/
• http://www.vvobzambia.blogspot.com/
• http://www.slideshare.net/bart.cornille/tab-1-tales-of-thegrasshoppers
With contributions from presentations by Kristin Smets (VVOB Brussels) and Leonie
Meijerink e. a. (VVOB Zambia)
literature
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Bubb, S., Earley, P. (2007). Leading and managing continuing professional development (2nd
ed.). London: Paul Chapman Publishing.
Bubb, S. Earley, P., Leading staff development for school improvement, School Leadership and
Management, Vol 29, No 1, February 2009, pp. 23-37.
Fullan, M. (2007), The New Meaning of Educational Change (4th ed.), London: Routledge.
Leithwood, K., Mascall, B., Strauss, T., Sacks, R., Memon, N. and Yashkina, A. (2007)
Distributing Leadership to Make Schools Smarter: Taking the Ego Out of the System. Leadership
and Policy in Schools, 6:1, pp.37-67.
Marzano, R.J. (2003), What Works in School: Translating Research into Action, Alexandria, VA:
ASCD.
Marzano, R.J., Waters, T. and McNulty, B.A. (2005), School Leadership that Works: From
Research to Results, Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Meijerink, L., Dopper, S., Cornille, B., Duplicability of Grassroots concept to inspire educators to
use ICT in education, eLearning Africa Conference, 26 May 2010, Zambia.
Pont, B., Nusche, D. and Moorman, H. (2008), Improving School Leadership, Volume 1: Policy
and Practice, Paris: OECD.
Reeves, D. B. (2009). Leading change in your school: How to conquer myths, build commitment,
and get results. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Schollaert, R. and Leenheer, P. (Eds.) (2006), Spirals of Change. Educational change as a driving
force for school improvement, Leuven: Lannoo Campus.