Professional portfolio 2010-2011
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Principal Quality Standards
Posted on February 14, 2011 http://lcollings.wordpress.com/author/lcollings/
As a Principal in the Rocky View Schools, the Principal Quality Standards
Document provides the framework to reflect and receive feedback on the
leadership work to which we engage. The 2010-2011 school year has been
one of the most important for me, in terms of growth.
For the 2010-2011 school year, Springbank Community High School has
propelled itself into one of the most innovative high schools in the Province.
This year, we delved deeper into Schooling by Design, implemented a One to
One environment, piloted a lock down browser, explored 21st century
learning environments, expanded students leadership and introduced
cornerstone assessment as a way to alternatively assess our students
authentically.
We still have much to do. While we enjoy significant support from our
school/community, work will need to be continued with respect to educating
parents about the direction education is going.
This portfolio will demonstrate, using a Schooling by Design philosophy, that
I am meeting expectations as outlined by the RVS Principal Quality
Standards document.
With the best intentions, I have tried to follow the philosophy of digital
citizenship, giving credit where credit is due, asking those who I have quoted
or indirectly referenced for permission to use their names and sourced all
photographs, videos and quotes.
Developing and Fostering Leadership in Others12/25/2011 10:47:00
Developing and Fostering Leadership in Others
Personal Reflection
You cannot facilitate and foster leadership in schools alone. This link will
hopefully illustrate some of the personal reflection I have done in this area.
Developing and Fostering Leadership in Others Blog was originally created
for the Administrator Leadership Development Program. I was a guest
speaker at one of the sessions.
21st Century Learning Organizations
When a school chooses a One to One environment, barriers to teaching and
learning disappear and a new lens needs to be applied to the reality you find
yourself in. It seems like a natural progression to begin to have different
conversations with respect to the 21st century learning environment. The
paper I have attached below became the next logical step in the journey. A
group of interested individuals came together to explore opportunities. It
became clear that the one area we would focus on would be looking at
flexibility of “time”. The group read literature, Skyped with High Tech High,
worked with Dr. David Townsend, had various meetings with RVS to
understand hot to proceed in the area of “flexible time”. The White Paper –
21st Century Learning Environments was chosen as our guiding document.
Using a collaborative decision-making model, the school is bringing forth the
following concepts for next year planning: Flexible time within an inflexible
timetable (i.e. blended courses, j-blocks, re-defining what instructional time
looks like, hybrid concepts), advisory, electronic student portfolios, flexibility
of space (learning commons and flex space for 21st century learners). The
Backwards design with respect to next year’s course offerings is available to
look at Flexible Opportunities.
Edit
Fostering Effective Relationships
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Fostering Effective Relationships
Seek to understand, then to be understood. (Stephen Covey)
Personal Reflection
A universal truth about people is that they want to be heard. They want to
be listened to. They want to be part of decision-making. These things take
time to build and foster. Below are some examples of how I illustrate that
process.
Academic Leaders
At Springbank Community High School, we believe that the role of the
Curriculum Leader needs to change into the role of the Academic Leader.
For the past two years, we are changing the way Curriculum Leaders view
their role. This has been an effective way of taking the academic
relationship to a new level. When there exists a clear role, then effective
and positive work flows. The following will illustrate the change:
Role of the Academic Leader (Schooling by Design, Wiggins and McTighe)
Responsibilities Related to Mission and Learning Principles
Responsibilities Related
Responsibilities Related
Professional Learning
Responsibilities Related
Time & Mission
Responsibilities Related
Individual Meetings
to Curriculum
to Results
to Structure, Policies and Resources
to Culture
In January, we had a change in leadership. It was clear to me that I needed
to go back to something I did when I first began at the school which was to
have individual meetings with all staff. I began with sending the Teaching
Preferences Inventory Form to each staff member. They were invited to a
Google Calendar to book their appointments. I gave them a deadline. The
inventory form was the focus of the first part of the meeting. The following
were the essential questions we used as our discussion. The theme is our
Mission statement items on creative and critical thinking and media literacy.
Essential Questions (Teachers)
If you have finished Moodle, what were your strategies to complete?
If you have not, what is your plan to complete Moodle?
What have you done to integrate technology into your practice
What have you done to integrate UBD into your practice?
If the opportunity presents itself would you be willing to offer a blended
course in the future?
Do you still see this as a place for you considering the changes that have
occurred?
Where do you see yourself with respect to your practice in 5 years?
What do you need now to assist you in making the transition to a 21st
century teacher?
Academic leaders had slightly different questions as their roles are different.
Essential Questions (Academic Leaders)
If leading by example is an important component of leadership, how have
you led by example?
Are you actively on board with the direction our practice is moving?
What are the perceptions of the people in your department with respect to
the changes currently underway?
What is your department measure of success?
Do you see yourself as the person to move your department forward?
(Chinese Symbol, “To Listen”, from Google Images)
Leading a Learning Community
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Leading a Learning Community
Reflection:
Perhaps one of the most inspiring quotes for me comes from Dr. Sharon
Friesen from the University of Calgary. In the document, entitled,
http://lcollings.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/wdydist_national_report_en.pdfWhat Did
You Do In School Today? National Report, She writes:
Effective teaching begins with the thoughtful and intentional design of
learning that engages students intellectually and academically.
Students are asked to undertake work that is worthy of their time and
attention, is personally relevant, and deeply connected to the world in which
they live.
Assessment practices are clearly focused on improving student learning and
guiding teaching decisions and actions.
Teachers foster a variety of interdependent relationships in classrooms that
promote learning and create a strong culture around learning.
Teachers improve their practice in the company of peers.
Surrounding and infused into each of these core principles is the effective
use of the technologies. It is undeniable that the face of education and the
role of technology are changing rapidly.
When we first delved into 21st Century Learning Environments, we were
thinking very superficially. As we backwards designed the process, it
became very clear we needed to hear the teacher, student and the parent
voice. We invited them into a process to design with us what a 21st century
learning environment would look like. Below is the process we had our
stakeholders engaged in.
Reading the Literature
Staff, Parents, and students were invited to read the White Paper – 21st
Century Learning Environments. From there, one of our staff, Dr. Heather
Fansher developed a one page document, “at a glance” that is available to
read here Imagining the Future.
The feedback from the document, entitled Pillars – Conversation with staff,
parents, and students was both informative and important to listen to.
Perhaps the most exciting part of the voices captured during this process
was that it reaffirms we are on the right track.
Cornerstone Assessment
Stumbling blocks are one of our biggest challenges. The question I often
ask myself is, what is stopping us? When we first began the process of
transforming SCHS into a 21st century learning environment, there were
road blocks. Although staff could somewhat articulate the main challenge,
we were having difficulty seeing it clearly. Through a process that is called,
“Group Thinking“, we were able to get to the nub of what was stopping us
from reaching our next level. The key road block was that we, value product
over process. This is, I believe not an uncommon challenge. But, what this
process did was open it up for us to take a look at. This is where the
concept of Authentic and Cornerstone Assessment came into play. It gave
us the opportunity to begin thinking about assessment in a different way.
And, the 3-Year Plan gave us the opportunity to make it a goal for
improvement. Since then, there have been major advances in the thought
process of both the teachers and parents. I am now hearing things from
parents like, “that exam does not assess how students are learning”. THAT
is progress.
Managing Effectively
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Managing Effectively
Reflection:
I had the privilege of working with Dorothy Dyer for five years as her
Assistant Principal. Among the many things I learned from Dorothy was the
idea that to facilitate leadership and create a stable school environment, the
role of the Principal is not a power and control endeavour. Further,
“enabling” processes are imperative. Schooling by Design is processoriented. It clearly lays out responsibilities and roles. An example of
facilitating leadership in others comes from the Chapter 1, “Mission” and
chapter 7 entitled, “The Role of Academic Leader”. Springbank Community
High School creates processes through backwards design. Schooling By
Design is illustrated nicely in this document. Mission is also important.
When I first came to this school, there was incredible amount of discussion
related to international travel and the incoherence with the programs. The
policy below illustrates how powerful processes and policies are in running
schools. The development of this process has assisted in giving shape to
travel as well as placing parameters over it. Every March, the committee
meets to: review the process and to hear the travel proposed for the next
year. Field trip procedures are contained in this link. Check out the Letter
to Teachers – Approval form. Teachers use a standard form for information
to students in the SCHS Travel Contract.
Providing Instructional Leadership
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Providing Instructional Leadership
“You must be the change you want to see in the world.” – Mahatma
Gandhi
Learning Walks
Reflection:
For several years, I have struggled with “how” to be an effective
instructional leader. This is the most important leadership dimension and
probably the most poorly understood and haphazardly done. As part of my
Professional Growth Plan, it has been my desire to do a better job in this
area, however it has been an illusive goal. I simply didn’t know how to get
better. Through my mentor, Dr. Guilott, I was introduced to Learning Walks
and I feel I have found the “how”. Here is the handout she provided:
Learning Walks
Learning Walks are, perhaps, the most powerful tool to providing quality
instructional leadership. It has profoundly changed my practice as an
instructional leader. I have introduced this to 4 other administrators in this
Division, thus creating capacity in this jurisdiction.
“I am learning how to be a better instructional leader. You can help
me to achieve this goal.”
This is a phrase I used with my first year teachers. In addition to struggling
with how to be a better instructional leader, I feel we need to do a better job
with our beginning teachers. I am working on a process to mentor
beginning teachers. Outlined below is the process I am working on:
Pre-conference – I outlined my expectation to the teacher during a one to
one conference. I reiterated that fact that I am learning as well. The model
chosen closely aligns with the Divisional model; balanced assessment,
understanding by design, universal design for learning. No evaluation would
take place until they had practiced and honed in on their skills.
I started out with Marzano’s Observational Protocols
MarzanosObservationalProtocol. Beginning teachers reviewed this document
and then we met and set goals. What did they want to work on?
After approximately 6 weeks, we had another conference. Are you ready for
a learning walk?
Learning walk occurred. Teachers on the learning walk reflected on their
own practice. I gave feedback to the beginning teachers which included
observations on their goals
Learning Walk participation offered. After the initial learning walk, beginning
teachers were given an opportunity to be a participant on the learning walk
based on their specific goals.
Evaluation observations were booked for semester 1. Beginning teachers
were given the opportunity to choose the classes I was to view based on
observables from their goals. Evaluation #1 was completed, vetted with the
beginning teachers and submitted to the Division.
Using an outside facilitator, two meetings were organized to bring together
all of the beginning teachers. Using the activity linked here Make Meaning
Leading to Transfer, beginning teachers discussed how to improve their
practice. Click here to view their feedback Feedback from Make Meaning
Leading to Transfer.
Tansfer Tips handout is helpful to give to teachers Transfer10tips
(All links above have been created by Dr. Margo Guilott “Authentic
Education” and are used with her permission.)
Providing Visionary Leadership
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Providing Visionary Leadership
Reflection:
The number one benefit of information technology is that it empowers
people to do what they want to do. It lets people be creative. It lets people
be productive. It lets people learn things they didn’t think they could learn
before, and it removes THE barrier. This tool has contributed to huge
transformational move in this school. Coupled with a sound philosophy, a
focus on change, this has propelled this school to a different level of thinking
about what the future of education looks like. I must caution anyone
reading this that moving to a one to one environment alone will not
transform teaching and learning. In tandem, you must have philosophy in
place, a critical mass with a baseline of skills to take on the challenge, and
the ability to know when to “turn up the heat”, “keep the heat simmer”, and
“when to turn the heat off”. Take a look at the video produced at SCHS that
talks about the One to One project.
The SCHS One to One video was created by Rick Gaudio and used with his
permission.
Societal Context
12/25/2011 10:47:00 AM
Societal Context
Refelction:
Since becoming a One to One school, we have been working with other
schools in the jurisdiction to assist them in their desire to implement this
kind of initiative in their own schools. For example, we have been working
specifically with both high schools in Cochrane to assist with their process in
moving to a one to one environment. Through bi-weekly Skypes and
personal contact, the schools have shared their learnings, and is providing
mentorship to these schools.
Our School/Community were surveyed as to their perspectives on twentyfirst century environments. Two things came from this survey; the first is
that parents are eager to learn about what their students are doing at school
with respect to learning and technology. We responded by setting up a
Parent Professional Learning opportunity aimed at two things: Firstly, a look
at how the Springbank Community High School Website is leveraged for
information and learning. Secondly, Mahara Portfolio System and how it
relates to the four-year plan and student individual learning plans. Lastly,
the Moodle Learning Management System and how it leverages learning any
time anywhere, and any place. Parents are still very reticent about the web
and very much focus on the negative. However, with a lot of talk, a great
amount of information through the newsletters and professional learning,
things are slowly changing.
One of the most important learning we have had is in the area of Digital
Citizenship and the crucial piece it plays in a One to One environment. Dr.
Amy Burns and myself created a Community of Practice, called Digital
Citizenship. Inspired by Carmen Christie-Bill’s presentation at the Emerge
2010 Summit, we realized the power of the information. It is not meant to
be a set of “rights and wrongs”, but rather information presented in a
thought-provoking discussion oriented way. Carmen’s Website is included
here as a great resource. Carmen’s material is all open sourced and she
gave us a great deal of information. Particularly, she skilled us in the area
of open source material and what that means. Creative Commons and other
open sources, such as Google images are great places to get images with
full/partial/limited permission. This encourages users to use information
without having the concern of what is copyright and what isn’t. In
November, I presented Digital Citizenship to a symposium at the University
of Calgary. You can view it here Digital Citizenship U of C presentation Final
copy.
There is not question that the power of the student voice is so very
important in schools. Having students on board and working with you on
innovation is crucial to the success of the endeavor. To this end, we had a
leadership student take on the monumental task of presenting Digital
Citizenship to students, parents and the larger community during the month
of January, 2011. With her permission, I have included the presentation and
it can be viewed here Student-led Digital Citizenship Presentation. Since
these presentations, she has been asked to present at other schools. She
will be traveling to Chestermere to do a presentation to Rainbow Creek
students in April, 2011.
I believe that what we are doing here and what others are creating
elsewhere needs to be shared. At the High Schools level, we are creating
the conditions to work together more collaboratively. A sample of the
visioning information is outlined here long term vision for high schools.
I was approached contribute to a RVS Blog. The SCHS administration team
decided to work on this collaboratively. To this end, we submitted our first
contribution, entitled, “Binders Optional”. When a school goes to a one to
one environment, you can see very quickly that the game changes. There
are many things that change, some for the better, some to challenge your
thinking. However, all necessary things for us to experience as we begin to
see how technology is a game changer. The second submission, entitled, “It
Is About the Learning, Not the Gadgets, is about the profound learning
experiences that happen at High Tech High, a prototypes for Springbank
Community High’s transformation.
(Chinese symbol of “journey” taken from Google images)