During the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote learning was a foreign concept for many teachers and they were expected to figure it out almost overnight. As teachers do, they took the bull by the horns and made the best of an unprecedented situation. When schools opened back up in the fall of 2020, classrooms were thrust into a makeshift version of blended learning. This is where my inspiration for my innovation plan came from. I saw the potential of using blended learning and also recognized the needs of the students on my campus and how blended learning could help fill in the gaps that had formed during distance learning. As we continued on into the 2021-2022 school year, I have seen the need for training in blended learning grow even more. With students returning to campus, I have seen a backslide in the amount of technology used in the classroom. In order for my innovation plan to be successful, adequate training must take place and ample support must be provided for teachers to feel as though blended learning will work in their classroom.
When developing my Professional Learning Plan I first identified my why. I then referred to Gulamhussein's 5 key principles for effective professional learning (2013):
Duration
Support
Engagement
Modeling
Specific Content
Along with these principles, I have used Fink's 3 Column Table (2003) to help me align my outcomes, assessments, and assignments for the professional learning course. Collaboration is essential to this professional learning course, but more importantly, having a clear purpose for each meeting will help propel the collaboration into a space where meaningful change takes place. The TNTP report by Bryan Goodwin showed that over the course of two years there was no difference in growth between groups of teachers that spent more or less time collaborating (2015). Clear goals and quality planning are what will lead to meaningful change and authentic learning. While collaboration is important, it cannot stand alone. A tentative schedule has also been developed for a 5-week online course. This timeline may change as more time may be needed between each meeting due to scheduling and providing teachers enough time to review materials between each session. Below is the outline that will help guide me as I complete my Professional Learning Plan for blended learning on my campus.
References:
Fink, L. D. (2003). A Self-Directed Guide to Designing Courses for Significant Learning. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Fink, L. D. (2003). What is “significant learning”? Retrieved from
Goodwin, B. (2015). Research says/does teacher collaboration promote teacher growth?
educational leadership, 73(4), 82–83. Retrieved from
Gulamhussein, A. (2013). Teaching the teachers effective professional development in an era
of high stakes accountability. Center for Public Education. Retrieved from
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