learn create share and key competencies

This year, I wanted to use learn-create-share to lift confidence and collaborative learning in 10QI students. My hunch was that if I could build student confidence in sharing with each other and the wider world, they would be able to work more cooperatively and help each other make progress. Student voice indicated that there were factions in the classroom but if the teacher managed groups and mixed up student-chosen group activities with some teacher-assigned activities, then they were willing to try new sharing. Blogging feedback showed that if I drip fed the blogging from the most willing first and eventually to everyone, then the fear of online sharing reduced hugely. 

My new learning (ongoing) has so far been a blend of relationship building with my class, with individuals and with groups and also the important mahi of building a class team ethic. It has also involved working with other 10QI teachers to find out what and how they are learning in Maths and Global Studies. For my ORS student, it has involved working with Jason, Bev & Cherie to make resources and strategies for sharing work for Max. I'm pretty excited about Max's progress, particularly his growing confidence to speak in front of the whole class.

A key challenge last week related to a key competency challenge that arose when I was off sick yesterday - some students wrote inappropriate comments on the padlet on our class blog (inappropriate content now gone). I rehearsed my speech in the shower about how we are a team and need to show team pride to the world. The class took my grand speech with the seriousness I had hoped for but not presumed, and those students who could not remove comments on their padlet posts asked me to get rid of the inappropriate content for them. We could carry on with our research with our heads held high.

This week we are looking at participating and contributing in class. We have some tension in the room, and I want all of the students to be welcomed and welcoming in our class, not all-minus-one. So I've been working with the class, and with the dean, and we are going to run a restorative process. I'm not sure that I have the skills to do this on my own, and I'm looking forward to learning from the two deans who do have the restorative training for this project.

I have two important next steps for the next fortnight:
1. We are evaluating resources. I've started to prep this section, and I'm going to bring SOLO back into our skill set.  We were a very committed department in terms of SOLO about four years ago, and I don't want to drop that ball as we bounce so many others.

2. I've organised for my appraiser to observe me in ten days' time.  It's precious time that people give up when they do observations, and I want Scott to be able to collect useful information when he watches us (10QI & I).  I figure we will be ready for some significant sharing of our research by then, and so we can test progress on using sharing to improve key competencies and, in turn, raise achievement.