The Principal Diaries - reflecting on the journey three terms in!

These school holidays marked the end of my third term at Albany Senior High School. I am absolutely loving my role as Principal at ASHS and I am still pinching myself when I think about how good of a fit it feels for me (and hopefully vice versa as well). It is incredible to think about how much has happened in such a short time. At this point I really do want to give my senior leadership team and all the staff at ASHS a massive warm and fuzzy shout out for the way they have jumped in boots and all!

Below is a bit of an overview and update of the exciting things going on at ASHS. Much of which links directly back to the our trusty annual plan.

Link to the 2019 Annual Plan

Specialist Subjects working on providing visible, deep and inclusive learning. Part of this year’s annual plan is focusing squarely on how we can ensure we are working towards all learning being visible, deep and inclusive. Under the fabulous leadership of Associate Principal Miranda Makin and DP Cristina Casey our specialist subject leaders are working hard to unpack each of these concepts and build on the work that has already gone on at ASHS. Visible learning is achieved through the careful use of technology ensuring all learners know what they are learning and can access that learning 24/7 via platforms such as Google Classroom - this will be an ongoing focus to ensure we are using these platforms effectively and consistently across the board. Deep learning (which has been an ongoing focus at ASHS for some time) is about ensuring our learners not only know what they are learning but can see how that learning is relevant beyond the classroom. For most subjects this is about further enhancing dialectic practices in their courses. Deep Learning is also achieved by tackling real world contexts such as climate change in Science and applying their Mathematics learning to future focused contexts such as coding and robotics. Inclusive learning is about employing ‘universal design for learning’ to ensure our learners can access and evidence their learning in a way that suits their strengths and interests and ensuring assessment is personalised rather than one size fits all! This is definitely a work in progress and I look forward to seeing how it develops over the coming terms.

Impact Projects 2.0 are go! At ASHS they have dedicated every Wednesday for the past 10 years to Impact Projects (IP) where students get to focus on a large scale and long term project of their choice. Projects are developed by students who work with a project mentor (teacher) and are guided by four principles: student ownership and agency; substantial learning beyond the classroom; quality product; and participating and contributing with the community. This ensures our students have the opportunity to be an adult in the world and to develop the skills required to succeed in the 21st Century, developing skills in: time management; leadership; project management; participation in an authentic context of their own making and making a very real contribution to our world. 

This year, with the help of DP Hamish Chalmers, we have stepped up the IP mentor practice focus on problem-solving and mentoring conversations, we have re-introduced Impact Projects Hubs that group students with common interests and have introduced the Stanford D.School Design Thinking Framework to engage in creative complex problem solving, critical thinking and learn how to negotiate and collaborate whilst managing themselves and others. These are the very skills that employers and universities are increasingly looking for and are the skills our young people will need to thrive in an increasingly complex world. We believe each and every ASHS students has the opportunity to be future ready! I have always loved ASHS Impact Projects so it is beyond exciting to be able to support them as they evolve. We are also introducing extended PD for staff on Wednesdays (2.30-3.30) from this term onward, hopefully this will give us a chance to further embed the design thinking approach which is still very much in its infancy.

ConnectED is growing. ConnectED aims to be a first of its kind, school / business / community / innovation hub and network which will be based at Albany Senior High School. The aim of the network is to establish a network and talent register that might mentor and support student Impact Projects; connect learning across the school with the community and wider world of business; host whanau community facing educational events about futures thinking and social business networking so as to establish ASHS as THE ed-innovation hub on the shore!

ConnectED which is being supported by DP Ross Martin and our Business SSL Lloyd Gutteridge (and our ConnectED crew of students) is already working with The Mind Lab, 21C Skills Lab, Grow North and Shore Junction. More recently we have met with the North Harbour Club and the OMG Tech team from Voluntari.ly who are working with our ConnectED Impact Project students looking to develop a platform that will be able to bring students and business and industry mentors together with ease. The ConnectED crew are also looking at hosting a community launch event later this term. Am pretty excited to see how this might evolve into something for all students and schools across NZ.

ASHS has opened a dedicated Makerspace for the whole school community. 2019 marked the launch of a dedicated Makerspace at Albany Senior High School. The aim of the Makerspace is provide a creativity hub for the entire school community. Recent additions to the Makerspace include a laser cutting machine, 3D Printers, a screen printing press and even a spinning wheel. We look forward to adding more VR and AR equipment, robotics, a CNC router and a pottery wheel and kiln. Over the coming years we are looking to expand the space to include a range of art and design equipment to ensure we are providing the necessary infrastructure to support ASHS becoming the leading school for creativity and future focused innovation! Credit where credit is due - a lot of this is down to the vision and hard work of our Technology Specialist Subject Leader (SSL) Tracy Elton-Farr and the ongoing support of Office Max. Can't wait to see where might take it over the coming years!!

Other things on the horizon include the appointment of a new Deputy Principal, with founding Associate Principal taking on a fabulous role as Professional Expert at University of Auckland's Leadership Centre we have an exciting opportunity to grow an already fabulous senior leadership team. Closes next Friday if you're interested ;). 

On a more personal note I am looking forward to seeing out my last months on the Teaching Council. I have loved being part of the Teachers Council, Education Council and now the Teaching Council. I do hope I can continue to support that work in some way. It has proven to be the most incredible opportunity for both personal and professional growth and I have felt very privileged to have been part of the incredible work produced by the Education Council over these last three years and getting to work alongside the likes of Graham Stoop, Lesley Hoskins, Pauline Barnes, Barbara Ala'alatoa and Anthony McKay. 

Later this term I look forward to heading to EduTECH to lead a Masterclass about design thinking and project-based learning and talking once again about 'The Digital Blue Yonder'. Let me know if you are going to be at EduTECH!

I am also really looking forward to helping lead 'The DisruptED Social Learning Experience' which will happening over Terms Two and Three. Make sure you join DisruptED on Facebook if you are keen to get involved. Our wee DisruptED PLN made up of myself, Maurie Abraham, Nicola Ngawera, Steve Saville, Natasha Hemara and Andy Kai Fong continues to be a great source of support and challenge. 

If you are interested in more regular updates about what we are up to at ASHS, make sure you join me for my weekly Facebook Live updates which air every Wednesday on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ashsnz  My intention is to ensure these are weekly throughout the term. 

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The Principal Diaries - The Annual Plan and putting the plan into action!

It was an interesting process pulling together my first annual plan as Principal at Albany Senior High School. School Charters and Annual Plans are interesting beasts. To be honest, they appear to be box ticking waffle and weasel words which gather cyber dust in some virtual filing system.

My belief was that a plan can be bloody useful, but only if it was actually designed to be useful. For that reason, I set about researching and reading as many as I could lay my hands on. What I found, for the most part, was (I thought) unnecessarily long winded and either attempted to capture so much in so much detail that they seemed insurmountable or so vague they read like paraphrased business as usual. In the end, the easiest approach was to go to The University of Auckland Centre for Educational Leadership to look at their resources and templates and have a crack of building something from scratch. The following is my attempt to craft an Annual Plan (this obviously doesn't include the broader school charter) that is succinct enough to fit on one A3 page, but detailed enough to be useful in supporting some kind of improvement and change. This, of course, represents a whole lot of input and feedback from the Senior Leadership Team and much staff and student voice.

Link to the 2019 Annual Plan

The four categories across the top are from the charter and also provide a handy structure for the annual plan foci. 

Basically we have four areas of focus that provide our five goals: 

• To re-frame Impact Projects and further develop mentor practice so as to improve attendance and engagement of learners.
• To ensure learning is culturally sustaining, visible, deep and inclusive so as to improve student success in Specialist Subjects.
• To enhance teacher practice in Tutorials so as to improve student success and engagement.
• To grow student partnerships with community and/or business groups.
• To build leadership capability of middle leaders to rigorously inquire with their teachers so as to enhance teacher practice and student success. 

These are then unpacked into a series of actions, outcomes and targets, so as to ensure teachers can see what they need to do in practice and understand what success will look like. It reminds me of this quote from Michael Absolum (2010) “When students have a clearer understanding of what achievement looks like, they have a greater chance of achieving, and they do.” Likewise, if busy teachers have a clearer understanding of what the changed practice looks like, I believe they have a greater chance of doing it. It also provides a mechanism for providing professional guidance, support and a level of accountability. 

In order to make it even clearer we are also developing the ASHS Annual Plan in Practice doc which attempts to unpack the principles for powerful learning which sit at the heart of our annual plan, ensuring learning is visible, deep, inclusive and culturally sustaining, and then highlighting the key areas of focus for each part of our curriculum. 

Principles of powerful learning in practice

The idea is that this can be used as a support for planning and I am also thinking about a version that could be used as an observation template. 

The challenge (as it always seems to be) will be ensuring we actually "walk the talk". A few ways I am hoping to improve our chances of this include:

• A3 posters of the Annual Plan printed and put up in all work spaces and teaching spaces.
• The Annual Plan in Action doc is used to support planning and observations. 
• Framing morning briefings to match up with our four areas of focus (we are trialing going to brief morning meetings with aim of no afternoon meetings at all) - Monday is for school vision, big picture stuff, Tuesday we focus on Tutorials, Wednesday we focus on Impact Projects, Thursday for Specialist Subjects and Friday for Professional Inquiries which will focus on area of the teacher's choice. The idea that these are brief meet ups to focus what's on top rather anything administrative (it's a practice I saw used very effectively at HPSS and their daily "kitchen tables").
• Deputy Principals will lead one focus area each, with a commitment to us also working collaboratively to support all areas of practice. 
• I am also going to trial doing a weekly Facebook Live session on the school Facebook page as a way to engage the community and share with them our annual plan, because as we know, it takes a village!

There is nothing particularly radical going on here, and to be honest, that is by design. This year is really about laying strong foundations for where we go next. It was important that the first step was acknowledging the work that has gone on before me and about fine tuning what ASHS does so well already. This year we will focus on improving whilst also reviewing our curriculum and genuinely consulting our students, staff and community thereby being in the very best position to evolve our curriculum in 2020 (HELLO BLUE SKY!) and beyond. 

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The Principal Diaries: My Lens on Powerful Learning

If there is one thing I am pretty adamant about, it is that the Principal's primary role is to be the 'leader of learning'. To that end one of my real focus areas in my first term as Principal is to observe as much learning as I can in action. As many of you will know, at Albany Senior High School (ASHS) we have three strands to our curriculum - Tutorials, Specialist Subjects and Impact Projects.

You can read explanations of each part of the curriculum here:
Tutorials: http://ashs.school.nz/curriculum/tutorials
Specialist Subjects: http://ashs.school.nz/curriculum/specialist-subjects
Impact Projects: http://ashs.school.nz/curriculum/impact-projects

I came into the school knowing that I loved the curriculum design and the way that the time allocations clearly signalled the value of each element. What I did not know was how well each element (in their current form) was meeting the needs of each and every learner. And as in every school there is often a bit of a disconnect between our espoused theory and our theory in use. Whilst you could send out a google form gathering perceptions, nothing beats actually observing students and teachers in action.

As I was getting all David Attenborough on it and documenting everything I was seeing and hearing I thought it was only fair that I shared with our teachers the lens through which I observe learning. It actually took me a little while to define this for myself! So often we go into a classroom and we observe (and judge) based on our own set of biases and successes which have been formed by our own experiences. I'm actually okay with that, but it does pay to think abut how we have formed our theories and thinking. Mine, I realised had been formed by experiences in working and leading in so many different schools and environments. At Rangitoto College I was taught to be a learning designer with the expectation from day one that we each designed for our class and context (a department practice rather than a school wide one), at Takapuna Grammar I helped lead work around differentiation that focused on inclusive practice, at Auckland Girls Grammar I developed my understanding around the importance of culturally responsive approaches and it was at AGGS I also developed a love for teaching as inquiry and e-learning (through my MOE e-fellowship), at Team Solutions I developed my practice around leading leaders and at Epsom Girls Grammar School synthesise my skills around teaching as inquiry, e-learning, differentiation, leading leaders and ultimately leading change. And then of course I got to hone all of those skills further within an ILE context at HPSS.

All of that experience has meant that I tend to frame my lens on powerful learning based on three high level questions:

• Is learning visible?
• Is learning deep?
• Is learning inclusive?

Each of those high level questions were supported by more questions:

Is learning visible?

• Are learning objectives visible?
• Can students articulate what they are learning?
• Is Google Classroom being used every lesson?
• If a student is away can they follow learning?
• Is there success criteria (beyond achievement standards)?
• Do they have a frame for navigating next steps?

Examples of practice included:

Explicit use of Google Classroom (already the agreed LMS at ASHS)

Frameworks that make cognitive next steps visible such as SOLO Taxonomy

Is learning deep?

• Do students know why they are learning what they are learning?
• Can they articulate how learning might be transferred beyond school?
• Is their learning connected?
• Are they using the trivium model of learning to support deeper learning?
• Is there evidence of higher-order thinking skills?

Examples of practice included:

Evidence that the ASHS Deep Learning Model (Trivium) was being used

The (OECD) Seven Principles of Learning being evident

Is learning inclusive?

• Are there different modes for students to access learning?
• Are there different modes and strategies for students to process learning?
• Are there different modes and time frames for students to evidence learning and/or be assessed?
• Is there evidence of choice re: timing, assessments and topics?

Examples of practice included: 

Evidence of Universal Design for Learning

Or at least evidence of differentiation:

This was presented to the teaching staff as a presentation and as this summary document:

Link to document

The teaching staff then had the opportunity to reflect on their own practice within the context of their own teaching. In groups they did a "quick and dirty" reflection spending 10 minutes using the following worksheets. The top row for capturing what they already do, the bottom row considering what they could be doing or doing more consistently.

Link to worksheets

So, what next?

I will be using this frame to gather evidence divided into 'Observations' and 'Opportunities' (for improvement and innovation). I have also encouraged anyone that wants to send through any of their own observations and opportunities as well. All of this will provide the basis for me to be able to work with the SLT to establish our priorities for 2019 and then plan for how we will work with the whole staff to develop and co-design strategic and then action plans for 2019 and beyond.

The ultimate aim being to lead meaningful and manageable change so as to ensure ASHS will always be a NEW school. 

Will keep you posted how this all goes!

The following readings and resources were also shared:

Visible Learning

Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback (ASCD)

Amplifying Best Practice with BYOD and Google Classroom (Blog)

SOLO Taxonomy (HookED)

Deep Learning

The Nature of Learning (OECD)

Innovative Pedagogies for Powerful Learning (CERI/OECD)

The Future of Education and Skills - Education 2030

Inclusive Learning

CAST - About Universal Design for Learning

Universal Design for Learning | Inclusive Education (TKI)

What differentiated instruction is and isn’t (ASCD)

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Amplifying best practice with BYOD and Google Classroom (or any online platform)

Video - Google Classrooms, Learner Agency & Universal Design for Learning

In this day and age it blows me away that there are still high schools debating whether to introduce Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), and then it frustrates me further than when they do go BYOD and they choose to make it optional or drip feed it in level by level.

Those yet to introduce BYOD are doing their students a massive disservice, potentially widening the gap between the "haves and have-nots". Young people need these skills, and considering your school probably has something in the vision or mission statement about preparing young people, you're really not delivering the goods.

And as for those who are doing the slowly, slowly drip feed of BYOD, bravo for taking the first step, but you need to recognise that you are increasing your teacher's workload, not reducing it, and the chances are you are not getting anywhere near the benefits that a one to one BYOD programme can offer.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know what you are saying, change is hard for teachers, but dipping your toes takes just as much work, on top of still doing traditional prep and the chances are the efforts are half-arsed as a result and the students are frustrated because it's bloody unclear how they should be learning. This also allows for the nervous and reticent amongst your teaching staff to pretty much opt out and to lean on the offline they strategies they are confident in. And remember universal BYOD or one to one does not mean that you forgo that fabulous face to face offline practice, it just means that you can invest time and energy to do the online strategies well.

And yeah, yeah, yeah I hear others saying their learners just can't afford it. Well personally, I think those learners are the ones that need and deserve it more than any. Get your retailers/ICT suppliers to put together a weekly payment plan for a naked chromebook or laptop, ie. simply a chromebook or laptop. Not one that comes with case, insurance, steak knives and kitchen sink. You should be able to get these down to a few dollars a week. If your school budget or some kind school supporters can stretch to it, bulk buy and let families pay back at $3-4 a week. Yes, these strategies take time, and some financial risk,  but quite frankly if this means we are going to close the digital divide for our students and possibly their families, it is time bloody time and money well spent!

But I digress, this blogpost is supposed to about how BYOD can and amplify best practice.

Note - If your behaviour management is poor, if your lessons are poorly planned and your contexts less than engaging (and if you don't get of your bottom throughout each and every lesson) your BYOD will stand for Bring Your Own Distraction.

As the quote states below, technology can help education where it's already doing well!

Rather than finding a digital educational cure, he came to understand what he calls technology’s “Law of Amplification”: technology could help education where it’s already doing well, but it does little for mediocre educational systems. Worse, in dysfunctional schools, it “can cause outright harm.” He added: “Unfortunately, there is no technological fix…more technology only magnifies socioeconomic disparities, and the only way to avoid that is non-technological.”

- Dr. Kentaro Toyama in Time Magazine

Therefore it is key that when you bring in devices and start using an online learning platform you need to ensure it works to reinforce best practice. At Hobsonville Point Secondary School we have three principles that we believe underpins powerful learning: innovate through personalising learning, engage through powerful partnerships and inspire through deep challenge and inquiry. So when we looked at developing a best practice guide for e-learning our fabulous E-learning Specialist Classroom leader Danielle Myburgh used these principles to organise and construct a guide that outlined expectations for our teachers.

E-learning Best Practice Guide developed by Danielle Myburgh as E-SCT

One of the key ways we support learning at HPSS is through the development of a Learning Design Model that underpins a shared learning taxonomy that all staff use to formulate learning objectives for each and every module and lesson.

Learning Design Model - designed and supported by Di Cavallo and our awesome Learning Design Leaders

To ensure these learning objectives are visible I ensure I publish them at the beginning of each lesson, along with clear instructions as to what we are doing, so if any students are away or need to review their learning, they can do so with ease. 

A typical Google Classroom announcement

The quotes below are taken from our end of module feedback form where students were asked to comment on my use of Google Classroom.

Student Voice about visible learning strategies in my module

As well as ensuring learning is visible I am also keen to ensure that learning is as inclusive as possible. To this end I try to use a fairly simplistic approach to try and ensure that the principles of Universal Design for Learning is also underpinning how I use my online platforms (and how the students get to use their devices).

Image from CAST

This means that I try to use a range of modes for students learning about any one topic or developing any skill.

Offering a range of modes through Google Classroom 

I also let students, where appropriate, use a range of modes for evidencing their learning. For example, rather than demanding an essay, I would always let them present their learning as a podcast, video, infographic or essay/blogpost. Of course if I am assessing writing, I get them to write! But if I ain't, why the hell would I limit their chances of presenting in the way they do best. Note - it does pay to spend a little time teaching/letting them learn how present effectively through each mode. Don't worry, YouTube more than makes up for any teacher inexperience!

Offering a range of modes for evidencing learning (is easy)

The quotes below are taken from our end of module feedback form where students were asked to comment on my use of UDL through Google Classroom.

MoStudent Voice about UDL strategies in my module

Finally, BYOD has to be about developing Learner Agency! You can read more about that here. I believe BYOD and online learning platforms really come into their own when they are used to support learner agency and carefully curated choice! And as well as giving them choice, look at your direct teaching to learning ratio. See if you can do only 10-15 minutes direct instruction (if it's needed at all) and then let THEM learn! Just make sure you don't then sit back and do your sudoku/emails/Pinterest (okay that last one is a reminder for me ;). Use this time to sit amongst your students and question, challenge as support as needed. If you are take advantage of this time to do some quick admin, do it at the back of the class. Learners with screens need your support and your vigilance!

Let's got free-range!

More blogposts on this topic:

Learner Agency - More than just a buzzword #futureschools

"Tech doesn't improve student results - study" - why news reports like this are damaging (and missing the point).

So what are you doing differently this year in your classroom (and/or school)?

SECTOR VOICES: The Future of Education - Navigating the space between educational paradigms

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Effective Andragogy - Universal Design for Leading and Visible Leadership

This year I am undertaking a number of personal professional and teaching inquiries. I am participating in the National Aspiring Principals Programme (NAPP) where I am undertaking a leadership inquiry. I am also working on Masters in Educational Leadership for which I am intending to complete a thesis (in the next year or two). As well as these two external opportunities for inquiry I am also completing three inquiries that are borne out of my personal professional learning plan I am completing as part of our professional learning and appraisal cycle at HPSS.

Our HPSS Personal Professional Learning Plan is an attempt to support staff in developing a sense of agency and ownership of their professional development, but done in such a way that ensures their inquiries are focused around putting the HPSS Principles of Innovate, Engage and Inspire into practice. Within the goals there may be 1-3 teaching inquiries with the opportunity to also focus on 1-2 more personal inquiries around their areas of leadership or learning. Below is my first attempt to frame up personal goals/inquiries which were developed with the help of my 'critical friend' Steve Mouldey. NB. The HMC stands for How might Claire.

My first personal goal got me thinking. 

As I looked at it more closely, I realised I was looking to apply what I regarded as effective pedagogy to what I hope is effective leadership. We strive to differentiate our teaching and learning as a means of meeting the needs of diverse learners, but do we differentiate our leadership style so as to meet the diverse needs of our team? Do we tend to adopt a model of leadership that we think might suit the context or project (and simply reflect how we like to be led) and forget that we are still dealing with a range of people that need a range of approaches to meet them where they are at? As I mentioned in an earlier post - this is an inquiry I am exploring with my Professional Learning Team. To begin my focusing inquiry I have started with a simple activity of actually meeting with each of my team and simply asking what kind of leader they needed me to be for them to feel supported and encouraged to develop as increasingly autonomous leader in their own right? How I work with them from here on in is going to be determined by their needs combined with a common framework or approach of having termly strategic team meetings (where we consider our collective plans for the term in relation to our collective strategic plan) and individual fortnightly catch ups (that can be more or less regular than that according to needs) where we discuss their short term goals for each term. If this improves how we function as a team and how they perceive my leadership effectiveness will only be seen as we move through the year - so I am guessing it is a case of 'time will tell'.

This in turn got me thinking about what I hope to do my thesis on - the idea of looking at the impact of de-privatisation of practice has on leaders. When I discussed this idea with my principal Maurie Abraham (who shares his practice and reflections very openly) he suggested that I was talking about 'visible leading'. That was absolutely what I was talking about. I really want to explore what happens when leadership practice and reflection on leadership practice becomes visible, transparent and openly shared through presentations, blogs, tweets and other online communities. Does the very act of sharing change practice? Does it provide opportunities for feedback and support the leader to become an adaptive expert in a way that keeping leadership practice closed to everyone except those directly affected by it? This in turn got me thinking about the concept of visible learning as defined by John Hattie "Visible Learning means an enhanced role for teachers as they become evaluators of their own teaching. Visible Teaching and Learning occurs when teachers see learning through the eyes of students and help them become their own teachers",  which made me think that in a sense this is what I am talking about, but in a leadership context. The leader that shares and openly reflects on their practice is seeking to become evaluators of their own leading, seeing leadership through the eyes of those they are leading (hopefully) and help them to become their own leaders.

Considering these two inquiries alongside one another and I realised another thing -  I keep coming back to looking at leadership through an effective pedagogy lens or more precisely though a lens of effective andragogy. Is this an effective way to think about leadership, or am I merely defaulting to my teacher role? Does that even matter? 

So many questions. 

Here's hoping I might discover some answers along the way.

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