Assessment

I was privileged to attend the National Assessment Conference 2021 and the Gifted NEX Online Symposium to start the holidays. Below are my key takeaways and provocations for my practice moving forward. 

I shared this with staff during term three at a leadership meeting.

If I have an apprehension in New Zealand at the moment, it's not because we're not smart enough. It's because we're not courageous enough. - Pat Sneeden 2017

This quote is an excellent thought to hold onto as I look into the assessment of ākonga. Changing our students, whanau, and community thinking on assessment will require courage.

Over and over again, we hear that the knowledge of the learner is most critical. Do we know our students at a deep level? How do they learn, what stops them from learning, what frustrates them? Who do they think are the champions that support them and want to help them?

Any assessment needs to build the mana and connectedness of students and be a partnership between the student and teachers.

Webber and Macfarlane 2018 unpack what mana is for gifted Maori students.

• Mana Tangatarua: being confident and open to appreciating differences. 
• Mana Tū: being persistent and determined
• Mana Motuhake: having a positive self-concept concerning learning and success.
• Mana Ūkaipo: understanding they belong and have connections to places and spaces.
• Mana Whānau: are connected to whānau and aware of collective agency.

Can these also be utilised with all students to support their learning? How does assessment look if we are considering mana enhancement?

Suppose we are talking about the learner's knowledge. Could a learner profile support both the learner and their supports to deepen the understanding of the individual? 

• Could this learner profile help them realise they have things to teach others and have something they can learn from them?
• Understand they are connected, and their culture is valued.
• Support who they are and from where they come.
• Identify positive role models that they can aspire to mirror.
• Show that many people from their cultural group have achieved success.
• Identify what they are good at and help them know what areas they need to develop.
• Support them to understand their family, peers, teachers, and members of the wider school community care about them.
• Support them to know what their gifts, academic strengths and interests are.

We must always keep asking the questions of why are we testing? What is the purpose? Do our assessments ensure the realisation of the Learning Support Action Plan vision?

A vision for an inclusive education system where every child feels a sense of belonging, is present, makes progress, where their wellbeing is safeguarded and promoted, where learning is a lifelong journey, and where children and young people with learning support needs get the right support at the right time.

This Learning Support Action Plan vision caters for the students on the edges however if we plan and prepare to those edges we get benefits for all students.

UDL in Distance Learning: Meeting Each Learner’s Variability Webinar

This webinar by edWeb.net was full of great ideas, tips, and resources supporting all learners learning from home. This webinar also had excellent ideas for supporting all learners in collaboration and working online in a 1:1 classroom. 

What is learner variability? 

A recognition that all learners differ and that learning sciences research guide us in understanding how these differences matter for learning.

It considers the whole child.

In the video Research@Work: Embracing Learner Variability in Schools, David Rose discusses the importance of providing learning supports and structures tailored to students’ individual needs and abilities. He shares his vision for “de-standardising” education to help students discover their strengths and become expert learners.

Teachers need to understand how I learn, not how the average student learns, which our new National Education and Learning Priorities focus on, particularly Learners at the Centre and Barrier Free Access.

What do we mean when we say engagement?

Student engagement is made up of Emotional and Relational, Cognitive and Behavioural which I have blogged about previously in Wellbeing Won't Cut It Alone!.

The Learner Variability Navigator: A Whole Child Framework

A great framework is The Learner Variability Navigator, which helps us understand learner variability and then recognise learning challenges become a design opportunity rather than a student problem. 

First, you choose the area of interest of either math, reading, literacy or adult learning. Then you explore the factors that may create barriers to the learning for example in Literacy 4-6 Examples are Literacy, Cognition, Social and Emotional Learning and Student Background.

 If you know Syntax is a barrier by clicking on it unpacks the factor.

Once you understand the factor, you click on Strategies, and the framework has various research-based strategies for the factor.

The framework is not specifically for New Zealand; however, I see value in this, especially for teacher PLG's as part of an inquiry to include in the Learn if they are looking for new strategies to support learners and the connections between the factors.

The framework also supports teachers of learners with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, Deaf/Hard of Hearing by identifying what strategies would support.

If Universal Design for Learning is new to you or you wish to inquire further into it Smita Worah a professional development consultant from SERC has created this Padlet - Introduction to Universal Design for Learning

The following notes come directly from the slideshow today and are the work of the educators below and others. Even though this is talking about distance learning there are strong links to online learning when using Google Sites as part of classroom practice.

Distance learning: 6 UDL best practices for online learning

Examining Barriers to Find Solutions Summary (click the link above to unpack each point)

1. Explicitly teach expectations and engagement. 
2. Allow for asynchronous learning. 
3. Assign note-takers or provide guided notes with a summary of key ideas.
4. Make materials accessible. 
5. Embrace your students as teachers.
6. Actively build a supportive community.

Watching a lesson via video rather than experiencing it in the classroom can make it difficult for students to: 

• focus
• feel connected 
• process information 
• identify key ideas

Live Video Lessons: 5 Ways Kids Struggle and How to Help

Video is a challenging medium of learning for many students. Students have varied skills and

comfort levels with technology for distance learning.

Examining Barriers to Find Solutions Summary (click the link above to unpack each point)

1. Feeling Anxious About Being on Camera 
2. Staying Focused
3. Keeping Up With the Lesson
4. Managing Sensory Information 
5. Remembering Key Points

UDL solution: Explicitly teach expectations and engagement

• Co-create expectations with students.
• Teach and provide opportunities for practice
• Use multiple formats for sharing and referencing expectations. 
• Some students have trouble processing information only in auditory form.

UDL solution: Allow for asynchronous learning

• Record video to access later (or again)
• Incorporate other representations
• Provide transcripts, using apps like Otter.ai (has a limited free version), Youtube (Not always accurate), iPhone dictation

Online work: Best practices for teachers to use with students

Materials, handouts, and images can be difficult to access for some students, including those who use screen readers.

1. Be consistent in how you post your content and share information.
2. Create a regular timeline for providing information and activities.
3. Use a consistent layout for sharing tasks and activities. 
4. Offer multiple means of representation.
5. Remember to use multiple means of action and expression.
6. Introduce new tools in low-stakes ways. 
7. Provide a structured drop-in option for help, questions, and support. 

UDL Solution: Make materials accessible

• Create short text descriptions for images and videos.
• Use Word, Google Docs, or another accessible format that have optical character recognition (OCR) for screen reader access.
• Use tools like WebAIM (cost involved) to check written materials, especially PDFs, for screen reader accessibility. 

5 tips for supporting students socially and emotionally during distance learning

Distance learning can make it harder to check-in on and gauge emotional and physical well-being and to provide support to each other. 

1. Schedule regular check-ins with students and their families.

2. Teach strategies for organization, planning, and self-regulation.

3. Read and discuss current events.

4. Assign a project that encourages students to be “helpers.”

5. Share stress-reduction and mindfulness strategies.

UDL solution: Deliberately build a collaborative community

• Build time in for students to connect with each other
• Use “break-out” rooms (Zoom) or have individual/group check-ins with students
• Use discussion boards or collaboration tools like Miro or Padlet

UDL enhancement: Embrace your students as teachers

• Build in interactive ways for students to provide feedback on your plans
• Check in with students about what they need and be flexible and responsive 

How to plan online lessons with Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Subtracting Mixed Numbers Problem Type 1 (No Borrowing)

Using a Google Doc and Screencastify with Drawing Tools to annotate.

Before Teaching - UDL-Aligned Virtual Lessons

• Think about physical design and layout
• Familiarize yourself with technology platforms
• Give time and patience to student and families to learn technology
• Anticipate misconceptions and questions
• Think about pacing and breaks
  

While Teaching - UDL-Aligned Virtual Lessons

• Leverage options within technology platforms
• Provide choices for how students can interact
• Give students agency over how and when they engage in work
• Be open minded about formats that students’ work can take

After Teaching - UDL-Aligned Virtual Lessons

• Develop a reflection and evaluation practice with yourself and with students
• Read and study up-to-date research
• Engage in learning communities with other educators to learn and share insights

UDL Lessons In 2021 and Beyond

• Don’t feel like you need to implement everything all at once.
• Don’t be afraid to try something new. Expect several iterations.
• Work in partnership with others rather than trying to do it all by yourself.
• Acknowledge that cognitive demands on kids and adults can look and feel different across learning models.
• Prioritize necessary skills and standards for students. Think about how to integrate different skills within lessons and across content areas.
• Think about UDL even when teaching social emotional learning and self-advocacy skills.

Distance learning toolkit: Key practices to support students who learn differently

Wellbeing Won't Cut It Alone!

I thought by reflecting on my journey during this opportunity; I might clarify my thinking and support others. For myself, I believe that it is not wellbeing alone that made this challenge so manageable. It has been the combination of wellbeing, success and engagement, which has enabled me to come through this period refreshed and excited.

In my head, this has never been a crisis, I have seen it as a challenge or opportunity. I have been fortunate like most educators, I have continued to receive my full income. I am in no doubt if my wife or myself lost our incomes, then this would have become a possible crisis.

Do not get me wrong as I have had many moments of self-doubt, stress and anxiety; however, I have managed to work through these. I have come out the other side fresh and reinvigorated in my purpose and role supporting schools.

How have I done this? Let me take you through my reflections focussing on my wellbeing, success and engagement. At the time, I was not aware I was doing things that supported all three aspects.

I remember a colleague once telling a school staff meeting to ensure student success we needed to look at three parts of an equilateral triangle. These parts were student wellbeing, student engagement and student achievement. Missing one would impact on the others as they were all interconnected.

 Since the earthquakes in Christchurch, there has been a real push for wellbeing. As a result, I think we have forgotten about the importance of success and engagement for improving wellbeing.

The image above is my attempt to understand what these three things looked like for me. 

When I started, I was not sure how to define each, so I went to good ole Google. Here are what I have used to describe Wellbeing, Engagement and Success.

Wellbeing - I focussed on the Five Ways to Wellbeing from the Mental Health Foundation NZ.

Success - I used ERO's Valued Student Outcomes and Wellbeing for Success.

Engagement - I used a combination of resources from TKI Student Engagement Teaching as Inquiry, Universal Design for Learning from Inclusive Education and Ka Hikitia Accelerating Success. 

I am going to relate them to my own experiences and why I am feeling so positive and refreshed.

Wellbeing

• Take Notice - One of the simple things that give me joy is having a spa with the family which continued over lockdown.
• Keep Learning - I signed up to two challenges during the lockdown, one around nutrition and the other the 25 days push up challenge. I learnt many new things which I implemented into my daily routine and enjoyed. I did so much professional knowledge building as I am sure many educators did as I worked through what learning from home required to be successful.
• Be Active - I maintained my regular exercise program and even added extra with regular walks with my wife.
• Give - with a colleague; I explored new ways to present content to teachers, learners and whānau online, created resources and shared these with our communities. I connected with friends online, played games with my bubble, supported my wife and children in working and learning from home. However, my wife did most of the learning support for our children while I had online meetings.
• Connect - I connected teachers and leaders I supported either face to face online or through blogging, email and online support and found this very rewarding and enjoyable. I met daily with our national team for a quick update and participated in Friday online drinks. We connected with other family members outside our bubble. We gave our children access to messenger apps that allowed them to communicate with their friends and cousins.

Success

• I participated and contributed confidently in a range of contexts to support teachers, leaders, students, whānau, family, friends and new acquaintances. For example, we created a site to support educators teaching from home and I joined a Whatsapp group to support each other in a nutrition challenge. I was involved in numerous video conferences, messages, emails, and phone calls to connect with others personally and professionally.
• I was a successful lifelong learner completing a nutrition challenge which I gained much new knowledge to support my training and future sporting events. I blogged as I worked through my thinking about the new learnings in lockdown. My children and I learnt lots about how we all work as we came up with strategies to support our learning from home. Once again, I blogged about this to support others who may have had similar issues.
• I have good relationship skills, are self-confident and can bounce back from setbacks. I can lead while being able to self manage and make responsible decisions to ensure my practices are sustainable. One of the things I did that was successful during this time was creating a routine early on and sharing this with all the educators I supported.
• I have self-belief due to the knowledge I am involved with numerous individuals and organisations that know what they are doing. I also know how to navigate the online world when I do not know something to access content, knowledge and skills to support myself. I think this self-belief supports me to be confident in my identity, language and culture as a citizen of New Zealand. This confidence extends to fixing a motor on a washing machine, supporting my son through the meltdown of online learning, or changing the way I look at traditional knowledge of food and education.

Engagement

• Cognitive - I learnt late in my life that I learn best by either doing, watching or talking with others to develop my knowledge and skills.  However, I am also able to draw on other modes of accessing information like text and audio if the situation warrants it. I am lucky the leaders I work with understand learning and therefore provide access to materials in numerous ways. I have been trying to utilise the principles of Universal Design for Learning in my work when supporting others. We had supported our children by looking at the content provided for their learning. When it was not available through the class learning, we found the information in different formats online. 
• Cultural  - this has been an exciting experience seeing how families and organisations, including my own, have created environments online to promote a sense of belonging. The addition of grid view in a Google Meet helped develop a sense of belonging along with the use of secondary smaller online bubbles for more intimate group work. When learning online, there is a real need to show the organisation's culture and values, what makes your audience think "that is my classroom". Acknowledging culture is an area I am developing and often is left till last as I think about how learners will access the content. However, reflecting on this as I write this, what use is equitable access if the learner can not see their culture or values in the content and choose not to engage?
• Behavioural - My children certainly had enjoyed the choice they were given and the freedom of choosing when and how they completed their learning. We did have meltdowns when there were no scaffolds as to how to complete the work or support for the students' workflow. I have been allowed the space to work in a high trust model. I had choice and opportunities for how I interact with material and how I want to show that material in my context. I was able to think about what I could manage in my context and then plan my workload accordingly. I had support and guidance from leadership about how to proceed in our daily meetings. The big enabler was I realised with support from colleagues and reading others experiences what was manageable and sustainable. I think some educators who felt their wellbeing had been impacted by Learning at Home did not modify their behaviours. They proceeded to interact with learners the same way they did face to face.
• Emotional - going into this experience, my colleagues have known me and built relationships with me for seven years. They understand how I work and what support I might need. I think with the work I have done with educators in our online meets has developed stronger relationships. For some, working at home offered an environment with fewer distractions so they could focus on what mattered and changed as needed. It was so awesome seeing my son connect with one of his teachers and the commonalities he found he had with the teacher. Caution needs to be applied, especially in a secondary context as it would be impossible to connect with all your students individually online. I would imagine where educators tried to do this; they may well be exhausted now as we head back to schools.

My personal opinion is that if we solely focus on wellbeing at the expense of the other two, we will end up in a worse position. 

As leaders,

• Can we empower individuals and groups to manage their own lives by focussing on the five ways to wellbeing?
• Could we support them to enable themselves to be successful in life?
• Might we encourage them to engage by considering how we interact with them through material and expectations of evidence? 

Maybe by focussing on all three aspects, we may help to create a  state of being for all that is comfortable, healthy, and happy for the majority of the time.