Meeting My PLN

Day 7 (of 187) – September 12, 2018

Today is a new day… it was a HUGE day… first, I overbooked myself. I am so grateful that I have colleagues who are willing to flex their time and reappointment to another time. After last nights class, I stayed up late… to blog… but also prep for my classes today. I am just pooped. That said, nothing picks up your day better than meeting members of your Twitter PLN face-to-face. I know Monica (@MBerra) from Twitter and Noelle (@noelle_pepin) knows me from Twitter. All in all, this morning was pretty much an one-hour love in. I did not want it to end. I love what they are doing at the SD57 District Learning Centre and I can’t wait to have Noelle come guest speak to one of my classes… and Monica work with my other class with the SD57 Education Kits during practicum.

This was a good start to my day… as I race back to the university to teach my two classes back to back… these classes went super well as well. This made me super happy. JUST BE YOURSELF. You teach who you are. Be the person you want to see… Classic… the Golden Rule at its finest. I had fun in both my classes, but the 10 minute transition from one class to another makes it a marathon of instruction. I just met my first class, the elementary practicum group, for the first time. Because I met so many of these students during orientation, it did not feel like a “syllabus day.” It was so great to OVER PLAN and go with the flow. Goodbye PLOW mindset. I wanted thisclass to get a good sense of who I am and what I am all about. With my second class, it was our second class together. Again… I was going with the flow and over planned this class too. I had stuff to pull from but also was was able to give space for students to co-create knowledge and collectively sense-make. I was a super fun class. We had our FIRST student led presentation too… using MEMES. How timely, because #bcedchat kicked off the school year with memes.

The day concludes with me chatting with a student after class, cancelling a meeting, putting aside some work for tomorrow… and racing home to attend the SD46 Board of Education meetings via phone. Yup. It was a full day. I even got an email from one of my students from last night indicating that he had enjoyed last night’s class. So cray, cray.

Habitual Pedagogy

Day 6 (of 187) – September 11, 2018

Oh my goodness… what a day. Not only am I writing my “second” daily blog of learning today, I clocked in more than 12-hours on campus… teaching, learning, and leading. No complaints. I loved it. I truly enjoy having my DOOR OPEN, as mentioned in my last blog entry, and having students and staff drop in to say hello, discuss course work, or share ideas. It’s an ideal workplace situation. I am totally stoked about starting and e-Portfolio with our Teacher Candidates and learning-by-doing what it means to facilitate this shift in teaching and learning. The best part is knowing that someone on campus has a collaborative expertise on this. This was a perfect storm. I will let you know how this goes. In the meantime, I was prepping for my night course EDUC 601 – Educational Research and Design. Well… all I can say is REDO please. I can do better.

I don’t want to be my toughest critic but I think I am. The students seemed OK, but they don’t know any different. I walked away from tonight’s class and thought… Why am I doing all of the blabbing? What do I know? How can I facilitate learning to help them know (without me dumping MY THOUGHTS on research)? We have a book… and what are their thoughts? I will admit, we were trying to get two weeks worth of “content” done tonight because we did not have class last week. UNBC’s classes officially started last Wednesday (and we’re a Tuesday night course). It was a “sit and deliver” on the course syllabus and Chapters 1 and 2. The students thrived when I just gave them the space to figure our their research problem and discuss with others. I so bummed that when push comes to shove that I would resort to what I know… HABITUAL PEDAGOGY.

A PowerPoint, my vague summary of the chapters, and me speaking about the BIG IDEAS of the chapters these students have pre-read before my class… Can this get anymore disappointing? OK. I’m doing my job… but not well. I know I can do better. I want a new HABITUAL PEDAGOGY that is student centred and student led… in higher education. I want students to be sense-making… collaboratively and cooperatively. I want to create a learning community that thrives on growth, experiential learning, and play. I am being a bit rough on myself. I’m not sure what I expect from my first class of any course in higher education. The syllabus run-down is really just me sharing my vision and expectations for the course. Nothing too exciting. But I could have done better on my chapter summaries.

That said, I was encouraged by how students from my previous classes are already talking to me about what they are planning to do in our class in the next coming days… to collaborate and bounce ideas. I love that. I was heartened by how quickly my night class gelled and gracefully engaged in small group discussion to talk about research and their research problem. We’ll see how this goes. No one was scathed and I am judging pretty early in the term (i.e. after the first class). In hindsight, my first class of other courses I taught at SFU had a “slow start” and would only gain momentum by Week 6. We are only in Week 2. I should be kinder to myself, but I do understand why it would be difficult to adopt BC’s New Curriculum with HABITUAL PEDAGOGY. I am a huge supporter of BC’s New Curriculum and 21st Century Learning… and here I am defaulting to “lecturing” (even though that’s my job title). I am learning as I am doing. Can’t wait for tomorrow.

Building Relationships

Day 5 (of 187) – September 10, 2018

I am slowly but surely flooding my office at UNBC with “stuff.” There is no way that I will handily fill 5 BOOK SHELVES within the school year, but I am prepared for the challenge. I am also slowly but surely catching onto this DAILY BLOG on days of learning. Yes, I am learning. And yes, I am one day behind, as anticipated because it takes time to form new habits. That said, I had no classes on Monday but I like to go to the university to work and meet new people. All that I have to do is LEAVE MY DOOR OPEN. This is nice. Personally, as an extrovert, I like the door open. But having my door open provides an invitation to others to walk by and say HELLO or have a seat to have a chat. I liked that. I met more faculty (new to me), connected to familiar faces, and chatted with some students one-to-one. What I am appreciating most about teaching and learning at UNBC is that I can be myself. I feel authentic to my practice and to those I work, teach, and learn with. This is a nice feeling. I like being in a state of change, personally and professionally, which helps me to gain a deep understanding of the change process and how RELATIONSHIPS are at the core of what we are trying to do and achieve.

Today will not be a super long blog reflection on learning. I’m anticipating to write another blog entry tonight on today’s day of learning. I’m teaching tonight too. Anyway, I love that I continue to make connections with other people to broaden and deepen my understanding of teaching and learning. I am diversifying my understanding being in a different place with different people and I love the opportunity to make myself vulnerable to the learning process with hopes that it will influence my teaching practice and thus improve or enhance the learning experiences of my students (aka. teacher candidates) and their students to be. This is a good place to be and I hope to continue building relationships so that we can move forward together towards a common goal. Don’t get me wrong… as much as I am excited to lunge forwards 3 steps… I do step back one or two because it’s the right thing to do. This is the thing about relationships. It’s a give and take process. There are no winners. It’s opportunities for teaching and learning. In the end… realizing this after a brief conversation with another student this morning… it’s not about what you teach that students remember, it’s the relationship that you have created and nourished… and how you made them feel in that relationship will last a lifetime.

You Can’t See Yourself

Ah yes… my fave… a FOOD PIC. This a photo of a Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict from “Ohh Chocolate in downtown Prince George. It was sooooooo delicious and sooooooo unexpected. First of all, there was something yummy in the hollandaise sauce that was tangy and somewhat addictive. So, goodbye potatoes dipped in hollandaise sauce. It was the first thing to go off my plate followed up by the strawberry garnish as a palate cleanser. Then I moved onto the piece of maple bacon COVERED IN CINNAMON. What the? So delicious!!! This does not speak to the main course of the meal… the Eggs Benedict. At first glance, you’d think that the HUGE piece of salmon is lying on a piece of toast, but no. With closer inspection, it was a piece of toasted croissant. Moist and tender to the knife and fork. The egg, sauce, salmon, and croissant was a winning combination and this was a LOCAL chocolate coffee house. YUMMY. Best of all… Breakfast special for the month of September… TWO breakfasts for the price of ONE. Winning!!!

This blog entry is not a food review… but really, today’s brunch AND COFFEE at Ohhh Chocolate were outstanding. It’s not even a commentary of the awesome local venues that are up and coming in Prince George, but I hope to go to more. I’m really enjoying myself. Furthermore, it’s not one of my DAILY BLOG ENTRIES to reflect on each day of learning; a challenge I have personally taken on from Ian Landy @technolandy because I think it’s absolutely crazy to blog everyday. So, I might post this blog entry onto my personal Facebook Page. Day’s like this is an opportunity for me to get out of my apartment (or university campus office) to connect with those I know who live in or near Prince George. Today, I made plans with one of my former Math 12 students from Chatelech Secondary… Deb Petula… now Deb Young… to have brunch. Ohhh Chocolate is like a modern, locally owned business with lots of yummy things to eat and drink.

Meeting up with folks like Deb (and Nicole Doran from a few weeks ago) is an opportunity for me to explore the City of Prince George through the lens of my former students but also current residents of Prince George. I am slowly but surely getting my bearings but I think this will take some time. To get anywhere that’s not College Heights, UNBC, or Winners, I have to turn on my MAPS APP on my iPhone and trust that I am going to end up where I want to be. Thank goodness for technology. Without it, I would definitely still be in my apartment wondering if I knew anyone in Prince George. That would be a sad state of affairs. Here I go… up and over the hill via the university to get to the other side of Prince George to head to an area called “The Bowl” to pick up Deb from her home. I met her husband Jack and waved hello to her two little ones who were in the house. They were super cute and still in their jammies. You knew it was Saturday morning.

It was clear to Deb that I had no idea where I was going. She had to be my human MAPS APP to get to our destination. On the way there, we chatted about how she landed in Prince George. I did not realize that she schooled at UNBC, met her husband at UNBC, and started work in Prince George soon after university graduation. She’s been in Prince George for 17 years… which means I taught Deb at least 18 years ago… now that BLOWS MY BRAIN. Has it really been that long? Must be true though… I just can’t believe time flies. We chatted all morning as if no time had few by. I liked that Deb had to tell her friend this morning that she couldn’t do coffee with her because she was going out with her MATH TEACHER. Oh ya… feels good!!! I had no idea that I was Deb’s favourite teacher and favourite math teacher. I enjoyed having her in my math class but I did not know I was a favourite. Huh. YOU CAN’T SEE YOURSELF… the title of this blog entry.

This cognitive awakening got me thinking about my research and self-assessment. How do we know what we know if we can’t see ourselves? This is metacognition at it’s finest. I’ve always believed that we all need “a mirror” to see ourselves. I don’t think SELFIES are going to cut it. That’s all orchestrated and designed for social media, but how do we really see ourselves? How do we measure ourselves? I wonder about this. I do recall not being other people’s favourite teacher, but is that really true. I loved how Deb said during brunch today… that I made math easy to understand and FUN to learn. She said that I made math too seemingly too doable that she wanted to go to university to study math and become a teacher. That was my biggest compliment I took from today. I had no idea I was achieving this with my high school math students even though it was my intent.

We had an amazing brunch… as mentioned earlier… and seen in my favourite to do FOOD PIC. We headed out to check out another area that many locals had mentioned. We went to “The Hart.” I was surprised how many people I’ve met and chatted with mentioned that they live IN THE HART where it apparently SNOWS MORE due to higher elevations. Not going to lie… I’m glad I’m not living there. I’m not handling the snow already and it’s a beautiful summer day heading into fall. Let’s not talk about this. So, we drove out to THE HART and I managed to make my way around a ROUNDABOUT. Yup. it’s the small wins that matter most. Wow. I was so glad to drive out that way. I had never been here before and can see why people live out in The Hart. It’s a bit of a distance and well… I like the convenience of where I live (for me) at College Heights. Now, I know.

En route, Deb mentioned the Northern Lights Winery. I wanted to go back there because my other friend, Kat, who taught up in Prince George with a French Cohort with SFU said it was a place to go. So let’s… It was AMAZING. A beautiful location along the Nechako River… an establishment built only 3-years ago that makes FRUIT WINES. Of course we engaged in a wine tasting and both Deb and I walked away with two bottles of wine each. From apple to huckleberries… the wine was unusual and delicious. What an awesome find in Prince George. There was a tour from France visiting the winery and it’s great to know that they too serve brunch, lunch, and dinner. I’m coming back to get two more bottles of fruit wine… but possibly closer to October when the cherry wine comes in.

Thank you Deb Young for taking me around Prince George. My mantra: One venue at a time. I loved how Nicole Doran (former Chatelech Secondary student) took me around to different places in Prince George as well as brunch at Nancy O’s. That was amazing. Next time, it will be Chicken and Waffles brunch (with a side of bacon). I will be meeting up with Melissa Darney (another former Chatelech Secondary student) on Monday morning and I met up with school trustee colleagues Trish and Tim from the SD57 Board of Education. I have also met folks from my Twitter PLN… Glen Thielmann who now teaches at UNBC and Shannon Schinkel who will be guest modding #bcedchat later this month. I was reunited with Deneen Sawchuk who teaches in SD57, but did teach in SD46 with me years ago. We went to Zoe’s Java House. YUM. My colleague Deb Koehn has been great introducing me to Prince George and UNBC. We went to Sushi 97 last week for lunch. That was good. My kid would have loved it. Now, I’m in the midst of making plans folks from Quesnel… Dot who used to curl with me in Gibsons and Gloria who served with me on the BCSTA Board of Directors and current chair of the SD28 Board of Education.

Thank goodness for people. Without them, I would be hibernating in my apartment in College Heights… blogging about what could have been. Instead, I’m blogging about what is… with gratitude, great experiences, and good conversation. I am so pleased to know so many people in the Prince George area. There are more and I will meet more. FUN!!!

Cruising Around

Day 4 (of 187) – September 7, 2018

I am cruising around campus today and I have slightly deviated from my one route to and from the Teaching and Learning Centre to anywhere else. No classes for me today and “the floor” was very quiet. I believe only one of four cohorts were in session. It was a good opportunity to do some work and get things done. Fridays is also the day Gretchen, one of my colleagues, is on campus. She’s on campus only on Fridays and teaches the rest of her courses online up north. Yes, she lives somewhere more north from Prince George. I don’t know how she does it, but she’s doing it. Anyway, we connected and I helped her move her furniture in her office. In return, I coerced her to go to the UNBC Faculty Association New Faculty Welcome Reception. They were serving lunch… why not? It was fun to cruise around campus with her to find the FA Lounge and meet new people.

After lunch and introductions, we left the event with some swag and bought UNBC Orange T-Shirt Day shirts from the bookstore. We had a chance to talk about EDUC490 and connect up with the Education Coordinator Deb later in the afternoon with Practicum Placement Coordinator Carol. Gretchen was getting stuff done and so was I. Today was a great opportunity to talk to the IT/AV department and visit the university library. And check the picture above… UNBC WEATHER DEPT… I was captured by the MATH. This was a pleasant surprise during my university exploration and checking out the university cafeteria where we bumped into the Dean with her son (who’s attending the university). It was a really good day. It makes me think about the importance of understanding place to understand my work and my place. I had a good day, but now it’s time to go to bed.

I am looking forward to tomorrow and Monday where I get to meet up with former Chatelech Secondary students (from my era as secondary math and science teacher) who now live in Prince George. I am really happy to meet and reunite with people here in Prince George. It’s a good reason to get out of my apartment or office at the university. I love connecting with them. It makes me feel more settled in Prince George. And thank goodness for technology. I don’t think that I would be able to do what I am doing now without technology. I feel connected to my family even though they are still on the west coast in Sechelt. Love the daily SnapChats, texts, and surprise FaceTimes. It makes me feel good… like going to bed early. Not my normal, but hey… I just bought snow boots.

No Class Selfie

Day 3 (of 187) – September 6, 2018

Unbelievable. I review my pics and this is what I’ve got. This is one of 3 pictures of course sign-ups. That’s it. I had full intentions of taking a selfie with my EDUC 360 class… my first class at UNBC… but nope. I must have been focussed… or not focussed. This would depend on your perspective. I chatted about stuff that I did not intend to while going through my course syllabus. Admittedly, going through the course syllabus is not one of my favourite classes to facilitate, but it’s was definitely a great opportunity for my class to give me FORMATIVE FEEDBACK on my course syllabus and ask questions. Dang… I did change my mind on some of the course assignments and yes, there were errors in my course syllabus. AWESOME. I appreciated the feedback. No only did I learn how to get stuff posted to BLACKBOARD (a different platform from Canvas), I also updated my course syllabus with version 2. The irony does not escape me when much of my course chatter was about FORMATIVE and SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT. This was nice.

It’s interesting trying to transfer what I know and understand from my teaching and learning experience at SFU (Simon Fraser University) to teaching at UNBC (University of Northern British Columbia). As the saying goes, “you don’t know what you don’t know” but you’re surely going to find out when you put yourself out there and TRY. It’s interesting to hear how other classes went. I shouldn’t be my own toughest critic, but as always… it could have been better. I was orienting myself to how to use technology of the classroom, getting my PowerPoint going, and turning up the volume. That’s still true… except I’m not navigating how to use the TV/VCR (lol). I was getting used to the class orientation, class size, and plowing through my course syllabus in less than 2-hours. I was so used to students not really knowing each other, classes ranging from 28-38 students, and 4-hour classes. It was a shift in momentum for me… but I’m looking forward to more.

Well… that’s the only class that I’m teaching this week, but I have much more to do and achieve. Now that I know the basics of BLACKBOARD, I need to get my other classes on board. I have some prep to do for next week’s classes and I want to get my head back into research with SFU’s Centre for the Study of Educational Leadership and Policy (CSELP). I’ve been postponing that and really, I need to take the lead on that… because I have something to learn. So I really appreciate having an office where I can leave work at work… so that I can get to different work at home. This is the pros and cons of not being with my family. There is a huge part of me that wants to be in Sechelt to be with my kid, man, and dog. On the other hand, this is my time in Prince George to make the most of this teaching and learning experience in Prince George at UNBC. I must stick to my core belief… “anything is possible.” The goal is to make it happen. Onwards and upwards.

Teacher Orientation

Day 2 (of 187) – September 5, 2018

Wow. It’s Day 2 of the Teacher Candidates Orientation at UNBC. It was so great to see again and listen to BC Ministry of Education’s Superintendent of Learning Pat Duncan speak to our Teacher Candidates about BC’s New Curriculum. It’s nice to hear from the person “on the top” talk about what’s being imagined for BC Education and WHY we are doing it. I was shocked about the exponential growth of technology and access to information. It was a nice reminder to listen to Pat with the continued message from the Ministry of Education that change is happening, it needs to happen, and it’s going to be messy. It’s so crazy for our Teacher Candidates to consider especially when we have been educated in a school system that was predictable, efficient, and routine-like.

I also appreciated that after Pat’s 1.5 hour presentation that he field questions from our Teacher Candidates after his spiel, during lunch, and afterwards with our Year 2 Teacher Candidates. Our students asked some really difficult questions and I could not help myself but jump in from time to time about my take on BC’s New Curriculum and where I think we’re heading towards. It was a great dialogue and we also heard from other UNBC instructors… Glen, Deb, and Richard… contributing to the conversation. I am grateful that our students were not shy to ask the tough questions. Ir reminds of me of the “wicked question.” Questions with no clear answers. This can make some people uneasy and frustrated, but also it may make others excited and liberated. For me, I’m the latter.

Thank you to the School of Education Coordinator Deb Koehn and Placement Coordinator Carol Fedyk for making this 2-day learning experience with our Teacher Candidates possible. For me, it was very classic “education” but also it was a great way for our students to transition back into university life and for teacher training via Practicum. Lots of learning ahead and I also felt like this 2-day experience was part of my orientation as Lecturer/Instructor at the university. For this, I am grateful. The day concludes with me doing work in my office and preparing for tomorrow’s class and beyond. I sent my detailed course syllabi to our copy centre with no expectations of getting my copies until next week. NOPE. I got them within an HOUR!!! I was shocked and dismayed. Thank you Barry for your kindness, communication, and quality of work. This made my day!!!

Back to School

Day 1 (of 187) – September 4, 2018

Welcome BACK TO SCHOOL. It’s been almost 8 years since I had a full-time job. That seems so crazy to say… 8-YEARS!!! I left teaching secondary mathematics in public schools in the fall of 2010 to pursue my doctorate degree and spend more time with my daughter. During that time, I also served as a school trustee, which was another opportunity to stay connected with K-12 education but from a different point of view. I loved teaching secondary mathematics. I loved all of the people I’ve met as a school trustee. Now that I am done my doctorate degree, it was time for the next step.

I am very grateful to be working at UNBC as a full-time Lecturer in the School of Education. I am teaching predominantly teacher candidates during practicum, but also I am teaching undergraduate courses in curriculum and instruction and classroom dynamics, and a graduate course in research methods and design. It’s pretty much a job of my dreams. I am also involved with opportunities connect with school districts and reimagining teacher education. I am really thankful to engage in these conversations and I look forward to teaching the students, learning as I am doing, and creating some educational change that will enhance the learning experiences of teachers candidates, coaching teachers, and university instructors. I just finished my course syllabi TODAY!!!

As seen in the photo above, today was TEACHER CANDIDATES ORIENTATION DAY. I was more of a participant than facilitator. I am still learning about the program’s culture and I loved having the opportunity to meeting Year 1 and Year 2 students, elementary and secondary. There was definitely a nice BUZZ in the room as we engaged in some classic edu-activities to break the ice. I enjoyed chatting with those at my table. I am really excited to start teaching on Thursday. Tomorrow is the second day of the orientation and we will be listening to my friend and Superintendent of Learning Pat Duncan. It’s amazing how small circle things are. Superintendent of Graduation & Student Transitions Jan Unwin also visited our School of Education faculty last week. I enjoy seeing familiar faces.

With our 1.5 hour lunch break, Teacher Candidates had the opportunity to participate in the University’s Orientation events while I had the opportunity to pick up a FREE PLANT for my office, PG swag and maps, and unload some of my personal items to fill at least one bookshelf in my empty office. I am pretty stoked to have an office. It’s really nice to work in. I also used that time to connect with IT, find my class lists, and finalize my course syllabi for this term. I was so happy to get feedback on my syllabi from a seasoned practitioner in higher education. Admittedly, that took some courage on my part to get feedback, but also it’s my choice to take or leave the feedback. I was pretty satisfied with what I had produced and imagined. I did make a few modifications and VOILA… done.

What I realized today is, I will be teaching a graduate course, a Year 1 secondary course, and Year 2 elementary course. This is a nice sampling of the school of education. I am also supervising one student who’s completing her MEd in Multidisciplinary Leadership. It’s really fun so far. I appreciate the help I am getting from my colleagues and the conversations we are having. My mission is to make teaching and learning VISIBLE at UNBC. We are in the midst of change and I’m super excited for our students, the university, and the community. I can’t wait to learn more and see what’s possible. My purpose is to enhance the learning experiences of students. Let’s see how this goes. Apparently, I will be writing a daily blog, so I’m imagining we’ll find out soon via blog.

Embracing Change

Day 0 (of 187) – September 3, 2018

Well… I have taken on the challenge of blogging everyday during the school year. Now that I am at UNBC in Prince George,… living away from my family… this would be an excellent time to reflect on my learning and experiences. Thank you Ian Landy (@technolandy) for inspiring me to do so. I always thought you were CRAZY blogging everyday, but you were inspired by George Couros (@gcouros). I like the idea that one is learning from another. I also appreciate the notion of you don’t know what you don’t know unless you try. So… here we go!!!

Of course, I have started this daily blog challenge one day behind. Yes, it will be a 2-blog day. I could have started with DAY 1 today but I was thinking about this blog entry before writing about DAY 1 – “Back to School.” I’ll get to that blog entry after I get this one done.

First of all, I love this photo. A snapshot of my little family on FaceTime. It’s also how we are going to spend our time together. It’s true… my little family stayed in Sechelt on the Sunshine Coast and I ventured alone to Prince George to start a full-time teaching appointment at the UNBC School of Education as Lecturer. I’m pretty excited about this opportunity and the teaching/learning experiences I can be a part of. Admittedly, I’m pretty stoked. It’s a nice match to my expertise and research background. I am super happy to stay close to the K-12 system, teach pre-service teachers, and do research at my own pace. It’s nice.

One thing about EMBRACING CHANGE that I am not a personal fan of… and continue to struggle with… are the people who will come and go in your life. When I was younger, classmates would come and go. I was very accepting of that idea. As an adult and building relationships with those in your workplace, for instance, I am perplexed how some friendships are broken or temporarily set aside, while others stay unscathed and stronger than ever. At some some level, it’s really out of my control and yet on another level, I wished that things would always stay the same. This is a naive point of view. Of course if I am changing and making changes, the people in my life will change. The only way I can accept this phenomenon exists is that to allow new people in my life, others have to go. It’s not like I choose this. Well… I may sometimes, but rarely. This belief helps me through the hurt and unknown reasons why people are no longer in my life.

I look forward to those who will enter my life while in Prince George. I have met so many great people and it so awesome to be reunited with former students, friends from the past, and members of my Twitter PLN face-to-face. Lots have people have entered in my life in addition to meeting really nice people in the community and UNBC School of Education. It is an excellent exercise of making myself vulnerable and open to meeting new people, but also let go of those who no longer want to or need to stay in my life. This phenomenon has happened several times during the last 24 years since I left university during my undergraduate years. It’s something I am noticing and mindful of. In the end, I will EMBRACE CHANGE but in doing so, the people in my life will also change.

Thinking Formative

Yes. I have taken a photo from the archives… well, it was not taken that long ago… last month. I’ve been meaning to blog all week and waited for my moment of inspiration. I almost blogged about bumping in to THREE Sechelt folks in Prince George. That was very exciting, but that was only tweet and Facebook post worthy. LOL. I also thought about blogging about all of the people I know in Prince George, whether it be a former student, trustee colleague, or someone from my PLN. It’s really amazing and I’m enjoying my time trying to connect with these people face-to-face. It’s super fun. My moment of inspiration has come from thinking about the details of my syllabi for courses I’m teaching at UNBC, my associations outside of my employment, and rebranding my website and company.

THINKING FORMATIVE. That’s why I love this photo above from my EDUC454E100 class. It was a photo taken from our last class together as they partake in a learning activity that required a full-exercise of the core competencies of thinking, communicating, and personal/social. To succeed in this activity, everyone had to be operating in the formative. What do I mean by that? Everyone is sharing their two-cents on what they thought the image would look like. Every student contributed to the creation and formation of this beautiful image, “Coming Home” by Coast Salish artist Margaret Briere. Some information shared had value. Some input was taken, while others were not… and that was OK.

I remember the kind of work it took on my part to make this class fun, engaging, and meaningful for those who wanted to participate. One of the most overwhelming comments that came from my students informally was that they were so surprised of the LEARNING COMMUNITY we’ve created. Some said that they knew maybe one or two people in the class prior to the course starting and now walked away with many close friends and colleagues to connect and collaborate with. This warms my heart, but why did this happen? We were THINKING IN THE FORMATIVE as a learning community.

Ongoing formative assessment from my part, class discussions, and an open-door policy were critical. Students were encouraged to ask any questions, seek clarification, or get formative feedback on anything prior to demonstration of learning. This was a BIG IDEA. Some of my students asked for feedback after they performed but what is there to say unless they were going to do that exact same learning activity again. I could give feedback if they planned to do that learning activity in their classes as a future teacher or teacher candidate, but there was no moment when I wanted to give formative feedback after they had been evaluated. Why? What’s the point? This took much explanation for my students to understand the difference between summative and formative assessment.

Can you imagine if you were being judged at every moment and that everything you do was “worth marks” and being evaluated? YIKES. Or worse… believing that we are being judged or evaluated all of the time. With this perception or reality, no one can be their authentic self, be willing to make mistakes, or receive information that might be helpful to them and the learning community. We are all interconnected. Our shared success should matter to all of us. This is the kind of climate and culture I tried to create in my EDUC454E100 class. Some of my students asked me how I created that learning environment. The underpinning to that course’s success and sense of community was knowing that I was on their side and THINKING FORMATIVE. To form and be informed...

One of the downfalls of THINKING FORMATIVE is thinking summative. There is no judgement. It’s not personal. The job of the learner or receiver is to take what is being offered wholeheartedly and do something about it… or not. Sometimes the formative feedback can’t be received or heard because we think or believe that we are being judged or evaluated. This is the EGO talking… wanting to protect self from what is happening and what they can do about it, if they want to. This was a HUGE idea for my students to understand. I offered, many times, that they could have handed in their DRAFT final project to me as many times they wanted formative feedback on their work before they handed it in to be evaluated. Very few took me up on that opportunity and as a result, some received grades that was less than “meeting expectations” (aka. an “A”).

This HIGH STAKES culture needs to shift… and this will take time and practice. It also takes wholeheartedness and vulnerability. Moreover, it will take an open mind, trust, respect, and kindness. It’s complicated. I cannot tell you how many times I had to park my ego as the instructor to make this happen. EGO BUSTING is two-way. Thinking formative is a two-way conversation. My job is to help and support the learner. The learner’s job is to receive feedback and do something about it. This is also reciprocated. Lots of ego parking is needed to forward together and succeed. Do I believe that everyone can get an “A”… the answer is YES. We just have to find a way to get there.