Week 5 2018 Professional Development Part 2

I have enjoyed reading your discussions and descriptions of your own PD in your schools as well as your responses to my ideas of what to think about as you read.  Before we jump into the readings for Week 5, I was asked in the VCI about the format of the report for the Needs Assessment survey.  While there is not a set format, you do need to provide information to me (and other readers) about your context and what you did to collect the data.  And you need to present your results in a ways that makes it easy for you and for others to use the results to prioritize and plan the professional learning plan for your school.  So I'll make some suggestions, but feel free to modify as needed.
1.  Begin with a description of your school context (information for me and the others in your small group), including the number of teachers, the grade levels, how many teachers at each level, resources teachers and administrators.
2. Tell how the survey was distributed to those teachers/administrators, if you did any followup in terms of re-sending the survey link for example, and how many people returned the survey (give a total but break down by grade level/area as well so that the conclusions you draw can be contextualized to those teachers).
3. Put in tables or charts of the survey results.
4. Write a narrative summary of what you found out.  What are the key ELA standards that they say they are implementing and which ones seem to not be implemented as much? What do they say they are knowledgeable about and which ones were not checked as much? What did they say they would like to learn more about and which were not checked so much or were not checked?  What types of formats were most popular?

Share your charts/tables in the small group online discussion that you need to have during week 5 to help each other with the summaries. 

This week you will continue to read about professional development and learning.  In the Research on PD piece, parts 2,3,4,5, you will read about processes and approaches to PD, effective environments, what and how to evaluate PD programs, and indicators of effective PD.  In the Guskey article, there are new issues around PD that will be brought up, and the Hobbs et al article discusses a type of PD around digital and media literacies.  Before you read, what do you hope to find out in these readings this week that is new to you?  What ideas do you already have that you hope will be reinforced?

In your blogs this week, discuss the key ideas that you have gotten out of these readings that you think will be important for you to remember as you are creating your own school-wide professional learning plan?  Why?  How do they match up with adult learning theory? How will you integrate a plan to assess the effectiveness of your program? What might be some challenges you will have as you make your plan? Why?  How can you help each other to try and address those challenges? Be sure to include the following concepts/terms in your discussion: learning environment, mental model, principles of learning, design principles, evaluation, technology, time, collaboration.

Remember that you will need to find a time for your blog group to get together online to share your results of your survey this coming week.  Let me know if you would like for me to join you (Tuesday is a day I teach from 7-10 so couldn't join any group then).
The write up of the needs assessment needs to be uploaded to Canvas during Week 6 before the face to face class on Feb. 24--I'll remind you again.  We will spend some time in class working on starting your Task 2 and making sure you all know what needs to go in there.

Stay warm this weekend, and Happy Valentine's Day on Wednesday!

Week 4 Professional Development Part 1

All three groups had interesting, but different discussions on your blogs.  Thanks for your heavy thinking and making connections to your own situations.  One thing I'd like for you all to think about and that is the difference between a core reading program and the reading and language arts curriculum.  The two are NOT the same thing.  The core reading program should be chosen to support the curriculum already in place in your school.  For most of us in Oklahoma, that is the ELA standards.  Some districts may enhance those standards with additional curricular topics.  So see the core reading program as only one of the possible materials that could be used to support your teaching of the literacy curriculum.

This week you will look at research on effective professional development, elements and guidelines for successful site based PD and some principles of adult learning, as well as some tips for developing PD.  What do you think are characteristics of effective PD? Tell me what works for you.

First , read section 1 of the uploaded piece on research on effective PD, thinking about what effective means and the characteristics of effective PD from the research.  Then read the other three chapters, one from each of the books.  Begin also to note different types of PD and compare it to the types of PD article uploaded on Canvas.  Take notes for yourself about what you want to remember as you begin to put together the professional development plan for your school.Think about these questions or activities for your blog:  What is the difference between professional development and professional learning?  Which do you want to focus on in your plan? Look in the Bean chapter at the Think about This questions on 114, 120, and 121.  Pick one to respond to for yourself.  The blog leader may talk about the one she did and ask for your input on the ones that you did.  What is your understanding about adult learning theory mentioned in the B chapter figure 5.1 and alluded to in WSQ p. 131 and Bean page 122?

Don't forget that this week you need to complete the Virtual Check In form you can find on Canvas.  I'll be checking it on Wednesday and again on Friday, so if you have needs/questions for me, earlier is better than later.

Have a good week!

Week 3 Comprehensive literacy programs

You will reading this blog after we have spent all day Saturday together.  Beginning this week, you will be responding to my blog before you read the chapters for the week.  I'll try to target some key vocabulary that you need to pay attention to as well as to help focus your reading and your own blog discussions.  Some weeks I'll also tell you how to jigsaw read the readings for the week (on weeks that there is lots to read).

Since we have just finished a face to face class, I'd like for you to reflect on what we did in class. What are your key take-aways from class? why are they important to you? What are you hoping to learn about comprehensive reading literacy programs?

As you read, make connections to your own school and the comprehensive literacy program there.  You will be finding out about what needs the the teachers in your school have to make changes in the literacy program through professional development.  Think about these terms and what they might mean for you as a literacy leader:  standards, curriculum, teacher beliefs, teacher knowledge, change, CBAM, stages of concern, assessment.  Think about these questions as possible starters for your blog posts and discussions: B8 has guidelines for choosing a core reading program.  Compare those guidelines to what you remember happening in your district the last time you adopted a core reading program. How did that affect your comprehensive literacy program? How does assessment fit in a comprehensive reading program? in WSQ on page 162, respond to #3 in the reflection questions. Choose one of the "Think about This" questions in the Bean chapters to discuss.

Remember to let me know if you want me to address something in your blog.  I"ll be reading twice a week, and will make a few comments.

Have a good week, stay healthy!

Week 2 Literacy Leadership 2018

I'm writing this blog from Germany where I'm teaching this week.  I got up this morning (Saturday) to snow covering everything including my rental car.  So I was scraping ice before I drove to class.  I'm envious that I am missing the warm weekend in Oklahoma!  I haven't read your blog entries for Week 1 yet but am looking forward to getting to know those I don't know a bit through your posts, and reacquainting myself with those I do know.

This week, your readings will focus on building community of learners in a school.  Some topics that you will read about include roles of teacher leaders in a school and how to work with different stakeholders, some elements of effective professional development that supports communities of learners, how to lead groups and collaborate with others, and how to develop a school literacy program.

This week, respond to this blog after you read the chapters.  Which characteristics of effective leaders are a strong point for you? A challenge?  What did you take away as a commonality of working with each of the different stakeholders that a reading specialist or literacy leader needs to collaborate with? Which of the types of collaborative PD in Appendix 18.1 have you experienced? Which would you like to experience?

Respond to each other, comparing your answers to theirs.

I'm looking forward to seeing you on Saturday, Jan. 27.  We will begin working on your big assignment that is broken up into four tasks, by creating a needs assessment survey together to use to determine the needs, desires, and activities already in place of teachers in your educational setting.  We will also begin the creation of your personal learning plan.  I'm really looking forward to seeing/hearing about your Self as a literacy leader posters!

See you soon!

Week 1 Literacy Leadership 2018

Welcome to EDRG 5903  Literacy Leadership! As you know, the purpose of this course is to examine effective literacy leadership and the role of the reading specialist in an educational setting.  Aspects of leadership include supporting teacher growth, designing professional development, and contributing to an effective whole school literacy program.   I’ve included a short video introducing myself and some of my expectations for the class so follow the link to watch it Welcome video. For those of you who have had a class with me before, these expectations are not new to you.

Just so you know, I’m in Germany this first week of class, teaching military members and teachers about Educational Research.  I’ll have access to email so if you have questions about the syllabus, the assignments for this first 2 weeks, or the readings, send an email.  I’ll get back to you when I can—just remember that I am 7 hours ahead of you timewise, and am teaching every evening and during the day on the weekend. 

This week, please respond to these questions  before you read, and then to each other after you read.  For this week, respond to each other by Saturday evening.  For Week 2, follow the directions in the syllabus for the blog.  We will set up your blogs in the face to face meeting on Saturday, Jan. 27. 

The focus for this first week is for you to begin to think about who YOU are as a literacy leader right now and what you think literacy leadership is all about.  So, before reading, what do you think are key aspects of literacy leadership?  Which of those aspects do you think are ones you have already begun to develop?  

When you return to respond to your classmates, integrate what the readings say about being a literacy leader and compare them to what the person said about themselves.

You will be creating an interactive digital “poster” to share with all of us on Jan. 27 that uses print, pictures, audio, video, other graphics.  Try to stay away from PowerPoint as your platform unless you have not been involved in other digital platforms.  My video was made on my iPad using Explain Everything, but you could make an iMovie or Adobe Spark video, do a Prezi, create a Glog, use Book Creator online to make a book, or some other digital platform.  Either upload the link before Jan. 27 or the actual item.

I’ll have Week 2 post up by next Friday, so you might want to visit it before you do the readings for Week 2 to help you focus your reading, and to prepare for our face to face class.
Have a good first week of the semester!  I’ll see you on Jan. 27 in Rm. 334 of Collings Hall.  Please bring a laptop or iPad or other tablet to class.  We will use them to set up blogs and try out other New Literacy tools for you to use for the online portion of the class.

Week 15 2016 Revisiting your view of yourself as a literacy leader

Each of you have come a long way on your journey to be literacy leaders where ever you are now and in whatever role you take on. I'd like for you to reflect on your growth as a literacy leader from the beginning of the semester.  Revise your self as a literacy leader poster to demonstrate that growth.  When you respond to this blog, embed your link to your poster in the comment.  Also briefly summarize where you think your greatest area of growth has been and why you think that is your greatest area of growth. Please do this by Dec. 4 at 5 pm.
Return to this blog after that time.  Using the links provided you, visit the poster of each of the other class members. What else do you see as their growth? Give one compliment about the poster in general and one compliment about how they have grown.  Please do this by Dec. 9 at midnight.  I'll be visiting as well.
By the time you read this, I'll have been in Kenya and Uganda for about about 3 weeks. In fact, I'll be flying on my way home.I'm looking forward to seeing what you do.

Week 12 2016 Program Improvement 3

We are winding up thinking about program improvement this week and also beginning to think about collaboration and professionalism and what that all entails. How do you differentiate cooperation and collaboration? What role do you think the literacy leader should have in evaluating a whole school literacy program?  How do you define professionalism? What do you think is the role of parents and community in improving the reading program?

WSQ chapter 11 is specifically about evaluation and change in a school program and the role of the literacy specialist.  Chapter 15 discusses principles for integrating New Literacies into literacy instruction.  Chapter 16 discusses the role of parents and community. The L&T book is about collaboration and especially advocacy and professionalism.

As you read, think about how you responded to the questions above and compare you responses to the ones that you read about.  I"m giving you a bit of direction this week for your blog:

On page 163 of WSQ 11is a table that describes the 10 guiding principles that will help a literacy leader support change in a school.  Choose the 2 that either you find the most challenging for your setting or that are most germane to supporting change in your setting. There are self-reflective questions with each one.  Respond to those questions for the 2 principles that you chose.  Reflect on the key ideas about collaboration and professionalism for school improvement.

Have a good week and I"ll see you on Nov. 11 at 3:30 in Rm. 223.