Researching our Classroom Literacy Practices in 2012 (welcoming newcomers & raising the bar) Collaborative Literacy Learning Communities 2012 Anne Cloonan Deakin University

1+1+1 powerful ideas = cultural shifts Shift to being inquiring researchers Shift to being inquiring researchers Shift to being collaborators – deprivitising work; moving to an actual community rather than a pseudo- community Shift to being collaborators – deprivitising work; moving to an actual community rather than a pseudo- community Shift to leading one’s own and others’ learning. Shift to leading one’s own and others’ learning. Collaborative Learning Communities Distributed Leadership Inquiry (PAR) Participatory Action Research

Cultural changes 2011 My participation has changed the way I work as a teacher. I used be 'stand up and deliver’. I am not that person any more. I listen to student voice and negotiate their work. We are all responsible for learning. We look at the curriculum together and their assessments and set learning goals. If I don't know something, I'm like 'let's find out together'. It’s completely different and I couldn't go back. (CLLC Teacher, 2011)

Cultural changes WALKING THE TALK: Where 3 big ideas are effectively adopted, an alignment in approaches with students, teachers, project officers and academics collaborating, undertaking inquiry, distributing leadership and taking on roles as creators rather than reproducers of knowledge. WALKING THE TALK: Where 3 big ideas are effectively adopted, an alignment in approaches with students, teachers, project officers and academics collaborating, undertaking inquiry, distributing leadership and taking on roles as creators rather than reproducers of knowledge. TEACHER INQUIRIES MEAN DIFFERENTIATION: accounting for your work contexts requires diifferentiation: greater personalised engagement with needs of teachers in local situations TEACHER INQUIRIES MEAN DIFFERENTIATION: accounting for your work contexts requires diifferentiation: greater personalised engagement with needs of teachers in local situations CONNECTIONS: between changed teacher pedagogy and what and how students learn. CONNECTIONS: between changed teacher pedagogy and what and how students learn. NEEDS REFINING: use of multimodality and social networking and other digital tools both F2F and online NEEDS REFINING: use of multimodality and social networking and other digital tools both F2F and online

Collaboratively reflect on methodology AND content 2011 to plan 2012… HOW we research and learn WHAT our projects will be PLUS: What did we do well as action researchers last year? 1. Planning (for teacher/student learning)? 2. Putting our plan into action ? 3. Observing the impact of our actions? 4. Reflecting on what we observed? MINUS: What did we not do well? IMPROVE: What aspects of our researching can we improve? What do we want to improve in terms of teacher learning? What do we want to improve in terms of student literacy learning?

Participatory Action Research  Participatory - we are all active researchers (no passivity allowed).  Integration of action (implementing a plan) with research (developing understandings of the effectiveness of implementation)  The twin goals are YOUR learning and positive educational CHANGE for students (yours and others).

Participatory action research is about collaborative change at YOUR school with your unique students

Educators systematically examining literacy pedagogies using techniques of research; systematically changing both the practitioner/researcher and literacy pedagogy. A social practice…shared ownership of action by the community… Underpinning assumptions about (literacy) educators 1.You work best on ‘issues’ you have identified. 2.You are most effective when encouraged to examine and assess your work and consider ways of working differently. 3.When you collaborate with colleagues this impacts on your ‘issue’ and your professional learning. (Carr & Kemmis, 1998; Kemmis & McTaggart, 2005; 2007) What is participatory action research (into literacy ed)?

What participatory action research is not …the usual things you do when you think about your teaching. It’s systematic and involves collecting evidence on which to base rigorous reflection. … habitual responses. It’s a quest to improve and understand the (literacy education) world by changing it and learning how to improve it from the effects of the changes made. …research on other people. It is research by you on your own work to help improve what you do, how you work with and for others. (Kemmis & McTaggart, 2005)

Systematic processes of Action Research Plan - develop a plan for change based on evidence and context to improve what is already happening (document) Act - act to implement the plan (document) Observe - observe the effects of the action in the context (document) Reflect - reflect on these effects as the basis for further planning (document)

A spiral of cycles of reflection We test knowledge and theory by changing practice. We evaluate changes through further cycles. We open up our changes to scrutiny by peers through publication, sharing practice, and application by others in their own situations.

Buzz Time: time out to quickly clarify what’s been presented

Workshopping our Participatory Action Research Plans Open mouths (trust)! Open minds (dare/support)! Creativity welcomed!

Planning & documenting tool

Planning tool

Your school issue  is based on evidence that this is a literacy teaching and learning issue  is within your locus of control  is something you feel passionate about  is something you would like to change or improve (what do we wish was different?) With your school group discuss the emerging issue now – this will probably be refined as the project proceeds.

Knowledge of the issue – ‘out there’ & at school Review what is known ‘at school’  What evidence do we have that this is an issue?  Who might have information/evidence/data? Review what is known ‘out there’  What is the relevant research in professional readings?  What does an internet search find on this topic?  What do our colleagues know?

Knowledge of issue: types of data/evidence/information At school Interviews (students, teachers, parents) Testing results Self and peer assessments Anecdotal notes Samples of work, projects, performances Tapes and videos Focus groups responses Checklists Portfolios Individual files Records, reports Meetings notes Etc ‘Out there’ Readings from journals Professional books Websites Policies Case studies Research outcomes and reports School groups discuss What do we already know? What else do we need to know? (this becomes your plan for teacher learning)

Developing a plan for practitioner action learning/action research : Date: Literacy issue to be addressed (an area that will benefit from changes/improvements) The purpose of this inquiry/research is… Knowledge of the issue (to impact on student achievement your Plan needs to link to evidence of student achievement as well as professional knowledge on the topic). Plan to collaboratively explore your understandings of theories, policies, values in literacy education and evidence of student achievement related to your issue and draw on assessment results, observations, work samples, photographs, parent feedback, etc.) We already know that… (policies, theories and student achievement) We also need to find out…(this may be transferred onto your documentation plan for teacher learning) Research question (first draft) See Knobel & Lankshear pp Specific, doable

The Research Question/s “Breathes life” into the issue Is open-ended Gives a focus to the plan and helps ensure that it’s workable How can we use our new netbooks to support teaching and learning of literature? How can we incorporate student voice into our literacy teaching and learning? How can we develop students' abilities in discipline-specific writing? What can we do to develop our students’ confidence and capacities in oral presentations? School groups: draft/refine your question now – knowing that this may be refined as the project proceeds.

Towards a change statement Our change/s to teacher professional learning will be… that we are all confident with the rationale for and use of digital technologies to support the teaching of literature. To achieve this we will… Our change/s to student learning experiences will be… that students are more engaged with and knowledgeable about literature. To achieve this we will…. School groups: draft the beginnings of a change statement now – knowing that this will be refined as the project proceeds.

To be continued (PLC today and at school)… To be continued (PLC today and at school)… Likely collaborators Who might you work with? In and out of school. How? Consider technologies. Resources and communication statement To carry out this inquiry we need to… Timelines, roles and responsibilities What will be the roles and responsibilities of each member?

Holy Trinity, North Eltham Mary Immaculate, Ivanhoe St. Andrew’s, Werribee St. Francis Xavier’s, Montmorency St. Michael’s, Ashburton St. Monica’s, Moonee Ponds Mount Lilydale Mercy College, Lilydale Sacred Heart College, Oakleigh Mercy College, Coburg Nazareth College, Noble Park North Collaborators: Who might you work with?

To be continued at school…planning, implementing, observing, reflecting and documenting your first cycle of participatory action research (to be completed by 10 May)

Planning & documenting tool: completed by 10 May