Rights Respecting Schools: Workshop Series

Workshop 4 Teaching and Learning through a Rights Lens

Five-Minute Reflection INSTRUCTIONS Welcome! Please circulate the room and read the quote at each table. Then choose to sit at the table with the quote you feel best reflects your educational philosophy. Discuss with your tablemates: Why did you choose this quote? How does this quote reflect your educational philosophy? How does this quote connect education and the rights of children?

Workshop 4: Teaching and Learning through a Rights Lens AGENDA Activity 1: Five-Minute Reflection Activity 2: The ‘How’ of Rights Respecting Education Activity 3: Creating a Classroom Charter Activity 4: Applying the ‘How’ to ‘What’ We Teach Activity 5: Good Practices for Teaching and Learning

What is a Rights Respecting Classroom? The rights respecting classroom is a vibrant, safe and diverse community of learners with a common ethos grounded in respect for all human and children’s rights. This ethos is nurtured through the teaching of rights respecting education.

Rights Respecting Education Rights respecting education combines talk with action. With rights respecting education: The Convention is taken into consideration through both pedagogical approaches and content. Students are engaged in the process of democratic learning and participation. Essentially, children’s rights are not only taught, but are recognized, respected and modeled.

The ‘How’ of Rights Respecting Education The Strategy: Democratic Pedagogy The Lens: Teaching the Five Global Concepts Through a Children’s Rights Lens The Learning Process: The Cycle of Learning

The Strategy: Democratic Pedagogy

The Lens: Global Concepts through Rights

The Learning Process: Cycle of Learning

RBM An Example of ‘How’ – Classroom Charters

Rights, Respect and Responsibility Children’s rights are unconditional – they are not dependent upon responsibility Instead of ‘responsibility’ on charters, try ‘respect for rights’ language

RBM An Example of ‘How’ – Classroom Charters

RBM An Example of ‘How’ – Classroom Charters

Creating a Classroom Charter 1.Choose the six articles you think most relate to student’s lives at school. 2.Determine how you will word a commitment to each article in your classroom. Example: In our classroom, we have the right to play. 3. Determine how you will demonstrate a commitment to respect each article in your classroom. Example: We respect the right to play for ourselves and for others, by playing fairly and safely. 4.Decide on a design for the charter. Have everyone sign it. Revisit it throughout the year.

Teaching and Learning in Rights Respecting Schools Benchmark 13 Teaching staff model rights in their classroom by adopting participatory teaching and evaluation methods.

Teaching and Learning in Rights Respecting Schools Benchmark 14 Teachers give students opportunities to make choices in their learning and evaluation methods, within the framework of the required curriculum, so that curriculum requirements and students’ interests and concerns are met.

Teaching and Learning in Rights Respecting Schools Benchmark 15 Conflicts between students, and between students and adults, are resolved with rights-consistent decisions, policies, and classroom management practices.

Teaching and Learning in Rights Respecting Schools Benchmark 16 Teachers cultivate a culture of respect in their classrooms by adopting a class charter that incorporates the rights of children. Barrhaven Elementary School – Ontario

Teaching and Learning in Rights Respecting Schools Benchmark 17 Students have opportunities to give constructive feedback to their teachers with regards to the quality of teaching and learning, assessment, and evaluation methods.

The ‘How’ of Rights Respecting Education Discuss: In what ways is this pedagogical framework in line with your educational philosophy and practice? In what ways does this pedagogical framework challenge your assumptions about teaching, about children and about schooling? What challenges can you anticipate with fully implementing this pedagogical approach? How would you respond to these challenges?

The ‘What’ of Rights Respecting Education

Group Work Instructions Look first at your Group Instructions page Ensure you have all the necessary materials You have 15 – 20 minutes for the tasks Designate someone to share the highlights from your discussion

RRS Action Plan: Our Roadmap What is being done? What do we need to do next? CRT completes RRS Action Plan Our school has a roadmap for our future

Good Practices for Teaching and Learning through a Rights Lens Work together as a group to determine which strategies would work best to meet your assigned benchmark. Create this 3-columned chart StrategyResourcesTimeline Activities the school will undertake. People resource, budget and materials needed to undertake activities. Timing of year, duration of time needed to accomplish the activities.

Take Away Resource – For Everyone Strategies for Rights Respecting Educators Describes strategies for upholding articles of the Convention Printed handout

Take Away Resource – For Staff/Students Classroom Charters Outlines a clear process for developing a democratically elected and envisioned student council Available for download on rightsrespectingschools.ca

Take Away Resource – For Everyone Books for Rights Respecting Educators This booklist includes children’s books and novels suitable for exploring topics related to children’s rights. Suitable for use inside and outside the classroom. Available for download on rightsrespectingschools.ca

Take Away Resource – For Staff/Students Energizers These participatory and engaging energizer activities teach about children’s rights as well as skills and concepts that encourage a rights respecting classroom culture. Available for download on rightsrespectingschools.ca

Take Away Resource – For Parents/Staff The Danger of a Single Story Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice – and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding. Available for download at ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie _the_danger_of_a_single_story.html

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