Extended Lower Mainland Meeting

The extended Lower Mainland Networks of Inquiry and Innovation and Aboriginal Enhancement Schools Network schools will be meeting later this week.  Please see the time/location details below.  Please feel free to bring friends or colleagues from other schools – everyone is welcome! So we know how many people to expect, please RSVP to Donna Weaving at dweaving@dccnet.com.

If you are in another region of the province and wondering when/where local schools in your area may be getting together, please contact us.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2016 – SURREY

4:00 - 6:00 pm

District Education Centre (DEC) - Room 2020

14033 92 Avenue, Surrey

Network school inquiries now up on website!

Network schools are now fully engaged in their NOII and AESN inquiries, collaborating across roles and schools to improve teaching and learning in their districts. Please take a few moments to scan through the list of topics and foci for this school year so you can see the breadth of learning taking place across the province, as well as potentially connect with another school and/or district working on similar learning goals. There are three lists of inquiry topics to explore:

Aboriginal Enhancement Schools Network
Those focused on specifically on First Peoples Principles of Learning and Aboriginal worldviews. For example, history/culture, residential schools, place-based learning, self-identity, etc.

Aboriginal Impact Study
Secondary schools focused on student transitions. These schools are also engaged in a research study looking at the impact of their inquiry work. 

Network of Inquiry and Innovation
Schools focused on a variety of topics linked to specific school needs. For example, self-regulated learning, the new curriculum, student engagement, math, co-teaching and collaboration, etc. 

To learn more about the process that schools engage in, check out the Spiral of Inquiry guide and the Four Key Questions That Matter.  

If you see another school that is working on a very similar focus, why not connect with them to share stories and strategies? If you are not sure about how to connect, please contact us for support. 

Missed ICSEI 2016 in Glasgow?

Several members from the Network attended the International Congress for School Effectivenessand Improvement (ICSEI) conference this past week in Glasgow, sharing BC stories and learning from school teams from around the world. If you missed it, you can catch the keynotes and presentations here (more will be added soon). Dr. Pasi Sahlberg, currently a visiting Professor of Practice at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, also shared his presentation here – check out slide 10 to see how Canada is faring with regard to equity and student achievement).  In January 2017, ICSEI will be in Ottawa – start planning now!

Also, a quick update on the partnership work in the UK with the Whole Education Network.  Many of you know that the Spirals of Inquiry is being piloted with cohorts of schools in the UK, with a research team following progress and working on a report. We’ll share the full report when available, but for now, here are a couple of quotes from their experience:

Seriously engaging with Spirals of Enquiry is difficult work, at least initially, because it is a new way of doing things. It requires organising, good questioning skills, a willingness to seriously listen and have your thinking challenged. And sometimes the scanning response elicits painful responses from children and young people which are hard to hear.

I’ve loved doing the process and just the fact that you are making the kids the centre of it has been the absolute key to figuring out what we should do next. We’ve already started thinking about how we might adapt it and change it, so we will definitely be using this again 

Judy and Linda, in partnership with Whole Education, launched a new cohort of UK schools back in November and you’ll find some notes and feedback from that session here.

Within the next week we’ll have our website updated with how BC schools are focusing their inquiries this school year – more to come…

Happy New Year!

Warm wishes from the Network

Happy Holidays to all our Network friends. Looking forward to more sharing and learning in 2016. For now, we’ll leave you with these strong words from a Grade 2 student from Sea to Sky School District (SD#48). Thanks to Network Leader April Lowe for sharing this writing sample. This student has captured the spirit of season beautifully – what more can we say?   

Words worth reading (or listening to...)

This cold, rainy (or snowy, depending on where you live in BC) weather makes it a good time to hunker down and delve into some good reading. Ok, ok, we know it is a busy time of year, but the links below are well worth checking out:

http://www.cea-ace.ca/blog/brooke-moore/2015/09/1/school-risky-place

Network leader Brooke Moore (@bmooreintheloop) is an avid blogger with the Canadian Education Association. This is a quick read (with a book suggestion…)

http://www.bcauditor.com/pubs/2015/audit-education-aboriginal-students-bc-public-school-system

Just recently released, the BC Auditor General’s Report of the Education of Aboriginal Students in the BC Public School System is an absolute must read for every BC educator.

https://twitter.com/AKMPeterson

Amelia Peterson (@AKMPeterson) is currently a PhD student at Harvard and Associate with the Innovation Unit. She tweets about neat things with regard to educational reform. And bonus, she’ll be a presenter at the next NOII Symposium (May 13 – 14).

http://www.teachinquiry.com/index/Introduction.html

This website is from a few years ago, but the material is relevant and helpful in thinking about the possibilities inherent in BC’s new curriculum. Neil Stephenson (@Neilstephenson) is Director of Learning Services with the Delta School District.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDHNxaebe8Q

Susan Harris MacKay was a speaker this year at TEDx West Vancouver Ed. In this video (also below), she talks about Opal School, a program of the Portland Children’s Museum, and how spaces that enhance creativity, curiosity and wonder can also enhance deep learning.

Inquiry – Making a Difference in SD #91 Nechako Lakes

Over the last few weeks we have been receiving inquiry plan submissions from schools across the province (see here for how to submit). There is very inspiring, collaborative professional learning happening all over BC -- we'll be sharing lots of school and district stories here in the coming months.  It was also a pleasure to read this blog post by SD #91 Nechako Lakes (written by SD 91 Director of Instruction, Manu Madhok) describing the inquiry focus areas for individual schools in their district. The article also outlines how the district structured a professional learning day for staff around concepts of both student-led and teacher-led inquiry. Thanks to Michelle Miller Gauthier, Network Leader and SD 91 Literacy Coordinator/Teacher, for sharing this helpful article.

Manu also highlights the video below, which was shared with educators during this day of learning last week. It’s a good reinforcement of how formative assessment practices can benefit our learners. Perhaps something to take a look at during your next staff collaboration time? 

Inquiry Proposal Submissions - Due Nov 27th

It has been exciting to hear about the Network meetings taking place across the province over the last few weeks. As just one example, Prince Rupert had a packed house on Oct 20^th (they ran out of chairs!) to discuss plans for the coming year, spend time reviewing new research and resources, and collectively deepening their understanding around what it going on for their learners. Neat to see these planning notes and picture from their meeting.

Please share with schools that the 2015 – 2016 NOII/AESN Inquiry Proposal template is now available on our website. We have tried to streamline the submission process this year and you will see that reflected in the guidelines and the template. School teams use this template to submit their inquiry focus at the beginning of the school year, and then submit case studies at the end of the year to document their experience. It may also be helpful to review the Spiral of Inquiry, as well as the 4 Key Questions That Matter. Proposals are due November 27^th. We very much look forward to receiving your submissions and encourage you to contact us is you have any questions.