The videos are
completed. The series, Inspired to Learn: Kansas Stories, is ready for use. We are proud of the product, but the journey was more than an end point. What did we learn in this process? From the beginning this has been a learning
journey filled with hope, joy, frustration, perseverance, and pride. We have been inspired by those we interviewed,
and those who were willing to let us peek into their professional learning
experiences. We have been energized by the convictions and expertise of these
Kansas educators. Our own learning and passion have been reignited. The “we” in this blog represents Dayna
Richardson (LFKS Executive Director) and me - partners, colleagues and friends in this journey. A year after we intended to be done, here is a
glimpse of our story…
The journey of Inspired to Learn: Kansas Stories is much like a school
year – only longer. We began with a
vision in the application process 4 years ago, and started with so much hope, excitement
and energy once we received this 3 year grant just like the first day of school. Our “classroom” was filled with unknowns,
dreams that needed direction, and the desire to acquire skills and support to
make those dreams a reality.
Transforming professional learning was our focus in Learning
Forward Kansas as we rebooted our organization. As LFKS reached out to educators across the
state, we continued to hear, “But what
does it look like in my school?”
This driving question became the trigger for LFKS to apply for the Learning Forward Affiliate Grant in
2015. The Kansas State Board of Education approved the Standards for Professional Learning in 2012, but few schools knew
about this, much less utilized the standards to improve their instructional practice. Our vision was to do something
different: to create a video series
featuring Kansas educators that
could be a resource to schools and educators who were seeking to improve their
professional learning experiences. Our
purpose was to facilitate their understanding so our initial plan was to create
a video on each of the Standards of
Professional Learning, plus one on the process of change.
Every educator
begins their school year with a vision and a plan to support that vision. But the needs of the students often alter
those plans. Our experience with the
video series was very similar. Once we
received the grant, our thoughts began to shift into a different direction
based on continued discussions and observations from the field. Educators didn’t need another resource
defining the Standards for Professional
Learning. They wanted something to
help them use and implement them. After
discussing our new understanding with our LFKS board, several Kansas
educational leaders, and our support group from Learning Forward, we realized
that we must create something that was useful, modeled effective professional
learning, and helped guide educational leaders to use the Standards of
Professional Learning collectively, not individually. Silos were a thing of the past. We soon came to realize, we are better together.
Kansas has a wide range of school sizes, strengths, and
needs. One size does not fit all for
learning in the classroom, with the faculty, or from one school to the
next. What effective professional
learning looks like in an urban school is vastly different than a small rural
school hundreds of miles from a large city.
Regardless of the differences in resources, delivery methods, or
personnel, the goal remains the same: every educator wants to use effective
instructional practices that lead to student success. And to that end, all educators are inspired
to learn, and want to know “What
does that look like in my school?”
Our Work: Inspiration, Listening, People,
Collaboration, Time and Feedback (repeat 5 times)
When we listen to
the learners, our instruction becomes more focused on the needs of that
learner. Sometimes what we believe to be
the best way to learn may not be the best method for the learner. With that understanding comes revision and a
renewed focus on the purpose of our work.
What is the learning goal? How
will we get there?
Our first video attempt was too long and lacked clear
focus. We got some tough feedback from a
supportive organization of educators. We
swallowed hard but we listened and started again. We realized we had failed to establish the
WHY and convey that what we were doing was important – not just to us – but to all
Kansas educators aspiring to improve teaching and learning. It wasn’t enough to have great sound bites
from great educators; we had to weave a meaningful message of the importance of
effective professional learning. Our learners
spoke to us and we listened. Those plans
we made when “school started” were put aside and reworked with a renewed focus
on the learner’s needs.
Since Lois Brown Easton’s article, “The Why, How, and What of Professional Learning,” appeared in
Learning Forward’s Tools for Learning Schools in 2012, we have focused on the
importance of establishing the “why” in everything we do and within every
learning opportunity LFKS offers.
Further study of Simon Sinek’s work (which was the basis for Easton’s
article), strengthened our belief in ensuring that establishing the why is the first and most important
step to effectively change one’s practice.
This understanding and the feedback we received led us to the
realization that our first video attempt lacked the WHY and subsequently required
a major revision. Going forward, this philosophy guided everything we did and
led to how the Inspired to Learn: Kansas
Stories video series was organized.
Lesson plans and
learning goals continue to evolve during a school year, and the same thing
happened in our video experience. Once
the first video was completed, the second video seemed easier to do. We saw that educational leaders believed that
professional learning was important but too many were relying on
one-size-fits-all or sit and get sessions that just weren’t engaging,
meaningful or relevant. That lead us to
- What does effective professional
learning look like…. in Kansas schools?
Once we conveyed this message in video two, the questions began to shift
– How does this work? How do we
plan? How do we engage staff? How do we promote collaboration that changes
practice and leads to student success?
Understanding why is
critical. Clarify what is important. But how is the vehicle that takes us from knowing
to doing.
As a result, the rest of the videos revolved around how
effective professional learning is achieved from multiple perspectives, using a
wide variety of strategies. As a teacher
would personalize learning experiences for students in his/her classroom, our
focus was fine-tuned, and the video series took shape. We needed more interviews, different
questions, and more examples of effective professional learning to feature in
these how videos. Sometimes learning and
progress is messy as educators will tell you.
We also felt these same growing pains.
Confusion reigned sometimes as we watched draft videos over and over causing
pictures and words to seemingly swim together.
Cutting footage typically came from asking ourselves to revisit our
purpose for the video we were watching.
Did this comment or picture fit? Does it help tell the story?
One of our greatest aha’s was when we went together to film in
a small 1A school in south central Kansas where educators were excited about
project based learning and making learning relevant and engaging. We discovered them when they presented with
their students at the KSDE conference the previous fall. How could we use their energy? Their passion inspired us. Their humility was revealed in their desire
to simply do what was best for kids and credit each other for their success. How could we bottle their success to be shared
with others? To that end, our questions
to them weren’t about the project based learning itself, but focused on how
they made this work. What professional
learning had to happen to get it started and more importantly, sustain this
work at such a high level? What lessons
could they share with others on what to do and what to avoid? How did leaders
support and facilitate their work? We started to understand the importance of
HOW and the need to share this with our fellow Kansas educators.
If we were to do a “walkthrough”
of our “classroom” one would see engaging lessons, modeling of effective
professional learning, and a variety of learning strategies (protocols) that
meet learners where they are. One would
see collaboration and deep conversations around thought-provoking questions. One would see experts discussing their
beliefs, experiences, successes and challenges.
Learning would be happening before, during and after viewing the video
utilizing protocols in the accompanying facilitation guides. And one would see
the learners taking this information and adapting it for use in their own
work. The initiatives that schools
undertake are designed to meet the needs of their students so the examples in
the videos are there for consideration and not intended to be the only answer. Our intent for this video series was to spark
real professional learning, where educators turn theory into action, or as we
like to say, to go from knowing to doing.
When the culture in a classroom, building or district becomes focused on growth and success for ALL, and is supported through every
action, and every professional learning opportunity, students win. Our purpose in creating these videos was to support
these efforts as schools and educators evolve.
Just like educators believe that everyone
can learn given the opportunity, resources and sufficient time, this video
series was created in the same way.
Our Journey Continues. It was a 3 year grant,
but it took 4 years to complete. Life
happens in the middle of our plans sometimes, and we make adjustments. We couldn’t have done this without the willingness
of Kansas educators to share their experiences on camera or let us be a part of
their school’s professional learning sessions.
We also relied heavily on the support and feedback of Kansas educators
that we knew well and others that we befriended during this process. Our technical support was second to none and
allowed our dream to become a reality.
But without the dream, backed by the grant received from the Learning Forward Foundation, none of
this would have happened. Again our video series journey parallels the
classroom experience. Support
matters. Resources matter. People matter.
Our journey comes to an end during May, much like a school year. It has taken us from knowing to doing, and while we are happy to rest a bit, we recognize we have
much more to do. Our future work, as we look to the next school year, will
benefit from the valuable lessons learned firsthand that we are #BetterTogether. Join us as we continue Learning Forward.
Click here
to learn more about the video series.
