Your weekly source of learner-centered inspiration
Dear Educator,
I often hear about desires to shift practices, followed by frustrations over how. We know from research and practice that teachers are more likely to take risks to develop and implement new knowledge and practices when they feel supported to do so. Three key things that leaders can do to support teachers to evolve their practices include:
Empower and inspire educators with a clear and compelling vision and greater sense of purpose
Provide opportunities for continuous learning that is cyclical, participatory and reflective
Develop a system of collective responsibility to ensure that instructional decisions have the desired impact on teaching and learning
For this week’s Bright Spot, I am excited to highlight an example of what this looks like in practice.
With Gratitude, Katie
I'd love to hear from you! Reply to this email to share your Bright Spot this week!
BRIGHT SPOT OF THE WEEK
Bringing a Learner Profile to Life
Throughout the 2021-2022 year, we worked with Mesa Union School District and a guiding coalition of families, teachers, administrators and the county office to create their Framework for the Future, which defines their vision, core values, learner profile, learning model along with key priorities.
Take a look at Mesa Union's Framework for the Future! Click the graphic to view.
To kick off the school year, educators had time to explore and discuss what new measures of success might look like based on this framework. Grade levels explored ideas, made collaborative commitments to test out their ideas and reflected on the intended impact of each in the upcoming school year. They planned for student-led conferences, portfolios, and exhibitions. I can’t wait to see the impact of all they planned to bring their new learner profile to life for each and every learner!
Interested in exploring ways to empower teachers to design new learning experiences this upcoming school year? Let's connect!
Below are some professional learning resources to support an evolution of learning design in your school or district.
1. So you designed a Profile of a Graduate. Now what? The act of creating a shared vision for graduates serves as a starting point to define a learner-centered system. In this blog post, Rebecca Midles and I consider next steps to transform your vision for learners to reality.
2. Inspiration from a learner-centered classroom. Keys School teacher and team leader Kelsey Simpson shares4 strategies and curriculum ideas from her classroom to put learners at the center this upcoming school year.
3. Redefining student success. This blog explores the importance of creating definitions of success that reflect communities’ aspirations for their students’ futures in order to drive coherence in policies and improve outcomes.
LET'S SHARE OUR BRIGHT SPOTS!
How do you empower teachers at the start of the school year?
Share your back-to-school #LCBrightSpots on social media!
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Learner-Centered Collaborative, 49 Stevenson Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
