Tag Archives: Inquiry Hub

Missed opportunities

Here is a quick look at how we are doing with this thing called remote or distance learning. While things are good, I think we should have been more prepared for maximizing this ‘opportunity’, rather than just being more prepared to cope with it.

Background: Since returning from China in 2011, I’ve been a leader in Coquitlam Open Learning, the district’s ‘Distributed Learning’ (online) school. That year my Principal, Stephen Whiffin, pitched the idea for Inquiry Hub Secondary and I got to co-found and lead this innovative, blended learning school. I’ve been directly involved with integrating technology into learning as a leader for over a decade, and this has been an integral part of my role for 9 years now.

Current State: Over the past several weeks my staff of teachers have definitely struggled far less than most teachers.

For my online teachers very little has changed other than they are working from home, and assessment practices had to change in some courses. We have always provided testing and support blocks at our schools, and supervised assessments have been key to validating authenticity of work done at home.

For Inquiry Hub, every class was already on Microsoft Teams, and/or had a class OneNote, and/or had digital resources shared in Moodle. Classes moved digital, but there are still many opportunities for students to connect online, have meetings and discussions, and continue with lessons and assessments as if we were still in the building.

So, the transition to remote learning has been smooth. Great… But what are we missing?

The online school: We are continual entry, and so my teachers, at any moment, have students starting the course, doing their final assessment, and everything in between. As a result, they almost never run synchronous lessons. So while I previously mentioned two great ‘Learning Experiences‘ my teachers did with students, these are exceptions rather than the norm. And as I mentioned above, assessment changes needed to be made, but I’d say the changes we made were not really groundbreaking or norm-changing. We are doing a good job, but we aren’t pushing any boundaries.

For Inquiry Hub: We’ve really had a smooth transition, kids are still getting a lot of support, and we have, as a staff, had daily meetings that always touch on two things: How are kids doing/who needs support? And on professional development and planning for some great integration of courses working in edu-scrums for next year. This is exciting work, and it happens in the background while teachers are working smoothly to maintain a continuity of learning for students.

So what’s missing? Where are the missed opportunities?

  • Relevance: what have we done to connect and relate the global experience to what we are learning in class?
  • Service: What could our students be doing to support their community?
  • Assessment: What a great opportunity we have to rethink our online testing and personalizing it for our online learners?
  • Community: What more could we do to build community ‘in’ our schools, both for students, and for families?
  • Well being: How could we better support the kids we know are struggling, and also identify and support the kids who are struggling that we don’t know about?
  • Course delivery: What opportunities do we have for students to learn in different ways?
  • Inquiry learning: How could we leverage support for students inquiries when there are so many homebound experts in different fields that would love to help students out?
  • Supporting colleagues: How have we shared what we know and do well with colleagues that are struggling with the transition?
  • I wonder if we wouldn’t have innovated more if the changes required were more drastic? Have we missed too many opportunities with a smooth transition? Will we be further ahead when things return to normal, or will things go further back to normal than they need to be?

    • What are students creating?

    It’s a simple question, but there is a lot of power in the verb, ‘creating’. I was digging through old Powerpoints last night, and I came across a presentation that I did in Selno, Ontario, in April 2017. There was a slide in that slide deck that looked at what students at Inquiry Hub were ‘doing’: iHub - what students are doing - 1

    It’s a bit overwhelming to look at a slide with this many words on it, but then my next slide played with the colour of the font a bit:

    iHub - what students are doing - 2

    The learning verbs we use are very powerful. Are students searching for data, or are they collecting their own data? Are students copying a cookie-cutter assignment where every final result looks almost the same, or are they being led to a final product that fosters creativity and choice by the student? When you think about it, the difference between these pairs of questions are determined completely by the teacher, and the kind of assignments they provide. The former are usually more about content delivery, and the latter are about creating learning experiences. Here’s one more slide to think about:

    Role of the Teacher

    Teachers across the globe are missing their students, and our students are missing their teachers. It may seem far away still, but when we get students back into our schools and our classrooms, what experiences are we going to give them that they didn’t get during remote learning? How are we going to foster learning verbs that are about students engaging with the learning in a meaningful way?

    How can we foster students as creators of content, and not just consumers of it?  

    (And there’s no need to wait for students to get back into schools to do this!)

    A fun ‘how to’ video

    One of our teachers at Inquiry Hub Secondary, Ms. Yu, posted a video challenge on our all-school Microsoft Teams:

    I whipped this video up yesterday. It was fun to do, and didn’t take that long to make.

    Imagine trying to make this video 20 years ago. What equipment would you have needed? How many hours of editing would it have taken? Now, anyone can create a simple ‘How to’ video in a matter of minutes, or a couple hours if you want to edit it and add captions/music etc.

    We live in a time when producing and sharing creative ideas is easier than ever. I’m connected to a lot of educators online that create and share amazing things with me. I’m also connected to educators that have so much to share, and they don’t. If you are the former, thank you for your contributions to my learning. If you are the later, what are you waiting for?

    The quick answer isn’t always the best answer

    Tomorrow marks the first day back from March break in our school district. Teachers will not be returning Monday/Tuesday, and can schedule a time to come in to collect resources etc. after that. The continuation of learning plan will evolve over the week in response to schools being closed to students due to COVID-19.

    I know that students and families want to know what things will look like after that, but no one is rushing to give answers, and for good reason… This is all very new to us and our approach moving forward deserves thoughtful planning.

    We need to consider:

    • Ministry expectations and requirements
    • District plans and protocols
    • Capabilities of staff & technology
    • Capabilities and needs of students and families
    • Fairness with respect to expectations across the district and province.

    This last point is interesting. At one my schools, Inquiry Hub, we could almost run everything the same. Every class already has shared digital spaces. We could have students meet on Microsoft Teams during class time and students are only in class 40-60% of their day, so they could still have large parts of the day to do school work, and inquiry projects, and have free time. But how fair is it for us to expect this of them at home, when no other school is expecting this? How fair is it when we don’t know how equitable home situations and supports are?

    We need to go slowly. We need to ask a lot of questions. We need to think about expectations at the provincial, district, school, and home levels.

    A quick response will not be as good as a slow, thoughtful response. The pandemic has everyone thinking in ’emergency response mode’. What we need now is long term thinking and planning. We can’t treat a continuation of schooling like we are in a constant crisis with immediate response time required. We have to remember that the school year ends at the end of June, and quick responses now, without thinking and processing time, will not help us get to the end of June in a thoughtful and supportive way. We need to slow things down, think things through, and put the long term well-being of our students first.

    Novel ideas can spread from a novel virus

    I travelled to China during the early H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic in 2009. Concerns were low in Canada and there wasn’t a travel warning at the time. On my flight to Japan there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. However after leaving Japan, when we landed in Chana we were asked to stay on the plane and remain seated.

    A team of people masked and dressed in white came on board and used an infrared thermometer to take our temperatures. Two rows in front of me a person that was coughing and unwell, and her husband, were escorted off the plane first. I remember thinking, ‘Oh man, sucks to be you!’

    I thought that was it, but after leaving the plane I guess that we passed a heat sensor camera because I was tapped on the shoulder and pulled aside. A lady in a mask, shining a red light on my forehead, took my temperature and said, “Too hot.”

    To say that I was freaked out is an understatement. I was visiting for 1 week to learn about my future job as a school Principal, and visions of quarantine in a foreign country, where I don’t speak the language, swirled through my head. Fortunately, a second reading was done and I was fine. I think a coffee right before landing, plus the fact that I run a little hot anyway, might have been the initial trigger.

    Still, that shook me a little. I wondered about why these measures were not happening elsewhere? The response in China seemed preventative, while in other countries it seemed merely reactive. I’m not sure too many lessons were learned and the novel Coronavirus currently spreading across the world will likely have a significant impact on our globe before things get better. Yet I don’t mean that to sound like foreboding, and ominous foreshadowing. This virus will run its course, then some valuable lessons will be learned that were not learned by viruses like this in the past. Lessons that will hopefully help prevent the severity of a future pandemic.

    —

    I read in interesting article, “How the coronavirus will shape the future” and want to expand on one section as it relates to schools and education:

    If the growing novel coronavirus outbreak becomes a lasting pandemic, it could accelerate fundamental changes in the economy, politics and the workplace...

    Going remote: Videoconferencing and remote work have exploded as the virus has spread.

    • According to Kentik, a global provider of network analytics, videoconferencing traffic in North America and Asia has doubled since the outbreak began.

    • Led by tech firms like Twitter and Facebook, companies are encouraging and even requiring their employees to work from home, both to slow the spread of the disease now and prepare for the worst should offices be closed in a quarantine.

    • Many experts believe business leaders will come to see that central offices and face-to-face meetings are less vital than they thought. “We’re going to see that work can be tied to productivity anywhere rather than putting time in an office,” said Peter Jackson, CEO of the digital collaboration company Bluescape.

    At Inquiry Hub Secondary every assignment is already available online. Students have access to Moodle, Microsoft OneNote, and Microsoft Teams from any connected computer or mobile device. The Microsoft tools also have immersive readers and dictation tools to support students no matters where they are learning from.

    Using Teams, I can invite colleagues or students into a virtual classroom, sharing video including either my or a student’s screen, and we can all link to resources in the Chat. Students could collaborate and do presentations, submit work, and get feedback without entering a school. That creates a lot of opportunities that weren’t previously available. I have no idea if this is something that will become necessary in the coming months, but in some parts of the world schools have already been closed, and so the idea that this is possible becomes a topic of discussion.

    Discussion about the possibility of remote learning invites questions about blended learning where some of the work, both asynchronous and synchronous, is done remotely. It also invites conversations and questions about what we should be spending our time on when we do get together?

    We might not have to change anything to deal with the Coronavirus, but the fact that this virus is impacting the world the way it is might impact how we think about operating our schools and businesses in the future. What excites me isn’t the idea that more work might be done remotely, but rather the ideas behind what we do when we connect face-to-face, and how we use that time? Will we focus more on collaboration, team building, social skills, construction and creation of projects, and more personalized support? How will we engage students in learning when they might not be coming to school every day?

    Let the holidays begin

    It’s the last day of school before the holiday break and I’m really looking forward to the time off with my family! I’m already eating too much, and so my treadmill run this morning will be longer and slower for a good calorie burn, and I will try to keep up my time-restricted eating to prevent some of the late-night snacking. But I will also indulge a bit too. Last night I was in bed by 8:45pm, I can tell that I need a break.

    One thing that I always think about this time of year is how different the holidays are for many of the students in our schools:

    • Some will have holidays that make us envious, while some will stay cooped up at home with ‘nothing’ to do.
    • Some will celebrate the holidays with presents, some will not.
    • Some will eat to their heart’s content, some will eat whatever they can get.
    • Some will feel the love of a complete family, some will feel the loss of a loved one more than any other time of the year.
    • Some are excited about the break, some are dreading it and wish it wasn’t so long.

    We sometimes forget that the joy we feel for the holidays is not always felt by everyone. For those of you in schools, pay attention to who might need a bit of your time and attention today. Celebrate the start of holidays by spreading some cheer with some of the kids that need it most.

    —

    Also, if you are in the spirit of giving, help Inquiry Hub Student, Andrew, raise money for young teens that will have very little over the holidays. Support Covenant House in Vancouver.

    Happy holidays!

    Gas in my tank

    Yesterday evening was the Inquiry Hub Open House.

    Here is a snippet from the ‘Cold Open’ that started the event, a song written by one of our students.

    I wrote about the rehearsal and shared it here.

    My day started with my meditation at 5:30am and getting to work by 7:20. I got home after the event at just before 10pm. I should have been exhausted, but the event was so rejuvenating! I came home and had a late night 2nd dinner, and was asleep just after 11pm. That should be a wipeout kind of day.

    It wasn’t.

    Watching our students showcase their school and their passion projects was wonderful. The enthusiasm was contagious. The night filled my gas tank. Sometimes we need events like this to pump some fuel into us, and get us off ‘E’. I’m ready to cruise through the craziness of the month ahead.

    Artist

    A Place to Dream, Create, and Learn

    Imagine a school where you are given time every day to Dream, Create, and Learn.

    I’m writing this Tuesday evening before our annual Open House and publishing it on the morning of the event. I popped in earlier in day to see how things were going. The teacher who has worked with the students the most on this event has Tuesdays off. Another teacher is working with students on displays in the hallways, a third teacher is popping his head into the gym periodically to see how things are going and if he can help. A former student is working with a crew to get the sound up and running, and our show director is setting up the order of entrances and exits to ensure mic hand-offs go as planned. I was invited back at 2:30pm to see the final run-though. I arrive at the end of the ‘cold open’ musical performance and stand next to another former student, who ran the open for the last two years. He speaks first, “This will be the best Open yet.” The song finishes and I ask our student director? Did you write that song? “A group of us did.”

    I watch the rehearsal and there are issues with sound, and a video not working properly. I am not worried about this. Last year Alvin Law did a presentation at our school and he told me that he’s presented to large corporations with massive budgets and he was never treated as well by a sound crew, or had a sound system work so perfectly, as he did at our school. I would have thought he was just being polite had he not repeatedly emphasized this, even when we were saying goodbye at his car. My sound crew know that their job is to be invisible… unnoticed because sound is never an issue. I know that they are students and it might not be as perfect as that, even if the last 3 shows were.

    I only had two suggestions: First, a pair of presenters did not have a strong ending to their talk, so I suggested they present what’s coming up next; Second, one of our Grade 12’s starts with a personal story then gets lost in a list of things she accomplished. I suggested she remember to go back to storytelling and share why that list of things are important to her. Our show director has a lot more to say. She is as in control of this rehearsal as any teacher could be. She is critical, for example: “That was really good except your timing drifted off,” she says to the guitarist and piano player. She is encouraging, “I like the way you two play off of each other.” And most importantly, she is respected by the performers and presenters, and they know and understand that she has their best interest in mind.

    A student designed the advertising.


    Two students are working together on thematic ads for Instagram:

    Coder Chef Artist

    The Foods class have created custom deserts. All the clubs have representatives to share what they’re doing. Freshly created student work is on display on our walls. This isn’t just an open house, it’s a showcase. It is an opportunity for students to present to an authentic audience, by students who love the fact that they don’t just sit in classes all day. A presentation by students that get to design part of their day. They get to throw themselves fully into running and presenting at an even like this… they get to Dream, Create, and Learn as part of their school day.

    _____

    I’ve written about Inquiry Hub Secondary a few times before, most recently in March, on my Pair-a-Dimes Blog. Here is information for educators.

    Talents, Time, and Space: Passion Projects in Schools

    In every school there are athletes, musicians, dancers, artists, designers, and creatives in the areas of coding, electronics, mechanics, and even gaming, who do not get to express their full potential in school. And while it is not our job to be everything to everyone, we can create the time and space for students to work on passion projects that let them shine.

    It’s time for all schools to let go of rigid block schedules that corral students through the entire day from teacher to teacher, where every moment is determined and controlled by adults.

    This isn’t about the teachers and teaching in some of those blocks, we have amazing teachers that are engaging and excellent at teaching the curriculum. This is an issue with the schedule, and design of the day, in such a way that classes after classes fill a students day with courses that limit their ability to shine… Shine in fields they are passionate about that schools could but don’t always allow students to express themselves in.

    When students have time in their day, they can do some amazing things, like write an entire musical, design an app to help homeless people and their support workers locate resources, and build a non-partisan app & website to help people make an informed vote, (actual projects at Inquiry Hub).

    Teachers are still essential, they are the compass that helps guide students. And teachers still have classes and curriculum to teach at different times of the day… they just share that time with other times and spaces where students can follow their passions.

    Learning doesn’t have to only happen in a guided way with the teacher leading the way. If that’s the approach, letting students follow their passions will be overwhelming. The task would be too great for teachers. To do this the schedule needs to build in the time and space for students to lead their own learning, with the ever important teachers and mentors helping them find their way.

    Empowering students

    Inquiry Hub is a small school. We don’t have a lot of grads, but we have grown enough that we need to switch venues for our Annual/Graduation. We run this event together, for our entire school community, so that our grads have a full auditorium at their ceremony.

    For this special event, the presentations and entertainment are organized by our students and teachers together. At the event, our students run the show, with teachers handing out awards, and students providing the entertainment. Last year we packed the small auditorium, and with 8 more grads this year, the search for a new location began.

    Two of my grads did the research and presented me with a couple options. We started inquiring about dates and costs, and by ‘we’, I mean my students did, presenting the final suggestion to me. My job, pay the deposit and set up the first technical visit.

    That visit was today. We looked at the stage set-up, I shared my thoughts and ideas, and while a few were taken, a few weren’t. When the meeting with the booking coordinator was over, we thanked her and she said, “It’s funny, this whole time, until you came in today, I thought I was corresponding with teachers.” She had no idea that all the setup and communication (other than me joining in to sign the papers and pay) was done by students.

    I thanked her and told her that these students, Jazmine & Antoni, would continue to be her main contacts for the event, other than final payment. The first 5 minutes of the drive home, the car ride was silent, while these two students made notes on their phones.

    The one big realization that I needed to remind them of was that unlike last year, they would be in grad gowns in the front seats, and other students would have to work back stage. They assured me that the 2 students that were being groomed last year were ready to take on the challenge, and they were not available today or they would have joined us. I guess I should have known that already, but if I didn’t trust them then I wouldn’t really be empowering them.

    I’m not pretending that there won’t be a lot for myself, my teachers, and my PAC (Parent Advisory Council) to do, to ensure that the event goes smoothly. But, I also know that what will make this celebration extra special is that it will look and feel like it was student run, with a level of quality that surpasses what you’d expect from a student run event. Why? Because when students feel truly empowered, they shine.