3.1    What is a learning organization?

Reflect on what it would feel like to be part of a learning organization

1.       What do you think it feels like to be part of a ‘learning organization’? 

Response:

As an individual, I am continuously developing my knowledge, skills and classroom practice with every opportunity that is made available to me. My past and present experiences drawn from the organizations I have worked, as well as, my current employer have provided opportunities to learn, grow and develop as an educational practitioner and for that I am grateful. 

However, while opportunities for training is present, opportunities to apply it in the classroom is limited.  This is due to inadequate educational systems and processes in place; inappropriate infrastructure and a potential toxic attitude of some unwilling teachers and administrative staff in the organization.

It is an ongoing challenge that we all are currently working on towards improvement.

 2.        What might prevent a school from developing as a ‘learning organization’?

Response:

There are many factors that has the capability to stunt the development of any learning organization, such as lack of vision, inadequate training, mismatched programs, unaccommodating curriculum, absence of modifications, criticism, no teamwork, no structure, no empathy nor sensitivity; but what stands out for me will be having a good, positive attitude towards learning, growth and development both individually as a professional; and collectively as an organization. 

 What makes a school a learning organization?

Response:

Administrative staff, teachers, general personnel all need to be in agreement with the organization’s vision and goals towards inclusive learning and development.  Individuals must also understand their function and the impact of the role as a part of a whole.

Growth and development warrants openness to innovative ideas; willingness to collaborate those initiatives; a culture of collecting data in a variety of methods; monitoring and evaluating such data to produce meaningful outcomes towards better and best practice in the classroom and school environment.

 3.2  Experiences of professional development

Consider your own experiences of continuing professional development and write a forum post

Think about the opportunities that you have had for professional development.

Make a list in your study notebook. Highlight which one was the most memorable and most effective, and the one which was the least.

Response:

My professional development originally stemmed from a corporate/ financial background until I made a 360 degree career change to education.  I appreciate the disciplined work ethic of banking, the professionalism required to deliver services and interpersonal skills of working with the general public from all ages, races and classes of people.

My educational career brought out the emotional side of me in regards to empathy, accommodation, modification, patience, keeping student engaged, creating new ideas to deliver content in the curriculum.

The theoretical and practical knowledge of educational practice, the direct experience of teaching, conducting assessments and making evaluations; in and out of the classroom as mainstream teacher, a special subject teacher and currently a special education teacher continues to mold and shape my character as an individual. I have no regrets on my journey thus far.

   Explain why they were effective or not. Make a short post on the Week 3 forum briefly describing a professional development experience which challenged your thinking or helped you to improve your practice. Say why you found it to be effective.

Response:

All the knowledge, skills and experiences gleaned from training and development from both my previous and current careers better prepared me for where I am now as a special education officer.  I am equipped with skills that allows me to differentiate, modify and accommodate both my lesson delivery as well as my classroom environment that enables me to achieve my goal in reaching students in a manner where they can rediscover their abilities and thrive as individuals and do so much more.

 3.3  Being an effective inclusive teacher

Using your experience to identify what it is that effective inclusive teachers need to know, understand and be able to do. Consider how this links to CPD

Think about the attributes of an effective inclusive teacher.

 In your study notebook:

 • Write down 4 or 5 attributes of an inclusive teacher.

• For each of the points that you have made, identify the knowledge and skills that they need to have.

• Classify the knowledge as skills according to one of the bullet points above.

Response:

Five attributes of an inclusive teacher are as follows:

Attribute: Creative

Knowledge:  theory and practice on how to developing creative ways of developing ideas for lesson delivery, engagement, expression and evaluation

Skills: being open-minded, problem solving, being able to execute lesson planning, using a variety of media to deliver content, using visual and performing arts to induct, engage and evaluate lessons in the classroom

 Attribute: Adaptive

Knowledge:  of theory and practice on how to differentiate, modify and make accommodations in planning, executing and evaluating lesson content with varied needs of varied students in the classroom

Skills:  soft skills on learning new skills and behaviours to support varied needs in changing circumstances that may affect the learning experiences of students in the class

Attribute: Organized

Knowledge: of theory and practice on how to plan and structure activities that would be effectively executed in an manner that would produce a positive outcome of learning, engagement, enjoyment and meaningful evaluation taking place

Skills: the ability to set goals, time management, attention to detail, effective interpersonal communiation skills, delegation, self motivating and being analytical

 Attribute: Detailed-Oriented

Knowledge: of theory and practice on managing and multitasking projects and programs as well as breaking them down into smaller tasks or processes

Skills: methodical, have a good memory, produce high quality work, can multi-task, pay close attention to details

 Attribute: Even-Tempered/ Calming

Knowledge: of theory and practice on the ability to manage one’s mod and temper in varying circumstances especially stressful ones

Skills:  patient, considerate, does not hold grudges or take vengeance, kind and accommodating

 Now, look back on your response to Activity 3.2, and at some of the responses in the Week 3 course forum. If you are a teacher, consider what sort of PD opportunities your need.

If your work involves supporting teachers, consider how you might support teachers in developing the different types of knowledge.

Response:

In my job supporting teachers in their classroom is part of my many functions and in this regard I would create opportunities to provide training, model and conduct demonstrations and provide positive feedback and suggestions in a variety of ways that can make their job run easier, smoother and more effective in the classroom, some of them are:

Workshops

One on One Demonstrations

On-going Coaching in teaching styles, engagement techniques and differentiation of curriculum content

Observation/ anecdotal Notes

Give access to Resources/ Links

Develop a Resource Bank of tried and used resources/ technicques/ plans from other teachers

Model the practice, practice, evaluate and reflect

Identify alternative ways to deliver and improve lessons

Differentiated Instruction

Game-based Teaching/ Learning

3.4  What kind of professional development?

Use your responses to the previous activities to reflect on why traditional cascade models of

professional development are not considered to be very effective

 1.       In week 1 you heard Daniel suggesting that professional development should be organised into short sessions focus on particular skills; and be followed up

 He suggested that teachers need continuous support, rather than ‘one’ off training sessions.

Think back to the training that you have experienced and look at your notes from Activity 3.2.

Did it include the elements that Daniel describes?

How could it have been done differently? Did it cover the things that teachers need to know and be able to do? (Activity 3.2)

Response:

The current training I have experienced have been either lecture style, open group discussions or self-managed online training like this one.  So, no my current training experiences did not include the elements Daniel described.

 If anything had to be done differently, it would consist of 3 elements:

1.       Frequency of training – that is, bi-weekly or monthly opposed to end of quarter or beginning of the new term

2.       Delivering the content/ training in a variety of ways – that is, opposed to lecture style it can be presented in drama, role-playing, videos, debates, focus groups and more

3.       Creating a forum where more teacher collaboration of feedback such as ideas, suggestions, evaluations, reflections and concerns are shared, pooled and packaged in a manner where all involved has equal access to the resources, testimonials, techniques gleaned from the training

The training would usually cover the main areas of importance to the teaching practice but it usually subjective and in theory and rarely in practice,  sometimes, the learning experience becomes more       meaningful when you see it in practice or role play it yourself so that you experience its effectiveness.

Additionally, teachers need continuous support in order to develop a culture that purports an attitude and approach of consistency, desire and development in the teaching practice.

 2.       Research suggests that traditional models of professional development are not very effective.

Drawing on your experience, and what you learnt in the first course in this series about inclusive teaching, why do you think this might be?

Record your thoughts in your study notebook

Response:

According to research, traditional models of professional development are considered to be ineffective because of the following:

1.       Training is not usually designed where the teachers can interact with the content among their peers where they can practice, evaluate and give feedback

2.        The scope of the training being provided is vast and diverse but does not drill down into the

actual classroom challenges being experienced by teachers

3.       There is no access to consistent coaching from a well-informed/ experienced expert in the

areas beng training to provide meaningful feedback and evaluation

4.       Often enough professional training and development usually glosses over general issues in teaching but does not address nor equip teachers with how to handle the actual problems and challenges in teaching practice in the classroom

5.       Traditional professional development are usually ‘informing’ of theory rather than ‘performing’ the practice, denying the space for self-evaluation and reflection of the application of knowledge and technique in the classroom

6.       There are no formal mechanisms of measure or assessment put in place to gauge student performance derived from the training gleaned

 3.5   Example from practice

Read the case study provided. It is about professional development for learner-centred education in Tanzania. As you read, respond to the following questions in your study notebook:

1.       From the teachers perspective, what did they do differently?

Response:

From the teacher’s perspective, what they did differently to the norm was that they met with a purpose to learn and try new approaches with varied resources; they were given the opportunity and time to practice it in the classroom; and then return in a timely manner to provide feedback, reflect and evaluate

 2.       What was the contribution of the researchers? Think about your own professional working environment.

Response:

The contribution of the researchers provided a sense of structure and organization in the methodology of the training.  By this is, I mean assigning designated school in-service co-ordinators (SICs) who works with the head teachers to plan regular teacher group meetings (TGMs).  Thus, creating the space and time for ‘training’ to take place; creating the space and time for ‘practice in the classroom’ to take place; and creating the space and time for ‘feedback and evaluation’ to take place, all coordinated working towards one goal and one form of scheduling

 What would need to be in place to enable teachers to work in this way?

Response:

Currently, in my country, teachers are bombarded with reports, paperwork and lesson plans due for administration and there is no designated time for the aforementioned.  Structured and coordinated time and space for the processes of training, practice and feedback should be assigned in accordance with teachers timely class scheduling.

 What resources would they need?

Response:

The resources needed would be time, manpower to organize and coordinate regular teacher group meetings, resources used in the classroom and instruments of assessment for feedback and evaluation.

 Make a short post on the Week 3 forum in answer to the question:

What needs to be in place to enable teachers to take part in ‘learning study’?

How could Learning study be used to develop inclusive teachers

Response:

Learning study is a collaborative action research approach that teachers can use to improve and increase their teaching techniques and skills bank coupled with the ability to both access as well as develop an appropriate resource bank from which they can draw from.  However, with regards to the development of inclusive teachers, this approach also enables them to learn, liaise and live the practices shared through pedagogy and intuitive reflection and evaluation of teaching for differentiation, adaptation, modification and accommodation in both main stream and special education in an effort to achieve inclusive education in their schools.

 3.6 School-based teacher development

Listen to the District Educational Standards Officer (DESO) form Chisamba in Zambia, talking about the impact of the enhanced SPRINT system.

Highlight one challenge that SBTD might present in your context, and one opportunity

Response:

A potential challenge that may be present in the context of my country will be to assign time and space for the processes of training, practice and feedback; and redirect the mountain of demands for reports

A potential opportunity that may be present in the context of my country will be to implement consistency in training, practice and feedback in a timely manner.  It will also foster a communal, collaborative teacher pedagogical culture that in turn will achieve an inclusive culture in our school.

 3.7 Resources for schoolbased CPD

Browse some resources to support SBTD and suggest how they might be adapted for your context.

Response:

The school based teacher developmental resources can be adapted via the following:

The development of interactive text modules

Role-playing practice in the classroom

Testing or trying new approaches

Having collaborative meetings to reflect and re-evaluate

Hosting inclusive based activities and events as a team

Lesson Plans and assessments

Consider the following questions and write the answers in your notebook.

1.       What is the role of the head teacher in supporting a programme like this?

Response:

The role of the head teacher in supporting a programme like this would be to identify and delegate tasks to Supporting In-House Service Coordinators who will operate as the bridge between the teachers and the head teachers in the respective class levels.  The head teacher will act as a resource to give support to the support coordinators in organizing and scheduling regular meeting in accordance with teachers scheduled classes

 2.       What is the role of national policy makers in supporting this sort of activity?

Response:

The role of the national policy makers in supporting this sort of activity can be a number of functions such as:

To monitor and track the overall school performance in terms of its growth in size and crowd control

Teacher/ student ratio

The quality of teacher training and teaching methods

The upkeep and maintenance of school infrastructure and any required accommodations and modifications from special needs students

The curriculum and guidelines of how the content should be taught

The creation of funding for the operation of the school and much more

 3.       How useful are these materials? As an educator, how can you imagine using them in your role?

Response:

These materials are all very useful and as an educator I can use this among my colleagues when we conduct training workshops; as well as, the student aides that I supervise, who work with students with special needs.  This will also improve and increase their skill set and resource bank in their job function

 Write a brief post in the Week 3 forum highlighting one aspect of these materials that you like and one that might present a challenge in your context.

Response:

I like the use of role playing, storytelling and playing games as materials being incorporated into the teacher training and professional development process

I think that working in pairs may discourage collaboration and encourage more cliquing.  Therefore, working in groups should come first until everyone in more familiar and comfortable with each in pairs

 Reflection Point:

How could a programme of School-based teacher Development contribute to creating an inclusive ethos and culture in a school?

What role might you be able to play to encourage and support such a process?

Response:

A school-based teacher development programme would indeed contribute to creating an inclusive ethos and culture in a school; because cultivating an inclusive ethos requires exposure to new knowledge in the realm of inclusive education, differentiation and making modifications through special education, training, practice and modelling inclusion.

By creating a teacher developmental culture sets the foundation through the emergence of characteristics and skill sets that purports buy-in, collaboration, teamwork and a desire to learn more by default setting the foundation to develop an inclusive ethos so that cooperation among staff would be seamless and an inclusive ethos achieved.

 3.8  Monitoring inclusivity

Based on your role within the education sector, select one of the groups of stakeholders associated with the schools in your context.

 This might include:

• Teachers

• Learners

• Parents and care givers

• School-management committee

• District or zonal education officers

• Community leaders

 • Specialist teachers for disabled children

From this perspective of this group, in your study notebook, make a list of the features of an inclusive school. Try to make your list as practical as possible.

Response:

Selected Group: Teachers

List of features on an inclusive school would be as follow:

Teachers need to:

-          Have a welcoming attitude from all those that interact with students

Example: Teachers can make physical and visual accommodations in their classroom that would generate a welcoming atmosphere for their students such as visual charts that highlights the time schedule or short class rules supported by graphics or symbols

-          Develop policies that incorporates inclusion and celebrated diversity in all the operations and activities in the school

Example: Administrators and teachers collaborate and develop policies that make allowances for students with special needs such as providing an option to be assessed or evaluated via orally versus written

-          Have a positive attitude towards encouraging parents to become more involved and participative in their children’s performance in class and involvement in school activities

Example: Teachers can create more opportunities to encourage open communication between themselves and parents such as using whatsapp social media application for real time communication or weekly notes on updates for assignment deadlines or school activities

-          Have more access to on-site/ off-site training and opportunities for professional development that would enable them to deliver content in a variety of ways that would reach diverse learners in the classroom effectively

Example: Teachers have a positive and more open-mindedness to learning new strategies and training and practicing new techniques and approaches to delivering content, keeping students engaged and conducting assessments in a variety of methods

-          Assessments that would be functional enough to identify students’ strengths and areas that need attention for development using a variety of approaches to collect such data

Example:  Designing assessments that can be modified to meet students’ needs such as either reducing the number of questions in the assessment or conducting the assessment orally or through drama, art or even observation.  Teachers must be willing to use diverse methods of collecting data on their students

-          Curricula that can be streamlined and modified against the needs of students both collectively as well as individually according to class levels and as a school

Example: Teachers can create ways to differentiate and modify the content while maintaining the curriculum but varying how it is being delivered, engaged and assessed in the classroom such as including videos, games and drama etc.

-          Create an environment that is inclusive and accommodating to all students, especially those with special needs for learning in both the class and school environments

Example: Teachers must be flexible enough to make any accommodations to their classrooms that would enhance and encourage learning among their students such as seating, spacing, access to visual teaching aids etc.

  3.9  Monitoring tools

Is there anything else that you would want to include in the tool, to be confident that the school is working towards being an inclusive school?

Response:

Infrastructural modifications to access and interact in the classroom and general school areas

Consistent teacher coaching/ training meetings

Inclusive-based school activities that celebrate diversities and inclusion

Develop a diverse resource bank of strategies and teaching aids that can be accessible by teachers

Create a space or opportunities that would foster collaboration, sharing and a spirit of teamwork

 Which of the tools do you find the most helpful, or would you prefer to adapt them to create one for your context?

Response:

I find that the areas of professional development and all stakeholders fostering a positive attitude towards inclusion are considered to be more helpful currently in the context of the school with which I have worked

 Summary

What is the contribution of community organisations, families and children in creating an inclusive school?

Response:

Some contribution are as follows:

Promoting inclusion awareness and inclusive education

Offer educational and intervention services for students with special needs

Empowering and advocating persons with disabilities

Create social participation and stakeholders engagement