A Tale of Two Conferences...bring on Edcamp!


Recently I was privileged to present at two conferences during the same weekend, the view I had of professional development was one of curious delight. One gathering, 12000 educators strong, is two days of inspirational educational keynotes (Sir Ken Robinson, Pasi Sahlberg) while the other was two dozen educators with two local educational heroes speaking, while the rest of the sessions the attendees were charged with generating the synergy. Although they appear on opposite sides of the spectrum, the two formats solidified my belief that professional development does not work if a culture is received. 
At the large PD gathering, CCTCA, the passive lecture I had prepared went well. The audience was clearly keen on sitting and listening so I talked away. The feedback was positive but no one other than the speaker had any chance to contribute to the session. I have found this creates a dialectic of quickly forgetting key points and noting down resources to be filed away who knows where.


At the intimate gathering, ROEE (a organization that calls itself a non-organization) the small group flourished under a schedule of 'unconference sessions', focused round-table discussions and most importantly, short ed-chats during the van rides to different locations. My 'passive lecture' session was obviously not a fit, was quickly modified and we naturally chatted, as professional rejuvenation goes, developed tremendous conversations that lasted the weekend.


I know this is not surprising but the fact is, a student is no different than an educator full of intrinsic motivation. The extrinsic, static nature of the large P.D. gathering did little for extending professional practice. The intrinsic, dynamic intimate P.D. allowed the audience a voice, modelling a classroom where the teacher is in the middle of the classroom and not the front.

Spontaneous, development oriented, grassroots professional development is the future for my professional growth. The incredible success of the 'Edcamp' model is proof that a massive gathering for educators professional growth, models the exact thing many want to avoid in classrooms: extrinsic, implementation oriented motivation.

Bring on #edcampyyc...

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Parenting With Steiner/Waldorf in Mind (and questions to ask).

Like so many new parents, I have found myself researching parenting trends and the science of child-rearing. Why not share? During interviews conducted during my graduate studies with experts on experiential learning there was commonly a referral like: "Well if you look at the utopian experience that Steiner/Waldorf Schools advocates create...". The expert would go on painting a description of a learning style striving to develop a complete human being. Where music, movement and theater, writing, literature and nature are not simply subjects to be read about and tested. They are experienced. The skinny: a Steiner/Waldorf ethos demands questioning of an experience or reaction to a behavior. What could be some nuggets that parents could utilize in home life? This post is just some Q and A's whipped together. Is electronic media as bad as research says it is for children? [1] Yes, Steiner/Waldorf training programs argue. Electronic Media affects child development
Read more

Blended Learning, meet Outdoor Education, you're such a wonderful fit...

Image
As buzz words go in education, the 'blended learning' model has been steadily increasing as an accepted delivery within classroom education. Blended learning, a challenge to teacher-centered classrooms, is no more technical than it sounds, basically encompassing a fluid use of face-to-face, on-line and group collaboration of some sort. Outdoor education is a powerful example of experiential learning that is far too often compartmentalized as extra curricular. Praised by many; however, its value localized with wellness and character building.  As ironic as it seems, outdoor and experiential education stands to benefit by the current integration of   technology. Teachers concerned with blending the classroom , as Cailin Tucker recently explained in a recent NPR article: "are using technology to replace elements of in-class instruction, classroom time can be leveraged to deepen learning. [Teachers] can embrace project-based learning and create student-centered class
Read more

My PLN just made my school a better place:

Image
One of the latest project-based challenges we faced in our grade 8 & 9 classroom was designing and constructing a safe and beautiful stage set for our (public) school's (k to 9) younger students holiday concert. Made helpful by both our district and province mandating 'competency focussed learning ' and made into reality through developing an effective PLN. Right:  One of the Grade 8 groups developing prototypes to answer the challenge: "With the area of 5 sheets of plywood, you must create a set that has 4 houses and can safely hold students 'on top of them'" I jumped at the opportunity when our school's music teacher asked our staff team for some help, I knew it was risky putting students in charge of a project that not only the entire school and staff  would see, countless parents would as well.  The doubts were many: Would the students fail to take ownership of this ? Was the task too advanced for the age group to create something l
Read more