Goals for 2020

Even though we don't have to continue with appraisal systems based on our recent changes in the Collective Agreement and Accord - info here and here - I still continue to be a reflective and aspirational practitioner.

Goals for 2020:

* Survive Lockdown -- at times it's felt like waiting for the Purge. Other times I'm just damn grateful that I don't have children. Would this be what it's like having children? Stuck at home... ALL THE TIME? Gah. Mindboggling. I miss driving to see my friends. Being on an aeroplane and traveling to far-flung destinations. I miss being able to be completely free to go where I want, when I want. Being stuck inside has been HARD. For everyone. But harder still for those of us battling our insides and past trauma related to home stuff. I have so much aroha for those who are still in those dark, hurt places who are forced to stay in those spaces purely because of lockdown. How hard it must be to constantly be in that space with no hope of getting out. I just hope their neighbours have been actively listening and just being PRESENT for those people - so when the time comes, they will have help where needed.

* Finish my korowai -- last year in my appraisal hui we talked about my hobbies and passions. Something I'd missed doing all year was my korowai. Being so far away from Whaea Lorraine in Mamaku was hard and I struggled to even pick my korowai sampler up. This year I signed up with Te Wananga o Aotearoa... (yes, AGAIN!) and I've really enjoyed learning from Te Raita and her nan Roka. I've enjoyed researching Ngati Maniapoto kairaranga and whatu raranga like Rangimarie Hetet and her daughter Diggeress Te Rangituatahi Te Kanawa. I've recently been taught how to harvest harakeke but because it was my mate o te marama - I had to stand back and watch. Just you wait though... I know where to get the harakeke for muka now! Roka said I need to make 600 whenu. 600! That's going to be a LOT of prepping. Good thing I still have more samplers to do and to actually finish my korowai sampler too. It's looking so beautiful.

* Identify more places to travel to -- When lockdown is over - I am going to TRAVEL everywhere. I cannot wait.

* Sharing my tech geekiness with my colleagues -- I want to start ByteSized PLD with the OC whanau. It worked really well at Heights. Even if I was making more work for myself with little recognition from senior management... I was doing the mahi for them. But OC is different. At OC they seem keen on learning new things and happy for distributed leadership in those areas. I've waited back all of last year, assessing what needs my team has and figuring out how to best help people. I've really enjoyed doing PLD sessions with my team during lockdown. I've developed some PLD videos already for Whaea T, K and A -- and shared HEAPS of resources with S which hopefully helps with 3.8.

* More hui with English Dept -- I have LOVED doing our English dept catchup sessions each Wednesday and look forward to having time built into our timetable to be able to do this more often. Just being able to korero with the team about how things are going and what we need to do next to develop our skills as a team. It's been good seeing everyone and catching up even about mundane things which have become less trivial and actually interesting - the flip of lockdown I guess for me - recognising that this is why my nan always asks these questions about the weather and what I've been doing. Because it's actually interesting when you're stuck, bored out of your brain at home.

* Remote Learning -- I've learnt that there are MULTIPLE ways of doing online learning and that we still have much to learn. Even though I studied in Mindlab back in the ra, and all my studies, analysis, development of perspectives etc it reminds me daily that there are still laggards to bring along with us on this journey. These laggards have now been pushed like blue flamers into the late majority -- still keen to learn but not knowing how. For this, the lockdown has been useful too.

* Learning how to front those difficult conversations rather than continuing to avoid them to avoid confrontation -- the Effective Leadership hui we went on earlier this year is still in the back of my mind. I want to be better at communicating. I think though that the way I've fronted the issues which need most focus - has worked. Offering support, ensuring they know I'm here and waiting -- has actually worked. Proof -- hui this morning. AWESOME learning. It was truly so good. So much learning and more to happen this weekend.

* Developing resources -- Being commissioned by NZATE has been a really good challenge. I know I'm crap at deadlines. I also know I need processing and planning time. I gave myself a deadline I knew I couldn't meet, passed it and then asked for an extension. It's now only been a week since the deadline I should have given haha. I still have more to do. I wish I'd chosen to give a resource I'd already made. A win I guess, is that it allowed the discussion about Creative Commons to occur with my principal and the BOT.

* New leadership opportunities -- I wasn't shoulder tapped this time. But I was talked to about it, in a roundabout way. I was later told that they had brought my name up too but there was specific mandate NOT to shoulder tap me. And thus... I wait further. Hoping that my self-nomination is successful. Though I still would have liked to have more info about the role first haha. We'll see whether the association votes for me.

* External Moderation -- I still need to learn how to do this. I've asked for help from a few different people. Straight up - I just need someone to show me how. I know it's not hard. But it's my first time as a CA to do it on behalf of my team. I want to do it right and listen to what the MNA guy said last year too.

* Cross-curricular learning -- I want to do more of this. Let's work together!

* Localised learning -- I want to do more of this too!

* Lockdown has just been made SO MUCH EASIER -- thankyou cousin! We can now travel around the country to see our whanau. I CANNOT WAIT to go see our nan. YAY Level 2 - LOVE IT. Still stay safe. Stay vigilant and be on guard. Keep your contacts to a minimum.

* Distance Learning -- changes during Level 2 -- there will still be students needing remote learning available. More info to come.

Parent Teacher Interviews: Thankful parents

Last night I experienced another really rare moment. This time it was two parents of two of my students who explicitly thanked me for what I do for them and their students. It was so nice.

Nice because we don't often hear that. And the sincerity and seriousness of what they were saying made my heart sing.

One of those parents was the same one who said this last parent teacher interviews. She noted that her daughter should be more thankful, and apparently has said this to her in the past, because I let her daughter read an alternate text for her novel this year. The parent commented that she'd told her daughter that this wasn't normal practice and that her daughter should be more appreciative of what I do.

Last night we talked about how her daughter was playing a game on her phone yesterday. The one time I catch her daughter out doing something she's not meant to, out of hundreds of days where she has been absolutely brilliant and completely putting all her effort into her mahi. We laughed because that relationship, to share that funny moment, was there and had already been built.

What I would like is to have that kind of relationship with all of my student's parents. To have them know what I do, to have their support, to improve their learning and overall engagement in their student's learning.

Last night there were way less parents who came. Perhaps this is because of the two other house tutor group day sessions for goal setting and option choices we've held already this year since the last parent teacher interviews.

Regardless, it's always something a teacher likes to hear. That we are actually making a difference and that the difference is noted and appreciated. :)

Collaboration in English - Thematic Y11 Programme

A couple of days ago a colleague from the English department asked if I could give her some ideas for the Y11 film study. We talked about what I do and how it all connects to be able to teach 1.8 properly - by using a thematic study of texts. I teach around the themes of corruption and control and Y11 and it continues to be super effective. (Still need to nail the Y12 programme.... heoi ano..) 

In Y11 we start with creative writing and two short texts: 'Harrison Bergeron' by Kurt Vonnegut and 'Examination Day' by Henry Slesar. This year we looked at the films for these too - very short films - which seemed to capture their understanding in even more depth. By term two, we're doing the novel study - this year they had a few options: 'The Giver' by Lois Lowry, 'The Knife of Never Letting Go' by Patrick Ness and 'Divergent' by Veronica Roth. Last year I had given them 'The Hunger Games' and 'Noughts and Crosses' too - but having so many options was crazy chaotic - although useful in some ways... This year it has been way more manageable and students have been able to identify with different texts more effectively. Having their formal writing assessment (where they wrote an essay about their novel) due right before their first exam was useful as well as it helped them achieve so much more effectively than ever before. Majority of Merits, smaller number of Achieved's and only a handful of Not Achieved's and one Excellence. In preparation for term three, where they do the 1.8 Connections assessment, we will be beginning to study 'V for Vendetta' directed by James McTeigue. In the 1.8 assessment, they have to write a report analysing four texts - three studied in class and one they've chosen on their own. All four texts need to be connected in some way - usually a main theme that is overarching. 

After explaining the 1.8 assessment a little bit with my colleague, we discussed possible options for films going from the themes in the short story 'Ka Kite Bro' by Willie Davis that they had previously studied this year. The themes of racism, culture, acceptance and self-identity run through it. I grabbed a few options from the dvd cupboard in class, and gave her Boy, The Blindside and The Boy in Striped Pyjamas. We then started talking about the themes in other forms of possible media, like poetry and articles she'd done in class. I told her about the unit I used to do with the bi-lingual kids at Massey High and how we incorporated spoken word poetry and traditional poetry as well as short stories to create a thematic unit around overcoming racism and breaking stereotypes. I gave her a few post its with the stories I'd used and emailed a few of the ones I could find on Google Drive while she was still there. We talked a bit more and decided on Whale Rider for her film study, which I had a copy of at home.

Yesterday I created a shared folder with ALL of the texts that could possibly help and also created a Google Slide deck with spoken word poetry, traditional poetry and also the blogpost where I talked more about it a couple years ago. This slide deck will be incredibly useful when I need to use it again - possibly with the Y10 English class in a couple weeks time. 

This morning she told me how effective one of the poems was - a spoken word poem by Joshua Iosefo called 'Brown Brother'. I only heard about it myself because one of the bi-lingual students had brought it up in class one day - and from then on I've been hooked. The poem discusses institutionalised racism and the inherent stereotypes faced by people of colour. Particularly from his perspective as a Samoan teenager looking towards his future prospects. 

This kind of teaching is what I love the most - working with people to solve problems, identify shared issues and try to overcome them through resiliency and problem solving.

And... now on to more marking :D

Appraisal Connector: Interlead

Here is my appraisal report for this term.

Full Report 31 Jul 2014.PDF

This turned into a mini-inquiry ... here is the process to get to embedding a pdf on Blogger. There probably was an easier way - but this works. :)

 .... Still trying to figure out how to upload it as a PDF. Gah. Should just upload it to GDrive and then have it as a link...

Went to Youtube - watched two videos - one to do it through docstoc and another through Scribd.

Here is the video -

 

Went to Scribd.com and created a free account to put this on here. Will be good in the future to do this with other links and docs.

A Post about More Posts

Some posts I should make if I ever need inspiration:

Thoughts while I do my Interlead Appraisal - Self-Appraisal.

• A post on student voice... with links to my other blog posts using student voice, but specifically reflecting on student voice (eg exit cards/tickets etc)
• Reflection on how I predict for student errors in lessons
• How I take advantage of student's having trouble and change them into 'teachable moments' in class
• How do I make contingency plans on students differing levels... does this just mean differentiation
• Need to update my planning - year levels in particular
• Registered Teachers Criteria
• Showing my evidence of rtcs
• A post on importance on referring cases to counsellors
•