Activity 1 - Taking Action!

The Spiral of Inquiry
Spiral of Inquiry Adapted by The Mind Lab by Unitec

Week 25 - Taking Action

This week I have begun the "Take Action" phase of my teacher inquiry on Hybrid Learning and it has been a busy week! As outlined in week one of my action plan, I have emailed whanau of my key stakeholders - my Year 9 French students. The purpose of my email was to introduce myself and the Hybrid Learning initiative to parents as part of the students’ transition from the intermediate school into year 9. I have collected my baseline data through a survey on Microsoft Forms, and have introduced my class to Microsoft Teams - a real hit! 


So far, I have been filled with enthusiasm and positivity. I have had some supportive and encouraging replies from whanau, pleased to hear that their child’s teachers are “keeping up with the times” and providing exciting, relevant learning opportunities for our students. Not only has this spurred me on and fuelled my growth mindset (Dweck, 2006), but it has made me realise the value of involving whanau in my students’ learning, how a simple email can be greatly appreciated.

After weeks of thought and planning, it was exciting to see how quickly my students took to Microsoft Teams – the digital platform we will use for the Hybrid Programme. I had set up a “chit chat” channel so that they could experiment with different features and communicate off-topic. Some students had used Teams before and were able to teach the rest of us tips and tricks. Within no time there was a contagious buzz permeating the classroom. Riding the wave of this buzz, my students completed the survey sensibly and carefully to provide me with useful insight into their feelings towards French, and their perceived competence in digital-learning.

Lesson one did not come without its difficulties however, as we did encounter the odd systems-based problem. Being the beginning of the school year, a few new students did not yet have access to the school network, and a couple of others had WiFi connection issues. Future digitally-centred innovations would be best left until a few weeks into the term when these types of issues are generally resolved. In saying that, we easily found a solution by buddying up students to work together.

Through a Wider Lens

My involvement in past change initiatives has highlighted the importance of adapting and changing my leadership style to suit my followers, so during this initiative I am aiming for a situational leadership model (Hersey, Blanchard & Johnson, 1969), where I adjust my leadership style based on the readiness of my followers. Following Robinson’s (2009) Diffusion of Innovation theory, this week I encouraged the early adopters to show others in the class how to use Microsoft Teams, which quickly promoted enthusiasm across the class.

In their study using Hybrid Learning, Badenhorst & East (2015) described Blended Learning as a co-constructive model, where the teacher is a partner in the learning, working with the student to scaffold, manage, provide feedback and maintain a safe learning community. They found that Blended Learning allows for more student‐centred learning, differentiation and equal opportunities for all students, not only the loud and confident. During the “Learn” phase of the spiral of inquiry, I considered the six principles of Kaupapa Maori (Katoa Ltd, n.d) and discovered how well the principles of Tino Rangatiratanga - the self-determination principle and Ako - the culturally preferred pedagogy principle fits in with Blended Learning. 

I have found an innovation I truly believe in and am really looking forward to Week 2 of this journey.



Badenhorst, G., & East, M. (2015). Hybrid Learning in a Multi-Level German Class: Making the Most of the Reality of Combined Classes. New Zealand Language Teacher, 41, 64–77. Retrieved from http://libproxy.unitec.ac.nz:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=111644221&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.

Kaupapa Māori Research [Web log post]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.katoa.net.nz/kaupapa-maori
Ministry of Education (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington, NZ: Learning Media.

Robinson, L. (2009). A summary of Diffusion of Innovations. Changeology. Retrieved from http://www.enablingchange.com.au/Summary_Diffusion_Theory.pdf


Comments

  1. Unknown12 February 2019 at 19:02

    Kia ora Emma, I really enjoyed hearing about your innovation, especially as I also teach this student group. This innovation meets all the criteria of Kaupapa Maori: Tino Rangatiratanga, the self-determination principle, is met by ensuring that the students maintain control over their own learning and Taonga tuku iho is addressed by ensuring the learning aspirations of all students, including the Māori students, are considered. You are embracing Ako as you teach and learn together and from each other and Kia piki ake i nga raruraru o te kāinga, the socio-economic mediation principle, is taken into consideration as you make a plan for students without a device. Students do not come to us to learn in isolation; their Whānau are vital to their wellbeing in education, health and justice and they have been included in your action plan; this is especially important with younger students. Kaupapa, the collective philosophy principle, will be strengthened by students working collaboratively. Ka pai!

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