Professional Learning in the 21st Century Unleashing learning for teachers Bernadette Mercieca eLearning Co-ordinator, Xavier College,

Plan for the workshop ●Professional Learning? Professional Development? ●Research background: What is a Community of Practice? ●Why participate in a Community of Practice? ●How to build a Community of Practice in your school ●Simulating our own Community of Practice

Professional learning? Professional development?

Have a chat….. ●What is the difference between Professional Development and Professional Learning? ●What has your experience been of Professional Development and/or Professional Learning in your school?

Professional Development Professional Learning Largely private affairCollaborative experience “done/given” to teachers Enacted by teachers Unfocused, fragmented, not specific to school Grounded in local context Teachers as passive learners Teachers as active learners One offOngoing

“The start of term is ruined by PD sessions full of dull Power Points and pointless spider diagrams. All I can think of is my work piling up!” Secret Teacher: don't waste my time on torturous training days!

“ Closed door isolation: from each other, from ideas, from learning theory and educational policy as they’re translated into real teaching, and from ourselves as teachers as we try to learn. Over time, this deafening isolation dampens the imagination and initiative we brought with us as new teachers, and the silence among us grows.” (Blog: Erik Nelson, Effective learning in not a mirage, Sept. 18, 2015)

Faculty meetings are fine, but they are not really communities of practice So what is a community of practice? We have faculty meetings- is that what a community of practice is?

Let me tell you…... What’s in it for me?

We can’t do it alone! No individual alone can transform our schools into places where all children get what they need every day CoPs have great potential for solving hard problems in challenging contexts. They bring together more skill, knowledge, and experience to work than any single individual can. They can integrate individual members' diverse contributions into a creative problem that is what is needed. Some of us might suspect that we're stronger and more effective in teams, but we haven't had such an experience. Until we do, it can be hard to fully invest in building a team.

#PKMChat twitter chat 9 March, 2016

#PKMChat twitter chatt 9 March, 2016#PKMChat twitter chat#PKMChat twitter chat 9 March, 2016 #PKMChat twitter chat 9 March, 2016

#PKMChat twitter chat

#PKMChat twitter chat

#PKMChat twitter chat #PKMChat twitter chat

#PKMChat twitter chat #PKMChat twitter chat#PKMChat twitter chat #PKMChat twitter chat

Did you know ….. That the type of conversations you might have in a CoP can help you… ●Cognitively - become more skilled in framing problems, working out solutions and identifying connections ●Performative skills - learn skills you can use in your classroom ●Social skills - become more skilled in working collaboratively with your peers (Hartung, 2015)

How to build a CoP 1. Foundation: Build Relationships -of trust and mutual respect -no hierarchy -shared concerns 2. Learn and Develop the Practice -develop new knowledge that can be shared with other teachers, other schools 3. Take action as a community -take purposeful action to carry out tasks and projects -gain recognition as a school that values teacher learning and collaboration

Communities of practice are important because they: ●Connect people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to interact, either as frequently or at all. ●Provide a shared context for people to communicate and share information, stories, and personal experiences in a way that builds understanding and insight. ●Enable dialogue between people who come together to explore new possibilities, solve challenging problems, and create new, mutually beneficial opportunities. ●Stimulate learning by serving as a vehicle for authentic communication, mentoring, coaching, and self-reflection.

●Help people improve their practice by providing a forum to identify solutions to common problems and a process to collect and evaluate best practices. ●Introduce collaborative processes to groups and organizations as well as between organizations to encourage the free flow of ideas and exchange of information. ●Help people organize around purposeful actions that deliver tangible results. ●Generate new knowledge to help people transform their practice to accommodate changes in needs and technologies.

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Over to you now - Let’s form a community of practice!