Year: 2018

In Episode 37, we revisit One Stone in Boise, Idaho to learn from Neva Geisler, Opportunity Wrangler, and two learners – Kylie Caper and Bennett Huhn. You may recall that we spoke to members of the One Stone community previously in Episode 29. One Stone is a unique learning organization. It’s student-led and directed and focused on making students better leaders. The program empowers high school students to learn and practice skills through experiential service, innovative initiatives, social entrepreneurship and the radical reinvention of learning.

Key Competency

Learner-centered leaders fearlessly embrace the work of transformation. The coaches and learners at One Stone collaboratively design learning environments and expectations that represent a break from the system. They embrace what many in the realm of education would consider innovations. And in a manner that is designed to disrupt the system driven by the mission of helping students become better leaders and the world a better place.

Takeaways

• One Stone is driven by a mission – a mission to make students better leaders and the world a better place.
• There is a significant emphasis on agency and student ownership. In a school-centered environment, students may be involved in service projects organized by adults. Students just need to “show up.” At One Stone, students demonstrate agency in participating in student-led and directed projects they are passionate about. In order to create the conditions that connect learning to student passions, the culture has to help learners find their passion. To do that, they start with the learner first!
• One Stone is led by a board – 2/3 students; 1/3 adults. Learners really do have a voice in the organization!
• Teachers are known as coaches and have a role different from the traditional teacher. Bennett shared, “If you’re in a bowling alley, and we’re the bowling ball, then the coaches are the bumpers on the side that are really kind of just guiding you towards your goal.”
• The focus at One Stone is on growing the learners as people. This is different than in the traditional school-centered paradigm that might be focused on, according to Kylie, “getting good grades and getting that perfect test score. But here at One Stone, I’ve realized that it’s the experiences that I’m learning here and the knowledge and insight that I’m gaining that will help me be more successful in the future.” Neva followed up with the framework at One Stone: Knowledge, Skills, Creatively, Mind Set.
• Learning experiences at One Stone are connected to learner passions. Bennett shared an example connecting physics to his passion for music. Neva spoke about the One Stone makerspace, the Foundry, which provides opportunities for learners interested in doing work with their hands.
• One structure in place at One Stone that fosters and recognizes student passion is Winter Exploration. This is a week-long deep dive into one thing students are passionate about.
• Neva shared her thoughts on leadership. Leaders must be vulnerable. “We talk a lot here about vulnerability, and vulnerability can be tough. But when you are vulnerable within your community, that really opens up avenues for creativity and this culture of failing forward. We are all encouraged to show up as our real, authentic selves. Whatever that may look like. You’re supported here in that, and we are here to help each other grow.” Empathy is also key to Neva. “I think from the coach perspective, you really need to believe in the power of students, and we do here at One Stone. We believe that learners are capable of extraordinary things when they find their voice and they’re empowered to use it.” Kylie and Bennett reiterated the emphasis on the power of student voice.
• One Stone has an advisory model where students are encouraged and supported to check in and set goals.
• The One Stone community are committed to being “fearless, embracing the work. It’s not easy to disrupt the system, but that is what we are here to do.”

Connections to Practice

• Our high school students are provided some open-walled, personalized opportunities through our internship program.
• We have advisory models in our high school and middle school. What are the successes and challenges of these learning experiences? How could these experiences be developed further so learners are setting goals and tracking progress?
• We offer many clubs and activities at all levels. This summer we added some workshops – Fly a Drone, Etc – for our learners. But, how do we do more.  Could we have a Winter Exploration session? What would that look like?

Questions Based on Our Practice

• How can we take our high school internship program to the next level by releasing the agency of our learners to find the projects and work they are most passionate about?
• How can we get more students involved in decision making?
• Do we talk to learners (and adults) about how to own their own learning – how to shift that mindset?
• In what ways do we start with the learners first? In what ways can we improve?
• Do we believe in the power of students (and the adults in the system) – that they are capable of extraordinary things when they find their voice and are empowered to use it?
• How do we create more opportunities to connect students with projects in the community?
• What are the barriers that constrain us from disrupting the system? What does our community want to disrupt?
• As leaders across the organization, are we fearlessly doing this work? Are we making ourselves vulnerable? How do we know?

Next Steps for Us

• Reflect upon the ways we act that start with the learner and the ways we start with the system.
• Consider the idea of a winter exploration session. What are the possibilities? Constraints? If not winter, could it be summer?

In Episode 36, we visited with the Founder/Executive Director and a learner from an innovative learning environment in Bethel, CT – Workspace, a maker and co-working space designed to help families implement education their way in a vibrant learning environment. Families choose and co-create what their children need in this private school environment. The learning environment is a place where parents can teach, bring in teachers and experts, or choose from a database of tutors and teachers, online classes, and curriculums, as well as a smorgasbord of classes that appeal to all kinds of learners.

Key Competency

Learner-centered leaders approach work with learners using an assets model. They believe all learners have passions, interests and curiosities. Effective learning environments build upon these.

Takeaways

• Catherine Fraise, the Founder and Executive Director of Workspace has brought to life an audacious vision for learning: Google-like-high-tech spaces and feel, parental and family engagement and involvement, high levels of learner agency, support resources to help parents co-design powerful learning opportunities with their children.
• The Workspace environment provides learners with the opportunity to explore their curiosities. “I feel as though Workspace has given me the option to try things and really tell me where my curiosity will lead me, so that my curiosity takes me through the world.”
• The Workspace learning environment is designed to provide learners with options. For example, Raphael, the learner on the podcast, spoke about the Socrates room. “I think that was really a powerful moment for me when I realized the space was giving me a toolbox and not a piece of paper that told me, ‘These are all the things that you’re going to do.’ It wasn’t a checklist. It was options.”
• Learner-centered leaders need to be great listeners and observers if they want to create the ideal environment for personalization.
• Learner-centered leaders understand that age and quality of ideas do not necessarily go hand-in-hand. They respect everyone for his/her ideas. Young and old are co-learners.
• Learners have opinions. They have power. They can be heard. Learner-centered leaders encourage that. Raphael shared, ” As long as that is encouraged, speak out whatever it is that you’re thinking, and dream as big as possible.”

Connections to Practice

• Workspace has a high level of family engagement. While our families are not engaged at a level we may want, conversations with parents and board members indicate a level of support for our learner-centered vision.

Questions Based on Our Practice

• Do we operate from an asset model? Under what circumstances do we drift?
• While Workspace is a private school with different constraints than traditional public schools? What elements of Workspace could transfer to public schools/our schools? What constraints of the public school system (policy, funding, etc.) are we not yet pushing on hard enough to realize an audacious vision for learning?
• As we move toward our vision of a competent learning, how will we ensure the vision is available to all learners regardless of how well they read, how much money their family has, the language they speak or what they believe in?
• It would appear that Workspace provides significant room for families to determine what learners need to know and be able to do. Where does the role of community fit into the vision for learning? What other “communities” shall we engage in our work as we strive to develop competent learners? What happens when the members of various communities do not accept the invite to be involved?
• How are we getting to know our learners – young and old – so we are able to design environment conducive to personalization?
• What areas could we be more “learner-centered”? For example, looking at our goals, how can families and learners intersect with the work, improving the outcome? What’s appropriate?

Next Steps for Us

• As part of our goals this year, draft an advocacy/policy white paper on learner-centered education in the context of a rapidly changing future to share with policymakers as appropriate.
• More intentionally include conversations about learning space design in task redesign activities this year.
• Design creative ways of engaging families in the learning process. How do we go beyond the custodial role of education in the current era?
• Uncover areas in our goals where we could be more learner-centered.

In Episode 34, we spoke with leaders from Norris Academy in Wisconsin. Norris is a a small public school near Mukwonago, WI serving the needs of learners from a variety of diverse backgrounds and changing the lives of its learners through the power of learning. Learners at Norris gain life, career and community experiences through an innovative approach that builds learner agency (ownership) and self-efficacy (worth) while addressing four dimensions: academic, employability and career planning, citizenship and personal wellness. Together these four dimensions lead to life, career and community success. In addition, the Academy leverages educational, behavioral health and community resources to provide an integrated service for disadvantaged learners and their families.

Key Competency

Learner-centered leaders approach challenges through a design-thinking process. At Norris, the work of transformation has gained momentum as the result of communication of the vision and involvement of stakeholders in a comprehensive five level process. Transparency guided by a compelling vision is one of the main components leading to Norris Academy’s success as a learner-centered environment.

Takeaways

Norris Academy is the outcome of a call for urgency to transform – moving from a compliance, ritualistic environment to one that is student-centered.

In the first year a design thinking process was used to look at the structures and policies, instructional framework and roles and responsibilities of those in the school. This resulted in the Norris Macrocosm, a framework with six core elements:

• Empowered learning – developing urgency stories, learner profiles, knowledge/skills/dispositions for success, competency continuums
• Four dimensions of competency-based learning – Learning occurs within four dimensions – academics, employability, citizenship, wellness
• Open-walled plans and pathways – learning specialists conference with learners to identify goals, problem-finding processes, pathways to graduation
• Learning network – redefined roles and responsibilities of people within the system – interdependent relationships; What are the communities that learners can engage with (I.e. STEM, business and human services, etc.)?; community transition plans
• Operating practices – What is the design process we use to develop? What is our communication framework so that all key stakeholders understand the vision? How do we develop each other as practitioners and leaders?
• Learner-centered infrastructure – What is in place behind the scenes – policy, procedures, LMS, technology?

Learners find something they want to participate in or learn about and present a project/pursuit pitch to the adult staff. The learner defines the learning they will experience and how they can engage their peers. The adults then take the learner’s idea and make certain their are opportunities for academics, employability, citizenship and wellness. The adults then bring the project/pursuit pitch back to the learners with some additional ideas. Once ready, the opportunity is open up to all learners in the academy for participation. An example shared includes a cardboard boat regatta design challenge and race. Projects such as this one are highly personalized and contextualized. The process and outcome are tied back to graduation competencies and include many opportunities for open-walled learning. Johnna and Paula shared other examples as well.

Learners participate in open-walled conversations and experiences with experts around careers. Speakers are also brought into the school.

Competencies are tracked using Epiphany Learning. Learners design their learning pathways in this software environment. Learners also keep track of their learning in a portfolio. Many times competencies are clustered together. The way they allow student choice and voice along the way, along with documentation of competencies, allows for building a transcript that translates to colleges.

The greatest barrier that Norris needed to overcome was mindset. Examples include the transcript and adult roles in the organization. Learning looks different. It doesn’t have to be a teacher in charge of a class for a period of time during the day. How can we as a connected team work to service learners in different, unique ways? Mindset shift is critical. Norris has overcome this barrier through a design process. They have developed a process of five levels of stakeholder input unique to Norris. When there are perceived barriers, the design process is engaged to develop a means to overcome that barrier. This approach demonstrates how Norris puts people first before the system. Learners take precedence over efficient systems. Johnna and Paula shared examples of challenges solved through the five level design process: transcripts and open-walled learning.

What they do with their young learners they do with their adult staff. This includes learning profiles, personal goals and pathways to growth. Learners have a profile. Staff have the same. As an organization, Norris does this as well.

Johnna suggests to those working on school transformation to stay the course and don’t compromise the vision. It’s challenging, but rewarding work. Keep all the stakeholders involved and over communicate. The design process needs to be distributive. Keep reflecting on promising, emerging practices. What do you need for those practices to become enduring? Communication. Reflection. Involving stakeholders.

Paula reminds us that there will always be challenges. Approach them through a design process.

Connections to Practice

• The Norris Macrocosm demonstrates the complexity of this work. Many of the elements are consistent with our Profile of a Graduate work and our learning beliefs. The model is just different.
• While we have articulated the knowledge, skills and dispositions our learners need to be successful upon graduation, we have yet to articulate clear competencies at various places along the continuum of time with us.
• We have often come back to this idea of shifting mindsets. This conversation with Norris has reinforced the idea that this work is primarily about shifting mindsets.
• We are working to build the same knowledge, skills and dispositions in our adults that we expect in our younger learners. We also aim to create the same kinds of professional learning environments for adults that we want for our younger learners.

Questions Based on Our Practice

• While it’s not clear what the urgency was that was fueling transformation, how do we create more urgency in our organization as we move from invitation to expectation?
• How might our learning models iterate across time depending on learners, beliefs about learning and reflecting on our practice?
• What are defined competencies for our Profile of a Graduate?
• How do these defined competencies become integrated into our teaching and learning?
• What impact does this work have on curriculum documents?
• What can we learn from their competency model and creating a transcript that is useful to colleges?
• How are we doing with shifting mindsets? How do we know? What can we do differently? What are our barriers?

Next Steps for Us

• During the upcoming leadership team retreat, reconnect with our WHY? and use it to build urgency to fuel the transformation.
• Reflect upon how our work has changed over the past several years. How does that help inform future work?
• Design competencies in the areas of our Profile of a Graduate for the various grade spans.
• Consider redesigning curriculum documents to more accurately reflect knowledge, skills and dispositions.