In Episode 33 we learned about the transformation in Elmbrook Schools, a public school district located near Milwaukee, WI, serving over 7,000 students. Elmbrook is quickly becoming a leader in personalized learning, supported by a robust technology platform. Classroom environments support student engagement, collaboration, student voice and choice, and flexible work spaces.
Key Competency
Learner-centered leaders strategically approach building the capacity for shift with teachers and other leaders. Leaders create a culture for others in the system to learn, unlearn and relearn. Over the course of years, Elmbrook fostered change in teachers and leaders using a cohort model of professional learning. When they reached a tipping point, it was time to move from invitation to expectation. Since this work is about shifting mindsets, a well thought out plan for support is critical to build a contingent of believers.
Takeaways
Elmbrook is a school district that had achieved much success in the school-centered paradigm. After years of lack of risk taking, Dana and Mark worked to create a culture across the organization that fostered more strategic risk taking. Their pivot to learner-centered has been a journey of approximately five years. They have learned that change is a journey that takes time.
What created the spark for transformation? Five years ago, an invitation was sent out to a cohort of interested teachers – teachers already doing transformational work in their classrooms. Those early years consisted mostly of conversations and professional learning around the shift. The 42 participating teachers were then invited to write a grant to support further transformation in the classroom. Seventeen grants were awarded. The cohort model continued to be replicated. “Now it’s no longer an invitation, it’s an expectation. All of our educators are expected to annually create a personalized learning action plan. They now have to be team based. They now have to be tied to our district goals and initiatives.” What was a grass-roots endeavor has turned into a “treasured system.”
In this movement from invitation to expectation, the members of the first cohort became the leaders that built momentum toward the shift. “We just kept building this contingent of believers.” Principals were also provided with opportunities to shift their mindsets. They are active participants in learning with their educators. “Nothing is going to happen well unless our principals, our school-based leaders, are completely in-it-to-win-it with us. And they are and have been.”
In this transformation, Elmbrook innovators have given up the notion that content is king. Mark shared how access to information has changed as a result of technology. Now they ask the question: How are students authentically engaged? Helping equip teachers for the shift has been supported by quality professional development. “Control” is one of the areas that is a work in progress. Elmbrook has made headway in shifting control in the classroom, and there is work yet to do. Elmbrook is also working on providing all learners with that control over their own learning.
One of the challenges has been urgency. What does “excellence” look like? The community is fairly stable with many adults having attended Elmbrook school and presently achieving life success. Some parent find the shift scary. A final challenge shared included the amount of learning that teachers need to experience as part of the shift. The student clientele is becoming more and more diverse. Everyone needs to learn, unlearn, relearn. “I feel like a new teacher all over again.” From a leadership perspective, it is a challenge to keep teachers excited and motivated to explore new possibilities of learner-centered.
Elmbrook has implemented a new learning opportunity for high school students – an internship program called “LAUNCH.” They decided to ask the question: How can high school be less of a power-down and more of a launch? After researching learning environments that focused on creating authentic learning environments for high school students, they found that other districts and schools had found a way to reshape the transition from high school to higher education/career. The program is off-site from Elmbrook’s two high schools. The program consists of strands – education, business analytics, global business – with more strands coming next year. Students work together with a school mentor and a business mentor on a solution to a problem from a local business. Businesses pay $7,000 to participate in the program. Students produce and pitch solutions to local business leaders.
Elmbrook believes this program not only benefits students, but will benefit the community when students return home after college. This is only the first year, but they look forward to expanding this work in the future. A project example includes a local company wanting students to analyze supply chain logistics and costs. Three students, utilizing their background, analyzed whether this company should be using an internal or external supply chain to supply steel to manufacturing sites. Students figured out a blend of internal/external solutions. The company saved over a quarter million dollars as a result of adopting the proposed solution.
Regarding learner-centered leadership, Dana and Mark believe the competencies they want to instill in their learners they also want in their leaders – purpose-driven change agents, responsible citizens, emotionally intelligent, kind, grateful, flexible and adaptable, intellectually curious, resilient and competent communicators.
When asked about advice, Mark suggested that we are in the business of managing dreams for learners and we need to take that responsibility to a whole new level. We need to deliver on every student, every time, all the time – no more lip service. We need to think differently about the role of teachers and learners in the classroom. When we start to do this, we will restore reverence back to education.
Connections to Practice
- We have used a cohort model as well with success over the past two years with Leading #YourSalisbury.
- Our principals have been active participants along side our teachers in the Leading #YourSalisbury cohorts.
- The journey seems to not have an “arrival.” It’s a process of iteration.
- Our community is becoming more and more diverse as well, and it is a challenge to balance the new learning required of learner-centered with meeting the needs of an increasingly diverse community – learners and parents.
- We started an internship program this year for our high school students.
Questions Based on Our Practice
- How do we move Salisbury from invitation to expectation? Is this the year to do this, after two years of invitation and a growing cohort of teachers shifting mindsets and altering classroom practices to support learner-centered?
- How do we communicate the WHY to our stakeholders? Has that message been heard? Do we need to revisit it?
- How do we keep our leaders and teachers inspired to fully enter this world of learner-centered, even as we continue to be bombarded with state initiatives and a diverse community of learners and parents?
- The LAUNCH model is interesting! What elements can be done here in the Lehigh Valley?
Next Steps for Us
- Later this summer, we will be working with Paul Facteau from Apple, Inc. to help us design a plan with accountability mechanisms to move from invitation to expectation.
- We might need to engage teachers and leaders more in conversations around the challenges of moving toward learner-centered, especially as we want to move toward expectation. More supports will be needed and there is no better way to know how to support than have conversations and build those deep relationships with leaders and learners (parents as well).
- Pursue more partnerships with local business to create more learner-centered, open-walled opportunities for learners.