​​From Better Learning Through Structured Teaching: A Framework for the Gradual Release of Responsibility (2nd ed.), by D. Fisher & N. Frey, 2013, Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Copyright 2013 by ASCD.

I continued to simplify these ideas in my own instruction to: “Engage”, how the teacher shared content and expectations with students; “Do” or the supportive opportunity to practice within the action taking place within the lesson; and, finally, “Share” the demonstration of learning or product that is created by the student. Each stage of the learning also incorporates continuous interactions — in the form of peer review, learner to learner collaboration, and learner to teacher feedback as is realistic to the educator’s remote learning situation and lesson focus. I even went as far as to create what I call a “Mix and Match” lesson template for educators (inspired by the work of Katie Muhtaris). The model includes these mini-lesson “must-haves” but also highlights options that can be used to construct impactful remote learning lessons based on the depth of teacher-led direction or translated to create a realistic choice-board for a student’s self-driven learning experience. 

Summary adapted Mini-lesson Mix & Match, Jaclyn B. Stevens, April 15, 2020. See full modification and guides. Inspired by Digital Learning and Reading Workshop from @KatieMuhtaris.

Feedback from educators, as well as instructional coaches, agreed that when focused learning “chunks” are targeted within instruction, it fosters more communication, better demonstrations of learning, and less stress on teachers and students alike. Educators must mix-and-match in order to find the right combinations that work for their remote learning instruction. These decisions can be based on the size of their classes, the needs of their students, and the opportunities that can be created for differentiation and personalization. The foundations of successful learning and teaching don’t change because the environment in which the learning happens has changed; we just have to come at it differently, and while there is no one right answer, we are finding that keeping it simple and focused is working. 
 
GRACE  >  GRADES
The panic we all felt was perfectly understandable. The strain that followed was compounded by obstacles, unknowns, and elements out of our control. As with all swift and drastic change, it is a time to fail forward, learn, rethink, and re-tool. Our circumstances, however, did not offer the pause many of us, (and our students and their families), felt was needed to get to that mindset let alone manage the new demands, tasks, and expectations placed upon us both professionally and personally in times of crisis. Thus, the implementation of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) has never been more applicable and important. 

Though it has been a mainstay of education, countless webinars, trainings, and resources have emerged in these weeks incorporating SEL and the CASEL SEL framework. (It is even highlighted as its own principal within the Instructional Design Principles for Remote Teaching and Learning recently created by the Friday Institute and NCDPI.) Infusing SEL into our instruction can not only help students learn better but offer an interruption to the stress and trauma, providing methods to manage their experiences and emotions. Its five core competencies – self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, social awareness, and relationship skills – also offer impactful remote learning skills and strategies. 
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One of these effective practices has been making the concerted effort to connect as often as possible. Instructional coaches and leadership have offered regularly scheduled synchronous occasions to check-in with informal “Coffee Chats” and teachers have offered their students and their families regular office hours for support. More formal connections are seeing the benefits of using Single Point Rubrics (Dietz, 2007 via Fluckiger, 2010). Like holistic and analytic rubrics, it breaks the aspects of an assignment or goals down into achievement levels for a set of criteria, clarifying expectations. This systematic approach, however, differs by providing moments for support and guidance while crafting a collaborative description of successful work between the learner and the teacher or coach. Without placing boundaries for the learner, more attention is placed on the work versus the grades and creates more flexibility without sacrificing the clarity of the learning goals and expectations. 

This rubric has also supported families in helping their children learn. Family members have the chance to clearly understand the teacher’s expectations (center column) within a lesson while also providing space for additional feedback to the teacher based on their observations of the student’s learning — noting where their child struggled and where they excelled (left and right columns). This feedback loop fosters connection while modeling and creating strategies for organization, planning, and opportunities for self-regulation — all activities supported by the SEL framework.

Likewise, the sharing of stress-reduction activities and mindfulness strategies in these last weeks before the close of school has made an impact on how teachers and students are maintaining their motivation and momentum in the absence of end-of-year social gatherings and testing. Upon reviewing so many ideas being shared across social media, I compiled a brainstorm of motivational activities correlated to the SEL framework to model both how a teacher could infuse these skills into their curriculum and continue to foster a culture of community. It should not be perceived as an additional lift but as something supported by our practices and interwoven into our disciplines and content. We just need to tease them out, and our remote learning experiences have reminded us of the value and continued worth of Social and Emotional Learning.

SELF-CARE CHECK-IN AND CHECK-UP
The most distressing realization I had was upon reviewing feedback from educators across our state after a webinar last week. It came when asking them how they were managing to care for themselves. It is no mystery that educators have a high-stress job on a regular day. A study by the advocacy group, Alliance for Excellent Education, reports that 40-50% of new teachers leave within their first five years on the job due to stress. It is also no surprise that our emergency remote learning situation has amplified educator stress considerably. I was heartbroken to read that educator after educator in our feedback form found it necessary to give us thanks for simply asking the question, “How are you doing?”

No one had asked them.

Here they were, two months in, getting information on how to support their students, connect to families, and how to foster empathy, but no one had stopped to consider them and, more importantly, teachers had not stopped to consider and check-in with themselves. When they did, most reported that they were not doing well.

I myself have been working long hours each week, not eating well, forgoing exercise and, while I was continually sharing resources about self-care and the importance of brain breaks and moving, I was not taking the advice I was sharing. We must fill our own cup if we are expected to fill the cup of others. It is in everyone’s best interest that we take care of ourselves, set boundaries, and remind ourselves that not everything is on us to accomplish. But instead of asking, “How are you doing”, ask “What are you doing to take care of yourself”, or “How are you taking care of yourself this week?” or even, “What has been the best thing to happen to you today?” in order to shift towards hoping over just coping. 

A graphic we have been sharing from day one speaks volumes: 

​Consider the things that currently matter most and the things that are within the scope of our control. That is what we need to focus on. A message worth reminding ourselves, but also one that needs to be shared with students and their families. Yet, there is one additional thing I recommend should go in the center of our Venn diagrams: self-reflective practice. 

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE: HOW ARE YOU LOOKING BACK TO THINK FORWARD?
Self-reflective teaching practices are something we are taught in the early years of our teaching experience — to capture thoughts, takeaways, pluses, deltas, and ideas, etc. More than once over these weeks I have heard veteran teachers proclaiming that they felt like they were back in the first few years of their teaching profession — and they are not wrong. For many of us, we had to hit a “restart” button. On the other hand, consider all we have accomplished during this time, all that has changed, and all the strategies we will take with us to enhance and transform our practices, be they remote, face-to-face, online, or otherwise. All it takes is simply asking yourself some questions and capturing your thoughts while they are still current. For example:

• In what ways did you create positive learning and teaching moments? How can you leverage the strategies that made these moments possible for the future?
• What were the challenging moments? What made them challenging? How would you respond next time?
• What excited you? What excited your students?
• How have your communications changed and what has been the impact on students? On families? On instruction? Etc. 
• In which ways did your students surprise you most? In which ways did you surprise yourself?

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As I write this, it is difficult to ask exhausted educators, many of whom are just trying to motivate both themselves and their students to make it to the “finish line”, to stop and review their remote learning experiences. Many just want to get to a point where they can simply rest and come back to the idea of reflective practice another day, yet our considerations and contemplation are best when fresh. The goal is to look for what is working and what is lacking. Do not become focused on fixing anything, but instead celebrate what has gone well, identify strengths, and use them to bolster opportunities for growth. This will require honesty, without rationalization or thoughts of mediocrity or fear. It is a time to reflect, iterate, and improve based on what is important and focusing on what really matters. Whether it be noted in a journal, soundbites recorded on a reflective walk, or a blog like this one — capture those thoughts! 
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I am hard-pressed to think of any of the strategies referenced in this blog going away upon our return to “school as normal”, and we know it will never be the way it was. We began this journey in disbelief, which was quickly replaced by action, or more probably, panic. Yet week after week we tried and failed forward, growing ourselves and finding strategies and practices that worked. We were reminded of the foundations of our practice and that we could still create teachable moments amidst a crisis. For the last 10 years, I have worked to foster a reimagining of what learning and teaching can be from media centers, classrooms, and lecture halls all across our state — but it yielded only pockets of risk-taking and innovation. Looking back over the last two months, however, though it was not perfect, we have made more strides and turned 200+ years of education on its ear; all while showing the nation and the world what it takes to truly be an EDUCATOR. Just like that media center poster says, “If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you”, and we, educators, have risen to the challenge time and time again. Not because we were told to but because it was the right thing to do for our students. It was necessary, and we have been changed as a result. Changed for the better. Changed for whatever the future will bring. ■

Last week I was working with teachers in a middle school and were were loosely discussing the potential for schools to close (maybe for a week) with the coronavirus heading into the US. I spent our 45 minute lunch break creating a crash course of strategies for these educators "just in case" they found themselves having to transition to distance learning in a hurry.... Three days later, no one is surprised by the increased discussion around planning for the use of distance learning as a continuity plan for most universities and schools. Distance learning is very different: you can’t just digitize yourself/lessons or mail a packet home and expect it to work.

So, if you find yourself suddenly in need of taking your classes to a fully virtual environment or distance learning situation and are not sure where to start, the team I work with, the Friday Institute’s Professional Learning and Leading Collaborative is here to help! We turned around that 45 minute crash course and it became these 7 strategies (based on research and the realities of the times we are currently facing). I hope it helps!
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 1 | Be proactive and realistic
How will your students connect with you? What if the internet is an issue? No computer in the home? Disrupted schedules? Accomodations and IEPs? Consider collecting information that will help you communicate and confirm contact information. If you already use communication tools with students and/or an LMS, keep using them. Otherwise, consider alternatives with your students that are both equitable and can enhance communication and collaboration.

 2 | Consider your needs and the needs of your students
What physical materials would be beneficial to your students while you are apart? What will support learning and teaching? Resources such as textbooks, workbooks, manipulatives, content magazines, and additional reading materials apply. This should be a collaborative experience, so don’t forget to let the students choose some reading for enjoyment too. If you are looking for digital alternatives, now is a good time to start collecting and/or creating resource repositories. 
NOTE: It is important to limit the number of new tools and methods being introduced, distance learning is a big enough lift itself. Be strategic in choosing and using digital tools that you may not have used before, and while tech tools are offering free services for now, it does not mean you have to use them.

 3 | Keep fostering relationships and building empathy – even online
We make connections by seeing the faces of those we know, not just hearing their voice!  Video is a powerful way to continue to build relationships and connections with and between your students in a distance learning situation. Research tells us your students want to see and hear you (and each other), not be taught by a clip you found online. Consider making your own videos and asking students to make their own too.  And don’t forget to create office hours for yourself and/or open class hours so synchronous connections and conversations can still be made.

 4 | Create communities of inquiry
Creating spaces for discussion to keep students connected is essential. If you are already using something with your students, such as a Learning Management System from your district – be consistent and keep using it. You also want to create robust discussions and require students to leave critical feedback on at least 2 to 3 peers in order to spark deeper learning and collaboration. Be transparent about your expectations for feedback. Model your expectations as often as possible. Remember, students need to be educated on how to give feedback to one another, especially in a virtual space.

 5 | Avoid Isolation
“Reluctant” participants will be difficult to connect to in your new distance learning community. When asked about their greatest concerns about learning, some students shared they would be stuck watching videos and reading articles for every class — leaving them bored and isolated.  Be creative in how you are sharing and teaching information to kids and build in synchronous activities as much as possible to increase engagement. Try to utilize the pedagogical strategies that work in your regular classroom in the virtual environment.They will still be impactful.
 
 6 | Provide timely feedback and encouragement
When learning online, students are more likely to get discouraged when they can’t ask you or a peer for help as easily as in the regular classroom. Set reminders for yourself to send out encouraging messages both to the full group and to individual students. When students submit work or engage in activities, be responsive and supportive. Personalize the feedback as much as is realistic. If they feel you care about their involvement, and see you are involved yourself, they are more likely to continue to engage and absorb what you are sharing and learning.
Studies of effective teaching and learning have shown that learners want to know where they stand in regards to their work. Providing answers to the following questions to help provide quality student feedback. 

• What can the student do? (Give genuine praise!)
• What can’t the student do? (focus on one skill that is critiqued versus multiple errors)
• How can the student do better? (provide a model and example)

And don’t forget to invite the students to give YOU feedback as well.

 7 | Check for understanding regularly
Students need to be held accountable more often in a distance learning situation than in the regular classroom, as you can’t see them actively learning as easily. Check for understanding regularly with short, small formative and summative assessments. For more complex tasks and problems, ask students to record or write out their thinking.
Additionally, prepare to schedule one-on-one conferences with your students to check-in and discuss the assessment(s) together to foster continued relationship building and to create goals and expectations collaboratively. 

KEY THINGS TO REMEMBER

• Less is more.
• Give explicit instructions in both written text and in video.
• Specify expectations with rubrics/ checklists, etc.
• Use your teacher gut and teach from a place of empathy – Suddenly learning  from home will be a shock to students too. Some will have limited internet access, significant disruptions from their home environment, and may not have their basic needs met, such as meals. Consider what is realistic and what your students can handle.

This is a lot -and we must remember to be flexible and adaptable. We base these recommendations on the iNACOL standards, in collaboration with blended/online learning strategies and research. 

Due to the outcry for support, the team I work with is orchestrating regular check-ins and synchronous support during this trying time: We call it FI Connects – a community of educators supporting one another. 
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During these virtual discussions, we will share best practices and resources, but we will also spend time facilitating role-alike discussions for you to collaborate, share, and ask questions of your colleagues from around our nation in an effort for us to lift the load together.

For more information, go to go.ncsu.edu/ficonnects.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Spreadsheet Courtesy of Amazing Educational Resources
• Remote Learning Resources Website | NC DPI
• Coalition for eLearning | SETDA
• Nationwide Remote Learning Response Resources
  • Miami Dade
  • Wisconsin
  • Highline Public Schools, Seattle, Washington
  • Northshore

I recently came across this quote and it got me thinking: what ARE our rules for describing our reactions to technology? Douglas Adams, author, scriptwriter, essayist, humorist, satirist and dramatist put it this way - " Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works; Anything that's invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.; and, Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.”

This makes sense to me and has been my experience working with all ages around the US. 

But that I have to laugh, is not our taste in music the same? Any music we hear that existed before we are born is "classic" and always has been, any music created during our early years is innovative, new and exciting, and anything we hear after the age of 35 is just, well, you know.... My husband and I recently watched a music awards show and we honestly did not know ANYONE nominated. We were Googling names and trying to figure out who is who: we officially felt a little old. 

Technology is like that and living in a digital-age, supporting students, I need to get over my reactions and consider theirs. It is not about me. It is about them.

The Universal Design for Learning Guidelines, created by CAST, directly correlate with what it takes to create the mind shift to the “Learner-Center”, where learner agency is key and we are all natural learners, together, engaged, represented, expressed, and get all learners to the same place but on their own unique pathways. Looking at these models together reinforces how educators can access, build, internalize and thus create expert learners who are purposeful and motivated, resourceful and knowledgeable, and strategic and goal directed.

The concept of learner agency has been integral to educational thinking and practice since the beginning: the idea that education is the process through which learners become capable of independent thought which, in turn, forms the basis for autonomous action, has had a profound impact on modern educational theory and practice. Another way of thinking of learner agency is when learners have “the power to act” - when learning involves activity and initiative on the part of the learner themselves, and not just the teacher, curriculum, and/or resources, etc. Consider concepts such as personalization and learn-centric or learner-centered education: these are aspects of what we might mean by learner agency, but it goes even deeper than that.

The UDL Guideline structure supports and elevates these ideas. The three categories: Engagement, Representation, and Action and Expression are subtitled down to the “WHY” the “What” and the “How” of learning. In the learner-centered mindset educators and leaders must consider their answers to the following:

• Why is the reason we educate ourselves, our kids, and each other?;
• Why do different brains think differently?; and,
• Why are developing different skills and capacities crucial?

 

• How do we need to change and/or widen our perspective?
• How do we plan, implement, and assess?
• How must we teach?

 

• What are our outcomes?
• What will hold us accountable?
• What can be created to drive and assess learning? (portfolios, exhibitions, internships, etc.)

Connecting the UDL model and correlating it with that of the Learner-Center mindset leads to strategic and job-embedded practices that support both the learner and the teacher. A plan that is both competency based, personalized, contextual and relevant, and supporting the learner to develop a master of learning itself - not just a specific set of skills: in short, becoming expert learners.
What holds us back? The fear factor. The fear factor for educators to do this is very real: giving up the control that once seemed their role to become the guide and facilitator. Involving the learners in the decision-making is a must. These decisions will place more ownership and empowerment on the part of students. Teachers must become comfortable with changing their leadership style from directive to consultative -- from "Do as I say" to "Based on your needs, let's co-develop and implement a plan of action together." Marry this with the UDL guidelines for a recipe for success.

Today education is all about talking the talk of advocacy, choice, and voice that should occur in the classroom as well as in any learning environment, but they don’t do a great job of walking the walk and providing educators with a place to start, to think, to act.  Relevance and value on the part of our learners are central elements to success and the learner-centered mindset directly works with UDL fundamentals, placing students at the center of their own learning, requiring collaboration and deep thought.

Educators and learners alike need a voice in why, what, and how learning experiences take shape.Letting student interests drive the content that teaches skills and concepts, as well as offering a variety of product options based on what you know about your students is a big leap for some educators and they need strategies and knowledge to inform their own “why” and practice, while also having faith in students’ ability to lead. Educators need to be open to what universal design for learning can offer and that, when the WHY, the HOW, and the WHAT are considered with students at the center, the best of learning and teaching follows.

As coaches and educators we want to model instructional technology use to support curriculum and instruction while sharing what we are learning and teaching in our classrooms. Recently at the Friday Institute’s Summer Boot Camp, the Professional Leading and Learning team came up with the idea of modeling the current Augmented Reality trend with ways to further build the capacity of the hundred K-12 educators were were supporting in our one day, intense and content filled training -- it is called Boot Camp, after all.

We invited educators from across the local education agencies we support to create a two minute video highlighting a tool, resource or instructional strategy they used in their own classrooms. Their collective talent and expertise was then shared as professional development - and in two minutes captured the depth and breadth of their pedagogical, content and technology knowledge.
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What is Two Minute PD?
Give PD back to educators. The collective talent and expertise you can share is the best PD there is. Each two minute PD reveals the depth and breadth of that reservoir of talent YOU CHOOSE, giving educators an opportunity to share and learn efficiently and often.

What makes a good Two Minute PD?
Here are the key components of a strong Two Minute PD. Everything else is up to you.

1. Introduction: Tell us your name and where you are from (city, state, country if not in the U.S.) What: What are you sharing? (What was the learning objectives? Common Core goal? Digital skills?)
2. Why: Why does what your sharing matter or why is it important?
3. How: Include concrete steps on how to implement this in the classroom. Be clear in your instruction (ie. “do this…” or “try this.”).

• Be sure to include at least one visual.
• Which digital tool did you/students use? Why? How?
• What were some lessons learned?
• How were students assessed?
• Consider LINKS to select student digital artifacts

    4. And, of course, Two minute PDs must be under 2:30 in length.
And that’s it! You can be as simple (talking head) or as complicated (animation, music, etc.) as you would like — be as creative as you want!

It has been sometime since I have posted to this blog, but it is for good reason. I have been out on Maternity leave and now, more then ever before, I have a new perspective on the future, the work I do with educators has never been more important. 
I look at my son and try to image what education will look like when he begins school - in just five years, what technology will we have, what expectations will we have for learning, what will engage my son when it comes to learning. 
Expect new posts and insights now that I am starting back up with my work and jumping in to continue to support and coach those responsible for our greatest commodity, the most important product we can produce -- our children.  

​And now that the devices are in the hands of students in all of their 32 schools, the Alamance-Burlington Schools district has turned to a researched practice that not only makes a tremendous impact on the culture of our public schools, but expounds upon collaboration, increases rigor, and propels the capacity of all stakeholders at twice the expected rate of return: they have begun implementing instructional rounds, or Learning Walks.

This collaborative practice is based on the medical model or rounds. The practice has been further developed for school administrators to observe and discuss best practices in the classroom, and modified to enable educators to conduct their own instructional rounds focused on self reflection and growth designed to begin discussions of instruction directly into the process of school improvement. In other words, this simple process creates a common language, common discipline, common focus, common purpose, and common problems.

Getting Started
You can talk about Learning Walks, but to truly understand this experience and it’s associated benefits, you have to experience it – you have to ‘walk the walk’. It is important that all involved understand the purpose of the walks and that they are introduced in a non-threatening way.  Although schools and districts will initiate learning walks in various ways, several strategies are critical to gain buy-in: In this case, Alamance Burlington committed all it’s leadership to experience a full day of learning walks spanning schools across their district. Leaders had the opportunity to sign up for one of four days of instructional rounds, each with their own area of focus aligned with district expectations for digital learning and teaching – Management of a Digital Learning Classroom, Content & Instruction, Using Technology to Differentiate Learning, and The 4 C’s.
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