Woohoo... #bcedchat begins. I'm Christine from the Sunshine Coast co-modding with @MsVictoriaOlson tonight on Including Parents in the Revised Curriculum. Looking forward.
Hi @bcedchat - will be in and out this evening for this important conversation! Janice from Richmond, K-12 curriculum support and does a lot of work with parents. #bcedchat
A1: Most of our teachers have already had conversations with parents (in notes home, conversations at student-leds, etc). Especially around conversations on assessments (like using @freshgrade#bcedchat
A1: Many school-based PACs have hosted curriculum evenings. I have done presentations on the new math curriculum at most of our elementary sites. Our district hosts an annual Saturday conference for parents and shares info on Twitter and Facebook. 1/2 #bcedchat
I love that. Freshgrade is awesome... from what I understand. I have not experienced this as a parent in my SD but know of this as a school trustee. I hear good reviews. #bcedchat
A1: I try to be transparent with what we're working on and how it's set up in my classroom to focus on new curricular comps (I.e. Blending traditional subjects, focus on skills). It can be hard to communicate these ideas! #bcedchat
A1: snapshots of learning each month, overview of learning each month, goal setting conferences instead of PT meets, student-led conferences. Moved fr. Wick Elementary in Tofino where implemented all. Port Alberni slowly getting on board. Powerful. #sd70#parentpartners#bcedchat
This is a good question. Parent education is always a big concern. It matters to have parents on board with new initiatives, especially new curriculum. PACs/DPAC is one way but it's a fraction of the parents. I wonder how else. #bcedchat
A1: I am in the PAC of my daughter's school -- and I coordinated getting speakers from our district to present the new curriculum to around 40 parents in our community. #bcedchat
I like the idea of a Saturday conference for parents. I would go for sure as a parent. PACs/DPAC are limiting in terms of attendance and spreading the message... also sense making. Hmm... #bcedchat
Love that. Looking at how to get that information out to parents (around Communicating Student Learning). We started with the conversations in PAC meetings and having a Math night in January. #bcedchat
It's great to keep an open door policy with parents and have an ongoing conversation of what's happening in the classroom and with the new curriculum. #bcedchat
A1 been having fun parent meeting going over why I am doing what I am doing (emphasis on design thinking and being anxiety-aware) and how the new curriculum enables every student to have a personalized experience #bcedchat
It's definitely more difficult in intermediate/higher grades where parents are often working full time or are less direct in their involvement b/c kids are more independent #bcedchat
The competencies are the âbig oneâ - on our report cards going home they take up a big portion in part to help emphasize that these arenât just âsoft skillsâ they are âtheâ skills! #bcedchat
A2: I was fortunate to start at my current school at the same time as the implementation, so the pre-conversations had happened, and the actual implementation happens on my watch (so it was a natural change). #bcedchat
Another good point. Information has to go out in different medias and multiple times. How will we know when Parents understand what's happening with BC's New Curriculum? #bcedchat
I have also done many specifically around math (what is the same and what is different is what most parents want to know). They also tend to have a lot of questions around assessment and how will they know how they can help their children at home. 2/2 #bcedchat
A2: Our principal, @seano3ca, does a great job of sending out a weekly update that includes relevant articles to get parents thinking about learning in alignment w/ new curric #bcedchat
A2: I've made sure to connect old/new in overviews of learning sent home each month to families. Using terminology in parent meetings (big idea, inquiry,core competency, curriculum competencies). Have students share what learn with parents using terminology. #bcedchat
Love that. What is the response, though? I have a great parent community, but not all are invested in understanding the revised curriculum. Most just want to be assured that we care about their children (which we obviously do). #bcedchat#ILoveMyWork
Wow Geoffery. Good for you for organizing that for your parents. And a pretty healthy attendance. I wonder how we can keep the momentum going? #bcedchat
These are all excellent questions / discussions we have had or continue to have as educators! It sounds like you and your district are doing a great job of communicating openly and involving parents with the changes #bcedchat
You'd have to ask him about direct response to that strategy, but I'd say parents are very open to the strategies we employ at my site and the way technology and assessment move hand in hand #bcedchat
There are been lots of efforts in this area but we can always do more and keep thinking of different ways to reach all parents. We have to work with families as a team to support our students! #bcedchat
These are all excellent questions / discussions we have had or continue to have as educators! It sounds like you and your district are doing a great job of communicating openly and involving parents with the changes #bcedchat
PACs play such an important role in getting more people involved in these discussions. We are blessed with an incredible PAC at West Langley Elementary #bcedchat
A1: I am in the PAC of my daughter's school -- and I coordinated getting speakers from our district to present the new curriculum to around 40 parents in our community. #bcedchat
Parent of 3 disabled kids...A1: But conversations on many topics are being limited by public board policies. Parents of disabled kids deserve notification re: discussions of sexuality and gender. New #SOGI123 initiative seems to violate parental/family status rts. #bcedchat#bced
That brings up a good point: we implemented the revised curriculum, at the same time as changing our assessment tools, our communicating Student Learning (reports), implemented new technologies with computational thinking and mobile labs #bcedchat
Are you talking about parent meetings at reporting periods? Or an ongoing conversation with parents? I like the idea of fun and learning. How are your parents responding? #bcedchat
Do your schools or the district have relevant websites that parents can turn to for answers? And then, another challenge, are parents aware that those resources exist? #bcedchat
With my eportfolio, many of my parents are part of descriptive feedback loops - so some formal (interim) conversations and many âend of dayâ check-ins! #bcedchat
Q3: What are some ways we can support parents in understanding parts of the revised curriculum that they didnât experience themselves as students? #bcedchat
Lots of students in action with explanations as to what is happening and how it fits in with each core competency. Dig the student work idea though! #bcedchat
I love that. The students are part of the action and explanations. That would help many parents with understanding and possibly partaking in BC's New Curriculum. #bcedchat
A3: One of the best ways we did this at #sd43 was through the #SFU dialogues series where we had tables facilitated by educators around the revised curriculum by experiencing it. #bcedchat
Is that the group that had that presentation a few weeks back? I was with the developing mindful leadership for educators session and so missed it. #bcedchat
A3: Have kids demonstrate why the process is so important. Student-led conferences or visible work can help us pinpoint more specific issues with learning and provide better supports. #bcedchat
We have had Ministry groups come in to do focussed discussions with parents and always share the Ministry website and let them know it is a public site. On our district website we have a Let's Talk feature that shares an article each month on the new curric with links. #bcedchat
Agreed. Be explicit. What's the same, what different, and what might change. It's an ongoing dialogue and parents are an integral part of the student learning experience. #bcedchat
Q4: As curriculum shifts to competency-based instruction, assessment practices are shifting too. How do we involve parents in conversations about these changes? #bcedchat
Q4: As curriculum shifts to competency-based instruction, assessment practices are shifting too. How do we involve parents in conversations about these changes? #bcedchat
A3: I think the most powerful way to help parents understand facts of the curriculum that are new to them are to share stories from the classroom - examples of how learning comes to life and how the different elements of the curriculum are woven together. #bcedchat
First of all, many parents feel blindsided by a lack of appropriate notification & a lack of consultation & discussion. In many districts, presentations have been limited on some very complex subject matter...in my case, pertaining to #PwD. #bcedchat#bcedhttps://t.co/j3aVICla1F
Absolutely. SHARE STORIES. How has the New Curriculum benefitted student learning. Kids know this and would be good advocates and communicators of what's good about BC's New Curriculum. #bcedchat
Second, discussions of the "Genderbread Person" and "Gender Unicorn" are not scientifically based. They are purely theoretical. If districts want to open curriculum to pure theory, then we should end prohibitions on creationism or climate skepticism as well. #bcedchat#bced
Absolutely. The competencies are the learning and the content is the vehicle to help build, introduce, or develop those competencies. Schools must go beyond what Google can provide. It's more that just content. #bcedchat
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @jenmezei, @technolandy
A4: Assessment has been such a big part of the changes with the new curric... and to be honest, it's still in limbo in our district. All I know is parents aren't appreciating new reporting format through MyED BC, and I would say most teachers aren't either #bcedchat
A3: Our district showed examples of recent student work & projects to parents -- And these visually linked the new ideas for curriculum and assessment. Show them Why & possibly How it will look. #bcedchat
2) To combat this, I try to use Kidblog to have a transparent digital portfolio of work that parents can turn to for more in-depth examples and reflections on student work #bcedchat
Absolutely. I would say that Assessment drives Instruction, thus the deliver/implementation of BC's New Curriculum. Must lean into the formative and competency-based learning to personalize learning. #bcedchat
Love your attitude Nick... and welcome to #bcedchat. That's all that we can ask for... trying our best and educating FAMILIES and community members. Great point. #bcedchat
Feedback loops... times infinity. Teaching/learning should be a constant feedback loop toward improvement until skills are mastered and can be applied in several contexts. #bcedchat
Same day as the #bcssafall conference and the district's Mindful Leadership development session for teachers. Sorry I missed it, but hopefully, another one will be coming soon to a school new us.....#bcedchat
A4- This year I did parent information sessions and asked parents to explain what they disliked about their school experience and used those values to show the beauty of the new #bced curriculum #sd42#bcedchat
A3: Takes lots of conversation and having parents experience new ways of assess/learning via student led conferences. In last school, took 5 years for school community to embrace new reporting, conferences, and then recently new curriculum. #worthit#bcedchat
There has been some grumbling in the elementary grades in SD43 too. In HS, we're juuuuust starting the conversation about grading / reporting & many are wanting to wait to see what the post-secondaries say about admissions. Long process #bcedchat
#bcedchat sd42 brings parents in for student led conferences twice a year. Artifacts are shared, strengths and stretches written collaboratively, and goals set together. Parents feel part of the team. Plenty of opportunity for conversation about new curric
Agreed. Formative all the way... until the very, very end when summative is implemented. Other things like reporting periods need to change to support this notion. E-portfolios help, but needs to be system wide. Communicating Student Learning with parents is key. #bcedchat
#bcedchat I sent interim reports home with self-evaluations by every student on all the core competencies and encouraged students to upload an example of their work to the class website. #bced
Regardless, reporting feels really dry and poorly designed through MyED BC. Layout is hard to navigate, parents don't know what to look for. Last year, i literally had to create a guide of how to read reports... #bcedchat
That family of schools has been strong for quite a few years. Love the conversations that are initiated within parent/educator community! Well done!!! #bcedchat
I struggle with system wide unity of platform that takes away teacher autonomy in technology choices. If it was well designed, I'd probably find less issue with it, though :) #bcedchat
You report through MyEd? I didn't think that it was an appropriate program to include the depth of the communicating student learning (esp the student perspective and core competencies). We have a district template that is love (as admin, teachers may differ). #bcedchat
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @KennethHeadley, @lizbellteacher
Oooo... I like that. Why not so student self-evaluations on the Core Competencies during the interim report? You don't have to wait until the final report cards. Should be an ongoing process. Gets better over time. #bcedchat
Q5: What are some assessment strategies you are tweaking in the revised curriculum and why? How can we best communicate these changes to parents? #bcedchat
Interesting. I see your point. The system unity should be what BC's New Curriculum intends... that is personalized learning. The same should go for communicating student learning. My point is, reporting periods have to go. Needs to change to suit CSL. #bcedchat
A4: At parent presentation, there were folders on each table with examples of the new report cards. Parents were walked through these examples. #bcedchat
We used it at HS, but it was all about percentages and canned comments (with a few teacher created comments). In Elementary, I don't see it working within what the revised curriculum is about. #bcedchat
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @KennethHeadley, @lizbellteacher
Would love to see elementary reporting to be about standards (not grade levels). So that it doesn't 'matter' where a student is at the end of grade 2, but showing improvement and growth by end of grade 8......(I extended elemen to include middle). #bcedchat
A5: Tofino took work of Campbell River district (and others) re. Continuum reports. Along with performance standards and new curriculum, we created our own learning continuums. These were our report cards. Took time for parent buy-in but fits new curriculum well! #bcedchat
I see these self-assessments happening on regular basis...formal & informal. Creating those processes to see it will be important! Awesome to have educators already doing! #humancapital#bcedchat
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @ChristineYH, @DCampbell212
Agreed. Self-assessment and student self-reflection should be a common practice regardless or reporting periods. This helps students to develop their metacognition skills and understand how they are really doing. #bcedchat
self-assessment should be taken place constantly not just for reporting. Hattie said that this is the biggest impact on learning. Student self-reporting
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @ChristineYH, @DCampbell212
Think that happens more naturally when you use visible thinking and assessment tools for sure. It's whether you make it explicit to kids what they're doing to communicate that self assessment, making them more metacognitive about that communication #bcedchat
In reply to
@seano3ca, @ChristineYH, @DCampbell212, @Seesaw, @FreshGrade, @bcedchat
We ARE working with teachers to have more informative comments - what the student can DO - rather than just "Leon needs to do his homework more regularly" #bcedchat. Small steps!
In reply to
@brynmw, @MsVictoriaOlson, @KennethHeadley
I like the âStudent Perspectiveâ that STARTS the @sd43bc middle reporting template that Mrs. Seano3ca was working in this fall. Some of the students, apparently, didnât like it so much, though. Parentsâ response unknown. #bcedchat
We are hoping to start having Ss in our learning centre do weekly self reflections through #growthmindset lens.
With this conversation tonight, I see we will need to figure out how to let parents know...a little challenging at secondary. #bcedchat
In reply to
@technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @ChristineYH, @DCampbell212
There are a lot of stock comments that can merely fill space and not give much info about LEARNING vs. actually communicating where kids are w/ specific skills and how to support. #bcedchat
In reply to
@lizbellteacher, @brynmw, @KennethHeadley
Ahhh... I love this... and take on the challenge at secondary. What a great idea. The growth mindset via weekly self-reflections helps all students and practitioners. #bcedchat
In reply to
@lyndasuelew, @technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @DCampbell212
The more samples, the more ideas, the more can be brought together to create the best possible reporting method we can to communicate where kids are at. Needs to be effective for educators and parents/kids alike! #bcedchat
We did gr 9 - 11 self reflection on the report cards in Nov. It was supposed to go home with the report cards - all was handed out / worked on at the same time. Haven't had any feedback - that I know of! #bcedchat
In reply to
@lyndasuelew, @technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @ChristineYH, @DCampbell212
Yep - design thinking and project based learning had multiple entry and exit points - can be very personalized for an individual learning journeys #bcedchat
Awesome. Way to take on the secondary folks. If we can get behind the why then students and parents will get behind BC's New Curriculum. This is very heartening. #bcedchat
In reply to
@lizbellteacher, @lyndasuelew, @technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @DCampbell212
A5: I Have been doing check ins not quizes or tests and now we are doing unit reviews byself first, then ask a friend for a hint and finally look it up. We highlight pink, yellow and then blue and review the yellow a bit and blue a bunch before check in. Ss love it. #bcedchat
A6: I heard feedback from a lot of our parents that they really appreciated the lens into their child's classroom learning experience through FreshGrade. #bcedchat
Q5: Assessment for modified and adapted subjects is problematic, esp. when children transition schools. It would be helpful to have robust provincial standards for assessing children w. developmental disabilities. IDEA compliant policies in U.S. could serve as a guide. #bcedchat
Design thinking is an excellent framework for BC's New Curriculum. It's more than just getting the "right" answer and moving on. It's about establishing a deep understanding of the content and competencies. #bcedchat
Some of us #digitalimmigrants are working to learn a few things about technology and utilize office365 platform that our district has implemented. Trying to be relevant to our #digitalnatives...and hopefully will provide some data for Ss as they approach grade 12! #bcedchat
In reply to
@ChristineYH, @technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @DCampbell212
I love using check-ins as ways for kids to learn/improve from. I don't rely on averaging out any scores; instead, look at growth and acquisition of skill sets along the way. #bcedchat
Again. Super jelly. I want to experience Freshgrade with my Grade 9 kid... Sigh. I want a phone notification. I want to see what and how my kid is learning. In due time, I suppose. #bcedchat
My favourite comment from MyEd was about "$ (for student name) needs to work on their knife handling safety". I always wanted to use that for calculus to see if they were ever read...#bcedchat (I didn't, though)
In reply to
@MsVictoriaOlson, @lizbellteacher, @KennethHeadley
Response varies. Have had parents come to me on the steps at school to âreportâ on their progress on some things, and to discuss what I shared on others. Adding analytics to links is on to-do list, but frequently is a forgotten extra step. #BCedchat
Power dying (and I still need to take a pic of my lights that I set up this afternoon. Thank you, @ChristineYH and @MsVictoriaOlson for a great chat, tonight. #bcedchat
Ah, this is something we need to constantly consider...be aware of the education jargon which can be frustrating to understand and can build walls between school and home if we arenât aware. #bcedchat
In reply to
@GeofferyKehrig, @ChristineYH, @MsVictoriaOlson
The team at @HWKodiaks, led by @MmeFerrer, have been using office 365 for students to post and save their self reflections. Place for self-reflection and teacher feedback! #bcedchat
In reply to
@lyndasuelew, @ChristineYH, @technolandy, @MsVictoriaOlson, @DCampbell212, @MmeFerrer
I spent most of parent teachers explaining that this is where they are at today and the mark will change as we continue on in the course. No averages between terms, cumulative mark and more emphasis on growth of knowledge and not tests. tough for chem 11 Ps at first #bcedchat
365? When the âkidsâ are using google? Interesting....đ my kid in G12 was excited when our district was open to google (but itâs been a year so not holding breath) because itâs what her and friends use when not on district devices (also rarer and rarer) #bcedchat
In reply to
@lyndasuelew, @ChristineYH, @MsVictoriaOlson, @DCampbell212
My daughter is in grade 4 and her teacher is using Fresh Grade. I LOVE receiving the emails with photos of work. Feel like I have a view into her learning. She is always amazed (in a good way) when I ask about something...like I have magic powers to know! :) #bcedchat
A7 #bcedchat get busy connecting ideas. Help schools break down the walls & barriers between subject areas. Have âbig ideaâ convos, even with little kids. Take the time to encourage deep exploration outside of school, send that learning to us so we can leverage it.
