Welcome to you Cohort 21 Blog. This journal is an integral part of your Cohort 21 experience. Here you will reflect, share , collaborate and converse as you move through the C21 Action Plan process.
This is your first post and an opportunity to share a little bit about yourself as a learner and leader. Please respond the to the following prompts below:
1) Reflect on your own personal learning journey and K-12 education. Identify one learning experience that you can point to as having made a significant impact on some element of your own growth and development. It could be that teacher and subject that really sparked significant growth or a trip that opened your eyes to a whole new world or way of thinking or a non-catastrophic failure that you learned so much from. Briefly describe the learning experience and identify the various supports, structures, mindsets and relational ingredients that were put in place by the teacher or facilitator that directly contributed to your growth and success.
Hello Cohort 21! My name is Robin and I have been teaching in CAIS schools in both Montreal and Oakville for 6 years now. I have been very fortunate to have had incredible mentors over the course of my teaching career. From day one out of my Masters in Science and Technology Education I was brought into exemplary CAIS schools that lead the way in hands on teaching and 21st century skills. After reflecting I have to say the experience that made the biggest impact on me was my time at St. George’s Elementary school in Montreal where my mentor pushed me to develop curriculum that promoted deep learning, sustainability and allowed for diverse learning opportunities. When I started at St. George’s I was thrown into an incredible makers-space classroom a few days before term started and given a lot of space and opportunity to develop my own curriculum. My mentors were supportive and creative and helped me to flourish as an educator. Now that doesn’t mean that I breezed through the years. For the first year I was frequently uncomfortable, nervous and felt like I was barely treading water trying to keep up with amazing coworkers. I felt that this challenge really made the educator I am today. I can accept discomfort and face the fact that I always need to grow. I’m excited to see what I will accomplish this year!
2) What is the one Learning skill (MOE) or Approach to Learning (IB ATL) that you feel is MOST important in this day and age? How do you intentionally build it into your curriculum and develop it in your students throughout the year?
For my I think that the most important learning skill in this day and age is Initiative. Though collaboration was right alongside there I feel that to collaborate well that initiative is essential. In this day and age there is so much information and so much potential for our students to learn both in and outside of the classroom that giving them initiative will allow them to succeed so much more outside of school. I intentionally build it in my classroom through a wide variety of inquiry and PBL opportunities. Students are pushed and challenged to solve problems that have many different answers and they are encouraged to take initiative and find many different answers. Students are rewarded and encouraged when they bring in questions or ideas to the classroom. To show that I also frequently show them or discuss different opportunities or ideas from the outside world. I also engage in ‘Shout-outs’ that highlight when a student took initiative and thought it wasn’t observed. I personally believe that a student with initiative will go far and achieve much more. They will also bring forward an energy and create an atmosphere that creates exceptional work.
3) Insert an image below that best captures the essence of that Learning Skill or ATL.
This was taken last year at the FLL Championship where we won Core Values for teamwork. A large portion of our team was new to FLL but the girls consistently took initiative in their group work and that lead to a great atmosphere and strong team values and success!