Trying to get traction with my change project on HOTS

I have found that in my action research for this project, that often times I am coming back to what feels like square one with my project, rather than majestically changing the educational experience of a whole host of students. I feel as though trying to get traction for the ideas and changes I am bringing is difficult. One of the things that stuck with me from the seminar days with Emerging Leaders was that as soon as you are not leading a change, you can have no control over it.

I feel that whilst I can effectively control what happens in my classroom, I am getting stuck trying to develop this change for other teachers. I feel that these teachers are weighed down by the expectations placed on them, and that adding more to their plates, no matter how much they think it is a good idea, is not possible.

Juxtaposed against this feeling of failure is the sense that I am changing and developing both as an educator and a leader. I feel that in my classroom, everything, from the language I use with my students (including describing the types of knowledge), the time I give students to attempt challenging tasks that require thinking, and my expectations that they do think (often), is developing through my project.

My personal development is gratifying, and I see the results in my students and how they respond to the learning environment in a positive way, as a success. Where I struggle is to know how to adequately translate my wins into wins for the other Year 11 science teachers, as per my goals with my project.

There is not a lot of time left!

Disequilibirum

I was lucky enough to take some students from my school to our sister school to attend a regional constitutional convention today. The students were focused on examining the question 

"Are the disadvantaged being left behind by Australia's social and economic policies?".

It was really powerful to have students invoked in learning outside of their normal environments. Students who are not always active and contributing in class were heavily involved in discussions around politics, economics and social justice. They were presented to by two guest speakers, Dr Jonathan Welch and James Merlino (our local MP) who had differing interpretations of the topic.

What really struck me was how much the students already knew about aspects of this issue, and how they were willing to put their ideas forward and make suggestions as to policy decisions. It was also clear that not many of the students had a clear understanding of what disadvantage was, and this raised valid discussions itself. One of my students said to me after that the day had really opened his eyes to how much goes on in Australia - I was genuinely surprised by this, but happy that it had done so.

Taking the students out of their normal environment was really powerful. Obviously we need to have regular learning environments for students to develop most successfully, but clearly, there is also an important need to occasionally challenge the status quo and do something different. Pushing the students into disequilibrium with a completely novel experience allows the students to experience a different perspective, particularly in terms of how they view themselves.