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The Next New Normal
Upon reflecting on my experiences at St Luke’s Catholic College, I ponder on the words of a ‘new normal’. These words stressed by Dziuban, Graham, Moskal, Norberg & Sicilia enforce the idea of an emerging blended learning experience in education (2018). Yet, these words were first expressed to me by our innovative Principal, Greg Miller, at my first encounter of St Luke’s. This idea seemed to ignite a shift in my pedagogical thinking that was fragile with the contradictions of systemic traditional school context. The curiosity for intrinsic motivation in a world of lifelong learning had abolished my previous emphasis of summative assessment. In an environment void of the lurking HSC, it was a refreshing experience to evaluate authentic learning for what it was. A new normal had fuelled the pursuit of formative assessment that contributed towards a real learning experience that was both impactful and memorable for my students. A memory that would outlast the satisfaction of an ‘A’ on a year 9 half yearly.
2 years into my journey at St Luke’s and this idea of a ‘new normal’ seemed to be expertly applied to the ever-changing context of learning, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. A new normal to me has meant becoming personally acquainted with change, greeting ‘change’ like an old friend that sporadically came to visit when he was in town. I witnessed many other teachers, of varying experience, soothed by the idea of stagnant structure and uninterrupted routine. The simple life. A great goal. However, I have found myself inspired by a new normal which requires adaptation, evolution, innovation and transformation. This way I was sure to become resilient and prepared for this new normal, the new normal after that and the new normal after that. This same logic inspired me to discover the research in education that proved St Luke’s innovative mindset had merit beyond their years.
So, “strap in tight” my inner voice exclaimed! “It is time to head back to uni”. I commenced my Masters in Leadership and Learning at the University of Technology Sydney in mid-June, 2021. With no intention of embarking on a formal Leadership position at this stage in my career, the course has largely been inspired by the concept of lifelong learning in the digital age. In turn, I have used this experience to avoid becoming a walking contradiction that promotes life-long learning yet submits to stagnant structure. With the conclusion of my first unit, it affirmed team teaching, the inquiry process and (what was once a foreign) leadership structure. To support this, I have included an extract from my research report based on leaders in varying contexts.
“The comparison of transcripts in this report highlights the rapidly changing contexts and arrangements that shape leading practices. Most notably, there is the transformation from the traditional definition of ‘leadership’ which was viewed as a noun, to a more contemporary understanding of ‘leading’ as a verb (Edwards-Groves, Wilkinson, & Mahon, 2020). This logic implies that leadership is not individualistic but relies on a web of practices that support or suffocate one another in a living ecology, dependent on time and space. The commonalities of practices between transcripts focus on the rise of “participatory leadership” (McDowall Clark & Murray, 2012), “joint-decision making” (Nick Hopwood, Ann Dadich, Chris Ellior & Kady Moraby, 2021) and “leading from the middle” (Edwards-Groves, Wilkinson, & Mahon, 202). This observation correlates with the shifts in cultural assumptions about leadership as Australian’s recognise a transition toward egalitarianism (Atwater, Twase, Fields, McFarren and Nae, 2019)”.
My research affirmed co-leading practices and leading structures that align with St Luke’s model of mentoring and coaching. This model requires a shift in thought as ‘hierarchy’ is abolished. Leaders work with individuals and teams with the mindset of being in the trenches with them. This style of leading requires hostility that welcomes constructive and proactive feedback. In this light, personal and professional goals are joint-constructed, which was alien at first but now is a part of my everyday practice. The abolition of hierarchy awards merit to all individuals as masters of their own experiences.
With one eye on contemporary learning and the other on the next ‘new normal’, I am excited to discover the possibilities of blended synchronous learning, mobile learning and connected learning as part of Walsh’s Technology Integration Matrix (2017). Tackling the concept of the ‘digital native’ is important. It is assumed that in an era where students are masters of digital interfaces, that they are intrinsically motivated to use technology. Yet, in various articles (Stale & Stokken, 2012/ Pratama, 2021) it confirms that students engaging with new materials are more motivated and strive to achieve versus those who are acquainted with existing technologies. This therefore requires a shift from overused and exhausted websites to an integration of new technologies that inspires students to take autonomy and engage with their own ventures of websites, apps and interfaces that contribute to their professional bank of resources and skills.
As a professional educator, I aim to experiment with the concept of m-learning. The combined CAPA unit (Visual Arts and Music) invites students to complete flipped learning tasks on mobile devices whilst applying the inquiry-based notion of problem solving presented through the stimulus of a crime. The Driving Question for this unit is ‘To what degree can creativity stimulate the senses?’. Due to the implementation of connected learning, this unit will be delivered online as evidence of ‘anywhere, anytime learning’ with students working in pairs to solve a crime staged by teachers of Creative and Performing Arts.
Each week evidence will be given in the form of police reports, witness statements, photographs, films and documents that will be delivered to the entirety of Stage 4. Teams are provided pathways of choice as they can complete activities that match their strengths in art or music. Music pathways encourage the investigation of the concepts of dynamics, pitch and duration that are particularly evident in crime music. While art pathways explore the compositional choices that imply uncanny relationships within narrative photography inspired by Gregory Crewdson. The program will invite students to collaborate with peers invested in the opposite pathway, joining forces like true detectives, to narrow down suspects and motives. In true inquiry fashion, activities will be flipped, supported with scaffolded video tutorials and a slow release of technology use. Zooms will be available for collaboration and conversation as teams can select to disclose information with others in the bid to ‘solve the crime’.
Teachers in this space will therefore become facilitators of the process reflecting on experiences with students opposed to pontificating expectations and delivering lecture-based content. In addition to the underlying crime narrative, students will use collaborative communication software to create a virtual reality recreation of the crime scene that is accompanied with music made by the students through SoundTrap. The end product feature a voice over where students will reflect on their experiences and consolidate their understanding of how ‘creativity stimulates the senses’.
In what other context would this idea be supported, let alone recognised as authentic learning? I am astounded with St Luke’s and the incredible team of people compliment my Gallop Strength of visionary. This alters the stigma from the ‘ideas man’ to the person ready for the ‘next new normal’.
Augmented Reality Tester
Speaking of having one eye on the ‘next new normal’, download ‘Zappar’ on your mobile device. Scan the picture below for an AR sample that introduces my colleagues, and close friends blog, Joe Ng. This same style will be used to introduce instruction to CAPA students that supports a Universal Design for Learning by limiting executive functioning.