It had been bothering me for years. You can go to amazing conferences, have excellent professional development or learning experiences, but they just don’t always transfer back to the classroom or educational context. I will pick up great morsels to try out or immediately add in my classroom, but I have never manifested the change in my practice that I dream is possible when I’m immersed in an amazing conferences or am inspired by a learning scenario. Why is that? Is it a lack of will or determination? Is it just me? It turns out that it’s not. Actually, this is a common reality, and it was proven a while ago. Professional development does not always equal learning.
In a modern learning environment, change and professional learning are synonymous with teaching and foundational for school improvement. However, in 2007, Fullan wrote that “Professional development as a term is a major obstacle to progress in teacher learning.” (Change the Terms for Teacher Learning). Again, in 2013. Steven Katz and Lisa Ain Dack. in their book Intentional Interruption, painted a well-researched picture of teacher learning clearly illustrating that teachers rarely learn through professional development opportunities. So how can we rethink professional development as an opportunity to engage teachers in a more effective way?
I’m not a learner designer, but I am a designer of learning. This is my 25th year of teaching, and I build projects and initiatives for my classroom and for other teachers, schools, and communities. I have been building this particular solution over a few years now, and I'm excited to finally see it ready for action. I wanted to construct a learning exchange where the facilitator has a general sense of what they wanted to teach while also be one where the participants would determine what was actually exchanged through a responsive environment built around the learning needs and drives of those in the experience. I wondered if a more flexible syllabus could be developed or if those terms were oxymorons. I also wondered how learning experiences could be deeply rooted in connection and community. I wanted to help create a non-prescriptive way to build a supportive space to help teacher change their practice in their contexts. The Mpact became an addition to our supportive mentorship offerings at The Mentoree.
The W model is fascinating, and it was key to figuring out the format of this initiative. The model, which is applied in a variety of ways, but it is built to create time for learners to go back and implement thinking or do work and then return to a learning scenario to continue deepening knowledge or improving practice. It’s a model that was suggested by my board for summer learning last year, encouraging online instructors to have touch points and independent work periods, but I didn't want to use it that way. The two questions I marinated on when I considered the W model for professional learning were: What happens when teachers are stuck during their return to the classroom, attempting to implement new learning but needing support? I also wondered about the direction of the learning and how it could be malleable enough to change in view of the learners. The challenges with courses or many different learning experiences, is that they are immutable in nature. The course is set and change happens in between courses through reflection to alter the syllabubs. That is not true of our work at The Mentoree.
Can a course change course in progress? What if the model was an M instead of a W? What if you entered The Mentoree as a first step. Then, you would understand the forms of supportive mentorship we offer and expect the experience to be connected. Then the 3 touch points would have a few weeks in between them for implementation, reflection, and iteration. You could share feedback that would help the facilitator evolve what they were teaching to the needs of the people in the experience, and it would be a little bit different with each group. Change would then be the result because the educator experienced learning through a supportive mentorship model that comes from both the Mentor and the community. Plus, the support wouldn’t have to end when the experience ended.
With the freedom to build outside the blocks, I deliberated this idea and started constructing this vision with our co-founder. Now, through working with our Leadership Team at the Mentoree, Christine Chin and Dr. Teri Rubinoff, and through the hard work and vision of our Lead Math Mentor, Jordan Rappaport, we are ready to set sail on our first Mpact. If you read the thoughtful description of the offering, you will see how well-constructed it is. This, though, is an Mpact and not a course. As such, it will evolve to meet the needs of the participants and Jordan is more than equipped as a Math educator and effective Mentor to build it around who is in the room. Mpacts are designed to make an impact and help create change. I will also be participating to learn, build, and continue developing the Mpact model. Mpacts are led by a Mentor but driven by participants.
Learn more about the Mpact created to help support teachers in the province titled Enabling the Implementation of the Revised Ontario Math Curriculum in Ontario.