University of Wyoming Early Care and Education Center

1. Working with Staff to Create a Critically Knowing Community Our Process of Rethinking Teacher Professional Development University of WyomingEarly Care and Education Center Mark Bittner – Director Nikki Baldwin – Curriculum Coordinator

2. What is a Critically Knowing Community? • Glenda MacNaughton (2005) used the term “Critically Knowing Community” to describe an approach to professional learning where administrators and teachers engage in a dynamic process of personal and group reflection, growth, and change.

3. Professional Development Challenges • Discussion questions • Does your program have a professional development philosophy? Can you articulate it? • What motivates your professional development approach? • How do you make decisions about professional development activities? Who is involved in making these decisions? • What are your greatest challenges with professional development? How have you addressed these challenges?

4. Some of our Challenges • Lack of time for professional development activities • Lack of funding for professional development opportunities • High rate of teacher turnover • Teacher pay does not match teacher expectations • Constantly changing support staff • Large variation in the level of preparation of staff • Conflicting messages on campus and in the community about our program mission

5. Other challenges impacting professional development-Carter and Curtis • Teachers lack a philosophical foundation Often teaching practices, and professional development activities are dictated by: • Agency regulations • State and National Standards • Accountability measures • Developmental timelines • Commercialized products • Activity books and Web Sites

6. Other challenges impacting professional development-Carter and Curtis • Inadequate definitions of quality impact professional development approaches • Teachers, children, and families have very little power in determining the definition of quality. • Measurements of quality come from a deficit perspective. • Current measures of quality encourage sameness and discourage creativity. • Definitions of quality relate to performance on certain measurable tasks, not on quality of life or relationships. • Professional development activities are often driven by external, top-down measures of quality.

7. Nearly all literature discussing change [in schools] assumes a vertical, authoritarian organization with both the intent and the execution of change coming from the administration. Teachers are cast, not only in a passive role, but frequently in the role of active obstructionists. - Charles Hill

8. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity -Albert Einstein Rethinking our approach to professional development

9. University of WyomingEarly Care and Education Center • Serving 83 children and 64 families from the UW campus community • 6 classrooms (1 infant, 2 toddler, 3 preschool) & 1 after-school program • Employ 45 staff • 6 lead teachers with a Bachelors degree in early childhood education or child development • Two part-time assistant teachers per classroom • Four part-time teacher-aides per classroom • Place more than 300 practicum students each year from a variety of campus programs

10. University of WyomingEarly Care and Education Center • Administered by the Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences in the UW College of Agriculture • In partnership with the Dept. of Elementary and Early Childhood Education in the UW College of Education • Other campus partners include: • Communication disorders • Fine arts (theater, dance, & visual arts) • Psychology • Nursing • Counselor Education

11. Curriculum

12. Emergent/Negotiated Curriculum • Principle #1 An “emergent/negotiated curriculum” can occur in classrooms where teachers have a strong image of children.

13. Our Philosophy*Children* We believe that children are strong, intelligent, competent and constantly learning.

14. Our Philosophy*Learning* We believe that children, parents, and teachers are all learners and all teachers.

15. Emergent/Negotiated Curriculum • Principle #2 An “emergent/negotiated curriculum” develops when teachers plan experiences that are: • socially relevant • intellectually engaging • personally meaningful to children

16. Emergent/Negotiated Curriculum • Principle #3 Curriculum is “negotiated” between • what interests children and • what teachers know is necessary for children’s education and development

17. How is it different from other curriculum approaches? • Long-term projects & investigations • Focus on how children think, how they learn, & what they know • In depth study rather than “activity-based” planning • Avoidance of traditional themes or topics (ie. holidays, community helpers)

18. Linking our Professional Development Approach and our Curriculum Approach Emergent/negotiated professional development • Principle #1 Occurs in programs where administrators have a strong image of teachers.

19. Our Philosophy*Teachers* We believe that teachers are caring professionals trained to support the children in their learning and the parents in their participation.

20. Our Philosophy*Teachers* We believe that teachers are researchers engaged in the creation of new knowledge as they work alongside the children and in collaboration with other adults in the campus community.

21. Linking our Professional Development Approach and our Curriculum Approach Emergent/negotiated professional development Principle #2 Includes experiences and opportunities for teacher growth and change that are: • Professionally relevant • Intellectually engaging • Personally meaningful

22. Linking our Professional Development Approach and our Curriculum Approach • Principle #3 • Professional developmentopportunities are “negotiated” between • teacher interests, needs, and goals and • program vision, mission, and goals as facilitated by directors.

23. How is it different from other professional development approaches? • Long-term group study • Focus on how teachers think, how they learn, & what they know • In depth study rather than “one-shot” training • Avoidance of trendy topics, or quick fixes. Instead focusing on local program vision and change

24. Creating a Critically Knowing Community • 9 Keys to our work • Relationship work comes first • Create a climate of critical reflection • Conscious attention to teacher emotion • Establish a common vision • Share ownership • Time and space for growing ideas & understandings • Focus on teacher agency • Rethink teacher accountability • Embracing change, ambiguity, & messiness

25. The ‘quick fix’ technocratic models of change emphasize the place of method and technique in creating change, often ignoring the messiness, uncertainties and ethical dilemmas of relationships in teaching. In doing so, this approach to ‘improving teacher quality’ diminishes the very person it targets—the educator—who wilts as yet another ‘simple answer’ fails them. -Glenda MacNaughton

26. Two stories of program change • Changing our shared spaces • Improving student mentoring

27. Changing our shared spaces • Establishing our beliefs and creating a shared vision • Long-term study • Brainstorming ideas • Making it happen

28. Changing our shared spaces • Establishing our beliefs and creating a shared vision • We started with research – visiting programs, and finding resources. • We engaged in lots and lots of dialogue as a lead teaching/administrative team. • This work culminated with a written program philosophy statement.

29. Changing our shared spaces 2. Long term study • Over the course of two years we engaged in a team book study of two books related to environments and teaching. • Throughout this process teachers and administrators experimented and made changes to the environment. • Children and staff use of spaces was observed and we engaged in more group dialogue.

30. Changing our shared spaces 3. Brainstorming ideas for major changes • We then elicited input from all community members (including support staff & families). • During this process all members participated in dialogue regarding needs and specific changes that would require additional resources and planning. • Based on this input we created drawings of shared spaces and began purchasing & building materials.

31. Changing our shared spaces 4.Making it happen • All community members participated in the physical labor of changing spaces. • Once complete we revisited group feedback and worked to clearly articulate why we made changes and how we envisioned each space being used. • We are continuing to evaluate & make changes. This process is never complete.

32. Before

33. After

36. Relationship is the primary connecting dimension of our system, however, understood not merely as a warm, protective envelope, but rather as a dynamic conjunction of forces and elements interacting toward a common purpose. -Loris Malaguzzi

37. Improving student mentoring • Addressing challenges with mentoring student-staff (the majority of our staff are also UW students) • We worked to clarify our biggest challenges in mentoring student-staff in 2010. • We solicited feedback from student-staff on their experience as new employees. • Based on this feedback we made changes in three key areas. • Developing a new-staff mentoring program • Revising the new hire orientation process and materials • Committing to providing more time for classroom team meetings throughout the year

38. Improving student mentoring • Focus on lead teacher mentoring skills • After working to improve student-staff experiences as a program our focus turned to improving university practicum students experiences. • We began the process by eliciting feedback from students and UW faculty about ways to improve mentoring. • This led to a focus on providing support for teachers in their efforts to improve mentoring skills/practices.

39. Improving student mentoring • We embarked this fall on a long-term study of mentoring & leadership – including a book study. Components of our study have included: • Teachers sharing their core beliefs that guide their work with students, children, and families • The team determining commonalities between teacher beliefs and creating a list of shared beliefs and program priorities for mentoring and communication • Team members sharing the significant life experiences that influence them as mentors and leaders

40. Improving student mentoring • “Legacy Leadership” as a tool for reflection • Inspired by the book “Your Leadership Legacy” the team reflected on the legacy each individual hopes to leave behind at the ECEC. • The group then reflected on the numbers of students placed in our program for practicum experiences, and the number of student-staff working at the center and determined that the most powerful legacy we leave will be in how we have influenced these two groups.

41. Improving student mentoring • Based on the “leadership legacy” self evaluation, teachers and administrators articulated personal goals and made these visible for staff and students. This study continues as the team is applying new ideas in our work with students this year. We are still working toward articulating a solid mentoring vision for our program, and a plan for the future.

42. Professional Development • VS • Professional Learning Professional Learning in Early Childhood Settings Susan Edwards and JoceNuttall (Eds.) 2009 , Sense Publishers.

43. Reflecting on your approach • Discussion questions • What work could you do as a program to critically reflect on your current professional development practices? • What are the strengths of your current approach? What would you like to change? • Is there anything from our program’s journey that could provide insight into your work?

44. The proper, the best, and indeed the only source of lasting and significant change must be the teacher in the classroom. -John Holt