The Role of Leadership in the Implementation of Successful Blended Learning Programs
• Rachel Goodwin, Administrator, Chicago Virtual Charter School• Jacquii Leveine, Director of Professional Learning, iLearnNYC , New
York City Schools• Eileen Marks, Implementation Manager, iLearnNYC, New York City
Schools• Cary Matsuoka, Superintendent, Milpitas Unified, Ca
September 2013
Blended Learning
• “a formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through online delivery of content and instruction with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace and at least in part at a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home…” - (Horn and Staker, 2013)
Tech-rich = blended
Teaching and Learning• What the student is
doing and where the student is.
What the teacher is doing and where the teacher is.
What and where the content is.
Webinar Focus
• Leadership and Implementation of Blended Learning Programs– District Perspective– School Perspective– Teacher Perspective
Cary Matsuoka
• Superintendent, Milpitas Unified
• Milpitas, Ca (Northern California)
Blended Learning in Milpitas Unified
• Started in the 2012-13 school year• Why?
– Schools are still operating with an industrial, factory model, one size fits all, sequential use of time and delivery system – the complete opposite of differentiated instruction
– Blended learning offers the possibility of customized learning, putting the student in charge of their learning
How we got started• By posing a single question – “if you could
design a school of the future, what would it look like?”
• With accompanying design guidelines, we started with design thinking conversations with our principals and teachers.
• We have had two spring design cycles in our district in 2012 and 2013
• The spring 2012 cycle led to two full K-6 blended learning schools in the fall of 2012
Communicating with Concentric Circles
• Communicating the vision in the right order was essential
• Started with the Board• Then the management team AND teacher
union leaders• Then school staffs• Then the parents, once schools were ready• Then the local community via the media
Implementation Stages
• Year 1, 2012-13– 2 elementary schools and a preschool
• Year 2, 2013-14– two elementary schools and pre-school
continue– Blended learning is expanding to 7 other
schools– 9 out of 14 schools are using a form of blended
learning
Role of Leadership
• Vision – answer the question of why, present the need for a paradigm shift
• Defined autonomy – let school-based teams design their model, provide support and boundaries
• Get the infrastructure right – hardware, software, wireless
• Get ready for lots of problem-solving, meetings
Getting Started
• Read, do field trips, visit other schools and districts
• The importance of models – the best models are happening in our charter schools when it comes to blended learning
• Network and learn from others – this is very new work
Other Reflections
• Common Core and blended learning are complementary
• Go open source as much as possible – we have adopted Google tools, Gmail, Chromebooks as our primary standard
• Be willing to risk
Questions?
Contact InformationMilpitas Unified
• Cary Matsuoka, Superintendent
• www.musd.org
Rachel GoodwinChicago Virtual Charter School
• K-8 Academic Administrator
• Master in Elementary Education
• Currently finishing a Masters in Administration and Leadership
Chicago Virtual Public School
• K-12, 651 students (cap of 680)
• Students living in Chicago city limits.
• Public school so all students are welcome
• As charter school, some flexibility of structure and management
Chicago Virtual Public School
School PerspectiveBlended Learning Journey
• When and why?– CVCS opened their doors in 2006 (K-8)– Curriculum and management services provided by K12– Board and K12 had a vision to provide a state of the art
curriculum and create an environment where students can learn at their own pace
• How started? – K12 worked with the state in allowing a hybrid school to
open in Chicago, then worked with CPS to be the charter authorizer, and then worked in establishing a board had a vision in making this model a reality.
• What was focused on first, second, etc?– Getting the right teachers in place– Developing a mission– Developing a strategic plan– Developing the right culture
• How was support for the blended learning direction developed with Board…with staff…with community? – Constant communication– Clear objectives– Review of data
Implementation Stages
• Where we are now• We are outperforming the neighborhood schools• Increase in State assessment scores each year• Increased the student cap and now have a complete K-12 school
• Where we are going• We want to be the best hybrid school• Improving our support programs• Use data more effectively to drive our instruction and support, but
also to determine the type of individualized teacher PD we can provide
Our Blended Learning Model
• What does it look like? Learning Center one day a weekVirtual leveled groups sessions twice a week Individual or small group virtual sessions focused on curriculum
or provide academic interventions Students who are behind receive additional support at the
Learning Center and virtually by the Academic Support Teachers.
Students receive their curriculum and we allow a certain amount of flexibility.
Leadership and Implementation
• Key aspects of leadership– Effective communicator– Mission driven– Able to develop relationships with all stakeholders– Risk-taker – An advocate
• What daily/monthly leadership activities take place to support blended learning direction?– Weekly staff meetings to review data, school
operations, and instructional PD– Monthly PD- presenting current research, scaffolding
instructional approaches, reviewing data as a school, and reflective converations
– One on one weekly meetings– Formal and informal observations
Leadership
• Promising Practices:• Data meetings, ILSP, check-in meetings, PD that
allows teachers time to implement and reflect
• Lessons Learned• Being transparent• Having a clear direction• Understanding the student body• Providing quality PD and training for the staff
• Recommendations• Have high expectations for all stakeholders• Developing a year and 3 year PD plan to support the
teachers moving into a blended model• Listen to the students and teachers• Working as a team• Willing to be reflective and change what is not working• Using data effectively
Questions?
Contact InformationChicago Virtual Public School
• Rachel Goodwin, K-12 Administrator
• Email: [email protected]
Jacquii LeveineEileen Marks
• New York Public Schools
iLearnNYC is a blended and online program that enables teachers to differentiate instruction by coupling online content with face-to-face instruction to allow for student control over time, place, path and space.
HistoryYear 1 (2010-11): 40 schools – pilot programYear 2 (2011-12): 124 schoolsYear 3 (2012-13): 196 schoolsYear 4 (2013-14): 240+ schools
Middle Schools and High Schools are using blended and online learning for many purposes:
Providing Credit Accumulation / Credit Recovery
Sharing Instruction across multiple schools
Infusing technology into the traditional F2F classroomfor differentiated instruction and improved engagement
Supporting Students with Interrupted Education
Providing Credit Accumulation / Credit Recovery
Lab Rotation Model A• Content is homogeneous• Teacher of Record (TOR) supervises the lab
Lab Rotation Model B• Content is heterogeneous• Facilitator supervises the lab• Teacher of Record (TOR) may push in
periodically, mostly works virtually with students
Sharing Instruction Across Multiple Schools
Self-Blended Model• Advanced Placement• World Languages• Electives• Independent Study
AP SPANISHSCHOOL 2
SCHOOL 3SCHOOL 1
TOR
Infusing technology into the traditional F2F classroomfor differentiation instruction and improved engagement
Station Rotation Once a week Three times a week Daily
Delivery 1:1 computing Small group work Whole class presentation
http://www.iLearnNYC.net
Blended Learning:Six Success Indicators
That Guide Implementation
• Proactive and reactive instructional strategies • Engaging content experiences• Structured and integrated approach to data collection
and measurement • Data driven, student-centered instructional strategies • Evaluation and ongoing improvement strategies• Online communication tools and student collaboration
Leadership and Implementation
• Key aspects of leadership
• Professional Development
• Implementation Managers / Support Staff
Leadership
• Promising Practices
• Lessons Learned
• Recommendations
Questions?
Contact InformationiLearnNYC, NY
• Jacquii Leveine, Director of Professional Learning, [email protected]
• Eileen Marks, Implementation Manager, New York, [email protected]
Future iNACOL Webinars
• http://www.inacol.org/events/webinars/