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      string(4947) "The professional learning revolution �����28……………………………………………………………………………………………………………O ver recent years there has been arevolution in our understanding ofprofessional learning – both in termsof what it is and in clarity about what works. Eversince the publication of the DfES’s Strategy forProfessional Development (2001), with the shift offocus to school-based continuing professionaldevelopment (CPD), the emphasis has been onlearning together, learning from the best, learningfrom what works (Handscomb, 2002/3).��� School basedSo what are the ingredients of effective professionallearning? Well, first and foremost it is about beingschool determined and led. Teachers, localauthorities, training organisations and governmentdepartments all concur that effective professionaldevelopment starts in the school and is focused onthe craft of the classroom. Within any school thereis a tremendous amount of experience that isuntapped and needs to be used for the benefit ofothers. Professional learning is not about injectinginputs form elsewhere, but rather about schoolsidentifying their own needs robustly, capitalising onthe expertise within and deciding how this can becomplemented by contributions from elsewhere.��� Focused on teaching and learningSecond, it is increasingly clear that professionaldevelopment that makes a difference is linked toteaching and learning. Teachers and other staff reportthat professional learning sticks and has a lasting effectTHE PROFESSIONAL LEARNINGREVOLUTIONWhat are the main features of effective professional learning? GrahamHandscomb gives a concise guide for professional development coordinators.Practitioner pieces29……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………References DfES (2001) Learning and Teaching: A Strategy for Professional Development � Essex (2003) Educational Enquiry andResearch in Essex.  Essex Forum for Learning and Research Enquiry (FLARE). � GTC (2002) Professional Learning Framework GeneralTeaching Council � Handscomb G (2002/3) Learning and Developing Together in Professional Development Today Volume 6 Issue 1,Winter 2002/3 � Handscomb G and MacBeath J (2003) The Research Engaged School. Essex Forum for Learning and Research Enquiry(FLARE). � Handscomb G and MacBeath J (2005) Professional Development Through Teacher Enquiry in Topic 33 April 2005. NationalFoundation for Educational Research. � Handscomb G and MacBeath J (2006) Research Engaged School Health Check in Leading aResearch-engaged School. National College for School Leadership. � National College for School Leadership (2002) Becoming aNetworked Learning Community: Improving Learning and Leadership Together � Teacher Training Agency (2002) School Based ResearchConsortium: Working and Learning in Partnership. DfES.of enquiry, they have found it to be a highlysatisfying and energising professional learningactivity. For teachers who have engaged inresearching their own school and classrooms, it hasnot only brought new insights, new levels ofunderstanding and new challenges, but hasenhanced the quality of teaching and learning atthe same time. (Handscomb and MacBeath, 2005).Many schools are recognising these benefits not justfor individuals but also for the whole institution,and are making commitments to developing asresearch engaged schools, applying the enquiryprocess to school self-evaluation and improvement(Handscomb and MacBeath, 2003; 2006).��� A potent mixTaken together, all these ingredients make a potentmix for school professional developmentcoordinators to manage (see Box 1). The challengewill be for them to do so in such a way that fulfilsnot just the needs of the individual and school, butalso contributes to the body of professionalknowledge that can be shared among all within thewider community and beyond (see Box 2).This is an extended version of an article that appears onthe GTC’s website: www.gtce.org.uk/networks/connect/connect9Graham Handscombwhen it is related to what they do in the classroom andcontributes to improving the craft of teaching. Thisincludes not just the honing of teaching techniques,but also engaging in reflection upon one’s practice andconsideration of the values and purposes of teaching.��� Collaboration and networkingNext is the powerful ingredient of collaborativelearning. The GTC’s professional LearningFramework rightly emphasises ‘the value of movingcollegial learning from the margins of professionalpractice to the heart of it’. We know the"
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THE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING REVOLUTION

1 Jan 2005

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Professional Development

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Professional Development

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1 Nov 2006

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      string(5560) "This month’s FeaturesClassroom ideasfor using onlinevideoHow can schools and teachers take advantage ofthe online video revolution, and bring its powerinto classrooms? Here, James Cross exploressome practical classroom techniques and ideas.The students sat in today’sclassrooms belong to themost media-savvy, mobilegeneration ever – andproviding an online learningexperience that engagesthese students is a challengefor schools everywhere. Inthe past, simply uploadinga PowerPoint file or Worddocument to a learningplatform may have beenenough – but evolvingtechnologies such as theweb and smartphones havebrought about a new waveof possibilities for engagingonline learning.The rise of online video hasbeen one of the key points in thedevelopment of the web over thepast decade. Broadband Internet,with its rising speeds, has enableda new world of entertainment,which has taken the entertainmentindustry by storm. As YouTube andNetflix and LoveFilm have becomehousehold names, others have feltthe brunt of this – such as Blockbuster,which in 2010 filed for bankruptcyin the USA. Internet-enabledtelevisions, which stream contentover a broadband connectionrather than the airwaves, are findinghomes in many living rooms, and themajor TV stations all now providean online ‘catch up’ service for theirprogrammes.But it’s not only the world ofentertainment that online video ishaving an impact on. Searching http://www.teachingtimes.comThis month’s FeaturesYouTube for the words ‘how to’brings up over 18 million results– including videos explaining howto light a fire with sticks, to how toplay the latest Lady GaGa hit on theukulele, and everything in between.Interestingly, a high proportion ofthe videos on YouTube have beenuploaded by students in the highschool age and university agebracket. Countless young peopleare using online video as a wayto informally learn, and teach –completely under their own steam,and without any adult direction.When young people are creatingand consuming so much onlinelearning content in their free time,educators clearly need to takenote. In the past, using video inthe classroom was a fiddly andtime consuming affair – involvingtapes, cables, lengthy transfers andinaccessible editing software. For thebusy teacher, using video regularlyjust wasn’t a viable option – and evenwhere teachers did make use of it,there was no easy way to safelyshare it with students for them to useas a learning resource outside ofschool.The tides have now turned,though – and video can now bebrought into the classroom with ease.It’s a medium which resonates witha mobile, media-savvy generation,and it puts them in complete controlof when, where and how they learn.Online video lets schools providean online learning experiencethat’s immediate, highly visual, andthoroughly engaging – especiallywhen compared with the usualfare of PowerPoint files and Worddocuments on a VLE.Below are some simple, effectiveclassroom techniques that teacherscan use to bring online video intotheir classrooms:Classroom ideas for usingonline videoCapturing the learningNo matter how engaging andinspiring the lesson, the sound of aschool bell tends to act as a ‘reset’button in the minds of students– especially if it signals lunch time! Bycapturing key parts of a lesson withvideo and placing it online, teacherscan create a permanent record ofthe learning, allowing students toaccess it, on-demand, at any time.And like the ‘catch up’ services thatTV channels now offer, it provides avaluable resource to students whomay have missed the lesson, or whosimply need a reminder of what wascovered.Starters, plenaries andlearning objectivesThe ability to provide engaginglearning objectives, and for studentsto be aware of how their learningprogress fits with these, is a crucialpart of the learning process in manyschools. Learning objectives are http://www.teachingtimes.comThis month’s Featuresmost powerful when students havebeen involved in drawing them upand assessing themselves againstthem – and when combined withan interactive white board, digitalvideo provides a way of making theprocessAt the start of a class, play backa video clip from the students’previous lesson – and through a classdiscussion and teacher questioning,use the clip as a basis for drawingup students’ learning objectives forthe current lesson. What stage didthey get to last lesson? What needsto be improved upon? What’s themain thing that they need to focuson? Objectives can either be whole-class, or individually drawn up bystudents or groups within the classfor project work.At the end of the lesson, playback some key clips from the currentlesson (this is easy with digital video,as it’s simply a case of pluggingin the camera, or uploading videoinstantly using a mobile device andpressing ‘play’). 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Digital Learning

Classroom ideas for using online video

26 Jul 2012