We made it! This has been a whirlwind experience, and I feel like it is really just the beginning of an exciting journey. When I started the course, I had a limited experience with inquiry, only dabbling in its use with my students. I was lucky to have some colleagues that were immersed in IBL, and through them I was able to engage with a little background knowledge.
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| This image is one I will keep close as a reminder of where to start and the journey to free inquiry! |
As I reflect back on the last 6 weeks, I would like to focus on the areas that had the most impact and those I feel I can begin to implement in the near future, hopefully as we get back to a more "normal" routine. We have done so much learning in such a short time, that I feel I will be "unpacking" everything for quite some time to come. For now, I will reflect on "nudging" and collaboration, as well as transforming space to create an inclusive and inviting environment for IBL.
For me, this experience has made me think a lot about collaboration and the idea that we need to find ways to "nudge" ourselves in the direction of IBL. The "nudge" aspect, as I have also come to see, is both for myself and the staff that I work with in our school. Personally, I connected with Coatney's statement that, "...the best way for school librarians to become comfortable with implementing inquiry learning is to practice becoming inquirers themselves and to encourage faculty and staff to do likewise." (2015, pg. 13). While I am, for lack of better terms, "amped up" to get going and start the process, this is going to be a small challenge at our school, as we have a lot of experienced teachers that are somewhat "set in their ways" in their own classrooms.
But, embracing Fontichiaro's idea that, "...engaging in just a few PD activities throughout the school year, you can help build a powerful definition of —and, hopefully, enthusiasm for—moving away from cut-and-paste and toward inquiry." (2015, pg. 49), is a direction I hope to guide our staff in going forward. Collaboration and Coatney's idea of, "Administrators and those in charge of staff development need to provide workshops and materials that empower teachers in collaboration with school librarians to understand and adopt an inquiry stance to teaching and learning." (2015, pg.12), demonstrates that as a staff, we will all need to work together to create an IBL environment.
This bring me full circle, to probably one of the most important quotes for me during this course, Fontichiaro says, "For librarians to have a place at the table, they need to be nimble in finding points where they can insert themselves into research projects even if an overhaul is not possible" (2015, pg. 51). The process is going to be "slow and steady" if it is going to be successful. At this point, I need to find a way engage the staff, and insert myself beyond the T-L that can help find resources in the library or simply support "research skills" in the classroom, only to be finished in one session and move on to the next class.
Where I plan to start, is with the introduction of "TRAPP" and the curation of resources with our staff. I look forward to sharing and implementing this tool with our intermediate classes, supporting them as they move away from the "copy and paste" aspect of research that is often observed. As I mentioned in my learning log, this connected me to:
Patiently and kindly helping teachers to move forward and leave behind static, quick answer-driven projects that encourage plagiarism and have no interest to students: This is the one that hits home the most with me. I have personally witnessed the students that have been given a project of very little interest. We actually dealt with blatant plagiarism twice this year in our Grade 7 population, and both times it was evident that it came from boredom and just wanting to get the assignment done. I will admit that once it was an assignment of mine. More and more with the use of technology, it is easy to copy and paste and call it your own with no thought. We have to move away from these projects and provide richer learning opportunities! (Learning Response #1, July 17)
If I can start here, with a simple tool that can have a big impact, I feel I will be able to "nudge" my way into other areas. Hopefully, at this point, I may be able to support our staff, and demonstrate ways they can "nudge" their current units in the direction of inquiry. I am optimistic that we can slowly implement some change and have our staff see the benefits for our students.
I will leave this portion of the reflection with a quote and a connection to my personal teaching experience. When I was in my second year of teaching, some 15 years ago, I went to my principal and expressed that I was frustrated, I just wasn't getting through all of the Grade 5 curriculum in a year. His response to me was, What do you remember from Grade 5? I sat back, thought about it, and responded by saying I enjoyed spelling, math, we had a student teacher that taught social studies, and we did an autobiography project and I brought in Borscht to share with the class! But, not much else...
At this point, he told me to focus on teaching the kids "how" to learn, and not to focus on whether or not I was covering the whole curriculum. The ability to know how to learn, beyond school walls and as a member of the community going forward, is the best lesson you can give your students. I feel this connects well with Colyer's statement about inquiry and rote learning, "It is a form of deep learning that allows children to learn how to learn as opposed to making children learn what to learn in the form of isolated and fragmented content." (2016, pg.2). I have kept what he said to me as part of my philosophy in teaching since that day, and going forward, with inquiry, I feel it will be even more present in my thoughts. It is time to start "nudging" our school in the direction of inquiry, in a way that encourages our students to "learn how to learn" in all aspects of their school experience.
The second area that resonated with me, and I will be working hard to change in the coming years, is that of the physical space in our library setting. I knew coming into this class, that our space was limiting our options, but I am beginning to see just how much potential we have at Kidston.
The library is the first thing you see when you come in our front doors, and it truly is the hub of the entire school. Placed between the primary and intermediate wings of the school, students pass the library multiple times a day. What we are in need of to fully support inquiry in our school is the creation of flexible learning spaces, so, "...the physical environment must be planned to include a variety of defined areas to support individual, 1-to-1, small group, and large social groupings." (Lippman, 2013).
The image below, is one that I now have in hard copy, as I think it accurately reflects where we are in each of the categories:
As the image shows, I have highlighted where we are in each area of the "Performance Standards" at our school. We are caught between a limited program and school library with program, and we have a long way to go to get ourselves to the point of a functioning LLC.
As I stated in a previous discussion post:
Ultimately, the plan is to create a space that encourages collaboration. As Lippman says, "Spatial design influences how people engage with one another, and whether or not they are able to fully participate in activities. For this reason, learning environments must encourage collaboration." (2013, pg. 34).
I feel this is going to be our way to move beyond simple "bird units" and recall projects, and get our students collaborating and working on IBL in our library space. Having STEM and Makerspace opportunities, a variety of space for learning individually, in small groups, or as a whole class, will bring our learning community together. As Fontichiaro says, "Maker centered inquiry has a real-world purpose and is driven by a student’s curiosity and motivation to fulfill his or her creative vision." (2014, pg. 48). I look forward to the day we have these options for our students. My hope will be that the district plan to create LLC throughout our district, will include our space and what it will look like in the future!
References
Coatney, S. (2015). Essential Questions and Answers for Implementing Inquiry. School Library Monthly, 31(5), 11–13.
Colyer, Jill and Watt, Jennifer Gail. 2016. Getting started: Inquiry-based learning with junior learners. In THINQ 4-6: Inquiry-Based Learning in the Junior Classroom. Cambridge, ON: Wave Learning Solutions Inc.
Ekdahl, M. & Zubke, S. (Eds.); Daly. H (Rev.). (2017). From school library to library learning commons: A pro-active model for educational change. Vancouver, BC: BC Teacher-Librarians’ Association (BCTLA).
Fontichiaro, K. (2014c). Nudging toward inquiry – Makerspaces: Inquiry and CCSS. School Library Monthly 30(6): 48-49.
Fontichiaro, K. (2015). Building Inquiry Understanding with Classroom Colleagues. School Library Monthly, 31(5), 49–51.
Lippman, P. C. (2013). Collaborative spaces. T H E Journal 40(1): 32-37.
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