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MirandaNet Fellows presenting ICT CPD models at Naace

From the MirandaNet Newsletter
This year John Cuthell and I organised the ICT Continuing Professional Development (CPD) theme for the Naace conference that took place in Torquay this February. Naace, English professional association for those concerned with advancing education through the appropriate use of information and communications technology (ICT). About ten members of MirandaNet are also members of Naace.

Some of the delegates followed our strand throughout. In the plenary they expressed a view about the use of ICT in schools which MirandaNetters will recognise. In the first place they cited key barriers in some schools as teachers’ lack of time, poor technical support, the lack of effective ICT CPD programmes and assessment which does not value the impact of ICTs in learning. However, what they agreed overwhelmingly was that lack of vision for learning was the reason why the take up of ICT and results are still so poor in about 75% of schools. Communities of practice for professionals were seen as a key way of changing attitudes.

Running this strand on ICT CPD was part of researching into the ICT CPD experience of the members of Naace, MirandaNet and ITTE. Our hypothesis here is that many people who are charged with teaching other teachers about ICT have had very little support themselves in any formal way. This is why communities of professionals like MirandaNet are so important.

In the conference John and I were concentrating on the achievements we have seen in the use of practice-based research for whole school CPD. Richard Millwood opened the theme by talking about the practice-based ICT CPD models that he and Stephen Heppell used to run at Ultralab. Niel McLean, Becta, talked about multimodality and Vanessa Pittard, Becta, looked at the research that has been published about effective ICT CPD. Again, practice-based research came out very well. Tim Tarrant talked about Effective Models for ICT CPD with examples from UK teachers who joined him. Byron Evans, Adviser, RTU explained how teachers’ communities have been developed in Northern Ireland based on project work.

We also invited several senior managers and teachers from MirandaNet to present practice-based models that seem to be working in schools. You will find more about these presentations in the report: John Cuthell and Dai Thomas on ICT CPD – The MirandaNet Model: David Litchfield on Managing Information, Managing Change: Jane Finch, Primary adviser, There’s more to IT than just ‘getting someone in’, Mark Bennison, Vice Principal at Westminster Academy on Developing a Global Citizenship and Enterprise Agenda through ICT Underpinned CPD: Michael Smith, the Professional Development Coordinator, Forest School, Snaresbrook, who described his own CPD journey in ICT to bring out strategic issues and offer an opportunity for future thinking.

The final presentation mentioned in the report is Roger Broadie’s project for Naace: Practically Transforming Learning, offers teachers a web space where they can go for instant information on running leading-edge practice based projects. We will be in touch with Fellows for support on building this knowledge base

John Cuthell and I are currently working on the whole staff ICT CPD programmes with Westminster Academy, London and Castle View School, Sunderland. Teachers from both these schools came to Prague. Do get in touch with us if you would like us to advise on ICT CPD programmes in your school as well christina@mirandanet.ac.uk, john.cuthell@mirandanet.org.uk.

Naace Conference Report

The Naace Conference was held in Torquay from February 27 – March 2 this year, with the theme: 20:20 Vision – The Future of ICT in Education – Clarity for the Present, Possibilities for the Next Decade.

One of the strands of the conference was ICT CPD, managed by Christina Preston and John Cuthell, who were also engaged in researching Naace members’ experiences of ICT CPD.

Lead Presentation: Latest Research into Effective Pedagogy in ICT CPD
Richard Millwood, formerly Director of Ultralab

Richard’s session shared the progress made in the Naace/Ultralab DfES funded project to develop new continuing professional development approaches for teachers using inquiry-based learning, online community, patchwork assessment, exhibition and personalised learning.

Contributions were made by a number of MirandaNet Members and Fellows. David Litchfield presented the first of the sessions. His theme was:

Managing Information, Managing Change

David Litchfield is the Headteacher of Castle View, Sunderland: Caroline McHale is Director of Business and Community Services at Castle View School.

Senior managers face not only the developments of new technologies, but also the changing demands on information and communication. At Castle View School, the leadership group has been working to bring a coherent approach to development, monitoring and improvement by concentrating on the impact for the individual student. This session explored the approaches to student participation and individual learning that have driven the changes in information systems and the skills of the workforce.

John Cuthell ICT CPD – The MirandaNet Model
John’s presentation looked at the MirandaNet model, and the ways in which members of the MirandaNet Community of Practice use it for their professional development. He outlined the ways in which the technologies of MirandaNet – the listserv, MirandaLink, the resources on the website, the Case Studies, the Discussion Forums and the working groups build a resource for the whole community. Not only that, but the resource is available to all, both nationally and internationally.

Evaluating ICT CPD Programmes
Was the title of the presentation by Margaret Danby, Education Consultant and Mirandanet Fellow.

The essential features of effective CPD evaluation were described and illustrated with examples of lessons learned about what promotes and what impedes effective CPD, drawn from previous various evaluations. The session included points raised with evaluators by both teachers and providers about what worked really well for them as well as what went wrong. These lessons were used to highlight key considerations for schools that will help them select and plan appropriate CPD provision, and to raise awareness of the wide range of potential CPD opportunities available. The benefits of formative, as well as summative evaluation were highlighted, especially its role in facilitating intervention when problems are identified and acknowledgement of effort and progress. An example evaluation framework was constructed to show how key sources of evidence can be identified and how it can be used to monitor the effectiveness of a CPD programme. A member of the audience contributed to testing out aspects of the framework against a recent CPD experience. The merits of a range of evaluation techniques were also discussed, with valuable input from the audience on newer technology -based techniques, such as photographs and video.

Jane Finch is a MirandaNet Fellow and a leader in the Visual Learning group. Her talk looked at:

Primary ICT CPD… There’s more to it than just ‘getting someone in’
Jane Finch, Teacher Adviser ICT, HoS Manager, Worcestershire LA

This session considered some of the features of successful Primary ICT CPD, capitalising on lessons learned in the Worcestershire Hands on Support Scheme.

Mark Bennison is Deputy Head at Westminster Academy. His talk looked at the ways in which ICT can underpin hole-school change.

Developing a Global Citizenship and Enterprise Agenda through ICT Underpinned CPD
Embracing the RSA 21st century competency-based curriculum, learning is integrated and thematic; moving from the yearly theme of community, through global citizenship to enterprise in the first 3 years (KS3). Tutoring is vertical, e-learning embedded, through their Connetix Learning Environment; at its heart, an individual learning plan for all students.

In a secondary school whose catchment is probably the most diverse in the UK; 75% of students are EAL, 35 main languages are spoken: Westminster Academy cannot help but embrace the agenda of global citizenship and has as a core vision, the importance of preparing its young people for a perspective which is global; economically, socially and technologically. In this session, Mark Introduced “school for a global future” showing how, working closely with organisations – MirandaNet and iNET – the global citizenship agenda comes to life.

Practice Based Research - The Becta View
Dr Vanessa Pittard is Director Evidence and Evaluation, Becta. Her talk looked at a theme that is at the core of the MirandaNet community- Practice Based Research.

Practice-based research has an important role to play in building up evidence of how technology can be used effectively to support learning.

It also plays an important role in enabling learning to take place from the leading edge and enabling effective professional reflection on emerging practice.

In researching new practice with technology practitioners need to consider: robustness of design, capturing the learner experience, assessment of outcomes, salience and transferability of findings.

There are particular challenges in assessing the value of learning technologies to learning outcomes. A framework of outcomes relating to technology for learning is presented.

Dai Thomas, Director of ICT at Warden Park Specialist School and Mirandanet Fellow

Dai’s talked looked at the reality of CPD for many teachers – and then examined what constitutes effective CPD.

This theme explored a number of approaches to ICT CPD and evaluated their effectiveness in terms of school improvement, pedagogical change and learning for both pupils and teachers. Examples were drawn from a number of projects that have examined the affordances provided by new technologies, and ways in which these have been used to promote personal and institutional transformation in learning.

Discussion following the presentation focused on the issues that still arise where teachers fail to take a professional role in their own CPD process. This is still problematic: possible solutions were discussed. The underlying problem seemed to be that many teachers felt that INSET was seen as CPD, and was something that was ‘done’ to them

Traditional delivery models of ICT CPD were challenged, particularly one-day courses involving large groups, where the theme was inevitably general, and specific application in the school context was difficult to achieve.

Teacher research seen as an essential tool for effective CPD focus. The MirandaNet model, and the Best Practice Research Scheme, were considered as exemplars.

Lead Presentation: The Future; Multimodal Literacy – Examples of what this means for Teachers and Children in the Near Future

Niel McLean, Executive Director, Becta

Niel’s presentation looked at the needed for multi-modal models of learning to become part of the repertoire of teaching and learning strategies. Many of the themes were familiar to MirandaNet members, and supported much of the work that the community has done in the past few years.

ICT CPD in Northern Ireland
Byron Evans, Adviser, RTU

This presentation reported on a pilot programme involving forty-eight schools in Northern Ireland. The programme had as its main aim the exploration of an online collaborative community approach to develop the ICT competence of staff and to embedding ICT into the life and work of the school, in the context of school development planning and whole school improvement.

Effective Models for ICT CPD
Tim Tarrant’s presentation was a collaborative effort involving Tim Tarrant, Head of ICT Team, TDA; Georgina Stein, Canterbury Christ Church University and Member of the Naace Executive Committee; Sarah Neild, Teacher, ICT Coordinator and AST at Birchley St Mary’s Catholic Primary School; Zoe Goodwin, Vice Principle, Greensward College and Margaret Baxter, Teacher, ICT Team Member and AST at Eccleston Lane Ends Primary School

This session drew on the experience of the TDA and covered its draft CPD strategy for the school workforce. It drew on the TDA’s experience over the last 8 years and the conclusions that could be drawn. One conclusion was the simple fact that the best CPD is most often teachers working with teachers and this was illustrated by the work and experience of Sarah Neild and Margaret Baxter. A challenge was how we can make initial teacher training, induction and professional development a continuum and help reduce the loss of teachers in the first 5 years of their teaching. The session examined the factors that influence professional development in the future and how we might address them.

An Inspirational Journey
Michael Smith is the Professional Development Coordinator, Forest School, Snaresbrook

Michael described his own CPD journey in ICT to bring out strategic issues and offer an opportunity for future thinking. This session also investigated the importance of collaborative learning environments and multi modal mapping for professional development and learning.

Michael described his own personal journey, which brought him to realise the importance of visual learning as a way to recover the complexity of ideas and engage learners. Through his work as a teacher/researcher with Mirandanet, he has investigated the power of multi-modal learning and considered the implications for the future in our schools. Do we still need textbooks providing information in a linear fashion? What are the implications for classrooms as the role of teacher and learner becomes blurred,as are the boundaries between schools and the external community.

The audience discussed the implications for software development especially mapping software and the need for learners to have a more sophisticated understanding of how multimedia presentations can be used to influence views.

Practically Transforming Learning – The view of the Naace Community
Roger Broadie of Broadie Associates Ltd is Member of the Naace Advisers and Consultants Working Group and Coordinator of the Transformed Education and Pull CPD projects, and as such a long-time friend of MirandaNet.

Assessment of ‘Quality of use’ of ICT in schools is currently geared to doing the best we can with what we have – in the way the school currently operates. This is optimisation.

Schools that have already optimised use of ICT, through use of the Self Review Framework and by gaining the ICT Mark, and who wish to aspire to transformation will require a systemic rethink of the way that learning is organized so that schools can achieve significantly greater impact upon pupil achievement – for all. Some schools are now doing this, stretching the gap between schools in educational offering and achievement.

The Transformed Education project has created practical tools for schools to assess and develop the best approach to fit their culture and community. The Pull CPD project is now developing knowledge bases that will aid all schools, whether they are still at the stage of optimisation or are amongst the 20% of schools that are developing new pedagogical and school organisation approaches.

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