Developing a Hunch

What is Going on For Our Learners? How do we know?

- Developing a hunch 
How are we contributing to the situation? "Hunch" is an important word – hunches may not be totally accurate, but it is essential to get them all on the table because they guide the focusing. Sometimes they might be well-established routines of the school or the classroom, and be relevant to your own school. Hunches need testing.

My new inquiry big question is: What is learner agency and how could I develop this at my school?

My leadership responsibilities (from Leading from the Middle - MOE - pg12) are:

• Improve outcomes for all students - with a particular focus on priority learners
• Create the conditions for effective teaching, learning and curriculum delivery
• Explore and promote the use of ICT and e-learning to open up new ways of connecting, sharing and learning
• Develop schools as learning communities
• Build networks within and beyond their schools to enhance learning and achievement
• Develop others as leaders

Developing my hunches

Learner Agency:

From the scanning phase of my inquiry I have uncovered that the children are not confident when articulating their learning/next steps, and most children in most classes do not have true learner agency (personalised learning, that is driven and monitored by themselves). Why is this? Is what we are doing as teachers hindering this? Do we provide the students with the opportunities or skills to develop learner agency? Do teachers know what learner agency is? Do they believe in it? Do they have the skills themselves to help the children develop learner agency? Do they want to change?
What about the children? Do they want control over their learning? Do they understand why they could have control over their learning? Do they see how this could help them? Are they interested or engaged? Do parents know about learner agency? Do they believe that their children would be able to drive their own learning, and be able to articulate what they know and what their next steps are? Do they think that this is the teachers job and not the children's?

My first hunch around learner agency is that as this is a relatively new term, and many teacher's do not know what learner agency is, or have a deep understanding of it. I believe that many of the teachers are very happy doing what they are doing, and their children are getting results that are perfectly fine. They are achieving to the standard and the parents are happy. I believe that they think 'why should change doing what I am doing because it isn't broken?' Many teachers will be thinking 'we have just had ERO, they were very happy, we are now 5 years, so why change?' 

So my hunch is that the children are not good at articulating their learning or having personalised learning (leaner agency) because teachers do not have a deep understanding of it and don't see the importance of it.

How will I know this? I expect to see:

• Teachers engaging in learning around learner agency
• Discussion between teachers around learner agency
• Teacher's believing in the importance of learner agency
• Classes beginning to demonstrate learner agency
• Children having greater control over their learning
• Children being able to articulate their learning and next steps
• Sharing of assessment between teacher-students-parents
• Student achievement improving because of learner agency
• Learner agency becoming ingrained in teaching practice

Writing vs Devices

This is another area I would like to 'test'. I have heard many teachers/principals/researchers and parents say that children's writing gets better when using devices, and that boys in particular are incredibly engaged in their learning (in particular writing) because of using devices. I would like to test this thought. 

My first hunch around engagement in learning using devices is: That children's learning (in particular writing abilities) improves because of their engagement levels using devices and Google Docs. Boys are more willing to complete activities, collaborate and write because of the devices, which leads to better writing and better student achievement.

How will I know this? I expect to see:

• Better engagement in writing and learning tasks by boys (and all students)
• Better quality writing from what they were/are producing before using devices
• Increased asTTle scores
• Greater quantity and increased quality of writing
• Collaboration between writers
• Articulation of learning, criteria, abilities and next steps in writing
• Working towards specific goals
• Online posting and sharing of writing work through the use of Blogs or parent portals
•