Vygotsky and the Zone of Proximal Development *Teaching Strategies w/Dr. Zhu

 

Hey, there! I'm glad you found me!  The topic for my blog this week is Vygotsky and his "Zone of Proximal Development", or ZPD for short.  A learner's ZPD is where his instruction, and thereby his learning can take place. This optimal learning place is somewhere between what is already known and that which is not known. And the way the learner makes that learning happen is through his interactions with adult guidance and/or more knowledgeable peers. But there is a fine line around one's ZPD. Provide too little support or scaffolding and the learner becomes frustrated; Too much and the learner becomes bored. 

Hence, balance. The teacher's role, as I see it, is to provide just enough support, or scaffolding, to facilitate the learning. The teacher is responsible for providing enough assisted practice to help the learner internalize the strategies to complete the task or learn the new concept. The teacher aids the students in building on what (s)he already knows to learn what (s)he's trying to learn. The teacher builds on the learner's scaffolds to help develop the learner's ZPD. There needs to be a certain level of "imbalance" - or disequilibrium- internally with the student in order to achieve learning. Learning happens because of-not in spite of- this imbalance. The disequilibrium starts the learner's cognitive growth so that his equilibrium can once again be restored.

      

     Knowing what we know about the necessity of disequilibrium, it isn't too much of a stretch to assert that being comfortable, not challenged and uneasy, makes one less likely to learn. It is that uncertainty, the disequilibrium, that signals the brain to start the learning process.  Therefore, one can surmise that being comfortable essentially acts as a "kill switch" to your brain when in the learning process.  Think about the way a first grader learns to write and form letters: a teacher provides guided opportunities for writing (through modeling in the air, on the board, in sand, with one's finger on a peer's back, on one's forearm, etc.) then moves (through a gradual release) to providing tracing worksheets the student completes independently. This process continues as the student works more independently with the teacher being less involved as the student masters the concept. Another example is the manner in which early readers learn to read. The teacher scaffolds the learning by using what the child already knows (s says /s/, a says /a/, t says /t/, models how to put them together (blend) and they become /sat/. The teacher has modeled then has students attempt to "blend" sounds, then has students "read" the word (maybe with a picture icon for support). The teacher, once again, has modeled and provided support through the student's disequilibrium in his ZPD then uses a gradual release as the student becomes more independent. Eventually, the student will demonstrate mastery of the concept. 

                    "When we get too comfortable, we stop learning."

Now consider the scenarios discussed above again. If the teacher in the writing example gave no support and did not consider where the child was academically, the learning would have been too hard and the child would have been frustrated. As a result, no learning would have taken place.  Conversely, if the teacher had given too much support without opportunities for independent practice or made the task too easy, the student would have been bored.  Likewise with the reading example. Too much support or if the task is too easy, then the learner does not enter the state of disequilibrium and thus, does not begin the learning process. When we get comfortable, we get stagnant. In order to grow and learn we have to go through periods of uncomfortableness-to enter the state of disequilibrium-and ultimately, to grow and learn. I'm sure you've heard the old saying, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll continue to get what you've always gotten."  So my advice to you is, if you want to learn, get out of your comfort zone.  Find something in that "sweet spot" (your ZPD) and learn something new. Until next time, readers!                                   

Innovative Leadership in the Digital Age-Wk 5

     So this week, it's all about the Benjamins (so to speak).  Educating the masses costs money. The government has it and school districts want it. So how are we gonna' get it? The majority of school financing comes from state and local funding, with a small portion coming from the federal government. But no matter where is comes from, it's rarely enough to go around. And, unfortunately, that means technology integration is often a lower priority when it comes to funding and budget cuts happen quite frequently. That just means innovative leaders have to leave no stone unturned as they look for alternate funding sources. There seems to be a multitude of resources available to interested parties; one just has to know where to look.  According to an article in USA Today (Arbel, 2021), President Biden has recently put together a $100 billion dollar plan to make internet availability more equitable, more affordable, and less monopolized. Would our district be positively impacted by such a plan? Maybe. Any plan to lower the cost of internet access and make it more affordable would have a positive effect on our community unless taxes are increased in doing so. Our school district recognized the need and has made strides over the past two years to make internet access a reality for our neediest students. Initially, our district leaders were able to secure low-cost internet connections during the pandemic. More recently, we've provided internet hotspots to families who request it. So will President Biden's plan, if it comes to fruition, have a positive impact on our community? I guess only time will tell. 

     My "Call to Action" focused more on professional development with student achievement as a by-product of that PD rather than on infrastructure; use rather than access. As a result, I plan to focus my efforts on funding options that support tech professional development.  One of that "multitude of resources" I alluded to earlier is in "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA) funding. Section 4104 of the ESSA specifically addresses how the ESSA grant might be used for professional development, and that fits right in with my Technology Integration Plan. ESSA for the win! Funding from this grant would allow my district to support ISTE certification for educators in our district. It would also allow us to embrace the use of EdCamps (ISTE, 2018) for tech professional development. Further, it would allow us to implement support for programs resulting in "micro-credentials". Each of these strategies made possible by ESSA funding would go hand-in-hand supporting the goals in our Tech Integration Plan.

     The ISTE (2018) article outlines the steps necessary in order to secure funding through an ESSA grant. Those steps include 

• identifying our state's SSAE grant officers.
• identifying our state's current priorities for the SSAE grant.
• conducting additional research as necessary.       
• scheduling a formal meeting with our state's grant officers to begin official collaboration and planning while advocating for our district's needs.
• forming a planning committee with said officers.
• presenting major findings (made by the aforementioned committee) to the district superintendent.
•  completing a needs assessment,
• communicating with state tech directors for additional guidance and support. 

The ESSA grant appears to be a viable resource for funding the professional development opportunities our Technology Integration Plan calls for.  It also has an added bonus of opportunities for assistance with the process and collaboration with state grant officers. The potential benefits of this grant far outweigh the level of work and research required to win the funding. It's a definite option for our district. 

Resources:

Arbel, T. (2021, April 3). Broadband for all: Inside President Biden’s $100               billion plan to improve internet access. USA Today

ISTE. (2018). Using ESSA to fund EdTech:  Getting the most out of Title IV-A.

     

Innovative Leadership in the Digital Age- Wk 4

     Welcome back to my blog, Friends!  We're getting closer and closer to putting all the pieces together and finally coming up with a Technology Integration Plan.  The goal this week is to consider either student engagement or professional learning.  I chose the latter so here are my thoughts.

Technology Integration for Learning

Professional Learning

      Our district has, for the most part, relied on the age-old method of "sit and get" professional development for as long as I can remember. Then Covid19 happened and forced us to rethink our professional development delivery system. Recently, we have expanded our repertoire to include some video lessons and online support for teachers. In short, our technology professional development has been hit and miss at best. Gura (2018, pg. 73) suggests that..."unless it (tech PD) is tied to well-thought-out, focused goals and plans, it amounts to little more than activity for its own sake, even if it appears to be something needed or wanted at the moment." And that's where we currently find ourselves: struggling to reach our teachers and empower them through meaningful and authentic technology professional development that doesn't become "just another thing" in the long list of things teachers do. The bad news is our district doesn't currently have a formal Tech Integration Plan to guide our steps.  The good news is our district has an Ed Tech Specialist who is a visionary and has the ear of our Superintendent of Schools.  With that said, she has a vision and is making plans to increase her staff from two specialists (LSM and Makerspace) to include a "technology coach" specifically to support our district's elementary teachers. The next piece of good news is that the majority of our teachers are hungry to learn how to use technology in a manner that makes the most of what we have and that helps our students achieve success.  We just need to develop a plan that accommodates a variety of learning styles, addresses a wide variety of available time commitments, and figures out how to entice all our over-worked and under-paid teachers to take part while doing so on a very limited budget.  

     Gura (2018, pg. 74) lists several methods (in addition to the traditional workshop method) that could be viable options to enhance our Ed Tech training:

• Coaching (We'll already have a tech coach onboard next year so this seems like a "no brainer".) 
• Embedded PD (especially since we'll have a "tech coach" onboard next school year)
• Podcasts (We have the capabilities and the resources as well as someone on staff who produces podcasts on a regular basis.)
• PLNs (Professional Learning Networks) online and PLCs (Professional Learning Communities w/i the school setting)

    I believe these to be viable options for our tech training/professional development because the groundwork has already largely been laid. And honestly, anything is worth consideration and a try because we all know what we've been doing isn't working; we need to evolve in our trainings/learning just as technology continues to evolve.  I believe that these "new" training options will appeal to many of our teachers because the coaching and embedded pd can take place during school hours while teachers still work with their students. The podcasts and PLNs can take place at the teacher's convenience. And both of those methods capitalize on methods and platforms with which most teachers are already familiar.  

     Teachers are already making themselves part of professional networks as they connect to various Facebook groups, subscribe to various teaching blogs, and follow education influencers on Twitter and/or TikTok. Platforms such as these are less demanding on teachers’ time because they can write or respond to posts whenever they have free time in their schedule. These sites also provide a space for collective knowledge building and sharing where teachers can find support from large groups of individuals who pool their answers to find the best solution to a problem. One online website that is worth consideration is the Educator's PLN. Although I've not joined it myself, several of my colleagues have joined and frequently share about the relationships they've developed while networking on that site. Edmodo is another education network worthy of a quick look-see.

    For any professional learning activity to be successful, there must be buy-in and Gura (2018, p. 69) says as much. Because teachers are familiar with the previously mentioned platforms, they will have a certain level of comfort with them and will allow themselves to "buy in" to the offerings more readily. In planning for professional learning activities and networking opportunities, it is imperative that we consider what motivates teachers to learn, what feels authentic and meaningful to them, what fits in with their schedule and isn't just "another thing" to do. There must be real value that teachers can see in the experience where teachers can learn and grow with their practice. Teachers must feel as though they are part of the conversation and planning; their needs matter, and who better to talk about their technology needs than those who are in the trenches, so to speak, every single day?

Resources:

     

Gura, M. (2018). The EdTech Advocate's Guide to Leading Change in 

     Schools. International Society for Technology in Education.