More Questions than Answers

I have been thinking lately about how best to build capacity amongst teachers. Not just at the school level, but throughout the system. Building capacity with technology use and teacher comfort with using technology seem to be some of the bigger challenges. The new Digital Lead Learners (DLL) initiative may provide some solutions to address these concerns. 

I spent the day at the first ever DLL professional learning session with a group of smart, creative and innovative educators who seamlessly integrate technology into their practice and are keen to share their ideas and expertise with others around them. The DLL initiative signals a new direction for the Teaching and Learning with Technology department at the TDSB, a direction I see as a positive one. While similar groups have long been in existence - ICT mentor/cadre, ICT lead teachers, TACIT (Technology and Curricular Integration Team) - the new DLL structure differentiates itself in a number of key ways: 

Focus on the process. The work shared by DLL teachers will have a clear focus on the learning process that occurs with any good teaching, digital or not. This will allow teachers who look at the shared work to take-away what they need and adapt it to their own teaching situation without being overwhelmed by a particular technology tool or application.

Clear connections to current pedagogical practice and effective teaching. With a focus on Learning Goals, Success Criteria and Descriptive Feedback, these links to Ministry of Education and Board initiatives will make DLL teachers’ work more accessible and more relevant to all educators. The teaching examples provided through the DLL initiative may prove to be a key ingredient as the TDSB develops its Digital Learning Strategy. 

More equitable representation. The Teaching and Learning with Technology department has worked hard to ensure that each Family of Schools (areas within the school board) has at least 2 elementary and 1 secondary representative.

'New’ teacher involvement. Many of this year’s DLL members are new to the ICT ‘team’ and some are relatively new to teaching as well. Innovative work is being done in schools using the relatively new tools of Google Apps for Education and Academic Workspaces (AW - TDSB’s internal communication and collaboration tool), much of it by teachers who were not previously part of TACIT.  

DLL mentor teachers - In an effort to build capacity with a newer generation of technology integrators, the DLL structure includes a group of mentor teachers. These DLL mentors will bring long range perspective and a great deal of experience to support newer Digital Lead Learners on their leadership journey. I am honoured to be one of those mentor teachers and look forward to sharing digital learning experiences with new DLL members.

I am excited to be working with, and learning from, such an amazing group of educators. I anticipate seeing some outstanding work from our very own TDSB educators and their students at the ICT Marketplace on December 6th at Burnamthorpe C.I. and throughout the coming school year.