Preface & Introduction to the New Pillars of Modern Teaching

Welcome to the Preface and Introduction to The New Pillars Modern Teaching. In the preface, Will Richardson sets the stage for the book with a brief history of essays and books that were predecessors to this series of books from Solution Tree called the Solutions for Modern Learning series. In this section, he describes how we have reached this point in education and what our next steps might be.

In the introduction, Gayle Allen provides a description of how the book as arranged to best address where teachers, who are surrounded by technology, will address this in their teaching. She explains that she wrote the book to help us understand the “why” of it all, and to address the question of how and why to allow access to the wealth of knowledge surrounding us inside of the classroom.

Using the comment tool at the bottom of this post discuss. Please label your posts as Q1 for answers to question 1, etc.

1. Introduce yourself and tell us where/what you teach?
2. Why do you feel it is important to read this book?
3. Describe the shift to the new pillars of pedagogy. Does this shift seem to apply to your classroom and way of thinking about curriculum, instruction, and assessment?
4. In what ways, if any, do you feel we have already started addressing this shift on your campus or in RCISD?

Feel free to reply to the comments of other learners.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible. Please focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Chapter 1: Why We Need to Change Pedagogy

In Chapter 1 of The New Pillars Modern Teaching, Gayle Allen lays the groundwork for why we must change pedagogy in our schools. Data shows that the majority of U.S. workers are not engaged in their work. Is this something that can be addressed with our students while we still have them in K-12 schools? She also explains the change in access to information over the last century. Now that we are living in a time of informational abundance, teaching and learning methods must change.

Using the comment tool at the bottom of this post, please discuss the following. Label your answers by question number, for example, Q1, etc.

1. Daniel Pink, author of the book Drive (2009), recognizes three environmental factors researchers point to as keys to employee engagement: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. If this is true, how can we better engage students now and hopefully assist them in becoming engaged workers and members of society later?
2. How does living in a time of information abundance impact how we learn and teach? How can we work in this environment to improve student ownership of learning?
3. Are you a knowledge worker or a learning worker? Please explain…

Feel free to reply to others comments.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible, so lets focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Chapter 2: Pillar One – Design

The focus of Chapter 2 is the first pillar: Instruction, which Gayle Allen argues will shift to Design. Traditional approaches to instruction developed during a time of information scarcity and put the teacher in between the student and their learning. 21st century connectivity means that our students can own their learning and the design of it and should if we want them to be truly engaged learning workers who will be able to achieve their potential. Technology, Allen notes, makes it possible to shift from teacher as instructor, to students designing their own learning by making connections.

Using the comment tool at the bottom of this post, please discuss the following. Label your answers by question number, for example, Q1, etc.

1. Allen notes that students own their own learning when playing video games, for example, when they watch a YouTube video to improve their skills. How can we use this example to cede control for learning to the students? Does this sound possible?
2. How often do students get to decide on the four elements of powerful learning in your class? What area will you choose to focus on next year?

Feel free to reply to the comments of other learners.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible. Please focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Chapter 3: Pillar Two – Curation

The focus of Chapter 3 is the second pillar: Curriculum, which Gayle Allen argues will shift to Curation. According to Allen, the transition from Curriculum to Curation requires us to embrace the abundance of information that surrounds us and help students use tools to organize, store, and tag information for use in learning. Scanning, Sense Making, and Sharing are highlighted as the 3Ss of great curation.

Use the comment tool at the bottom of this post to discuss the following questions. Please label your posts as Q1 for answers to question 1, etc.

1. What effect has the Carnegie Unit had on the U.S. education system?
2. Provide examples of things that you currently curate for professional learning? What is the impact of this process on your learning experience?
3. What are the benefits of allowing students to curate resources for learning?
4. How can you implement this next year?

Feel free to reply to the comments of other learners.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible. Please focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Chapter 4: Pillar Three – Feedback

In this chapter, Allen notes that high quality feedback accelerates the learning process. In the example provided, Allen describes technology-based examples of feedback providers such as a fit-bit, that is even able to personalize the learning to the wearer’s experience. She recommends creating effective feedback loops to accelerate learning and help students connect at a personal level.

Using the comment tool at the bottom of this post, please discuss the following. Label your answers by question number, for example, Q1, etc.

1. The author presents the four characteristics of feedback that make a significant difference for learners. Think of a recent assessment situation in your classroom. Use the four elements to adjust how the assessment can be transitioned to feedback and provide a greater impact for students. What do you predict the result would be given these changes?
2. In what ways do you collect and encourage feedback in your classroom? Please share methods and tools and discuss the effectiveness of each based on the four elements in figure 4.1.
3. How can we implement feedback loops in a sustainable way in our classrooms next year. What do you expect to result from this change?

Feel free to reply to others comments.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible, so lets focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Chapter 5: Iteration and Failing Fast to Learn

This chapter focuses on the importance of “doing” and the impact it has on student learning. By using iteration and failing fast as strategies for scaffolding learning with the three new pillars of modern teaching, the author contends we can deepen understanding, improve engagement, and create learning workers in our classroom.

Using the comment tool at the bottom of this post, please discuss the following. Label your responses by question, for example, Q1, etc.

1. What did you learn from the pot analogy? How can you apply this to your practice and your classroom?
2. What is the difference between repetition and iteration? Which occurs more in our classrooms? How can you adjust your practice to include more iteration?
3. Using Ries’s four-step approach to apply one or more of the new pillars of modern teaching to a hypothetical classroom.
   • Identify one small change you would like to empower students to own their learning by designing their instruction, curating their content, or soliciting independent feedback.
   • Alter a lesson or activity to implement this change in a basic way. Please describe the change.
   • Plan to try this next year and predict how students might react to this adjustment.
4. What can we do to create autonomy, mastery, and purpose for student to heighten engagement in the classroom?
5. How will you adjust your practice as a result of studying this book.

Feel free to reply to others comments.

FYI. Names are posted, and the website is visible, so lets focus on positive discussion and sharing. Happy reading!

Thank you for completing this book study with me.

Please email me to let me know when you are finished posting – dana.grieb@rcisd.org.