It s a long way from there to here

It’s a long way from there to here… Planning to go the distance Anne Looney

Microsoft 25 years… There’s no going back…. . No return to default settings… You can’t hit the organisational reset button…. Leading is not about restoration…. 2

Committee 287 K Knowledge and Research 373 K Learning 749 K NCCA 4637 K Inter-agency 69 K Virtual 101 K Organisational 3104 K

Innovation and Identity: Ideas for a new Junior Cycle

Rationale for junior cycle development § ESRI research - experience of junior cycle § Previous/ongoing review of junior cycle § Minister’s request and input § Broader concerns about this stage of education 5

Pay attention to how change takes place! A source of ideas

Balance small moves with the freedom to go further Schools resourced to change from within! External supports available

Focus on teaching and learning and gathering evidence of that learning TEACHING AND LEARNING Teaching And Learning Structured Practice The exam LEARNER Syllabus and QUALIFICATIONS THAT FIT textbooks THE LEARNING EVIDENCE OF LEARNING

1 2 3 4 5 From curriculum conformity to schools having freedom to be different From the Junior Certificate to qualifications designed for all From the three years in junior cycle to three years of junior cycle Towards a renewal of learning and teaching From generating an examination grade towards generating evidence of learning

Key skills and learning tutorials emphasised Locally developed school courses included Thematic learning and investigations across subjects Key skills embedded in all learning and curriculum Allocation of 20% of school –devised curriculum Moving Further Still Fewer subjects Moving Further Small. Move 1. From curriculum conformity to greater freedom for schools Freedom to design the whole curriculum within the Framework for Junior Cycle e. g. curriculum could be concept based Little central prescription

Redesign the junior cycle qualification Some schoolspecific element to the qualification More than one qualification Moving Further Still Existing Junior Certificate or similar addresses wider spectrum of learning in line with Level 3 of NFQ Moving Further Small. Move 2. From the Junior Certificate to qualifications designed for all Open access for schools and learners to new junior cycle qualifications but also to other external qualifications at Level 3 and adjacent levels

Option 1+2 A range of taster subjects in 1 st year, leading to informed curriculum choices in 2 nd and 3 rd year Option 2+1 1 st and 2 nd year variety of subjects. 3 rd year focuses on preparing for a junior cycle qualification Moving Further Still 3 year model Bridging frameworks Improved communication flow Increased flexibility in patterns of organisation of junior cycle Moving Further Small. Move 3. From three years in junior cycle to three of junior cycle 3 year plus model 6 th class and 4 th year included in junior cycle experience Final year of junior cycle marks end of compulsory education

Co-operative learning and project work emphasised Engagement in learning through peerlearning and selfassessment Moving Further Still Focus on developing key skills Greater use of: §activity- based learning §student reflection §assessment for learning §ICT Moving Further Small. Move 4 Towards a renewal of teaching and learning Self-directed learning encouraged Student input to teaching and learning decisions Peer tutoring and learning communities encouraged

Less emphasis on centrally administered summative examinations Evidence of learning gathered, discussed, shared and built into a record of achievement Establish a balance between locally and centrally devised summative tests Moving Further Still Begin to use multiple sources of evidence of learning Moving Further Small. Move 5 From generating an examination grade to generating evidence of learning All evidence of learning, including tests, gathered in schools and reflected in a statement of achievement or form of portfolio that links into a qualification

Project Maths New places, new processes, new possibilities

New places…. . • Committee and school • The interaction between teacher and students as the developmental rather than the implementation space • Key texts – Lesson plans – Student work • Consultation as part of the construction process • Connecting primary and post-primary

New processes • Curriculum as co-construction • Evidence gathering at the heart of the process – – – Effective learning Learner achievement Learner progression Learner motivation Teacher enjoyment/engagemeng

New possibilities • Teacher as – developer – researcher – investigator • Assessment – about evidence – generating feedback – assessment artefact as performance rather than procedure • Time…. .

Key skills framework

Elements and learning outcomes

Working with others Negotiation Compromise Team approach Communication Information processing Express opinions Discuss and reason Present Ideas in different ways ME! Critical and creative thinking Argumentation Problem solving Thinking imaginatively Researching Discrimination between sources Organising information Being personally effective Self evaluation Perseverance Achieving personal goals

A Key? § To unlocking the mystery of curriculum for those outside education? – A shared vision § To a common language? – Across the curriculum – Through all levels of the education system § To connect learners with their learning? – To give them a voice § To connect teachers with learning?

Aistear, a journey. .

Presenting children’s learning and development through themes 26

Hannah Arendt Education is the point at which we decide whether we love the world enough to assume responsibility for it and by the same token save it from that ruin which, except for renewal, except for the coming of the new and young, would be inevitable. ﾒ And education, too, is where we decide whether we love our children enough not to expel them from our world and leave them to their own devices, nor to strike from their hands their chance of undertaking something unforeseen by us, but to prepare them in advance for the task of renewing a common world. 27

Playing to our system strengths § The quality of relationships § More flexibility and choices § The quality of networks § Talking/language 28

Working on our weaknesses § Isolationism § Assessment and learning § Primary/Post-primary § Planning § Get on your boots…. . 29

The Wisdom of Heifetz and co. . Balance optimism and realism. Avoid floating into naivety. . And sinking into cynicism! 30