New Directions

My first blog entry of 2012 is actually a carry-over from the previous year. It concerns the second day of our end-of-term professional development. In some ways though, it is fitting that the entry is dated for the new year for in this new year of 2012, as a school we will be further embarking upon our IB journey, and as far as the middle grades are concerned, we will be applying for, and hopefully implementing the Middle Years Program.

Our second day workshop specifically focussed on MYP planning. We were fortunate to be guided by a friend and colleague from an IB school in Toronto who is a trained IB workshop leader. This session was intended to be more informal and did not involve accreditation. In keeping with the themes of interconnectedness and employing technology when appropriate, the session was done over Skype. As is often the case, there was a technical glitch as we attempted to connect. Perhaps anathema in blogosphere, but I was reminded of the oft-used phrase, "To err is human, but to really screw up you need a computer."

Yet, even while we waited to the technical issues to be resolved, it was obvious that the collaborative exercises of the previous day had borne fruit. There was healthy professional dialogue centered around best teaching practices and team planning. Indeed, with only 6 hours until break of term, the entire session was both productive and positive. In short order, our connection came through and our guide (Grace) helped us to better understand the world of MYP, especially from the perspective of unit planning. Creating effective units of study was achieved in small team groups and the notion of interdisciplinary teaching was explored in a rudimentary form. It was clear from our deliberations that we were only scratching the surface in terms of our understanding of IB, but the really encouraging thing is that as a staff, we were embracing a new paradigm in terms of curriculum and team planning. The walls of individualism were breaking down, and greater team cohesion was filling the void. Indeed, it was clear that as a staff, and as a division, we were heading in a new direction.