{"id":12613,"date":"2020-04-23T09:53:12","date_gmt":"2020-04-23T13:53:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aurora-institute.org\/?post_type=cw_post&p=12613"},"modified":"2020-04-26T21:59:52","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T01:59:52","slug":"silver-linings-observations-of-self-directed-behavior-in-an-online-environment","status":"publish","type":"cw_post","link":"https:\/\/aurora-institute.org\/cw_post\/silver-linings-observations-of-self-directed-behavior-in-an-online-environment\/","title":{"rendered":"Silver Linings: Observations of Self-Directed Behavior in an Online Environment"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article was originally posted on the New Hampshire Learning Initiative<\/a> website.<\/p>\n

There has always been a clear recognition of the importance of the critical competencies of communication, collaboration, creativity, and self-direction for success in the \u201creal world\u201d by teachers, parents, community members, and local business leaders. The \u201cwhy\u201d has never really been a question. However, providing opportunities for application of these skills in real-world situations that can transfer outside the walls of the school has been a question that educators have been grappling with.<\/p>\n

\"Garrett
Garrett, 14, works at his desk during the COVID-19 pandemic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many educators in New Hampshire have been deliberately engaged in integrating the work study practices into learning experiences for the past four years.\u00a0We always approached this work in classrooms through the lens of supporting learners in practicing these skills in school, in the hope that students would be able to apply these skills outside of school. A common starting point for schools coming into this work was to begin with self-direction with a focus on metacognition, the ability to be self-aware, set goals, and monitor and adapt. No one ever considered that a true test of self-direction and metacognition, and an opportunity for students to practice (and demonstrate) these skills would occur because of a global pandemic that necessitated distance learning.<\/p>\n

Since this epidemic caused the shutdown of schools statewide in New Hampshire on March 15th, the New Hampshire Learning Initiative has sought ways to support educators in the field. During that first week,\u00a0my wife and I balanced supporting our own children<\/a>\u00a0(ages 15, 14, and 8) with their schooling, while I considered on a professional level how I could support the field in some meaningful way. The idea of doing podcasts (something I had never done before) came about because we were speaking with many of our teacher, principal, and superintendent colleagues in the field who were sharing incredible stories of compassion, perseverance, and creativity. We thought that we could\u00a0share these stories<\/a>\u00a0to help others. One of the common themes in these conversations, from the very beginning, was the teachers\u2019 and building level leaders\u2019 recognition of the role of self-direction, and the many surprises they were experiencing in relation to this.<\/p>\n

Cathy Baylus, social studies teacher from Laconia Middle School, recently shared that \u201ckids are proving me wrong.\u201d The ones Cathy thought might be struggling were doing well, and some she thought would be fine were struggling. Jess Tremblay, Social Studies teacher at Souhegan High School, concurred with Cathy\u2019s initial observation, noting that she saw almost immediately that \u201cstudents who typically struggled with self-direction in the regular classroom were flourishing in this new environment.\u201d It suggests that the environment plays a bigger role in the manifestation of these skills than we may have previously considered. Nicole Woulfe, noted recently that students had actually requested resources related to self-direction to utilize in their home environment. In a previous conversation with Nicole, (her school had been doing distance learning for less than a week at that point) she\u00a0noted in this podcast<\/a> (this portion begins at 7:04) that \u201cstudents that do not present themselves as independent learners in the classroom, have presented themselves as independent learners at home\u201d. Nicole described this as \u201csuper interesting\u201d. I would agree.<\/p>\n

In one of my early calls with\u00a0Ryan McCluskey and Jill Lizier<\/a>, principal and assistant principal (respectively) of Memorial School in Newton, NH, they note their school\u2019s focus, and the students\u2019 strengths in work study practices (portion beginning at 16:35), but Jill notes that this situation will \u201chighlight the agency piece\u201d and Ryan recognizes it is \u201cgoing to show (them) what students are really able to do.\u201d When we\u00a0followed up with Ryan and Jill just recently<\/a>, about three weeks after our initial call, they noted how their historical focus on CARES has really served students well in this environment, and in fact has become an entry point for the administration to engage in \u201cfacetime\u201d with the entire student body. Recognizing that their instruction of these skills had always been geared toward the behaviors in school, Ryan and Jill share a Friday message focusing on various aspects of the CARES behaviors. The most recent message to their students,\u00a0linked here<\/a>, is on Assertion, a correlating component to self-direction.<\/p>\n

Classroom teachers as well, very early on, recognized the role that self-direction and metacognition would play in this new normal.\u00a0Jennifer Manning, a kindergarten teacher<\/a>\u00a0at Memorial School in Newton, NH noted that her students (beginning at 5:31), developmentally, need a greater level of support. Jennifer had to be cognizant of the availability of parents to support their children, given the students developmentally limited ability as five-year olds to be self-directed. The scaffolding and support at these primary ages is critical.<\/p>\n

This recognition of the need for structure was not limited to primary-age classrooms, however.\u00a0Heather Wheeler, Sanborn Regional High School Science Teacher<\/a>\u00a0noted that \u201call children\u2026 need structure\u201d and they had \u201cquickly come to consensus (as a staff) that they wanted their students to have structure in their (virtual) day\u201d and built a schedule accordingly, especially at the beginning of their transition. It intentionally included face-to-face time with ongoing opportunities for students to check in.\u00a0Ashley Harbel, Sanborn Regional High School ELA Teacher\u00a0<\/a>also noted the \u201ccheckpoints\u201d that they are providing for students \u201cwho need a little more structure\u201d. Teachers, as they do in their physical classrooms, are providing the scaffolds and supports at all levels to ensure the greatest opportunities for success.<\/p>\n

The current situation is unprecedented, and has prompted some students who maybe haven\u2019t asserted themselves with their teachers in a typical classroom in the past to begin to do so.\u00a0Bari Boisvert, Sanborn Regional High School ELA teacher<\/a>\u00a0(beginning at 6:45), shared that students that she didn\u2019t hear from typically \u201chave been emailing and asking if they can set up an (individual) Zoom.\u201d This opportunity has allowed for a more personal check-in, to address school-related issues, but also connect on how the students are doing. This connection, however, may not have happened had the student not taken the initiative to reach out.<\/p>\n

Additionally, the structure of the school day looks very different for everyone, teachers, parents, and students alike.\u00a0Ashley Harbel<\/a> noted this in her podcast, when she shared how she has recognized the need to stay flexible (beginning at 11:40), as some of her students are getting their work done, but not during the day, as they are having to assist younger siblings, or in some cases, out of necessity, work during the day because there is a family need. The bottom line is that when students have the support (and are afforded flexibility and options for work completion) that they need, they can be successful while \u201ctaking care of the things they need to take care of\u201d but still having the leeway to be self-directed in determining how they can get done what needs to get done academically.<\/p>\n

It has also become clear that the self-direction and work study practices work happening in classrooms prior to the move to distance learning has served students well during this difficult time.\u00a0Sarah Kiley, Art Teacher from Epping High School<\/a>, (beginning at 10:59) has utilized previous work she had done around work study practices as a foundational component for her move to distance learning. Sarah noted that she was able to keep things somewhat consistent during their initial move to distance learning because there were some work study practice assignments (blog posts) that were already due, and students in this new environment chose to talk about avoiding procrastination, using shorter term goals, and modifying schedules to ensure their work was getting done. This is a direct reflection of metacognitive practices being utilized and transferred, a critical component to demonstrating mastery. Sarah noted \u201cthe benefit of being able to demonstrate these skills when no one is watching.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through all of this, a curiosity is brewing about how this situation may have a lasting impact on students\u2019 metacognitive and self-direction skills. Brian Stack, Principal of Sanborn Regional High School<\/a>, (beginning at 11:00) shared that a \u201clightbulb went off for (Brian) as he was reflecting upon the previous three weeks. Despite the fact that we were all \u201cthrown into this environment\u201d, and \u201csecurity blankets\u201d of support were removed, \u201cwe\u2019re all being forced to think about work study practices in a new way.\u201d Brian recognizes the potential for a \u201csilver lining\u201d and is \u201ccautiously optimistic\u201d that students will \u201ccome back to schools with a much better understanding of how they learn, of what they need to learn, of how to start the learning process, and be more independent, but also recognizing what they need more help with and how to advocate for that a little bit better.\u201d In essence, metacognitive practices will possibly be more ingrained in the day-to-day thinking of learners.<\/p>\n

Self-direction translating to an online environment is something my wife, Stephanie, and I have recognized in our own home, as well. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, we have three children. Our oldest son, Garrett, is in eighth grade, and was thrust into this new mode of learning like so many others. I\u2019ve had a number of conversations about self-direction with him, along with our other two children over the past two years (probably much to their chagrin), as the work I\u2019ve done has allowed me the opportunity to reflect and think about the critical importance of these competencies and consider what may have helped me when I was a student. I was very pleased to walk into Garrett\u2019s room last week and find a crumpled up piece of paper on his desk, with a clear weekly schedule he had created to help him. When I asked him about this, he indicated that it was \u201cwhat he needed to make sure (he) got everything done.\u201d Over the course of the week, he methodically worked through this schedule, completing all of the work he needed to.<\/p>\n

\"Garrett
Garrett, our 14-year old son, quickly figured out his own way to keep himself on track for weekly assignments during the move to distance learning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The long-term impact of our current situation as it relates to self-direction in students is yet to be determined. Drew Szeliga, STEM teacher at North Hampton School, noted in a recent conversation the opportunity this situation may present for teachers moving forward, In reflecting on how some students are doing well, while others may struggle, Drew wondered about what \u201cwe can bring forward to the next school year\u201d by asking \u201cwhat have I been doing well teaching self-direction and independence, and how can I improve that moving forward into future school years?\u201d Sarah Kiley, noting an observation of her students\u2019 recognition of these skills during this crisis shared that, \u201cThey (students) understand that these skills are serving them in their life and their ability to get work done and be proactive about seeking help when they need it. They\u2019re much more self-reliant, and they\u2019ve found a greater reason to demonstrate these work study practices then we could have ever imagined. They\u2019re really showing it outside of the classroom.\u201d If this recognition by teaching and students of the importance of self-direction occurs, and students are consistently able to transfer this skill in new situations, we may be able to point to these times as a turning point in our quest to prepare students for a world that requires these critical skills.<\/p>\n

References:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Ashley Harbel. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-ashley-harbel\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 6, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Bari Boisvert. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-bari-boisvert\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 6, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Brian Stack Revisited. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-brian-stack-revisited\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 8, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Heather Wheeler. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-heather-wheeler\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 3, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Jennifer Manning. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-jennifer-manning\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 2, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Ryan McCluskey and Jill Lizier. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-ryan-mccluskey-and-jill-lizier\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 2, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Ryan McCluskey and Jill Lizier Revisited. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-ryan-mccluskey-and-jill-lizier-revisited\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 10, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Sarah Kiley. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-sarah-kiley\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 9, 2020.<\/p>\n

Voices From the Field with Jonathan Vander Els: Nicole Woulfe. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/motivis.org\/voices-from-the-field-with-jonathan-vander-els-nicole-woulfe\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 6, 2020.<\/p>\n

Stack, B. and Vander Els, J. Opinion:\u00a0Four effective strategies for parents who are now homeschooling their children.<\/em>\u00a0Hechinger Report. Accessed at:\u00a0https:\/\/hechingerreport.org\/opinion-effective-strategies-for-parents-new-to-a-homeschool-environment\/<\/a>\u00a0on April 9, 2020.<\/p>\n

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