Leading change
A leader is an individual who influences a group of people to achieve a common goal. Most of the time we think about Leaders as the one who holds the biggest authority in the organization. In my scenario, the School Principal fulfills that role. And although they are leaders by definition of their status, they are not the only ones who can successfully influence and lead organizational changes.
Through my work with the Apple / Lamar Coding Program and my DLL studies, I know that I can too become a leader because Leadership is the ability of regulating my own anxiety. To implement my Coding in the elementary classrooms, even though some may think right now is not the right time and that our priority should be only focused on literacy and numeracy as well as close the learning loss gap, I have to continue to engage and persuade my school’s decision makers that Coding marks those boxes and more. Coding can usher us in a path that would greatly benefit our students into becoming critical thinkers, creative problem solvers, flexible and able to work in collaborative groups.
My first step is to have a Crucial Conversation with our new building Principal who will take their position this summer.
I have to lead with my heart, and state my Path:
STATE My Path to Coding in SOE:
Share your facts: Coding had a great start in SOE. We had a Coding Camp in Summer of 2019 and more than 40 students participated in second grade and 25 students in 4th grade. Second grade teachers successfully participated in the SBISD Computer Science year long PL. All this took place under the umbrella and push of the Apple / Lamar/ HCC Program and Partnership to bring Coding into students school population who historically do not participate or engage in Coding / Computer Science: low income/ hispanics/ female.
Tell your story: We had started and had plans to create resources for all the schools to use as part of our Leader In Me Empowerment time - STEM projects. During our first semester we did Science related STEM and STEAM projects and we would bring Coding during the second semester with a Course in SOE LIM and PDs. But the Pandemic halted that, and we never went back to it as the priority shifted to fill in the gap of lost learning.
Asks for others paths: Have you worked with schools, Teachers that implemented a Coding Program in their schools?
Talk tentatively: I think we can continue with our initial Plan in our School, for even though our first year was cut, the benefits of Teaching Coding to students in Primary grades have proven greatly improvements on schools around the country.
Encourage testing: Maybe we can even add and modify our Plan to implement Coding in SOE so it can still be implemented perhaps with it having to be the Flagship but a complement to the new vision and mission our school will attempt to accomplish in the next school years.
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For Coding to effectively be inserted in our classrooms I need to avoid emotionally triangled or stuck but instead offer support, as well as identify, and create opportunities for the benefit of the entire school. To Give Hope and spark the three Cs: creativity, curiosity and confidence for our Teachers and Students.
INNOVATION STRATEGY RESULTS
Students 2-5 grade to be literate in fundamentals of Coding and to apply critical thinking skills to their daily learning
MEASUREMENT
Teachers using Coding resources especially created for them in SOE LIM, Coding Books, and websites such as code.org during the 2nd, 3rd and 4th nine weeks of the school year measured by having students create testimonials via Flipgrid on what they have learned in their CODING STEM lessons, what is their favorite part of Coding and asking them to show how to code in apps such as code spark academy for lower grades and scratch jr for upper grades.
Vital behavoirs
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Teachers don't implement Coding in their classroom because it's too much on their plate or fear that they do not have enough knowledge to teach.
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Teachers don't ask for help to implement Coding in their classroom or don't share their ideas or success for lack of confidence.
Target audience
2-5 in are Science and Math Teachers.
Organizational influencers: Admin and MCL (Multi classroom leaders).
Six Sources of Influence
Will they teach Coding in their classroom? Would they Teachers enjoy it?
Connect with core value: we are teaching Coding to engage critical thinking, collaboration and creativity in our students.
Professional Learning program to learn and grow in Coding with different guided practices in the use of code.org, code sparks, Scratch jr; modeling and collaboration through out the year of implementation and roll out.
Are other Teachers encouraging and helping each other with ideas and lessons?
Have Principal and MCL buy in, support from SBISD that can bring examples of how other schools in SBISD are rolling out Coding in their schools and the positive results. Invite Parents night for students to show their learning.
Create collaboration groups with Teachers that are more advance in Coding and invite them to short how tos modeling sessions. Create a discussion group in the SOE LMS for questions and ideas between Teachers.
Are there rewards for Teachers and students to learn Coding?
Create Coding Creativity, Problem solving awards for Teachers and students. Monitor how Coding critical skills is enhancing other subjects areas learning.
Allot time specifically for Coding STEM every week in all 2-5 grade Classrooms. Provide coding books to these classroom. Provide Teachers with Simple Coding lessons booklet and LIM resources (links and videos) to start their implementation roll out.
Four disciplines of execution
Focus on the goal
D1
Use 5 lessons for our CODING itslearning LMS page during the second 9 weeks of school at Coding-STEM hour every week.
Execution of the Goal
D2
LAG: # code.org lessons completed in classrooms by 2-5 grade students from Code LMS
LEAD: Students should create and post a flipgrid video explaining what is coding and modeling a loop using a coding app they used in the classroom.
LEAD: Teacher share lessons and products in announcements / discussion section of Code LMS
Keeping Score
D3
Create a 5 minute spotlight at our Leader In Me students meetings on Fridays, where we can present flipgrid by grade level -Teacher:
Coding in SOE.
Meeting with your team
D4
WIG 15 minute during extended planning for each grade level.
5 Minutes during staff meetings on Wednesday to monitor and show how CODING is been implemented at SOE, impact, benefits or adjustments.
Five stages of change
1.
GETTING CLEAR
Communicate SOE CODING WIG. LEAD and LAG measures. and how we are keeping score. WIG sessions will be quick and embedded in Teacher level planning times and School staff meetings. Monitor, adjust and commit to achieve our 1 Wildly Important Goal.
2.
LAUNCH
Launch and implement Coding SOE plan. Communicate WIG, meet during our WIG sessions monitor our measures in a scoreboard on our Code SOE LMS. Keep track and show LAG and LEAD to all Teachers /Admin. Launch PL and have Teachers do the Coding lessons that they will teach (experiential learning). Start these Pl sessions with easy to teach Coding elements, activities and fundamentals and increment difficulty as the school year continues and Coding becomes familiar for Teachers and students. Identify resistors and make sure to address all vital behaviors challenges.
3.
ADOPTION
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Identify Teachers that are thriving to become our positive Coding models. They can become Lead Coding Team and share other activities , lessons and insights that worked in their classroom. Identify Teachers that are struggling, coach, co-teaching and/ or modeling. Allow flexibility and adjustments. Open collaboration and discussion in our LMS and encourage Teachers to help each other as they start to navigate and implement Coding in their classrooms.
4.
OPTIMIZATION
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Teachers and students are implementing CODING and can experience the effects of problem solving, creativity, collaboration and how these critical skills are also overflowing into other subject areas.
5.
HABIT
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Once our 1WIG has been accomplished and becomes part of our whirlwind, what new WIG can we create on Coding for our school that can help us in our next step to help our students become literate in Coding and critical thinkers and our Teachers more confidents to become Coding leaders in our School District.