Kamehameha Schools Distance Learning (KSDL) Owau

Donna's reputation preceded my participation in her workshop. During our operational planning meeting the week before I attended the Collaborative Leadership workshop, I heard people refer to Donna and her methods more than once. Needless to say, my expectations were high, and Donna exceeded all of them. What I learned: Because information is readily available to anyone today, not just folks at the top of an organization, everyone wants a say in how that information will impact them. That's why collaborative leadership is more important today than ever before. There is more buy-in and a commitment to success from people who are given a voice and a vote on decisions. It's all about Content & Process: WHAT will be accomplished and HOW will the group accomplish it? There are lots of great tools and strategies to employ for the process; it's important to choose the right tool for the task. Know the OUTCOMES you want to see at the end of the meeting.  Carefully...

Alliance College-Ready Public Schools launched Blended Learning for Alliance School Transformation (BLAST) at three high schools in 2011 and 2012.  What they found was this powerful model had an impact on teachers at every level of experience.  They found: Teacher roles morphed from “sage on he stage” to “guide on the side." Teachers had to plan out multiple lessons in advance, with minimum one week ahead, to keep up with the different learning paces. Increase in the need for classroom management skills. Teachers need to particularly focus on analyzing real-time data about what students are and aren’t learning each day.  School leaders play a critical role in creating a culture of collaboration, shared learning and an atmosphere of openness and willingness to make and learn from mistake. In hiring teachers for a blended learning classroom, seek those who are willing to innovate and take risks. Before sending teachers into blended classrooms, provide orientation tr...