Collaborative Planning In The PYP (Online) - Module 2

Module 2 - Essential elements, systems and structures

Activity 1 - Essential Elements in the PYP

Goal = Discuss how best to plan for the essential elements collaboratively with a UOI - What makes this element essential to student learning?

Focus 1 - Transdisciplinary Skills

1. Examples of how planning for TD Skills occurs at BNMS

2. How and why are the TD skills contributing to student learning?

3. How is the PYP planner used to facilitate and document planning for TD Skills?

Focus 2 - Attitudes

1. Examples of how planning for the Attitudes occurs at BNMS

2. How and why are the Attitudes contributing to student learning?

3. How is the PYP planner used to facilitate and document planning for the Attitudes?

Focus 3 - Action

1. Examples of how planning for Action occurs at BNMS

2. How and why is Action contributing to student learning?

3. How is the PYP planner used to facilitate and document planning for Action?

Activity 2 - Synthesising the Essential Elements

Task: Create something that represents the Essential Elements and how they work together.

This could be:
- a photo
- a model
- a poem
- a picture
- or something that is a tangible demonstration of my understanding

Comment on at least one other groups posting

Activity 3 - Personal action plan

Goal = Start developing my individual action plan based on the needs in my school identified in Module 1 according to Standard C2.

Review the article UbD and PYP complimentary planning frameworks, by Jay McTighe, Marcella Emberger and Steven Carber, to learn about the backward design process.

At the end of this course I will need to present an action plan as evidence of my thinking.

To help with this, read Standard C1 in the IB Programme standards and practices.

1. Start thinking about my action plan in relation to collaborative planning in my school.

Action Plan Example

Action Plan Template

2. Post my initial thoughts and questions about the action plan in the module forum assignments thread Activity 3: Personal action plan.

Activity 4 - SWOT Study

I will look at structures in place in my school that involve specialists and support teachers as equal partners in the planning and reflection of PYP units.

I will complete a SWOT analysis of the planning/reflection process.

Key Question - What structures are in place in your school to involve specialists and support teachers as equal partners in the planning and reflection of PYP units?

2. Complete a SWOT (definition below) analysis of the planning/ reflection process.

- Strengths

- Weaknesses

- Opportunities

- Threats

Post my analysis in the module forum assignments thread Activity 4: SWOT Study.

Comment on at least two other postings

Activity 5 - Tools For Collaboration

Read both of DuFour’s articles (on the following page) and choose one of the Module 2 forums to contribute to a discussion on maximizing team effectiveness or time management.

Share successful strategies and challenges from your own school and experience.

Read the article 'Making Time for Collaboration'  This article is from Rick DuFour’s AllThingsPLC website. On this website there are plenty of other resources to be found to support building professional learning communities.

2. After reading the article, consider - How does my school make time for collaboration?

3. Post my thoughts in the Module 2 'Activity 5 discussion forum: Tools for collaboration'.

4. Give feedback on at least one other participant's posting."

Making time for collaboration

Task - Listen to or read part of Rick DuFour’s article “Making Time for Collaboration”.

It is also imperative that teachers be provided with time to meet during their contractual day. We believe it is insincere and disingenuous for any school district or any school principal to stress the importance of collaboration, and then fail to provide time for collaboration. One of the ways in which organizations demonstrate their priorities is allocation of resources, and in schools, one of the most precious resource is time. The following list is not meant to be comprehensive but is merely intended to illustrate some of the steps schools and districts have taken to create the prerequisite time for collaboration.

- Common preparation

- Parallel scheduling

- Adjusted start and end time of contractual day

- Shared classes

- Group activities, events and testing

- Banking time

- In-service and faculty meeting time

Please read the rest of this article to find out more about making time for collaboration.

Checklist for Module 2

To complete this module, make sure I have completed the following:

1. Discussed how best to plan for essential elements collaboratively with a unit of inquiry.

2. Created a presentation that represents all of the essential elements.

3. Developed my individual action plan.

4. Completed a SWOT analysis of the planning/reflection process.

5. Discussed maximizing team effectiveness or time management.