September2015InfinityLearningMapstoGrowStudentAgency

ByBrianAnnan(PhD)&MaryWoottonContactusatinfo@infinitylearn.orgforsupporttouseInfinityLearningMapsInfinityLearningMapsareavehicletogrowstudentagencybyconnectingstudents, teachingprofessionals,familieswithoneanotherandtoglobal trendsinlearning. Theyarealsoausefulevaluativetooltoreviewthegrowthof agencyandthemovementstowardsfuture-focusedlearning environments.Afewquotesprovideaninsightintothepowerof InfinityLearningMapsasanexciting andengagingnewevaluativetool.

Student: “TheInfinityMapshelpedmebeamoreactive,connectedlearner.”

Teacher: “InfinityLearningMapsmademerealiseIhadtochangemypractice.”

SchoolLeader:“InfinityLearningMapswerethecatalysttochangeinourschool.”

Parent: “SinceInfinityLearningMaps,Ineedtotakea‘guideontheside’kindofrole andpraiseherforbeinganactivelearner.”Areyourstudentswhoarechallengedbyacademiclearninggrowingmoreagency? Howdoyou,yourstudentsandtheirfamiliestrackthe growthofstudentagencyovertime? Isthatgrowthpatterncontributingtothedevelopmentofafuture-focusedlearningenvironment?InfinityLearningMapsprovidesupporttoanswerthosequestions.Wehaveseenthelearningmapssupportthosestudentstobecomefarmoreactive,morecollaborative andstartinnovatingtoresolvethechallenges surroundingtheirlearning.Wehavewitnessedgroupsofstudentsstepupinthiswayinvariousprojectsoverthepastfewyearsandtheresultsareremarkable. Projects, however,comeandgo. Ouraimistodiffusethe mappingexerciseintosystem-wideeffortstocreate future-focusedlearningenvironmentsasthenorm.A‘future-focusedlearningenvironment’meansmuchmorethanmodernbuildingspacesanddigitaltechnologies. Theyareaboutlinkingwithglobalmindsetandpracticeshiftsaroundmovingfrom:theknowntotheunknown,fromschool-centrictoecological;fromindividualtoconnected;frompassiveto interactive;fromcompetitivetocollaborative,andfromdeficittoappreciative. Silo wallscomedownaslateralconnectionsformwithinandacrossschools, communities,businesses,governmentagenciesandthephysicalenvironment. Theseshiftscreatearichanddiversetapestryoflearningactivitythatismerging formalstructuredlearningwithinformalinterest-basedandauthenticlearning.

Wheredothestudentswhoarechallengedbyacademiclearningandtheirfamiliesfitintothispicture? Studentsandtheirfamiliesneedtoknow,andinfactwanttoknow,abouttheglobalshiftsthatareoccurringfrompasttofuture-focusedlearning.Theygrowinconfidencebyreviewingwhere theyareinrelationtothoseshifts. Thenwiththatnewfoundconfidencethe studentscananddotakeresponsibilitytomakechangestotheirstrategising aroundacademiclearning,well-supportedbytheirteachersandfamily.InfinityLearningMapsStudentsdrawtheirInfinitylearningmapstoshowelementsoftheircurrentlearning environment. DrawingtheInfinitymapsisadisciplinedprocessthatalsoinvites flexibilityandadaptability. StudentssharetheirInfinitymapswithoneanotherandanalyzethemtoidentifypatternsthatpointtochangepriorities. Eachstudent thenentersexplanatorydataabouttheirInfinitymapintoapersonalizedonline-database. Thestudentsidentifyoneortwochangeprioritiestomeetdesiredacademicgoals.WhatamIgoingtododifferentlytoimprovemylearningsituation?Thestudent’steacherandfamilymembersalsorecordwhatthey intendtododifferentlytosupporttheirchildrentomakethechanges.Students thenproducea2-minutevideothatdescribestheirInfinityLearningmapandthechange prioritiestheywillmaketocreatetheacademiclift. Teachersandfamilyalsodocumentonlinewhattheywilldodifferentlytosupporttheir student/child.

AnexampleofaStudent’sInfinityLearningMapsHereisan exampleof twoInfinityLearningMaps designedbyTeAwhitu,a10-year-oldindigenousstudentatRataStreetSchoolinNZwhowasworkingbelowNationalStandardsinreading, writingandmathatthetimeofdesigninghisfirstInfinityLearningMap.InfinityLearningMap1,FebruaryInfinityLearningMap2,October

TeAwhitushowedhehadthecapabilitytoexplainhisTime1andTime2InfinityLearningMaps.Heself-recordedavideowithalittlesupportfromhis teacher, thenshareditwithhisDadforreviewandcreatedasecondrecordingbasedonhisDad’sfeedback. TeAwhitugrewconsiderableawarenessofhis learningenvironmentandtookfargreaterresponsibilitytochangethingsto achievehisacademicgoals. Thisisanexcellentexampleofstudentagencyinaction.AshisTime2InfinityLearningMapshows,heisnowfarmoreconnectedtopeopleandlearningtools thatenablehimtotakemorecontrolofhislearning.

TeAwhitu’steacheralsoadjustedheragencybasedonherchangesinpracticetoenableTe Awhitutobecomemoreinteractiveandconnected.HisDadalsochangedthewayheinteractedwithTeAwhituandhislearning. Boththeteacherandthe familyintroducedtechnology,whichenabledTeAwhitutogrowhisagencyand tocreatecloserlearningconnectionswithschoolandhome.FiveideasunderpinningInfinityLearningMapsInfinityLearningMapshavebeeninformedbyfiveideasthattheauthorsexperiencedduringtheircareers.Theymanagedtolinktogetherthoseideasinrecentyearsastheygrappledwithmakingmindsetandpracticeshiftsfrompasttofuture-focusedlearning.Thesefive ideascreateatheorythatdespitesomestudentsbeingchallengedbyacademiclearning,itcanbeapleasurefor themtoidentifythosechallengesandusetheirstrengthsandsupportoftheirteachers,familiestoaddressthem.Idea1. InfinityLearningMapscapitaliseonthehumaninterestandaestheticpleasureofdrawingpicturesinthemodernworld.Humanshaveenjoyeddrawingpicturesindiversewaysforvariousreasonsformillionsofyears. Experimentationwiththeideaofstudentsdrawingpicturesoftheircurrentlearningsituation,inclusiveofitschallenges,indicateditcouldbealiberating experience.Mostchildrenthoroughlyenjoyedtheexercise.Addingadigitalvideoanddatagatheringexercisestothenon-digitaldrawingtaskheightenedenjoyment.Wediscoveredthatthecombinationofalong-standingnon-digitaltaskwithmodern-daydigitaltasksgeneratedauthenticengagement andexcitementaroundaddressinglearningchallenges. Itwasapositive alternativetoadult-drivengap-analysesandproblemidentificationaround learningchallengesthattypicallycausedfeelingsofconcernanddisappointment amongstudents,teachersandfamilies.Idea2. Itisbettertoanalysethecurrentlearningsituationthanjumpstraighttosolutions(Annan,J.,Annan,B.,Wootton,W.,&Burton,R,2014).

TheInfinityLearningMapspromptstudentstodrawtheirviewofwhatishappeningintheirlearning currentlyandthentothinkabouttheiraspirationsforthefuture.Withareal-timepictureonthetable,students,teachersandfamilieshaveatangibleframetostop,reflectandthinkdeeplyaboutchangesthatwouldmostlikelycreatebetterconditionsforlearning.

Asthosegroupsmakeagreementsaboutchange, thereisnecessarilyagencyre-adjustmentoccurringamongthem.Studentagencytendstoimmediatelyrise,asthestudentstakeownershipofthemapping exerciseandtheydecideonnewwaysforward. Teachersandfamiliesadjusttheiragencyastheylearntosupportthestudents’moreself-determinedwaysoflearning.

Idea3. Positiveenergyandnewhopeforsuccessgrowswhenchildrenaresupportedtoexternalisetheirchallenges(Epston&White,1992).Itisnotthechildwhoisthechallenge. Rather,itisthepracticesandinteractionsbetweenchildrenandtheirenvironmentsthatcreatechallenges.Whenchildrenlearntoexternalisetheirlearningchallenges,theygrowconfidenceintheirstrengthandabilitytotakeresponsibilitytoaddressthosechallenges,particularlywiththesupportoftheirpeers,teachersandfamilies.Idea4. EachInfinityLearningMapispersonalizedtothestudent.TheInfinityLearningMaps,explanatoryvideosandconversationswithteachersandfamilymembersarecreatedbyandhenceuniquetoeachstudent. ConversationsabouttheInfinityLearningMaps arecompletelyjargon-freebecausetheyaregeneratedfromstudenttalkfirst.Theentire experiencegoestotheheartofhoweach studentviewstheirlearningandwhattheyneedtochangetolifttheiracademiclearningexperiences.Therearealsospin-offpersonalisedmindsetandpracticeadjustmentsforteachersandfamilies.Everyonehastore-thinkandadaptforallchildrentosucceed.Idea5. TheInfinityLearningMapsprocessshiftsthestudentsfrombeingpassengerstodriversoftheirlearning.Thisisourgame-changertheorywherebystudents expandtheirlearninghorizonsthroughtheirowninternaldesires,withpositive andpatientsupportfromteachersandfamilies.Teachersandfamiliesarenotpushedintothebackground;rathertheyarejoinedatthehip withthestudents. ButthestudentshaveclearresponsibilityandagencytodesigntheirownInfinityLearningMaps,toanalyzetrends,toidentifyandmakechangesandtoassesstheimpactofthatchangeontheirlearning.

ItisOKtogetexcitedUseofInfinityLearningMapsovertimeiscreatingunprecedentedconfidenceandengagementinacademiclearningamongstudents,teachersand families.Asoneteachercommented recently,itcreatesahungerforsuccessinlearning amongthosestudents:

“theybelieveinthemselvesnow...theybelievetheyCANdo it!Andoncetheytastethatsuccess,evenifitwasonlyalittlebit...theybelievedevenmore,andwanteditevenmore!”(GlendaStewart, personalcommunication,18/12/2014).

Hereinliesadilemma. Termssuchas‘new’,‘exciting’and‘hungryforsuccess’aretypicallydiscountedas‘promotional’inthefieldsofschooleffectivenessandimprovement.Yettheyareessentialforinnovationthatcreatesshiftsfrompast-focusedschool-centrictofuture-focusedecologicallearning.Thedilemmafor

schools,communitiesandgovernmentsistodecidewhataspectsofpast-focusededucationareworthholdingontoandjusthowinnovativetheyarepreparedtobetostepintothefuture.InfinityLearningMapsareusefulasatoolforthosegroupstomake thosedecisions.

ResearchintoInfinityLearningMapsOurresearchprojectearlierin2015aimedtoassesstheperceivedvaluetoparticipantsofInfinityLearningMapsandtoidentifythetypesofactivitythatparticipants chosetosupportstudents’learning(Annan,J.,Annan,B.,&Wootton,M,inDraft). Theresearchinvolvedover300students,theirteachersandfamily.Thestudytookplaceovera4-monthperiodinwhichstudents,teachersandfamiliescametogetherthreetimestodraw,redraworrevisetheirInfinityLearningMapsandtoplananddiscusschangestotheirlearningenvironments.Studentsentereddataintoanon-linedatabasewithintheInfinitywebsiteasthey workedthroughtheInfinityLearningMapprocess. StudentscapturedtheirInfinityLearningMapsdigitally, videoedtheirdiscussionabouttheirInfinitymapsandnotedthepeople,places,toolsand relationshipsthatsupportedtheirlearning.Theyalsosetchangepriorities,listedthe actionstheywouldtakeandrecordedtheirprogressinmakingthechanges.Teachersandfamiliesmadecommentsonthestudents’informationand notedtheactionstheywouldtaketohelptheirchildorstudentachievetheirgoa l .Inaddition,moredetaileddatawerecollectedthroughfocusgroupsanda surveyoftheperceivedusefulnessofInfinityLearningMaps.Informationwascollectedafterthefirstandlastmappingssessions.FindingsfromtheresearchindicatethatInfinityLearningMapsareprovingtobeusefulina numberofwaystogrowstudentagencyandadjusttheagencyofteachersand families.Bytheendofthethree-monthperiod,theresults fromthemultipledatasetsshowedthatallparticipantgroupsfoundInfinityLearningMapshelpful foravarietyofreasons(seetablebelow).

Figure1.PerceivedhelpfulnessoftheInfinityLearningMapstosupportspecifiedlearning.

InfinityLearningMapsSurvey

4 Veryhelpful3 Helpful2 Abithelpful

STUDENTS PARENTS TEACHERS 1N o t helpful

4

3

2

1

Thefindingsbelowshowpositiveinallthreegroupsofparticipants-students,teachersandfamilies

StudentsStudentssoughttobecomeactivelearnersandtoshareresponsibilityfordirectingtheirlearning.Themajorityofstudentsaddressedtheirchangeprioritiesorwere‘nearlythere’. Strategiestheyselectedatthelastmappingsessioninvolveddevelopinglearningrelationshipsandextendingtheirlearningenvironmentsincontrastwiththebaselinestrategiesofmanagingtasksandpracticing.

• Iusuallyhelpothersandusedtotellthemanswerbutnowgothroughthingsstep bystepandlearnfromthemaswellbyseeingwhatstrategiestheyuse

• Learnatlotsofplaces,doactivitieseveryday-musichelpswithmath,guideshelps withcraftsandmath,school,library,museumtolearnhistory,learnfromhockey, computercodingclass

TeachersThenatureofthestrategiesusedbyteachersstartedwiththeprovisionofadditionalexposuretoschoolwork(e.g.longertime)andmonitoring. Bytheendoftheproject,teacherstrategieshadgenerallyshiftedtosupportingstudentstoco-constructnewstrategies,connectwithotherpeopleandengagein personalisedlearning.

• Itisaboutchangingperceptions,gettingtoknowfamiliesandhowtheyare connectedtoeachother.

• Noticedthatthekidsaremoreengaged• Confidenceinsomehasincreased.[theyare]moreswitchedontotheirlearning• Kidsmorearticulatewitheachotheraboutwhattheyarelearning

outsideof school.FamiliesFamilystrategies,initiallyinvolvedgeneraloffersofhelp.Traditionalhomeworktasksbecameincreasinglyfocusedonsupportingactiveandpersonalisedlearningandprovidingfeedback.Familiesindicatedthatpreparingtheirchildrenforanewandunknownfutureworldwasahighpriorityforthem.

• [I]hadn’ttakenasteptothinkabouthoweducationhadchangedinschoolsyet,gaveanopportunitytodothat,tostopandthinkabout howtheylearn

• Workenvironmentshavealsochangedsowhywouldn’titbedifferentinschools• Nowmoreawarethatinteractionsandsharinginformationarekeyto

learning, learningoutsideofschoolandbeingexplicitinhighlightingitisanareafor learning.Makingconnectionsbetweencommunitysituationsandlearning

Insummary,theresearchfoundthatparticipantsconsideredthattheInfinityMappingprocesswasusefulforexaminingandextendingthestudents’currentlearningenvironmentsandsupportingtheiractiveinvolvementinlearning.Overthefour-monthperiodofthestudy,thestrategiesselectedbystudents,teachersandfamiliestoaddresstheirchangeprioritiesshiftedfromroutine,traditionalpracticestothosethatsupportedactive,personalisedandfuture-focusedlearning.ConclusionInfinityLearningMapshaveproventobeausefultooltoengagechildrenandfamiliesnewandauthenticlearningpartnershipswithteachingprofessionals.Theyarealsoprovingtobeausefulevaluativetoolforthosegroupstoassessthegrowthofstudent agency and themovementtowardsfuture-focusedlearningenvironments.ThesetwodevelopmentsaroundnewpartnershipsandnewmetricsarecriticaltoNZ’sschoolingsystemmakingsomeseriousin-roadsintotheeducationequitychallenge.

AcknowledgementsThetwoauthorswishtoacknowledgethefollowingpeopleforshapingtheInfinityLearningMaps:

• themanystudentswhoutilizedearlyversionsofInfinityLearningMaps;• themanycommittedteachers,familiesandgovernmentofficialswho

supportedthosestudents;• governmentinvestmentandsupporttodevelopearlyversionsofInfinity

Learning Mapsvia;o theDepartmentsofEducationinHobartandNewSouthWales,o theCatholicDioceseforEducationinParramatta,ando theMinistryofEducationinNewZealand,and

• Internationalcolleagues’constantcritiqueandchallengeintheGlobalEducationLeadersPartnerships(GELP)programinclusiveofthoseintheOECDInnovativeLearningEnvironmentsproject.

ReferencesAnnan,B.(2015).LearningandChangeNetworksMilestoneReport5. UniServices&theFacultyofEducation,TheUniversityofAuckland.Annan,J.,Annan,B.,Wootton,W.,&Burton,R,(2014). FacilitatedNetworksofLearning. SeminarSeries237,CentreforStrategicEducation. September.Melbourne.Epston,D.,&White,M.(1992).Experience,contradiction,narrativeandimagination:SelectedpapersofDavidEpson&MichaelWhite,1998-1991. Adelaide,SouthAustralia:DulwichCentrePublications.