Pedagogical leadership

This section is aimed primarily at DP coordinators. It will first explore the role that the DP coordinator has as part of the pedagogical leadership team within a school. It will then explore three examples of ways to raise the profile of ATL within schools by:

developing and implementing teaching and learning initiatives in schools: embedding ATL in the school culture
implementing a system of student self-assessment of ATL skills: developing students’ self-confidence and motivation
enlisting allies: involving the wider school community.

Related resources

The DP coordinator as part of the pedagogical leadership team

The processes involved in the management of the DP are comprehensively explained in the annual Handbook of procedures for the Diploma Programme, which details the specific regulations and practical requirements for delivering the programme. However, in addition to the crucial “procedural”/organizational responsibilities of DP coordinators, another important aspect of the DP coordinator role is that of being part of the school’s pedagogical leadership team.

This does not mean that the sole responsibility for pedagogical leadership should fall on the shoulders of the DP coordinator. However, it does mean that DP coordinators play a crucial role in helping to ensure, for example, that:

there is a clear and unified approach to planning, including collaborative planning
international-mindedness is embedded in curricular and co-curricular activities
the three elements of the DP core play a central role in the curriculum, and both support, and are supported by, the subject disciplines.

Related resources

Developing and implementing teaching and learning initiatives in schools: Embedding ATL in the school culture

When designing and implementing teaching and learning initiatives in schools, DP coordinators are often faced with the challenge of how to embed initiatives so that they become an integral part of the culture of the school, rather than simply an add-on. One important way to help with this is to ensure that initiatives have a very specific focus and benefit, rather than their being perceived as doing something new or different just for the sake of it being new or different. Another effective way of embedding ATL in the school culture is to ensure that in-school professional development (PD) activities not only focus on, but also model, the approaches to teaching and learning being discussed. For example, the visible thinking routine “sentence, phrase, word” (Ritchhart et al. 2011) is an excellent way to engage teachers with reading an article or extract from a text.

TEACHING IDEA

Using the visible thinking routine of “sentence, phrase, word” to discuss an article or text as part of an in-school PD activity.

Select an interesting article or text extract to discuss as part of an in-school PD activity. Rather than simply asking teachers to read the extract, use the visible thinking routine to give greater focus to the activity and promote deeper discussion. Ask the teachers to individually read the text, and to highlight one sentence, one phrase and one word which they feel particularly capture a key idea or catch their attention. Then, in small groups, ask the teachers to discuss the choices they made, explaining why they made the selections that they did. Ask the group to reflect on the themes which emerge from their responses.

(Ritchhart et al. Making Thinking Visible 2011: 207)

Examples of teaching and learning initiatives that can be instigated/encouraged by DP coordinators:

ScopeApplications

An in-school PD session on TOK across the curriculum

A useful starting point for engaging non-TOK teachers with TOK can be the “knowledge framework” found in the Theory of knowledge guide(first assessment 2015). TOK teachers use this tool to analyse areas of knowledge into five related areas, such as “scope/applications” and “methodology used”. However for non-TOK teachers, it can also provide a helpful scaffold and the vocabulary to encourage TOK conversations in their subject classrooms.

Encourage a review and coordination of the school’s calendar of DP deadlines

DP teachers can help students with their time management and organization skills by coordinating the deadlines for internal assessments and major projects so that these do not all happen at the same time. This can help to avoid unnecessary student stress.

Introduce a “post internal examinations” reflection for students

Reflection by students on their performance in internal examinations can help to embed reflection as part of the assessment process. It can also help to develop a more effective dialogue about assessment between the student and teacher. In this initiative, students are asked to reflect on their performance in internal examinations, identifying areas for development and proposing some action points. Teachers then review the students’ responses and make additional suggestions of areas for development.

Set a whole-team target to focus on teaching through inquiry

Setting a single focus of attention for all DP staff for a particular period, such as a focus on teaching through inquiry, can help to give a more coherent student-centred approach to DP teaching within the school. Because all teachers are focusing on the same approach, they are able to share ideas, examples of unit plans, and so on, giving them additional support and ideas for how to embed the approach into their teaching more effectively.

A collaborative planning initiative

Collaborative planning is explicitly specified as one of the programme standards and practices (standard C1). A crucial aspect of the DP coordinator’s role is, therefore, ensuring that effective collaborative planning is taking place between DP teachers. Collaborative planning should focus on areas such as exploring connections and relationships between subjects, and finding opportunities to reinforce the concepts, content and skills addressed in different subjects. It also helps to ensure that all teachers have a better overview of students’ learning.

An “observation buddy” initiative

One effective way to gain feedback on the teaching and learning happening in their classrooms is for teachers to engage in a peer observation scheme, where they observe a lesson from, and in turn are observed by, a peer. Some teachers can find this idea intimidating, as they feel they are being “judged” on their teaching. Ritchhart (2011) suggests beginning with observations that focus on observing student thinking, or student learning, rather than on the teaching itself, as this change of emphasis can help the observation seem less intimidating.

Encourage DP teachers to engage in action research

Where schools are looking for ways to extend and challenge teachers who are already engaged with, and enthusiastic about, ATL, one effective way can be to encourage teachers to engage in action research. In 2013 the IB launched a new IB Journal of Teaching Practice, which is a research journal written by, reviewed by, and published for teachers. Conducting research and then writing an article for this journal could be a powerful form of professional development for teachers, as well as having a positive impact on student learning. It also encourages sharing of good practice relating to ATL across the wider IB community.

Related resources

Student self-assessment: Developing students’ self-confidence and motivation

One possible way to embed ATL into school life is to consider requiring students to regularly self-assess their progress in developing these skills, for example, as part of the school’s reporting procedures. Student self-assessment has been shown to improve both self-confidence and self-motivation (Dweck 1999). Using this technique, students are relied upon to accurately judge their own competence or proficiency improvements in specified skills against generalized skills-proficiency measures.

Given a clear proficiency-development framework, DP students are very capable of self-assessing both their initial ATL skills and the progress that they make towards mastery. One example of such a framework is as follows (Dreyfus and Dreyfus 2000, Berliner 2004).

Level 1

Novice

ObservationLevel 2

Learner

EmulationLevel 3

Practitioner

DemonstrationLevel 4

Expert

Self-regulation

Observes others performing tasks and using the skill

High levels of scaffolding from teacher needed

Copies others’ performance of the skill

Medium level of scaffolding needed

Can demonstrate the skill on demand

Minimal teacher scaffolding required

Can teach others the skill

No teacher scaffolding required

Teaching students the skills of self-assessment in a staged process gives them training in the vitally important skill of accurately gauging the quality of their own output, generates more self-confidence and intrinsic motivation, and ultimately reduces the burden of marking on the teacher. Once students have demonstrated proficiency in self-assessment, they can be given many opportunities to do so.

If an approach of student self-assessment is adopted, it can be extremely useful to include this element on reports. In addition to the benefits to students, doing so can also help to raise the profile of ATL skills in the school community, and help them to be seen as being embedded into the curriculum rather than being an add-on.

Enlisting allies: Involving the wider school community

IB World Schools are learning communities that encourage school leaders, teachers, students, parents and local community members to value learning as an essential and integral part of their everyday lives. Another strategy that can help to embed ATL in schools is, therefore, to engage the wider school community with the ATL programme.

In addition to subject teachers, there are a number of other individuals/groups who play an integral role in supporting students in their learning. For example, counsellors, in collaboration with year-level leaders and other staff, can be effective in integrating developmentally appropriate and timely pastoral topics into homeroom and advisory schemes in an effort to promote the development of balanced learners (see the IB learner profile). Counsellors can integrate lessons on study skills and assessment preparation into the homeroom and/or advisory schemes, as well as working with parents, who will serve as partners in supporting the process.

Drawing from an overall understanding of the students’ needs, the rigour of programmes, and dynamic academic and extra-curricular demands, counsellors can be responsible for coaching individuals towards maintaining a healthy and realistic balance of expectations. In an effort to empower students to meet deadlines while maintaining balance in their lives, counsellors can teach backward-planning models as well as visual timetable-mapping exercises in homeroom/advisory sessions. Counsellors can implement schemes that address the affective and physiological responses to school-related stress and how to manage them. Students should be taught the importance of stress- and anxiety-reducing strategies and, through modelling, be shown how to use them in different scenarios. Counsellors can also be effective in advising parents on how to help their child maintain a realistic schedule.

Another important group within the school community are parents. Parents can sometimes feel excluded from education, and it can be challenging for schools to talk to parents effectively about their children’s learning. However, parents can play an important role in the development of ATL skills; for example, parents can support reflective practices by asking students questions about their learning and talking about learning processes and goal-setting. Ron Ritchhart, senior research associate at Harvard’s “Project Zero”, recommends five “tips” for engaging parents in the learning of their children (2013), suggesting that when teachers talk to parents they should:

Tip 1: Link to a research base
Tip 2: Have a clear rationale
Tip 3: Connect to the familiar
Tip 4: Use rich examples
Tip 5: Provide specific action points/takeaways

Ritchhart (2013)

Librarians

School librarians can play a central role in the development of ATL skills. As a natural part of their work, librarians offer expertise in information literacy, critical thinking, and other study and learning skills, to support effective learning through the development of ATL skills. This is best achieved by working with subject teachers, the IB coordinator and others (rather than in a parallel environment), and where the role of the librarian is understood in the school and reflected in school documentation and practices (Tilke 2011).

The role of librarians in DP schools may involve working with students on areas such as academic honesty, researching and extrapolating important information, and citing sources effectively. Librarians in DP schools may also play a role in supporting teachers in their planning; they are often well placed to work with teachers to develop vertical and horizontal planning of ATL skills across subjects and the integration of ATL skills into unit plans. Their expertise in research skills makes librarians a vital asset in planning for the integration of these skills into the curriculum, as well as other inquiry-related skills such as critical thinking, creativity and collaborative skills.

Examples of opportunities to effectively engage the knowledge, skills and expertise of school librarians.

Management of a collaborative and reflective workspace and learning environment (the school library).
Developing students’ citation and reference skills.
Working with students on academic honesty, and promoting effective strategies to reduce plagiarism.
Developing technology-related skills, such as using online resource databases and other technology-based research tools.
Developing an information infrastructure (for example, liaising with local universities).
Developing collaborative strategies with teachers, and helping to promote a collaborative learning environment.
Using the curatorial skills of a librarian to help students develop their own curating practice through tagging and using helpful tagging terms to help them collect and organize data gathered through their own information searching.