Introduction to 3CSN Communities of Practice

Habits of Mind

Jan Connal 3CSN Habits of Mind Coordinator

BSILI 2014

This CoP is for educators wanting to….

• Understand why and how Habits of Mind impact learning and success

• See examples of activities and programs that cultivate Habits of Mind

• Discover new ways of embedding Habits of Mind activities and routines into their practice

• Learn how to assess Habits of Mind improvements and outcomes

• Network

Importance of Habits

“Your beliefs become your thoughts, Your thoughts become your words, Your words become your actions, Your actions become your habits, Your habits become your values, Your values become your destiny.”

Mahatma Gandhi

Cognitive Science finds that….

Intelligent behavior is not just a matter of being able to store and retrieve knowledge (content)

Rather, it is how Habits of Mind are practiced

with content knowledge

So… What do we mean by

Habits of Mind?• An acquired disposition to

respond in particular ways when we don’t have a solution.

• The inclination, capability and commitment to particular behaviors that lead to productive outcomes.

Habits of Mind

inform Behavior

Disciplinary Habits of Mind• History• Welding• Art• Composition• Math• Sociology• Nursing• Sciences• Business

What is your discipline?

What habits of mind have you acquired through your disciplinary training?

What mental routines or strategies do you employ when confronted with a problem?

Our Habits of Mind FrameworkPersist

Manage impulsivity

Listen with understanding and empathy

Think flexibly

Think about your thinking (Metacognition)

Strive for accuracy

Question and pose problems

Apply past knowledge to new situations

Think and communicate with clarity and precision

Gather data through all senses

Create, imagine, and innovate

Respond with wonderment and awe

Take responsible risks

Find humor

Think interdependently

Remain open to continuous learning

Habits of Mind can infuse & inform…• Classroom practices and activities• Directed Learning Activities• Supplemental Instruction• Tutoring• Student Support Services• Campus-wide initiatives• Flex and professional development activities• Curriculum development• Student Learning Outcomes assessment• Program Review & Accreditation • Institutional Effectiveness

California Acceleration Project

Katie Hern and Myra SnellCAP Co-Leaders

BSILI 2014

CAP supports educators to. . .

Increase student completion by redesigning their English and Math Curricula

– Shortening developmental sequences– Better aligning remediation with college-level

requirements: “Junior Varsity” college English classes, Algebra preparation for students in math-intensive majors; statistics pathways for others

CAP’s “why”Developmental courses sequences were intended to support the success of under-prepared students, but they are having the unintended consequence of weeding students out of college at high rates.

CAP’s “why”The lower students are placed, the more likely they are to drop out.

– 19% of students who begin 3 or more levels below College English complete a college-level English course in three years.

– Just 7% of students who start 3 or more levels below college math complete a transferable math course in three years.

• The pipeline is clearly broken!

CAP CoP helps faculty teach redesigned classes that. . .

• Replace decontextualized sub-skill exercises with just-in time remediation•Offer a thinking-oriented curriculum that is rich in collaborative practice•Use intentional strategies to address students’ affective needs

CAP Professional Learning includes. . .

• Introductory ½ day workshops– North and South– Fall and Spring

• Community of Practice– Year-long training program for faculty piloting

redesigned courses

Community of Practice includes. . .

• Three weekend workshops– Training in accelerated pedagogy– Sharing best practices– Leadership capacity building

• Check-in calls with faculty teams• Shared classroom resources

“Acceleration Means to Me”. . .

• Video from CAP Website

ResultsRP Group study of first 16 CAP colleges

found that in effective accelerated pathways:

• English students had a 2.3 times greater odds of completing college-level course

• Math students had a 4.5 times greater odds of completing college-level course

Why Reading Apprenticeship?• “Learning is hard. True, learning is fun, exhilarating, and

gratifying, but it is also often daunting, exhausting, and sometimes discouraging”– (Angela Duckworth, qtd in Tough)

• “The secret killer of innovation [learning] is shame. You can’t measure it, but it is there. Every time someone holds back on a new idea, fails to give . . . needed feedback, is afraid to speak up . . . you can be sure shame played a part. That deep fear we all have of being wrong, or being belittled and of feeling less than, is what stops us from taking the very risks required to move . . . forward” (Brene Brown, Daring Greatly, 65)

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Reading Apprenticeship

• A partnership of expertise between the teacher and students, drawing on what content area teachers know and do as skilled discipline-based readers and on learners’ unique and often underestimated strengths

Reading Apprenticeship Framework

Why Threshold Project?

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What are “Threshold Concepts”?

• First identified by Ray Land and J.F. (Erik) Meyer

• Examples:– History consists of a series of competing

narratives (History)– Language use constitutes meaning; it shapes

what we know and how we know and how we know it. (Writing Studies)

Characteristics of Threshold Concepts

• Transformative• Irreversible• Integrative• Provisional• Troublesome• Liminal

(Cousin, 2006)

Characteristics of Threshold Concepts

• Transformative• Irreversible• Integrative• Provisional• Troublesome• Liminal

(Cousin, 2006)

Communities of Practice

• Make room for recursivity• Create safety, connectedness for risk-

taking• Make room for growth• Shame resilience• Help us work productively with expertise

CTE Community of Practice

• Create networks of collaboration, expertise and creative problem-solving

• Transform CTE programs and departments• Flow of successfully prepared graduates

meets the demands of the California job market.

California Community Colleges’ Success Network

CTE Community of Practice

Networking forums for faculty to identify, discuss and examine, the shared problem of  embedding basic skills into the curriculum areas without increasing student time to completion or increasing costs to the college

California Community Colleges’ Success Network

CTE Community of Practice

Professional learning and support as faculty and staff create a shared vision of what can be and participate in action research to solve the shared problem

California Community Colleges’ Success Network

CTE Community of Practice

Collaborate with existing organizations to improve delivery of instruction and services for CTE programs and classrooms

California Community Colleges’ Success Network

CTE Community of Practice

A repository of research and best practices for CTE instruction

California Community Colleges’ Success Network

CTE Community of Practice

Next Steps:Connect with Donna and LuisJoin monthly conference call Share ideas and practices with group

California Community Colleges’ Success Network