Interrogation

Based on my professional context as a school administrator, many concepts from this course resonated with me and inspired me to facilitate change and embrace updated best practices. It was difficult to choose just three areas, but I finally narrowed it down to feedback, program evaluation, and EDI (equity, diversity, inclusion).

Feedback

My current learning, paired with reminders of prior knowledge about feedback, was one of my most immediate and sustained areas of interest throughout this learning journey. Carless (2012) wrote about the importance of trust in relation to feedback due to the emotional and relational components. This strongly resonates with my experiences as a school leader. When I am giving feedback to students or staff, I have learned it is easier to give constructive suggestions if I have built a relationship based on trust with the other individual. Feedback frequently carries a negative connotation, and it tends to be better received when there is a positive emotional connection involved.

Utilizing feedback to help others see themselves, rather than giving them the perspective of what we see (Hirsch, 2018) was a powerful notion that I have been revisiting many times over the last several weeks. It is imperative to consider the purpose of feedback.  “Is it to force a change or to provoke an insight?” (Hirsch, 2018). When I pair these considerations with the four steps from the Renninger (2024) feedback video; the micro-yes, giving data points, shared impact statement, and end on a question, I feel empowered and encouraged to have additional tools to support success in giving and receiving feedback. Being reminded to ask for feedback (Renninger, 2024) on a regular basis to demonstrate continual learning is something that I am inspired to not only model myself, but to encourage others to embrace as well.

Program Evaluation

The Kirkpatrick model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2006; Smidt et al., 2009) highlights the following four levels in evaluation; reaction, learning, behaviour, and results (Mahmoodi et al., 2019; Smidt et al., 2009). This framework is something that resonated with me immediately and I have been reflecting and connecting to prior experiences to encourage more intentionality in future program evaluations.

I learned that program evaluation can serve many purposes, but ultimately it is utilized to determine program success, uncover the validity of the program and the feasibility of it continuing, or designed as a tool to promote improvement (Metz, 2007; Suklani, 2023). To simplify it further, program evaluation is used for decision-making purposes. I was excited to be able to apply this knowledge to my current context and I am looking forward to researching other frameworks or building one based on my learning that is better suited to meet the needs of my situation. I am hoping to collaborate with my admin partner to revisit this structure to further enhance our co-learning as an admin team and to ensure consistency in practice. Utilizing the data that we collect will support informed decision making when determining the feasibility of some of our programs (Smidt et al., 2009; Suklani, 2023). Selecting a pre-determined framework with intentional goal setting will support objective decisions and hopefully remove some of the emotional connection that can sometimes impact the validity of the decision-making process.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion

Inclusion has always been an imperative and central focus in my professional practice. Learning about additional concepts on how to transform from a traditional to a growth mindset that supports equity, diversity, and inclusion was one of the greatest areas of passion in my learning. Feldman (2023) challenges and encourages educators to use equity in grading practices and to view assessment through a transformative lens. He shares that “… teachers use grading for many different and contradictory purposes” (Feldman, 2023, p. xxxvi).

Educators must be willing to engage in deep reflection about their current assessment and grading practices to prepare for courageous deconstruction and intentional rebuilding of assessment structures (Hong & Moloney, 2020) while supporting student voice as an integral part of assessment (Montenegro & Jankowski, 2017). “There is an assumption at play within the field of assessment that while there are multiple ways for students to learn, students need to demonstrate learning in specific ways for it to count”(Montenegro & Jankowski, 2017, p. 6). This is a mindset that is lodged in tradition and will require courage, trust, and intentionality to support what will be a significant shift in assessment and evaluation culture. Employing a culturally responsive lens to thoroughly examine traditional grading frameworks and explore more equitable solutions that recognize the diversity of all students, is the overarching objective in my ongoing efforts to cultivate inclusive learning environments for everyone.