Connecting & communicating your innovation plan

When I first interviewed for the job as Spanish teacher at St. Anne  Catholic school, I was told upfront that the school needed a change in the program.  They were looking for new ideas and a new approach to revitalize a program that had become stagnant.  I thought I would take the year to observe the students and get to know the resources that were already available in the program.  It didn’t take long for me to recognize that the students needed more dynamic lessons. After researching online World Language Teacher groups through Facebook, I realized that most World Language Teachers were pulling from different curriculums and Teacher Pay Teacher to create their own personalized curriculum. However, not many were embracing a blended learning environment other than to use videos and an occasional online game. 

Thankfully, St. Anne had already discovered the value of an online curriculum called QTalk for elementary students.  I took this as a jumping off point to create a blended learning environment for my students. The Innovation Proposal I made to the Administration proposed adding a digital component to the Spanish curriculum for elementary and middle school students.  I believe that the addition will enhance student learning and move student thinking from a fixed to a growth mindset. Students will learn that effort is more valued in the classroom than a grade.  In support of my proposal, I conducted a Literature Review. The literature showed positive outcomes for students who participate in a blended classroom environment.  To implement the proposal, I created an  Implementation Outline to plan out how the proposal will be executed.  

In addition, I embarked on an educational journey for myself by enrolling in a Master’s degree program in Applied Digital Learning (ADL). Although my schedule is a bit tight, I have found a lot of inspiration in the ADL courses for my own classroom. Implementing what I learn in the ADL program into my classroom has become a new and rewarding challenge.  The course readings, discussions and a literature review emphasized the value of a  growth mindset and also the COVA framework.  I will continue to look for new ideas to implement in my classroom as I go through the ADL program. Most importantly, I will keep a record of anything new I try in the classroom and create a report to outline what worked, what didn’t, and how I can do it differently next time.  By keeping detailed notes, I can make an argument to the Administration to continue making positive changes to the program.

Going forward, I would like to continue reading and learning about a growth mindset, COVA and the benefits of a blended classroom for the foreign language student with the purpose of implementing these philosophies into my classroom.  To do that, I have created a to do list for myself which includes books, conventions and trainings: