This reflection is going to be peppered with appreciations. First set goes out to the ETFO team. Ruth Dawson has supported us (us = Jenn and me) with previous Summer Academies and for 2020 the assistance was different but equally important. The team also includes Kalpana Makan, Lisa West, Dennis Governor, Kelli Parton, Kristin Vander Eyken, Kruti Macwan and involved Joshua Jones from WebiNerd. All ETFO Summer Academy facilitators were given training in how to use the Zoom online platform effectively. Ruth was also so receptive to the sometimes-bizarre ideas we have when it comes to running our school library sessions. Ruth gave the okay for the session to run twice; this wasn't the original plan but the response was so overwhelming and the waiting list was so long that when we proposed this option to Ruth, she approved.
Jenn and I spent a long time pondering and preparing for each of the six modules in our session. This was time well-spent (and we were compensated too). Each module was only 90 minutes long. There was a morning session, then a lunch break, then an afternoon session of equal length, for three days in total. 9 hours is not a long time but Jenn and I made every minute count. We referred back to our session description to ensure our topics matched and we planned for ways to engage the learners, build community, and teach through and about different media and technology tools/texts. (These embedded photos of me experimenting with my green screen are examples.) We developed synchronous and asynchronous ways for the participants to contact each other, so that it was a more democratic model of program delivery.
Our tech mentors, Cameron Steltman (week 1) and Ian McLain (week 2), were great. We didn't need a lot of assistance but they came in handy, especially for two particular portions: taking attendance, and monitoring the main room when both of us were preoccupied with breakout rooms. Cameron and Ian were also wonderful cheerleaders, encouraging us as we tried increasingly daring Zoom maneuvers like manually chosen breakout rooms (because Jenn and I are strong proponents of voice and choice).
Those pre-selected breakout rooms were important because on the third day, we had guest speakers join us. Big, BIG thanks go to
- Stephen Hurley (VoicEd Radio)
- Ardo Omer (FOLD Kids)
- Toni Duval (FOLD Kids)
- April deMelo
- Wendy Burch Jones
I apologize for not getting a photo of Ardo and Toni - I never obtained their consent when I popped into their breakout room, and another important tenet I try to practice regularly is acquiring consent.
These guest speakers captivated our fellow learners and I can testify to the sentiment. Everyone spoke so eloquently and with such passion. A common refrain among the participants was "Why can't we get to see all three?" - this is a natural consequence of providing choice; sometimes you can't have your cake and still keep it (have your cake and still eat it? I can't recall the proper way that saying goes.)
I wish I could name all 61 people who took the course, but once again, I want to respect people's privacy and the need for informed consent. Just know that every single one of you contributed to the wonderful learning experience that occurred. I know people have asked for Jenn or I to "bottle up" or "package up" what what covered in these events, but it is so difficult to comply because it is a co-constructed opportunity and is just as much about the process as it is about any of the products we share or make during this time.
The participants used the #ETFOsa2020 hashtag a lot (and I take pleasure in noticing that the top tweet for this hashtag, as of August 2, was one related to our workshop). I love it when educators make their learning visible like this.
I learned a lot from guest speaker @ArdoOmer this morning who’s from @FOLDkids & @TheFOLD_. I am so glad that there are concrete things that I can actually do as I continue to unlearn and relearn. #ETFOsa2020 @JennMacBrown @MzMollyTL pic.twitter.com/B3GYWjuEme— Daphne Tran (@D_Tran_) July 30, 2020
Powerful thinking in this morning’s #ETFOsa2020 session on book selection and book retention. “Who’s writing the story and for whom.” “Who supports you in your choice”. Thanks for leading this courageous conversation @JennMacBrown pic.twitter.com/qqEQg8A5JC— Lesley Pike (@TeachMsPike) July 29, 2020
Discussing Equity in the School LLC this AM during #ETFOsa2020 @JennMacBrown— Melissa (@MelissaSeco) July 29, 2020
-OISE Black Faculty Convo #OISEBlackFacultyConvo @DrAnnLopez @Janelle_Brady_ @OISEUofT @OISECIARS @CLD_Leadership
-Unsettling Canada #UnsettlingCanadaVoicEd @Giidaakunadaad1 @clclyne @voicEdcanada pic.twitter.com/jG9kNeD9W6
And then there's the pleasure that is working with Jennifer Brown.
I had so much fun with Jenn, even when the work was serious and sobering. I've tweeted and written in the past about what a joy it is to be in her presence at these type of events. At the risk of repeating myself ... I feel so fortunate that I get to spend time with this person. She is passionate, caring, energetic, experienced, authentic, equitable, observant, hard-working, and knowledgeable. I even spend time with her for recreational reasons (on our Animal Crossing New Horizons virtual islands). Thanks for including me in your life Jenn! Love you oodles!
So, what links can I make with my regular education portfolio? This experience was well supported financially, with enough people power and adequate time for planning and delivery (not too little to feel frazzled, not too much to have screen fatigue). Too bad it doesn't seem like that can be replicated province-wide. Scaffolding online learning to make it meaningful was possible with all those other factors in place. Diversifying the space with small group gatherings was beneficial but also had its drawbacks. Bringing in other voices was essential (especially ones that weren't from the typical school library professional profile = white cis-het upper middle class female TLs). Having two facilitators involved at all stages was crucial to our success.
As we continually said during the course (which fell right during the huge Ontario Ministry of Education announcement at 1:00 pm on July 30 about returning to school in September), we aren't sure what we'll be instructed to do, and how our jobs might change, but remember that school libraries are important to student academic (and socio/emotional) success. Thank you ETFO for allowing this summer academy session to run. Fingers crossed that a version happens again (either virtually or in-person, with or without the Brown-Maliszewski team) next year.
I'm so very sorry I missed this. I love spending time with the combination of your brain and Jenn's brain. It's kind of magic. Thanks si much for sharing your wrapup , and your learning.
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