Rod Miller

OLTD 502
Final Project

Implementation of Genius Hour in a Grade Seven Classroom

Goal
By introducing Genius Hour to our school I will create a student-driven, project-based,
blended learning environment that will show parents, colleagues, administrators and
students that this kind of intrinsically motivated learning works. That it offers
opportunities for deeper thinking, the development of new knowledge and skills, meets
learning outcomes and is in line with the new BC Education Plan.
Initial Steps
Before the launch of the program it was critical to ensure that our school had the
infrastructure and technological capacity that would allow students to research, explore,
and create online. Without this component in place there would be no need to proceed,
as this project is heavily reliant on the the use of technology and the internet.
Once the technical issues were sorted out, the first and perhaps most important task
was to create a team approach to the implementation of this type of learning model.
This will require a buy in from parents, teachers, administration and students. In order
for this new approach to learning to be successful, Leithwood and Duke state that it is
important to create a shared vision as the first dimension of Transformational
Leadership (as cited in LaBonte 2008). To create this shared vision, I have invited
parents, colleagues and administration to an information meeting where I will share my
rational and have students speak to the topics and passions they have chosen to
pursue.
Because some of the students may need mentoring from experts and the wide realm
of topics that students may choose from, it is necessary to have a large resource base
of expertise available to draw from, so the more people on board, the larger that
resource pool becomes.
Rational
The face of education will be undergoing changes with the new education plan that the
government has introduced. Under the BC Education Plan, teachers, students and
parents will work together to make sure every students needs are met, passions are
explored and goals are achieved. This means student-centered learning thats focused
on the needs, strengths and aspirations of each individual young person. Students will
continue to create blended learning opportunities through online learning and classbased environments.1 Exploring passions and sharing new knowledge is at the heart of
Genius Hour.2 The combination of online research, information exchange, sharing of
ideas and knowledge using technology, along with the classroom based component
address the blended nature of the plan.
1

http://www.bcedplan.ca/actions/pl.php

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMFQUtHsWhc

I feel it is important to provide an environment where students are focused on learning

and not the teacher. Kanuka states, The role of the teacher is that of facilitator, helper,
and partner in the learning process. The teacher does not simply provide information;
he or she must create the conditions within which learning can take place (as cited in
Anderson 2008). By allowing students to pursue their passions and own line of inquiry, I
feel that I am facilitating those Aha moment conditions.
I want to add engaging, student driven activities to my classroom, as Mitra has shown
us the value in this type of learning.3 This is also an excellent way to include crosscurricular projects. Students interested in music, art, science or any subject area can
create a project that may be used in those subjects as well.
My non-traditional learners and creative students, who may not shine in the academic
area, need to see that their ideas and interests are valued and worthy of peer interest. I
feel obligated to provide an arena in which this can happen. It is my personal philosophy
that students should see the strengths in each other and know that we all have
something to contribute to our class. It is essential to build a positive culture (LaBonte
2008) in my classroom, where students value each other and their contributions to our
class community.
By working online the introverted student can take advantage of the group
asynchronous discussion room in Edmodo and the class Blog site to contribute ideas
and thoughts in a way that feels safe.
I want to create opportunities for all students to take a leading role in mentoring their
peers and a chance to be the expert. My hope is that this will enable them to develop
a sense of collaboration and project their own social presence in an online community.
Rourke et al. (1999) define social presence as the ability of learners to project
themselves socially and affectively into a community of inquiry (as cited in
Gunawardena and McIsaac 2004). The internet, wether Blogging or community based
forums like Google+, also provides the students with the means to connect with a world
wide community of other students who are involved in this type of activity in their
schools and to exchange creative and cultural knowledge with them.
I want to students to discover that taking chances and stretching out of their comfort
zone can lead to amazing new ideas and rewarding discoveries.
For a portion the students week I would like to remove the extrinsic factors such as
scores and grades and have the motivation for their learning be driven by intrinsic
factors. My aim here is to sow the seeds of a paradigm shift within my students,
showing them that learning can be fun again, as it was in primary school when they
were allowed to explore without restrictions or prospect of a bad mark. The focus will be
on self-assessment and meeting their own expectations set out in the proposal
completed prior to the project work beginning.

http://www.ted.com/talks/sugata_mitra_the_child_driven_education.html

As blogging is becoming prevalent in todays digital communities, I would like to

introduce my students to this form of communication and expression. The students will
keep on online journal of their experience in their own blog section of our class web site.
Peers will be able to post comments on classmates Blogs, which will further promote
the development of a social community online.
Considerations
One of the potential roadblocks that I have encountered is the use of social media as a
way for students to display their learning and connect with each other. There is a great
concern for student cybersafety in our district. This is evident by the increasingly
restrictive fire walls on our school server. Restricted areas include Facebook, Twitter,
Youtube and so on. The rational for these restrictions is that these areas can lead to
conflict among students and are also a distraction during class time. I have been able to
get Youtube for Schools allowed through the firewall, as this will be an invaluable
resource for those students that need to watch a how to video to help them with their
project.
There are some parents that do not want any of their child's information online, so the
creation of their own web page or blog post presented some problems. In order to
address these concerns, I have created a class web page using my own information
and then created a blog page for each student using only their initials as an identifier.
The blog page and the photo page have been password protected and I have set it up
so the web page is not found when searched for. When I presented this to the
concerned parents and administration, I had them attempt to find the web page. When
they could not, I provided the web address and had them attempt to access the blog
page. The password protect feature would not allow them to reach the restricted
portions. This set up has alleviated any concerns and we have been able to move
forward, with all students being able to share their information with peers. All students
will begin the program this way and as we progress and parents start to feel comfortable
with social media being a part of the online learning experience students will begin to
develop their own web pages.
Another consideration is the expectations put on students to take control of their own
learning. This is a new concept for many of them and an area in which I will need to
spend some time coaching them. This idea of student driven, self-assessed learning
has also met with skepticism from colleagues that prefer the tried and true methods. In
this progressive learning environment new methodology and pedagogical philosophies
are required, no matter how uncomfortable it may be for teachers and students initially.
To achieve success online, students need to accept responsibility for their own learning
so that it becomes a shared, knowledge-building constructivist experience. Similarly,
teachers share this process, becoming moderators or facilitators of co-learning
opportunities. Both teachers and students may have difficulty assimilating these new
roles, as the resultant paradigm shift is significant (LaBonte 2011).

Final Thoughts
As we move forward with this new project, the students have become increasingly
excited at the opportunity to participate in something so different from their usual
classes. They have moved from confused, to unsure, to eager. Parent participation has
been very good and most students have come up with projects that will stretch them
intellectually. I am pleased with the support I have received from all parties concerned.
Both school and district administration have been supportive during the initial phases
and have suggested an increase in the time allotted to this venture. While student work
is in its early stages the experience has been a positive one. It will be some time before
final products and presentations are made, but it is the change in the student's attitudes
toward learning that I am most looking forward to.
On a personal level, I have had a chance to try new ideas and further develop my own
philosophy toward teaching. I have taken to to the constructivist theory of teaching, but
another philosophy from our last readings has grabbed my attention as well. Kanuka,
speaking to the progressive philosophy of teaching says that the progressive orientation
is personal growth, maintenance, and promotion of a better society. The preferred
methods of instruction include the experimental, problem-solving, and situation
approaches to learning (as cited in Anderson 2008). That is the type of instruction I
hope to provide my students with and eventually all students in our school by
introducing Genius Hour. I think we all like to consider ourselves to be progressive in
our chosen field of endeavor, but I now see that being progressive can be done in the
public system, that can at times can be stifling, and look forward to trying new and
challenging activities and lessons with my students.
References
Anderson, T. 2008. The Theory and Practice of Online Learning. [e-book] Edmonton: AU
Press. pp. 91-111. Available through: http://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/
99Z_Anderson_2008-Theory_and_Practice_of_Online_Learning.pdf [Accessed: 11 Dec
2013].
Bcedplan.ca. 2013. BC's Education Plan. [online] Available at: http://www.bcedplan.ca/
actions/flexibility.php [Accessed: 08 Dec 2013].
Gunawardena, C.N. and McIsaac, M. S. (2004). Distance education. In D. H. Jonassen
(Ed.), Handbook of Research in Educational Communications and Technology, 2nd ed.
(pp. 355-395). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
LaBonte, R. (2008). Leadership and e-learning: Change processes for implementing
educational technologies. In Hirtz, S. & Kelly, K. (Eds.) Education for a digital world:
Advice, guidelines, and effective practice from around the globe. (pp. 277-286).
Vancouver: Commonwealth of Learning. Retrieved from http://www.colfinder.net/
materials/Education_for_a_Digital_World/Education_for_a_Digital_World_complete.pdf.
Labonte, R. 2011. Quality in E-learning: Engaging Learners. [online] [Accessed: 11 Dec
2013].
Mitra, S. 2010. The child-driven education. [online] Available at: http://www.ted.com/
talks/sugata_mitra_the_child_driven_education.html [Accessed: 10 Dec 2013].