Travelling Through Transition: Day one – Here We Come!

“Behold, children are a gift from the lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward” (Psalm 127:3-5) In the words of my Irish Language: BEIR BUA (May You Succeed!!)

Hurry up or you’ll miss the bus! Where is my backpack? Did you brush your teeth? I wonder who’ll be in my class?

This is what might be heard in Catholic homes across Ontario on Tuesday Sept 6th, day one of the new school year.

Parents will be scurrying madly in preparations for their children’s return. Anxiety levels will be at an all time high following a summer of “routine de-programming”

What awaits your child? Transition…Transition…Transition.

Students will be introduced to some or all of the following transitions: A change in teacher, classroom, grade, school, community, curriculum, and classmates.

Parents are prone to worry all day while they await the supper time analysis from their child. Remember that they have experienced a day filled with a Tsunami of transition. Your response should be reflective, as you listen attentively to their day and tempered with your understanding of the natural first day jitters and uncertainty.

The key to a successful year is based on our Catholic sense of belonging. The Irish phrase: “Cead Mile Failte” – A Hundred Thousand Welcomes endorses the importance of welcomeness.

Your child requires a warm welcome from the moment he/she sets foot in their school. Their uniquely individual needs must be affirmed, be they learning, or intellectual disabilities, personality quirks, interests or challenges. It is essential to remember that, “God created us in his image and likeness” (Genesis 1:27)

Belonging is key to building self-esteem. Students’ levels vary on the self-esteem measurement scale. They require different infusion amounts of T.L.C. (Tender, Loving, Care) in a classroom that welcomes and validates the variety of learners. This process is an ongoing creation that empowers your child to be successful because they feel valued as integral members of a gospel values based class community. A place where God can look down and see his value for each human life perpetuated in the daily life of our school. Transition is defined as change. Change is as we know constant. That first day parents will attempt to navigate the turbulent waters of the school system. Their success will require compassion, understanding, patience, and unconditional love, the same offerings given to us by the Good Lord.

Dr.Ashleigh Molloy
Director Transformation Education Institute
OAPCE Lifetime Member

There are definite differences boys and girls experience within the education system. It is evident from research that the education system is failing to address the learning needs of male students and these in part are related to pertinent issues surrounding gender learning styles and brain functioning. The fact that males lead in every special education category, are much more commonly medicated than females really got me thinking…Although I have been aware of the gender discrepancies that exist within the classroom, I honestly did not realize how grave the problem was and how excessive the dropout rate is among our male population until I began pursuit of statistics and conducted my research on the problem.

I would like to begin with the self-awareness I experienced in this journey and how humbled I felt as I began to uncover the harm being experienced by our boys in school. Not only did I feel a profound sense of guilt overcome me; not because I was a bad teacher, but it really made me think about each one of the classes I have taught in my career and what I have done to address this issue. I did not think that I was coming to school with any preconceived notions about the male students in my class and how they learn, but upon reflection, I feel as though I did not make learning `hands-on` in enough subjects. I thought about the professional development workshops held in the elementary panel; which present innovative instructional strategies to teachers in hopes of having classrooms move further away from paper-pencil tasks, and quickly became disturbed. My thinking had exposed a fundamental flaw in the education system, whereby elementary school initiatives are rendered inutile, as they are being undermined by the completely different experience high schools and post- graduate institutions offer their students.

In elementary school, we allow students multiple opportunities for improvement and within the day, make necessary accommodations and modifications to individualized programs which cannot be addressed in the same way in high school due to time slots and environmental constraints. Furthermore, the majority of subjects in non-specialized high schools are taught via paper pencil tasks and require that students have a strong grasp of literacy and numeracy skills in order to prepare them for a post-secondary education. Thus, it is no surprise that the statistics are changing in terms of male and female success rates in school, as there are so many more reading and writing tasks involved in subjects such as math and science; areas which were once predominantly more hands-on that now have a literary focus causing increasing difficulties for male students. Subsequently, females seem to be excelling in these subjects that were often male-dominated, as there is an emphasis on communication in the forms of summarizing findings, making connections and communicating their knowledge in order to explain their answers. It is no wonder then that the majority of students that
drop out of school then are boys, as the challenges boys face are only augmented when the deck is stacked against them. If boys are already coming to school with different understandings of what school is and different methods of socialization, educators must fundamentally change attitudes to ensure that the program they deliver and school environment is conducive to their learning.

My reflective thoughts cause me to think about my own university experience; where every class required me to sit and listen to professor after professor lecture endlessly. Although individuals may be successful, or even skilled at demonstrating their knowledge in the form of essays and formal written tasks, that does not mean that this is the best way for educators to develop learning tasks. There is such a focus on differentiated instruction, varied student groupings and several assessment and evaluation tools in elementary school, that it seems almost ridiculous that there is such a paradigm shift in higher education. This is not to discount co-op programs, technical institutes or trade colleges, which are post-secondary education facilities, but the reality of the workforce is that in most high-paying jobs or executive job positions, employers look for university graduates, college diplomas or specialized degrees- and in competitive fields, this is not always enough; some workplaces may look for Master or PhD qualifications. So I raise the question; How are we acting in the best interests of our students if there is no continuum with the elementary and secondary panels and if the message we are sending (consciously or not) is that we place greater value on literacy than trade knowledge or experiential learning?

If we create environments in both elementary and secondary panels that adopt the same initiatives and values, both male and female students will feel supported and be able to experience greater success.
One very significant and valid phrase states that: “biology shapes behaviour but then our society manages it”; the very same society that tells boys not to cry, toughen up and put emotions aside; Our education system must challenge these invalid measurements of what it means to be a man and provide the alternatives for defining masculine behaviour in order to better serve our boys while understanding the severity of challenges males face at school. I feel that in doing so, this would address the most relevant point; which is that as educators, we must ensure we do not understand our children in terms of their behaviour, but understand the child, as well as their behaviour.

Below are some of the connections I have made to personally shift my thinking in terms of gendered learning and not to regard it as an issue in passing. My decision to identify key concepts on Gender Learning experience reveals these many challenges.

-We need to change our message. In order for students to know that they are valued and included, we must clearly demonstrate to them that they are. They need to know that they can learn and that school is a place for them and not exclude them systemically.

- In knowing that chemical imbalances in the brain of hormones such as dopamine, causes more impulsive behaviours, we must choose what we wish to address in our classroom. Obviously if a student is being attacked physically or emotionally and their well-being or self-esteem is at risk, an educator needs to step in. However, we must also recognize that we need to pick our battles. The same way one would not fault a student with Tourettes from impulsive action or speech, we cannot control every aspect of male student behaviours and at times, need to evaluate if it is best to step back a minute before taking immediate action.

- The same way we cannot tell a child with Tourettes to suppress their TICs, as they will only become more intense and over-compensate they second they can exhibit them once again, we cannot keep students in for recess, as we are preventing them to work off their physical energy and whatever build up may have caused them to act in an incident which occurred in the first place. As a result, we may lose both groups socially, emotionally and academically because they have used so much physical and mental energy and over-exerted themselves to do what we have asked, that they have tuned out and become exhausted.

- Physical, Cognitive, Learning and Behavioural difficulties can be compact! Thus, as educators, our planning must involve growth plans to support students with exceptionalities who are challenged in many ways. For instance, a male student clearly already faces many changes in the education system. When we think about a male student with Tourettes as well as ADHD, there are even more challenges. Thus, school has become more connected with the community than in the past and we must continue work as a team to utilize the resources we have to build the best learning environment we can for our students.

- In the same way we do our best to understand the psychology and physiology of a student with Tourettes or other special learning needs, we must also do the same for male students. Both groups are aware of the expectations imposed on them by their social environment and aware of their own actions; regardless of whether they have control or not. Thus, self-esteem is at the core of the human person and the perceptions of others greatly influence how they feel about themselves.

Children believe what others believe about them: if you believe in a child and grant them opportunity, they are much more likely to succeed than if they are constantly told they are incapable and not given a chance!
Equity is about providing a level playing field for ALL learners. It is time to make the changes needed to better serve our boys.

This book is an excellent resource for both teacher and parents. Those of us who are teachers and parents of boys are well aware of the differences between the sexes in terms of behaviour and learning styles; however, we are often at a loss to find scientific and practical information regarding gender differences.

Each chapter in the book is written outlining scientific data available on gender differences and follows it up with supporting strategies useful for parents at home and those strategies specific to use in a classroom. It also provides examples from the personal experiences of Michael Gurian and Kathy Stevens.

The main focus of the book is to acknowledge the truth behind curriculum development and school environment as it relates to boys. We have known for years that our current methods favour girls’ learning styles. It provides a way of looking at academic expectations with respect to boys and suggestions for creating alternative methods of instruction and assessment to ensure success.

Another area of particular interest is Chapter 5 titled “Removing Environmental Stressors from Boys’ Lives.” It highlights the importance of the brain scan in determining incidental injuries to the brain through aggressive play and sports activities. The injuries may go undetected yet be a significant contributor to learning difficulties. “Screen Time” is also discussed in some detail. Television, computer and video game activity is another issue cited in the book. Gurian and Stevens make a strong argument for the connection between too much screen time and ADD/ADHD. They include information and statistics from various research reports to support their statements. They also include data on how diet and drink affect brain health and positive steps which can be taken to make improvements in nutrition.

While some of the information may seem like common knowledge to many of us, it is a worthwhile read. It provides information and strategies for those of us who can appreciate the uniqueness of both girls and boys.

Dr. Ashleigh Molloy aka “ Dr. Ash.”

Dr. Ashleigh Molloy has a PhD in special education and is the President of the CEC. He is an author and internationally renowned speaker who has appeared on radio and television, and presents at conferences worldwide. Dr. Ash will discuss how social, physiological, and brain differences influence how boys and girls learn.

Thursday, November 18th 5:30-7:00 pm
OISE 5-280
$2 for CEC members,$5 for non-members

Please RSVP to cecchapter1175@utoronto.ca as there are limited spaces

*Everyone will receive a certificate upon completion of the workshop

Dr. Ash’s Take on Back to School

The Toronto Association of Parents in Catholic Education present Dr. Ash with life-time membership. The official presentation will take place in November 2010 at the Commissioning Ceremonies.

Check out the event poster, brochure and available workshops!

UPDATE: Networking reception has moved to the Embassy Suites Hotel, 6700 Fallsview Blvd, Niagara Falls (a short walking distance from the Ramada hotel).

Need a place to stay?
Call direct and request a room for the OAPCE Conference at the Ramada Hotel Niagara Falls. $89.95 per room – (two double beds) – including breakfast and discount parking. The OAPCE rate is valid up to April 14, 2010.

Ramada Hotel Niagara Falls
6045 Stanley Avenue
Niagara Falls, ON L2G 3W3

Telephone: (905) 374-4142 • Toll Free: (877) 374-4142

Register online here.

Read more for proposed bylaw changes:

Please find below changes to current bylaws being recommended by the Board
of Directors to be ratified at the 2010 AGM on Saturday May 15th.

Section 9 – modified to read “No Director’s term shall exceed two years nor
shall a Director serve more than three consecutive complete terms.”

Should member schools not able to send a representative to vote in person
wish to cast a vote on this change, please do so in writing as per
guidelines in bylaws, section 14.

The Brain and Gender Learning Differences – What’s It All About?

Find out more here!