I wish that I knew what i know now, when I was younger.
Hindsight is 20/20.
This program has been such a gift.
I didn't expect to pursue a Masters Degree and wondered if this was the right choice to take on extra commitments during a pandemic. Teaching is stressful enough! But I feel so grateful and glad that this program was made available to those of us in the Coding Teacher Camp with Apple and Lamar. It's honestly been one of the most positive things to come out of a difficult time, and one of the best decisions I've made personally and as an educator.
What is COVA?
What is COVA?
In a nutshell, COVA = Choice plus Ownership plus Voice through Authentic Learning.
COVA, when combined with a Significant Learning Experience (or SLE), provides a blueprint for how teachers can maximize powerful learning in the classroom. Thinking of my lessons through the lens of COVA aligns with my learning philosophy.
I believe as teachers, we are all still learning— but it's one thing to say, and another to intentionally take the position of a learner. I hadn't been in a classroom where I wasn't the teacher in 20 years. I don't know about how other students in the program felt, but I could almost feel my learner's brain muscles being exercised in that incredible way where you are challenged but also supported. Creating an EP, designing innovation plans and professional learning experiences as well as digging deep into research to form my own new synthesis of ideas was a sort of alchemy that truly carried over into my own classroom. Going through the process of COVA + CSLE as a learner is so powerful because it's the same process and attitude I take with my own classroom. Feeling the value of this experience only reinforces to me how essential it is to take the same approach as a teacher.
Moving forward, I plan to approach the plans in my classroom with students as well as plans for any professional PL for myself and/or others through the COVA standard to yield authentic learning and generate a significant learning experience (SLE) for everyone involved. As an example, my students may be tasked with creating a design for a specific purpose, but they can choose the format, style, audience, look and feel, and make the design their own, using their own distinctive voice. I think preparing students for the COVA approach isn’t a leap because more than likely, their most valuable learning in the past followed this model. I think it’s more of a leap to follow the COVA model for PL, because we’re so conditioned for Sit-and-Get types of training.
Here’s a full example of how I would introduce COVA into a professional learning setting for teachers.
COVA, when combined with a Significant Learning Experience (or SLE), provides a blueprint for how teachers can maximize powerful learning in the classroom. Thinking of my lessons through the lens of COVA aligns with my learning philosophy.
I believe as teachers, we are all still learning— but it's one thing to say, and another to intentionally take the position of a learner. I hadn't been in a classroom where I wasn't the teacher in 20 years. I don't know about how other students in the program felt, but I could almost feel my learner's brain muscles being exercised in that incredible way where you are challenged but also supported. Creating an EP, designing innovation plans and professional learning experiences as well as digging deep into research to form my own new synthesis of ideas was a sort of alchemy that truly carried over into my own classroom. Going through the process of COVA + CSLE as a learner is so powerful because it's the same process and attitude I take with my own classroom. Feeling the value of this experience only reinforces to me how essential it is to take the same approach as a teacher.
Moving forward, I plan to approach the plans in my classroom with students as well as plans for any professional PL for myself and/or others through the COVA standard to yield authentic learning and generate a significant learning experience (SLE) for everyone involved. As an example, my students may be tasked with creating a design for a specific purpose, but they can choose the format, style, audience, look and feel, and make the design their own, using their own distinctive voice. I think preparing students for the COVA approach isn’t a leap because more than likely, their most valuable learning in the past followed this model. I think it’s more of a leap to follow the COVA model for PL, because we’re so conditioned for Sit-and-Get types of training.
Here’s a full example of how I would introduce COVA into a professional learning setting for teachers.