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HGSE Offers New Program on Making Learning Visible

The Harvard Graduate School of Education is offering a new online professional education program, Making Learning Visible: The Power of Group Learning and Documentation in Classrooms and Communities. The 13-week program, which focuses on the power of a group as a learning environment, and documentation as a way to shape, extend, and make visible how and what we learn, will be offered three times in 2015 beginning on February 23, June 1, and September 21.

“The world is becoming increasingly connected and interdependent. As we become more group-oriented in the workplace and in school, our knowledge of ourselves as individual learners and members of a community becomes more important,” said Mara Krechevsky, program chair and a senior researcher at Project Zero. “In order to live and work together effectively, we need to be able to listen to one another, to work together to identify and solve problems, and to acknowledge and respect diverse points of view.”

Despite the increased interconnectedness of our world, school instruction and assessment continue to emphasize individual performance and achievement. Krechevsky stresses that educators need to revisit key assumptions that have long guided practice in the past to determine what kind of education will serve our children best now and in the future.

This course will examine group learning through the Making Learning Visible (MLV) framework. MLV began as a collaborative research project between Harvard’s Project Zero and educators in Reggio Emilia, Italy, to explore the power of the group as a learning environment and documentation as a way to deepen and extend learning. Over the past decade, MLV has worked with hundreds of teachers throughout the U.S. to promote the development of learning groups. In this course, participants will learn about the MLV framework and how to apply it in their own settings to benefit students, teachers, and the school community as a whole. District- or school-based classroom teachers, instructional leaders, teacher leaders, and administrators are strongly encouraged to enroll as a team of three to six members in the program. Individuals who enroll in the program will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The sessions run over a 13-week period and include six content areas where participants will explore these new ideas through readings, multimedia, and classroom applications; work together with local and online peers; and share experiences, student work, and other artifacts.

“Making Learning Visible is not business as usual. No matter where, what, or whom one teaches, creating a learning community is essential to promoting student learning,” Krechevsky said.   “The course will provide a unique opportunity for participants to clarify their educational beliefs and values, enhance classroom practice, gain new insights into supporting and assessing learning in groups, and develop networks of supportive colleagues and expert faculty.”

Applications for the program are now being accepted online. For additional information or to apply, visit: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/ppe/program/making-learning-visible-power-group-learning-and-documentation-classrooms-and.

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