My IBSC Journey - Pre-Conference Tasks

Action research is a classroom-based or school-based approach to research. It empowers teachers because it is done by teachers for themselves. Teachers are able to study their own classrooms and in doing so are able to better understand them and are able to improve their quality or effectiveness. Action research enables teachers to focus on what they are interested in which gives them the opportunity to engage in personal, professional and educational reflection. For these reasons and so many more, I am thrilled to be a member of the 2018/2019 IBSC Action Research Cohort. 

Fifty-four participants from Australia, New Zealand, UK, India, Canada, USA and South Africa make up the 41 research projects in the 2018/2019 IBSC Action Research Cohort. These projects are managed by 4 team advisors. Catherine Steenhoff is my research partner and Trish Cislak is our team advisor. Team Trish is known as "The Long & Short of It". 

Me, Trish Cislak and Catherine Steenhoff.

All cohort members were involved in pre-conference tasks before we met at the 2018 IBSC Annual Conference at The Southport School in Australia. The introductory activity involved cohort members uploading a photo and short biography of themselves or their team. 

Task One was designed to help cohort members feel more comfortable using the different technologies needed to communicate during the programme. It was called "The Amazing Race" and was a race to see who could finish the tasks first. Tasks included writing a 6 Word Story describing yourself or your team, creating and sharing a Google document, Facebook activities, creating Skype contacts, joining a WhatsApp group, accessing the IBSC Member Centre, reading past Action Research Reports and completing a Google Form. Jacob Geiger, a fellow Team Trish member, won the race. 

Our 6 Word Story

Task Two was a theory assignment and involved reading various website pages and the prescribed text, Mertler, C.A. (2017). Action Research: Improving Schools and Empowering Educators (5th Edn). New York: Sage Publishing. It was aimed at strengthening our knowledge as researchers so that we would have a solid understanding of the theory of action research.

Task Three focused on the research topic, Boys and Stories: Pathways to Learning. We had to source two relevant journal articles and write an annotated bibliography on each article making use of APA referencing and following the IBSC Style Guidelines. 

Once all these tasks were completed we were ready to meet in Australia for the 2018 IBSC Annual Conference at The Southport School. 

My IBSC Journey - The Application

When my headmaster, Rob Macaulay, returned from the 2017 IBSC Annual Conference at The Boys' Latin School of Maryland in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, he reported back on the Action Research Programme. He was very excited about the programme and told the staff that anybody interested in doing action research would be given the opportunity to apply for the 2018/2019 Action Research Programme.

I jumped at the invitation and immediately went to the IBSC website to find out exactly what the Action Research Programme involved. I discovered that the topic for the 2018/2019 Action Research Programme was to be announced in September 2017 and applications were to be submitted in November 2017. 

Boys and Stories: Pathways to Learning was announced as the topic for the 2018/2019 Action Research Programme. I began to brainstorm ideas. My husband pointed out that the "My Story" meetings St Peter's had introduced in 2016, in an attempt to break down barriers and provide a platform for parents and staff to understand and really get to know each other, lent itself perfectly to this topic. South Africa has been described as a Rainbow Nation with a diverse population. This diversity provides opportunity as well as challenge. The “My Story” meetings are ongoing and give stakeholders the opportunity to share “their stories”. My initial research idea was to build on this initiative by adapting “My Story” meetings to include the boys.

When I shared my idea with my headmaster, Rob Macaulay, he was very supportive and mentioned the idea at the next "My Story" meeting. After the meeting, Catherine Steenhoff, my Deputy Head and Director of Academics approached me and asked whether we could form a partnership and apply to do the action research together as a team. I readily accepted and we began working on our application. Our application was successful and at the end of November 2017, we joined the 2018/2019 Action Research Cohort. 

My IBSC Journey - Where it began...

In 2006 during my first year at St Peter's Boys Prep, I was given the opportunity to attend the 13th Annual International Boys Schools' Coalition (IBSC) Conference at St John's College in Johannesburg, South Africa. The IBSC is an organization of schools dedicated to the education and development of boys worldwide. It enables educators from around the world to work together to discover the best learning practices for boys.

The 2006 conference was inspirational and as a teacher new to a boys school, I learnt a great deal about how boys learn, especially from Abigail Norfleet James. She presented two papers, Gender Differences and the Brain: Classroom Applications for Middle School and Studying is More than Just Reading a Book:  How to Help Boys Learn to Learn. 

However, Dr Michael G Thompson, consultant, author and psychologist specialising in children and families, made the biggest impact on me. He was one of the keynote speakers at the conference. I noticed him standing on is own during one of the first social functions and I plucked up the courage to go and introduce myself. What an amazing man! He astounded me with his ability to understand exactly what I was trying to say, even better than I understood myself. Throughout the conference, he was happy to chat and exchange ideas with me. At the end of the conference, he gave me a signed copy of his New York Times best-selling book, Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys (Ballantine Books, 1999) co-authored by Dan Kindlon. The book is one of my prized possessions and I have read it from cover to cover many times, especially since having a son of my own.

During this IBSC Conference in 2006, I also heard about Action Research for the first time. The IBSC had just introduced Action Research aimed at promoting the collaboration of educators in member schools worldwide to design, implement, evaluate and report on in-depth Action Research projects in order to improve their effectiveness in the classroom and beyond. Immediately, I knew that one day I was going to be a part of this initiative.

Since the IBSC introduced its Action Research program in 2005, more than 220 teachers and administrators from all regions of the IBSC membership have contributed to more than 200 Action Research projects, which are conducted over a two-year period with the assistance of an IBSC Action Research coordinator. And now 12 years later I am part of the 2018/2019 Action Research Cohort!

Listening - the first step to learning a new language!

Listening is the first and most important step in language acquisition. It is at the very core of learning a new language. When babies first learn their home language, they go through a "Silent Period". Although it may seem that babies are not "doing" anything, they are very busy listening and assimilating the phonetic features of the linguistic environment. 

Similarly, when children learn an additional language, they also go through a "Silent Period". During this time it is essential that they are exposed to the language. Listening to a teacher speaking Afrikaans a couple of lessons a week is not enough for a child to develop a comprehensive understanding. Unfortunately, many children do not have the opportunity to hear Afrikaans in any other setting. Many parents either do not speak Afrikaans or if they do, they do not feel comfortable enough to speak Afrikaans. So what can parents do to help their child learn Afrikaans?

Introducing, Richelle Pretorius' Kinderstories (Children's Stories) YouTube Channel. I was thrilled when I discovered this channel as I have wanted to create a similar channel for years and have just never found the time. Richelle has recorded numerous videos that can be used to help children learn Afrikaans.

At present, Richelle's YouTube Channel consists of three playlists. 

1. Edufriends Afrikaans Reading Course Outline

These are videos which cover basic Afrikaans vocabulary. 

2. Ou Gunsteling Boeke

These are classic Disney stories read in Afrikaans.

3. Oom Attie se Slaaptydstories 

This is a collection of short stories read in Afrikaans. There are no pictures and no English translations. 

I use the Edufriends Afrikaans Reading Course Outline in Grade 3, as my focus is on extending their vocabulary. In Grades 4 and 5, I continue to use this playlist as well as the Ou Gunsteling Boeke in my regular Vocabulary and Reading Assignments posted on Google Classroom.

The Ou Gunsteling Boeke videos, however, are the main reason why I am writing this blog post. The playlist provides additional language learners with the resources needed to just "listen". As I mentioned, the playlist consists of classic Disney stories read in Afrikaans. Many children will most likely have heard these stories in English. As they know the stories they will be able to follow the story and this means that children can just "listen" and begin to assimilate the phonetic features of the Afrikaans language. They have the opportunity to experience that vital "Silent Period".

As children continue to listen to the stories, they should begin to read along which will enhance the learning experience. These stories are also beneficial for children who have a good understanding of the language. Once children have worked through the Ou Gunsteling Boeke videos, they can start listening to Oom Attie se Slaaptydstories.

For parents, Richelle Pretorius' Kinderstories YouTube Channel is a wonderful resource that takes very little effort other than actually finding the time for your child to listen. Now your children have a good reason to watch YouTube Videos. 

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