Reflection

As I reflect on my learning about High Performance Learning, I think of Angela Lee

Duckworths research on grit and the ability to learn is not fixed. Amazingly, I am still able to
learn. There were many days during this semester in which I wanted to just quit. Her work
provoked me to keep sojourning through the modules on High Performance Learning and
Learner Centrality. Perseverance and grit, are non-cognitive skills that continue to build my
brain. These are a few of ideas in which I was not aware. There was a sense of cognitive
dissonance. I did not understand this theory of High Performance Learning. I could not wrap my
head around what High Performance Learning could look like or be. I was not even sure it was
even achievable. I have been turned off against the mandates like No Child Left Behind and
Common Core Curriculum. No Child Left Behind did end up leaving a lot of children
behind. High stakes testing has created a stressful learning environment for children, teachers,
and parents. Judy Willis, a neurologist, turned teacher, shared how stress affects the brain.
Learning is impaired with stress and boredom. Having a learning-centered culture is a utopia
that I now see is a possibility and a necessity. When I read Cultural Shift, my definition of High
Performance Learning began to evolve. As I become more literate on the topic of High
Performance Learning, I learned that there is no one way of providing a learner-centered
environment. In Finland, teachers are valued, students are placed in educational settings with
several teachers for multiple years. The teachers build rapport and learn the cognitive realities of
each student. The students that need help are quickly identified and receive this needed support.
Students in Finland are successful, and they do not have any children left behind. Sugata Mitra,
shared in a TED Talk video his experiment of placing computers in remote villages with high
speed internet connections. His research has interesting outcomes. Students will learn if they
want to learn. This research showed me the importance of collaborative work among peers.
Salman Khan, shared his story of Khan Academy on a TED Talk video. His videos on learning
went viral. Teachers are able to flip classrooms using his videos. This all started because he
made a video to share with his cousins how to do math. These videos made learning more
individualized and self-paced. It brought a humanistic approach back into the classroom. The
flipped classrooms became learner-centered, and not teacher-centered. I am now more aware of
the four Cognitive Arcs in High Performance Learning, and see the value of each. I am inspired
to continue my learning about High Performance Learning and to apply this to my teaching and
share with others. As I reflect, there are areas in which I would like to do further reading and
research. There are various people whose work I would like to do further reading. I would like
to read more about Carol Dwecks thoughts on Growth Mindset. I would also like to read more
about Ken Robinsons work. He is funny, and inspiring, and an advocate for a new learning
paradigm (learner-centered).
My symposium portfolio project has enabled me to revisit various the Cognitive Arcs of
High Performance Learning. As I constructed each page of my Weekly website I revisited and
explored more in depth each arc. I had to discern what media was important to me and what
would help my colleagues better understand High Performance Learning. In the LearnerCentered Arc, I chose to put the Declaration of Students Rights and Responsibilities that was

written by six teenagers. I felt as though, it is important to see through the eyes of our students
what is important. These rights and responsibilities will make an imprint on our teaching and
learning. On this page includes three videos 2 from Ken Robinsons speeches. His speeches are
motivating and give insight why the current learning paradigm is not working. He shares a
humoristic approach, however, it is thought provoking. The other video, Disrupting Class with
Michael Horn, I selected because he also shares how our current model of educating students is
like a factory. A one size fits all education. The invention of online learning is a disruption to the
current learning model. It is relevant because online learning is making learning individualized. I
also included the Teal Center Fact sheet on student centered learning. It gives definition to
learner-centered learning. Within this first arc I also included, Cultural Shift, The Alliance for
Excellent Education produced this report that shares an explanation of what is needed to change
the current culture to meet the needs of todays and tomorrows students: a learner-centered
culture. The last component I included was Learner-Centered Psychological Principles: A
Framework for School Reform and Design. This document published by the American
Psychological Association in 1997 established fourteen psychological principles factors that are
primarily under the control of the learner, however these factors are interconnected with external
factors. These principles were established for a framework of thought when designing education.
In the Fact-Based Futures Arc component of my Weebly website I included various videos on
leaders in current research on learning. Carol Dweck and Angela Lee Duckworth share great
information about Growth Mindset and Grit. I also included a video about the brain and a
video of Judy Willis, a neurologist, who became a teacher. I also included a podcast called
Back to School. The podcast shares an interview with the author Paul Tough, How Children
Succeed. He shares insights on non-cognitive skills that are needed for achievement. These
skills included tenacity, resourcefulness, and impulse control. Lastly, this arc of my Weebly
includes The Science of Learning. This publication is intended to be a resource for teachers. It is
a source for learning about the science of learning. This publication summarizes, existing
research from cognitive science related to how students learn, and connects this research to
practical implications for teaching and learning.
The New Learning Ecosystems Arc component of my Weebly website shares innovative research
and examples of how learner-centered environments can exist. It is no longer essential to teach in
rows and have the teacher be the center of learning. Learning can exist in remote areas of India
via the internet. Sugata Mitra shared this with his research. A video of his research is on this
page of my website. Salman Khan shares his story about Khan Academy and flipped
classrooms. The computer has changed the way students are learning. It can be self-paced and
individualized. Sugata Mitra also shares the importance of collaboration when using computers
for learning. Geoff Mulgan shares how Studio Schools keep the interests of high school students.
The students work and learn at the same time. These schools are keeping high schoolers from
dropping out. These studio schools are catching fire and popping up all over the UK. I also share
of the success of Finlands ability to keep children from being left behind. Learner-centered
environments can be anywhere. It does not necessarily need walls for learning to take place.
This part of my Weebly has inspired me to think differently about High Performance Learning. I
am used to thinking that a building, a classroom, various instructional materials are the

environment for learning. This is no longer the case. We still have our school buildings, but how
we teach in them should perhaps be rethought. High Performance Learning is evolving, we
(educators) also need to do so.
My last page of my Weebly, is the Scholar Practitioner Arc. On this page I included various
blogs from Maryellen Weimer. She is a professor of Penn State. Her blog is called The
Teaching Professor. She has written on topics such as the scholarship of teaching and learning,
classroom policies, active learning, assessment, generational differences, and student
performance. She represents a scholar-practitioner in my eyes. She continues to teach and learn
about teaching. She speaks to educators across the country. I found her blogs to insightful and
interesting. It is something I will return to in the future.
I am grateful for this learning experience, and I hope this Weebly will inspire the teachers of my
school to reflect on this Weebly website and their own teaching/learning experiences. Perhaps a
change in their philosophy will take place to be one that is student-centered.