Category: Kuwait

1 Two 1, Collaboration, iOS, Kuwait

Advice needed for Technology Coaches

Lissa Layman

In February, my husband and I were hired as Technology Coaches at an international school going 1:1 this fall with iPads. This position was a brand new position and we were told we were hired because of our experiences working in 1:1 environments and giving PD. We found out a couple months later that they had hired a 3rd coach to work with us (no longer would we be working as a husband-wife team, but with another person whom we had never met). Upon arrival in August, we found out that the three of us would be working as a K-12 team (our school has about 1800 students and is divided into divisions – elementary, middle, high). We are excited about this new venture, but are in need of all the help we can get in order to be successful. As a team, the three of us came up with the following job description….

The primary role of the technology coach is to collaborate with teachers in order to
integrate technology in a meaningful and effective way in their classrooms. Responsibilities may include:
– assisting teachers in lesson planning regarding the integration of technology in ways
that support teacher goals and further student achievement.
– facilitating school-based high-quality professional development across all grade levels
(prek-12) and subject areas.
– meeting and working with teachers in teams or individually on an ongoing basis to refine
 their knowledge and skills. Examples include in-class coaching, peer observing,
and/or modeling of instructional strategies.

It is up to the three of us to make the K-12 vision of the admin a successful reality. If you have experience as a Technology Integration Coach (or a similar title), working as a K-12 team of teachers…or any other relevant expertise, please share below!

MANY MANY MANY THANKS!

Kuwait

First day of school

Lissa Layman

It’s been an interesting experience to start the year off teaching when my mindset had completely changed. Since February I’ve been preparing myself to be a Technology Coach…not a teacher. Especially not a teacher in an international school. I just finished my first of 2 classes for the day. First day of school, first class I taught at AIS, first class I’ve ever taught made of up entirely 9th graders! They are eager to please but sneaky at the same time and wow are they squirrelly! There were 21 of them in a room half the size of a normal classroom.

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If you didn’t notice…there is no computer or projector in this room. It is a brand new classroom and not entirely ready for classes to be taking place. Very interesting to teach with no technology!

In groups they made lists of words/phrases they remembered and then put their best 6 on the board. First impressions on their ability…they learn faster and have better pronunciation than the American students I’ve taught. This is their 3rd year of French and is equivalent to my level 2 class in the US. They remembered quite a bit and we had a good discussion about nouns and verbs. Their first formative assignment (I need to get used to the lingo in an IB school!) due tomorrow is a family tree. I’m giving them lots of freedom, hoping I get some good results 😉

I did not tell them that I won’t be there teacher for the entire year, although I briefly mentioned no gum, no food, no cell phones and no online translators. Their new teacher is supposed to arrive late Sunday night so I’m not exactly sure when she’ll be taking over. I may just be teaching through Sunday, I may be teaching 2 full weeks. I’m planning on telling them during our 2nd or 3rd class together that there will be a different teacher. I want to balance between them getting attached and the misbehaving because I’m not staying. We shall see!

This afternoon I have my first DP class. I imagine it will be quite the opposite…grade 11 students taking their first French class. The schedule here is really different. I’ll have to share it another time!

iOS, Kuwait

New Beginnings

Lissa Layman

As you may (or may not) know, my husband and I moved to Kuwait to begin our international education career as Technology Coaches at an International Baccalaureate (IB) World school in Kuwait. We arrived LATE Friday night and have been in orientation with all the new staff since then. We’ve been constantly busy (in a good way) setting up our apartment and getting to know the other new teachers. Today was the first day with the entire staff back to school. It’s been an interesting journey so far.

We were hired as Technology Coaches in February and are still figuring out exactly what that will look like. Today was a great day for as us we got more information about the 1:1 iPad roll-out (we aren’t really involved in the logistics..yay!) and had time to meet as a team (me, my husband and the other coach) to creating a job description that we can share with faculty & staff. Our goal is to get the message across from day 1 that we are here to help teachers meaningfully integrate technology into their lesson plans.

The Big News: The school has been scrambling for a French teacher since finding out 2 weeks ago that the hired teacher needed to stay home for a family emergency. Yesterday I was asked to take over her part-time load (3 French classes) until they can find a permanent teacher. I agreed, with the clause that it is truly temporary (maximum 1 semester). Although everything can change before school starts on September 4th, I am currently teaching 9th and 10th grade French (both part of the Middle Years Program – MYP) and 11th grade French (Diploma Program level 1). I have incredibly mixed emotions and I’m going to try really hard not to stress until Sunday when I know for sure if I’ll be starting the year in the classroom on Tuesday.

I hope everyone has had a great start to the school year or is eagerly awaiting the first day of school!