9. Successful Collaborative Partnerships and Empowering Teachers to Share Their
9. Successful Collaborative Partnerships and Empowering Teachers to Share Their Expertise | Presentation
Julee P. Farley
Successful collaborative partnerships of any type require thought and planning. This section explores aspects of planning, guidance for higher education personnel making a first connection with a school district, and contextual details which may aid in improving communication between higher education and PreK-12 educators.
Learning Objectives
Learners should be able to:
- Articulate general features of collaborative partnerships.
- Determine who their potential partner(s) may be.
- Use tips and strategies for connecting with school districts.
- Implement strategies to achieve impact.
- Identify practice steps to empower teachers and administrators to provide feedback.
Assignment
An Orientation to Building Collaborative Partnerships with Schools
Google Slides: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Kn0WV8dk3FCEXe8UrSaGYPN0l0h9whbvujlEssw1JEA/edit?usp=sharing
PowerPoint Slides: http://hdl.handle.net/10919/112264
Slide Deck Transcript
Collaborative higher education/PreK-12 partnerships require planning and evaluation to be successful. Collaborative partnerships require:
- Joint planning between all parties involved
- Meaningful and measurable outcomes for all parties
- An evaluation plan to determine which outcomes were met
- Opportunities for iteration and improvement
Explicitly state who the audience is for the work. The audience could be all kindergarten students, female students in 6th grade, or students who are graduating high school without employment or college plans. The audience could also be earth science teachers, high school counselors who need recertification, or administrators who want to learn about emotional intelligence. Having a specific audience is best so that you can tailor your project to meet the needs of this group. If you try to make your project applicable to too many groups (for example, designing an activity that both an elementary and high school student would enjoy), you may make your project meaningless to both groups.
Once you know who your audience is, that will help you know who to approach for building a partnership. If your project involves earth science, you may approach the science administrator of your school district to start your partnership. In general, approaching administrators is recommended over approaching specific teachers, because administrators can ensure that outreach is spread equitably throughout the school or district. You may also want to suggest involvement of a school librarian or media specialist as part of the project in addition to a teacher or group of teachers. School librarians may be interested in expanding their knowledge about OER as part of their role in supporting classroom teachers.[3]
Once you know who to approach, you should first investigate any existing partnerships with the school or district. Your goal should not be to become an expert in the school distri