The Our Kid Project
In 2015, we engaged our constituencies (students, parents, staff, and community members) in the “Our Kid” project. Participants in the study were asked which skills, dispositions, knowledge, and values are essential for a Hanover School Division graduate. The results were the development of a Deeper Learning Plan that brought strategy, direction, and structure to our stated aims.
What do we mean when we say Deeper Learning? We mean a clear focus on learning those essential skills, dispositions, knowledge and values. We mean more relevance, rigour, curiosity, connections, questions, clarity, community, preparation for a digital world, and even more adventure. We mean deeper academic, social, emotional, and intellectual engagement.
After all of our work on Our Kid, we have identified eight deep learning competencies, all eight of which we have identified as essential for “Our Kid” to flourish: to be a Learner, Critical Thinker, Communicator, Collaborator, Literate, and Creative and to exhibit good Citizenship and Character.
We can achieve this deeper learning by developing dynamic learning environments, building collaborative learning partnerships, transforming pedagogical practices, and leveraging the digital resources now available to us.