SelfDesign’s commitments to families, families’ commitments to SelfDesign
Two basic tenets of SelfDesign’s philosophy and approach are that learning happens everywhere – at home, in the community, and online – and is made possible by relationships.
The relationship between learners and parents is fundamental to the SelfDesign learning journey. It, combined with the relationship with the learner’s SelfDesign educator, is essential to helping ensure a child’s SelfDesign experience is successful.
Welcome to this next post in our blog series about enrolment at SelfDesign. We’re sharing helpful tips and useful information about enrolling your child in programs and services offered by the SelfDesign Learning Foundation. Check out the last blog post in our series here and be sure check back later for additional posts.
Parents new to SelfDesign Learning Community often ask what is involved in participating in SelfDesign. In order to satisfy our contractual relationship with the B.C. Ministry of Education and to ensure that our learning program is clear for learners and families, our work and learning together is guided by 18 program agreements. We make these commitments to each other in order to best support learners’ and families’ full participation in SelfDesign.
Some of the agreements apply to all grades, while others apply only to kindergarten to grade 9 or to grades 10-12.
Overall, the agreements pertain to three main areas of engagement between families and SelfDesign:
- the learning program, including learning engagement and reporting
- technology, specifically, use of SelfDesign’s learning platform
- education and actions, including online orientation, participation, safety and support
As families enrol their children in SelfDesign Learning Community, they receive a full copy of our program agreements and are encouraged to ask questions or request more information. To give you a sense of what the program agreements entail, we share three of the agreements here:
I will support my learner to participate weekly in the learning program.
The relationship with your SelfDesign educator is central to your experience with SelfDesign Learning Community. A key part of this relationship is the ongoing Observing for Learning process, which is documented each week through the SelfDesign learning platform. Each Observing for Learning communication is based on the goals, activities and resources noted in your learner’s learning plan and can be completed by the parent, the learner, or both. Once your Observing for Learning communication is shared with your learning consultant, they will respond with insights and further resources to support you and your family.
I will support my learner to participate in all aspects of the learning program.
Aside from weekly Observing for Learning communications, your participation in SelfDesign Learning Community and the annual rhythms of the learning year includes other aspects. At least twice each year, you and/or your learner will have a live or online conversation with your educator. Each season, reflections help ensure progress is being made on the learner’s goals, as identified in their learning plan.
Each year, learners engage in goal-setting and self-assessment of SelfDesign Competencies. Self-reflection provides an opportunity to review and for the learner and family to check-in with yourselves to see if you are headed in a direction consistent with your learner’s goals and plans. In an educational setting, self-assessment provides an opportunity to review progress and the development of specific competencies. When you and your learner engage in self-assessment, you are able to determine next steps for growth.
I will ensure learner and I act to support an environment of safety, acceptance, and respect.
SelfDesign is a online learning program that uses technology to connect learners and parents to the program and to each other. We offer a variety of opportunities for connection, from our Village of Conversations to real-time online meetings and in-person gatherings. While SelfDesign is not responsible for any content shared by others in our community, we do ask that all learners and parents commit to conducting themselves in accordance with our Acceptable Use and Educational Environment of Safety, Acceptance and Respect policies.
Want to learn more about our programs? Head over to our SelfDesign Learning Community page or to our Enrolment page to begin the enrolment process for the 2020-21 learning year.
