Teachers in four Central Okanagan schools are contributing to an international initiative to facilitate efforts to respond to common challenges and inspire advances in classrooms, schools and policies. 

Innovative and groundbreaking teaching techniques fostered at the four participating schools Ï㽶ÊÓƵֱ²¥“  Rose Valley and Pearson Road elementary, George Elliot Secondary and Canyon Falls Middle - are being followed by educators around the world through the  OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) Schools+ Network.

With the benefit of modern technology, education professionals from around the globe are able to communicate through a series of Zoom conferences to share their insights over the length of the project, starting in 2023 and concluding in 2025.

The global study involves 40 countries, and 30 schools and impacts 118,000 students. There are eight schools in total from Canada taking part, all located in B.C. 

Representatives of the four Central Okanagan schools appeared before the Central Okanagan Board of Education at the Nov. 13 board meeting to make a presentation on each of their school's involvement in the initiative. 

The study has focused on the areas of classroom interaction, cognitive engagement, formative assessment, subject matter quality and social-emotional student support. 

The aim of the study is to produce a toolkit of teaching and learning techniques and ideas with the intent of making a positive impact on education globally. 

Areas the Central Okanagan schools have engaged in include land-based learning, incorporating First Nations cultural principles and cognitive critical thinking and goal setting for students. 

"We are engaging students in difficult concepts that will lead students to live their lives in a good way...helping them to seek and find consensus, learning from the benefits and strengths of different perspectives," explained Steve Labrie, principal of Rose Valley Elementary, which has placed an emphasis on Indigenous cultural values for how people interact with themselves and their environment. 

Stu Laird, principal of George Elliot Secondary in Lake Country, echoed the sentiments of the other presenters that the 5 a.m. call to participate in the Zoom conference calls can be challenging. The initiatives being discussed are being driven from the ground up rather than the top down, meaning teachers are sharing their insights and learning from each other. 

"It is connecting and empowering islands of innovation to drive and transform education forward," Laird said. 

Nina Ferguson, principal of Pearson Road Elementary, talked about her school's embrace of land-based learning, of taking education out of the classroom and into the outdoors. 

That has included weekly field trips to nearby Chichester Wetland Park, and creating outdoor garden and greenhouse projects. 

Sarah Watson, principal of Canyon Falls Middle, said her school has placed a learning emphasis on metacognition, improving the ability of their students to plan, monitor, evaluate and make changes to their own learning behaviours in order to confront challenges more effectively.

Kevin Kaardal, Central Okanagan Public Schools superintendent/CEO, said the global study is another example of how educators in the school district are attracting world recognition for their dedication and willingness to experiment with new approaches to learning and share what they have learned with their colleagues.  

"It also shows the power of collaboration and networking...creating opportunities to learn," he said.