Earlier this year, Seesaw became available in Icelandic, supporting its rollout across 12 schools in Kópavogur. Having the platform in Icelandic was an important first step, but the next question was a practical one: how could we help educators feel confident using it in their own schools?
In August, Seesaw colleagues travelled to Kópavogur to spend three days working alongside the people who would be using and supporting Seesaw every day.
Hosted by Bergþóra Þórhallsdóttir, Project Manager in Information Technology for Kópavogur, the visit included four workshops for teachers, school administrators and local education teams. Some participants were completely new to Seesaw, while others had already been using it and wanted to take their practice further.
That range of experience shaped the training and, rather than trying to cover everything for everyone, each workshop was built around what the people in the room needed.
Getting comfortable with Seesaw
For teachers who were new to Seesaw, the priority was simply to spend time using it.
Participants brought laptops and worked in the platform throughout the session. Seesaw colleagues led the first part of the workshop, with Begga continuing the training in Icelandic.
Having Begga there made a real difference. She knows the schools, the teachers and the local context, so questions about Seesaw could be discussed in terms of how teachers would actually use it once they were back in their classrooms.
By the end of the session, the aim was not for teachers to know every feature but for them to feel comfortable enough to get started.
Giving experienced teachers time to compare notes
The conversation was different with teachers who were already using Seesaw.
Rather than spending the session going through features, they brought their own work and looked at it together. Teachers compared their digital portfolios in Seesaw and talked about how they were connecting activities with competency standards and learning objectives.
There was an openness to the conversation that made the session useful. Teachers could show something that was working, ask how somebody else was approaching the same area, or talk through something they had not quite figured out yet.
They also had time to think about what they wanted to work on next with their study groups.
For the Seesaw team, being in the room for those conversations was valuable too. Training works best when it is not one-sided, and hearing directly from teachers gave our colleagues a much better sense of how Seesaw is fitting into everyday teaching in Kópavogur.
Working with the teams supporting schools
The three days also included a workshop for Seesaw administrators and IT leaders in Kópavogur.
Their questions were naturally different from those coming from teachers. The session gave them dedicated time with the Seesaw team to talk about implementation, administration and the support schools need as their use of Seesaw develops.
The final workshop opened up the conversation to the wider education community, with an invitation extended to people from Kópavogur and neighbouring municipalities.
It meant the visit was not only about classroom training. There was time to talk with the people responsible for making decisions about technology and supporting it across schools.
Seesaw is GDPR compliant, with UK and EU customer data stored and processed in London using secure AWS infrastructure. Schools can use the platform knowing that the same attention given to the classroom experience extends to the way their data is handled.
Continuing the work in Kópavogur
The workshops may have lasted three days, but the work in Kópavogur continues!
Begga brought the groups together, co-led the training and continues to work closely with the schools as they build their use of Seesaw. For our team, being there in person gave us the chance to listen to teachers and leaders and understand what support looks like in their context.
Most importantly, the educators now have time, ideas and shared experience to build on as they continue using Seesaw with their students!
Takk fyrir to Begga for bringing everyone together, and to the educators and school leaders who welcomed us and shared their experiences so openly.
