Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1470295
Magpayo Castro and Recinos, at top, with visual and performing arts TOSA Lisa Ruiz, presenting a session on how SEL can help provide an inclusive experience for every student; Ruiz guided viewers in constructing Japanese Notan art, which focuses on the play of light and dark. to help teachers transition and deliver instruction virtually – a quick shift that most districts were not always able to make. That's where the union stepped in with the ILC opportunity for training on demand. Just prior to the pandemic, new HLPTA President Billie Joe Wright had been making plans to engage c h a p t e r m e m b e r s a s w e l l a s c o m m u n ity, i n c l u di n g s e tt i n g u p a n e q u ity t e a m a n d leveraging member expertise for professional development opportunities. He saw that Mag- payo Castro and Recinos' work dovetailed with his chapter objectives. "It was those two things combined – PD by our members that ref lected the equity com- ponent," Wright says. "I wanted Teresa and Ricardo to lean into that equity part" - men- tioning LGBTQ+ examples, m ental h ealth topics, etc., that could attract a wider range of members. "HLPTA represents nurses, speech language pathol- ogists, counselors, as well as classroom educators." HLPTA and CTA supported Magpayo Castro and Recinos' attendance at relevant conferences and trainings, and promoted TRansformational Tech on its social media platforms and in communications with parents and community, among other things. Even when schools went back to in-person instruction in 2021, there was an urgent need for more PD – for example, teachers wanted to know what tech was worth bringing back into the classroom. The webinars have gained a solid following. "It started with 10 people watching the livestream at first," Recinos says of the pair's passion project. "Our loyal watchers still tune in live, but teachers want PD on demand. We noticed our audience would grow to 300 or more who viewed webinars later." "We're always trying to think of what teach- ers need from us," he continues. "And we think about the broader audience and how to bring in parents, students, community. We survey viewers about what topics they want to see, or they tell us." Recinos and Mag pay o Castro have pre- sented at conferences, such as CTA's Good Teaching Conference, and hope to develop a more intensive training session in the future, such as an AR/VR bootcamp. Meanwhile, they continue to vol- unteer their time for the weekly webinars, often planning and preparing late in the evening after their children have gone to bed and their day jobs are done. " We're tr ying to be purposeful about TRansformational Tech," Magpayo Castro says, "because we care about student voice and choice." Find TRansformational Tech on YouTube. CTA's Instructional Leadership Corps The Instructional Leadership Corps is a statewide community of educators committed to transforming our profession through educator-led professional learning so each child in California public schools may reach their full potential and thrive. ILC is currently focused on supporting 60 existing teams and four new regional pilot projects that strengthen partnerships and embed practitioner-led professional learning in local associations across the state. See cta.org/ilc. "We're always trying to think of what teachers need from us. And we think about the audience and how to bring in parents, students, community." —Ricardo Recinos, HLPTA 43 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 2