Facilitating Learning in the 21st Century

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Principal Possum: HPSS - a High Viz School

Principal Possum: HPSS - a High Viz School

Fabulous post by Maurie Abraham, Principal, HPSS.

The students were fabulous indeed!

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Final Keynote

Karen Melhuish - Spencer

Growing our purpose ready students.

A few key points -

- school is the only place where students get to grow as good citizens

- networks are 'networked publics' - this is where they learn about citizenship

- direct link between empathy and well- being

- who teaches students how to navigate these places safely?

- schools might be the only place where students get to question

If I walked downed your corridors and asked 'what innovation would I see here' - how many of you would talk about the technology?

Where's the conversation about the learning design?

Full notes and tweets here -

https://storify.com/virtuallykaren/edchatnz-my-keynote-in-your-words

Great final speaker!

Planning at HPSS

Ros Maceachern - follow the journey of the school on the blog

http://rosmaceachern.blogspot.co.nz/?m=1

Workshop - Starting point - sit in your learning area!!

In your curriculum groups plans how you would develop A Term 4 big idea around 'systems, organisations, how things work'

No explanation - we chose

' recognises and understands how texts are constructed for a range of purposes, audiences, and situations'

AND

'constructs texts that show an awareness of purpose and audience through deliberate choice of content, language, and text form'

Key words from the curriculum drive the planning -

Question chart used in planning -

Lots of questions - around all of the planning - big and little questions - use the post-it wall.

'Where you work is Utopia' - yes but there are issues and there are challenges - but the challenges are good and make for better practice. We know that we are lucky with the building, with starting from scratch, that we are all like minded.

We are building the plane as we are flying it!

If you're constantly banging your head against the wall, you're the only one ending up with a headache

Basically you're going to be like a primary teacher on steroids! (Claire A)

Teachers choose to teach across curriculum areas - not expected though.

English - Maths Unit - team teaching

- writing blogging

- analysing their hits / blog stats

Principles -

- innovate through personalised learning

- engage through powerful partnerships

- inspire through deep challenge and inquiry to develop empowered learners

The stimulating and inclusive learning environment which empowers learning ... It's not just the building!

Being everything back to the values and the vision - values sit in the middle .

Always asking that question - go back to the values.

LOTS of planning for the model

Separate subject silos - not the real world.

What does this look like for teachers?

- rhythm of the day is very different

(Image to insert)

For students?

Spin - specialist one teacher

(Image to insert)

Thanks for the honesty Ros!

Personalisation through SOLO taxonomy

SOLO

Allows students to see

- what I am learning

- how am I doing

- what do I do next

A way of breaking down NCEA questions

- describe

- discuss

Link how much to what is written

Can be used for anything - depends on how you set up the rubric - a skill; knowledge; understanding

https://drive.google.com/a/hobsonvillepoint.school.nz/folderview?id=0B54MZSQeEZsLdzV5X3o0TEM0N3M&usp=drive_web

Hand signals linked to the levels of the thinking - integrated into all aspects of work at HPSS.

Break down NCEA questions - interpretation - don't spend all the time and energy writing the 'describe' - especially in Sci subjects.

Have to build a knowledge base before you can get to the M and E questions.

Provides a structure to be able to answer appropriately (Mr Black)

Every unit has SOLO rubrics incorporated - makes learning visible. A cultural shift in a school.

Personalise own learning - if students are collecting information they are only at unistructural - if I'm comparing I'm working at relational level.

Student questions

- can I do this task?

- at which level?

- how can I move to the next level of understanding

#edchatNZ Day 2 - Project Based Learning

Project based learning - should be something that kids are interested in - needs to be based in the real world - this makes the difference.

Buck Institute of Learning - free online plans and resources and research on PBL - http://bie.org/?gclid=Cj0KEQjw6pGfBRD09M-TmYTBzqIBEiQAcRzH506jLHEOr9qXvYNuS45xXznI6L3rZ0nSt160vLWZa6QaAo0Z8P8HAQ

What lessons can we learn from Hip hop? Keep it real - great 3 min clip

http://bie.org/object/video/keep_it_real

Give students choice and voice - publically presenting work gives it value for the students.

Schools around the globe are structured around PBL - but any teacher in any classroom can engage students in an authentic manner.

HPSS - lucky that they are actually involved with building the community!

Hobsonville Habits - dispositional curriculum!

Authentic contexts

- first one community spirit

- second one 'save the epilobium'

- clean up the mangroves

- school show - 2025

All students have role in each if the contexts!

Does not have to be a weekly timetable - could be a 'discovery week' - see Alfristion model.

Need a 'big project framework'

1 a kick off

2 plan - what do we need etc

3 action

4 show time

5 final look

Research shows-

*A rubric needed to show what needs to be achieved - explicitly teach these skills.

*exemplars

*experts - visits / online - need budgets

* time

*feedback

Students have to tell a story through the process - most use Google Sites -

https://sites.google.com/a/hobsonvillepoint.school.nz/hpss-build-our-culture/

The strength is in building these skills from Yr9 - compared to ASHS - where the students have to develop the skills when they arrive in Yr 11.

Sarah Wakeford - amazing energy and enthusiasm. Everything on blog - http://hpssbigprojects.blogspot.co.nz/?m=1

Jotter pads printed with the planning templates - cool idea.

COMO - turn your site into an app

Fabulous session - many thanks

Friday, August 8, 2014

Explain Everything and Youtube

Differentiating what you use regularly

....

How to rebrand what you already have - a tool to flip the lesson - http://www.morriscooke.com/?p=134

Available on android and apple - under $5

Things to note :

Allows students the time to process in their own time.

Need to get over the fact of hearing your own voice!!

Personal touch - don't look for perfection - kids like to see the 'warts and all approach' - things do go wrong !!

The 1-1 or 1- a few, works with these.

Keep it short - two to three minute parts -with diagrams included.

Technology is meant to save us time - Explain Everything - looks like a good tool - upload any existing documents into Explain Everything and add a soundtrack.

Linda Reuben's flipped classroom

http://mrsrubens.wordpress.com/2014/08/05/explain-everything-pd/