ICTeD Services

Challenge Based Learning & AITSL Teacher Standards

Yesterday, a unit of work on mine that started out as a Challenge Based Learning unit for grade 3/4  students a couple of years ago, http://ictedservices.typepad.com/elearning/2010/06/challenge-based-learning-activity-for-grade-34-extinct-and-endangered-animals.html has been morphed into an Annotated Illustration of Practice [AIP] on the Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL], National Professional Standards for Teachers website.
The Content Provider Organisation was the  Australian Council for Computers in Education, [ACCE] Thanks to my collaboration with Dr. Anne Scott from the Australian Catholic University [ACU], in work  this unit is an illustration of a Grade 5/6 unit that would be great to see the classroom of a Graduate Teacher teaching year 6 Science.
Here is the AIP http://www.teacherstandards.aitsl.edu.au/Illustrations/Details/IOP00036
This AIP is also linked with Hot Topics section of the website which features Information and Communication Teachnology [ICT] for March / April 2012. http://www.teacherstandards.aitsl.edu.au/HotTopics

The Pencil Metaphor and #pencilchat for eLearning Professional Development

 

There has been a few versions of using The Pencil Metaphor in eLearning and #pencilchat in Twitter going around the the past two months.

I thought I would aggregate them here in one place as a handy resource for any Professional Development sessions I might run. The resources below are handy icebreakers which can really start a discussion. So the resources here are not original, but what you do with them could well be.

The Pencil Metaphor surfaced in early January, describing six cohorts of teachers and their uptake of eLearning as the different parts of the pencil. From the leaders being at the pointy end of the pencil to the Hangers On and the Erasers being at the other end [ i.e. the blockers]

http://rhul-lt.blogspot.com/2012/01/e-learning-and-pencil-metaphor.html

Now I really liked this and was amazed when I found that pencil metaphor had been around for quite a while.

http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/lindy/pencil/pencil.htm

If that is the case, then we haven't really moved as fast as should be expected expected. Is there still dead wood, erasers and hangers  in  your school?

The other pencil metaphor was #pencilchat on Twitter. In tweets the words desktop, notebook, netbook, iPad etc were replaced with the word pencil. That is the name of one tool [ computer / device etc] was replaced with that of another [pencil]. Eg. "I'm not using these pencils until I get professional development in how to use them". or "Students might use these pencils to write words that they aren't supposed too!'

This tweets where put together by MiddleLevelEd using a xtranormal using a great animation.

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/12783558/ode-to-pencilchat-technology-integration-in-the-classroom

 It is great viewing, really useful for Professional Development. Watch here

 

The pencil manufacturer in the images has nothing to do with the content of this article

 

 

Students as eLearning Leaders Project 2012 - Leadership in a Digital World Module

Attribution http://blog.rozee.pk/2010/05/12/effective-team-leader/ & http://icon-king.com

Great meeting today about the continuation of the DEECD WMR Hobson's Bay Network Students as eLearning Leaders continuing for Grade 5 students in 2011.

These were my ideas below, which were  thrown into the mix. The final outline when completed, will really build on the successes of 2011.

 Download my presentation to the project team. Download HB Students as eLL

 

 

Western Region Study Tour: Integrating ICT into your Primary School Program.

Hope you can join me as part of
ICTEV - Western Region Study Tour: Integrating ICT into your Primary School Program.

Thursday, October 27, 2011 - 09:00 - 15:30

From the ICTEV website.

Following previous successful study tours within the metropolitan area, we are pleased to offer this study tour program in the Williamstown locality of Western Region to assist with ideas for you to integrate ICT into your primary school program. The format of the study tour is to provide a mini bus to transport you between three schools in one day. These study tours are a great opportunity to join with fellow teachers, share ideas and see what other schools do. They are days for observation and to discuss the various approaches being used with ICT in the classroom to achieve exciting outcomes in student performance.
Each school has a differing approach to the integration of ICT and yet in each school their students are obtaining excellent results through the use of ICT in the primary years.  In this tour there is an emphasis on the 1:1 program, with detailed descriptions of the planning that went into its successful implementation. Each school took a varying pathway, which provides delegates with choices and alternatives to consider for their own situations. On the tour you will be taken by bus between Williamstown Primary School, Seabrook Primary School and Altona Primary School.

My part of the itinerary:
 Meet at Williamstown Primary School, Cecil Street, Williamstown for a 9 am start.

9.00
 Williamstown Primary School - Host: Mark Richardson, ICTeD Services
Mark Richardson, ICT Coordinator at Williamstown PS, will introduce you to the ways that the school organises its curriculum around its notebook/netbook trolleys and interactive whiteboards. Find out how these devices are used in English, Mathematics and Integrated Studies and learn how you can plan activities like these for yourself. Examples of planning and activities will be shown and you will be able to talk to teachers about their work.
Topics covered will be:
    •    The importance of whole school ICT / eLearning planning;
    •    How to plan great ICT / eLearning lessons;
    •    The organisational and technical support that is needed;
    •    Using Bloom's Digital Taxonomy as a planning tool;
    •    Making the most of all the software on PCs and Macs;
    •    Using Interactive Whiteboards to enhance classroom management, teaching and learning.
Mark will also demonstrate some of the great Web 2.0 tools to use in the primary classroom, discuss the assessment of student work in ICT / eLearning lessons, explain how a Learning Management System can enhance your lessons and conclude with describing how PD can be integrated into these activities.

Followed by
11.00
 Altona Primary School - Host: Danielle Webster and Robyne Luketic
Making the most of the Ultranet: Strategies at Altona Primary School to promote and encourage teachers' learning.

1.30 
Seabrook Primary School - Host: Delores Giordimaina
In 2011 Seabrook Primary School implemented a one to one MacBook program.

To register go to
http://ictev.vic.edu.au/pd/2011/10/27/western-region-study-tour-integrating-ict-your-primary-school-program

Hope to see you there!!

My PD Offerings for October, 2011

For VITTA

Reinvent your Teaching with Challenge Based Learning!

Find out how Challenge Based Learning can invigorate teaching and learning of Primary and Middle Years classes! It is an approach that is highly engaging, embraces authentic learning and is great for students and teachers to use 21st century learning skills. Find out about the theory and seeclassroom examples.
A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to support this learning.

DATE: Thursday, October 20, 2011

TIME: 4:30 - 6:30pm

VENUE: The ICT Teaching & Learning Centre, Williamstown Primary School,
Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown.
Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.

MacBooks, online resources and afternoon tea included

PRICE: Non-members $100 Members $80

To Register http://www.vitta.org.au/events/event/reinvent-your-teaching-with-challenge-based-learning

*********

For VITTA

What's New in iLife '11?

Just got a new MacBook, maybe through the DEECD Notebooks for Teachers and Principals program? You will notice that it comes with the new version of
iLife.

This will be a hands-on session as much as possible. A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to
support this learning.

. So what's new in iLife '11?
. What are the changes?
. What are the implications of this upgrade for the classroom>
. Exploring what's new in iPhoto?
. Exploring what's new in iTunes?
. Exploring what's new in GarageBand?
. What about iWeb & IDVD?
. Exploring what's new in iMovie?
. What are some great things you can do in the classroom with iLife '11
. Where to after this session?

DATE: Thursday, October 27, 2011

TIME: 4:30 - 6:30pm

VENUE: The ICT Teaching & Learning Centre, Williamstown Primary School,
Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown.
Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.

MacBooks, online resources and afternoon tea included

PRICE: Non-members $100 Members $80

 To Register http://www.vitta.org.au/events/event/whats-new-in-ilife-11

*********

For ICTEV

Western Region Study Tour

Thursday, October 27, 2011 - 09:00 - 15:30

Visit three schools during the day [Williamstown PS, Altona PS & Seabrook PS]

Synopsis of Williamstown component

9.00 am
Williamstown Primary School - Host: Mark Richardson,
Whole School ICT/eLearning planning at Williamstown Primary School.

Mark Richardson, ICT Coordinator at Williamstown PS, will introduce you to the ways that the school organises its curriculum around its notebook/netbook trolleys and interactive whiteboards. Find out how these devices are used in English, Mathematics and Integrated Studies and learn how you can plan activities like these for yourself. Examples of planning and activities will be shown and you will be able to talk to teachers about their work.
Topics covered will be:
• The importance of whole school ICT / eLearning planning;
• How to plan great ICT / eLearning lessons;
• The organisational and technical support that is needed;
• Using Bloom's Digital Taxonomy as a planning tool;
• Making the most of all the software on PCs and Macs;
• Using Interactive Whiteboards to enhance classroom management, teaching and learning.
Mark will also demonstrate some of the great Web 2.0 tools to use in the primary classroom, discuss the assessment of student work in ICT / eLearning lessons, explain how a Learning Management System can enhance your lessons and conclude with describing how PD can be integrated into these activities.

Member Cost: $160.00 Non-member Cost: $190.00

Register here http://ictev.vic.edu.au/pd/2011/10/27/western-region-study-tour-integrating-ict-your-primary-school-program

Hope to see you at one or all of these events

Teaching and Learning in the 1 to 1 Classroom Using MacBooks

My next PD gig!!

Are you involved on 1 to 1 learning with MacBooks? Are you using a class set of MacBooks for some of your curriculum activities? Then this activity is pitched at you!

This session will cover the following:
• The pedagogy of the 1 to 1 classroom.
• Classroom organisation.
• Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy & the 1 to 1 classroom.
• What are some curriculum activities that are supported by 1 to 1 learning.
• Why collaboration is vital?
• Assessment in the 1 to 1 classroom.
• Buying, leasing, parent co-contribution or ownership.
• Technical support and security.
• School policies for the 1 to 1 classroom.

A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to support this learning.

DATE: Thursday September 22, 2011

TIME: 4:30 - 6:30pm

VENUE: The Gallery, Williamstown Primary School, Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown, 3016.
Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.

MacBooks, online resources and afternoon tea included.

PRICE: Non-members $100 Members $80

Register with VITTA

My Next Upcoming PD Gigs!

This blogpost needs the #shamelessselfpromotion tag! I'm just finalising the details if three after schools professional development sessions I am running at Williamstown PS. Abstracts below!

Teaching and Learning in the 1 to 1 Classroom using MacBooks.

Thursday 22.09.2011 – 4:30-6:30,
The Gallery, Williamstown Primary School, Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown, 3016.
Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.
MacBooks, online resources and afternoon tea included.

Are you involved on 1 to 1 learning with MacBooks? Are you using a class set of MacBooks for some of your curriculum activities? Then this activity is pitched at you!

This session will cover the following:

• The pedagogy of the 1 to 1 classroom.
• Classroom organisation.
• Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy & the 1 to 1 classroom.
• What are some curriculum activities that are supported by 1 to 1 learning.
• Why collaboration is vital?
• Assessment in the 1 to 1 classroom.
• Buying, leasing, parent co-contribution or ownership.
• Technical support and security.
• School policies for the 1 to 1 classroom.

A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to support this learning.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What’s New in iLife ’11?

Thursday 20.10.2011 – 4:30-6:30.
The ICT Teaching & Learning Centre, Williamstown Primary School, Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown, 3016.

Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.
iMacs, Online resources and afternoon tea included.

Just got a new MacBook, maybe through the DEECD  Notebooks for teachers and Principals program? You will notice that it comes with the new version of iLife.

• So what’s new in iLife ‘11?
• What are the changes?
• What are the implications of this upgrade for the classroom>
• Exploring what’s new in iPhoto?
• Exploring what’s new in iTunes?
• Exploring what’s new in GarageBand?
• Exploring what’s new in iWeb?
• Exploring what’s new in iMovie & iDVD?
•  What are some great things you can do in the classroom with iLife ‘11
• Where to after this session?

This will be a hands on session as much as possible. A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to support this learning.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reinvent your Teaching with Challenge Based Learning!

Thursday 25.08.2011 – 4:30-6:30.
The ICT Teaching & Learning Centre, Williamstown Primary School, Corner of Parker and Electra Streets, Williamstown, 3016.

Ample parking available outside school, check signage.
Nearest railway station, Williamstown Beach.
iMacs, online resources and afternoon tea included.

Challenge Based Learning is an approach which has -

•          A multiple entry point strategy and varied and multiple possible  solutions
•          A focus on universal challenges with local solutions
•          An authentic connection with multiple disciplines
•          An opportunity to develop 21st century skills
•          The purposeful use of Web 2.0 tools for organizing, collaborating and publishing
•          The opportunity for students to do something rather than just learn  about something
•          The documentation of the learning experience from challenge to solution
•          24/7 access to up-to-date technology tools and resources so students can  do their work

Challenge Based Learning: Take action and make a difference [Apple 2009] p.2

Find out how Challenge Based Learning can invigorate teaching and learning of Primary and Middle Years classes! It is an approach that is highly engaging, embraces authentic learning and is great for students and teachers to use 21^st century learning skills. Find out about the theory and see classroom examples.

A comprehensive set of online resources will be available as will membership of a network to support this learning.

If you are interested in coming to any or all of these sessions, details and bookings will be appearing on the Victorian Information Technology Teachers’ Association [VITTA] very soon. http://www.vitta.org.au/ or phone 9495 6836

Students as eLearning Leaders Project 2011 - CyberSafety Module

I have been working as part of DEECD, Western Metropolitan Region, Hobson’s Bay eLearning Leaders' Network, [A Partnership Program with Dell] to develop a six part Leadership & ICT module for Year Five students.

Finding a pedagogical model for this was a challenge. So I'm really looking forward to reflecting on and tweaking the learning model after this event

What comes next are some slide which combining two learning models and how they are to be used in this project.

The Hobson’s Bay Network Leaders' Network meeting on Tuesday [Sue, Kevin, Clare & Geoff] gave direction to what you see is written here. What is here is still a draft and will be further discussed next week. It is published for study purposes only.

What is student leadership?
 
Student leadership encompasses the school’s provision of:
• formal and informal learning opportunities which develop the competency of individuals as leaders and effective participants.
• processes and structures for student representation and the incorporation of students’ views into decision making and the life of the school. [Not Relevant to this project]

The development of student leadership skills involves opportunities which encourage students to:
• act in roles of responsibility with integrity and honesty.
• foster a sense of vision and purpose.
• work with others to determine and achieve collective goals.
• take on responsibilities and use decision making skills in order to carry a project through to a successful conclusion.
• be active, reflective listeners who respond effectively.
• earn the respect of others through their actions.

http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/studentsupport/studleadsrc/studlead/primary/

What skills are we looking for from our Student eLearning Leaders?

• Communication skills
• Thinking / Planning skills
• ICT Competencies
• Collaboration Skills
• Mentoring Abilities
• Good Listeners
• Decision Makers
• Project Management Skills

What’s the Pedagogical Model?

• It’s based on the Kids Teaching Kids pedagogy.
• This has been used at many Student Environmental Conferences run by Kids Teaching Kids. A number of schools in Hobson’s Bay Network send or have
sent students to their events in recent years,
• This model is also great for other student lead events and is based on a solid pedagogy! See http://www.kidsteachingkids.com.au/kids-teaching-kids/learning-model.html

There is also a bit of Challenge Based Learning in the pedagogy as well.
• This is Action / Solution Based Learning.
• In this activity there will be a Big Idea or Challenge for students to approach.
• Students will provide an action or solution to that Big Idea or Challenge by the end on the activity.
Based on http://ali.apple.com/cbl/

What eLearning themes could students explore?

• Creating Resources for their classes back at school.
• Creating Online Content, [Ultranet etc.].
• Creating tutorials for other students.
• Action / Solution Learning.
• Virtual Classrooms.

Let’s put this all together!

The Big Idea
Being safe online [CyberSafety] is important for all users of the Internet.

The Challenge
Show how we can make our students to be all great digital citizens.

So what will the 6 weeks look like?
• Each has a half day session and the network Professional Learning Centre
• Maybe 4 students form 5 schools = 20 students
• With 1 Dell laptop each + EduStar Image
• Teacher support
• Technical support
• Back at school activity

Week One

Week Two

Week Three

Week Four

Week Five

Week Six
This project is exciting, will write further, both the planning and the practice [and the evaluation].

My Top Ten Take Outs from the ACCE Study Tour & ISTE 11.

I've just returned to Australia after three weeks in the USA. So what did I learn, and how will it influence my curriculum planning and pedagogy?

Below are the strongest themes that came out of hearing presentations, seeing some practice in schools and discussions with teachers in the US and with other teachers and educators on the study tour.

In creating this blogpost I've explored these themes in terms of the Higher Order Thinking Skills of analysing and evaluating. See earlier blogposts for the remembering stuff!

Here they are My Top Ten Take Outs in no particular order!

01. Device? What Device? Does it matter anyway?

It seems in every school district we visited or heard about, there were big budget cuts [as there are for the whole nation]. In schools this often was being dealt with, by cuts in resources, staff or amazingly in some cases by cuts in instruction time. [In the USA, the school year is shorter than the 193 or so days that students are in classes with teachers in government schools in Victoria.] To meet budget cuts buying / leasing hardware, the Bring Your Own device was often the solution talked about [particularly in high schools]. There are some social justice initiatives for students without access to these. Essentially this model is a cost saver, where the student brings a device [laptop, smartphone, netbook, tablet etc, whatever they have]. The school only provides robust internet pipe, access for disadvantaged students and hopefully some type of learning management system or at least access to the cloud for document storage [Dropbox, Evernote etc.] and access to collaborative tools such as Google Apps]. Now I think it is a shame that the "BYO Device" is based on budget cuts, but it does also bear thinking about on pedagogical grounds. As schools and teachers are we too obsessed with platforms and applications? Are we better off to focus on the process and the product of student learning rather than the shiny toolbox [the school computer] and what it contains [the applications]! Obviously, we need to teach students what's in the toolbox and the possibilities for each tool, but then should we just let then go with whatever application, online space and device is available? The jury has just gone out on this one! 

02. Confirmation just doesn't happen in church.

Off all the visits, presentations and discussions I was part of, there was no WOW factor. Great stuff was happening in many schools and classrooms in the USA and it was great to see it and discuss about it. But similar great stuff in happening in Australian schools and classrooms. I really didn't come across anything new there, but it was great to see US teachers dealing with the big themes of eLearning, communication, creation and collaboration. Learnt a lot about many things that fire me up in Australia: Moodle, Challenge Based Learning, ICT Coaching, Google Tools and Apps, Leadership, Professional Development Models, eLearning integration across the curriculum and 21st century teaching and learning. So all this was confirming about my planning, practice and pedagogy as an ICT / eLearning teacher.

03. The iPad should be about creation and the other Higher Order Thinking Skills.

O.K. confession here …. while I've organised professional development on iPads in the Classroom, I don't actually own one and only have limited sandpit time with them. In fact when I was involved in purchasing a class set of devices for my primary school, I went MacBooks rather than iPads. Why? Because a Macbook was more suited to changing the classroom pedagogy of my colleagues at this point of time. I'm still happy with that decision, however, what I did see at Apple - Cupertino, Marymount School - NYC and at ISTE 11, was the use of the iPad applications related to Bloom's Digital Taxonomy and the creation of ePubs [essentially either teacher generated texts for students or texts created by students as assessment pieces or as content for other students]. These can be easily made in Pages and exported as ePubs for iPhones or iPads http://www.apple.com/itunes/inside-itunes/2010/04/using-itunes-to-add-epub-files-to-ibooks.html. Teachers making there own textbooks is really powerful stuff and uses the higher order thinking skills of Bloom's Digital Taxonomy. See also a presentation I heard at ISTE 11 on some great iPad apps and how they relate to the HOTS of the Taxonomy. https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhsgv8zv_4143np48dg


04. Face to Face Networks are still vitally important.

Met some great US teachers, administrators and educators and had some great discussions with them. But it was really having discussions with the rest of the study tour that was the best network experience. We were a good mix from five different states and primary, secondary and university teachers / educators. So there was plenty of time on buses, trains, hotels, bars and restaurants to de brief, compare and contrast with what we do in the different parts of Australia and reflect on our current practice. A couple of Keynotes that Gary Stager delivered were controversial in part, but great discussion starter which, made many of us at least justify our positions

 05. Good pedagogical models for students can be good pedagogical models for teacher professional learning.

It was great to meet my Challenge Based Learning mentor, Katie Morrow from O'Neill HS, Nebraska, where so much CBL is done. See http://www.slideshare.net/katiemorrow/presentations for some of here work. We were both at a session run by Larry Baker from Michigan. Larry outlined his experiences of CBL in his high school. Nothing new about this, but then he went onto explain how he was given responsibility to engender school change and how he used CBL as a professional development model. I'd never thought of using CBL this way. Read more at Larry's blog http://larryrthoughts.blogspot.com/2011/06/iste-2011-presentation.html

06. Teaching is a Team Sport.

Some one said this, forget who! It's not rocket science, but we often forget about this, when we want change in our schools, faculties or institutions. Like all teams schools have champions and average players, key position players and all rounders, youth and experience, inventive players and those that repeat what they have always done. The point is that great teams acknowledge these differences when setting the team’s directions. Sports teams, like schools and universities have plans of where they want to be in 2, 5, 10 years time. But in the education context for today's or next week's or next term's teaching and learning experiences, we can only put current players [teachers] that are currently sitting in the staffroom. So build teams, take teachers from where there are, to towards where you want to be, support those who are uncomfortable with change and celebrate successes. This will be an ongoing process, like sports teams there will be some better performances than others, but always have your eyes on the prize [and have high expectations for yourself and your students about what the prize is!]

07. 1 to 1 just a math ratio, it's the classroom planning and practice that it important.

This was a bit of an epiphany for me. It didn't come out of one presentation or discussion. It was more listening to those presentations and discussions and reflecting on my current thinking. I teach at a school that has just moved into wireless based computing. We currently have trolleys [class sets] of Netbooks running Windows and MacBooks. Why the two sorts? Well the Netbooks were a donation. The MacBooks support the rest of the computers in the school [eMacs & iMacs]. Now looking at this I think it is a good idea, here students have access to different devices that can be used for different purposes. Rather than 1 to 1 where a student is "locked to a device" via user agreements, parent co-contributions etc and teachers feel that they have to use that device all the time, otherwise students [or their parents] will complain that this expensive devise is a waste of time. My thinking currently, would be that a class set on iPads would be my school’s next acquisition, [ for the reasons above].

08. Collaboration between students and teachers and students and students is so, so, important.

We would all agree with this I think, but it doesn't happen enough in schools. In visiting Google and talking to teachers from the Google Teaching Academy, I realised that I haven't used their apps and tools nearly enough. Do I add online collaboration into units of work I design for students? No, not nearly enough. I need to make sure that collaboration is added to units / courses I plan. We also need to teach ourselves as teachers / educators and our students to be good collaborators.

09. Creative, pedagogically sound teaching with can still succeed despite under resourcing and lack of systemic support.

I heard some inspiring stuff from some US teachers who are working under an economic recession and budget cuts. They are still doing some great things, but it is happening across classrooms and schools rather than [generally] across schools districts and states. One school leader [from a High School that will remain nameless] was doing some great relationship building to improve the educational standing of his school. The school had a number of relationships, sponsorships and support networks, as many schools do. The key is [as that High School has done] to combine what you have into a unified direction that supports the school's teaching and learning program. I mentioned teaching teams above, this is building a "team" out of your school resources and networks, i.e. have all resources supporting a focused direction.

10. Explicit teaching is vital, it's just that that the teacher and student nexus has changed in the 21st century.

Nothing is new about what the role of the teacher is in 21st century learning, but as teachers we need to be aware that things have changed for teaching and learning and we need to support this in schools and systems. I think that content still needs great teaching [see also below], which does not necessarily face to face. The challenge is that a teacher has to be both a teacher and a learner. They have to be a learner all the time but as well an explicit teacher, facilitator, organiser etc for only some of the time. The trick is to work out the balance between these roles. When to intervene, when to let go!

It's like the baseball hitter who has a split second to decide whether to swing or bunt or leave the ball. Not all right decisions result in a home run, but wrong decisions can make you look stupid!

And one more

11. The Flipped Classroom needs more investigating by me.

There was some discussion about the flipped classroom, were student access the content of lessons at home or on the way to school via podcast or some other form of online delivery. This covers the lower order thinking skills and leaves the teaching session for the higher order stuff - the analysis, the evaluation and the creating the new content. Well that's the theory, and I'm not being critical at this stage, as I do need to read and think more on this. Content delivery is still very important, but more important is pitching the content to the students in terms of understanding were they are at, what the appropriate learning sequences and how the students are picking up the content as they are going along. Now, this is not to say that that this can't be done in the flipped classroom. But, it is something that as teachers we need to be very aware off. In the US it seemed as a methods of dealing with budget cuts etc. i.e. learning by podcast costs less that putting a teacher in front of students. If we embrace it the content has to be well pitched and well presented and it has to based on improved pedagogy, that is it allows for more concentration on the HOTS! This blogpost is a good start to find out more.

http://usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com/2011/06/13/the-flipped-classroom-model-a-full-picture

 

ACCE Study Tour 2011 Day 12: Promethean, Schools in Queens & Manhattan NYC

 Two school visits today in NYC. One with the assistance of Promethean and the other with that of Apple. First was an Elementary School [234 Queens].

There was lots of great stuff here. Promethean had it as one of its lighthouse schools. The light was to be able to visit classes in the lastfew days before their summer break and chat to teachers and students. In comparing US and Australian schools it is a case of "Same, Same, but Different". Really useful de-brief after the visits.
Scg After lunch, we went back to Manhattan to visit a very different school, Marymount School, 5th Avenue.
Great presentation on how this school is essentially creating its own texts using ePubs which students can access on iPads and other devices.