A learning journey with no fixed abode
A great session to catch up with our goals and goal setting- it was really neat to hear about what everyone was up to. Gave me pause for thought about my own digital practise. Well done Jenny…. you’re a star. But the way everyone participated and contributed, well you all passed that key competency in my book.
Junior training
I have had a headache for the past few weeks and its beginning to annoy me. Ever since I came back from Learning@School07(http://centre4.interact.ac.nz/spaces/space.php?space_key=1738) I’ve had a headache.
When you’ve had an experience like that it takes some time to fully digest what has been said. With my “not so popular” run down to the staff last week I sort of came to an impasse. I’ve reached a stage now that I sense I have very little real impact for change. My footprint in and on the school is minimal. The need in our community to educate ourselves for providing the meaningful, rich educational experience for our kids is huge, but without fundamental change in attitude and direction this ‘Net-Bust’ generation are going to be left out in the cold. It’s going to take massive amounts of time, PD and commitment from the schools and businesses for our kids to succeed.
All that, by way of preamble for my most recent observation. ICTPD is essentially a sub-priority. Lip service is paid as is various amounts of money but there is always a greater priority, whether it be NUMPA,
Reading, Writing, AtoL. All of these are noble topics for PD but then so to should technology. We are a long way from the digital classroom being the norm, working digitally, training digitally. If our staffs are to be expected to be up skilled then really, quality focus needs to be paid to ICTPD taking the number one spot, even if it is just for a year.
I long to hear the words of a principal be:
“Ok, this year everything else is on ‘tick over mode’, top priority is for you to fully integrate technology into your classroom teaching.”
How long can you hold your breath for? I can’t hold it for THAT long.
If School 2.0 is all about collaborative working, children directing the learning, teaching and learning for ‘Just in Time’ what does it look like in a matrix. What should I be doing with my Year 3’s? Year 5’s, Year 2’s? I’ve heard from Vicki Davies blog recently that keyboarding isn’t dead. That word-processing at the speed of speech is practically a miraculous gift. Wesley has some software suggestions that might help. Speech recognition software is no where close; currently. Perhaps if it were the learning would be impaired somewhat. I know I have learnt more since being this blog than I have ever done- perhaps. Don Tapscott talks about the flat work place. That N-Geners prefer a flatter workplace. I wonder what a flat school would look like. Would I truly be a better place for it? Flatter in terms of the students or the staff or both? What would that really look like. Would communication with the school be better or worse? Would we achieve more or less?
So many questions are there any real answers out there. And more importantly are schools, principals, trustees, governors, teachers and the Ministry of Education willing to embrace such a future. It’s about time someone went looking for the answers.
As promised. This is Michael Absolum talking about assessment in new Zealand. My apologies for the sound quality, but he did enjoy wandering over the stage and not talking into the mic. who am I to well him? Enjoy. Clarity in the Classroom
This is my first go at embedding my podcast. Thought I’d see how it goes before I stuff up the kids wikispace
Simon’s podcast
Give it a listen!
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