PG's Ponderings

It’s the end of 2014 – time to think about what we are, what we do and why we do it in this crazy, awe-inspiring profession of ours... standing in front of young minds every day: entertaining, leading, suggesting, facilitating, questioning, supporting...the list goes on. So here are some possible answers to the question – What do you do? 11 Habits of an Effective Teacher to consider for 2015 ENJOYS TEACHING. Teaching is meant to be a very enjoyable and rewarding career field (although demanding and exhausting at times!). You should only become a teacher if you love children and intend on caring for them with your heart. Let your passion for teaching shine through each and everyday. Enjoy every teaching moment to the fullest. MAKES A DIFFERENCE. There is a saying, "With great power, comes great responsibility". As a teacher, you need to be aware and remember the great responsibility that comes with your profession. One of your goals ought to be: Make a difference in their liv...

We talk about the value of Camps and the success or failure of the learning opportunities attached to them. If we look at the theory of experiential learning , and transfer that approach to our camps, we may find a basis to use this time as an effective learning process. Experiential learning is a powerful way to address individual growth and potential, which is commonly a much neglected approach to teaching and developing people of all ages. Experiential learning is adaptable for individual style, preferences, strengths, direction, etc. As such it is more likely than conventional prescribed training or teaching to produce positive emotional effects, notably confidence, self-esteem, and a sense of personal value and purpose. People need learning which is adaptable for them as individuals, and also the traditional prescriptive teaching and training focused on external needs, typically of the organisation, or to pass exams or gain qualifications. It is important to use the best sort of l...

Seven Keys to Effective Feedback Grant Wiggins Advice, evaluation, grades—none of these provide the descriptive information that students need to reach their goals. What is true feedback—and how can it improve learning? Who would dispute the idea that feedback is a good thing? Both common sense and research make it clear: Formative assessment, consisting of lots of feedback and opportunities to use that feedback, enhances performance and achievement. Yet even John Hattie (2008), whose decades of research revealed that feedback was among the most powerful influences on achievement, acknowledges that he has "struggled to understand the concept" (p. 173). And many writings on the subject don't even attempt to define the term. To improve formative assessment practices among both teachers and assessment designers, we need to look more closely at just what feedback is—and isn't. What Is Feedback, Anyway? The term feedback is often used to describe all kinds of comments mad...

Thank you for your collective contribution to the discussion on Friday – it had me thinking about the power of collective thought which led to this article: Is Collective Intelligence Like Individual Intelligence? by Tom Atlee (2003). The article follows. The capacities I explore here are perception, communication, memory, reflection, problem-solving, creativity, implementation, and feedback. They are listed in a loose order (we perceive first, then think about what we saw, then implement what we decide, etc.). Keep in mind, however, that these capacities are not really separate or linear. Most of them are deeply involved in each other's functioning. But I think you will find it interesting to explore them separately with me here... PERCEPTION - Seeing, hearing, feeling, etc. -- these are different ways we absorb information from our environment, or gather it from within ourselves. This information is the foundation for everything we do with our intelligence. HOW DO WE DO THIS CO...

"2014 is the year the Web turns 25. Today, 19 August, marks the anniversary of Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, releasing the code of the WWW to the public by making the files available on the net via FTP (refer to the History of the World Wide Web for more details). Last March in Vancouver, Tim Berners-Lee gave a TED Talk: A Magna Carta for the Web , that was just released by the TED conference: These are extracted from his concluding remarks: What sort of web do you want? I want one which is not fragmented into lots of pieces, as some countries have been suggesting they should do in reaction to recent surveillance. I want a web which is, for example, a really good basis for democracy. I want a web where I can use healthcare with privacy and where there's a lot of health data, clinical data is available to scientists to do research. I want a web where the other 60 percent get on board as fast as possible. I want a web which is such a powerful basis for innova...

"...a practitioner (who) does not reflect, ... is inattentive to the limits of his actions." (Schön, 1982, p. 282). Schön argued that teaching is not "a method but an art". He postulated that the "artful teacher" will find a way to solve the problems of his students by looking at himself, stating that a teacher will invent new methods to "develop in himself the ability of discovering them". Schön put forward a novel approach, the idea of "reflection-in-practice" and "reflection-on-practice" in which the researcher becomes a part of the practice, allowing the proceedings of practice to continue, thereby confirming the legitimacy of the practice. This approach is based on the teacher demonstrating a "tacit knowing-in-action" which reflects an intuitive understanding of everyday actions. Schön suggested that the reflective practitioner endeavours to make sense of the issues which he or she encounters through the refle...

This term we will start on the three key focus points for students preparation for the examinations and the ending of the course programmes: Listening – listen to where your students are at in their examination preparation or in the course completion. Questioning – what do your students need, what are they asking for, and what questions are you asking them. Analysing - identifying, clarifying and developing solutions and answers to the questions – fine tuning the learning and the examination preparation. To analyse something is to ask what that something means. It is to ask how something does what it does or why it is as it is. Analysis is the kind of think-ink you'll most often be asked to do in your work life and in school; it is not the rarefied and exclusive province of scholars and intellectuals. It is, in fact, one of the most common of our mental activities. Most people already analyse all the time, but they often don't realize that this is what they're doing...

This term we will start on the three key focus points for students preparation for the examinations and the ending of the course programmes: Listening – listen to where your students are at in their examination preparation or in the course completion. Questioning – what do your students need, what are they asking for, and what questions are you asking them. Analysing - identifying, clarifying and developing solutions and answers to the questions – fine tuning the learning and the examination preparation. Communication is a difficult art. Good communication ensures that what is communicated is received in the same manner and tone as was intended, not merely as it was said. The key to good communication is context, i.e. the framework one communicates within. For example, a question may be made in class which each student may perceive very differently, as they will come from very different contexts or starting points. The secret of good communication is to take these differences in c...

This term we will start on the three key focus points for students preparation for the examinations and the ending of the course programmes: Listening – listen to where your students are at in their examination preparation or in the course completion. Questioning – what do your students need, what are they asking for, and what questions are you asking them. Analysing - identifying, clarifying and developing solutions and answers to the questions – fine tuning the learning and the examination preparation. Listening and learning: Some suggestions on how to identify those students who may struggle to listen and learn and to respond to your focus on their listening skills. You should also consider your own ways of interacting and the expectations you have of your students: it may be that changes on your part will enable them to feel they can communicate more readily. Take note of learners who: rarely or never volunteer in group situations appear to have low self-esteem or confidence ...

Graham Aitken on Developing an Inquiry Approach: "Teaching effectiveness is determined by the quality of inquiry into the relationship between teacher actions and student learning." Effective teachers inquire into the relationship between what they do (style) and what happens for students (outcomes). But effective teachers do more than simply inquire (or reflect) – they take action (in relation to what they are doing in the classroom) to improve the outcomes for students and continue to inquire into the value of these interventions. Thus effective teaching is more than style and it is more than outcomes – it is the continual interrogation of the relationship between these two dimensions with the aim of enhancing student achievement. Such a model implies particular attitudes or dispositions (open-mindedness, fallibility) and particular actions (questioning students about what they are understanding) but it does not prescribe or checklist such qualities. It simply prescribes...

This week – a Humanities response Where do you stand? Engage in the discussion. Humanities perspective is needed in all global challenges The key conviction around which the debate swirls is that the world desperately needs the insights of the humanities. Socio-economic progress, developmental challenges and the intelligent addressing of complex world issues require a combination of skills drawn from the humanities, social sciences and Stem subjects to design and deliver holistic and fully informed solutions. Increasingly, development agencies assert that technologically sound, engineering-based projects are failing because they don't take sufficient account of the cultural context. These projects, in concept, design and implementation, lack the human perspective that recognises that no global issue, developmental problem or socio-economic challenge can be fully understood, let alone resolved, without real evidence of how the local community and the rest of humanity are experiencin...

This information is gleaned from various sources that support the move towards a STEM focussed learning environment with an interesting website listed in the end. Where do you stand? Engage in the discussion. STEM Education The changing world economic conditions have placed pressure on all economies to re-examine their commitment to public science investment. The emphasis on supporting business expenditure on R&D has grown and there is increasing expectation that science will support economic recovery through addressing immediate industry and firm needs. A quality science education will be an absolutely critical part of this equation. What's at Stake? New Zealand will succeed in the global marketplace by doing what we do best, which is harnessing the talents and ingenuity of our people. This kind of innovation however isn't born in the boardroom or on the factory floor. It doesn’t begin in a basement workshop or a research laboratory. That’s where the payoff happens. It sta...

Reflective teaching means looking at what you do in the classroom, thinking about why you do it, and thinking about it is a process of self-observation and self-evaluation. We identify and explore our own practices and underlying beliefs. This may then lead to changes and improvements in our teaching. Why it is important? Many teachers already think about their teaching and talk to colleagues about it too. You might think or tell someone that "My lesson went well" or "My students didn't seem to understand" or "My students were so badly behaved today. "However, without more time spent focussing on or discussing what has happened, we may tend to jump to conclusions about why things are happening. We may only notice reactions of the louder students. Reflective teaching therefore implies a more systematic process of collecting, recording and analysing our thoughts and observations, as well as those of our students, and then going on to making changes. If a...

As a teacher you are a leader – where do you stand on these Five Factors? Five key leadership factors that are clearly more important in the future than in the past include: thinking globally, appreciating cultural diversity, demonstrating technological savvy, building partnerships and sharing leadership. Thinking Globally Globalization is a trend that will have a major impact on the leaders of the future Two factors that are seen as making global thinking a key variable for the future are the dramatic projected increases in global trade and integrated global technology. New technology is another factor that is going to make global thinking a requirement for future leaders. Appreciating Cultural Diversity As the importance of globalization increases, future leaders will also need to appreciate cultural diversity. They will have to understand not only the economic and legal differences, but also the social and behavioural differences that are part of working around the world. The appr...

Self-Managed Learning is about individuals taking the steps, without the assistance of others, in determining their learning needs, developing their learning goals, identify human and material resources for their learning, choosing and carrying out appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating their learning outcomes. Managing their own learning has meant that our students need to use a wide range of opportunities for earning. For example: Using their environment – sharing new knowledge, facilitating development of new understanding Feedback from teacher – this tells the student what she has achieved and gives specific or general guidance to help her improve her work. Coaching – seeking special training for practical skills to improve performance Mentoring – working with an experienced person who provides guidance and advice about the student's work Finds help with specific needs – these might include languages and numeracy, access might be needed for specialist intervention S...

The notion of participation is so well entrenched in the collective mind of the teaching profession that I wonder if we have not consciously stopped considering what we are after when we work with a class. (p. 15) Dennis Gioia thinks that most of us are after lots of different students answering and asking questions. It really feels good to see a substantial portion of the class joining in. Indeed, success at achieving class participation is a seductive sort of accomplishment—so seductive that it often leads to a de facto presumption that the class is successful simply because so many people are more actively involved in it. (p. 15) He's got a point. Sometimes it's so difficult to get anyone to participate, that on those days when there's a good amount of discussion, we can't help but feel the class is going well. But if our concern stops with the number of students who speak, we may be valuing quantity over quality. Gioia makes an interesting distinction between partic...

Four timeless elements that can enhance "the relating to the others competency" through learning relationships. 1. Consistent Communication Consistent communication is the most vital element as it serves to create a connection between the two. A teacher who understands the problems of his or her students and then shapes his or her teaching style in order to interact better with the student can see success, but this takes not simply observation, but communication. The more the teacher communicates well, the higher is the chance of fast and effective learning at the student's end. 2. An Emotionally-Safe Learning Space Creating an open learning environment where different opinions are equally respected and where there is no fear of ridicule from either one’s peers or the teacher is crucial for building good student teacher relationships. Students need to feel safe when asking questions, safe in the belief that they won’t be taunted or criticized and that their question or co...

Critical thinking is self-guided, self-disciplined thinking which attempts to reason at the highest level of quality in a fair-minded way. People who think critically consistently attempt to live rationally, reasonably, empathically. They are keenly aware of the inherently flawed nature of human thinking when left unchecked. They strive to diminish the power of their egocentric and sociocentric tendencies. They use the intellectual tools that critical thinking offers – concepts and principles that enable them to analyze, assess, and improve thinking. They work diligently to develop the intellectual virtues of intellectual integrity, intellectual humility, intellectual civility, intellectual empathy, intellectual sense of justice and confidence in reason. They realize that no matter how skilled they are as thinkers, they can always improve their reasoning abilities and they will at times fall prey to mistakes in reasoning, human irrationality, prejudices, biases, distortions, uncritica...

Our focus this term is on professional learning and curriculum review that is likely to lead to the sorts of changes we wish to make. It will be important to keep these complex systems dynamics in mind as we consider ways to shape learning networks to make desired outcomes more likely to be achieved. Five conditions that increase the likelihood that new insights will emerge in a complex network of learners: It is important to draw on diversity to access the power of collective thinking. While diversity of input is essential, redundancy also matters. There must be common ground where the people who are interacting can stand together and share the same vision. Control and authority must be able to be distributed across the group. Creating spaces for interaction is essential to the emergence of new insights and ideas. Somewhat paradoxically, setting a clear structure and boundaries around planned learning activities will make it more likely that the other four conditions can be met, but o...