"Where good ideas come from?"

The e-Learning Lead Team at Mt Roskill Grammar represent a number of learning areas and departments across the school.  Face-to-face time is one opportunity to connect and learn.

Today's agenda included many opportunities for conversations specifically targeted at sharing the impact of the team's teacher e-learning inquiries.

We kicked today off with this short clip by Steven Johnson, and shared some of the ideas that resonated with us on this collaborative Google doc.

"...we have so many new ways to connect, so many new ways to reach out and find other people...that's the real lesson of where good ideas come from, the chance favours the connected mind" 

(Steven Johnson)

Exploring the "Raw Materials of History"

Exploring primary sources or the "raw materials of history" provides students with an opportunity to examine the past free from the interpretations of others.  

(Library of Congress)

The following Google presentation has been created to explore strategies and resources for teaching and learning with primary sources. It also includes:

• strategies to support students to analyse primary sources 
• support for using analysis tools and Google docs for collaboration
• links to Google research and search tools for locating and organising data and information 
• support for creating and integrating Learning Paths in Digistore

The intention is to revisit and add to this resource in response to feedback and the evolution of further resources and web tools.



Click the 'open in a new window' icon above to view a full screen version

"Because context matters...inquiry is important"

 I have been fortunate in the past couple of months to have had opportunities to collaborate with teachers and colleagues focusing on a variety of educational contexts including: curriculum, pedagogy, e-learning, leadership and assessment.  Our conversations and thinking often include reference to Teaching as Inquiry (NZC and TMoA).

As we have explored examples of Teaching as Inquiry I have been reminded of a statement from Claire Sinnema that I referenced in an earlier post on this blog "Inquire with a Travelling Mindset" ...

"because context matters... 

inquiry is important"

 The New Zealand Curriculum Online describes the Teaching as Inquiry cycle as "an organising framework that teachers can use to help them learn from their practice and build greater knowledge."

While the framework provides us with a common understanding and language for inquiry into our pracitice, the context is what brings life to the inquiry and to the learning.

Context matters 

GTASYD11

GTA Team Swan - just received our GCT Certificates

View Doc

...to the power of three...now four!

For the past three years our professional learning networks have supported an e-learning un-conference in Auckland. Tagged EduCampNZ the success of our day of learning, links and laughs is truly down to the participation and energy of the educators who contribute before, during and after the actual event.

Update...to the power of three  four!

This year, thanks to enthusiastic participants in other regions, EduCampNZ will also be hosted in Wellington, Whangarei and Tauranga!

EduCampWelly: Wellington College, Saturday 21st May

EduCampTaiTokerau: Whangarei St. Francis Xavier Catholic School, 2nd July

EduCampAKL: Epsom Girls Grammar, Saturday 6th August
EduCampBOP: Tauranga School Support Services, Saturday 13 August 
 ...and then there were five!

 EduCampDunners: St Clair School, Dunedin, Saturday 27th August

Participants are also using social media to share and collaborate. 

Details of how you can participate and what to expect can be explored on the wiki including:

• images and video from previous years
• Twitter #tags for each venue
• opportunities to connect with participants & share your interests  

The focus is on e-learning and education, sharing ideas we've discovered and learning from each other. Everyone is invited to participate. The purpose of EduCampNZ is to both learn and contribute.

"Go with the flow, follow your passion, take responsibility for your own learning" (unconfernece.net)

Snapshots of Learning

A focus of the Digi Advisor roll this year has been the further development of the snapshots for the Software for Learning website. While the snapshots are intended as a taster to the software and digital content – an indication of how one teacher has recognised the potential to support learning, we also wanted to make explicit the links to e-learning and effective pedagogy and explore how the snapshots might be utilised by leaders to support professional learning.

Initially we reviewed the format of the snapshot to align with the teaching as inquiry cycle. While this provided us with consistency in both the format and framework for publication, the intention was to improve their potential as a catalyst for thinking and dialogue within our professional learning communities.  We considered the qualities of professional communities that promote teacher and student learning (Teacher Professional Learning and Development:BES. p.203) and have increasingly integrated the new snapshots into our online support and face-to-face facilitation to reinforce these.

As an e-learning facilitator I have also used the snapshots with our e-learning cluster to explore how teachers in other schools are integrating e-learning and the implications for teaching and learning. Additionally the links to the teaching as inquiry cycle  provide a useful framework for teachers to inquire into their practice. The cycle provides common points of reference in relation to effective pedagogy and teacher actions. This can be useful to support dialogue as teachers in a professional community also have diverse learners and consequently may have identified different professional learning outcomes from those of their colleagues.

"Because context matters...inquiry is important"
(Claire Sinnema)

Snapshots in the new format are continuing to be edited for the website and we would like to acknowledge and thank the teachers who have shared their teaching and their students' learning. Their collaboration on this project is both valued and appreciated. While the snapshots are accessible from the Software for Learning home page, links to the new snapshots have been saved as a group in the Software for Learning Delicious. Browse each of the snapshots using the arrow on the top right of the Delicious navigation bar. Teachers are invited to share their snapshots of learning, visit the wiki for details.

Click to enlarge

Celebrating 50 Years of Teacher Education

Howls of laughter today working with a teacher who is also a past T-Group buddy from our days at the Hamilton Teachers’ College.  Waikato's  Faculty of Education have been celebrating 50 years of teacher education and all our original photos have been posted on the Hamilton City Libraries website. We hadn't seen our T-Group photo since it was taken way back when!

"The library is promoting digital storytelling to create a digital library of arts, cultural and heritage resources to help create a digital knowledge basket of Hamilton memories for future generations to enjoy and everyone is invited to join the fun..."

...and we did have some fun today, testing our memories and sharing stories from our student days. If you attended Waikato's School of Education (formerly the Hamilton Teachers’ College) search the archives for student teachers as far back as 1960...I found mine...a chocolate fish if you can identify me ;-) Click photo to zoom.

Geocaching

Many thanks to Gerard and his students for inviting me to tag along last week on their Geocaching session at the Auckland Domain. Lots of learning and laughs, plus it was great to see Gerard's programme in action with the students.
Find out more about Geocaching and the Key Competencies on Software for Learning.

View on Flickr 

Crowd-sourcing...

...it might not work for everyone however crowd-sourcing, in the form of a 'Smackdown' has provided lots of learning and fun collaborations for us over the past couple of months. Back in June this year Dorothy, Rocky and I attended edubloggercon, an all-day unconference held before ISTE 2010. I was also on a bit of a recce for EduCampNZ where we included a Smackdown as a quick and effective way of connecting with people and ideas. Starting the day with this type of activity can be quite important for an un-conference, where the programme is developed on the day and there may be participants who are attending for the first time. We set up a Wallwisher and everyone was invited to contribute before, during and after EduCampNZ.

This can be quite important for an un-conference, where the programme is developed on the day. 

I was excited when Dorothy came up with the idea to try this out at uLearn10 this year even more so when I found out the theme was Apple Tools...a "sMACdown!"

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

The standard rules applied and this time Dorothy also created a GoogleSite and invited other Mac enthusiasts to contribute their tips to kick-off. A Wallwisher was posted for participants to add their tips and it was great to see how many were also added by people not attending the conference. We also tapped into Twitter using the conference hash tag #ulearn10 and #sMACdown

The Smackdown concept has worked for us in both an un-conference and traditional conference setting and we have been able to adapt to suit the context and purpose. From the feedback received it also seems to have worked well for the 'crowd' who at the end of the day are the reason why these types of collaborations are valuable.

If you participated or contributed...many thanks! The 'what the who and the how' can be accessed from the sMACdown Google site along with everyone's contributions.

If you are planning a Smackdown please share it with us...the crowd will be ready and waiting!

Can Digistore contribute to sustaining e-learning in your school?

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

In a recent Interface article David Kinane makes valuable recommendations for school leaders to consider if they are to develop sustainable e-learning models for their schools.

David specifically refers to the impact of teacher turnover and subsequent loss of knowledge suggesting that "ICT knowledge and skills should be actively collected and accumulated not randomly swapped."

"...good skill sets and a wealth of IP just walk out of the door" (David Kinane)

We have been exploring the possibilities within Digistore to create collaborative learning spaces. These include functions that can enable schools to develop and share resources and strategies both in and across schools. Using their school's current Digistore school login, teachers can develop Learning Paths that can also be shared publicly. The single sign in for educators (coming soon*) will also enable teachers to share resources between their school and their individual Digistore account. Consequently when a teacher leaves a school resources that have been developed are not lost to either the school or the individual teacher.

Harnessing tools for collaboration and sharing can also provide valuable opportunities for educators when planning and reflecting on their practice. This includes opportunities to model effective e-learning integration and develop sustainable procedures within schools that can lessen the impact of staff turn over.

These functions in Digistore include:
Learning Paths
A collection or sequence of learning content interwoven with teacher comments and descriptions. Learning Paths can be created and shared between schools, and publicly. This functionality enables educators to develop resources collaboratively and share within and across schools. Read more about Learning Paths on the Digistore wiki.
(see the Digistore User Guide, p.30)

Star Rating and Comments
Share knowledge on the value of Digistore content in relation to the New Zealand Curriculum. Rating content and sharing comments will support others to identify and select digital content more effectively. This will enable a collaborative understanding of the pedagogical value of content to grow both in and across schools.
Tags
Add your own tags to content to improve searches and highlight specific keywords and phrases relevant for use across the curriculum.
(see the Digistore User Guide, p.24-28)

*Watch the Digistore website and subscribe to the Diginews for updates on single sign in