Education Readings - Reflections/last reading for 2014

By Allan Alach

This will be last list of readings for this year. I’ll be taking a break until the end of January, but then will return, fully refreshed, to the fray.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Forget about education, schooling, GERM, etc and focus on what really matters - on yourself and those near and dear to you.

I welcome suggested articles, so if you come across a gem, email it to me at allan.alach@ihug.co.nz.

This week’s homework!

What’s Lost as Handwriting Fades

A couple of week’s back I posted a link to an article about Finland’s intention to downplay the teaching of handwriting. Here’s another perspective.

“But psychologists and neuroscientists say it is far too soon to declare handwriting a relic of the past. New evidence suggests that the links between handwriting and broader educational development run deep.”

http://nyti.ms/1wLMLpR

This week’s contributions from

Bruce Hammonds:

Dan Pink: How Teachers Can Sell Love of Learning to Students

Bruce’s comment: An interesting look at education from Daniel Pink. Selling the love of learning. Since learning is the inborn default mode you have to wonder where it went!

“In his new book To Sell is Human, author Daniel Pink reports that education is one of the fastest growing job categories in the country. And with this growth comes the opportunity to change the way educators envision their roles and their classrooms. Guided by findings in educational research and neuroscience, the emphasis on cognitive skills like computation and memorization is evolving to include less tangible, non-cognitive skills, like collaboration and improvisation.”

http://bit.ly/1AyOOuG

Igniting Student Writer Voice With Writing Process Strategies

Bruce’s comment: Help students discover the power of writing.

“Learning how to write can be further challenging when a student lacks confidence in his or her skills as a writer. How we mediate student perception of writing is as important as teaching the skills. Using diverse strategies via the writing process, any teacher can ensure that when a student struggles to write, a different approach is readily available.”

http://bit.ly/1DAwK9a

7 Ways to Use Technology With Purpose

Bruce’s comment: Using technology with purpose – is technology still oversold and underused?

“In order to make sure you are using technology the right way, you must first “start with why”. If your students understand the “why” behind your technology use, then the class will have a purpose and technological glitches and issues can be worked through. If they don’t understand the “why” then any small issue could turn into a major problem.”

http://bit.ly/13t3QYZ

Outlook on instruction: Class around the clock

Bruce’s comment: An interesting overview of educational trends for 2015. Worth reading to see how things might unfold in the US.

“Some exciting advancements are on the horizon for classrooms in 2015. While they sound technical, the biggest changes aren’t going to be driven by an app, a computer program or a new kind of tablet—they will come from new theories about how to engage both students and teachers in the classroom.”

http://bit.ly/1GKL9vM

Provocations for Early Childhood Education

Bruce’s comment: Just read a few of the postings on this blog to remind us of the kind of childhood we used to have and what the young need today – an exploratory childhood  based on play - that some characterise as ‘benign neglect’.

 “Just today I really started to piece more things together, to see the connections to who I was as a child and who I am now as an early childhood education practitioner.  My passion for envisioning, creating and enhancing spaces for children is most definitely genetic first, then fueled by my studies and work with children, and set ablaze by 16+ years of exploring/applying lessons from the Reggio Approach - that whole nature versus nurture thing.”

http://bit.ly/1syHkJk

Declaring your incompetence

Bruce’s comment: Some good advice if you really want to be a learner.

“What I find time and time again in my work with people is that the hardest part of the learning journey or of making changes is the admission of the inability to do something or of the struggle. Once that step has been taken the process is usually simple, if not easy. Surrendering to the learning journey by declaring one’s incompetence is the doorway to beginning to change.”

http://bit.ly/1J1fiuU

Tinkering Is Serious Play

Bruce’s comment: Making things is very serious play – back to the real basics of learning.

“The maker movement celebrates creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship through the design and construction of physical objects. Maker activities may come across as playful, even slightly wacky, explosions of inventiveness. But in education contexts like schools, museums, libraries, and after-school programs, research shows that if the invitation to creativity is accompanied by intentional structure and guidance, maker activities can be channeled to support deep student learning.”

http://bit.ly/1BXevsY

Passion-based learning in the 21st century: An interview with Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach

Bruce’s comment: This article/interview with Sheryl Nussbaum- Beach really resonates with me.  Really good advice for teachers who want to equip their students for the future.

“In this interview, Sheryl describes the “shift” she believes must take place in teaching and learning practices if elementary and secondary schools expect to remain relevant in an era when information and communication technologies will continue to expand exponentially.”

http://bit.ly/1Gs5vvH

To Advance Education, We Must First Reimagine Society

Contributed by Bruce’s colleague Wayne Morris.

“Because disaffection with the education system reflects a much deeper societal malaise, it’s imperative that we first figure out what kind of world we really want: a world populated by responsible adults who thrive on interdependence and community, or a world of “customers” who feel dependent on products, services, and authority figures, and don’t take full responsibility for their actions?”

http://bit.ly/1BXfM3b

Practices to Engage All Learners

Bruce’s comment: How to engage learners – a more important issue than  current obsession testing and a narrow orientated accountability.

“Teaching students who are at risk requires energy, dedication, talent, and commitment. These exemplary educators consistently and continuously remain connected and engaged with their students. By keeping their students' needs, interests, talents, and learning styles in the forefront, these teachers successfully reach and educate the students who need them most.”

http://bit.ly/1qZaJvj

From Bruce’s ‘oldies but goodies’ file:

Environmental awareness for pre-schoolers - from 'On Looking' by Alexandra Horowitz

Bruce’s comment: The above article made me think of this excellent book about exploring your environment through a range of perspectives.

“For many of us our experience walking is un-remembered because we  fail to pay attention and we miss the possibility of seeing what is in plain sight of us.”

http://bit.ly/1xo3Ndi

Learning from outdoor play

Water play

Following on, Bruce draws attention to this ‘oldy but goody’ blog about creating in early education an environment for the young to learn through play.

“Young children are programmed by evolution to learn from their experiences. By the time they arrive at school they have already developed the ability to walk, talk, draw, ask questions and develop theories about everything.Teachers need to build on such achievements and do nothing to blunt the amazing curiosity young children bring with them. Classroom environments, at all levels, should celebrate students’ interests, questions, and their theories.”

http://bit.ly/1uSlCeI

We have lost so much over the past 50 years. We need to return leadership back to creative teachers.

“In recent years the myth of the principal as the key to school transformation became persuasive and as result the principal's status has gone up commensurably. Crowther questions this myth, believing that the reality has not lived up to the rhetoric. The so called 'heroic leader' may effect short term change but all too often this is a temporary transformation.”

http://bit.ly/14oaM8E

Reflection on my teaching beliefs

Bruce’s comment: unfortunately we still haven’t escaped the surveillance and audit culture!

“Recently I read an article by educationalist Andy Hargreaves who wrote about 'Four Ways' of educational change since the 1960s. His thoughts reflected many of the thoughts about educational changes that have concerned me over the years. It is obvious that what 'officially counts' in education is driven by forces beyond the classroom. The creativity of the 60s that 'emerged' out of the decade of security following the Second World War, is a good example and was when my education journey, or story, began.”

http://bit.ly/1zeOfrA

Criteria for a quality Classroom.

Bruce’s comment: It’s a bit late for Southern Hemisphere teachers to do much about the ideas in the blog as most schools have closed for the year but it might be worthwhile reflecting about the ideas about criteria for a quality classroom and maybe keep in mind for the new year? The only things I would add to the list of quality learning criteria is that

Artwork represents endpoint of student research - year 5/6

quality classrooms have moved away from the use of demeaning ability grouping and have ‘reframed’ literacy and numeracy as an integral component of class inquiry studies.

http://bit.ly/1J1gfU7

Fundamentals in education

Bruce’s comment: 

 On re-reading this I  was struck by how little my basic beliefs have remained unchanged over the decades –  at the core of my beliefs is the simple idea of the importance of the creative mind continually responding to experience - continually reshaping itself as it goes. It is strange how ideas re-emerge as today I wrote a blog which had the same message – that how the brain ( one’s

1970s booklet

identity) is unconsciously shaped by the culture it is exposed to and that we ought to be focussing on the culture we create as teachers rather than being side-tracked by accountability demands. Earlier today  I re-discovered a booklet I put together  in 1970 about the kind of creative teaching of a group of teachers I worked  had developed. Once again  this booklet still reflects my current beliefs.  It is almost that, over the decades, in the process of coping with imposed compliance demands, I have been forced to dance to others tunes and in the process compromised my beliefs.  I have the feeling I have come full circle. Let the others comply if they wish – let’s stick to what we really believe in.

http://bit.ly/13b5vRO