By Allan Alach
Another week, ho hum. Easter break coming up so I hope all teachers
are planning for a ‘no school’ weekend!
I will help out by not compiling a readings list for next week!
 |
| Chris Hipkin |
The bright spot on the New Zealand education horizon has been the
speeches by Labour spokesperson for education, Chris Hipkins. As you’ll see by
this http://chrishipkins.org.nz/?p=1030 and this http://chrishipkins.org.nz/?p=1036
he is very much heading in the right direction.
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!
Bill
Gates' classroom of the future
One of life’s great mysteries is why a man
who made his fortune by through buying another company’s software (e.g. MS-DOS)
or ‘borrowing’ ideas from Apple (Windows) is now seen as an educational expert.
"Being
there physically doesn't add much value..."
Why
Students Learn Better in a Playful Environment
 |
| Learning through exploration |
Learning,
creativity, and problem solving are facilitated by anything that promotes a
playful state of mind.
To help cleanse your mind of the rubbish
from Gates, this article is written by someone who knows what he is talking
about.
Contemporary
Teaching Practice in the Era [Error] of NOPLAN
Australian Derek Hedgcock wrote this article
for The
Treehorn Express. While it’s focussed, on the first instance, on
Australia, there is so much of value for all teachers, and is a very powerful
rebutting of the Gates’ led nonsense about ‘teaching.’ If you only have time to
read one article from this week’s listing, this
is THE ONE.
The Exhaustion of the American Teacher
And the Australian
teacher and the New Zealand teacher and the English teacher…. some home truths
here that all teachers will relate to; however good luck in trying to get
politicians to accept these!
The
problem finders (via Bruce Hammonds)
 |
| Ewan McIntosh |
‘ICOT 2013 keynote speaker Ewan McIntosh explains the
thinking processes used by many creative professionals and how these can create
dynamic and deeper thinking that will better equip students for their future.’
This is an excellent
video to watch - set aside an hour or so, and enjoy.
There
Are No Best Practices (via Bruce)
One particularly tiresome piece of jargon is
‘best practices.’ When you really ponder
on this, you’ll realise it’s as empty as ‘raising achievement,’ ‘school
effectiveness’ and so on. Suggestion - every time you catch yourself using
these kind of phrases, consider them to see what they mean, if anything and ask
yourself why you’re using them?
Heads Up, America! Your Schools Are in Danger (via
Bruce)
Another chance to play ‘spot the
similarities.’ As most of the GERM agenda comes from USA, we all need to pay
close attention to events there, as we can be sure that variations will arrive
in our backyard before too long.
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