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| Bill Guild's classroom - see the last readings |
Education
Readings
By Allan Alach
I welcome suggested articles, so if you come across a gem, email
it to me at allanalach@inspire.net.nz
Now
What: Recovering from the Standards Era
‘The
damage caused by the National Standards policy of the previous government will
not be easily undone. The side effects have had somewhat of a cancerous
impact on our education system, and a careful approach will be needed in order
to support teachers through this next transition.’
The
end of National Standards and the role of researchers and academics
Article by Professor Martin Thrupp, one of the loudest academic
voices who battled against
national standards.
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| Enuf measuring - time to taste the apple |
‘It’s
great, though, that New Zealand primary schools will now be able to spend less
time shoring up judgements about children – judgements that have often
been pointless or harmful – and instead spend more time making learning
relevant and interesting for each child. Removing National Standards should
also allow teachers to be less burdened, contributing to making teaching a more
attractive career again.’
Longworth
Forest selected as part of Finnish "HundrED’s 100 Global Education
Innovations Project”
‘Longworth
Forest was established in Poraiti, Napier, in 2014 by Linda and Bruce Cheer,
and seeks to provide children 5 - 7 years of age with safe and semi structured
opportunities to experience risk and challenge, to problem solve and
enterprise, all at the child’s own pace. It is a child led approach which gives
children the power to initiate and drive their own learning, to make meaningful
choices and to discover and develop their interests. Through regular outdoor
play, children learn to develop positive relationships with themselves and
others as well as a bond with nature and an understanding of their place in the
natural world.’
My
Students Are Addicted to Screens
Teaching
kids real maths
‘I've
been doing some research about teaching mathematics, and decided to start by
reading and l have been listening to the thoughts of the British technologist Conrad
Wolfram, who for a number of years has been arguing that we need to rebuild a
maths curriculum for the computer age and that students should be calculating
"just like everyone does in the real world". His argument is
that school maths is very disconnected from the maths used to solve problems in
the real world, and that it needs to be more practical, more conceptual and
less mechanical.’
A
Troubling Side Effect of Praise
‘Teachers
often use praise to reward good behavior or correct answers. But there’s a
potential downside to this common choice: Praising young children for being
smart can increase the likelihood that they’ll cheat, according to a new study
in Psychological Science by an international team of researchers.’
Contributed by Bruce Hammonds:
Are
We Innovating, or Just Digitizing Traditional Teaching?
‘A
few months ago, I noticed an increased amount of discussion around the notion
of blended learning. Many of these conversations started on a similar note: “We’re blended—all of our teachers
use Google Classroom” (or Edmodo, Schoology, Canvas, Moodle, etc.). However, in
probing further, I often discovered that these tools had merely digitized
existing content and classroom procedures.’
10
Tips for Creating a Fertile Environment for Kids’ Creativity and Growth
‘There’s
a common misconception that the best way to encourage children’s creativity is
simply to get out of the way and let them be creative. Although it’s certainly
true that children are naturally curious and inquisitive, they need support to
develop their creative capacities and reach their full creative
potential.Supporting children’s development is always a balancing act: how much
structure, how much freedom; when to step in, when to step back; when to show,
when to tell, when to ask, when to listen.’
Why
Learning and People Should Come First
‘My
primary objective for all multiday workshops is to illustrate the vital role
that technology can play in improving teaching, learning, and leadership.
Most of the first day is spent on emphasizing the importance of a pedagogy
first, technology second mindset. The bottom line is that if we don’t get the
instructional design right first, then the chances of technology improving
learning outcomes is slim to none.’
From Bruce’s ‘goldie
oldies’ file:
The transformative Power of Interest : Annie Murphy Paul -
Dan Pink and Carol Dweck
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| Anne Murphy |
‘If there is just one message I could share with parents,
educators, and managers, it would be about the transformative power of
interest.’ Annie Murphy Paul.
The development of every student’s unique set of talents and gifts is the
challenge for a 21stC of education and so far few schools have yet to
appreciate this challenge.’
The rise and fall and rise again of teacher expertise
‘Schools need to be seen as 'professional learning
communities' that respect creative teachers as true co-leaders with ‘principals
who can develop such learning communities can create creative schools with
extraordinary teachers, and make learning stretching, creative, fun and
successful.’ A new sense of excitement could well be on the horizon. Only those
who have been around long enough will know this sense of possibility is not new
– but this time perhaps the time is right?’
Back to the future.
‘Twenty five years after retiring Bill Guild ( currently 91
and still an enthusiast) has been invited back to his old school to share his
ideas about quality teaching and learning. It is a half a century since Bill
took up his appointment at the school.. Tapping into the wisdom of the past is
a powerful idea - and it turns out Bill's wisdom is very current .Bill was part
of a small group of Taranaki teachers who worked hard to develop creative
classrooms in the 1970s.’
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| Bill complied a marvellous booklet for the school reunion |
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