ULearn07 Notes
Pre-conference – Ewan McIntosh
2 10 2007
Web 2.0 tools with Ewan McIntosh
Pre-Conference Workshop
WOW, what a head spin or a mindf*ck as it was put to us! 
This was an amazing day learning and experimenting with a range of web2.0 tools that Ewan presented to us. It’s amazing looking at whats out there and available for us to use. It once again brings up that question of “What do I use?”
I left today with an Action Plan. I plan to return to school and implement the 5 frame storytelling as a motivator for my kids. I was really impressed with the way what seem like
simple things such as flickr can transform into more indepth opportunities. I am keen to get back and start taking photos to add to the classroom displays area on flicker for my own professional development. For my classroom the 5 frame story group is awesome and I can already see a wealth of opportunities based around this and our topic of bookmaking this term.
One of the biggest thing I am taking aboard is that what my kids are creating need an audience.
That audience isn’t just our class or the class next door. It’s a worldwide audience! I can already see the way that this would motivate my students to push their work to a new level.
Many of my kids noted that they would like to write more for their audience in their goals for the upcoming term. The opportunities that have been presented to me today to curate this learning with my kids is boundless. Stay posted…
Keynote Day 2 – Helen Baxter
3 10 2007
Today is Day 2 and I am sitting with a open mind waiting to be questioned and question myself.
It starts today with the keynote Helen Baxter, here are my notes.
Personal learning pathways -
Mindmeister – online colloboration tool
Educating the new Leonardo’s
* Renaissance 2.0
* Collective will and community – the social tools we have around us will allow this
* The need for more innovators and creative types.
“The New Leonardo’s”
Multidisciplinary connections and studies
NESTA UK - projects
Continuously reworking what we know and learn as we don’t know what we need to learn yet.
Instil the joy of learning – play, engage
How do we provide these tools and skills in our kids?
Open Source Attitude
* Learn
* Develop
* Share
* Connect
* Innovate
Cross pollination of ideas and concepts
Specialisation – reskill/readjust not just specialise in one key area
Every learner learning they way that they want.
Avoid specialisation too early?
TED.com – check this out for tonnes of great videos
Well it has to be said that I lost it with this presentation. What we are here and saying about what the kids use and all the technologies open to us the use of a mind map for an hour to stare at just didn’t really cut it for me. Especially in comparison to yesterdays Keynote. So many ‘wonderful’ websites and examples were SHOWN to us in text but not in the flesh – why couldn’t we see these excellent examples?!
Breakout 3 – Mark Treadwell
3 10 2007
Competencies – The New Curriculum
5 themes ERO not coverage
Metacognition: Most people aren’t thinking about their own thinking
Recommended Reading:
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
Malcolm Gladwell
See Mark Treadwells Book List
Scientific American Mind Magazine
Competencies – Mark Treadwell’s Website
Teaching students the language sets around thinking – how can we ask students to explain their thinking when they don’t have the vocabulary.
Don’t assess – ask the kids to reflect on their own comptentencies.
eAstle project – 29 trial schools
Data compiled by students not the teachers.
Sustainability of ideas…
Intangible to assess on the competencies
- how do we give a B for thinking? What elements of thinking are we giving a B?
Difference between competence and capability.
competences are more value based: thinking skills/attitude
capabilities are what we expect to see from the competencies
abstract – competence / tangible – capability
child reflection on their own competence – writing in their own manner as a child as a family would comprehend
Students reflecting and writing their reflections gives more insight.
Competence is the richer of the 2 – competence/capability
Thinking incorporates discovery and creativity. The nature of being human and not robotic.
Personalising Learning: How do you describe this?
how/what/why/who is front of us – we need to reverse this system of planning.
what data is going to inform me about the type of learner that is in front of me?
we first need to look at WHO IS IN FRONT OF US – looking at the data we have in front of us.
knowledge to build concepts then this gives you the capacity to do things
*Sharing the learning intention -
clear learning intentions
inquiry learning – the technology process
** Reflect, review, iterate
prelim knowledge
key-essential questions
subsidary questions
advocacy
“discover” process plan
research process
synthesis of ideas
presentation of ideas
share new understanding
action
** challenges:
FIRST 3 years
reflect
wondering – idea recognition – discovery – sharing
through chatter
Years 4 – onwards
reflect and sharing
wondering – idea recognition – research – discovery – sharing
Just in time – solving problems
paradigm shift in education because the lack of resource
Learner dispositions
* being curious, imaginative and passionate
* to think laterally
* being metacognitive
* to be aware of the “big picture”
* being in/inter/dependent, critical thinkers
* willing to modify and adapt our world view
* Able to provide reasons
* to act in a responsible, caring manner
* being capable and willing to be strategic
* to be persistent
The shift in the learning paradigm is a big shift – we are shifting a culture.
We need to work on the whole culture not just bits.
andagogy – teacher as a coach
* Language Sets – John West-Burnham
Scroll down to language sets
Solo taxonomy
concepts within a multitude of contexts not just one or the same one.
teaching same skill in multiple contexts you become adaptable.
Veronica and Cathis – ICT PD Journey
4 10 2007
Silverstrean ICT PD cluster – * Cathie Stenhouse and Veronica Sawers – Silverstream.blogspot.com
shift -in paradigm/thinking click – onto new ideas etc fast forward – rollercoaster
teaching teachers that ict is a tool including it in all area
its not a matter of Its too hard – but it is what my kids need to survive in the 21stC
catering to the needs – workshops for about half an hour – different skills – simple – cards etc -
OSCARS at the end of the year to celebrate – serious and funny – kept attendance for the workshops – not mandatory -
ICT mentors – teacher in charge of 3 or so teachers to help them
Self-directed learning Students timetabling their day timetabling events – on friday they get a blocked out timetable with blocked out whole school/class or syndicate events certain things where things were to be collected
* sharon fresian * jeremy cadiant (sp?) -
Digikids
it doesn’t work first time – just keep going ethos
Inquiry Process
* S Model – SILVER ** Saturate – Inquirings – Learning and Searching – Voyaging – Educating Others – Reflection
Allows curiosities to drive the curriculum
A CHANGE – A sage on the stage to a guide on the side the basic skills needed more focus – skimming, scanning, note taking etc (similar to ours) information skills, thinking, ongoing review of the stages
- children reviewing the stages in class (own class notes and tweeks)
review – thinking skills programe to run along side the
thinkers keys – yr 3 upwards 6 thinking hats
junior skills program – using keyboard, cut and paste, all the basics rubrics for assessment
flat stanley blog – cathie
modelling as lead teachers highlighting those who make changes and using them eds.com cat herder ad
Making Your Podcast More Pro – Ewan McIntosh
4 10 2007
Ewan McIntosh – Breakout 5
* A mish mash of formats – change of structure.
* 2min 53 seconds is average listening time
* coolhunting.com vidcast – cut and paste
* USB logitech microphones
* Always get kids to use the desktop to save things to
* create a vox pops
* Not a yes or no question – if so – have another question to follow up
Using Audacity
* stager – opening
* free sounds
* soundsnap.com
Squish tool (hour glass)
* click four times along the sound
* then pull down the areas you want to keep.
Shift click to project and make a quick mix – will collapse the tracks selected into one track.
* vox pops – voice from the street
* Media Literacy
editing
* highlight and click delete
* Audacity automatically moves people together
Sock
* over the mic to filter out the lip smacks and pops
intro & music – context for vox pop – outro & music
Different contexts
* Phone in
* Interview
mcintosh
* vox pops
* atmos – the amosphere in the same place
Record a minute of noise and repeat this so that the sound at the back is the same.
Different atmos – planes/cars/street etc
* audio hijack
* interviews – ask loads of questions
* keep the final interview short – four questions max.
this asks them to ask what the most important is
* Listen in
find podcasts – analyse and copy and paste the ideas you like
what worked?
what didn’t?
find a routine for a podcast – cleaning the classroom
developing media literacy skills
PLAN YOUR ATTACK
time limits
decide subject matter
planning a show
recording voices
finding music
editing – 40% of the whole process
in-class premiere
online launch
2 stars and a wish
for journals
2 good things and something to improve
all about fun but putting structures in place help develop those media skills.
Karen Boyes – Habits Of Mind
4 10 2007
Why Habits of Mind?
* Transdisciplinary
* As good for adults as they are for students
* Focused on a range, enduring, essential learnings
Sharing The Vision
* Several staff meetings – sharing the vision of the students – What will they look like when they leave?
* Develop the vision of where we want to head? Where do we want our students to be?
Metacognition development – 1/2 to 2/3 of people only metacognate
Often the gifted and talented student
Striving For Accuracy
* Striving for the key element – the crafting of accuracy
Indigo Children – Reading
Crystal Children
To know a wine you must drink it.. – art costa
you must be able to put your senses in and involve them in your class.
Exploring – Rudolph Steiner – 12 senses
12 senses more in-depth
Taking Responsible Risks
Entreprenurs – majority of them are responsible risk takers
embrace them – these are the risk takers/problem solvers/the ones to do things a different way.
These risk takers need to take risks in a RESPONSIBLE way and be given the opportunity to do so
Thinking interdependently
4 Academic Success – Marcia and Amanda
* Persisting
* Thinking about Thinking
* Taking Responsible risks
* Listening with understanding and empathy
4 Academic Success proven through studies – Karen (these aren’t the most important but what studies show)
* Persisting
* Managing Impulsivity
* Striving for accuracy and persisting
* Metacognition – thinking about thinking
Mangaging Impulsivity
Frog – blurts
Owl – is wise and thinks first
We are learning to manage our impulsivity by being more like an owl, not like a frog. Think before you act!
M&M lesson of graphing colours – manage impulsivity
Rubric
Independent – Owl
Usually Independent – half owl/half frog
Sometimes Independent – Mainly frog – little owl
Independent frog
Students write the rubric
Teacher focus – Where am I on the rubric?
The average teacher waits 1 second after calling on a student, either answering a question him/herself or asking another ques.
M. B., Rowe
In a moment, but not quite yet…
Processing time – give them time to process what you are asking
7-10 seconds processing time for students
Striving For Accuracy
C3B4Me – for marking
Alot of power to the buddy teacher
No teacher marking -
Definition of insanity – do the sane thing and expect a different result
Same thing with teacher marking – students don’t go back and check the ones wrong – oh i’ve past – finished
SKIM MARKING
There are 4 errors on this page – go back and find them.
Don’t list all of them wrong if they are all wrong – give them a lower number
Thinking and Communicating with clarity and precision
Labelling thinking skills and process – we are dumbing down the vocabulary
this is important – if we want this culture in our school – use the language
Using the language sets if we want our kids to do these thinking skills
COMPARE, ANALYSE etc
Metacognition
TAPS – Think aloud problem solving
Pose a challenging problem and then go through a process
1. Plan 2. Share their thinking 3. Reflect and Evaluate
A majority of the learning happens in the reflecting!
Sustaining and Engaging Metaognition
1. Check for accuracy
2. clarify
3. provide data not answers
4. resist making judgements
5. stay focused on thinking
6. encourage peristence
Teachers Questioning of the student in this process is important – not to answer it for them but guide their thinking
how do you know thats right? how did you work that out?
Thinking Dialogue
Thinking buddies
* create your own thinking toy (stuffed toy etc)
work through these steps
* talk aloud to your buddy and it talks to you
* think to your buddy and it thinks back
* get rid of your buddy and think to yourself
Authentic Writing through metacognition – journal reflections and writing
thinking about what I know about… e.g. the number 100 etc
Creating, innovating and imagining
Steiner – start teaching reading and writing at 7yrs
TV stiffling creativity – replaying aspects of tv e.g. will play transformers but not creative past this
ASTRA – Creative play
Wonderment and Awe
How can we create a community using the Habits Of Mind
Signals in the school environment
* mottoes
* recognitions
* acronyms
Not just the talk and the signs – it’s ingrained in the school
Slogans/Posters/Create an environment of thinking
What you are speaks so loudly, they can’t hear what you say – Ralph Waldo Emerson
karen@spectrumeducation.com
Tony Ryan
Tony Ryan
what 3 main concepts/processes and ideas are you most likely to take further?
will they measurably enhance your students learning?
will they support your present great practices?
can you pay respect to your self while implementing them?
3 main concepts
* wider audience
* reflection/meta-cognition
Putting it into practice
* what could you do?
* What WILL you do?
* How and when willyou do this?
* How will you maintain success?
How can you stay inspired throughout this ongoing learning?
Systems and schools
Classrooms
YOU
Inspiration – Enthusiasm – Passion – Purpose – Spirit
Inspiration at the school and system level
* Practice ‘abandonment’
* Understand that you ARE the system
* Develop sustainable practices
- work out what works for you and is sustainable for you
* Create green light environments – see Tony Ryan notes above
Inspiration at the classroom level
* Promote Intellectual Rigour
* Encourage inquiry-based learning
* Be explicit
* Help students to create solutions
- solutions at 3 levels – personal / local / global
- personal – sorting out personal solutions
- local – at a local level – our environment around us
- global – the world around us – not just saying “oh thats crap” but “what can we do about it? how are we going to help?”
Students against landmines is an example of this
School aid
global ideas.org
Second life
What is Second Life?
Inspiration in your First Life
* Who do you know who is truly inspiring?
* Why is that person so inspiring?
* What’s your score for ATTITUDE?
- Mark your attitude at roll call out of 5..?
Inspiring in your first life
* Maintain high energy levels
- It’s not hard work that tires us out
- It’s negtive work that tires us out
- People make energy choices in their lives
- Energy creators
- Energy Neutrals
- Energy Consumers
(Brighouse and Woods, cited Fullans, 1998)
High Energy – Physical / Mental / Spiritual
Experiencing the FLOW of achievement every day!
Your own energy…
Q. Is it possible to be inspiring most (all) of the time?
Q. If your answer is NO, is it simly because you are resigned to your past neutral pathways?
Celebrate??!!!
Mexican Sky Dancers
Change the World
The Ripple Effect
* How inspired are YOU by education?
* Teaching is the most important profession on the planet
* Your influence is profound
* The power of the ripple effect
*
1 comment.
Simon
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