The Future of Learning depends on teachers who are passionate about learners and skilled at their craft, who also see themselves as learners. Where learning is more about change than knowledge acquisition. When I speak or facilitate workshops about the future of learning and the disruptions we are facing today, I often sense angst inContinueContinue reading “The Future of Learning: Teachers as perpetual learners”
Category Archives: Professional Learning
Learning Design: Creating the ‘need to know’
Over the last few months I have appreciated working with future-focused educators and school designers in Australia and Asia exploring ideas around designing learning and learning environments that support engagement. The essence of the keynotes and workshops I have presented is the future of learning, I see this as the pointy end of human growth.ContinueContinue reading “Learning Design: Creating the ‘need to know’”
Teachers as designers of learning: Step 1 Empathy
How might we support the individual student growth and achievement so that learning is personal and differentiated? Design thinking, a collaborative and participatory process, is useful in finding unique and creative solutions to complex problems. It provides a way for non-designers to co-design or co-create their way through a problem, shifting between convergent and divergentContinueContinue reading “Teachers as designers of learning: Step 1 Empathy”
Meet Sophie: Her future is our challenge.
This is Sophie. She’s an Aussie kid. I often talk about Sophie in my workshops. I want to help make learning and the learning environment relevant to Sophie’s today and tomorrow. What do I mean by ‘relevant’? It means ‘appropriate to the current time, period, or circumstances’. For Sophie, it is looking at the opportunities,ContinueContinue reading “Meet Sophie: Her future is our challenge.”
7 steps to differentiated learning through empathy: Walking in their shoes
Being able to differentiate learning is considered important for enabling engaged and empowered learners. Approaches such as project-based, problem-based and enquiry-based learning are vehicles that can support differentiation, but there is greater benefit when the design of learning is overlaid with empathy, seeking to gain an understanding of student motivation and concerns. This post containsContinueContinue reading “7 steps to differentiated learning through empathy: Walking in their shoes”
Recalibrating the Thinking-Doing Balance for Educators
Why up to half of all Australian teachers are quitting within five years I read this article with concern. It asserts that the work load for young teachers leaves no time for ‘a life’ and there needs to be a greater allocation for planning and collaboration with colleagues within the school day. Now, my ownContinueContinue reading “Recalibrating the Thinking-Doing Balance for Educators”
Growing a professional learning community in your school: ONE thing that you need first.
Effective and lasting change in schools, or any organisation for that matter, is a result of a strategic process, designed to meet the needs of the school, rather than ‘sending a couple of teachers off to a workshop’. When I first started at SCIL we decided to run workshops on a variety of educational topics, such as ‘LearningContinueContinue reading “Growing a professional learning community in your school: ONE thing that you need first.”
It’s time to rethink pre-service and early career teachers… We want them to stay!
In the second week of the new school year in Australia the Grattan Institute, an independent think tank, released the report Engaging Students – Creating classrooms that improve learning. It is important to consider the holistic environment that promotes learning and engagement in students. Student behaviour and the choices that they make are critical toContinueContinue reading “It’s time to rethink pre-service and early career teachers… We want them to stay!”
5 reasons why cultivating creativity in a crazy world is a non-negotiable
Many have watched Brene Brown’s TED talks on the Power of Vulnerability and Listening to Shame. Last week I was travelling down the rabbit warren of finding a new e-book on Amazon, when I came across Brene Brown’s The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who YouContinueContinue reading “5 reasons why cultivating creativity in a crazy world is a non-negotiable”
Happy teachers matter: Seven things school leaders can do to create the optimal culture
What are some of the things that make us happy in our work? A sense of a job well done Confidence in our abilities Great people to work with Feeling valued for our efforts Being heard and understood In March 2015 the OECD released a report from the International Summit on the Teaching Profession: SchoolsContinueContinue reading “Happy teachers matter: Seven things school leaders can do to create the optimal culture”
culture | learning | design 