"How to bring our schools out of the 20th Century" was the title of an article in TIME in December 2006. It featured a more recent take on the Rip Van Winkle fairy tale. After 100 years of slumber, Rip wakes in the first decade of the 21st century. As he walks the streets, observing the citizens of the dayContinue reading "(Pedagogy + Place) & (Rhetoric + Reality) in learning space design: A decade of dialogue"
Shifting the practice of education from polite cooperation to purposeful collaboration
Cooperation or collaboration? In lists of the various ‘Cs’ of the 21st century ‘collaboration always seems to make an appearance. In this past week I worked with a group of educators, looking at agile learning spaces, thinking about how we need to work to ensure engaged learning for students in these spaces. The necessity ofContinue reading "Shifting the practice of education from polite cooperation to purposeful collaboration"
How open learning space can work for introverts, extroverts & ambiverts: D.A.R.E.
Let me give you a snapshot of myself. I like people, I enjoy conversation. I am quite comfortable in settings where I don’t necessarily know anyone. I don’t find it difficult to strike up a conversation with a new person. I’m fairly confident communicating with small and large groups. I actually enjoy a goodContinue reading "How open learning space can work for introverts, extroverts & ambiverts: D.A.R.E."
The impact of noise on learning in open & shared spaces: 4 questions to ask
Why do we have smoke alarms? We can see smoke, we can smell smoke. Why isn't that enough? Hearing is the most reliable sense, because ‘our ears are always on’. We will wake up to the alarm, but not the smell and “it is the only sense that is reliable when we sleep”. (Oseland andContinue reading "The impact of noise on learning in open & shared spaces: 4 questions to ask"
Psychoacoustics of learning environments: A people-centred approach to noise
As I write, it’s a rainy day. Our small apartment is on the top level of the building, located on a semi-busy road. Not a highway nor a freeway, more of a connection between suburbs. I’m quite used to the steady stream of traffic noise and today, as it’s raining, so there is the addedContinue reading "Psychoacoustics of learning environments: A people-centred approach to noise"
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 ‘LearningContinue reading "Growing a professional learning community in your school: ONE thing that you need first."
School Education: A both/and solution? Standards & accountability AND joy & creativity
I'm a big picture, solutions-focused kind of person. I love solving problems and making things better. As a result, my biggest stressor is when I can't see a way through. I've just listened to a podcast: Why school teacher Gabbie Stroud loved and left her career. Then I read her piece in the Griffith Review, Fixing theContinue reading "School Education: A both/and solution? Standards & accountability AND joy & creativity"
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 toContinue reading "It’s time to rethink pre-service and early career teachers… We want them to stay!"
First things first: Principal as change agent
Before we even begin to think about teacher being a change agent, we first need to ensure the conditions are in place for the principal be an effective agent of change in the school. What do teachers think about the change styles of principals? You may be surprised by what they think. The article "The RelationshipsContinue reading "First things first: Principal as change agent"
A Leadership Strategy: Ask not what your people can do for you (rather, the other way around)
My part in the research project ILETC is looking at the role of the teacher, adapting and changing mind frames and practices to take the opportunities that the innovative learning environment affords. This cannot happen in a vacuum, it is effective and lasting when change is the result of leadership, clear vision and the collective pursuitContinue reading "A Leadership Strategy: Ask not what your people can do for you (rather, the other way around)"
culture | learning | design 