Star Performer - Kathleen Roach - St Albans Catholic Primary School

Earlier this month  I met with E- Learning Leader, Kathleen Roach from St Albans Catholic Primary School. Kathleen has recently completed her Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Practice and I was keen to find out what the benefits are for busy classroom teachers.

This programme is important for teachers as we are preparing students for a world that we cannot imagine. The way they (students) will earn their money are in ways we haven't even thought of yet. The programme focuses on a shift from knowledge to the skills students will need and how to apply these skills to a situation. A specific area of my classroom practice that I developed was my focus on the Key Competencies that are embedded within the curriculum. It is important to highlight that although we had hands on time in the 'techie areas' of robotics, Makerspace and new apps, the emphasis was on the pedagogy and best practice  based on the research in the use of these tools.

In a recent article by the Washington Post, Jeffery Selingo highlighted three key areas that companies are looking for in new graduates. These are:

1. Applying knowledge and skills to the real world.
2., Being innovative and creative.
3. Critical/ Analytical Thinking.

This change in thinking is heightened in Christchurch due to the new schools that are being created and the pace of educational change. Many schools are starting to review their purpose around the classroom in this format:

• Strengths of our school?
• What's shifting in our school - outside/ inside.
• Vision - is this shared among staff, students and community.
• Bridges or steps, puzzle pieces of development we need to plan for.

These thoughts led me to discuss with Kathleen the requirements of the programme and how to complete it while teaching full time.

Overtime, you gain confidence in completing assignments whilst meeting the demands of full time teaching. I believe it is also about  setting the right time aside to do it. I was part of a study group and we would meet every Saturday to discuss our coursework. What was exciting about this group is that it involved  people from different backgrounds working together to achieve a shared goal.

Congratulations to Kathleen on her completion of this programme and her commitment to such worthwhile professional development.

Paul O'Connor - Flipped Learning Example!

Today, I met with Paul O'Connor (Catholic Cathedral College) to discuss how to create Flipped Learning videos using whiteboards. We discovered a helpful 'how to guide' from Catlin Tucker (www.catlintucker.com). Paul took 40 minutes to create this video for his Year 12 English class and is integrating this into his Religious Education classes. Check it out and post any thoughts or comments!

Share YOUR story.

The activity in this blog post is regularly used by leadership consultants to work with schools who are looking into the question "What is our case for changing our school?".

In this activity I would like us to answer this question based on your school:

What story would you tell your friend who asked you what makes you proud of…...

 The focus of the question is the strengths of your school. Please add your reply in the "comments" section. 

Free PD for Catholic Primary and Secondary Teachers!!!

Please sign up and attend the second Free PD session in Christchurch at www.teachmeet.co.nz

Circle of Prayer and Catholic Schools Day - West Coast

The Circle of Prayer and Catholic Schools Day Mass was celebrated on the mighty West Coast. Here are some of the pictures they sent through. A great sense of community was fostered between all three Catholic Schools as they celebrated their Catholic identity together. 

Two New Apps for Teachers?????

Here are two new tools to support your classroom teaching!

1. Trello.

Trello is a software application that can be used to manage workflow and keep track of important information. The benefit of using this in the classroom is for teachers to use it as a learning tool to facilitate student work. Further, it can be  a tool students use when they are completing Inquiry Projects/ Project Based Learning where they manage and track their progress. 

Most importantly Trello is free! Search Trello and sign up today!

Trello: www.trello.com
To see how Trello can be used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xky48zyL9iA

2. Seesaw   

Seesaw is a student driven digital portfolio that empowers students of all ages to independently document and share what they are learning. 

Seesaw has the following benefits:

 EMPOWER STUDENTS:
Students (as young as 5!) can independently create, capture, and store artifacts of learning in their private learning journal.

ENGAGE PARENTS:
Parents (after teacher approval) get notified of new items, giving them a glimpse of their child’s day and an opportunity to support learning at home.

SIMPLIFY WORKFLOW:
Whether you are 1:1 or just have a single device in your class, Seesaw seamlessly organizes digital and physical work in one place.


Seesaw: http://web.seesaw.me/
To see how Seesaw can be used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlw-tUKvnNc

Catholic Schools Day 2016 - St Patrick's and St Jospeh's

The First Christchurch Teachmeet Event 2016!

This week, St Andrew’s College hosted the first TeachMeet event in Christchurch for 2016 and over 40 staff from 15 different schools attended. If you’re unsure of what a TeachMeet actually is, you can find more at the website http://www.teachmeet.co.nz  but in short:

A TeachMeet is an organised but informal meeting (in the style of an unconference) for teachers to share good practice, practical innovations and personal insights in teaching with technology.

Participants volunteer (via the TeachMeet website) to demonstrate good practice they’ve delivered over the past year, or discuss a product that enhances classroom practice.

Source: Wikipedia

One of the key reasons TeachMeets are successful is that presenters are limited to only 2 minutes or 7 minutes for their presentations. This results in a fast-paced event and a range of different ideas and solutions being shared. It also means that preparation for the volunteer presenters is kept at a minimum – it’s not onerous to share something you’re already doing in your classroom or researching to give a go.

There were seven presenters who shared on the following topics:

1. Wilj Dekkers (St Andrew’s College) Using MineCraft and OneNote for Creative Writing
2. Tom Neumann (Riccarton High) Using an alphanumeric self marking video game in Moodle to review content of Yr11 Economics
3. Sue McLachlan (Hagley College) Using OneNote Learning Tools in the classroom
4. Tam Yuill Proctor (St Andrew’s College) Using OneNote as a Digital Teacher’s Planbook
5. Karyn Gray (Haeta Community Campus) The Quest for Personalisation of Learning- My Thinking, My Research, My Questions
6. Schira Withers (Our Lady Of The Star Of The Sea) How we as educators can help students with low working memories improve their self-management skills using digital technologies, thus  allowing them to experience success and move from a fixed to growth mindset.
7. Donna Jones (St Andrew’s College) Using a 3D app to inspire creative thought and ideas for creative writing.

When one of the presenters was unable to attend at the last minute, I added some thoughts on using Google Earth to create personalised tours to round out the afternoon.

A number of attendees contributed on the designated Twitter hashtag of #TMChch and you can see the entire timeline here with a small selection being:

https://teachmeet.co.nz/2016/05/17/tmchch-0-1-twitter-wrapup/


Article written by Donna Jones a teacher at St Andrew's College. Connect with her on Twitter via the handle @djs_jones

Secondary Teachers - Welcome to a FREE Event!!!

As a teacher, I am running a networking event for Secondary Teachers within our five Catholic Schools.  This will take place on Wednesday 25th May at 4:30 pm, Pomeroy's Inn. The purpose of this event is for teachers to discuss our classroom practice and new ideas we may be implementing. “Teachers reflecting on their teaching is one of the highest factors in students improving their learning” - John Hattie.

Here is the signup sheet that you can edit if you are attending:  https://goo.gl/iRmwxK

The advertising poster is below.

I look forward to seeing you on the 25th May.

Thank you,

Jeremy.

Great Performers Programme - Ange Hide - St Joseph's Timaru

Redifing and challenging the status quo in education are key aspects of this study.

Professional Development is an area that we as teachers sometimes struggle to participate in due to our various work demands. Completing a regular amount of professional learning is a success where we attempt to keep pace with our rapidly changing world. However, imagine driving for four hours every week for sixteen weeks in order to complete a programme of Professional Development! Sound impossible? Well, this is exactly what St Joseph's Timaru, teacher Ange Hide did to complete her Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Practice through the Mindlab.

Workshops involve unleashing teachers creativity and design thinking around unusual problems.

Here are Ange's thoughts on a programme that is rapidly changing pedagogy and classroom environments within New Zealand schools. 

"The reason why I began this course of study was out of personal interest. I was really lucky that a great colleague from Oamaru also enrolled meaning, company and stimulating professional debate and debriefing etc for the four hours in the car each week!"

"I completely recommend the Mindlab course if anyone is considering it. It's a lot of work but really great content for the real world of teaching". The surprise for me was the amount of focus on leadership - absolutely the course to do if you are ambitious to climb the management ladder". 

Focusing on what good leadership looks like is a key feature of this programme. 

Congratulations to Ange on her dedication to improvement and role modeling what a life long learner truly is.

Catholic Schools Day - Marian College

Marian College held their Circle of Prayer Service at 10:40 - 11 this morning. It was fantastic to witness this special event.

Short 20 second video here: https://goo.gl/Edkpq3

90 Days and counting until World Youth Day Experience in Christchurch.

The Word Youth Day Experience occurring on 29th July - 1st August at Marian and Catholic Cathedral College is fast approaching. The experience will involve over 240 senior pupils from Catholic Colleges of the Christchurch and Dunedin Diocese.  The aim of the experience is to offer a youth focused faith community across the the two South Island Diocese, future proofing the Church with developing future leaders and the ongoing formation for youth and young adults. The four day experience is stacked with activities ranging from Service Days through to a Pilgrimage around the Central City. Today, members of the organizing committee met with volunteers who will curate social media coverage for the event. 

This is a fantastic initiative and more updates will continue to be posted closer to the experience weekend.

Introduction to Spirituality (RE 102)

Last Friday, (29th April) thirty five teachers from St Teresa's School, St Francis of Assisi Catholic School, St Mary's School, New Brighton Catholic School  and St James School gathered to participate in "Introduction to Spirituality". The programme was lead by Catholic Education Office Primary Advisor Cushla O'Connor. The course focuses on Catholic Spirituality and how to embed spirituality within our Catholic School community. 

The day was eventful where teachers were able to experience different forms of prayer, discuss what Catholic Spirituality is and how to engage young people in their relationship with God through prayer.

This is the first part of a programme which involves an online component enabling teachers to collaborate and discuss their ideas around Catholic Spirituality. This group of teachers will meet for a follow up three hour session before completing their assignment in July.

Congratulations to the  teachers from these schools! Their dedication to improving their knowledge and their pupils experience of Catholic teaching. 

Year of Mercy Day at Marian College & Catholic Cathedral College

To start off Term Two, all staff from Marian College and Catholic Cathedral College spent a day focusing on the Year of Mercy. Father Brendan Connell (Milgrove, Victoria) presented a workshop titled "Shaping Moral Character through Liturgy and themes of Liberation and Mercy". This is a fantastic initiative created by Marian College Director of Religious Studies, Abina Pope.

It is important as Catholic Educators that we come together as a teaching community and reflect on what is at the heart of Catholic Education - Jesus Christ. This has become an annual event and both schools should be congratulated.

Father Brendan also stayed for a week after this presentation where he worked with Year 13 and Year 11 classes from Marian and Catholic Cathedral College. Staff and pupils enjoyed his visit where he commented on the "supportive Catholic environment" both Colleges develop.