A fine balance

Who leads the learning in your institution? Is it the teachers, or students - or do both contribute equally to ensure the best possible conditions for learning? It's a fine balance.

Carl Rogers championed student centred learning, while John Dewey emphasised the importance of learner participation. Seymour Papert strongly believed that the best learning takes place when learners take charge. The Progressive Education movement holds that education is not something that should be imposed upon students, but instead should be a conscious consensual process with which each learner is actively engaged. Education is not done to us. Education is something we do. Education is at its strongest when learners are at the centre of the process, and can exercise their choices about what happens.

For students, education should be about taking control of learning, while for teachers it should be focused on letting go. But that can be a difficult proposition for some teachers, because we tend to teach in the same way we were taught. Perhaps the biggest objection traditional educators have about learners taking control is the argument that students don't really now what they want, so can't effectively direct their own learning. Progressives respond by pointing out that the most powerful learning occurs when it has personal meaning, and only the student can construct that.

The middle ground is that students can be given freedom to learn while they are scaffolded by experts within prescribed knowledge sets. What students learn is important, but so is the manner in which they learn. The big question all educators must answer in the coming years is how we create a fine balance where students have control of their own learning, and teachers provide the best possible support. One important movement will be from passive reception to active engagement. It will require effective management of expectations - of both students and teachers.

In Experience and Education, John Dewey highlighted the importance of students leading their own learning through active engagement: “There is, I think, no point in the philosophy of progressive education which is sounder than its emphasis upon the importance of the participation of the learner in the formation of the purposes which direct his [sic] activities in the learning process, just as there is no defect in traditional education greater than its failure to secure the active cooperation of the pupil in construction of the purposes involved in his studying.” Unfortunately, students will be unable to do this if the school regime forbids a student voice in favour of teacher dominated pedagogy. We need to get the balance right. 

The last word should go to Paulo Freire: “The teacher is of course an artist, but being an artist does not mean that he or she can make the profile, can shape the students. What the educator does in teaching is to make it possible for the students to become themselves.” 

References
Dewey, J. (1983) Experience and Education. Gloucester, MA: Peter Smith Publishing.
Horton, M and Freire, P. (1990) We make the road by walking: Conversations on education and social change. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.
Rogers, C. R. (1983) Freedom to Learn. New York: Prentice Hall. 

Photo from the National Photo Company Collection via Flickr


A fine balance by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

The imitation game

In my kitchen, my devices 'talk' to me. My American fridge lets me know if I have left the door open too long (which is often), and my microwave tells me if I have heated something up and then forgotten to remove it. I can communicate with my central heating wherever I am in the world via my phone. Siri and Cortana  talk to us through our mobile phones (but don't let them speak to each other - if they do, all you get is nonsense), and many people now also have conversations with their in-car Sat Navs. Just a generation or two ago, such experiences would have been science fiction. Now they are common place and we take our conversation with technology for granted.

I say conversations, but I really mean basic interaction.

With the best will in the world, you could never have an intelligent conversation with these tools - they merely alert you to what you need to know, or enable you to maximise your use of technology. You can have some fun though. Ask Siri what to wear for Halloween and you're likely to laugh out loud. It may respond with 'Go as an eclipse. Just dress in black and stand in front of people.' Or it may respond with 'Just go as yourself, pumpkin.' But Siri hasn't developed a sense of humour, nor is it about to embark on a lucrative career as a stand-up comedian. It's simply doing what its coders have told it to do.

Alan Turning

Such intelligent personal assistants blindly follow algorithms to function, and have been doing so for a long time. In the 80s I discovered a program called Basically Eliza (created by Joseph Weizenbaum) and obtained a version for the BBC Computer. It had been written to mimic a psychiatrist consultation - a sort of early artificial intelligence demonstration. The British computer scientist Alan Turing had argued that for a computer to be 'intelligent', it would need to imitate a human so well that people would believe they were conversing with a fellow human being.

Eliza responded to the questions typed into the keyboard by using a simple string matching algorithm. Eliza would first ask you to state your problem. Mainly, it reflected your statements back to you as questions. Occasionally it went a little further. If for example, if you told it you had a family problem, Eliza would ask how many brothers or sisters you had. Alternatively, it might ask about your marital status. But this wasn't a ghost in the machine - an emerging computer intelligence, simply Eliza following a random routine in its code. When I showed it to my nursing students back in 1985, such a semblance of artificial intelligence made quite an impression on them.*

So I rewrote the algorithm to be verbally abusive.

Instead of Basically Eliza, the psychiatric consultant, it became Dr Fraud, the psychiatric insultant. In itself, Dr Fraud was fairly meaningless. But my students loved it. They queued up to use it, and laughed as they were continually insulted by a machine. The more they sat there, the worse the insults became. Everyone was intrigued by this demonstration of artificial intelligence, and in turn, it switched them on to other, more educational programs on the menu. It was a gateway into computer supported learning. Soon, the computer suite had become one of the most popular places in the entire nursing college.

Personal assistant software is a little more advanced than it was in the 80s, but not that much. It leads me to wonder just how advanced it will need to be before it can convince us that we are talking to a human rather than a machine. But that's another discussion, another (Turing) test and something to look for in our future. How do you see personal assistants developing in the future? What are your thoughts? The comments box below awaits you (....and I will respond intelligently, I promise).

* The full story about my work programming BBC computers can be read here.

Photos by N3WJack and Parameter_bond on Flickr


The imitation game by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

New learning environments

Our final #EDENchat of 2015 focused on new learning environments, namely MOOCs, flipped classrooms and blended learning methods. It was one of the busiest we have seen, and the archive of the conversation can be viewed here. Those who participated shared their experiences of MOOCs and flipped learning both as teachers and as learners. One of the key discussion points was around the nature of these approaches and their effectiveness as learning environments. Some debated the merits of MOOCs, high attrition rates and the legitimacy of participating without completing a course. An inevitable comparison was made between the earlier cMOOCs (which were largely connectivist and student centred in their ethos) and the later xMOOCs (which are more commercially oriented and arguably less student centred). The merits and limitations of these are debated in finer detail here.

Other issues were raised around student motivation and the impetus required to sustain focus when away from tutors/parent institution. There were calls to provide students with incentive to persist in their studies through enhanced forms of interaction (with content, other students and teachers) and more authentic learning and assessment activities. Some raised the issue of lurking and peripheral participation, but the point was also made that wherever there are open and free events, we will find those who lurk in the background.

The final question asked whether new learning environments such as MOOCs, flipped classes and blended learning represented a new or emerging pedagogy. Opinion was divided on this, but what do you think? You views are welcome in the comments box below.

Generally the Twitter timeline was fast moving and thought provoking. We plan to continue to momentum of this chat series and have already started putting together a programme of #EDENchat sessions for 2016. The dates and topics will be announced on this blog and on the EDEN website soon.

Photo by Mark Brannan on Flickr

NB: #EDENchat is supported by the European Distance and E-learning Network


New learning environments by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Pitch Day 2015

After all of the planning that went in to Pitch Day 2015, by us and the kids, it was finally time to pitch our ideas. Pitch Committee members began showing up at 8:15 and by 8:35, we had all of our judges in place. We divided them into groups of four judges and each of the three groups was located in a different room. Each committee would hear roughly fifteen pitches. Our first couple of students for each room readied themselves and the pitching began. The committees heard about ideas from coding to cooking, fashion design to water desalination gadgets. The committees heard it all.

Derrick and Bryce are READY for their Pitch Day Presentations!

Each presentation started with a one-minute video that functioned as a commercial for the student's idea. When our school wifi was working properly, the videos were actually one minute. Most of the time today, the wifi was glitchy and the kids were frustrated when their videos stalled out. All of the kids overcame the wifi problem, often talking instead of showing their video. The videos were to be followed by a two-minute description of what the project was, what the student was planning on learning, and the plans for the project beyond this year (if there were any). Lastly, we reserved two minutes for committee members to ask questions of the kids.

While debriefing with the committee members after the last pitch was done, we heard an array of comments. All of the members were impressed with the kids' presentations. Some raved about a particular student or thought that a certain idea could be a world-changer. Nearly all of the committee members talked about how excited the kids were about their ideas, how invested in the ideas they were and how meaningful the projects would be for the kids. This is the kind of learning that is exciting to see. Those committee members left our rooms with a sense of excitement about learning in general and 20% Time in particular. It is one of the reasons why we're convinced that 20% Time, PBL, Genius Hour and personlized learning is the future of education.

They'll believe they can fly

This image was sent to me by my university colleague Will Barlow. It is clearly an illustration from another age, but the sentiments are as true today as they ever were: If you constrain a child's creativity and imagination, don't be surprised if they begin to lose their curiosity and passion for learning about the world around them.

It was wonderful earlier today to see almost 2000 very excited school children witnessing British astronaut Tim Peake's launch into space. They were watching the live TV coverage from the Science Museum in London, and I couldn't help but wonder whether that excitement will be transformed into a lifelong passion for scientific discovery. They are certainly in the right place to learn about science. One would hope that those teachers in charge of them will allow them to spend some time walking around exploring the exhibits, and focusing their attention on what scientists have achieved. The Science Museum has a particularly good display of space memorabilia, including a full scale replica of the Apollo lunar landing craft. Those children might also be encouraged to follow the 6 month long mission by Major Tim and his two fellow spacetravellers - they will be back on earth again just in time for the end of the summer term. How many projects can the kids complete in that time that will help them to learn more about subjects such as the environment, physics, biology and technology?

It only takes one person, one event, one experience, to create a spark of passion in a child. My own lifelong passion for technology and learning began on a school trip to a science museum (the full story is here). Sadly, it also takes just one person, one event or one bad experience to turn children off for life. Let's not clip the wings of our children. Instead, let's give them the space to believe they can fly.

Image source


They'll believe they can fly by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Christmas /holiday reading. A new inspirational book about Elwyn Richardson - New Zealand's pioneer teacher

A new book about Elwyn's inspirational ideas

In my early days, a long time ago, one book inspired a group of us to develop integrated student centred learning . The book was 'In The Early World' written by Elwyn Richardson and outlined his work with his students in an isolated North Auckland rural school in the 1950s.

Elwyn's book has been recently been reprinted by the NZCER and it remains one of the worlds most inspirational educational books. 

All schools should have a copy

Described by one reviewer as “possibly the best book about teaching ever written”, this book is important not only as a brilliant demonstration of the creative capacities of all children but also in its profound implications as to the nature of the learning process.

Elwyn developed his school as a community of artists and scientists - more relevant than ever.

A lifetime of creative teaching

I have recently been given notice of a new book about Elwyn's ideas written by Margaret MacDonald. A year or so ago Margaret completed a thesis on Elwyn  and  it is this thesis that Margaret has referenced as the basis for her book.

Margaret Mac Donald

The book has been published by the NZCER and is available for sale this week.

International customers: Email sales@nzcer.org.nz to place order and arrange shipping

If you want more information below are extracts from the forward  to the book written by Prof Deborah Fraser University of Waikato.

Prof Deborah Fraser

'There is no doubt that Elwyn Richardson made a hugely significant contribution to education. Margaret MacDonald peels back the layers of influence of the man and the teacher whose innovative pedagogy remains an outstanding example of teaching.

There are deeper lessons for all educators in this book that are both timely and urgent.

Do policy makers today consider the education of the whole child, or are they distracted by data entries, achievement graphs and measurement by standards?

Do we value the legacy of outstanding teachers such as Elwyn, and, if so, where is the evidence of this in contemporary schools?

Where are the arts-rich schools that integrate curriculum and capitalise on children’s natural curiosity? 

Sir David

When US president Obama met with world-renowned naturalist Sir David Attenborough, Sir David argued that the question is not about how to interest children in the natural world—they are fascinated by the life they find under an ordinary rock.

The question is: How do they lose that fascination?

Schooling has an important responsibility here. Do we fan the flame of enquiry, or do we contribute to extinguishing that flame? The evidence of late suggests we are eroding children’s curiosity in our rush towards completing activities and achieving results, as measured by narrowly defined outputs.

Teachers do not intend to erode children’s curiosity; they do so by default, caught up in the incessant demands of an assessment-driven curriculum. Elwyn, like Sir David Attenborough, recognised that children are mini-scientists in the making, if only they are given the opportunity and guidance.

One of Ekwyn's student's painting

Elwyn realised education should enrich who we are and resonate with relevance. He deliberately built the curriculum around the internal and external lives of his students. When teachers forge connections with children’s lives like this, they create a meaningful curriculum.

Screen printed cloth

Weaving this web of connection helps teachers stay alert to what really matters in education.

What matters is a curriculum that places children’s natural curiosity at the heart, so that they are encouraged to explore who they are and the world around them.

This is evident in Elwyn’s use of an integrated curriculum, focusing on intriguing questions that motivated children to pursue avenues of enquiry. He encouraged the freedom to explore, the opportunity to observe closely, and the discipline to record findings in various ways. He also upheld the value of the arts as a vivid means of expression and not secondary to other subjects. He also realised that one subject informs another; that scientific understanding is enhanced by the aesthetic, and vice versa.

Magnificent art

 His school and its surrounds reflected children’s creations, constructions and projects. For educators to claim that new furniture and devices create a high-quality learning environment misses the point. It is the quality of the teaching that takes place in any space that is the litmus test of whether an environment is conducive to learning.

John Dewey

Elwyn Richardson and the early world of creative education in New Zealand While Elwyn referred to himself more as guide than teacher in traditional terms, he, like John Dewey, did not allow just any activity to count as learning. (Elwyn) challenged children to explore, ask questions, try things out, consider alternatives, and craft and re-craft to produce high-quality work: art work worthy of exhibitions, science projects like those of real scientists, vivid poetic and other writing which the children published in their regular school magazine. This is teaching at its finest.

 Children, like adults, enjoy the feeling of being stretched and achieving something they are proud of. At Oruaiti they were afforded the dignity of being taken seriously as critics, writers, artists, scientists and thinkers.

Teacher education has much to glean from Margaret’s keen analysis.

 It is to our detriment if we perpetuate ahistorical ideas that do not acknowledge the wealth of beliefs, movements and theories that have informed education. No teacher education programme can cover everything, but we need to know about the finer aspects of our past—the people, policies

and philosophies that have shaped us and continue to shape us—in order to reveal, as Margaret does, the rich soil from which our best ideas and practices came. If not, we risk a mediocre deference to—or worse, a seduction by—whatever latest trend is marketed the hardest by those who decide what counts as fashionable, regardless of its longevity and worth.

Republished book available NZCER

We risk a superficial interpretation of complex educational ideas that have been debated over time. This book explores central tenets in education and associated debates on topics such as child-centred education, the role of the teacher, progressive education and child art..

Teacher education also needs to consider what teaching as identity- work might mean. Elwyn’s early interests and influences are readily apparent in his pedagogy. There is a seamlessness between his own interests and his teaching, particularly in his abiding curiosity for the natural

world. Teachers who share their keen interests, as he did, open a wondrous world for children—a world they may not ever experience as enticing if such a teacher did not provide both pathway and beacon.

Elwyn

 The thing we most recall about our favourite teachers is the passion they had for a certain field or fields, and such passion, along with an enquiring manner, is contagious. It is vitally important that teachers bring their own interests to teaching, revealing aspects of who they are and the satisfaction that comes from losing oneself in a subject; that delicious blurring of self and subject, which evokes depth of focus and appreciation. In so doing, teachers also give children licence to bring who they are and what they cherish to the table of learning.

This important book brings together the strands of influences that shaped Elwyn Richardson and, more broadly, the landscape of education in New Zealand. 

Observational rooster

We need more such stories that acknowledge the complex interface between personal identity and social, cultural and historical influences. We need this timely reminder of what is possible, as teachers feel increasingly shackled by forces beyond their control. This book is neither romantic accolade nor polemic. It is a series of inter-related stories with the theme of hope—as relevant today as at any time in the history of schooling'.

Professor Deborah Fraser

The University of Waikato

August 2015

International customers: Email sales@nzcer.org.nz to place order and arrange shipping

Making drums and playing music

Educational reflections/readings for creative teachers

Sticking to ones beliefs is never easy.

By Allan Alach

As the New Zealand school year is coming to an end, this will be the final education readings for this year. Normal service will be resumed towards the end of January.  To give you something to do until then, this week’s list will be a bit longer than usual!

Bruce and I hope you all have an enjoyable festive season with friends and family.

I welcome suggested articles, so if you come across a gem, email it to me at allanalach@inspire.net.nz

No Art Left Behind: Introducing a New Series

Keep an eye on this blog series by Susan Dufresne and Anthony Cody.

“In the past 13 years of No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top test-driven education policies, art has been pushed to the margins in our schools. Students have lost countless hours for creating art, music and dance that expresses themselves. But artistic expression is like the seedling that forces its way through cracks in the asphalt. This blog series will explore how students and teachers use art to express themselves.”

http://bit.ly/1Oj5MCZ

Tablets out, imagination in: the schools that shun technology

“But the fact that parents working for pioneering technology companies are questioning the value of computers in education begs the question– is the futuristic dream of high-tech classrooms really in the best interests of the next generation?”

http://bit.ly/1M3XInN

Classroom technology 'rarely used' by half of teachers

How well are they used?

I remember this problem from my principal days.

“Nearly half of teachers rarely use the technology in their classrooms, with a lack of trainingholding many of those surveyed back, new research suggests. Over a third of teachers in primary schools, and a similar number in secondary schools, also say they are unsure about how to integrate technology into the curriculum, leading to many items going unused on a regular basis.”

http://bit.ly/1XXplLA

Technology makes a difference

However, on the other hand, here’s Steve Wheeler.

On the other hand!

“I have often heard the argument that there is no evidence that technology improves learning. Thisis a vacuous claim that is either a) based on ignorance of the available research literature, or b) possibly the result of a deep seated fear, mistrust or dislike of technology in general. My usual response to such a claim is that children with special educational needs are a classic example of technology improving learning.”

http://bit.ly/1NcEjoC

Reflections on Teaching: The Craft of Teaching

Posted on Save Our Schools Australia:

“In Victoria, long ago, teaching was left to teachers. It was presumed that there were people skilled in the craft and they would pass on their knowledge to others. But theory has trumped practice in recent decades. Now teaching has been overtaken by education, which deals with students and clients, rather than children, and which often has little respect for the craft of teaching. But learning begins with teaching, not data collection.”

http://bit.ly/1Qgd1kU

National Academic Standards – Turning Public Education into McSchools

This is happening all over.
“But look almost anywhere in the US of A, and you’ll see a strip mall with almost all of the same stores and fast food restaurants selling the same crusty burgers and fries left waiting for the consumer under a heat lamp. Somehow this has become THE model for public education, as well. Corporations have convinced our lawmakers that the disposable franchise business schematic is perfect to increase student learning.”

http://bit.ly/1HVD7Hk

Can Competency Based Education Be Stopped?

I haven’t included a Peter Greene article for a while…

‘Every single thing a student does would be recorded, cataloged, tagged, bagged, and tossed into the bowels of the data mine, where computers will crunch data and spit out a "personalized" version of their pre-built educational program. Right now seems like the opportune moment for selling this program, because it can be marketed as as an alternative to the Big Standardized Tests which have been crushed near to death under the wheel of public opinion. "We'll stop giving your children these stupid tests," the reformsters declare. "Just let us monitor every single thing they do every day of the year.”’

http://bit.ly/21QgdHS

Why teacher-powered schools are picking up momentum

“In teacher-powered schools, students are at the center of every decision. Teachers secure autonomy to make the big choices about a wide array of factors, such as the learning program, school-community partnerships, and budgeting. In many such schools, teachers evaluate their colleagues with peer review processes, as is so often the case in other professions.”

http://bit.ly/1U5sAea

‘Not a Math Person’: How to Remove Obstacles to Learning Math

Prof Jo Boalar

“Recently, a colleague’s 7-year-old came home from school and announced he didn’t like math anymore. His mom asked why and he said, “math is too much answering and not enough learning.” This story demonstrates how clearly kids understand that unlike their other courses, math is a performative subject, where their job is to come up with answers quickly. Boaler says that if this approach doesn’t change, the U.S. will always have weak math education.”

http://bit.ly/1mbuwGF

Contributed by Bruce Hammonds:

Can a Truly Student-Centered Education Be Available to All?

Is the public school system scared to put students at the centre of education?

“An education which doesn’t use any set curriculum and is instead directed by the child’s interests, is vastly different from traditional public and private schools. While the freedom inherent

in the model excites some readers, others question whether young people educated this way will learn the important information and skills they need to become productive adults in our society. Big Picture Schools use the learner and his or her interests and passions as the organising principle of school. The focus is on each and every student, not on a standardised curriculum – an idea pioneer creative New Zealand primary teachers would recognise.”

http://bit.ly/1IFwpoZ

Why the Greatest Minds Take Long Walks

Charles Darwin.

“Walking isn’t sexy. It’s not the hot new trend or the most enticing productivity hack. Even so, it’s probably one of the most beneficial habits you could add to your routine. But don’t take my word for it. Some of the greatest minds throughout history were notorious for taking walks, from Steve Jobs to Charles Darwin, walking was a part of their routine. Here’s why.”

http://bit.ly/1RFsQkI

Stop, Start, Continue: Conceptual Understanding Meets Applied Problem Solving

There must be a better way!!

The end of the year is the time to ask some important questions.

“As simple as these sound, they provided us a safe, predictable set of questions that became habits of mind, a way to pause and reflect before engaging in something else. Our aim was to get better at what we were doing.What should we stop doing?What should we start doing? What should we continue doing?”

http://bit.ly/1YZMyd4

Teaching By Doing Something Meaningful

Getting away from corporate testing mad ‘Big Education’ and bringing back the magic of real teaching.

Has teaching lost its magic?

“When my head is in the world of corporate education, my heart isn’t fully in my job. When I am focused on how much there is to “do,” I lose some of my teaching magic…and unfortunately, so does my audience. There are still many abracadabra moments that take me away from the sideshow of Big Education Teaching, in its truest form, is simply inspiring other people to inspire each other, and to learn and grow together.”

http://bit.ly/1TgVkju

A Few Ideas for Better Writing Conferences

Value student's voice

Not a new idea for creative teachers – or is it? Personal writing developing each students ‘voice’ and sense of identity was once a feature in New Zealand classrooms.“That perhaps this was my chance to not lead their conferences.  To not have all of the answers, but instead be ready to listen and support.  To let them tell me what they needed rather than vice versa.  So I did, and it felt like I held my breath all day, but it worked.  It worked!  And I could not be happier with the outcome.  So what did we do?”

http://bit.ly/1XXo6Mr

From Bruce’s ‘goldie oldies’ file:

End of year survey – tapping the wisdom of your class/school/community

“At the end of the school year it is a good idea to gather information from the students you are passing on.Not only is this a chance for you to get some insight about your teaching but it is also a great way to value the ‘voice’ of your students.What are your students’ attitudes towards areas of learning?”

http://bit.ly/1SOZAGA

What should a parent expect from a teacher in the 21stC?

Steve Wheeler

This an extract from a blog by Steve Wheeler, Professor of Technology, University of Plymouth, UK.

“In this post I'm not going to dwell on digital skills. Instead I'm going to focus on three essential things teachers need to practice, and without which children would be poorer.The first thing parents should expect from teachers is their ability to inspire children to learn.Another allied skill we should expect from teachers is an ability to understand the child's perspective. Parents should also expect teachers to give creative freedom to children.”

http://bit.ly/1QwPHy6

Teachers' key role in fostering creativity

“Essential characteristics of creative teachers,are a commitment to: deepen the understandings of the world of each learner; believe in the creative ability of all students; encourage empathy in students; value creative expression in learners; teach in ways that facilitate it; adapt the curriculum to meet students individual needs.”

http://bit.ly/1EUJFm2

The corporate takeover of society and education.

“Since the early 90s society has been reshaped by a neo liberal corporate ideology. An emphasis on

private enterprise and self-centred individualism has replaced an earlier concern for collective good of all members of society.  As a result of this ideological shift a wider gap has been created between the rich and poor causing a number of social concerns. Schools as part of this shift have been transformed from a community orientation to being part of a competitive cut throat ideology.”

http://bit.ly/1hARUnP

Pitch Day Logistics

The logistics behind pitch day are extensive. In October, we try to secure our Pitch Committee. We send out e-mails to several teachers, coordinators and administrators to gauge availability and interest. We have experienced great cooperation. Our superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, assistant principal, curriculum coordinators, principals from other buildings and various teachers volunteer to be on the committee. This year, we need between 10-12 committee members.

During the week before Pitch Day, kids prepare their one-minute video commercial to help sell their idea to the committee. That video will kick off their presentation. After the video, they will talk for two minutes about their project and what they plan to learn and accomplish. Following the two-minute talk will be time for the judges to ask questions about the project idea. Those three elements round out each five-minute presentation.

We use three classrooms (in the past we have used two but this year we are tweaking things) for pitches. Four judges will be located in each of the three classrooms (for a total of 12 judges). We create a list for each classroom that we use. This year we will have Pitch Group A, Pitch Group B and Pitch Group C. Each pitch group will be in one of the three classrooms.

The morning of Pitch Day will be bustling with activity. Kids will be waiting in the cafeteria for their name to be called to go pitch. During their stay in the cafeteria, they can put finishing touches on their presentation, practice their talk or relax and catch up on school work. While the kids are housed in the cafeteria, we get the judges settled into the three classrooms that we are using. When the judges are ready, we call for the first presenter in each room. Presentations follow a list that we create for each room. As one student is presenting, the next student on the list is called from the cafeteria to be "on deck", waiting outside the appropriate classroom where they will present next. We expect about fifteen presentations in each classroom for a total of 45 presentations. We are planning on Pitch Day taking the first two class periods of the morning.

Pitch Day is a high-stakes day for the kids. We talk to them about how to enter the room, how to introduce themselves to the committee and how to begin their presentation. The judges have feedback sheets that include presentations skills as well as questions about the projects. The kids usually dress up, have their notes prepared and rock their presentations. We are both nervous and eager to see how Pitch Day this year will turn out. It is such a great day of experiential learning for the kids and we very much value it.

New learning environments: The challenge and the promise #EDENchat

In recent years, education has evolved to the point where learning can take place anywhere and at any time, usually beyond the walls of the traditional learning space. There are all sorts of possibilities thanks to new technologies. Although distance education has been in existence for more than a century, the various technological means by which it can now be conducted have advanced quickly. The last two decades alone have seen a rapid rise in popularity of the World Wide Web, smartphones, social media, social networks, augmented reality, wearable technologies and user generated content sites. New trends have emerged including blended learning, personalised learning environments (PLEs) Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), mobile learning and the flipped classroom. Although it could be argued that some of these are not new concepts, in combination they have become a phenomenon that has occupied and exercised the minds of educators worldwide.

What are the challenges of these new learning environments? What do new learning environments promise in terms of new learning, new pedagogy and new opportunities? What are the issues we need to address to make new learning environments a success? And what new skills and knowledge do educators need? These and other questions will be addressed at the final Twitter #EDENchat session of the year on Wednesday 16th December, when we will discuss issues, challenges and benefits of the new learning environments mentioned above. As ever, the session will be one hour in duration, and will start at 20.00 GMT (21.00 CET). Please join us, and come prepared to share your expertise, ask questions, challenge others and be challenged, and generally learn together as we head towards 2016. I hope to see you there!

NB: All previous #EDENchats can be found here as Storified archives

NB: The next series of #EDENchat will start on 13 January, 2016. Further details will be posted about the schedule on this blog and also on the EDEN NAP website later.

Photo by Sarah Macmillan on Flickr


New learning environments: The challenge and the promise #EDENchat by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Podcast: Preparing for Pitch Day

In this episode, we talk about Pitch Day and the preparations that go into this event. Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes and follow us on Twitter @dayankee and @melissahellwig4

Going off road

Veering off the beaten track is something I often do. Beaten tracks are too 'safe' and restrictive for me. I like to go off road and explore, and I often find myself down some backstreet in a city I've never visited before, chatting to locals or taking photos of strange new sights.

I can't help it. I have never been comfortable when I'm confined. Nor have I been happy simply 'towing the line' where important things like teaching and learning are concerned. I suppose that's also why I've always been uncomfortable with lesson plans. I always have an idea of what I'm going to cover in my lectures and seminars, but I rarely write anything down, preferring to keep several ideas in my head so that I can respond quickly and flexibly if the situation demands it. As a result, my teaching is now more responsive than it was when I was less experienced, and used strict frameworks and defined resources to conduct my lessons.

This kind of free-wheeling approach to teaching isn't for everyone, of course. We show our education students how to create lesson plans, schemes of work and other closely defined documentation to track and manage teaching, and they are trained to adhere to these. I wouldn't encourage any teacher to depart from them... unless of course they see a need to do so. In such cases, I advocate flexible, agile lesson plans from which teachers can change direction, when they need to, or when they sense they have to. That flexibility should extend to the introduction of ideas you may not be familiar with (learning together with your students), the sequence of the content, and also the learning outcomes you have identified. Ultimately, it should also embrace assessment of learning. If you come up with a better (or more appropriate) way to assess than the method you have outlined in your lesson plan, do it.

Lesson plans are a little version of the curriculum. They are created to provide suggestions and should not be treated like stone tablets. They should be used to interpret content and activities, and as a guidelines rather than as rules to follow regardless of whatever is happening. Ultimately, it's your students' learning that is the most important element of teaching, and if the lesson plan gets in the way of that, ditch it.

Image/graphic text by Miot Sheremeti


Going off road by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.