Planning for Powerful Learning

During a visit to Point England School at the end of 2009 Dorothy Burt inspired some thinking around a planning process she had been using with teachers within her Manaiakalani Cluster. It showed how a child created digital learning object can often live months after it's creation when placed in a blog, google site or wiki where it has potential to be commented on.
We have been grappling with how best to plan for powerful learning for some time, this motivated me to think about whether we could create something similar around our own powerful learning process.
The plan above is our first go at planning to activate thinking and learning experiences at different stages of the process.

School designs - What's possible?

Image taken from Stephen Heppell's site
I was told recently that a trillion dollars is spent on education a year across OECD countries. The scary reality is there has been no significant change in educational outcomes for students in 60 years. This would suggest more of the same is not the answer. Thinking 'different' perhaps is! How do we maximise the evidence highlighted in John Hattie's recent Visible Learning meta analysis, about what works? What actually has an impact on student outcomes? How do we design learning to take into consideration opportunities where students self grade (1.4 effect size) and provide opportunities for rich feedback to be integrated into everyday learning.
With this in mind I am currently grappling with what impact does the traditional school design have on student outcomes if any. How do you flip the traditional on it's head and create the new, what might be possible? I am in a privileged position currently thinking about how one might design learning environments/spaces to ensure that learning experiences, opportunities and student autonomy is increased. Has the traditional classroom contributed to the no change in student outcomes?
More questions than answers as I sit and scribble how multiple learning zones and spaces might be organised/ furnished to maximise student ownership and autonomy and ultimately increased student outcomes.
The more I search the more innovation I find. Check out this cushion hub above that looks like it helps to make learning fun, comfortable and maybe maximises student outcomes!

Learners should work harder than their Teachers!

I was privileged to sit in on a session that Anne Davies facilitated at the beginning of this year. Anne is an assessment guru residing in Canada. One of the comments she made has resonated with me ever since. She said that we need to get students to work harder than their teachers.
The more I have pondered this the more I have to agree. She shared the importance of learners being involved in assessing peers learning and building their own assessment literacy to make informed judgments about progress and high achievement.
Whilst sitting in classes recently I have been thinking about the traditional mental model we hold about teachers providing the right stretch and challenge for each learner to reach their potential. To get the learner working harder we need to flip that on it's head and teach learners how to give themselves the right kind of stretch. I am wondering how one might motivate and empower learners to build a habit of extending beyond what they can already do.

Longitudinal Evidence - Student Voice

How do you really know as a Primary School that you are having a lasting impact on student learning and outcomes beyond their Primary School experience? Are the competencies you instill in young learners developed to the extent that they are habitual? Do they last, continue to live beyond the Primary School experience?
Rather than wondering and making assumptions we have set about to design an online survey that can continue to gather past students reality, ideas and feedback. I am excited about the potential such feedback has in creating a broader and more informed picture of our Schools impact on learners.
Watch this space!

Snells Beach School - What a beauty!

What an amazing opportunity yesterday to visit Snells Beach School, situated just north of Auckland. We arrived only a few days after the schools 1st birthday. The entrance was welcoming, gardens extensive and the greeting on arrival second to none.
Our team spent the next 3 hours asking lots of questions and exploring the learning areas, each unique in colour. The thought that so obviously must have gone into the design is to be applauded, multiple and flexible spaces open and close with ease.
A most enjoyable afternoon, certainly got ones creative juices flowing. Thanks Kathryn and Jill for your generosity in sharing the journey and your time.

Cyber Safety - Building Students Digital Literacy

iphone - sending pxt to blog

I have been playing around with my iphone to see what it can do. I was on a road trip during the summer break and stopped at a few schools along the way. Here is a photo of Taihape School. I was impressed with the layout and the welcoming way in which you entered the school.

Go the iphone - am imagining what students could do with this technology - amazing!

Thanks Dorothy - Another great clip worth watching

Clip Dorothy Burt Shared - worth a look!

Online Bridges Symposium

A great bunch of teachers and leaders gathered prior to the start of the school year to be immersed in ideas around e learning, powerful learning and web 2.0 tools. For those delegates who were interested in a copy of the power point presented around Red Beach School's development of the Powerful Learning Process.

Thanks for the participation and great questions.
Just having trouble uploading presentation to slide share will persevere and get it up asap