What are/were? the newspapers?

'Papa, What Are The Newspapers?'
I rather like this poetical summary of the Victorian press.
- Rare Bits (1882) pic.twitter.com/WxynXMYv5Q

— Dr Bob Nicholson (@DigiVictorian) September 23, 2018

* The poem was published in 'The New York Saturday Press' - 27th August, 1859
* The poem was published in 'The Golden Age' - Queenbeyan, NSW - Thursday 20th August, 1863
* The Taranaki Herald (where this poem appeared in 1868 - Volume XVI, Issue 851, 14th November, 1868) was an afternoon daily newspaper, published in New Plymouth, New Zealand. It began publishing as a four-page tabloid on 4 August 1852. Until it ceased publication in 1989, it was the oldest daily newspaper in the country.
*The poem was published in 'The Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette' - Saturday 24th November, 1877

The poem is consistently inserted, in each newspaper, midst columns of news.

Have we lost a certain intimate style of reporting, in our haste to be digitally progressive?

Creativity...

Creativity is so enigmatic...But so worth exploring for the sheer excitement of struggle and vision, often hopelessly entangled...But then there is the final spark...What an adrenalin rush...Share the moment...It may inspire others to dare...

— Gemma Wiseman (@AuraGem) September 21, 2018

Re-imagine Traditional Schooling...

Image Source: ISTE.org

As a result of reading the article Designing a Public School from Scratch

by Nora Fleming

September 19, 2018

I decided to use some foundation ideas from the article and then branched away into my own musings.

1. Foundation Ideas - from Design 39 Campus, Grades K-8, San Diego, California

Design 39 is known as a campus not a school

Teachers are called LED's - learning experience designers

Classrooms are called studios

Library is called the Loft

Front office is the Welcome Centre

2. My Ideas - based on a Prep to 12 private school in Victoria, Australia

An atmospheric environment is a crucial stimulant for learning.

The secondary field of English and Humanities, sadly, gets the interchanging classrooms, with little time or space to set up an 'environment'.

School Design

Prep Circle - rooms round courtyard and playground

Primary Tracks - Studios branch away from central outdoor amphitheatre style area - seating for lunch, outdoor displays or plays

Secondary Hubs - Year 7 + 8 Centre + large studio gathering for Years 7-8

Year 9 Centre + studios

Year 10 Centre + studios adjoining VCE Centre

VCE Centre - studios including study pods, lunch room and outdoor verandah

Music and Drama Hub + Performing Arts Centre

Art and Visual Technology Hub

Sports Centre

English and Humanities Hub - including a gallery of primary documents, old books etc

Languages Hub
The Loft - (Multi-Modal Centre? - for Media + 2 adjacent studios) + lined with study pods + books? + reading corner for primaries

Studio Design

Variety of movable furniture - tables on casters, wheeled chairs, bean bags, 3 seater lounge 

computer hubs along the walls 

LED's area central

Hub Design

Reflect elements of the teaching area including posters, screened films etc

Now for the big and prickly questions...

1. Have textbooks had their day? 

Surely there is enough free and regularly updated source material available on the internet...This particularly applies to Humanities...Students just need to be reminded to source their material...preferably in a Research Log...

2. Should students begin an ongoing, digital portfolio from Grade 1? 

Should students be the data keepers of learning progress and teachers have access to student portfolios of sample work (scanned or completed online) to see how they are travelling?

Teachers only record assessment/exam results?

New teachers simply access students' portfolios in their class?

3. Should senior students in Year 11 (or 12) be encouraged to complete a MOOCs course - appropriate to their line of career choice? An alternative default? 

A MOOC is a Massive Online Course, which is a free online course available to anyone that wants to take the course. They are similar to online courses in terms of teaching and learning methods videos, group chats, assignments and tests but they do not generally provide academic credit. If you want a certificate of completion, payment is required.

4. Should schools provide online courses? 

Is there a place for schools to indulge in online courses?

At what year level could they begin? Years 9 and 10 to profile and assist students to make informed/appropriate career choices?

REFLECTION

I feel that as educators, we have not moved far enough into the 21st century...

Some of the obstacles involve data tracking...the buzz words that highlight good teaching...ahem..

Data tracking is so absorbing, so over-whelming, so time consuming (my weekends are dominated by their demands) that the students' spark of delight in exploration is quenched and the energy of the teacher is depleted to keep pace...

Preparing innovative lessons and being creative is a whim, an 'on-the-fly' possibility, but often dies into a passing thought...

The mighty data wheel must be greased regularly...Sigh....

Remove the data regime and record the surprise of results as they happen...

All those inspiring 21st century environments bring results...

if the door is left wide open and the latch is broken...

To teach is to keep learning

Yes, yes, yes and more yes! There's far too much data and not enough of the 'spark' there. Education ought to be a weapon in the hand, not a gun to the head..... For students and teachers. So many thoughts about all this....

— D (@kvoldvaka) September 23, 2018

Effective Secondary Reading Programs...

My school is exploring Accelerated Reader with Renaissance Learning.
To support formative assessment, quizzes are available for a wide range of novels.
Further, reading levels are monitored closely
and a printable graph is available for individual students or a whole class.
Independent reading is encouraged and each student has his/her own realistic goals.

A review is HERE
+
***As of November 2016, Renaissance Learning partnered with Achieve3000.
The focus on monitoring differentiated learning in non-fiction reading and writing has now strengthened.
More details HERE 

21stC education = MEASURE - endless teaching data, digital fuel, curricular weather patterns. Creativity?

— Gemma Wiseman (@AuraGem) October 6, 2017

To teach is to keep learning

Graphic Novels for Differentiation?

Source: Edutopia - Powerful Graphic Novels for Middle School

The article by Quin Rollins suggests that this selection of graphic novels represents possibilities of learning in English, Humanities and Science classes.
They could engage all literacy levels.


But could there be further possibilities?
1. Partnerships - Students read and discuss
2. Modified curriculum resources 
3. Cross-curricular modified resources
4. Peer evaluation evidence



To teach is to keep learning

Value of document-based questioning...

A fine video (from Fairfax County Public School)
illustrating how document-based questioning promotes:


critical thinking
analysis skills
co-operation - including synthesising responses
oral/public speaking skills
reading/comprehension skills


I especially like:
*one question - multiple primary and secondary documents sourced to answer it
*how these students sort perspectives into bucket lists which are shared and compared



REFLECTION
While document-based questioning ideally applies to documents in History,
I wonder if these principles could be applied to:
*analysing extracts from novels esp the classics
* novel into film - comparing differences and values
* advertising - comparing the value of different advertisements
of the same product or on the same topic


 
To teach is to keep learning

Review of Reading Australia...

In view of current statistics suggesting that Australian universities have the highest dropout of students in a decade,
(up to 1 in 5 students - SMH 8.9.16)
it is time to push the value of reading widely
to enhance a will and drive to concentrate and enhance ideas.

Reading Australia
is a website supporting English teachers in their search for reading materials.
Resources are for both primary and secondary levels.

An account is FREE
and offers regular updates on book news and teaching resources.

A home page video introduces the features of the site.


Primary and secondary tabs lead to graphic novels, drama, short stories, poetry, narrative history, opinion, memoir, essays (about books), young adult.
Each resource has a suggested year level and includes sample classroom and assessment activities.


Special Resources
Australia Day
Anzac Day
Sustainability
Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia
Indigenous Histories and Cultures
Family
Future Resources


Perhaps the real bonus is the addition of comparative titles - a further reading element - and film resources where appropriate.

There are even rubrics.


Overall, this website is a priceless resource and tool for English teachers.


Shared on Edmodo 8.9.16 

To teach is to keep learning