Keri Facer- Learning Futures

If you are wondering what the big deal is about modern learning, 21st century learning, digital or blended learning then this video might shed some light. We recognise that the world our students are entering is vastly different to the world our traditional education system is designed to prepare our students for. We recognise that our students require a different set of skills, a different form of literacy, in order for them to be successful and productive citizens in a world that is rapidly changing. This video helps bridge the gap in our understanding of what skills our children need and how they can apply these skills in order to make a difference in the world that they will inherit from us.

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Learning is messy

I find myself somewhat frustrated with the environment that we are expected to work in. Being a data driven industry I feel torn between being an innovative, future focused educator that focuses on individualised learning experiences for my students and on the other hand having the pressure of National Standards reporting hovering over my shoulder. Last year I achieved some wonderful results with my students. I managed to provide opportunities for students to taste success; students who had spent most of their school years feeling inadequate and incapable of achieving well in standardised tests. Many of my students still failed to score well in standardised tests. However, they managed to succeed in areas that are hard to measure. I saw many students self-esteem improve because they managed to complete a project for the first time on a topic of their choice and one which they were engaged with. They began to see themselves as experts in a niche area. They began to recognise themselv...

Student Agency

In 2014 my journey as an educator continued to develop. I had the responsibility of introducing a 1-1 digital class, with the biggest challenge being to convince the community and whanau of our students that it was the right decision to make.It developed to a point where I provided my students with the opportunity to take some control of their learning and allow them to redesign their learning environment. What it demonstrated, not only to me, but to the people who witnessed the learning environment, was that through student ownership the engagement levels exceeded all expectations. Everybody in the class found a valuable task that they could contribute to positively. The respect that the students had for the environment they had created was considerably higher than if it had been given to them. One student was lambasted for using a sharpened paper clip to draw on the newly made desks, because it was "their" desks. It was a successful and hugely rewarding experience for ever...

Creating a shared understanding of the issues impacting our societies, our community and our ākonga and how we address them as a school

Creating a shared understanding of the issues impacting our societies, our community and our ākonga and how we address them as a school Society, culture and professional environments are all facing issues that are often pervasive and impact us in ways we sometimes find difficult to fully understand. As an educator, I am aware that we all influence and affect one another, either positively or negatively. When we can create a shared understanding of an issue, more often than not, we can achieve outcomes that have a positive impact. However, if we fail to achieve a shared understanding of an issue, then our outcomes have the potential to have a negative impact. It is well documented that societies around the world are changing at a rapid rate and for many of us, it is a struggle to keep up with what is current. This is particularly true when it comes to education. One of the biggest issues we currently face, and one I have experienced in more than one school is the difficulty of cr...

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