Reading Writing Responding

creative commons licensed (BY-NC-ND) flickr photo by Let Ideas Compete: http://flickr.com/photos/question_everything/4447757532 The big announcement that came out of the recent review into the Australian Curriculum was that it was crowded. There is nothing new about this perspective. People have been making noise for a long time, particularly in regards to the primary curriculum, since the introduction of subjects such as science and history in the Early Years. However, is this really the case or is there something else at play? One of the areas that people often get caught up with is the interdisciplinary learning. These strands span the areas of:  Communication Design, Creativity and Technology Information and Communication Technology  Thinking Processes I have been in many different settings and I have yet to see these strands implemented effectively. I remember sitting in a session nearly ten years ago where the presenter explained that the purpose o...

creative commons licensed (BY-NC) flickr photo by CaptPiper: http://flickr.com/photos/piper/4249136849 One of my goals this year has been to move towards a more student-centred approach. Whether it be reducing the time spent on instruction or providing more meaningful tasks, I have sort to evolve my own practise. Often such conversations open up into talk about choice , authentic projects and placing students at the centre of discussions. However, a particular ingredient that I have added to my cocktail this year has been the focus on ambiguity. Ambiguity can come in many shapes or forms. For me, it maybe leaving a project open for interpretation or providing a task where students are given a space to decide on various elements. In his book on digital literacy , Doug Belshaw wrote a fantastic explanation of ambiguity, influenced largely by William Empson's book Seven Types of Ambiguity . For me, ambiguity has come in the form of narrative. My focus has been to move the ...

cc licensed (BY-NC) flickr photo by Thomas Hawk: http://flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/2355249759 I am not sure if I was being naive or slightly arrogant, but this post began its life as an effort to provide an overview of the different modes and methods of inquiry. Whether it be challenged-based, project-based, problem-based or plain old inquiry, I was trying to bring everything together in my own head, to make more sense of it all. However, what I soon realised was that the more I explored the topic, the more variants that appeared, with so many different ideas and interpretations. It all came to a head when  +Richard Olsen  shared a blog with me from  +Ewan McIntosh  on the difference between project-based learning and design learning. As you read through both McIntosh's  post , as well as various comments that follow, you realise that there is little consistency throughout. Although many of the differences are only marginal, there is littl...

It is so easy to get caught up wanting one thing, but not necessarily wanting everything that it may bring. Take for example, the following: Want an 8 cylinder car, but don't want to pay for the increase in petrol Want to use Google Apps/Chromebook at school, but don't want to invest in quality Internet and appropriate infrastructure Want to go on a holiday, but don't want to pay for accommodation Want writing proofread, but don't want to discuss any of the changes Want students to be at the centre of learning, but still as a teacher want to have all the control Want a bigger house, but don't want to clean it or pay the increase mortgage repayments Want to have a big night, but don't want to put up with the hangover in the morning And the list goes on ...  This happens in all facets of life, where there is a discrepancy between what we want and the reality of the full situation. However, it is becoming more and more pertinent in schools. So of...