Future competencies - beyond the 3Rs!

The universe is continually evolving - as are societies and individuals.Our populist government is rushing ahead to return us to the limitations of a Victorian education system.This is not to say literacy and numeracy are not important, they obviously are, but they are at best 'foundation skills' for more expansive learning competencies.And if the government's intention is to find out, and focus on, those students who are falling behind ( the so called 'achievement tail') we know where these students are already. And, as well, we have very efficient national monitoring systems in place to uncover areas of weaknesses across the system.It all boils down to simplistic political promises and tapping into, or creating, parent worries without any...

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Posted in: Ministry NZCurric,Rants and Raves,teaching and learning

Qualities required for creativity by Claxton

Guy Claxton is aways worth a read. It is important for anyone interested in developing and new ideas to appreciate the creative process. One thing is certain it is not as simple and as easy as many think. Studying creative individuals in any field involves dedication and good old fashioned practice and personal effort.Guy Claxton proves some guidance. Creative people, Claxton writes, draw on a great deal of prior knowledge and experience. Creativity , writes, Guy Claxton ‘is an advanced form of learning that involves a finely tuned sympathy orchestra of mental attitudes and capabilities playing together in complicated rhythms… it builds on basic skills and habits of more familiar kinds of learning.’ Creativity, as such, is a long way away from...

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Posted in: Creative Schools,Creativity,inquiry learning,Personalized Learning,Talent Development,teaching and learning

Rip van Winkle would be pleased with National Standards

At least Rip would feel at home in many secondary schools!All is not well in our current education systems as more and more students fail to leave the ‘confident, connected, creative life long learners’ equipped with the necessary future competencies, our new New Zealand Curriculum asks of schools to deliver. Failure seems endemic in educational systems worldwide. The new curriculum provides a ‘more informed vision’ of what could be but our current system, particularly our secondary schools, remains caught up in a web of educational thinking that was set in place over a 100 years ago. The assembly line mentality of such schools needs to give way to more enlightened ideas.If Rip van Winkle were to awaken in the 21stC after a hundred year snooze...

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Posted in: Big Picture,change,Ministry NZCurric,national standards,Secondary Education

Time for a transformational vision?

As Einstein said 'Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth.'We are a battle between populist politics of national standards and creative education. Time to speak out!It is at the ‘edge’ that all new learning occurs but it is not always a comfortable place to be. New ideas, in any area of life, are by their nature unsettling and to those in power can even be seen as heretical. Mind you, nothing wrong with heresy –all it means is having an alternative point of view.I think now is the time for a bit of courageous heresy as the current government is determined to impose National Standards in schools no matter the professional opposition and even though NZ currently does well in International literacy and numeracy testing....

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Posted in: Big Picture,Ministry NZCurric,teaching and learning

Reclaiming the joy of learning

Painting from the cover of Elwyn Richardson's book 'In The Early World' re-published by the NZCER.The ideas of Elwyn have been a strong influence in my own thinking particularly in trying to place curiosity, creativity, environmental awareness and imagination at the centre of learning. Once someone said I was ,'locked into the 60s' ( when this book was published). At the time I reacted against this but now I no longer mind. Ever since the 'experts' have imposed national curriculums on schools creativity has been at risk. Recently someone said ( but not to me) that my recent book was old fashioned . No apologies from me. The best of education is as much back to the future as it is reaching forwards. Only the status quo is unacceptable - and...

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Posted in: Creative teaching,Creative teaching Educationalists,Creativity,Educationalists,Personalized Learning,teaching and learning

Tapping the learners default model of learning.

The students in this class are following a river from source to sea ( possible in our part of NZ) and are following up their research questions and, as well, with sensitive teaching, making full use of mathematics to measure and calculate, poetic writing, drawing and art. This approach to teaching builds on the natural default mode of the students. It is based on in depth learning; doing fewer things well This is the type of learning that has been lost with the emphasis on covering content.There is no doubt far too many students do not ‘achieve’ as well as we would like in our education system.Populist politicians, their supporters, and the media see the answer in simplistic terms – what is required are National Standards ( tests) to identify...

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Posted in: Big Picture,Creative teaching,Integrated Learning,Ministry NZCurric,Personalized Learning,teaching and learning