tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90837116853104392372024-03-14T08:10:11.349+13:00Learning and Teaching Buzz“Teaching is about making some kind of dent in the world so that the world is different than it was before you practiced your craft." BrookfieldLearning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.comBlogger232125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-14222735486222432142022-10-08T12:30:00.045+13:002022-12-01T13:34:49.550+13:00Akoako@TeKura - Our Online Community of Practice - More than halfway!<p> We have had a term of two sessions twice a day in Weeks 3, 6, and 9 and have been reflecting on the impact of Akoako@TeKura in general and specifically the extra sessions. What has the impact been on the Community of Practice at Te Kura. Is it becoming a way to create a sense of community and connection? </p><p><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;">Sessions in Term 3</span></b></p><p>Our sessions this term have focused on creating a sense of belonging at Te Kura and the part that each and everyone of us has to play in that. We can say we don't feel a part of something, but what can we do to change that - to be solutions-focused, rather than only seeing the problem? What are the opportunities that have popped up as the result of something we've noticed?</p><p>The focus questions for the Term have really challenged us to go deeper - to think more critically about how we can continue to be part of the change we want to see...and be. You can see an example of some of the questions below with the related Mātāpono in brackets:</p><p class="m_-7005396702379817717paragraph" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><ul style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><li><span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="m_-7005396702379817717normaltextrun"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">What does belonging look like at Te Kura? </span></span><span class="m_-7005396702379817717eop"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></li><li><span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="m_-7005396702379817717normaltextrun"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">What does it feel like, sound like, taste like, smell like? (Whakamana, Whaitake)</span></span><span class="m_-7005396702379817717eop"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></li><li><span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="m_-7005396702379817717normaltextrun"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">How do we create a sense of belonging for our ākonga and their whānau at Te Kura? What are all the rauemi/resources we have available to do this? (Kotahitanga, Whakamana, Māramatonutanga)</span></span><span class="m_-7005396702379817717eop"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></li><li><span class="m_-7005396702379817717normaltextrun"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d;">How do we create a sense of belonging for kaimahi at Te Kura? What do we do now and what are the possibilities for the future? What are the possibilities? (Māramatonutanga, Kotahitanga,
Whaitake)</span></span></span></li><li><span style="color: #38761d;"><span class="m_-7005396702379817717normaltextrun"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">How can individually do something to create a sense of belonging at Te Kura? (Whakawhanaungatanga, Māramatonutanga) </span></span><span class="m_-7005396702379817717eop"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></li></ul><h3 style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Here is what we've explored in Term 3</span></h3><div>Every time we create a session, our focus is always to connect to who we are at Te Kura. </div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdpFhq7xbXw" target="_blank">Belonging at Te Kura</a></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CdpFhq7xbXw" width="320" youtube-src-id="CdpFhq7xbXw"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg&vl=en" target="_blank">The Danger of a Single Story</a></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D9Ihs241zeg" width="320" youtube-src-id="D9Ihs241zeg"></iframe></div><br /><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CI9bUZYGab8" target="_blank">Moving Beyond a Single Story</a></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CI9bUZYGab8" width="320" youtube-src-id="CI9bUZYGab8"></iframe></div><br /><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">We've picked up a few new leaders, which is fantastic and have more people interested in running sessions in the future - lots of ideas for future sessions are added to the Jamboard. The beauty of using this tool is that once it's opened, it stays in your Google Drive and can be accessed anytime, anywhere. It is really exciting to see when people in our CoP add ideas at times outside of the main session.</p><p style="text-align: left;">We have deepened our focus and connection to our Ngā Mātāpono as discussed in a previous post. This has had an impact on the level of discussion. This is mostly in the chat and on the Jamboards. I think our next - and most important - focus for the community, is to find ways to encourage people to have the confidence to share with cameras and microphones on - this is the challenge of having a solely online Community of Practice...but we are up to the challenge! </p><p><br /></p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-39749326349518683192022-07-08T12:31:00.022+12:002022-12-01T13:03:16.149+13:00So, Why is a CoP so Important and Valuable?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimeuHmHkra5oN2PdqQaplMob15UlS7aYiOn6FUQ8y4EM_Fy3vepWHI2ZJspB-Us_OdCfaN30T_kleUIPa00i7OnD4YnD5n9L1nFPNMbnlsGeUrVhGcJFGpLh8l_1SddlQqezG3DSkMVy2uNoZ7VIYNVHyML9QQElXYpQSQwxe0lxe0cwaR7VxM1Ves/s902/Ma%CC%84ta%CC%84pono%201.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="846" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimeuHmHkra5oN2PdqQaplMob15UlS7aYiOn6FUQ8y4EM_Fy3vepWHI2ZJspB-Us_OdCfaN30T_kleUIPa00i7OnD4YnD5n9L1nFPNMbnlsGeUrVhGcJFGpLh8l_1SddlQqezG3DSkMVy2uNoZ7VIYNVHyML9QQElXYpQSQwxe0lxe0cwaR7VxM1Ves/w214-h228/Ma%CC%84ta%CC%84pono%201.png" width="214" /></a></div><p>I've written a previous post on Reflective Practice and Communities of Practice - a warning: it's a long one! It goes into detail about the power of reflection in a CoP and includes thoughts on how important the Key Competencies are. You can read it <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2016/03/reflecting-on-reflective-practice.html" target="_blank">here</a>. </p><p>As I looked back at that post from 2016, I made many connections to what we are working to achieve at Te Kura. I know how powerful CoPs can be when they are designed well and work well. As part of this - and underpinning it - at Te Kura we have our Ngā Mātāpono/values, which I've also reflected on in a prior post: <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2020/12/looking-back-to-look-forward.html" target="_blank">Looking Back to Look Forward.</a> In Akoako@TeKura we are focused on creating sessions that are underpinned by these values so that our people can see Ngā Mātāpono in action and explore them in the context of the discussions.</p><p>Our community continues to grow and it has been exciting to see the level of confidence growing in our participants. </p><p>A question came up about why we wanted to share the invitation to the sessions with ALL staff. The reason behind this is that it shouldn't only be about our teachers if we are going to be a true CoP - all voices need to be heard and have much to offer. As an example of this, I remember many years ago when I first became interested in CoPs and we made sure that all of the staff at our school, from our caretaker through to the Principal was involved and invited to sessions. Some of the most powerful changes we made to our teaching practice came from discussions with our people who weren't teachers. I'm pretty passionate about including everyone, particularly if we are to live our values - our Ngā Mātāpono. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7UgPIYMQ_iSuLuQ8vLLzaMMlMYFMZ5aNKcYonF3SvvEbSf_ypOAgN9bb6Wy2YyggWl-45k39fULC-1w05ZAR99rzKK1rtQH2g8Q_yhkX_j6jE8BzQHDHiYH7ULh1tW9Jmn4M16j_foM87-cDuCN6C2OaBD2SXZsKPZ522U_nkxfu_4KpXxUUQxDn/s2062/Ma%CC%84ta%CC%84pono%202.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1110" data-original-width="2062" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7UgPIYMQ_iSuLuQ8vLLzaMMlMYFMZ5aNKcYonF3SvvEbSf_ypOAgN9bb6Wy2YyggWl-45k39fULC-1w05ZAR99rzKK1rtQH2g8Q_yhkX_j6jE8BzQHDHiYH7ULh1tW9Jmn4M16j_foM87-cDuCN6C2OaBD2SXZsKPZ522U_nkxfu_4KpXxUUQxDn/s320/Ma%CC%84ta%CC%84pono%202.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>Ngā Mātāpono are our principles that guide our practice but they are also how we want to be. </p><p>Discussions in the second part of the year have included the following:</p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Term 2</span></b></h2><p><a href="https://youtu.be/u4ZoJKF_VuA" target="_blank">What's Your Why?</a> Simon Sinek</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/u4ZoJKF_VuA" width="320" youtube-src-id="u4ZoJKF_VuA"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://youtu.be/biPC_IJyiHo" target="_blank">Everyone is a Change Agent</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/biPC_IJyiHo" width="320" youtube-src-id="biPC_IJyiHo"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://youtu.be/7XWMAteuaks" target="_blank">Be a Change Agent - Teachers as Change Agents</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7XWMAteuaks" width="320" youtube-src-id="7XWMAteuaks"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;"><b>Where to Next?</b></span></p><p>We still get requests to record the sessions, but are sticking to our guns on this one. We have made sure that everyone knows that they can still access the rauemi/resources, Jamboards, extra within our learning platform and that is helping a little bit. It's still a challenge for us and I'm not sure we have the answer yet. The power of being live -and not recorded - is the interaction, comments in the chat and the connections that are formed during each sessions between people. I still think we would lose that if we recorded and I definitely believe we would lose some of the trust and openness. </p><p>We have, however, listened to people who have really struggled to get to the 8.00am session. If we want to be a truly inclusive community, we needed to address this so, from Term 3 we are moving to twice-daily sessions, three times a term. The second session will be a lunchtime one from 1.30pm - 2.15pm. </p><p>It will be interesting to see the impact the second session has. This is such an important aspect of creating a strong and effective CoP - listen to voices. Your people own this community, find ways to make it theirs. </p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-50515977113628239332022-04-08T18:00:00.031+12:002022-12-01T12:33:42.550+13:00Creating a Community of Practice in a Special Space<p> I've written before about <a href="https://www.communityofpractice.ca/background/what-is-a-community-of-practice/" target="_blank">Communities of Practice</a> and how powerful they are in all spaces, whether the community is one involving ākonga(students), or adults - or even better, ALL ages and stages. See <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2016/06/what-is-community-of-practice-concept.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2014/09/improvements-and-feedback.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and<a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2018/02/whats-community-of-practice.html" target="_blank"> here</a> for a few previous posts. </p><p>The power of a well-designed CoP means that it is a space for all voices to be heard, they have a place and space to contribute and it is not reliant on a certain level of experience. Everyone has something important to offer.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.tekura.school.nz/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="1421" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ofiVHadCa-m8XbE21_K_1HAo7Nb7zrQVn0x0Iyjsj-oL2tImNESfZX3W-yetJAWW_jh-dxWS5is-LVtNYnqdxbCgtZ3DwlIPF-czfGyUbA1hn8ZYcrbM4iQ_elDONkQemYiIVZi-XcAmRfr-p-c1w1cGAXcEbRYdfeIV2sIq4a8xnKJzdVQcxMIg/s320/Screen%20Shot%202022-12-01%20at%2012.07.29%20PM.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu</td></tr></tbody></table><p>At <a href="https://www.tekura.school.nz/" target="_blank">Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu - The Correspondence School</a>, we are spread across the whole of Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond, so it can be challenging to find ways to create a sense of community. From the time I began teaching at Te Kura, I quickly became focused on how I could help create this sense of community through something like a Community of Practice as I had in many previous spaces I had worked in as well as during my Masters' study.</p><p>The perfect opportunity arose this year when I took on a new role as a Kaiarahi-a-motu - National Leader of Learning in the Curriculum Wāhanga (team). Another kaiako (teacher) was also interested in creating an online group of some type - a book group or club - to focus on professional learning and development as well as personal growth and development, and so the plan began.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRAhgzxw8IFOqzoxvia8zo8cn4xm1f25d2-4tFaQDS5-rl6b1taVr-sq4SAqUmc61oneZltCiT89Rwnmj_Fe3lgZRG-KFw5TfmBEhPSW9reXWExva4n35Cl5m4sLLKzt316FEnIxr5G3adLTixLAsaEjSSkMP2577BbcTrvrA2z2wwttgTKYd4fZW0/s2512/Akoako%20pic%20for%20blog.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1432" data-original-width="2512" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRAhgzxw8IFOqzoxvia8zo8cn4xm1f25d2-4tFaQDS5-rl6b1taVr-sq4SAqUmc61oneZltCiT89Rwnmj_Fe3lgZRG-KFw5TfmBEhPSW9reXWExva4n35Cl5m4sLLKzt316FEnIxr5G3adLTixLAsaEjSSkMP2577BbcTrvrA2z2wwttgTKYd4fZW0/s320/Akoako%20pic%20for%20blog.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>We are a term into the group now. Akoako@TeKura has become our online community of practice where we can share and collaborate in a safe space. Currently, there is one session in Weeks 3, 6, and 9 of the Term. The sessions are a 'Breakfast Club' and run from 8.00am - 8.45am.</p><p><b><i>Our format is the same each time:</i></b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Pre-reading or viewing - never longer than 15-20 minutes at the most (often a TEDTalk or TEDxTalk)</li><li>Focus questions to prompt thought and discussion for our sessions</li></ul><div>We also have other rauemi/resources available if our people want to delve deeper into the topics. These are released on the day of the sessions so that we don't overwhelm people beforehand.</div><div><br /></div><div>The sessions are never recorded - even though we've been asked many times to do this. We have been firm in our thinking on this as we wanted to create a safe and open space where people don't feel constrained in what they can share by the fact of it being recorded. This has meant that we have had some incredibly personal stories shared and we've been really humbled by this. A well-designed CoP relies on being underpinned by a sense of respect and trust and I think we have worked hard to develop this.</div><div><br /></div><div>During the sessions, the focus is on discussion and creating new learning together - another important aspect of a CoP. We start with an icebreaker - often just a quick thought-provoking or funny video. We then open a Jamboard - we have one for each session and they are consistent in format so that people know what to expect:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>3 Important Points</b> (from what we've read, watched, etc)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAlt-4gEppoiSWiF8IOSOaPua6e-IURYs15T-vZTfN2KpGEaz2o_htM2e_gTLKDFEYWdnJzArQbTWczF6XVv-e0XpHKT1kWX2mV_pSVGolEWxASRx2xr8hpTeAQ4uoJckmwXJ9S7UhcTEz_RINsc7eSYxGSIY4WexsdY29Xkk2rdlDBfqtOFIQ4L4/s2532/3%20Important%20Points.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1426" data-original-width="2532" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwAlt-4gEppoiSWiF8IOSOaPua6e-IURYs15T-vZTfN2KpGEaz2o_htM2e_gTLKDFEYWdnJzArQbTWczF6XVv-e0XpHKT1kWX2mV_pSVGolEWxASRx2xr8hpTeAQ4uoJckmwXJ9S7UhcTEz_RINsc7eSYxGSIY4WexsdY29Xkk2rdlDBfqtOFIQ4L4/s320/3%20Important%20Points.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Something that Squares with Your Beliefs or Practice</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK9MjTMkKVGIfXifIjaZ65MEL1IyiIk_9qBXxR7gmvcIRRDODFbkmf5alwtaosOtnS0QNG22IFbwf1A1iX5vjYtXdabUg-KDEy35oAUTzd8vCSpB8mmcsxwLSECVFzUZvo-pipqNT1X5ssgEvqD9M6m6ebXb1b8VRFAWL2e92Vn9_ym_gP6qAj64hV/s2520/Practice%20Beliefs.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1428" data-original-width="2520" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK9MjTMkKVGIfXifIjaZ65MEL1IyiIk_9qBXxR7gmvcIRRDODFbkmf5alwtaosOtnS0QNG22IFbwf1A1iX5vjYtXdabUg-KDEy35oAUTzd8vCSpB8mmcsxwLSECVFzUZvo-pipqNT1X5ssgEvqD9M6m6ebXb1b8VRFAWL2e92Vn9_ym_gP6qAj64hV/s320/Practice%20Beliefs.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Something Still Circling Around Your Head</b> (thoughts, wonderings)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-AAjoY112VdR7dEEf461MCFdd7x9vu-BuJIzEUaVdUtQ3HFH1cxsMfFWKmAIIkmK9IQLHRty9qI8V2_5E4iBxImrvVS4BLqA658kl3-zUrHeVLLOCaLOGV5ioRjLr81svMU8CJQ4C1VosXfqqWjBmDtxQ2TlFfbUnZ3uSrG1yLcy1aqawvLWmcTD/s2506/Circling.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1418" data-original-width="2506" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-AAjoY112VdR7dEEf461MCFdd7x9vu-BuJIzEUaVdUtQ3HFH1cxsMfFWKmAIIkmK9IQLHRty9qI8V2_5E4iBxImrvVS4BLqA658kl3-zUrHeVLLOCaLOGV5ioRjLr81svMU8CJQ4C1VosXfqqWjBmDtxQ2TlFfbUnZ3uSrG1yLcy1aqawvLWmcTD/s320/Circling.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>A Call to Action</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEift2r3cLbgpmwVcXgd4EVtkyNEd8IrBKo1y9ijyPhsKVIYIcVoiv3aitok41kYrqlFyUPKupiuvG4uqdOfyVZ3-frkuiHgi9rJ5DHr0jrNf1x-3cKt61ehgdo1sl2M6rrdkvb0hDm-OL_L_oXo_TcEfRISHz0YQenGBWFrRU6vNDaG90Kxn3fB8ulL/s2510/Taking%20Action.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1398" data-original-width="2510" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEift2r3cLbgpmwVcXgd4EVtkyNEd8IrBKo1y9ijyPhsKVIYIcVoiv3aitok41kYrqlFyUPKupiuvG4uqdOfyVZ3-frkuiHgi9rJ5DHr0jrNf1x-3cKt61ehgdo1sl2M6rrdkvb0hDm-OL_L_oXo_TcEfRISHz0YQenGBWFrRU6vNDaG90Kxn3fB8ulL/s320/Taking%20Action.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Moving Forward - Ideas for Future Sessions</b> (to give a voice and choice/agency in what we share and learn about)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6zFSvdJugnQXAixB6Mf3PrYImNY0auxRKNvSWcSkD178riTqW8pFa7TBOB3IfCoFZB8xFq2CIYPrKOEBTXjhp2evMYXN1hqHX6oMS-CLYvnQcj7OVh7riul6gmht5XONG67siJ3SqHjlygIRFucup7NEAOoD0N_PhCQ1hmsj-AssZ0h29T93F_X3E/s2474/Moving%20forward.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1412" data-original-width="2474" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6zFSvdJugnQXAixB6Mf3PrYImNY0auxRKNvSWcSkD178riTqW8pFa7TBOB3IfCoFZB8xFq2CIYPrKOEBTXjhp2evMYXN1hqHX6oMS-CLYvnQcj7OVh7riul6gmht5XONG67siJ3SqHjlygIRFucup7NEAOoD0N_PhCQ1hmsj-AssZ0h29T93F_X3E/s320/Moving%20forward.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>One of our other main goals was to create opportunities for leadership in the CoP - another important part of a well-designed CoP. We are gradually widening the group of leaders in the space and this is something that we will always have as a goal and focus. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Everyone has something to offer and contribute in a CoP</span></i></b></h3><div><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><br /></span></i></b></div><div>Some of the topics for discussion in Terms 1 have included:<br /><br /><a href="https://youtu.be/bA9EwcFbVfg" target="_blank">Two-eyed Seeing</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bA9EwcFbVfg" width="320" youtube-src-id="bA9EwcFbVfg"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://youtu.be/4KrxfcW7Irg" target="_blank">From Two-eyed Seeing to Two-eyed Being</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4KrxfcW7Irg" width="320" youtube-src-id="4KrxfcW7Irg"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://youtu.be/qeK3SkxrZRI" target="_blank">My Identity</a>: Mana: The Power in Knowing Who You Are - Tame Iti</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qeK3SkxrZRI" width="320" youtube-src-id="qeK3SkxrZRI"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><h3 style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Where to Next?</span></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Heading into Term 2, we are focusing on leadership and knowing our 'why' or purpose in what we do at Te Kura. One of our main goals is to increase participation and ownership of the community. It is already strong but we know we can do so much more to create this sense of belonging and ownership. We've already increased the number of people who are keen to develop sessions and lead with us supporting. Our goal is still to create a CoP where people know they belong and are keen to take leadership of discussions with us in support roles. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Stay tuned! </div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p></p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-44803566581027005292021-10-28T21:49:00.000+13:002021-10-28T21:49:09.759+13:00All You Have Is Time - So How Are You Using It?<p>The title of this post is credited to the amazing <a href="https://www.awhiyoga.co.nz/about-us-2">Jase Te Patu</a>, (Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Ruanui and Ngāti Tūwharetoa), one of the Keynote Speakers at uLearn21. Jase is a leader in the field of Mindfulness for Children and wellbeing.</p><p>Jase helped us to explore Te Whare Tapa Whā and challenged us in such an honest and open way to really look deeply at what we are doing in our lives that stops us from having a balanced Whare. The meaning of Hauora is Hau-o-rā - the "vital essence of the sun." It is all about energy and balance. </p><p>In 2019, Jase spoke at TEDxWellington. This is the recording from that conference.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/c3CUTuqAT4c" width="320" youtube-src-id="c3CUTuqAT4c"></iframe></div><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: medium;"><b>A FOCUS ON TE WHARE TAPA WHĀ AT TE KURA</b></span></p><p>Wellbeing at Te Kura is central to everything we do - not only for our students, but also for ourselves. We have regular PLD around Wellbeing utilising the work of <a href="https://nziwr.co.nz/keynotes/">Lucy Hone and Denise Quinlan</a>. Te Whare Tapa Whā is frequently explored at our Huinga Ako and forms an important part of <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2020/12/looking-back-to-look-forward.html">My Korowai</a>. If we don't focus on our wellbeing, learning and teaching can't happen successfully for anyone. </p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: medium;">APPLYING NEW LEARNING TO THE CLASSROOM</span></b></p><p>Each week at Te Kura we have our Huinga Ako. These are usually face-to-face, but are all online at the moment due to the Lockdown in Tāmaki Makaurau. I wanted to be able to take what I've been learning over the course of the year at Te Kura and combine what I had learned from Jase.</p><p>At today's Huinga Ako, we used the same activity that Jase did with us. I created the four pou (pillars) on a Jamboard and we discussed what each of the pou could mean for us in terms of our Hauora this Term. What are some of the things we can do to take care of our pou over the course of the Term? We related this to our <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2020/12/looking-back-to-look-forward.html">Ngā Mātāpono.</a> </p><p>Here is what we've come up with so far. The most exciting thing for me? The fact that this was a group of students supporting each other's Te Whare Tapa Whā, and that they were still online tonight adding to their kete of tools to look after Te Whare Tapa Whā. We will continue to revisit this and develop our kete for each one. Jase challenged us to do this. <b>Do we go back to our kete enough? Do we support others enough to revisit their kete? Wellbeing is a team effort. </b></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SY86AW2BlUg/YXphxwstFrI/AAAAAAAAHPY/c9mtrUvvCrsTnbUr60hYaVhiAwOegNr3gCNcBGAsYHQ/s1011/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.37.55%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="1011" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SY86AW2BlUg/YXphxwstFrI/AAAAAAAAHPY/c9mtrUvvCrsTnbUr60hYaVhiAwOegNr3gCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.37.55%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hE1-qCrla5M/YXphxyUgCMI/AAAAAAAAHPU/NLuJ10fmQhADKo-UskD1LZ80FEvThwm1wCNcBGAsYHQ/s1010/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.03%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="1010" height="181" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hE1-qCrla5M/YXphxyUgCMI/AAAAAAAAHPU/NLuJ10fmQhADKo-UskD1LZ80FEvThwm1wCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.03%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GpLClyv2zOU/YXphxp9r6lI/AAAAAAAAHPQ/3ARXsJU6DNITO6aE7G-ZvSdmjcDkPN55QCNcBGAsYHQ/s1009/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.12%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="1009" height="181" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GpLClyv2zOU/YXphxp9r6lI/AAAAAAAAHPQ/3ARXsJU6DNITO6aE7G-ZvSdmjcDkPN55QCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.12%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iqIfWxhmVqA/YXphy95oJ_I/AAAAAAAAHPc/UfMHEQt7u2I5pEsPMer_kRUgOHGeSf23gCNcBGAsYHQ/s1009/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.19%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="566" data-original-width="1009" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iqIfWxhmVqA/YXphy95oJ_I/AAAAAAAAHPc/UfMHEQt7u2I5pEsPMer_kRUgOHGeSf23gCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.38.19%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p><br /></p><p><b>A final thought from Jase - and this one really hit home for me:</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: large;">"We spend two minutes on our dental health but some of us no minutes on our mental health." </span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>What are you going to do this Term to balance the pou on your Te Whare Tapa Whā? </b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>"Make [your] wellbeing a MUST each day."</b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://terauora.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="386" data-original-width="512" height="241" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xXHBN8kDiOA/YXpjOejFoFI/AAAAAAAAHP0/Lwxvpl11bVko7eFsCH0Au5Uq145rwkZcQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-28%2Bat%2B9.44.48%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-68679759250174002942021-10-27T09:57:00.001+13:002021-10-28T08:00:37.172+13:00Citizen Science in an Online Learning Environment<p>During the uLearn21 Conference, I attended two sessions on <a href="https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/citizen_science">Citizen Science.</a> This is an area that has really piqued my interest - probably because I've held a long-time interest in flattening the classroom, connecting with mentors, and finding opportunities for learners to connect with the world around them.</p><p>I've had a long time connection with <a href="https://www.epals.com/#/connections">ePals</a> in the past. This is an amazing platform where you can connect with people from all over the world, share learning and teaching and also experiences. We even had a shared Wikispace - remember those! - where everyone collaborated on their learning. It was about 2010 and exciting times.</p><p>Attending the two sessions on <a href="https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/citizen_science">Citizen Science </a>brought back a lot of the excitement I had for those days. The first session was a short taster session presented by Carol Briesman and Cathy Bunting. They provided a fantastic summary of what Citizen Science is:</p><p>"...scientific work undertaken by members of the general public, often in collaboration or under the direction of professional scientists and science institutions." (Eitzel, Cappadonna, Santos-Lang, Duerr, Virapangse, West, et al., 2017).</p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>BENEFITS</b></span></p><p> - Access to mentors</p><p> - Access to larger data samples to work with</p><p> - Being part of the scientific process</p><p> - Grow science capabilities and connect to the Science community</p><p> - Encourage students to 'think like Scientists'</p><p> - Build student agency / whakamana</p><p> - Exploring possibilities in terms of future careers and, most importantly,</p><p> - The chance to make a difference in the world.</p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>LINKS WITH DESIGN THINKING</b></span></p><p>I must own up to having a bit of an obsession with Design Thinking and the opportunities it offers our students to connect with the world around them and make a difference. Empathy is a key component of Design Thinking and this also kept coming through in the presentations on Citizen Science.</p><p><b><i>This is a nice summary of what Design Thinking is....</i></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gHGN6hs2gZY" width="320" youtube-src-id="gHGN6hs2gZY"></iframe></div><br /><p><b><i>This is a great summary of what Design Thinking can DO - especially when learners run a project....</i></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7CTh2ky3gDk/YXeunbyxH3I/AAAAAAAAHOI/WBMUzgpgOgMY7u4jUs3NWaq-WNpme5-NACNcBGAsYHQ/s1440/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-26%2Bat%2B8.27.49%2BPM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1440" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7CTh2ky3gDk/YXeunbyxH3I/AAAAAAAAHOI/WBMUzgpgOgMY7u4jUs3NWaq-WNpme5-NACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-26%2Bat%2B8.27.49%2BPM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>This was a Makerspace Project at a previous school. I supported students to learn the skills and we learned more about the Design Thinking Process by working together to create an awesome space - <a href="https://thecreatoropssteam15.blogspot.com/">The Creator Ops STEAM</a> (named by the project lead - one of my 13 year-old students). </p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>POSSIBILITIES AND WONDERINGS</b></span></p><p>We are currently in Level 3 in Tāmaki Makaurau - and we're not sure how long for. I teach at Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu - The Correspondence School, where we are mostly an online school with face-to-face catchups once a week when we are at Level 1...so how can I make something as powerful as this work? What do I need to do as a teacher to make this work and how can I use my experience as a blended learner and teacher to make a difference in the learning of my students? We also have a Citizen Science Module available for our students - how can I use this and extend the learning from this starting point?</p><p>The second person who presented was Matt Boucher from Thorndon School in Wellington. Matt shared what he has been working on for quite a while with a range of students and contexts. The more projects he shared and explained, the more ideas I had for how this could work in our context at Te Kura. Matt's passion for what he has created really gelled with my Teacher Inquiry and the questions I have around bringing more Science into an online learning environment and how that could possibly work well. </p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">RESOURCES AND WHERE I NEED TO HEAD NEXT</span></b></p><p><span> My next steps will be to explore the resources at the links below, and watch the recording of the uLearn21 sessions again. From this, I will develop a plan that fits in with my Teacher Inquiry around bringing more Science into our learning environment at Te Kura and how that can happen no matter what the situation. My big question is around how we capture the real time excitement around experiments and thinking like scientists. I think Citizen Science could provide most of the answers for this question.</span></p><p><span><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Exploration Links</span></i></b></span></p><p><b>Science Learning Hub - Pokapū Akoranga Pūtaiao</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zyc3rHWCbqM/YXhlws_YnsI/AAAAAAAAHOQ/VQVWushuqEMlPA177_NtkxXRjYmDlkLtgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1407/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.30.40%2BAM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="688" data-original-width="1407" height="156" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zyc3rHWCbqM/YXhlws_YnsI/AAAAAAAAHOQ/VQVWushuqEMlPA177_NtkxXRjYmDlkLtgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.30.40%2BAM.png" width="320" /></a></div> <a href="https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/citizen_science">Science Learning Hub - Pokapū Akoranga Pūtaiao</a><p></p><p><b>National Geographic - Citizen Science</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JFrri3-Pz98/YXhnTTlICvI/AAAAAAAAHOY/N01vt9l7JygxftbA-Gqy4NE2tMklB_mqgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1428/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.37.26%2BAM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="699" data-original-width="1428" height="157" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JFrri3-Pz98/YXhnTTlICvI/AAAAAAAAHOY/N01vt9l7JygxftbA-Gqy4NE2tMklB_mqgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.37.26%2BAM.png" width="320" /></a></div> <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/citizen-science/#:~:text=Encyclopedic%20Entry%20Vocabulary-,Citizen%20science%20is%20the%20practice%20of%20public%20participation%20and%20collaboration,done%20as%20an%20unpaid%20volunteer.">National Geographic - Citizen Science</a><br /><p><br /></p><p><span><b>National Geographic - Citizen Science Projects</b></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vV44RbZbSKI/YXhonS9cLAI/AAAAAAAAHOg/Fhzz55DTkuA6tWotonLCEVuxYdmbBuUfQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1425/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.42.52%2BAM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="1425" height="151" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vV44RbZbSKI/YXhonS9cLAI/AAAAAAAAHOg/Fhzz55DTkuA6tWotonLCEVuxYdmbBuUfQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.42.52%2BAM.png" width="320" /></a></div> <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.org/idea/citizen-science-projects/">National Geographic - Citizen Science Projects</a><br /><span><br /></span><p></p><p><span><b>Citizen Science New Zealand - Facebook Group</b></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VYHnquDb0i8/YXhqL8fF1aI/AAAAAAAAHOo/1voMjZvND5knzpE4mHTSSIQzAaE-oE43gCNcBGAsYHQ/s1163/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.49.26%2BAM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="1163" height="149" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VYHnquDb0i8/YXhqL8fF1aI/AAAAAAAAHOo/1voMjZvND5knzpE4mHTSSIQzAaE-oE43gCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-10-27%2Bat%2B9.49.26%2BAM.png" width="320" /></a></div> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CitizenScienceNewZealand/">Citizen Science New Zealand FB Group</a><p></p><p>These will be enough to kick off the exploration and thinking as well as ideas for how we can make this work in our particular learning environment. Stay tuned! </p><p><span><br /></span></p><p><span><br /></span></p><p><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><br /></p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-17908386138992971902021-10-17T20:31:00.004+13:002021-10-17T20:36:13.079+13:00Aotearoa e tōnui nei | Thriving Aotearoa uLearn21<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The theme of uLearn21 was Aotearoa e tōnui nei - Thriving Aotearoa. I am always excited about uLearn and have been attending for many years. Due to our current situation in Aotearoa, this year's conference was online. My excitement was tempered a little bit by Tāmaki Makaurau heading into Week 8 - or is it 9? - of our current lockdown. We've had four so far and this has been the longest. I'm always a bit of a Pollyanna, but this one is even getting on my nerves, so I wondered if I could be as enthusiastic as I have been in the past about the incredible learning that is uLearn. I needn't have worried. You know that saying about 'something you didn't know you needed?' I always know that this is a conference I need, but this year's one had something extra special. It came along at the right time and has given so many of us an incredible boost, along with awesome tools that we can incorporate into our practice. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Most importantly, it made us <b>think, question, reflect, and have a driving need to take action</b>. The four keynote speakers, alone, created so much energy that the ever-present focus on lockdown just disappeared. There was so much incredible food for thought over the two days that there will need to be many blog posts to not only reflect on what I heard but importantly, to reflect on what action I will take in my life and teaching practice to make and support changes needed - not only personally, but also in terms of Education in Aotearoa. I am incredibly fortunate to be able to learn and teach in a kura that is already so well on the way in this journey of thriving. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As a bit of a taster, here is one of the Keynote Speakers presenting at a recent TEDxWelington. Jase Te Patu has a very special way of connecting with his audience and challenging us to be more and do more. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/c3CUTuqAT4c" width="320" youtube-src-id="c3CUTuqAT4c"></iframe></div> Jase Te Patu (Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Tūwharetoa)<div> TEDxWellington 2019<br /><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Having an online conference has many benefits including:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> - People who dislike crowds can participate more confidently;</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> - If you have hearing loss, you are more than ably catered for - the sign language interpreters often stole the show!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> - As all sessions are recorded, there is plenty of time to be able to go back and revisit those that really got you thinking and, importantly, to be able to watch the sessions you weren't able to attend because you were at another incredible session.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As a conference that is inclusive, this is a fantastic example. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Although the theme was #ThrivingAotearoa, I noticed another theme that seemed to run through nearly every session I attended - and also the ones I've watched since - the theme of space. Space to think, space to dream, space to be listened to (and heard), space to be individual and unique self, space to just be. This theme, particularly in the current challenging climate seems to me to be just as important as the main theme. </span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Perhaps it is this 'space' for what we need individually that leads to us thriving? What space do you need this Term to be able to thrive?</span></b></p></div>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-32610645677067590712020-12-18T12:40:00.003+13:002021-10-17T20:02:49.873+13:00Looking Back To Look Forward - <p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: medium;"> <span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre-wrap;">LOOKING BACK TO LOOK FORWARD</span></span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_M5AIMgMEh4/X9uwuWyT-pI/AAAAAAAAG-A/hP8jEYw3pdE9PBZbR0VkxQBkyQxhQ-tywCNcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Titiro%2Bwhakamuri%2BKokiri%2Bwhakamua%2B%2BLook%2Bback%2Band%2Breflect%2Bso%2Byou%2Bcan%2Bmove%2Bforward.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_M5AIMgMEh4/X9uwuWyT-pI/AAAAAAAAG-A/hP8jEYw3pdE9PBZbR0VkxQBkyQxhQ-tywCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Titiro%2Bwhakamuri%2BKokiri%2Bwhakamua%2B%2BLook%2Bback%2Band%2Breflect%2Bso%2Byou%2Bcan%2Bmove%2Bforward.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><p></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-530ff338-7fff-9d64-0d54-9742c00ccaf5"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2020 has been a year of many things to many people. For many of us, it has changed our focus and we are reevaluating what is important to us.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After many years of not being able to work full-time and of thinking that my career and love for teaching was in the past due to various health issues, a corner was turned and 2020 has turned out to contain so many more positives that any other year to date.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This year, I was hired to work at a very special school - <a href="https://www.tekura.school.nz/">Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu - The Correspondence School</a>. This is Aotearoa New Zealand’s Correspondence School, but it is not the Correspondence School of old. This is a truly innovative and ākonga-centred learning and teaching environment that has our ākonga firmly at its heart. Our philosophy is as far away from a ‘one size fits all’ philosophy as you can get. <b><i><span style="color: #38761d;">We have a ‘one size fits one’ philosophy.</span></i></b> You hear it in the daily conversations with colleagues, ākonga and their whānau. You see it in our actions.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="color: #38761d;">CONTINUOUS REPORTING</span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We have just changed to a <a href="https://www.tekura.school.nz/supervisors/student-reports/">continuous reporting system</a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Instead of report-writing twice a year which, in actual fact, causes a lot of disruption to learning and teaching and with a finished report that is generally out of date by the time it reaches our ākonga and their whānau, we have ongoing learning and teaching where feedback and feedforward is ongoing and seamless. (ADD MORE and link to articles, research and Te Kura website)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="color: #38761d;">NGĀ MĀTĀPONO</span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PvclU-xZ-Ns/X9u0Uercm0I/AAAAAAAAG-M/nBjvWPULeoQxgSuO_Ls43FwfxXpunm0WACNcBGAsYHQ/s960/Ng%25C4%2581%2BM%25C4%2581t%25C4%2581pono.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PvclU-xZ-Ns/X9u0Uercm0I/AAAAAAAAG-M/nBjvWPULeoQxgSuO_Ls43FwfxXpunm0WACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Ng%25C4%2581%2BM%25C4%2581t%25C4%2581pono.png" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></b></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ngā Mātāpono are the principles we follow. They guide us in everything we do.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and it is at the heart of everything we do. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The five Guiding Principles also include two Capabilities and Dispositions each that we want to support our ākonga to develop. Together, these are:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Kotahitanga</span> - Care / Resilience</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Whaitake</span> - Curiosity / Contribution</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Whakamana</span> - Agency / Optimism</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Māramatonutanga </span>- Sense Making / Creative Thinking / Innovation</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Whakawhanaungatanga</span> - Collaboration / Connection</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="color: #38761d;">MY KOROWAI</span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My Korowai is our cloak which links past to present and to the future. It is never finished as new learning, experiences and connections help to grow and strengthen it as it envelopes our ākonga. It is our ‘connector’ if you like. It tells the story of all the different parts of the learning journey our ākonga are on.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="color: #38761d;">TE KURA BIG PICTURE LEARNING</span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Big Picture Learning is all about personalising learning and keeping our ākonga (learners) at the heart of everything we do. It's about connecting learning to the real world and finding opportunities to support our ākonga to find their way in the world. It is Inquiry Learning or Problem Based Learning at its best.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">This form of learning and pedagogy is my passion and I am incredibly excited about the coming year and how I can incorporate these changes into learning from and with my ākonga. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are constantly evolving and it is an exciting ara to be on. </span></span></p>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-970586195615285542019-06-20T09:41:00.001+12:002019-06-20T21:12:28.397+12:00I Can Meet the Needs of Gifted Learners in my Classroom at All Times - Let's Be Honest and Bust that MythThis week is <a href="https://nzgaw.jimdo.com/">Gifted Awareness Week</a> and the theme is all about <a href="https://nzgaw.jimdo.com/">Mythbusting</a>.<br />
There are so many <a href="https://www.nagc.org/myths-about-gifted-students">myths</a> about <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/define-and-identify/characteristics-of-the-gifted-and-talented/">giftedness</a>, <a href="https://www.edutopia.org/blog/debunking-myths-about-gifted-students-heather-wolpert-gawron">gifted learners and gifted education</a> in general that it's sometimes hard to know where to start, so I'm going to start with a very personal post which is all about my journey in gifted education - and it may just surprise some people.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">WHAT I BELIEVED</span></b><br />
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When I was training to be a teacher in the late 1990s, we received very little in the way of learning about any aspect of gifted education. In fact, the common mantra seemed to be in line with the image below and we were taught to believe that we could meet all of our learners' varying needs in our own classrooms and learning environments. Honestly, do a search of this message and it's everywhere - even on coffee mugs! And it still persists today. Did I also believe this? Absolutely I did!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cgriHH7lfcc/XQqSkiTVPkI/AAAAAAAAGc4/ckLtUTL0XJsi_TnZbfA1M9-ob-37jKshwCLcBGAs/s1600/Every%2Bchild%2Bis%2Bgifted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="263" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cgriHH7lfcc/XQqSkiTVPkI/AAAAAAAAGc4/ckLtUTL0XJsi_TnZbfA1M9-ob-37jKshwCLcBGAs/s200/Every%2Bchild%2Bis%2Bgifted.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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The word '<a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/design-and-implement/differentiation/">differentiation'</a> became the catch-cry through which we could ensure that all learners' needs were met. This is great and does work to a certain extent, as long as there has been extensive professional learning and development (PLD) around it. How many of us can honestly say that we have received that?<br />
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I spent a lot of time learning about <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/design-and-implement/differentiation/">differentiation</a> in my own time. My learners and I always planned our learning together - at the beginning using the old separate curriculum documents and later on when the revised <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/">New Zealand Curriculum</a> came out in 2007. My learners were engaged, owned their learning and, according to the data and my observations, they were all progressing very well and thriving in the learning environment. Something was still bugging me though about the learners I could see who were standing out for so many different and unique reasons. Something wasn't gelling with me in my observations.<br />
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Yes, I was extending those students who stood out in a traditional academic way, but this was always enrichment at the same level - it wasn't acceleration which is still a bone of contention in education circles. (For more information on this, <a href="https://educationcentral.co.nz/enrichment-or-acceleration-or-both-how-to-best-provide-for-gifted-students-2/">click here</a>). I started to question whether this was actually extending them at all - or challenging them enough. I also started to notice as a new teacher that there were students who amazed me with their thinking and their creativity who didn't really fit the mould of being <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/nz/blog/gifted-ed-guru/201201/bright-child-vs-gifted-learner-whats-the-difference">academically talented</a> - we didn't use the word gifted because, as in the photo above, this was not really something that existed according to the powers that be. The belief that you always took all learners horizontally across the curriculum level, never to the next level, was so strongly entrenched that you didn't really question it - until you could see that learners were switching off. And what of the learners who were not in the so-called academically talented group - how were they being extended and was it really all about how successful you were in what was valued the most?<br />
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">WHAT CHANGED?</span></b><br />
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<a href="https://artcostacentre.com/html/habits.htm">Habits of Mind</a> was always a foundation of learning in my classrooms from Day 1 and I started to question what I was doing the more we engaged with the concepts in this philosophy. The more discussions we had, the more certain learners outside the traditional realm of what was judged to be talented, stood out. I needed to make sure that I was meeting their needs. I continued to question my practice and my beliefs around the word and concept of 'gifted'.<br />
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In the early 2000s I was fortunate enough to teach in an intermediate school that had a withdrawal programme for learners identified as gifted. This was really the start of me questioning my practice - why did we need a withdrawal programme when my classroom environment should be enough? What was I not able to do in the classroom? The more I experienced what was happening in this programme and the more open I was to learning, and the more I could see how much this programme meant to the learners involved, how it was changing their attitude to school and learning. The most important knowledge - I could see how powerful this programme was, how powerful and important it was for learners to be able to connect with like minds. You can read about this in the Aotearoa New Zealand context <a href="https://www.nzcer.org.nz/system/files/set2013_1_049.pdf">here</a>. I began to learn from the learners about what worked for them. I also learned so much from the teachers who were leading the programme. My practice and thinking started to change dramatically and I wanted to know and learn more.<br />
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In the mid-2000s I was lucky enough to attend a <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/">session on gifted education</a> with one of the authors of the paper in the previous link. This was run by the now <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/">New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education</a>. While I had started to read and learn about gifted education, I still had the residual of the mindset that "I'm a qualified teacher and I should be able to meet all learners' needs in my classroom." These sessions opened my eyes even further and raised my awareness to the point where there was no way I wasn't going to start questioning what we were doing to meet the needs of our gifted learners - and gifted learners absolutely do exist and they are often not your academic stand-outs. If you want to read more on this, check out <a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">"Gifted Children Do Exist - Here's What Happens When We Deny It."</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="711" height="268" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X652nvoRbH4/XQqbD0xa3II/AAAAAAAAGdE/lyGgUTaGOTwRXz2D8qf6oo9HTwspMSgIgCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2019-06-20%2B08.28.36.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">From: Not So Formulaic</a></td></tr>
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It was also about this time that the concept of <a href="https://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Inclusive-practices/Implementing-an-inclusive-curriculum/Building-a-rich-knowledge-of-the-learner/Encouraging-student-voice">Student Voice</a> was gaining traction. I had always planned with my learners but how much voice did they actually have and were they just being compliant or were they really engaged and owning their learning? There were so many questions I had around this, especially as I began to question my beliefs around giftedness.<br />
I read <a href="http://www.evaluate.co.nz/clarity-classroom/">Clarity in the Classroom</a> and this was a real turning point, particularly in using the power of student voice to change my practice.<br />
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<span style="color: purple; font-size: large;"><b>So What?</b></span><br />
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Being honest and <a href="https://www.waikato.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/360861/Reflective-Practice-June-2015.pdf">reflective in our practice</a> and acknowledging that we can't meet all of our learners' individual needs in our learning environments without adaptation and flexibility is not a sign of weakness or failure as a teacher - it's a sign of strength and reflection and it shows strong advocacy for our learners, particularly as we find the best way to meet their needs. It shows that we understand their individual needs and will do whatever it takes to meet those needs. It is always, always about our learners.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">WHAT NEXT?</span></b><br />
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<li>Challenge your thinking around giftedness and gifted education - it's a matter of <a href="https://www.nagc.org/blog/balancing-excellence-and-equity-twenty-first-century-struggle-gifted-education">equity</a> for our learners. Gifted learners matter as much as those who have learning difficulties - in fact some of our gifted learners can be found in these groups - they are our <a href="https://childmind.org/article/twice-exceptional-kids-both-gifted-and-challenged/">twice-</a> or <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/define-and-identify/identification/twice-multi-exceptional-learners/">multi-exceptional</a> learners.</li>
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<li>Join in discussions and join groups focused on gifted education and be open to ideas and conversations. You could join <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/137238016943562/?ref=bookmarks">Gifted and Talented Teachers (NZ)</a> which is the group I started.</li>
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<li>Be aware of the research and other publications out there. Giftedness is backed by evidence. It is not elitist or the domain of 'pushy parents.'</li>
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<li>Have a look at some of the ways you can celebrate your gifted students - not just this week but throughout the year. Some ideas can be found <a href="https://giftednz.org.nz/AR%20Ideas%20For%C2%A0Gifted%20Awareness%20Week">here</a>, and <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1toDtjaeN88hu2BHfpVjLpnGqotK7DPsT/view">here</a>.</li>
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<li><a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/define-and-identify/">Know what to look for</a> - identification is key to their success and engagement as learners.</li>
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<li>Be open to using <a href="http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Future-focused-learning/STEM-STEAM">STEAM</a>, <a href="http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Future-focused-learning/Student-inquiry/Passion-projects">Passion Projects</a>, <a href="https://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning">Problem/Project Based Learning</a> and <a href="https://geniushour.com/">Genius Hour</a> as ways to meet the needs of your gifted students.</li>
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<ul>
<li>Be open to the ideas of <a href="https://www.davidsongifted.org/Search-Database/entry/A10487">acceleration</a>, <a href="https://www.giftedchildren.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Biddick-M.pdf">cluster grouping </a>and <a href="https://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/ERO-Gift-Talent-GP-WEB.pdf">withdrawal</a> programmes to meet the needs of gifted learners and be aware of taken the <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/define-and-identify/identification/identification-tools/">identification and definition</a> of giftedness wider. Gifted students need '<a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/mindplus">like minds</a>' to connect with.</li>
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<ul>
<li>Understand what true <a href="https://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Inclusive-practices/Implementing-an-inclusive-curriculum/Effective-pedagogy-for-all-students/Differentiation-and-adaptation">differentiation</a> looks like and how it can be used to meet learners' needs.</li>
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<li>Know that our gifted students need <a href="http://envisiongifted.com/services/understanding-depth-complexity/">depth and complexity</a>.</li>
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<ul>
<li>Utilise organisations such as <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/">NZCGE</a>, <a href="https://www.giftedchildren.org.nz/">NZAGC</a>, <a href="https://giftednz.org.nz/">giftEDnz</a> and <a href="https://www.giftedaotearoa.nz/">Gifted Aotearoa</a> to challenge and question your practice and keep learning and reflecting - and acting. Don't forget the <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/">Gifted and Talented community on TKI</a> - this resource site is growing all the time.</li>
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">Above all... be open to the ideas and evidence that gifted learners exist and it's a matter of equity that their needs are met. Don't be afraid to be a Lone Nut or First Follower...</span></b><br />
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-53190152975691381302019-03-09T19:25:00.002+13:002019-03-09T19:25:17.362+13:00Should Our Students Participate in the Climate Change Protests...and Should we Support Them?Over the last while you will have seen the <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12209586">news articles</a> in the <a href="https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/03/it-won-t-help-the-world-one-bit-mps-slam-students-protest-on-climate-change.html">print media</a>, <a href="https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/backing-nz-students-abandon-classes-over-climate-change">seen reports on the news</a> and in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/schoolstrike4climatenz/">social media</a> about the upcoming <a href="https://mygoodplanet.com/march-15th-student-protests/">Global Protest Against Climate Change</a> on March 15, 2019.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aiqi3ih1mPI/XIM_alLILNI/AAAAAAAAGWE/vb_NJpl-G4YTr2yWYBvblmhjFBMELXjJACLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2019-03-09%2B17.21.36.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="678" height="314" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aiqi3ih1mPI/XIM_alLILNI/AAAAAAAAGWE/vb_NJpl-G4YTr2yWYBvblmhjFBMELXjJACLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2019-03-09%2B17.21.36.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/111139469/student-climate-strikes-rules-dont-matter-when-youre-fighting-for-your-future">Article from Stuff 09/03/19</a></td></tr>
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You will have heard the arguments for and against. So should our young people be protesting and should we support them in this protest against climate change - a global movement?<br />
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b><i><span style="color: blue;">The short answer is yes, they absolutely should and we should absolutely support them.</span></i></b></h4>
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We keep saying that our students don't care, don't have empathy, aren't interested in current events and issues and yet, the minute that they do show an interest or a passion for change, we want to shut them down and we belittle their efforts with comments in the vein of the students just wanting time off school. So some are saying to <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/111013724/students-who-strike-for-climate-change-will-be-marked-as-truants-principals-say">mark them as truant</a>. This is just plain wrong and smacks of someone throwing a tantrum. Why not mark it as an unjustified absence? Why choose truant? Or could we perhaps do the right thing, in my opinion, and mark them as a justified absence?<br />
<br />
Are we really listening to - and understanding - what they're saying - and do we really believe that this is just about a day off? Yes, that may be the case for some but we're really doing our young people a huge disservice if we continue to minimise their beliefs and opinions. To be honest, it's insulting to our younger generation.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J8RB9-OcwfQ/XINOUZ-aKXI/AAAAAAAAGWQ/ZgjLAGRfNpEr1wZfnAjjA8mbKZe7UY0rgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2019-03-09%2B18.24.58.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="696" data-original-width="1166" height="191" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J8RB9-OcwfQ/XINOUZ-aKXI/AAAAAAAAGWQ/ZgjLAGRfNpEr1wZfnAjjA8mbKZe7UY0rgCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2019-03-09%2B18.24.58.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/The-New-Zealand-Curriculum">The New Zealand Curriculum (2007)</a></td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/The-New-Zealand-Curriculum">New Zealand Curriculum</a> is held up to be a world-leading document. Perhaps it's time for some of our educators to carefully revisit its content and intent. It is full of examples of requiring our <span style="background-color: white;">learners to be "...lifelong learners who are confident and creative, connected, and actively involved" (NZC, 2007, p.4). This statement, by the then Secretary for Education, Karen Sewell, appears in the Foreword of the document and underpins everything else. This is the "...starting point..." (ibid).</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;">The Values, Vision, Principles and Key Competencies sections all go on to discuss participation and contribution as essential aspects of learning and teaching programmes (see for example pp.7-10).</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">According to our document from which all learning and teaching is derived, our goals are to help our learners become individuals who can contribute locally and globally and stand up for what they believe in. We want them to connect to their wider communities - again both local and global. We want and need them to be critical, creative thinkers who problem solve and problem create - that's how change happens. Isn't the current local and global protest the perfect opportunity to connect our learners to the real world context - to apply learning and teaching in a meaningful and connected way. It's making learning real and flattening the classroom walls. In 2012 I blogged about this in a post <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2012/04/what-do-we-really-want-for-our-students.html">It's About Authentic Learning - Dancing with Change.</a> My thoughts have not changed on this. Students will lead the way and are encouraged to do so in the NZC - if we facilitate this for them - and trust them.</span><br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-a450ee08-7fff-c9e5-62fe-c09c8870f44a"></span><br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At every level of the Social Sciences section of the NZC, the Achievement Objectives include those designed to encourage this independence - with our support and guidance - the goal is to help them become confident and connected individuals who can think locally and act globally. Again, the current protest is the perfect opportunity for this. What better way to connect the current situation and learning to the events of the past, to economic and social issues, to place and environment. If we fail to support them in this, we are missing a valuable learning and teaching opportunity and, even more importantly, our students are also missing out on this valuable opportunity.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i><span style="color: blue;">This is <a href="http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Learner-agency">agentic learning</a> at its best - it's what we as teachers strive for in our students. They're taking responsibility for their learning and applying it in an <a href="https://edspace.org.nz/discussion/view/97325/what-is-an-authentic-learning-context">authentic context</a>. </span></i></b></span></h4>
<span style="background-color: yellow;"><br /></span>
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We say that they're too young to make a difference, that what they're doing will not change anything but then we turn around and want to stop them from even trying. History is full of people who were told that they couldn't make a difference because they were too young. We only have to think back to the protests of the 1960s and 1970s against the Vietnam War and to protest Treaty of Waitangi issues, and what about the 1981 Springbok Tour? As a very young student I attended some of these marches and was proud to do so. Was it because I wanted time off school or to follow the crowd - no, it was because I strongly believed that this was the right thing to do and I wanted to be part of a collective voice. Why should it be any different for today's young people. For so many, this is also about having their voices heard - locally and globally, also one of the goals of the New Zealand Curriculum (see for example <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/The-New-Zealand-Curriculum">pages 8, 12, 13, 30, 39</a>).<br />
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The upcoming protest on <a href="https://mygoodplanet.com/march-15th-student-protests/">March 15 is a global one</a>. Instead of shutting down our students who want to have a voice in this issue, should we not be supporting the fact that they want to take action so that there is a brighter future for our planet. Have they struck a nerve with some of us...because we know we should have done more...should have done what they are doing now? It's time for the adults to support them - not shut them down.<br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-34714630295801993632019-03-06T18:01:00.002+13:002019-03-06T18:01:36.843+13:00A Celebration...and a Caution<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last week saw the <a href="https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/new-support-package-gifted-learners">exciting announcement</a> from the government around increased recognition and funding for gifted education. <a href="http://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/expertise/profile.cfm?stref=324330">Dr Tracy Riley</a> of Massey University has blogged about the latest developments and provided a succinct background of the history of provision for our gifted learners over the past 20+ years in her blog - <a href="https://spark.adobe.com/page/8WLQMeImMRYOq/">Gifted Learners: The Heart of the Matter.</a> This is recommended reading and focuses on what is needed in order for provisions to be successful - and equitable for our learners. As in the title, the learners are the focus of Dr Riley's post.<br />
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To give another side or perspective to the recent announcements, this post will focus on <span style="color: red;"><b><i>what is needed in order for educators to meet the needs of this unique group of students</i></b>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT</span></h3>
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<span style="color: blue;">What do Teachers Really Need?</span></h4>
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<span style="color: blue;">What's on Offer so Far?</span></h3>
<a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/">Te Kete Īpurangi (TKI)</a> - This is continuing to be updated and provides a wealth of professional learning and development resources for schools and other professionals. It's exciting to see the changes on the site and I would absolutely recommend this as one of your resources to add to your tool box or kete.<br />
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<a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/further-support/awards/">Awards for Gifted Learners</a> - this new initiative will provide opportunities for gifted learners to undertake special and unique learning opportunities either on their own or as part of a group.<br />
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Increased funding for One-day Schools (<a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/mindplus">MindPlus through the New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education, NZCGE</a>) - these exciting learning environments provide a tried and trusted experience for learners to be challenged in their learning. They provide a crucial environment where like-minds can connect. This is a key aspect of provision for the social and emotional development of our gifted learners. There is also a wealth of resources available for Professional Learning and Development (PLD) from this organisation.<br />
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Other PLD is able to be accessed through the Network of Expertise - <a href="https://www.giftedaotearoa.nz/">Gifted Aotearoa</a>, a collaboration between some of the main organisations involved in gifted education in this country (<a href="https://www.giftedreach.org.nz/">REACH Education</a>, <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/mindplus">NZCGE</a>, <a href="https://www.giftedchildren.org.nz/">NZAGC</a>). These organisations, along with <a href="https://giftednz.org.nz/">giftEDnz</a> are access points to invaluable PLD. They are currently offering a range of initiatives but how do we as professionals take responsibility to sustain this learning once we've finished a course, qualification or programme? <br />
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The key idea here is taking responsibility for our own learning - just as we expect our younger learners to do. These PLD provisions will only be as effective as possible if there is sustainability built into what is offered but it is unfair to leave it solely to the organisations involved. This is where communities of practice, particularly <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19415257.2016.1233507">blended CoPs</a> that offer <a href="https://www.schoology.com/blog/asynchronous-learning-definition-benefits-and-example-activities">asynchronous learning</a> (any time, any where learning) and learning that is owned by its members, really come into their own.<br />
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<span style="color: blue;">Sustainability of Programmes and Supporting the PLD</span></h3>
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<span style="color: blue;">Communities of Practice</span></h3>
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What is a blended community of practice and how does it differ from a community of learning? I've blogged about this many times over the years, see <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2018/02/whats-community-of-practice.html">here</a> and others listed below, for example. My Masters' research was in this area, so it's a bit of a passion due to the fact that it is owned and created by the members in the community. It is not a top-down model. It is a learning environment that matches what we know to be the most effective for our students. This also applies to our teachers' learning. Teacher agency is at its heart; it is ongoing and constantly changing to meet the needs of the learners. It's an environment where everyone learns from and with each other - no hierarchy - everyone has expertise.</div>
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<b><i>Additional posts on CoPs</i></b></div>
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<a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2016/06/what-is-community-of-practice-concept.html">Communities of Practice</a> - this outlines the basic premise of a CoP and what it needs in order for it to be successful, particularly in relation to blended CoPs which have an online and face-to-face component and have proven to be the most effective in changing practice.</div>
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<a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2014/09/improvements-and-feedback.html">Improvements and Feedback in a Community of Practice</a> </div>
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CoPs were developed by <a href="https://wenger-trayner.com/etienne/">Etienne Wenger</a> - this video is from one of his presentations. An 'extra' if you are keen to learn more.</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">Why the Caution in this Post?</span></h3>
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Although it's exciting that we have a government that acknowledges that our gifted learners have unique social, emotional and learning needs and is prepared to put its money where its mouth is, we need to also do our part in ensuring that there is much open and honest discussion around this area of education.</div>
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We can't continue to sit back and adhere to that old chestnut that "Every child is gifted, they just unwrap their gifts at different times" or we will be failing to provide a learning environment for a group of learners with research-based unique needs. <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2018/10/changing-thinking-to-create-equity-are.html">This is a matter of equity</a>. Yes, <a href="https://raisinglifelonglearners.com/not-all-children-are-gifted/">all students have gifts, but not all students are gifted</a>. We need to stop ignoring the <a href="https://giftednz.org.nz/AR%20Research%20and%20Articles">wealth of research</a> that backs this up.</div>
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The recent announcement of increased funding and recognition is a powerful step in the right direction but it absolutely must be backed up by professional learning and development at all stages of teacher education - from pre-service to inservice... and it <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-resources/Career-education/Sustainable-practice/Professional-development/Teacher-professional-learning-and-development-best-evidence-synthesis">must have sustainability built into it</a> or it will just be another PLD provision that has a start and end point before we move on to the next area. This is not an easy ask and this is why it is so crucial to get it right this time. </div>
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Gifted learners have unique social, emotional, academic and cultural needs and the area of gifted identification is very broad. There is no quick fix after many years of piecemeal approaches to gifted education and PLD in gifted education. The government has stated that there are <a href="https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/new-support-package-gifted-learners">more announcements to come</a>, and hopefully sustainable PLD will be a part of those announcements. We've got some fantastic organisations willing to provide the PLD, it's how we sustain and support those learning opportunities that will be key to changing practice for our learners and teachers. </div>
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-9409949509478461632018-10-28T13:11:00.001+13:002018-10-28T13:30:05.622+13:00Refocusing Learning and Teaching<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Apologies in advance for the strange variations in font - Blogger kept crashing and not matter how many times it's edited, the strange variations remain). </span> <span style="font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">Day 23 of the giftEDnz blog challenge</a> is all about shifting our focus...are we too focused on assessment? Have we narrowed the curriculum too much?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Over the past 8 years since the introduction of <a href="https://www.nzcer.org.nz/research/national-standards">National Standards</a>, we have faced an ever-narrowing curriculum and learning and teaching focus. The pressure on teachers to show that their students are achieving has been enormous and there is little evidence that this intense focus made any <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11898617">impact on achievement levels.</a> Anecdotally, we had many students who were not engaged or motivated in their learning. Some schools worked well with the standards and worked incredibly hard not to narrow the curriculum, others had an enormous focus on standards without connection to real learning.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Refocusing on the New Zealand Curriculum - Effective Pedagogy </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">These are all things dear to teachers' hearts. There is one area on this list which I think warrants further open and honest discussion and it is that of teachers needing to 'inquire into the teaching and learning relationship.' I'm going to reflect on this in another post but <b><i>I'm wondering if we've gone too far with the incredibly in-depth inquiries we are expecting of our teachers?</i></b> Some of these inquiries are so in-depth that they are almost mini theses. If we're going to refocus on learning and teaching, we also need to address what is happening in this area as well. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Of course we need to reflect on our practice - that's one of the most powerful aspects of what we do </span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">to make sure that our learners are progressing, but does it need to be done in the depth of detail that is currently occurring alongside the evidence that must be recorded for <a href="https://educationcouncil.org.nz/content/practising-teacher-criteria-0">Practising Teacher Criteria</a>.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We know that <a href="https://www.waikato.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/360861/Reflective-Practice-June-2015.pdf">reflective practice</a> is what leads to changes in practice but we need to be realistic to ensure that the focus is not on too much on this and shifts our focus from the students. Of course, it’s absolutely necessary and they all work in together to help us meet the needs of our students but, like anything, we need to make sure that there is a balance.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Key Competencies, Vision and Principles</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Key-competencies/About">The Key Competencies</a> were intended to be the driver of the curriculum with the learning areas providing contexts that would link to real-world learning connections. Too often they have become a checklist to be ticked off with little depth and connection. The NZC has often become the place where we go to get the appropriate Achievement Objectives. If we can go back to the original intent of the NZC and understand how the Vision, Principles and Values form the overarching structure with the Key Competencies and Learning Areas underpinning these, then we have the start of a winning formula to increase motivation and engagement in learning for our students and a chance to really improve the learning environment for all, including our teachers who will be able to again focus on what they signed up for. Perhaps we could have fewer behaviour issues as well. A simplification of all of the complex problems we face, I know, but it's a starting point.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">We have the chance to take a broader view of learning and teaching but there is much-needed professional learning and development around the NZC and its original intent. Yes, we still need assessment - that guides our 'where to next' and ensures that we're meeting the needs of our students. However, it needs to have a purpose and to not always be focused on a test. There are so many different ways to assess how our students are achieving and their voices needs to be at the centre of this. By refocusing on the NZC we have a chance to put creativity and passion back into learning and teaching.</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>"These principles put students at the centre of teaching and learning, asserting that they should experience a curriculum that engages and challenges them, is forward-looking and inclusive, and affirms New Zealand's unique identity."</i></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i> New Zealand Curriculum (2007, p. 11).</i></span></span></div>
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-61009377960955985352018-10-21T20:27:00.002+13:002018-10-21T20:27:36.157+13:00Changing Thinking to Create Equity - Are We Up to the Challenge?Today's post - Day 21 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> - is all about equity and is inspired by the article below and the accompanying visual image which was also the subject of a Twitter Chat discussion.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://culturalorganizing.org/the-problem-with-that-equity-vs-equality-graphic/">The problem with that equity vs. equality graphic you're using</a></td></tr>
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Many of us have seen this graphic above (circulating for about two years) and we've often used it in education when we're advocating for the needs of our students, in this case, our gifted students. But it's an incorrect expression of what should be happening for students who are in a minority group.<br />
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<b><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">There is a distinction between equity and equality and it's a very important one if we are to meet the needs of ALL of our students.</span></i></b><br />
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So what is the difference? Don't they both achieve the same outcome? No, they don't. The <a href="http://culturalorganizing.org/the-problem-with-that-equity-vs-equality-graphic/">article</a> explains it very well and I've summarised it below.<br />
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<b>Graphic 1 - Equality</b><br />
Everyone has access to the same number of crates and is using them to attempt to see over the fence. The only one benefiting from the crates is the middle student. He can now see. The first student is tall enough that he doesn't need the support and the crate for the third student doesn't work or change their situation.<br />
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<b>Graphic 2 - Equity</b><br />
In the second graphic the students all have what they need in order to be able to participate.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>So how does this relate to gifted education? What does it mean?</b></i></span><br />
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In Aotearoa New Zealand, all of our students are fortunate enough to be able to access education and there are systems in place to make sure that they can participate. However, not all systems meet all individual needs and there are adaptations that need to be made and learning that needs to happen in order for it to be a truly equitable system. Gifted education is just one part of it. There are many others which will be discussed in a later post.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><i><b>What if we made a third change - and removed the fence (barrier) altogether?</b></i></span><br />
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<b><i>We need to stop talking about the 'achievement gap' and reframe it as an 'opportunity gap'</i></b>. Seeing it as an achievement gap is deficit thinking, in my view, which is also a central view in this article. This type of thinking implies that it is the abilities of the students that are causing them to not achieve when it is a far bigger issue of opportunity. If we don't offer the same range of opportunities, then this is where issues of equity will always arise. This ('achievement gap') is a distraction that stops us from acknowledging and focusing on real issues.<br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15.5px;">"As many have argued, it should actually be termed the </span><a href="http://schottfoundation.org/issues/opportunity-gap/talking-points" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15.5px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">“opportunity gap”</span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15.5px;"> because the problem is not in the abilities of students, but in the disparate opportunities they are afforded."</span></i></div>
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The suggestion in the article is that we look at and identify the real issue or problem/barrier and work to address this. So what is the real issue or barrier in addressing the needs of gifted and talented learners in Aotearoa New Zealand? <b><i>My thinking so far is that it centres around the following areas:</i></b><br />
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<li>a lack of professional learning and development at all levels of teacher education from pre-service to in-service which leads to</li>
<li> a lack of understanding and acknowledgement that gifted and talented learners exist</li>
<li>knowing how to identify gifted and talented learners - knowing what to look for</li>
<li>knowing how to effectively differentiate learning and teaching programmes</li>
<li>understanding that there are many categories of giftedness and that we need to be particularly aware of cultural differences and twice-exceptional learners</li>
<li>teacher expectations and beliefs - and deficit thinking - which goes back to the first point of the need for effective, and sustained, professional learning and development that leads to changes in practice. <b><i>One-off courses will not do this unless they have sustainability built into them.</i></b></li>
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The final graphic in the article is the one below - where strategies aren't put in place to create equitable situations which may not be sustained. <b><i>It is the complete removal of the barriers. </i></b> I know that some of the points above could lead to these barriers being removed for ALL our gifted students. <b><i>Are we up to the challenge?</i></b> I believe teachers always have the best interests of their students at the heart of what they do and they are always up to the challenge of learning more. But they can't do it alone. <b><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">It's time for the government to see this as a priority and help us remove the barriers for this group of students.</span></i></b></div>
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-70320037233960894752018-10-21T11:19:00.000+13:002018-10-21T11:24:03.463+13:00Are We Challenging Our Gifted Learners? Day 19 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> focuses on ways to challenge our gifted learners.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/apr16/vol58/num04/Six-Strategies-for-Challenging-Gifted-Learners.aspx">6 Strategies for Challenging Gifted Learners</a></td></tr>
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This article discusses many of the same issues we face in Aotearoa New Zealand - how to identify gifted students, which programmes, which definition...the list is pretty much as long as you want to make it. What it basically boils down to for me, however, is teacher awareness and understanding along with knowledge of the possibilities of giftedness. I think if we can start from this place of awareness then we are much more open to being able to recognise giftedness in its many forms. If we are coming from a place of assumptions and judgement of what a 'typical' gifted learner 'looks like' then I think that's the point where we are running into trouble and there is huge potential for gifted students to not be identified and have their specific needs met.<br />
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The article covers <a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/apr16/vol58/num04/Six-Strategies-for-Challenging-Gifted-Learners.aspx">six strategies</a> for challenging our gifted students. These are listed below. I've chosen to reflect on each one and what it might look like in our learning environments based on my previous experiences.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>1. Offer the most difficult first</b></span><br />
This is about compacting the curriculum for our gifted students. If a student is able to demonstrate understanding in maths when they've completed a set of problems accurately why would we make them do more 'practice' worksheets - or any worksheets? At this point, they need extension learning activities that link to real-world contexts so that they can apply the knowledge and understanding that they already have. We also have to be incredibly wary of using them to support other learners all the time. Some support and help is great and builds tuakana-teina but if this is happening too often then there is no further learning and development for the gifted student and this is also one way that these students can become bored and turned off learning.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">2. Pre-test for volunteers</span></b><br />
This is really interesting. If you have an area that needs to be covered and that will have a post-test or assessment at the end, then offer this to volunteers at the start. If they complete it without any difficulty then they already know what they need to learn in that unit so why would we make them complete it? Differentiation is about providing DIFFERENT learning opportunities, not more of the same. Our gifted students can still be learning in the same curriculum area but at a different level of complexity or with a different focus.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">3. Prepare to take it up</span></b><br />
This is similar to number two but it focuses on options. Always have options available for those who need them and make sure that some of the options are at a higher level of difficulty or complexity and have a wider range of contexts rather than a narrow focus. Also, allow for choice and for the students to be able to develop their own learning paths. I've always expected this to happen and it works really well with the teacher guidance and support when and where needed.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">4. Speak to student interests</span></b><br />
Student interest is everything in learning and teaching. We still need to expose students to other possibilities and options they may not have thought of - or may not have thought they'd be interested in - but also encourage their own passions and interests. There is always a way that this can be done even if you are in a learning environment where the curriculum planning is quite prescriptive. There are always ways that you can get around this and meet the needs of the students while still following the requirements and expectations of our schools. Ask the students - they will always come up with amazing ideas in this respect!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">5. Enable gifted students to work together</span></b><br />
This is so important. It's the concept of like-minds and gives our gifted students a chance to connect with students who are on the same 'wavelength' as they are. This is particularly important for their social and emotional development. Ideally, schools will have cluster-grouped students so that they have like-minds whom they can bounce ideas off and collaborate with. There is much research to support the importance of this. This doesn't mean that multi-level grouping is not also important for gifted students. They can have a powerful effect on helping raise the achievement levels of all students and being able to challenge thinking. Multi-level grouping also helps gifted students become confident in learning with other students with different abilities. Like most things in education, it's all about balance and meeting individual learning, social and emotional needs.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">6. Plan for tiered learning</span></b><br />
A lot of this one is all about teacher expectations. When planning, it's suggested that we plan for more complex learning and understanding and then differentiate and teach from that point. By doing this we are keeping our expectations high and showing our students that we have high expectations for them and their learning. This can be incredibly powerful and you will often find that students you may not have expected to have a high level of understanding in a particular area actually do. It is also in these situations that you can often identify possibly gifted students whereas if your expectations and planning were aimed at a lower level, you may have missed identifying a particular student.<br />
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The final part of this article contains a chart for teaching and learning with gifted learners and it's a valuable one so I decided to share it here.<br />
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<b><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">What do you do in your teaching and learning programmes that challenge your gifted learners? What would you add to this? What do you think you could do differently?</span></i></b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/apr16/vol58/num04/Six-Strategies-for-Challenging-Gifted-Learners.aspx">Dos and Don'ts of Teaching Gifted Students</a></td></tr>
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-73349578887362284132018-10-17T22:52:00.002+13:002018-10-17T22:54:43.768+13:00Don't Miss the Ability Because You Only See the DisabilityDay 17 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz Blog Challenge</a>!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/05/09/608509143/why-so-many-gifted-yet-struggling-students-are-hidden-in-plain-sight">Why So Many Gifted Yet Struggling Students Are Hidden in Plain Sight</a></td></tr>
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This prompt, which is all about how our gifted students can be <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/05/09/608509143/why-so-many-gifted-yet-struggling-students-are-hidden-in-plain-sight">hidden in plain sight</a> made me wonder about the times over the years when I've encountered these students. As a teacher, you're always observing and reflecting on your practice. You start to become attuned to individual behaviours and characteristics of your students. You know - or you suspect - when a child is possibly gifted or operating at a different level to their peers. I use the term 'operating' as 'achieving' has connotations of always being about an assessment and can really limit the possibilities of diverse giftedness in our students. It can also then limit your own thinking and narrow your focus which we can't do if we want to meet the needs of these students.<br />
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The difficulties arise when you have a student who you know without question is possibly <a href="https://www.speld.org.nz/stories/gifted-challenged-paradox-twice-exceptional">gifted but they also have a learning disability</a>. The parents have talked to you about their special talents, you also recognise and celebrate these but then you come up against the bureaucracy or other teachers who perhaps only see the disability rather than the ability. This is <a href="https://ransawsblackboard.wordpress.com/2014/01/22/the-negative-effects-of-deficit-thinking-what-we-know-could-save-us/">deficit thinking</a> and it's not helpful for the students, their families or the teacher who believes in them and knows without question that they are gifted. In fact, this type of thinking can be dangerous as it limits the possibilities of what we can offer a student in their learning and also of what they can achieve. We also run the risk that these students become our <a href="https://ramblingsofagiftedteacher.wordpress.com/2016/04/01/gifted-and-bored/">disengaged students</a> who may exhibit behaviour problems and also risk being our <a href="https://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2016/02/who-is-gifted-underachiever-four-types.html">underachievers</a>.<br />
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We have to challenge our <a href="https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1055&context=giftedchildren">understandings</a> and sometimes also our beliefs. So many of our gifted students will remain hidden unless we do so. That becomes a question of ethics for me. We have to expand our thinking about who gifted students are. There are many underrepresented groups in this country along with the twice-exceptional. Our <a href="http://www.confer.co.nz/gnt/Thursday/webber.pdf">Māori</a> and <a href="https://vimeo.com/243738744">Pasifika</a> students, students from lower socioeconomic groups, underachievers and those who don't have English as their first language. Until we acknowledge this and push back against the <a href="https://www.giftedchildren.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/bevan-brown.pdf">assumptions</a>, then many will remain hidden. They often become statistics in mental health and in our justice system. I've often wondered how many of the inmates in our prisons are gifted. I think we have an <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/beautiful-minds/talent-on-the-sidelines-the-widening-gap-in-excellence/">ever-widening gap in excellence</a> or giftedness in this country.<br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-15312959765291799562018-10-16T10:07:00.000+13:002018-10-16T10:07:05.988+13:00Getting Back to the Heart of What We Do It's <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">Day 15 of the giftEDnz Blog Challenge</a> and we're halfway!! <br />
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One of the things I've loved the most about the challenge so far is the way it's challenged my thinking and encouraged me to think deeply about specific areas of gifted education in Aotearoa New Zealand.<br />
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Social and emotional needs matter in learning and teaching - both students' and teachers'.<br />
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The focus of this post is on the <a href="https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6092&context=dissertations">unique social and emotional needs </a>of our gifted students. The prompt challenges us to reflect on our practice and think about how we meet these needs in our learning environments. How do we acknowledge these differences in our day-to-day rush of learning and teaching? At this present time, there are so <a href="http://www.scoop.co.nz/news/education.html">many issues in education</a> in this country. Teachers have so many pressures coming at them from all directions so how do we manage to make sure that we are focusing on this area of need - for all of our students as well as our gifted and talented?<br />
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Sometimes we need to take a step back from the negativity and <a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action?language=en&utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare">refocus on our 'why</a>' - the 'why of what we do and why we became teachers. (I've blogged on this before <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2014/05/simon-sinek-love-your-work.html">here</a>). Not always easy in the current environment but this can act as a welcome antidote to all the other issues - it can, in fact, also be a way that we take care of ourselves. (A great post to read is from the research of <a href="http://teach-learn-lead.blogspot.com/2017/07/teacher-wellbeing-some-research.html">Meg Gallagher</a>). Going back to the beginning and making sure we haven't lost the passion for what we do is, I believe, the first step in making sure we can meet the social and emotional needs of our students.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JOUonfu_9UI/W8QgUgV5ViI/AAAAAAAAGI0/VxACQu0FHjcU-WRCiBGOpW7-PQjpb8n6ACLcBGAs/s1600/Students%2Bat%2Bthe%2Bheart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="960" height="244" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JOUonfu_9UI/W8QgUgV5ViI/AAAAAAAAGI0/VxACQu0FHjcU-WRCiBGOpW7-PQjpb8n6ACLcBGAs/s320/Students%2Bat%2Bthe%2Bheart.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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In terms of our gifted students, there are specific things we can do to make sure that their social and emotional needs are being met. I've summarised what I believe is important and have been guided by my experience and a post I read from SENG (Social and Emotional Needs of the Gifted) and which was also the prompt for today's post - <a href="http://sengifted.org/28-acts-of-kindness-for-the-gifted/">28 Acts of Kindness for the Gifted.</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qDSOkVQ6bDI/W8QiYEIImUI/AAAAAAAAGJA/CImmbLMbBOcO55LMKBmHXxSRGQfbH6wwwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-15%2B18.12.05.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="1011" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qDSOkVQ6bDI/W8QiYEIImUI/AAAAAAAAGJA/CImmbLMbBOcO55LMKBmHXxSRGQfbH6wwwCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-15%2B18.12.05.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://sengifted.org/28-acts-of-kindness-for-the-gifted/">28 Acts of Kindness for the Gifted</a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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<b><i><span style="color: #0b5394;">Caring for the Social and Emotional Needs of our Gifted Students - some ideas based on my experiences and learning to date about this unique group of individuals.</span></i></b></h3>
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<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Provide opportunities for them to connect with like minds.</span></li>
<li>Be aware of and acknowledge that they DO have unique social and emotional needs - learn all you can about these.</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Know them as individual people first and students second.</span></li>
<li>Help them explore what it means to be gifted - the good and the not-so-good, so that they have the skills needed to navigate the seas of giftedness (there's always rises and falls, it's how we deal with them that matters the most).</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Celebrate and encourage their passions and who they are - expect them to be themselves and not hide their giftedness.</span></li>
<li>Be empathetic - put yourself in their shoes.</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Use mindfulness techniques to help them develop strategies to manage their emotions and perfectionism.</span></li>
<li>Focus on the products of their learning not on how gifted they are.</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Be the scaffolder they need to help them go further in their learning.</span></li>
<li>Let them express their emotions - don't expect them to hide or minimise them.</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Krissy Venosdale</td></tr>
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-59090095343098381172018-10-14T14:34:00.000+13:002018-10-14T14:37:06.425+13:00What Happens When We Deny That Gifted Kids Exist?This post combines <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit">Days 11 and 12 of the giftEDnz Blog Challenge</a> as they were quite similar prompts which work well together and respond to the work of Jo Boaler.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-caUoJu62qCs/W8KEdP0lZEI/AAAAAAAAGIU/c67w3XQ9N20mU_bDuCel6xCVauQj1nYhgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-14%2B12.48.20.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="1075" height="205" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-caUoJu62qCs/W8KEdP0lZEI/AAAAAAAAGIU/c67w3XQ9N20mU_bDuCel6xCVauQj1nYhgCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-14%2B12.48.20.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2018/03/no-its-not-time-to-ditch-gifted-label.html">No, It's Not Time to Ditch the Gifted Label - Gail Post, PhD</a></td></tr>
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The first one - <a href="https://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2018/03/no-its-not-time-to-ditch-gifted-label.html">"No, It's Not Time to Ditch the Gifted Label</a>" was written by Gail Post, PhD, and takes an in-depth look at a <a href="https://www.youcubed.org/rethinking-giftedness-film/">recent video and commentary</a> by Jo Boaler. Don't get me wrong, I love much of the work of Jo Boaler and agree with her on many points. However, I think in this instance what she is saying runs the risk of being misinterpreted and used as a reason to 'ditch the gifted label'. Apart from all the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268522910_Research_on_Giftedness_and_Gifted_Education_Status_of_the_Field_and_Considerations_for_the_Future">research that is evidence</a> that giftedness exists and that problems arise when it is not acknowledged, we just have to listen to all the voices of the children who are gifted and who have not had their learning, social or emotional needs met to date in the education system. For all the carefully-chosen students in Boaler's video, there are so many more who see this from a totally different perspective. This is not to negate the feelings and beliefs of the students in her video, it is just to caution that, like anything we see and hear, we need to be objective and keep in mind that there is always more than one side to a story - just as we remind our students to do.<br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans"; font-size: 17.6px;">"Unfortunately, this heart-rending video overlooks </span><a href="https://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/gifted-education-practices/why-are-gifted-programs-needed" style="background-color: white; color: #6caad8; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 17.6px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">research</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans"; font-size: 17.6px;"> about gifted children and gifted education. It perpetuates </span><a href="https://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2017/08/one-of-greatest-barriers-to-gifted.html" style="background-color: white; color: #2282b2; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 17.6px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">stereotypes</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans"; font-size: 17.6px;"> about gifted people, the </span><a href="http://giftsforlearning.com/wp/dropping-gifted-label-solution-solves-nothing/" style="background-color: white; color: #2282b2; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 17.6px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">gifted label</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans"; font-size: 17.6px;">, and the </span><a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/09/malcolm_gladwell_s_10_000_hour_rule_for_deliberate_practice_is_wrong_genes.html" style="background-color: white; color: #2282b2; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 17.6px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">myth</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans"; font-size: 17.6px;"> that everyone shares an equal amount of ability and potential. And although some gifted children may receive conflicting and distressing messages about their giftedness from parents, teachers, and peers, this should not indict the label itself." Gail Post, PhD</span></i></div>
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The NAGC (National Association for Gifted Children, US) also responded to Boaler's stance in a summary from their STEM Network Working Group:<br />
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<i style="font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 17.6px;">"Refraining from offering suitable curricular challenges to students who are ready for them, whether called gifted, talented, exceptionally promising, advanced, or something else because other students are not ready for or do not have an interest in them is not ethically justifiable." NAGC 2018</i></div>
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This statement, which is also discussed by Post, raises a crucially important point. It is a matter of equity that the needs of this group of students are met but is it also a matter of ethics as outlined in this statement? I think it is. It wouldn't be ethical to deny a student with Aspergers or dyslexia an education that meets their needs and yet we keep denying that giftedness and the specific and unique needs of giftedness exists and insisting that all students are having their needs met in our system. My concerns around this are that we are only identifying a small portion of the population and the identification process is too narrow which means that we are missing so many gifted students who are multi-exceptional, twice-exceptional (2e), underachievers or who may not have English as their first language or are not identified as gifted through a cultural lens. Our lens is very focused in one direction and dimension.<br />
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The second post has this title: "<a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">Gifted Children Do Exist. Here's What Happens When We Deny It.</a>" This is a powerfully written piece by Ginny Kochis teacher and parent that explores what happens when we deny that gifted children exist.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">Gifted Children Do Exist. Here's What Happens When We Deny It.</a></td></tr>
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This post is a personal account but also links to research and the areas that affect gifted students if we deny that they exist. It also links to Boaler's work and discusses the areas where there are flaws. Some say that <a href="https://profiles.stanford.edu/carol-dweck">Carol Dweck</a> also agrees with this stance through her Growth Mindset work but this is not strictly true. While she does have issues with the term 'gifted' she does not say that giftedness does not exist but that we need to praise the process rather than the label as focusing too much on the label can mean that students don't develop a growth mindset that can take their learning even further. The clip below from Dweck (2015) explains her thinking. I think it's important for us as educators to question what we see and hear, particularly when it comes from popular academics, and go back to the source so we know what is the correct information - just as we expect our students to do.<br />
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Giftedness is not a badge of honour or a term of superiority - it is often quite the opposite for many gifted students - gifted students are wired differently if we want to look at it this way. They are not better, they are just different but they do have <a href="http://www.nagc.org/sites/default/files/WebinarPowerPoints/The%20Social%20and%20Emotional%20Development%20of%20Gifted%20Children%20with%20Assessing%20Services.pdf">unique social, emotional</a> and learning needs. They are part of a <a href="https://neurodiversitysymposium.wordpress.com/what-is-neurodiversity/">neurodiverse</a> group of students which includes our students with additional learning needs, our Aspergers students, our dyslexic students to name just two.<br />
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Would we deny an equitable education for any other group of students?<br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-36142225737429095462018-10-11T16:44:00.004+13:002018-10-11T16:44:33.337+13:00All Children Have Gifts But No, Not All Children Are Gifted This post from the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">Day 10 prompt of the giftEDnz Blog Challenge</a> has definitely been one of the most difficult and challenging to write to date. I've chosen to reflect deeply and confront my beliefs and assumptions over the years and share why I changed from initially quite firmly believing the quote that inspired today's post. The image is below and you, like me, will have seen it and heard similar expressions many, many times over the years.<br />
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I'm really not sure where this originated and it sounds fantastic in principle. <span style="color: #cc0000;">But it's wrong. </span> Yes, all children absolutely are gifts and they have unique skills and possibly talents, but not all children are truly gifted. Gifted students have unique social, emotional and learning needs. <br />
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I began my teaching career in 1999 and we had little experience or sessions in gifted education and gifted students and how to meet these unique needs. In fact, I can remember that we were often told information that wasn't a hundred miles away from the above quote. Our learning suggested that we were quite capable of meeting the needs of all our students in our classes because we would personalise and individualise the learning. This is absolutely correct with one important condition...it was crucial that some of our learning covered the growing area of students with special and particular learning needs. Looking back, our programme was informative and challenging but it didn't provide enough, or in some cases, any information on gifted students. Did they not exist? Would their needs be the same as any other student? Surely, we were told, if we were teaching to the individual needs of each student and developing personalised learning programmes which, in the main I always did, then those needs would be met no matter what.<br />
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While it is true that most individual learning needs are met if we have differentiated and individualised learning programmes that meet the student where they are currently and help them move to the next step, what happens when it doesn't work like this?<br />
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During the first few years of my career, I was relatively confident in my ability to be able to meet the learning needs of my students. They had individualised learning programmes and each student was achieving - most were experiencing accelerated progress which as we know continues to be the great focus in our schools to this day (more on how problematic 'accelerated learning' can be in a later post). I believed I could - and was - meeting all their needs in my learning programme. Wasn't I now an experienced teacher whose students always achieved?<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>I was mistaken and quite wrong in some areas.</b></span><br />
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I did not fully understand the unique social and emotional learning needs of my gifted students - and I did have these students over the years. It was very obvious to me who these students were in so many different areas of the curriculum. I've never been one for hanging my hat on academic achievement as a way of identifying giftedness. For me, it's often the ones who are flying below the radar, the ones who come up with the most amazing ideas or have incredibly interesting and insightful conversations, among other indicators, or the ones who are seen as having 'behaviour issues'. I'm always concerned when I hear teachers say that they don't have gifted and talented students. You do and you will have, but it can be a lack of professional learning and development and perhaps a school environment that has too narrow a definition of giftedness and hasn't developed policies and procedures to be able to identify these learners.<br />
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I was a bit stuck and I'd reached a crossroads. Did I really believe that saying - that 'all children are gifted, they just unwrap their gifts at different times'? Deep down I knew I didn't. As my experience grew, so did the understanding grow that I had students who had different needs and they weren't really being met through mixed ability grouping and personalised learning. Only some of their needs were and these were largely academic. I was using innovative practice and was a very early adopter of digital technologies to support and extend learning as far back as when I began teaching in 1999. My students were connected locally and globally. Wasn't that enough? In a word, no.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">So what do you do?</span></b><br />
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The questioning of my beliefs and practice has always been a part of who I am as a teacher but became more of a drive to learn more when I moved schools in 2003. There didn't seem to be a great deal of professional learning available so I started reading everything I could get my hands on and also talking with two colleagues who ran the gifted and talented programme at my new school. A few years later I enrolled in courses at Massey University (which still offers some of the best and most sustainable professional learning around). Unfortunately, I had to withdraw very early from the programme as I was promoted and was being stretched too thin. I did, however, read every article in the study guides and used these to continue to improve my knowledge and understanding of this group of students and how I should be - not could be - meeting their needs more effectively. The key understandings I was missing were around the social and emotional needs.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>Gifted students have unique social and emotional needs (along with learning needs)</b></span><br />
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Below is an excellent summary of the <a href="https://www.byrdseed.com/10-facts-about-social-emotional-needs-of-the-gifted/">social and emotional needs of gifted students as summarised by Ian Byrd from Byrdseed</a> (I recommend that you follow him on all of his platforms. His website has fantastic resources).<br />
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Summarised, these unique needs are:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">"1. Be aware that </span><a href="http://eric.hoagiesgifted.org/e527.html" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">strengths and potential problems can be flip sides of the same coin.</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 2. Gifted students’ </span><a href="http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=574" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">physical, emotional, social and intellectual growth is often uneven.</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 3. Gifted students </span><a href="http://school.familyeducation.com/child-psychology/gifted-education/38654.html" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">may doubt that they are actually gifted.</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 4. Gifted students may face social challenges not just from peers, </span><a href="http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/eric/e489.html" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Open Sans, sans-serif;"><span style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; transition-duration: 0.35s; transition-property: all; transition-timing-function: ease-in-out;">but parents </span></span></a><br />
<a href="http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/eric/e489.html" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">and teachers </a><a href="http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/eric/e489.html" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">as well.</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 5. As they get older, </span><a href="http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/Delisle_RisktakingAndRiskmaking.shtml" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">gifted students may take fewer risks</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 6. Gifted students can have surprisingly heightened emotional sensitivity. </span> 7. <a href="http://www.tip.duke.edu/node/793" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">Gifted students are often shy, know they’re shy, and know that shyness is often looked </a><br />
<a href="http://www.tip.duke.edu/node/793" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">down upon.</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 8. Gifted students’ abstract intuition may</span><a href="http://personal.ashland.edu/~jpiirto/mbti.htm" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;"> conflict with teachers’ desire for concrete thinking</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"> 9. Gifted students needs </span><a href="http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/Sak_SynthesisOfResearchOnPsychologicalTypes.shtml" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">cannot be met by one style of learning</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2f2c2d; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">10. Gifted adults </span><a href="http://www.educationaloptions.com/resources/resources_gifted_adults.php" style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #990000; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.35s ease-in-out 0s;">wish they were better informed about giftedness as children.</a>" Ian Byrd<br />
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I changed my practice to make sure that these needs were being met, that students had opportunities to learn with like-minds (a key to supporting the social and emotional needs of gifted students). I had always worked with mixed-ability groups since I began teaching but there is so much evidence for this to be balanced by making sure that there are opportunities for gifted students to learn and interact with like-minds that it can't be ignored. (This is a reflection for another post).</div>
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<b><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">No, not all children are gifted and until we are able to understand and acknowledge that this is a fact supported by evidence, then we will continue to have a group of students who are missing out and that is not an equitable situation. </span></i></b></div>
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-43631776447259230452018-10-10T10:47:00.001+13:002018-10-10T10:49:42.986+13:00Using Genius Hour to Meet the Needs of Gifted and Talented LearnersThe prompt for <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">Day 9 of the giftEDnz Blog Challenge</a> is all about Genius Hour which I'm a HUGE fan of, although most of my Genius Hours have usually turned into Genius Day...or Genius Week... (and sometimes Term...)<br />
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The prompt asks us to look at the resources in the crowdsourced resource from the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/137238016943562/">Gifted and Talented Teachers (NZ)</a> group and choose one (a challenge in itself) to share and reflect on how it would work to meet the needs of our gifted and talented students.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/lmxj681a1prsbjy/Screenshot%202018-10-09%2018.49.39.png?dl=0">Gifted and Talented Teacher (NZ)</a></td></tr>
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There are some great resources in here and it's being added to all the time by group members.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ite75G3ee9lSU7bQ-rg_Bcdey9GRZ9ZiNoS5pvhTnIs/edit?usp=sharing">Genius Hour Resources - A crowdsourced collection of resources for learning and teaching</a><br />
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The one I've chosen to reflect on is a presentation created by Patricia Chiles from Anaheim Elementary School District in the United States. This is one of my favourite resources because she begins with the 'why' which is something I always begin with for all learning and teaching.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://caforthegifted.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/chiles-genius-hour-copy.pdf">Genius Hour - Patricia Chiles</a></td></tr>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dvEfcqxy0vk/W7xOK7RHU0I/AAAAAAAAGHM/017sseT9-mAtuf9xcR1I8oIyMMo2CohxACLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-09%2B19.34.23.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="925" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dvEfcqxy0vk/W7xOK7RHU0I/AAAAAAAAGHM/017sseT9-mAtuf9xcR1I8oIyMMo2CohxACLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-09%2B19.34.23.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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So what makes Genius Hour so powerful, particularly for our gifted students? Along with the 'why?' in the image above it offers:</div>
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<li>A chance to drive their learning in areas which they are passionate about</li>
<li>The flexibility of timetables - the learning drives the timetable</li>
<li>Authentic contexts that can connect to the real world.</li>
<li>Can be <a href="https://www.redesignu.org/design-lab/mastery-learning/resource-bank/asynchronous-learning">asynchronous</a> - anytime, anywhere learning - when it really takes off</li>
<li>Students can choose to work with others or on their own (important for many gifted students)</li>
<li>A chance to collaborate with like-minds at their level (also vital for gifted students)</li>
<li>Offers <a href="http://envisiongifted.com/services/understanding-depth-complexity/">depth and complexity</a> in the curriculum - students can connect with experts and take the learning as far as they want to.</li>
<li>The curriculum fits the learning and the learning drives the curriculum - not the other way round</li>
<li>A powerful way to let the <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Key-competencies">Key Competencies</a> drive the learning (the original intent of the <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/The-New-Zealand-Curriculum">New Zealand Curriculum</a></li>
<li>Empowering and creates ownership of learning </li>
<li>Encourages and supports true <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-power-and-passion-of-true.html">differentiation</a> of <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/assets/Uploads/files/Differentiation-Toolbox-by-Brooke-Trenwith.pdf">content, process and product</a> - <a href="http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Learner-agency">learners have agency</a> in that they are able to have choices in all of these areas with the support of their teacher.</li>
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There are many more reasons but, for me, these are the main and most important ones and the ones that have always driven student learning in my learning environments. What else would you add? There is a wide range of resources in the <a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ite75G3ee9lSU7bQ-rg_Bcdey9GRZ9ZiNoS5pvhTnIs/edit?usp=sharing">crowdsource collection</a> to spark your imagination and understanding of genius hour.</div>
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-61356522039394271692018-10-09T10:45:00.001+13:002018-10-09T10:45:30.794+13:00The Power and Passion of True Differentiation - One Teacher's ExperiencesDay 8 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/14X9gibSLUk8_gqN6nVlFjGRMUPVCUzqzwMPblKeIyIk/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> and it's all about differentiation...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2016/08/yes_differentiation_is_hard_so_lets_get_it_right.html?cmp=SOC-EDIT-FB">From the Edweek article by Peter DeWitt</a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">There's Something Missing From This Chart</span></h4>
For me, differentiation is not just about content, process and product, it's about relationships and connections. It's about people. I think you have to really know your students well - not just academically but most importantly as people. What makes them tick? What are their passions? What concerns them? Where do they feel their strengths are at the moment? What do they know they need to work on in their learning at this point in time? How do they like to learn? If you have this knowledge then you can truly work alongside them to differentiate their needs - socially, emotionally and academically.<br />
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<b><i>So where do you start with this?</i></b><br />
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<b style="color: #cc0000;">Get to Know Your Students as People</b></h4>
At the beginning of every year, I always got my students and their parents/whānau to complete information fact sheets. For the students, the questions included items such as "What I need you to know about me - as a person, as a learner," "Ways I currently learn best," etc. There was always room for growth - we would revisit these during the year and there were always questions about their passions, usually framed with a question like "If you could spend a whole day learning about anything, what would it be?" The parents' information was similar with regard to items such as "What I need you to know about my child," "Their passions are," etc.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">Past Experiences With Differentiation...</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">... and what's possible (a few examples)</span></h3>
Collaborative Planning - With Students<br />
When I began teaching we were still using the separate curriculum documents. I had an absolute belief that students needed to own and create their learning with support from me - Vygotsky, Piaget, Dewey, etc strike again and were my early influencers. I had also been fascinated by A.S. Neill's <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/">Summerhill </a>when I was studying to become a teacher and wondered about the possibilities for our own learning environments here in Aotearoa.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">7 Year-Olds Can Plan Their Own Learning</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Fresh out of university I decided that there was no reason why we couldn't use the documents to plan our own learning while at the same time following the requirements of the school. So we did - with 7 year-olds. Did they manage it? With support, of course they did and we created some fantastic learning experiences together, including running workshops for parents. We were still a bit constrained by the requirements of the school but it was the beginning of learning about differentiation for me. We still had a long way to go, however, as there was still a long-term plan to be followed and it was frustrating for the students - and for me - if your passions and interests weren't in line with what the school had decided you needed to learn. I was heavily influenced by Bloom, Multiple Intelligences and Habits of Mind and these also helped form a foundation for differentiating learning.</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">Year 7 and 8s Are Inspirational</span></h4>
In 2003 I moved to an Intermediate and the environment was less prescriptive. There is often the belief that differentiation can't happen in this environment which can be true if you don't have the support of the leadership team. Fortunately, this school was driving toward enabling students to find their passions. Bliss!! Long story short, my Year 8s brainstormed all their interests and passions and then formed groups - or not (some wanted to learn on their own) and together we created learning plans for them and their own timetables to fit in around the requirements of the main timetable at the school. This was differentiating the learning, the environment, content, process and product.<br />
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During this time, we had learning experiences in so many diverse areas. There was a group who were interested in the work of the SPCA so one part of their learning involved working there for a day and interviewing staff. When they returned they ran a food drive for the SPCA and presented a learning session for their peers. Another group contacted Auckland Airport to find out what changes had been made since 9/11 - they were interested in international security. This caused a little bit of an 'incident' but they ended up communicating with the then Minister of Internal Affairs and had a Customs Officer and his dog come to the school as part of their presentation of their learning. Yet another group created a scale model of the Colosseum - their passion was ancient history. Part of this process saw them emailing experts in this field from all over the world. Another group was interested in design. They ended up communicating with Trelise Cooper who sent them photos, earlier designs showing the design process and swatches of fabric etc. There were many more incredible learning experiences. The learning was so diverse and exciting and it was incredibly heartwarming to see these groups able to follow their passions and interests while still learning what they needed to know across the curriculum. That's where the teacher fits into the differentiation process. You are there to scaffold and guide the students, help them learn the skills they need in order to be successful in their learning and teaching. Yes, it's exhausting at times but the benefits are immeasurable.<br />
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Two years later we had an odd number of Year 7 classes when I became Head of Year 7. What did this mean? It meant that we could run our own timetable! This was incredibly exciting and only supported the differentiated learning even more.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;">Since Then...</span></h4>
I've continued to work hard to learn more about differentiation and what it looks like for every individual student. There are many misconceptions out there about what it is...and is not.<br />
After moving back to a Primary School in 2007, I found myself with several gifted and talented students who were attending the local one-day school. I wanted to be able to constantly connect and value their learning between both environments so I asked them how they thought we should go about this. Their answer was to connect their blogs from both learning environments and also to run workshops to showcase their learning...across the school. They were also running workshops that teachers and parents could join in. This class was the one who created one of my favourite quotes that I stick with even today...<br />
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<b><i>"We are all teachers and we are all learners in our learning environments." </i></b><br />
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They particularly wanted the word environments in there as "learning doesn't just happen in the classroom." Very wise. These students were Years 5/6.<br />
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I've since learned and taught in a school that was largely Pasifika and Māori and had to learn so much more about the particular cultural needs of these groups in terms of being able to differentiate the learning and teaching. This was such an amazing time and we did what I had encouraged in the past but this time through a different lens. These students taught me so much.<br />
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At my last school, I had Year 6-8 and was completing a postgrad certificate through <a href="http://themindlab.com/postgrad-studies/programme-overview/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIqM65iOX33QIVmTUrCh0rKgSYEAAYASAAEgIQv_D_BwE">The MindLab</a> where we were learning a lot about <a href="http://www.spencerauthor.com/design-thinking/">Design Thinking</a>. That got me thinking about how powerful it could be as a catalyst for differentiated learning and teaching. I always shared my learning with my students so we started talking about what we could do...<br />
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They decided we could build our own <a href="https://www.edutopia.org/blog/designing-a-school-makerspace-jennifer-cooper">Makerspace</a>...in an unused classroom...from the ground up.<br />
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Well, why not? So we did and it became <a href="https://thecreatoropssteam15.blogspot.com/">The Creator Ops STEAM</a> - named by them.<br />
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How did differentiation work in this instance? We learned about <a href="https://www.teachervision.com/blog/morning-announcements/design-thinking-a-catalyst-for-classroom-change">Design Thinking</a> and then brainstormed what we needed to do. From this, the students chose their areas of interest and began to form groups. A few chose to work on their own which was always accepted in our learning environment. As we worked through the process, skills were taught including writing reports, measurement (of the room), interview techniques, design skills, planning, budgeting and so much more.<br />
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They rebuilt the classroom from the ground up - new kitchen, carpet, paint, huge wall-sized whiteboard for planning and sharing ideas, created a budget and sourced furniture and equipment and so much more. Everything they did had to be able to meet the needs of the whole school - from the 5 year-olds up. I could write forever on this but they've already done it through a blog of their journey. I would really recommend that you read this - and particularly have a look at their <a href="https://thecreatoropssteam15.blogspot.com/p/photo-gallery.html">PHOTO GALLERY</a>. They inspired me and showed me that you can always differentiate learning and teaching.<br />
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<b><i>Yes, differentiation can be hard but it's essential if we are going to meet the individual learning, social and emotional needs of our students. Plus...it's incredibly exciting, stimulating and a whole lot of fun! You get a chance to help students push themselves to the optimal level of learning. You get a chance to really know your students. </i></b><br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-11111219688119780052018-10-07T19:21:00.001+13:002018-10-07T19:23:42.752+13:00Be A Catalyst For Change - Find Your Tribe Day 7 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/14X9gibSLUk8_gqN6nVlFjGRMUPVCUzqzwMPblKeIyIk/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> - already a week into it!<br />
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This time the prompt - <a href="https://spark.adobe.com/page/ABPCjywrC2gRO/">from Tracy Riley</a> - has reminded me of the importance of my tribe and how we as a group can be <a href="http://prodigy.net.in/becoming-a-gifted-education-advocate/44">strong advocates for those who need their voices heard</a> (there is a great article in this link). In this case, our gifted learners and also their teachers who believe in them need this advocacy.<br />
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8 years ago I watched this clip on YouTube and saw it gain great momentum. It is still one of my favourites and a great reminder that while it's okay to be the lone nut and the first follower, it's also vital that, as part of it, you can find your tribe or your professional learning network (PLN). Tribes can be powerful catalysts for change. <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1127536.pdf">Teacher leadership</a> leads the change through support from the tribe.<br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fW8amMCVAJQ" width="560"></iframe><br />
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Now, more than ever, our gifted students are relying on us to utilise the strengths of our tribe to enable their voices to be heard. We need to work with our tribe to create honest, open and reflective conversations and discussions around what it means to be gifted. These students are learners in our system who have unique social, emotional and learning needs. We have to increase our understanding and knowledge of specific types of giftedness - for example, our twice-exceptional students, our underachievers, the different cultural aspects of giftedness.<br />
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Often, we find ourselves being criticised for even mentioning the word 'gifted.' It's almost as if we are doing something wrong by daring to suggest that giftedness exists. <a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">But it does and we know it does</a> - <i><b>to deny it, in my view, is denying a group of individuals their right to an education that meets their individual needs</b></i>.<br />
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One way of fighting against this - and we must fight against it - is to find your tribe, your PLN or be a part of a community of practice which has a common goal of working to create an equitable learning environment for our gifted students.<br />
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Finding our tribe helps us become part of a community of practice (different to our current CoLs).<br />
A community of practice (CoP) is all about ownership and leadership. Everyone is on an equal footing and has something of value to share no matter whether you're a student teacher or a professor - what you think and have to say is valued and respected. Learning happens with others and through discussion and sharing of thinking, new learning and understandings can evolve. It is not a top-down model. That's a CoP in a nutshell. If you want to know more, the link below takes you to my presentation on CoPs which grew out of my Masters. I have an absolute passion for this form of a professional community because the learning is owned by its members.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="485" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/key/9tumB2xEFpbwhx" style="border-width: 1px; border: 1px solid #ccc; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="595"> </iframe> <br />
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<strong> <a href="https://www.slideshare.net/Justine8/pathways-to-collaboration-changing-the-face-of-teacher-professional-learning-and-development" target="_blank" title="Pathways to collaboration changing the face of teacher professional learning and development">Pathways to collaboration changing the face of teacher professional learning and development</a> </strong> from <strong><a href="https://www.slideshare.net/Justine8" target="_blank">Justine Hughes / PhD Candidate/Teacher</a></strong> </div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">What Does Your Tribe Have to Offer?</span></b><br />
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Your tribe discussions will be some of the best professional learning you can get - if not THE best as you all own it and drive it.<br />
They will challenge your thinking - and their own at the same time.<br />
They 'get' you and understand and share your passions.<br />
Your tribe provides a group of '<a href="https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2015/01/14/building-a-culture-of-collaboration">critical friends</a>' who are there to help you reflect on your practice and be a reflexive teacher.<br />
Your tribe contains a group of 'like-minds' who you can learn from and with.<br />
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Sylvia Duckworth (<a href="https://twitter.com/sylviaduckworth/status/612478090447581184">@sylviaduckworth on Twitter</a>) sums up, in this sketchnote, the value of having a tribe and what it means to be a part of one...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image Source: <a href="https://twitter.com/sylviaduckworth/status/612478090447581184">Sylvia Duckworth</a></td></tr>
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We need to challenge the thinking that there's no such thing as giftedness or that 'all children are gifted' and the other myths out there. We need to fight it and with our tribe I believe we can do just that. We accept and value other groups of learners so:<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><i>...why is there such animosity towards the concept of giftedness when there is a wealth of research and other evidence to show that these students absolutely do exist. </i></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LaAioWi7shw/W7mkzg1zjtI/AAAAAAAAGGA/kE1CQE9LWnUVvszcmhE0TjiKKpPI-E_3ACLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-07%2B19.16.18.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="645" height="295" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LaAioWi7shw/W7mkzg1zjtI/AAAAAAAAGGA/kE1CQE9LWnUVvszcmhE0TjiKKpPI-E_3ACLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-07%2B19.16.18.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://globalgtchatpoweredbytagt.wordpress.com/2017/12/28/challenging-myths-about-gifted-children/">From the #gtchat in December 2017</a></td></tr>
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To end this post, <a href="https://www.sethgodin.com/">Seth Godin</a> talks in this TED-Ed presentation on tribes being "<span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Founded on shared ideas and values," and that ..."tribes give ordinary people the power to lead and make big change. He urges us to do so."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b><i>Our gifted students are depending on us - and our tribe. </i></b></span></h3>
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-17645262471819092252018-10-07T11:03:00.002+13:002018-10-07T11:03:49.292+13:00The Power of Student VoiceDay 6 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/14X9gibSLUk8_gqN6nVlFjGRMUPVCUzqzwMPblKeIyIk/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a><br />
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Today's prompt comes from Madelaine Willcocks' blog post from Gifted Awareness Week 2018 (for more inspirational blogs, please visit <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/blog?src=nav">NZCGE (New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education)</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image source: <a href="https://blog.remind.com/10-ways-to-use-stamps-getting-instant-feedback/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=blog-new-stamps-backtoschool-2014">Remind</a></td></tr>
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I've read comments recently during a discussion on gifted education and gifted learners and it was interesting to read some from teachers who believe that there's no such thing as giftedness, that their students are fine and achieving 'where they should be' and are 'happy in the classroom' etc. That's fantastic. If they are doing all these things, if their teachers are meeting their needs and challenging them at the level they need to be challenged.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>But how do they know? What is their evidence?</b></span> <br />
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A test score? Observation - which is always subjective as is our nature as people. The questions that kept circling in my mind were -<br />
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<b><i>Have you asked the students? Where is the student voice in this discussion? Where is the focus on the learning as well as the teaching?</i></b> <br />
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Many of the comments focused on the teaching but not a lot on the learning.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b><i>Is it time for some very honest reflection and to increase the use of student voice?</i></b></span><br />
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Back in 2007 I read Michael Absolum's book <a href="https://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Clarity-the-Classroom-Michael-Absolum/9781869710699">Clarity in the Classroom</a>. It changed a lot of my practice. I had always listened to my students - but had I really HEARD them? I reflected a great deal on this and have ever since. There is a questionnaire on page 41 (in the image below) which can be confronting but once you're in the habit of deep reflection it can become a starting point for change and one of the most powerful tools you can use.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ss8hyPcIBfk/W7kqJsIrzHI/AAAAAAAAGFQ/XbBoxw50p_M5rVZtpgcfqr0MEAczB8BtwCLcBGAs/s1600/Absolum.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ss8hyPcIBfk/W7kqJsIrzHI/AAAAAAAAGFQ/XbBoxw50p_M5rVZtpgcfqr0MEAczB8BtwCLcBGAs/s1600/Absolum.JPG" /></a></div>
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Over the past few weeks, I've been reading through the student voice responses to another survey on giftedness. The results were, in the main, heartbreaking in relation to how these students perceive themselves, how they feel about school and how they feel their teachers perceive them. The survey will be collated and I'm hoping shared widely. <br />
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There are so many ways to give students a voice in learning and teaching and I've blogged about some of these before <a href="https://k12motivation.blogspot.com/2014/09/students-reflection-on-their-learning.html">here</a>. The list is endless but there's always a way to include student voice - the trick is that it must then be used - reflected on, let it challenge our thinking, confront us in some cases. We just need to be open to and expect it as part of the learning and teaching process.<br />
Some of the ways I've used it in the past include:<br />
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<li><a href="https://padlet.com/">Padlet</a> (formerly Wallwisher)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.gettingsmart.com/2014/04/teachers-use-paper-blogging-promote-student-voice/">Blogs</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.amle.org/BrowsebyTopic/WhatsNew/WNDet/TabId/270/ArtMID/888/ArticleID/606/Encouraging-Student-Voice-Through-Writing.aspx">Journals </a></li>
<li>Post-it notes</li>
<li>Postbox in the classroom</li>
<li><a href="https://ictevangelist.com/student-voice/">Google Forms</a></li>
<li><a href="https://mashable.com/2016/03/18/collaborate-google-docs/#tmYM6ElP65qq">Google Docs</a></li>
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<br />It's important to find ways that ALL voices can be heard - particularly those of the students who may need ways to share that are private to them and their teacher.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jr5s6OMpnFc/W7kuDSqCeaI/AAAAAAAAGFc/HnLDFQQrMj8rB9csQVa7PeIMUM2hWAoBgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-07%2B10.49.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1366" height="149" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jr5s6OMpnFc/W7kuDSqCeaI/AAAAAAAAGFc/HnLDFQQrMj8rB9csQVa7PeIMUM2hWAoBgCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-07%2B10.49.32.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.edutopia.org/blog/establishing-culture-of-student-voice-john-mccarthy">Establishing a Culture of Student Voice</a></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><i>Teachers want their students to achieve and be successful and they want them to be reflective learners. We need to make sure that we are also being reflective - even if that means we confront some of our own beliefs. </i></span></b><br /><br /><br /><b>Reference</b>Absolum, M., (2006). Clarity in the Classroom. Hodder Education: Auckland, New Zealand<br /><br /><br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-64935824522592105852018-10-06T11:12:00.000+13:002018-10-06T11:15:37.165+13:00We Are Not Inclusive...Yet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: start;">Day 5 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> is all about helping our students be themselves and 'come out of their shells.' It is inspired by this <a href="https://spark.adobe.com/page/CIauTPMldi2E4/">blog post from Vanessa White</a> which has really struck a chord with me. Sadly, Vanessa's story is all too common.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://spark.adobe.com/page/CIauTPMldi2E4/">Coming Out of His Shell - One Gifted Kid's Success Story</a></td></tr>
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As teachers, we try very hard to respond to individual differences but sometimes this can, unfortunately, be in the form of trying to get students to comply and act in the same way. With the pressures placed on today's teachers, this is understandable but it is not right. We can't do this. Not if we want all of our students to have a safe and nurturing learning and teaching environment. We have to really embrace and celebrate those differences otherwise our students lose their identity and self-esteem as an individual. See the person first - not the student. </div>
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We say that we have an inclusive education system in Aotearoa New Zealand...but do we really? Can we honestly say this - hand on heart - when so many of our children feel that they don't fit in? <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Student voice is a powerful tool and over the past few weeks, I've read too many comments (around 120 from a student voice survey) from a wide range of students at different ages and stages who are saying that they don't fit in - they don't feel included. </span></b></div>
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All children need a voice and need to know - and feel - that they fit in and are included as a valuable - and valued - member of the community, that they are <b><i>equally as important </i></b>as anyone else. As teachers, we can make sure that happens by increasing our knowledge and understanding of what it means to be gifted and/or multi-exceptional. So much confusion and misunderstanding exist around giftedness. If we deny that giftedness exists just as much as ADHD, Aspergers, Dyslexia, etc then we're denying that a group of individuals exist. This is not inclusive and can we really afford to be doing this?<br />
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<b>So what can we do about this...</b></div>
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<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">We can begin with empathy - all learning and teaching must start with this in my opinion.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">We can challenge our beliefs </span>about giftedness and multi-exceptionalities.</li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">We can accept that giftedness is not just a name</span> - it is a genuine category of people who have unique social, emotional and learning needs that are different to others - just as it is with ADHD, Aspergers, etc. We can accept this and work to meet the needs of these students - so why not our gifted students as well? <span style="color: #cc0000;">We need to stop denying the wealth of research that is out there.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Discussion - be open to different ideas and thinking.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Celebrate, encourage - and EXPECT - our gifted children to be themselves.</span> This needs to be done actively in all learning environments if we are going to see any change in our gifted children's self-esteem and development of strong identities. </li>
<li><span style="color: #cc0000;">Continue to push back on the amount of unnecessary administration</span> so that we can place the emphasis firmly back on what we signed up to do - learning and teaching with inspirational and incredible individuals who need us to see them as people - not as data. Be very clear on the 'why' - if it doesn't impact learning, teaching and the well-being of our students then we need to question why we're doing it. This isn't easy, but the more of us who question is, the greater the chance we have of creating change - our students and their whānau need and deserve this.</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.edutopia.org/blog/empathy-classroom-why-should-i-care-lauren-owen">Empathy in the Classroom: Why Should I Care?</a></td></tr>
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We have a chance to change the environment and outcomes for our gifted children with the <a href="https://conversation.education.govt.nz/conversations/disability-and-learning/">Draft Disability and Learning Support Action Plan</a> currently open for discussion until the end of October 2018. We can't let this opportunity go by. It's time to challenge beliefs, understandings and misunderstandings around gifted education and gifted children, (particularly our own through reflection and reflective practice). If we don't, then we're not going to be meeting the learning, social and emotional needs of all of our students - and that's not who we are as teachers. It's not why we became teachers. </div>
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-74126500327647151572018-10-04T10:16:00.001+13:002018-10-04T10:23:32.306+13:00Inclusion is About Belonging, Valuing and Celebrating DifferenceDay 4 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit?usp=sharing">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a><br />
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Today's post is inspired by a <a href="https://eventhesmallestperson.wordpress.com/2018/05/28/of-course-you-can-come-to-the-party/">post written by Andi Delaune</a> for this year's Gifted Awareness Blog Tour held annually in June by <a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/">NZCGE</a> - the New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education.<br />
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Andi writes about the crucial role teachers have to play in making sure that "everyone is invited to the party." Teachers work incredibly hard to make sure that everyone is included but 'we don't know what we don't know.' If teachers don't have the understanding of what giftedness is and what it means to be gifted then how are they able to meet the learning, social and emotional needs of this group of students? If they have misunderstandings around:<br />
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1. <a href="http://crushingtallpoppies.com/2018/01/22/being-gifted-is-often-not-the-same-as-being-high-achieving/">Gifted students are often not your high-achievers</a><br />
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2. <a href="https://www.notsoformulaic.com/gifted-children-exist-deny/">Giftedness does exist</a>. Problems can start when we ignore or deny it.<br />
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3. Gifted students have particular and specific learning, <a href="http://sengifted.org/9-important-topics-about-the-social-and-emotional-needs-of-the-gifted/">social and emotional needs</a><br />
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4. <a href="https://globalgtchatpoweredbytagt.wordpress.com/2015/07/12/when-the-gifted-child-hides-their-giftedness/">Giftedness may be hidden</a> (think about <a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/For-schools-and-teachers/Twice-exceptional-2E-students/Teaching-strategies">twice-exceptional</a> (2e), <a href="https://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2016/02/who-is-gifted-underachiever-four-types.html">underachieving students</a> along with <a href="https://study.com/academy/lesson/factors-in-the-development-of-gifted-students.html">cultural, gender and socioeconomic factors</a> just as starting points)<br />
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Here are a few resources that are particularly useful when we as teachers are thinking about how we make sure that our gifted students are included. The first one, a TEDxTalk really resonated with me and explains some of the differences so well. I would absolutely recommend watching this one, in particular, if you want to work towards a truly inclusive learning environment.<br />
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Why Gifted May Not Be What You Think</h4>
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W4Gj2UC8gYI" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<h4>
10 Social and Emotional Needs of the Gifted - from Ian Byrd (Byrdseed)</h4>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vRHZ9wTbqRU/W7UrqWiQgaI/AAAAAAAAGEY/4CUGPnbXXfQvEXgjojL_ywZ14rt9wALUwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-04%2B09.49.59.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="664" data-original-width="904" height="233" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vRHZ9wTbqRU/W7UrqWiQgaI/AAAAAAAAGEY/4CUGPnbXXfQvEXgjojL_ywZ14rt9wALUwCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-04%2B09.49.59.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.byrdseed.com/10-facts-about-social-emotional-needs-of-the-gifted/">10 Social and Emotional Needs of the Gifted</a></td></tr>
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<h4>
What is Inclusion?</h4>
This is a great video to share and create discussion around - great for a professional learning and development (PLD) session where a starting question could be similar to what Andi states in her blog post -<br />
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"If joy was a party...then the teacher was the one to make sure that everyone not only got the invitation, but was partaking of this joy while they were there." A. Delaune (2018)<br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6SnXBKEfr2s" width="560"></iframe>
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One of our fundamental roles as teachers is to help every single student find the joy in their learning and make sure they are all included and their differences celebrated. If we build our own knowledge around what it means to be gifted - in all its forms - then we really can't go wrong.<br />
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<span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span> <span style="background-color: #383838; color: #eeeeee; font-family: "libre baskerville" , serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span>Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-16036711441085323062018-10-04T09:22:00.001+13:002018-10-04T09:22:32.569+13:00Is there a Gap in Our Understanding? Gifted vs High-Achieving StudentsDay 3 of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a>.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U5wCTv1ie_U/W7PQYJnIAPI/AAAAAAAAGDI/3T7YvpQ0hqASMiWgc8h_CQRVTuBuwuOSgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B09.08.29.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="709" data-original-width="666" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U5wCTv1ie_U/W7PQYJnIAPI/AAAAAAAAGDI/3T7YvpQ0hqASMiWgc8h_CQRVTuBuwuOSgCLcBGAs/s200/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B09.08.29.png" width="187" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://loudounnow.com/2017/03/23/the-truth-about-gifted-versus-high-achieving-students/">The Truth About Gifted Versus High-Achieving Students</a><br /><br /></td></tr>
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Gifted students have it easy - right? They're well-organised, popular, are our natural leaders, a dream to learn and teach with, often the go-to person in the classroom and they always get the best marks. Right? No. They don't. These are our high-ability students and there IS a difference. This is such a misconception and it puts our gifted students on the back foot right from the time they enter the classroom. If they've been identified at some point and then don't meet teacher expectations there can be a break down in relationships, both with their teachers and their peers and the damage done to self-esteem and identity can be hard to rectify.<br />
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So what do we need to do as teachers? I've thought about this a lot over the years. Some of this thinking is based on research, reflection and my own learning but some thinking is also based on the gut instinct we develop as teachers. Here are my thoughts:<br />
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1. Don't assume </h4>
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I love this quote from Alan Alda - <em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Whitney SSm A", "Whitney SSm B"; font-size: 16px;">“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in awhile, or the light won’t come in.” ~ Alan Alda, actor</em></div>
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<span style="font-family: Whitney SSm A, Whitney SSm B;">The student that struggles with reading and writing could still be a gifted writer. They just need a different platform to share their ideas. That student who's 'always in trouble' could also be a gifted student who is showing his or her frustration in a different way. The autistic student could be the next top computer programmer. Sometimes our assumptions that a student CAN'T do something can cloud our ability to see what they CAN do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Whitney SSm A", "Whitney SSm B";">For more on this, please read this powerful post...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Whitney SSm A", "Whitney SSm B";"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7rw5SE7tYGM/W7RFrERJs9I/AAAAAAAAGDs/lIcplECLn9ASbLf_O63g2dAbpf7g4xmTACLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B17.28.55.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="1389" height="148" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7rw5SE7tYGM/W7RFrERJs9I/AAAAAAAAGDs/lIcplECLn9ASbLf_O63g2dAbpf7g4xmTACLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B17.28.55.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://humaneeducation.org/blog/2017/scrubbing-our-assumptions-about-our-students/">Scrubbing Our Assumptions About Our Students</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Whitney SSm A, Whitney SSm B;"><br /></span></div>
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2. Don't read the report comments from the last teacher/school until well into the first term</h4>
This might be controversial but it's honest and not meant to offend.<br />
By all means, respect the basic data/professional judgements and anything essential but we all know that personalities come into play in learning and teaching. That student that "...has not reached his/her potential...' could just need a different teacher with a different perspective. We can't be precious about this. It's just a fact of life and it's normal. If we see it as any other way then we might just miss that gifted student who just needs a fresh start or that new perspective.<br />
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3. Know our students as people first - students second</h4>
Who is this awesome person in our room - what makes them tick? I used to get my students to write to me on the topic of "What I wish my teacher knew about me." It was one of the most powerful learning activities I've ever done. It gives you a real insight into who these amazing human beings are.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n82aspw2P1M/W7RDKrlE4uI/AAAAAAAAGDg/-6vjDokoH9w-h2mRlXpNCbZ_ocDAigGcQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B17.18.20.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="731" data-original-width="1178" height="123" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n82aspw2P1M/W7RDKrlE4uI/AAAAAAAAGDg/-6vjDokoH9w-h2mRlXpNCbZ_ocDAigGcQCLcBGAs/s200/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B17.18.20.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://iwishmyteacherknewbook.com/">What I Wish My Teacher Knew About Me</a></td></tr>
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4. Be open to possibilities - be open to the possibility that a student may be gifted.</h4>
This links in with not making assumptions. We need to address our assumptions in terms of gifted students coming from so many different<br />
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5. Listen, observe and question</h4>
Teachers are great at talking - I am very much guilty as charged in this respect but many years ago I was reading about the power of listening in the classroom and it really changed how I interacted with my students. It's still very much a work in progress because I can't help myself but it was amazing what I picked up by being quiet and just listening and observing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T5HQbYDlP64/W7RM8syWvwI/AAAAAAAAGD4/q0YNGUBGEWEbwoENJk5NNskO_Ll6q9fegCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B18.00.26.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="684" data-original-width="693" height="196" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T5HQbYDlP64/W7RM8syWvwI/AAAAAAAAGD4/q0YNGUBGEWEbwoENJk5NNskO_Ll6q9fegCLcBGAs/s200/Screenshot%2B2018-10-03%2B18.00.26.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2018/03/07/listening-is-a-teachers-most-powerful-tool.html">Listening Is a Teacher's Most Powerful Tool</a></td></tr>
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6. Surround yourself with as much knowledge as possible.</h4>
This is sometimes not as easy as it sounds. Teachers are under so much pressure to raise achievement levels of students who are below the expected level, deal with a myriad of neurodiverse students and meet all the other administrative requirements of their profession. This is where our gifted students often fall between the cracks if we're not careful. We can make sure this doesn't happen by learning from others asynchronously through our online professional learning networks (PLN) as well as in more formal learning situations. There is a myriad of groups and pages where information can be found on learning and teaching with our gifted students. Just a few are linked below...<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/137238016943562/">Gifted and Talented Teachers (NZ)</a><br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/giftEDnz.org/">giftEDnz</a> - new website coming soon<br />
<a href="https://nzcge.co.nz/">NZCGE</a> - New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education<br />
<a href="https://www.giftedchildren.org.nz/">NZAGC</a> - New Zealand Association for Gifted Children<br />
<a href="https://www.giftedreach.org.nz/">REACH</a> - Specialists in Gifted Education<br />
<a href="https://gifted.tki.org.nz/">TKI</a> - Gifted and Talented<br />
<a href="http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/">Hogies' Gifted Education Page</a><br />
<a href="http://sengifted.org/">SENG</a> - Social and Emotional Needs of the Gifted<br />
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7. Question what you observe.</h4>
Always question what you are seeing and hearing. This is not second-guessing or self-doubt. It is part of being a <a href="http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/pte/module2/rp.htm">reflective</a> and reflexive practitioner. <br />
Two common models are the <a href="http://resources.eln.io/gibbs-reflective-cycle-model-1988/">Gibbs Reflective Cycle Model (1988)</a> and <a href="http://www.nicole-brown.co.uk/reflective-model-according-to-kolb/">Kolb's Reflective Practice Model (1984)</a><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YIzO9O4xK8c/W7UjC73OgDI/AAAAAAAAGEE/8L5wfr9qqs85fZ4X5eN-vDAuJc7oNO4ggCLcBGAs/s1600/Gibbs-Reflective-Cycle-690x430.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="430" data-original-width="690" height="124" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YIzO9O4xK8c/W7UjC73OgDI/AAAAAAAAGEE/8L5wfr9qqs85fZ4X5eN-vDAuJc7oNO4ggCLcBGAs/s200/Gibbs-Reflective-Cycle-690x430.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://resources.eln.io/gibbs-reflective-cycle-model-1988/">Image Source: ELN</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kfrMTGKe-OU/W7Uj7c5OuUI/AAAAAAAAGEM/hYpG9iEd1mMy364PMuGg5-GFuiFKo8vOACLcBGAs/s1600/Kolb%2527s%2BReflective%2BPractice%2Bmodel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="915" height="143" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kfrMTGKe-OU/W7Uj7c5OuUI/AAAAAAAAGEM/hYpG9iEd1mMy364PMuGg5-GFuiFKo8vOACLcBGAs/s200/Kolb%2527s%2BReflective%2BPractice%2Bmodel.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nicole-brown.co.uk/reflective-model-according-to-kolb/">Image Source: Nicole Brown - excellent explanation on her page</a></td></tr>
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If you suspect that a student may be gifted utilise your PLN, your colleagues, the student's whānau and other resources to help with identification. Be clear in your own mind that there is a difference between gifted and high-achieving students so that your gifted students aren't missed. It is a question of equity in education that the needs of our gifted students are met. <br />
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<br />Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9083711685310439237.post-23357951416020964212018-10-02T16:37:00.000+13:002018-10-02T16:37:19.523+13:00You're Really Annoying Me!<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><b>Day 2</b> of the <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QgYv2pECKWwxh6qWtuWzxB2qDOqtN74J0YT_n75IqVg/edit">giftEDnz October Blog Challenge</a> and it's all about how NOT to annoy gifted children.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.giftedguru.com/top-ten-ways-to-annoy-a-gifted-child/"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1209" height="190" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q6B7Cw5K2oM/W7HOmtztnfI/AAAAAAAAGBs/Iagng74E9SED7qqNa2DQ-tGwr4rv3_SXwCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-01%2B20.36.38.png" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.giftedguru.com/top-ten-ways-to-annoy-a-gifted-child/"><span style="color: #444444;">Gifted Guru - Top Ten Ways to Annoy a Gifted Child</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444;">Today's prompt is one that could make you laugh...or cry...depending on the way you look at it and also what your background experience is. The 10 ways to annoy a gifted child are listed below. I thought about ways to reflect on these statements. The author's (<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "open sans" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><a href="http://www.giftedguru.com/">Lisa Van Gemert</a>) </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">perspective is funny with a touch of sarcasm. But this is a serious issue and after nearly 20 years in the profession, I've decided my reflection will be a serious one - with hopefully a dash of humour and a whole lot of positivity around how we can make things better - for our gifted students and also ourselves.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">First of all, I was going to reflect on how I have seen every one of these statements for myself over the years - and often despaired - but it's not in my nature to be overly negative. I'd much rather reflect on what I've learned - and am learning - and create solutions for these points. <b><i>Have I been guilty of some of these?</i></b> You bet I have - you don't know what you don't know, or so a very wise colleague said to me one day when I was beating myself up over something. So here goes... </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<h3 style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Open Sans", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 16px; padding: 0px;">
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">1. Force them to remain at the “right” grade level.</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">This is a curious one. Why do we do this? Often we hear it discussed that it's because students 'wouldn't cope with different-age peers' but hang on...what about the mixed levels in smaller rural schools? Students have been coping exceptionally well in these learning environments. In fact, when I was head of Year 7 in a large College a few years ago it was always quite easy to identify learners from these environments as they were often - not always - but quite often, more comfortable around people of all ages. It was what they were used to. So what's stopping us?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">2. Insist that they show their work.</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">This is another interesting one and one that has, in the past, been dictated by people other than those at the whiteboard face of teaching and learning. The Numeracy Project was good for this. I remember during one interview where students have to explain their thinking/strategies a student asked me why I needed them to do this. My reply was the standard one about needing to know what strategies they could use so that I could find the right level for their next learning. The next statement from the student really made me think - they were one of those amazing students that just 'got' the answer. A truly gifted mathematician by every definition and description. The response - "But is the answer right?" "Yes," I replied. "Well then telling you how I got it isn't going to change it to being anything else then is it?" The student had a point. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">I think with gifted students it's very different. With a student who is struggling, explaining or showing their thinking can really help them understand what they're learning and how something works. For gifted students, this just frustrates the heck out of them when they are more than ready to move on to the next challenge.</span></div>
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<h2 style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Open Sans", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 16px; padding: 0px;">
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">3. Force them to read along.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">Fortunately, I've never done this (quickest way to kill a passion for reading) but I have seen it happen so many times! Back in about 2003, I developed a NZ version of Literature Circles. One of the guidelines was around just this. The group could only DISCUSS what their group was reading up to the part where the slowest reader in the group was up to - and being a slower reader was also a cause for celebration as they were often the ones who were also picking up the finer details as much as the gifted readers. We really pushed and valued this in my class. It was always something to be as proud of as being a gifted reader. The more capable and gifted readers could read as much as they wanted. It was all about flexibility.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;"><i>You can read more about this version of Literature Circles by clicking through the presentation image.</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><strong> <a href="https://www.slideshare.net/Justine8/literature-circles-presentation-28219314" target="_blank" title="Putting the 'Oomph' Back into Reading - Literature Circles, blogging and Twitter - the key to developing a passion for reading.">Putting the 'Oomph' Back into Reading - Literature Circles, blogging and Twitter - the key to developing a passion for reading.</a> </strong> from <strong><a href="https://www.slideshare.net/Justine8" target="_blank">Justine Hughes / PhD Candidate/Teacher</a></strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">4. No differentiation.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">There's differentiation and then there's real differentiation. It's not about giving more of the same to our gifted students or slightly harder work. It's about truly knowing our students and differentiating to meet their specific needs. This is becoming increasingly challenging as class numbers increase and the primary sector relies more on relief teachers to fill gaps.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">Differentiation is not about putting our gifted students in the 'top group' or mixed ability groups all the time. To really meet their needs, our classrooms need to be organised to have clusters of gifted students in them so that they have the opportunity to learn and teach with like-minds. This is crucial for their social and emotional development and careful grouping -<a href="http://psych.wisc.edu/henriques/papers/grouping.pdf"> and ranges of grouping are key. </a> Differentiation is all about differentiating the <a href="http://www.teachhub.com/using-differentiated-instruction-gifted-learners">content, process and product.</a> The toolbox link below explains qualitative differentiation for our gifted students really well.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WYmziibKFNo/W7LkFO9OAZI/AAAAAAAAGC4/-HNIi869qwcvoUvQgPn_hN3CID-l06NTQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2018-10-02%2B16.20.32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444;"><img border="0" data-original-height="694" data-original-width="539" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WYmziibKFNo/W7LkFO9OAZI/AAAAAAAAGC4/-HNIi869qwcvoUvQgPn_hN3CID-l06NTQCLcBGAs/s200/Screenshot%2B2018-10-02%2B16.20.32.png" width="155" /></span></a></div>
<a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/e9ps3ziqd3m63w2/Screenshot%202018-10-02%2016.20.32.png?dl=0"><span style="color: #444444;">The Differentiation Toolbox- Brooke Trenwith</span></a><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;">and from Carol Tomlinson...</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: small;">We may have better opportunities for this with the new FLEs (or ILEs/MLEs depending on which acronym you use). However, a caution with the new environments is that they may not suit all of our gifted students - particularly the twice-exceptional (2e) students, and there has yet to be a significant amount of research conducted into their effectiveness. I'm excited about the possibilities though - but we need evidence and we also need professional learning and development (PLD) in order for these to work well as they necessitate a shift in pedagogy.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">5. Make passive aggressive comments about their intelligence.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">There's not much to say about this one. We've all heard one of our colleagues say this and it is not acceptable. Even as a joke. Gifted students can often be very sensitive and this is just damaging to identity and self-worth. Never start a sentence with <a href="http://files.adams14.org/files/16/Parenting.pdf">"But you're so smart..."</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">6. Only allow same-age friends.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">This goes back to #1 but it is also more than that. In order to be able to interact with <a href="https://www.nzcer.org.nz/system/files/set2013_1_049.pdf">like-minds</a> it's crucial that students can <a href="http://afgfamily.com/blog/gifted-children/gifted-children-and-social-relationships/">interact with all ages</a>. Sometimes it's often by this interaction that we as teachers can start to identify a gifted student - or very importantly - one who has been flying under the radar and not indicated a great deal of giftedness in the classroom setting. These are often our underachievers or students who may have behaviour issues. Because gifted students often develop asynchronously, it's vital to let them find their 'tribe' - people who can meet their social, emotional and intellectual needs.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">7. Don’t let them linger over things that interest them.</span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: small;">This is such a tricky one and the cause of this happening is so often beyond the control of the student's teacher. The pressures from curriculum and assessment demands have, in the past, put enormous pressure on teachers to 'get through the work'. It's honestly crazy. The changes since I began teaching in 1999 have been enormous and the workload and expectations are sometimes out of kilter with what we know to be absolute best practice in teaching and learning. I hope we can push back on this a little now that National Standards have gone but there's going to need to be professional learning for many who trained under the NS system so that the focus goes firmly back on our fantastic - and I still believe - world-leading <a href="http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/">National Curriculum</a>. </span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">This curriculum allows for passions and interests to be followed. <a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ite75G3ee9lSU7bQ-rg_Bcdey9GRZ9ZiNoS5pvhTnIs/edit?usp=sharing">Genius Hour</a> and <a href="http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Future-focused-learning/Student-inquiry/Passion-projects">Passion Projects</a> fit so well into this. It has differentiation and personalisation at its heart. It was designed to begin with the Key Competencies and build the curriculum for our learners from there. There's always 'wriggle room' in our planning and assessment. Imagine the power of that!!</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.nagc.org/blog/we-need-keep-our-most-advancedstudents-engaged-heres-how"><span style="color: #444444;">Davidson Gifted</span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ite75G3ee9lSU7bQ-rg_Bcdey9GRZ9ZiNoS5pvhTnIs/edit?usp=sharing"><span style="color: #444444;">Genius Hour Resources - crowdsourced resource collated by teachers</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">8. Give them more of the same level of work.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">See # 4</span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">9. Expect perfection.</span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.raisingwizards.com/perfectionism"><img border="0" data-original-height="625" data-original-width="1068" height="187" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kx8GvmtxEKo/W7LeJWUCBaI/AAAAAAAAGCM/Bht9mhgWw2s46X1UVhcwXaBTNBGp6Zk5QCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2018-10-02%2B15.55.07.png" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.raisingwizards.com/perfectionism"><span style="color: #444444;">Meet the Perfectionists</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">No one is perfect and most certainly I am not! I have learned so much more from failing than I ever did from getting things right - something I've had to work on being the perfectionist that I am. We need to take the negative pressure right off our able and gifted students. They are individuals and a human being first and foremost. If we don't remove that pressure or teach them how to combat serious perfectionist tendencies then we are contributing to the mental health statistics.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: small;">10. Make them repeat the same things over and over.</span></h2>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PXrFqC913vs/W7LdUS0FABI/AAAAAAAAGCE/ywzdvjv-C0gRJSNdqo18AmW0i2nnN9eoQCLcBGAs/s1600/Deep%2BCove%2BCamp%2BHair%2BDye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PXrFqC913vs/W7LdUS0FABI/AAAAAAAAGCE/ywzdvjv-C0gRJSNdqo18AmW0i2nnN9eoQCLcBGAs/s320/Deep%2BCove%2BCamp%2BHair%2BDye.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">I will not dye my teacher's hair red.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">I will not dye my teacher's hair red.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">I will not dye...</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">Oh - not THAT kind of repetition!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;">Repetition kills the joy of learning. Yes, some students need repetition to help them master new learning but not all do. We have to ask the question "What is the point in repeating something that a student already knows or has mastered?"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;">I think the key point in all of this - and helpful in not always annoying your students (let's be honest, we're human, we all annoy each other at some time!) is to keep them (individually and as people) at the heart of everything we do. If we do that then we can't go wrong - and we'll only annoy them a little bit.</span></div>
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Learning and Teaching Buzzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140550903207435526noreply@blogger.com2