Jill Hammonds EdBlog

I’m so pleased that I’ve never been worried about the small stuff, or boxes or linear time.  Now I can go back and recap on some of the other hightlights of this busy few months.

While talking about conferences, it has been exciting to take part in some cluster conferences recently.  A few weeks back I was in Balclutha for the Big River Cluster Conference - well short of 1200 attendees, but nevertheless a buzz for those who turned out to quite a variety of workshops.  Liz Weir from Freeville School impressed us all with their school journey from the early years of an ICT PD Cluster programme, through the development of inquiry, learning models and development of autonomous learners.  I found the concept of their restorative justice programme fascinating and a great example of authentic learning.  The programmes brings offenders and victims together in a supported environment to work through the issues that prompted a conference time.  The end result is that natural consequences append themselves to student choice, and hence real learning occurs.

Two weeks later I was back in the deep south for the ILT Conference in Invercargill - the third in the series and just as good as they have been previously.  One feels like royalty with the care and attention paid to presenters at this conference, so as well as the convivial company, there were dinners to attend each night, very comfortable accommodation and the bar tab attended to.  For a local NZ Cluster conference, this one is fortunate to have the ILT funding that enables an awesone line up of international presenters to complement the local regulars.  Eric Jensen, Tony Ryan, Jeni Wilson and Michael Pohl were all presenters who had new material to offer and new ideas to build into my own conference presentation this week.  We are well served for great educators down under, and these conferences far outweighed the International Conference on Thinking that I attended in Sweden this year.

Well, time now for coffee and the next workshop which is a must do for me.  I’m really looking forward to Rosemary Hipkins session on key competencies and assessment.  i hope I’ll be back in less than 4 months this time

Ever caught yourself saying the things that you hate hearing others say?

How often have I groaned when others have said that “they don’t have time to . . . online.” Oh dear. Looking at my last blog entry back in June I must have been thinking the same at some point, or maybe I’ve just been busy in other online areas instead.

However today I have the luxury of some time. I am attending the ULearn Conference in Auckland, and for once I’m on the attendee side of the counter. I had planned to be at Tony Ryan’s session on “The Rules of Engagement”, but following my round of conferences in the last week, looking at the handout notes I see that I have already attended the same session at the ILT Conference in Invercargill last week. Engaging though it certainly was, with many ideas already put into play at my PreConference workshop on thinking yesterday, I have decided to breathe and blog instead.

Day One of the conference . . . the highlight so far has certainly been Ewan McIntosh’s keynote this morning. Focused on the engaging opportunities that today’s cutting edge technologies afford us, I certainly expected to be engaged, but great to be entertained as well - a great sense of humour and fun was evident. It certainly whet my appetite for our full day session with Ewan in Hamilton next week.  I sense that my use of technologies is going to have another uplift.  Already I am heading off to set up a Bebo account and to visit some of the websites mentioned to check out more of the work today’s students are producing.  Cup stacking - no I think I’ll not try and compete on that one though.

The Online Conference afforded me the opportunity to go back to Te Awamutu Intermediate School and interview two group of year 7 & 8 students. I was once again amazed at how articulate these students were without any prompting, to express their thoughts on what the online environment does for their learning. They have a clear message for all teachers, so I’ll let them speak for themselves:

Well done! Let’s hope everyone is listening.

The Time4Online Conference has certainly consumed most of my time this week. The curtains opened on Monday to reveal an almost all there line up of workshops. A peep behind the curtains the day before would have seen quite a different picture as we scurried to get the last bits of the first three days into formation online. There were panic phone calls when things didn’t go as expected, and new ways had to be found. But that in itself is worthy of bringing to the front of stage for what it has to offer teacher and student learning in this exciting era.

Gone are the days when you needed to know anything to do something. Now you just have to want to, have a bit of confidence, and a willingness to take the leap even when you haven’t checked to see that there really is a parachute in that pack on your back. This conference began for me with a dream of what could be, that has gradually formed into shape. There were moments when those who had asked me to co-construct this conference seemed to lose faith in my ability to pull it all together - largely due to different ways that we all work, and where we start the process. Fortunately, Anne Mason and I had enough confidence to feel we would get there in the time available.

The planning and dreaming was easy. Contacting people and persuading them to take part was also a breeze - people joined the excitement and I don’t think anyone said no. Everyone basically thought they could do their part, and, many of them at the 11th hour when all busy and able people get going, have made it happen. As with all my learning, I found that I knew only a small drop of what it takes to achieve the results I wanted. I did however have the innate belief that it could be done. Having key people who could do the really big stuff certainly helped. A lot of stuff simply appeared, although I’m sure the magicians who got it there felt quite different about that. But I got my first chance to do lots of things that I would have liked to do but never got time for.

This week, I have made my first movie - have played a bit with the software in the past, but never taken one through to final form. Never had the need until now. But along the way I found out about programmes that convert this to that so that it will work there. I experimented with cutting and cropping, choosing the wrong process first and having to go back to my original footage again - well only because I forgot that magic undo button, but that’s learning for you. I asked a few questions on Skype or cell phone along the way and got little bits of info that I managed to piece together to make some logical process. I found out about exporting it to whatever it was it needed to be, AND, I uploaded it to Teacher Tube without any help, and copied the code into a wiki to have it viewable on the conference site. Imagine the thrill that was for me.

But hey - our students and our teachers should be getting these sorts of thrills every day as they work through the process, check with a few experts they know, and problem solve their way through. Nobody needs to wait until they know how, before they get on and do it. No teacher needs to know how, before they enable the learning process for their students to achieve the learning intentions that the teacher and students have co-constructed.

BUT every teacher needs to know where they and their students can get help when they need it. And that is where web 2.0 is so fantastic - all the experts you need are sitting along the window sill in the classroom just waiting to help when you need them - or they will be if you take part in the conference (no cost - only a moment of time required here and there.) They’ll then know about blogging and be able to read the blogs of the experts sitting on the window sill. They’ll know or be able to look back and find out, how to set up RSS feeds to these blogs, so that people really are on the window sill. They’ll be able to look back and set up a del.icio.us account and search more effectively for the things they want to know by piggybacking on what others who came before have also wanted to know. They’ll get addicted to the wonderful knowledge that is building up ever so fast on Teacher Tube, and subscribe to listservs aboout the things of interest to them.

If you’re reading this and you haven’t got into this stuff, then visit http://time4online.org.nz and get started. If you are into this stuff, go to http://time4online.org.nz and get contributing - there’s a few spare places on the window sill right now :->>

Come on in and enjoy!

How lovely to be sitting here in the luke warm sun at my own desk in my own home after four weeks of extensive workshopping and cluster visits around the country. I have been to Invercargill and back (Waikato, NZ) twice in that time, plus many places in between. It has been inspiring but exhausting, and blogging has been high on my mind, but bottom of the priority list as I moved further into survivial mode.

Today, however, our Time4Online Conference begins, and online everythings are top of the list. If the sun continbues to shine and all is alive and calm in the conference area, I may just catch up on the months of blogging that have been lying low.

Top of my thoughts is how wonderful wikispaces are. Gone are the days of photocopying (except for readings for the workshop) and even burning things to CD to give away. Now when I run a workshop, I create a wikispace - right then and there int he workshop, to show people how easy it is, and how useful! These web 2.0 tools really are the best thing since sliced bread, as they enable us to capture new ideas, share old and new ones, and collaborate beyond the now in a way that was not previously possible. Thanks you a million times over to wikispaces.com for their free wikis for educators - this is a great asset to education around the world. When I’ve used your 100,000th one, I hope you will grant another lot, as this really is the way forward for us all. Of course there are other free wikis available, such as pbwiki, but wikispaces is top of the charts for me right now as it takes a minute to set a new one up, and 2 more minutes to make it look good and get under way.

If you haven’t heard of or used wikis before, check out some of the ones that I have created in the last few weeks, and then go to the Time4Online Conference and take part in the workshops and tutorials that will guide you through the process and extend your thinking on how to use them to greatest effect.

My wiki for workshops on facilitating adult learning in workshops and peer mentoring http://androgogy.wikispaces.com

My wiki for a workshop on 21st Century learners http://21stcenturylearners.wikispaces.com

My wiki for a two day national workshop and regional meeting in the lower South Island http://sthregional.wikispaces.com

My wiki for a secondary school teachers national workshop and regional meeting http://chch2ndary.wikispaces.com

My wiki for an Early Childhood Workshop in Hamilton http://ecehamilton.wikispaces.com

You will see that these wikis, many of which are still in their raw state awaiting a few minutes from me to look good and add in some more info, have been used to:

• Brainstorm ideas from discussion sessions
• Share readings and resources
• Provide links to online resources, software etc.
• See the potential for online web 2.0 tools.

Check them out.

My, doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun. I see my last blog entry was way back in early February, and now it’s nearly the end of March. I have so many things to write about from the intervening times, and of course blogs are usually sequential. Well, those of you who know me well will know that the only rule is that there are no rules, so instead of worrying about catching up with yesterday, I’m leaping in to today and maybe yesterday will be tomorrow.

Today I went and lunched with one of my facilitators who lives not far from here, as I am not making an official visit to the cluster this term. There were a few things she wanted to discuss, so lunch seemed a good way to go. Two hours later after another round of coffee, we thought we might need to pay rent to the restaurant, so adjourned to her office to continue the discussion. In the interim we had planned out the scope of home group, regional and national meetings for term 2 - I work so much better when there is someone to bounce ideas off. Sometimes I do that online, but you still can’t beat a bit of face to face and over food and drink.

Going back to her office was a great idea though, as she was keen to show me what she had been doing during the term - of course I didn’t have my camera with me, so can’t share all of that with you just now. However, Donna also took me in to her cluster wikispaces to see the developments since I lasted visited there. It reinforced for me that I’ve just got to share this space with as many people as I can, because here is a cluster that is beginning to use these tools well for their communication and sharing of ideas.

Donna has three wikispaces she uses for different facets of her cluster business. The Rosetown space http://rosetown.wikispaces.com/ is used for professional readings and stimulus of ideas. If you’re checking in here, see how a few good YouTube videos (Future Stuff) have been used to focus teachers on how new developments in technology are changing the way that we will be working tomorrow - a “DON’T” message for teachers who want to teach kids how to use technologies and even hold them back until they have learnt first. There isn’t time and there isn’t any good reason to do so. Our students need to learn how to work out technology use - teachers need to focus on learning and their role in that.

The RATS space (Really Awesome Teachers Stories) http://rats.wikispaces.com/ is gradually taking off as teachers realise that they are doing some great stuff and gain the confidence to share. As they get confidence in here, it is also to be hoped that they take up the contribution opportunities in the other spaces. A wikispace is intended to be a collaborative development and its tools make reader contribution a very simple process.

What is really great is that Donna is also encouraging teachers to share their resources and ideas in the EdResources space. http://edresources.wikispaces.com/ If you visit this space today you need to check back here in the future as Donna has plans to share her workshop presentations - she is a shining example of how when we share our resources and strengths, we build community - and COMMUNITY is what Web 2.0 has to offer - interaction and sharing with others of common interest and activity. Let’s not have competition to the forefront in our teaching practice - let’s share - and know that in that way, we get to enrich what kids are experiencing in their classrooms around the world. Let us also be aware of plagiarism rules and give credit to the source when we utilise the resources found on the web.

Well done Donna. Looking forward to the next lunch date.

For all those who have been moaning that summer hasn’t started yet, its because it’s all been hiding over in the Bay of Plenty. Paengaroa turned on a beautiful day for us to shut ourselves away indoors, but teachers turned out in droves for a great day of learning to focus the beginning of their year.

Warren Patterson set the tone of the day with a keynote on working for success - looking at the keys that lead to that and lessons from the research for us as teachers. This was followed with Russell Brebner introducing us to Umajin software, and then, after morning tea, we were in to the first round of workshops. Many of these were hands on sessions, but many of them with teachers being able to work on their own laptop through the local school wireless network. Teachers learnt lots of practical ideas for their classrooms and had their ideas and practices challenged.

Lunch, a fabulous spread, was eaten sitting out in the sunshine, and then it was in to the second workshops followed by a keynote on gaming by Gareth Schott - not just about playing games, but using game strategies and technologies in learning. When games are so motivating we all have much to learn about the strategies involved.  The software developed through gaming also has much to contribute to the classroom.

The final workshop round followed, and then many of those who had stayed on for the final round were fortunate enough to take home some fabulous spot prizes donated by the conference sponsors.

Listening to the talk during refreshment breaks, those who gave up their day to attend had plenty to take back to the classroom with them next week.  New strategies, new management systems, new software, and hopefully a new awareness of the present and future reality that our students are already embracing.  Teaching with and through ICT is not just about the  technologies, it is about the change  to

• students taking more ownership of their learning
• teachers being aware that students need to learn about and understand how they learn, and enabling them in this process
• students and teachers developing their thinking and creativity along with many other skills that will stand students in good stead to be empowered in their now (21st century) world
• greater partnership in the classroom with each learning from the strengths of each other
• developing curriculum that is relevant and meaningful to all those involved
• greater joy, energy and persistence in learning

There are many more things that could be added to this list.  The great thing about this and other such conferences is that they begin (or build) the process.

Great work Lorraine, Bruce and all the team who made this such a great day. 

Well, hard to believe that 2007 is one month down already and this is my first post for the year. Schools will be back in full swing next week and already the ICT PD National Support Services Team are now in full gear with Learning @ School Conference planning high on the priority list.

We have had our first team meeting at Core Education Ltd in Christchurch, and a conference planning meeting in Hamilton, and by next week we will be able to contact all our new clusters. We are now into a new contract with the Ministry of Education, and there are lots of exciting changes in the way that we will work to support clusters, that will be announced at L@S Conference in February. With changes in the team membership there has also been a redistribution of areas, and I am looking forward to spending time in the South Island again this year, as well as having a group of clusters close to home in the Waikato and King Country. I will however miss the clusters that I worked with in 2006, but will look forward to catching up at conference.

Tomorrow sees my first day out workshopping at the Together Towards Tomorrow Conference hosted by Nga Tii Roa Cluster at Paengaroa School. I look forward to having photos and ideas to share with you following that event.

Now, however, it is time for a walk to freshen the brain, and then pack my bags and get on the road. May 2007 be a great year for all those who read here.

Cheers,

Jill

The loss of my South Island clusters and move to mostly North Island has meant that I now have only first and third year clusters. Doing the final visits for the year has made me realise just how marked the contrast is between the two.

Last night I stayed with a friend who has a very young puppy. This puppy is full of energy, explores everything with its teeth and gets very excited over anything new. This is so much like the first year clusters, where they are excitedly telling me about the new things that they are discovering and learning and seeing make a difference for their teachers and students. There are reports of those aha moments where connections are made and new territory unfolds. There is also the uncertainty of writing their first variation report with all that that entails in reviewing, meeting with principals, tracking their progress and deciding where to head next year. There are also often little yelps as they discover some things that don’t go smoothly and where they need some additional support to ease the way and resolve issues. Not all schools are on the same page and there is more diversity of need.

In contrast, the visits to my third year clusters to date, have been golden years, with really solid discussions about learning, achievement, processes, learning, teacher capability, students articulating their learning, teachers reflecting on the three years, recognition that there is ongoing learning to be done and practical discussions about how this can be achieved now that the funding is drawing to an end. There is discussion of the Draft Curriculum and how this fits with where their thinking has now lead them. There is recognition of the opportunities that Web 2.0 presents and last minutes requests for more input into setting up good resource areas for clusters and establishing lasting communication channels using the technologies.

Three years and smiling. Still work to be done, but at a settled pace. Time in the day to bask in the sun as well as to hunt and enjoy the feed. Three years and smiling.

One of the great things about my job is that no matter where I go to visit schools, I always seem to find something to excite me.  I’ve seen a fair bit of technology use and students doing some pretty amazing stuff.  However, you may have picked up by now, that what really turns me on, is seeing students and teachers learning in powerful ways.  This may or may not involve plug in or push button technologies, but does include some component that changes the way people think or operate.

Today I met a really vivacious second year teacher who is also a lead teacher in her school.  She didn’t just talk to me about what her class were doing, but shared her passion and excitement.  She had been to the ULearn Conference and had learnt about podcasting during one hands on workshop, and decided she would like to try that with her year 3-4 class.  They began by listening to some podcasts and critiquing them to then make a list of criteria that would be important to  use for their own attempts.  The criteria related to the message, the delivery and the technical skills they would need to employ.  These were then built into a period of focusing on each and brainstorming how they would operate.  They discussed the collaborative skills they would need to develop, and assigned a variety of roles for each team - which included a quality control component.  Whoopee - critical and reflective learners aiming for high standards.

Book reviews were their first context, so book selection, review writing, reading with expression and awareness of pace, podcasting techniques were all skills to be developed.  Finally they were ready to record and then to listen and critique.  Audacity and a cheap, very basic microphone had been employed, but the cheap microphone amplified all the consonants producing the popping sort of static noises.  Teacher recording studio knowledge and a bit of No 8 wire ingenuity solved the problem via a coathanger and a pair of pantyhose.  Check it out in the photo - note the X on the home made sound boom to ensure that the readers faced the microphone.

So OK, we can now podcast and we’ll use this skill again as part of our space unit to provide some sound files for other classes.  But wait - this is a critical reflective teacher and so there is more learning that can be developed from the experience.  So now the class have looked at audience and how that impacts their context, their presentation style and the content.  They looked at how having an elderly audience would impact what they produce.  What if any changes would they need to make?  And to interest fathers?  Kids in kindergarten? Others?

Well the story ending hasn’t been developed yet, but what is brewing for the future is podcasting for the blind.  Talking books via podcast maybe.  Obviously there will be much research required and the year is running out but plans are afoot nonetheless.  I hope I get to hear more about the sequel to their first exploration of podcasting.  Real learning is evident even in the preliminary process.  This teacher has paid more than lipservice to the desire for her students to be collaborative, critical thinkers and problem solvers.  They are already building practise of these into their work.  Well done Kelly.