Author Archives: mwalker

What are the challenges of working in flexible spaces?

Posted on June 29, 2010 by mwalker

New flexible learning environments are being built in schools as rate never seen before [and given the country’s debt probably never again] in this country. The ‘Building the Education Revolution’ Commonwealth Government initiative was part of Australia’s economic recession proofing … Continue reading →

Posted in flexible learning spaces, Instruction, Leadership, Teaching, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Is there an execution gap between our goals and actions?

Posted on June 15, 2010 by mwalker

I’ve been reflecting lately on our strategic plan which lists a number of worthwhile actions and improvement goals. I know the goals as the principal as I interact with the plan on a regular basis but I wonder if  they … Continue reading →

Posted in Accountability, Leadership, school | 2 Comments

Social Media – need a reason to change – here it is!

Posted on June 10, 2010 by mwalker

Thanks to Durff’s Blog in the States I found this clip that is essential viewing for teachers struggling to reason why we need to adapt our practices to embed the use of technology – in Victoria called the Ultranet.

Posted in school, Ultranet, Video Clips | 2 Comments

Cybersafety sessions come to Elsternwick Primary.

Posted on June 10, 2010 by mwalker

This week our assistant principal Demos [pictured on the right] in consultation with 3 other local schools coordinated a series of cyberbullying workshops from ACMA [Australian Communications and Media Authority] for staff , students and parents. The staff session was … Continue reading →

Posted in cyberbullying, school, Teaching, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Teachers not getting quality feedback and recognition

Posted on June 1, 2010 by mwalker

I have just finished hearing a report on the state of teacher performance reviews in Australia completed by the Grattan Institute. Its a fairly controversial report as reported in the education review, ABC in South Australia, Australia ‘fails in teacher … Continue reading →

Posted in school structures, Teaching, Video Clips | Leave a comment

Support in schools arguments

Posted on June 1, 2010 by mwalker

This is the second post on the issue of support for teachers. In the previous post “What constitutes support for a teacher?” I set the scene that we have been re conceiving our workforce plan with the loss of 50% … Continue reading →

Posted in coaching, school structures, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Celtics off to the championship!

Posted on May 30, 2010 by mwalker

Cannot help but feel awed at the Boston Celtics charge towards the finals.  As a fan of the Celtics my son, Mitchell and I have been following the games on the Sports Channel here in Melbourne. Written off by many … Continue reading →

Posted in sports, Uncategorized, Video Clips | 1 Comment

Marzano makes a point about the use of his protocol in observing instruction in classrooms

Posted on May 30, 2010 by mwalker

Just a short clip on the use of protocols when observing instruction. here Marzano talks about the use of his protocol and not to be confused with other techniques. It’s a timely reminder as we here in Victoria embarked on … Continue reading →

Posted in Instruction, Uncategorized, Video Clips, Walkthroughs | Leave a comment

Good grades at school are not the goal – so argues Alf Kohn

Posted on May 30, 2010 by mwalker

You watch these two short video clips where Alf Kohn argues that the more students seek high standards [performance] as measured by grades rather than learning through the task the less they learn. It’s an interesting argument to put and … Continue reading →

Posted in school, Teaching, Ultranet, Uncategorized, Video Clips | Tagged | 1 Comment

Disputing Classrooms – a text on innovative use of technology to “personalise learning”

Posted on May 26, 2010 by mwalker

A month or so ago all principals in Victoria were given this book “Disrupting Classrooms” just prior to the release of a new innovation in schools called the ultranet. We have all been reading this book in our own ways … Continue reading →

Posted in Networks of Schools, school, Technology, Ultranet, Uncategorized, Video Clips | Leave a comment

Sustainability in schools – a broader view.

Posted on May 25, 2010 by mwalker

This week as part of Masters Leadership course we visited Collingwood College looking at the broad theme of sustainability. Collingwood College was the first center for the now nation wide Stephanie Alexander’s school kitchen gardens. These photos show the gardens … Continue reading →

Posted in Monash University, school, school structures, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

What constitutes support for a teacher?

Posted on May 25, 2010 by mwalker

Over the past few month prompted by the news that our assistant principal was successfully appointed as principal to another school I have been working on a revised workforce plan. This plan is quite complex and covers role allocation, possible … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

pink on performance pay

Posted on May 25, 2010 by mwalker

I was watching question time in Federal Parliament the other night having arrived home from a late school council meeting. I know you must be thinking – what question time? There was a question put to one of the ministers … Continue reading →

Posted in Industrial Issues, Teaching, Uncategorized, Video Clips | Tagged | Leave a comment

Maths Problems: how to engage youth in learning to ask and solve maths problems using a little bit of technology.

Posted on May 19, 2010 by mwalker

Another fabulous TED talk this time on Mathematics, one of our school improvement targets. Meyer’s a secondary school maths teacher shows how we can connect students to maths problems using technology in real life situations. To learn to ask the … Continue reading →

Posted in Mathematics, Teaching, Uncategorized, Video Clips | Leave a comment

Our Blind Sides

Posted on May 19, 2010 by mwalker

I have been reading the book Blind Side by Michael Lewis and thinking about the parallels here in life and education. Now I do like watching American football on TV and confess besides the quarterback passing down field to receivers … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Teaching, Uncategorized, Video Clips | 4 Comments