Category Archives: Teaching

Teach to the test – what’s next?

Posted on February 8, 2010 by mwalker

Well, as reported in the Age Newspaper, it didn’t take long for some directive to teachers to teach to the Naplan test. We all know you get some short term gain for 1 year and as the article points out … Continue reading →

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Student empowerment vs engagement

Posted on January 18, 2010 by mwalker

I’ve been following a conversation started by Chris Lehmann and joined by Dave Sherman questioning whether student engagement is a worthwhile improvement goal for schools to set. The conversation is worth some thought as Victorian schools like Elsternwick Primary are … Continue reading →

Posted in Instruction, reflections, school, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Here’s one creative teacher using technology in classrooms

Posted on December 24, 2009 by mwalker

Sometimes I stumble upon really creative ways to use technology in classrooms with kids. Chris Betcher prepared this for an online conference and it goes for about 20 minutes. There’s so much in this presentation that it’s useful to come … Continue reading →

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Reflections on a year just finished – what changed and what’s ahead.

Posted on December 23, 2009 by mwalker

Photo courtesy of Bayside leader At the end of a school year I generally get a little reflective – after a day or two on holidays that is and after I’ve spent some time catching up on the uncompleted tasks … Continue reading →

Posted in construction, Instruction, Leadership, reflections, school, Teaching, Uncategorized, Video Clips | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

How far have we come as teachers in using technology to engage learners?

Posted on December 23, 2009 by mwalker

Have a quick flick through this presentation as we in Australia shut down for the summer school holiday period. I’m reminded of a now famous quote “Yes we can” when I see this. I remember as far back as the … Continue reading →

Posted in Assessment, Collaborative Communities, Instruction, Reading, school, Teaching, Technology, Uncategorized, Video Clips, Walkthroughs | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Does a school transition program make any difference to parent concerns about student class placements?

Posted on December 22, 2009 by mwalker

Certainly one of the by products of an effective school transition program we hoped was the easing of parent concerns about the student class placement for the following year. An earlier post on school transition described the program that we have … Continue reading →

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Facebook dilemmas

Posted on November 26, 2009 by mwalker

Recently we faced a dilemma as school leaders about students using Facebook and in posting this I’m seeking feedback from a wider audience. To explain we were alerted to a situation about a young student who had a Facebook page. The police had been involved … Continue reading →

Posted in cyberbullying, school, Teaching, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

National Standards – do they improve teaching and learning?

Posted on November 22, 2009 by mwalker

Thanks to Greg Carroll I came across this video where John Hattie makes a case around issues like accommodation, retention [repeating classes] or dumbing down learning surrounding National Standards. National Standards are due to be introduced in Australia next year. He concludes … Continue reading →

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School Transition Programs – Do they make a difference?

Posted on November 22, 2009 by mwalker

During our school review we identified student transition as an area to improve student engagement and connectedness to school. Our transition program aims to provide smooth pathways for students moving from one year level to the next or from location to … Continue reading →

Posted in school, school structures, Teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged | 4 Comments

School Regeneration Projects

Posted on October 14, 2009 by mwalker

School regeneration projects engage schools and their local communities developing a sustainable educational provision plan that covers educating young people from birth to adulthood. The school communities usually agree to reduce the number of sites and organise the provision of education … Continue reading →

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Children See ….. Children Do

Posted on October 8, 2009 by mwalker

I saw this short clip by NAPCAN for a “Child Friendly Australia” and thought it worth posting for its very clear and powerful message to us as teachers, parents, grand parents and any adult who is responsible for kids. It’s worth a look.  Thanks to Donald MacDonald … Continue reading →

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“teacher roles defined as covenants should be at the centre”

Posted on October 6, 2009 by mwalker

Sergiovanni in this book gave me one of those precious light bulb moments, as a school leader, when he defined roles as “the most sacred obligations and commitments we have towards each other, toward the school and toward its purpose” [p … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Masters in Education Course, Monash University, school, school structures, Teaching | Tagged , | 1 Comment

A school’s core purpose in a larger framework!

Posted on September 14, 2009 by mwalker

http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/senecavalleyhs/childdev/maslow.htm We have trying to clearly define our school’s core purpose that will help give direction to our improvement work over the next years. The school’s purpose is stated in the strategic plan which is a formal agreement between the community, teachers and … Continue reading →

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Social Media in classrooms

Posted on September 3, 2009 by mwalker

The clip is thanks to Warrick Wynne. Today at the end of the school day I walked into a classroom to catch up with a teacher about workforce planning for 2010 and saw the face of a young teacher, currently in … Continue reading →

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

Milos World – Virtual learning possibilities

Posted on August 28, 2009 by mwalker

Thanks to John Connell and Ron Burnett for this amazing clip from X-box and Lionhead Studios. I have played a little Wii before and was thinking about guitar hero for the school and lunchtime music classes but this takes gaming to another … Continue reading →

Posted in Teaching, Technology, Video Clips | Tagged , , | 1 Comment