Spotlights and invited guests
Spotlights and invited guests
ULearn08 features spotlight presenters and invited guests who will cover a range of topics relating to our three key themes.
Julia Atkin - Learning By Design (Australia)
Dr Julia Atkin is an independent education and learning consultant who works across education settings in Australia and internationally. Her work with educators over the past twenty years has focused their reflection and dialogue around two key questions: What is powerful learning? and What is it powerful to learn? Julia is passionate about developing educational services that:
• nurture the human spirit of individuals and the organisation
• are personalised and customised
• help the learner learn to think and learn to learn
• integrate the best of learning technology with information and communication technologies
• are collaborative
• result in learning that has deep personal meaning and is thus transferable from one context to another.
Julia’s work is characterised by an approach that bridges the gap between theory and practice. She has received a number of prestigious awards in recognition of her work. In 2000-2004 she was named a Distinguished Educator by Apple Computers Australia. In 2000, Julia was made a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators and awarded the Sir Harold Wyndham Medal 2000 in recognition of the contribution her work has made to the learning of teachers and the children of Australia. In October 2003, The Bulletin named Julia as one of Australia’s Smart 100 - a list of one hundred people, ten in ten fields, making a difference to Australian society through innovation.
Skoolaborate: Emerging technologies and their implication for learning
Westley Field - MLC School (Australia)
Technologies change the way we work and live. The rate of change with technology and the types of technologies that are emerging have tremendous implications for the future of education. Schools will need to adopt new practices including new skills for teachers if they are to remain competitive.
In this presentation, participants will explore new directions with emerging technologies as well as learn the strategies that worked in establishing a successful global collaborative initiative in teen SecondLife - from admin to practice.
This presentation will explore the learning and subsequent heuristics used to make this project a success. Participants will learn about practical strategies and administrative considerations that make these projects work. Participants will view video footage of student experiences as well as interact with students and partners during the presentation.
Westley Field is the Director of the ‘Skoolaborate’ Initiative. He is also Director of Online Learning and Manager of IT at MLC School in Sydney.
Westley presents around the world on topics such as Education in Virtual Worlds, Making 1 to 1 work, Heuristics of implementing elearning, Educational Technology, Connecting Students in a Web 2.0 world and Leading in a Flat World.
In 2008, Westley received the ASLA John Lee Award for innovative us of IT in learning. Westley has previously received a Churchill Fellowship, Computerworld Honours (Smithsonian), Apple Distinguished Educator, Macromedia Ed Leader and Adobe Ed Leader for his work with schools and communities. Westley is also on the Board for the NSW and Sydney branches of the Australian Council of Educational Leaders.
Webciting: Web 2.0 and Education. This is the most exciting time for learning!
Greg Gebhart, IT Vision (Australia)
In this spotlight Greg will focus on the shift from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 tools, with a range of free and engaging applications that can enhance student learning. Web 2.0 also opens up the possibility to change the ways teachers undertake professional learning, and the session will showcase many of the resources that can enable teachers to be connected and up-to-date. To finish, Greg will focus on new and emerging technologies, with mobile devices and m-learning (mobile learning) being highlighted.
Greg Gebhart is a former teacher who now works as a consultant to schools and education groups on the use and implementation of new and emerging technologies. Greg’s specialist areas include the use of Web 2.0 technologies and internet safety for children.
Greg is a regular presenter at conferences in Australia and internationally as well as working closely with individual schools and school clusters. He has won many awards including Outstanding Achievement by a teacher at the National Schooling Awards in Australia, The Sate of Victoria’s Regional Achiever of the Year, and the Australian ICT Innovator of the Year.
Critical issues for learning in the 21st century: Multiliteracies, new technologies and knowledge building
Nicola Yelland, Victoria University (Australia)
As we move towards the end of the first decade of the 21st century it is relevant to reflect on the ways in which we are supporting learners to become effective citizens for new times. The growth of new technologies has shaped new learners who come to schools with funds of knowledge that are relevant to their lived experiences in classrooms, but rarely used in authentic ways. As their performance in schools comes increasingly under scrutiny with regard to heritage outcomes, they are creating knowledge building communities, both on and offline, that reflect an increased capacity to understand and make sense of their world in dynamic ways. New learners live in a multimodal world that requires them to understand and make meaning of multiple forms of texts and images as well as being able to critically interrogate a variety of media and sources of information. How can centres and schools make a contribution to these new citizens and support them to acquire and use skills that will enable them to be effective learners?
In this presentation, Nicola discusses what it means to be literate in new times and the ways in which teachers can provide relevant contexts that support children to become multiliterate by extending their modalities of learning. This involves a rethinking of what it means to be literate as well as a consideration of the pedagogies used by teachers and the creation of partnerships between teachers to ensure that learning is a continuous process as children transition to each new year level of their education.
Nicola Yelland is Research Professor of Education in the School of Education, at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia. Over the last decade her research has been related to the use of ICT in school and community contexts. This has involved projects that have investigated the specific learning of students in computer environments as well as a broader consideration of the ways in which new technologies can impact on the pedagogies that teachers use and the curriculum in schools. Her multidisciplinary research focus has enabled her to work with early childhood, primary and middle school teachers to enhance the ways in which ICT can be incorporated into learning contexts to make them more interesting and motivating for students, so that educational outcomes are improved.
Nicola's latest publications are Rethinking learning in Early Childhood Education (OUP) and Rethinking Education with ICT: New directions for effective practices (Sense Publishers). She is the author of Shift to the Future: Rethinking learning with new technologies in education (Routledge, New York). Nicola is also the author of Early Mathematical Explorations with Carmel Diezmann and Deborah Butler and has edited four books: Gender in Early Childhood (Routledge, UK), Innovations in Practice (NAEYC) Ghosts in the Machine: Women’s voices in Research with Technology (Peter Lang) and Critical Issues in Early Childhood (OUP). Nicola has worked in Australia, the USA, UK and Hong Kong.
“Whatever!” The conceptual era and the evolution of School v 2.0: A new paradigm and a new renaissance in learning
Mark Treadwell, Dataview (NZ)
New Zealand leads the world in so many aspects of innovative education practice. In this session Mark will take you on a nationwide tour looking at innovative practices surrounding curriculum, school and centre management, assessment, use of ICT and transformation leadership. Schools and centres highlighted range from early childhood, primary, middle school, and secondary.
Our next challenge as a nation is to learn from this exemplary practice and integrate these practices across the board. Mark will briefly speak on the central nature of school and centre culture as the driving force behind systemic change within schools and centres, given that the iterative approach to professional development is simply not applicable in a time of exponential rates of change across almost every aspect of education.
Mark Treadwell has been lecturing, providing teacher seminars, and speaking at
national and international conferences for over 15 years. Mark speaks on a wide range of topics including curriculum information and communications technology, thinking, teaching pedagogy for the 21st century, authentic assessment, competencies, wisdom and values.
Mark is a Director of Dataview, a high-tech company which focuses on developing technology solutions for companies as well as for education authorities and schools. Dataview is involved in several MOE projects which centre on the interoperability of Student Management Systems (SMSs) and Online Learning Environments (OLEs).
You're a leader - lead!
Cheryl Doig, Think Beyond (NZ)
21st century learning isn’t just about the students. If you as a leader don’t walk the talk then why should others follow? This spotlight requires you to think about your own behaviour and gives you some tools and strategies to move forward.
Key questions addressed will be:
- am I, as a leader, a positive role model of the key competencies?
- what feedback do I seek about my own performance (and how)?
- am I pushing my own learning forward or am I stuck in today’s world?
- how am I helping others to examine their own practice?
If you aren’t prepared to examine your own practice, then this workshop is not for you ... if you think you can change others without changing yourself, think again. This spotlight is for people in any leadership role (including classroom and centre teachers) who want to get real about the impact they have on others.
Dr Cheryl Doig (EdD, MEd, DipEdMan, BEd, DipTching, CertQA, FNZIM) has been an educator for over 30 years - as a student, teacher, principal, Teaching Fellow in Educational Management, ERO reviewer and board member. Her depth of experience includes 14 years as a school principal; service on boards and trusts such as NZ Institute of Management and Core Education; and 25 years of part time university study!
Cheryl has a Doctorate in Education, with a particular focus on leadership, change management, futures thinking, information technology and innovation. She has been involved in the development of the NZ Curriculum and leadership for principals. Cheryl’s company, Think Beyond, helps leaders move from good to great.
21st century teachers: A shifting landscape
Joan Dalton, PLOT (Australia)
Much of what will be shared and talked about at this conference focuses on young people and 21st century learning in a digital, networked world. As educators, this may well be our most compelling challenge.As part of this, there are questions we need to address that are of critical importance to us as teachers and to our profession:
- What does this rapidly shifting landscape mean for us as teachers?
- What might it mean for our role/s and identity?
- How do our practices change in networked environments?
- What might this mean for how we work, where we work, and with whom we work?
- What capabilities and dispositions might be critical for us?
Joan Dalton is a highly respected Australian teacher and educator, whose expertise in learning, leadership and facilitation is highly sought nationally and internationally.Author of several internationally successful books, Joan’s contribution to Australian education has been recognised in several ways, including awards from the Australian College of education and the Australian Council for Educational Leaders.
Joan’s major commitment these past twenty years has been to working long-term with schools and educational systems to build dynamic professional communities grounded in pedagogy practices that prepare today’s learners for tomorrow’s world.
In partnership with David Anderson and the Queensland Department of education, Joan has created the PLOT (Professional learning Online Tool) website, which supports school leaders and teachers in their educational endeavours around the world.
Transformational teachers
Tony Ryan (Australia)
For some, the present exponential rates of educational change are a curse designed to overwhelm their lives. For others, this rapid reshaping of schooling is a powerful opportunity for redesigning the very essence of the classroom.
For those who are intent upon creating the very best that education can offer, this practical and entertaining session will clarify some of the facilitative skill sets necessary for redefining the 2014 classroom.
These transformational learning environments will be facilitated by teachers who have developed personal and professional skills for:
- initiating valued-based and ethical learning opportunities
- encouraging creative thinking intent within everyday interactions
- offering solution-focused inquiry-based units of work within personal, community and global contexts
- providing students with the capacity to manage their own learning and their self.
Most importantly, this session will help you to believe in the worth and power of teaching.
A former teacher, Tony Ryan is an educational consultant and writer, and offers professional support to school organisations throughout the world on issues such as change leadership, lifelong learning and quality classroom practice. He has presented numerous keynotes and workshops at state, national and world conferences in the past 10 years.
He has been engaged as a teacher-in-residence in over 400 schools throughout several countries. In this role, he teaches extensively, and offers guidance to teachers with their everyday practice. Many of his ideas used in his work can be found in his blog at http://tonyryan.edublogs.org
Tony is a prolific author of books on effective thinking and learning. These books include The Ripple Effect, Thinkers Keys for Kids, Mindlinks, Brainstorms, Thinkfest and The Clever Country Kits. His latest CD-Rom features a comprehensive update of Thinkers Keys. His site at www.tonyryan.com.au contains numerous free downloads of his material.
Tony is a director of School Aid (www.schoolaid.org), a non-profit organisation that co-ordinates post-tragedy fundraising and social justice programs within 10000 schools around Australia.
Assessment issues associated with the implementation of the New Zealand Curriculum
Rose Hipkins, New Zealand Council of Educational Research (New Zealand)
In this talk, Rose will address debates about assessment of newer aspects of the curriculum – in particular the key competencies. Should we do this, and if so, for what purpose? She will link these questions to the challenge of so-called "21st century learning" and introduce some possible strategies for addressing assessment issues that arise.
Dr Rosemary Hipkins is a chief researcher at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research. She works in a range of projects, and is currently serving on two national advisory panels with a focus on assessment, as well as another two focused on New Zealand's curriculum reforms.
Rose has a strong interest in science education, and is currently working on two assessment projects in this area. These are part of a future-focused programme of work investigating how the OECD key competencies (as described in the revised national curriculum) might help transform teaching and assessment practice.
For which master?
Bruce McIntyre (New Zealand)
Education is increasingly structured to serve the economic construct. We know that economic wealth is centred in a few hands, while our planet is being stripped of its life support systems and species, while our environment is rampantly toxic and stressful, while people are turning off or lashing out. What role does education NEED to play in today's world if humanity is to have a desirable future?
Bruce McIntyre
is known for starting Macpac at age 19 in 1973. Macpac became one of New Zealand's early export success stories. Today, its innovative, high quality products can also be found in shops and mountains around Australia, UK, Europe, Scandinavia, USA, Japan and Asia. In the late 1980s, disullusioned with traditional business culture, Bruce instigated a prolonged cultural and organisational reform project which transformed the workplace into an open, highly participative, team-based, human-oriented environment. These reforms were presented at the two Workplace NZ conferences.
Currently, Bruce is working on education reform, developing a model school, which has the intention of developing the innate, holistic potential of every student. Bruce comments that, "current education is openly focused on providing workers for the economy. But the base cause of our social, environmental and economic woes is that our society limits human potential to an estimated 10% of its capacity - the other 90% of us is shut down."