The Rant, I Can’t, The Elephant and the Ant- On SlideShare

We aren’t in the ‘teaching business’, rather we are in the ‘learning business’.

January 12, 2011 - 10:06 pm | future, instructional design, leadership, metaphor, pairadimes, Pedegogy, restructuring

“I think there needs to be a recognition that we aren’t in the ‘teaching business’, rather we are in the ‘learning business’, and if we aren’t constructing a teaching model that supports teachers in their learning then we need to redesign what a teacher’s day looks like!” That’s from my comment on Less is more. Teach less, learn more. Below is from my comment on Tom Grant’s post, CORE PRINCIPLES AND “PERSONALIZED LEARNING”, which also … Continue reading →

An expectation of openness

October 2, 2010 - 3:41 pm | Connected Principals, education, future, instructional design, leadership, learning, Learning Conversations, pairadimes, Pedegogy, Pro-D, restructuring

2 Comments

On a recent post about empowering students, Gary Kern asked me a question in his comment: What are your thoughts on the structures and changes needed for teachers, especially at the older grades, to be able to foster higher levels of participation in their learning? What we really need are structures that both develop (and keep) GOOD TEACHERS! Teachers that are co-learners rather than information pushers. Let’s just admit that the greatest influence in schools … Continue reading →

Ladders, leaders, students and storytellers

September 8, 2010 - 8:44 am | connecting online, education, instructional design, leadership, Learning Conversations, metaphor, pairadimes, storytelling, student leadership

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I had to move to China to see the ‘ladder walk’. A man, standing on an ‘A’ frame ladder, painting a ceiling of an outdoor entrance cover had finished the section he was working on. Instead of stepping down to move the ladder, he stepped up and put one foot over to the other side of the ladder, straddling the ‘A’. Then he quickly but methodically ‘walked’ the ladder to a new location, like a … Continue reading →

Great things in the classroom

April 7, 2010 - 7:34 pm | education, instructional design, Learning Conversations, pairadimes, Pedegogy, Pro-D, reflection, Social Responsibility

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Here is a little tribute I shared with my staff at our staff meeting today. I took 3 or 4 of the photos last week, and then yesterday I visited classes and took the rest. It seems that whenever I talk to my staff the conversation is always about the things we need to do better or still need to get done… It’s the nature of teaching that we can always improve our practice. So, … Continue reading →

The Role of a Principal

March 17, 2010 - 10:39 pm | compassion, education, humour, leadership, learning, pairadimes, Social Responsibility

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(You probably won’t find these in a job description, though you should!) – Hand-holder – Zipper-fixer – Tear-wiper – Peace-maker – Pants-buttoner – Ball-retriever – Nose-wiper – First-aider – Firm-talker – Cheer-leader – Toy-mender – Toy-confiscator – Mouth-wiper – Rule-implementer – Ice-provider – Argument-settler – Wrapper-opener – Photo-taker – Hallway-monitor – Coat-zipper – Skip-rope-holder – Eat-your-vegetables-inflictor – Band-Aid-administer – Complaint-listener – High-fiver – Story-teller – News-breaker – Crime-solver – Item-finder – Dress-code-imposer – Hand-shaker – … Continue reading →

The Trap

February 7, 2010 - 9:11 am | education, leadership, Learning Conversations, pairadimes, Pro-D, reflection, technology

6 Comments

Being the edu-nerd that I am, I often look at parallels between my experiences inside and outside the world of schools and education, (see Bubble Wrap for another example). Now, two-and-a-half weeks into my Thailand & Vietnam holiday, such parallels are jumping out at me, and I think of them as ‘traps’. It seems that everywhere we go on this holiday there are tours being offered and trinkets to buy. The packages and prices are … Continue reading →

Augmented Identity

January 15, 2010 - 10:31 pm | connecting online, digital native, education, networks, pairadimes, Pedegogy, School2.0, technology

3 Comments

Augmented Reality (AR) has been around for a while. Fans of Monday Night Football have always had the television advantage of ‘seeing’ the first down line conveniently added for their viewing pleasure. A more advanced version of augmented reality can be seen here, where you can see information about all the nearest subway locations in New York superimposed onto your iPhone’s camera view. And now from Ewan McIntosh I’m introduced to this application of Augmented … Continue reading →

Shifting Education

December 6, 2009 - 6:36 am | compassion, education, leadership, Learning Conversations, metaphor, pairadimes, Pedegogy, Pro-D, restructuring, School2.0, Social Responsibility

11 Comments

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. To the unshifted: Shift or retire… regardless of your age and number of years experience. We have the means to teach differently, now! It doesn’t start tomorrow, it starts today. Pick one thing you don’t like about your practice and change it. Find one thing that engages your students, and has them take over the learning … Continue reading →

My 2009 Edublog Awards Nominations

November 27, 2009 - 4:36 pm | blogging, connecting online, education, leadership, Learning Conversations, pairadimes, technology

18 Comments

I would like to thank the following people for contributing so much to my learning. I’m only nominating in categories where the impact has been powerful and potent. I’m also going to cheat and add a few ‘honourable mentions’: These may not mean much to the Edublog Awards, but they mean a lot to me, (if you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll already know that I follow my own rules that work … Continue reading →