Author: wenmothd

Derek is regarded as one of NZ education’s foremost Future Focused thinkers, and is regularly asked to consult with schools, policy makers and government agencies regarding the future directions of NZ educational policy and practice.

Derek’s Blog, launched in 2003, serves as a platform for sharing thoughts and reflections related to his work. It offers over 20 years of searchable posts, categorized by the tags below. Feel free to comment, as your feedback contributes to ongoing reflection and future posts.

Why digital literacy is so important

I'm currently contributing to a reference group that is working on developing a strategic document around the development of digital literacy for all NZ students, as an embedded and fully integrated disposition required to function effectively as a learner and a citizen in the third millennium. 

Like similar groups that are tackling this issue – from school staffs through to governments and NGOs – there's a continuum of things to address,  from a focus on the ability to use digital technologies effectively (skills)  through to the issues around responsible use and safety etc. (citizenship). 

A couple of months ago, the PEW Research Centre published a report titled "Teens and Technology in 2013" in which they explored technology use among 802 youth ages 12-17 and their parents. The slideshow above was created by Kristin Purcel to present the key findings of this report , and outlines 10 important facts we should know about today's teens.

  1. Among Teens 12-17, social network site growth has slowed particularly Facebook, but Twitter use is growing rapidly.
  2. Today's teens are sharing more personal information online than teens have in the past
  3. Today's teens do care about online privacy
  4. Today's teens do take active steps to manage their online reputations
  5. Parents of teens are very aware that online content can impact their teens' lives
  6. Most teens educational environment include the use of at least some digital technologies
  7. The internet has fundamentally altered how teens do research, but not necessarily for the worse
  8. Digital tools can benefit kids' writing skills and abilities according to teachers.
  9. Teachers are divided as to whether "digital natives" are all that unique.
  10. A digital divide persists in the area of educational and technology

As educators we have a responsibility to explore how these sorts of findings are relevant in our context, and to consider how we must respond if we're to make our educational offerings relevant to today's learners. Further, we have a responsibility to ensure that both what we are teaching and how we are teaching it is modelling the sorts of knowledge and behaviours that will prepare our young people to live as confident, capable and connected learners in their future lives and careers. 

Using science to create NZ’s future

Here's a great opportunity to engage your students and community in  a game-based conversation about the future of NZ. Pounamu is a free, online game set in a future world where EVERYONE in New Zealand can use science as easily as they can use a computer now. Anyone can play; from primary school students to research scientists, from young entrepreneurs to kuia and koro.

The game will be live on 29-30 August, from midnight to midnight – all you need to do is register now to be able to access and participate. 

Players post micro-forecasts (concise ideas – 140 characters, like twitter) of future possibilities and build on, or reshape other players’ ideas. You can play for five minutes and share one idea, or play for the whole game and post hundreds of possible futures. Pounamu will have ’hubs’ scattered around the country on game days, so players who want to play in teams, or don’t have access to the internet, or just want to play in a social environment, have the opportunity to do so.

Pounamu is collaboration between the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, StratEDGY Strategic Foresight; and Professor Shaun Hendy, winner of the Prime Minister's Science Media Communication prize and author of Get Off The Grass which he wrote with the late Sir Paul Callaghan.

 

Blended learning guide

BlendedLearningGuideThe term blended learning appears in so much educational policy and literature nowadays, but with so much variation in the way it is interpreted and implemented. 

The Blended Learning Implementation Guide recently released by Digital Learning Now (DLN) is designed to guide school and district leaders through the process of successfully shifting to a blended learning model with a strategic and comprehensive plan.

A couple of key drivers behind this shift are (a) the developments in technology that are enabling far greater reach in terms of where and when learning occurs, and (b) the increasing focus on personalisation of the learning experience. 

The guide uses a simple four-stage process to provide practical support and guidance for schools wanting to move in this direction, from creating the conditions for success through to continuous improvement. 

As the introduction to the guide points out, blended learning isn't just another initiative to add to all the other things we have to contend with, rather, it is a fundamental re-design in the way we think about and provide for the education of learners in our schools. It involves rethinking the organisation of our schools and classes, how time is used, and how limited resources are allocated. It involves new roles for teachers and learners, and embraces parents and caregivers in new types of relationships as part of the learning process. It also relies heavily on robust technological infrastructure and services to support it all.

Looking past the very US-centric context for which this guide is written, it's among the best I've come across so far for providing a 'big picture', yet very practical outline to guide what a school might do to embrace a blended learning methodology.

For those interested, my friend Nancy White today published an interesting post on her FullCircle blog titled The Value of Hybrid/Blended learning in which she argues for the benefits of blended learning in a variety of contexts in which she is or has been working. I particularly like the graphic at the head of her post which provides a useful way of thinking about the various forms a blended approach may take. 

 

Growing up digital

I presented a workshop this morning at the NZ Commerce and Economics Teachers Association conference here in Christchurch. The topic was 'growing up digital' and the focus was on developing understandings about how the world of our learners has been and is being shaped by their interactions with technology, and how this in turn is shaping their expectations as learners. The slideshow is represented above. 

One of the topics raised in the workshop discussion was the issue of attention span, and the observation that many of our students appear to be less focused on going 'deep' into their studies, preferring instead to glean ideas from a wide variety of sources from which they gather only superficial understandings. This notion is consistent with what Nicholas Carr has written about in his book "The Shallows" (see video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGY_RjqlSRU)

This is certainly an area of concern that needs to be addressed in our staff rooms and professional learning meetings. Not as an excuse to condemn or criticize the use of technologies by the young people, rather, it needs to be used as a rallying call for educators to work together to plan how best to address the issue – how to leverage the considerable benefits and potential of such wide access to information, with the need to ensure there is depth to our engagement with it when and where it matters.

Thinking strategically about technology in schools

educ8now

I had the privilege of attending the NZ Christian Schools Educ8NOW conference held at Elim Christian College today, where I presented a couple of workshops and hosted two 'connect' sessions for general discussion. My workshops focused on strategic issues – the first around how we can strategically plan our school's professional learning and development programme so that it caters for both personal needs and helps us achieve school wide goals. The second workshop was on using a pedagogical decision making model to support our thinking about technology investment, to ensure anything we do actually supports the teaching and learning in our schools and classrooms, as opposed to being introduced independent of that sort of thinking. 

My two presentations are available on Slideshare, and are linked from the presentations tab on this blog, and also from the links below:

Using a Concerns-based adoption model to plan effective PLD in your school

Using a pedagogically driven decision making process to make informed technology investment decisions

 

What makes a learning environment modern?

MLE_outdoor

The term modern learning environments (MLE) has gained currency in recent years as a way of referring to the new forms of school buildings that are being constructed in New Zealand and other places around the world. The term is synonomous with 21st Century Learning Envrionments, or Schools of the Future etc. 

As with any form of language there are those who support as well as those who oppose the use of the term or phrase. For me, reference to 21st Century Learning Environments had meaning at the end of last century, but is a term that loses currency every year we actually enter into the 21st century, and "schools for the future" draws you into the endless discussions about what the future might be, and whether we should be preparing our students for the future, or be considering what education might be like in the future. Both are valid questions, but difficult to ascribe meaning to in terms of school buildings.

Personally, I like the term 'modern learning environments'. I like it for two reasons, firstly because of the reference to learning environments rather than schools. This opens up the possibility for considering all sorts of dimensions to what a learning environment might be – from what we currently know and understand as schools with organised classrooms etc, to community learning spaces, homes and evern the virtual (online) dimension that now forms a significant part of most students' learning experience. 

Second, I like the use of the term 'modern'. I know that many people argue against the use of this term, based on the fact that buildings constructed back at the turn of last century may have been considered modern then, but are 'old hat' and no longer fit for purpose nowadays. Others argue that many of the buildings being constructed now aren't modern, but merely replicas of what we've had in the past. 

For me, however, it's the genesis of the term 'modern' that gives it meaning for me in the context of modern learning environments. 

Going back to Late Latin modernus, "modern," which is derived from Latin modo in the sense "just now," the English word modern (first recorded at the beginning of the 16th century) was not originally concerned with anything that could later be considered old-fashioned.  (from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/modern)

Understood like this, to be modern, any thing we're designing or building must be conceived of and developed for what we know and understand 'just now', drawing on our lessons from the past, and considering the demands of the future (whatever they may be) – but in essence, it must capture the essence of "just now" – which, in my view, necessarily means it cannot be then cast in stone and considered "finished", but must be continually refreshed and revisited in order that the design remain current and "just now" as the future unfolds. 

The principles of "open-ness", "flexibility" and "agility" that underpin so much of what is in the literature about modern learning environments underpins the significance of this for me.  While architects may plan and builders construct the sorts of buildings we will then occupy to teach and learn in, it is this very activity that will define them as learning environments, and as such, they need to be able to accommodate our need for change in practice as a result of changes in our mental models and the beliefs we hold and share about teaching and learning. 

Basically, I believe that to be 'modern' means, as its definition suggests, continually "just now", or "contemporary", and as such, means that we must always be in a state of openness to change and development. This is why it's really not possible to copy what someone else has done, or to template the design of a MLE (building) and replicate it in a number of contexts (despite the economic benefits of doing so). While we can certainly draw inspiration from what others have done, a truly modern learning environment will be "just now" for the community that will occupy and use it, reflecting their particular values and beliefs, and be flexible enough to accommodate these as they change and adapt into the future. 

True – we've had buildings constructed for schools in the past that were considered modern at the time – and are now considered 'out of date'. The reason – they lacked the ability to be used flexibly and creatively as the needs and aspirations of those using them changed and evolved. A MLE isn't about the amount of glass and concrete that is used, or about the lines, shapes and angles that are incorporated – it isn't even about the amount of technology that is crammed into every crevice of the structure – it's about the people who use it, and about how flexible, agile and adaptable it is to how it will be used, now and in the future. 

Further questions I then ask include,

  • 'is it a place learners where can feel safe?
  • 'does it support learners with different learning needs and styles?
  • 'what is the link/interface with learning at home and in other community contexts?'
  • 'how are community values, beliefs, activities etc incorporated into the design?'
  • 'does it promote collaboration between and among students? and teachers?'

Lots to ponder here – I'd be interested in what others think?

 

eLearnings Book Online

kindle_eLearningsWahoo! After much experimentation, our book,'eLearnings: Implementing a national strategy for ICT in education' is now available online through Amazon for the Kindle.

Few countries in the world have embarked on such an ambitious approach to a national ICT strategy for schools as New Zealand. This book archives the impact and implementation of the national ICT strategy in New Zealand, 1998-2010, from the perspectives of the people who effected that implementation. It is a story of both policy initiative from the ‘top down’ and local innovation ‘from the bottom up’, as seen through the eyes of those involved.

There are stories here from the perspectives of the politicians and policy makers involved, through to the facilitators who worked with schools and the teachers in classrooms who made exciting things happen with children. For those who've walked the journey through these years you'll find lots of familiar names and events, and for those who are interested in understanding more about how the NZ education system has evolved in its implementation of ICTs to support learning, this book provides a range of insights that will save you hours of interviews. 

As the NZ education sector contemplates what learning will be like in the 21st century and the importance of digital literacy, considers the purpose and potential of a national managed network, and explores bold new options for organising schooling based on the rebuilding of schools in Christchurch, this book provides a useful historical perspective on what works (and what doesn't) when implementing such future-focused programme of change. Importantly, this book illustrates just what can be accomplished when the emphasis is put on people, harnessing their potential and involving them in all aspects of the change management process. It provides insights about leadership, change management and collective decision making. A good read for a winter weekend!

Building better schools

Andreas SchliecherThis morning I had the privilge of attending a breakfast at the Beehive with a large group of principals, BoT chairs and other educators to hear Andreas Schleicher speaking about what we can learn from the PISA data.

I've referred to Andreas' TED talk in a previous blog post – his breakfast presentation covered a lot of what is covered in that video, with specific reference to New Zealand in the discussion. Some of his recent PPT material is also available online from previous presentions. 

For those unfamiliar with the PISA research the Auckland Primay Principal's Association has shared a useful summary online reflecting what the PISA data tells us about NZ schools. 

The PISA data seems to capture headlines whenever it is released, and is increasinlgy used by governments to inform policy and resourcing of education. Such decisions are not without controversy of course. The previous evening I had the opportunity to attend the launch of some research commissioned by the PPTA, titled "Who achieves what in secondary schooling? A conceptual and empirical analysis".

The research, conducted by LIz Gordon with a companion piece by Brian Easton, aims to answer a series of questions relating to the currently popular political discourse that one in five students are failing in secondary school, and explores more deeply a lot of the PISA data in the process. The closest to the politically popular 20% figure the researchers were able to find was that 14.3% of students failed to achieve proficiency level 2 on PISA reading – and a closer examination of this group showed that 74% were male and that socio-economic factors such as parental income and the number of books in the home were clearly contributing issues.

The key things I took from both meetings were:

  1. confirmation of the importance of data in our decision-making process when it comes to formulating policy and allocating resources at a national and local level,
  2. there is now a rich pool of data available for us to interrogate and use to inform these decisions, and
  3. we need to engage meaningfully with the data to ensure the conclusions we draw are indeed supported by the data and that superficial conclusions, or  the use of the data to support pre-determined  conclusions be tested through a thorough interrogation and analysis process.

MLEs in the news

Campbell_MLE

Interesting news item on the Campbell Live programme tonight, featuring footage from the Modern Learning Environments Expo that CORE Education ran in Christchurch a few weeks ago, and also from some of the new schools built in NZ in the past couple of years. The item was titled "Bringing the Kiwi classroom into the digitial age", and provides quite a good introduction to some of the thinking behind MLEs, however I'd see it as more than simply a response to the digital age. Much of what is illustrated confirms what we all understand to be effective pedagogy – stuff that Dewey and others highlighted in their research over a century ago. Well done TV3 for providing a useful starting point for discussion around MLEs!

Tribute to a friend

vince ham3

Today my very good friend, colleague and co-founder of CORE, Dr Vince Ham died after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was at home with his wife and family.

Vince was one of New Zealand education's rare gems – both in terms his personal integrity as a researcher and educator, and in terms of his immense contribution to the educational knowledge base, nationally and internationally, around ICTs and learning. 

Vince and I were introduced more than 20 years ago when I began work as a lecturer in educational technology at the Christchurch College of Education, and Vince was already there in a senior lecturer role. He must have wondered abut me when I arrived, full of raw enthusiasm and completely naive in terms of working in a tertiary context. But he never criticised or made fun of me – instead he did what I've seen him do with dozens of other educators in the intervening years, he simply got alongside and gently channelled my enthusiasm by asking questions, making suggestions and effectively modelling the behaviours of a reflective practitioner. 

Over time Vince and I began working closely on a number of projects, collaborating to write papers and present at conferences and generally 'feed' off each others respective strengths. I did my apprenticeship as a researcher under his tutelage, benefitting enormously from the depth of his knowledge and skill across all dimensions of research endeavour – particularly action research. 

The connection with Stephen Heppell in the late 1990s fuelled our vision for a NZ-based educational research and development organisation, and with Nick Billowes, led to the establishment of Ultralab South (now CORE). In this venture, Vince became known as the 'consience' of the organisation, the 'keeper of the values' on which the organisation was based. He continued to defend this passionately, including in the more recent years when he was appointed as one of the founding trustees on the CORE Charitable Trust. 

Vince was indeed a man who 'walked the talk' when it came to living out his personal philosophy and beliefs as an educator. He will be missed by a great number of people. He will be missed by me because in him I had an 'anchor' for my thinking, someone I could pass my ideas before and expect an honest critique, and someone I could turn to when I felt out of my depth academically and intellectually to help make sense of things.

My thoughts and prayers are with his wife Ronnie and his family as they mourn his passing. 

Me te aroha tino nui atu.

What others say

The Learning Environments Australasia Executive Committee  has received a lot of positive feedback, which is greatly due to your wealth of knowledge and information you imparted on our large audience, your presentation has inspired a range of educators, architects and facility planners and for this we are grateful.

Daniel Smith Chair Learning Environments Australasia

Derek and Maurie complement each other well and have the same drive and passion for a future education system that is so worthwhile being part of. Their presentation and facilitation is at the same time friendly and personal while still incredibly professional. I am truly grateful to have had this experience alongside amazing passionate educators and am inspired to re visit all aspects of my leadership. I have a renewed passion for our work as educational leaders.

Karyn Gray Principal, Raphael House Rudolf Steiner

I was in desperate need of a programme like this. This gave me the opportunity to participate in a transformative journey of professional learning and wellbeing, where I rediscovered my passion, reignited my purpose, and reconnected with my vision for leading in education. Together, we got to nurture not just academic excellence, but also the holistic wellbeing of our school communities. Because when we thrive, so does the entire educational ecosystem.

Tara Quinney Principal, St Peter's College, Gore

Refresh, Reconnect, Refocus is the perfect title for this professional development. It does just that. A fantastic retreat, space to think, relax and start to reconnect. Derek and Maurie deliver a balance of knowledge and questioning that gives you time to think about your leadership and where to next. Both facilitators have the experience, understanding, connection and passion for education, this has inspired me to really look at the why for me!

Jan McDonald Principal, Birkdale North School

Engaged, passionate, well informed facilitators who seamlessly worked together to deliver and outstanding programme of thought provoking leadership learning.

Dyane Stokes Principal, Paparoa Street School

A useful and timely call to action. A great chance to slow down, reflect on what really drives you, and refocus on how to get there. Wonderful conversations, great connections, positive pathways forward.

Ursula Cunningham Principal, Amesbury School

RRR is a standout for quality professional learning for Principals. Having been an education PLD junkie for 40 years I have never before attended a programme that has challenged me as much because of its rigor, has satisfied me as much because of its depth or excited me as much because of realising my capacity to lead change. Derek and Maurie are truly inspiring pedagogical, authentic leadership experts who generously and expertly share their passion, wisdom and skills to help Principal's to focus on what is important in schools and be the best leader they can be.

Cindy Sullivan Principal, Kaipara College

Derek Wenmoth is brilliant. Derek connects powerful ideas forecasting the future of learning to re-imagine education and create resources for future-focused practices and policies to drive change. His work provides guidance and tools for shifting to new learning ecosystems through innovations with a focus on purpose, equity, learner agency, and lifelong learning. His work is comprehensive and brings together research and best practices to advance the future of teaching and learning.  His passion, commitment to innovation for equity and the range of practical, policy and strategic advice are exceptional.

Susan Patrick, CEO, Aurora Institute

I asked Derek to work with our teachers to reenergise our team back into our journey towards our vision after the two years of being in and out of 'Covid-ness'.  Teachers reported positively about the day with Derek, commenting on how affirmed they felt that our vision is future focused.  Teachers expressed excitement with their new learning towards the vision, and I've noticed a palpable energy since the day.  Derek also started preparing our thinking for hybrid learning, helping us all to feel a sense of creativity rather than uncertainty.  The leadership team is keen to see him return!

Kate Christie | Principal | Cashmere Ave School

Derek has supported, informed and inspired a core group of our teachers to be effective leads in our college for NPDL. Derek’s PLD is expertly targeted to our needs.

Marion Lumley | Deputy Principal |Ōtaki College

What a task we set Derek -  to facilitate a shared vision and strategy with our Board and the professional and admin teams (14 of us), during a Covid lockdown, using online technology. Derek’s expertise, skilled questioning, strategic facilitation and humour enabled us to work with creative energy for 6 hours using a range of well-timed online activities. He kept us focussed on creating and achieving a shared understanding of our future strategic plan.  Derek’s future focussed skills combined with an understanding of strategy and the education sector made our follow up conversations invaluable.  Furthermore, we will definitely look to engage Derek for future strategic planning work.

Sue Vaealiki, Chair of Stonefields Collaborative Trust 

Our Principal PLG has worked with Derek several times now, and will continue to do so. Derek is essentially a master facilitator/mentor...bringing the right level of challenge, new ideas & research to deepen your thinking, but it comes with the level of support needed to feel engaged, enriched and empowered after working with him.

Gareth Sinton, Principal, Douglas Park School

Derek is a highly knowledgeable and inspirational professional learning provider that has been guiding our staff in the development of New Pedagogies’ for Deep Learning. His ability to gauge where staff are at and use this to guide next steps has been critical in seeing staff buy into this processes and have a strong desire to build in their professional practice.

Andy Fraser, Principal, Otaki College

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