Tag: educational transformation

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Overwhelm

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Overwhelm is the fact or feeling of not being able to cope or deal with something. Collins Dictionary The headline in a paper this week, quotes a new report from MFAT that says the ‘Future looks grim“. The report details what MFAT believes Kiwis should know about risks to NZ’s security, and that conflict in our region ‘could occur’. According to the report the globe is experiencing “heightened strategic tensions and considerable levels of disruption and risk“, with New Zealand just as affected as others due to its interconnectedness, the changing nature of the Pacific and the evolution of new threats. Grim reading … Continue reading Overwhelm

Uncategorized2 Comments

Educational Leadership Crisis

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CRISIS – “an unstable or crucial time or state of affairs in which decisive change is impending” Miriam Webster Dictionary A headline in yesterday’s newspaper read: The article quotes NZEI Te Riu Roa president Mark Potter who says; “… it’s clear that New Zealand has an imminent problem with a shortage of school leadership. Even new leaders in the profession are facing burn out and ultimately, it’s the children who will suffer if we can’t attract people to the role and retain them.“ I was particularly captured by the use of the word ‘crisis’, not so much in the headline … Continue reading Educational Leadership Crisis

Education Futures, hybrid learning, networks and learning, Reforming schooling, Uncategorized1 Comment

Recombinant Education

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As disruption continues to impact our education system, are we prepared to make the tough calls and make the significant and bold steps required to operate as an ecosystem? Or will we continue to shift the deck-chairs on the titanic and put our faith in yet more cycles of ‘back to basics’ campaigns that will continue to fail our kids and their future? Continue reading Recombinant Education

change, Education Futures, hybrid learning3 Comments

Resilience Required NOW!

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Photo by Wang Whale on Unsplash What if 2023 is more disrupted than 2022? What if there are more of these empty desks? Would we be prepared? Most who know me regard me as an optimist, someone who looks on the ‘bright side’ of things. Certainly, throughout my career I have had the privilege of being involved in a wide range of innovative and ‘hope-bringing’ initiatives. Some may say it’s a result of how I’m wired, and there’s bound to be truth in that. But another reason is that I’ve always had a fascination with emerging ideas and innovations, and … Continue reading Resilience Required NOW!

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3 Signs of System and Organisational Distress

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It seems to me that the sea of opportunity in education is littered with shipwrecks. Each represents a particular change initiative or strategy implementation that has foundered or sunk before reaching its destination. Each has set off with the best of intentions and sights fixed on the distant horizon, only to find themselves beaten back by relentless waves of resistance, merciless winds of discontent, a craft that is not fit-for-purpose or a crew that is inadequately prepared or trained for the journey. Continue reading 3 Signs of System and Organisational Distress

Education Futures, Reforming schooling, Uncategorized1 Comment

Why is transformation difficult?

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Photo by Suzanne D. Williams on Unsplash “Transformation is a process, and as life happens there are tons of ups and downs. It’s a journey of discovery – there are moments on mountaintops and moments in deep valleys of despair.” Rick Warren My previous post on transformation vs reform has attracted lots of feedback in a variety of forums, so I thought I’d follow up with this one, posing the question, ‘why is transformation so difficult?’ On the face of it there appears to be growing agreement around the need for transformation in education. The UN Transforming Education Summit in New York … Continue reading Why is transformation difficult?

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Lessons on strategy from riding a bike

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“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving” Albert Einstein Riding a bike is something I’ve been doing since I was very young. It’s still something I do by choice to simply get around the place when the weather and time permit, and I enjoy it as a way of getting exercise by taking long rides along the river trails or, occasionally, up the hills around where I live. As I was out on my bike yesterday my mind wandered back to when I learned to ride, and some of the lessons that enabled … Continue reading Lessons on strategy from riding a bike

change, Communities of Practice, Education Futures, hybrid learning, Leadership, Reforming schooling1 Comment

We all want trees – now!

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“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” Chinese Proverb Whether we’re talking about climate change, the health system, education or environmental issues, a common refrain in much of the current rhetoric is the urgent need for action. This sense of urgency belies the fact that what needs to be done should have been started a long time ago, but by ignoring the signs, we’re now faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges in terms of the scale and complexity of the problems that lie before us – and our children. Consider the … Continue reading We all want trees – now!