Ako: Teacher Learning

Wednesday, 20 July 2016

Bee Bots

Key concepts:
1. You must give instructions to make anything happen.
2. You come across problems that must be solved.

Materials:
Grid - 100's boards, series of whiteboards, carpet squares, Make own grid - 15cm squares, maths square books etc.
Plastic sheet with 15 cm grid - velcro on corners to keep secure.

Generic buttons - go button, red stop button, were else do we see these symbols? L & R arrows, L, R wings to support early learners.

Tell the story - place on the grid a toy (Kiwi) and a place to get (spiderman). How could Spiderman go and rescue Kiwi?
1. Need precise language for instructions? Receptive and expressive language.
2. Determine and agree language and directions. R, L or arrows, establish agreed protocols. Implicit clues.
3. Begin to include the symbols to shorten the code. (Supports ESOL students)
4. What direction are you facing to begin the sequence? Does this make a difference?
5. Where do you put the starting arrow? Determine the collective rules.
6. Little kids - move and draw at the same time to develop the sequence.
7. Write the programme and get the testers to test and de-bug. Identify the error - de-bug.
8. Add complexity - avoid the barriers that are in the way - objects or images under the plastic mat.
9. Extension: What is the quickest way? The more efficient the code - better pay! Is there a quicker way to get there? Be precise and accurate.

Roles:
Developer
Tester
Peer teaching

Big human version - masking tape on a tarp.... Kidbots
Barrier game - coder giving verbal or non-verbal communication to get the buddy to complete the code.
Kids struggle with left & right - move back to the physical and look at little parts of the sequence rather than the whole line of code.

IPad:
Physically try, write sections of code, apply to the iPad programme.

Bluebots:
Programme with your phone. Take a photo of something which becomes the map.

Cross curricular:
Maths: Counting to 10 - colours,
Identifying alphabet - sequence numbers, write name...
Begin to write a story ... pause at a place, describe the setting, solve a problem...
Spelling: Essential words
Alphabetical order
Latitude and mapping
Recycling - rubbish to which bin?

Ordering Beebots - tell the CHCH supplier we have been working with the Buzz Off team.

Tournament in September - look for the second tournament. Up to Year 3, teams of 3.

CODE Studio
Hour of Code

Ideas for Term 3:
1. Learning about mapping in the world / New Zealand, long and lat.
2. Image of different setting features - write a sentence describing each setting or write a noun and adjective.
3. Give a line of code for a sequence - debug and correct it.
4. Brainstorm words from an image, write a poem by moving to the key words.
5. NSEW directional math unit.
6. If the grid is blue, then turn right, If it is free, then move forward.
7. Confused - syntax error.... we need to unpack!

Binary Numbers

Binary Numbers:
Digital technology is all about 0 and 1.
How can you represent things using just 0 and 1?

8 - 10 year old students:
binary- unpack the language.
You have the choice of black or white + a dot!
Traditionally we have worked with the 10 base - using binary is using just 2.
The back - 1 = a bit. We can count to 1.
How can we build up the sequence?
Groups of 8 = a byte.
1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32,

On a CD there are about 6 million bits.

Challenge: (Maths, reasoning, problem solving, justify opinion, sequence)
Only using 5 cards to keep all the kids involved - larger groups and it is a management issue.

How can I have 11 dots visible? 1, 2, -, 8
Do you want the 16? Why is it out?
Do you want the 8? Why?
21 dots = 1,-,4, -, 16
No, No, Yes, Yes, Yes - start at the highest end -, -, 4, 2, 1
Reason for the order - start with the most significant - the largest.
Least significant bit is on the right.
Most significant bit is on the left - focus on place value.
Conventions - we agree on these before, consistent.
Hexadecimal - chunking them in groups of 4 like place value.
Smallest number to represent? 1 (Wait, they will review - 0 - that make the All-Blacks!)
Can we count up in sequence 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, class help them... 7, (one is very busy, every 2nd time - white for odd numbers.)
All other numbers are even. Add even numbers = even. No way they can make an odd number without the 'odd one'.
Even + odd = odd, Even + even = even.
Difficulty of number - 2 hardest, 4 next hardest as they have the most work to do.

6 cards = 64 values
5 cards = 32 values - adding one bit makes a huge different.

Security of bank account - 200 bits - how many combinations are there - huge numbers. It might take till the end of the world to hack your number. Secure because there are so many options.

201 bits - double the level of security.

How could I represent the letters of the alphabet? A - 1, B - 2, C - 4
Use sounds - conventions quack - white, Moo - black
Make Moo, quack, moo, moo, moo rather than numbers- what letter of the alphabet? H or black, white, black, black, black
On a modem they were represented by high and low sounds.

Can you represent all the letters of the alphabet?
Can we write a secret message?
What about macrons?
Can we agree on what number = macrons, ! , .

Compose music:
Low, high, low, high - what's the letter? Low - 0, High - 1

Art:
Inverse koru - 0 or 1 - hiding messages in art - steganography
Can you make a secret message?

It is not about devices but our thinking skills...

Computational thinking:
Logic - right card is odd numbers
Algorithm - How to add 1
Decomposition - Break things into one section at a time
Patterns - doubling, all white is one less that next card, frequency of flips
Abstraction - ow to represent alphabet, numbers, texts, images
Evaluation - largest, smallest, How many bits needed to represent a given number

We start with a problem and look at how to solve them...
1. How to get a message out of a country with poor human rights record?
2. How to write a secret message?
3. How to represent Te Reo in the American system with no macrons?

Our privacy depends on our understanding of technology. (Need 2 locks)
Lock - encryption.
Put credit card details in a lock box. Pass through all the providers - all the kids.
How long should it take to get to America? Seed of light - a few seconds.
How can she unlock the encryption? phone, e-mail...... not safe.
She locks it in America with your encryption and send back to the start. I take my lock off, leaving just her lock on it. Send it back so she can access it.
It is secure all the journey and the sender or receiver don't need to share their secret codes.

This allows:
Secure secret voting system - know you voted but no record of who you voted for. (Some countries might be useful)
Codes on security depends on prime numbers!

Saturday, 2 July 2016

Week 32 - APC - Changes in practice

Wow - the end of MindlabEd November Intake 2015!

It has been a rollercoaster ride of wishing I had more time to delve even deeper, opportunity to test ideas over and over again with my learners and even more time to just share with ‘like minded’ people. Stretch the course over two years and it might have almost been perfect!

I never realised how much I love learning and sorting my ideas out in the form of a blog post or assignment. Posting them was just the promise to my wider community that I am going to take action. The choices for research projects and leadership I made were to useful because they gave opportunity unpack the things that interest me or that I am struggling with. Mindlab has given me the opportunity and skills to be more effective in developing my own teacher inquiry, which is an essential skill to have as an effective teacher in New Zealand. (Ministry of Education)

I have also loved being fed all the current readings and videos that a reflective should be interacting with. I know it will be harder to find them without Mindlab but my Twitter CoP are always feeding new readings and blog posts into the mix. This continual cycle of reading, implementing and reflecting is one that will continue in my professional life as Osterman and Kottkamp (1993) identify it as the way practitioners can be more self aware about their impact and as a result grow as a teacher.

So how has the last 32 weeks changed me?

Honestly… I knew about lots of things but was experienced in just a few. Mindlab was the springboard into buying a class set of Makey Makey, running a computer science course and unpacking the Agile Approach. I have learned that I am a leader and the way I draw in my stakeholders and the leadership style I use impacts the effectiveness of everything I do.

As a school we are looking carefully at reflecting on our practice, working backwards from our action to see where it fits into the Practicing Teacher’s Criteria (PTC) which is going to be exciting as I unpack my Mindlab learning. It will be hard to focus on just to of the criteria!

Criteria 4:

Demonstrate commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of professional personal practice.

Wow - 32 weeks of Mindlab was certainly a commitment of critical self reflection and changing how I do things - not to mention a vast number of late evenings and weekends! It was a chance to examine my motivations, prejudice and how effective I really am in the classroom and our wider learning community. (Osterman & Kottkamp 1993)

My blog posts in the past have been unpacking an approach or resource in the classroom. I am now beginning to actually interact with readings, other practitioner’s blog posts and question my actions, effectiveness and my assumptions. I still look for opportunities for PD such as the Coding Training with the University of Canterbury in July and and working through my Teacher Inquiry for 2016 based around the effectiveness of the Feuerstein Method in our school setting.

My PD does not rely of what is offered vis school but feeds directly out of the connectiins I have made through Twitter and my wider learning communities, which reminds me of a whakatoki about working collaboratively: "Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi” With your basket and my basket the people will live.

Criteria 7:

Promote a collaborative, inclusive, and supportive learning environment.

I had already begun this journey, which is why the Mindlab programme appealed to me, but there have been some changes take place as the course progressed.

I love the opportunity that ‘Aglie’ gives me to support students in learning to code and managing their groups through an inquiry project. Those quick 5 minute ‘check ins’ at the start to establish where we are at, what we are struggling with and intend to achieve during the session keep us all on track and aware of what support is needed.

Students are collaborating on Google Docs, even running AKO training sessions in how to use Google Draw and other tools to support their writing and inquiry. Constructive comments are made on blog writing and buddy conferencing supports the writing of students at all levels. All of this maximises learning as there are 58 teachers in our team. I have even begun to let of of the control that I used to crave. My three writing students on an independent writing programme are amazing me with the quality and quantity of the work they are producing, just because the have been given agency and trust.

I could go on forever about the amazing work my students are doing but need to identify...

Where to Next?

Carry out my teacher inquiry based on the effectiveness of the Feuerstein Method in our school and report our results to all stakeholders, while building greater connections with our growing community of practice.
Continue my training in Feuerstein so that I can teach the whole range of enrichment activities.
Continue to develop a bank of planning and resources to support staff in our school as they begin to take the Feuerstein journey.
Develop my skills in coding and unpack how this can be integrated across the curriculum.
Go back and play around with how Agile can be developed as an approach to scaffold student independence.
Make stronger connections with our marae and look at ways to strengthen my cultural responsiveness in the classroom - Roll on Maori Language Week!
Spend some time going back over what I have been learning and embed it in my classroom:

Makey Makey
Coding
Augmented Reality
Collaboration
Student led workshops
Student independence in learning

It sounds like I am going to continue to be very busy, but for the next few days I’m going to just going to put my feet up and reflect on the ups and downs of the journey so far.

Resources:

Freire, Paulo. (2000) Pedagogy of the oppressed /New York : Continuum

James, M. Agile Scrum Training Series (2016) http://scrumtrainingseries.com/

Ministry of Education (nd). Practising teacher Criteria and e-learning . Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Professional-learning/Registered-Teacher-Criteria-and-e-learning

Osterman, K. & Kottkamp, R.(1993). Reflective Practice for Educators.California.Cornwin Press, Inc. Retrieved on 7th May, 2015 fromhttp://www.itslifejimbutnotasweknowit.org.uk/files/RefPract/Osterman_Kottkamp_extract.pdf

Sunday, 26 June 2016

Week 32 - APC - Changes in practice

Reflective practice can assist practitioners to understand and be able to evaluate their practice. This in turn leads to professional development.

Osterman & Kottkamp(1993) has contrasted traditional approach of professional development by outside experts delivering workshops for schools versus reflective practice model. They suggest that traditional approach results in knowledge acquisition while reflective practice can lead to change in behaviors via self-awareness.

Continuing learning is fundamental to keep one in a profession to be able to adapt to any change be it the new pedagogy, or new regulations or even a new environment. In this aspect, reflective practice should be established as learning habits and be used frequently to inform and improve practice.

Most professions have a professional body that regulates the career lifelong learning of its members especially in sectors that require working with people such as nursing, social work and teaching. It is important that a practitioner meets an expected level of professional standards and is able to provide examples as evidence.

In New Zealand education context, Ministry of Education (nd.) has set criteria for Practising Teacher Criteria (PTC) in e-learning.

12 Practising Teacher Criteria (PTC) in e-learning.

Professional relationships and professional values

Criteria 1: Establish and maintain effective professional relationships focused on the learning and well-being of all ākonga.
Criteria 2: Demonstrate commitment to promoting the well-being of ākonga.
Criteria 3: Demonstrate commitment to bicultural partnership in Aotearoa / New Zealand.
Criteria 4: Demonstrate commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of professional personal practice.
Criteria 5: Show leadership that contributes to effective teaching and learning.

Professional knowledge in practice

Criteria 6: Conceptualise, plan, and implement an appropriate learning programme.
Criteria 7: Promote a collaborative, inclusive, and supportive learning environment.
Criteria 8: Demonstrate in practice their knowledge and understanding of how ākonga learn.
Criteria 9: Respond effectively to the diverse and cultural experiences and the varied strengths, interests, and needs of individuals and groups of ākonga.
Criteria 10: Work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa NZ.
Criteria 11: Analyse and appropriately use assessment and information, which has been gathered formally and informally.
Criteria 12: Use critical inquiry and problem-solving effectively in their professional practice.” (p.1)

During the last 7 weeks, several topics have been introduced to provoke your thoughts about a variety of aspects in your practice. You should by now gain a deeper understanding of how those aspects directly or indirectly influence your daily practice.

It should be now the opportunity for you to reflect and review your learning journey over the duration of this course, test new understandings, challenge assumptions and critically consider your practice in line with theory and research.

Saturday, 25 June 2016

Making connections across learning areas - messy and engaging.

Interdisciplinary connections between subject areas might seem innovative and new as seen in Hobsonville Point Secondary School but it is something primary school teachers have been experimenting with for years. The only way to fit everything in, at a depth that makes learning purposeful and interesting, is to mix it all up together like it happens in life!

But how do we define Interdisciplinary teaching? Mathison and Freeman (1997) suggest the purpose is to enhance learning by having two or more subjects work in together to help make the connections. They suggest that the interdisciplimnary approach is more teacher driven, an intergrate approach is inquiry driven and the intergrative approach is about sharing student and teacher ideas to co-construct the curriculum. The basis of all of these approaches is to make connections between learning areas and apply skills across different contexts.

Interdisciplinary connection map:

My interdisciplinary connection map is totally different from those of other Mindlab students because I have focussed on aspects I am so passionate about that they seep into everything I do as a teacher.

I love utilizing digital technologies for learning to scaffold student success. They allow students to create and share their learning as digital citizens with an understanding of the strengths and challenges involved in working ‘online’.

Being the Enviro School lead teacher has a huge impact on how I do everything. The five guiding principles are that of empowering students to take action for real change, teaching and learning for sustainability, honouring Māori perspectives, respecting the diversity of people and cultures and developing the skills in our students that will nurture both people and nature as a sustainable community. These Enviroschool principles tie in with my passion for Te Reo, raranga (flax weaving), Māori tikanga and empowering students to be independent change-makers.

My focus is to develop independence in learning and developing the Key Competencies so my students have the necessary skills for participating in the challenges of the 21st Century. A key component of this is self reflection, unpacking the metacognition behind their learning which will help them develop as a self directed learner. (Ministry of Education 2016)

Topmost in my mind is the way the Feuerstein Method has changed my teaching. I focus on unpacking - cognitive functions into manageable chunks, mediate learning by asking those challenging questions that help students identify effective strategies, while making connections from learning to other contexts and the real world. I believe that every student is modifiable and feel that it is my responsibility to give them the skills they need to grow. (Feuerstein 2010)

Finally, I strive to make learning engaging, for a purpose and social. We co-create learning as we struggle with an inquiry or problem based learning which requires us to use all of our skills and make connections across the curriculum areas.

Identify two of the potential connections from your map as your near future goals:
In the challenge of fitting everything onto the page in my map, I forgot to mention the possible future steps.....

1. Make closer links with the Marae and local Māori community. I hope to return to studying raranga (flax weaving) in 2017, which will continue to build my relationships within tthe Māori community, but also need to look at ways to make my teaching even more culturally responsive. One way is to take more of an active role in my local marae so that I can build relationships and incorporate these into my classroom.

2. Unpack the effect of Feuerstein amongst our learners. This will take the form of carrying out my research project, supporting new other teachers from the school in their training and developing a bank of resources that can be used in implementing this amazing method. This will also require further training over the next few years, so that I can teach the full range of enrichment tasks within our school Dynamic Thinking programme, while also embedding the approach across the curriculum with the aim of providing ‘Equity for all’. (Ministry of Education 2016, NEG 2).

The beneifts of making connections:
Feuerstein states that teaching specific cognitive functions should be done repeatedly and in isolation so it can then be embedded in a task. His key focus is to always make those connections between the strategy and where in the world it was being used. This is fine for an intense cognitive function programme but I believe that it is more motivating if the 'need' for learning arises from an authentic learning opportunity. This results in....

clear connections being made between subjects, strategies and encourages application into new contexts
more complex and challenging isssues can be unpacked - in depth rather than superficial 'coverage'
collaboration as a focus, using creativity, communication, problem solving and critical thinking to socially co-construct knowledge
authentic lines of inquiry engage and inspire students
student interest and voice leads the direction of inquiry or problem soving challenge
learning being fresh and interesting because it is driven by student interests

The challenges of interdisciplinary connections:
Uncertainity of planning:
These issues tend to sit with the teacher. Are they prepared to 'back-plan' or cope with the uncertainty of not having the planning completed for the term? Relying on student imput takes the control away from the teacher and requires flexibility.

Curriculum hour blocks:
The other current issue I can see in primary school is moving away from specific subject blocks. While we might be using reading or writing to support the inquiry or project based leawrning - why do we need to separate the day into 1 hour sections? Breaking down these barriers is fine in a single cell classroom but how do you manage three teachers and 90 students in the mix?

Tracking and assessment:
If the subject blocks are removed and we focus on 'Integrated Learning' how do you check that each subject recieves an appropriate amount of time, track the learning in separate subjects and keep it sorted in your own mind? How then do you explain this to parents who are set in the traditional apporach of hour blocks?

It is obvious that real life does not fit into small clearly labelled sections but is messy and skills from one part of life are always applied to other areas. This is the life we are preparing our students to thrive in. Lets give them the skills they need!

References:

Feuerstein, R., Feuerstein, R. S., & Falik, L. H. (2010). Beyond smarter: Mediated learning and the brain's capacity for change. New York: Teachers College Press.

Hipkins, R., Bolstad, R., Boyd, S., & McDowall, S. (2014). Key competencies for the future. New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) Press.

Lacoe Edu (2014, Oct 24) Interdisciplinary Learning [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA564RIlhME

Ministry of Education, http://www.education.govt.nz/ministry-of-education/legislation/negs/ 11/5/16 uploaded

Ministiry of Education, Key Competencies. http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Key-competencies 26.6.16 uploaded.

TEDx Talks (2001, April 6). TEDxBYU - David Wiley - An interdisciplinary path to innovation. [video file].Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ytjMDongp4

Week 31 - APC - Professional Context - Crossing boundaries and creating connections (Class notes)

One of the most important skills you will need to learn is to become “self-aware” as a teaching professional and to understand the context of your own discipline: it’s strengths and its limitations. When you can clearly define our actions as a teaching practitioner and the context of your practice you will able to move across disciplines to other areas of practice where you can make informed contributions on the practice of your own current and future practice along with emerging practice disciplines.

Working in an interdisciplinary manner does not mean disregarding individual disciplines. It requires the practitioner to have a rigorous grounding and understanding of their discipline and its relationship to other practices. Every discipline has its own intellectual history and future. Every discipline has a unique perspective about its subject matter, its own epistemology, unique methodologies and methods of research. Each discipline also has unique methods and techniques in practice.

To work across disciplinary boundaries you will need to understand key elements as they are represented within each discipline. You will need to understand how the community of practitioners and scholars who i) pursue the creation of new knowledge in a discipline, ii) who teaches and practices within that discipline iii) operate in the context of the discipline; and the communities that the discipline serves.

Interdisciplinary practice allows individuals who are based in their practice discipline(s) to focus on collaboration and participate in finding solutions to the increasingly complex problems occurring in the world today. When working in an interdisciplinary manner we need to draw on multiple perspectives, practices, epistemologies and methodologies to identify how these can be utilised to solve real world problems.

Friday, 24 June 2016

Social Media - Does it have a place in Education?

The world is changing pace rapidly so how do we to prepare our students for 21st Century when we don’t have the skills ourselves? We as teachers are supposed to model being ‘lifelong learners’ then where and when do we learn? How do we measure our effectiveness or get inspiration? Who acts as our mentor or critical friend when there is no money or little time to invest in these tools?

It is social media that inspires me to ‘hack learning’ in my classroom and continue to be that ‘lone nut’ that stands out as doing something a bit different. For me being ‘Connected Learner’ (Office of Ed Tech 2013) it is not the key aspect of being a 21st Century Educator. Being a connected learner is essential for my growth, my excitement and what drives me to continue the journey in becoming a better teacher. It is the air that I breathe as an educator.

This is good because relying on ‘management’ to provide relevant PD to my particular interests or needs is not realistic. Melhuish states “It is recommended that educators explore ways to make strategic use of social network sites within a clearly articulated inquiry, focused on student outcomes.” (2013, pg 179)

How do/would you use social media to enhance your professional development? Why?

Being actively involved in my Twitter Community of Practice has has allowed me to make connections with colleagues around the world. I can participate in discussions about current educational trends across continents due to the ability to access this PD at any time or place. This provides a never-ending, free ‘conference’ where we share resources, challenge ideas and discover the next inspirational book to read. Twitter is like a spider’s web of AKO that binds us together in learning from and supporting one another. Gone is the past where resources were hoarded and classroom doors closed. The sole purpose of being a connected learner is to support those around you and be enriched by sharing their expertise. I am lucky to be connected to colleagues from around the world that challenge and inspire me to be better.

Other social media tools that help support my learning journey are using Google Docs to collaboratively plan, Google + groups and Facebook pages for discussion with like-minded people on issues like ILE or Collaborative Teaching. The VLN Groups network are an excellent resource but the most effect on my practice has come from Twitter.

2. What are some key features of social media that are beneficial for teaching and learning? Why?

Why would we ask students to ‘power down’ when the come to school when we are charged with preparing them for the 21st Century? Surely our job is to engage students while teaching them how to effectively use these tools to collaborate and create in a safe way. (Education Council 2016). Digital citizenship has to be at the heart of our classrooms along with moving from the act of consuming to actually creating. (Seaman, & Tinti-Kane, 2013) Pearson’s survey in that same document shows there was an increase of 21.3% from 2012 to 2013 in social media use in teaching.

In our classroom, we make use of many social media tools to motivate students, support their learning and share that journey with whanau.

Every student has their own blog which acts like an e-portfolio tracking their progress across time from Year 4 - 8. This is a place to share writing, oral recordings of reading fluency, reflections, slide presentations for inquiry, movies and many other exciting pieces of learning. It gives students an audience and purpose to present their ‘best’ and the thought of ownership and their learning being seen by ‘the world’ is highly motivating.

Through blogging we have an opportunity to teach Cyber Citizenship - with a purpose. We also have a huge focus on students giving constructive comments and following the next steps suggesting in those from teachers, parents and peers. This reinforces the concept of us all being both the teacher and learner. This could also be seen when my students not only participated in 5 Sentence or 100 Word Challenges but also wrote comments on the writing of other students. To be a Cyber Citizen, we can’t expect to just receive comments but we also need to give back to our community.

Teaching students to use a range of apps and tools allows them to make choices about which would be most effective in achieving their desited goal. This requires them to take their audience into account and evaluate each tool. These are all skills of a much higher level than just ‘consuming’ drill and skill games! They are the skills of a 21st Century Learner.

Apart from blogging, we also use a range of other Social Media tools. We use twitter as a reflection tool where students need to make a summary, have it correct and think about their audience. (@coolkiwikids) This gives us a platform to share learning but also has the opportunity to make connections. In the past we have been involved in #kidsedchatnz, quadblogging and #kidscafeNZ which developed into running a kids ‘educamp’ for blog buddies from another school. Making connections helps develop empathy as students see the similarities between them and students in other countries or circumstances.

Another tool we find valuable is the LEARNZ Network for Virtual Field Trips. This gives students an opportunity to participate in activities that might be impossible to attend in 'real-life' and make connections with experts in the field. This next week we are actually participating in making the 'Bird Survey' video that will be shared with other students.

Being a GAFE school also gives our students great joy as they love collaborating in projects and co-writing stories which they then post on their blogs, from where whanau can comment. Google Docs and the use of Hapara Dashboard to track student learning gives me opportunity to build those relationships Joosten reports are needed for learning (2013). I can even comment on learning that students are working on in the weekend!

Classrooms are no-longer the centre of our learning. They are the base from which we reach out to a rich wealth of connections with other classrooms, students and experts. I am excited that the classroom I have the pleasure of working in looks so different to the one I began my teaching career in 20 years ago.

Pages