"The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The greatest teacher inspires."
I believe that I am a life long learner and I try to instil this belief onto my students and those around me. Being a teacher for 10 years I would have never have imagined starting out that teaching and learning would have changed as much as it has over this time. This is truly why we need continue to learn ourselves and remain ahead of the next trend, aware of the next innovation with technology and be prepared to take risks with a new idea or initiative. This is how we need to think as educators and should also be what we encourage in our learners as well. Challenge themselves, take risks and try new things. We cannot be stagnant in our own practice and learning or believe that because it was ok to do 10 years ago that it is ok now. We cannot do what we have always done if we are to expect change in ourselves and our students.
I believe that I have led the way in many areas at Kamo Primary School regarding my practice in the classroom and beyond it. I led the charge with the introduction of ActivBoards in 2006 and not only became a facilitator to my students to help with their learning but also a facilitator to the staff at Kamo Primary and to staff at other primary schools Northland wide. I continue to use the ActivBoard to this day almost 10 years on from when I was introduced to the technology and believe that it is an exceptional visual aid in the classroom and a great way to motivate and engage students.
I was also 1 of two teachers to have the first 1 to 1 iPad classrooms in Northland. After a period of exploration and research I was given a class set of iPads and began my journey with mobile devices. This has been an incredible adventure for myself and my students over the past 4 years. Learning about and with the devices happened with the students and as a class we evolved together. My own practice has been fine tuned over the years and I believe I am at a place where the devices are now an extension of the students themselves.
Although using ICT is a huge part of my own classroom practice is not everything. I am a huge believer in student led learning opportunities and student inquiry projects. We have 'Genius Hour' on a regular basis where students are encouraged to explore an area of interest or to find a solution to a local community problem. The skills learnt through these processes are invaluable for their schooling and also future lives i.e. managing self, thinking and relating to others are all skills needed in the real world. Not to mention the problem solving and communication skills they learn as well.
I believe in challenging students and having environments where students can take risks with their own learning. Having students aware of where they currently sit and having them understand what they need to do to progress is important in this process so that risks can be made and challenges can be set. As a class we use the App Seesaw to publish and record examples of work regularly. This is then reviewed by myself their peers and parents. They can also track their own learning and identify where it is they need to improve or areas in which they are strong in. Providing feedback wether it is formal, written or a comment on Seesaw is vital and the App Seesaw is one way that allows me and their parents to do this regularly throughout the day. Making these connections with the home are limitless with Seesaw and vital for both students confidence and their parents awareness. There is no surprises at report or interview time as the parents are seeing daily what is being learnt and how well their child is doing.
Giving students a voice with and about their learning is also very important. With technology this is more capable than ever for students to explain how they have learnt, what they have learnt and where their learning is heading next.
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