My goal and vision for Kamo Primary School would be to continue to lead by example and to share my knowledge, passion and ideas with ICT use in the classroom across the whole school and to ensure best practice of ICT with all staff.
To support all staff and students to become confident and capable users of ICT.
To give our students the skills needed to enable them to learn for the future and recognise how the use of ICT can enhance future opportunities.
Understanding the past, present and future direction of Kamo Primary School I recognise just how important ICT and the use of technology is for both students, Whanau and teachers now and in the future. This is without question an area that I believe will set me apart for all other candidates and makes me the perfect Principal for Kamo Primary. I have not only talked the talk but also walked the walk regrading the use of ICT within schools for over a decade now as a learner first and foremost but also as an educator and facilitator. My understanding of the Apple Mac environment for both administrative and classroom application is second to none and I firmly believe that you will not find a more qualified or passionate candidate in this area.
I have not only worked at Kamo Primary School and seen the direction that the school has taken, over the past 10 years, but I have also helped to shape this direction and I want nothing more than to be a part of the future direction also . Kamo Primary School has always been regarded as a forward thinking and progressive school and this must remain part of our culture and what we do at Kamo Primary School. We have never sat back and watched or waited for the next big thing to happen in education and ICT, instead we have been front runners. I myself have led the charge at Kamo Primary School with the use of ActivBoard technology, iPads in the classroom not to mention being a leader with applications for student and teacher use i.e. Seesaw, Blogger and Google apps for learning all of which have helped our teachers document student work but are ways that students have been able to share their work with the wider world.
My experience and how I have influenced the ICT landscape at Kamo Primary School -
ActivBoards - I became a Promethean accredited trainer in 2008, one of only 2 in Northland at the time. This accreditation coupled with my own ongoing learning, training of other educators and creation of resources for Promethean Planet which are used world wide, helped us as a school on our way to receive our 'Centre of Excellence' award from Promethean New Zealand.
iPods - I was lucky to attend the Apple Bus Tour which travelled around the upper North Island of New Zealand visiting New Zealand's top users of technology. This experience helped to shape my thinking around devices in the classroom and where they were heading.
After the trip I entered an online competition through Renaissance Education to design and develop a resource for classroom use with an iPod touch. I won the competition and my first iPod. This device became the first one at Kamo Primary and was used religiously and rigorously by my students on a daily basis in every curriculum area. This also started my discussions with the Principal and management team of the time, to begin thinking about device use in the classroom and the need to go 1 to 1.
iPads - after initial trials with iPods and iPads we looked at what would be best for our students and what we wanted our students to be able to achieve as well as thinking about the best technology going forward. We decided on iPads and I was lucky enough to be the 1 of two teachers in Northland to have a 1 to 1 iPad learning environment.
This environment reshaped my ways of thinking, teaching and planning for our learners and it enabled the students to also think and learn differently. Going forward I know the importance of students being exposed to a range of technologies and just how vital it is to support the staff and students to be confident capable users of ICT.
I have also had a major role in helping all staff to create and maintain class Blogs and appraisal Blogs which are used to document our successes and also to show how we meet the registered teacher criteria. I have a passion for movie making and special effects, claymation, photography and coding. All of which are explored throughout the year in my classroom. I have shared at countless staff meetings and PD events at Kamo Primary School as well. It is this knowledge and experience that I love to share with others both student and teacher.
I have presented for a number of years at a range of different conferences regarding my knowledge of iPads, ICT and classroom application of iPads. These have included the Tai Tokerau Literacy Association, EdCamp Northland, International Whiteboard Conference Auckland, TechQuest Whangarei as well as being a facilitator for other school with ActivBoards and iPad setup and roll out.
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