Edited by Keith Redman

Topics covered in this edition include:

• Professional Learning in the Pilbara
• 1:1 Laptop Learning Hub
• Cognitive Coaching SM: Training programs in Northern Territory and Victoria
• Dimensions of Learning Hubs in 2010
• Feedback from DoL Staff Development Days around Australia
• Act quickly to register for the 2010 Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) Hub in Victoria
• An external program of interest: Share-a-Book
• A contact of possible interest for on-line computer training
• Some interesting reading

Welcome to the first ANSN E-News for 2010.

Professional Learning in the Pilbara

Starting the year with a “good news” story, Leith Hogan reports that she has been working with teachers in the remote Onslow and Pannawonica schools in the north of Western Australia. These schools are several hours from Karratha and her long drive to reach them was through dry, dusty but beautiful countryside, littered with prospective mine sites and mineral exploration.

Leith helped support teachers in the building of partnerships, in and between their schools and across their broader context, where distance is a key factor. Pannawonica Primary School – whose children are mostly from families involved in iron ore mining – is over 2 hours by road from Onslow, its closest school. Staff members in the two schools are now working together in teacher partnerships, planning their work, using Action Learning research circles and focusing on improving their students’ learning, on both campuses – specifically in literacy and numeracy. This was a key topic in teacher conversations.

The teachers and support staff work in complex circumstances. In Onslow, for example, factors such as student transience, truancy and home/school language impact greatly on the teacher’s ability to deliver the curriculum to the students. Leith comments that the first challenge is to get their students to school and then to keep them engaged whilst they are there – since only then does the school have a chance of improving the children’s literacy and numeracy outcomes.

Leith reports that the Commonwealth’s My School website was launched while she was working with the schools and this was a talking point in the community, with questions raised about how much the data reflects what is happening within these schools and how it will inform their teacher practice?

Leith was impressed with how the remote Onslow and Pannawonica schools are building vibrant professional communities – and how they used the Teacher Partnership workshop both to build upon their existing work and to help induct newly arrived but experienced teachers – all in a setting where everyone was focusing firmly on the work. Back in Perth, she has used the story and her reflections on it with her University students, to emphasise the value there will be for them, of working in respectful partnerships with their colleagues in schools when they graduate.

1:1 Laptop Learning Hub

Registration is open for ANSN’s new 1:1 Laptop Learning Hub which, in a series of four sessions, will explore opportunities for innovative teaching and learning using laptop computers. The Hub will help groups of teachers – from primary, secondary and special settings – to design engaging and rigorous learning experiences for their students, and to share and develop resources, whilst supporting one another in the learning. The Hub will be led by Jill Reading – an experienced classroom teacher, passionate about the use of ICT in schools – who has spent most of her career in Melbourne’s western suburbs, currently as an Ultranet Coach for Western Metropolitan Region.

In 2008, Jill Reading (below) was named the ICTEV Leader of the Year in Victoria and was also awarded a UNESCO commendation for ICT leadership.

The Hub will be run from the ANSN work site at Williamstown Primary School in Melbourne and will meet on the following dates:

Day 1, Tuesday 16 March
Day 2, Wednesday 5 May
Day 3, Wednesday 2 June
Day 4, Wednesday 28 July

For details of the Hub’s aims and program content, and for registration, go to
www.ansn.edu.au/1_1_laptop_learning_hub_2010 or email Joe Wickert at joe.wickert@ansn.edu.au or call him at (02) 9590 5341.

Cognitive Coaching SM: Training programs in Northern Territory and Victoria

Cognitive Coaching SM was devised by Art Costa (co-developer of Habits of Mind) and Robert Garmston. It focuses on the “maps” and “tools” that are needed to mediate another’s thinking, the three “maps” being: planning; reflecting; and problem-resolving – which interact with each other. The main tools of Cognitive Coaching SM are: rapport; mediative questioning; response behaviours; pacing; and leading. The training focuses on learning these tools and using them with the maps.

In 2010, ANSN will continue to offer both Foundation and Advanced training programs for Cognitive Coaching, in association with Hawker Brownlow Professional Learning Solutions. The teams of presenters for the Foundation programs will vary in composition between locations but are drawn from the following accredited trainers (left to right, below) Gavin Grift, Sue Presler, Abby Graham and Janelle McGann.

     

The dates and locations for the FOUNDATION programs are as follows

8-Day Cognitive Coaching FOUNDATION Training in Darwin, Northern Territory
29th March–1st April 2010 and 18th–21st June 2010
For further details, and to register, click here

8-Day Cognitive Coaching FOUNDATION Training in Bendigo, Victoria
19th–22nd April, 2010 and 5th–8th July, 2010
or 13th–16th August, 2010 and 15th–18th October, 2010
For further details, and to register, click here

8-Day Cognitive Coaching FOUNDATION Training in Brighton, Victoria
27th–30th July 2010 and 20th–23rd September 2010
For further details, and to register, click here

In addition, an ADVANCED program will be presented by Sue Presler (below left), with Michael Dolcemascolo, formerly Assistant Director of Staff Development for the 23 school districts surrounding the city of Syracuse in central New York. Now an independent consultant, Michael specialises in mentoring coaches.

The location and dates for this program are as follows.

5-Day Cognitive Coaching ADVANCED training in Brighton, Victoria

Tuesday 29th June to Saturday 3rd July 2010

For further details, and to register, click here

If you have questions about any of these programs, or wish to discuss the benefits for you, please email Gavin Grift at ggrift@hbe.com.au or by mobile at 0458 094 050.

Dimensions of Learning Hubs in 2010

The ANSN Dimensions of Learning (DoL) hubs are established as a highly successful element in the Network’s program of professional learning. They focus participants on exploring a comprehensive learning framework – a “thinking” approach to learning and pedagogy. DoL uses what researchers and theorists know about how students learn to improve learning outcomes, as well as providing an effective tool to align assessment, pedagogy and curriculum planning.

The Dimensions of Learning Hubs are offered in two-day or five-day Action Learning workshops, Introductory and Advanced (which can be followed through progressively). Together with ANSN’s Setting the Stage Hubs (which focus on particular Dimensions, including Habits of Mind), they provide opportunities for participants to address the National Professional Standards for Teachers (MCEETYA, 2003). In particular, they address the key elements, Professional Practice, Knowledge, Relationships and Values.

For Queensland teachers, these ANSN Hubs tailor the learning, providing opportunities for participants to develop skills and knowledge that will help them address the three key facets of the Professional Standards for Queensland Teachers framework: Teaching and Learning; Professional Relationships; and Professional Growth.

Locations and venues already scheduled for 2010 DoL Hubs, in the Northern Territory and Queensland, are shown below

DoL 5-Day IntroductoryHubs
Location	Day 1 & 2	Day 3 & 4	Day 5
Darwin	18th & 19th February	7th & 8th June	9th August
Kenmore SHS (Brisbane)	4th and 5th March	22nd & 23rd April	June 3rd
Mooloolaba SS	8th & 9th March	19th & 20th April	31st May
Toowoomba	17th and 18th March	27th & 28th April	19th August
Gold Coast	24th and 25th May	23rd & 24th August	11th October

Setting the Stage Hubs (Dimension 1: Attitudes & Perceptions and Dimension 5: Habits of Mind)
Location	Day 1 & 2	Day 3 & 4	Day 5
Mooloolaba	10th & 11th March	19th & 20th April	31st May

DoL 3-Day Advanced Hubs (Prior DoL knowledge is required)
Location	Day 1 & 2	Day 3
Mooloolaba	22nd & 23rd February	4th May
Toowoomba	29th and 30th April	20th August
Darwin	9th & 10th June	10th August
Gold Coast	26th & 27th May	12th October

(Editor’s note: Some of the Darwin dates have had to be changed, to avoid clashes with NAPLAN testing – please disregard dates in previous fliers that you may have received. The dates in this table are correct at time of distribution.)

If none of these options for time and place suits you, but your school is interested in hosting a Dimensions of Learning Hub or a Setting the Stage Hub in your area, contact us to explore the options for 2010. We are happy to deliver programs across Australia.

To discuss this, or for more information about any of the scheduled events, contact:
Hanan Harrison (below, left): hanan.harrison@ansn.edu.au  0407 464 472, or
Tina Doe (below, right):  tina.doe@ansn.edu.au  0421 440 725

For more details about the Hubs and their value for schools, go to the ANSN web site, at www.ansn.edu.au 

Feedback from DoL Staff Development Days around Australia

Hanan Harrison and Tina Doe report that ANSN’s work to develop schools’ awareness and understanding of the Dimensions of Learning has had a busy start to the year. Nationally, they have worked with five schools that engaged in action learning opportunities on their Student Free and Curriculum Days. This focused either on the Five Dimensions of Learning as a set or on Setting the Stage (which is specific to Dimension 5, Habits of Mind, and Dimension 1, Attitudes and Perceptions). Brief descriptions follow.

Trinity Catholic College, Lismore, NSW
Key members of the curriculum steering committee attended Setting the Stage Hubs in 2009, and since then have utilised that learning to lead staff in shorter sessions and promote a basic understanding of attitudes and perceptions and Habits of Mind. On 28th January, the school’s student-free day focused on developing a common understanding and enhanced learning for all staff, to help build capacity for their future journey.

On a scale of 1–5 (low to high), 76 of the 78 participants rated their previous knowledge of the topic as 3 or below (with 30 saying 1/“Low”). With only one day available, time was short and the program more fast-moving and crowded than would usually be the case. This was reflected in feedback from some participants who emerged from the day saying they were “tired”. The photo below left shows groups in hands-on activities while, centre and right, staff members share information about themselves as a way to demonstrate Dimension 1, Attitudes and Perceptions – developing positive classroom climate.

 

As well as a consistent theme in the feedback of wanting more time to learn, absorb, try out and work on the material, among the things that people liked about the session were:
new input to the learning process; the expertise, knowledge and passion of the presenter; sharing of ideas; role modelling; group activities; being encouraged to use the skills that had been displayed; and the inclusion of humour. The comment at the top of the feedback items about what they had liked was: “It will take time but it is worth the effort to improve student habits”.

Mooloolaba State School, Sunshine Coast
Mooloolaba SS, in Queensland, is a “site of action” school for the ANSN. In 2009 the principal, David Turner, was part of an Advanced DoL Hub and a team comprising the Deputy Principal and other key curriculum team members attended a Setting the Stage Hub. In 2010, Mooloolaba SS is embarking on a whole-school journey to align its curriculum, pedagogy and assessment through the DoL framework. David used the student-free day to engage all staff in professional discussions and learning around DoL. Participants constructed an understanding of the framework and made connections to their current practice. This will be followed up with a series of professional conversations with ANSN members during 2010, to enhance their journey.

Trinity Lutheran College, Ashmore, Queensland
Trinity College, Ashmore, has been implementing DoL actively for a few years. Key staff members have participated in both introductory and advanced DoL Hubs in previous years and have developed a dedicated team to help guide the rest of the staff forward in the implementation process. The student-free day was used to develop a greater depth of understanding for teachers, particularly with the middle school team who spent all day unpacking and exploring key components of Dimension 1, 2 and 5. In the photos below, participants work in groups, undertaking hands-on activities.

St Stephen’s College, Coomera, Queensland
Roz Comport, Assistant to the Headmaster, Curriculum, has been a key figure in helping develop a culture of lifelong learning among the staff at St Stephen’s College. The curriculum focus for the last few years has been on developing a curriculum that promotes thinking dispositions. Throughout 2009, staff had opportunities to connect with the DoL steering committee and also to attend a range of professional learning through ANSN. The student-free day focused on small group learning (see photo) where participants identified aspects of Dimensions 1 and 5 that would be embedded into their curriculum and pedagogy planning for the semester.

Osborne Primary School, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria
Liz Klein, the Osborne Primary School principal, received a grant to investigate learning opportunities that would enhance teacher practice for her staff. She elected to attend a Setting the Stage Hub and was so inspired by the professional learning she experienced that she booked a curriculum day for her staff. Fifty participants worked through the DoL framework and focused specifically on how to help students develop more productive attitudes and perceptions, in terms of both classroom climate and classroom tasks. They also looked at how to use the Habits of Mind as a school-wide thinking framework.

These short descriptions provide examples of how ANSN’s DoL Networkers, Hanan Harrison, Tina Doe and Jacquita Miller tailor programs to local needs while helping schools focus on quality teaching through reflective practice and professional renewal. Their workshop activities are designed to help educators: develop a deep understanding of how students learn; understand how to develop an environment that fosters successful thinking dispositions; and put DoL learning into action.

For further details, contact Hanan Harrison by email at hanan.harrison@ansn.edu.au or by mobile at 0407 464 472.

Act quickly to register for the 2010 Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) Hub in Victoria

The aim of ANSN’s Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) Hub, which has run successfully for several years, is to enable teachers to use IWBs in designing, engaging and implementing rigorous learning experiences for their students. The hub caters for teachers in primary, secondary and special settings. Membership of an IWB Hub provides five days of intensive training (spread over the year) in classroom use of IWBs.

The program includes opportunities for collaborative design and development of programs and materials, for sharing of ideas, for classroom trials and evaluation, and for peer-based exhibitions of work completed during the year. It also gives schools the opportunity to purchase packages, including the Promethean ACTIVboard, at reduced prices negotiated by the ANSN.

The Hub starts its operations soon. Dates for the IWB Hub in 2010 are Friday 12 March, Friday 19 March, Friday 23 April, Friday 23 July and Friday 3 September. Sessions for this Hub will all be held at University Park Primary School (formerly known as St Albans South PS), Lister Street, St Albans. For further details or to register, act now and click here.  To enquire about opportunities to participate in an IWB Hub later in the year, or for other queries about this Hub, contact Andrea Federico at: federico.andrea.l@edumail.vic.gov.au

To explore the possibility of having an IWB Hub in your area, contact Kate Cooper by mobile on 0402 848 364 or email at kate.cooper@ansn.edu.au

An external program of interest: Share-a-Book

Hanan Harrison emailed E-News about Share-a-Book, a project run by the Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation. The project asks Australians to donate/collect pre-loved or new children’s books, which the project workers will then distribute nationally, to disadvantaged and marginal community libraries and schools. You can donate books at any Officeworks store – there will be bookcases labelled “Share a book”, where books can be left. If you find a book on the shelf that you would like to keep, you may also take it, in exchange for a gold coin donation.  Hanan reports that the project runs from 3rd Feb to 31st March.  For further details, go to www.alnf.org or www.officeworks.com.au

A contact of possible interest for on-line computer training

E-News was contacted by a company called Dynamic Learning On-line, which offers on-line computer training for schools – for example, in use of Windows, Vista, Excel, Word and PowerPoint. The company literature notes that its on-line training was developed with the assistance of an R&D Grant from the Federal Government, and that it was also contracted to develop on-line introductory computer training for the Federal Government’s Broadband for Seniors’ project. The company offers school site licences. ANSN does not endorse companies or products, and we have no direct experience with this one, but readers might be interested to know that such services are available. If you want to explore this further, the company’s website is at www.learnoffice.net.au. 

Some interesting reading

In November 2009, Melbourne City Mission and Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) co-hosted a forum in Melbourne on Partnering to learn: the role of community organizations in supporting disadvantaged students, to explore learning support programs (homework clubs and tutoring programs). Anne Pate from the Mission and Sharon Bond from BSL have written a summary of the proceedings. For details, or to review any of the papers from the day, visit either www.mcm.org.au or www.bsl.org.au Anne contacted E-News to advise that the Mission and BSL have formed an alliance to advocate on this issue and that Hanover Welfare Services has joined the partnership. For more information or to join in this work contact Anne Pate at: (03) 8625 4469 or apate@mcm.org,au.

BSL is also about to launch the new Life Chances study report, Turning 18: pathways and plans, based on its longitudinal research. More of this in the next edition of E-News.

John Hogan has been reading and enjoying The Illusion of Leadership: Directing Creativity in Business and the Arts, by Piers Ibbotson, which starts with statements such as the following: Nothing comes from nothing. We are always starting from somewhere …. There are always initial conditions.

Australian Policy Online draws our attention to the following items. To read or download the full text of an item, use CTRL + click to follow the link.

Measuring what matters: student progress

Ben Jensen, from the Grattan Institute, writes in the context of the launch of the Federal Government’s ‘My School’ website. His report discusses how to measure school performance accurately, and comments on the significance of incorporating these performance measures into managing each level of school education systems. Among other things, he argues that the school performance measures published on the ‘My School’ website are prone to mismeasurement and may be biased against schools serving lower socio-economic communities.

Inspiring Australia: a national strategy for engagement with the sciences

Published by the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, this report outlines a national science communication strategy, drawing on consultations with a wide range of science communicators, educators, journalists and scientists in all states and territories. Its key findings relate to: national leadership and coherent action; reward and recognition in the sciences; development of potential and interest across the country; development of a capable science workforce; and a national framework with local action.

A flying start for Queensland children

Published by the Department of Education and Training in Queensland, this ‘Green Paper’ on the future of education is part of the state government’s  plan to provide all Queensland children with a “flying start” in life. Queenslanders are being encouraged to provide feedback on the proposals. Suggested discussion questions address issues such as support for families; the role of volunteers; and whether Year 7 should be in secondary school (in line with other states and territories) rather than primary.

Let's Start: Exploring Together - an early intervention program for Northern Territory children and families

Gary Robinson, and colleagues from the School for Social and Policy Research at Charles Darwin University, present an evaluation report on the Let’s Start project. This was a trial to implement the Exploring Together Preschool Program (ETPP) in the Northern Territory, a program for managing behaviour problems in Indigenous and other children. The report’s findings include “statistically significant reductions in problem and risk behaviour among participating children according to multiple measures”.