Day 3 Developing students who create
Keynote Address 5: What Maker Kids, Tom Hanks and PAX Taught Me About Creativity (Adrian Camm)
Adrian's keynote outlined ideas around constructing a learning culture in schools
"One of the most powerful things a teacher can do is to be a learner"
"Every child starts out a scientist and then we beat it out of them. A few trickle through the system with wonder and enthusiasm intact."
Does this apply to teachers also? Are we still constantly learning about our own practice?
"Culture drives everything when you are looking to change"
Things to construct a learning culture
1. Create a shared vision
We need a shared language for what we value
What is learning? Video done by teachers at his school were just responses to this prompt but revealed how different everyone views such a simple idea, an idea of particular importance in a school!
2. Switch from passive to active
Staff at Cam's school engage in Learning projects on Tuesday afternoon, then present to peers on staff day in term 4. The projects are linked to Deakin University and this year 15 staff are doing post-graduate studies based on their research.
3. Provide permission
Being innovative requires us to step outside the ordinary
Cam has a "Permission to innovate card" for staff - they need to understand they have permission to go for it, to fail etc. Do teachers have permission to innovate?
Some examples of projects from the Yr 9 innovation project
• Prosthetic hands
• Bags
• Ferris wheel made out of Lego
• Robotics
4. Make your default "Yes"
Innovation is on the edge of ridiculous ideas
5. Tell people they are awesome
Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result = insanity
This graph shows the decline in uptake of STEM subjects
A few projects students have been involved in:
- Design an F1 car competition
- Year 7 boat building task - get across the pool.
Do real stuff!
Click here for a Google document of ideas of "instead of"
- Gaming project
- Game character design... Design, print new character (Sculpt plus) for CEO of Game company
- Create trading cards! Create card game
Other ideas:
- Portal 2 game - Physics game
- ARIS augmented reality game creator
- Makers - Corey Docktrove
"The most important skill students could have is the skill to keep learning and learn how to learn."
Every student has their own digital portfolio in CampusPress
adriancamm.com @adriancamm
Workshop - implementing STEM (Annette McArthur)
Ormiston College has innovation grants for staff for them to use in a project
Support for staff
• Technical skills
• Learning networks
• Modelling
• Showcase to wider community
• Student voice
What does STEM look like in our school?
At Stage 3 she examines root causes of problems (tree diagram)
PBL task - hydraulic machine that serves a purpose. Students gave great feedback on this task
STEM video challenge
Digitising rubrics - webinar Sept 7th 11am EST
Resources
Keynote Address 6: Full STEAM ahead! (Karen Bonanno)
Slides here:
Employers want people who ask good questions
Preparing students for the new future of work is an issue of national importance
Karen gave many examples of where technology is replacing jobs and the need to train students in coding
How could we use drones at school? Current business uses include Dominoes deliveries, building bridges, deliveries
Karen showed some amazing products created by young people that show what can happen when students are engaged and passionate about their learning:
- Luke - Fibonacci blocks
- Taj - giving tablets out
- Izzy - cosmetics
How can we scale this? Guided inquiry, design thinking
The sweet spot ... Talents, business money, passions:
Image credit @eskimon
Creating a Vision for Learning - Adrian Camm
Adrian shared the process his school went through to produce a vision for learning at the school. The process involved all stakeholders in the school.
What is the vision statement for the school? Do staff know it?
What is our personal vision? What is important to me in teaching and learning? How does our school vision align with our personal vision?
Some ideas I had:
- That each student gets the opportunity to reach their potential and engage in what they are passionate about.
- To see more kids engaged at school and being independent learners.
- To shift the whole school through the use of technology to a more student-centered place where students are engaged in their learning.
We often use words and assume everyone has the same understanding of what that means - but this is not the case. We need to unpack assumptions and beliefs, we need a shared language. eg
What does differentiation mean? What do independent learners look like?
We need a roadmap for the future...
Adrian uses a curriculum mapping tool - Rubicon atlas - to see what each course is covering in terms of soft skills
We talked about an "Inquiry probe"- questions that we ask to assist in brainstorming:
A few of mine:
- How do we move to transformational practices
- What common practices do staff need to engage in to promote deeper learning in students?
- How can we empower parents in their role?
Gamestorming book