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Volume 1 Issue 2, October 2007
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Innovative Schools: Innovation "in" or "of" the School?
by Eduardo Chaves
Even
a conventional school can become home to some innovation. I think,
however, that the expression "Innovative School" ought to refer not to
schools that host one innovation or another, but to schools capable of innovating themselves - that is, of creating themselves anew. To create itself anew a school must rethink its pedagogical vision: its view of education, of learning, and of its own role in the learning of its students.
Education
To be innovative today the school must shed the traditional notion that
education is the process by which older generations transmit their
culture heritage to the new ones. This process, besides being centered
on the needs of society and focused on the past, neglects the fact that
human beings are born incomplete (incompetent and dependent) and that
education is the process by means of which they become competent and
autonomous adults. Education, thus understood, is a process centered on
the needs of the individual and focused on the future.
Learning
To learn is not to assimilate information: it is to become capable of
doing that which one could not do before. Thus, learning aims at
building competencies and expanding capacities.
The School
The school is a formal learning environment the objective
of which is to help students learn what they ought to learn in order to
become competent and autonomous adults. Since helping students build
competencies and autonomy is essential to the school, the school must
be democratic, a place where students are capable of practicing their
competencies and their autonomy.
Given that we are all different from one another, the curriculum
of an innovative school ought to be sufficiently rich, and its
implementation sufficiently flexible, to take into account the unique
talents and different interests of the students. A "one-size-fits-all"
curriculum is inadmissible.
Its methodology ought to
recognize that there are many ways of learning essential and important
things. Letting students free to choose the projects in the course of
which they will learn what they need or want, is a way of respecting
their freedom to learn and solves the difficult challenge of
motivation. But the focus must be on the development of competencies
and autonomy.
Learning assessment, finally, ought to
contribute to student learning as well, and not merely bring out what
students have not learned. So, learning assessment must not be a series
of episodic events that take place periodically in the school: it must
be integrated into the very fabric of the school and must be focused on
ascertaining whether students are developing their competencies and
autonomy. Are there many schools willing to create themselves anew
according to this vision?
EDUARDO CHAVES is a member of the International Advisory Board of Microsoft's Partners in Learning.
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Thousands of miles away but in the middle of Asia...
Canada's
Partners in Learning Program does its work within the three great
oceans that line the country's borders- the Atlantic, the Artic and the
Pacific. That is a few thousand kilometers away from Asia, where about
50% of the world's population lives.
"To be a successful country in the future, Canada will have to be
successful in Asia," says Jacinthe Robichaud, Director, Partners in
Learning, Canada. "The opportunity to establish relationships that lead
to projects between Canada and Asian countries has been one of the
unexpected, but fantastic benefits of PiL."
So far, projects have been established with Hong Kong, Singapore and
Taiwan with hopes to build further relationships with other "friends"
in Asia Pacific including Malaysia, Philippines, Australia and New
Zealand.
"Right now, we are promoting the Cyber-Learning Academy from Taiwan to
schools in Canada because it is an excellent opportunity to have our
Canadian students work with students from across Asia," says Robichaud.
"Dr. Chi-Syan Lin, Director of the project from National University of
Taiwan, spent a week with us in Canada last summer explaining how to
get involved in his wonderful program."
Canada's PiL program is also interested in extensive use of the MARVIN
software from Australia. This software, free from Microsoft Asia
Pacific, allows users to create cultural specific, multi-lingual
e-learning materials. "Without our participation in the activities of
Microsoft Asia Pacific, we would have never learned about this
versatile authoring tool which might be a powerful storytelling vehicle
for our Aboriginal people as well as everyone."
In Wikinomics, How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything,
co-authors Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams nuture the idea that
individuals have the tools to create economic, political and social
change faster than countries and corporations. PiL has brought Canadian
educators the initial contacts needed to move that vision forward. For
example, the PiL program in the Province of Manitoba already works with
a number of Asia countries, but is always looking to increase its
opportunities for collaboration. You can reach out and touch us! Norman
Lee, Coordinator, PiL Manitoba has been involved with PiL as the
coordinator of the first PiL program in Canada. He has participated in
several Microsoft Asia Pacific conferences and training events. You can
reach Norm at nlee35@shaw.ca
MInTS - NZ ICT Industry Scholarships: Establishing a Point of Difference in New Zealand
New
Zealand (NZ) is increasingly becoming renowned for its innovation in
information and communication technology (ICT) development through
high-end technology-based movies, like Lord of the Rings, and the children's television show, Jane and the Dragon.
Significant government support for ICT in New Zealand schools has seen
considerable improvements in the level of 'computer literacy' of
teachers. With this in mind, the NZ PiL Advisory Group initiated a very
targeted PiL program in partnership with the Ministry of Education.
MInTS (The Microsoft Innovative Teacher Scholarships) creates the
opportunity for teacher leaders to spend six months working with
leading ICT organizations. The aim is to extend and enhance teachers'
knowledge of ICT and the technological practices of leading ICT
industries, allowing teachers to enhance learning experiences when they
return to the classroom.
John Maguire, Head of Technology at Kavanagh College, Dunedin, was
identified as a leader in the innovative use of ICT and, along with two
other teachers, was offered the opportunity to participate in the 2006
pilot project.
John was placed with Animation Research Ltd. (ARL), New Zealand's
leading developer of high-end software for 'virtual experience' and
animation creation. Through its parent company Terabyte Ltd, ARL has
been responsible for the development of animation software used in
America's Cup regattas, motorsport, golf and cricket.
John's position within ARL was strongly project-based, with specific
goals aligned to Virtual Lathe, a software-based product aimed at the
education sector. The product was designed to introduce students to
operational procedures and functions surrounding the use of a workshop
lathe, as a prerequisite (or adjunct) to actual 'hands on' experience.
Participants in the pilot MInTS program were unanimous as to its value
and the diverse opportunities and benefits it presented. Early research
also provided pointers for the design and structure of effective ICT
industry/education partnerships in general.
For the hosts, the benefits were significantly longer term and were
part of a 'larger picture' view of education and how they could
contribute. For teachers, the benefits were more defined and related
largely to the immediate work with their students. They valued the
opportunity to take a step out of the classroom and investigate the
type of knowledge, skills, and dispositions students would need to
pursue careers within ICT industries.
John Maguire says: "I went in with an understanding based on the
curriculum - many of those assumptions were challenged by my
experience. It's taken me out of the zone of saying 'this is the way we
do it' to looking at multiple ways of going about solving a problem.
That's something I have been able to bring back to the classroom - a
more open approach to teaching technology."
ICT Peer Coaching - Supporting the Classroom Integration of ICT
The Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) is a partner in Microsoft's Partners in Learning Program in Australia.
Through this partnership, four Victorian teachers completed the ten-day
Microsoft Peer Coaching program in 2005, which focused on peer coaching
as a strategy to support the integration of ICT in the curriculum.
These teachers then piloted elements of the Microsoft Peer Coaching
program in their schools during 2006, carrying out an investigative
study coordinated by DEECD's eLearning Unit. From this small start, a
larger pilot, involving almost 30 schools around Victoria has been
implemented during 2007. Findings from this pilot, due in December,
will inform a larger ICT Peer Coaching program in 2008.
The Microsoft Peer Coaching program provided a wide range of resources,
including a Web presence, aimed at peer coaches and facilitators. These
resources were critically examined during the investigative study and
planning leading up to the 2007 pilot. Peer coaches participating in
the pilot were provided with an ICT peer-coaching manual comprising a
selection of resources, some adapted to best meet the needs of
Victorian teachers. It contextualised ICT peer coaching within
Victorian educational programs and prioritized and contained sections
for school leaders, peer coaches and participating teachers, with
resource material and templates for each group.
The objectives of the DEECD Peer Coaching with ICT pilot included:
. provide strategies that are grounded in learning and teaching to support ICT professional learning in schools;
. promote Peer Coaching with ICT as
a means of improving teachers' pedagogical understanding of learning
and teaching with ICT in order to impact student learning, and;
. provide a peer-coaching framework that focuses on ICT and supports a
culture of collegiate sharing, collaboration and reflective practice.
A professional learning program to support the ICT peer coaches was also developed. It introduced the ICT Peer Coaching Manual and
explained the ways in which the templates could be used and adapted. A
Microsoft Sharepoint portal for the ICT peer coaches to facilitate
their communication and collaboration was also provided. A further
element of the professional learning program was an introduction to protocols,
strategies which structure professional dialogue and active listening
to ensure every participant has an equal voice in giving and receiving
feedback. These skills are essential to any coaching program and have
been central to the Victorian pilot to date.
The data from the pilot are currently being compiled, with a final
report due by the end of December. Anecdotal feedback indicates
positive results for both ICT peer coaches and their coaches in the
areas of increased confidence, skill level and teacher collaboration
using ICT. Much of the work of the ICT peer coaches has been on
supporting teachers to embed ICT in the classroom practice, rather than
skill development in isolation.
For more information contact Rita Ellul, Department of Education and Early Childhood Development at: Ellul.rita.t@edumail.vic.gov.au
What Does a School of the Future do with ICT? Collaborate!
Singapore-based
Crescent Girls' School (CGS) is a leading girl's school that provides a
nurturing and innovative environment that empowers students to be
confident and visionary leaders. An innovator in utilizing technology
to create learning experiences, the school was a pioneer in equipping
students with individual tablet PCs for all lessons. Responding to a
changing, inter-connected learning landscape, the school wanted to
develop an application that could foster collaborative learning beyond
existing classrooms and borders.
Noting the changing nature of learning and the proliferation of new
media tools such as blogging, instant messaging, web conferencing and
podcasting, the school wanted to tap into this new potential. "Moving
forward, we wanted to add more collaborative features to the system to
support future learning," says Mr. Lee Boon Keng, Head of IT at
Crescent.
Using Microsoft's Office Live Communications Server 2005, the school
and partners created the Global Learning Faculty (GLF). Launched in
April 2007, the resource is now used by educators and students
throughout the school. Using this tool, students and teachers can see
each other when they are online and out of class. They can perform
chat, whiteboard and access group-based functions like shared
whiteboard and desktop sharing.
With its strong focus on the learner-centric experience in a
technology-rich environment, CGS is extending the boundaries of
learning communication and collaboration. "Students will be able to use
the platform seamlessly to enrich their learning through collaboration
with their peers and educators both locally and globally," according to
Mrs. Lee Bee Yann, Principal, Crescent Girls' School.
The benefits are already clear to the school.
. Boosting Collaborative Learning: According to Lee, "With GLF, our
students are now the initiators. They can see and experience the
benefits of collaborating so they are asking for interaction
directly-an amazing development in the learning process."
. Broadening Knowledge Access: Students can learn more in a safe
virtual space. Even more important is the cumulative aspects of virtual
learning. "The process is never static," according to Lee, "Students
are always learning from each other in this system at all times."
. Empowering Interaction: An interesting development of the GLF is the
change in student behavior towards the learning process. "We're seeing
students asking for more collaboration and interaction with their peers
and teachers," says Lee. "They're actually keen to learn interactively
and are self-motivated."
For the full study, see:
http://www.microsoft.com/casestudies/casestudy.aspx?casestudyid=4000000643
For more information about the Crescent Girls' School, visit their Web site at: http://www.crescent.edu.sg/
Thai Education's Best Practice of Leading Change
What
is one difference between developed and developing countries?
Decentralization. The legacy of a hierarchical, top-down management
model has existed for a long period of time in Thai history. While the
world is changing and moving on, each country tries to be different
from the others so that they can survive and be competitive. This is
the reason why Thailand has to look at who we are, what we have, where
we are going, and why we have to change.
Thailand's government is working to decentralize local educational
agencies, which are a key for sustainable development at every level
and sector. Every individual has a unique potential which is ready to
be inspired. Once various potentials unite to be the "One", we will be
moving forward to the brighter future.
In 1999, the enactment of the National Education Act began the process
of addressing educational needs by initiating educational reform and
decentralization. The act was premised on the idea that educational
reform requires the involvement from students, teachers and principals,
schools, and local stakeholders. The chain of repeating challenge
starts from centralized administration then local government agencies,
schools, teachers and students who will grow up to be a part of Thai
society. In the past policies decided on by the central government were
not always implemented consistently at the local level. These policies
were not always seen as relevant by local school officials. The new
emphasis on decentralization is designed to empower local officials to
implement policies that best met the needs of their students.
To assist in this process of decentralization, the Thai Ministry of Education, in partnership with Microsoft, held the Learning to Lead Change workshop
on March 2007. This workshop was lead by Professor Michael Fullan, who
has researched and written extensively on change and change leadership
in the educational environment.
The need to implement the ideas
outlined by Fullan was immediately embraced by the Minister of
Education, Prof.Dr.Wichit Srisa-An, who stated, "This is the day we
waited for after Thai educational reform started when Prime Minister
Sunya Thammasak's government re-shaped policy thirty-three years ago.
It is the successful sign of educational reform and decentralization in
Thailand. Thai Education Ministry should concentrate on supporting and
monitoring the decentralized policy in long terms and decentralize more
power to schools, local government agencies, and other stakeholders.
Furthermore, we have to set the Leaders of Change curriculum for
dissemination in Thailand."
After Fullan's workshop, the minister assigned the Office of Basic
Education Council (OBEC) to follow-up and assist schools to implement
the ideas learned. As one step in this process, the Secretary-General
of the Office of Basic Education Council (OBEC), Khunying Kasama
Varavarn Na Ayudhya noted in the next six months "OBEC should have the
blog or website for gathering, updating, and sharing all Best Practices
as a knowledge-based society portal to other people."
Next Gen
Fifty-seven
faculty and deans from universities in ten Asia countries participated
in Peer Coaching training in Kunming, China from October 15-19, 2007.
This training is part of the Next Generation of Teachers (Next Gen), a
project co-sponsored by UNESCO, Microsoft and Cisco. Next Gen is
designed to prepare the next generation of teachers in the Asia Pacific
Region to utilize ICT to enhance teaching and learning, and improve
integration of ICT into education throughout the region.
Participants from Brunei, Cambodia, the Peoples Republic of China,
India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka,
Thailand and Vietnam learned how to develop effective curriculum in
this workshop. Key themes of the week were stronger lesson design,
enhanced communications and collaborations skills, and best practices
in ICT integration. Four trainers from the Puget Sound Center for
Teaching, Learning and Technology led the Peer Coaching workshop.
The workshop concluded with each Teacher Education Institution
outlining its plans for implementing Peer Coaching. Participants will
updated these plans online in the next six months and review their
successes when they come together for the second phase of Peer Coaching
training in Brunei in 2008.
For more information about the Next Gen program, refer to the Next Gen Web site: http://www.unescobkk.org/education/ict/teachertraining/next_gen.
For more information about Peer Coaching, sponsored by Microsoft, please visit the Asia Pacific Web site at: http://anon.apac.innovativeteachers.com/Pages/Welcome.aspx
Upcoming Events
Partners in Learning ICT Training
We are pleased to invite you to attend a Partners in Learning Regional Training from December 12 to 14 (Wednesday to Friday) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
PiL reflects Microsoft's long-term commitment to partner with national
and local governments, schools and teachers to increase basic access to
information communication technology (ICT) and to build capacity in
national and local education systems. Despite real improvements in
accessing and using ICT in education, many students and teachers still
lack basic access to technology, training and professional development.
This particular training looks into addressing new challenges in how
schools and teachers can develop great and compelling content for their
everyday teaching and learning, incorporating their local requirements
of language and culture as well as providing schools and teachers new
skills in working with more diverse groups of children, some with
special needs. This training will consist of the following sessions:
MARVIN System ( http://www.marvin.com.au/marvin/home.asp) This part of the presentation will focus on the MARVIN
Software, how it is to be implemented, and requirements for access
along with tips and suggestions on possible regional roll-out and
inter-country MARVIN collaboration. MARVINT is an exciting innovative
and engaging animation software application created in the Northern
Territory of Australia. It embodies a philosophy of empowerment and
ownership. MARVIN allows inexpensive, flexible and relevant education,
health and governance resources to be created in the community, by the
community and for the community in real time.
From a technical
perspective, MARVIN is a complete 3D character-based (Avatar) resource
and e-learning development Microsoft.net application. It allows the
rapid creation of culturally specific and multi-lingual policy,
education and health promotion materials ranging from interactive,
animated e-learning lessons to paper-based flip charts. It is easy to
use yet immensely powerful and was designed specifically to enable
those with differing language/literacy/ICT skill sets to be able to
develop professional animated presentations and educational resources
with low-end hardware access. We will run two sets of three concurrent
sessions, with each session lasting 1.5 days. Please specify which set
you will be attending. Each session will have vacancy for up to 10
trainers and we will have capacity for 30 trainers per set. CARE - Curriculum for Accessibility Reach
This workshop will feature the Introduction of ICT accessibility - Why
it is important and how it works. It will also focus on the
Accessibility function of Windows XP/Vista, Office 2003/ Office 2007
and how to utilize PowerPoint for students with cognitive impairments.
We will only have capacity to run two 1.5 days sessions, with each
session having maximum capacity of 20 trainers. Please register early to avoid disappointment: http://mseventsasia.com/pil07/Next Gen Deans' Forum
Faced
with the challenge of meeting the increasing demand for quality
teachers, UNESCO, Microsoft, Edith Cowan University and the Sampoerna
Foundation Teacher Institute are sponsoring the first Asia Pacific
Deans' Forum in Perth, Australia on February 18-20, 2008. The focus of
the forum is partnership; specifically, the partnerships between
teacher education institutions and other organizations towards the
improvement of the quantity, quality and status of teachers in our
schools in the Asia-Pacific region.
For more information, visit the program's Web site: http://sandbox.ea.ecu.edu.au/projects/apdef/index.shtml.
APM Corner
Academic Program Managers Contact Information
If
you want to contact your country's Microsoft Partners in Learning
Academic Program Manager, their name and e-mail address follows.
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Country
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Academic Program Manager
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E-mail
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Australia
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Felicia Brown
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feliciab@microsoft.com
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Bangladesh
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Farid Ahmed
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faridahm@microsoft.com
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Brunei
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Wan Kong Chan
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WanKong.Chan@microsoft.com
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China
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Jerry Zuo
Jing Guo
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jerryzuo@microsoft.com
jingguol@microsoft.com
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Hong Kong
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Ng Mei Mei
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meing@microsoft.com
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India
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Srinivas Garimella
T.S.Y. Aravindakshan
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srinigar@microsoft.com
taravind@microsoft.com
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Indonesia
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Ananta Gondomono
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anantago@microsoft.com
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Japan
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Yuzo Takita
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yuzot@microsoft.com
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Korea
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Bum Joo Park
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bumjpark@microsoft.com
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Malaysia
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Farad Alhusaini
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farada@microsoft.com
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New Zealand
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Nils Beehre
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nzedu@microsoft.com
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Philippines
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Michelle C. Casio
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mcasio@microsoft.com
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Singapore
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Horng Shya Chua
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horngshya.chua@microsoft.com
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Sri Lanka
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Jinashri Samarakoon
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jinashs@microsoft.com
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Taiwan
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Carrie Chen
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chiche@microsoft.com
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Thailand
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Supoet Srinutapong
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supoets@microsoft.com
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Vietnam
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Huong Thanh Pham
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i-phamh@microsoft.com
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Resources
NEW APAC Innovative Teachers Network
The APAC Innovative Teachers Network was launched in October. This new site provides a wealth of great resources including:
. Best practices of the 2007 Innovative Teachers from across the Asia Pacific region;
. The chance to share ideas or learn from others and to create online communities focused on topics of immediate interest, and;
. A wealth of lesson plans, Virtual Classroom Tours (VCT's) and other quick ideas that are relevant to you.
You can find all of these resources and others at: http://anon.apac.innovativeteachers.com/Pages/Welcome.aspx Microsoft Asia Pacific Web sites
Microsoft's Public Sector Web site for the Asia Pacific region offers a wide variety of educational resources. The site:
. Provides teachers with tools like tutorials and templates;
. Offers model technology-rich, lesson plans;
. Gives information about the Partners in Learning programs;
. Presents white papers on topics like "Education in the Global Knowledge Economy," and;
. Provides case studies on how schools across the region have integrated tablet PC's and other ICT resources into classrooms.
You can find all of these resources and more at: http://www.microsoft.com/asia/publicsector/psprograms/shaping.mspx.
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