The school
holidays were approaching and it was time to visit my family in Brisbane.
Although I am from Brisbane I haven’t lived there for many years. I decided
that it would be a missed opportunity if I didn't meet up with some of the
people I've connected with on twitter. Amalgamate professionally and socially. Of course I had
big plans of visiting four schools yet I only managed to visit two. Honestly,
those two days of meeting, observing and talking with educators and directors
of learning provided me a plethora of information to reflect upon. I don't know
about you but I need time… time to process, time to think of how to apply this
new learning to improve my students' learning. These two very different visits
also encouraged me to question my role as a teacher, and more importantly a
learner. If innovation refers to renewing,
changing or creating more effective processes, products or ways of doing
things, then I am an innovator.
I spent about six
hours visiting St Paul’s and this experience was humbling and inspiring. The
numerous heads of learning Jon had organized for me to meet were generous with
their time and candid about their journey. When I met each leader of learning,
Jon openly shared how their contributions have deepened students’ learning and
wellbeing. Their experience, knowledge and skills were visibly appreciated. My
morning began visiting and conversing with Marianne Connolly (Director of JS)
and Cheryl Wegener (Head of Curriculum Development JS) about their process of
curriculum mapping and Immersion Studies Time (IST). IST is their sustained
commitment to Heutagogy (student-determined/driven learning). By placing
students in the driving seat, they achieve deeper engagement and authorship of
learning. They have been working with the Australian Curriculum for over three
years and I probably could have chatted with those forward thinking ladies for
hours. We then observed a prep class where Andrea’s students performed their
own Opera. Through their creativity and collaborative skills, the students
enjoyed performing for an audience.
Julie Bryce
(Manager of Teaching & Learning)
shared her vast amount of knowledge of Professional Learning Communities and St
Paul’s appraisal system, explaining how customization was required to suit
their context. It was at this point of the day I realized these leaders had a
transparent and united vision. They also had permission to take
risks…well-researched risks. “If you are going to fail, fail fast!”
Meeting with Heads of Learning to talk about pedagogical coaching was
insightful and thought-provoking. This unique team consists of Des Hylton - Inquiry,
Terese Reese - Global Sustainability, Gabrielle Kempton - Creativity, Tim
Osborne - Design and Cathy Smith - Entrepreneurial. This team of five, work on
a K-12, transdisciplinary remit and support all colleagues with learning
design, innovation and critical reflection. They work at the frontiers of
Heutagogy and operate with an open philosophy. I appreciated how they shared
that they were there to support the teachers to integrate their knowledge and
skills. We discussed how the element of trust was vital especially with
appraisal and risk taking with learning innovations. Two things that resonated
with me was the complimentary manner in which each educator was introduced and how
open they were for feedback.
The open culture
of St Paul’s was evident. I asked many questions, went off on many tangents (as
always) and thoroughly enjoyed the conversations that took place. Jon
continually gave me opportunities to think and reflect. I met the Principal,
Paul Browning who came across as down to earth, humble and very welcoming. Neuroscience,
trust, intrinsic motivation, failing and leadership were all topics of
conversation. I must admit I was delighted to learn that in addition to being a
Principal, Paul is also a primary teacher. While Jon joined
his Big History class, I sat on the verandah reflecting on my day. “You learn
so much if you just listen”. I’m going to take Greg’s advice and not just
listen to students but also to other educators. I will seek their knowledge,
experience and wisdom. Thank you Jon and St Paul’s for reminding me to be
prepared to fall and fail, take risks and innovate.
The following day
I visited Mount Alvernia, after connecting with @debraway on twitter. But
that’s another story!
Thank you-
Jon Andrew
@jca_1975
Paul Browning @PaulDBrowning
Des Hylton
@des_hylton
Tim Osborne
@TimOsborne71
Julie Bryce
@JulieBryce4
Terese Reese
@TereseMReese
Cheryl Wegener
@CherylWegener
Gabrielle Kempton
@ga_kempton
Cathy Smith @
CMSmithAUS
Marianne Connolly @66Connolly
Marianne Connolly @66Connolly
