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This week I joined with teachers, students, researchers and policy writers at Melbourne University to discuss student voice. This conference was hosted by Social Education Victoria and made possible by the conference partners, The University of Melbourne, Education and Training Victoria, Foundation for Young Australians and Connect. Over three days, participants engaged in rigorous dialogue about the significance of student voice and what is required to ensure its benefits are maximised for all.

"The flipped classroom allows the class to dig a little deeper into active learning. It's a big misconception that the flipped classroom is about making videos and placing them online, sure that's one part of it. It's an important part of the puzzle as its forces you to focus on the explicit content you would like students to know. Making a 5 - 8 minute lesson isn't easy, but it certainly makes you consider what your learning objectives are . The real power of the flipped classroom is what happens the next day in class. The flipped classroom opens up opportunities. My main goal is to go deeper and have students participate in a richer active learning experience where I become more of a coach to guide their learning. The classes become much more collaborative in nature where students are solving complex problems with an emphasis on higher order and critical thinking skills."

"Blended learning is the foremost trend in education. While millions of elementary through high school students are participating in blended learning, it is a method, not a goal. The How to Choose Digital Curricula for Blended Learning Infographic provides answers to ten crucial questions educators should ask themselves when selecting digital curricula for Blended Learning:"

This paper addresses the competences needed in 21st century life especially in relation to civic participation, and the educational requirements to foster them in young people. New technologies are widely used by young people for informal social interaction, video game-playing and giving voice to their views. Incorporation of these practices into the classroom has been fairly slow, despite their manifest potential for promoting agency and civic engagement. The paper argues that this is in part due to the need for a cultural shift in education to accommodate them. Currently, many competences young people will need for the future world of interactive technology and 'bottom-up' information, communication and democracy are mainly being developed through informal practices. These competences, which include adaptability, managing ambiguity, and agency are discussed in relation to civic participation. 

Yesterday was the culminating event and as the focus of the project was professional development, John Pearce offered to present the opening session looking at how the PD we undertake can be reflective of a range of learning theories. Along the way he sought to highlight some options that some of the participants might have already experienced or alternatively might consider in the future.

"ITSL, in collaboration with the Centre of Program Evaluation at the University of Melbourne are conducting a three-year process and impact evaluation of the implementation of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. The purpose of the Evaluation is to assess the usefulness, effectiveness and impact of the Standards on improving teacher quality. Over 6,002 respondents including teachers, school leaders, pre-service teachers and teacher educators participated in the 2013 National Survey. Initial analysis from the survey highlights the key findings below."

"ITSL, in collaboration with the Centre of Program Evaluation at the University of Melbourne are conducting a three-year process and impact evaluation of the implementation of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. The purpose of the Evaluation is to assess the usefulness, effectiveness and impact of the Standards on improving teacher quality. Over 6,002 respondents including teachers, school leaders, pre-service teachers and teacher educators participated in the 2013 National Survey. Initial analysis from the survey highlights the key findings below."

Relationships Australia (SA) is looking for up to 10 Adelaide area gamers who want to participate in paid consultancy work about online gaming through a program called Keep It Fun. The end game is to create an online or mobile widget/app/info source for gamers aged 12 to 17 to help them work out whether they've got game and are keeping it fun or whether their gaming habits are pwning them.

"Isn't that a human paradox? While conflict can irritate, it can also beckon. While conflict can bring out the worst in people, it can also bring out the extraordinary. While conflict can make us resist, it can also expand our understanding. While conflict can divide, it can also unite. As participants discussed ideas and practiced on examples of conflict from their work, here is what I observed:"

Several lists of digital tools you can use for these activities. Icebreakers are " discussion questions or activities used to help participants relax and ease into a group meeting or learning situation" (Dover, 2004). Icebreakers are very important in the learning-teaching process that takes place within the classroom. They can help in creating and maintaining a healthy and successful learning environment for students and are also the best warm-ups to get students engaged in a learning task." 

"2013 is starting with a wonderful event arranged by Roland Gesthuizen with the support of ICT in Education Victoria. Teachmeets depend on the participants getting involved - everyone knows something that is interesting to someone else!"

"The simplest acquisition of literacy can have a profoundly empowering effect personally, socially and politically.  Literacy gives people tools with which to improve their livelihoods, participate in community decision-making, gain access to information about health care, and above all, it enables individuals to realize their rights as citizens and human beings. Literacy is not just about reading and writing; it is about respect, opportunity and development..."

@tomwhitby "Dell Computer has sponsored four education Think Tanks over the last year, or so, and I have been fortunate to participate in three of them...Each of the groups is given four to six general topics of concern in education to discuss for about forty-five minutes to an hour. Since the members are all invited guests, they are usually intelligent, passionate, and well-versed in aspects of education specific to their profession....Progress is being stymied by the 6 "P's". By this I am not referring to the military expression "Proper Planning Prevents P*ss Poor Performance". I am talking about Poverty, Profit, Politics, Parents, Professional development, and Priorities preventing progress in Public Education."

If you're near your Skype account and Skype device tonight (Wednesday, 11 April, 630pm Adelaide time) - I'd welcome your participation in a test call to kick the tyres on Skype premium. Details on my blog: http://kerryj.com/2012/04/11/skype-premium-test/

Story telling is one of the most ancient and powerful forms of human expression. In today's media rich world, there are an abundance of digital tools that allow students to express themselves through digital narratives in ways that would have been impossible only a few years ago. This presentation will introduce participants to the tools of digital story telling, provide rich examples of student work, and help to provide context to the relevance of story telling in curriculum and instruction.

This is a simple tool for quickly creating and posting polls. Go to the site, type a questionand then type your answer choices. The poll you created can stay online for up to seven days. Kwiqpoll assigns a unique url to each of the polls created so you send that url to the students that you want to participate.

As Australia's peak professional organisation ACEL is a forward thinking, relevant and responsive agent of change and innovation.  ACEL is a not-for-profit company and a 21st Century learning organisation that is continuously improving its practices to harness national and global opportunities. As the premier provider of resources and experiences for educational leaders, ACEL's membership continues to grow with over 6500 members actively connecting and participating in regular professional learning opportunities.

This report provides the findings from the 2011 analysis across 7 participating countries. From Innovative Teaching and Learning research site (sponsored by Microsoft Partners in Learning)