Monday, 11 January 2010

2010 - What to expect

Well, 2009 was an incredibly quiet year from a blogging perspective, but a very active year in terms of eLearning. The focus has definitely moved from technology to learning and how to design courses which work well in on line environments - easier said than done. What has not changed is the need to have good technology, and access to it, to ensure that good learning happens through ICT. Therefore the rural broadband investment initiative is an exciting opportunity for schools, which, supported by stage 3 of the schools network upgrade (snup), should see access to ICT and the internet improving. What still needs to happen is for schools to see ICT as a strategic asset and not just a cost centre or hole for money. This is not only because of how it can impact on all aspects of education, but also because of the large investment in the asset and the need to sustain the asset. ICT needs to be considered in the same light as property, and funding accordingly set aside. This means schools integrating ICT into all elements of the strategic plan, which will allow them to set targets against which they can report and measure progress.

With regard to Volcanics, what will we be focussing on in 2010?
  1. Continual drive to fully integrate ICT into schools' strategic plans, which flows through to an annual action plan and on to individual teaching plans and goals.
  2. How ICT can be used to support differentiated teaching and inquiry learning, which will hopefully personlise learning for individual students. Teachers will need support to draw up unit plans and identify useful eLearning tools. They will also need practical ideas and examples on how to implement new approaches and how to measure their effectiveness.
  3. Learning design - developing on-line learning which will meet the needs and expectations of 21st century students. This is especially important for our eTeachers. We will be looking at planning, methodology, practice and tools. This links up with 2 above.
  4. The development of a true community of practice for eTeachers.
  5. Educating and informing students and parents about eLearning and the opportunities that exist for students through the Volcanics eLearning Community and the Virtual Learning Network. This means having information on school websites and regular articles in newsletters.
  6. Continual focus on the development of a learning community within Volcanics which brings together teachers along lines of interest and along curriculum lines. Areas of interest will include inquiry learning, differentiated teaching, behaviour management and classroom management, literacy across the curriculum, learning design and on-line learning environments, cyber-citizenship and formative assessment.
  7. Keeping on top of of the RBI roll-out to ensure that Volcanics schools are represented and given the best opportunity to take up fibre as soon as possible.
  8. Continual membership and development of the Virtual Learning Network (VLN) so that it has a strong national voice which will represent the interests of the Volcanics Community.
So, roll-on 2010 - Heaps to do, but an exciting time for learning

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