Differentiation means tailoring the teaching and learning to meet individual student needs. It is the ability to modify and adapt within your classroom in several main areas. These include the content, process, products and the environment, as well as assessment and flexible grouping. Teachers in many countries I visit and work with are not as fortunate […]

Project-based learning through Genius Hour provides a structure to help students succeed. There are three main components to Genius Hour. Research: Students must research something. Students cannot spend time going over the information they already know. The key is learning and as a bi-product of this, learning and refining research skills. Create: Students have to […]

“We have had the posters and logos up on the wall for two years and there has been no improvement.” These were the words of a Principal in Singapore after they had identified and displayed the new school values, dispositions and skills they wanted students to learn and adopt. Passively hoping students will learn such […]

Understanding the job market for our youth… The future is not what it used to be. I was recently asked to speak at a High School Careers day. The school had invited professionals to come and speak about their jobs, with the aim to help inspire and inform students of career choices for their future. […]

I was recently asked to write an opinion piece for a national newspaper about the future of exams… here is my response… The world is changing and our education system needs to evolve with it. Our current education system was established to create employees, from the manufacturing model of the nineteenth and 20th centuries. The […]

An essential part of learners being independent and self directed is their ability to set and reflect on goals for their success. At each age and stage of schooling there are several suggested key ideas and strategies that will scaffold the learning for learners to be able to be highly efficient and proficient goal setters […]

One of the leading goals in every classroom should be creating independence in our students. This means teachers are required to step back, stop rescuing, allow students to make mistakes and ask powerful questions about learning. I love the I.C.T. method, first taught to me by Adrian Rennie in Christchurch. It stands for Individual, Collaborative […]

I’ve been pondering… what if education looked different? What if we truly valued what really matters rather than what used to matter? What if we cared more about the progress students are making rather than the marks, grades or number of credits they get? What if we were more concerned about the skills that will […]

Creating an environment within your classroom where every student actively participates in their education is a major goal, and key challenge for educators. An effective way to promoting active participation is through classroom dialogue. Unfortunately many of our students have been educated out of actively being engaged in their education with the fear of making mistakes, […]

I come from a long line of great chefs, caterers and foodies – in fact my Nana, Mother, sister and daughter are real foodies, and I’m just not one of them. I make food to sustain, comfort and for sharing with others. Now I can cook and indeed do and really enjoy it – not just at […]