Friday Night

Friday night will be full of energy and ideas. – (Download copy of program here)

You’ll be treated to a series of short keynotes, reflections and micro-sessions to whet the appetite and see some directions you’d like to follow up during Saturday workshops.

Hospitality students will be providing some finger food, and there will be plenty of opportunity during the evening to meet new people, catch up with old friends and share the sense of being engaged in looking at options for the ways that we can imagine the possibilities in future schooling.

Friday night will kick off in the auditorium at the Newcastle School, on the corner of Laman and Union Street, Cooks Hill.

Due to our need to have a little bit of cash to pay for catering and some of our sound and lighting gear, you’ll need to register for the Friday night event. There’s a charge of $10 for members of the Australian College of Educators, or a charge of $15 for non-members.  Please bring your receipt as a ‘ticket’

We are limited to 160 people, including presenters, so it will be organised on a first to pay basis.

There’s no other charge for Splendour.

Friday Night Program Features

Keynotes: Short and full of big ideas

Keynote One: Mark McConville (Principal Toronto High School)

Many HCC staff watched the recent 4 Corners Story on Toronto High School with real interest.  Mark McConville’s keynote will not be a dialogue on Local Schools, Local Decisions; rather, it will an opportunity for all passionate educators to learn about reforming practices, asking the ‘hard questions’ and building the capacity of staff in a leadership role.  Mark will reflect on his experiences as an educator, providing a real insight into contemporary leadership theory, as a classroom teacher, Head Teacher, Deputy Principal and Principal.

This is a journey many teachmeet participants aspire to and we hope that this keynote provides you with additional direction and inspiration.

Keynote Two: Amber Harvey (Student Voice)

How can we discuss future trends and engaging students without hearing from those with the most to gain – students?  Splendour in the Class is delighted to have Amber Harvey, a year 10 student from a Hunter Valley National Partnerships school, provide a view of education that we often do not consider enough.

Below are the 6 micro-sessions running on the Friday night.  In addition to these we will call for expressions of interest from any educator willing to share their knowledge and passion on Saturday morning.  Please keep an eye on our blog, or through Twitter and Yammer for updates. Just write your name on the sign-up sheets as you arrive at Union Street School.

There will be an extensive variety of workshops on the Saturday which will allow you to explore digital technologies on a hands on basis.

 

Micro-session 1 – Ipads and the Educreation App

If there’s one app that you must have installed on your iPads, it is ‘Educreations’. Educreations is promoted as the app that turns your iPad into a recordable interactive whiteboard that captures your voice and handwriting to create amazing video lessons. Laura Chaffey will demonstrate how to use this app with K-6 students to not only create video lessons but also as an assessment tool to document and share student knowledge, skills and understanding.


Micro-session 2 - NuLearn – Newcastle University Innovative Pedagogy Project

Educational change is complex and takes place within an ecosystem of influences ranging from national policies and programs to local school specific contexts and cultures. The NuLearn Group will present the latest results from the Innovative Teaching and Learning project: an international research collaboration, sponsored by Microsoft, involving seven countries, Finland, Mexico, Indonesia, Russia, Senegal, UK and Australia. The research identifies the conditions that are most likely to promote innovation in teaching practices in schools.

Micro-session 3 - ‘Engaging your school community through Twitter and Facebook’

How do you engage with your school community? In an age of social networking, has your school developed a positive online presence? Chris Payne will discuss and demonstrate the ways in which he uses social media to interact with the school community, enhancing communication, improving communications efficiency and promoting the amazing talents of student and staff.  Don’t be the last school in HCC to go online!

Micro-session 4 - ‘Engaging young minds using Bee-Bot technology’

Bee-Bot is an exciting new robot designed for use by young children. This colorful, easy-to-operate, and friendly little robot is a perfect tool for teaching sequencing, estimation, problem-solving, and just having fun.  Janet and Sarah Howard will demonstrate how these technologies are used in the classroom to inspire and engage young children.

Micro-Session 5 - ‘Edmodo – Safe secure social networking for learning’

Join the most world’s most popular platform for socially networked learning.  Used by more than 3 million teachers all over the world, Edmodo is a student’s first choice for academic support and communications.  Brendt Evendon will demonstrate the power of this platform and prove just how ‘intuitive’ it is.


Micro-Session 6 - ‘Transforming Middle School Practice with Educ8′


Ken Robinson once wrote, “Education doesn’t need to be reformed — it needs to be transformed.” Two Waratah Technology Campus teachers are heading up an innovative program to shift the paradigm in Education. Beau Berman and Cory MacDonald will discuss their Middle School cross KLA team teaching program structured around the principles of collaborative PBL. Beau and Cory will outline their philosophy and approach and are keen to hear your thoughts and field your questions about educ8.

Register now for the Friday night event.

3 comments

  1. Using ipads and Itouches in a classroom setting

    How do you use a small group of ipods and ipads in a classroom setting? Can they be used to engage learners or are they simply a toy? Learn how students can be engaged in a small group setting with these devices.

  2. Showcasing your student work on a class blog or wikki.

    Showing casing your student work and what is happening in your school is an important step in engaging your students and the wider community. See how using Presntation web2 tools- like Kizoa, Vuvox can be embedded into your blog/wikki/school website.

  3. neil says:

    some of this could be amazing for the Saturday fair if you are willing…..information goes up in the next few weeks..Roger and I will broadcast on Twitter, Facebook and Yammer.

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