Claire Amos

Interestingly, when I started out at HPSS I was completely convinced that we would not need a formal LMS (Learning Management System). I believed the time of Moodle, KnowledgeNet and UltraNet was behind us. I believed that students should manage themselves and teachers and students should have free choice. I believed that providing one LMS as our main online space was simply no longer needed. Then, as time passed, I reconsidered, I started to look back on Moodle with increasingly rose tinted glasses. I remembered the structure, the untapped potential of all those activities, all those plugins. Before I knew it I was making a steady u-turn. I began thinking, yes, we do need a LMS, we need that Moodle - even if only as a front door, a front door that allowed us to mash up Google Apps, Gmail, KAMAR student portal, MyPortfolio and links to eTV and our Library Management System. Moodle, Google and MyPortfolio supported by SSO (single sign-on) became the vision once more.  With this thin...

In the spirit of openness and sharing, here is my first draft (of many I am sure) of our ICT and e-learning strategic plan which is born out of school values and vision. Our Vision, Values and ICTs Our Vision To create a stimulating, inclusive learning environment which empowers learners to contribute confidently and responsibly in our changing world Our Mission Innovate, Engage, Inspire Our Goal Innovate through personalising learning. Engage through powerful partnerships. Inspire learners to be empowered . Our Values Empowered Learners who are resilient, responsive, resourceful Personalised learning which develops curiosity, passion, excellence Powerful Partnerships which enables learners to connect, collaborate and contribute Our Values, ICTs and eLearning We inspire to develop empowered learners who are: This means: What this looks like: Resilient persistence, determination, self-motivation, positive thinking, flexible, manawanui, spir...

Here is a piece I originally wrote for Interface magazine which serves as a preface for my next post which looks at some of our thinking around ICTs and e-learning at Hobsonville Point Secondary School. Wondering where to start with strategic planning for ICTs? Here are a few thoughts to get you started. Start with the end in mind Before you even worry about anything technical, you need to think about THE most important factor - the student. Begin by clarifying your school's vision around what you actually want for your students and their learning. What does their learning like now? What would you like it to look like in 2-3 years time? How will you ensure you don’t limit that vision to your own level of confidence, comfort and expertise around ICTs? This vision, more than anything else, will guide your strategic planning. So how might you do this? It might be useful to ask a few questions to clarify thinking, such as: What does your student want and/or...

The novelty effect, in the context of human performance, is the tendency for performance to initially improve when new technology is instituted, not because of any actual improvement in learning or achievement, but in response to increased interest in the new technology. The Hawthorne effect is a form of reactivity whereby subjects improve or modify an aspect of their behavior being experimentally measured simply in response to the fact that they know they are being studied,[1][2] not in response to any particular experimental manipulation. Source: Wikipedia As someone who is passionate about the potential for e-learning and Teaching as Inquiry to be real change makers, I think it is paramount that the potential for the "novelty effect" and "Hawthorne effect" to cloud our results and what we now believe to be true is openly discussed and considered. Without question I believe that increased access to technology and the Internet have the potential to improve ...