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SiMERR Summit
Ways to
improve educational outcomes
in rural and regional
Tasmania
10am - 4pm on Wednesday 4th June 2008
Sir Raymond
Ferrall Centre, UTAS, Newnham Drive, Launceston
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Participants Issues:
We asked each
participant to write an issue that they had, an
"interesting positive" that
they were hearing from the sessions and a
possible idea.
These have been roughly categorised into themes, some of which come from the
map adjacent which
shows the various interest areas represented at the summit.
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Issues
Professional Learning
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Is training teachers
the only way to make progress in schools?
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How do we manage
professional learning for teachers in rural and isolated schools?
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How can we empower
teachers?
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How do we build confidence and build teacher passion and
enthusiasm for the subjects they teach?
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Transient nature of
teachers in rural schools.
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Connecting learning
communities – providing opportunities and environments for ongoing
communication and collaboration for teachers to build communities of
practice… collaborative on-line workspaces.
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Professional Learning.
Engaging teachers
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How do we engage
teachers?
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Engaging teachers in
innovative projects.
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Many science and maths
teachers are disengaged from these areas.
Pre-service teaching
program
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Pre-service teachers
observing/being mentored by current practice great teachers!
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How can the pre-service
teaching program at UTAS be constructed to better enable our graduates
to engage with the issues raised at the summit?
Partnerships
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How do we create
partnerships?
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How to we approach
business?
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How do we shift
thinking about education that issues we have discussed are part of usual
practice not add-ons or projects – so that pathways and partnerships are
part of what we normally do?
Student engagement
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How do we engage
teachers?
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Motivating students
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What are teachers’
capacity to engage students?
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How do we make science
relevant?
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How can we transform
our conceptions of engagement?
Curriculum
Student transitions
Policy
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What makes
implementation stage workable?
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How do we ensure
sustainability?
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How do we ensure
accountability?
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Lack of support and
inclusion.
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Small bits.
Engaging Parents
Community
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Interesting Positives
Professional Learning
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Commitment to
contextualised professional learning.
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Anywhere, anytime, just
enough, just in time, just for me.
Students
Well rounded, often
resourceful, community-minded children who enjoy country lifestyle and jobs.
Student Engagement
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Game making course
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Smartbots
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Face-to-face engagement
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The keenness of some
teachers to motivate and engage students
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Media continually has
current science issues and breakthroughs- how can these engage both
teachers and students?
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Student engagement is
possible
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That the programs have
had success in engaging students and teachers.
Resources
On-line
learning resources
Parent engagement
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Maths game night
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Involving parents
Communities
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Communities are proud
of what they have achieved.
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Exploitable and
under-utilised community resources.
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Plenty of existing
events in schools and communities to use for wider learning.
Mentoring
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Peer mentoring between
students, between parents, between teachers
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Commitment from the top
(principal) really matters)
Policy
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DER funding for
hardware for 9 – 12, broadband connectivity, online-content solutions,
system delivery, teacher PL
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Systems thinking is the
key.
Business
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Industry groups are
changing their attitudes
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People genuinely want
to do the best for students but may lack expertise or knowledge –
teachers, parents, community, UTAS, DoE.
Research
Great willingness of UTAS
to partner with schools and offer a research perspective.
Other
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Recognition of the
worth of doing the work.
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Lots of opportunities
already offered.
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That the “problems” are
clear.
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Lots happening, good
people working on a range of issues with a solutions focus
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Possible Ideas
Student Engagement
Innovation
Teachers and schools should
have more time for exploring new ideas.
Mentoring
Students at higher grades
mentoring lower grades. Parent mentoring. Use of SKYPE and Facebook.
Assisting self-study and getting ready to do more at home.
Professional Learning
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Address the need for
professional learning through communication and teachers assessment.
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Industry providing
professional learning for teachers and follow-up.
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Compulsory teacher
problems solving days and planning.
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Personalise on-line PL
support.
Pre-service teaching
programs
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More children form the
country to train as teachers, through lower HECS fees.
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Pre-service teachers
purposefully matched with teachers on practicums – eg problem based
learning, innovative practice
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Integrate systems
thinking with the pre-service curriculum – what does it look like – how
does each discipline incorporate this?
Business and Community
engagement
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Local industry to have
more input into training needed in the community.
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Connecting schools with
skills in the local community – incorporate into pathway planning –
relevant to both parties – needs a facilitator and personal approach.
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Rural connections with
communities in another country (such as Vietnam) to improve students
self-image.
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Broad community
partnerships founded on a desire for sustainability.
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Link parents and
industry (parents already work in industry).
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Expand on traditional
community/school events.
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Video community history
– students learning through technology?
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Work with industry to
influence teaching practices and workplace learning.
Engage Parents
Integrated Learning –
parents and children together
Technology
Student Pathways
Match students who are from
regional areas with work-placements in rural communities (rather than
sending the behaviour problem kids to work on a farm). People in rural areas
should be valued and it should be seen as a lifestyle that people are
choosing to make – it is a good place to be.
Partnerships
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How do we foster
partnerships between schools, industry and wider community while
preserving diversity of partnership models?
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Continue to foster
networks of people – link to sphere of immediacy.
Policy
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Programs supported with
funding
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How can non-govt
schools be included?
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Work more closely with
the DoE leadership team.
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Keep it simple
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