Having visited schools in Ireland I can say that in NZ:
We are very fortunate with our school environments
Our autonomy under Tomorrows Schools is worth its weight in gold (and student engagement and achievement)
Our teachers have wonderful professional development opportunities in general and support as beginning teachers
Our staff are empowered to be reflective practitioners due to the systems and processes that we have in place
Our lack of a formal second language is debilitating
The imposition of National Standards is a move back in time and will do little to help our children
We have a beautiful country!
Having listened to some top international speakers such as Art Costa and Edward de Bono I am challenged about some of our practices and indeed about the risks inherent in moving to a narrow curriculum focussed on numeracy and literacy. I am reminded of the absolute need to help our children to be skillful thinkers and of the need for teachers to utilize strategies that will empower and enable our children.
I am also challenged by the difference between "real learning" and "school learning" and how we might reduce the gap between the two so that learning is more meaningful for our children.
It is an honor and a privileged to travel here to learn about teaching and learning from such an expert field. It is also a privilege to teach our children in New Zealand.
As the children and families struggle with ongoing earthquakes in Christchurch I am again reminded about the amazing job that the dedicated staff at Windsor do in providing a positive and challenging learning environment.
Kia Kaha Christchurch and Windsor!
Neill from Belfast June 2011
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