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Thursday, March 27, 2014

PD in your weekend? Why would you bother?



                                           (photo source http://www.flickr.com/)

This post could also be titled, who would you give up your Sunday sleep in for? Or invite to dinner? 
Well that's easy.  Barack and Michelle, Richie ( of course) Sir Peter Jackson, Wills and Kate, Dr Lance Sullivan, Dame Ann Salmond, Ellie Catton, Lorde...
 But another question might be who would you give up part of your weekend or holiday to go and listen to. Who do you think is worth listening to?

Last year I went to the Elmwood bowling club to listen to Martin Crowe speak about his battle with cancer and his life as a NZ cricket legend. Yes it was a book launch, but he shared some insights into his life and talked about playing in cricket matches I had seen or listened to. I really enjoyed these few glimpses into his life.  Another person I heard speak at the Christchurch Cathedral was Terry Waite. I sat in the aisle and listened to an extraordinary story of courage, survival and forgiveness. I will never forget it.

However, attending educamps, lectures and workshops in the weekend(and holidays), I see this as an opportunity to connect with other educators, learn, be inspired and re-energised to teach again on Monday. I have written previous posts on the value of personal PD, some of it where I have been sitting on my deck in the sun, learning.
Events such as 
ULearn, MLE, Festival of Education, MLearn14, CoreEd breakfasts are just some of professional learning opportunities I have attended  recently. I see this as an opportunity to connect with other educators, learn, be inspired and re-energised to teach again on Monday. I have written previous posts on the value of personal PD, some of it where I have been sitting on my deck in the sun, learning.
 The opportunity to listen to international educators, sharing their views and experience is as the advert states "priceless". Over the last few months I have listened to 
Professor Stephen HeppellDr Julia Aitken, Kevin Honeycutt, Ken Shelton, Professor Steve Wheeler, Christian Long and Professor Michael Fullan. Professor Scott McLeod of the famous Shift Happens video and was a guest lecturer on one of my Masters papers at the University of Canterbury.
Add onto the list Fabulous NZ educators such as Derek Wenmoth, Mark Osborne, Karen Melhuish, Chrissie Butler, Claire Amos  and maybe you can see why I am happy to give up a few hours of my weekend to listen to presenters who I see as education heroes. 
Last weekend, I gave up my Sunday sleep-in, left the packing, drove to Wigram Airforce museum to listen to Professor Michael Fulan and Christian Long. In June, I am lucky enough to be going to a conference where Sir Ken Robinson is speaking.
I can't wait! Oh, and did I mention, I sat next to the current Education Minister on Sunday morning.
 







2013 version of Shift Happens and link to the wiki



(Waite was the Assistant for Anglican Communion Affairs for the then Archbishop of CanterburyRobert Runcie, in the 1980s. As an envoy for the Church of England, he travelled to Lebanon to try to secure the release of four hostages, including the journalist John McCarthy. He was himself kidnapped and held captive from 1987 to 1991)




Sunday, March 16, 2014

Thinking about being grateful!

Following up from the last blog post, I remembered this fabulous TED talk. I think the ideas of mediation and gratefulness go well together.


One Minute Meditation - a minute out of your busy day!


This video link came via the Chaplin at school. Great way to spend a minute in the midst of the
teaching and learning daily grind/bustle/hastle/challenge/general busyness... (fill in your own word)