Secondary teachers and schools have a lot to learn from their Primary counterparts.
Yesterday we spent the morning in 2 of our contributing schools. Yasmin, Sally, Jill and I went to Hobsonville Primary and Lisa, Kylee, Sarah and Megan went to Whenuapai. What we saw in each of these schools was great pedagogy and made us realise that our students for next year are going to be well prepared for what we are planning.
In fact, the biggest reflection point on yesterday was that what we have planned for Hobsonville Point Secondary School may be radical for Secondary but is not a big step different to what already exists in Primary schools.
In our visits yesterday we saw the following awesome stuff:
- differentiation based on self management ability – from self-directed through to teacher guided
- student and staff passions becoming part of the learning
- incredible warm but demanding relationships
- great use of Key Competencies and dispositions for learning and goal setting
- Awesome long-term projects which allow student leadership to emerge – executives, financial officers etc.
Both schools were really keen to continue a partnership and stay connected to make sure the transition is smooth for their/our students not just this year but into the future. Overall, a really positive day!
nb: For a great post on how much Secondary Schools still need to transform their practice, see Bruce Hammond’s thoughts here.
Steve Mouldey 