The MA Ed blog for curriculum lads

Kelly starts by defining curriculum, but this is more difficult than you would first think.

Should the curriculum be defined as what should be learned or the skills that should be developed.

Kelly says the most dangerous fallacy is that the knowledge content of the curriculum is paramount.

This would be a useful paper to consider the idea that we know a lot about curriculum theory, but for some reason we choose not to put it into practice. Kelly would argue that the curriculum designers have an ulterior motive.

This is a great video which tries to introduce how Web 2.0 is different from older linear thinking and writing.

The best bit is that the responsibility for organising the world comes back to the individual rather than reliance on external groups (government, school, Google, Microsoft)

The video is embedded after the fold.

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This is a diagram from Kathy Sierra - It shows the problem with the way we view curriculum change

Sometimes you need a revolution to get over the wall.

This was the paper that started all the change for me – I first read it just before getting involved with the \clc project at Middleton.

It challenges what we are doing in education.

Some useful quotes

“…a belief that is we are to build world class schools for a knowledge society then it is not sufficient to merely tinker with existing structures.”

Read it again and again

You can get it here

David Huffaker pdf

Kids use blogs more than adults.  They can be used for educational reasons as they empwer the user to create (publish) work directky to th Internet.

Huffaker says that they can increase literacy by increasing the use of storytelling

He also mentions the idea of digital fluency – how comfortable people are in the use of technology.

Mentions weblogg-ed

by Mitchel Resnik – pdf cited

Resnik says we need to update our model of education to prepare students for the future.  In particular to think of computers as aiding the creative process, rather than just making existing teaching happen faster or more efficiently.  This give kids the independance to think creatively.

This post is Richard’s essay plan developing as he thinks of things.

Title – How far does our understanding of curriculum and learning prepare students for the challenges of the 21st century?

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Reflective Professional Development

An Initial Task – 6 things about me

A Reflective Review – due 9th January

Innovation in Teaching and Learning

Essay outline – due 15th December

Essay – How far does our understanding of curriculum and learning prepare students for the challenges of the 21st century – due 26th January

I cdnuolt blveiee that I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd what I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in what oredr the ltteers in a word are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is that the firstand last ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can still raed it wouthit a porbelm. This is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the word as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

We saw the Shift Happens videos yesterday.

Thought I would give you the links so you can find them again easily.

Shift Happens, Shift Happens (UK)

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