Term One Reflections 2015

With one term down now is the perfect time to look back and identify what has worked and suggest some areas for growth ahead of Term Two. It has undoubtedly been a busy time but in the midst of that have emerged ideas that have really worked and our new programmes have had the desired impact in getting the students started. So in no particular order here are my reflections for term one 2015.

1. Stand Up Meetings - Early in term we decided to implement a daily stand-up meeting with the goal of providing a time each day to share ideas and discuss the day ahead. With a new team member, new programmes for Science, History and Mathematics on top of English programmes that had been updated significantly to integrate with the other new programmes it was set to be a busy time with a lot to stay on top of. These meetings have been a definite success and have allowed us to come together as a supportive team. One of the strengths has been the sharing of what is working well within a programme and the ability for others to adopt strategies that helped a team member deliver a successful lesson. The side benefit of these meetings is that each team member has embraced the opportunity to run a ‘morning lines’ with the students and this has resulted in sessions with more meaning than was present when ownership of this time was shared across five teachers. 'Morning lines' is a short assembly used for distributing messages, it still does this but now it includes reflections on the topics we cover, discussion of pastoral care matters and strategies for effective learning delivered with a personal flair unique to each of us. 

2. Real Science - One of the biggest changes has occurred with the introduction of the New Science Curriculum. Our goal for Term One was to have the students engage in true scientific inquiry linked to an exploration of rapid changes at the earths surface due to events such as earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, bush fires and droughts. After an initial period of exploration and research students were given the challenge of creating experiments that would explore their chosen event in greater detail. At this stage we had little idea of what the students might come up with and while we had back-up plans we knew at this stage we would need to remove ourselves from the process. We did not want this to become ‘science by numbers’ where the students simply follow a recipe. The results have been pleasing and the students have risen to the challenge with some quality scientific thinking. Not everything went to plan and some groups in the end had to report that their experiments produced somewhat inconclusive data but in each case they have shown high order thinking fuelled by reflection on what each phase of experimentation revealed. By approaching the task in a cyclical manner with planning, followed by experimenting, followed by reflection then more planning before further experimentation students saw how scientists build and refine their understanding over time.

(1901). Poster "Don't be in such a hurry gentlemen!". To do with Enabling Acts 1896 leading to 1897 Convention. Deakin Collection. 1901 - http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/22431900

(1901). Poster "Don't be in such a hurry gentlemen!". To do with Enabling Acts 1896 leading to 1897 Convention. Deakin Collection. 1901 - http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/22431900

3. History - We decided to embrace the new History syllabus this term as the changes to Science dictated a rethink of our Units of Inquiry. The result has been a programme that begins with an in-depth look at the reasons for Australia’s  Federation and moves onto exploring the structures of Australian democracy and Government. We are half way through this programme now and will continue next term with visits to Canberra as part of our camp. Students are enjoying the study thus far and their ability to understand historic concepts is pleasing. As a concluding performance of understanding linked to Federation students engaged in a debate of the issues as perceived by each colony. The result revealed a deep understanding of the issues confronted by the colonies as they debated Federation leading up to 1901 and the passion the students applied to their colony’s perspective was impressive.

4. Mathematics - A shift towards an inquiry approach to mathematics has lifted students’ engagement with the subject and allowed us to build a deeper understanding of the concepts. With less time spent on repetitions students are spending more time applying their knowledge and using skills from one strand in another as they solve and create problems with genuine relevance. From re-designing the playground to using real world data in explorations of directed number, distance and speed students have seen the immediate applicability and interconnectedness of their learning. Having students take on the task of creating challenging mathematical questions for their peers to solve has added a new dimension and another opportunity to demonstrate understanding. 

Artwork by Year Six student completed as part of Optional Homework

Artwork by Year Six student completed as part of Optional Homework

5. Optional Homework - Late in term I asked my students to share what they were most enjoying about their time in Year Six, almost all said homework. This term we decided to offer students an option to design part of their homework. The goal was to give them a choice and a say in how they spent their time. We hoped that this would allow students to pursue a personal interest and to take ownership in their learning. We felt that dictating what homework was done and enforcing its completion with detentions or the like was counterproductive and denied the students an opportunity to develop responsibility. The results have been in most cases fantastic. Students have taken on a rich variety of projects each on a scale that can be completed in a week. We have had artworks, poetry, comedy, animations, coding, cooking, journals, websites, short films and documentaries. Feedback from parents has been positive with many stating that homework is no longer a chore as their children take on responsibility for managing it themselves. Part of the success of the overall programme has been a result of keeping some set items and always providing the option of a teacher set task. This option has been used by students when they either can’t think of a better option or don’t have the time that a self selected task requires. The next phase of this will be to add a more deliberate process of reflection to allow students to identify what they have learned from a particular task.

6. Genius Hour and Parent Partnerships - For 2015 we are shifting from a Personal Passion Project (PPP) that was completed during Term Four to a Genius Hour project that will run throughout the year. Based on the lessons learned with the PPP we have revised our processes for introducing the Genius Hour project and created new planning guides for students to use. This process has been an excellent opportunity for us to reflect on what has worked for us in the past and to combine that with ideas from ‘Design Thinking’ and project management. As a team we engaged with the process of designing the new programme as phase one of our Action Research project. Our ideas have been shared through Google Docs and we were able to engage colleagues from the senior school in this process incorporating their expertise in design thinking. So far we have introduced students to the concepts of project management and design by calling on parent experts. We have been fortunate to have three parents give an hour of their time to share their expertise with the students and called on a large number of parents to assist with a visit to the Powerhouse Museum so the students could see great designs. Next term we move on to the serious phase of the programme as students plan their projects guided by a modified version of “The Design Thinking of Educators’ guide produced by IDEO. By the middle of next term students should have moved from big ideas powered by ‘How might we questions’ through to a workable plan with timelines, resource lists and a clear concept of what success will look like and require. Along the way students will take on the task of gathering peer feedback on their ideas, pitching their ideas to their teachers and refining their plans. It should be an exciting process and one that we hope produces spectacular results.

7. Growth Mindsets – I have introduced the concept of ‘Growth Mindsets’ and the writings of Carol Dweck to students and parents and while it is early days the results are positive. It is a concept that resonates with learners as they struggle with how to measure their success and learn from the times when it does not go as planned. We have started with the idea that fail should be read as F.A.I.L. or first attempt in learning. Over the term I have spoken the students about these ideas on a number of occasions and it is nice to see some using this sort of language in their reflections. As a school we were able to give a Monday Meeting over to the discussion of Carol’s writing and talk of developing growth mindsets is spreading. It has been interesting to discuss this with parents and many have encountered the concept through their professional lives and are keen to share their perspective.

8. The Learner’s Way - This blog you are reading now has become a tool for reflection and engagement with educational ideas. One of my personal goals has been to post to this site on a weekly basis regardless of how busy the week may be. It has allowed me to share my ideas and those developed from the books and other blogs I read with an audience. Some of the more popular postings include one on Finland’s approach to handwriting, reflections on the idea that knowing is obsolete and the future of schools. A post made late last year documenting our eight years of experience with Personal Passion Projects was well received along with an article on Carol Dweck’s concept of growth mindsets. For me blogging has become a powerful tool for reflection and thinking about my teaching and teaching in general and is a strategy I recommend highly. 

9. An Excellent Team – I am blessed to work with a team of teachers willing to try new methods, to adopt new technologies and share their ideas and passions while critically reflecting on their practice. Teaching is easy when you are surrounded by people who genuinely care about the quality of learning that occurs in their classrooms and are eager to operate as part of a team. 

By Nigel Coutts

The future of Schools

Ask the average adult to describe a school and you are likely to get similar responses. There will be a focus on the places and spaces in which their education occurred, the teachers who taught, the rows of desks, the daily schedule of classes and breaks. They may reflect on the subjects they enjoyed and those they didn’t. If you asked the same question of your typical octogenarian the response would be similar and if you could travel back in time you would receive a similar response from those whose experience of school would not include electric light. It makes you wonder what makes a school and what might a school be like?

Karl Weick the organisational theorist wrote in 1976 an article titled ‘Educational organizations as loosely coupled systems’ in which he asks the questions ‘Why do all educational organisations look the way they do, and why do they all look the same?’ He suggests that the common structural and organisational elements in schools are not a result of the true task of education but a consequence of the certification and registration process. The implication being that if schools were designed to best serve their fundamental task they would look different and there would be differences between schools as a result of their intentions and purposes.

The unflattering description of the physical layout of most schools reveals much in common with factories. Raw product enters at one end, is acted upon through set processes and at the opposite end of the factory processed products exit ready for the workforce. Along the way the child learns how to fit into society, how to complete core tasks required for dutiful citizenship and is presented with the knowledge of content expected of an educated person. Pink Floyd’s gruesome portrayal of a school as a production line for humans resonated with its audience not only for its gore but also its metaphorical accuracy. Thankfully schools have a greater calling and are moving away from this archaic model.

The modern classroom is a space full of light and colour, with flexible furnishings and a degree of comfort not present in the classrooms many adults recall. Students are encouraged to take charge of the space and arrange its physicality to meet their needs. Design decisions are based around engagement, creativity, expression, imagination and an understanding of education as an active process that the student chooses to engage with. So important is the physical space that authors and architects for education OWP/P published a book titled ‘The Third Teacher’ as a tome for anyone wishing to enhance the effectiveness of their learning spaces. 

In this classroom you will likely find the teacher located somewhere amongst the students. The role of the teacher is transforming from the deliverer of content and enforcer of behavioural norms to one of facilitator of learning. Learning as an educational term is under re-evaluation as the profession and society considers what it means to learn. Once defined through connections to the recall of facts and the application of formulas and methods, learning is now seen through a wider lens. Learning is a process that you must learn to do, a process that involves imagination, problem finding, questioning, design thinning, collaboration, reflection and knowledge creation. The modern teacher is skilled in enabling dispositions, attitudes, habits of mind and thinking skills within their diverse learners. A successful lesson will be one that generates a new list of questions, not a set of answers. 

The students in this classroom are adept at asking questions but they do not expect easy answers and they do not rely on their teachers to be the source of their learning. They approach their learning with a sense of possibility and openness that the students in the Pink Floyd clip have had beaten out of them. They should experience a learning system that encourages creativity and prepares them for a world that will value them for their ability to find problems and solve them in unique ways.

What might the school day be like? The ever creative Finns are exploring a model of learning that does away with traditional subjects. Students instead of discretely studying mathematics or language will explore themes with opportunities to develop a wide mix of dispositions and skills around the exploration of central ideas. This model of themed learning is described as having more in common with how individuals learn outside of a school-based setting where they operate within a group to explore a set of closely linked ideas and find solutions to the problems they encounter along the way. Such a change will bring with it fundamental adjustments to the timetabling of the school day, the structure of schools around faculties and the compartmentalisation of knowledge that comes with this. The skill set of the art teacher, the mathematician, the scientist and the language specialist will be combined around a central theme with the students benefiting from the sharing of knowledge that this model creates as their teachers collaborate. 

If the process of modernising schools identifies a clear intent for schools with an equally clear model for how this is best achieved will schools still all look the same? Will a shift from schools as factories for the fodder of the industrial age workforce to a focus on the production of creative problem finders and solvers produce a greater variety of schools? Will Weick see a diversity of organisational structures? As we shift from the one-model fits all system of the past to a new model that celebrates flexibility and individuality will this be reflected by a diversity of school systems that follow? Will there be a common experience of school in the future or will the loosely connected structures, tasks, intents and people of a yet to be invented educational model centred on the networked individual even form an organisation that we can meaningfully refer to as a school?

By Nigel Coutts

 

If knowing is obsolete. . .

Speaking in 2013 at ‘TED’ Sugata Mitra (2013) posed the question ‘Could it be that at the point in time when you need to know something, you can find out in two minutes? Could it be that we are heading towards or maybe in a time when knowing is obsolete?’. This question has merit and far reaching implications for education. 

A range of factors make this question worth exploring. Firstly is the matter of what we teach and the curriculum documents we follow. For those in Australia we have the new syllabus to implement and while this makes progress in some regards by placing such things as concepts and skills at the centre of our focus there remains a good degree of content to be taught. Secondly the technology that makes it possible to ‘know’ something on demand is with us today. Through the devices we carry with us, with the resources of the Internet and thanks to the power of search it is possible to find any chunk of knowledge whenever and wherever it is needed. 

Speaking to a group of Year Six students the director of digital for a large Australian telco described the near future of technology. He started with a brief history of technology and described in pictures how computers have changed from the time he was a teen experiencing computing for the first time to the technology we all carry with us today. He described how Gordon Moore of Intel had predicted a doubling of chip speeds every two years and how this came to be known as ‘Moore’s Law’. He demonstrated how computing technology has continued to shrink and described how this has allowed for technology that we can not only carry in a pocket but also wear. If the tech companies are right and wearables begin to gain traction in the market our reliance on ‘knowing’ will only further decrease. Once the watch or glasses that I wear are able to provide me with the answer to my knowledge based questions why would I burden my memory with these details?

The New Media Consortium, Horizon Report: 2014 K-12 Edition identifies Wearable Technology as one of the important developments in technology for school with a time to adoption in the four to five year category. Wearable technology is defined by the report as technology that can be worn in the form of jewelry, sunglasses, backpacks or items of clothing. The impact is described as being most significant in the enhancement of field trips and excursions and augmented reality. But this ignores the great ease of access to information that this style of device offers and ignores the potential for these devices to provide context aware notifications. How far can it be from a time when my watch or my glasses prompts me with potentially relevant ‘knowledge’ based on the data it is gathering from my environment, my online presence and the online presence of the people and things around me.

As we move towards a Web 3.0 world we will increasingly rely on machine learning to access and present data from diverse sources, including an expanding ‘Internet of Things’ in ways that we are able to make use of. The early signs of an internet populated by articles and sources created purely by computer are the ‘Knowledge Graph’ results Google provides and the emergence of articles written by algorithms. The ‘Knowledge Graph’ presents information based on a search query and compiled from a mix of sources as a result of Google’s algorithms. Steven Levy wrote an article for ‘Wired’ titled ‘Can an algorithm write a better news story than a human reporter?’ in which he describes technology produced by ‘Narrative Science’ that produces articles based on the data fed to its algorithms. A BBC report from 2014 describes the writing of an article for the LA Times that is reportedly the first written for a newspaper by a robot. The challenge for machine generated content will be finding an audience for the content that is generated and most likely this will be facilitated by models of content delivery where the information finds its user rather than relying on the user finding the content.

The implications of the evolution of technology, of search, machine learning and of ubiquitous access to knowledge are yet to be fully understood and explored but are part of the rationale for Ian Jukes to declare, while speaking at EduTech in Brisbane in 2014, that knowledge work or routine cognitive work will become a thing of the past at least in Western nations and that schools need to stop preparing students for jobs that will not exist. We need a greater emphasis on what Ian and others refer to as ‘Long Life Skills’ (creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, problem solving and social intelligence) and an ability for individuals and even groups to learn and unlearn the skills required for specific tasks. New opportunities for enterprise bring with them new challenges for learners e.g the birth and growth of the app developer. But this does not mean we teach app design in the same way we taught grammar, the skills needed now will be outmoded by next year or sooner, according to Ian we need teach the mind set required for app design.

Ian says ‘Our present system is not broken, it is obsolete, outmoded. We cannot make little modifications, it is time to redesign’ and that if schools are in the content delivery business then we are going to be out of work soon. Looking for the silver lining in this the future of education and of teaching is exciting. Freed of the need to teach content we can focus on teaching what matters most, what excites and challenges our students and builds capacity for creativity, knowledge creation and innovation. 

By Nigel Coutts

 

 

 

 

 

Schools, learning, innovation and student futures

For all of us, learning was an innate part of life. It was something we just did, that was as natural to us as breathing. If not for this innate desire to learn and with it the ability to do so, we would never learn to walk, or speak or interact with others.

But at some point learning stops being something we do and becomes more like something that happens to us. Our initial self-drive to learn is replaced by learning as a part of our life that is highly regulated, controlled, monitored and externalised. For some people this compartmentalisation of our lives with learning as a self contained piece that takes place inside of schools results in the belief that it is something we can opt out of. 

Learning becomes the ability to absorb and make use of information and skills that are presented to us in a manner that another person or group of people decides is best. Learning becomes something we do in a specific place and at a specific time, for a set number of years and via a lockstep sequence with a group of peers sharing a common age.

From this model of learning comes a string of consequences. It separates learning from the control of the individual, it places the decision making process about learning priorities into the hands of others and it dictates what is and is not success. It divides us into people who are skilled at learning and those who are not skilled at it according to this model and subsequently for the first time it forces us to evaluate our ability to learn. This assessment of our ability to learn and indeed our ability in general is placed into the hands of others and this assessment of us by others for many plays a critical role in determining our self worth. 

All of this does not stop learning from happening outside this controlled environment. Children continue to play games, to learn from their peers, to discover ideas for themselves, but this model does separate and devalue this learning from the supposedly real learning that occurs in schools. 

Many have written and spoken about the current education paradigm as being modeled around the needs of the industrial revolution; that schools are modeled after factories with students entering as raw product, teachers performing the routine labour of transferring information and skills and adults leaving at the other end as product ready for the needs of the industry.  It is also well documented that the world we once prepared children for no longer exists. Through a mix of economic forces, changing priorities, technological change and globalisation our children will leave school requiring a different skill set marked by an ability to creatively identify opportunities and develop creative solutions to capitalise on these. In his book ‘Creating Innovators’ Tony Wagner describes the mindset and orientation of an individual prepared for this world. He identifies what is required to be an innovator as ‘some of the qualities of innovators that I now understand as essential such as perseverance, a willingness to experiment, take calculated risks, and tolerate failure, and the capacity for design thinking, in addition to critical thinking.’ These are not skills developed through even the most judicious application of a ‘chalk and talk’ methodology which while less prevalent today remains a common pedagogy. A similar set of skills required of the innovator is offered by Tim Brown CEO of IDEO writing for Harvard Business Review and cited by Tony Wagner, is ‘empathy, integrative thinking (the ability to see all the salient and sometimes contradictory aspects of a problem), optimism, experimentalism and collaboration. Tim states that ‘My experience is that many people outside professional design have a natural aptitude for design thinking, which the right developmentand experiences can unlock.’  Sir Ken Robinson’s often cited comment on creativity and education reveals his beliefs on why there are not more people leaving school equipped with the skills of the innovator: ‘I believe this passionately: that we don't grow into creativity, we grow out of it. Or rather, we get educated out if it’.

Through a series of interviews with successful innovators Tony Wagner describes the forces and people that shaped them and influenced their development. In most cases these influencers fell outside of the normal systems of school and college, educators and mentors described as ‘outliers’ by Tony, educators who despite the system, manage to encourage young innovators to follow their passion and seek out challenges that matter. 

Ian Jukes is another educator calling for change to educational systems. At ‘Edutech’ in Brisbane last year, he described the disappearance from western nations of careers based upon routine cognitive tasks, the traditional office jobs which are so easily relocated to countries with cheap labour. Tony Wagner echoes this ‘A growing number of our good-paying blue-collar and even white-collar jobs are now being done in other countries that have increasingly well-educated and far-less-expensive labour forces’. Ian calls for an educational paradigm through which students develop an ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn and to do so rapidly. Students leave this system not with a pool of knowledge but with what Ian calls ‘Headware skills’ creative skills that are rapidly adaptable and within the control of the individual. Ian calls for educational systems to not just shift teachings to new ideas delivered in the same mode but for a shift in the focus towards providing opportunities for students to become creative problem finders and solvers. As an example a school may identify the emerging App economy and desire to teach students this new skill but this does not mean we teach app design in the same way we taught grammar, the skills needed now will be outmoded by next year or sooner, we need to teach the mindset required for app design; a problem solving, design process with inquiry skills and the ability to quickly learn and unlearn skills to suit the needs of the task.

To meet these challenges and to ensure the learner is at the centre of the learning with a voice and opportunities to self-assess and self-direct, schools need to change focus. Ian describes two sets of skills, short life and long life. Short life skills are the ones that quickly become redundant or outdated. Long life skills are creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, problem solving and social intelligence and have value to the individual even as circumstances change. These are the skills schools need to develop but these skills will not develop in a system where the teacher is a content delivery mechanism.

They may be developed in a system that embraces Sugata Mitra’s view of learning as an 'edge of chaos phenomenon'. In this, the individual is provided with opportunities to discover and solve problems that matter but in allowing learners to imagine the problems, the control and organisation loved by too many schools is lost.  Only by understanding that the value of these experiences lies in the life long skills that students will apply and experience and by not focusing on the content lessons missed as a result of the chaos will schools truly prepare their students for the tomorrow that already exists just outside their classrooms. When schools do this, maybe learning will remain an innate and natural part of ones life.

By Nigel Coutts

Personal Passion Project - Reflections After Eight Years

For the past eight years my students in Year Six have participated in a Personal Passion Project during Term Four. It is a way to finish their time in Junior School with a project that connects their passion with all they have learned about managing inquiry/design based projects to that point. Over the years it has proven to be a highlight of the year and has produced amazing results. With a change to the Australian & NSW syllabus we have had to revise our approach to the Personal Passion Project and so now is the perfect time to reflect on the past and identify the lessons learned.

Firstly a little history, in 2007 Redlands was in the final stages of an experiment with Middle Schooling. Years Six, Seven and Eight were involved and the key difference between the middle school and a traditional primary school was that students spent most of their day in one of two classes; Humanities and Sciences. Teachers worked in pairs with one taking the two classes for Humanities and the other taking these same classes for Sciences. Each teacher had one of these classes as their 'Homeroom' class with a pastoral focus. This model worked well as the team of two teachers knew the students in their classes well and was able to share insights and perspectives about the students that might have been missed by one teacher working alone.

My 2007 homeroom class contained the year group's top cluster of students, at this time we partially streamed classes. These students were naturally high achievers with some unique personalities and quirky interests. By the time Term Four arrived I needed to offer them an alternative to the homework they were used to, something that would challenge their abilities and motivate them to show what they were capable of. My idea was to offer the option of a 'Personal Passion Project' as a homework task. I had expected only a few to take up the offer, in the end the whole class did and the degree of enthusiasm was such that I needed to find time within the timetable to allow the students to work on and share their developing projects.

The idea of a 'Personal Passion Project' was not unique in 2007 but was less common than it is now. Ideas like ‘Google's 20% Time’ were not well known in Education nor was the term 'Genius Hour' commonly used. How to best structure and support a Personal Passion Project was not something I had given much thought to as I really did not think many students would take the option. The result was that the class and I sort of fell into the project and learned as we went along. A key to the success at this point was the collaboration that took place between the students. Without prompting from me they were encouraging and supporting each other through the projects. This collaboration ensured that deadlines were met and that individuals never felt overwhelmed by the scale of what they had taken on.

The results of this first year showed the potential of the concept. I had students designing and making horse blankets, creating dance costumes, exploring architecture, writing books of poetry, investigating aerodynamics and writing short stories. What impressed me most was the depth of understanding the students were able to demonstrate at the end of the projects. The students had solved real problems, applied the design cycle and managed their time effectively; they demonstrated all of the skills I hoped my students might have developed after seven years of formal education.

At the end of this year I had the opportunity to chat with a Year Six teacher from a nearby school. I heard of how difficult the students had become in the last weeks of the year. As I taught two Year Six classes I could relate to this experience but only for the class not involved in the Personal Passion Project. For the class that had been involved the experience was very different. While one class was moving into holiday mode the other class was at their most engaged. Late in the final week of term we spent a morning sharing our projects and discussing the process. I asked the class 'should I do this next year?' and the resounding response was 'yes'. The general feeling was that this was the best thing they had done at school.

The signs were positive and when I shared my experiences from this pilot programme with my colleagues in 2008 they were keen to give it a go. This time all of year six would take on a Personal Passion Project during Term Four. This would require some additional planning and as this was now a core piece of our teaching would require more detailed programming. This was also our first year back in Junior School with a traditional one teacher per class model. This first year was a great success in many ways but there were also lots of lessons to be learned in a short period of time. Fortunately thanks to a skilled group of teachers and enthusiastic students we were able to solve most of the little problems that came along. 

The Personal Passion Projects have produced an enormous variety of projects, too many to list. There are those that recur each year and others that are truly unique. It is the projects that fall furthest from what one expects of a Year Six student or are least likely to be covered in a traditional syllabus that stand out. Projects like these:

In 2012 two projects stood out; one as it was the sort of project that at first I thought was going to be too difficult, the other because it was quite unexpected. The first student decided he wanted to build a laser CNC engraving machine from old printers. What impressed me from the outset was that he knew exactly how he would make it work and what difficulties he would encounter along the way including how he would control the movement of his laser in two axis and how he would program it. In the end it worked almost as expected and if not for some last minute issues with the laser being fried by excessive voltage, would have been perfect. The second was a project to explore low cost emergency housing for cold climate situations. This became a highly scientific investigation of the insulation properties of a range of recycled materials.

In 2014 a student in my class decided he would make a guide to creating an ‘Internet Start Up’ company. His final product was exceptionally well produced and based on detailed research into the strategies that would allow a company to grow rapidly and adapt to unseen or changing circumstances. His work impressed me but more importantly it impressed the many parents with a business background who could fully understand the quality of his recommendations.

Some projects have proven popular such as making a skateboard or surfboard. The most recent adaptation of this has been a student using 3D software to design his surfboard and then investigating options to have this 3D printed. There have also been a number of outstanding efforts at recycling furniture or creating new fashions from pre-loved clothes. Greatest success has come where the students have had a clear vision for their designs.

For some students the Personal Passion Project has been their first taste of real success at school. While we tend to steer students away from projects that involve a more technical ‘make’ aspect due to the limitations of working in a junior school; however, we have made exceptions to this rule. One boy who was passionate about surfing set to the task of making a surfboard using traditional methods of foam and fiberglass. Working with a member of our Senior School Design and Technology department he was able to do this. This was a student who had struggled to produce quality work in the classroom but on this project set and achieved the highest standards for quality. He learned that by taking a risk and giving attention to every detail he could achieve success and we all learned that the right project and the right environment will allow students to achieve great things.

There are also notable examples of where students have taken on more traditional projects but produced results beyond expectation. In 2007 one girl decided to write a piece of music and record this using software. For a school with a strong music programme this is not so out of the ordinary but this girl had little interest in computers before this project and needed to teach herself ‘Sibelius’, a highly technical piece of professional software. The result was amazing, was produced to the highest of technical standards and in its simple beauty hides the complexity of thinking behind it.

Another is an exploration of ‘Conceptual Art’.  The finished artwork demonstrated high levels of creativity and a keen understanding of the genre. What was most surprising here was that the student selected a project outside of his comfort zone while he could have used his exceptional talent for writing and ensured himself a successful and less challenging end of year. The final piece incorporated video, audio, sculpture, re-cycled materials and performance art in a way that described the artists journey towards maturity.  Read his history of Conceptual Art

There have been a number of books written through the Personal Passion Project but two stand out as examples of the surprising talents this can reveal. One was a book of poems written and illustrated by a student in 2007. This students attention to detail and desire for perfection bordered on obsession but in this project she used these personality quirks to great effect and produced a refined product of simple beauty and emotional depth. The other standout book was produced last year by a young author who wrote her first novel 'Aftermath'. She used her writing to develop a compelling story that draws her readers into a dystopian world that seems all too real. Read or Download 'Aftermath'

The Personal Passion Project has been enhanced for many students through ongoing reference to the Design Cycle and many students are able to fluidly move from one phase of this cycle to another as appropriate to their investigation. We introduce this cycle in Term One but the Personal Passion Project is the first time where students are applying this with complete independence. We display this cycle in our classrooms and have a copy on the website that accompanies the project. - Redlands Year Six

Graphic courtesy of ©International Baccalaureate 2007.- http://www.ibo.org/

Graphic courtesy of ©International Baccalaureate 2007.- http://www.ibo.org/

 

Over the years we have continued to refine the processes we apply to the Personal Passion Project. We have gained insights into the sorts of projects that work well and which will cause difficulties. We have added a degree of structure while maintaining the required degree of freedom necessary for a personalised project. The results of this learning are presented below.

1. Be prepared to be amazed - The quality of the students projects will go beyond what you expect. This is particularly important when a student comes to you with a grand idea that seems too hard or overly complex. If the student has the right level of passion for the project and an idea for how they will get started they will more than likely complete the project and complete it well.

2. Don't let your fears get in the way - The students are almost certainly going to select topics that you have no knowledge of and don't have the skills to support. At this point it could be easy to let your fears and insecurities get in the way. The best way to move forward is to listen to the student; do they know what they are doing? do they know which questions they need to answer? what problems they need to solve? If the answers to all of this are positive, start looking for an expert to help when times get tough.

3. Some students need a push in the right direction - Some students will come up with projects that are too simple with answers that could be easily Googled. We introduced the students to 'High Order Thinking Skills' and built these into the planning forms students complete. Projects need to include elements of synthesis, evaluation and creativity with the minimum requirement adjusted for individuals. We provide students with a list of verbs appropriate for the top levels of Bloom's taxonomy and help them use these in framing their topics.

4. Some students design a project that has nothing to do with their passion - A student might have a passion for surfing and decide they are going to write a book about the history of the sport. The problem is they have designed a project where they will need to be a historian, a researcher, a writer and you know they don't enjoy doing any of this. Maybe with the right topic they will gain a wider interest in these things but most likely they will quickly dream of days at the beach.

5. Some projects are just not possible - It can be hard to say no to a project but some are just not feasible. A classic example is the student who wants to design a better tennis racquet by selecting the right mix of shape and materials. The problem is that the modern tennis racquet uses high tech composites and even with million dollar R&D budgets the differences between one design and the next is hard to prove. 

6. Time and Scale - Some projects will clearly take longer than you have available, others are simply too large in scale or will rely on the involvement of too many people. Setting manageable goals and working to an achievable timeframe is important. At the same time you need to ensure that the concerns over time constraints are genuine. Creating a detailed timeline with estimates of how long each phase will take is beneficial on many levels at this stage. For the students the conversations around how long the project will take can include some rewarding reflection on how they approach tasks and can assist in their development of an understanding of their learning style. Some students need time to talk about their project and unpack ideas socially, others need quiet time to think through the steps, some just dive in and fix mistakes and redirect their plans as they go.

7. Too many changes - One of the challenges for some students has been the ever changing project. They select one topic, discover they don’t like it or encounter a problem they can’t easily solve and change to another topic. A week later and the process repeats. Setting a definite deadline after which there can be no changes is important. In the end the students work out that they have to make their ideas work.

8. Just enough planning - Over the years we refined the level of planning the students were required to do before commencing on their projects in earnest. The initial version required great detail and length processes for developing focus questions and setting targets. For some students and some projects it worked well but for others it got in the way. Eventually we got to a point where the planning had just enough detail, so we know the students have an understanding of their project and that we can support them along the way. View our simplified planning template

9. Relying on experts and building a team - Many of the projects students have explored over the years fall outside of the expertise of their teachers. I have no idea how to sew for example and have been of equally little help to students who are basing their projects around dance or music. Across the school we have found amazing partners with the skills we needed and in most cases they are keen to spend time with a student who they share a passion with. Building a team of support around the project is key to its ultimate success. Being mindful of the workload within this team is also important. We have had some colleagues so keen to help that they become overloaded and although they never complained we had to be careful in managing the demands on their time.

10. Collaboration & Self Organised Learning - Because this is a Personal Passion Project we have not included team projects. Nevertheless collaboration between students is an important part of many projects. Where possible foster the opportunities for collaboration while allowing each student to maintain control of their project. The power of collaboration will lift the quality of the projects as students share ideas and encourage each other to go beyond expectations. Collaboration will also solve some of the problems with projects outside the teacher’s comfort zone. This year I had a group of students focused on game development and their ultimate success was a direct result of the community of like-minded learners they created around their projects. This is a perfect demonstration of students adopting a self organised learning environment as they connect with their passions. 

11. The invisible safety net – For the Personal Passion Project finding the right levels of scaffolding, teacher input and guidance is one of the challenges. We want the students to feel that they are working independently while maintaining an appropriate level of support. In many ways we are wanting to provide an invisible safety net that allows the students to take risks independently while having the support they require.

12. Documenting the process and ensuring time for reflection - Giving time to active reflection on the process has been important. Students need to be able to take a step back and assess what they have achieved and what remains to be accomplished. Sharing these ideas with peers is most beneficial and allows you to train the students in reflecting on their learning and in giving feedback to their peers. The act of reflecting on the process has also benefitted many students when it is time to share their projects with the world as their audience is as interested in the process as they are in the product. This is particularly true for projects where the process is not obvious or is underestimated by the audience. A good example is game design projects in which the finished product does not reveal the level of knowledge and effort that was required.

13. Real Audiences – For all learning adding a real audience for the students is critical, too much of what students do is produced for an audience of one. For the Personal Passion Project presenting to an audience in the end of term ‘Gallery Walk’ has been critical in ensuring the success of the projects. The students gain a real sense of achievement from this day and the feedback is always genuinely positive.

For 2015 we are planning to move to a ‘Genius Hour’ model with students engaging in a scaffolded programme of project management skill development throughout Semester One that leads into planning for and completing a Personal Passion Project across Semester Two. The difference will be that the learning experience will be distributed across the year, one hour per week. We hope that this fits with the demands of the new syllabus from a time perspective while retaining the best parts of the present model. Certainly at the end of the year we will reflect and share what has been learned.

By Nigel Coutts