I was fortunate to be a presenter at the National Forum: Teachers Making a Difference in Melbourne on 28 November.
Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme (AGQTP) is a $300 million flagship initiative for supporting quality teaching and school leadership. Its primary function is to “fund professional learning activities for teachers under agreements with state and territory government and non-government education authorities.”
I was fortunate to be a presenter at the National Forum: Teachers Making a Difference in Melbourne on 28 November.
This gave me the opportunity to showcase research conducted throughout 2006. I presented as a compliment to Jenni Proctor another teacher from Mary MacKillop Primary Birkdale. We were a part of the Building an Inquiry Culture team from Catholic Education Queensland. AGQTP funded this professional learning activity for teachers.
Both Jenni and I conducted Appreciative Inquiries.
Jenni undertook to “ascertain the impact that middle schooling practices have on the engagement of students and the effectiveness of their organising the school’s annual career awareness day.”
I explored the empowering relationship Visual Literacy has to Literacy and Numeracy. “The school has a history of successful Career Education so both projects used the context of the day and worked together to create a Visioning Wall. (Picture)
Throughout 2007 I will be exploring many aspects of this presentation and further explaining the context, the process and findings. This is an ongoing inquiry.
Teacher inquiry is also known as reflective practice. It is hoped that professional development programs will encourage teachers to be more reflective and research oriented in their work. I found the approach beneficial.
The Inquiry opened up the professional world for me because I was publicly encouraged to explore the potential of the Creative Arts to “Power Up The Curriculum.” The process enabled me to establish links and working partnerships with other teachers such as Jenni and this encouraged the creative potential of our students to be unleashed. You can see this reflected in the beautiful Visioning Wall.
Partnerships with the parents also flourished in this fertile environment of collaboration. David West a Graphic Artist and a parent of two of our students coordinated much of the artistic side of the Visioning Wall project. Many parents came forward to talk with the children about the Literacies and Competencies that are a part of their chosen career pathways. The children themselves scripted and choreographed their dramatic contribution at the opening of the day.
It will be a challenge to keep this creative momentum going and to record the effect it has on all aspects of the curriculum.
