Episodios
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In this episode I’m speaking to Jennifer Webb. Jenny is nothing short of a legend in English teaching after writing a number of hugely beneficial books ranging from how to teach reading and writing to metacognition as well as grammar instruction for secondary professionals. On top of this, she is a constant source of insight via her in person and virtual CPD events, which encompass advice on almost every element of secondary academic life imaginable.
Following what has been an incredible couple of years for English teachers around curriculum development, I wanted to ask Jenny a number of questions about how she, the schools she works with and the departments she advises have interpreted these new ideas.
We discuss:
What Jenny thinks of organising the curriculum by concept as opposed to earlier approaches through theme or task type.How Jenny feels about the government’s pledge to improve oracy in schoolsThe extent to which kids need to learn to learn or be more meta-cognitively awareWhen considering text choices through an unapologetically ambitious lens, does Jenny mean more full texts, extracts or something else?And finally, Teach like a Writer offers insights into how English happens in an authentic context. To what extent does Jenny think kids need to be assessed by producing a text that resembles the ‘real thing’ in English.Thanks again to Jenny for offering so much insight about many of the most popular topics for discussion around at the moment. In addition to this, I hope she realises the massively positive impact she has had on the profession as well as the many ideas she she has shared that make the job all the more effective and therefore enjoyable on a daily basis.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Jenny’s books
Jenny’s (free) CPD
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In this episode, I’m talking to Eoin MacCarthaigh. This is the second in what we hope will be a long line of episodes focused on issues in and around English teaching. For anyone who hasn’t listened before, we bring forth 3 unknown issues to be discussed each, relating to things that we’ve thought, learnt or considered lately.
We discuss:
Uncertainty around the purpose of grammar and language teachingGiving students ‘choice’ x Organising English conceptsThe role of modelling in EnglishThe stratification of English skills x research and reflectionSEND students’ or routines in classAuthenticity and oracy in EnglishIf you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk and Eoin @EMCTeach
Links:
Essential Grammar by Jenny Webb and Marcello Giovanelli
Crafting Brilliant Sentences by Lindsay Skinner
Ausubel's Meaningful Learning in Action by Sarah Cottingham
Explicit English Teaching by Tom Needham
The Complete Guide to Service Learning by Cathryn Berger Kaye
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¿Faltan episodios?
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In this episode I am speaking to Shane Leaning. Shane is an organisational Coach, international educator, author and podcaster. As a prolific creator in a number of different spaces, I was keen to get Shane on to discuss what it takes and what it’s like to make the switch from teaching students to advising schools around the world.
We discuss:
1. What made Shane transition from the classroom to consultant in the first place
2. His process for making contact with potential school partners
3. Shane’s go to texts to inspire and inform him on the job
4. The current state of the private education sector in China
5. And finally the original intention for his podcast and how that has evolved over time
Thanks again to Shane for his generosity in terms of time spent chatting as well as all the content he produces via the podcast and beyond.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Putting Staff First by John Tomsett and Jonny Uttley
Change Starts Here
Global Ed Leaders podcast
The Online Marketing Made Easy Podcast
Two Weeks Notice by Amy Porterfield
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In this episode, I’m talking to Eoin MacCarthaigh. This is the first in what we hope will be a long line of episodes focused on issues in and around international English teaching. It’s important at the outset to explain that this is an unapologetic rip off another podcast that I personally love, namely Craig Barton and Ollie Lovell’s Tips and Tools for Teachers. For anyone who hasn’t heard this show, first of all it is a fantastic listen for professionals of any discipline. Specifically, the regular format is that both speakers bring forth 3 unknown issues to be discussed each, relating to things that they’ve thought, learnt or considered lately. So, here is me and Eoin’s effort at doing the same with an international English bent.
We discuss
- AI
- Oracy
- Inquiry
- Gapless instruction
- Infographics
- And lastly, whether English sits outside the insights of cognitive research
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk and Eoin @EMCTeach
Links:
Meanings and practices of inquiry-based teaching and learning in the International Baccalaureate (2022) Joseph L. Polman and Karla Scornavacco
Drew Perkins’ interview with Dylan Wiliam
Craig Barton’s interview with Adam Boxer
Bringing the English Curriculum to Life by David Didau
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In this episode I’m speaking with Professor Guy Claxton. Guy is a cognitive scientist, author and one of education’s foremost experts on practical ways of expanding young people's relationship with and capacity for learning. His most recent book, The Future of Teaching, And the Myths that Hold it Back, a work that seeks to reclaim the nuanced middle ground of teaching that develops both rigorous knowledge and ‘character’, and lay the foundations for a 21st-century education worthy of the name.
We discuss:
1. What 'good thinking' is and why there is a dearth of it in schools
2. What teachers, departments and schools can do to better attend to students' attitudes and dispositions
3. What 'expert amateurism' is and how it would challenge the current paradigm
4. Guy’s 'third way' for education or 'guided discovery’
5. How we go about convincing state schools that academic outcomes aren't everything
6. And finally, whether Guy would advocate for a move away from traditional subjects and move towards a more responsive curriculum
Thanks again to Guy for giving up time in his busy schedule to talking so broadly, passionately and practically about the experiences of students and the changes we need to make to respond to a changing world.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Guy’s River of Learning and Teaching visual
Future Wise by David Perkins
How We Learn by Stanislas Dehaene
The Gardner and The Carpenter by Alison Gopnik
Education Outrage by Roger Schank
Teaching Minds by Roger Schank
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In this episode I’m talking to Professor Nutsa Kobakhidze. Nutsa is a Director at the Comparative Education Research Centre and Assistant Professor at Hong Kong University. Her areas of expertise include comparative education; privatization of education; globalization and education and large-scale international assessments. I wanted to speak to Nutsa particularly in regard to the privatization of education and more specifically, private tutoring.
Having read an interview with the professor in Youth Hong Kong, a quarterly magazine published by the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups, I was instantly struck by how much academia and research there was around so called ‘Shadow Education’ that largely goes undiscussed in the day to day practice of classroom teachers.
We discuss:
1. Why the term ‘Shadow Education’ is used in academia and what services it covers
2. How or why shadow education benefits from Hong Kong’s education system
3. Whether there is a consensus on why students get tutoring in secondary schools
4. What students are missing out on during an evening filled with tutoring
5. Why it is so difficult to gain a consensus on whether private tutoring contributes to students' academic achievement
6. How schools, students and parents can work together to better understand the need or not for a private tutor
7. And finally, the ways AI technology might impact the shadow education industry in the future
Thanks so much to Professor Kobakhidze on her research and advocacy for better understanding around private tutoring and the impact it has on young people and their families as well as offering up her time to talk to me for the podcast.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links
Youth Hong Kong - the magazine for which Nutsa was recently interviewed.
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In this episode I’m talking to Sarah Cottingham. Sarah is Associate Dean at Ambition Institute, author of Ausubel's Meaningful Learning In Action, a Professional Development Consultant and former English teacher.
I was really eager to speak with Sarah after reading her work about Ausubel’s theory and applying it to recent discussions about how English can be approached in a more conceptual manner. Added to this is the requirement that every subject be approached conceptually within the IB framework but with limited practical guidance about how to implement such a curriculum.
We discuss:
- What a subsumer is and how secondary departments should plan with them in mind
- What the subsumers Sarah believes we should teach Secondary school English students are
- What Sarah thinks of the IB MYP 'Key Concepts', 'Related Concepts' and ‘Global Contexts’
- How an English subsumer could be fed with detail over the course of a secondary education
- What an advance organiser is
- And finally, how subsumers interact with retrieval practice
Thanks so much to Sarah for giving up her time to discuss this brilliantly written book in more detail as well as her wider contribution to the conceptual teaching discussion.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Ausubel’s Meaningful Learning in Action Book
Sam Gibbs and Zoe Hellman’s The Trouble with English and how to Address It
David Didau’s Making Meaning in English
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In this episode I’m talking with Drew Perkins. Drew is Director of Thought Stretchers Education and host of the ThoughtStretchersEducation Podcast. I wanted to speak to Drew as I continue my exploration of what inquiry looks like in the classroom and particularly how it applies to English. Drew is an active advocate for implementing inquiry in a meaningful manner within education and has helped thousands of individual teachers to do so.
We discuss:
The difference between inquiry, project-based and other constructivist approaches to teachingWhat inquiry is for and what it offers students that other approaches do notHow we know when to give students the level of autonomy they can handleHow we can best aid students in generating their own questionsWhat Drew means by ‘order of operations’ and how it is practically appliedAnd finally, whether Drew thinks there's a difference between inquiry in elementary and middle-school and between different subject disciplines.Thanks again to Drew for discussing inquiry approaches with his customary enthusiasm and expertise.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
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This week I’m talking to Zach Groshell. Zach is an instructional coach, teacher in the American school system, has a PhD in instructional design and hosts the Progressively Incorrect Podcast.
I have listened and loved Zach’s podcast for a long time now, particularly as the first season deals with the tension of progressive ideas and ideologies around inquiry based teaching as well as direct instruction as a pedagogy. For me, these are two approaches that a teacher delivering the PYP, MYP or DP for IB has to wrestle with on a daily basis as well as any teacher operating in any school where competing pedagogies are prevalent.
We discuss:
- What direct instruction and inquiry based teaching mean in practice
- Whether there’s scope for inquiry to play some part in a unit given that topics such as: the information age, masculinity, travel, ways of life, love of literature can be explored according to students' standing interests, experiences or passions
- How Zach feels about suggestions that relying solely on direct instruction and not “culturally responsive education” is narrowly Western, Eurocentric and racist
- If there's a disconnect in international and state schooling with regard to improving teaching and learning
- If seeking guidance as an international teacher about how to improve teaching, what Zach would suggest teachers start with
- And lastly, when implementing an instructional coaching culture in a school, what are the most important things to consider and prioritize at the outset?
Thanks so much to Zach for weighing in on what I believe is hugely important set of topics for international teachers or teachers of IB curriculum more specifically. His podcast is linked to in the show notes below and is well worth a listen for people working in any walk of education.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Zach’s podcast
Zach’s blog
Roshenshine’s Principles of Instruction
THAT Kirschner, Sweller and Clark paper
Zach’s conversation with Gene Tavernetti
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In this episode I’m speaking with Sarah Donarski. Sarah is a Head Of English Department, PGCE & NQT mentor, speaker, blogger, researcher and author of The researchED Guide to Assessment. I recently relistened to an episode of Craig Barton’s Tips for Teachers with Sarah and immediately jotted down a number of questions and I had about assessment in English, which she has been kind enough to come on and answer.
We discuss:
1. What final or summative assessments should look like in a KS3 department
2. Whether teachers should ever give grades and if so, when and why?
3. What should feedback look like at KS3?
4. How should students follow up on feedback?
5. The 'novice / rote / inflexible / flexible' spectrum of knowledge
6. And finally, Sarah’s favorite things about having studied in Australia and formerly working in an IB school.
Thanks again to Sarah for not only contributing to the online discussions around assessment but also evidence informed professional development more broadly.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Sarah’s book, edited for ResearchED
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In this episode I’m talking with Kirun Goy. Kirun is the co-founder and co-host of the BrainTools podcast, a show dedicated to sharing practical brain science for everyday people. Additionally, he is a Leadership Facilitator with Harvard Business Publishing.
I was lucky enough to have Kirun run a workshop for teachers at my school recently and after looking up his podcast, I realised it was rare to have someone with so much actionable insight on neuroscience also be well versed on students and school.
We discuss what teachers might need to consider when it comes to the following in and out of the classroom:
- Habit formation and maintenance
- Focus on the task in hand
- Memory and what is learnt
- Anxiety and self-esteem
- Students’ sense of resilience
- Teamwork when interacting with peers
Thanks again to Kirun who not only offers consistently excellent and concise insights here but also via his regular podcast that you will find linked to in the show notes below.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
BrainTools - Kirun’s podcast
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Ali Abdaal on YouTube
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In this episode I’m speaking with Andrew and Dave of the IB English Guys. 2023 saw the first roll out of the IBDP English A course’s Paper 2. As such, teachers across the world rallied to prepare students for a comparative literature essay that featured unseen prompts and the opportunity to select any of the studied texts from across their two years of study.
I was keen to chat with Andrew and Dave as they have been a fantastic point of contact on relevant IB teaching forums and of course across all their content on YouTube. Additionally, both of the guys were examiners for Paper 2 this year and had access to extended conversations with the principle examiner regarding expectations for students’ responses.
We discuss:
1. Since the last time we spoke, something new Dave and Andrew have taught or would like to teach in the coming year.
2. Whether this year’s Paper 2 and its focus on thematic prompts is a sign of things to come
3. The observation that students fared better if they stayed out of sentence-level analysis and instead aimed at broad authorial choices.
4. How to write conclusions in a meaningful manner.
5. What the tell-tale signs are that an essay has been learnt and therefore forced onto a question provided
6. And finally, what we should all be doing more of on a formative assessment level to prepare students for this paper
Thanks again to the guys for being so generous with their time as well as the practical advice gleaned from reading hundreds of responses and consolidating what they believe to be best practice for a demanding exam.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
The IB English Guys YouTube Channel
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In this episode, I’m speaking to Chris Youles. Chris is a Classroom Teacher at Taipei European School and author of Sentence models for creative writing: A practical resource for teaching writing.
Chris’ book is one of the most instantly applicable teaching books that I’ve come across in recent years and coupled with a robust grammatical understanding for students, it can really help students to understand how and why writers make certain choices in their sentence structures as well as how they can go about applying some of these techniques themselves.
We discuss:
1. The best text Chris has ever read, taught or been taught
2. How he went about amassing all of the different sentence types in the book
3. What the prerequisite grammar knowledge he would advise teaching before or alongside such structures
4. The extent to which certain sentence structures genuinely create a tone, mood or impression of some sort versus purely serving as a way to add variety in expression
5. How teachers might arrange such structures in a horizontal and vertical curriculum
6. Where teachers should go if they want to approach the sentence construction of rhetorical, discursive or analytical writing in the same way
Thanks again to Chris for researching and producing a brilliantly replete resource for teachers in Primary and Secondary alike as well as giving up some time to talk with me.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Chris’ book - Sentence models for creative writing: A practical resource for teaching writing.The Arrival - Shaun Tan
The Writing Revolution - Natalie Wexler and Judith Hochman
On Writing - Stephen King
The Elements of Eloquence - Mark Forsyth
The Art of the Sentence - Greg Keast
First You Write a Sentence - Joe Moran
How to Write a Sentence: And How to Read One - Stanley Fish
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In this episode, I’m speaking with Craig Barton. Craig is an author, maths consultant, former Secondary Maths Adviser to TES and OG podcaster who originally hosted a TES podcast before going on to produce the Mr Barton Maths Podcast and Tips for Teachers podcast.
For me this was an enormous highlight of my own podcasting experience so far given that Craig’s was the first teaching focused show I ever listened to many years ago and was responsible for my discovery and interest in the likes of Dylan Wiliam, Adam Boxer, Daisy Christodoulou and many more who have ultimately enhanced my teaching to a better and better standard.
We discuss:
1. A brief summary of Craig’s transition from teacher to podcaster to author to consultant
2. What his typical working day and week looks like now that he’s doing a variety of roles
3. Whether the fantastic amount of publications, podcasts and other media we now have access to can lead to a sense of professional dysmorphia
4. How Craig has managed to juggle his many ventures with kids
5. Craig’s advice for someone who sees teaching as their passion, wants to help as many people as possible and wants to work hard at establishing themselves as a writer, consultant or podcaster
6. And finally, what’s motivating him to keep creating such brilliant resources and what has he got planned for the future
Thanks again to Craig for finding a time in his busy schedule and being so candid and insightful with his responses. All of his writing, broadcasting and other services can be found in the show notes and I would strongly encourage you to check them out.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Craig’s books
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Tips for Teachers podcast and YouTube channel
Craig’s CPD services
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In this episode I’m speaking with Carly Leung and Vinci Tam. Carly and Vinci are Development Director and Business Executive respectively at V’air, Hong Kong. V’air is a youth-initiated environmental education organization with the mission to promote low-carbon local tourism as a means to mitigate climate change. V’air uses its digital platforms, ecotours and public education events to recommend less conventional travel destinations in Hong Kong.
I wanted to talk to Carly and Vinci as part of an ongoing interest in how Service or Action can play a larger role in the taught curriculum of the MYP.
We discuss:
Carly’s role as a youth delegate at COP27 - what this required and what the conference was designed to achieveCarly and Vinci’s experience with learning about climate change or other environmental matters at school and university and whether this topic deserves greater exposure in Hong Kong schools?How teachers should approach the idea that young people can make a difference to what is a united, global effortWhat can we be done at a local level in Hong Kong specifically to aid in environmental preservationV'air’s services or experiences for students living in Hong Kong And finally, other than V'air, alternative organisations that schools should look to work with in Hong Kong to build meaningful experiences for studentsThanks again to Carly and Vinci for giving up their time to talk to me as well as the fantastic work done by V’air more broadly in promoting sustainable local tourism and nature conservation as well as youth empowerment.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
V’air’s website
COP28’s website
WWF Hong Kong
Green Hub Hong Kong
O Park 1
O Park 2
Local Conference of Hong Kong Youth
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In this episode I’m speaking with Kate Beatty. Kate is the first returning guest I’ve had on the podcast and one I’m always very pleased to speak with about all things MYP. Kate is an IB Consultant, workshop leader, IB school accreditation team leader and programme leader, executive coach and author of educational resources including the INTHINKING MYP English Language and Literature website.
For this episode, I wanted Kate to guide me through her thoughts on an MYP unit I had constructed with any of the salient strengths and weaknesses that she could see. Additionally I wanted to pose a few questions based on the work she’s done for the INTHINKING MYP site to better broaden my knowledge of English Language and Literature in the MYP.
We discuss:
1. How she feels about the suitability of the Statement of Inquiry, Questions and GRASPS in the unit
2. The fact that a number of different facts or skills are taught in a direct and teacher led manner and whether this is okay given that they will go onto produce something that is also borne out of inquiries
3. What Kate thinks of the ATLs and the way they have been implemented in the unit
4. Kate’s general opinion of PPTs and other materials being used to communicate the course's knowledge, skills and tasks
5. On the MYP InThinking site, Kate’s decision to offer units that fall into Key Concepts outside the typical Creativity/Communication/Connection/Perspective associated with Language and Literature and why this was
6. And staying with the site, given that Kate has offered units on some classic topics of English study, how does she ensure that such a unit has a conceptual lens, connects to global contexts and has an authentic assessment?
Thanks again to Kate for guiding a way through the rewarding but challenging experience of MYP curriculum construction. All of the materials mentioned in the episode will be linked to in the show notes for anyone who wants to refer to them.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Unit plan discussed in the episode
INTHINKING for MYP Language and Literature
Kate’s website
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In this episode, I’m speaking with Leon Furze. Leon is an international consultant, author, and speaker with years of experience as an teacher in the UK and Australia. Leon is currently studying his PhD in the implications of Artificial Intelligence on writing instruction and education and as an English teacher is very well placed to advise how recent innovations in AI may affect the subject.
We discuss:
1. In laymans terms what is a chatbot? What can it do and not do?
2. Why the likes of Elon Musk have called for a halt on AI development.
3. What Leon would advise schools and departments to consider in terms of the way in which they work with the a technology that has certain ethical and environmental impacts.
4. The ways in which AI should and shouldn't be used to aid students' writing.
5. Whether chatbots are useful in terms of planning individual lessons or a sequence of learning.
6. What this technology does for the likes of coursework and written examinations
7. And Lastly, what does this do for certain jobs? How does Leon see the creative, informative and rhetorical professions evolving in the coming decades?
Thanks again to Leon for providing answers to a number of burning questions that I’ve had ever since Chat GPT came into the educational scene. His writing is an excellent way to ease your way into this new landscape of technology and you’ll be able to access it via the show notes
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Leon’s blog
Atlas of AI by Kate Crawford
On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots by Emily Bender and Timnit Gebru
Tom Barrett’s CREATE advice of using AI
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In this episode I’m speaking with Julie Stern. Julie is a four-time, best selling author with titles that include: Learning that Transfers, Visible Learning for Social Studies, The On-Your-Feet Guide to Learning Transfer and Tools for Teaching Conceptual Understanding.
She is an advocate for sustainability, equity and well being in education and has spoken internationally to help facilitate this in many schools around the world.
We discuss:
1. How conceptual learning and transfer compliment each other
2. How teachers or schools can accurately assess that transfer has taken place
3. Julie’s stratification of different kinds of concepts and how this might apply to English
4. David Perkin's book, Future Wise, and where his 'lifeworthy knowledge' would they fit in this conceptual stratification
5. Whether Julie thinks the current paradigm of dividing schools up into: Math, Social Studies, English etc is an appropriate model looking into the future
6. When designing the closest thing to a perfect assessment, what she thinks it should entail for students
7. And lastly - when, if ever, is a good time to do project based learning with a class?
Thanks so much to Julie for being a passionate and engaging voice on the topic of conceptual learning and offering a framework that better allows IB educators and beyond to crystallize their teaching approaches.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
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In this episode, I’m speaking to Ben Walker. Ben is an English and TOK teacher here in Hong Kong as well as the current CAS coordinator. Next year he will be taking up the Head of Secondary English role at his current school.
We discuss:
1. The best book he’s ever read, taught or been taught
2. The advantages and disadvantages of running the 5 year MYP course all the way up to the DP
3. His perspective on inquiry and authentic assessment and whether they look different in Year 7 v.s. Year 11
4. How much Ben’s current school implement the element of service within the curriculum and the directions he’s considering moving forward
5. The feasibility of CAS playing a part in the academic curriculum
6. And finally, a somewhat insular one but HK v.s. Singapore. What's the difference and what's Ben’s advice if considering a move from one to the other
Thanks again to Ben for his eloquence and insights across the CAS and English curriculum.
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Go Went Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck
At Night All Blood is Black by David Diop
Black Boy by Richard Wright
The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
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In this episode I’m talking with Cathryn Berger Kaye. Cathy is president of CBK Associates, ABCD Books and travels globally to provide professional development on the likes of service learning, 21st century competencies and environmental sustainability.
She is the author of 'The Complete Guide to Service Learning', 'Going Blue' and 'Make a Splash!', which are student guides to Protecting Our Oceans, Lakes, Rivers, & Wetlands. In addition she has also authored a range of books for the ‘How to Take Action’ series, which is aimed at guiding students through the issues of hunger, homelessness and climate change to name but a few.
We discuss:
1. How Cathy reflects in her own practice and to what extent can we expect students to follow our example when it comes to reflecting well
2. The MISO method and elements of it which younger students typically need more guidance
3. How and why to combine units and work towards a service goal at some stage within the curriculum
4. Direct, indirect, research and advocacy service styles and the advice Cathy would give in terms of the practicalities of establishing direct opportunities for service
5. The dangers of 'voluntourism' and how to develop an asset based mindset in students doing service
6. Whether schools need to see the way they interact with local service and international service on a sliding scale in terms of age or experience
7. And finally, what advice Cathy would give educators who aren't sure where to start when it comes to adapting the curriculum to integrate service
Thanks again to Cathy who is nothing short of a legend in this field for speaking to me today. I was overjoyed to have some time to pose the questions, which you may pick up on through my sometimes overzealous phrasing of the questions. All of Cathy’s books mentioned will of course be linked in the show notes and I’d strongly encourage you to consider these first when developing your knowledge of service in the curriculum.
Find out more about the online course "Getting Started: Service Learning and Global Citizenship Foundations" here. Designed by Cathy and two of her associates, Shei Ascencio and LeeAnne Lavender, this is a dynamic way to advance your understanding and turn ideas into action!
If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk
Links:
Cathy’s email
Cathy’s
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