My understanding of Manaiakalani kaupapa and pedagogy
I work at a low decile school and it just accentuates the fact that our families are often trapped by circumstance. It is difficult to be empowered if their choices are limited because the lack of finances disempowers them due to the lack of choice.
It was a very informative session with regards to how deciles of schools are determined. Household incomes, occupations, household crowding, qualifications and income support all determine the decile a school would be awarded.
It was shocking to hear that kids from low decile areas arrive at school with the abilities of a 3 year old and they hear 32 million less spoken words than some of their peers. Restricted or no internet result in lower results.
The quotes that I can relate to the most – “I found that my learners were unintentionally brutally honest about the learning I provided. If they didn’t like it they simply didn’t do it. I am competing for their attention with Fortnite and Tik tok.”
and
“The greatest joy comes from Empowering students to discover the treasure that lies within them.”
What could improve my confidence, capability or workflow as a professional
When I hear the words Computational Thinking I was not even sure I would get through this DFI session today. It sounds daunting and coding is not exactly my forte. No actually …. I have never even attempted any kind of coding before. As I found out today it is really quite fun. I think I could actually use this in my class. After today I feel much more comfortable with my understanding around Computational Thinking and am feeling quite excited to try lessons with my class. It was amazing learning how there are many ways to deliver lessons using devices. There is so much you can do to make their learning journey really exciting. We have been so fortunate to share in the resources that the DFI team have provided that cater to the many learning levels. I am excited to try some of these with my class and to expand their learning in regards to Computational Thinking.
What did I learn that could be used with my learners? Today I learnt how to code and add sound in Scratch! It was awesome and something I really want to try with my kids. I loved seeing and exploring all the coding sites. I took the opportunity to add those to my class site for students who finish their work early. I know that they will love having the the opportunity to explore these sites themselves.
What did I learn that could improve my confidence, capability or workflow in my personal life?
I have learnt so much! All there is left to do now is to use the skills that I have been taught to make a difference in the learning journey my kids are on.