Perhaps this is where education has gone wrong. I’m sitting at the ACEL 2014 conference, and I’m surrounded by people who no longer have anything to do with students. Of the thousand or so delegates at the conference, I reckon that less than 10% are actual teachers. Sure , there are school principals, but the…
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The thing about football
So, it’s another grand final day here in Sydney. The sun is out, I’ve got a brand new flatscreen TV, and the Hawkies are a chance for another flag. Of course, I’m not sure they’re going to win this one (as much as my heart says ‘yes’, my head is firm on ‘no’), but I’ve…
Melbourne, again.
Melbourne, again. We’ve driven down from Batemans Bay, and somewhere outside Traralgon we were caught up in an apocalyptic storm that swept the postcard day away in clouds and hail. We’re a little rattled by the time we make it to Melbourne, a feeling that is made worse by the gathering dark and sudden drop…
Updates to the site
You might have noticed that I am playing around with a few of the settings on the site. The plan here is to update my blog to bring it into line with the work that I am doing to update my site. None of that has gone live yet, but I’m planning on it not…
Mr Heggart’s Address to the Class of 2014
What words can I give to the graduating class of 2014? It’s been a long time since I left school – almost 20 years, but I find it challenging to distill the collected experience of that time into a tonic of wisdom that would make sense to you – or would even have any relevance…
Taking the plunge with social media in the classroom.
I created my first Twitter account in 2007 – back when the social media giant was just beginning to take off. Over the next seven years, I’ll be honest with you – I’ve fallen in and out of love with both twitter and Facebook, and there have been long periods where my digital footprint has…
A picture made up of different elements
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately – not thinking for my doctorate, but thinking about my doctorate. It’s not often one has the opportunity to devote such a lengthy amount of time to any one project as you do in a program of doctoral study, and it is a privilege to do so;…
Who’s afraid of streaming?
I’m generally not a huge fan of streaming. There’s a lot about it that I don’t like – in some schools, I see it being used as a tool to punish children. Having said that, I’ve been contemplating the way that it might work in schools that I’ve worked in. Ultimately, my dream – and…
Sport and Diplomacy
I’m watching the cricket on Saturday night, and it’s Australia playing South Africa at the Harare Sports Club. It’s put me in some kind of nostalgic mood; I know that both my parents watched people play there at some point, and I’ve heard the stories, but I’ve never been there myself, so the place is…
The many faces of social media
I’ve been reading a lot about social media and the maker movement. It’s been generally good stuff and I’ve actually enjoyed it, which isn’t always the case with some of the stuff that I’ve read for my doctorate. I’ve been thinking about why that might be the case, and I think it’s related to the…