Hazel Owen's Blog – June 2015 Archive (4)

What happens when a school isn't working - for the learners, the community, and the teachers? Sometimes it's a case of bringing in the broom, working with leadership, and then starting again.

Gavin Clark shared his story from the Board resigning, the Commission coming in, and the subsequent changes in leadership. The school is now undergoing a process of…


Diana Ayling, a while back, posted this personal experience and reflection (cross-posted with permission in full below). It was interesting for me in two key ways - the first was Diana's understanding of how her own learning 'practice' has shifted, such that when she is immersed in a less connected, active one, she felt frustrated and dissatisfied. The second was the list of…

Student voice and student agency are key to learning. However, this doesn't always seem to be an unquestioned (inconvenient?) 'truth'.

Lorraine Makatu explains what happens when student agency is supported and nurtured. 

Mangere Central School has sister schools in Bali, and Lorraine shares some of the experiences of students who start to explore different places and life…

Creative writing in school can often be formulaic...you teach this, the students learn this, and then they write a story.

Tamara decided to change the format (check out more in her post Creative Writing with a difference). Building on an idea from Primary (Tamara is in…