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  • Olympic advice – focus on the losers

    I would like to hedge a bet that over the last few weeks the number of middle aged men going through a midlife crisis has increased tenfold. The reason is simple, the Olympic Games. While being an avid supporter of the Olympics, I believe that the Olympics are dangerous to the emotional wellbeing of most…

  • Imagining Decolonisation – Book Review

    At a recent Professional Development day I was challenged by a talk from Terresa Cartwright Ford and Johnson Davies. During their inspiring, and sometimes confrontational, talk they recommended a book called Imagining Decolonisation. Over the recent school holidays I managed to get my hands on a copy of this book and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.…

  • Teen Brain: A book every principal, teacher and parent should read

    If you want a challenging and thought provoking book on addiction, computers, parenting, schooling, and screen time, then look no further than David Gillespie’s book, Teen Brain. I have just finished working my way through the audio version. The book’s content has been extensively researched in regards to the role technology addiction is playing in adolescent…

  • Adding Wait Time to your teaching

    How long do you think the average teacher pauses after asking a question? Several studies from the 1970s looked at this question and the results were astonishing. Despite what we might think, the average wait time from teachers was 0.9 seconds. The same study found that when educators leave a period of silence between posing…

  • How important is Media Literacy?

    The 21st century has seen a huge advancement of new media and its availability to younger populations. Think of the growth of platforms like Instagram, Snapchat and Tiktok over the last two or three years. The latest statistics show that students are consuming and making media at an alarming rate. Between 2000 and 2016 the…

  • Wish me luck at the Olympics

    Many people view the Olympics as a time to marvel at amazing athletes and their ability to perform super human feats under immense pressure. To them the Olympics is a time to sit on the couch, eat food and watch. Not me. For me, the Olympics is the chance to pit myself against the world’s…

  • The Ultimate School Day

    Inspired by Beau Miles’ awesome documentary about making the most of every 24hours, I decided to make the Ultimate School day with my Year 8 class. Split into teams of 3, 4 or 5 students, I put forward two goals for the day. Run a marathon within your team, and as a class we would…

  • Using whakapapa to connect athletes to team’s identity

    Today I listened to Mike Hosking talking to performance coach Owen Eastwood. He has worked with the likes of the All Blacks, the All Whites and even NATO. His focus is team culture and what it does to improve performance. Currently, he is working with the British Olympic team and English football team. Check out…

  • The importance of Goal Setting and Learning Reflections

    A key part of my classroom programme is developing student agency. This starts with students taking ownership of their learning through the setting of regular goals and learning reflections. GOAL SETTINGThis occurs at the start of ever week and currently students must write 2 goals for the week. I have left the exact focus for…

  • Setting Class Culture

    Over the years I have spent a lot of time setting up class contracts, treaties etc. Starting last year I changed this system and now develop a Class Statement based around learning. I spent around two lessons developing our 2021 statement. I basically asked two questions over that time and we brainstormed options. What does…

  • 2021 – Like a Rolling Stone

    On December 31st 2019, like any other year, we collectively sat around on New Year’s Eve and guessed what might lay ahead for the new decade. Boy, were we wrong! Many of us probably wished for the usual things; less stress, more family time, less food and more exercise. The realty was that 2020 was…

  • Educational Policies – A quick look at what NZ voters have to work with.

    Usually during a New Zealand election one of the key talking points is education. Unfortunately, this year education has been an issue that has hardly been discussed. Covid-19, roading, and Trump seem to be more important. Education should be a big part of a political party’s vision and its policies. According to the Ministry website…

  • Student Teachers – Why I like having them in my class?

    Over the past 6 weeks I have had a student teacher in my class. Today is their last day and we have the obligatory ‘farewell party’. To be honest this is the worst part of having a student teacher. I am a grumpy-old-teacher so a class party, quickly turns into the ‘class mess’. That is…

  • How to grow Middle Leaders?

    At the moment I am reading David Price’s latest book – The Power of Us: How we connect, act and innovate together. The premise of the book is around ordinary people working together to drive change. He covers all aspects of our society, and uses the latest examples from around the world to highlighted people…

  • Can you be a leader while in “Middle Management”?

    This week I want to reflect a little more on leading from middle management. Is it possible to provide leadership when you you are stuck between the masses and your bosses? From experience, if you are in middle management, you feel you are either advocating for those below you or doing the grunt work for…

  • Leader of Learning or a Manager of Grunt work

    Following a conversation with a colleague this week I was challenged to think about the difference between being a leader and a manager. Within education we use the word ‘leader’ a lot. The current job I started was called ‘Head of Faculty’, but as times have changed I am now a ‘Leader of Learning’. I…

  • The see-saw nature of Middle Management

    Middle Management in education is hard. You are constantly riding a see-saw of responsibilities and expectations. One minute you can be working alongside a colleague with a classroom issue and then the next you are justifying budget spending to your Principal. For me the see-saw nature has two parts. Firstly, you are required to manage the…

  • Collaborative Learning – a student view

    This week I had two boys paired together to work on a maths/science collaborative task. The task involved a short experiment measuring the cooling of water and then some follow up activities. These two boys have been Learning Partners all year and the task was certainly within their ability, so it was a surprise when…

  • Promoting collaborative learning

    This term one of my little wonderings is around collaborative learning. It is a skill I am wanting to promote with my students and so each week in Term 3 the students have to complete a collaborative task. So far I have given the students a collaborative Religious Education task using a digital tool –…

  • Class Vision revisited in Term 3

    First week back for Term 3 2020 and it was as you would expect. three days of excitement and some rusty behaviour from the students, however, by the end of the week we had settled back down to our normal systems and rhythm. This week we had Student/Parent/Teacher Conferences. This is a day when we…

  • Restarting with the ‘Why’

    During my last teaching observation, at the end of last term, I was challenged to think about the WHY of my teaching? Do you know your why? Do your students know your why? I know this is an old video that has done the rounds before but it is worth looking at again. The foundation…

  • Post Covid-19 – Student Feedback Term 2 2020

    Below is my student feedback from Term 1 and 2, 2020. Due to sickness and end of term chaos only 20 students managed to complete the feedback. First two questions are standard. I will match them against results in Term 3. Below are the results from the question – What are you finding good about…

  • Post Covid-19 – Parent Meetings and a fresh set of eyes

    There were two main activities related to my teaching this week. Firstly, I held my first parent meeting online (outside of lockdown) and then I called in a ‘set of new eyes’ to look at my classroom. Firstly, lets start with the paret meeting. Organised for a Wednesday night at 7:30pm it was nice to…

  • Post Covid-19 – Refining my classroom structures

    This week I feel that we (students and me) have made some good progress. Over the last two weeks we have tried a couple of little tweaks to classroom structures. This has come from my own observations and feedback from students. Below is an outline on where we are currently at. WEEKLY OVERVIEWEach week I…

  • Post Covid-19 – drifting back to your old normal

    This week saw New Zealand move back into Level 1. Any amazing accomplishment for our country and the team of 5 million. For me this has been achieved due to a number of factors, but primarily, good leadership and clear communication. But now the focus for our country moves from a crisis to a recovery.…

  • Post Covid-19 – What to do when students don’t do their work?

    A couple of students in my class are struggling with the new structure we have. The increase in student agency has resulted in work not being completed and, most disappointing, poor choices being made around their own learning. You get the drift. For me the easy option is to isolate them and tell them exactly…

  • Post Covid-19 – Autonomous Learning

    Two days back into ‘normal face to face classes’ and I hit a wall. Everything I had learnt and everything my students had learnt during lockdown had been thrown out the window. I don’t know why, but it is just sometimes easier to do what you always do. Run with the status quo. Don’t rock…

  • Don’t let history repeat – 1982 All Whites and Covid-19

    In 1982 the New Zealand men’s football team, known as the All Whites, made it through to the Football World Cup. It was the first time we had made it that far in such a prestigious football event. The result was a football boom. Record numbers of players registered over the following seasons, national players…

  • The parable of the Crusader and the Essential Worker

    This is an adaptation of the parable of Jesus found in Luke 18:9-14. To those who were confident of their own social distancing and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two people went to the local park to play, one a Crusader and the other an Essential Worker. At the park, the…

  • Learning Microsoft Teams on the fly

    Like most teachers over the last few weeks I have had to complete a crash course in remote learning. Upon reflection I think I have had more misses than hits. However, I am learning and getting better slowly. The key tool that I am using with my class is Microsoft Teams. Our faculty has decided…

  • Planning for a Pandemic – I think I missed that class at University!

    Never in my teaching career did I think I would be planning for a Pandemic. But over the last week that has been the reality for me, my fellow staff and educators around the world. So where to start… Well I often need to write things down when life gets a little crazy.  I am…

  • The Parable of the Lost Harry and Megan

    Jesus continued: “There was a Royal father had two sons – William and Harry. The younger one said to his father, “Charles, I have just married the love of my life.

  • Challenges instead of resolutions for 2020

    Over the next few days, everyone is going to be writing down their New Year’s Resolution and most of these lists are going to include 2 things: “I want to eat less ” “I want to exercise more” Now both of these are great aspirations. But the research shows us that’s all they are, aspirations.…

  • The Parable of the unmerciful Steve Smith

    This is an adaptation of the parable of Jesus found in Matthew 18: 23 – 35 23. “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to Steve Smith the former Aussie cricket captain who was found guilty of ball tampering.  24. When he began the tampering, he ordered his players to use sandpaper…

  • NZ MIEE Hui 2019 – My Learnings

    Just starting to reflect on my learning from the 2019 NZ MIEE Hui in Auckland. Firstly, it was a fantastic opportunity to spend the weekend with some rather inspiring educators from New Zealand and around the world. For me I am always amazed at the wide variety of teachers, senior leaders and principals that are…

  • Cricket – It is just not fair!

    Let’s be clear from the outset, cricket is not fair. It never has been, it never will be, and it has never claimed to be.

  • Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert Video

    MIEE -Expert video 2020

  • New pay offer for the balding, grey haired, khaki pant wearing teacher.

    I do hope that young teachers don’t fall for the PR spin put on the latest pay offer. While I would like to think that the last few weeks the government and the PPTA have been negotiating a deal, it seems they were just working on a PR campaign to make everyone look like a…

  • Why I love being a teacher!

    A lot has been written over the last few months about the teaching profession. With pay negotiations currently unresolved there is a lot of discussion around the teaching profession in New Zealand. While some of what has been in the media is true, the overall conversation has overshadowed the good parts about the teaching profession.…

  • Wisdom from All Blacks coach Ian Foster

    Last night I had the privilege of listening to All Black coach Ian Foster talk on talent identification, leadership and the development of culture. Below are a couple of the quotes I took throughout the session…. “It is a privilege to influence people” In leadership our job is to develop people and make them better.…

  • Huw Edwards on being a great news reporter

    Huw Edwards give advice on being a great news reporter

  • Activity 8 – Reflect on your learning journey

    Stage 1: Problem identificationI have thoroughly enjoyed my Mindlab journey. It has been great to be able to reflect on my own teaching/leadership and to have the opportunity to initiate change. For me the dual nature of the programme has enabled me initiate change with both my class and the group of teachers I lead.…

  • Activity 7 – Impact after Take Action

    To what extent can MOOCs impact on the understanding of media literacy for New Zealand Intermediate aged teachers and students. Shem Banbury – Mindlab Inquiry 2019 Step 1: What is the observed impact after the ‘Take Action’ phase?My inquiry was to use a MOOC to develop Media Literacy with my students and students from around…

  • Activity 6 – Reflect on Evidence

    To what extent can MOOCs impact on the understanding of media literacy for New Zealand Intermediate aged teachers and students. Shem Banbury – Mindlab Inquiry 2019 Step 1: Describe the data you have collected The key to ensuring relevant data is collected is making sure that data collecton within an inquiry is planned and systematic.  Earl…

  • Christchurch Reflection

    Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For the measure…

  • Activity 5 – Consider your Audience

    To what extent can MOOCs impact on the understanding of media literacy for New Zealand Intermediate aged teachers and students. Shem Banbury – Mindlab Inquiry 2019 Step 1: Briefly define your audiences Throughout my Mindlab inquiry my audience has always been the tamariki of New Zealand. The MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) that I developed…

  • Belief – The greatest gift we can give learners

    Over the summer break I read Mike Krzyzewski’s book Beyond Basketball. Krzyzewski is one of the world’s best basketball coaches and is the head coach of Duke University. The book is a great read for anyone into sport, team culture and motivation. Each chapter covers a value that Krzyzewski promotes within his team. His chapter…

  • Activity 4 – Act in your Professional Environment

    What are ethics?Ethics are a set of behaviours that are often shaped by a range of influences. Our personal interpretation of ethics helps shape our ideas about justice, our morals and virtues. Identifying your personal ethics allows you to understand what drives and motivates you to respond to situations in certain ways. Step 1 –…

  • BBC game asks students to be the reporter

    The new interactive BBC iReporter game – aimed at students aged 11 to 18 – gives them the chance to become a BBC reporter. The game is a professional designed “choose your own adventure” game, created by Aardman Animations. Students get to challenges themselves to make decisions on which sources, political claims, social media comments and pictures…

  • Activity 3 – Cultural responsiveness practice – MOOCs

    This week I will consider and reflect on indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness in my practice. Backing up from my last post I will uses Rolfe’s model of reflection as a guide Step One – WHAT – I am a South Island bred Pakeha. At 40 years of age I have gone through life, and the education…

  • 5 Quick Tips for analysing News

    When big news breaks, it’s easy to get caught up social media and the unfolding situation. This can lead to information being more emotive than accurate. Here’s some advice parents can offer kids and teens as they watch the news. 1. Remember, breaking news is often wrong.  In the rush to cover stories, reporters make…

  • Activity 2 – Applying a reflective Model

    In 2001 Rolfe, Freshwater and Jasper created a reflective  model based upon three simple questions: What? So what? Now what? Using this model of reflection, I am going to address and reflect upon certain parts of my teaching practise. What? What Happened Following on from developing my MOOC – www.toku-ako.co.nz – I moved to surveying…

  • Activity 1 – Act on my Plan – MOOCs

    ‘The education systems designed in the last century no longer meet the needs of our learners and our societies.  We know that schools must be transformed to engage today’s young people’.  Timperly, Kaiser and Halbert (2014) For me, the quote above sums up the interesting juncture that education in New Zealand is currently at. Our…

  • Media Literacy with Forest Gump

    This rather clever video shows how media can be distorted easily to create a slightly different message to the one intended. A good reminder about teaching students to analyse and evaluate the messages they receive everyday.

  • What are MOOCs?

    MOOCs have been around education for sometime. But, what exactly are they? DefiNITION Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, are free online courses that allow learners unrestricted participation to educational courses. MOOCs provide conventional modes of teaching such as lectures, videos and reading material. An important aspect of MOOCs is that they have an interactive…

  • My Predictions for NZ Education in 2019

    So to begin this year I thought I would put together my educational thoughts for 2019.

  • Make 2019 Extraordinarily Ordinary

    For some reason setting goals is an intricate part of my life. From an early age I can remember writing goals down on paper and ticking them off when they had been achieved. I think having my birthday on the 31st December helps with mindset. Having the anniversary of my birth coincide so nicely with…

  • Media Literacy Video Course

    YouTube channel CrashCourse have put together a fantastic online tutorial all about digital media. The 13 tutorials cover topics such as the history of media literacy, online advertising, media ownership and the skills needed to improve your media literacy.

  • What is Media Literacy?

    Definitions are always difficult things to pin down and coming up with an overarching explanation of digital literacy is no different. With the growing quantity of information and the increased options of receiving this information, the way in which we process and interpret electronic messages has become crucial, especially to our students. Before we look…

  • Abihail or Prasooona – Take your pick

    Go on and admit it. Once when you were looking up a number in the phone book, a funny listing caught your eye. You chuckled at the poor guy whose name is also a curse word. Then you thought, “If I had nothing better to do, what other funny names could I find in the…