Strands for 2012 Conference  - Strand Keynotes

• Creative Arts
• EAL Primary and Secondary Combined
• Early Childhood
• English Teachers
• General Strand
• Humanities Teaching
• Librarians / Information Literacy
• Mandarin Studies
• Mathematics Teaching
• Modern Foreign Languages
• Primary Teaching
• School Leadership (Open to all)
• Sciences
• Principals Strand (By invitation only)

Creative Arts Strand

Strand Leader: Kerrie Reid

EAL

Strand Organiser: -  John Mason 

twitter: mason8786 #21clhk #21clhkeal Eal strand scoop it site

Want to share practical language learning applications that are tried and tested classroom friendly? Then look no further, the EAL Strand is for you! Strand Aims:

To demonstrate uses of Web2.0 technology that assists language learning strategies. Explore the potential of ICT to enhance language learning in a laptop school. To share good practice of practical applications  that work in a language learning classrooms with significant English Additional Language populations. Hands on and Show and tell style of delivery

Content: All too often the wealth of students’ ICT knowledge and the sheer volume of what’s out there have created a “digital divide” between the 21C language learner and the C20 language teacher. This strand seeks to bridge the gap!  This strand posits that EAL and ICT are a great match. Technologies such as – digital storytelling, uses of online learning platforms, vocabulary building, podcasting and thinking tools are powerful literacy companions.  There is a reservoir  of Web2.0 tools for language learners out there, let’s tap into it together! suggested directions for version 2012:

How a school based VLE can support/sustain eal learners; how visual planners  e.g bubbleus, lino it, can assist writing/thinking; eportfolios and the language class; Videos and video making in the EAP classroom. How video creation and  editing software such as Windows Movie Maker live and iMovie can boost learning capacity. Application of digital technologies such as IWBs, iPads, response clickers, document cameras in the ESL classroom.

Early Childhood

Strand Leaders Serena Fan & Neil Ringrose

The early childhood strand will focus on the following questions: What is the role of ICT in an early years classroom? How do educators speak with parents about the benefits and reasons behind using technology, while also addressing their concerns? More importantly, how can we get other early years educators excited and engaged to use technology?

The aim of the strand is to provide an opportunity for early childhood educators to participate in an open dialogue to discuss personal past experiences on what has worked and what has not. It is also an opportunity to share and gather new ideas for your classroom. Interested parties who want to lead a panel discussion on any of the questions above are welcomed to contact the strand leaders. 

English Teaching

Strand Organisers: Dana Watts & James Smith

The internet is, more than anything else, a language space. The ability to dissect language, understand meaning and assess a writer’s intentions has never been more important. We teach skills of judgement, analysis and creativity in order for our students to write effective essays, narratives and commentaries; but we also teach these skills so that our students can make sense of the world around them, read critically, be worthy digital citizens and reflective learners and use language in all forms of text and for all types of purpose.

The English strand will be of relevance to primary and secondary colleagues working both with English Language and Literature, and will place emphasis on practical ways in which technologies can allow the learning objectives of the English classroom to be met. The skills we teach for our high-stakes assessments are also the skills of the digital learner – they coincide with them and reinforce them – so the workshops in this strand will explore ways to address the needs of both.

Presenters in this strand will be skillful classroom practitioners who can give practical insights about how technology can be transformational in the English classroom; they will make the links between old and new media, critical reading in the offline and online worlds, traditional literacies and digital literacies; they will speak from their own experiences and their insights will be ones that can be applied on the Monday morning after the conference ends. 

General

Strand Organisers: Paul White & Harish Kanabar

The general strand will appeal to participants who do not feel that they fit into any of the existing strands. The presentations will be primarily delivered by the keynote presenters. The presentations will not be subject specific, but applicable for use in all subject areas and potentially across different age ranges. There will be a few general presentations offered by teachers.

Humanities

Strand Organiser:Dom Massarella

The pace of technological advance has left teachers of humanities based subjects with no shortage of tools with which to enrich their teaching and learning.  Too often, however, we are faced with a barrage of new tools and left with little time to reflect and devise ways of effectively applying them to our teaching. What is essential is that we embrace learning technologies not for their own sake, but when they genuinely enhance the teaching and learning experience.

This practical series of sessions aims to provide a forum where experienced practitioners will share their best practice, while allowing you time to genuinely explore the potential of the tools presented. 

Are you sold on learning technologies?  Do you wish you had the confidence to integrate them into your teaching? Do you wish your students were able to fully benefit from their potential to enrich, if only you had the time and the support to genuinely explore the possibilities?  If you answer ‘yes’ to these questions, then this strand is for you. 

Librarians / Information Literacy

Strand Organisers: Andrea Walker & Dianne Mckenzie 

This strand will appeal to anyone interested in the future of libraries as learning spaces.The role of Information/Digital Literacy and how we support students and staff in a world of Googleitis and “info-whelm”.

Mandarin

Strand Organiser: Makky Fung

In digital schools, Mandarin teachers can use innovative ways to motivate their students to improve their language skills through the use of ICT. The Mandarin Strand will appeal to anyone interested to explore the potential of ICT to improve Chinese language acquisition.  

How can Mandarin teachers make use of existing/emerging technologies to enrich learning experiences of students?  How can students be motivated to acquire a second or third language?  What is the impact on teachers and students in an ICT enriched classroom? How do teachers differentiate learning in Chinese classrooms? How is digital work of different style and format being assessed?  What are the research saying about integrating ICT in Mandarin?

At the 2011 conference there were over 10 presenters from all over SE Asia who shared their experiences and best practice. Participants have brought away lots of ideas, resources, and most importantly they were able to build a professional learning network.

This year, we are calling for presenters who are keen to share their best practice, teaching resources, or research findings to support Mandarin student learning.  Those of you who are keen to offer presentations, run discussions or hands-on training sessions can contact the Mandarin strand leader (makkyfung@gmail.com).

Maths Strand

Strand Organisers: Pat STAFFORD & Kelly Grogan

The Mathematics strand is a mash-up of two key components: experiential hands-on workshops and dedicated delegate forums. The workshops will be interactive and involve sharing teaching methods and showcasing technology that can improve the effectiveness of maths teaching and influence development of students mathematical understanding.  Throughout all sessions, the focus is to increase engagement in the middle and secondary sectors.

The workshops will explore three threads:

* Utilize web-based tools as a form of assessment in the classroom and to add multi-modal projects to the teaching toolbox

* Maximize the use of software and calculators to engage students by bringing mathematical concepts to life, be it, graphical, numerical, analytical, or verbal

* Explore the use of subject-specific software, such as Autograph and Geogebra

Delegates attending the workshops can expect to come away with a wealth of ideas to put readily-available software, calculators and web-based applications to use in the classroom for mathematical understanding and assessment.

The delegate forum is vital for peer-to-peer sharing - if you have an idea, it may be someone is working on a similar theme and can help you expand it, take it to the next level or even collaborate.  These free-form sessions are about sharing techniques that really work and do not require a full workshop presentation.  Have you ever wondered just which website has a great pool of math resources?  Who to follow on Twitter?  Or where can you find those extra resources for your Advanced Placement class tomorrow?  No idea too small, no project too big - we all want those tech extras to make it more involving for students and this is the forum where we can all share and learn.

Delegates will go back to their school with a rich portfolio of resources for the specific needs of their own students.  Examples of work at particular age groups will be given, and the skills demonstrated will be widely transferable across academic levels. Specific software requirements will be detailed in the full programme notes.  Delegates wishing to take away e-resources are advised to bring portable storage media, such as a USB stick. #21CLHK and #21CLHKM

Modern Foreign Languages

Strand Organiser : Paul TATTAM

This Strand will look at creative ways that 21st Century Learning can be used to engage students in MFL classes. At the 2011 conference there were very varied presentations on the use of ipads in the Primary school classroom, a cross-curricular ICT-powered Spanish drama project in an international secondary school, and a swap shop of ideas and experience involving teachers from all over SE Asia. We would very much welcome practitioner input on best classroom practice, on pitfalls and opportunities... and on everything we can do to engage students and enhance their learning in the modern classroom.

Primary Teaching

Strand Organiser: Jane Harris

Friday, 17th February, will comprise school tours which we intend to theme. We anticipate there will be more than one learning theme being offered by each tour and both Lower and Upper Primary will be included in the same visit. The rationale is for participants to be able to visit schools which are showcasing specific learning models and/or innovations which are relevant to their particular institutional needs eg; 1:1 initiatives, electronic portfolios, games-based learning, personal learning networks, virtual learning environments, etc.

At the end of each school visit we hope to offer an on-site “feedback and unpack” discussion to better frame what has been observed, heard and experienced on the tour. Not only do we feel this will help to develop professional learning networks among participants, we also believe it will facilitate a much richer take home in ideas and understandings.

For Saturday, 18th February, we will be inviting teachers and learners to come and share what was observed on the tours. There will be discussions about how different environments for learning are created and managed, as well as how student learning is documented and assessed. There will also be opportunities to engage in “just-enough” hands-on upskilling sessions covering a range of topics, unconference time and of course more traditional workshops. 

School Leaders

Strand Organiser: Tim Carrell

The School leaders strand is for issues that are bigger than a single subject area. They could be trans-disciplinary, or strategies that work across an entire school or district. Areas such as professional development, curriculum design, collegial support structures, technological innovations and new pedagogical approaches fit into this strand. Those involved in leading effective use of learning technologies within their schools or districts are encouraged to participate. The strand is designed to encourage discussion and reflection on the journey that schools are taking  to effectively transform teaching and learning in the 21st Century.  Presenters will look at particular aspects connected with technological learning and discuss how leaders could and can influence school vision and culture in a meaningful way.

Sciences

Strand Organiser: Johnny Cornes

In the Science stream, experienced  practitioners will be offering the opportunity for participants to see what they each are doing in their classrooms with learning technology. Participants will get real, practical and authentic info, tips and experiences from these presenters, and they will then have time to try out, use and play with the things they learn about. 

This will be a wonderful opportunity for participants to participate in workshops focused on giving them hands on experience of a range of learning technology tools and seeing how they are being used in classrooms

School Principals

Strand Organiser: Bill Garnett

This Strand will appeal to school principals and those not primarily involved in the classroom. It will focus on transforming your school into a 21st Century Learning School. This strand will be supported by presentations by the school principals and keynote presenters.