Student Voice Presentation

The best way to understand some of the ‘concepts’ to be included in the Project REAL blog is through the work of the student themselves. So many of us are inspired by philosophy of reformists, such as Sir Ken Robinson, and his insistence on ending the ‘industrial model’ of education. Project REAL staff are determined to listen to student voice and to challenge the paradigm by re-defining the physical context of the classroom whilst adopting a conceptual approach to our ‘overcrowded’ Stage 5 Geography and History syllabus documents.  Not an easy task by any means, but a journey staff and students are willing to make.

Please watch our Year 9 presentation – their first animoto!

Extracts / Trailer from ‘We are the people we’ve been waiting for’

Jasmine and Gabbi discuss Project REAL

Useful Web Tools – Planning with Popplet

Last year we introduced Popplet to our students. This amazing webtool was introduced to staff via a primary school teacher on Yammer. The team finds that the most useful recommendations always come from primary staff. This is because they always seem to select the most intuitive tools for staff and students. Whilst not all students use it, Popplet allows students to plan all of their visual, audio, web based and written resources on one interactive mind-map. Students can deconstruct a task, create headings and load in content relevant to each concept. Below are some simple examples, join up and enjoy on the next assessment task your class undertakes! FREE, easy and engaging……

Diagnostic Source Analysis – Achieving Better Outcomes Using Formative Assessment

Students are required to independently locate, select and analyse images from the ‘Australian War Memorial’ website. They submit this as a homework task on Edmodo. This provides teachers with an understanding of the initial ability levels of each student regarding source identification and analysis. From this process teachers are able to provide relevant and detailed feedback to specific students whilst they undertake similar activities in class. This formative approach to source analysis has been very successful in the last two years and has led to significantly improved summative assessment results.

PBL – Student song about Vietnam Veterans and PTSD

This task replaced a source analysis exploring the varied experiences of Australia’s Vietnam Veterans. Becc elected to research the manner in which some found it difficult to transition into mainstream society in the years after their return from the war. Soon another video by different students will be uploaded. This time from the perspective of anti-war protesters in 1970.

Playing with PBL using ‘Moviemaker’

In term 1 all year students enjoy our coastal management excursion to Stockton Beach.  We shout a BBQ, students learn about the physical and human elements of this wonderful place and complete a standard assessment task.  These students decided to teach themselves Movie Maker in their own time.  They went back to the site the next weekend, set up their ‘TV studio’ in a parent’s garage, scripted their documentary and created the video below.

We are happy to post this ‘as is’, with their bloopers included, as staff loved their enthusiasm and passion.  These wonderful students have already evaluated how to ‘do it better’ and may complete their Changing Rights and Freedoms History task using a similar technique.  Now they just have to ‘teach the teachers’ how to use it!

Well done guys, you made us very happy with this effort!

 

Artistic Merit – Playing with PBL

Part A of our first Year 10 History assignment is the standard source identification and analysis component of many History tasks.  To increase student engagement we have also added an opportunity to complete this task in another way.  The students approach staff and outline their proposals and if it meets the outcomes we just say ‘go for it!’.  Over the next two weeks we will be posting two different protest songs, written and composed by students, two paintings, and other interpretations of historical events and sources.  Similar to Brooke’s memory quilt and Becc’s Stolen Generations song, students have responded to these tasks with passion and enthusiasm.  Whilst the tasks are not strictly PBL, we love been able to promote creativity, whilst maintaining our strong National Partnership focus on literacy and conceptual argument.

Dust Off – Collecting soldiers in Vietnam – Danielle

 

 

Brooke, aged 15 (PR10, 2012)

I have made this memory quilt to try and capture how the wife or mother of a soldier may have reacted to their loved one’s involvement in the Vietnam War.  Making a memory quilt is one way that a woman from this era could have demonstrated to future generations the impact the Vietnam War could have on the veterans and their families. I made and designed the quilt as if I was a mother, or wife, of a soldier during the 1960s.

One photo shows a young family, being separated by the war.  This would be a terrifying experience for such a young mother.  Another photo is of a young man, dressed in military uniform prior to leaving to Vietnam, inset into this photo is the young man’s father, grieving over his deceased son’s memorial.

I hope you like my quilt!

2011 Data Sets

2011 SC VA Comparison – The Power of Formative Assessment and Feedback

Value Added Project REAL Geography 2011 – Scatterplot  (4.17%)

Value Added Project REAL History 2011 – Scatterplot (4.70%)