Teacher connecting with others

In the last few weeks we have researched and discussed some interesting topics about 21 st century learning, information literacy, and reading cultures. I have also grown in my knowledge and skill set as a blogger. I have learned how to imbed videos, hyperlink webpages, label key words, and comment on others’ pages. Some key takeaways I have learned after all this exploration and learning is to take risks and try something new every week; be it a reading initiative, technology app, or manageable on-going professional development. “If you never make mistakes, then you have never tried something new”.                                                                                  Images retrieved from Pinterest The topic I am most passionate about from this phase of our course is “Fostering a reading culture in schools” because I love books and using them in our theme units of study. But the topic that resonated with me and the one I need to wor

  Image retrieved from cia.gov           Image retrieved from gotimorleste.com   The developing country I chose to focus on is Timor-Leste. It is an under-developed island off Indonesia and has both Portuguese and Indonesian influences before winning independence from these nations in 2002. A friend of mine, who is a librarian in New Zealand, spent a year in Timor-Leste supporting their library initiatives through VSA, a volunteer organization.     Picture of my friend, Aubrey From what I can gather, all libraries in Timor-Leste are non-government run. Here is a list of the libraries based on type: Public Libraries Biblioteka Ermera - opened in 2011 Biblioteca Centro Comunidade Maliana - established in 2002 Haburas Moris Atauro Island Library - Xanana Gusmao Reading Room - established in 2000 Balibo Community Learning Center - opened in 2003 (plans to include a library but currently provides some learning programs

Supporting Teachers’ ICT Curriculum and Pedagogy: On-going Professional Development   Image courtesy of TeachHub When you work in a large school, it is sometimes hard to connect to each and every staff member on a regular basis. If they do not frequent the staff room or are unable to attend meetings due to various circumstances, you may not see certain colleagues for weeks at a time. How can we share and respond to the needs of our staff in a timely and cohesive manner with the most appropriate and useful professional development tools? This is something every school can continue to work on (as I’m sure there are always going to be a few colleagues who are missing out on various opportunities). For example, using technology as a communication and teaching tool with support networks in place and being flexible when scheduling workshops, meetings, and seminars might be two easy first steps. At our school we have staff meeting on the same day and time ev