When running inquiry-based workshops a frequent request is for some dot point ways to identify the differences between inquiry-based teaching/learning and other teaching approaches. My experience is that most teachers’ practice moves somewhere along a continuum of very traditional teaching methods through the middle ranges of constructivist teaching right to the other end of the spectrum often described as discovery … Read More
Finding the potential in problems- another site of failure?
Finding the potential in problems – another site of failure? by Mary-Denese Holmes This continues our exploration of sites of failure and how we might deal with the expectations buried in all sorts of daily-lived life. Today I was reviewing the book “What Do You Do With A Problem?” by Kobi Yamada & Mae Besom 2016, Compedium Inc. The text is well … Read More
Helicopter Parents and Building of Resilience and Grit
Helicopter Parents and Building of Resilience and Grit Post written by Mary-Denese Holmes I have heard, of late, the term “Helicopter Parents” being applied to parents engaged in the life work of growing-up the children and young people in their care. At the outset I need to be clear that I include in the term ‘parents’ the many and various … Read More
Developing Collaborative Discussion Practices
Collaborative Discussion Techniques Post collaboratively written by Carla and Mary-Dense Holmes Summary of the big ideas in this blog Students need to have the language of learning in order to participate in inquiry Using collaborative discussion strategies enables students to become active participants in the inquiry process Conceptual understanding grows when students develop strategies for connecting ideas, working collaboratively and asking questions Students need the chance … Read More
The many faces of failure
I sit writing this among the clutter and chaos of children and adults packing to return to HaNoi after seven weeks of holidays. The dog has gone into a decline and is hiding under the bed, this is way too much drama for him. There is goodwill aplenty; noise at ear-splitting levels and the all available energy fast diminishing. It … Read More
Unleashing Learning- Welcome to 2016 and the Year of the Monkey
Unleashing learning Who’d have thought the time between September and now would have slipped by so quickly. Christmas for the team was very busy with family comings together and catchings up. Lots of movement across the globe, lots of celebrations and lots of tear filled goodbyes. January/February 2016 however has seen a rapid return to work. Carla has been doing … Read More
Here’s to a new year….
(M-D) I was thinking about the coming January 1st New Year 2016 and what hopes I might be bringing to BCW and its development over the coming 12 months. I was remembering a friend of mine talking about time he spent in NASA’s space program. He spoke of a social function that many dignitaries had been invited to and the … Read More
Welcome to the BCW book room
Ahh, the sweet delight of books. We have added a book room to the BCW site; because book reading is something we all share. We were grown-up on reading and stories, and we delight in the treasures that books and stories reveal. I live in HaNoi in a tower of a house. It rises like a turret from its small … Read More
Team update…busy busy busy
Well a busy couple of weeks have passed and even busier ones are ahead. We continue to tweak the website and overcome, understand, uncover (and various other prefixes) hassles on the site to ensure it will function easily and reliably. As we continue to appreciate this is no small task. Pearl has attended some Narrative training in Sydney about the … Read More
The team update – Our inquiry continues
Well one month on from launch and we are doing some re-viewing of how naïve we were at launch. Having done months of work we thought launch was “all go from here on in”, sigh….. if only. We have had to re-jig bits of the web site, send constant frantic emails back to our web creators asking endless questions and … Read More