CPD via Twitter (up to 10th May)

The plan is that this will be the first of a regular set of blogposts, showing what I’ve learned over the previous week or fortnight via Twitter. We’ll see how it goes. Explanation, if you need it, was in my previous post. This won’t include all my favourited tweets, but hopefully many of them. It’s also possible that links found from other sources will make their way in.

This is taking longer than planned, so I’m breaking it up a bit. This post covers my favourites list up to 10th May or so. I’ll try to bring it up to date tomorrow. Basically, I favourite too much.

Highlights

@RealGeoffBarton followed up his previous TES piece with this blog post. The main focus is a colleague’s letter which addresses some of the concerns with Ofsted expecting to see progress in 20 minute slots.

Challenging and fascinating read discussing the difference – and overlap – between ‘genes’ and ‘environment, by @ejwillingham. Great for able Biology students, I would suggest.

I liked this, but it’s a shame #SciTeachJC doesn’t get a mention; The National Education Trust published an article by @miss_mcinerney on the use of evidence in the classroom from their event with Estelle Morris & Kathy Sylva

It’s about teaching, and science, and it’s written by an astronaut. Great Science Education Starts With Great Teachers was tweeted by @thefaculties.

Ugly Learning – written by @bennettscience, tweeted by @mrsebiology – is interesting not just for what it says about the ‘flipped classroom idea’, but for how it reminds us students react to any change.

Pedagogy

• @DonaldClark is looking at the evidence (for and against) of many educationalists’ theories.
• @thought_weavers: A simple guide to using Bloom’s taxonomy in the classroom: http://wp.me/p1upWt-B
• @josepicardo: The Reflective Practitioner http://j.mp/IEVJNk #blogging #reflection
• The always reliable @mrsebiology shared several links on metacognition, and my only caveat is that they may include American spellings. Nothing’s perfect. The Reading Lady, Suggestions for Building Metacognition, Pam Hook (inc SOLO bits), Connecting Practice and Research.
• Some studies on CPD in the UK were shared by @teachitso: Opfer & Pedder’s work is important to you. Have you come across it? http://www.darleenopfer.com/File/CJ%20Access%20article.pdf http://www.darleenopfer.com/file/EJTE%20Lost%20Promise%20FInal%20pdf.pdf
• Via @TeacherDevTrust: Learning is the work | Michael Fullan on CPDs central importance to school improvement http://www.michaelfullan.ca/articles_11/11_july_fullan_learning_is_the_work.pdf
• @agittner: RT @Totallywired77: New Blog Post: SOLO Stations http://wp.me/p1hq7O-9r can’t wait to try this #asechat

All anyone talks about is the monitoring. They forget about the link to making learning and teaching better.

— David Rogers (@davidErogers) May 10, 2012

Performance Related Pay

Pay teachers according to performance, MPs propose gu.com/p/378p2/tf

— GuardianEducation (@GuardianEdu) April 30, 2012

Oh, boy, this kicked off quite an argument. The actual report mentions a lot of other stuff too, but as you might expect this idea is what both the media and many teachers focused on. For example:

• @informededu: 3 reports agree, but there has been one successful application of PRP it seems: http://bit.ly/IlhyMM
• @MichaelRosenYes: Performance related pay for teachers exposed to a bit of rational rubbishing here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/may/01/performance-related-pay-teachers (also tweeted by @RealGeoffBarton, article written by @MikeGriffiths01)
• @oldandrewuk: Markets can’t magic up good teachers. Nor can bonuses | Zoe Williams http://gu.com/p/37ae3/tw via @guardian
• the always excellent @warwickmansell commented on a linked idea, that of recruiting the ‘best’ candidates for teaching: : Jeez…@cmpobristol seem to be using version of US argument: let lots try to teach, then judge them on ppl test scores: http://bit.ly/Kwifm0
• @SchoolDuggery: And another desperately poor one that fails to give the most basic info on this survey showing teachers want PRP http://tgr.ph/Kj9S2I
• Several of these articles and points were picked up in various letters to the Guardian, linked by @RealGeoffBarton: Lively & persuasive mix of comments RT @schoolsontap: Letters: shining a light on teachers’ pay http://ow.ly/aH44T | Guardian
• There’s a lot of schepticism about some of the claims, for example @DylanWiliam: “Most teachers support link between performance and pay” says Sutton Trust. Well, yes, but in a very weak way: http://bit.ly/ITnvpj

SciTeachJC

The paper last week was about where people (actually Americans, but you get the idea) learn most of their science. Lots of discussion, unfortunately we once more felt that many of the changes were out of our hands as teachers. (But when we run museums and the BBC it might be different.) It was pointed out that visitor centres etc do try to collect data.

@gailsci: The Ri for example uses a system based on the generic learning outcomes. More here http://www.inspiringlearningforall.gov.uk/ #SciTeachJC

@alomshaha: Science learning: better outside school than in? http://wellcometrust.wordpress.com/2011/11/30/science-learning-better-outside-school-than-in/ via @HLeevers #SciTeachJC

No summary of the discussion yet but there is an archive, courtesy of @alby.

Science

• @brainpicker: Fascinating read on the social-cognitive differences between dogs and wolves, and how dogs use humans as tools http://j.mp/Kst6O3
• @senseaboutsci: You can now listen to Lord Taverne’s lecture, “What has science ever done for us” via @Guardian http://gu.com/p/3792t/tw #SASlecture
• @guardianscience: Science and politics: chalk and cheese? | Adam Smith | Talking science to power http://gu.com/p/37b33/tf
• A link on inclusion and the experience of science from @kimberlykowel: Timely tweet. #SciTeachJC RT @Annie314159 Science experiences should be for everyone: http://ow.ly/aMlce H/T @astrolisa

DailySkeptoid: GPS satellite clocks gain 38ms/day on Earth clocks: +45 from distance from massive Earth; -7 from high speed. Relativity!

— Brian Dunning (@BrianDunning) May 5, 2012

That’s just here because it’s cool. 🙂