Gifted Conference in Rotorua

This weekend I attended the Reaching Forward conference in Rotorua. Attended by educators from all over New Zealand, the conference focused on how we differentiate our curriculum, teaching and schools to try and personalise the learning for all our children.

One of the most inspiring talks at the conference came from Robyn Boswell. She talked about the opportunities offered by the new curriculum to start by asking "who are we teaching" rather than "what are we teaching." I believe that this is key to changing the way that schools run and teachers teach to better meet the needs of 21st century learners. What and how we teach our children depends on who our children are. All children have different needs, understandings and ways of learning, and it is no longer acceptable for us to work from a one size fits all model for teaching. The challenge for all schools is to find a way to change how we teach so that we are meeting the individual needs of children much more effectively. There has been much talk in New Zealand in recent years about "personalised learning" but there has been no definitive answer to the problem. However we must continue to search for one. The world our children are growing up in has changed and education must change too, or we are doing them a great disservice.

The conference certainly got me thinking and excited about the times ahead. It is a great time to be in education. We are on the cusp of some really exciting changes and, at Fendalton, we need to be riding the crest of that wave.