The suggestion to write a blog about education, and particular my experiences in being a “lead learner”, to borrow from Michael Fullan’s The Principal, in the realm of international education came out of a visit to my local pub with a colleague. Several hefeweizen had been consumed before he blurted out his idea. I think the words “thought leader” were also used, but I am not sure.
My colleague’s suggestion hit home more accurately than he thought. I had been pondering for some time about the notion of writing a blog that mused over the incredible developments currently taking place in teaching and learning. We had talked about some of the initiatives I had started to implement at the school, all of which were building on these developments: formative assessment, deep learning pedagogies, alternative credentials, technology accelerating learning.
The relaxing environs of the pub lent itself to a significantly longer period of time than either of our families were happy with, but our discussion was a good one. Theoretical and practical reflections on how these said ‘incredible developments’ in teaching and learning might be applied to the international, intercultural and interlingual space in which I now operate will be an important aspect of this blog’s reflections but it will probably not be the only focus. Ultimately, my intent with this blog is to reflect on teaching and learning and to contribute in a meaningful way to the discourse about learning, and the discussions about the changes taking place in realm of teaching and learning.