Global Education

Welcome back to school! I hope you all had the opportunity to participate in (and present) some inspiring professional learning to motivate you for the year. At Kalgoorlie Primary School we were very lucky to have Cameron from the One World Centre present a thought-provoking, half day session on global education. The morning was a fantastic mix of information about global issues, opportunities to discuss ideas in groups, engaging activities relevant for use in the classroom and commentary on links to the Australian Curriculum. 

Students in the twenty-first century are interconnected like never before and common sense...as well as the Australian Curriculum, tells us that we need to empower our students by providing them with meaningful opportunities to;

• learn about themselves and others 
• learn about diversity and 
• ultimately, recognise a shared humanity and communal responsibility for our world..

Enabling young people to participate in a better shared future is at the heart of global education. 

The cross curricular priorities, the general capabilities, English, History and Geography all explicitly emphasise the importance of teaching students to become reflective, responsible global citizens.  

Stay tuned for lesson plans and units of work, developed and trialled at KPS, with a Global Education flavour.

 

Entitlement...and the Australian Curriculum

During the summer holidays, I spent some time catching up on a year’s worth of reading.  I hope you also found some time to refresh and recharge doing the things you love.

One of the professional readings I completed during the break, “Data-Driven Instructional Leadership” written by Rebecca J. Blink Ph.D, reminded me of an integral aspect of the Australian Curriculum - the concept of entitlement. This is the right of every Australian child; regardless of geographical location, socioeconomic status, race or religion, to have the opportunity to be exposed to and learn set knowledge, skills and understandings.

The book began with a personal recount which emphasised the role of the ‘No Child Left Behind’ (NCLB) policy in the US in providing greater opportunities for the author’s nephew, who had an identified intellectual disability. Prior to the directive that every child be exposed to an academic curriculum, this student had spent hours completing menial tasks; wiping down benches, distributing newletters, photocopying …in the name of life-skills. As a result of the policy, he was given access to the academic curriculum, the opportunity to learn to read and write and to develop the skills to actively operate in society – true life skills.

An extreme example in some ways, and our Australian Curriculum is very different to NCLB; however, the shared concept of entitlement is something we, as educators and school leaders, need to keep at the forefront of our minds as we progress down the path of national curriculum implementation. So that children from across our diverse nation are provided with equity of access to learning. 

Kalgoorlie Primary School is hosting a Centra professional learning opportunity, investigating the concept of entitlement and other core messages of the Australian Curriculum during term two. Please contact us if you would like more information and keep an eye on the blog for updated information.

Celebrating the ANZACs through Literature

Staff, students and families at Kalgoorlie Primary School believe students should finish their primary schooling knowing more about the ANZAC tradition than just the story of Simpson and his donkey. To ensure this happens in a cumulative and developmentally appropriate way, we developed a whole school scope and sequence for learning about Australia's involvement in conflict and peacekeeping throughout history.

This year we developed units of work around war and remembrance themed literature to integrate the learning areas of History and English. 

Our Kindy and Foundation students shared and heard stories about family members and people they know who have been involved in wars and peacekeeping. Students across the school learned about conflicts over time including Gallipoli, The Western Front, Korea, Vietnam and recent peacekeeping efforts in Afghanistan. We were very privileged to have Daniel Keighran, Victoria Cross recipient speak to our students and share his experiences. 

Introducing and investigating the topic of war through Literature 

- allows students to interact with history on an emotional and intellectual level

- encourages critical thinking

- promotes discussion, debate and questioning of motives and decisions behind historical facts

- encourages the development of attitudes that lead to caring for and appreciation of others unlike themselves  

- gives rise to the questioning of the way certain characters have been portrayed and the language decisions around this. 

(Acknowledgement of Di Rees and Vicki Briggs of Statewide Services for the above list).

Please follow the link below to access a unit of work for Year 2 based on the book 'Do Not Forget Australia' by Sally Murphy and Sonia Kretschmar. 

Do Not Forget Australia - unit of work

 Student work samples - Do Not Forget Australia