Hi and welcome to our March 2003 Newsletter.
The initial rush that kicks off each school year is now under
control and we have time to catch up and look around. For OTRNet that means
getting our next lot of modules off to the printers and exploring new items
that might be useful as resources for maths teachers. I hope you find some
useful resource or information in this newsletter.
Regards,
Mark
In this newsletter there is
information on:
1. The Latest on the Integrated
Maths Modules
2. MAWA Professional Development
3. Subscriptions to our Online Service
4. Student Reflection page
5. PD at your school
6. Cooperative Learning Workshops
1. The Latest on the
Integrated Maths Modules
Two new modules have arrived back from the printers and are
now available. These are modules E03: 3D Shapes 1 and F04:
Networks. This completes all modules in the B, C, D, E and F
stages. The stage G and H modules are now under development and will be
released during 2003 in readiness for students moving into year 10 next
year.
Samples from these two modules are available from the sample
pages at:
Twenty two integrated maths modules are
now published and samples from all these modules are available
from our website at the link below:
You can check availability of all modules at this page of
our web site:
2. MAWA Professional
Development
A reminder about MAWA's first Afternoon Workshop for 2003
at the new MAWA Office in Mirrabooka on Thursday 13th March.
I will be repeating the session from the MAWA Secondary
Convention. The title is "Focusing on Learning in the Classroom". The
aim of this session is to suggest ways and means of making a
classroom more student centred, making learning more constructivist based,
and allowing students to work cooperatively. The session would
be of interest to people who are trying to make changes in their own
classroom or are looking at how an alternative learning process can be
managed.
You can register with MAWA for this session by contacting
the office on 9345 0388.
3. Subscriptions to
our Online Service
A reminder to schools or individual teachers who have previously
subscribed to our Online Subscription Service that renewal for 2003
is only $10 per category. Send an order form or an email to let me
know that you wish to continue access.
If you were not previously
subscribed then follow the link below to find out more about what we
offer. You can get students working mathematically on quality tasks
modelled to fit your desired outcomes.
Subscriptions
Service Information
4. Student Reflection page
Each Integrated Maths Module now comes with a "Student
Reflection Page" at the end of the module. This page is designed to be the
basis of a final learning experience allowing students to review and reflect
on what they have learnt in the module. More and more the reflective
process is being seen as a vital component of higher level learning, both
within the learning cycle and as a cumulative 'evaluation' of the quality of
learning that took place.
You can find out more about our "Student Reflection page" at
this page of our web site:
Follow up an Internet article on reflection at this web page:
5. PD at your school
I am now available to schools for professional development in
two areas:
1. Finding out about how the Integrated Maths modules can be
used to resource your maths courses.
2. Focusing on Learning in the Classroom.
This can be arranged either for after school or within school
hours (on some days of the week). Sessions can be from 1 to 2 hours long for
groups up to about 15.
Email me at the address below with what you are aiming to do
and we will organise a session at a time that suits.
6. Cooperative Learning Workshops
Under the Middle School links on the OTRNet web site there
are many links to information on modern education theory. One of the
categories is on Cooperative Learning, which provides resources that can
help us to implement Curriculum Framework outcome 12.
For Western Australian teachers interested in developing
skills in this area the State School Teachers Union is running a series of
two day Professional Development workshops in May & June with Barrie
Bennett, co-author of "Cooperative Learning - Where Heart Meets Mind".
OTRNet thanks you for your time in looking at our newsletter.