TaNuj^’s Weblog

This post is dedicated to the wonderful schooling year that I have been gifted with. This is a recount of my memories; memories that quite often send tears rolling, down my cheeks (relax, I’m only kidding). After all it’s been a mind-blowing year that we have had at our school. This year at Parramatta Marist High: learning, educating and development of year 9 students, took a leap into what we call PBL (Project/Problem Based Learning), as most of my blog readers have a fair idea about this system, so I will not go in-depth. But I will emphasize on the topic- education on a turning point. Its said many years ago, people would have to come to their chosen place of learning, carrying a burden of books, which were their only means of gathering information and gaining knowledge. For many years this how things worked, however it was in the late 19th century many ordinary individuals got introduced to the terms- technology (computers) and a software which we call ”Internet”. Many thought bringing technology into practise would be useless, anyhow there was a wise man who gave technology a go, and it was from this, that we got introduced to 21st century learning. PBL is a step forward in the era of technology, many schools in our today’s society are trying to excel in this program. Many developed and developing countries are slowly but steadily adopting this system. Numerous schools are looking ahead, and educating their learners with the skills they will need to compete globally.

I feel proud to be saying my school happens to be the very first school to undertake PBL in whole of Australia. Even though we were ginny pigs (I guess its fair to say so), yet I feel so privileged and thankful for being chosen to experience such a thing. Education I have received through out this year has helped me and my mates become successful citizens of our country. But also the skills we have developed and gained is sure to help us lead to the pathway, which is bound to have a bright future. Good example of this would be-…through our course of PBL we had to go on a journey of completing a given task, task that could not be completed single handily. Students had to work with others in order to fully meet the needs of given project. This leads onto teamwork, which is one of the most important elements in the workplace. By this its evident we were not only taught normal Maths and English, alongside we were skilled with many lifetime learnings.

It was with such an extraordinary learning experience that we were offered to present our final product, to some of well-known individuals around our dioceses, these included- politicians, religious leaders and many others. Alongside we developed a healthy relationship amongst our teachers (they were superstars). I admit at the start students weren’t as engaged nor were we trying our absolute best. But as they say the biggest room in the world is the room for improvement, students slowly visualised the enormous amount of advantages, which were on offer and went on to take full advantage of them. At this I congratulate all of my teachers as they inspired and motivated all of their lovely learners =) to become more interested in their learning.

Nothing in this world comes without a struggle, similarly with our grade doing PBL, we got of to rocky start, and that was understandable as this was first time for teachers to be teaching in such a situation (no one is perfect). The main problem our teachers faced was that they would describe and clarify the project to students by giving us an entry document, yet students would often ask for various answers to questions, which were required from them in order to complete the given project. At this teachers sat together and came up with a solution. Solution was – for students to complete a given project, teachers would set out few other smaller activities which would then later lead onto the final product (bigger picture). In these smaller activities if student had problems, then teacher would simply show him/her the direction or the pathway he/she can take in order to complete the given task. Showing the pathway would be as simple as giving a list of Internet sites and telling the student “that your answers you seek lie somewhere within them”. This method in my opinion was far better than giving students a straight answer. This is a huge credit to our new PBL coordinator Gavin Hays and to all those teachers who want to that extra bit for their students (special mention to Karyn West and oh who can forget Lucy Gresser . It was from this that the students and teachers at our school got a real boost, end result being, terrific and the most remarkable project were formed (religion and the technology department worked together as a unit forming tremendous, and well thought projects. On the other hand we had likes of Lucy Gresser, Dean Groom and few others working together, forming projects, which were well beyond our lavishing dreams. Good example of Write on, Write now). From then on everything went the right way up.

Teachers with whom I have been privileged to interact with and be taught by, were just tremendous, to be honest I have no such words to show my appreciation for them. At times things have been have been hard (that’s life), but it’s been my teachers and their pleasant talks, which has shone my mates and me the better aspect of an enjoyable learning. As a good friend of mine once said to me “The better people in the world learn to overcome the obstacles that life throws at them, because it will only make you stronger.” I now look forward to my schooling year in 2009 (wish you all a very happy new year), my goals aren’t completely set but one thing is for sure I’m willing to overcome any obstacles that lie in front of me, because I know I can do anything I dearly wish for. As in my dictionary there is no such word as impossible.

After the success we had with our previous project (write on, write now), in which many of the students and teachers performed the act of enthusiasm. Now it was time to move onto our next project, which was given the name of, “Australia Then and Now”. As the name would have suggested that this project would looks at aspect of history, history of great nation that today we know as Australia. In order to under take this task students were given a formal document, which highlighted things that are asked from this project….

“AUSTRALIA”

The compendium to the movie

To coincide with the release of Australia the movie, director Baz Luhrmann and his production company have promised to release a compendium to the movie so that an international audience may better understand the setting and context for the film.

The compendium to the film shall include a brief history of the nation from settlement until the present. Selected historical writers have been asked to complete different chapters. One chapter, Australia to 1901-1914, is to be written by school students from Sydney.

 The compendium is to be launched in 2 weeks time to coincide with the Sydney premiere of the movie. Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman will also be available for a book signing at Angus and Robertson’s Pitt St. store on November 25th (cough, cough – like this would be true)

Even though we have only spent few lessons on this project, yet students have taken in quite a lot of content into them. As a class we have done an extensive research on- the world to 1914. In doing so we encountered many facts, which still shock many people. In my opinion the best way to describe the period from 1901- 1914 would be, clam breeze which blows before a storm. In say so I’am referring to periods just before World War 1. A bloody battle which we know took lives of many courageous warriors. Now you must be wondering how come our project is based on Australia, and yet we are doing all this research about the world, and wars. The reason behind this sort of research is for us students get a better knowledge on many sorts of alliances which were formed, during wars. This was done in-order for us to have a clear understanding in the relationship of Australia and its mother country- Great Britain. During our research work we covered many topics such as-

• Empire/Imperialism
• Arms Race
• Dreadnought- Naval Race
• Triple Entente
• Triple Alliance
• Boer War
• Boxer Rebellion

If you look from your eyes at all those topics it would seem useless, but if see from the sight of a historian you will see fascinating topics which hold so much mysteries about our past.

Anyhow, later in the week we got together as class and viewed couple of videos. These videos had an in-depth look at the situation in Australia. We looked at the topics such as…

• Constitutional convection in Australia
• Federation taking place ;uniting as a country ( “either we work as a team, or die as individuals”)
• United Defence Force
• Trade and Economy
• Woman Suffrage

From my prespective this project tends to be on rocky grounds, simply because there is no means of social networking (google docs., Ning) involved. But I’m sure my teachers and friends -Lucy and Sac with whom I developed in my learning this year would be able to convert it into a superior project.

“There is a long way to go, but at least a sturdy start has been made”

So here are few photographs I took, which convey our learning…

Who imagined that learning could be this fun ….

Over the last few weeks year 9 students at my current high-school have been working on a project so called “Write On, Write Now”(fabulous title, in my opinion). A project which has been created by the likes of amazing and enthuziastic teachers such as- Lucy, Dean , and few other new comers.  It was a project in which we(students) had an in-depth look at the aspect of reading and writing.

Walking to school I had many of my mates and teachers talking of this project. Which required students  to read George Orwell masterpiece- Animal Farm, and later go onto writing a book of their own consisting 8000 words – that to in ONE, SINGLE SCHOOL DAY!. At Hearing of such an extraordinary project, only thought that ran through my mind was- “gi harsh times lie ahead of Social Studies teachers”. It would have sound as a nightmare for some of the students… reading 2 chapters a day of Animal Farm, a book which consists of so many morals, and in-depth meaning. If that wasn’t enough, for students to rock up to school on one particular day and be asked to write a book, right from the scratch. Never had such a project been carried out, especially with teachers having such high expectations. 

Teachers at our school are really starting to blossom as 21 century tutors. A major part of being such a group of talented teachers, undertaking PBL( problem/project based learning) for first time in entire Australia, is that they to are learning alongside students. But they also realise, and look at the projects from the perspective of students. In doing so, they were able to make out releasing all of the project at the same time would send many of the students into panic, and in some cases lose the enthusiasm of students. In order to prevent such negative things to happen, teachers released project bit by bit.

First phase of the project asked students to read this marvelous book Animal Farm . Alongside students had to communicate and answer questions about the book via sharing google documents. None of the students knew who their teacher was, but they knew that they had to work hard towards achieving 30 marks, which were set upon this section. Here is an example of a student communicating with his/her teacher – Napoleon…google docs..

In order for students to understand various message that Orwell was trying to get across to the audience. Many of the students analyzed chapter by chapter, using various techniques such as- mindmaping.

After a week of vigorous reading, did our class finally manage to finish this book which left us with a thought  that ” Power put into wrong hands can create a work of a devil”. Throughout the book we not only learnt about the abuse of power, but also the way Russian Revolution that took place many years ago . I for one was quite fascinated with the way Orwell depicted his message through the use of animal characters. 

Soon it was the time for 2nd phase of our project. This portion, consisted us (students) to further develop our creativity, and make use of descriptive language (similes, metaphors, and personification…). I was quite amazed (in a happy way) to see such content be involved in our project. To be particularly honest throughout this extravagant year that PBL- Social Studies have had, still not a lot of literacy techniques have been taught (something for teachers to think about). Anyhow as the days went on Lucy and Sac spent many hours with the class- giving them their advice on writing, and at times holding tutorials as a class. Special mention to Lucy who devoted ENORMOUS amount of time to this project, just in-order for each of her students to become life long learners who leave her classroom with heaps and heaps of knowledge and understanding.

Leading up to our writing day was a tutorial held with a well known author Bernard Cohen. With him students learnt and developed many writing skills, being an author we got given first hand advice for minor things to look out for in our writing.

Anyhow after receiving many tutorials, the judgement day had arrived. Students knew of nothing, except that they will have to plan and write a book on their chosen topic, for me it was - T*H*U*N*D*E*R*S*T*O*R*M: A Collection of Short Stories on the Use and Abuse of Power. This project not only taught students variety of literacy skills, but also skills which would be needed at the workplace, example- planning, and time management. Here are few examples of marvelous work done in a single school day…The Blood line, Dream on President, Geriant Quest for Freedom

So in conclusion, what a project we have had?. Never had I even imagined of doing something like this, many thanks to the Social Studies staff, Lucy, and Dean for their contribution. As I have mentioned many times, fair enough students made a book, but none of it could have had been possible without English Loving Teachers we have at our school.  It has been a great journey and a terrific experience. Now I look forward to the Projects that lie ahead. As Boxer once said’ “I will work harder”.

“Being able to write effectively consists of the writer to make his reader come and stand in his footsteps, and be able to see the problem from the perspective the writer is looking at” (By Tanuj)

Why else is it Important to write well?

• Form of communication between two or more people.
• Unclear writing may lead to misunderstanding by the reader, whilst trying to convey a message.
• Unclear writing reflects negatively on the writer and sometimes reflects foggy thinking.
• Being able to write clearly strengthens the writer’s self-esteem.

As writing high-quality paragraphs leads to effective writing, so here is my opinion on….

What is a paragraph?

A paragraph is a collection and collaboration a of related sentences put together, which then go on to look at the bigger picture. A paragraph usually contains a general idea in one sentence, and 4 – 5 supporting sentences, which expand this idea by giving explanation, details and/or examples to support the main idea.

What does a paragraph consist of?

1. Topic Sentence- This is the first sentence in the paragraph, and it expresses the main idea (gets straight to the point).

2. Supporting Sentences- Details that expands and helps in conveying the main idea.

3. Concluding Sentence – Rounding off, this is where the main idea gets referred back and you express your opinion the idea.

When writing here are couple of things that I find helpful -

• Unity- Making sure that the entire paragraph only focuses at a single topic, and that I’ am NOT drifting of in other directions – as that would totally confuse the reader.
• Coherence- Writing a paragraph that is easily comprehensible to a reader. Using language/ words that are easy to understand.
• Adequate Development- The topic (which is introduced by the topic sentence) should be discussed fully and adequately, in order to get the in-depth meaning and understanding.
• Use examples and illustrations
• Using other information, such as – facts, statistics, evidence, details, and others.
• Examine testimony – what other people say such as quotes and paraphrases.
• Define terms in the paragraph
• Compare and contrast with other information that is out there!
• Evaluate causes and reasons
• Examine effects and consequences thpse related to the topic

Cross-checking your paragraphs

Proofreading your paragraphs is one of the most important things you must do in order to create high-quality reading experience. Since mostly people do most of their writing on a computer, they have access to automated spelling and grammar checkers. Beware though — some words, used in the wrong context may be missed by computerized by the spell checkers.

Ever wondered- what cartoons are ?? what do they consist off?? What are the basic of cartoons??. Well today whilst I was conducting my research on cartooning, I came across a site by one of the members from optusnet. The article there stated and talked about cartooning, I certainly found it quite extravagant.  Many cartoons are illustrated, tell a joke, satirise, caricature, entertain or to tell a story with a meaning behind it. Cartooning is a fine example of the use of creative thinking. You can see a different perception of the world through the eyes of the cartoonist. Cartoons are often drawn with great economy of line. In just a few strokes of the pen, the artist is able to capture the essence of an idea, or in the case of a caricaturist, to observe and exaggerate the key features of the subject. A cartoon presents the cartoonists point of view so you see what the cartoonist would like you to see in a situation. Our society tends to associate cartoons with fun, humour, and often childhood, and this association is a positive one. By having fun, you can open up the creative pathways in your brain. With our social studies project we are meant to create a cartoon on either -

Social- Cartoons those related with community or public….

Political- Cartoons showing current issues regarding politics and politicians…
(Australian/Foreign)

National- Cartoons conveying a message on the current Australian issues…

International (any cartoon addressing an issue of international importance)-Cartoons conveying a message on any international issue.

Historical (War and Propaganda and recruitment)- cartoons showing anything that might would have happened in the past.

Sporting- Cartoons those related to current topics in Sporting life.

Creating an interesting cartoon consists quality of criticism. Criticism could only be formed once we have the full information about the subject and its problem. Four basic steps that I would certainly find helpful when creating Creative Problem Solving with cartoons

1. Draw your problem as a cartoon.
2. Write a caption for your cartoon.
3. Modify the cartoon by introducing another element. Does this move toward you generating a solution?
4. Alternatively, draw elements of your problem in cartoon form.

So what are your thought, if you would be having any information on cartooning please let us know…thanx for your help…

As the days go on have you everwondered on the whole process of developing writing skill…. well todaysearching through Internet I came acrosss article published by BBC… article stated the steps on how- us humans develop our writing  skills right from the days when we are born to those when we are able to write complicated essays….so this what the article stated….

Children learn a lot about writing before they begin school simply by seeing language around them. They are surrounded by print: on road signs, food packets, in books, magazines and catalogues.

We learn to talk by joining in with words as we hear them used. In the same way, especially in homes where people write things down, children learn a lot about writing through joining in and having a go.

When your child writes, first of all she has to decide what to say. Then she has to be able to write it down. These two key aspects of writing, planning and actual writing, are constantly taught and practised throughout the primary years.

Mastering the writing skills of spelling, handwriting and punctuation is important. Being confident in these skills allows children to put their energy into composing what they want to say. The flow of writing is spoilt if children have to write very slowly because handwriting skills haven’t been developed or they need to keep stopping to look up spellings.

Unfortunately, it can be easy to spot mistakes in writing, so parents often worry when spellings are wrong, work appears untidy or a full stop is missing. Your child, particularly in the early stages, will find it difficult to focus on everything at once.

However, it’s important to read what the writing says and celebrate that first of all, rather than to focus entirely on errors. Try to pick out the best bits to praise: it could be a great ending or a clear description. If a tricky word has been used in an interesting way, this should be praised even if it is spelled wrongly.

Of course, it’s important that children eventually learn to write accurately, too. But if you do correct your child’s mistakes, focus on a small number of points: perhaps one or two spellings, or adding full stops. If spelling lists are sent home try to make practice fun by playing games that encourage careful listening to the sounds in words and looking for letter patterns.

Young children usually write about subjects of immediate interest, in a style that sounds like speech written down. This changes gradually as they come into contact with a wider range of writing styles.

Through constantly hearing how written language differs from speech, children become aware of writing conventions and phrases such as ‘Once upon a time…’ Gradually the more formal structure of non-fiction texts begins to occur in their written work, too. Children learn to use paragraphs and to structure their writing to build up drama or develop an argument.

To ensure this happens in a systematic way most schools now follow the guidance of the National Literacy Strategy, which includes poetry, fiction and non-fiction writing in each term’s teaching plan. When your children have writing homework, encourage them to say what they want to write before they record it. Then ask them to keep re-reading what they have written, asking themselves: ‘Does it sound right?’ and ‘Does it make sense?’

Throughout the process of witting, ACS Distance Education  states that  we need to keep having a look at the following steps,and develop on the following areas of writing….

Skill – being able to use language correctly and appropriately in a given situation

Knowledge – knowing correct formats for a range of writing situations; knowing enough words and how to use them to convey precise meanings; identifying your writing goal and the requirements of those you write for; knowing what you are writing about

Commitment – being focused on your writing goal; spending time and energy learning to write well; determining to produce quality writing; using criticism constructively to improve your writing

Practice – writing often to develop your skills; applying learned writing skills thoughtfully and consciously; reviewing your writing to note areas needing improvement and areas where you are doing well.