A contemporary issue that is shaping NZ education is the shift of focus to student- centred learning. The Education Review Office encourages schools "to develop systems, processes and connections that put students at the heart of learning and teaching, rather than on the periphery of school decision making and the curriculum"( Education Review Office, 2012). Learning environments are developing where students are seen as partners in learning and where their student voice is valued and accepted. The use of digital technologies and the fact that the students can access their work from anywhere has meant that students are spending more time with 1:1 devises and collaborating with their peers than facing the front, being directed by the teacher. The traditional role of the teacher is changing. Teachers are working alongside students, guiding them and providing scaffolding to an individual or groups when needed. Students are setting their own goals and learning direction. A recent study from Academy of Finland shows " how technology enhanced learning activities have shifted the nature of teaching. Teachers are expected to be effective facilitators, engaging in  joint problem solving with their students." (Johnson, Adams Becker, Estrada and Freeman, 201, p.28). An issue with this shift in teaching pedagogy, is that teachers can feel overwhelmed by the rapid developments and need sufficient training and support to integrate emerging digital tools in their curriculum and classrooms effectively.
My community of learning is making the shift towards student centred learning. We are incorporating: student led inquiries; getting students to set their goals in relation to the expected level and identifying what they can do to make improvements; information about the students's strengths and interests are developing the classroom programmes and, where possible, students are being encouraged to choose the tools and the contexts that they use in their learning. In our school community we use Microsoft Office 365 where all the students can access the planning and contribute to the learning criteria. The next step with this is for the students to collaborate with the teacher to plan their own learning and timeframes within the framework of the school curriculum.

Creating authentic learning opportunities prepares students with lifelong learning skills such as critical thinking, reflection and problem solving, enabling students to enjoy future workplace success. While educators can see the benefits of authentic learning and are keen to embrace it, the government needs to help guide the schools through the process. Schools need strong connections with their wider community and these relationships need time to develop. Assessments, matrixes and check points of how students's skills are progressing need to be developed. Recent ways in which my community of practice are creating authentic learning opportunities include, taking our senior students back stage during the local drama production so that they got an idea of what jobs are important when producing a musical and they can then take on these roles, such as lighting, sound, set builder in our school production next term. This week I have a meeting with the local council and DOC at Wakanui Beach to see how Wakanui School can be actively involved in the Wakanui beach restoration project that has been proposed. Another exciting project we are involved in is raising funds to sponsor a child through World Vision. We are continually looking for ways and connections to engage our students to become lifelong learners. As teachers at our school we do not always get it right, classrooms can appear chaotic and some students get lost in the mix, facilitating effective collaboration is challenging,  it is hard as a teacher to stand back and not solve the problems for them particularly when momentum dips and there are timeframes to meet. Assessing the skills such as key competencies, school values and the principles of the curriculum and reporting these to parents and getting them to understand the value in them is an on going issue for our community of practise. I would welcome feedback from others on what is working for them.

References

Education Review Office, 2012. Evaluation at a Glance: Priority Learners in New Zealand Schools. Retrieved 18 May 2016, from http://www.ero.govt.nz/About-Us/News-Media- Releases2/The-three-most-pressing-issues-for-N

Johnson, L., Adams Becker, S., Estrada, V., and Freeman, A. (2015). NMC Horizon Report: 2015 K-12 Edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.