RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!*

“We need librarians more than we ever did. What we don’t need are mere clerks who guard dead paper. Librarians are too important to be a dwindling voice in our culture. For the right librarian, this is the chance of a lifetime.” Seth Godin “If you can’t dance a step, you can’t teach it, and if […]

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The Soap Opera

 “Politics is war by other means.”         Foucault The soap opera that is Australian politics entered a new phase last night. Three years after being deposed by Julia Gillard, in a coup led by ‘faceless men’, Kevin Rudd has been returned as leader of the ALP and Prime Minister. Back then it […]

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Gonski and Faux Reform

Now the extra base funding necessary to get us to this school resourcing standard over six years is $14.5 billion. It’s a lot of money, but I believe it is a wise investment in our children’s future and in our nation’s future. J. Gillard The Gonski Review has led to our Prime Minister announcing “the biggest changes […]

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Not a list (a reflective post with 2013 in mind)

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” “Fight evil, read books.” These two quotes are my favourites for the year. Pithy and profound, they seem to share great truths with some hope that one can start doing something positive right now. When so many issues […]

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A Bigger Picture

Winston Churchill famously said that ‘democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried’. One can certainly bemoan the messiness of what can only be described as a serious deficit of coherent national educational strategy, ironically, at a time when ‘Australia is falling behind’ is often heard from politicians. […]

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The Wrong Conversations

  Fairfax has signalled that the future is online Fairfax cuts 1900 jobs   Fairfax media, publishing the Sydney Morning Herald, since 1831, is the latest industry to be forced to change, perhaps too late, in response to the digital revolution. Many suggested the writing was on the wall 15 years ago and that tardiness, […]

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What’s important?

The ritual dance, between the NSW Teachers Federation and the NSW Department of Education and Communities, continues over how education is organised in our state. I do not propose to comment on my employer’s policies or my union’s response.   Educators must focus on what is truly important for our communities. Quite simply, our priorities […]

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What can we learn from Francis Fukuyama?

The purpose of this book is to fill in some of the gaps of this historical amnesia, by giving an account of where basic political institutions came from in societies that now take them for granted. The three categories of institutions in question are the ones just described: 1. the state 2. the rule of […]

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The aims of the system

This is not about people in the system but the system itself. It is difficult to know how the current controversies, the numerous proposed changes in the way education is organised in NSW and Australia, will impact on the next generation of children. A national curriculum, new funding arrangements for schools, the impact of technology on […]

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Australia and Denmark

Carsten’s blog post led me to write today.   cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo shared by attila acs In the last few months, on returning from Denmark, I have often tried to articulate what are the similarities and differences between our nations. The events and coverage of Australia Day 2012 encapsulate […]

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Somnambulism

The characteristic symptoms are walking or exhibiting other activities while seemingly still asleep. Some people mistakenly believe that a sleepwalker should not be awakened. It is not dangerous to awaken a sleepwalker, although it is common for the person to be confused or disoriented for a short time when they wake up. cc licensed ( […]

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Hung Parliaments and the Importance of Literature, Philosophy and History

The political uncertainty of the election ‘result’ that Australians watched unfold last night will lead to concerned discussion about what a hung parliament will mean for our democracy. There will be many at the moment worrying, including myself, about the NBN plan and what will happen to the Digital Education Revolution, if Mr Abbott is anointed. However, another interesting question is, obviously, how […]

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Disruptive Technologies: Kindle in Australia

Disruptive technologies You may remember that I almost bought an iLiad last year. I had been after an e-reader for quite a while but the available product was just not good enough to purchase. The release of the Kindle 2 re-awakened my digital lust earlier this year. Today, my Google Reader presented *drum roll* Amazon’s Reader Comes to Australia  […]

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