We had some time to explore Reykjavik on Friday evening.... On Saturday Bern and I booked ourselves onto a "Golden Circle Tour" - Iceland is certinaly full of waterfalls and pretty impressive ones, we got to see a few, as well as exploring a "lava tube" from its old volcanic a black sand beach, the geyser area, where we saw "Stokkur" blow his top very 5-8mins and the impressive natural structure of Thingvellir - two walls of basalt rock that is the the border between two continental tectonic plates that are slowly drifting apart ( the Eurasian and North American plates) the area of Thingvellir is also the site of the very first ancient parliament of Iceland. We could not leave Iceland with trying to spot the Northern lights- so we booked onto a Northern Lights Tour - the first night (Friday) we weren't - the skies were nice and clear, but the Aurora didn't want to come out, The tour company allowed us to try again the next night, it was cloudy and didn't look like we'd have any chance. Our tour guide, stopped the bus and studied the night sky, to figure out what direction to take in hope that there was a clearing in the sky/clouds.. he saw a "hole" in the clouds and headed south along the main highway to the airport to get under the hole... well it did not disappoint!!! We got to see the northern lights!! It was simply stunning!!
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This school was started in 2004, as a need for students in the western area of Iceland and the snaefellinga peninsula. It has about 400 students and also a distance ed section. The school works on teaching all students equally - whether they are at school or in the distance ed program everything is on Moodle. Students on the distance program, if they have a chance, can come to the main school and join the classes "in real life". The distance ed sections have Skype setups with cameras TV screen etc. the internet connection was very good and fast. The students spoke about how they liked that the work was on Moodle, and they could access it anytime whether at school or at home and that they made good connections with their teachers, but having face to face time was valuable. The main teaching classes could be seen from the main foyer, the Principal proudly asked "Can you tell the students from the teachers? There are two teachers in there amongst the students." It was hard to tell, everyone was engaged in what they were doing, the teachers then waved up at us. The space is flexible with three main class area, broken up by portable display boards and white boards. The Principal said you would rarely find a teacher up the "front" (there was no front) teaching the students. The whiteboards were mainly used for brainstorming and group work, or small group work with the teacher. The big white "hanging" panels on the walls are acoustic dampeners - they look like big white canvases and are filled with wool. The teacher would normally have videos and work on Moodle and the students work through units of work. They have a timeline to stick to and must submit assignments, approx every three to four weeks.
We were lucky to chat with the senior teacher of politics and geography - she was able to explain how she team taught with another teacher who was science - they combined to create integrated projects - for example she said the students would work in groups of two or three on a project - one she explained to us was "how to survive on a space ship for 60,000 years" the students had to design a space ship, think about the social impact, what to do with dead people, waste, recycling, water, food , etc - how m ay to take on the space craft at the start.. what mix of age and skills, would they have birth control or not? The students had to then hand in their work and give a class presentation. Those students not physically in the class, still presented but via Skype. We also learnt that they have NO EXAMS in Iceland, the students gather "points" through their school work, tests, projects etc. The points are then added up and if you get a certain amount of points you pass / graduate. Our understanding is that the points are based more on competencies that teacher have to align with the curriculum. The school also also had a beautiful backdrop of "Church Mountain" the most photographed mountain in Iceland - the large Windows in the school often framed the mountain. These are some views from the window - just spectacular! The first large photo is from the dining room. We were greeted by an extremely friendly Principal, who took us up to. Aconference room where ther were some Icelandic treats waiting for us! Smoked salmon on toast, dried lamb on toast and some donut type dumplings and some regular donuts. After the sampling of food. She then told us about her school. The school, like the previous Icelandic school we visited. Was also a day school and a distance ed one. Students can attend at the school if they can, or if they are blocked from coming due to weather, or distance, it doesn't matter, they all use the Moodle platform.. Students enrolled come from all over Iceland, and some from other countries. They range for 400 to 1000 students as they also offer short courses, so this will increase their enrollment. The school works in 10 week blocks, and teachers are expected to have a 10 week outline program up onto the Moodle platform - the 10 week outline of the unit, and will have the learning goals, activities and assessments task and due dates on it. This allows students to see what is expected and when activities, tasks and tests are all due. The other interesting thing is the school week starts on tuesdays for the students. Monday is the day that teacher can have time to solve any problems, correct work and upload the weeks work onto the Moodle. This allows for consistency, and all students know, what ever course they are undertaking, that they must log into the Moodle every Tuesday Morning- this gives them any news, notices, and their tasks. Each teacher must follow the same basic stucture within the Moodle environment, but can also have some. Creativity with how they present the tasks. Some teachers, may be confident and use whiz bang programs, and others may only have the confidence to upload a word doc. This is fine and not a problem - what theeseental ingredient is that the instructions are extremely clear and easy to understand and follow. Tech Tools are getting better and better, but that doesn't mean the teachers have to use complicated or fancy programs- just jump in and try - do t be scared. The teacher just have to be there for their students, ensure the work is clear and give the students regular feedback - you have to respond to their emails She explained that feedback was the most important thing, and even though they worked in an often "virtual" environment, you can easily Skype or talk to students and or interview them in regard to their work or submission. Even though her school is a "School in the Sky" - you have to connect with the students, so that the students feel you are there for them.
They evaluate their programs /courses regularly - they do this by "cleaning the house" - she asks the teachers to think of it as a guests coming to visit - so you do a quick clean - the house guests are other teachers, who will go into your course and have a quick look around - click on activities and have a look at them , see if they think the instructions are clear, etc etc. they then go and chat to the teacher about what they saw and felt. The teacher who "visits" your Moodle doesn't have to be in the same faculty, it's just a "short visit". Just enough to get a feel of the course and what the teacher is trying to achieve. Another interesting point was that that she used to create a newsletter on the Moodle site for all students and found that not many were reading it, so she has now create a Facebook page and posts her newsletter on that as well. She said you have to be where the students are at. They were on Moodle for their course work, but not on that for events and general news. So they have changed to better connect with the students. We were the taken on a quick tour and down to the science area in particular the geology section and we were met with the geology teacher who explained their rock collection to us - a the geology of Iceland is pretty unique! So that was pretty cool for us science nerdy people! We could not leave the area without a photo stop at the gorgeous kirjufell mountain and water fall. The most photographed maointain in Iceland, and you can see why!
Our first afternoon and evening in Iceland will be spent in the tiny fishing village of Grundarfjordur, located on the west coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula.The town is surrounded by exceptionally beautiful mountains. The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is renowned as destination for viewing the Northern Lights. Fingers crossed we will find the weather good and the aurora beaming down on us.I have been researching how to take night photos and especially those of auroras, so we will see!.
Fjölbrautaskóla Snæfellinga - a Comprehensive High School on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. This school services a wide area, and was established in 2004, it has an open plan learning spaces. Due to the nature of the climate, especially in Winter, students may not be able to attend school, thus the school has accommodated this by being a leader in the use of ICT and online learning. It has a "moodle" as its main way to communicate information to students. Students can access any lessons and relevant information via this set up. more info on the school here Verzlunarskóli Íslands - Commercial College - Reykjavik, began way back in 1905. It is an Independent School, and has a strong commitment to online learning. This commitment to online learning has seen it develop a whole Distance Education Section for students and adult learners form all over Iceland. Link to school web page here |
Bernadette Albertson & Maree TimmsPassionate Science Teachers at Galen Catholic College Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia Archives
October 2017
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