Leading Change at

Balmacewen Intermediate
With reference to Andrew Fuller’s
seven steps towards change.
1. Establish a sense of urgency
• Late 2004:
• Andrew Hunter (Principal) and Simon
Clarke (Deputy Principal) together
presented to the Board of Trustees the
idea of a “concept class” to trial a new
direction for teaching and learning within
our school. Dunedin College of Education
also involved as Action Research.
 2005 – the first concept class
Children applied to be in this class

Key features of the Concept class were.

• Integrated Themes
• Higher Thinking Skills
• Inquiry Learning
• Personal and Social Responsibility
• Attitudes and values
• Interpersonal skills
• Increased use of ICT
• Community Involvement
• Flexible Timetabling
• Anywhere, Anytime, Anyone (A3) – i.e. used Blackboard
 2. Form a powerful coalition
• 2005 – Other teachers were asked to apply to also trial
ideas and teach a ‘concept class’ in their own class for
2006
• Two year 8 and two year 7 teachers (including Simon)
were selected to form a coalition and teach in a similar
manner to the concept class using the same ideas and
trialing any new concepts or directions they were
interested in.
• The 4 teachers visited three inquiry based schools in
Christchurch; Discovery, Heathcote Valley and
Unlimited.
Key Findings from visiting Christchurch
Inquiry based schools:
• That Inquiry needs to be a balance of teacher
directed and student driven.
• Explore opportunities to involve parents in
teaching and learning further.
• Development of formative assessment using
Learning Stories/Portfolios.
• Started to think and discuss what does “Inquiry”
mean, is this what we are going to call it and
how should it look.
 Goals for the future of the ‘concept class’ and
our new vision at Balmacewen Intermediate
• Somewhere between the Heathcote and Discovery1
model.
• Ties in with the ICTPD contract.
• Eventually remove the ballot system and will become a
whole school philosophy.
• Benefits will be a lot of paper work, philosophies will be
developed by 2008-9 etc.
• Would like to regularly update and provide templates of
what we are doing on T drive in Concept Class.
• Looking for a new name which reflects what we are
actually doing!
 3. Create a Shared Vision
• End of 2006 Four more teachers (2 from each year
level) visited these schools in order to learn more
about the inquiry learning approach and begin
implementing the new school direction into their
classrooms. Simon Clarke attended Conference in
Scotland with Dunedin College of Education
lecturers also to present what we were doing.
• 2007 – Teacher only day to reflect on the progress of our
new inquiry approach to teaching and to develop a
shared vision, title and set of key objectives for our
school’s new approach to teaching and learning.
• Simon and the first four staff of the coalition share their
experiences from teaching ‘concept classes over the
past 1-2 years.
 Balmac life
Learning Is For Ever

“The Balmacewen Way”

• There is no one way to describe the
inquiry process, however it is useful to
have a model of our own which describes
the ”Balmacewen Way”, and provides
teachers and students with a tool to help
clarify their ideas. Our way is ASPIRE.
“It’s life Jim but not as we know it”
 Aspire – Our Inquiry Process
• A – accumulate gather information related to your topic
•
S – sort what do I want to find out? What
information is useful?

• P – plan identify resources, timelines, submit to

teacher for accountability
•
I – implement make, create, test, solve, use a range
of resources

• R – report present, share, presentation techniques

• E – evaluate how did it go?, what could have

been done differently?
 4. Empower others to act on the
vision.
• ICT cluster
• Teachers who have been involved in
coalition to share their plans, experiences
and expertise.
• Resources – Activ boards, video cameras,
digital cameras, green room,
 5. Plan for and create short term
wins
• Action Research Incentive - $100 – first year only a
handful of staff, mainly those in the first coalition
completed and presented their results
• Curriculum Flexibility- encouraging others to try new
ideas, use ICT, community service and trialing ASPIRE
model – creating templates and resources for teachers –
Year group and staff meetings
• Examples of new direction – Documentary Making, Café
Quest, Helping Hands, Art Attack whilst maintaining
Numeracy and Literacy programmes which were
integrated whenever possible.
 6. Consolidate Improvements

• 2008 - Moving from “topics” i.e the Olympics to a

big question or concept each term eg Impact –
What impact do I have on our environment?
How can I make a difference?
• Re-working of year group planning to integrate
with new term focus. Common objectives,
templates, “bare minimum” assessment and
saturation activities to be taught across the year
group followed by opportunities for inquiry using
the ASPIRE format.
 7. Institutionalise new approaches
• 2008-2009….
• Curriculum plans modified to fit in with our
vision, current practice, changes in
programmes and the new curriculum
document
 FROM OUR CURRICULUM PLAN: Immersion Phase
Week 1 – 7 Using a main concept, the students will
encounter new knowledge and understandings whilst
teachers model aspects of the inquiry process. Teachers will
cover the learning areas as planned for and described in the
Term Overviews with links to detailed unit plans available on
the intranet. An important aspect of this phase is to elicit
questions from students that will help to focus both the class
direction and individual inquiry later on.
Individual Inquiry Phase Week 5 – 10
Teachers should refer to the resources supporting ASPIRE
and be flexible to meet the needs of students. Students
should keep a progress log of their learning, with information
gathered at each stage of their inquiry. Teachers should have
regular checkpoints where they question and refocus
students at each stage of inquiry.
 English
Reading: Inference
-Examine the author’s
message
Writing: Arguments
Science - Persuasive letter
Visual:
The Arts
Earth Systems Drama
Investigate Earths Create and perform a
resources of water, air and class drama production
rocks

Health
Maori Positive Puberty
Kaitiakitanga Term 3 - Identify the physical /
Examine conservation and social and emotional
sustainability from a Maori Impact changes that occur during
perspective “What impact do we puberty
have on the environment -
and can I make a
difference?”

ASPIRE
- Use the Year 8 Aspire Social Studies
Planning Sheet to
Sustainability
complete their Inquiry
Investigate the impact of
- Complete the self
technology on
evaluation form to analyse
communities
their inquiry
Community
-Invite in adults to share /
present information ICT
- Hold a Parents Night to Use click-view to
view the class drama effectively research
items and individual information for their inquiry
inquiry investigations

Non Integrated Topics = Math Physical Education Technology Visual Arts

 Balmacewen Intermediate Unit Plan

IMPACT: What impact do we have on our environment? How can I make a difference?
TOPIC: Social Studies – Impact of Technology on DURATION: LEVEL: 4
Communities
INDICATORS
Understand how exploration and innovation create opportunities and challenges for people, places and environments.
Understand how people participate individually and collectively in response to community challenges.

SPECIFIC LEARNING OUTCOMES KEY Relating to others ASSESSMENT TASK

-Cooperating Design a blue print for an energy
Describe the differences between renewable COMPETE -Negotiating
and non-renewable energy sources and give NCY -Responding to others efficient house based on the
examples. Thinking work environment it is in.
–planning -Reflecting RESOURCES
Identify the effect excess carbon is having on –Locating -Observing www.energywise.org.nz
our environment and justify the need to Information Participating and www.think-energy.com
reduce our carbon footprint. -Elaborating Contributing www.eeca.govt.nz,
-Generalising
Investigate ways of reducing your carbon -Hypothesising
-Listening www.sustainableliving.org.nz
-Considering opinions
footprint. -Inferring -Justifying
www.jaconline.com.au/science/weblinks
-Questioning ICT
Investigate the causes and effects if there -Summarising
-Sharing Ideas
Email
-Persuading
was an electricity crisis in New Zealand. -Selecting -Explaining
Fax / Telephone
information Powerpoint
-Performing
-Revising Internet research
-Reporting
-Viewing Digital camera
-Providing Feedback
Word
Using VALUES Publisher
symbols, Excellence Interactive whiteboard
language Innovation, inquiry Click view – learning objects
and text and curiosity
-Presenting
ideas in a range Diversity
of ways Equity
-Note taking Community and
-Questioning
-Selecting
Participation
information Ecological
Managing Sustainability
Self Integrity
-Work Respect
independently
-Work to a
timeline
-Goal setting
 Lesson Sequence
Investigate energy. What is it? Where does energy come from?
Watch a short video clip of …………………. In books list all of the
ways that energy has been used. Eg, driving cars, listening to music,
lights, heaters, cooking.
How is it possible for humans to be able to do all of this? Talk about
where energy and electricity comes from.
What are the main energy sources? How can these energy sources be
useful or a nuisance for us? What are the advantages and
disadvantages for each type of energy? Students in pairs or threes to
investigate and present information, images and examples of each
type of energy source. Students create a PMI for each energy source
based on the presentations.
Renewable vs Nonrenewable energy (energy forever
www.thinkenergy.com 7-11 yr old section)
ARB task – Energy Sources and alternative energy sources page
below Fill out energy templates below
Speculate about which energy sources we predominantly use in NZ.
How could renewable energy resources be used instead of fossil fuel
sources. Why are renewable resources often not preferred to
nonrenewable sources?
(Article – Economic Interests keep drive for renewable energy stuck in
neutral. Also attached follow up questions)
Research the history of energy use since the beginning of the
Industrial revolution. Create a timeline highlighting key events that
shifted energy usage patterns (eg. new inventions, laws or
discoveries.)
Develop questions about energy use for wonderings wall throughout
session eg. “What do you think the world would be like without fossil
fuels?” “ How could carbon charges potentially encourage countries to
rely on renewable energy sources more.”
What is carbon? How does it affect our environment? What is my
carbon footprint?
Watch Al Gore’s an inconvenient truth, followed by (click view
argument which shows the other side of the story.) Discuss as a class.
Use problem, issue, solutions template off save the world unit.
Discuss carbon – what is it and why is it bad for our environment –
natures time machine, living in a green house science alive
Class task on flip chart – Bella Buzz’s wacky wasteful week (
www.thinkenergy.com 7-11 yr old section)
Read Ecological footprint and complete activity (science alive)
Watch Simpsons recycling episode. Complete saving the world
thinkers keys task below.
Changing futures, check and challenge, science alive
Are you an eco monster or mouse? Go over task as a class on white
board (www.thinkenergy.com 7-11 yr old section)
Ask an expert: Invite Tania McClean from……………. In to discuss
ways that you can reduce your carbon footprint and energy use.
Create an eco monster and mouse for the class wall and students can
add traits that would make people either and place them around them.
Or put a model house on the wall and students are to put pictures,
notes on it to show areas where people can cut back on their energy
usage and/or carbon footprint. – Use websites such as the ones listed
in resources to help identify these areas.
Encourage students to start making an impact with their lunch box? How can they do
that?