Queensland – news – 24/10/09

Professional Development Calendar 2009

2009 Professional Development Activities:

Values Education Workshops
During 2009, a series of workshops have been provided throughout Queensland to support schools to explore and familiarise themselves with the resources for values education that have been developed by Curriculum Corporation for DEEWR.

Two vodcasts were made of presentations given at these workshops and are available on the Queensland Department of Education and Training website. 

• Brenda Little from Beenleigh State High School ( a school in the Values in Action Schools Project) discusses, in Out of Apathy, the way in which Service Learning, Circle Time and the Arts can be powerful vehicles for delivering Values Education.
• In Philosophical Inquiry in the Classroom, Liz Fynes-Clinton talks about Philosophy in Schools and Socratic Circles as pedagogical approaches to values education. Liz was a teacher at Buranda State School where Philosophy in schools has been practised for many years.

Values Education Leadership Breakfasts
There were four Values Education Leadership Breakfasts throughout the State during 2009 – one each term. The Breakfasts feature Dr Ron Tooth, Principal of Pullenvale Environmental Education Centre, addressing the topic: Learning for Sustainability: A Whole School Approach to Values Education. The Breakfasts are open to all schools.

A vodcast of Learning for Sustainability: A Whole School Approach to Values Education is available on the Queensland Department of Education and Training website. Dr Ron Tooth Principal of Pullenvale Environmental Education Centre (PEEC) talks about the fact that the health of the environment and the importance of human connections to nature are increasingly seen as critical for personal well-being and for the future health of society. This is impacting on mainstream education and he shows how to weave sustainability thinking and values into the very fabric of our schools.

Values Education Expo – 23 November 2009
9am-5pm, Royal on the Park Hotel – corner Alice and Albert Streets, Brisbane
This Expo in Brisbane will be for all educators who have an interest in values education. There will be a keynote address followed by a showcase of innovative and exciting values education projects implemented in Queensland schools during 2009, as well as a wide variety of resources that are available for teachers to strengthen their work in values education.

Breakfast/Lunch and Workshops with Dr Neil Hawkes
Moreton Region and Sunshine Coast Region invited Dr Neil Hawkes, a values education consultant to governments around the world, to work with teachers in their regions while visiting Australia in October.