- Google Certified: Congratulations to Lorinda Bruce (ASV eLearning Education Consultant) and Jody Lawson (Heritage College Secondary Science Teacher) who were accepted into the Sydney Google for Education Certified Innovator Program. Each year Google has five intakes for the program selecting just 35 applicants for each program from around the world. (Sherrie – here is an interactive map if you want to include a screen shot of where the successful applicants come from). To apply they had to create a vision slide deck and one minute video to submit with their application. Lorinda and Jody attended the Sydney Academy at the Google office from 16-18 August for three high-intensity days of training and learning. This is followed by 12 months of working on their innovation projects.
- SYNC Launch – ASV are very excited at the launch of SYNC, a Google+ community that will strengthen collaboration, and build community and support for our teaching staff. Ana Ferry (Heritage College Secondary Teacher) has used the research component of her Masters degree to creative a site where early career teachers and their mentors can have conversations and access resources online. Linking into SYNC is Betty Lakovic’s (Associate Education Director) recently developed Learning & Teaching website which provides a range of resources including new innovations such as the PB4L program. “It is our wish that SYNC will give teachers a sense of community across the system by supporting them to easily access resources and receive ‘real time’ support from other colleagues in their specialised areas and, that this in turn will provide them with a sense of well-being in their work”.
- ASA Communities by ASV Lorinda Bruce (ASV eLearning Education Consultant) in collaboration with Adventist Schools Australia has developed a Google+ community for administration and teaching staff to collaborate across schools in their class/subject/speciality areas. Teacher’s can ask questions, post links, link to a SEQTA programme, add resources/events or discuss relevant topics!
- Google Boot Camp. Teachers across ASV have been invited to attend Boot Camp and to received their Google Certified Education Certificate. The training assists teachers to “not merely learn tools, but to discover the new educational possibilities and purposeful lesson design for their students and themselves”. So far Nunawading Christian College teachers have trained to receive their Level 1 certification and Heritage College their Level 2.
- Rolling Out New Websites: Updating of our schools’ websites commenced last year under the supervision of ASV’s Marketing Coordinator, Cameron Arnold. The new look websites are now live for Edinburgh College, Henderson College, Heritage College and Nunawading Christian College with Gilson College soon to be released. Updated Prospectus’ are also being created for publication later in Term 4 which will complement the website in style and appearance. Cameron also continues to work at school level supporting schools with their marketing through his innovative and creative ideas. It great to see the evidence of increased interest in our schools. For example in events such as Nunawading Christian College’s recent “School at Work” promotion which saw 60 people tour the school – the highest number to date. We look forward to this trend continuing across our schools.
