Michael Graffin (@mgraffin)Global Classroom Co-Founder & CoordinatorPerth, Western Australia

http://theglobalclassroomproject.wordpress.com

Global Classroom - 2011-12

Looking Forwards, Looking Back

BlackBoard Collaborate Recording

This presentation was held in Blackboard Collaborate on July 1, 2012.

You can access the recording of our Australia / Asia / Europe session here:

https://sas.elluminate.com/site/external/jwsdetect/playback.jnlp?psid=2012-07-01.0309.D.4C3548A84E624FA254CD6511B7CA09.vcr&sid=vclass

We had huge technical problems with our Americas webinar, but you can access the recording here:

https://sas.elluminate.com/site/external/jwsdetect/playback.jnlp?psid=2012-06-30.1715.D.4C3548A84E624FA254CD6511B7CA09.vcr&sid=vclass

Aims of the SessionIt is time to reflect on our stories of global collaboration ....

Join us as we officially bring this amazing year of global collaboration to a

fitting end.

As one chapter closes, another begins ...

One Year On

The Story So Far

Global Classroom 2011-12 ran from October 2011- June 2012, hosting over 15 major projects, and helping connect teachers worldwide.

• 41 Countries• 6 Continents• 300+ Teachers• 1/3 Active Members in 2011-12

It has been an AMAZING Year

We are forging new connections, and exploring new ways to learn and collaborate globally.

We've built a vibrant global education community, and are becoming world leaders in this field.

We're "standing on the shoulders of giants", and becoming true "voices of change".

And who knows where this journey will lead?

Global Classroom Stories

"Imagine yourself in the house of your dreams, fully furnished, beautiful pictures hanging from the walls and equipped with all the electronic gadgets your heart can wish for. A wonderful feeling, isn't it?

Then try to imagine living in this house with the windows always shut to the outside world. Now, that's quite different, right?

A classroom without real-life connections to the outside world is a great house without windows."

Effie Kyrikakis @WinnersSchools

Wiki: http://winnerseducation.wikispaces.com/

The Sunny Thought Project: http://thesunnythoughtproject.wikispaces.com/

Michael Graffin - @mgraffinPerth, Western Australia

What a year ...

• Establishing the #globalclassroom Twitter Chats

• Meeting Govinda Panthy, Director of the SAV School in Nepal

• Mentoring world-leading #globalclassroom teachers around the world

• Skyping Kerala's Finance Minister, and with Sebastian Panakal's "small" group of teachers in India [read 200+ teachers...]

• Sending the #globalclassroom scrapbooks around the world

Kimberley Rivett (@krivett1)

Our class had an incredible year 'meeting' and chatting with other classes from the UK, Australia and America through quadblogging and then also through The Flat Stanley Project that an American class in Pennsylvania participated in with us.

It involved learning about social networking and being responsible online citizens through Edmodo, blogging together and then getting to 'meet' through Skype.

We are Room 14, Point View Primary School located in Auckland, New Zealand.

We are an eLearning classroom that consists of 16 Year 4 children and 11 Year 3 children.

We are interested in finding out about and comparing life around the world.

This year it has expanded into us exchanging class mascots, and then communicating about our countries and learning more about being global citizens through our deeper knowledge of each others' lives.

We started our own Gruffalo Project and have sent our 2 class Gruffalos to Lebanon and Singapore, and through their online diaries we have learnt more about those countries.

St. Ignatius School, PennsylvaniaTina Schmidt (@MrsSchmidtB4)

St. Ignatius School, Pennsylvania

Cathedral of St. Raymond SchoolTheresa Allen (@tdallen5)

Participated in:

Global Hero VoicethreadGlimpse Around the World - LunchboxesEdmodo K-3 Chats - Monthly themesSeasons Around the WorldGlobal Hello Project - Sunny Thought Project

Effie Kyrikakis

@WinnersSchoolsAthens, Greece

Blog: http://winnerseducation.blogspot.com.au/

Wiki: http://winnerseducation.wikispaces.com/

The Sunny Thought Projecthttp://thesunnythoughtproject.wikispaces.com/

One of the most amazing projects we created was The Sunny Thought Project. Through this work we wanted to encourage our students to focus on the bright side of their life, at a time when everything around them seems to cause the opposite. Obviously, the benefits of positive thinking are recognised by the global educator community, so our project has attracted immense attention.

21 schools and classes from around the world have contributed their Sunny Thoughts and more than 6500 people have visited our wiki. The project is also a way to see the immense variety of e-tools that can be used in collaboration and the power of Skype in education, as students from our Athens-based school managed to interview Boston-based artist Bren Bataclan, renowned for his Smile Project.

Effie Kyrikakis @WinnersSchools http://winnerseducation.wikispaces.com/

Sebastian Panakal Kerala, India

Thanks to Michael Graffin of Global Classroom, who convinced our Finance Minister of the power of ICT enabled teaching: a rural school in a remote village was granted a handsome fund for a Multi-Media Lab.

Global Classroom has been a boon to us in Kerala, thanks to the team's cross-cultural connections and trans-disciplinary learning.

Train Online Online

http://elearning-rajettan.blogspot.in/

Video: The GlobalClassroom Project

Twitter: @sebastianpanaka

Kerala's Global Classroom

Thank you Global Classroom!

A team of three teenagers have started an online English Language Training Centre in a member's home.

• Accepting a honorarium to cover their expenses, the team connects weekly with schools abroad on Skype and has a cultural exchange where everyone actively participate.

• They engage online English teachers from abroad to volunteer at the training centre. Parents oversee management, making it a cosy family affair.

• They blog to promote their business while developing language skills.

Lin-Lin Tan, Taiwanworkonlittledreams.blogspot.com

The Global Classroom Project 2011-2012 in Taiwan

Involved In:

• Skype lessons

• Global Lunch Table Project

• Sunny Thought Project

• Oddizzi Class Pals

For Students:It enables students to have distinct direct contact with peers/teachers of other nations in order to gain new perspective about the world they live in.

It provides teachers with various choices of projects in order to integrate students into international education and enriches our teaching experiences.

Teachers around the world in the group (Global Classroom) are dedicated and help one another in the platform. This creates sense of belonging.

It is a whole new way to bring the world to the classroom.

How did the Global Classroom Project impact on your students?

Comments from webinar sessions:

• They were thrilled to take part in a project where they could exchange info and show the world something about our country.

• They loved meeting and speaking to kids in other countries. It was exciting for them to explore the similarities and differences in our cultures. It made the learning real for them.

• My students would ask, "Who can we talk to today?", or "What new project are we doing?". They loved connecting and they enjoyed participating in the projects. -Theresa

• My students feel so cool ... to meet other classes across the oceans ... (Linlin, Taiwan)

• My students had the chance to actually "feel" being in the world that is larger than their classroom. It is beyond authentic - it is real, and taps into human bonds and similarities.

• My students felt connected and developed relationships. It was a cool real-life context, that whole authentic learning.

Looking Forward to 2012-13

We will be:

• Exploring new ways to better engage and support teachers' engagement in global collaboration

• Expanding, and improving our online collaboration spaces

• Experimenting with ways to better include teachers and students from non-English speaking countries and less privileged economic situations.

• Establishing a fundraising partnership with Open World Cause and Govinda Panthy's SAV School in Nepal

• Making sure @mgraffin doesn't lose so much sleep!

Global Classroom Feedback Survey

If you were involved in Global Classroom 2011-12, or have just discovered our work for the very first time, we'd appreciate your contribution to our Feedback Survey.

The only requirement is an interest in global education and / or global collaboration.

http://bit.ly/GCPFeedbackSurvey

Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

Upcoming Presentations

• F.L.A.T Action Talk o http://flats.flatclassroomproject.org/o July 2012? (Details TBC)

• Working in the Global Classroom o Australian Computers in Education

Conference - October 2012

• Global Classroom: The Story So Faro Global Education Conference -

November 2012o Details TBC

Thank You

This project was made possible through the efforts, creativity, and innovative thinking of teachers around the world.

While many of these teachers are unaware of the impact they have had on me personally, and the wider #globalclassroom community, there are a few who I'd like to personally thank ...

Theresa Allen, Deb Frazier, Tina Schmidt,, Rawya Shatila, Stefan Nielsen, Effie Kyrikakis, Sebastian Panakal, Jennifer Fenton, Edna Sackson, Lin-lin Tan, Louise Morgan, Karen Stadler, Lu Bodeman, Rob Sbaglia, Cristina Milos, Jo Hart, David Potter, Vicki Davis, Julie Lindsay, Lisa Durff, and so many more :)

Michael Graffin (June 2012)

Find Us Online

Blog: theglobalclassroomproject.wordpress.com

Twitter: @GCPorganisers (New for 2012-13)

Google Group: Global Classroom Group

Wiki (2011-12): globalclassroom2011-12.wikispaces.com

Wiki (2012-13): globalclassroom2012-13.wikispaces.com

Michael Graffin is a third year relief (substitute) teacher in Perth, Western Australia. He has yet to teach a class of his own, but takes pride in his role in leading the creation of the Global Classroom community. He still has no idea where this project will ultimately take him, but is happy to go along for the ride.

Michael blogs at http://mgraffin.edublogs.org, and tweets as @mgraffin.

Deb Frazier, from Ohio, USA, is currently teaching and learning with 20 very excited first graders who love learning as much as she does! She began her teaching career as a special education teacher/intervention specialist, and finds her special education background a true blessing working in the early years!

Deb blogs at http://deb-frazier.blogspot.com/, and tweets as @frazierde.

The Global Classroom Project Co-Founders