Albany+High+School

=Meet the team that has developed Albany Senior High School, its web based learning, and continued review of its processes of student engagement.= ====﻿You get a great feel for where the schools success stems from, when you meet the Principal: Barbara Cavanagh, and Deputy Principals, Miranda Makin, Mark Osborne, Colleen Maguiness and Ronwyn Taylor... Learn more about this fabulous school of the 21 Century, by going to their website:http://www.ashs.school.nz/curriculum/==== Miranda is very passionate about the need to focus on what students are able to bring to Science, to draw upon this by **predicting, observing, then using computers to explain.** =Science is no longer presenting, it is about students being responsible for their learning.=
 * Kim Kindley, Principals PA and Principal, Barbara Cavanagh**
 * They use the e-portfolio for showcasing their student project work, that is team based (shareholders), and conducted on Wednesdays of each week.**
 * The school has an open plan, with courses taught in spaces, with specialty rooms attached. Miranda Makin designed the science laboratories shown below.[[image:Science_Labs.JPG width="403" height="360" caption="Notice the computer pods in the centre, and sink benches outside"]][[image:Open_learning_areas.JPG width="480" height="360"]]**
 * Her pedagogy is strongly influenced by Russel Bishop and Jane Gilbert.**

We want to create a school and a community where everyone has access to a wide range of powerful tools on every computer at all times. Using proprietary software at school means that either i) students can only work on their learning at school (and not for the other 18 hours a day) or ii) only some people can afford to carry on learning at home. We want our students to be able to compose music, create 3D models, edit video, create databases, record podcasts and do all of the things possible in a digital world without having to pay for the privilege of expressing themselves creatively. Almost all of the tools listed below can be installed on any computer, as often as needed, free of charge. In short: we are an open source school because we believe that this approach is the best way for us to achieve our vision: "We nurture each other; we inspire each other; we empower each other to achieve highly and become good citizens."
 * The snippets below are from the school website:**
 * Why is Albany Senior High School an open source school?**

e-portfolio system

 * Albany Senior High School uses the open source e-portfolio system Mahara**, hosted by the Ministry of Education at []. This portfolio allows students to upload 'artefacts' like blog posts, files, images, comments, videos and audio; construct 'views' (e-portfolios), then share them with people like teachers, family and whanau and potential employers. Mahara is very student-directed with the learners retaining control over what is showcased and to whom it is showcased.