Teaching

Course Design Principles

• Pedagogy / Andragogy
  • Student-led learning / Experiential learning
  • Assessment for learning / Authentic assessment
• Teaching / Mentoring
  • Face-to-face
  • Remote - online / by distance
  • Blended
• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
• Low-floor, high-ceiling tasks

AI in Education

• Link to Michael's warning to educators that AI assistants can lie convinvingly.

• Link to Michael's analysis and experience.

Instructional Design and Moderation

• Link to Michael's philosophy and example.

Teaching - Primary to Postgraduate

• Level 7 Grad Dip.Tchg Science and Mathematics Education and Education Leadership.
• Level 5 Dip.ICT and B.App.I.S degree level computer science courses.
• Green School New Zealand - leader of science and mathematics programmes (Year 7 - 13).
• Intermediate - Digital Technology - robotics and game design (Years 7 - 8).
• Secondary - Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth and Space, Mathematics, Calculus, Robotics & Game design (Years 9 - 13).

Teaching Leadership

• New Zealand Ministry of Education E-learning Fellow: Michael's report & the state of Science education in New Zealand.
• Education Lead - Private Training Establishment (PTE); Agriculture and Construction.
• Programme Leader - Open Polytechnic and the Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki.
• Green School New Zealand - leader of Science and Mathematics programmes (Year 7 - 13). Cross-curricula course design and assessment.
• Workshop Developer and Facilitator - CORE Education. Science Teacher Fellowship programmes.
• Workshop Developer and Facilitator - Focus Consultancy. Assessment design & moderation.
• Instructional Designer - EarnLearn. Assessment design & learning resources. Mathematics and Science expert.
• Writer/Instructional Designer - World Interactive Software: Year 12 Interactive Physics.

Research & Innovation: Ultra Low-cost science lab equipment

Link to Casio FX-9750 serial protocol hack details

“Breakthrough:The main limitation of using a Casio calculator with Picaxe or ESP / Arduino devices has been overcome. This enables low budget data logging for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics using learners own calculators. Time interval logging using a casio fx-9750 or fx-9860 calcualtor is now possible without triggering a COM error. This eliminates having to purchase costly EA-200 or CLAB data acquisition units. Ultra low-cost home-made sensors for colorimetry, water hardness, conductivity, salinity, and thermodynamics investigations.”

Combined STEM for old and young - TV and movie props

Link to B9 robot and other props

“Technology should disappear into the learning experience while making thinking visible.”

Generative AI as a partner - sound tracks / game art

Michael works with generative AI as a project partner; filling skills gaps that would otherwise prevent a project being completed. The use of generative AI is is to support the learner, not do all the work for the learner. As an example, for fans of the TV series "Land of the Giants", the Ballad of the Spindrift required a human created storyboard, human edited clips (under non-commercial- fair-use for educational purposes), and human written lyrics.

A generative AI was used to created the music but a human user had to provide prompts and settings, and adjust the final output.