What+works+for+learning?

We asked kids to think about times when learning has really worked for them. These are the comments made by four groups of three to five students from four different classes.

...in **what** you learn:
"We should have options in what we want to do. It makes it more fun and you look forward to doing it." "We should be able to choose our technology subjects." "Inquiry was really cool but we got off task. It's really cool to find out new stuff and get to choose." "We had inquiry and it was good to choose, but ours was too narrow because we had to fit it under given questions. We only had four choices. Also, it was too rushed - we only had two weeks." "We're doing an explanation booklet just now. It's good because we can choose what we do it on." "If we get to choose we are more likely to want to work because it is something we are interested in." "We don't always know what we want to do, but our teacher could give us options and then let us choose." "Things that we are learning should be done in lots of ways. Some could be reading or writing, but then other times we should be able to make something that relates to what we are learning." "It is good to use what we have learnt in class at home or use what we have learnt in a practical way." "We should do more cool subjects like science."

...in **where** you learn:
"Getting away from class, like going to Te Papa." "Working outside. We could do maths outside." "We should be able to choose where we work if we are getting the work done." "Some classes should be for just boys and others for girls. The boys are too noisy."

...in **when** you learn:
"It was good being able to choose our own timetable. We were told which things we had to get done and could choose when we did them in the week. I can't do things when people force me to do them. There's no point in me writing if I don't feel like it." "Having a do list and choosing when to do it. It feels like you're choosing what to do and you're in control of your learning.It makes you independent.Different people take different times to finish." "You don't feel like doing tests, and some other things in the afternoon." "It is good having a list of "must do" tasks for each subject and then being able to choose when we complete them."

Digital Technologies
"Adults don't know how important it is for kids to use technology." "We should use computers all the time." "We should be able to listen to ipods while we work. They help block out the things that distract you. But we shouldn't use cellphones because people would just txt." "It would be fun to record everything on computer. But what if the computers crashed, because everything would be saved on them and you wouldn't be able to do anything." "Our class made a video. It was a lot of fun. It taught us to work together, how to use the technology and teamwork." "We should use technologies instead of books. It would be cool to record all our learning on the computer." "ICT was good - learning how to make a page and using PowerPoint." "We should use computers more often. They should be used for all subjects." "Technology is more fun and you're using more energy." "I love using the internet." "I'd like to use more ICT, e.g. internet, like at primary school when we had to research three topics and make presentations." "Using programme like Word or PowerPoint make our work tider and easier to present. We acheive more because we're not worried about how messy our writing is and can spellcheck our work before sharing it." "I like listening to music when I work." "We should be able to use out cellphones in class. They can be used for taking photos or videos or as calculators." "I like PowerPoint, and embedding YouTubes."

Breaks
"Breaks, like brain breaks, give you energy." "We need breaks in our work, like, to walk outside, or even just 5 minutes to blob." "We need to have breaks every session."

Action
"Acting, art - expressing feelings." "Doing things rather than bookwork or teachers showing us on the board." "I don't like discussions. We should do them on forums or blogs." "Doing things we like." "Teachers talk too much and get off the subject. They give too many examples. They need to get to the point. It was good when the teacher typed the instructions up on the data projector." "I don't like it when teachers take too long explaining." "Science worked. He [the science teacher] doesn't talk too much and he gets us involved." "Doing stuff, making stuff." "It doesn't work when you get told too much to do." "Going on trips - like Te Papa, camp."