Linking Minds
16 November 2008
The Linking Minds programme is a joint professional development initiative for young teachers co-funded by the NZ-UK Link Foundation, the New Zealand Ministry of Education and the British Council. Support and assistance is also given by the New Zealand Teachers' Council and British Airways. Selected teachers spend a fortnight hosted by a local authority in the UK, to learn about latest trends, initiatives and to share current thinking and ideas from New Zealand.
Applications for up to four spaces on the 2009 Linking Minds programme will close on 30 May 2009. Applicants, who must be under 35 years old and in their first five years as fully registered teachers in the schools sector, will have the opportunity to build leadership capacity and study best teaching practice in the UK. The trip takes place in the September school holidays. Click here to find out more information and to access application forms.
The four winners this year (pictured left to right) are: Tina-Maree Hooper, acting principal of Cambridge Primary School, Hayley Ryan of Dawson Primary School, Joanna Blick, deputy principal of Saint Paul's School in Richmond and Steven Mouldey, assistant head of Social Sciences and year nine dean at Wellington College. They have already been to the UK and looked at examples of human rights based education in Hampshire schools. Similar similar schemes are being developed in NZ in conjunction with the Human Rights in Education initiative. 2008 is sixth year the award, which has helped 24 young teachers to date, has been run.
In 2007, the selected team was made up of: Karen Stimson of Henderson High School in West Auckland; Melinda Bennett Ahuroa Primary School, Warkworth; Tom Haig of Nayland College in Nelson and Greg Thornton of Manurewa High School in Manukau, they spent two weeks in September 2007 with the Gloucestershire local education authority.
Professional leadership was the focus of the 2006 Linking Minds programme and participants who linked with the Gloucestershire Local Education Authority were Zane Wilson of St Clair Primary School in Dunedin; Katie Roche of Onslow College in Wellington; Rebecca Brown of Thorndon School, Wellington and Hurae White of Nawton School in Hamilton.
In 2005, Emma Bergh a French/Japanese teacher from Alfriston College in Auckland, joined Rhys MacDonald a teacher in Japanese at kamo High School in Hastings, Danielle Gammell a Spanish teacher from Hillcrest High School in Hamilton and Japanese teacher Catherine Holt of Heretaunga Intermediate in Hastings to look at language teaching in British schools.
Creativity and creative thinking, with an emphasis on the gifted and talented pupil was the theme for 2004, which saw Vanessa Cook from Auckland Girls Junior College, Sarah Maegaard of Waimea Intermediate School, Cate Campbell from Epson Girls Grammar and Amber Curran from Dunedin North Intermediate, linking minds with UK counterparts.
The inaugural award in 2005 looked at critical and digital literacy in a link with Wiltshire Local Education Authority. Brendan Finn of Goodwood School in Cambridge, Angela White from Mt Pleasant School in Christchurch and Ben Johnson from Grasmere School in Invercargill were the three teachers who travelled to the UK that year.
Teachers interested in more information about the Linking Minds programme should contact Julie Weir at the Teachers Council. Click here.
For more information refer to The British Council.
Files
- Linking Minds 2006
- Download: Linking_Minds_2006_Release.doc (71 KB)
- Linking Minds 2006 Winners
- Download: Link_Minds_2006_Winners_Release_1.pdf (16.57 KB)
- Linking Minds Report-back 2005
- Download: 2005_Linking_Minds_Report_Back.doc (1.39 MB)