English Teachers Jennifer Pullen and Elizabeth Phipps submitted an abstract for and were selected to present at the 4th Cultures of Thinking Conference at Bialik College, Melbourne (August 24-27 2013). The conference was sponsored by Harvard’s Project Zero and featured key-note presenters Mark Church and Ron Ritchard from Harvard University. There were over 400 attendees at the conference representing 7 countries. Jenny and Elizabeth’s presentation was entitled ‘Promoting a culture of thinking in the senior classroom’ and was based on the Year 11 Advanced English unit of work ‘Textual Conversations’ in which visible thinking routines were used to assist students to engage with and respond to ekphrastic literature (texts constructed in response to each other, traditionally this has been poetry written in response to artworks). Jennifer and Elizabeth shared their learning activities and videos of students evaluating the experience. They explored how visible thinking routines encourage deeper understanding and independent learning. Their presentation showed how our English teachers are fostering a culture of thinking in their classrooms.
