Have you tried Googling it? Audrey Campbell and Nicole Lloyd A thirst for knowledge, a desire to connect, or trying to
freed up in that moment for the girls to use her
find the solution to a problem – just Google it.
face to face rather than going home and doing an
For St Margaret’s College teachers Audrey Campbell and Nicole Lloyd it’s not cheating, it’s innovating. Audrey is
her help and knowledge while she’s there.”
a Google certified coach and Nicole is a Google certified
Nicole is also a Google certified trainer which has
coach and a Google certified trainer. Both are two of
opened up a huge resource to the girls and staff at SMC
only four in the South Island and both are here at SMC.
through Google Magic Tricks with Nic.
Working alongside their colleagues, Audrey and Nicole
“Coaches focus on the one-to-one whereas a trainer is
are challenging traditional teaching concepts, breaking
one to many. Magic tricks was my project. We had
down the walls of the classroom and reaching out to
a range of demographics and starting points, it was up
experts in the community and even in other countries
to me to try and differentiate the learning so everyone
to build confidence in using technology. As Nicole says
took something away. We did this with a weekly session
“It’s about empowering the staff, we can’t be in every single classroom even though we’d like to be but if we can teach 10 people and they go back to their classes
with the option of tuning in remotely. I’ve now created a website where I’ve collated the lessons and I am sharing them with my teaching colleagues in other
and they each teach 20 girls then that multiplies. The
schools as well.”
ripple effect is huge, even if one thing that we say sticks
Google skills are making a difference nationwide and
then that’s going to make a difference.”
close to home thanks to Audrey and Nicole, from
Taking up the challenge also comes in different forms
Junior School girls using Google Earth to study the
for the coaches, as Audrey explains, “I’m working with the Junior School teachers and technology has not always been their passion but Paulette Double (Year 3 teacher) is a prime example. She's loving it and is prepared to change her whole philosophy of teaching because she can see the value and she loves the engagement of those girls.”
6
independent task; they're actually able to flip into
Antarctic and engage with global experts for their learning, to the T3A (Technology for the Third Age) group learning how to use technology to connect with family and friends, which according to Audrey is her favourite time of the week. “They hang on my every word.” Giving back and upskilling is also Nicole’s mission, “If I can help one teacher to organise their technology
“We’ve been using the ‘flipped learning model’ where
to gain even five minutes a day, over a week that adds
she can pre-record herself for the girls to watch in class,
up to half an hour – doing that even a few times seems
they can replay and stop so they learn at their own
small but it’s a little ripple that might just start
pace, and it takes the pressure off the teacher. She is
something.”
