Evolution of Cultures of Thinking
In 2005, Bialik College collaborated with Harvard’s Graduate School of Education Project Zero team to develop the research project Cultures of Thinking. Led by Dr Ron Ritchhart and supported by Prof David Perkins, Mark Church and Karin Morrison, Bialik embarked on a five-year project that was made possible through the generosity of Abe and Vera Dorevitch. Initially, our research began with an exploration of Thinking Routines and later extended to include the other seven Cultural Forces: Environment, Expectations, Interactions, Language, Modelling, Opportunities and Time. The ultimate goal of the project was to develop a school-wide culture that supports deep thinking and the nurturing of students' and teachers' thinking dispositions. The book, Making Thinking Visible, was written based on the five years of research that was conducted at Bialik College with Project Zero. Over a period of 13 years Bialik has hosted seven consecutive international Cultures of Thinking conferences biennially.
Today, Cultures of Thinking is a method and practice of teaching that is embraced on a worldwide scale. Many books have been written, institutions across the globe including early childhood centres, schools, universities, museums, galleries and the like have adopted the pedagogy, and conferences are held in different corners of the world. We are very proud that Cultures of Thinking had its very beginnings at our school, Bialik College.
This year, we invite you to join us for our 8th Cultures of Thinking conference, “Transforming Spaces and Places for Learning,” exploring:
- Collaborative learning for tomorrow’s world
- The impact of purposefully built spaces and places for thinking
- Spaces and places for First Nations People’s Voice
Over 2 days we will investigate the research and work of Dr Daniel Wilson (Immediate Past Director of Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Principal Investigator at Project Zero), Dr Flossie Chua (Principal Investigator at Project Zero), Professor Marcia Langton AO (Associate Provost at The University of Melbourne), Associate Professor Melitta Hograth (Assisstant Dean in Indigenous Education at The University of Melbourne), Dr Stefania Giamminuti (Senior Lecturer, Early Childhood Education at Curtain University) and Dr Wesley Imms (Associate Professor in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education) as well as the work of educators from within our school community and wider education circles.
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