If your printer keeps telling you there’s a paper jam when there isn’t, you aren’t necessarily going insane. This suggestion worked for me.
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Frustration, by Terry Freedman
Thumbnail sketch: Bad Choices: How Algorithms Can Help You Think Smarter
Here is a short review of this book about algorithms.
Read MoreComputing in the UK
The Royal Society recently produced its report into Computing, After the Reboot. Here are my notes and comments on that report.
Read MoreThe importance of touch in Computing
Making it possible for students to come face to face with real things from times gone by can have an electrifying effect on them. This is especially so when teaching Computing.
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Picture from Geralt on Pixabay. Licence: CC0
Two cheers for the internet of things
What an amazing age we live in: app-controlled devices, connected homes. So why aren't I wildly enthusiastic even though I am not by any means a Luddite?
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Review of ASAP Utilities for Excel
A program to put Excel on steroids. Loads of utilities that can be applied straight away, no programming involved, and it's free!
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The Raspberry Pi User Guide 4th Edition
Thumbnail sketch of the Raspberry Pi User Guide
I always dread having to open any kind of manual. For a start, it’s against the natural order of things. (I don’t ask for directions either, even when I’m hopelessly lost.) Secondly, they usually seem to be written for people for whom they are superfluous.
Imagine, then, what a pleasant surprise it was to open this book and discover that it is not only well-structured, but an enjoyable read.
I wouldn’t say it is bedtime reading exactly (mind you, I used to read books on Excel functions and VBA before retiring for the night). However, it is very comprehensive.
For example, if you are interested in setting up your Pi to take time-lapse video, this book takes you step by step through the process.
If you’re serious about pushing your Raspberry Pi to its limits, and even if you’re already pretty familiar with what it can do, this book is a must-have for your bookshelf or workbench.
Raspberry PI User Guide (Amazon affiliate link)
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Keep going. Photo from Stencil. Licence: CC0
10 ways to prepare for teaching Computing
If you're told you'll be teaching Computing from now on, but don't feel competent to do so, what practical steps can you take in order to get up and running?
Read MorePlanning for the Computing curriculum
At first sight, it seems bizarre that despite the fact that many teachers urgently need professional development, and time, in order to be ready to teach Computing, headteachers are not always allowing them to attend courses during school time. A business planning approach by ICT leaders in school could help.
Read MoreComing soon in Digital Education
I'm in the process of planning a few themed issues of my newsletter, Digital Education. Read on for the low-down.
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A screenshot of a print-out of a screenshot
A Visual Basic School Calculator
Back in 1994 I wrote a program for a school-oriented calculator to help me manage my departmental budget. Here are some retrospective reflections on my first Visual Basic program.
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Presentation: 10 stimulating ideas for the Computing curriculum
Here is some information about the EduTech conference in general, and my session in particular.
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Photo from Stencil. Licence: CC0
Women and girls and technology: a matter of biology?
Are girls and women biologically predetermined to not be natural programmers? No, I don't think so either. This article contains some interesting points based on recent discussions, and links to (hopefully) useful articles.
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Photo from Stencil CC0
8 Reasons to use project-based learning in computing
I’ve long been an advocate of project-based learning, or PBL. Done properly, it can be much richer in terms of learning opportunities, and more fun. I believe it is entirely applicable to the teaching of the new Computing Programme of Study, for the following 8 reasons.
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Photo from Stencil CC0 licence
Why recipes are a poor way of teaching algorithms -- and why they're not
Recipes as algorithms is one of the themes I'll be exploring in the next issue of Digital Education, which will be out soon.
Other themes include 'Is educational research worth the paper it's written on?' and much, much more.
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Photo from Stencil, CC0 Licence
Drones in the Computing curriculum
If you're considering using drones in your Computing curriculum, where do you start? This article has a few ideas.
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What I've been reading: Weapons of Math Destruction
What's worse than being governed by algorithms? Not even knowing what the algorithm is doing. This very timely and readable book lifts the lid of what goes on in many walks of life.
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Photo from GetStencil, CC0 licence
Social media traffic sources: a self-fulfilling prophecy?
Where is your website and blog traffic coming from? In this article I discuss the problem of self-fulfilling prophecies, and suggest three ways to find out where your audience is.
Read MoreComputing Curriculum Conundrum: an analogy
A comic strip that, for me at least, encapsulates what has befallen the Computing curriculum in England.
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Photo by Jills, issued on a CC0 licence.
The Computing curriculum in England: A timeline of hopes and experience
Has the Computing Programme of Study been an unequivocal success? In my article It Wasn’t Me Wot Done It, Sir! The Depressing State Of Computing As A Subject, I said that many students were voting against Computing qualifications with their feet, and also that girls were under-represented. Moreover, I stated that the situation was entirely predictable (many of us indeed had predicted it).
In this article I set out what I see as the key milestones in the journey to where we are now. I have included quotes from the sources, and also given the source in each case so that you can check out the sources yourself.
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