On this day: Set trivial assignments for students of Computing stuck at home

May 28, 2025

Why set students real-world, life-changing, humanity-saving problems when trivial challenges are likely to prove equally, if not more, useful?

Blast from the past: the homework excuse management system revisited -- now with comments!

May 3, 2023

I have republished this post, or a version of it, on my Substack newsletter. The comments are interesting!You can use a spreadsheet to solve even relatively trivial problems — but why should you do so?

The Homework Excuse Management System, by Terry Freedman

Blast from the past: the homework excuse management system revisited

November 25, 2021

You can use a spreadsheet to solve even relatively trivial problems — but why should you do so?

Set trivial assignments for students of Computing stuck at home

May 28, 2020

Why set students real-world, life-changing, humanity-saving problems when trivial challenges are likely to prove equally, if not more, useful?

Blast from the past: the homework excuse management system

September 25, 2018

You can use a spreadsheet to solve even relatively trivial problems — but why should you do so?

Recent book reviews

Review: One for maths teachers

This wide-ranging book takes in probability, fractals, astronomy, Babbage, Lovelace and a host of other areas and people.

Reviews: Two for History teachers

Two books on the Nazi era.

Review: One for English teachers

No book about the craft of writing seems complete without a stern chapter on the importance of eschewing adverbs and adjectives - but what to put in their place?

Review: The Great Formal Machinery Works: Theories of Deduction and Computation at the Origins of the Digital Age

If you’re of a mathematical bent this could be just the book to delve into.

Review: How to lie with statistics

Although this book is over 60 years old, it is remarkably apposite for our times -- and especially in the fields of educational research and assessing pupils' understanding and progress.

Review of Blueprints

I submitted my review of this book to Teach Secondary magazine, an educational magazine in the UK. The first review is what the magazine published. The second one is what I actually wrote! In substantive terms there is little difference between the two, but you may find it interesting to see what the editor altered.

Filming in progress by Terry Freedman.jpg

On this day: Review of the Flip Video

This seems like a hundred years ago! Since the introduction of the Flip Pocket Video Recorder a couple of years ago, several variations on the theme have been put on the market, both by rivals and Flip themselves.

Review: Cabinet of Curiosity - Developing a Superpower

School life ought to consist of far more than just a utilitarian pursuit of exam grades over all other considerations.

Review: Dr Bot - Why Doctors Can Fail Us-and How Al Could Save Lives

In this comprehensive and highly readable Dr Bot, Blease tackles a wide range of issues, including some that are apposite for those working in schools.

Review: Books A Manifesto - Or, How to Build a Library

A compelling read that's bound to make even the most well-read among us feel somewhat under-educated.