I suppose this isn't quite fair, but I couldn't resist it anyway! Is this how discussions about the curriculum must seem to people outside education?
Read MoreIt doesn’t have to be pink
I turned my collar up against the wind. A useless gesture, because the wind contemptuously insinuated itself under my skin regardless, but it made me look hard. And hardness was needed in this job. I walked around the playground, glaring at kids who even just looked like they might be thinking of doing something wrong. Crowds of them parted as I approached. One looked shifty.
“You got a problem, son?” I gritted.
I was a teenage geek
This article is a bit autobiographical, but there is an objective point to it. Actually, it’s completely autobiographical, but there is still a point to it.
One day when I was 15, I was milling around in this youth club trying to look cool, when someone came up to me and asked me if I’d be interested in joining a cinematography club he wanted to get started. He explained to me that I’d learn how to use a cine camera to shoot films, edit the films,learning about lighting and all that other technical stuff, so I said “Yes!”.
I’d never touched a cine camera in my life.
BETT 2013 Interviews: Steve Wheeler
ICT thinker, lecturer and writer Steve Wheeler talks about being at the BETT Show for the first time this year, and the things people are discussing in the world of ICT.BETT 2013 Interviews: David Mitchell
Quadblogging founder David Mitchell talks about what he saw at the BETT Show this year, and quadblogging.BETT 2013 Interviews: Andy Black
Edtech guru Andy Black talks about what wasn't at the BETT Show this year, and some of the trends he spotted.BETT 2013 Interviews: Simon Finch
E-safety guru Simon Finch talks about why pupils should be allowed to use social media, why teachers should use it, e-safety and identity management.What is Both good and original in the world of educational technology?
When a young man with dreams of becoming a writer sent a manuscript to Samuel Johnson for his opinion, Dr Johnson is reputed to have replied:
“My congratulations to you, Sir. Your manuscript is both good and original; but the part that is good is not original, and the part that is original is not good.”
I thought it might be interesting to look at 10 ideas that have gained popularity in the world of educational technology and ICT in recent years, to see if they meet the “good and original" test”. Here are my considered, though possibly opinionated, views.
BETT 2013 Interviews: Yolanda Halston
In this video, Yolanda Halston, of the Educational Apps Store, talks about pupils collaborating and other matters.BETT 2013 Interviews: Prad Samtani
Review of BETT 2013
The BETT Show is, I’m reliably informed, the biggest education technology show in the world. It takes place in London, England, every January. This year it was slightly later, but I’ll come to that in a moment. The first thing I’ll say is that even if you didn’t attend you may find this article interesting, as I suspect that several comments will apply to any education technology conference.
We are running a good service –you can see it in real time
Here’s a photo I took recently on the London Underground. There are periodic announcements, static noticeboards, and electronic delays constantly assuring us that we are experiencing a good service. I presume it is intended to introduce a feel-good element into an otherwise mundane existence.
The sound of being connected
When I first had email and an internet connection, it was made possible by using a dial-up modem. These modems were positively snail-like compared to today’s devices. For example, my first modem could transmit data over the telephone line at the blistering speed of 9 kilobytes per second (kbps).
Unreliable information is worse than no information
I will never understand why so many people think that Wikipedia is OK to use for serious research on the grounds that it is mostly reliable. Mostly? Some years ago I posited the idea of a wiki timetable, in which people get to edit train timetables how they like. Some of the information displayed on the electronic noticeboards would probably be accurate some of the time. Useful, eh?
Impressions of BETT 2013
Unofficial Guide to BETT 2013 Out now!
Products, trends and advice from BETT 2012
In a couple of hours’ time I will be distributing the latest version of Getting the Best out if BETT, which includes the views of over 30 people who attended last year’s BETT. Here’s a Wordle of what products they thought worth pursuing, the trends they spotted, and the advice they offer to schools in these straitened times.
A Map of the Internet
I recently discovered this map of the internet through Stephen Downes’ newsletter, OLDaily. Downes says, “It’s mostly eye-candy, but it’s good eye-candy”. I prefer to think of it as “interesting” eye-candy. It’s visually attractive, but what I find interesting is the fact that the descriptions are not necessarily value-free.
C is for … Curriculum
There has been much discussion about the curriculum in general in England recently, and the ICT curriculum in particular. I wrote about the latter a few months ago, in an article entitled 5 Characteristics of an Ideal Programme of Study for ICT. Now, three months and two draft versions of a new ICT Programme of Study later, I should like to put forward a few comments, both about the area of “ICT curriculum” in general, and about recent developments in the UK in particular.
7 Reasons educators should blog
Like many others, I find blogging a useful activity. So useful, in fact, that I think everyone involved in education should do it! Here, in no particular order, are my reasons.