Here in England the Government, in its quest to put Computing on the map, did its best to make sure the rest of the map was blank – by getting rid of qualifications that lots of students took (especially girls).
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Exclamation mark, by Terry Freedman
Was it something I said? When an elevator speech falls on deaf ears
In one of my teaching jobs, I had to listen to a parent while he went on and on about how kids should taught how to take computers apart in their Computing lessons. When I pointed out that the course was about being literate in the uses of computers and also how to program them, rather than how they're made, he insisted that digital literacy could only be taught by taking computers apart.
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Society of Authors Educational Writers Group
Vote for me!
A few years ago I put myself forward to serve on the committee of the Society’s Educational Writers Group. As my three year tenure will be coming to an end soon, I’ve put myself forward for election to the Management Committee of the Society. That’s the group that decides policy and strategy. I think it’s very important that that committee includes a person who has been a teacher, and is still heavily involved in education, and writing for educational publications.
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Blogger, by Terry Freedman
New blogging course
If you’ve thought about starting your own blog, but are not sure what to write about or what keeping a blog entails, then a course I’m teaching in December 2019 might be of interest.
Read MoreComing soon in the Digital Education newsletter
The next edition of this esteemed newsletter has a cornucopia of links that will be of interest to teachers of computing and media literacy especially, and very little commentary! Read on to find out more.
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It won’t be as bad as you think! Picture: Terrified, by Terry Freedman
8 Tips for NQTs
Your first day at school may seem terrifying, but hopefully it won’t be as bad as you think! Here are 8 tips you may find useful.
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Angry, by Terry Freedman
16 pet hates about presentations and presenters
The season of training days and outside speakers is upon us. Here are 16 presentation and presenter quirks that drive me nuts.
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Handshake, by Terry Freedman
Breaking the social media contract
Why I’m unfollowing people more and more.
Read MoreSolving the driverless car problem part 2
The problem referred to in the title may be summarised as: who ya gonna kill? The car is hurtling along the road when a child steps out in front of it. The car is faced with a dilemma: kill the child, or the pedestrian waiting to cross the road, who would be in the car's path should it swerve to avoid the child. Terry Freedman explains why Lance Sharpe’s analysis was wrong.
Read MoreSolving the driverless car problem Part 1
The problem referred to in the title may be summarised as: who ya gonna kill? The car is hurtling along the road when a child steps out in front of it. The car is faced with a dilemma: kill the child, or the pedestrian waiting to cross the road, who would be in the car's path should it swerve to avoid the child. Guest contributor Lance Sharpe considers the problem from an Economist’s perspective.
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Computing and Related Qualifications
Computing and related qualifications ebook: why?
Here’s a brief note about why I wrote this mini-guide, and a couple of screenshots from its pages.
Read More24 must-have features of computer labs UPDATED
If you still have, or are planning to have, a computer lab, then these 24 things are essential to include.
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Digital News Report 2019 from Reuters
Notes from the desktop: digital news report
The Reuters Institute’s report on Digital News 2019 has just been published. Here are a couple of extracts.
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New prize draw, and updated information on our competitions
Good news: the prize draw for How to Think Like a Coder will be run very soon, for subscribers to the Digital Education newsletter. Here’s what you need to know.
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TPEA conference
Technology Pedagogy and Education Association Conference news
Good news if you’re thinking about going to the TPEA conference in July.
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Assessment machine, by Terry Freedman
Artificial Intelligence and marking: pitfalls
I’m all in favour of making teachers’ lives easier, but automated essay marking is not the answer.
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Be aware! By Terry Freedman
Is robotics a waste of time?
I’d rather teach pupils to program without going through the intermediary process of building a robot or anything else. Despite all the hype, I regard it as a massive waste of time.
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Big Data, by Terry Freedman
Data for its own sake is pointless
Unless data can be turned into information, what’s the point of collecting it?
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Terry’s desk, by Terry Freedman
Notes from the desktop: a prize draw, a damaged elbow and a conference -- oh, and posts about podcasts
Here are 4 useful bits of news. Topics covered: a forthcoming prize draw, podcast posts, a great-looking conference and my elbow.
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Partners. This illustration is from www.pixabay.com and has a CC0 licence.
Can the International Society of Technology in Education's Standards in Computing be adapted for use in the UK?
This article details the steps that a few of us in ISTE, ITTE, TPEA and others have taken to investigate whether the ISTE Standards for Computer Science teachers, and their list of Computational Thinking Competencies, could be adapted for use in the UK. There’s also an opportunity for you to give us your opinions if you wish to.
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