Oh no! Photo by Terry Freedman
We’ve all made mistakes, such as being a bit too excited about the thought of our colleagues using education technology more. I’ve written about seven of mine that I’m almost too embarrassed to think about. Here’s an index to all of the articles in this series.
Read MoreComputer error, by Terry Freedman
Fears about the unintended consequences of the proposed new Ofsted framework — have your say — plus links to other articles about Ofsted-related fears.
Read MoreThis is one of a current spate of books about the in-built bias found in many automated processes.
Read MoreA comic strip that, for me at least, encapsulates what has befallen the Computing curriculum in England.
Read MoreThere's only so much you can do to prevent things going wrong as far as technology is concerned.
Read MoreYou could put this up on the doors of your computer labs! Photo by Terry Freedman 2017
Why should other teachers get their hands on all that lovely ed tech? You can't tell them not to use it, but here are 11 tried and tested ways to make them not really wish to.
Read MoreThe London Book Fair 2017
Should educational materials be completely free to copy and distribute?
Read MoreMaybe you should have checked the tech first! Photo from pixabay.com CC0
What do trainee teachers or colleagues who are new to education technology need to know?
Read MoreScience fiction writers would have us believe that intelligent machines will either enslave us or get rid of human beings altogether. But what if they were extremely benign and protective towards us? What could possibly go wrong? This article may be used as the basis for a discussion with your pupils.
Read MoreWill he dictate even more of what you see?
VR technology has come of age (more or less) and suggests some exciting possibilities. But how will reportage be affected, and is it wholly a good thing?
Read MorePeople usually have a pretty dim view of how computers will treat us when they finally overtake us in the intelligence stakes. But what if they turn out to be too loving and caring?
Read MoreTrying to be helpful to pupils while assessing their understanding could actually be counter-productive.
Read MoreSuspicious enthusiasm? Picture from www.pixabay.com CC0
Why a lesson on spreadsheets became the highlight of the kids' day, and a nightmare to haunt me forever.
Read MoreThe sign-up buttons for the Digital Education newsletter have been in place for ages. So why was there a sudden drop in subscriptions?
Read More
I was reading recently that something like 47% of emails are spam. I can believe it. I get the whole range: offers of Russian brides, Viagra, genie bras, news that a previously unknown relative has left me tons of money and messages exhorting me to open the attached document or confirm my security details. All this would be quite funny on one level, but it makes downloading and then sifting through email that much more difficult.
So I decided to do something about it.
When I was in my teens I wanted desperately to get involved in television production, especially the filming and editing side. So I was delighted when one day there was a the start of a new behind-the-scenes series about how television studios operate. Well, the presenter started off by saying, “This looks boring, all these cables and wires everywhere, but…”. Then, a few minutes later, “This is a boring part, but…”. After 15 minutes I switched channels. I’m not even sure that the series was completed. Who wants to be told that the thing they have given up their time to watch is ‘'”boring”?
New EU rules on VAT (value-added tax) come into force on 1st January 2015. At present, the tax applied is the rate prevailing in the country of supply. Thus my ebooks are taxed at the rate of 20%. From the beginning of next year, this will change, and the rate of tax applied will be according to the place of purchase.
There are technical difficulties associated with the administration of this approach.
I heard an interesting snippet from Mike Cladingbowl, National Director at Ofsted, recently. He said that when interactive whiteboards were first introduced, Ofsted inspectors saw an increase in “chalk and talk”. Hardly surprising, because interactive whiteboards made chalk and talk, ie teaching from the front, easier.I’m reading a short story by Ian Creasey called “The Edge of the Map”. In the world depicted by Creasey, automated cameras called “nanocams” take photos and newspapers (and other media, presumably) source their illustrations from the pool created by them. In other words, there is no need for specialist photographers.
This raises a number of interesting questions.
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