Terry Freedman's ICT & Computing in Education blog — ICT & Computing in Education

What I've been reading: Delete

February 29, 2016

We live in an age where it's impossible to forget anything. Is this a good thing?

What I've been reading

February 26, 2016

A must-read for anyone who has taught in "challenging" schools!

But what if the singularity is benign?

February 25, 2016

People 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?

What comes first: education or technology?

February 24, 2016

Some people are adamant that educational practice, or pedagogy, must be the first consideration, before technology is even mentioned. But is this actually right?

5 problems with self-assessment and 4 solutions

February 23, 2016

Self-assessment is useful, but it needs to be introduced properly.

What I've been reading

February 16, 2016

Some educational research books are better written than others. "Making a difference in education" is one of them.

Perverse incentives in assessment

February 15, 2016

Trying to be helpful to pupils while assessing their understanding could actually be counter-productive.

Digital Education post-Bett edition now out

February 12, 2016

The latest issue of Digital Education is now available. Guest contributions from Crispin Weston, Ian Addison and many others. Observations on Bett 2016, assessment, Nicky Morgan's speech at Bett and Stephen Potter are just some of the things covered.

Philosophy and technical support

February 9, 2016

What if philosophers provided technical support...?

Logging in -- Photo from www.pexels.com CC0

My best and worst IT lessons #8: Logging in

February 8, 2016

logging in should take seconds -- not a whole lesson!

Ignorance vs certainty, by Terry Freedman

Uncertainty and ignorance: an issue for assessment?

February 5, 2016

If a student fails your assessment tasks, it could be that she knows too much!

The assessment machine, by Terry Freedman

The trouble with Levels

February 3, 2016

What was wrong with the old system of levels. In a nutshell.

Coming soon: a new edition of Digital Education

February 1, 2016

With reports on Bett 2016 from 12 people, plus a humorous but incisive article on Nicky Morgan's speech at Bett (by Crispin Weston), and articles on assessment, Stephen Potter, parental engagement, a competition and book reviews, the forthcoming edition of Digital Education promises to be a fine read! Sign up now (it's free).

Recent book reviews

Review: Social Media for Academics

This book is very readable, and if I sound surprised that is because it’s not always true of academics!

Quick looks: VIBE Coding by Example

For the time being, this book is free in Kindle format.

Review: The Game Changers: How Playing Games Changed the World and Can Change You Too

Despite the relative paucity of immediately obvious National Curriculum links, teachers will find several of sections of this book to be highly engaging.

Review: The Dictators: 64 Dictators, 64 Authors, 64 Warnings from History

In some respects one could view this book as a single warning repeated 64 times.

Review: The Bookshop, The Draper, The Candlestick Maker: A History of the High Street

Taking readers from the Middle Ages to (more or less) the present day, Gray charts how the places where we do our shopping and what we buy have changed over the centuries.

Review: Extraordinary Learning For All

As a source of potential ideas and inspiration, the book could be very useful indeed.

Review: Bad Education: Why Our Universities Are Broken and How We Can Fix Them

One has the impression that the main role of the university these days is to maximise profit, while that of the majority of teaching staff is to ensure the ‘correct’ views are passed on to students. All the while, students’ main concern seems to be to seek protection from anything that might make them feel unsafe.

Review: Next Practices - An Executive Guide for Education Decision Makers

Is a 2014 book on managing the computing provision in a school still worth buying?

Still relevant (sadly): How to lie with statistics, by Darrell Huff

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.

Quick looks: Bad Education: Why Our Universities Are Broken and How We Can Fix Them

It was a great source of pride to me, getting hundreds of students through their A levels and encouraging them to go to university. But for some time I have asked myself a question: would I recommend this route now?