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

12 things I've learnt about assessing Computing and ICT

September 30, 2016

I've been thinking about, doing, and running courses in the art and science of assessing what kids know, understand and can do when it comes to Computing and ICT for a long time. Here are 12 things I've learnt.

What I've been reading: Digital Literacy Skills for FE Teachers

September 27, 2016

Although this book is aimed squarely at teachers in Further Education, I think it would be a useful resource for school teachers too, and even university lecturers.

Articles on Ed Tech: Retrospective #5

September 23, 2016

Here are some articles you may have missed in the past week or so. Topics featured include inspection, book reviews and Word macros.

Big data infographic

September 22, 2016

Here is a big data infographic I produced in 2014.

Review of the Thule Gauntlet Laptop Bag

September 21, 2016

An expensive mishap concerning my laptop led to my buying a Thule laptop bag. Here's what I think of it.

11 attributes of the ideal ICT and Computing inspector

September 20, 2016

If ICT or Computing is inspected in your school, what attributes would you like the inspector to have?

A useful book for your education technology library

What I've been reading: Academic writing and grammar for students

September 19, 2016

A well-structured book that will prove a handy reference in the secondary classroom and beyond.

To put it Bluntly: Ofsted jargon

September 16, 2016

Derek Blunt takes issue with inspectors' jargon.

Articles on Ed Tech: Retrospective #4

September 15, 2016

Here's a collection of articles you may have missed, on a variety of subjects including Brexit, Master teachers and ebooks.

What I've been reading: How to read journal articles in the social sciences

September 14, 2016

While not specifically concerned with Computing or education technology, this is a very useful book for students undertaking research in journals.

Computing discussion topics 2016-09-14: Brexit and biometrics

September 14, 2016

It's very important to cover the Computing curriculum in a way that relates it to what is actually going on in the real world. Here are two more discussion topics to help you to do that.

Project-based learning in Computing: micro and mini projects

September 11, 2016

You can't just give kids half a term to solve a problem and expect them to be able to just get on with it. This article suggests a simple approach that will help them get used to working on projects.

EducationTechnology News: 4 forthcoming events

September 9, 2016

News of 4 forthcoming events, including one that takes place tomorrow.

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?