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ICT & Computing in Education

Articles on education technology and related topics
  • Front Page
  • Search
  • Newsletters
    • Digital Education
    • Terry Freedman's Books Bulletin
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    • Welcome
    • The "About" Page
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Ah, those were the days -- not

November 29, 2023

Here at Freedman Towers I have been trawling through the archives, hoping to salvage something of my legacy to donate to the nation, or indeed the world. Anyways, all joking aside, I came upon this email I wrote…

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In Blast from the past, History, News & views Tags Practical ICT, old technology

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Fun, in the most patronising way you can think of

November 28, 2023

It’s almost unheard of for me to read advertorials or sponsored posts, especially when the words “Advertisement” appears in small print somewhere other than the headline. But the title made me curious.

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In News & views, Using and Teaching Computing & ICT Tags patronising, gamification, fun

A lesson, by Terry Freedman

50 features of excellent ICT and Computing lessons

November 28, 2023

What makes an excellent ICT or Computing lesson? In this document I've tried to encapsulate the answer to that question.

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In Leading & Managing Computing & ICT, Professional development, Tips for teachers, Using and Teaching Computing & ICT Tags excellent ICT, excellent computing

Authentic Learning and ICT (Update 2023)

November 28, 2023

To the casual listener, stride piano, boogie woogie piano and rock-n-roll piano all sound pretty much the same. Yet Fats Waller, perhaps the most famous stride pianist, detested boogie woogie.

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In Using and Teaching Computing & ICT Tags authentic learning, authenticity, edusummit11, edusummit2011, piano

Why Are ICT Lessons Boring? The Start of the Lesson (Update 2023)

November 28, 2023

If I had to choose just one causal factor to focus on, as to why students find ICT lessons boring, it would be the start of the lesson.

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In Using and Teaching Computing & ICT Tags boring, starter activity, why is ICT boring

Why Is ICT Boring? (Update 2023)

November 28, 2023

Not all youngsters are bored in their ICT lessons, of course, but it’s a sufficiently common complaint to have made me do a mental double-take when Maddi, an Australian teenager, happened to mention that she actually enjoyed her ICT lessons.

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Tags ICT lessons, boring, why is ICT boring

Technicians – The David Sainsbury Gallery at the Science Museum: full review

November 25, 2023

Should you ever find yourself in the unlikely circumstance of having to choose between me administering medication or waiting for a paramedic, my advice would be to wait.

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In Reviews Tags technicians, exhibition, review, Science Museum

Review: A Little History of Music by Robert Philip (YUP)

November 25, 2023

I asked the AI module built in to Squarespace to write a paragraph on why music is relevant to teachers of Computing. Here’s what it said…

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In Bookshelf, Reviews Tags review, music

Come back! Drawing by Terry Freedman

Computing in Schools, UK

November 8, 2023

I've been reading the transcript of a conference called Computing in England's schools, from July 2022. Yes, I'm a bit behind the times on this, so I apologise. However, I think anyone who has been involved in educational computing for any length of time…

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In Computing Tags computing in schools

Difference engine #2. Photo by Terry Freedman

Artificial Intelligence News November 2023

November 7, 2023

We need to know how an AI decision-making tool arrives at it's conclusions, which might be hard given that even the designers of these tools don't always know.

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In AI Tags AI, artificial intelligence

New issue of Digital Education

November 2, 2023

The next issue of my newsletter, Digital Education, will be available soon. It contains articles on AI, smartphones, Calvino and more.

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In News & views Tags newsletter, Digital Education

Photo by Windows on Unsplash

New online blogging course

November 2, 2023

I will be running another online course in blogging in the evenings of the 17th and 24th November 2023.

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In News & views, Professional development, Using and Teaching Computing & ICT Tags blogging taster

Quick look: Parliament Buildings: The architecture of politics in Europe

November 1, 2023

I suspect that the use of space in parliament buildings will hold some lessons for schools as well.

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In Bookshelf Tags quick looks, space, Parliament, buildings
Recent book reviews
Review: Social Media for Academics
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!

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Quick looks: VIBE Coding by Example
Quick looks: VIBE Coding by Example

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

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

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

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

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Review: Extraordinary Learning For All
Review: Extraordinary Learning For All

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

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

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

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

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

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