Presentation: 10 stimulating ideas for the Computing curriculum

October 2, 2017

Here is some information about the EduTech conference in general, and my session in particular.

Inspecting Computing in schools: 6 research questions

September 27, 2017

The schools inspectorate in England (Ofsted) aspires to become a research hub. How might or should this affect Computing?

Forthcoming education conferences in London, England

September 25, 2017

Here are a few interesting-looking conferences coming up in London, England, up to January 2018.

In the next issue of Digital Education

September 20, 2017

Algorithms, book reviews and review copies of my book. All in the latest issue of Digital Education.

Women and girls and technology: a matter of biology?

September 20, 2017

Are girls and women biologically predetermined to not be natural programmers? No, I don't think so either. This article contains some interesting points based on recent discussions, and links to (hopefully) useful articles.

8 Reasons to use project-based learning in computing

September 13, 2017

I’ve long been an advocate of project-based learning, or PBL. Done properly, it can be much richer in terms of learning opportunities, and more fun. I believe it is entirely applicable to the teaching of the new Computing Programme of Study, for the following 8 reasons.

Why recipes are a poor way of teaching algorithms -- and why they're not

September 12, 2017

Recipes as algorithms is one of the themes I'll be exploring in the next issue of Digital Education, which will be out soon.

Other themes include 'Is educational research worth the paper it's written on?' and much, much more.

Drones in the Computing curriculum

September 6, 2017

If you're considering using drones in your Computing curriculum, where do you start? This article has a few ideas.

What I've been reading: Weapons of Math Destruction

September 5, 2017

What's worse than being governed by algorithms? Not even knowing what the algorithm is doing. This very timely and readable book lifts the lid of what goes on in many walks of life.

The latest Digital Education newsletter

August 16, 2017

Exclusive article about the forthcoming changes in the EU's data protection laws, pseudoscience (?), biological determinism, back to school resources and more are in the current issue of the Digital Education newsletter.

Read on for the full list of contents of this free newsletter.

Getting the most out of education conferences

August 15, 2017

This book has received 22 five star reviews in total so far, and is the TESOL Institute's featured book. Read on for more information, and for details on how you can buy a personalised version.

Digital Education newsletter: what's in the next issue?

August 11, 2017

There's a lot of food for thought in the forthcoming issue of the Digital Education newsletter, plus useful resources and tips. Read on for more information.

The Great Training Robbery, Part 13 of 13

August 9, 2017

What can you do to prevent your training materials being used to run a course -- without your permission or involvement, much less any compensation? This 13 part series suggests a few ideas.

8 Elements of a stimulating computing classroom

August 8, 2017

How can you make your computing classroom a vibrant, exciting place of learning?

The Great Training Robbery, Part 12 of 13

August 8, 2017

What can you do to prevent your training materials being used to run a course -- without your permission or involvement, much less any compensation? This 13 part series suggests a few ideas.

The Great Training Robbery, Part 11 of 13

August 7, 2017

What can you do to prevent your training materials being used to run a course -- without your permission or involvement, much less any compensation? This 13 part series suggests a few ideas.

The Great Training Robbery, Part 10 of 13

August 4, 2017

What can you do to prevent your training materials being used to run a course -- without your permission or involvement, much less any compensation? This 13 part series suggests a few ideas.

Fake news, bad algorithms and drones -- in the latest issue of Digital Education

August 3, 2017

Algorithms are based on maths, and maths is objective, right? You might change your mind about that when you've read Weapons of Math Destruction, which I've been reading.

You can read my review in the latest issue of Digital Education, plus information about drones, fake news, and going back to school after the summer break, plus a good money-saving offer on an online graphics application, plus a bunch of other stuff. Read on for more details and for a sign-up form.

The Great Training Robbery, Part 9 of 13

August 3, 2017

What can you do to prevent your training materials being used to run a course -- without your permission or involvement, much less any compensation? This 13 part series suggests a few ideas.

Recent book reviews

Review: The Shortest History of AI

How is it that ChatGPT, Claude and other Al models appear to perform so well at certain complex tasks that some people become convinced that they're sentient — only for them to then promptly fail at simple tasks that even a child could handle?

Review: Teacher Geek

Every so often I like to take a look, or another look, at a book published a while ago, and today I’ve been looking at Teacher Geek, by Rachel Jones.

Review: Teach Fast

The book contains some interesting ideas.

A question of leadership

I have somewhat dichotomous views of this question of whether leaders make a difference, or much of a difference. I think my views can be classified as macro and micro.

Review: Making Good Progress?

Daisy Christodoulou carefully picks apart the pitfalls of various kinds of assessment, drawing on different subject areas to do so.

principles and practice of assessment.jpg

Review: Principles and Practices of Assessment

There is plenty in this book to like.

Review: Effective Teaching: Evidence and Practice

Although this is a few years old now (2018), it has stood the test of time.

Review: One for maths teachers

This wide-ranging book takes in probability, fractals, astronomy, Babbage, Lovelace and a host of other areas and people.

Reviews: Two for History teachers

Two books on the Nazi era.

Review: One for English teachers

No book about the craft of writing seems complete without a stern chapter on the importance of eschewing adverbs and adjectives - but what to put in their place?