Bromley ICT Forum Blog

OCR is hosting the above free conference (see conference program) to showcase the ICT Nationals to interested schools/colleges that are not delivering this qualification at the moment. For more information about this exciting conference please see the attached invitation, which has been sent to many schools/colleges in the South East. We are inviting you (the local ICT consultants and advisors) to this confierence and we would be grateful if you would:

- Make your local schools/colleges aware of this conference via email and/or in person.
- Ask interested centres to book onto the conference by the end of term.
- Feedback to me anything else you think we should be doing as part of this conference.

To book your place at the conference please contact Melissa Hasprey, using the details below:

- By email - melissa.hasprey@ocr.org.uk
- By telephone - 02476 856 163
- By fax - 02476 851 604

Click here to complete the electronic version of the faxback sheet accompanying the Learning Platform Guidance and Advice booklet for all Bromley Schools

12,00 high quality music files are available from the LGFL web site.

These files have been created from a cooperative of professional British composers. This is a ’paid for’ resource provided by the NEN RBC’s , saving schools up to £95 every time they download a clip for use in teachers adn pupils work.

The Audio Network Licence has been extended for another three years with lots of additional files to download. Great for podcasting

“Teachers here in the UK have the job of ensuring that children grow up with an understanding of the interconnectedness of the world and the positive role that they can play in today’s global society.”    Department for International Development/DCSF Bringing the World into the Classroom 2008

 London’s Development Education Centre, the Humanities Education Centre (HEC), based in Tower Hamlets, is working with London Grid for Learning to promote the global dimension and poverty reduction agendas in our schools. It aims to support all groups and providers working in or with schools to frame what they are doing within the global dimension. HEC has been working with Tower Hamlets City Learning Centre and e-Learning Team over the past few years exploring ways of using ICT to deliver the global dimension.

It has now launched a global portal that has areas for teachers and their students to start exploring, across the curriculum issues such as water, gender, health, transport, food, trade, tourism etc, and there are webquests exploring how the DfID works, what is sustainability, how to be a UN Special Rapporteur for human rights…

Visit the Global Portal; book HEC to run a free session for your CLC or PDC or conference or professional development day; or for advice and support contact: e-mail: hec@gn.apc.org  global portal: www.global.lgfl.net

tel: 020 7364 6405                     fax: 020 7364 6422 

website: www.citizenship-pieces.org.uk

http://www.globaldimension.org.uk 

On behalf of

Michael Newman

Global Citizenship Project Worker

Humanities Education Centre and City Learning Centre

Tower Hamlets Professional Development Centre

A new video conferencing programme for schools run by Parliament’s Education Service

As part of a new video conferencing programme offered by the Education Service at the Houses of Parliament, these pilot sessions focus on the issue of Prison Reform in order to bring to life the role of Parliament, both historically and in the present time.  The conferences include the opportunity to talk with a member of the House of Commons or House of Lords
Set amidst the backdrop of Victorian prison reform, the session is based in 1878 as the government takes control of the prison system.  Your students will meet a Victorian prison governor and a long-time prisoner as they talk about their experiences of life in Pentonville Prison.

During the workshop, your group are encouraged to engage with both characters, played by costumed actors, and to ask questions before being led into a debate on the issues surrounding the prison system and its purpose.

Students will explore what prison is for and whether it works from both historical and contemporary angles; developments in the prison system and the role played by Parliament in its reform; as well as the future of prisons today.

A member of the House of Commons or House of Lords will be invited to conclude the workshop and discuss the role of Parliament in relation to this issue*.

A pack of preparation materials will be sent to you in advance of the session, including background information and discussion topics, to help your students prepare their arguments in advance of debating the issues involved.

To book, please call the Education Service on 0207 219 2105

Available: 12 May – 23 May 2008
Duration: 1 hour
Cost: free of charge
Suitability: Years 8 and 9 (KS3)

*Please be aware that on occasion due to the nature of Parliamentary business, Members of both Houses can be called away at short notice.
Parliament’s Education Service
Parliament’s Education Service works with schools and Members of both Houses of Parliament to support young people in developing their understanding of Parliament and democracy. It runs a busy visits programme all year round and provides printed and online resources for schools.
http://www.parliament.uk/education

New Voices, Old Vic

Under Kevin Spacey’s direction, the Old Vic Education section has employed professional directors, writers and actors to work with pupils and students from South London schools on a variety of projects to encourage them to think about the creative use of drama in other subjects. The first project was a joint collaboration with the Imperial War Museum around the theme of the first day of the battle of the Somme in 1916.

LGfL has agreed to host this and subsequent OVNV projects to make them available permanently as an anytime, anywhere resource for the National Education Network. Each project comes with full lesson plans and videos to help teachers and students create their own version of the project in their school.

Find this in the KS3/4 English and History menus or directly at www.ovnv.lgfl.net

Mastering E-Pedagogy Part 2 [Ian Usher, extracts]
Today was the second full day of the Certificate in Advanced Educational Practice in E-Pedagogy (try saying that with a mouthful of cake) we’re running in conjunction with Oxford Brookes… One of the most useful pieces of the day for me was Chris Higgins’ presentation on threshold concepts - the theory that in every subject area there are certain concepts which, once mastered, allow the learner to significantly expand their knowledge and understanding in that subject…

I have my own idea of an important threshold concept in the area of E-Learning - that’s the point at which a teacher realises that, in some aspects anyway, their pupils will always know more than them and no matter what the teacher does they’ll never overtake or even catch up with their pupils. That might be something too hard to admit for some people - but if it happens, then it allows teachers to concentrate on understanding:

• what the technology is capable of;
• those areas of competency which pupils aren’t naturally blessed with;
• that the role of a teacher is to guide the use of appropriate tools, rather than necessarily lead in the use of them;
• that if you want something done technically, ask a twelve year old.

… show me a teacher who’s admitted that they’re not going to catch up in everything and I’ll show you someone whose pupils will be far more free to learn by discovery, research & experimentation.
http://moodlea.blogspot.com/2008/02/mastering-e-pedagogy-part-2.html

Further thoughts on the EeePC [From Where is AB?]
“I’ve had my hands on an EeePC before, but only in short bursts - last Thursday and Friday gave me hand on for almost a day and a half. Have I changed my mind about this little wonder?”

[Ed] Andrew Brown considers screen resolution, battery life, the webcam, storage space and the keyboard of the EeePC when used in earnest.
www.whereisab.co.uk/blog/?p=583

Multimedia wordsearch [Nik Peachey]
This is a really nice tool that I have just discovered. It’s called PhotoSoup and it generates wordsearch activities based on any topic in just seconds.

It’s very simple and works on images from flickr. You simply type in your topic and the site automatically generates a word grid and image clues. You then have 90 seconds to find all the words. You can get hints and even get it to show you the answers.

Further comments at http://nikpeachey.blogspot.com/2008/02/multimedia-wordsearch.html

Intro to digital storytelling [Joe Dale]
This sweet video shows how easy it is to create digital stories with Windows MovieMaker by scanning in a few images and adding a voiceover. Hope you find it inspiring too.
http://joedale.typepad.com/integrating_ict_into_the_/2008/02/intro-to-digita.html

More creativity with the WiiRemote
[Ed] Doug Dickinson has embedded a link to a video of another demonstration of Johnny Lee’s creativity with a WiiRemote. This time it shows the creation of a virtual first person 3D display that moves as you move your head.
www.dougdickinson.co.uk/blog/2008/02/more-creativity-with-wiiremote.html

Reprinted from the NAACE Newsletter

JISC initiated a study involving a combination of examination of data from longitudinal studies and new research to see whether the “Google Generation” (post-1993) approached research tasks in a significantly different way to people from previous cohorts.

They define six types of behaviour:

Continue Reading »

Repurpose, Create and Share 

Becta and the National Education Network are inviting your school to submit a proposal to create engaging and innovative projects that exploit online digital resources for effective learning. Any materials created by participating schools will be then made available nationally for sharing with other schools.

This is a great opportunity for your school to

• Exploit online digital resources
• Create new materials to support learning and teaching for secondary aged students using these resources
• Work with the LGFL and the LA in the production and dissemination of these materials across the NEN

Becta and the NEN will provide up to £25,000 to support the development of these school projects .

The deadlines for these bids is 12 noon on Friday 22 February 2008Enclosed is a copy of the Call for bids paper with further information.

If you are interested and would like assistance in preparing a bid please let me know

Whole School Improvement supported by ICT ‘London Learning through ICT’ (an improvement initiative supported by DCSF, London Challenge and LGfL) has arranged four additional conferences, each providing comprehensive guidance, on the promotion of Whole School Improvement supported by effective deployment of ICT.

Whole School Improvement is about identifying what you do well, where you want to go and what can help you on this journey.

Whole school improvement is also about identifying your priorities and ensuring you stay focused on what is really important. Reviewing whole school ICT and maximising its impact on all areas of Whole School Improvement is a key skill for school leadership teams.

This conference will address how effective use of ICT can result in real learning gains throughout the school and how whole school ICT review and action planning can positively contribute to school improvement planning. The vital issue of Change Management will also be addressed. A process of self review for ICT, using the ICT Self Review Framework, will prove invaluable both as preparation for and successful implementation of the London MLE.

The dates for these events are:

• For East Sector schools 4th February
• For South Sector schools 14th February
• For North Sector schools 27th February
•  For West Sector schools 28th February

All conferences will be held in the Conference Hall at Mary Sumner House, Tufton Street, Westminster. Bromley LA is in the South Sector, therefore please book for the South Sector Conference which is on 14th February, or an alternative date if that date is not possible for you.

Please note that your school must complete the initial SRF registration process in advance of the conference.

This can be reached via http://schools.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=srf&rid=11966

There is no charge for these conferences.

Places are limited, so please register at the earliest opportunity and in any case not later than 31st January 2008.

 Places can be booked online via the link at www.events.lgfl.net It is anticipated that these conferences will be over-subscribed, and, in order that the maximum number of schools can benefit, places are limited to one senior leader per school. Details of additional one-to-one support in applying the Self Review Framework in your school will be supplied at the conference.