Bromley ICT Forum Blog

(Thanks to the Wirral Grid for Learning)

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Enclosed is an article from the NAACE web site  describing the impact of the Fronter VLE upon Ranville Infant School. It highlights the background, key features and the impact upin the teaching and learning program.

It also provides useful advice in helping schools ‘get started’

Click here to read more

An informal survey of Naace members on ePortfolios from Ian Usher
A few weeks ago I sent a message to the Naacetalk Advisory list - the general mailing list for members of Naace. 36 people filled in the survey to some extent. (See original article for links to a Google Spreadsheet summary):

• There’s an approximate 50-50 split between those who have selected and have yet to select their ePortfolio system;
• Most respondents are planning on using the same system for both primary and secondary phases;
• The majority of respondents plan on offering an ePortfolio to both pupils and staff;
• Two respondents anticipated that their system(s) would have more than half a million users; the majority anticipated under 100,000 users;
• Most respondents anticipate supplementing their core provision by allowing their ePortfolio system to access other (external) online storage services;
• Unsurprisingly, there’s a vast range of ideas about storage capacities for staff and pupil users at primary and secondary phases.

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Meeting of the Bromley Network Managers to be held at the The Ravensbourne School on Wednesday March 31st commencing at 2pm

Agenda

Learning Platforms-

Presentation of Microsoft Learning Gateway (Coopers Technology College) 

Presentation of Fronter

LGFL/Synetrix News

Other Items

Special thanks to Ben Musson and Paul Murphy for hosting this meeting.

Could you please make sure that you have sent an RSVP to andrew.ferrier@bromley.gov.uk by Friday 19th October?  This will help with catering.

The London Borough of Bromley is putting together a paper outlining options and advice for Bromley Schools in the purchase and establishment of an effective Learning Platform.

The best place to start in this process is obviously with Secondary Schools as many are moving down this track already. We have a number of Bromley schools using Moodle while some others are using Learning Gateways (Sharepoint). As you may be aware, the LGFL have endorsed Fronter as a London wide solution. Needless to say the solutions out there are varied and if they have one thing in common is that they are not cheap either financially or in human resource management. I am also concerned that whatever solution or strategy is decided, it is one that best meets the needs of all Bromley Schools.

Before the borough puts out a recommendation, I would be interested to hear if any Bromley Secondary Schools have made a decision on a VLE platform and, if so, what platform do they intend to use, along with the provider.

Any further information or comments would be welcome.

For those schools looking for further advice

Becta have created a section of their website to help planners understand the issues and expectations:
http://localauthorities.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=pf&catcode=ls_pict_06

• What is a learning platform?
• How to use the Learning Platform Services Framework
• Learning Platform Services Framework suppliers
• Funding for your learning platform
• Learning platform functional requirements and technical specifications

No doubt you are aware of the government’s elearning strategy which has identified two major milestones:

1.By Spring 2008, every child should have access to a personalised online learning space with the potential to support an eportfolio.

2.By 2010 every school should have an integrated learning and management systems in place (a comprehensive suite of learning platform technologies.)

What does this mean for you and your school community? Continue Reading »