Never mind the technology, where’s the learning?

The last couple of days I’ve been running some sessions and workshops at Afnorth International School in the Netherlands. This is the second time they’ve invited me, and colleagues from Advisory Matters. Last year, I did a quick introduction to stop-animation using Xipster, an easy-to-use application in which you can get students animating quickly. This [...]

I used my first computer in the classroom in October 1980. It was a Commodore PET (PET stood for Personal Electronic Transactor), it had 4k of memory, built in green screen and no lower case characters. It was one of the new computers approved under a Government scheme for Mathematics in which the school could [...]

If you thought understanding how to develop ICT for learning and teaching was difficult, then it’s much more complex than that. Even the most resistant teacher, deep down, realises that the tide can’t be held back. The story of Canute trying to halt the waves is traditionally used to illustrate how those in power often [...]

Sometimes you have to keep your feet on the ground. Today I did a twilight at a small rural primary school, pleasant enough with some dedicated and hard working teachers. But I couldn’t help thinking that things had not really changed since 1995. Then there might have been a couple of machines on trolleys, and [...]

Mark Hickson has been a good friend for over 15 years, 10 of them also as a work colleague for two different employers. Both our youngest were born on the same day - literally sharing the same birthday. Mark’s always been both an excellent educator and educationalist. Needless to say, he’s published his first [...]

The Becta 2006 review was published this week, and I’m sure it’s going to provide a lot of blog posts for me and others. The review is mostly a compliation of research that has been undertaken in the last year, but having a good deal of it in one document is useful for policy makers, [...]

According to the Register, Acorn, the educational computer manufacturer will be reborn next week. The people or person behind the revival of the company is unknown, but all will be revealed on the 10th May.
It will offer four notebooks: the 12.1in Solo Note, 14.1in Solo Book, 15.4in Desk Note and 17in Desk Book, all equipped [...]

Further to my last posting, this morning I received an invitation via email to a “Keynote Seminar” entitled, “eLearning – does ‘e’ add value?“. It explains:
“This seminar is being structured as a timely opportunity for a wide range of stakeholders to exchange ideas and views on best practice and future developments in eLearning and the [...]

I tend to agree with Will’s view:
The problem is that these types of technologies and the shifts they are facilitating are not prominently on the radar of any of the conferences I’ve been to of late. In fact, I am still amazed at the virtual lack of presentations that put the use of any technology [...]

Today is the first really warm day of 2006 as far as my part of the world. I try and get out at lunchtime and walk around the lower lake at Ketteringham Hall. Here there’s a bench. I could sit here for hours watching the antics of the geese, or spotting the carp basking near [...]