DEVELOPING COMPUTING IN THE CLASSROOM
Raspberry pi can be used in any subject but computing is good place to start from It runs on LINUX and the aim is to encourage students go into computing or getting back into computing. It boots up and students can see the concept of drivers (mouse being leaded etc...) It runs in Command Line Interface not GUI ...perfect to instruct the computer what to do... (programming skills) Contains pins to attach input and output devices or buy the Berry Clip as an interface It is not a replacement but an add-on to the desktop PCs you have at hand... It is an ideal experimentation tool for students Encourage game play ...scratch, python etc..... Can be used for GSCEe, BTEC and other curriculum Students can understand better what we mean by Performance of CPU… CPU clock, Ram etc…
FORMAL LEARNING V.S. INFORMAL LEARNING
The potential of informal learning... As formal learning was very distinctive in the past Through technology informal learning had become a continuation of what happens at school… Not changing competencies but building behavioral... Requires a new skill set Technology is vital... Student want to get information and move on, they want instant gratification and so we cannot restrict them to the school restrictive environment... Integrating learning with work- leverage technology and online capabilities... Identify the barriers within the learning organization You can't be aware of every students learning style ...so informal education leaves the student freedom to learn within his own methods Reflection is paramount to assimilate what you have learnt …ex use Twitter so students can expose their learning experiences
Instill a culture of wanting to learn within work... Measure of learning is not the number of hours you study. We should know what learning actually is and how to measure learning ...it’s all about connecting with the context being learnt... Formal learning still has a place but the way it is designed should be redefined to integrate new literacies
HEAD IN THE CLOUD ...FEET ON THE GROUND (MICROSOFT)
3rd Millennium Skills... Cloud computing takes out complexity of compatibility and access of data... Office 365 on the go... removes the problem of Office Suite divide among students (having students who do not have M.S. Office installed at home...
INVIGORATING COMPUTER CURRICULUM
Programming should be learnt at an early age Let kids play with technology... CODERDOJO.com a very interesting coding community (we should build this community here in Malta too) Computing at school ...educate, engage, encourage ...www.computingatschool.com.mt Appshed ...to concert scratch games into mob apps www.csunplugged.org
MOBILE LEARNING IN CLASSROOM (SOUTH AFRICA)
Better use few apps and succeed rather than being overwhelmed with too many tech and get confused Ed.Ge ...assessment app even for mob phones
EMPOWERING 21STR CENTURY SKILLS
Tangent between Accountability and Innovation (Many people believe that schools should ban mobile phones and collaborative tools) ...check Daily Mail header (BAN MOBILES FROM SCHOOL) Backward looking vs. Forward Looking of how education should be…. Ken Robinson talked how social media has completely changed how learning is done
BROADCAST: positive messages that schools have TEACH: develop engaging and exciting resources LEARN: using these tools and resources
Schools have very limited resources and so think carefully what tools to buy/use …try the FREE ONES!!!! ..Rather than giving the students a new tool to Login, why don’t we use the tools they already use => ”Fish where the fish are”
Schools should celebrate those interesting and positive vents that happens daily (BROADCAST) …use TWITTER and School FACEBOOK pages (especially for parents)
Teachers need to engage students as much as possible. Interest may mitigate students’ creativity, but social media engages the students to collaborate …YOUTUBE videos introduces factual content before they start the lesson (before lessons) => use “THE VIRTUAL SCHOOL” (education videos)
Blogger/ Twitter are brilliant tools to actively engage students, especially outside schools
LEARN …Primary schools are using Twitter so students twit what they learn at school… and blog about their learning experiences… LEARN through collaboration using Google Doc / Sky Drive
Do I still have problems with social media at schools? …Yes there will always be hitches to tackle such as abuse and cyber bullying. So educate young pupil on how to use social media safely and effectively to give them the skills when they go out in the working and adult world
SOCIAL MEDIA WILL CHANGE LEARNING AND HOW STUDENTS LEARN IN THE FUTURE! ... Jeremy Scott (Deputy Headmaster)
Accesses => Students have access at school? At schools they don’t but outside students have various devices to connect with the rest of the world… so usage of such tools should be enforced outside school, thus a continuance is created between schools and homes with the same devices and tools that the students are familiar and comfortable with.
What about the educational staff? What was their feedback about the integration of social media in the teaching and learning process? Most of the staff had a positive feedback as it is not restricting the teachers to use such tools. Others will never use them and this is not necessarily age related but rather confidence with using these tools
We are seeing a change in the attitude of the students …they used to see schools as not understanding them …now they are acknowledging that school is relating to them and understanding their way of learning.