In a previous post I set out five models of provision spanning face to face to fully online (and well designed) courses. That failed to fully capture at least one 'blended' model. I have reconceptualised the models - resulting in this new 'framework'. ...continue reading "Models of provision v2"
Category: Practice
Teachers as researchers
In previous posts I have talked about the characteristics of effective CPD and have argued that practitioner research is the best form of CPD. In this post I extend the argument to suggest that schools need to become research invested. ...continue reading "Teachers as researchers"
The halfbaked academic rubric
I have to admit that I’m not a fan of rubrics – preferring non-standardised forms of assessment – and perhaps because most of the rubrics I have come across have been pretty terrible. So I thought I’d have a go at developing a better one. ...continue reading "The halfbaked academic rubric"
Thinking differently about creativity
By Dennis Sherwood
We all know that old cliché 'Necessity is the mother of invention', and events over the past nine months have validated its truth: that wretched virus has caused many new things to happen, from enhanced remote teaching at all educational levels to the ever-closer development of a vaccine.
Why has there been such an outburst of the discovery of new ideas, of creativity? ...continue reading "Thinking differently about creativity"
Why are exam grades unreliable?
By Dennis Sherwood
In the summer of 2020, the Covid-19 outbreak led to the cancellation in the UK of all school exams. What happened next has been described as a scandal, a disaster, a fiasco, as has been reported extensively elsewhere. In the quest to discover what went wrong, ...continue reading "Why are exam grades unreliable?"
From F2F to Online Courses – models of provision
NB I've posted a new (improved?) version of the models of provision.
For over 20 years I worked at the Open University (UK) which is a world leader in online distance education. Over the last few years I have had the privilege of spending time at a number of predominantly face-to-face universities in Australia that were at various stages of developing their online provision, including over the last few months when most courses went online due to COVID19. I have been struck by the vast range of different approaches to online course provision I have seen, and thought it would be useful to try to categorise them. ...continue reading "From F2F to Online Courses – models of provision"
Home schooling or home education?
By Roger Broadie
Whatever other impacts the COVID-19 virus may have on education systems, there will be a big impact on parents which is likely to change attitudes.
Children going to school has allowed parents to ...continue reading "Home schooling or home education?"
Using real games
There is a lot of talk about gamification in education and to a lesser extent using real games to enhance learning in schools. By real games I mean ones which have been developed for the leisure market, their primary focus being on entertainment rather than learning. Findings from the NP3 research suggested that the use of real games ...continue reading "Using real games"
The DfE EdTech Strategy doesn’t ‘realise’ anything – But Teachers do
On 3 April 2019, the Department for Education published a document called ‘Realising the potential of technology in education’. Now I don’t want to get hung up on the name of the document, but having read it, I ought to draw your attention to something fairly basic here. The word ‘realise’, according to most dictionaries, can be used to mean ‘become fully aware of something’ or ‘cause something to happen’. This DfE strategy document doesn’t ‘realise’ anything. ...continue reading "The DfE EdTech Strategy doesn’t ‘realise’ anything – But Teachers do"
Characteristics of effective CPD
Effective professional development (PD) - professional learning if you prefer - is critical to maintaining and enhancing practice (and thus learning) in schools. However, the most common forms of PD for teachers tend not to be effective - in the sense of leading to positive changes in practice which lead to improvements in young people's learning. This begs the question - what does effective PD look like? ...continue reading "Characteristics of effective CPD"