The Government’s e-strategy sets the expectation that:
• by spring 2008 every pupil should have access to a personalised online learning space with the potential to support an e-portfolio (provided by their local authority)
• by 2010 every school should have integrated learning and management systems (a comprehensive suite of learning platform technologies).

Learning platforms can vary considerably, but each should provide a range of ICT-based functions:
• Content management – enabling teaching staff to create, store and repurpose resources and coursework which can be accessed online
• Curriculum mapping and planning – providing tools and storage to support assessment for learning, personalisation, lesson planning etc.
• Learner engagement and administration – enabling access to pupil information, attendance, timetabling, e-portfolios and management information
• Tools and services – providing communication tools such as email, messaging, discussion forums and blogs.
A learning platform is therefore not a single ‘off the shelf’ product but a collection of tools that are designed to support teaching, learning, management and administration.

Below, Saint Georges Primary School, Worcester took part in a Learning Platform Visioning Day. Video has been implemented onto Vimeo. Click below:

St George’s Visioning Day from Drew Crow on Vimeo.

There has been a development of a new laptop which has recently been launched to make a computer system be manageable for a novice user.

There is a new laptop called Alex which is built for simple minded people that tend to get frustrated by using a laptop from a range of suppliers that might include, Dell. It is important for you to realise there are many types of users and I feel that Alex will hit the market by tackling old users that are less computer literate and are being encouraged to learn about how effective laptops can be.
Based on Linux, the laptop comes with simplified e-mail, web browsing, image editing and office software.

Those who sign up for Alex pay £39.95 a month for telephone support, software updates and broadband access.

Its creators hope the laptop and its simple suite of software proves to be a popular alternative to the Windows and Mac operating systems.

For their monthly fee, customers also get anti-virus software and 10GB of storage space on the Broadband Computer Company’s servers.

Back to basics

As well as communication tools such as e-mail, Alex comes loaded with a suite of open office software including applications compatible with Microsoft’s Excel and PowerPoint file formats.

The desktop is more comprehensive than that of Simplicity, a computer aimed at older people launched by TV presenter Valerie Singleton in 2009.

Mr Hudson said the company also intends to launch an application store for Alex for customers who want to add more features and functions to their computer.

Assignments can be transmitted electronically, obviating the need for teachers to distribute colossal stacks of paper to their assorted students. Tests can be administered at computer centers, saving time, effort and paper. Exams are instantly and automatically graded, so students immediately know how well they did, and professors don’t have to waste time sifting
through mile-high stacks of completed materials.

Paperless resources just make sense. They save time and money for students and faculty. And they save the planet — although it’s true electronic resources (especially the Computer-Based Testing Center) do consume huge amounts of energy, it’s less than the energy and raw materials required to produce paper.

While teachers are turning more and more to paperless communication, electronic resources can improve the way we learn while being economical. Such measures are simple and effective, yet they are not nearly being universally employed.

Recording video of lectures, for example, could prove extremely beneficial. While some professors complain posting video of their lectures provides an incentive not to attend class, ways exist to avoid that pitfall. It would likely not be difficult for teachers to block access to videos for only those with specific permissions. If a student misses class because of illness — such as swine flu — the professor could grant access to recordings of those lectures missed. That way, students can receive the information they missed and return to class with little catch-up work dragging them down. It’s true there’s no substitute for actually being in class, but sometimes attendance just isn’t possible.

Another example: aside from occasional glitches, Moodle — the University’s online venue of communication between professors and students — provides an amazing opportunity for assisting students in assimilating information.

Assignments and syllabi can easily be transmitted via Moodle. Not only does this save paper, but it provides an easily accessible and constantly available copy of any information students need to complete their coursework. Grades can be posted so students are aware of their standing in the course and what they need to do to improve. The most technologically savvy professors can even administer quizzes and accept assignments over Moodle, which, again, saves paper and provides instant results.

The unwillingness of instructors to put in the time or effort to learn more about technological means of better teaching is reprehensible. At least a minimal participation in Moodle should be a requirement for every class taught at the University.

Paper may not be obsolete yet, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be trying to maximize learning simply because we’re too change-resistant to reduce the use of it.

The True Knowledge answer engine is a technology capable of answering questions put to it on any topic. If you simply type in a question onto google, such as ‘how old is bin laden?’ The answer will appear at the top of the page as you can see from the screen shot from below. An image will be displayed along with the answer.

I really thought this was a great addon which allows the user to find the information instantly. The best thing about this addon is that the knowledge base will continue to develop and it will get to a stage were users can find out data instantly without having to click through links and finding the data.

True Knowledge is a pioneer in a new class of Internet search technology that’s aimed at dramatically improving the experience of finding known facts on the Web. Our first service – the True Knowledge Answer Engine – is a major step toward fulfilling a longstanding Internet industry goal: providing consumers with instant answers to complex questions, with a single click.

Picking up where search engines leave off, True Knowledge’s path-breaking Answer Engine automates the laborious, time-consuming work that users generally must do to get final answers to their questions. True Knowledge does this by structuring data in a way that enables computers to work and think like humans do, drawing inferences and conclusions when needed to find the information that’s requested. Another key differentiator: True Knowledge is tapping subject matter experts around the globe to build its information repository – bringing together the benefits of machine-driven automation and people-driven intelligence.

Leading search engines, portals, and content sites all benefit from working with True Knowledge by providing users with more complete and immersive environments for finding information and with a more finely tuned approach to contextual advertising. With a Cambridge-UK-based based business and technology team, True Knowledge will debut its service globally in 2009.

I think it’s useful to take note that we in the county are moving towards a learning repository within Worcestershire along with giving the flexibility for teachers to share content not only within the Worcestershire’s framework but also globally through the NDRB. The amount of benefits of generating and using materials from across the World really appeals to educators.
The security elements are very much important as copyright will need to be taken into consideration. Teachers knowledge about copyright is minimal and educating teachers will be a task to ensure materials generated to share with others is their own material and not of someone else’s.

I look forward to reporting back on the development in the future.

I have talked about Windows 7 in the past and how I was comparing both Windows Vista and Windows 7. I have looked at the latest stats and have found out that US computer giant Microsoft have won back its crown as the number one consumer brand within the UK.

The World is going through tough times with the economy along with swine flu, which seems to be increasing and news are started to be populated of how severe the illness might become.

The number two consumer brand in the UK was Rolex followed by Google whom dropped to third. Last year 2008-2009, Google were the top consumers within the UK.

The list of the top consumers for years 2009-2010 is listed below:

TOP 10 SUPERBRANDS 2009/10
1.Microsoft
2.Rolex
3.Google
4.British Airways
5.BBC
6.Mercedes-Benz
7.Coca-Cola
8.Lego
9.Apple
10.Encyclopaedia Britannica
Source:Superbrands UK/The Centre for Brand Analysis

The language of e-learning continues to expand, as is evident by the burgeoning number of glossaries of e-learning terms that are emerging. E-learning systems are big business, education authorities are centring attention on their use in schools and there is interest in the effective use of e-learning for specific ethnic groups of learners. But there is much discussion on what e-learning should consist of. Some opinion holds that it should not necessarily exclude the use of printed text, while others believe that inclusion of the internet is not essential. E-learning is often considered as a means of permitting access to learning by using any or all of the following technologies:

* TV
* mobile phone
* webcam
* e-mail
* DVD/CD
* website
* telephone
* audio-conferencing
* audio graphics
* video-conferencing
* podcasting.

Simply the provision of passive learning material that’s electronically based, such as a pdf posted on the internet, is not commonly considered e-learning. This is similar to the provision of text material as a single means of learning where no opportunity is available to ask questions or to enter into discussion.

E-learning has immediacy

A key feature of e-learning is that it is interactive. It uses a two-way or multi-way exchange of information that gives immediacy to the learning process and has the potential to provide the synergy that is absent when a student attempts to learn from passive resources alone. Numerous types of feedback can assist learning but not all of them are considered interactive:

* self-assessment (passive – needs motivation)
* online feedback/assessment (interactive – can be immediate)
* teacher feedback/assessment (interactive – can be immediate)
* peer-to-peer assessment (interactive – can be immediate)
* peer-to-peer discussion (collaborative – can be immediate).

One of the key reasons I attended this conference was particularly to see how much impact Microsoft surface will have within the education sector. Teaching and learning is becoming very much digital and it was very enlightening on how effective Microsoft surface can be. I asked many questions to the person who works with Microsoft that travelled from America to demonstrate the product. The technology is very bulky and heavy and has wheels at the base so that it can be moved around.

Microsoft use C Sharp to program their applications, which was interesting to identify as I have previously studied C programming, which is not used as much now in society. Microsoft are still developing applications for educational purposes and hope to get everything rolled out by December 2009. RM are trying to get a contract with Microsoft in order to bulk sell their products to RM, so that they can be re-sellers. Watch this space!

NFER’s fire teacher voice omnibus survey, which was completed by about 1,000 teachers, including heads and newly qualified classroom teachers, shows widespread of use of information technology in schools: 80% said it had made a different to the way they teach.

But a “sizeable minority” (33%) felt they lacked the necessary skills to exploit the technology available to them and needed more support and information to integrate information and communication technology (ICT) in lessons, NFER found.

A third of the teachers surveyed said lack of resources and poor reliability discouraged them and limited their use of ICT in schools.
But NFER said when compared to research conducted in 2004, the findings suggest that teacher competence in using ICT has improved overall.

Two thirds (67%) said they had the ICT skills to exploit the technology available to them and 62% said ICT helps to raise pupil attainment. Teachers also said ICT leadership in schools could be improved. Just 27% of respondents felt that the leadership of ICT pedagogy in their school was inspirational and only 44% said that their school is innovative in its use of ICT.

NFER’s Maria Charles said: “The first TVOS survey has given us a valuable insight into the views of teachers. We hope to be able to continue addressing current issues within teaching in further surveys.”

I believe that technology needs backing and for the technology to be supported by teachers. Schools spend a lot of money on new technology, but fail to fully use the product to full capacity.

There are many ways in order to improve the usage of technology in schools. Training is a very important and the teachers need to be very comfortable in using a specific technology to enhance their teaching and learning. If technology deployed within a classroom fails it disheartens the teacher and potentially the teacher will be reluctant to use the technology again.

Glogster provides an excellent method for designing an attractive home page for your wiki. Identify which pages you would like to appear as links on your home page. Next, create your glog with links to those pages. Save your glog, grab the code, and embed it on the home page of your wiki. Click here for a simple example of this best practice in use.

Glogster has all the usual social software feature such as profiles, friends, tagging, commenting etc.

What I love about Glogster is the Post Modern bricolage-y way elements are combined into a non-linear presentation, allowing for the viewer to bring their own meaning and interpretation to the collection of sources and the relationship between them.

I have used the software to create my own poster in Glogster as you can see from below. I decided to create a Glog of when I went Go Karting with my friends from Birmingham University whom I still keep in touch with.