Channel Island Leadership Summit
Jersey's First Apple Event for Education
After a busy few weeks and a hard earned 'relaxing' weekend with my Daughter I have had time to reflect on Friday's Event. But before I continue, a big thanks to the Apple team and IQ for all the help and support to make this a successful event. Special mentions to Luke and Paul.
There was a large turnout and not a space left in the room. The number of delegates that brough their own iPads was a positive start. After introductions it became clear that there was a clear message, we are not allowing the students to learn in a manner that they are accustomed to at home. Creativity is seemingly being hampered by a fear, however rational and well meaning, that students will access inappropriate material. We must find another way. The message delivered is that we all have the desire to keep students as safe as possible but we need to allow new technology to flourish and re-engage students. These devices are not toys but essential learning devices.
I also made the point that it was not about Apple. If Apple let me down and new, better devices hit the market I WILL CHANGE. However the devices, software and support continues to be top of the pile. It is telling that 80% plus are on the most up to date iOS but Android users are awash with different versions of which some OS versions don't support each other. Even Windows own Surface demo froze during the live launch. Consistancy & reliability must be the deciding factor.
Politics aside, cost is a very real disabling factor. The model I am suggesting is to let students bring in their own devices. There are ways of managing this (they are being demonstrated all over the world) in an effective and safe way. I ask at every event I speak at how many people already own iOS devices and I regularly see 80-90% of the hands in the room go up. So why are we trying to hit 1:4 ratios that are inefficient and too low and costly, 1:1 has to be the goal.
I also made the point that, for me, it has to be the same operating system to be most effective. To utilise the apps available sharing can (mostly) only occur if the systems can 'talk' to each other. I also feel that devices HAVE TO BE OWNED. There is no point in having a class set of devices. Firstly the students don't look after them as well and the whole idea is to make a seemless transition from school to home. The devices must be available to the student 24/7.
SEN was a big part of my presentation and many people commented on the real story I had to offer (for Date Protection reasons I will leave it at that). iOS can not be underestimated in its part in the addressing the learning difficulties experienced by so many.
Bob Bonney followed my presentation (I was glad to get mine over with and relax). The most powerful part of his presentation was the way in which he has developed his course to emulate the experience of the students online life outside of school. A video featuring one of his students clearly showed how the pupil enjoyed the way in which he was asked to work. For him it was like going on to Facebook and sharing his learning experience with others in a native way. If you didn't follow the power of this engagement Bob's results and Chief Examiners report could not be ignored. Well done Bob.
VLE's need to be researched by teachers at the cutting edge. So many simply do not contain the features most students would best use, and every school has different needs. A Tweet usually tells you all you need to know in an hour so it seems odd that flaws are not spotted in the research stage. One fit solutions may be cost effective but ultimately waste money if they are not used. The system has to be easy and has to allow studnets to incorporate links to resources they use all the time. Twitter, Youtube and Flicker to name a controversial few. If it is simply a poor duplicate of successful social sites students will not use it. Systems that do not allow students to reach the rest of the world are also flawed. Why would they want to talk in a constricted environment when they can access the globe elseware. We are forcing them into unmonitored envronments.
After a busy lunch answering questions and getting the feeling the vast majority of the attendees we on the same page we were ready for Neil Emery's live demonstration. I was next door at a Technical session in which it seemed clear that the genius that is Emily from IQ supports most of the schools attending in some way. An interesting thought as the Isle Of Man uses only two technicians for the whole Islands tech support. I think we have significantly more input to keep Jersey's educational machines running.
Everyone in the technical area seemed to have the same problem but that's another story.
I managed to see the last part of Neil's app demonstration and when I walked through the door there was an eerie silence as the room was awash with engaged 'students' playing/learning about Devils hole. Creating visual/audio presentations that blew away the traditional ways of teaching the history/geography/ICT/English lesson that was occurring. So special thanks to Neil for showing the audience how utterly enthralling learning can be when delivered in a way that is current, engaging, and most of all fun.
So hopefully the momnetum will continue, I got a very real sense that some minds had been challenged. The Regional Training Centre starts with its first session on Tuesday (26th June) at Beaulieu with JCG the next week (contact me for more details). Bring your own device starts in September for me. Exciting times ahead.
I will leave you with a list of Apps I talked about during the day.
Thanks for spending the time to read and please email/tweet this to anyone you like.
Rory Steel
@JerseyITguy
Apps used
Free
When a class set of Beebots or similar cost £300+ for 4-6 devices why not get a whole class set with lessons pre planned AND made into a game for instant feedback?
Free
A great game for addition, KS2/3. Don't let your fish die.....
Free
I simply don't know how/why this app is free. It is the only note taking app (and I've tried a few!) that incorporates TEXT, AUDIO, PICTURES & VIDEO. Easy to use and has a calendar for homeworks. Great app.
Free
Again, FREE??? This is amazing. Don't set another essay let creativity show you what's in their minds. Groups or individuals.
I use this tool to give feedback to students on essay work as it is quicker to give more thorough notes than typed. The students have said that they like this as it is easier to follow. The students can be emailed directly from the app and listened to on any computer.
Great tool for gathering evidence of students work. I take photos of students work and make notes so that I have evidence of progress without having to take book back in. Also great for when students lose books.
Feed up of repeating yourself? Record your examples and share them with the world.
iBooksFree
Use this to save your PDF documents like schemes of work for easy reference. iBooks2 is a new way to look at textbooks to make them exciting and improve student engagement.
£8.99
Great visual display of sound, see the Doplar effect. A bit expensive, there are some basic cheaper versions like Spectrum View (FREE).
£2.99
More for the seasons presenter but I use GarageBand to add extra sounds and better audio notes to the iMovie presentations. It can be used as a great addition to any subject that uses music. Our A-Level Drama dept says that it has revolutionised the way they teach.
£2.99
This is amazing. I teach a little art every now and again an I use this to do large demos. The ways the paint behaves is unbelievable. A fantastic price for a powerful tool.
£5.49
If Art rage captured the creation of the painting in the way Brushes does I would but Brushes. But this feature is so useful to show students how I created an image that I have to have it. Quite expensive compared to Art rage, which I think is better, but until they add the capture feature I have to have this. (You have to view the creation file on a Mac)
Channel Island Leadership Summit
Reviewed by Rory Steel
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2:45 PM
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Reviewed by Rory Steel
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2:45 PM
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