#OnlyLearning

Like art, hashtag coding enables self-expression. Also, like art, it can be a catalyst for political and social change. Finding solutions to global and societal problems involves the same set of computational thinking skills as finding solutions to programming problems. Learning to code is not just about learning to use a powerful, modern 'lingua franca' to develop clever apps, but about developing the ability to understand how to break problems down, to spot patterns, to collaborate, to ideate-try-fail-tinker-and try again, to make sense of the world around us. Learning to code is about learning to change society (hopefully for the better) - it gives citizens agency (see Jennifer Pahlka's TED Talk  and read more about her work in ' [Re]:Coding <America/> ') and the tools to leverage impactful change despite the traditional political machinery being broken (as Jon Alexander champions in his book, 'Citizens'). Jennifer Pahlka's TED Talk Jon Al...

When we discuss #Sustainability, we often talk about #FoodMiles and #Renewables. When I taught my Social Studies classes, I would often ask them to think about the #SupplyChain of the lunchbox items (Farming, Transporting, Selling, Shipping, Processing, Packaging etc). But whilst we are well-versed in discussing the hidden carbon footprint of our foods, we rarely give much consideration for our tech.  For a long time, we have championed digital solutions and cloud storage as "a great way to save paper", and saving trees (especially with deforestation continuing at pace around the world) is a worthy criteria. In a meeting just last year, a Microsoft employee rejoiced telling me how M365 had saved a school so much paper, that, if stacked it would be the equivalent height as London's Shard building. Little was said of the need for energy hungry servers to store all that data - the cloud is a clever label, because we rarely think of 'clouds' as sinister. ( Although I...

Have you ever taken a moment to consider what you share online?  What about all those photographs of your children? Have you even asked your child if they are happy with you sending their digital likeness into the ether, at a time when an ever-greater number of tools are being launched, and used, with minimal thought for their longer term impact. The United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child was written a long time before we had any reason to worry about online presence - after all the the UNCRC came into action in 1992, a year before  CERN  placed its World Wide Web technology in the public domain and gave birth to the phenomenon of online communication. Yet the UNCRC has incredible relevance for our children, especially given omnipresent online access and these new AI   tools : Article 3  - The best interests of the child must be a top priority in all decisions and actions that affect children. Article 8  - Every child has the right to an id...

[ P.S. An abridged version of this post was published in TES magazine 22nd December 2022  ] Safe spaces in which Scottish Educators can discuss, debate, share our thoughts, enquiries and practice are few and far between these days. Barely have we had we chance to draw breath post-Covid (no pun intended), but we find we are already diving into a period of National Discussion , examining the findings of a slew of reports and a flurry of thought papers (among them opportunities to redefine the place of the Four Capacities and of IDL in our schools).  In such a time of flux, we would benefit from a safe place to share and explore ideas,  but our options are instead reducing. The Future is behind us Could relics from our recent past be our best shot at establishing grassroots opportunities to collaborate, share and discuss - as Pedagoo provided for a while - regardless of our geographic or digital locale, so that we might optimise this season of reform and renewal? ...

I recently read Stepping into a Virtual Reality Classroom for Teacher Training (columbia.edu)  and I was intrigued to see the situation in Myanmar pre-pandemic described in very similar terms to how I have previously described the situation here in Scotland today:  ...teachers often lack not only digital skills themselves, but also the pedagogical breadth to meaningfully engage students in inquiry-based activities that make the most of access to technology The  Myanmar: Connect to Learn  project site details the issues faced by their schools when it came to developing digital pedagogies: It was clear that knowledge, skills and infrastructure were all lacking. The same concerns raised in Scotland. Having just supported an authority with upskilling teaching staff and deploying thousands of devices into the hands of staff and students alike, I feel I have a good understanding of how these three factors impact on education here. The ongoing work being undertaken by ...

 The following excerpt is from a much longer reflective piece I wrote in 2010 as a student teacher. I've included it below to force me to reflect on how my practice has changed over the subsequent 12 years.

Since first appearing here, this post has since been posted on the Education Scotland PLL blog . In my last blog, I asked leaders to think about how they might liberate the minds of their staff teams. To adopt “intention” instead of “instruction” based leadership strategies. The notion of ‘intentionality’ has been at the fore of my thoughts for some time. Whilst discussing the benefits of digital tools, and training staff and students to maximise those benefits, I have been in the habit of asking leaders and teachers about their intended use of digital as part of wider school improvement ambitions. Often, the responses have outlined a drive to integrate digital tools into classroom activity or develop digital literacy amongst staff and students. Recently, though, I was told “I want to see the devices used in every lesson”. It may seem counter intuitive, but I reacted negatively to such all-encompassing digital goals. In another conversation, an early career teacher rightly asked me abo...

It was an absolute joy to bring the first Minecraft: Education Edition Scottish Championship to Abertay University's School of Informatics and Design this week. I will be forever grateful to Prof. Gregor White for throwing open the doors and welcoming the young people into the heart of the school - and for handing out the prizes at the end of the day too - making for a very memorable experience for all our young people. On the day, teams from three local authorities were present for both Primary and Secondary finals. The brief was to design a sustainable school of the future and resulted in some fantastic submissions. The judging process was particularly challenging as we found ourselves splitting hairs to finally declare the winners. What has been quite disappointing is the slow uptake around the country for Minecraft Education Edition. Education Scotland cannot provide this as a national app and the ongoing mismatch of DPIA/GDPR risk appetites/educational benefits within our ...

Originally posted on Education Scotland's PLL blog With Tartan Day celebrated on 6th April, the news was awash with stories of Brand Scotland being celebrated and promoted internationally. With Social Media timelines jammed with digital shortbread tins and heartfelt pleas to those in charge of American business budgets, it was all feeling a bit like Brigadoon had set up home in the Metaverse. One story caught my eye though, that of Moray-based tartan textile specialists Great Scot . The firm have created a new 'Ukraine Forever' tartan using the colours of the Scottish and Ukrainian flags as a gesture of support the war-torn Ukraine. Apparently, it was a real team effort leading up to the production of this tartan. The idea came from their online community and everyone in the company was involved in the creation, from seamstresses to the delivery team. It is amazing the opportunities that can arise when people work together. On a frosty November morning, back in 2020, I join...

Originally posted on Education Scotland's PLL blog For those of you who don’t have young children influencing your professional reading, then the term “A Squash and a Squeeze” will cause little pause for thought. For EY colleagues and parents, Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s first collaborative effort is an exquisite distillation of the importance of perspective. ''Wise old man, won't you help me, please? My house is a squash and squeeze.'' What can you do if your house is too small? The wise old man knows: bring in a flappy, scratchy, noisy crowd of farmyard animals. When you push them all out again, you'll be amazed at how big your house feels! – so reads the synopsis. The idea of perspective is key in leadership. I know that there are some days when I look at my diary and see countless school visits and meetings, and wonder when I’ll have time to “get work done”. Luckily, that feeling is short-lived, because I have learned to remind myself – conversa...