I was skimming around the other evening for the latest and greatest on e-portfolios. ICT is such a royal pain sometimes for becoming the focus of the debate.

We all know the ‘mines got more buttons than yours’ argument that often prevails when those in the debate don’t acutally know what they’re going to use the thing for.

I know, I’m the first to hold my hand up (usually), that folks in education are sometimes perceived as a bit waffly and ’soft focused’ but to me that’s fine because it’s round those edges that new learning happens. Keeping those softer edges is also quite an achievement in the UK target driven climate. Anyway - I’m waffling now.

As we get nearer to having a joined up learning platform solution in Bolton (our tender has just closed) it’s vital to remember just what we’re trying to do here ie. engage learners, teachers & families by enabling greater personalisation of their journey in the name of helping everyone enjoy & achieve more.

An e-portfolio is part of a learning platform and certainly a significant one. So instead of going down the functional/techie spec line I thought I’d focus upon another more powerful tool. Metaphor.

I like the ’story’ metaphor.

Stories are a natural way to help portfolio-makers think about their thinking. The neurologist Oliver Sacks (1987) believes a sense of narrative is ‘absolutely primal.’

(Paulson, Paulson, & Meyer, 1992).

I suggest you read this collection of portfolio metaphors if you’re getting bogged down with people who are leading the debate on button pushing.

[Update 7/10] Back in 2004/5 it seems I was playing the same record (remember those?)- here’s the presentation from within the TLC website.[Update Ends]

[JB]

I found myself having a conversation (actually it was an email but it’s so familiar now that it feels like a conversation) with a teacher today who I’ve known for at least 10 years in Bolton. It was about wireless vs. desktops in the classroom and the issues that they were experiencing with poor network coverage in the school - which by the way is pretty open plan and single storey.

She was considering the pros and cons of returning to desktop clusters and getting away from aging laptops with useless batteries. Fair enough.

“How would it go down with Ofsted?” she probed. Hmmm. Depends on the team you get, any other priorities and of course the quality of existing teaching. It’s said that schools’ experiences of Ofsted and ICT can fluctuate like Madonna’s accent.

Well the thing that surprised me most was how strongly I suddenly felt about being wireless. When I pictured children and teachers going back to using desktops again it was almost as if I could see them being tethered down like goats in a open field. What poetic nonsense and ridiculous imagery to get in your head about the notion of being wireless! Still - there I was and it’s bothered me ever since I sent the reply, even though I counter-balanced my view further on.

Panorama’s documentary on wireless technology didn’t enter my head really and I think that the issues of wireless are, by and large, fading. Did you know that those boffins at MIT have even worked out how to deliver wireless electricity? Eureeeeeka!

Naturally there’s a growing market for wi-fi ’stuff’ nowadays and if you’re a young person in school reading this I’d suggest you look into it as a career option. Try this.

“..the PillCam [is] a tiny two-sided camera the size of a very large pill which patients swallow. It has been used in more than half a million gastro-intestinal endoscopy tests since 2001. One version is used to diagnose disorders of the oesophagus and another for those of the small intestine. It snaps a pre-set number of pictures per second and sends them wirelessly to a data recorder worn on the patient’s waist. The images are downloaded to a computer for diagnosis. The $450 capsule passes through the bowel naturally and is flushed down the toilet.

Source: The Economist April 2007

So I’d say to schools, if wireless is getting so advanced and so cheap to produce now that it can now be just flushed away, we have to take the long term view that it’s only going to become more prevalent in education and life in general. [More on this: Economist] If you’re wireless you’re less tied down (!) with fewer boundaries to limit your options for collaboration and resource finding. Wireless brings it’s own challenges for sure but on balance I feel that the pros outweigh the cons.

Oh dear. Better wipe the butter off the underside of my laptop now. That’ll teach me not to blog between the toaster and the kitchen hob. Now if I’d been sat safely at the desk upstairs…

[JB]

A really quick one just to highlight the impact and success of blogging in a primary school in Scotland reported 18/6/07. Worth a read if you’re thinking about blogging via your school web site.

JB

[UPDATE:25/05/70 Brown Pledge to Tackle Bullies] In Bolton the SEAL programme (Social Emotional Aspects of Learning), delivered by the Behaviour Support Service, has been running for about 2 years now in a good number of primary schools and in an equally good number the programme has been well received. Now the DfES are looking to get it into the high schools. Interestingly, SEAL hasn’t a been a tool for schools with difficult children. It’s gone much wider than that and become a programme that deals with wide ranging issues.

Interesting then that the BBC report on SEAL today under the immotive headline ‘’Behaviour Lessons for Teenagers ‘’

The DfES says that primary schools have reported a decrease in problems such as bullying and fighting where the emotional intelligence lessons have been taught.

The type of subject areas covered would include developing empathy - such as showing how someone else might feel or another point of view; managing strong feelings such as anger and recognising the rights of others.

Among the primary schools to have taken part in a pilot was Vicarage Park in Kendal, Cumbria - with the head teacher Anne Hallam saying that the scheme had a significant impact upon helping boys to articulate their emotions.

Coincidentally Sandy Holt , the Boltonian Muay Thai Kick-boxer, is on channel 5 as I write featuring as a main subject of the documentary called Short Angry Men .  He suffered at the hands of bullies at high school and puts a lot of it down to his stature.  Sandy the ‘man’ has just re-visited his old high school on TV to talk about bullying with some of the children in the sports hall.  Sandy is openly emotional, still, about his experiences in the school as a boy. Now, one of the best known kick boxers in the world, Sandy says that his life has been clearly shaped by his high school experiences at the hands of bullies.

A BBC radio phone-in at lunch time served to heat up the argument about ‘values’ and ‘respect’ starting in the home. ‘’In my day…'’ was a popular opening phrase.  One Head described SEAL as an attitude that went across the whole of her high school - staff included.  In her view, respect between colleagues breeds respect at all levels.

Personally I’ve no children of high school age so I’m in no position to comment but I do have a 6 and a 4 year old who are currently fast asleep, tucked up in bed.  No hanging about on street corners, no arguing for the remote control, no MSN’ing people I don’t know, no publishing of personal information to their MySpace.  Yep - for a short while I’m being given the illusion of parental control.

But things will change.  Will SEAL be the solution or will it be my fault? Answers please - quick.

JB

I just received an email from a maillist to which I have subscribed for many years.
The question posed by the sender (a teacher) was…

So what can I actually use a classroom blog for?

Instead of asking for emails, they have set up a Wiki [definition] for people to build up (visit it here).  I’d suggest that if you’re interested in answering the original question you get in there and contribute.

It’s a very different experience and one that more and more children are getting familiar with. Also, if you’re into knowledge building communities [definition] this will put some ideas in your head!

Image copyright http://borgman.enquirer.com/

JB

Have you ever watched Colin Fry in action? Don’t know who he is? Well, he’s billed as one of the most successful mediums in the country and as I write he’s doing the Sixth Sense show on FTN (obscure digital channel).

Would someone understand that there’s a man holding up a road sign with Chipping Sodbury on it?

The main thing that strikes me as I watch, is just how Colin Fry’s readings seem to get better as the strength of his connection grows and as he is able to focus in upon the person who is this side of life.

Don’t ask me why but this made me think about the dialogue between you in school and ourselves in the Primary Team! (I could be digging a hole here…!)

Our support for you in your school, particularly as the renewed framework gain pace and traction, is shaping up very nicely, especially as more and more people in schools talk with us and share priorities. Thankfully we’ve been told that our recent and more intimate ‘framework familarisation sessions’ for maths and literacy people here at Castle Hill have really turned things around for a good number of subject leaders. That kind of feedback is a welcome turn-about from the launch event earlier this year so thanks.

So, buoyed up by this strengthening connection, there’ll be more CPD coming this summer and we’ll be getting detailed information out about it very soon. In fact by the end of the day on Wednesday (18/4) we aim to have all of our CPD scheduled out and finalised going through to summer 2008.

Well Colin has wrapped up now but fear not he’s on again in a couple of mins - why do I watch this stuff?

JB

Over the Easter break, the BBC reported this item regarding bored year 1 children that were going through boot camp:

Five-year-olds are being prevented from engaging in traditional play as they are under too much pressure from the national tests, teachers have warned.

According to the article, children in Year 1 felt ruled by the bell but is this an accurate reflection for all schools or not?

The teacher, from Keighley, went on to explain how pressure is now put on Year 1 teachers to prepare children for tests by removing sand, water, role-play etc and replacing with work space which, in her opinion, ‘’is a good model for how to switch children off and create failure'’.

In Year 1, children are already bored by constant assessment and tests. They know they’re going to be tested.

I’ll ask my daughter what she thinks of year one, being a current year one person herself.
‘’Fine!'’ comes the response, followed sharply by, ‘’Hey! What are you doing?'’
Instantly suspicious at my question she peers over the top of my laptop to read what I am writing, upside down.
‘’That says year 1!'’ I’ve been clumsy with my questioning ‘technique’ but perhaps if you get 2 mins perhaps you could add some depth to this posting?

Maybe you could ask some of the year one’s at your school and post their thoughts up here as comments? Also how does the PYP (Primary Years Programme) from the International Baccalaureate Organization measure up in the area of assessment and testing? Is the PYP taking play away?

JB

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all those that attended the literacy session on Friday 23rd March. Here is your very own blog as promised!!!

Remember to post any questions or hints and tips here!!!

Happy Blogging!!!

Thanks Sara

A summary of recent infomation gathering has now been pulled together as a blog page , rather than a blog posting.  From time to time we’ll bring together a range of responses into one page for ease of understanding.