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Where are the girls?

It was International Women’s Day on March 8th, so it seems quite timely (in a belated sort of way) to focus on gender issues as they relate to computing and ICT.

What are the gender issues? In the context of technology, the main issue is that not enough girls go into computer science studies beyond the statutory provision, or computer-related jobs. Various figures are cited, but it seems to be generally agreed that only around 16 or 17% of students in undergraduate courses in Computer Science in the UK are female, and only around 27 or 28% of employees in information technology jobs are women — a figure that is true for both the UK and the USA.

Why is there such a discrepancy? Various reasons are cited, all of which are probably true. They include:

x A perception that it is too geeky

x Too many boys on undergraduate courses — I saw a figure cited in one forum that there is a ratio of 5:1, males to females;; that’s probably anecdotal, but it kind of doesn’t matter whether it’s objectively true or not, because

it’s perception that determines behaviour, not necessarily reality; of course, this means that the imbalance is a self-fulfilling prophecy

x Too few female role models x Probably the perception that

being a “computer geek” means spending long periods without washing or sunlight, and living on beer and pizza

x In school, unless checked, boys tend to dominate classroom discussion.

Now, before anyone complains, I should just like to say that I have not intended this article to be an academic treatise, but a statement of what seems to be many people’s perception of the situation. The important thing is, what can be done about it? I would suggest the following.

Solutions In no particular order of priority:

x Ensure the work you set is interesting, involves problem-solving and, importantly, involves collaborative problem-solving; I realise there is a danger of gender stereotyping, but I would say that from my experience of teaching, girls are more engaged when the classroom is a place of collaboration rather than

Articles in this issue

Where are the girls? The view from here – Oliver Quinlan Apps for Good Success Story – Emma The Amazing Computer Education Project Book A question of data Review of The Thinking Teacher In memoriam Education Show news When it comes to coding, how secure is your network? – Darren Bartlett To put it Bluntly Plus news competitions, and other stuff!

Digital Education

is

100% free!

April 2014

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competition; in fact, I have also found that project-based learning is better for boys as well

x Ensure the work is authentic, in the sense of having potentially useful application in real life

x You could, if you like, establish a computer club for girls only. I don’t agree with that approach (except in girls’ schools, obviously), but such a course of action does have the merit of keeping the boys out of the picture altogether; if the girls in your school feel intimidated by the boys, this may be the answer

x However, I think a better option is to establish rules of engagement that preclude the boys hogging discussion, calling out the answers to questions, or behaving in ways that make girls feel less self-confident than is justified. For example, there are several assessment for learning techniques you can employ that will address these points. (Subscribers to Digital Education can avail themselves of a free resource I created called “31 Assessment for Learning Techniques”, which is in pdf format.) That would also teach boys how to behave constructively towards females in wider society.

x Make classes aware of the role of women in both the history of computing and in society today. See the Resources section below for help with this.

x Seek out women speakers who could inspire the girls in your school. These may include people in local companies, or students at a local college in university.

Clarity begins at home This is another set of solutions, but I think it is so important that I have decided to make it a section in its own right. You need to know the data. How many girls opt for your subject(s)? If there is a wide disparity between the two genders, find out why. Ask your “non-customers” why they didn’t choose your options.

This information could be useful next year. You could even run a survey now, asking pupils what sort of course would interest them, making sure to provide them with some genuine options. Do you know how well girls are doing in ICT and Computing compared with boys? If there is a disparity, why? And what are you going to do about it? Are the girls in your classes more, less, or equally as active in discussions as the boys? If not, why not, and what are you going to do about it? You can use your pupils, and your school’s digital leaders, if it has them, to help you devise ways and means of (a) finding out the answers to some of these questions and (b) helping you come up with solutions. You know, if you’re stopped for speeding and you tell the police you weren’t aware of the speed limit, they will inform you that ignorance is no excuse in the eyes of the law. I believe the same holds true when it comes to how different groups of pupils – in this case girls and boys – are doing. If you don’t know, find out!

Resources “The women are here”: special edition of the free magazine, Computer Science for Fun, which you can download from here: http://www.cs4fn.org/annual/cs4fnannual2.pdf “Mind the gap: getting girls into computing”: special edition of Computing at School’s magazine, Switched On, which you can download from here: http://www.computingatschool.org.uk/data/uploads/newsletter-spring-2013.pdf This includes contributions from such people as Carrie Anne Philbin, the creator of Geek Gurl Diaries at https://www.youtube.com/user/GeekGurlDiaries, and others. Who are the Tech Age Girls? An interesting UNESCO initiative, reported on here: http://www.unescobkk.org/education/ict/online-resources/databases/ict-in-education-database/item/article/who-are-the-tech-age-girls/

*** Readme ***

Assessment issues: 5 principles of assessing computing and ICT

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The view from here

Oliver Quinlan discusses the importance of educational research.

Last month the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) published the latest contribution to a discourse that is ever growing in the form of their report ‘Using Evidence in the Classroom’. From Ben Goldacre’s widely publicised assertion last year that we should be running more random controlled trials to test educational practice, to the latest round of the Education Endowment Foundation research reports including a study on the use of academic research to inform teaching, the place of research and evidence in our education system is at the top of many people’s agendas. In few areas is this more interesting than the that of technology in education, a field which has been characterised by many years of bold claims of potential impact. Back in 2012, Nesta’s ‘Decoding Learning’ report found that although millions of pounds had been spent on putting technology into schools, little work had been done to explore the impact it actually made. Often I think we see evidence and impact as something quite narrow, when in fact it is the broader lessons we can learn from it that are most useful. In schools, evidence is often discussed relating to very specific measures such as SATs scores or GCSE grades, measures which are inherently end points. In

business, I have found many organisations use evidence differently. Rather than using it to prove something has happened as we tend to do in education, business evidence is often collected to provide ‘insights’, information that will lead to making better decisions. One of the seminal works on evidence in education, Hattie’s ‘Visible Learning’, contains precisely this argument; that teachers should explore evidence in order to make better ongoing decisions about their practice. It is not just about the end points, but also about the process and the evaluation of that process to continue to contribute to more powerful end points. At Nesta I am exploring the field of evidence in education. Specifically I am running several research projects where we are taking well defined educational technology interventions, trying them in schools and getting the impact independently evaluated. In one project we are exploring whether one to one tutoring, delivered remotely from Maths graduates to primary children through a video link, can give children who are struggling the targeted support they need to succeed. We are currently looking for schools who want to take part, and help us to explore how we can systematically collect evidence on the impact technology can have. If you are in a school in the London, Birmingham, York or

Huddersfield area (of the UK) and would like to get involved then visit http://bit.ly/rttrial for more information and to come to our information events. However, it’s not just about collecting evidence and moving on. The next stage is exploring how this evidence can be made useful to teachers, to provide the ‘insight’ they need to make powerful decisions about learning in their classrooms. The ‘transformation’, as NFER describes it, of research findings into teacher insight is vital if we are to not just justify, but continue to develop the use of technology in schools. A promise of ‘21st Century Learning’ is no longer enough, if it ever was. What we need is a robust narrative of how technology impacts learning and what that impact actually is.

About Oliver Quinlan

Oliver is an educator and writer. He has worked as a school teacher, a lecturer in education, and now manages digital education projects for innovation foundation Nesta. His first book, ‘The Thinking Teacher‘, was published in January 2014 and explores and challenges assumptions and paradigms in education, and is reviewed in this newsletter.. Throughout his projects and writing technology and learning have been a strong theme, particularly the way in which new and social technologies encourage us to re-think how education and learning are conceptualised. His blog at www.oliverquinlan.com continues to explore these themes. The views expressed here are those of Oliver himself, writing in a personal capacity.

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story will be just the right length for reading on a phone.

Teachers’ stories On the app there is another feature which we think will be used in the classroom. Teachers’ stories is an option where a teacher can add their pupils to a story for homework or class work. The difference is that only the teacher can see the story ideas, the pupils will only be able to see their own idea; this prevents copying and allows the students to be original with their ideas. I think that the teacher’s stories could be used in classrooms to encourage children to use technology t o learn, and would also promote cross curriculum learning. I also believe that it would encourage children to write stories themselves and make the task of writing stories for tests or GCSEs less daunting.

The Apps for Good experience I enjoyed my experience with Apps for Good very much. They have widened my horizons and what I would like to do in life. I have learnt how to code HTML and have improved my confidence with presenting in front of an audience. I also enjoyed my experience with Quick Blox (http://quickblox.com/), the professional development company that helped build the app) and would recommend them to make anybody’s app. The entire experience has affected my life for the better and will be something that I will tell my children when I am older. I would recommend teachers to get their students to participate with Apps for Good as it can be life-changing and can open up children’s minds to the world of technology. It is just a really

Apps for Good success Story

Emma, 14, describes how she and two friends created the Story Wall app. The Story Wall was created by me and my classmates Teigan and Joe. We originally came up with the idea to help people with writing stories and how people can get stuck when writing a story. The name was created by thinking how walls and stories are everywhere and how a story could be written on a wall, but the name just came to us and sounded right.

Confidence Many young people have confidence issues when it comes to writing stories and this is what The Story Wall aims to tackle. Having the help of friends when writing a story will help build confidence and creativity about story ideas. When people are writing stories on The Story Wall they can ask people for help when they get stuck. They can then choose their favourite ideas and add them to the story. When the story is finished they can post it to The Story Wall where the people that participated in the story can read it, email it or post it to Facebook. With a word limit of 1500, the

amazing organisation and I am proud to have an app with them. Our app is available on the Apple app store, which you can find by going to the Story Wall page (http://www.appsforgood.org/public/student-apps/2013/the-story-wall). It is free, and we hope to see you writing stories soon. The team, school and developers decided to go with an iOS version of the app; there is currently no plan for an Android version.

About Emma Emma is part of The Story Wall team. She is 14 years old and goes to Cockburn School in Leeds. She lives at home with her parents, brother, the cat and her guinea pigs. She enjoys music, dance and creating the app. She is currently taking music GCSE and enjoying it very much.

Competition!

Got a brilliant idea to help pupils? Teachers can win one of ten £15,000 grants Enter now http://bit.ly/N7sPIH Deadline: 27th April 2014

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The Amazing Computer Education Project Book

Lots of people are preparing for teaching Computing in the next school year. I thought it would be interesting and useful to collate some ideas, concerns and resources into a free ebook. Read on to find out how you can get involved — and why you should.

What is it? I’ve set up an online questionnaire. Once I’ve received a reasonable number of submissions, I’ll read them, check that the links to any suggested resources work, collate them and publish them. “Fine”, I hear you say. “But I’m struggling a bit and trying to make the best of the situation. I don’t think I can provide any useful information." An understandable response, though not necessarily an accurate one. You may well have thought of something very simple that other people haven’t. Or you may have discovered, or even created, a resource that others may find helpful. So the answer to a question like "What sort of things am I looking for?”, is “Whatever you have found helpful, or interesting."

Why should you submit your ideas? For three reasons: First, if nobody submits any information, then nobody will gain anything from this exercise. Second, by contributing your information you will almost certainly help others. Even by stating your concerns, you will be helping others to realise that they are not alone. Third, it’s a good way of bringing your ideas to a potentially very wide audience. Obviously, I can’t guarantee that, but when I conducted a similar effort a few years ago, to produce The

Amazing Web 2.0 Projects Book, it was downloaded by at least 35,000 people ( I stopped keeping track when it reached that number).

How can you submit your ideas? By completing a fairly short online form, the URL of which is provided below.

Why should this exercise work? Well, it has done before, when 35,000+ people downloaded The Amazing Web 2.0 Projects Book, so hopefully it will again.

When? As soon as you can! The deadline for submissions is Midnight GMT on 30th April 2014.

OK, I’m convinced. Where’s the form? Here ya go: Computer Education Projects Book form. Stuck for project ideas?

Here are two ideas you might like: Have a look at Google’s Idea generator. It’s quite interesting: https://www.googlesciencefair.com/springboard/en/ Check out John Davitt’s Learning Event Generator: http://www.newtools.org/showtxt.php?docid=737

About Digital Education

Digital Education is published by Terry Freedman Ltd. It is fully independent. Although we accept advertising and sponsored articles, the content is not influenced by advertisers or sponsors. The views expressed by contributors are their own. If you don’t want to miss an issue, subscribe for free at http://www.ictineducation.org/newsletter/. Also, for fresh content several times a week, subscribe to our RSS feed at http://www.ictineducation.org/home-page/rss.xml Contact details: http://www.ictineducation.org/contact/

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What do you like about Digital Education? What would you like to see more of, or less of? How many people do you share it with? Please take 5 minutes to answer our readership survey. It will help us deliver more of what you like!

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A question of data

In October 2013 I attended a very useful conference put on by Inside Government. Entitled The 2nd Annual School Evaluation Conference: Using Data to Enhance Standards and School Improvement, it was not specifically about ICT and Computing, but it did provide useful tips. Here are some extracts from my notes: Mike Hoban Ofsted: In inspections, statistical data is used alongside other information as well: observation, work scrutiny, other records and discussion. Gill Close, Ofsted: Emphasis on pupil premium outcomes: to achieve “Good”, pupils supported by the Pupil Premium must be achieving and making progress similar to other pupils. Also, it’s a good idea to keep link Governor informed and, crucially, engaged. Emma Knights, National Governors Association: Need to value the unmeasurable [which I took to mean “capture the ‘wow’ moments”] James Brown, Surrey County Council: Make use of the data in a child-centred way, eg “What is the pattern of achievement of this child?” Also, look at the combination of factors on achievement, eg Free School Meals and Special Educational Needs.

Education Show news

The Education Show 2014 looked good. It featured an extensive new programme of free continuing professional development (CPD), with a mixture of expert and peer-led sessions. The two-day School Leaders Summit included topics such as preparing for the GCSE reform, using Pupil Premium to raise attainment, Ofsted’s guide to the inspection process, academy conversion, how to make the most of budgets and the impact of classroom technology. The Learn Live programme took place in five new purpose built theatres on the show floor: Teaching Technology Live, the National Curriculum, “How do I...”, Early Years and Special Educational Needs. The National Curriculum seminars and workshops were devised in association with Scholastic to help educators prepare for and implement the new

Tech4Good Awards

Entry is open to any charity, business, individual, social enterprise, school, college, university or any other public body with a base in the UK. You can nominate yourself or anyone else for as many Awards as you like. There are 7 categories in all. Closing date is 6th May 2014. Further details here: http://www.tech4goodawards.com/nominate-now/

curriculum with the advice and guidance of key industry experts and associations. The brand new Teaching Technology Live sessions were designed as hands on, interactive workshops led by key technology providers. Providing advice and tips for implementing technology into the classroom, the 45 minute sessions were designed to give educators the understanding they need to succeed. Alongside this, the new “How do I…” series of workshops focused on providing practical advice and tips to take back into the classroom on a variety of key issues facing primary and secondary teachers. I was unable to attend myself, which was frustrating, because the seminars looked good. Maybe next year: 19-21 March 2015. Congratulations to Scholastic for being awarded the Marketing Campaign of the year for its “National Curriculum/100s”. Basically, it publicised its “100 lessons” ranges in English, Maths, Science, History, Geography and Computing via printed copies of the National Curriculum sent free to all primary schools.

Next issue

Professor Paul Curzon looks at what we can learn about good software design from magicians, and Sal McKeown wonders whether some software could replace teachers. And, of course, Derek Blunt will be ranting as usual. Plus much more besides! Copy & article deadline: 23 April 2014.

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E-Skills Mentoring Scheme

Tech employers have come together through e-skills UK to pilot a mentoring scheme to support ICT teachers in secondary schools across the UK. Companies including HP, IBM, Sopra, Unilever, and National Grid are leading the nationwide mentoring scheme, which connects tech professionals with schools in their local area. (e-skills UK is the employer-led organisation responsible for ensuring the UK has the technology skills to succeed in the global economy.) The scheme aims to enhance the student and teacher experience by bringing real-world industry examples and expertise into the ICT classroom. The mentors work together with teachers to inspire young people about topics ranging from coding to tech careers. Pupils also receive guidance about the mix of skills that tech employers are looking for in new recruits, including soft skills and business behaviours. Schools or tech professionals who would like to apply for the mentoring scheme can contact Joanna.Scott@e-skills.com

made me think. It made me think about what the author was saying in its own right, that is whether or not I agreed with it. It also caused me to reflect on my own practice as a teacher and, now, as a consultant. Quinlan’s outlook may be summed up, in his own words, as: “If we want thinking children, we need thinking teachers.” Absolutely correct. I have been concerned for some time now that the effect of well-intended but, in my opinion, misguided help provided to teachers in the form of various “strategies” was to convey the unfortunate hidden message that teachers didn’t need to think too much as long as they followed the procedure laid down by some unknown “expert”. Interestingly, Quinlan touches on this type of thing, albeit in relation to children. Provide too much help, and you don’t allow the children the time and space to get to grips with the problem and work out their own strategies for coming to a solution. It will be interesting to see how far well-meaning and dedicated teachers provide “too much” help to children in writing and debugging programs. Although, as I have said, the book is slim, it punches above its weight. That’s because it adopts a challenging – though not

Review of The Thinking Teacher

When I first picked up this book I made an error of judgement. Noticing that it seemed quite slim, I thought I could finish reading it in just one or two sessions. However, what I had not counted on was the book’s living up to its title. In short, it

Bett 2015

Have an idea for a presentation at Bett next year? Submissions are open now! See http://www.bettshow.com/page.cfm/Action=Form/FormID=17/t=m for more details.

confrontational – approach. Drawing on fields as diverse as high finance, programming and lifestyle management, Quinlan says, in effect: “This is what we as teachers think or how we behave; this is what such and such an expert in this completely different field says; what if we applied that outlook to teaching?” Although I don’t agree with everything that’s said, the approach works. In fact, whether or not I agree with it is irrelevant. The aim was to get me, the reader, to think, and in that sense the book succeeds admirably. I like the fact that Quinlan enjoins teachers to think about how their background and other factors have shaped their individual ideology, and how that affects their outlook and practice. He makes a good case for the memorisation of certain kinds of knowledge, such as the multiplication tables, in order to have at our disposal information that can help us solve problems, rather than relying on search engines to

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In memoriam

It was with great sadness that I learnt of the passing away of Bev Evans. I didn’t know Bev very well, but enjoyed her company when I met her at Teachmeets and other events, and I very much enjoyed her Facebook updates. Bev will be remembered for her infectious sense of humour, her singing, and her brilliant special needs resources. These are still available, and still immensely popular and well-regarded. You can find them at http://www.communication4all.co.uk/

When it comes to coding, how secure is your network?

Darren Bartlett outlines the options.

With a new Computing curriculum coming in September 2014 that focuses on students learning to code and write simple programs it’s important for school ICT and Computing heads, teachers or those responsible for ICT/Computing to make sure their school network is secure and able to handle the new requirements without compromising the rest of the system. Here are a few considerations to help with that and make sure your data is safe and the students can enjoy exploring new learning securely.

1. Setup a separate segment on your network for coding and programming

This is called a VLAN or “virtual” LAN and allows you to split the network into separate secure areas that can isolate the coding and programming from the rest of the network. Most advanced modern network switches support this feature and it can also help increase performance, manageability and scalability on larger campuses.

2. Secure your Wi-Fi network

Many schools are embracing Wi-Fi and allowing students and staff to bring their own devices and use the Wi-Fi. Many though still don’t operate a secure Wi-Fi network, which a few simple steps can resolve.

help us solve very specific problems. He might also have mentioned the in-built bias of search engines. I very much agree with his comment that : “Theories don’t tell teachers what to do, but instead provide a structure in which to think about what they do.” He also makes a very good point about “smart regulation” – something that Ofsted does not provide – ie one that judges by outcome rather than by process. (Derek Blunt makes some interesting points about the “Ofsted lesson” elsewhere in this newsletter.) Quinlan states that: “There is no guarantee that all of the learners in a class are going to be engaged by the same topic.”

True, although I maintain that a good teacher in the right conditions can make any topic engaging for any pupil. He also makes some interesting points about the “minimum viable lesson” and, in effect, the “good enough” lesson, in his exhortations against the (understandable) predilection of many teachers to work ridiculously long hours in the quest to produce the perfect lesson. He might have drawn on the economist’s toolkit here. It is well-known by students of “the dismal science” that the old adage “If a job is worth doing, it’s worth doing properly”, does not hold up in reality. Why not? Because of the cost in terms of all the other things that cannot be achieved instead. Sleep, for example, or marking and feedback perhaps, or even the teacher’s own professional development. Quinlan also underlines the importance of teacher expectations on the performance of their pupils. There are a couple of things I do not like about the book. First, it doesn’t mention www.ictineducation.org in its list of recommended blogs. More seriously, there is no index, which I found frustrating. Nevertheless, provocative, in a gentlemanly way, and drawing on a wide range of research and perspectives, The Thinking Teacher is a book that, were I still a Head of Department in a school, I would buy for each member of my team and insist that they read it. They and you may not agree with Quinlan or even with each other, but I suggest that the experience of your pupils would be all the richer as a consequence. The Thinking Teacher by Oliver Quinlan.

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*** Readme ***

Building a recording and sequencing lab on a budget (cheaper and more powerful than an Apple iMac) - see link http://www.ict-direct.co.uk/blog/?utm_source=ICT+Direct+Customers&utm_campaign=8da15dab46-Z_Series_Workstations3_18_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_a39906a72d-8da15dab46-142750297

a. Turn off the SSID on the access points. This “broadcasts” the name of the Wireless network so that mobile devices can find it. You’ll have seen this at home when you scan and see your home network “BTHomeHub” or similar, or at the coffee shop “Starbucks WiFi”.

Once turned off this makes the wireless network more secure as it won’t appear on any scan from a mobile device.

b. Operate a separate Wi-Fi access point for visitors. This is a simple step that allows visitors to use your internet connection without them having access to the main network.

c. Make sure that you use a secure password for the Wi-Fi. Don’t be tempted by easy to remember password like “schoolnameWiFi” or “WirelessSchoolname”. These may be easy to remember but are also easy to “crack” for those wanting to access you Wi-Fi without permission.

d. Go for a Wi-Fi system that can provide reporting on application use, devices connected, bandwidth used and can let you see exactly what’s happening on your network.

3. Make sure you have up

to date and sufficient Anti-virus

Anti-Virus software isn’t just to prevent you opening malicious

attachments in emails, it also protects against downloading malicious files and looks out for “spyware” that you might know better as a “worm”. This doesn’t necessarily destroy data or make your system unusable but sits in the background and uses your PC or Network to carryout particular tasks like sending spam emails for example. With the advent of coding in ICT and the inevitable need to download, it’s vital that your school network is secure and protected from this type of infection to enable your pupils and staff to feel comfortable in maximising the opportunity that the new curriculum will bring.

About Darren Bartlett

Darren has been involved in ICT for almost 30 years as owner of a successful IT support and services business working in education and business. He has also serves as a governor in a primary school for 5 years and has helped them to form and run an ICT steering committee. Darren is also the Managing Director of UNS Unique Network Solutions Ltd, www.uniquenetworks.co.uk, which provides technical solutions and support for schools.

Google Science Fair 2014 has

launched

Google Science Fair 2014 has launched, in partnership with LEGO Education, National Geographic, Scientific American and Virgin Galactic. The online science competition invites students aged 13 to 18 from around the world to use their interests and talents to explore an area of science that they're passionate about – and be in with a chance of winning life-changing prizes. This year Google will be championing even more young talent with these new awards:

Computer Science Award will celebrate talented young scientists in this field Local Award will honour students from select locations, whose projects have attempted to address a locally relevant issue.

Register at www.googlesciencefair.com. Deadline is May 12.

Go on, bore the kids into submission!

Ever wondered how to ensure your ICT lessons are boring and ineffective? Go on, bore ‘em: how to make your ICT lessons excruciatingly dull tells you exactly what to do – and all for only £1.99.

What are you waiting for?

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Google Cultural Institute Salon

London, 30 April 2014 After the success of the first Google Cultural Institute Salon in March, there is an opportunity for you to apply to the next event at the Google London Office, on 30 April 2014 between 5pm and 7.30pm. This free informal and intimate event has been designed for teachers and education professionals to discover interactive Google tools and technologies to help you teach Art, History of Art and History. Attending this event will enable you to: Explore new and interactive ways to engage your students with History, History of Art and Art, and cultural content; Network and learn from other teachers; Become a Google Cultural Institute expert teacher; Collaborate to create great content to take back and use in school; Contribute to your CPD. > Apply now Visit the Cultural Institute Salons website.

Disclaimer

Good morning, Judge. I wasn’t even there;; it wasn’t my fault;; he made me do it, etc. Seriously, though, all the information and links in this newsletter have been checked, and offered in good faith. For the full text of the disclaimer, please see http://www.ictineducation.org/terms-conditions-and-privacy/.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all of the contributors. This newsletter is (c) 2014 Terry Freedman, but individual contributors retain ownership of their copyright. To help us maintain the standard and frequency of the newsletter, please consider contributing an article yourself. There are guidelines here: Contributor guidelines. But contact me first with your ideas: http://www.ictineducation.org/contact/

To put it Bluntly

Derek Blunt finds Ofsted-speak to be in need of improvement.

Very recently, the category of “Adequate” for independent school inspections was changed to “in need of improvement”. This brings independent inspections into line with those for maintained schools, where the “satisfactory” judgement was changed to “In need of improvement”. In other words, “satisfactory” now means “unsatisfactory”, and “adequate” now means “inadequate”. In this 1984-like landscape, where words change their meanings according to the latest “thinking” and conventional “wisdom”, anyone who tries to deliver an Ofsted-approved lesson is nuts. Even if you succeeded, the rules could change tomorrow, rendering your “Outstanding” lesson “Underwhelming”, or whatever new term someone decides to coin. Here’s a case in point. Not that long ago, it was de rigueur to make sure every lesson had three parts: an introduction in which the teacher “shared” the learning objectives; the main part of the lesson; and a plenary. That is now recognised as a load of nonsense – and rightly so. A good teacher will ensure that there are many introductions, “main” lesson time and plenaries as necessary, according to the nature of the work itself, the main purpose of the lesson and the make-up of the class. There is something quite immoral about trying to deliver an Ofsted-approved lesson anyway. The aim should be to ensure kids are taught properly, and that they learn, not to jump through some remote bureaucracy’s artificial hoops. Use Ofsted criteria of “Outstanding” lessons by all means as a set of criteria, but I say use them as a sort of general reference, not a checklist.

Derek Blunt: Blunt by name, blunt by nature.