Category: Staff development

Primary ICT Co-ordinator Support Session – mobile device focus

Malcolm Wilson, ICT Curriculum Development Officer in the Curriculum Support team of Falkirk Council Education Services, provided support sessions for Primary ICT Co-ordinators, with a focus on mobile devices for schools at the beginning stages of looking at how to use them in learning and teaching. How mobile devices can be used to make a difference to learning and teaching, the practical implications of this in a school, and how to overcome barriers to successful integration, are issues around which schools embarking on the journey exploring using mobile devices consider.

This post describes just a few resources which may be useful to help schools at the beginning of the journey towards considering using mobile devices to support learning and teaching.

AUP

When schools have wireless,  which can be accessed by pupils on their own device, and pupils are signed up to an Acceptable Use Policy which sets out responsibilities, they can then consider how best to to incorporate personally-owned mobile devices in learning and teaching.

Falkirk Council Education Services provides educational establishments with an Acceptable Use Policy which takes account of mobile devices and social media. This is available here: https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/fa/mobiledevices/documents/

Device Neutral Assignments

Device Neutral Assigments are tasks which let pupils choose tool according to device available. With multiple types of devices in a classroom (where pupils bring their own device), rather than the tool as the focus for learning, instead the tool should be chosen to suit the intended learning – and may be chosen by teacher or pupil to best suit task to support learning or demonstrate understanding of the learning – the learning activity does not presume a specific tool will be used. The link below provides further description of device-neutral assignments and provides links to tools for any learning activity (such as creating a video, note-taking, creating a video, creating audio, creating an assessment, etc) with suggested example apps/software/online tool specific to each device  https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/fa/mobiledevices/device-neutral-assignment/ 

QR Codes

Quick Response codes are square barcodes which, with a mobile device app, turn the mobile device camera into a barcode reader, to then provide a very quick way to access weblinks, video, images or text. http://goo.gl/1nnb2

Socrative

Socrative is a free classroom response system works on any Internet-connected device. This lets teachers set up questions for responses by pupils on any device. Pupils go to http://m.socrative.com & enter the teacher’s classroom number. http://goo.gl/w7t16. Socrative has a host of resources freely shared by other teachers worldwide.

Padlet

Padlet provides a classroom-friendly feedback discussion area online , private to the classroom, which can provide a useful tool in formative assessment in providing an online feedback tool which works on any Internet-connected device. 

http://goo.gl/dSC1eQ

Managing Devices in the Classroom

The Traffic Light Approach is one way teachers have found useful to support classroom management of mobile devices. Using this approach the teacher determines the level of use, or not, of mobile devices, at any given time in classroom

http://goo.gl/E7ms6d

Resources to support moving from One to Many to 1:1

From One to Many to 1:1 provides extensive links to resources which support the shift in emphasis in many situations from a dependence on desk-tied computing devices to embracing devices which are easily portable and able to be used anywhere by learners. Often these include devices owned by users themselves rather than by an educational establishment. The phrases often used to describe this form of application include: Handheld Learning, One to One (1:1), Mobile Learning, Tablets for Teaching, and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device).

Update on our Teaching for Deep Learning Programme

Yvonne McBlain from Falkirk’s Curriculum Support team has now created a page for each of our Teaching for Deep Learning sessions here in Glow. Five of our secondary schools have used, or are beginning to use these sessions as content for their Teacher Learning Communities and working groups. Nineteen of our primary schools have already accessed at least one of the sessions – sometimes as a whole staff, and other times within smaller collegiate groups. We have 18 TfDL (Teaching for Deep Learning) facilitators who are being trained to deliver the sessions – some want to do this in their own schools only, whereas others are happy to make themselves available across the authority where needed. Four of our secondary schools are modelling a whole range of Donaldson Review recommendations regarding professional learning in their use of the programme. Most have recruited teachers interested in becoming facilitators within their schools, who then attend an information session (Click to view) on the programme from Yvonne. Each school is then deciding how they can enable staff to identify which sessions should be priorities for their professional learning this session. Once these decisions are made, teacher learning communities interested in the same sessions can be formed. The same model of distributed leadership (facilitators) and professional autonomy through self-evaluation is being taken forward by some of our primary schools “in house” too. Feedback from participants of  sessions so far confirms the value of the programme as one of the ways in which we can move Falkirk schools from Good to Great.

Satisfying the yearning for mobile learning!

Stuart Lennie and Malcolm Wilson of the Falkirk Council Education Services Curriculum Support team have been working to create a Mobile Devices in Falkirk Education Blog.

The blog is designed to support Falkirk Council education establishments in their use of mobile devices in learning and teaching.

Beginning from September 2013, this site will develop to have further materials as work develops in establishments.

Click here to visit the blog: https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/fa/mobiledevices/

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Gateway to CPD now open!

CPD Manager Portal

Stuart Lennie, along with Lynne Lauder and Anne Hutchison of the Falkirk Council Education Services Curriculum Support team have been working to commission and implement a new way for staff to search, request, and record CPD opportunities.

The new CPD Manager Portal is now live for all Falkirk Council Education Services staff, and can be accessed here:

http://falkirk.cpdservice.net

All Falkirk Education Services staff should have received their logins via email by now. If you have not received your email, please contact cpd.educ@falkirk.gov.uk from your Falkirk Council emial address.

Active Literacy for P6/7/S1 – New Online Support Materials

Sharon Wallace, Curriculum Support Officer, Curriculum Support Team, has been working on a number of new CPD training support videos for Active Literacy.

These short video sessions are aimed at Second level, however some of the materials can be adapted and applied to earlier stages.  

Sharon has recorded nine short videos for ‘Reading’ including using film trailers, critical analysis, non-fiction analysis and moving image education. There are two sessions relating to spelling and these include the new spelling section and vocabulary building which explores homophones and affixes. There is one training session called ‘Developing Writing at Second Level’ and this looks at incorporating a range of different genres, as well as the use of mixed ability writing trios and effective conferencing to improve writing skills.

 These short animation videos are part of a series of CPD online sessions which range from P1 to S1.[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/gvXEPThdi2c" width="425" height="344" allowfullscreen="true" fvars="fs=1" /]

Offering a Gateway to CPD

CPD Manager PortalStuart Lennie, along with Lynne Lauder and Anne Hutchison of the Falkirk Council Education Services Curriculum Support team have been working to commission and implement a new way for staff to search, request, and record CPD opportunities.

The new CPD Manager Portal, provided by Gateway, replaces the existing paper based CPD course catalogue and booking system, and will allow Education Services staff to browse and request CPD from anywhere with an Internet connection- either in or out of work. In addition, the system will support the Employee Review and Development process and automate Professional Update for GTCS registered staff.

The Administration Team, made up of Ann Peoples, Fiona Dyson, Elaine Hunter, Kate Hotchkiss, and Jamielee Dickson, are currently processing the courses for next session in time for the launch in August!

At the start of the new session, all Education Services staff will receive an email containing their login for the new portal.

Russian relations

Yvonne Manning, Principal Librarian, Curriculum Support Team, Falkirk Council Education Services gave a presentation via Skype to the annual gathering of 100 children’s librarians in Russia on 17/6/13.

In November 2012, Library Support for Schools hosted a visit from Directors of children and young people’s library services in Russia where they were particularly interested in Falkirk Council’s RED Book Award and storytelling initiatives. This visit prompted  Andrey V. Lisitsky, Head of the Training Centre “School of Librarian Leadership”, Pushkin Library Foundation, to arrange a Skype meeting with Yvonne. After Yvonne talked to the group about the RED Book Award and storytelling projects there was an opportunity for questions. They were particularly interested in ideas to engage young people in reading for enjoyment and oral storytelling.

GTCS Validates Falkirk Employee Review and Development

General Teaching Council Scotland (GTCS) validates Falkirk Council Education Services Employee Review and Development (ERD) Framework

As part of the ongoing development of our ERD strategy, a team led by Norrie McKay from the GTCS visited Falkirk today to carry out a validation exercise. Along with Margaret Mackay (West Dunbartonshire) and Tara Lillis (NASUWT), Norrie met Anne Pearson, Service Manager of the Curriculum Support Team and Anne Hutchison, Support Officer Professional Development with the Curriculum Support Team as well as four groups of GTCS registered staff.

The groups included:

  • Permanent class teachers
  • Temporary and supply teachers
  • Promoted teachers
  • Specialist teachers ( Art, Music, PE, Outreach, Preschool Home Visiting, Specific Learning Differences teams)- Centre based staff ( QIOs, Pupil Support Manager, Curriculum Support Officer, Probationer Supporters, Support Teacher – Effective Learning and Teaching)

The purpose of the visit was to endorse the validity of the ERD process for GTCS registered staff in relation to Professional Update.

Anne Pearson and Anne Hutchison presented on the history of PRD in Falkirk. They discussed the big messages about the development of the revised ERD process (Glow log in required)and shared three key papers that explain the rationale and processes related to ERD. An engaging professional dialogue took place which was informative for all!

To validate the assertions made by the accountable officers, the GTCS team then met with 4 groups of staff who are involved in the new process and have informed opinions about their work profile & self evaluation prompt materials (Glow login required) . Once the triangulation process had been carried out, Anne Pearson and Anne Hutchison rejoined the validation team to hear the outcome of their scrutiny. Norrie McKay shared the team’s evaluation verbally and the service will receive a written report by the end of the session. This will be shared with all schools.

Overall, the feedback was highly positive and we anticipate that no conditions will be attached to the forthcoming validation report. Key strengths were identified:

– a quality process with quality documentation to back it up

– a clear vision for ERD in Falkirk with exemplary short, medium and long term planning

– coherence with other processes ( e.g. Recruitment, School Improvement Planning, Distributed Leadership)

– clear focus on the impact on teaching and learning

– high levels of trust in the process

– a continually improving process that responds to evaluations/feedback ( e.g. HT & validator survey monkeys)

– High quality partnerships with staff

– Staff think the central team has its finger on the pulse in relation to professional learning

The following recommendations were put forward for consideration:

– ensure involvement of temporary and supply staff

– continue to develop advice on evidence portfolios for Professional Update

– continue to reflect on the revised standards ensuring alignment

– continue to develop the quality assurance processes

This is a cause for celebration and another example of the great work that is going on in Falkirk schools. Thanks to all who gave up time today. Thanks also to all who have given up time over the last 2 years designing, delivering, participating, testing and SUPPORTING!

Click here to go to the Glow Group for Falkirk Council Education Services Employee Review and Development

Tapestry Masterclass – Making Thinking Visible

Yvonne McBlain was joined by a range of colleagues from Falkirk Education Service at the Tapestry Masterclass : Making Thinking Visible on 16th May. Mark Church was one of the main speakers – he is part of Project Zero at Harvard University. He suggested that schools should be learning cultures for adults, just as classrooms are for children. He posed a range of questions such as: Why does classroom and school culture matter to the learning that happens in this place? Click here to read an extract from “Making Thinking Visible : How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners” by Mark Church, Ron Ritchhart & Karin Morrison, 2011. Chris McIlroy then delivered a presentation entitled “Seeing what they mean” (click here to view his power point notes). Click here to view thinking routine resources produced by Visible Thinking of Harvard Project Zero. Unfortunately, Yvonne couldn’t stay to hear Anne Pearson, Graeme Logan and Frank Lennon in the afternoon but it would be great to hear  comments below from those who were there and can fill in the gaps.