Digitalkatie's blog

SL / Media crossovers

A couple of Second Life media crossovers happening recently, both produced in SL by Electric Sheep. 

One is a game for I Am Legend, the Will Smith movie being released in the UK on 4th January.  I got as far as trying to decide what outfit to wear - a scientist or a zombie!  It looks really good though - they have lots of sims recreating parts of New York.

Last night the CSI:NY episode featuring SL was broadcast in the USA.  There is a tie-in game in SL available that is apparently really good (Ewan McIntosh has twittered four times already this morning about it!).  I think I'll log in tonight :-)

Some cool and fun stuff

Someone has invented a really cool sleeping bag. It has legs and arms!  This would have been wonderful as a Guider on Guide camp for those times when you've just managed to warm up and get the sleeping bag toasty warm then you hear noises from one of the guide tents and know you need to investigate.  Now you don't even need to get out of the sleeping bag!

Another weird thing on the internet - instructions on how to cook lasagne in your DISHWASHER!  Yup, really!

...and if you end up in the Royal with food poisoning, when not head to the Pelican Gallery at the RIE and check out the "Healthy Body, Healthy Mind" exhibition there, featuring 2D and 3D artwork by pupils from my school.

At the Handheld Learning Conference there was protesters outside campaigning for us not to buy products that use wifi.  I really wish I'd had this t-shirt on as I walked past them!  It lights up more bars as the wifi signal in the area gets stronger.  Unfortunately it can't tell the difference between secure and unsecure wifi networks, but it is still very cool!

 

An evening in Second Life

I ventured into Second Life last night for the first time since the summer. I cleared all the waif and stray prims on our land, changed my shape to add a bump, wandered round maternity shops, bought a new outfit (which I now want in RL!), got given a free pregnancy test (guess what, I'm not pregnant after all ;-), laughed at the interactive baby attachments on sale for an extortionate amount, ...and then got bored. What do people do in SL these days? I have no main grid purpose!

I searched the event listings and ended up at a game of Primtionary, which was great fun. You get given a word and have to try and create it out of prims (building blocks in SL) and everyone else tries to guess what it is. It was really cool.

Bad days can only get better

OK I need to think positive about today but it's hard.

I phoned up the school to finalise arrangements for the phones. 

Bad point no. 1 - we can't get the arrangements done in time to have Gaist fly up so we'll need to postpone the unannounced parents meeting next week

Bad point no. 2 - my classroom has been burgled.  The data projector and a couple of flatscreen monitors have gone.

Bad point no. 3 - the timetable has been altered for the rest of the term.  I now have four cover periods a week instead of one.

I was in a foul mood until Kal twittered back to me saying "Maybe karmic burglars will cover some of your classes next week?", which made me smile :-)

I need to think positive, so here goes:

Good point no. 1 - maybe I'll get a replacement data projector with a hold/freeze function on it like the ones at Balti High School.  This would mean being able to leave a list of instructions or questions being projected while I can play solitaire, or ummm, do something useful ;-)

Good point no. 2 - At least they haven't taken my PC - I haven't backed up for a long time and would have lost a LOT of work.

Good point no. 3 - They didn't manage to get into my cupboard and nick the webcams.

Good point no. 4 - Thankfully we didn't already have the mobile phones delivered waiting to distribute to the kids.  We'll need to be really careful when they do turn up!

Good point no. 5 - I don't think I had anything valuable in my drawers.  I 'm hoping they've looked at my binary clock and gone "what the f*** is that?" and left it!  I don't count the printout of every single pupil password that was in my drawer as valuable

Good point no. 6 - If I'm feeling REALLY narky next week I can insist that pupil passwords are now all insecure and need reset, annoying EVERY SINGLE PUPIL IN THE SCHOOL! Mwah hah hah!!

Good point no. 7 - I'm on holiday this week and have exciting things to look forward to like visiting one day old Malina :-)

HL2007 Making it Mobile

Missed first hour - busy getting demo of a great product for creating quizzes and content and deploying files to handhelds. I also collected my TyTN II phone - shiny!

Stuart Smith, Information Technologist
Education Web Services for Handhelds
www.3sheep.wordpress.com

Things to think about:

Screen readers available for visual impaired users of mobiles

Mobile Flickr m.flickr.com post and view images. Restricted facilities.

Creating mobile web services:
Capacity - Memory and connectivity
Compatibility - multimedia, scripting0 downloads
Usability - screen size

"Device agnostic"? Not just the same websites for everyone.
vs
Device acknowledgement
'One web' concept more complex. Allow users to use whatever device they want but not necessarily same services for all devices.

-------------
Jason Langridge, Microsoft
blogs.msdn.com/jasonlan
jasonlangridge@microsoft.com

Mobile Life Youth Report, Sept 2006
91 percent of 12 year olds have a mobile

Futurelabs, Mobile Work Futures, Nov 2006
47 percent of UK workers work outisde the office

Windows Mobile 6
Support for Office
Better browser experience

Jason has been presenting powerpoint from his mobile phone!

Full support for charts in WM6 Excel
Word - can add tables, images, bullets, etc and all stored in native format - no conversion needed
Mobile Document Access allows you to get docs on Fileshare within an Office when you are somewhere else.
HTML and images within Outlook emails
IE - Microsoft looked at top 100 sites and made sure you can browse them properly on PC mode (eg not having to go to mobile version of ebay)
Live Search included and comes back with mobile friendly pages. Very easy to then send information via sms.
mobrender.com makes sure you get right to the content you are after
live.mobi - can access from any device with web (inc WAP)
MSN messenger - tabbed conversations with avatar pics. Can send pics, files and voice clips
Bots in Messenger - SmarterChild - enter "weather london" and it will respond, convert degrees F into C, etc
He's mentioned somewhere that has a bot - enter reg of a car in carpark and it will return owners phone number! Urk!

Voice Command - no training required. Six languages supported. eg "Open Excel", "Play Music" - response "what do you want to play?", "artist", "which artist...smashing pumpkins.." (lists artists of mp3 files on storage card)

OneNote - tool for capturing information on PC - images, handwriting, voice sound files, etc. Only two people in the room have used it.
OneNote Mobile - can store notes and capture on the device. Insert sound files (no 1min limit, limit of storage, can specify where to save) pictures (can be taken while in OneNote).
Isn't compatable on PC without OneNote unless you save as text file. We would need to upgrade Office at school to make full use of this.

HL2007 Science, Maths and Mobiles pt2

Adrian Oldknow, University of Chichester
New developments in handhelds for Maths, science and technology cooperation

5 schools got together in Fareham / Gosport
Looking at Maths, science DT, ICT, PE, sports, enterprise, healthy living

Crofton school - came 2nd in UK rocket competition
Enrichment session in aeronautics
www.crosscurriclar.co.uk
www.adrianoldknow.org.uk
www.teachers.tv/video/19119 - video analysis from sport

Adrian highly recommends Teachers TV video material

Cross-curricular - building ping-pong ball launcher
Vidshell software shown on video. Tracker 2 is better software and open source.
Algebra on top of jpg photos from video tracker program.

www.teachers.tv/video/154
Graphical calculator, OHP projector
Kinesthetic learning in a very difficult area to teach

3D geometry and Cabri 3D
www.xube.co.uk/bettawards2007/cabri3d.mpg
www.cabri.com/ VML 3d programmme

Skoool and LGfL MA / Intel Mathematical Toolkit
m-a.org.uk
dfes.gov.uk/psp/ practical support pack
T-cubed Teachers teaching with technology

edudownload.ti.com/downloads/files/cdn/TINspire.com
Texas Instruments

Maths Toolkit v1.8 free software

Too many long web page addresses and pages filled with useful resources but zipping by too quickly, but a very interesting session.

-----------------
Bristol Hande-Learning
www.bristolclcs.org.uk

Principles:
All students in a year group get access to a device
All students keep devices 24/7
Parents involved through e-learning foundation grants
Teachers get access to the devices beforehand

200 devices in primary
800 devices in secondary

Technical team
Device setup in advance
Liason with schools technicians
Ensure compatiblity with schools systems and wifi

Leadership:
managing innovation
champions, self-starters

Supporting Pedagogy
Working with Bristol University

Science - Boyles law
28 pupils, 4 'ludites' (including one of the most able kids in the school) not using the tech.
Other kids had finished writing up experiment when the other four hadn't even finished drawing initial graph.

Videoing bowl of water, tapping every sec, every 2 secs etc. Video could then be freeze framed.

Kids pointed out if they missed a slide they are always thinking what happened. Teacher now makes ppts available for pupils on the devices.

Kids download word doc with homework questions and then the kids upload them back - and can see on projector the folder filling up as they are submitted.

Using flash animations in Science
Sketchee (sp?)

Students creating their own wiki in science revision. Collaborative. (Mediawiki hosted on schools own website)

Podcasts from BBC Bitesize. Downloaded onto schools server.
Microsoft reader for revision notes. Microsoft have free program that adds into Word to save docs as eBooks

Interesting look at using voting style program in primary as a way of kids explaining answers rather than just voting.

SumsOnline program gives instant feedback where if kid is wrong it explains why. Teacher feels her role has completely changed - she is now a facilitator.

Video of primary kids using PDAs to take pics and videos while standing in a stream. Aquapacs used. Kid describing his video talks about the video quality being quite good despite it being through the aquapac and in the shade of trees. Wildkey software being used.

Primary teacher says that she found that kids filmed her as she was teaching to include in revision 'notes'.

HL2007 Science, Maths and Mobile pt 1

I arrived late to the first session (I decided to stop and chat with the wifi protesters outside the conference)

Someone has been talking about a Nova rugged tablet PC with a science prob. They have been using a nice simple program called MultiLab. There is also a nice multimedia scientific dictionary. The tablet is only £199 which is an amazing price. It's fairly heavy for the small size of screen but would be great for primary kids.

---------
David Crellin, ScienceScope
Mobile Science, Learning on the Move

£3mill project involving schools, public and community.
Trials developing educational games for mobile phones, environmental awareness

Devices are very specific: GPS and data loggers (carbon monoxide detectors) that look like they only have one use.
The data is then incorporated with Google Maps and Google Earth.

The presenter has shown results that he gathered while cycling round his village and while in New York. It would have been much better to see work kids have done. He has also run out of virtual memory and isn't quite sure why everything is going slow and Google Earth won't open. Closing Skype would be a good start.

Apparently someone from O2 was saying yesterday that by this time next year there will be more GPS phones than separate GPS devices

HL2007 Secondary in Practice pt3

Paul Hynes, Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT)

Mobile phones cost model has put off schools using them (eg cost of sending texts, photos)

Future:
M tickets - barcode displayed on screen to get into cinema, onto buses in Chester
Projector phones (they exist!)
laser projected keyboard
Drinks machine where you send a text and it gives you your can of coke

What are schools doing with the devices?
PSP case study

PSP Features: screen and sound quality, wireless connectivity, good storage capacity.

Camera, keyboard and GPS accessories for psp.

Paul showed an excellent video demonstrating learning anywhere. I really want to get a copy.

Green screen technology (adobe visual communicator) used to create material. Create scripts and use teleprompt tech. They've had head of PE reading maths lessons.

Issues:
Convincing the staff
Keeping students on task (not really an issue but teachers were worried)
Sanctions for misuse (detention meaningless instead internet access withdrawal hurts!)
Limitations of the technology
Standards, standards, standards - things like flash has to be tweaked to work on PSP, videos can be burned onto dvd
Digital divide(s) - even if computer at home, can kids access it?
Cost models for mobile phones

Student owned devices like psp's
no initial cost, no tech support cost, no insurance cost, no training, no disposal costs. Schools can arrange bulk discount cost. They then have to pay for wifi but that's it.
Use of online apps like Google docs.
Cabling, desking etc costs. Schools now looking at zero budget for ICT.

Ask student what they've got and what's next.
Forget the device, they change too quick.
Make material available independent of device in a range of formats
Try using google docs etc
Start with a psp club
Look at buying class sets
Look to employ web/media support (lots of people being trained by colleges and not enough jobs)

Think about how future ICT budgets may work
Think about sustainability

paul dot hynes at ssatrust.org.uk
ConnectED also workin with PSPs

---------------
Dr Alan Beecham and Phil McLear (Bradford)
Alan and Phil are doing a Morecombe and Wise style double act :-)

Initially used XDA Exec. Device lousy and staff forced to take part, which didn't work

They then gave school choice of XDA Exec, Eten Gloffish, MDA and something else.
Used HP 530 AP for wifi. One school using wifi on 802.11 on 'a' setting not 'g' because the signal didn't go out the room.
HTC not good for wifi networking when you need proxy server details.
80 new HTC phones stolen (they were glad!). Then went with eten glofiish

Kids get to take them home once they pay the 25 pounds for insurance.
Staff not required to participate but got 25 volunteer straight away

Recommend Synchroneyes and Mediascapes
Data Harvest and MathAmigo
Don't need Turning Point voting now Synchronise is working

www.goknow.com - PDA software and resources - Prof Elliot Solloway.

mymobilelearning.com

Sara (deaf pupil in Deaf school) "First time somebody from outside thought what I said important"

Demo of Synchroneyes on all the different devices spread round the room. They rave about it. Can control devices from central computer and type on them. Looks fantastic. Through the talk they have passed devices round and people have added comments and questions. They then sent a quiz to all the devices and we then all sent answers back. Excellent product.

Talked about giving kids battery advice - switching off bluetooth and wifi off when not being used.

In AUP they have clause about anytime a teacher can look at your device.

HL2007 Secondary in Practice pt2

Mike Carter, Gateshead CLC
Lots of developments in the council area:
Flexible learning spaces, blogs for schools, web2.0, wireless laptops, wireless networks in all schools.
By February every primary school will have 10MB internet connection, every secondary school will have 100Mb connection. Very different from CEC's 2mb connections for high schools.
Looking at wireless home access pilot. (wifi on lampposts) problems of council permissions to get use of lampposts.
Staff use of mobiles. ICT staff give out mobile and email and will get back to teachers within 48 hours.
Looking at integrated learning network using mobiles but having problems with admin problems of procurement of mobile phones.
Colin from MAAD (Gateshead project) are developing system for CMS for reporting and interactive content etc that will work on every type of system and work with existing VLEs.

-------------
Joanne Verrier, Director of Mobile Devices and e-learning
New Line Learning Academy and Cornwallis Academy

Three schools combined into two Academies. One school already using elearning and ICT well, another in special measures.

Mobile learning devices. Young people have the technology so how do we integrate that into education. We can't continue to teach in a traditional way. In most schools ICT is taught as a separate subject but should be taught in contact rather than seperately.

School pays for devices not pupils or parents
Year 7 pupils have Samsung Q1 UMPC devices. Year 8 and 9 got HP tablets - VERY unreliable. Too heavy to carry especially with weight of textbooks.

Reliability and weight re biggest problems.
Devices are only as good as the teachers using them and the resources they develop. Can't use them all the time, needs to supplement other types of work.

Pupils more willing to cooperate and collaborate now.

Funding:
7 percent of school annual budget spent on technology.
Efficiency savings across the three schools (eg one bursar for three schools, using new technology to reduce photocopying)

Managing mobile devices:
1 to 1 coaching with individual staff to support them

Learning:
Accept that the kids will know more! Leave the technology to the kids. Kids as superusers. Kids teaching each other. Empower the students to take control of the learning while you teach the content. Just let go!

Right device is really important. Know final outcome to help choose device. Buying as a federation of three schools brings the price down.
right service provider - SLA with new provider so that devices not out of school for months at a time (like when they started two years ago). Now using Langley not HP.
Staff training and support important.
Empowering students learning

Initially with project image was locked down - kids couldn't add programs etc. Now kids have ownership of device. They look after it because it is worth something to them.

Joanne talked about frustrations of IT support departments who don't support.

Kids viewing inappropriate material have devices taken off them. Parents told not to let kids on internet unsupervised.

Important to have the accidental damage etc insurance. Devices stolen at start of project (parents coordinating kids to have devices stolen!)

If schools were a company there would be 1 technician per 100 computers. The schools have 4 technicians for more than 1600 devices - there should be 16 technicians.

jo dot verrier at newlinelearning.com

HL2007 Secondary in Practice

Jon Tarrant, Jersey School for Girls
All girls school, fee paying buy subsidized by council.
Two year tablet PC project with Year 7 class.
Stylus use differed between girls using pen just as pointing device and those using it fully.
Didn't improve attainment in ICT or Science. Tablets not used in Maths and didn't affect maths attainment.
Next year ICT and English use stayed the same, but in Physics pupils given choice to whether they used tablet or paper. Pupils chose paper because easier to write/draw/revise with books, don't like tablet PCs, tablets too slow and heavy
"its like giving us a playstation then not letting us play on it" - technology should not just replicate non-tech teaching
Tablet PCs when there is mixed use in class or whole class use can distract from the learning.

Measured four times in a year:
quality of learning
presentation of work
organisation of work
enjoyment of school
...something else
feedback from teachers

Jon believes way ahead is learning environments.
In Jersey WAP services are free. They will be looking at exploiting this in the future.

-------------
Phil Wood, University of Leicester
Investigating use of PDAs with A-level students in virtual and real geography fieldwork.
Catherine Eccleston - Levels of student autonomy
Procedural, personal and critical.
Virtual fieldwork tends to be aimed at Higher Education
PDAs had GPS and MP3 commentaries for real fieldtrip
Afterwords the pupils had to do a personal report in the holidays. To support this a wiki was created by the students with summaries.
Why use Virtual fieldwork? prepared the students, gave them a chance to 'experience' the environments they would visit, etc.
PDAs used to increase pupil autonomy. Students navigated round the town centre themselves. Info on PDA could be used for just in time learning. Data was recorded in excel and downloaded once back in school.
Pupils liked using the pdas, more enjoyment of the task, greater interaction of the environment. Good understanding of five sites and also areas in between. More interactive.
Students identified their practice as being more independent that usual.
Now developing second generation virtual fieldwork platform with English Heritage.