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Tuesday, November 11, 2008 5:36 PM

Should we be afraid ... very afraid?

If you have a spare couple of hours, I recommend you read the ' Enquiring Minds ' [PDF] report from Futurelab. Enquiring Minds is a joint project between Microsoft and Futurelab , and is to be commended for pushing back boundaries with a radical...
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Monday, November 10, 2008 6:54 PM

National Strategies website - something missing??

I notice there is a new National Strategies website in beta, and very comprehensive it is too! ... but ... shouldn't there be a mention of the national e-strategy, Harnessing Technology: Next Generation Learning ... Becta is a mere footnote ...
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Sunday, November 02, 2008 6:38 PM

BT - time to step up to the plate?

I have just read a fascinating research paper from Becta, ‘Meeting their potential: the role of education and technology in overcoming disadvantage and disaffection in young people’ [ PDF 844Kb ]. The report offers a valuable insight into the digital...
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Saturday, October 11, 2008 7:15 PM

Becta Web 2.0 Research Report

Web 2.0 technologies for learning at KS3 and KS4 Becta commissioned the University of Nottingham in conjunction with London Knowledge Lab and Manchester Metropolitan University to research Web 2.0 technologies for learning at Key Stages 3 and 4. The purpose...
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Sunday, September 14, 2008 3:44 PM

Extended Schools and ICT - paradigm lost?

DCSF recently published extended schools funding guidance . One expectation of Extended Schools funding is a ' core offer ' that includes community access to ICT. Extended Schools covers a wide range of activities, and for obvious reasons I am...
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Friday, September 12, 2008 8:11 AM

ICT Managed Services in Schools - information

In light of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) requirement for ICT to be a managed service, I thought I would point to a report commissioned by Becta . It usefully explains what a managed service is, and the experiences of its customers.
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Sunday, September 07, 2008 9:41 AM

Huge shake-up in school data management?

It's no surprise that an on-going shake-up in the management of personal data at all levels of administration and government was going to affect schools sooner or later. As the main source of national pupil data through the school census, its where...
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Tuesday, August 05, 2008 8:23 AM

Northgate acquiring Anite?

Northgate Information Solutions has agreed to acquire Anite Public Sector Holdings Limited , which incorporates Anite ’s local government and secure information systems businesses, for a total cash consideration of £54.3 million payable at completion...
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Saturday, July 19, 2008 7:13 PM

If you read just one book ...

Last week Jerry, a colleague handed me a short book, What's Next: 21 Ideas for 21st Century Learning by Charles Leadbeater , and published by the Innovation Unit . Jerry was emphatic as he placed it on my desk ... "This says what I believe ....
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Friday, July 18, 2008 1:34 PM

Government Computers go green!

With Gershon efficiency savings being imposed on Local Government, and cascaded down to schools, I picked up an interesting Cabinet Office news item from a colleague. A bold plan has been announced to reduce carbon emission caused by ICT in central government...
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Thursday, July 17, 2008 9:31 PM

Harnessing Technology:Next Generation Learning - New Strategy in a nutshell!

I thought that I would try to summarise the key features of the revised and updated e-strategy Harnessing Technology: Next Generation Learning ; a sort of ' Reduced Shakespeare Company ' version for those who don't have time to read the document...
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Tuesday, July 15, 2008 6:35 AM

Learning in class?

The chart above is taken from the recently published revision of the e-strategy, Harnessing Technology: Next Generation Learning . It shows the learning experiences of children taken from MORI survey evidence. Its quite an indictment that the most common...
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Sunday, June 15, 2008 9:40 PM

Becta awards Open Source schools project

The Open Source community is apparently ' up in arms' following Becta's decision to award a £270K Open Source project contract to AlphaPlus Consultancy . This follows previous work with Becta on e-learning vocabularies . Mark Taylor of Sirius...
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Sunday, May 25, 2008 4:22 PM

XO2 - A new format for the sub $100 notebook

The $100 dollar laptop project has moved on with a new look and format, and is now planned to be $75! The new device created by the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project opens like a book and has a new price of $75. It's not aimed to replace the original...
Posted by AlanDay
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Saturday, May 24, 2008 3:34 PM

Post 'Byron Review'?

The Byron Report , Behind the Screen , and Grand Theft Childhood have all thrown their hats into the ring with research and recommendations for the safe use of technology by children; all agree that it is a complex area of research. There isn't much...
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Saturday, May 17, 2008 6:55 AM

Managing ICT - Value for Money

The Dept. for children, schools and families (DCSF) has published guidance for schools on the strategic management of ICT. The information can be found on their Standards website in the Value for Money (VfM) section . Advice includes: I CT Development...
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Friday, January 04, 2008 12:29 PM

Intel pulls out of One Laptop Per Child Project.

It would seem that a 'philisophical difference' between Intel and the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Project has ended in divorce. It was well known that whilst Intel was on the board of the OLPC project, it was also touting its own solution, the Classmate...
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Thursday, October 25, 2007 8:24 PM

i-whiteboards - the benefits are clear?

Following outstanding claims for the effectiveness of interactive whiteboards in a recent Becta research report and highlighted by my colleagues on their Blog , I read the full report . Its very thorough, and offers some interesting conclusions if you...
Posted by AlanDay | 1 comment(s)
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Wednesday, October 24, 2007 3:03 PM

Microsoft referred to Office of Fair Trading

Hot on the heels of the EU fine , It would appear Microsoft are now facing pressure in the UK from Becta. The issues of the EU decision were complex, and arguably the act of forcing Microsoft to hand over its Intellectual property to competitors is highly...
Posted by AlanDay | 2 comment(s)
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Wednesday, October 10, 2007 8:47 AM

Personalised Online Learning Space = Kent Learning Zone!

Schools may have recently received an email from Becta on their Oct 2007 ICT Advice Alert . The states the Government target that all schools should have a 'personalised online learning space' by August 2008. The alert also suggests that schools contact...
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Saturday, October 06, 2007 11:06 PM

Digital Inclusion Report

A recent report by UK Online Centres , " Understanding digital inclusion " on digital inclusion makes the following observations. • Despite developments in technology the uptake of ICT has largely plateaued. • Access to ICT is not enough – a proportion...
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Saturday, October 06, 2007 9:51 PM

Broadband Report - Stats and stuff!

The Office of National Statistics have redeemed themselves after my recent post on their education productivity calculation. The recent Internet 2007 Report summarises some fascinating trends, and shows an explosion of Internet use against a back-drop...
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Sunday, September 23, 2007 6:35 PM

End of Terms

I was just musing about anacronous terms after the previous post, and here's an open question: We all know the differences between the following? ... right? Learning Platform (LP) e-learning platform Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Managed Learning...
Posted by AlanDay
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Sunday, September 23, 2007 5:17 PM

The Mark of e-Maturity (say what?!!)

Those who manage to keep up with the ebb and flow of excruciating terminology and policy will know that the Self Review Framework (which from a branding point of view doesn't really say whats in the tin!) is based on a concept called e-maturity, itself...
Posted by AlanDay
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Tuesday, July 03, 2007 5:31 PM

What do Kent KS3 students do online? ... and for how long?

We have been beavering away to compile survey data returned from e-safety courses run by Rebecca Chapman and Alison Gaunt during this academic year. There is a lot of detail still to be extracted, but this should provide an overview: As you can see from...
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Thursday, March 22, 2007 9:44 PM

Summary of Key ICT Policies, Strategies and Initiatives

I was recently asked to put together a page of key national and local strategies. Thought it might be useful to share it. CLICK HERE to view it as a word file; feel free to download and add your own links.
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Sunday, February 04, 2007 10:22 PM

Gordon Brown - Speech in Edinburgh

Gordon Brown closed his speech at the Microsoft Government Leaders Forum in Edinburgh on Tuesday with: "Education supported by new technology: the great liberator, the pathway in the modern world to opportunity and the gateway to prosperity not just for...
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