Last term the Council for Subject Associations (CfSA) which was set up in September 2007 and funded for three years (before it has to become a self-financing organisation) produced the first of a series of Primary Subject folders that went into all schools across England for free. Other organisations can purchase a copy for £7.50. I was asked to write the ICT leaflet for the first issue on the theme of 'Every Child Mattters'.

The second Primary Subject's theme is the Gifted and Talented strand of the National Curriculum and was sent into schools in the last week of September 2008. Although I gave a sneak preview of the text in the Summer edition of Primary Focus, I have included the PDF that will be distributed along with leaflets from the other 16 subject associations to all schools in England during the third week in September 2008. The third edition of Primary Subjects will be distributed to schools in January 2009 and it has been confirmed that the theme will be Globalisation.

Your comments (posted underneath the article) on what you think of the leaflet would be very helpful feedback!

Why ask?

This may seem a strange and inappropriate question to ask as word e-learning is a ubiquitous term, but it is quite possible that by separating e-learning from learning, we might actually be holding back progress in the adoption of new models, and better tools for learning.
When we consciously, or otherwise, start to make a distinction between learning and e learning, we may be providing those, that are unlikely or unwilling to engage with it an escape route.

This raises some important questions; is is one form more of learning more appropriate than the other; and if so why? What are the differences in value between them? And, even more importantly; what type of learning would not benefit from, from technologies at our disposal?. Thinking about it in this way we soon realise that learning and the technology is only an enabler. In fact a great deal prescribed e-learning is likley to be relatively low level activities as pointed out by Stephen Hear. (*1)
"The experience of e-learning for many has been no more than a hand-out published online, coupled with a simple multiple-choice quiz. Hardly inspiring, let alone empowering"

This article addresses the differences from the point of view of learning between social networking, online knowledge construction and the dissemination of new knowledge. Christina Preston has focused on a number of examples from work carried out in my two Oracle Education funded projects to highlight ways in which teachers can reflect on the way children are engaged.

In this Article, Christy outlines how ICT may be used to help teachers ensure that lessons on 'world writing' are successful. It provides a review of the range of resources available from BBC Active designed for use on a whiteboard, supporting whole-class teaching.

Lisa Taner, who teaches at Bowes Primary School, lead the 'Send a friend to school' project and is still very concerned that we take notice and make the powers that be aware of the children in African countries, particularly girls who do not go to school.

Imagine a world where schoolchildren are contacting pupils in schools around the world through a totally safe, virtual environment, chatting about differences, sharing pictures, and posting opinions about stories they've read and written. Their teachers are making sure skills in literacy, numeracy, ICT and communication are being improved. The children are sharing ideas about how to live more healthy lifestyles. This Article illustrates how some of this is possible through the 101+ Club Project, supported by by the Oracle Education Foundation.

This paper is not about 'the Literacy Hour' - teachers have got this well sorted. If anything, it is a plea to move on. Many years ago, when working in Special Education carved upon every part of my psyche were the penetrating words of my Headteacher, "Every lesson is a speech and language lesson." So, too, Literacy Skills, in their broadest sense, should be an integral part of every lesson if not a mandatory part of every school's mission statement. The title, therefore, demands more than a cursory nod of approval.

A fascinating question and one that teachers would probably answer with 'more knowledge than we have now!' That alone is reason to share this vast wealth of understanding in the world, and really begin to learn from each other. Knowledge and understanding are not learned in isolation for in collaboration we can achieve much more. Teachers cannot possibly know all the answers to the questions children ask but it is their responsibility to equip learners with the thirst, skills and opportunities to be able to find out - and not simply through a Google search either.

This article explores this approach with Key Stage 1 pupils in a Hampshire infant school.

Introduction

We live in exciting times. Travel, technology, communication and innovation are creating a world which we can experience with increasing ease and enjoyment. Whether we choose to take our holiday on the other side of the globe or to eat bananas grown the other side of the equator, all things become possible, and indeed an every day part of our life.

So how does this relate to the education which we're providing for our children? How are we facilitating the kind opportunities which they expect from our global classroom? The resources to do so are readily available to us through a variety of means, including the Learning Platforms which we are all exploring within our classrooms. One such Learning Platform links learners from all around the world together through Collaborative Projects which focus on aspects of global interest, and we'd like to share the experiences of Weston Point Primary School as they discovered the delights of the UniServity Olympic Village Project.