On Thursday 8th November Mark Anderson came to The British International School of Abu Dhabi to deliver whole staff training on educational technology. This newsletter covers the sessions Mark lead for staff, the technology enabling tools he shared with us and a few examples from the sessions. It is worth noting that everything that was shared (bar Book Creator) was free!
Check out Mark’s website, blog and free resources by hitting the button below.
You can find Mark on Twitter by clicking on the button below.
Book Creator
Book Creator is a great ‘wrapper’ for all the content that the students have created across a range of apps to bring together and evidence their learning.
Technology gives you a real opportunity to make learning visible in ways which make assessment easier and learning more engaging.
Within Book Creator students can embed imagery, video and audio content into their work. See an example from Mark and other educators by pressing the button below.
Quizizz
Quizizz provides teachers and students the chance for low-stakes assessment and retrieval practice. It’s a great way to make the most of #edtech in the classroom.
What does the theory say? Ebbinghaus’s research shows that repetitive testing builds longer term memory. If we teach a topic and wait for 60 days then we are likely to only remember 5% of that information. By using tools like Quizizz we can use low-stakes testing for retrieving information, evidences learning and finding the gaps in student knowledge. Rather than end your lesson with a Quizizz quiz, why not flip it and start your next lesson with a quiz to see how much the students can remember! At the end of your lesson the information is fresh in their minds so this tool provides an opportunity for retrieval practice in lessons.
Much like other platforms, there are already LOADS of other quizzes out there made by other teachers. The work has pretty much been done for us. You can select their whole quiz or select individual quizzes to make your own that fits what you want the students to recall.
The data that Quizizz gives us then informs our planning and lessons for the future thanks to it braking down the data on a whole class basis, individual basis and more without having to download anything.
Mirroring using Office Lens
Office Lens is a great app for instant pupil feedback either one to one or as a whole class. Open the app, scan a document and start providing feedback using a stylus (or finger!) and colours in the top right hand corner. Thanks to its functionality you can use it as a visualiser while being able to move around the classroom.
Once you are finished providing feedback you can then store the document (including the edits you’ve made) in OneNote, OneDrive, Word or PowerPoint.
Another feature within Office Lens is ‘immersive reader’ which will read the document to you; a great tool for ESL students, those who lack confidence when reading or the visually impaired.
Quik
Quik is a fantastic app to showcase all sorts of school and learning opportunities: trips, experiments, house day, flag day and more!
It’s a simple and effective tool that can turn video or imagery into a high level video that showcases learning and events or wherever your creative ideas take you! It’s like the name......Quik!
Seeing AI
Seeing AI is another free tool that we can use on our iPads to support younger learners or those with additional needs. For example it enables students to interact with their environment without the need for a TA, aid visually impaired students and helps students access written texts when they otherwise might not be able to.
Doink Green Screen
This gives students the chance to develop oracy across the curriculum while taking them to other locations thanks to the screen putting a picture or video of another location behind them so they appear to be reporting live from any destination in the world.
Here you can see Marc using the green screen.
The finished article!
Using ICT for Assessment
When presenting grab the attention of your audience - when presenting a PowerPoint blank the screen by pressing B and the screen will go black, or press W and screen goes white.
Post-it Plus
Post-it Plus enables you to take analogue post it notes and turn them into digital ones ready to share with your class. Group them or organise them however you would like, why not get the students to organise them for you?
360° VR & AR in the classroom
Check out the full 360° panorama here.
Below is an activity using the Figment app where colleague, Nicole, walks through a portal into a world where she is transported to another place where she can record her screen and tell a story about the place she has visited. She is looking forward to trying this out in class where her Year 3 learners are able to visit trenches to tell stories from history about life there during the war.
Balance is hugely important when it comes to technology in the classroom, technology is not a silver bullet. We should make sure that we strike a happy medium between being a pace setter and a Luddite.
It’s the sum of the small improvements, the marginal gains, that make the big difference over a prolonged period.
Feedback from staff
Julie Usieto, Assistant Head Teaching & Learning, said:
“Buzzing Vibes at BISAD! Thanks to his adaptability and experience, Mark understood our needs and delivered sessions demonstrating how technology can enhance learning. The sessions were full of easy to use ideas that are quick to implement; Michelle even used one of the ideas with her class period four having attended a session period three! Attendees left with inspiration and excitement ready to enhance the learning experience for their students. Thank you to Olly for having such great connections and putting this newsletter together. Follow-up sessions coming soon....watch this space.”
Some staff tweeted their feedback, check them out below.
Alan Cocker, Deputy Head Primary, said:
“The sessions exposed us to practical and powerful ways to raise the bar in how we engage our students, and also how they can demonstrate, compare, review, evaluate and publish learning. Lots to take away and get using. Thank you Mark!”
Mark’s feedback: “Thanks to all at BISAD for their enthusiasm, dedication to professional learning and most importantly their students. I loved the school and can’t wait to hear what exciting activities learners have been engaging with and how the professional learning has impacted learning and standards.”
A huge thank you to Mark for an excellent day packed full of easy to use ideas, tools and resources that will lead to an impact upon learning across the whole school.
If you are interested in having Mark in your school to share and develop digital capacity in your staff he comes highly recommended. You can contact him via his website using the button below.
Credits:
Created by Olly Lewis @OLewis_coaching Created with images by eleven x - "untitled image" • geralt - "road sign town sign learn school courage" • TeroVesalainen - "thought idea innovation" • geralt - "road sign town sign training skills teaching" • Hans - "glasses read learn book text highlighter pen" • geralt - "problem solution help" • Wokandapix - "teach education school class teaching teach education" • kaboompics - "man reading touchscreen blog digital tablet working" • Tim Wright - "untitled image" • Samuel Zeller - "untitled image" • padrinan - "green art wood sharp pencil group blue" • Casey Horner - "untitled image" • Rachelle Magpayo - "untitled image"