Pupil engagement in BSF – Flux looking for ideas

FutureLab’s blog, Flux, has recently posted an article asking for ideas from people in the learning technology field about tools for engaging students and encouraging different ways of thinking:

“We’re in the process of doing some background research on tools that are being, or could be, used to support pupil involvement in the BSF/PCP design processes. We’re interested in the levels of engagement that different tools and approaches can facilitate.

Do any of you out there have any examples of tools, resources or techniques you’d mind sharing with us? For example, there are the beginnings of people using second life to allow children to design their learning spaces; thinking of other learning spaces – theme-ing and brainstorming workshop activities; Futurelab’s Power League, new school league tool and so forth.”

Author: Tim Rudd, Flux Blog, 18th April 2008

BSF – Building Schools for the Future project

For more information on this see the full article here.

Talk is cheap – FutureLab Power League

Free educational tool launched to support debate on any topic

Futurelab has launched Power League, a free online resource for schools which supports pupils of all ages to explore, debate and discuss any topic in a fun and easy way. Power League, available at www.powerleague.org.uk, enables the user to rank and display group opinions on any issue across the entire curriculum.

Author: FutureLab, 9th April 2008

Full article available here.

Virtual Voices – Event in Bristol

Futurelab is running a workshop on Create-A-Scape at this event, which is organised by South West Screen

10 July 2008
Watershed, Bristol

How can we develop young people’s voices so they become the content creators and storytellers of the future? Virtual Voices brings the media industry together with young media makers and their teachers or tutors to attempt to answer this question and many others…

What will it be like?

The event will include inspiring speakers, involving workshops (including one on Create-A-Scape run by Futurelab) and hands-on activities. See www.swscreen.co.uk/virtualvoices for more information as the programme is finalised, or sign up to the Virtual Voices e-mailing list by e-mailing virtual.voices@swscreen.co.uk.

Author: FutureLab, 7th April 2008

Full post and more information available here.

FutureLab – Learners are key to solving inequality in education

A new handbook from Futurelab shows how learners can play a key role in the design of educational technology, and so help tackle growing inequalities in education. Funded by CfBT Education Trust and launched today by Baroness Estelle Morris, ‘Designing Educational Technologies for Social Justice’ explores the role that digital technologies can play in reducing inequality in education and offers guidance on designing educational resources that benefit disadvantaged learners.

A key message from the handbook to developers, teachers and other education practitioners such as community groups is that, in order to design educational technology and projects to reduce inequality, you have to involve those using it throughout the design process. A tokenistic gesture – user testing an idea once development is under way or complete – will not suffice. Designers are also urged to avoid simply reusing technologies and projects that have worked in the past – what works in one place and with one group of people may not work well in a new environment.

Author: FutureLab, 2nd April 2008

Full article available here.

Becta publishes Emerging technologies for learning volume 3 (2008)

The ‘Emerging technologies for learning’ series aims to help readers consider how emerging technologies may impact on education and learners in the medium term. The publications are not intended to be a comprehensive review of educational technologies, but offer some highlights across the broad spectrum of developments and trends. It should open readers up to some of the possibilities that are developing and the potential for technology to transform our ways of working, learning and interacting over the next three to five years. This is available on the web.
Copies can be downloaded from

http://www.becta.org.uk/research/reports/emergingtechnologies

Author: Andy Black, Flux Blog, 3rd April 2008

Full article available here.

Futurelab Research Discussion Day at RIBA – Learning Spaces

“Learning Spaces was one of three themes covered during discussion day. The presentations and outcomes will be available shortly. I’ll start with a short summary and then follow up with posts about issues that arose or particularly interest me.

Tim Rudd (Senior Researcher in Futurelab’s learning team) kicked off the Learning Spaces sessions by looking at the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme. He raised a number of issues detailing limiting contexts and practical constraints under three headings:
– Problems and challenges.
– Pre-engagement and visioning.
– Co-design and stakeholder participation.

Tim and Tash Lee have already stirred this pot in their posts ‘Who should be responsible for Building Schools for the Future?’ and ‘Building schools right now, very quickly, without thinking about the future too much.’

Tim discussed:
– Lack of alignment with current policy contexts, particularly personalisation.
– Lack of wider public debate about the ‘big questions’ – the nature of education etc.
– Re-designing learning spaces needs to support community regeneration.
– The need for digital tools to help people think differently.
– Absence of transformational visioning and a central repository / resource of ideas, alternative models of education and perspectives.
– BSF timescales discouraging upfront visioning.
– The barriers of institutional logic and a risk averse society.
– The need for pedagogically informed design.
– Weak co-design and stakeholder participation.
– The importance of the design process as experimentation – and the need for adequate time to do this.
– Future learning possibilities.”

Author: Peter Humphreys, Flux, FutureLab Blog, 22nd March 2008

Full article available here.

Newtoon Update

Newtoon update… (last mentioned here)A video has been added to the page at Futurelab, so you can see Newtoon being used/played by students – and being discussed by the developers. I have to say that I’d still be more tempted to use Phun based on what can be seen here. Phun looks far more powerful, and based on open-ended play.Author: Daniel Livingstone, Learning Games Blog, 12th March 2008

Full article available here.

Building schools right now, very quickly, without thinking about the future too much

A few days ago there was yet another blow for the Building Schools for the Future programme with press reports claiming that only 9 new schools are open instead of the 100 that are supposed to have been completed by now. Surely it shouldn’t just be a numbers game. OK so only 9 schools have been built, but what of those 9 schools? Have they transformed learning like they were supposed to? There are other, arguably much more fundamental and important questions we should be asking — for starters, who and what schools are for? — instead of just churning out new buildings for the sake of it.

The BSF programme could and should be such a massive opportunity — to rethink education and to transform learning for so many people for who education didn’t work or isn’t working for. I really worry sometimes that we’re going to miss our chance and make many of the old mistakes again. I’m sure many people involved in the process are well intentioned, but whether these good intentions and big visions are making an impact on the buildings that are being designed, commissioned and built right now is questionable.

Workshop at Futurelab

Last week we held a small half-day workshop here at Futurelab to begin to explore the some of the issues around personalisation and the design of learning spaces. We had representatives from a variety of fields including: architecture, policy, teaching, construction/design and technology. One of the activities was to think about the key issues that might underpin a ‘design brief’- for a learning space for a) one single group or class; b) a ‘year group’ and c) a whole school. There were probably more questions than answers but there were some really interesting issues raised.

No one knows exactly what the future holds but surely we shouldn’t just wait for it to happen to us and then lament that our buildings aren’t right – surely we should at least endeavour to pre-empt what changes lie ahead – and maybe shape them even?

Perhaps some of the questions that arose out of the workshop last week might stimulate debate and creative thinking for those embarking on redesigning their learning spaces.

The design process

• Why do students seem to be largely if not totally excluded from the process – after all they are the ultimate consumer?
• Shouldn’t the design/re-design itself be seen as a valuable learning experience?
• Do teachers and students really know what technologies are available now or possible in the near future?
• How can we help/support schools to think more radically and longer term in their designs?

The spaces/buildings

• Can we develop a ‘learning building’. In other words where the structure and infrastructure, walls, floors ceiling and outside spaces are actually artefacts from which we can learn?
• Can we develop more ‘intelligent’ and reactive, sustainable and flexible buildings?
• Do we need fixed internal walls? Do we need fixed spaces?
• Does a learning space have to be just one site?

Users

• Should schools become places the whole community can use equally or regularly?
• Does everyone have to be there all the time?
• Can anyone use the facilities for learning purposes?
• Should we think in terms of ‘a community’ rather than classes when we design learning spaces?
• Are schools currently under-used – should they be multi-use, multi-function spaces?
• How much space can be personalised by learners – and what exactly does that mean?

Technology

• Shouldn’t there be more focus on the technologies, such as video and teleconferencing or tools that allow greater collaboration that allow these links rather than using fixed ‘walled’ technologies largely used as one way content delivery technologies?
• How will locative technologies, GPS, cell technology and so forth change our view of where and what learning takes place?
• What are the possibilities in terms of touch screen technologies and how might we consider the tactile and multi-sensory stimulation that they afford as part of the design in learning spaces?
• Can/should learners use their own devices?
• Should technology be like a ‘utility’?

A full write up of the workshop will be available soon from the Futurelab website.

Author: Tash Lee, Flux, 14th February 2008