Creative ICT News

Web 2.0 What is it all about?

Just when you thought you were beginning to grasp the meaning of the latest buzz words such as Podcasting and Blogging, suddenly everybody "in-the-know" is referring to "Web 2.0". "Hang on a sec!" I hear you cry, "I don't even know what Web 1.0 was, let alone 2.0". Don't panic, you are not going to have to re-learn everything you thought you knew about the web.

In the beginning there was the Internet. On to it was grafted the World Wide Web. This was essentially a collection of static websites put together by people called Webmasters (how come you never hear of webmistresses?). To a large extent, webmasters controlled the content because no-one else had the technical know-how to do it for themselves. People did try to put together template systems and editors that generated the HTML code necessary for a website to display properly, but these tools were essentially clumsy, limited and sometimes difficult to use. This was "Web 1.0".

Recently, a whole host of new technologies have emerged that promise to make the web more open, collaborative and easier to use. No longer is the end-user in thrall to the webmaster. Debates rage as to the precise definition of Web 2.0, but to me it is a collection of tools grafted on to the existing Internet structure that facilitates these objectives. It's an evolution of Web 1.0, not a revolution.

Here is Wikipedia's definition of Web 2.0: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0

Three free things you can do to start using the power of Web 2.0

1. Personalise your Google homepage. Add relevant content, pick up headlines from the sites you visit most frequently and start making the web work for you. Go to Google and click on "personalised home". For more information read the short piece at the foot of my "Plans for 2006" blog.
2. Sign your school up for a free del.icio.us account and get everybody working on a collection of "favourites" that works for your whole community. Here is my del.icio.us homepage to show you what it is like.
3. Start a blog - like this one. Actually, this blog is not free, it costs me £45 per annum, but it's more secure and more customisable than most of the free blogs out there (e.g. www.blogger.com) unless you can host one yourself.

Once you have started along this road, you will begin to see the collaborative possibilities that Web 2.0 opens up. How many times have I heard teachers refer to the Internet (when they mean the World Wide Web) as the "biggest library in the world"? But, do children see libraries as places that they can contribute to; that they can have ownership of; that they can publish in on equal terms? Or, do they simply see them as sources of information or (sometimes) entertainment? Web 2.0 gives children and teachers the opportunity to have a voice on the web and become managers of their own content. The web can be seen by children, not just as a vehicle to receive wisdom and knowledge, but as a means to impart it too.

All this sounds fantastic, but it presents a number of challenges. First of all, in many cases many LEA broadband networks are highly locked down and access to some of the sites is disabled. For example MEWAN (in Manchester) doesn't allow access to del.icio.us. This is a real shame, as the collaborative nature of such sites promote responsible use of the web. Similarly, many school networks are locked down to an extent where the user's profile doesn't retain the personalised Google information for when you log in.

Hopefully, many of these issues can be resolved if enough people make a fuss to their LEA, and network installation engineers configure networks in such a way as to allow retention of this type of data in a user's profile. I would be interested in hearing from teachers in different LEAs to find out about their experiences of using Web 2.0 applications.

To book an intriguing staff meeting on the possibilities that the free software, resources and tools existing on the web now can offer your staff and children, contact [email protected]

Bett Show Report

Last year for my first ever Creative ICT news page I published my own Bett show awards based upon what I saw when I visited the show. A number of people commented positively on that article, so for the second year running, here are the Creative ICT Bett show awards.

First off, although the show was busy and as big as usual, it seemed to me that there was little that was completely new. Interesting developments, a few tweaks and some good resources, but noything that really stood out from the crowd. Unless you counted the Oculas (http://www.theoculas.com/). This weird podlike object resided on the Riverdeep stand. Origianlly designed as a luxurious games console which blocks out all external stimuli, this very lack of distraction means that the developers are looking at its educational potential. Clearly they haven't been looking at school budgets!

Best Piece of Hardware

Last year I gave this to Intellidesk and this year there were anumber of other producers displaying desk units with built-in pcs. However, the best product for schools I saw was a very simple innovation that has the potential to get around a massive problem for schools: namely, stolen projectors. Sahara showed a brand new projector with a removable security unit which disables the projector completely; a bit like the removable facias of car radios. You just need to make sure that your local criminal fraternity understand that your projectors are no longer worth nicking because they won't work. Add a three year bulb warranty for education and a competitive price, and I think they are on to a winner: http://www.sahara-products.com/main.php

Best Curriculum Software

I was quite taken by Mindjet's MindManager software: the best concept/mind mapping software I've seen in a while. It works excellently on Tablet pcs and it links to Office documents impressively easily. You can buy it with elcs, but may be a touch expensive for the school market? www.mindjet.com/eu

Many of you may be familiar with Memory Map. It's a tool that is used primarily by outdoors enthusiasts to plan routes, look at topography etc. It's a brilliant piece of software that will take a digital Ordnance Survey map and give you a 3d image of the landscape and the ability to fly through it. For those of you that want it, it also links with GPS systems to give you accurate positional readouts. What I hadn't realised about Memory Map is, how cheap it is for schools to use. Until the end of Feb, you can order Memory Map for any area of the country that you want with a teacher's resource pack and waterproof paper for printing maps onto for £105.95 Oh, and that includes a 35 user licence. It can be bought with elcs and as such it is such good value for money that it gets my vote for the best curriculum software. www.memory-map.co.uk

Best Freebie

In the words of Lizzie Wray, Ict co-ordinator at Chorlton Park Primary School, "There were slim pickings this year". However, undeterred, I cadged a nice laptop bag from SMC for saying nice things about their ethernet over power product: apparently you can run ethernet connections over the mains (as long as it is on the same ring main). Potentially very useful for anyone wanting to link a mobile classroom to a network without going to the expense of digging up the playground.

However, as anybody who knows me will testify, I am always very close to my stomach, and best freebie goes to Naace for the excellent buffet they put on to celebrate schools achieving Naacemark. In order to qualify for this freebie, however, you need to be a member of Naace. Recently they announced an institutional membership plan. For your money, you get the weekly Naace newsletter, the quarterly magazine, reduced rates on Naace conferences such as the annual primary conference (held in December - see my report) and of course, free entry to the Naace lounge, the one area in the Bett show that you are guarnteed not to get hassled by sales people and you won't have to queue for three hours to get a cup of coffee.

Best Free Resource

There were some interesting developments going on at the BBC, not least, the amazing piece of software they were using in conjunction with a web cam. Basically, you waved a specially printed card under the camera, and it interpreted the card into a 3d character. The character could be moved around simply by moving the card. Once you added a few more cards, hence, a few more characters, they could be made to interact. Very impressive, and there must be some interesting educational applications for this???

Best resource however, goes to a Government Department (unlikely, I know), but, step forward the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and their great collection of websites:

www.playgroundfun.org.uk

www.webplay.org

www.myartspace.org.uk

www.headlinehistory.co.uk

www.artisancam.org.uk           My personal favourite

www.icons.org.uk

www.plantcultures.org.uk

Roll on Bett 2007!

Plans for 2006

Welcome to the first Creative ICT blog post of 2006.

Let’s start with an absolutely fantastic free resource for anybody doing any work on ecological issues or wildlife. The ARKive has fantastic images and movies of wildlife the world over, as well as a completely separate area looking at endangered wildlife in the British Isles. The quality of the images and movies are all of a top professional standard (as many are sourced from the BBC and other film makers).

The Year of the Blog

My prediction for 2006 is that blogging will become hugely popular in the education sector. In case you haven’t investigated this phenomenon yet, this article was written by me about 6 months ago. It explains some of the basics and gives you plenty of links to explore further.

In schools blogging can be used in a number of ways. First of all as a news page: (here’s an example); the huge benefit of incorporating a blog into your own school website like this is that you need no experience of web design to add news articles to the site – you could even cut and paste from your standard school newsletters! However, the potential of blogging goes much further. Because of the ease in which anybody can publish, it makes it an ideal medium for instant web publishing in class. Writing is all about audience, what could be more motivational than the shared poem you’ve just written in the Literacy Hour being put straight on the Internet there and then. This International School is a good example of schools using blogging across the curriculum and age groups.

Then there is the collaborative aspect: what better way to share the international dimension of your curriculum by publishing a blog and inviting your audience to feedback. Or work on collaborative blog projects such as the Keepers’ Project on Poetry Pizzeria.

Finally, there is Podcasting – warranting a whole article in its own right, but if you have read my article mentioned above, you will get the idea. Basically, podcasting is the publication of self-recorded sound files over the internet. It costs peanuts and adds a hugely creative dimension to your curriculum. I was fortunate enough to meet John Johnston of Sandaig Primary School at a recent Naace conference and he told me all about the wonderful work that the children in his school have done in the area of school radio.

Some people have expressed concerns about the security issues around weblogging, particularly the ability to post comments on web logs (although it is perfectly possible to set up a blog to receive no comments), but here is the DFES’ take on blogging: http://safety.ngfl.gov.uk/schools/document.php3?D=d77

Setting up a blog can cost from nothing to lots. Here is what Creative ICT offer:

4 page website incorporating a news blog including all hosting and set up:     £250

Fully configured multiple blog site (like the example above):                          £300

One day in school working with children on podcasts and blogs:                    £350*

Extended staff meeting (2 hr) or half-day INSET on blogging or podcasting:   £250

Full day INSET on podcasting and blogging:                                                    £400

*If ordered before Easter the one day in school includes a free extended staff meeting, provided it is held on the same day.

BETT Show

January sees the annual highlight of the ICT year in the form of the BETT show in London. If you can’t make it, don’t worry as Creative ICT will bring you the highlights in a post Bett newsletter and Podcast.

Customising Google

Have you tried customising the Google home page? It’s a very easy way to make your use of the Internet much more efficient. Click on “Personalised Home Page” at the top right hand corner of the Google screen and sign up for a Google account (you don’t need to get a Google internet account or receive marketing junk if you don’t want to). Once you have done this you can add content to the page by picking up RSS feeds from various websites. Click on the “Add content” box and copy and paste these links into it:

BBC Education News:       http://newsrss.bbc.co.uk/rss/newsonline_uk_edition/education/rss.xml

TES Breaking News:         http://www.tes.co.uk/rss/Breaking_news/

Creative ICT News:          http://creativeict.typepad.com/my_weblog/index.rdf

You can also add links to your favourite websites. Once you’ve finished, set this as your home page and you’ve got a homepage that is tailored to your needs, helping you keep up-to-date.

Ok, it’s a bit of a long newsletter, but hopefully a helpful one. I always appreciate comments and feedback either by email or by posting a comment here.

I wish you a successful 2006 and I hope that I can be of assistance in some way.