David Rogers

So, there we were thinking that we had a quiet few moments at Priory Geography when Steve Beswick, the Director of Microsoft Education, popped in together with some of the Partners in Learning Team .  This post is also over at Priory School’s blog.   It was an exciting day, and we were keen for it not to be a run-of-the-mill school visit. I have been involved with Microsoft and Partners in Learning since 2009 and love their approach to learning first and product second.   On Wednesday, Steve Beswick, the person responsible for every PC in every school in the UK, visited Priory Geography.  This high profile visit was in recognition of the creative use of technology that the department has been developing over the past five years. During the visit he watched geography lessons; met with DiGITAL LEADERS; spoke to students from Years 9-11 about careers in technology and spoke to senior leaders.  Mandeep from Microsoft’s Partners in Learning also visited the s...

I’ve always maintained that I don’t have a preference for WHO provides the technology that we use. Just that it works.  Photosynth is something that I cam across thanks to the Partners in Learning Network and my colleague Jo Debens demonstrated its power when exploring school spaces as part of her award winning project .     I’ve always found the software a little limiting in that you have to take a shed load of photographs to make it work really well. I also wanted to be able to take it mobile. Step in the new Photosynth iPhone App .  This to me is the way forward for technology in education: everyone making great tools available on everyone’s devices. We can already see the potential with this for the Geography classroom and, more importantly, out in the field.  For example we could:   Create digital panoramas with students showing the places they like to most and least, analysing them for common features and describing space. Capt...

Stuart Ball has many sayings.  One of my favourites is all about using existing tools in better ways rather than investing in new tools.  The Partners in Learning YouTube channel is rammed with short Innovids.  These are screencasts put together by teachers and show ways in which Microsoft software can be used by teachers to support learning. There are also a range of other videos there, including keynote sessions. I would fully recommend subscribing. Here are some examples: Find out how OneNote can automatically take notes from other programs: Sugatra Mitra’s Keynote at the Innovative Teachers Forum: How to create a simple game using Kodu: And this one if you want to see me with a moustache :

This time last year I started on a journey that has been challenging, rewarding and fun. It all started by submitting a Virtual Classroom Tour about a small project that we’d conducted in the department.  Good friends Ollie Bray and Dan Roberts convinced me that it was a good idea. And it was! I was lucky enough to take part in both the last UK and European Innovative Education Forums , at both I was exposed to a wide range of innovative practice.  But the best bit is that it was other teachers doing the sharing. Compliment this with some great looking workshops and keynote speakers, and I consider Microsoft’s Partners in Learning network to be valuable CPD. The best resource that the network has is Stuart and Kristen. Their down to earth attitude and enthusiasm creates a very human side to the Microsoft machine. I’ve also met some wonderful people, including the other UK European representative last year (I even got lost in Berlin with Jan Webb ). So, I would fully rec...

This post is aims to consolidate most of the information on using Social Media in the classroom.  Regular readers will find much of this familiar. The overview of the project is contained in this Virtual Classroom Tour submitted to the UK Partners in Learning network: Pirates and Social Networking View more presentations from David Rogers . The original lesson evaluation and story can be viewed at this post . This webinar given to European teachers and initiated by the Croatian branch of Partners in Learning also sums up how Twitter can be used to support learning. In particular, additional applications of the method are discussed. The webinar was recorded live, and starts 6 minutes into the recording, so you may wish to skip there! The file is available to download here . This post describe how the same methods were used to explore the Haitian earthquake. I have tried to share the technique widely, through this blog and also through face-to-face training sessio...

A return to the classroom today after a mega event: the Partners in Learning UK Innovative Teachers Forum . The event brought together like minded teachers and other professionals who have a love of learning. I was also impressed to see some students in one of the workshops. I was there to talk about my Pirates and Social Networking . There was a lot of interest in the project. I wish to clarify though, that the project is not about invading the social network that learners inhabit. Instead, the project uses a teachers Personal Learning Network as a model and data collection tool. The conference also had plenty of time to network. This is what a lot of similar events lack, instead relying on an almost relentless procession of keynotes and workshops. I really enjoyed having the time to reflect upon the workshops and conversations with others. This time to ponder means that it is more likely that ideas will be integrated into our Geography curriculum. There is a real buzz back at school ...