Education on the Internet
Number 110: 3rd March, 2004
Introduction
Introduction
Education on the Internet is published by Spartacus Educational every week. The newsletter includes news, reviews of websites and articles on using ICT in the classroom. Members of the mailing list are invited to submit information for inclusion in future newsletters. In this way we hope to create a community of people involved in using the Internet in education. Currently there are 45,990 subscribers to the newsletter.
All reviews are added to our web directory. There are sections on Internet Services, Online Seminars, Primary Education, English, Mathematics, Science, Modern Languages, History, Geography, Design & Technology, Business Studies, Special Needs, Media Studies, ICT, Sociology, Music, Politics, Economics, Photography, Art & Design, Theatre Studies, Physical Education and Religious Studies.
John Simkin
Online Debates
Higher Education Reforms: When Charles Clarke introduced the bill to reform higher education in the House of Commons he argued that "change was necessary because: The barriers to access to university need to be lowered. The measures I'm announcing today mean that disadvantaged students will get financial support to study what they want where they want. Universities need more investment. Vice-chancellors will tell you that these proposals generate hundreds of millions of pounds new money for them to spend on improving the quality of teaching and compete with the best universities in the world. We need to move towards treating students as financially independent from the age of 18." Many educators disagree with this approach to reform. If you have views on this subject, register with the International Education Forum and join the debate.
News and Articles
Milestone or Millstone?: Performance-related pay was introduced in schools in England in 2000. Ultimately 97% of applicants were successful, effectively creating a substantial across-the-board pay rise for teachers. According to a survey carried out by Ted Wragg at Exeter University, the scheme has had virtually no effect on the way they teach in the classroom. Most teachers surveyed for the analysis of performance-related pay in schools said that after going through the process required to secure a salary rise they were still teaching in exactly the same way, but they had improved their record-keeping to make their next application easier.
Differentiation: In the "Handbook for the Inspection of Schools" published by Ofsted, differentiation is defined as: "The matching of work to the differing capabilities of individuals or groups of pupils in order to extend their learning." Whether a class is setted or mixed ability, it will have a range of different abilities. In their published reports Ofsted has made it clear that differentiation involves recognising the variety of individual needs within a class, planning to meet those needs, providing appropriate delivery and "evaluating the effectiveness of the activities in order to maximise the achievements of individual students". This excellent article by John D. Clare of Greenfield School takes a comprehensive look at this important issue.
ICP Online: International Confederation of Principals (ICP) had its first meeting in San Diego, California, in February, 1990. The organization's mission is to encourage closer relationships among principals of all nations, promote and enhance the image and professionalism of the principalship. It also attempts to foster school curricula that encourage international understanding and good will and a respect for human rights and dignity across all races and cultures. In holds regular meetings and conferences in order to promote international cooperation.
History
Assassination of President Kennedy: This event has been described at the most important crime of the 20th century. However, if JFK was assassinated by a "lone nut" (as argued by the Warren Commission) history teachers would find it difficult to justify spending much time on the subject. On the other hand, if you believe that Kennedy was killed as a result of a political conspiracy, it is a subject that that deserves detailed study. On the International Education Forum teachers are discussing ways that the assassination of JFK can be taught in the classroom.
Durham County Record Office: This website contains a wealth of detail about the archives we care for and information about local and family history. You can search the database, which contains all of the catalogues, and you can access images online. One section of the website, The Learning Zone, is aimed specifically at schools. Images of documents are presented, with supporting commentary, teachers' notes and suggested classroom activities, linked to the National Curriculum. At the moment, there is only one topic, The Story of Jimmy Durham, a Sudanese soldier who was raised by and served with the Durham Light Infantry, with activities particularly for History and Citizenship aimed at Key Stage 3 pupils. The next planned topic is about the Holocaust.
English
School Express: This website provides over 6,000 free worksheets on a wide variety of different subjects for children aged between 3 and 10. The section on Language Arts includes worksheets on Abbreviations, Adjectives, Adverbs, Alphabetizing, Antonyms, Synonyms, Homophones, Classifying, Compound Words, Contractions, Direct and Indirect Objects, Nouns, Plurals, Prefixes and Suffixes, Pronouns, Proofreading, Punctuation and Verbs.
Learn: This Guardian owned website covers every element of the national curriculum in each subject at each key stage. The English Literature section includes material on Reading (comparing texts, following an argument, news or views, selecting, collating material), Writing (the writing process, writing appropriately different purposes of writing structuring your writing effectively, grammar trouble spots, vocabulary & spelling, publishing your writing), Speaking and Listening (contexts, activity types, speaking purposes & skills, practice).
Science
A New Kind of Science: Stephen Wolfram's massive new book is now available online: The ten chapters are: The Foundations for a New Kind of Science, The Crucial Experiment, The World of Simple Programs, Systems Based on Numbers, Two Dimensions and Beyond, Starting from Randomness, Mechanisms in Programs and Nature, Implications for Everyday Systems, Fundamental Physics, Processes of Perception and Analysis, The Notion of Computation and The Principle of Computational Equivalence.
Alan Turling and Morphogenesis: Alan Turing has a wide and still growing reputation as one of the most creative thinkers of the 20th century. His interests, from computing and the mind to information and biology span many of the emerging themes of the 21st century. Jonathan Swinton uses his website to look at the work, on morphogenesis in general and Fibonacci phyllotaxis in particular, which was carried out by Alan Turing in the four or so years before his death.
Geography
World Atlas: This website is organized into six channels: Plan A Trip, Map & Travel Store, Explore with Maps, Get Directions, Learn & Play, and Business Solutions. It also includes a free online atlas. It covers seven continents, twelve regions, 190 countries, and 50 US States, including maps, flags, and statistics. You explore these maps by clicking on one of two globes: Political World Atlas and Physical World Atlas.
SchoolNet Global: This project started in 1998. Since then over half a million young people, aged 4 to 18 have been involved. Many have recorded their thoughts and feelings about life in the 21st Century, on over 54,000 web pages. They write about their own lives, homes, interests, wild ideas, hopes and dreams and how they will make the world a better place.
Physical Education
P.E. Ideas: A collection of ideas to use with children aged between 5 and 11. This includes Heads and Shoulders (use a well-known song in your PE lessons to develop understanding of body parts), Late for School (a warm up activity which involves pretending to get ready for school), Hoop Activity (encourages children to co-operate in order to complete the task), and Untying the Knot (children untangle themselves by working as a team to solve their problem).
BAALPE is an association for advisers, lecturers, inspectors, consultants, advisory teachers and other professionals with qualifications in physical education, sport and dance. It exists to promote and maintain high standards and safe practice on all aspects and at all levels of physical education. It extends professional support to all members through a range of courses and seminars and by providing insurance cover and advice appropriate to their needs.
Internet Services
Un-Google: Some people believe that Google has been the victim of being spammed by commercial websites and fake pages that its search-results are no longer reliable. Un-Google (formerly known as PlanetSearch) attempts to solve the problem by metasearching multiple search engines including Google, AltaVista, FindWhat, Lycos, Yahoo, MSN and Dmoz. However, I am not convinced and Google is still my first choice search engine.
Seekscan: Another metasearch engine that fetches results from dozens of search sites, including Google, All the Web, AltaVista, Ask Jeeves, AOL, HotBot, Teoma, Excite, GigaBlast, LookSmart, WiseNut, Alexa, Lycos, Yahoo, MSN and Dmoz. Putting it through a couple of test runs the vast majority of these search engines come up with results very similar to Google. The exception to this are the sites that charge for websites to be listed and are therefore totally unreliable as search engines.
Book Section
The Jesuits: Over the course of five centuries members of the Society of Jesus have been accused of killing kings and presidents, they have travelled as missionaries to every corner of the globe, founding haciendas in Mexico, exploring the Mississippi and Amazon rivers, and serving Chinese emperors as map-makers, painters and astronomers. Whether loved or loathed, these missionaries had a dramatic and wide-ranging impact. Jonathan Wright's fascinating study draws the reader into a gripping tale of myth and counter-myth, of adoration and banishment, of extraordinary achievements and spectacular failures. (Jonathan Wright, HarperCollins, ISBN 0 00 257180 3, £20.00)
