I tried something really basic in one of my lessons today. I used a Twitter # (#myfavcoach) as a formative assessment strategy. Things were going really well. Some of the group were late due to the bus so I asked others to crack on with the twitter task. It was perfect and I was becoming excited about what was going to happen with the results. Everyone finished and we started to look

The routine office countdown until Christmas was heard this week (14 weeks was the last count). And with teaching staff looking for quick, easy and productive ways to use technology I thought that I'd share some of the things you could implement in your own activities.  Personally, it's always good to try and use a new resource as often as you can. Yes, there will be one or two

Batman vs. Superman. Take That vs. East 17. Lampard vs. Gerrard. Some times in life there are things that are completely inseparable. Prezi vs. PowerPoint is a common debate in most educational settings today. Let us reflect on both. Firstly, let me get something off my chest; we should not be talking about presentations in education. We facilitate learning. It really does bug me when I

Let this play as you read...... When did you come down? When did you land? Have you done so yet? I know what you are thinking; this boys too young to be singing the blues. Well, guess what? We have problems in education. Problems that can tarnish the quality work you and I do every single day. There are some amongst our profession who do not care, plan and/or value teaching (any more).

The BBC recently reported about the idea of teacher performance pay. Yes, teacher performance pay; my reaction was the same as yours. I will do my best to give a balanced argument on this topic but the thought makes me very uncomfortable.  5 reasons why performance pay is a bad idea: 1. First of all, this approach leads to a sales-based-profit-squeezing approach to teaching. Would

When I first drafted this article I was keen to talk about the various different apps available to support teachers using augmented reality (AR). I remember, a very long time ago, watching "Click" on BBC1. The chap presenting the show was demonstrating a dragon coming alive by hovering his phone over an image of it. I distinctly remember the excitement I felt when I thought about the

I have officially joined the flipped classroom show. Having read a lot the last couple of weeks on the impact it can have on learning (watch this video for motivation) I have decided to engage with this. For those relatively new to this concept, flipped learning involves creating materials for students to learn outside of the classroom which in-turn lets the lecturer focus on homework

Formative assessment can sometimes be a struggle for teachers to understand. Going beyond cutting and pasting "Q&A" in the assessment box of the lesson plan can cause stress and tension for anyone who is delivering the session. The reality is that you are formatively assessing your students all of the time. Obviously some techniques are going to be stronger than others. Importantly,

So, we all use YouTube right? It's an obvious place to look for a video on a certain task. Many educators are still not using it in the most profitable way though. Let me give you just one or two bits of advice that might change the way you plan your next lesson. It'll be simple but very effective. I'll give you a breakdown of what I do in lessons and assessments and then state how YouTube

I've been blogging for a relatively short period of time but have already learnt an awful lot from some great educators out there. Nominating was quite a difficult task. The individuals below have all improved my practice and/or enabled me to reflect on my own practice. People are writing in such a personal and individual manner whilst sharing a range of great ideas and resources. Anyway, time