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I have just received this email from John Rowe, headteacher Hope CE Primary School, if anyone can help him drop him an email.

Hi Steve,

I’m currently involved in a project to try and arrange for a network in schools in Burkina Faso to have access to ICT.

The country one of the poorest in the world and is being affected by the effects of global warming, the Sahara desert continues to expand southwards with devastating consequences for the Northern part of the country.

This project is designed to raise standards of education in the country, especially girls, since a much higher premium is placed on the education of boys. The network of 8 urban schools we will be supporting are revolutionary in the country since girls education is placed on equal terms with boys.

The project also aims to use open source, web2.0 software to keep costs down.

If any school has any old computers which they are not using, maybe considered obsolete, please could they get in touch with me via e-mail.

Maybe this appeal could be included in the LA blog?

Thanks for your time, have a great weekend,

John.

On 1st June Digitalbrain will migrate all Shropshire webmail clients on to the new service.  A pdf containing the key features can be downloaded from here, the new features include:

• New look and feel
• New editor
• Email archive option
• Drag and drop functionality
• Right click menus
• Searchable address book

If you have any queries or questions contact Keith Havercroft.

On 11th July Joe Moretti will be running a ‘Garageband‘ training session at STDC, the focus of the session will be music at KS2 & KS3.  I saw Joe do a session in Newcastle earlier this year and was amazed by what Garageband can do.  The course is free of charge for Shropshire schools.

Time: 09:15 - 16:15
Venue: Shrewsbury Training & Development Centre
Course Code: 72335C

Places will be limited to 10 people, but if you don’t mind sharing feel free to bring a TA with you.

Read Ewan’s take on Joe.

Book your place via email or phone: 01743  254522

Take the Risk, Reap the Benefits 

Building on last year’s successful conference, the 2007 conference will focus on reinvigorating and revitalising units of work to better meet children’s needs and interests. Delegates have the choice of attending three practical workshops led by specialist design and technology advisers, consultants and practising teachers. Schools are encouraged to send both the headteacher and D&T co-ordinator/subject leader to ensure that both strategic and class-based aspects of the conference are addressed back at school. Headteachers will be charged half the usual fee for a place at the conference if attending with a teacher/subject leader from school.

Date: Friday 29 June 2007
Time: 09.15 - 15:50
Cost: £125.00
Venue: National D&T Education Centre, Enginuity, Coalbrookdale, Telford

To book your place please contact the CPD team on (01743) 254522,
or e-mail: CPD@shropshire-cc.gov.uk

Last nights Panorma programme has certainly caused a stir, Becta have put an update on their website:

Following last night’s Panorama programme Becta has this morning been in contact with the Health Protection Agency (HPA) - the government agency responsible for health and safety - to obtain the latest guidance on any health issues relating to wireless technology.

Despite the claims made in last night’s programme, the HPAs guidance remains the same. The latest advice on their website reads:

“On the basis of current scientific information WiFi equipment satisfies international guidelines. There is no consistent evidence of health effects from RF exposures below guideline levels and therefore no reason why schools and others should not use WiFi equipment.”

Based on this guidance, and expert safety advice, Becta believes that there is no need to change its current guidance: while secure wireless networks can complement an institution’s wired network, they should not replace it.

Further information on WiFi safety is available on the Health Protection Agency website.

If you use the Shropshire Primary adaptamation as your digitalbrain home page, you may have noticed that it has been affected by the db upgrade and no longer works (you can make the changes, but can’t save them). Digitalbrain are aware of this and are trying to solve the problem. We will let you know the solution as soon as we find out.

Building upon the highly enthusiastic responses to our previous three events, the next ‘e-maginative learners’ national conference aims to provide timely, inspirational and practical support for everyone involved in transforming schools.  The focus is upon how the effective use of appropriate technology can best support learners, teachers and school improvement.

As ever, we seek to bring you inspirational speakers of high standing who will not only inspire and help move your thinking forward, but will also enable you to get to grips with the nuts and bolts of successful implementation.  Speakers and seminar leaders already booked for 2007 include:

·        Professor Stephen Heppell (www.heppell.net <http://www.heppell.net/> );
·        John Davitt (www.newtools.org <http://www.newtools.org/> );
·        Steve Moss (Strategic Director - ICT, Partnership for Schools),
·        Dr Baldev Singh (Head of Strategic ICT Development at Imagine Education Ltd and recipient of 2004 National Teaching Award for Innovation in Education);
·        Professor Angela McFarlane (via video) (Professor of Education & Director of Learning Technology at the University of Bristol);
·        Gerry Gray (Science AST).

The 2007 conference will make particular reference to:

·        implementing really effective personalised learning;
·        successfully addressing boys underachievement in English;
·        improving learning outcomes through the effective use of mobile devices.

Our conferences are self-funding but not for profit.

More information and online booking is available at http://www.sgfl.org.uk/clc .  Delegates may attend on one or both days.  Please forward this message to other colleagues (especially school-based) who you feel could benefit from attending.

Kind regards

Stephen Holland (on behalf of the Conference Team, Stoke-on-Trent City Learning Centres)

Colleagues

You may be interested in bringing this site to your colleagues and schools attention. It is about World Environment Day, which this year is taking the theme of climate change.  World Environment Day is promoted in the UK by the Environment Agency.

www.mendoftheworld.org

The site includes resources, such as web banners and posters and incorporates a mass survey to find out what people are doing, what else they could do and what is stopping them.

The approach they have taken, especially the animated introduction, may give schools ideas they could incorporate into their own websites and activities to raise awareness of climate change.

Regards

Margaret

Project Manager
WMnet Young People’s Climate Change Messages Project
climatechange.wmnet.org.uk

Every fortnight, NAACE publishes an e-magazine called ‘Sharing Success’ which focuses on a different aspect of Primary ICT every issue. You can view the archive of these publications here. They come in pdf format, so could be read online or printed and shared (depending on your eco-conscience).
Editions available are:
1) Early Years
2) Literacy/English
3) Numeracy/Maths
4) ICT co-ordinators
5) Digital photography
6) Control technology
7) Big Books
ICT co-ordinators
9) Adventure games

Scratch is a new, exciting and free piece of software which enables the user to easily create programmes to control sprites on screen and create animations, stories, even video games. It is aimed at children and consists of a number of customisable instructions that ’snap’ together. A fantastic resource to get children collaborating, sharing ideas, problem solving and getting creative! You can see a BBC article and interview here. You can download Scratch from here,  and also see what other people are doing with it.