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Marjory Smith Dip Ed

 

Luthermuir Primary

School Road

Luthermuir

Aberdeenshire

AB30 1QA       School Website:          

Tel 01674 840304     www.luthermuir.aberdeenshire.sch.uk

Fax 01674 840304       

19 th June 2006

Xchange 2006 – Belfast June 7 th – 9 th

I attended the above Conference on behalf of Aberdeenshire Council and the following is a brief report on various aspects of the Conference:

•  The Conference venue, The Europa Hotel, was excellent and hospitality throughout the Conference could not be faulted.

•  Flying from Aberdeen meant that I missed the first morning but there was a very good online facility available and I was able to catch up with the issues that were discussed in the morning.

•  The Conference provided stimulating presentations by a variety of speakers and each in their own way helped to inform delegates of the outstanding issues in ICT at the present time.

•  The Keynote Speakers came from all over the globe and provided a worldwide perspective.

•  Key areas covered included The Challenge of Change, Crossing the Digital Divide (both pupils and staff) The Challenge of Innovation, Creative Animation, Dissolving Boundaries (North and South of Ireland links), Strategies for Managing ICT, Challenges for the Future.

•  The Dissolving Boundaries project was particularly inspiring as it helped pupils from vastly different backgrounds to appreciate and value diversity of the Irish people. They developed a broader understanding of the north/south/catholic/protestant issue and seemed to learn tolerance of others ideas and ideals. It did involve visits between the schools and must have had a good deal of financial backing by both governments. The communication options that were used – videoconferencing, podcasting, blogging, emailing etc - are all resources that would also enable Aberdeenshire to link well with schools across Scotland, the UK, Ireland and beyond.

•  Crossing the Digital Divide – providing high quality ICT experiences for all regardless of background. One of the main issues surrounding this is the fact that there is a Digital Divide with Teaching Staff as well as pupils and there was very much a move towards providing teachers with a personal laptop and the software to use with it. Until teachers are fully familiar with ICT initiatives, it is difficult for them to teach them to pupils.

•  Creative Animation – Much was made throughout the Conference of the work being carried out in Northern Ireland in Digital Media Arts. We were fortunate to see a few examples of film/ animation made by pupils across the Education sector and it was certainly rewarding to see. Excellent examples of Good Practice are in existence across Aberdeenshire but because of the size of the Authority, we do not always get a chance to see it. This type of presentation would be excellent for a Celebrating Success Conference where Head Teachers could share ideas and Good Practice. In Angus, an Authority wide project has led to animation/film “Oscars” and has proved to be a resounding success. Aberdeenshire could consider this type of authority wide initiative.

•  School Visit - There was a visit to a primary school in Belfast on the Thursday. The school and pupils were very welcoming and showed us ICT work on going in the school. They had just spent £21,000 on Interactive Whiteboards for 8 of their classes and were to be adding to that at the Early Stages in the near future. Pupils were very enthusiastic about the use of the Interactive Whiteboard and it was already embedded in classroom practice. This was thought provoking for me as a Head Teacher because of the problems of funding Interactive Boards from the limited funding we have in a small school. In Luthermuir, we have just purchased one whiteboard and a projector thanks to Authority subsidy and PTA generosity.

•  My visit to Gilnahirk Primary enabled me to set up links with the school for future communication between us. This was one of the challenges set by Xchange for delegates to the Conference. The delegates’ list showed the sector of ICT/Education delegates came from, and I will be sharing, through the email system, the details of other schools who might be keen to develop links between Aberdeenshire and Northern Ireland.

Next Steps for Luthermuir

•  We have applied for Challenge Funding to support an animation project and hope to link in with the Angus Digital Media Centre in order to do this.

•  Next session, set up links with Gilnahirk Primary (approx 400 pupils) and with a school in the central belt (approx 200 pupils).

•  As part of an Enterprise project, we have volunteered to provide delegates to the Xchange 2007 Conference to be held in Edinburgh with heather badges. The organising committee is considering this at the moment.

•  The project will be recorded through podcasts and the enterprise will be able to be followed throughout the year.

•  Continued funding of ICT equipment by the PTA working towards an Interactive Whiteboard in each class.

Next Steps for Aberdeenshire?

•  I hope that other delegates will have the opportunity to be involved in Xchange. It is a valuable experience that should reap its own rewards as colleagues become engaged in the development of ICT.

•  Active participation in Xchange 2007. This is an ideal platform to celebrate the success already in place in Aberdeenshire. Let’s shout our success from the rooftops.

•  The opportunity to enthusiastically embrace SSDN and a Curriculum for Excellence so that we truly do create Successful Learners, Confident Individuals, Responsible Citizens and Effective Contributors to Society.

I would like to thank the Authority for the opportunity to attend this Conference.

Marjory Smith – June 2006