Education, Arts and Technology
Opportunities and risk in the digital age
Wednesday 28 September 1pm – 5.15pm FREE
If you want to explore the use of digital within your programmes and are interested in how schools are using technology within and beyond the curriculum, this free half-day session is for you.
Targeted at education and learning departments within creative and cultural organisations the session will focus on the technologies in use in schools, the emerging trends and the inevitable barriers and challenges. From schools’ use of twitter to the use of Minecraft for creative, collaborative classroom projects, the session will give an insight into the array of innovative practice in UK schools.
A draft agenda is below – A pre-conference survey focusing on barriers and opportunities in terms of digital within arts organisations will be given to all participants. The results of this will inform the content of some sessions.
1pm – Registration
Delegates are invited to try out various devices/software pre-conference (3D printers, VRheadsets, Raspberry Pi etc)
1.30pm Keynote – The state of IT in schools
This session will help arts organisations better understand how schools are using technology to support whole school development. The session will focus on what technology is being used, emerging trends and navigating the risks as well as exploring how arts organisations can tap into innovative practice.
2.30pm Workshop 1
The popularity of games like Minecraft mean that an increasingly large proportion of children’s creative energy is applied to the making of game-based content. This provides an excellent opportunity for educators to harness an existing enthusiasm in order to enrich a variety of curriculum areas. In this session you’ll have a chance to get to grips with Minecraft and collaborate with others to create your own virtual world.
An introduction to computational thinking
As one of the few subjects in the national curriculum to mention ‘creativity’, computing offers many opportunities for children to use their imagination and ingenuity. Computational thinking is at the heart of the new computing curriculum and this session will explore what this is and how schools are approaching the teaching of this concept from KS1 up.
3.30pm – Refreshments
3.30pm – 4.30pm Workshop 2
is a major initiative from the BBC giving every year 7 in the country a handheld, fully programmable computer. The scheme, which aims to support the teaching of computing and computational thinking at KS3, is hugely ambitious encouraging every 11/12 in the country to get creative and to get coding.
Twitter & social media
This practical talk will showcase how schools are using social media both within teaching/learning and also as a PR tool. As more and more schools begin to use social media to teach, learn and share, this session will explore how arts organisations can tap into this and engage with teachers and schools
Getting more from your iPad
An introduction to the popular apps used in primary schools to create, make, assess and reflect. If your department has or is thinking about using iPads, this session will provide a good overview of how primary schools are using these devices within teaching and learning.
Barriers, opportunities and next steps.