Ngā Matapakinga | Discussion

It is all very exciting... I like that we are learning and developing a new skill set and feel like I need to dedicate more time than I have available to learning it well.

80% Mauhika, 20% Maui

You're so right @Laura.Butler2 and Clive! I think it's timely to have well-rounded discussions about this space with our kids. Who makes the decisions? Who will they benefit? How do we know if the decisions are moral, ethical, just and fair?  

As we face an increasing amount of global issues/wicked problems, then the effective use of AI may well help the human condition...just like this Microsoft AI advertisement I found myself being drawn to...

This could become part of a localised electric garden project or a project using Micro:Bit moisture sensors Laura for your juniors - tracking the growth of plants etc.  https://www.electricgarden.nz/

Long term, interesting to be aware of the potential implications of Artificial Intelligence for education and industry (CORE Education's Ten Trends, p57). What do you think, is this something we can take to the kids

Found some examples on how to explore Beebots in maths. Do you have Beebots in your school? How are your students using them? Any other ideas to share?

@Natalia.King-Taylor TIP is a great idea to help grow knowledge and capacity collectively. I'm going to try the same TIP activity with the teachers I work with, so thank you for sharing this.

I'm also going to make some time to explore some more of these archived activities from CSUnplugged as well. How were you going to collate the teacher resources? In a website or folders?

No I have not used the sorting network activities yet. However, once the weather warms up I will head outside to have some fun. Would be a great one to do in our school Wonderhub as well. (Library)

It basically looks the same way it does for you and me, @Tessa.Gray - be open to un-learn and re-learn in order to remain relevant. I believe that real problem solving, outside a given framework, an ability to discern between fact, fiction, apparently factual information and possibly proven probability could be a start for a new set of "key competencies". Computational thinking would provide a good platform for the development of those skills. Currently, our high school students are acquiring a considerable level of descriptive skills, which to a certain point, involve some analysis ability. However, analysis doesn't necessarily involve creativity, or at least the kind of creativity I was referring to earlier.

I wouldn't wish to sound too radical, but as I have previously mentioned, we need to adapt to a world that is changing at an exponential rate. Subject specialized individuals are becoming a species of the past. Universality is what keeps our minds open and our spirit ready to be surprised. Successful computer games have a powerful story line, more often than not, historical, as well as amazing graphics. Medical robots and devices are created by doctors and ultimately, the technical solutions to our current environmental problems will be solved by engineers who have a profound understanding of the living world and our history in the Universe. 

Most 2-state or cascading 2-state logic problems can be solved with boolean algebra.

Example 1 - which car warranty would provide wider coverage:

a) your car warranty covers 100,000 Km or 5 years

                                                or

b) your car warranty covers 100,000 Km and 5 years

Example 2 - use of IF, AND, FALSE, NOT etc. functions in Excel formulas

i.e. Working out the amount of tax and net pay for someone who earns between $14,000 - $48,000pa - =IF(14000<Gross<48000,14000*0.895+(Gross-14000)*0.825,0) This will return the net pay per year.

Example 3 - for ax^2+bx+c=0 - IF((b^2-4ac)>=0,REAL,IMAGINARY)

I came across this article today:

https://www.fastcompany.com/90356441/the-30-second-trick-that-can-make-anyone-more-creative

It reiterates the importance of the "empathise" step. In creativity terms, it's more important to understand your audience, and really dig into how they feel and see the world than to focus on the details of the problem you're trying to solve.

Kia ora @Jacky.Young, @Chris.Dillon has shared the following resource in the DTTA community:

Ready-Steady-Code by Seamus O’Neill, it's based on the Irish curriculum but very usable in our local context.The resources provided span the NZC Lv1-5 (up to Year 10), including the sum of angles in a triangle, the angle of the hypotenuse, and volume of solids. https://readysteadycode.ie/rsc-free-resources/

Joining the dots to our curriculum, in authentic contexts would be our wero or challenge.

If you want to hear more about Steve's story, check out the latest Education Gazette Tukutuku Kōrero article https://gazette.education.govt.nz/articles/upskilling-in-the-new-digital-technologies-content/ 

Thanks for sharing @Hamish.Johnston it's good to know communities have value - especially when we're all in this learning together.  If you have any top tips for beginners or cool ideas from your experiences to share, that would be fantastic too. Technical support for loading media into Ngā Kiriahi can be found @ https://ngakiriahi.kiatakatu.ac.nz/pages/view/3236/nga-kiriahi-instructional-videos-em

Kia ora @Joanne.Roberts, so awesome to have you guide us through Pīkau videos and also here in our community. I'm glad you've bought up Scratch and ScratchJr, I see examples of Scratch in the Pikau videos and often hear teachers asking about which version to use. 

I personally like the graphic interface of ScratchJr that enables younger users to tell a story visually and then make this come alive with simple instructions. It looks less daunting than a blank canvas (for both teachers and students) in Scratch. I also see Gamefroot has that visually appealing look/feel too for making games. All have great tutorials and teaching resources.

Apart from the different interface and platforms (web, app) what would you recommend teachers use with lower/middle/senior primary students if they're just starting out themselves? Any examples to share as well?

Image source: Flickr: CC by 2.0 Maze game in ScratchJr by Wesley Fryer

Anyone who attended last week's Technology Online webinar will know how good it was - where several examples of Technology in action were shared that had natural links to designing/creating/presenting using digital tools and technologies. 

The resources for this webinar, including the presentation (PDF) can be downloaded from Technology Online. 

These powerful examples show how primary children are responding to human needs in authentic contexts. What do you think? Do you have any questions for presenters Deidre Senior or Cheryl Pym? 

Also see:

A recipe book: Linking technology and literacy

Primary playground redesign – a rich local curriculum opportunity