Local4Global

Tower Hamlets e-learning

HEC was approached by the Tower Hamlets City Learning Centre and e-learning team as a result of previous successful partnership work with schools. They asked HEC to work with them to explore inclusion of the global dimension within e-learning and the creation and sharing of good practice.

The partnership developed through a number of different processes including: shared delivery, team professional development training, shadowing the e-learning team members, inputting into e-learning team meetings and the secondment of a HEC team member to the e-learning team for two days a week. Through this relationship school delivery sessions were jointly created on data logging, sensors and control, design, animation production, webquests, spreadsheets and databases, music and sound resulting in the successful integration of global issues .

These case studies are being shared with ICT advisers at Teachernet meetings, conferences and CLCs, starting with Enfield, with INSET sessions and presentations, and are being produced as online teaching guides. They are being promoted and built into the Lgfl Global area. Further sessions are being developed on photography, game design and the use of webconferencing. Standard sessions are being offered to City Learning Centres in animation and global issues, fairtrade and fashion and ICT and democracy.

"As an ICT Advisory teacher in Tower Hamlets, I am always looking for ways to integrate ICT across the curriculum in schools. The Global Portal offers a wealth of resources across the curriculum that support the use of ICT, including webquests, using the Internet, film making, creating presentations whilst raising the global agenda.

"It is so useful to have such a stimulating collection of information, ideas and links in one place. I also really appreciate the links to curriculum areas such as citizenship and PHSE."
Marion Reilly, ICT Advisory Teacher, London Borough of Tower Hamlets e-Learning Team

Michael Newman, HEC, February 2009

Presentation to London City Learning Centres

Delivered to some seventeen London City Learning Centre managers and staff at their termly meeting, at the British Film Institute a twenty minute presentation on delivering the global dimension using City Learning Centres. Promoting three projects and training support for Cente staff. Followed up with an e-mail of the powerpoint and suggestions of how the Centres can use HEC to assist in reviewing and changing their delivery in terms of the global dimension. A publication is being produced in partnership with Tower Hamlets CLC, based on HECs work with the centre, with replicable case studies of delivering the ICT curriculum with the global dimension.
Michael Newman, Humanities Education Centre, November 2007.

APPROACH

Through a part-time worker placement to the Tower Hamlets City Learning Centre a development education project worker explored and developed ways that on-site delivery and school support could embed the global dimension. Working with the CLC adviser and the Tower Hamlets ICT advisers, school sessions on data logging, animation, objects and design, video-conferencing, simulations and spreadsheets were developed and delivered through sessions with schools. This was sustained and reviewed through CLC staff induction training. The sessions are now being shared through the London Grid for Learning, and have been part of teacher development days on how to use a City Learning Centre or on-line learning for promoting ideas of global active citizenship. At CLC team meetings, staff induction and team attendance at conferences the HEC worker has ensured a global dimensional input, reflecting on issues, resources and potential future developments and work. The staff training and co-working has ensured the creation of inbuilt ongoing provision in the centre for schools and teachers of global issues within the ICT curriculum, and the team working together to develop further activities, sessions and projects.

OUTCOMES

Webquests
Exploring how to engage children in researching global issues independently or in class, linking the research to local action through multi-media products or political action. Webquests, as self-contained learning activities on the web, offer a tool for empowering children to engage as global citizens and to learn how the web is an invaluable tool for such engagement. These form starting points for children to creatively express their response through powerpoints, webpages, video and animation. The children’s work becomes part of the content of the webquest giving a children’s perspective and voice to the issue and inspiring further creative work. The work is linked to children learning how to interview experts and witnesses to human rights issues. The interviews are edited as video clips for use by other children. Quests have been developed and used with primary schools to research issues such as health and water, homelessness, refugees and fairtrade.

Michael Newman, HEC, May 2007

<< Back to Humanities Education Centre