Ask Nature

You've probably heard of the website "Ask Jeeves" that searches information available on the interenet to answer your questions. However a new site - "Ask Nature" looks at nature to solve questions and problems that are pressing global challenges.

The concept behind Ask Nature is Biomimicry, (from bio, meaning life and mimesis, meaning to imitate) a design discipline that seeks sustainable solutions by emulating nature's time tested patterns and strategies.

This is a great source of information for anyone studying science, technology and geography or anyone just interested in the world around them.

ESafety Qualification for KS3 and KS4 pupils

BCS, The Chartered Institute for ICT are offering a qualification in eSafety for students at KS3 and KS4. The course addresses the potential risks of being online, protecting yourself online, as well as behaving responsibily online.
Supporting the need for a coordinated approach to esafety, the esafety qualification provides teaching materials, mapped to the curriculum with the added advantage of e-Learning for self study. At the end of the course, learners can take a test and on achievement are presented with a qualification. The course consists of four main areas:

• Unit A - The benefits and risks of using the internet




• Unit B - How to report and respond to esafety issues




• Unit C - How to protect yourself and your computer online




• Unit D - The legal issues of downloading from the internet

ESafety Level 1 is fully accredited on the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) with 20 guided learning hours. The full cost of the course is £15.00 in the first year rising to £20.00 from March 2012. This includes registration, learning materials, diagnostic test and final test. To access the test only the cost is £10.00 rising to £15.00 in March 2012.
Click on the link to find out more about the qualification. The Chartered Institute for ICT

iPads for notepads at Lisburn school

Pupils at a grammar school in Lisburn are being encouraged to swap notepads for iPads. Wallace High has negotiated a leasing deal for the computer tablets made by Apple which will cost parents £170 a year. A total of 530 pupils in years eight to eleven at the school will be able to use the new iPads in class and take them home. The super slim computers can be used for internet research, playing music, photographs and reading books. The school will use its own technology staff and budget to provide applications for the pupils to use. It is understood there will be special insurance for the iPads as well as tracking software in case they are lost or stolen.

Birchfield Austerity Sale

Latest content offer from Birchfield.

All of their curriculum content, games and tools for your VLE is priced at £2500 per school.
This includes 15,000+ curriculum content VLE resources for 15 subjects, 14 VLE games, 34,000 curriculum questions and a content editing tool which can SCORM your own content. Bespoke prices are available for Area Partnership Communities by calling Jo Western using the contact details below. To find out what comes with the whole school solution offer please click
here. (NB: offer prices will not be listed on the site, this is a fax/e-mail only offer).
Nb. The offer price is not on the website. Don’t miss it. *PLUS First 100 schools to order will get an extra 10% discount!
Jo Western
Birchfield Interactive Ltd
ITV Studios
Culverhouse Cross
Cardiff
CF5 6XJ
Tel: 029 2059 7000
Fax: 029 2059 9456

Zondle - games to support learning

Zondle is a free and easy to use website that allows children to play games in supporting learning. The user range can be from Foundation stage up to GCSE, with a wide range of games available in various topics and subjects. It’s really easy to create an account which allows you full access to the site. Watch this short video on the main page for a brief synopsis

Tim Rylands, Learning Consultant

Tim Rylands is a Learning Consultant who delivered two sessions at the recent ICT for Education conference in Belfast's Hilton Hotel on Friday 11th March. Tim is a gifted and inspirational teacher who presents results from his work in an imaginative and charismatic way. Tim uses a wide range of creative and mostly free web 2.0 tools to encourage and empower children to express their creativity and make significant gains in attainment. To find out more about Tim and his recommendations for top tools check out the links below.

• Tim's blog
• ICT2 Inspire (web tools)

Employment in IT Industry in N. Ireland

The research, ‘Technology Insights 2011’, shows that despite the recent recession and ongoing high levels of unemployment, demand for IT professionals in Northern Ireland has increased over the last year, with 16,000 people currently employed in the IT & Telecoms professional workforce – representing just over 2% of total employment. 60% of these IT & Telecoms professionals are employed in the IT & Telecoms industry itself, while the remainder are spread across every other sector of the economy.