General

An innovative technique of teaching computer programming, developed at the Open University, can help deliver what Prime Minister David Cameron calls a ‘revolution in education’.

The OU researchers reached out to new generations of young IT enthusiasts and their teachers by presenting its novel software and hardware at Digital Summer Camp, the biggest digital learning event in the UK this summer, on 12 July.

Earlier this year the government introduced a new computing curriculum, however the teachers are still struggling to find an adequate and engaging way of nurturing the future computer programmers. The solution they've been waiting for could be a hand-on introduction to the Internet of Things. This innovative method has been successfully implemented at the university level in the OU module My Digital Life (TU100).

The Internet-of-Things refers to technologies that enable the internet to reach out into the real world of physical objects. The OU developed a way of communicating the fundamental concepts of programming by linking an existing graphical programming language with a device that enables the programmer to control real objects. This technique allows students to easily and quickly create smart devices that can interact with people and other devices. This approach has been very effective with undergraduates, with about 10,000 students introduced to computing by this route.

The OU research potentially provides answers both to the question of what to teach in Computing lessons at schools and how to do it. It offers a method, software, and hardware that the new computing curriculum urgently requires. The combination of Sense, an educational programming environment created by OU academics, and the Senseboard, a specialised piece of hardware which connects to a user's computer via a USB connection, provides a gateway into digital creativity for schoolchildren, while allowing for extension into some fields of advanced computer science. 

The My Digital Life module addresses issues as diverse as the ownership of data, how the World Wide Web works, online identity in virtual worlds, and many more aspects of living in the digital world of today. It covers all the topics included in the new Computing curriculum at Key Stages 1 and 2 (primary) and most of those needed at Key Stage 3 and 4 (secondary). Any remaining gaps at the secondary level will be covered by a forthcoming new module in computational thinking.

Michel Wermelinger, Head of the Computing Department at the OU said:  ‘We are ready to share our approach and expertise with ICT teachers, who clearly need new instruments in their toolbox. The Computer Department has become an active player in forming the new generation of digital makers and digitally-savvy citizens, and our engagement with The Digital Summer Camp is the latest step on this path.‘

Schools can buy the Senseboards from OU Worldwide. Three schools – Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys in Canterbury, Rishworth School in Yorkshire, and The Radcliffe School in Milton Keynes – have already purchased the SenseBoards and are using the OU methodology in their ICT courses.

Digital Summer Camp took place on 12 July 2013 in Hackney Community College in London.
 

Watch a video on My Digital Life (TU100):

 

 

Posted on 8 July 2013. Updated 18 July 2013.

International Development Minister, Lynne Featherstone, has been shown first-hand how programmes and technology pioneered at The Open University are helping communities around the world access education and learn English.

On a visit to the OU’s central campus in Milton Keynes, Ms Featherstone was given a demonstration of how UK-AiD projects are making a real difference in countries across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. This includes the English in Action (EIA) initiative, the OU working in partnership with BMB Mott MacDonald in Bangladesh, which recently scooped a major British Council innovation prize.
 

Read more about English in Action project in Bangladesh

The EIA programme was launched in 2008 and aims to help Bangladesh compete in the global economy by improving levels of communicative English. By 2017 it will have reached some 25 million people across the country.

Ms Featherstone was shown how technology developed at The Open University has played a key part in this flagship programme – making use of mobile devices to help students and teachers learn on the move. Trying the technology for herself, the Minister was able to see how low-cost mobile phones are pre-loaded with teaching and learning materials before being distributed across Bangladesh.

Ms Featherstone said:

“The Open University is a highly respected British institution and I was keen to see for myself the exciting ways they are helping developing countries widen their education opportunities. The technology that is being pioneered by the Open University means people can learn valuable new skills helping them to pull themselves out of poverty and contribute to their national economy.”

The Open University has been at the cutting edge of education since it was founded over 40 years ago, and has been extending this expertise to international development projects for more than two decades. Through a programme of research in partnership with a range of institutions and stakeholders, the University aims to deliver sustainable international development in the fields of global health and teacher education.

Director of International Development at The Open University, Daniel Nti, said:

“The Open University has built up a wealth of expertise in the fields of distance and flexible learning since it was founded which, coupled with an enviable academic reputation, leaves us well placed to make a real difference to millions of people in developing countries across the globe. We welcome the Government’s commitment to international development and it was a pleasure to be able to show the minister how our work is helping people where it’s needed most.”

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