As schools strive to be innovative with technology but budgets are squeezed, allowing staff and students to use their own technology in the classroom is becoming more popular. Opinion however is divided, will BYOD save money and have a positive impact on learning or is it a security and safety nightmare waiting to happen?

Recognising this, NEN the Education Network is beginning a major piece of work in partnership with industry and other interested groups.  They want to hear your voice and thoughts on the use of personal devices in the classroom. Please contribute by following this link:

http://www.nen.gov.uk/news/258/boyd-what-do-you-think.html

2nd – 6th July at Magna Rotherham

Yes that’s right – free, which is why there’s not much time get book your places. This is a national event with schools from all over the country taking part but as it’s in Rotherham, we’d like to make sure that YHGfL schools make the most of this fantastic opportunity. Sign up for as much or as little as you want. Take your pupils or just go yourself, it’s all free and runs over 5 days so loads to choose from:

• 5 days of hands-on interactive and inspiring workshops and lectures from leading figures in education and industry.
• Fully inclusive workshop schedule – from Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 5.
• A fully engaged curriculum – Coding/Programmer/Computer Science, Art, Maths, Physics, English, Drama.
• 750+ workshop places and 2000+ activity places – applications encouraged from schools across the country.
• 250 CPD opportunities for teachers and educators to develop existing and new digital skills taking game creation back into the classroom.
• Industry-lead careers surgeries, vital advice and guidance for schools and young people.

For every you need to get the most out of this event, visit the website or download the Planning Your Visit document. They’ve even done your visit risk assessment for you!

http://www.gamesbritannia.com/2012/assets/planningyourvisit.pdf

http://www.gamesbritannia.com/2012/index.php

Tickets for workshops, talks and for entry into the REPLAYED arena are now available to Games Britannia registrants on a first-come-first-served basis.

Additions To The Schedule

Games Brittania are delighted to announce that Alex Warren will be delivering two Creative Writing/Literacy/Puzzle Solving workshops using Quest his free Text Adventure creation tool, and Bruce Grove, the General Manager of OnLive UK will be talking about the future of gaming – specifically cloud based systems that are set to revoluntionise how we play videogames at home and on the move.

Star Wars videogame writer comes to Sheffield

A Sheffield Hallam University graduate who now lives in Austin, Texas, is returning to the city to pass on her experiences of working on one of the world’s largest multiplayer online video games.

Jo Berry, who studied a master’s in creative writing at Sheffield Hallam, is a writer on Star WarsTM: The Old RepublicTM, a ‘massively multiplayer online role-playing game’ based in the Star Wars universe.

For more information and to book your free places:

http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/org/1178088293?s=7706373

UK’s founding father of interactive entertainment to open videogame festival

The co-author of the Livingstone-Hope Next Gen report in 2011, which prompted the government to address ICT in schools, will officially open the Games Britannia videogames education and careers festival in July.

Ian Livingstone OBE, co-creator of the Fighting Fantasy series of interactive adventure books, has given the festival organisers the go-ahead to run a Fighting Fantasy themed workshop. The session, which Ian will help facilitate, will show children how interactive fiction can bring the art of story-telling to videogames.

Ian said: “Interactive fiction is becoming more prevalent in games as players look for deeper, more engaging story-telling and increased scope for decision-making.

“The Games Britannia festival will give children a real look at how videogames involve writing skills and story-telling to create interactive fiction. I hope the Fighting Fantasy workshops will promote a passion for literature and encourage sometimes reluctant readers and writers to …read and write!”

The Fighting Fantasy series of workshops will showcase a new interactive fiction tool, created with writers and schools in mind and completely free of charge, by new creative start-up company inkle

Created by a pair of former videogame developers, Jon Ingold and Joseph Humfrey, inklewriter requires no set-up, no programming and no drawing diagrams – and it enables young people to write and share interactive literature.

Co-creator Jon Ingold said: “Before founding inkle, Joe and I both worked in the videogame industry and we know first-hand the importance of events like Games Britannia, to get kids thinking about how games work and how they’re made.

“It’s a real treat for us to be involved, especially in collaboration with Ian and Fighting Fantasy. We can’t wait to see what the students make with our inklewriter tool!”

Ian Livingstone will also be showcasing his brand new Fighting Fantasy title at the festival, called Blood of the Zombies.

The videogames education and careers festival will take place from 2 to 8 July at the MAGNA Science Adventure Centre, and will celebrate the strength of the UK industry and inspire the next generation of British videogame talent. The festival includes Games Britannia: REPLAYED, which opens the Games Britannia doors to the public for a weekend of games-based learning and entertainment.

Games Britannia, incorporating Games Britannia: REPLAYED, is organised by a partnership including Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, Sheffield Hallam University, Brinsworth Comprehensive School Academy Trust, Replay Events and UK Interactive Entertainment, and is backed by industry companies including Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.

To find out more about the festival, visit  www.gamesbritannia.com/2012/

Our friends at Sophos have posted a really useful article on their award winning blog explaining all about mobile phone hacking, how it works and what you can do to protect yourself from people wanting to access your voicemails. Well worth a read!

Sophos article on mobile phone hacking

Thursday 20th May 2010 9:00am-3:30pm
The Abundant Life Conference Centre, Bradford

The second annual bMoble conference is due to take place this year on May 20th and some places are still available. The conference is a fantastic opportunity to find out more about hand held technologies in both the Primary and Secondary classroom and see best practise from schools across Bradford.  This years keynote speaker is Tim Rylands, an expert in the creative use of ICT, and promises to be both entertaining and inspirational. If you are interested in hand held technolgies and haven’t booked your place then why not?!

www.bmoble.co.uk

Create-A-Scape is a website that provides Free  resources for creating digitally-enhanced learning experiences, using mobile technology to experience location-sensitive sounds and images that have been ‘attached to’ the local landscape. Can be used right across the curriculum with all age groups.
Go to: www.createascape.org.uk

Sony PSP

Off the shelf the PSP is able to offer an exciting number of tools. At a glance the PSP can offer….

• Wireless web browsing
• Run Flash / Java based applications
• Wireless Communication – Skype
• Play MP3 audio and MP4 video
• RSS feeds – Receive Podcasts

With the Slim and lite verson, You can display the screen on a projector or TV screen. Once the in expensive camera has been added the PSP can  record videos and take photes. Connection back to a PC or other computer is a simple connetion via the USB lead. A microphone and Sat NAV System is also available.

Watch our video case study  here

Some of the accessories you may consider

Camera

Adding the camera to the PSP opens up a whole new world for taking photos, movies and internet communications.

The 1.3 mega pixal camera with built in mic and will cost about  £40.00, plugs into the USB socket on the top of the PSP.

The camera photo function will allow 4 sizes of picture, 320 X 240, 480 X 272, 640 X 480 and 1280 X 960.

Videos are in AVI format and can be inported to a PC and edited in Windows Movie Maker, Use the FREE MediaGo software to transfer the edited movie back to the PSP (will convert to mp4).

FREE Video editing software is also available from Sony to use on the PSP called Go!Edit – Instructions on how to do this comes with the camera.

USB Lead

Quiet an esential when used in education, cost about  £4.00 and can be found with a split so charge’s the PSP at the same time.

Usefull PSP Links

ConnectED  – the uk ditribitors of the Sony psp in education

Sony PSP – The oficial Sony psp site

Sums online – Maths applications for the psp

Media go - Free managment software from Sony for uploading to the PSP

Watch how schools have used the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP in the classroom