#37 Teaching to the Text- Textbooks or Technology?

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What’s in this episode? 

Political control on textbook content  – yes, no, maybe
Best methods for retention of information
Can you have a favourite website like you have a favourite book?

Intro:
Tipping over 20,000 downloads
Round-up of the week
Opportunity to support #TMresolutions
Content:
TEACHING TO THE TEXT: TEXTBOOKS OR TECHNOLOGY? #battleofideas debate recorded at the Barbican with
Susanna Goldschmidt, Head of Publishing, Discovery Education
Colin Hughes, Managing Director, Collins Learning
Tim Oates, Group director of assessment research and development, Cambridge Assessment
David PerksFounder and principal, East London Science School; director, the Physics Factory
José Picardo, Assistant principal, Surbiton High School
CHAIR: Harley Richardson, Director of design and development, Discovery Education

Sample Quotations:

Harley Richardson
-Which do we need the most in the classroom: textbooks or technology?
-Textbooks or technology? We could just say a little bit of both and go home
-Many parents are concerned that mobile phones are allowed in schools

Tim Oates
-What constitutes high quality material?
-Understand the role and the function of traditional textbooks, understand what they have meant for hundreds of years to understand what we should do now
-Systematical control over textbooks is critical in reform
-Textbooks support a whole range of functions
-The best teachers around the world are those who are supportive of best quality textbooks
-In Finland textbooks still are seen as steering mechanism for education –
Textbooks provide a schema. They provide the shape of a subject. Digital performs differently

David Perks
-If textbooks are the answer, what is the question?
-What does a good textbook look like?
-Websites don͛’t last, their content is ephemeral. The whole premise in which digital has been designed is ephemeral and not long-standing
-If you want to take notes use a pen, don͛t use a laptop because it goes in much better if you use a pen
-When kids use technology is not the same as us using it -Google doesn’t teach, we do

Jose Picardo
-Textbooks and technology, rather than textbooks or technology. Both are useful, both facilitate learning
-Does a textbook need to be in print form? Cannot it be in digital form?
-Digital resources are dismissed often for the wrong reason
-What students prefer may not always be what͛’s best for them
-Spaced studying, interleaving topics, frequent load testing have improved teaching and learning
-Pairing texts with interactive graphics to help conceptualisation
-Featuring sound and video-recordings are great for languages teaching and learning
-The focus should be on how can we make these resources work better
-What learners prefer to do often goes against what cognitive psychology tells us is best

Colin Hughes
-Digital is dynamic, is connected
-Why 14% of time in UK classrooms use any kind of digital materials at all? Maybe 14% is about right actually. For the rest of the world is about 4%
-Adapted learning platforms are going to be unbelievably useful
-It͛’s about defining what can that particular technology do that the other can͛’t
-The use of printed revision guides is way stronger
-Textbooks are not a substitute for quality teaching or indeed teacher knowledge

Susanna Goldschmidt
-Comparing textbooks with tech is like comparing a theological treatise with an encyclopedia
-How could a textbook evocate for the plurality of options that now face subject teachers?
-Digital media lend themselves brilliantly to expanding horizons
-Digital activities encourage students to engage actively in what they͛re learning
-Technology offers tools capable of liberating teachers from drudge work allowing them to focus on the real business of teaching
-Hybrids, digital textbooks called ͚techbooks͛ combine the substance of textbooks with the attributes of digital
School is not just about learning what the curriculum stipulates should be learned. It͛s also about expanding horizons, transformative experiences.
-Textbooks or Technology? Both

References:
This event was recorded at the #battleofideas event by the institute of ideas at the Barbican, London: http://www.battleofideas.org.uk/2016/session/11568#.WBu6U-GLSu4
Speakers:
Harley Richardson https://twitter.com/harleyrich
Tim Oates http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/about-us/who-we-are/our-leadership/tim-oates/
Jose Picardo https://twitter.com/josepicardoSHS
Colin Hughes https://twitter.com/4collinsmd
David Perks https://twitter.com/dperks
Susanna Goldschmidt https://twitter.com/smg37  Discovery Education https://twitter.com/DiscoveryEd
References:
Why Textbooks Count?͛ Tim Oates http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/images/181744-why-textbooks-count-tim-oates.pdf
Cambridge Approach to Textbooks͛ http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/textbooks/ Cambridge Assessment  https://twitter.com/Cam_Assessment

Richard Culatta https://twitter.com/rec54
Surbiton High School https://twitter.com/SurbitonHigh  Shooting Azimuths http://www.josepicardo.com/education/shooting-azimuths
Bloomsbury https://twitter.com/BloomsburyBooks
Collins learning https://collinslearning.com
The Publishers Association https://twitter.com/PublishersAssoc
East London Science School https://twitter.com/elss_freeschool
HarperCollins https://twitter.com/HarperCollins  International Publishers Association https://twitter.com/IntPublishers
State Policy and the Control of Curriculum͛, William Smith http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/schools/interviews/schmidt.html
Michael Barber, Chief Education Advisor to Pearson –
Pearson https://twitter.com/pearson
TES https://twitter.com/tes
An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth͛, Chris Hadfield https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/apr/10/an-astronauts-guide-to-life-on-earth-chris-hadfield-review  Geert Hofstede http://geerthofstede.com

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