Bolton School Apple Distinguished School Status Renewal 2024

Summary

Philip Britten, Head of Foundation at Bolton School, emphasizes the importance of creativity in young people's lives, integrating it into the school's curriculum. The use of iPads enhances learning, particularly in math with AI-driven platforms like Sparks maths, which personalizes difficulty levels. The school also leverages technology for creative projects, using apps like iMovie and Fusion 360, and introduces algorithmic thinking through robotics. English teaching benefits from iPads for personalized learning and intervention. The goal is a paperless, digital approach, with iPads central to teaching, fostering efficient and meaningful learning experiences.

Takeaways

• 🎓 Philip Britten, head of foundation at Bolton School, emphasizes the importance of creativity in the curriculum for students' future success.
• 📚 Creativity is considered vital for both working and domestic life, and it's crucial for students to develop these skills early on.
• 📱 iPads have been a significant resource in the math department, facilitating the use of online packages and enhancing lessons.
• 🧠 The use of Sparks maths, an AI-powered homework platform, tailors the difficulty of questions to individual student abilities, impacting their success and progress.
• 🎨 Bolton School has integrated a creative thinking project using iMovie on iPads for PSAs and Fusion 360 on MacBooks for designing calibration cubes and lithophane light boxes.
• 🤖 An app called 'educator bu' on zap AI is used for teaching algorithmic thinking, allowing students to program robots to autonomously avoid obstacles using iPads.
• 🏆 The school's approach with iPads and robotics leads to participation in international VEX robotics competitions, showcasing practical applications of learning.
• 📚 English teachers also benefit from iPads, using various apps to support reading, intervention, homework, and revision, and to identify students' misconceptions.
• 📝 The goal of going paperless and digital is supported by iPads, especially for key stage four and five where digital portfolios are mandatory.
• 🤝 Weekly sessions at the Riley Center foster collaboration and idea sharing among teachers regarding iPad applications in education.
• 👩‍🏫 iPads are integral to teaching, as they empower educators to provide efficient, meaningful, and personalized learning experiences.

Q & A

Who is Philip Britten and what is his role at Bolton School?

Philip Britten is the head of foundation at Bolton School, where he is responsible for the creative curriculum.

Why is creativity emphasized in the curriculum at Bolton School?

Creativity is emphasized because it is considered essential for young people's future working and domestic lives, and it's important for them to develop these skills early.

What role do iPads play in the math department at Bolton School?

iPads are used as a resource to facilitate the use of online packages in lessons, enhancing the learning experience and making it easier for students to engage with the material.

Can you name a popular online package used by the math department at Bolton School?

Sparks maths is a popular online package used for homework and independent learning, which employs AI to tailor the difficulty of questions to individual student abilities.

How does the Sparks maths platform impact students' success and progress?

The platform has a significant impact on students' success and progress by matching the difficulty of questions to their individual abilities, thus providing a personalized learning experience.

What creative thinking project is mentioned in the script, and what tools are used for it?

The creative thinking project involves using the iMovie app on iPads to create PSAs, and Fusion 360 on MacBook to design calibration cubes and lithophane light boxes.

What is the purpose of the 'educator bu' app created on zap AI?

The 'educator bu' app is used in lessons to teach students algorithmic thinking, enabling them to program robots to autonomously avoid obstacles.

How do the iPads help students in the international Vex robotics competitions?

iPads allow students to quickly iterate the code for their robots, which is crucial for success in the international Vex robotics competitions.

What benefits do iPads offer to English teachers at Bolton School?

iPads offer a variety of programs and apps that support reading, intervention, homework, and revision, allowing teachers to identify individual student misconceptions and provide targeted reteaching.

What is the goal of using iPads in the subject of the speaker's choice?

The goal is to go paperless and be digital, as the portfolios for the subject at key stage four and five have to be digital.

What does the speaker find most useful about the iPads in their teaching?

The speaker finds iPads invaluable for every lesson, as they empower teachers to get the most from their students, leading to efficient, meaningful, and personalized learning.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Embracing Creativity in Education

Philip Britten, the head of foundation at Bolton School, emphasizes the importance of creativity in young people's lives, highlighting its role in their future work and domestic activities. He shares his enthusiasm for incorporating creativity into the school's curriculum and mentions the use of iPads as a valuable resource, especially in the math department. The school utilizes online packages such as Sparks maths, an AI-driven homework platform that adapts to students' abilities, significantly impacting their success and progress.

🤖 Integrating Technology in Learning

The script discusses a creative thinking project at the school where students use the iMovie app on iPads to create PSAs and Fusion 360 on MacBook to design calibration cubes and lithophane light boxes. An app called educator bu, developed on zap AI, is also mentioned. In this context, students are learning algorithmic thinking and programming robots to autonomously navigate obstacles using iPads, which is a stepping stone to international Vex robotics competitions.

📚 Enhancing English Learning with iPads

The use of iPads as a complement to the curriculum is described as highly beneficial for English teaching. Various programs and apps support reading, intervention, homework, and revision. Teachers can analyze individual student performance to identify misconceptions and provide targeted re-teaching. The aim is to move towards a paperless, digital approach, especially since digital portfolios are required at key stages four and five.

🌐 Going Digital for Efficiency

The script mentions the use of iPads for a wide range of school activities with the goal of achieving a paperless, digital environment. The Riley Center is a place where educators gather on Friday mornings to discuss and share ideas on how to best utilize iPads in teaching. The sessions have proven to be highly beneficial, and the iPad has become an indispensable tool for teaching, enhancing personalized and meaningful learning experiences across departments.

Keywords

💡Creativity

Creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, and patterns to create meaningful new ideas, forms, and interpretations. In the video, Philip Britten emphasizes the importance of creativity in young people's lives, suggesting that it will drive their future work and personal lives. The school's creative curriculum aims to foster this skill from an early age.

💡iPads

iPads are tablet computers that serve as a versatile tool for education, allowing for interactive learning and digital engagement. In the context of the video, iPads are used extensively in the math department and for various educational apps, enhancing the learning experience and supporting a digital, paperless approach to teaching.

💡Sparks maths

Sparks maths is an educational platform mentioned in the script, primarily used for homework but also for independent learning. It employs AI to tailor the difficulty of questions to individual students' abilities, which is highlighted as having a significant impact on their success and progress.

💡AI (Artificial Intelligence)

AI refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions. In the video, AI is utilized in the Sparks maths platform to personalize the educational experience by adjusting the difficulty of questions based on the pupils' abilities.

💡iMovie

iMovie is a video editing software application mentioned in the script, used for creating PSAs (Public Service Announcements) as part of a creative thinking project. It exemplifies the use of technology to foster creativity and digital literacy among students.

💡Fusion 360

Fusion 360 is a 3D computer-aided design, engineering, and manufacturing tool used in the script to design calibration cubes and lithophane light boxes. It represents the integration of advanced design technology into the school's curriculum to promote hands-on learning and innovation.

💡Algorithmic Thinking

Algorithmic thinking involves the ability to solve problems by breaking them down into steps that can be automated. In the video, students learn algorithmic thinking to program robots to autonomously avoid obstacles, showcasing the application of computational thinking in practical scenarios.

💡Zap AI

Zap AI is an app mentioned in the script, which the educator has used to create a tool called 'educator bu'. It seems to be a custom application that aids in teaching, although the exact function is not detailed, it illustrates the use of AI in educational tools.

💡VEX Robotics Competitions

The VEX Robotics Competitions are global, robotics competitions that challenge teams to design and build robots to compete in a game-based engineering challenge. The video mentions these competitions as a natural progression for students who have learned to program robots using iPads.

💡Reading Intervention

Reading intervention refers to strategies and programs designed to support students who struggle with reading. In the video, iPads and various apps are used to assist with reading intervention, homework, and revision, indicating a comprehensive approach to literacy support.

💡Digital Portfolios

Digital portfolios are collections of a student's work in a digital format. The script mentions that at key stages four and five, subject portfolios must be digital, reflecting a shift towards electronic documentation and showcasing the integration of technology in assessment and presentation of student work.

Highlights

Philip Britten, head of foundation at Bolton School, emphasizes the importance of creativity in the curriculum for young people's future.

Creativity is identified as a key driver in both professional and personal life, necessitating early skill development.

iPads are highlighted as a valuable resource in the math department, enhancing the learning experience.

Online packages are integrated into lessons using iPads, demonstrating their effectiveness in education.

Sparks maths, an AI-driven homework platform, is praised for its ability to tailor question difficulty to individual student abilities.

The positive impact of Sparks maths on student success and progress is noted.

A creative thinking project utilizing iMovie on iPads for PSA creation is mentioned.

Fusion 360 on MacBook is used to design calibration cubes and lithophane light boxes, showcasing cross-platform creativity.

An app called 'educator bu' on zap AI is introduced, used for teaching algorithmic thinking in robot programming.

Students are learning to program robots to autonomously avoid obstacles using iPads, illustrating quick code iteration.

The connection between classroom learning and international Vex robotics competitions is established.

iPads are used in English teaching to support curriculum, reading intervention, homework, and revision.

Teachers are able to identify student misconceptions and reteach effectively using iPads.

The goal of going paperless and digital in education is discussed, with iPads playing a central role.

Friday morning sessions at the Riley Center are used for discussing iPad applications in education.

The speaker expresses a deep reliance on the iPad for their teaching, stating it is indispensable.

iPads empower teachers to maximize student potential, leading to efficient and meaningful learning.

The use of iPads enhances personalized learning and contributes to the department's overall effectiveness.

Transcripts

[Music]

hello I'm Philip Britten the head of

foundation at Bolton school I'm

delighted that I had S at the center of

our creative curriculum in school

because uh creativity is so important

for young people that will be what

drives their working lives and their

domestic lives and it's really important

that they gain those skills early

on the iPads have been an amazing

resource for our peoples in the math

department we buy into quite a few

online packages and using the iPads in

lessons makes it really easy to use them

to great effect one of our most popular

packages is Sparks maths this is a

mainly homework platform but also used

for Independent Learning and it uses AI

to match the level of difficulty of

questions for our pupil's individual

ability this obviously has a huge impact

on our pups in terms of their success

and their

progress we've been doing a creative

thinking project at school and we've

been using an app on our iPad called

iMovie to make our PSAs we've used

Fusion 360 on MacBook to design

calibration cubes and lithophane light

boxes I made an app on zap AI called

educator

bu in this lesson the students are using

uh iPads and they're learning

algorithmic thinking to program the

robots to autonomously avoid obstacles

and they can quickly iterate the code

using the iPads and uh this kind of

thing leads neatly into to the

international Vex robotics

competitions as an English teacher the

use of iPads as part of our a complement

to our curriculum is really beneficial

uh we use a variety of different

programs and apps to support reading

intervention homework and revision and

it also allows us as teachers to go into

individual students and see which

questions they're getting right and

wrong where their misconceptions might

be so that we can then go and reteach

them

in school we use the iPads for all sorts

of things um my aim is to try and go

paperless and be digital because at

keystage four and five the portfolios

for my subject have to be digital on a

Friday morning we go across the Riley

Center to have breakfast and chat

through various topics and ideas and

applications that we can use with the

iPad it has been so useful I have gained

so much out of these sessions iPads I

cannot live without my iPad it is my

teaching life I use it every lesson all

of these things really Empower us as

teachers to get the most from our

students so that it's efficient learning

um it's really meaningful learning it's

very

personalized and it it absolutely

enhances what we are able to do as a

department

[Music]