Replied to a tweet by Athole (twitter.com)
You either practice social distancing or you don’t. This is exactly the vague ambiguity that Westminster has been guilty of. And, up and until now, mostly resisted in Scotland. If you practise social distancing you plan around it, instead of enacting a policy of wishful thinking https://twitter.com/Emma_Seith/status/1286297934607327239

I was disappointed by being “free to choose” to wear a mask or not. ‬I don’t have the knowledge or understanding to make that decision. It also seems it would be better if everyone did same thing? I’ve been reassured by Scot Gov decisiveness & clarity so far…

Replied to a tweet by Athole (twitter.com)
Definitely part of it. But I think it’s also the culture of these digital tools. Free to use for teachers. And they offer and promise a lot. But, ethically, this is incredibly problematic. Says the man currently tweeting on an iPhone! Feels like there was more open source before

Personally I like open source & I like paying for software (hopefully I pay for FOSS by using, bug reporting & sharing). I’ve no problem tweeting from an iPhone I paid for. More problematic ‬Is how I “pay for” twitter.

Replied to Athole (twitter.com)
You really should follow Ben. Reading his research strongly influenced the way I currently about EdTech. Quick adoption of new ‘free’ tools can be a dangerous path to tread. I have been guilty of this in the past. Beware of shiny digital buttons!

Always worth thinking about what “free” means. I think there is something in the idea of teachers exploring software, finding possibilities, testing & playing with pupils and evaluating. As opposed to using software designed for education by big tech.

Replied to Martin Hawksey #altc on Twitter by Martin Hawksey (twitter.com)
Microsoft Teams’ new Together Mode is designed for pandemic-era meetings https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/8/21317526/microsoft-teams-together-mode-dynamic-view-new-features #altc

‪I am concerned that you have to have camera on. In Glow Scotland’s Teams pupils cameras are not & can’t be turned on. I think that helped some shy kids.
‪The Register’s take

Replied to Remote Learning Lessons – Reflections From a Parent by Aaron Davis (readwriterespond.com)
Although so many of the structures were carried online, one that was absent was a deliberate social space encapsulated in the yard. A part of me understands why. Some may abuse such an opportunity. There is no means of putting in place clear habits and policies before moving online. Also, it would become another thing for teachers to manage. Maybe such a space is the responsibility of home, I still think that this social side is one of the limitations to moving online, a place for play and experimentation.

Hi Aaron,

This is fascinating, there was a lot of opacity between me and my class, this opens it up a bit. Your daughter’s school sounds a lot more organised in a daily fashion than my class.

I ended up setting up a  Minecraft edu server at home for the pupils to access. This turned into a social space as I set no real guidance, problem or focus. I thought of this as a playground. It certainly fits the description  a place for play and experimentation.