Glow Scotland

Guest Post from Laura Tansley at Learning and Teaching Scotland

Schools across Scotland tuned in on Monday to hear Michelle Paver talk of her experiences and adventures as she researched her series of Stone Age adventure novels, ‘The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness’. She spoke of happening across bears in California and singing ‘Danny Boy’ to distract them, getting close enough to Wolves in Finland to lick muzzles, skinning rabbits and eating Reindeer, all in a quest to discover what life was like for a hunter-gatherer. Michelle read from ‘Ghost Hunter’, the latest instalment of the ‘Ancient Darkness’ series which was tantalising for those who have yet to discover her writing. Through the Glow Meet, pupils were then encouraged to ask Michelle questions – we had so many unfortunately we couldn’t ask them all but we hope to get them all answered by Michelle at a later date. For the schools that missed it, the recording of the talk will be available soon at the Glow Group for the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

The Scottish Arts Council and Learning and Teaching Scotland have joined forces to bring arts education online through Glow. As a result of this partnership, a new post and project have been created to explore Glow’s potential to support innovative approaches to learning and teaching through the arts.

I have recently joined the Glow Team as Development Officer (Arts) and I’m hugely excited about this project’s potential to enable artists, performers and writers and Scotland’s schools to work and learn together in ways that have never been possible before. Glow is breaking down barriers and making learning experiences and opportunities more widely accessible – the recent Anthony Horowitz and Oscar Stringer Glow Meet events and the Willie Rodger print project are just a few examples of the exciting work that is already going on via Glow.

Over the next 22 months I will be working with selected Scottish Arts Council funded arts organisations on a number of ambitious demonstration projects, to be announced later this year, which will trial new ways of learning and will show how creativity and the arts are a fantastic way of supporting Curriculum for Excellence.

The project will provide CPD opportunities for both teachers and arts practitioners to work together to develop ideas, projects and resources. I am keen to make contact with teachers, cultural co-ordinators and local arts teams who would like to be involved so please do get in touch – I’ll be delighted to hear from you.

Look out for a new national Glow Group for the project which will highlight developments and opportunities providing a focal point for all related activity and a place to collaborate and share good practice. The project will also be showcased at the Scottish Learning Festival on 23 September.

Enquiries: glowenquiries@LTScotland.org.uk

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This post and project is funded through a partnership between Learning and Teaching Scotland and the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery Fund

Mark Baker Outdoor Learning Development Officer for LTS, and I provided Glow training for a wide range of Outdoor Learning  Partners last Thursday in the Optima. This training came about because of a demand from the Outdoor Learning community to get involved with Glow and Outdoor Learning in schools. It follows on from requests we took for Glow training at the Outdoor Learning Conference 2009  in Crieff in April. Thanks to all the attendees at this training for  being such enthusiastic participants:

The attendees  listened to presentations about Glow and took part in creating their own Glow groups. Later in the day they also collaborated in making changes to the National Parks and Outdoor Learning National Glow group. The first presentation answered some basic questions: what is Glow, where is it nationally and what can it do for me?  Participants took part in useful discussions about  how to use Glow for outdoor learning and asked tough questions about the value of more learning on the web.

After lunch  the discussion was focused on the National Site, Outdoor Learning Glow groups and shared administration in the National site.  It was very useful for me to have participants feedback on the National Parks and Outdoor Learning Glow group and it’s sub Glow group structure.  The new National glow group title is Outdoor Learning . It now has some new pages and some new sub Glow groups for example with National Parks pages and a National Parks sub Glow group. I was able to make improvements based on useful comments given by the attendees during the training. I  look forward to the participation of our OLPs as guest users in this National Glow group and Glow based outdoor learning projects.

We have seen requests for Glow training and guest memberships grow throughout 2008 and 2009. Following this successful training we will organise a Building Outdoor Learning  Community event for January 2010. Before that, we can also look forward to two Outdoor Learning events with Scottish Natural Heritage, both will be live in Glow: Outdoor Learning for Teachers Wed 14th Oct 2009 and  Sharing Good Practice in OL Tues 10th Nov.  For more details see news in the OLNGg.

This summer I have been working on the National Parks Glow group in the National Site.
This group is the product of discussions with the Cairngorm Natonal Parks Authority and Aberdeenshire ICT Project Officers. The potential for collaboration and partnership with Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) is growing, as this national group takes shape. Further talks will take place in August with the Cairngorms National Park Authority (CGNPA) and the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park (LL and TNPA).
The NPAs will eventually assist with the administration of this national group along with teachers who work in schools adjacent to the parks. The NPAs have started to provide resources for teachers who will be able to collaborate through the group and publish pupils work on the group’s pages.
Some pupils and teachers, in Aberdeenshire, are about to take part in an LTS funded project to promote learning in the CGNP.
This means that Glow will be used to promote learning in the outdoors. The National Park Glow group will, hopefully, model good partnerships in Glow and support the ideals of a Curriculum for Excellence by encouraging more outdoor learning, more intersubject collaboration and a better understanding of our rich natural and historical heritage.