A solutions-orientated approach to post-NOF CPD
Web-wise-wapping | Launch | Press Release | Further Information
Please note that this project has now come to an end, so the links may not all work
The 14 state schools in Wapping include Roman Catholic, Church of England and Muslim schools. When head teachers were offered £150,000 by their local community foundation, The St Katharine & Shadwell Trust, they chose to pool funds and expertise to build what they called: Web-Wise Wapping, or WWW.
Combining the money let the heads plan a 3-year training programme that became self-sustaining. The MirandaNet Fellowship, at the time based at the Institute of Education, University of London, was appointed to lead and provide peer mentoring, accreditation and assessment. New self-evaluation methods developed by the Institute let web users monitor their progress, request feedback and identify needs.
As citizenship is in the curriculum an international perspective on citizenship is a key aspect of the WWW project. Experts helped Wapping classrooms and staff rooms communicate with local schools and parents as well as South Africa, the Caribbean, Washington, Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Companies working with MirandaNet also partnered schools in the WWW project. Achievements were shared on Think.com, a web learning environment donated by Oracle, the software company to facilitate communication between communities. Minimal computer skills are required to use this program that gives all students and teachers an email address and an opportunity to publish their own web pages and portfolios of achievement. Web debates, interviews, conversations and e-magazines or ezines all reveal vision, social commitment and an international dimension. Teachers will receive electronic notebooks to help plan project work in busy schedules. Toshiba funded an investigation of the role of Think.com and mobile computers in the learning of the disadvantaged and the gifted. The Tools for Schools Charity provided good recycled computers for student and home use funded by Toshiba. Cisco negotiated to place IT academies in key schools to raise the level of professional qualifications amongst students and parents who want to improve their job prospects. Another key feature of the Cisco Networking Academy is encouraging women into IT. Actis contributed web based resources and Worth Media provided language resources
Local education authority Tower Hamlets offered support through its City Learning Centre. Planned bids to the World Bank and European Union envisage training more local people. Partner schools, companies and the St Katharine and Shadwell Trust believe that the Web Wise Wapping project will make an important contribution to community learning and digital empowerment.
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