Updating soon

We have been slacking on updating the Not A VLE project mostly because we have been busy speaking with teachers, pupils and parents. We are having great success with building online relationships and have got to a point where the blog is operating as required.

We hope to post several blog updates in the next few weeks. Please bare with us!

Yet another VLE conundrum - Sites for parents

@simfin asked on twitter today - does anyone have a list of useful links/resources for y1 parents I can pass on to a teacher populating her new VLE? TY

One of the things I simply don't know is what do year 1 parents need to know? Surely the teacher can only truly know what is useful for her environment and her parents? I know sites like http://myschoolclosures.com are relevant to the entire school so I would recommend that but I'm stuck to think of other sites to recommend that I can guarantee will be relevant..

Any feedback on this or recommended sites would be great! Cheers

UPDATE:

Simfin summarized what he wanted as: "things you need to know to help your child succeed in y1."

So the conundrum is What do the parents want to know to help them succeed? Will parents give assisted learning if they have access to the curriculum? Is it a good thing if parents do and some parents don't? Is the teacher putting links online just to tick a box and has the teacher informed the parents about the links?

One thing I must remember while working through this project is that a VLE is like a free market. Choice is key and everything has a traded value, the problem is that with 5 or 6 key parties involved, making a deal that suits all could be complex but like any good deal, everyone should feel better off.

Trying to tick boxes is not what I am trying to accomplish by this project..

One last thing whilst I'm on a rant.. One of the ultimate goals is a paperless school, "Not a VLE" is part of this project but the implementation of Web2+ tech will be predominant throughout.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

Wilsden Primary School have won awards for their excellence in delivering ICT using different technology however we haven't really ever properly focused on involvement outside of the school gates.

My goal is to try to provide Wilsden with a web presence that will fulfill the requirements of everyone who has contact with the school.

I haven't yet defined my target audience, that is job #1.

I'm not getting paid to do this work so donations and/or sponsorship in the form of beer/curry for free consulation is available.

I don't have a name for this site yet. I don't know processes I will go through. All that I do know is that nearly all schools who have had a VLE have not had a good experience. This is not entirely a technical problem, in most it is a fundamental problem with the naming of a VLE. Let's break that down..

Virtual = Very 1990's - no one cares for virtual any more.

Learning = Dictates the site is a place for learning, not true in most cases although Learning may be the outcome.

Environment = Why? Why?!

From the above I can summarize that whoever invented a VLE decided that the learners focus was purely off-site learning IE. learning from home and having very little teacher interaction. In Primary Schools this is not the case.

Information on what parents, teachers, pupils and other people who have relationships with the schools want available online is still unknown.

To conclude: I have been given an okay to re-invent the way the school use the internet in general to function. Not a VLE