West Downs 9
Chair: Terry Freedman
Time 9.35 – 10.35

What digital skills teachers need and how to make full use of digital tools across the curriculum are not separate agendas – they are inextricably linked. The theory of affordance, or what objects in the world provide or furnish for us, suggests that the needs of individual educators directly drive which digital tools are most appropriate for their use in any single context.

This session will report on an ongoing initiative, currently being trialled in schools, that has produced a series of tools and techniques to help educators discover which digital tools are most appropriate for their needs. By first discovering their own level of TPK, or Technological Pedagogical Knowledge, mapped against six dimensions of teaching and learning, teachers can plan not only for ways in which to develop their digital skills but also discover the most appropriate, or apt, digital tools to suit that development.

Based on doctoral work at the University of Exeter, the underlying APT methodology will be described and presented, along with the TPK quiz, dimensions models of teaching practice and Tech Trumps which describe the affordance of digital apps. Attendees are encouraged to critique the approach, offer suggestions as to ways in which the APT methodology might be trialled further in schools, and discuss how this approach might raise aspirations for digital education.

Catalysed was founded in 2016, and is run and managed by Dr Richard Osborne whose doctoral research laid the foundations for the business. At the heart of the Catalysed approach is the APT methodology created by Dr Osborne, shorthand for the Alignment of Pedagogy and Technology.

Catalysed is a not for profit limited company based in the South West of the UK. The company is fully insured for both public liability and professional indemnity.

Dr Osborne has almost 30 years experience in commerce and education, working in fields as diverse as defence, management consultancy, the Internet and both secondary and higher education. He holds a doctorate in Educational Technology and a PGCE in Secondary Science from the University of Exeter, masters level qualification in User Experience from the Open University and a BSc in Psychology from University College London. He is a Professional Affiliate of the Chartered College of Teaching.