Electronics CPD event for Teachers is “Excellent”
Following a successful pilot last year, the UKESF is continuing to work in partnership with the University of Southampton by supporting CPD workshops in Electronics, Computing and Physics for A-level subject teachers.
This month, 75 teachers attended courses based around the Music Mixer and Logic & Arithmetic circuit boards, taking the total number of teachers trained to over 100. The boards allow teachers to easily run hands-on practical sessions in core electronic concepts and computer arithmetic with digital logic (respectively), with classroom kits provided for their schools.
Jessica Rowson from the Institute of Physics, who has aided the UKESF in identifying schools to receive Music Mixer kits, said, “Thanks so much for the invite to the Music Mixer training day … it was clear to see from talking to the teachers how much they would value this equipment … wonderful project!”
Feedback from attendees has also been overwhelmingly positive, with numerous teachers highlighting the “excellent atmosphere, very friendly and helpful” and finding “the whole event very well organised and useful”. One attendee said the course was “one of the best teacher CPD events I have been to”.
On the resources themselves, comments included that “the circuit board is a brilliantly simple, user-friendly way of making circuit practicals simpler and easier, both for students to accurately carry out and for teachers to organise” and praised that it is “a really easy to use bit of kit that will be amazing in the classroom”.
Teachers, or organisations that would like to support the scheme as it goes forward, can register their interest in the project by joining Southampton’s Outreach Kits Mailing List.
“I think it’s a really good way of introducing students to something that has gradually disappeared from schools. It is not too daunting for teachers without experience to have a go at using, and it has the feel of ‘proper’ electronics for students.”
“For me, the most valuable part of the workshop was learning about the fantastic kits you and your talented colleagues have developed with support from the UKESF. I have already spent several enjoyable hours ‘perfecting’ my DJing skills to inspire my students at our next school disco! I am grateful for the sixteen Music Mixer kits that you, kindly, donated to my school. I intend to share them with my colleagues, with my A-level Physics and Further Maths students and with members of our Code and Science Clubs.”
“An excellent event! I felt well looked after and found it really interesting. I can’t wait to use my new bits of kit in September. Thank you.”