London Monopoly Challenge 2011

Craig Charteris, head at Trinity Lower School in Aldwicle, came up with an idea for a Monopoly-style, techno-challenge around London after watching an episode of the Gadget Show one weekend. I was minding my own business but was run over by Craig’s ideas bandwagon. This collision of creativity and chaos has resulted in the Northants BLT Monopoly Challenge 2011.

The Northants BLT Monopoly Challenge is designed for teachers and pupils to explore the opportunities offered by mobile and internet technologies to enhance learning before, during and after an educational visit. It should hopefully demonstrate both the scope and limitations of using a range of technologies in such contexts.

Every out-of-school visit is traditionally founded upon a pre-visit to a destination to assess the potential risks and gather the worksheets to keep the pupils occupied during the visit proper. Re-imagineering the concept of the ‘pre-visit’ is also a goal of the BLT Monopoly Challenge. A pre-visit could perhaps be more a practical CPD or action research opportunity combined with a chance to put ourselves in the pupils’ shoes and experience a trip from their viewpoint. Then perhaps we would be more inclined to remove the worksheets from the itinerary and explore what technologies might  be used instead to capture, collaborate broadcast and celebrate learning on and from a school trip.

The pre-visit is taking place next Friday. Let’s see how many worksheets we can avoid making…