I have been trialing a concept in teaching and learning which I feel has great potential right across the education spectrum. I call it “e_lessons” and its uses are many and varied. Initially I am concentrating on Science but I hope to look at social subjects next in order to illustrate subject breadth. Last year I spoke to one or two teachers in the school about my idea for “e_lessons” and they were very enthusiastic. We began immediately to draw up plans as to how we could implement the idea. The basic tenet was that there was a need for software which exactly matched the curriculum. Specifically, I had thought of sections which would be either time consuming, dangerous (in terms of health and safety for students) or difficult to perform.

Further investigation showed that there was even greater flexibility in that “e_lessons” could not only be used in place of experimentation but also as a precursor to experimentation in order to illustrate the concepts involved, if the teacher so wished. There was also potential for revision purposes, for pupils absent at the time of experimentation, for tutorial work and many other areas besides. “e_lessons” takes the form of a CD containing an Apple QuickTime© Movie illustrating the section of the curriculum desired. This movie can run on PCs or Macs and contains written material for both teacher and student in portable document format (PDF) which can also be read on both platforms.

The content of the movie can also be used by a teacher in order to learn how to use the ICT equipment involved as well as with the children in order to show the experiment and desired results. The written material can be used by the teacher as part of the lesson or by the student as a tutorial working on their own at the computer. The variety of implementations is what gives “e_lessons” its strength. Teachers have endless choices in the way they use it and the student can use it again and again, stopping at specific points in the movie to strengthen their understanding of the concept involved. The idea of using a CD rather than DVD is the availability of computers in schools capable of using the software. Any computer with a CD drive will be able to use “e_lessons”. If you wish to find out more or wish to receive a trial copy of the software (Physics & Chemistry only at the moment, although I am working with Geography and also in discussions with Biology) then please contact me at St. Andrew’s High School. The CD is free to teachers in Fife.