TEKTELIC brings the latest Smart Technology into Classrooms

A world-leading initiative that brings the latest smart technology into classrooms has been launched to help pupils prepare for a data-driven future.

Primary and secondary classes across southeast Scotland will learn how to interpret reams of statistics produced by sensors tracking environmental conditions in their schools.

The scheme, backed by the UK and Scottish Governments, will introduce pupils to the so-called Internet of Things (IoT) – networks of devices capable of collecting and exchanging a vast range of data.

Learning how to make sense of the data will not only enable pupils to improve their school environment but also equip them to navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape. It will also help to prepare them for work in new data-driven industries.

Data Learning

Classroom sensors that gauge CO2, temperature, humidity, air pressure, and light levels will be offered to all 550 schools. Some of the schools involved in the £9.5 million project will also receive outdoor air quality monitors, soil moisture sensors, and weather stations.

Each device will be linked to a high-performance computer at the University of Edinburgh where the raw data will be converted into graph form, which pupils can readily access. This prime example of the IoT in action means that pupils – accessing graphs on laptops, tablets, or a PC – can make informed decisions that will help create optimum learning conditions in class.

Sensor readings might suggest, for instance, that improving oxygen or light levels in a classroom would boost pupils’ alertness during lessons. Outside of the class, analysis of playground air quality might highlight that steps should be taken to reduce levels of exhaust fumes at the school gate.

Classroom Solutions

Whatever the individual gains, according to the project’s leaders, the overall aim of the IoT project is to help the pupils of today become the data citizens of tomorrow. The IoT project has been piloted at two Midlothian schools – Roslin Primary and Newbattle High – is part of a wider Data Education in Schools program.

So far, pupils and teachers at Roslin and Newbattle have worked with engineers, data educators, and technologists to design a range of classroom solutions. Now the project will extend to every school in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife, and the Scottish Borders. Support will be available to pupils and teachers through the Data Education in Schools Team at the University.

Boosting skills

The IoT project is being funded as part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. The Deal, announced in 2018, aims to drive growth across the region and includes investment in skills and employability, transport, housing, innovation, and culture. A key objective of the £1.3bn Deal is to make Edinburgh & South-East Scotland the ‘Data Capital of Europe’. Professor Judy Robertson, Chair of Digital Learning at the University of Edinburgh, says data skills development is relevant across all curriculum areas, topics, and themes.

With a bombardment of information – swelled by smartphones, social media, and online selling – comes a demand for meaningful analysis, which the program is seeking to address. Equipping tomorrow’s workforce so it can meet that need will, Professor Robertson says, drive economic growth and aid game-changing research that tackles real-world challenges.

Picture credits: Neil Hanna

Source: https://www.ed.ac.uk/news/2021/ps9-5m-project-gives-pupils-a-sense-of-data-power