School News and Head's Blog
Posted on: 28/04/2023Weekly News - Friday 28th April 2023
TCS London Mini Marathon
What a wonderful occasion it was last Saturday when over ninety St. Helen's College children, parents and staff came together to run the TCS London Mini Marathon.
Very well done indeed to all of those who took part. We hope that you have all been inspired to keep running!
Huge congratulations are due to Mrs. Rumney from the Upper School office who completed the London Marathon on Sunday with a time of just under five hours. What an achievement! We are sure that pupils will be inspired by her efforts too.
Year 5 Residential Trip: Isle of Wight
It has been a fun-packed, educational and enriching week for our Year 5 children, who have spent Monday to Friday on their residential trip on the Isle of Wight. They have taken part in all sorts of thrilling activities and taken the opportunity to enhance their geography and history studies too. They return today tired and happy and, no doubt, with increased independence and pride in themselves for all they have achieved and experienced during the week.
Satips Art Exhibition
Thank you to all of the parents and children who attended the Satips Art Exhibition at The Royal Masonic School in Rickmansworth last Saturday. It was super to see the work of forty St. Helen's College children displayed alongside artwork from other prep schools. The work produced was of a wonderfully high standard and we are sure that you all took great pride in seeing your children's work exhibited in this way.
Chess Success!
Well done to Rohaym U (Year 4) who took part in the Delancey UK Schools Chess Challenge competition on Sunday and has successfully qualified for the Gigafinal! We wish him luck!
London Young Musician Award
Minaya W has won a silver prize at London Young Musician for her viola performance. London Young Musician (LYM) is an international online classical music performance competition for musicians under the age of 28 from all countries. The competition looks for talented musicians who have excellent musical skills, a strong personality and fantastic creativity. Very well done, Minaya!
Month End Music Recital
Congratulations to all of the children who performed at our Month End Music Recital this afternoon. We were very proud of you all for sharing your talents and hard work!
Year 2 Swimming
Our Year 2 classes have had a great time swimming at Hillingdon Sports & Leisure Complex this week and have certainly developed their water skills!
Now that all classes have completed their intensive swimming programmes for this year, we would like to urge parents to keep taking your children swimming regularly. Development of skills takes frequent practice and swimming is fantastic exercise and great fun, so please continue to take them to the pool often!
Coronation Celebration Day - Friday 5th May
On Friday 5th May we will celebrate the upcoming coronation of King Charles III here at St. Helen's College. Children should wear red, white and blue clothes to school and we will enjoy a special coronation-themed picnic lunch. 4T will present their class assembly on the theme and children are invited to take part in our crown competition.
Next Week
Following Monday's bank holiday, we are looking forward to another busy week. On Tuesday, our Year 2 children will visit Iver Nature Study Centre and the first of this term's parents' evenings will take place for Years 1 - 6 (from 4.00 - 7.00 p.m.).
On Wednesday, our Maths Quiz team will take part in their Quiz Club heat online and on Thursday our General Knowledge Quiz Team will compete in their semi-final, pitting their wits against teams from other schools from across the country.
Also on Thursday, our Year 3 children will set off for their first St. Helen's College residential trip to PACCAR scout camp and we will be holding our 'School at Work' Open Morning here at school. There will also be the information evening for the Year 6 residential trip to France at 6.30 p.m. in the Evans Hall.
On Friday we will celebrate the coronation with a themed day of activities and learning across the school (details above).
Summer School
We will be running Summer School this year at PACCAR Scout Camp for children in Years 3-6. Information has been sent out to parents today and bookings open at 12.00 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday 29th April). Please login to your SchoolsBuddy account to book your place(s).
Posted on: 21/04/2023Artificial Intelligence - What Is It And Will It Replace Teachers?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a disruptive technology with the potential to revolutionize education. It has the ability to process vast amounts of data, learn from patterns and make predictions, and perform tasks that would require significant human effort. While there are several benefits to integrating AI in education, there are also concerns about the negative impact it may have on students and teachers. This report will explore both the positive and negative aspects of AI and its impact on education.
Positive Aspects of AI in Education
1. Personalized Learning
AI has the ability to personalize learning for each student based on their individual needs and learning styles. It can analyze data on students' progress, strengths, and weaknesses to create a customized learning plan that suits their individual needs. This can help students learn more effectively and efficiently, leading to improved academic performance.
2. Enhanced Teaching and Learning Experience
AI can provide a more interactive and engaging teaching and learning experience for students. It can be used to create virtual simulations, educational games, and chatbots that can answer students' questions and provide instant feedback. This can make learning more fun and engaging, leading to better retention of knowledge.
3. Improved Accessibility
AI can help make education more accessible to students with disabilities. It can be used to create assistive technologies that can help students with visual or hearing impairments, or those with learning disabilities such as dyslexia. This can help ensure that every student has access to quality education.
4. Time-Saving
AI can automate administrative tasks such as grading, lesson planning, and student record keeping. This can save teachers a significant amount of time, allowing them to focus more on teaching and providing individualized attention to students.
Negative Aspects of AI in Education
1. Overreliance on Technology
One of the main concerns about AI in education is the potential for overreliance on technology. Students may become too dependent on technology to learn and may lose important social and critical thinking skills.
2. Ethical Concerns
AI may raise ethical concerns in education, such as privacy issues related to student data collection. There is also a risk that AI algorithms may perpetuate biases and discrimination, which could negatively impact students from marginalized communities.
3. Cost
Implementing AI technology in education can be expensive, and some schools and students may not have access to these resources. This could create a digital divide between students who have access to AI and those who do not, which could further exacerbate existing inequalities in education.
4. Job Displacement
There is a risk that AI may displace teachers and other education professionals, leading to job losses in the education sector. This could have a negative impact on the quality of education and the development of soft skills that can only be learned through human interaction.
Impact of AI on Education
Overall, AI has the potential to have a significant impact on education, both positive and negative. While there are concerns about overreliance on technology and ethical issues related to data privacy and biases, the benefits of personalized learning, enhanced teaching and learning experiences, improved accessibility, and time-saving outweigh the negative aspects. It is important to carefully consider the potential impacts of AI in education and to develop policies and strategies to ensure that its implementation benefits all students and does not exacerbate existing inequalities.
While AI technology has advanced significantly in recent years, it is unlikely that AI will completely replace human teachers in the foreseeable future. AI can assist teachers in various ways, such as automating administrative tasks, providing personalized learning experiences, and grading multiple-choice exams.
However, teaching is a complex and multi-faceted profession that requires empathy, creativity, and critical thinking, which are currently beyond the capabilities of AI. Human teachers are also adept at adapting to individual student needs and providing emotional support, which are crucial aspects of the learning process that AI is currently unable to replicate.
Furthermore, education is not just about transmitting information but also involves helping students develop social skills, collaboration, and creativity. These skills are best learned in a social environment with other students and human teachers.
In conclusion, AI can enhance and support the work of teachers, but it is unlikely to completely replace them. The human touch remains an essential aspect of education, and AI can serve as a tool to assist teachers in delivering personalized and effective learning experiences.
I trust that many of you found this blog informative and interesting. I wish that I could take credit for the content of it. However, the above report/blog was all produced by the ‘ChatGPT’ from a prompt which I gave it. I wonder if you noticed the American spellings and a different ‘tone’ from my other blogs?
Over the holidays I have experimented with the ChatGPT and I am eager to learn more about the use of AI in education. Your children are growing up in a new age where technology is moving at such a rapid pace. Many of us use AI in our daily lives without perhaps being aware of it. My working day commences with my use of facial recognition then Waze as I navigate my way to work the most efficient way using the apps on my mobile phone. Children are much more receptive to change and adapt to new ways of learning thus it is important that we as adults explore and investigate this new world of AI in education then share it appropriately with our pupils.
I would be most interested to hear your thoughts and experiences of AI in your workplace.
Ms Drummond
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