By Dave Gibbs, Computing and Technology Specialist, National STEM Centre
You may have heard of micro:bit. If not, don’t worry, you will. Arriving in the hands of every 11-12 year old in the country during the spring term, it is BBC Education’s biggest project in 30 years.
The micro:bit is a tiny programmable device – a small computer. And it’s free.
This is great, but why should science and design and technology teachers care? Aren't computers the domain of the computing department?
Well, yes and no…
Yes, because the micro:bit is programmable with 4 different languages – something for every level of programming skill or experience. Yes, because the micro:bit ‘big drop’ will be addressed to the computing teacher who registered the school. Yes, because three nominated teachers will each receive their own micro:bit, and it’s possible they’re in the computing department.
But the appeal of the micro:bit is much wider than computing, and here’s why:
Firstly, the micro:bit has on board sensors that measure physical quantities, specifically acceleration and magnetic field strength and direction. This opens up a lot of opportunity for science experiments and for innovative design and technology products.
The micro:bit is expandable too. Along the edge are connectors that interface with analogue and digital inputs and outputs. Moisture sensors, motors, loudspeakers, switches, thermistors, light-dependent resistors and much more can all be connected using to a pair of crocodile clips.
But what about programming, which is included in the design and technology curriculum but not science? It couldn’t be easier, starting with drag-and-drop Blocks which looks very similar to Scratch. For the adventurous, Touch Develop, JavaScript and Python provide more advanced capability. The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have created some excellent Faraday Challenge resources for design and technology and cross-curricular projects, with example code to get you started.
Science teachers will be pleased to learn that the National STEM Centre has brought together computing and science specialists to create curriculum-linked resources that require no coding at all. The power of the micro:bit can be solely focused on science exploration without worrying about learning to program (although those adventurous tinkerers will have plenty of space to explore). Watch this space for these spaceflight-related goodies, released to coincide with Tim Peake’s mission to the International Space Station.
But is it complicated tow use?
- The whole system has been designed to be as simple as possible – very clever engineering (which you can’t see) has solved all the problems for you. It doesn’t need its own screen, keyboard, SD card etc, but simply plugs into a USB. No technical help required! The program files are written in the browser and compiled online, so no software needs installing. The resulting code files are simply dragged onto the micro:bit. A quick press of the reset button and away it goes.
- Don’t forget they’re free, and every Year 7 student will have one. That’s a lot of power in your classroom, for no outlay whatsoever.
So, now I’ve whet your appetite, I ought to share how you get your hands on a BBC micro:bit. The National STEM Centre, working with The IET and The Design and Technology Association (DATA), are bringing the micro:bit STEM roadshow to a venue near you. You’ll have hands-on experience and training with the micro:bit, and will take away subject-specific resources for the classroom. And if you work in a state school it shouldn’t cost you a penny, thanks to generous ENTHUSE Award bursary funding. So don’t hang around, book your place now as they are sure to fill up quickly.
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