Blog posts about Education, CyberSecurity, Digital Citizenship, Privacy, InternetSafety, curation, PKM, PLN, blogging, Global Collaboration, Coaching, Collaboration, eSkills, eLeadership, Coding, MakerED, MakerSpace, Social Media, How to learn, learning to learn
WHAT gifts to buy for the kids for Xmas and Holidays?
Every year the same question, isn’t it!? WHY not thinking about to buy gifts from where and with that the kids will learn? It might be good to have a look on WHAT are the skills required for the future from youth, students, learners and upon that making your choice! Actually (2020) the trends are in the maker scene and coding scene! Engineers, coding people and ICT specialists are needed, the workforce, industry is searching!!
WHAT is the Coding Scene?
Coding is THE 21st Century skill. Coding enhances creativity, teaches young people to cooperate, to work together across physical and geographical boundaries and to communicate in a universal language. Technology is part of our life, and coding brings it closer to you!
Well, I started myself years ago as a NEWBIE in Coding and so I tried out different stuff, whereby I became a fan of ARDUINO. Here below my gift selection for Christmas (Xmas) which I recommend:
While reading my above tutorials, you will find ALSO more examples in my blog about “Coding with Arduino, etc.); stay tuned for next tutorials with LEARNingByDoing with FUN and PracTICE 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, Grove, Grove Beginner Kit for ARDUINO, Coding, Maker, MakerED, Maker Spaces, OLED, DHT11, Temperature and Humidity Monitor, I2C, SEEDSTUDIO, Robots, Robot car,
Once cut out you have made the BREAKOUT and in this case the two modules “OLED Display 0.96 inch” and “Temperature/Humidity” modules are ready to get connected to the main module. NOW we have to connect them through the delivered connection cables. Here below a picture:
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As you can see, the OLED-Module is connected to the I2C connector, while the “Temperature/Humidity-Module” is connected to the “D3” connector. See PIC below, please:
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SO WHY the “D3” connector for the “Temperature/Humidity-Module”?! Well, let us have a look on the code:
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As you can see in this shown part of the code, there is marked ===> “#define DHTPIN 3“, SO it should GET connected to the “D3-connector” on the main board! If you use “D4” or whatever connector, SO you should change the code from “3” to “4” and so on!!! Give it a try and play around with it for understanding 😉
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Temperature/Humidity on OLED Display | THE Code
Well, the two connections with the provided cables with connectors took ONLY a few seconds, ISN’T it? 😉 Let’s GO now to upload the code. Open your “Arduino IDE“, click on “NEW“, erase the few lines marked in there, make a “Copy&Paste” from the mentioned Code below and paste it in the “Arduino IDE (NEW)” and upload it, here below the code:
As you can see there is a “special” indication on the display, THE “Heat Index“, WHAT is it?! I encourage you to read my following tutorial which explains:
Have fun learning with PracTICE and stay tuned for next adventures of learning 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, Grove, Grove Beginner Kit for ARDUINO, Coding, Maker, MakerED, Maker Spaces, OLED, DHT11, Temperature and Humidity Monitor, I2C, SEEDSTUDIO,
SEEEDSTUDIO asked me through LinkedIn to make a cooperation with them for reviewing a NEW Arduino, the “Grove Beginner Kit for Arduino” product which I accepted. Today I received the stuff which in the next days I will play around a bit and create Blog posts (Tutorials) about it, stay tuned…
FIRST impressions:
I ordered it on 28-07-2020 on the site of SEEDSTUDIO and it arrived on 03-08-2020 @02H58 PM, delivered by DHL. Actually very quick from China to Luxembourg!!
Unpacking my order:
Nice cardboard with lots of TIPS printed on it. The box is sealed with 3 circular glued plastic which I had cut through with scissors, BAD IDEA, as I damaged the cardboard while NOT knowing that the box was meant as a whole playstation as itself (see photos, please)… Here the company could improve please, thanks! My constructive critics! 😉
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
Click image, please, to enlarge.
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As long as that glued plastic problem ISN’T resolved, use a sharp cutter to cut off the glued circular plastic as I couldn’t remove it by hand!
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Reading the online Manual
Well, NOTHING to say against it, it is well done!! Please check it here below:
There are professional STEP-BY-STEP instructions so you can’t make mistakes!!
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Getting started
ALL you have to do is to connect the USB-Cable to the PC, Laptop, which is in the right sight of the box (see step 2 in the PIC below please) to start. [Start Text from WiKi] Grove Beginner Kit for Arduino is one of the best Arduino Beginner Kit for beginners. It includes one Arduino compatible Board and 10 additional Arduino sensors and all in one-piece of PCB design. All the modules have been connected to the Seeeduino through the PCB stamp holes so no Grove cables are needed to connect. Of course, you can also take the modules out and use Grove cables to connect the modules. You can build any Arduino project you like with this Grove Beginner Kit For Arduino. [End Text from WiKi]
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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Plug and Play Unboxing Demo
The Grove Beginner Kit has a plug and plays unboxing demo, where you first plug in the power to the board, you get the chance to experience all the sensors in one go! Use the button and rotary potentiometer to experience each sensor demo!
Scroll -> Rotating Rotary Potentiometer
Select -> Short Press Button
Exit Current Demo -> Long Press Button
Buzzer and LED module are used for key prompt.
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Some examples
Please check the pictures below:
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Temperature/Humidity GROVE
Click image, please, to enlarge.
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Air Pressure/GROVE
Click image, please, to enlarge.
Air Pressure/GROVE
Click image, please, to enlarge.
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My review
Well, I can recommend this product for beginners by 100%!! Up from the beginning beginners can find out HOW things work with just plugging the USB cable to the PC, Laptop, computer. It’s a GREAT way to bring Coding to STEAM students, Maker’s, MakerED and Maker Spaces!
I didn’t yet using the Breakout possibilities, I DON’T overwhelm you with TOO MUCH information, that will GET discussed in next tutorials, BUT looks promising as NO need to plug single cables, ALL done by ONLY one connector!!!
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Please check the videos below to understand how the GROVE System works.
Let the learners first trying the working examples in the box to discover the possibilities! Later you can make the Breakout and then they can reproduce the Coding examples such as mentioned in the online manual.
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
Social Distancing Monitor, Arduino NANO and Neopixel Ring
We realized already several projects for Social Distancing with LCD and OLEDs ===> https://gustmees.wordpress.com/?s=social+distancing and this time WE will use a Neopixel Ring who changes the color from green to orange and then to red depending on how close WE come to the 2 metres.
WE will have a look on the video who inspired me and where you will find more information:
Copy and paste it into the Arduino IDE and have fun 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
Social Distancing Monitor with Alarm, Arduino NANO and I2C LCD2004 Display
In previous tutorial we were using an LCD1602 display, this time we will use an LCD2004 display which gives us the opportunity to display on four (4) lines. That enables us to display more accurate text.
The wiring is exactly the same as already mentioned in previous tutorial, there is ONLY to make a few changes in the code, please check:
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
Social Distancing Monitor, Arduino NANO and I2C OLED Display
In times of the Coronavirus-Crisis (Covid_19), it might be GOOD to respect the 2 meters distance to avoid getting infected!!! But not everybody can estimate distances, nor are ALL persons respecting the 2 meters rule!!! So came the idea to build an easy to realize gadget, which measures the distance when the 2 meters are not respected.
First of all, like usual, I was searching the internet to find out if there isn’t already such a project around. And YES, there is one; I found a tutorial with an Arduino UNO with provided code as well. Please check below:
In a previous tutorial WE were already using a “Social Distancing Monitor with Alarm, Arduino NANO and I2C LCD1602 Display“, check below please for revision:
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
I recently met some young female teachers, educators in a Restaurant and as I am a very social person I started in to a discussion: I love to talk to find out what persons are around me and IF from EDUcation, guess, I can’t STOP to talk about Modern-EDUcation, Modern Pedagogy and for sure about Modern-Learning (THE MOST important for ME!).
Whiles the discussion was going on, THEY asked me my age and my function. THEY were surprised to know that first that I am retired (nearly 65 years old) and about my knowledge ABOUT Modern-EDUcation, Modern Pedagogy and for sure about Modern-Learning!! THEY asked me how that could be possible that I have MORE knowledge about it as THEM as THEY got the latest knowledge from Universities, according to THEIR diplomas… THEY heard (they were informed…) about the new, BUT WHEN I told them THAT I was using it ALREADY in 2002-2003 as an innovation in my country Luxembourg, they were perplex!!!
Well, looks like Universities are NOT YET UP-To-Date then?! I explained THEM that I am an “Autodidact” and a Life-Long-LEARNing person and that I made my “Professional Development” MOSTLY on my own!! SO, I could LEARN on my own pace with my personal LEARNing-Concept, check below please for more:
I told THEM ALSO, that soon THEY will GET used to Coding, programming as THIS is part of the National Strategy of #DigitalLuxembourg and #Digital4EDUcation, there THEY were skeptic about it, BUT today (06 February 2020) the Ministry released it:
When I was asking IF THEY were present on Social-Media Twitter, YES I have an account BUT… Well, THEY didn’t see the interest really in it and I gave THEM my Twitter account to follow to find out about the How-To one could do it ===> @Knolinfos. Please check ALSO my Blog post below:
Well, enough talked; BTW a week later I had some more followers from Luxembourg (NOT using a VPN…)… WHAT is a VPN actually? Please check below my Curation:
A certain moment we came up ALSO to talk about civilized behavior, OMG THEY told me!!! I was telling my experiences with a Bus-STOP 30 cm in front of the entrance of the house and one told me that she knows very well such an experience because of her grand father!!! Please check below my video about it to understand WHAT actually is going on:
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Concerning the behavior, I will create later another blog, stay tuned 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure).
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Autodidact, Knowledge, Professional Development, Life-Long-Learning, Curation, Blogs, PKM, PLN, Professional Knowledge Management, Personal [Professional] Learning Network, retired, behavior,
Valentine’s Day is around: GET creative with an LED Matrix and an Arduino!
[Start Text Wikipedia] Valentine’s Day, also called Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine,[2] is celebrated annually on February 14. Originating as a Western Christian feast day honoring one or two early saints named Valentinus, Valentine’s Day is recognized as a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of romance and romantic love in many regions around the world. [End Text Wikipedia]
A tradition worldwide around is to give flowers to his loved one, so WHY NOT ALSO a small electronic device which shows a heart on a LED Matrix?!! It is NOT expensive and gives a certain “special” feeling to your loved one 😉 And ALSO, I give you the “ready code” to start it straight on. You don’t need to create the “Heart Character” before, BUT I will give you ALSO the link to the tutorial who explains very well the How-To!
Please check below the tutorials with the wiring and the code:
All you need now is to bring it into a box for a nicer presentation and to give it as a gift to your love!
Secret tip: Use as well a LCD with scrolling text, where you can program then a special personal text message for your love. Please check my tutorial below:
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, LCD 1602, I2C Bus, coding, learning to learn, learning by doing, LED Matrix, Valentine’s Day, Character Generator for LED Matrix,
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
Through the Maker-Movement and IoT (Internet of Things) there is already a LOT happening and different Networks are collecting Data through Sensorsand make them available for everybody to have access and study them! Such sensors are e.g.:
Air Quality
Meteo
Street traffic
Radiation
People (counter) traffic
Water Quality
Wind velocity
Radar for excess of car speed
Inundation prevention
Observations on:
Nature (birds, etc.)
Archaeology discovering
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Those, above mentioned applications can even be assembled together and so being a precious source for communes and Governments! Mostly such projects are done with an ARDUINO and/or Raspberry PI based micro controller and a mini computer: The main difference between them is Arduino is microcontroller board while Raspberry PI is a mini computer.
Thus meaning: that fits perfect for the Maker-Movement and could GET integrated easily into STEM projects!
Well, after following for a long time different possibilities on the How-To to get globally access to such IMPORTANT Big-Data for everyone, I found out THAT “The Things Network” is a perfect way! Please find below the address and the projects:
Key words necessary for me to create this blog post: CitiZEN-Science, STEM, MakerED, Maker-Spaces, PracTICE, LEARNing-By-Doing, TTN, The Things Network, Arduino, Raspberry PI, LoraWAN, SigFox (Low Power consumption…)
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure).
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
CitiZEN-Science: WHAT is it and is it worth to follow?!!
[Begin Text Wikipedia]:
Citizen science (CS; also known as community science, crowd science, crowd-sourced science, civic science, volunteer monitoring, or online citizen science) is scientific research conducted, in whole or in part, by amateur (or nonprofessional) scientists.[1] Citizen science is sometimes described as “public participation in scientific research,” participatory monitoring, and participatory action research whose outcomes are often advancements in scientific research, as well as an increase in the public’s understanding of science.[2][3] Based on Alexa rankings[4]iNaturalist is currently the most popular citizen science website[5] followed by eBird[6] and then Zooniverse[7] in second and third place respectively.
[End Text Wikipedia]
Find below a GREAT article, who explains very well:
[Begin Text SciStarter]:
As we face global challenges, we may want to find local ways to make a difference in protecting endangered species, safeguarding water sources, preventing disease, or accelerating medical research. Science needs more eyes, ears and perspectives than any scientist possesses. Enter citizen science: a collaboration between scientists and those of us who are just curious or concerned and motivated to make a difference. People just like you are collecting data by taking photos of clouds or streams, documenting changes in nature, using smartphone sensors to help scientists monitor water and air quality, or playing games to help advance health and medical research. A citizen science project can involve one person or millions of people collaborating towards a common goal. Typically, public involvement is in data collection, analysis, or reporting.
There are thousands of opportunities to participate in this movement that’s sweeping the globe! Find them on SciStarter.org .
[End Text SciStarter]:
Well, I don’want to say much more about this, apart that I back it up! I find it extremely interesting and it should get used in schools as it would certainly make students interested into Science.
As far as I know, it is ALSO used in a school in my country Luxembourg:
Key words necessary for me to create this blog post: CitiZEN-Science, STEM, MakerED, Maker-Spaces, PracTICE, LEARNing-By-Doing,
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure).
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
Check my #curation to find best articles, blogs and courses about #education #itsecurity #CyberSecurity #EdCollCoach #GlobalEDU #cyberbullying, #AR #RA #augmentedreality #health #science #QR #qrcodes in EN, FR, DE…
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Coding is THE 21st Century skill. Coding enhances creativity, teaches young people to cooperate, to work together across physical and geographical boundaries and to communicate in a universal language. Technology is part of our life, and coding brings it closer to you!
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure)..
EDU: Digital CitiZENship, CyberSecurity, eSkills, Modern EDU by Gust MEES 