I have also completed and uploaded assessment 3 for this course. If anyone would like to check it out then please got to:
http://assessement3forfahe11001.wikispaces.com/
I will continue to add to this blog as I continue my degree but that won't be until I start again in a month or so, I am going to enjoy my holiday for now. So see you all next time, but feel free to check out my last effort for this course above.
Tuesday 17 January 2012
Digital Story Telling
Digital story telling is an amazing resource to have in a classroom. It allows teachers to gather a lot of information in one place and have it set in an engaging and fun format for students to access.
There are many places that can be used to make a digital story such as: - Photostory, Microsoft excel, moviemaker, Powerpoint and many others.
It is also a great resource for the students to use to present and give understanding to others about their learning. It offers them another outlet that can be manipulated in different ways to get their message across.
Here is an example I had created earlier using Photostory:
It is also important to keep up contact with people in the education fields and if in teaching in a high-school perhaps in your discipline area. Here are some links to contact and information from our moodle site, all of these are places I have gone already or come access wohile searching for information for this course:
Stephen's Web
eSchool News
elearnspace
Microsoft Education
The Learning Place
education.au Blog
Leigh Blackall's old Blog
Leigh Blackall's new Blog
Leigh Blackall's Latest Blog
The Learning Federation
Some other resource places are:
Learning Place
ICT Pedagogical Licence
Smart Classrooms Professional Development Framework
There are many places that can be used to make a digital story such as: - Photostory, Microsoft excel, moviemaker, Powerpoint and many others.
It is also a great resource for the students to use to present and give understanding to others about their learning. It offers them another outlet that can be manipulated in different ways to get their message across.
Here is an example I had created earlier using Photostory:
It is also important to keep up contact with people in the education fields and if in teaching in a high-school perhaps in your discipline area. Here are some links to contact and information from our moodle site, all of these are places I have gone already or come access wohile searching for information for this course:
Stephen's Web
eSchool News
elearnspace
Microsoft Education
The Learning Place
education.au Blog
Leigh Blackall's old Blog
Leigh Blackall's new Blog
Leigh Blackall's Latest Blog
The Learning Federation
Some other resource places are:
Learning Place
ICT Pedagogical Licence
Smart Classrooms Professional Development Framework
Wednesday 4 January 2012
week 8 extended e- learning
Here is the table I have made up of computing following the task for this week.
Using pedagogies for e - learning
In this topic I am still learning many things that are required of a teacher to compile and create lesson that will be engaging for students but still enable them to learn the material that is put to them. Personally I use Bloom's Taxonomy often as it is a thinking process that I follow unconsciously as do most people. It is also easy to implement in a lesson since most learning requires analyzing information, researching and thinking on what you have learned before presenting it to others. Also since I am in Computers using TPACK is a valuable resource as a pedagogy and framework to use. However I have found that incorporating other pedagogies and frameworks quite easy once you look at what it is you wish the students to take from the lesson. Such ones as de Bono's thinking hats is great to get people thinking in a different direction, especially if the class seems to be stuck on a certain aspect of a topic. Habits of Mind in another I regularly incorporate as most students if not the whole class can benefit from one of them. Such as letting the students know that a focus of the lesson will be using the Habit of Mind of Striving for Accuracy. Explaining the Habit of Mind and letting students explore it as part of their lesson will help many to strive for more in their learning. So far I guess I have learnt and understand to a degree that learning with technology is vital to students in this day and age, and will continue to expand and contribute to learning more and more as time goes by. Therefore it is necessary of educators to learn about it and how to use pedagogies to make ICT use integral to the students learning. As a student learning to become and computer teacher it is a given that ICT and its use will be and integral part of my lessons, however, it is important that I learn how to use ICT in a way that gives my students the learning that they need to complete the tasks in school and that will aid them in their learning journeys throughout their lives. E - Learning is an area that will expand for many years to come. At the moment more research is needed into what works well and what doesn't. However, in saying that much of teaching requires us to take on board many pedagogies, frameworks, ideas and concepts and plan lessons to the best of our knowledge and ability. Therefore it is important for all of us now in education or planning to be that we continually reflect on our students and their learning; that we take the best of our plans and lessons and expand on them. We need to not be afraid of trying new things and reading research or even being a part of a research project to improve the learning we provide.
| Information and Communication Technology – Year 9 | |
| Context Curriculum Sections | |
| Software and Programs | Unit focus: involves the understanding of; what program/software to use for an intended outcome; how to install programs/software; how and when to update programs/software; how to use different programs/software individually and together (sending project to other programs to add, manipulate work etc.); saving, moving and finding work and changing file formats when needed. This knowledge will be used to decide what is needed to create projects for class tasks and assessments and answer queries on modern technologies and their uses. |
| What does it look like? Students will… · Identify what is a program and what is software. · Be able to give examples of programs and software and their uses. · Understand what requirements are needed to run programs and software and how to check if their device meets requirements. · Be able to install, update, and remove programs and software. · Understand how to use programs and software of different media types and apply prior knowledge of program use to new programs encountered. · Identify file formats and when it is necessary change the format. · Raise questions concerning prior knowledge and usage of programs and software. · Explore new concepts and ideas concerning programs and software on their devices. · Connect their learning to real life activities they have taken part in and to prior knowledge of topic. | |
| What does it not look like? · No discussions taking place. · No questions being asked. · No computer use. · No mistakes being made to learn from. · No exploration and research of subject and topic. · No hands on application of learning. · No linking to real life activities. · No connection to prior learning. | |
| Hardware | Unit focus: involves the understanding of what computer hardware is; monitors, keyboards, tower and mouse for example. Understanding of what peripheral devices are; printers, routers and usb hubs for example. Learning about how to identify hardware, when it is needed and how to connect it to the main computing device –desk top or laptop for example-. Links to software and programs in learning how to install hardware objects once connected to main computing device. |
| What does it look like? Students will… · Understand what hardware devices are. · Locate and explain what different hardware devices are. · Be able to connect and install devices. · Locate and decide if a device is needed, for example uploading images from cameras. · Have hands on experience in setting up a desk top computer device. · Be able to access the hardware on the computer to ensure it is connected and working properly. · How to correctly remove devices from the computer without harming the device, the computer or any data on the device. · Discuss how devices have changed in look and use over the years. · Explain how they use devices in their own lives and have real life uses. · Use and expand their prior knowledge of the topic. | |
| What does it not look like? · No hands on activities and experience. · No discussions of the topic. · No chances for students to use their prior knowledge. · No opportunities to learn from mistakes. · No computers and hardware to explore. · No linking to real life. · No questioning of topic. | |
| Online use of websites and resources | Unit focus: involves the exploration of the internet and its’ content. Understanding how to find reliable and relevant information and content. Learning how to search and what engines to use to find information and content. What resources, information and content that is Education Queensland approved. Internet safety, personal safety and information safety. Security needed when creating online areas or joining sites. Internet protection software, for example virus programs and firewalls- their uses and how to set them up correctly. |
| What does it look like? Students will… · Be shown examples of correct and incorrect use of; the internet, searching for content, joining sites, uploading and downloading content. (unsafe practices will be shown with images and explanations and safe practices demonstrated) · Have discussions on the use of the internet at school and home. · Discuss prior knowledge and experiences of good and bad internet use. · Be able to go online and try search engines and advanced searches using for example Google scholar in finding quality content. · Access sites that can be used in assessment and class tasks safely. · Go through the steps of installing and setting up firewalls and virus protection programs. · Discuss internet safety and its’ impact on them and their lives at school, work and home- now and future implications of different internet uses on their lives. · Explore online learning capabilities for the class, such as places like Wikispaces to collect class information and works on a topic. | |
| What does it not look like? · No internet use. · No examples shown of the hazards of the internet. · No discussions to take place. · No learning how to keep themselves safe online or off with personal content. · No understanding of how the internet and its resources could be used to supplement and expand their learning in the classroom. · No chance to implement prior knowledge. · No relation between topic and real life experiences. | |
| Copyright laws and ethics in the off/online world | Unit focus: involves student understanding ownership of materials and copyright laws. Learning about common use options on material. Understanding why things should not be used- copyright but also the appropriateness of the material to be used in a project. Learning about target audiences and their preferences. Looking at where to go to ask permission for use of content that is copyrighted and where to go to access content that is not copyrighted and can be used legally. How laws and ethics are not just online but offline too and how it can impact on their school career if the rules are not followed. |
| What does it look like? Students will… · Research what copyright is and how to get it. · Look at sites that offer common use on material that is uploaded to them. · Find and Explore places that that offer common use materials for relevance for use in tasks. · Learn, understand and explain about plagiarism and the affect it can have of them and their schooling career now and into the future. · Learn how to apply for copyright on materials. · Understand how and why to reference materials used whether permission is given for copyrighted materials or for common uses materials or even for personal material such as a photo of a sibling for example. · Discuss and understand the why and what to use for what audience a project is for. · Understand and discuss what a target audience is and their wants and needs. · Look at themselves and how products are aimed at them and why. | |
| What does it not look like? · No computer and internet use. · No discussions to take place. · No exploring of material the topic is about. · No researching about topic. · No chance to use prior knowledge. · No self-analysis and research of advertising targeted at them for target audience understanding. · No relation to real life. | |
| Applications of programs | Unit focus: involves taking all prior knowledge and learning of this subject and combining it to create materials needed for class tasks and assessments. Utilises the understanding of programs, software and hardware and peripheral devices in the creation and completion of projects. |
| What does it look like? Student will… · Have access to and use different kinds of hardware and peripheral devices, such as; desk top computer, laptops, cameras, iPods, microphones, printers and many others. · Will be able to actively participate in collaborative learning and peer tutoring. · Have access to many programs and software to create and manipulate Medias, such as; Photoshop, PowerPoint, Illustrator, Paint, Audio convertors, Word, Excel and many, many others. · Have access to the internet and websites for both presentation and material download, such as; Wikispaces, Weebly, Cool text, Flickr, Picnik, bubbl.us and many, many others (only if it is able to be accessed with approval from Queensland Education) · Have class discussions. · Seek clarification on topics and outcomes. · Use multiple hardware devices, programs and sites to create a project or item. | |
| What does it not look like? · No computer access. · No hardware access. · No software access. · No internet access. · No room for creativity. · No room for student collaboration. · No questioning. · No class discussions. | |
| Care and Maintenance of Hardware and Software (programs). | Unit focus: takes place throughout the other components of this subject. Understanding of how to store, move, clean, install and update all hardware, peripheral devices and software, programs used in this subject and others used in different subjects or outside of school. Is a continuing learning topic but can be applied to new material with basics known. |
| What does it look like? Students will… · Have care and maintenance explained and demonstrated on each item as it is introduced to the student. · Demonstrate and explain care and maintenance and why it is to be done. · Be responsible for all equipment they use. (unless it is a problem above what is expected of the student, such as; server and school network problems and the dismantling of equipment for professional work) · Learn responsibility for items under their care. · Notify teacher of problems before attempting to fix them. | |
| What does it not look like? · No demonstration and explanations given before attempting care and maintenance of equipment. · Students attempting to fix problems that should be done be a professional. · Not understanding that responsibility of equipment falls to the student using it. | |
Overall I guess it can be said that E- Learning is only beginning and that we need to embrace it, learn it, try it, expand it and share it; to improve the learning of who will teach now and into the future.
Tuesday 3 January 2012
Week 7 SlideShare work
Here is my PowerPoint presentation of the life cycle of the butterfly. It is not a topic covered by my computers discipline but it was something easy to do I thought of. This was made in PowerPoint utilising Mouse Mischief add-on for some of the slides then uploaded to SlideShare and then embedded here.
Life cycle of a butterfly
View more presentations from amyd32.
The next step of the task was to upload an mp3 file of a narration of the presentation and sync it to the presentation in slideshare and then embed that also. However, I have spent the last 3 hours recording, converting and trying to upload and no matter how or with what program I convert the audio file with it will not upload and slideshare will not recognise the formats mp3 or otherwise.
Therefore there is only the above presentation and not the extra on with commentary.
This process though frustrating with the audio side of things not working was a good experience and one that requires the use of Bloom's Taxonomy to complete the task as, higher order thinking is needed to understand and complete the steps required to complete the upload and use of this site with PowerPoint. This type of task set up can also fall in to the TPACK pedagogy for the teacher to learn about and understand this technology before getting students to complete tasks.
The next step of the task was to upload an mp3 file of a narration of the presentation and sync it to the presentation in slideshare and then embed that also. However, I have spent the last 3 hours recording, converting and trying to upload and no matter how or with what program I convert the audio file with it will not upload and slideshare will not recognise the formats mp3 or otherwise.
Therefore there is only the above presentation and not the extra on with commentary.
This process though frustrating with the audio side of things not working was a good experience and one that requires the use of Bloom's Taxonomy to complete the task as, higher order thinking is needed to understand and complete the steps required to complete the upload and use of this site with PowerPoint. This type of task set up can also fall in to the TPACK pedagogy for the teacher to learn about and understand this technology before getting students to complete tasks.
Monday 2 January 2012
Week 7 Digital Learning Design
The first part of the tasks for this week was to search Wikipedia for information about our area of study for one discipline, and to make a list of resources that could be used.
My major discipline area is in computers, aka, information communication technology (ICT), sometimes it is also incorporated into business information technology.
1. My searches of Wikipedia did not lead to any useful pages that students would be able to be directed to in order to support their learning. Nearly all the pages I was directed to have inexhaustible information on schools around the world that have ICT classes available. Other pages included descriptors of what the Internet is and what ICTs are, some of these pages could possibly be used for students to access information. However, the information in these pages would be found in textbooks the students have or from other sites shown to students to collect information.
Personally in the classroom I would endeavour to have the students access Wikipedia and the information available there in the context on the subject. Doing this exercise I would be looking at the students using Bloom's Taxonomy for the taking in of information on the subject they are to be learning about, then researching and analysing information they find in Wikipedia and other sites. Then the information would have to be read and judged for relevance and ability to be understood; lastly the information selected by the students would be complied and presented to show their understanding of it; why some information was selected over others and their ability to get their peers to understand the information they collected in relation to the subject.
2. To make the information that students can access available to them in and out of school, I think the creation of a Wikispace would be best. Wikispaces as learnt about in other weeks would allow many types of media showing information on topics to the students. It also allows them to access the information at any time at school or at home and on different technologies such us desktops, laptops, smart phones or even Nintendo dsi and iPods. Using Wikispace to display topic information for the students with scaffolding (for individual or group tasks) also allows them to interact with the material; add or change content on the pages and lastly to leave comments on what is there.
3. Many of the pedagogies digital or otherwise can be implemented within ICT classes. Using Bloom's Taxonomy encourages the students to learn about a program/s and then to research it further, try new things out with the programs features and lastly to use higher order thinking to combine different programs and software capabilities to create a final product that can be used and viewed on multiply format devices. Habits of Mind can easily be used, for example: Striving to success, building confidence, team working skills, to encourage students to improve the abilities they already have in the area of technology. Many of the other pedagogies can be used such as; de Bono's thinking hats to look at what they know about a program/software and its application in a different way; or Dimensions of Learning to teach the students how to create a comfortable and safe learning environment for themselves and their peers when utilising technologies not just at school but outside of school also.
My major discipline area is in computers, aka, information communication technology (ICT), sometimes it is also incorporated into business information technology.
1. My searches of Wikipedia did not lead to any useful pages that students would be able to be directed to in order to support their learning. Nearly all the pages I was directed to have inexhaustible information on schools around the world that have ICT classes available. Other pages included descriptors of what the Internet is and what ICTs are, some of these pages could possibly be used for students to access information. However, the information in these pages would be found in textbooks the students have or from other sites shown to students to collect information.
Personally in the classroom I would endeavour to have the students access Wikipedia and the information available there in the context on the subject. Doing this exercise I would be looking at the students using Bloom's Taxonomy for the taking in of information on the subject they are to be learning about, then researching and analysing information they find in Wikipedia and other sites. Then the information would have to be read and judged for relevance and ability to be understood; lastly the information selected by the students would be complied and presented to show their understanding of it; why some information was selected over others and their ability to get their peers to understand the information they collected in relation to the subject.
2. To make the information that students can access available to them in and out of school, I think the creation of a Wikispace would be best. Wikispaces as learnt about in other weeks would allow many types of media showing information on topics to the students. It also allows them to access the information at any time at school or at home and on different technologies such us desktops, laptops, smart phones or even Nintendo dsi and iPods. Using Wikispace to display topic information for the students with scaffolding (for individual or group tasks) also allows them to interact with the material; add or change content on the pages and lastly to leave comments on what is there.
3. Many of the pedagogies digital or otherwise can be implemented within ICT classes. Using Bloom's Taxonomy encourages the students to learn about a program/s and then to research it further, try new things out with the programs features and lastly to use higher order thinking to combine different programs and software capabilities to create a final product that can be used and viewed on multiply format devices. Habits of Mind can easily be used, for example: Striving to success, building confidence, team working skills, to encourage students to improve the abilities they already have in the area of technology. Many of the other pedagogies can be used such as; de Bono's thinking hats to look at what they know about a program/software and its application in a different way; or Dimensions of Learning to teach the students how to create a comfortable and safe learning environment for themselves and their peers when utilising technologies not just at school but outside of school also.
Tuesday 13 December 2011
Reflective Synopsis
E-Learning constitutes all of the pedagogies, technologies and digital tools that can be accessed by educators to incorporate into lessons. It offers amazing opportunities for students to become engaged in lessons and new ways for them to express their learning to others.
It has been an exciting experience to participate in this course and learn about the different digital tools that educators are able to access. The amount of technology and digital tools that schools throughout Australia are now incorporating into their classrooms, and all the new technology yet to become available, makes studying to become a Learning Manager an exciting prospect. When thinking of what we are learning in this course and its' applications in the classroom, it is amazing to think of all the possibilities and opportunities that are becoming available to transform learning. I am now more eager than ever to get into the classrooms and share all this new information I have learnt with the students; and even more excited to see what; the students can accomplish with all the new digital tools; their enthusiasm to engage in their learning and explore what they can now accomplish.
In this new age of 21st Century (Appendix 1) learning it is important to remember that E-Learning is vital in classrooms as '... students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.' (Prensky, M. 2001) This is because as stated by Mark Prensky (2001) students of this era '... have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using computers, video games, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age'. Therefore, as an up and coming educator, I believe, it is vitally important for all educators to learn as much as possible about technologies, digital tools and learning theories (Appendix 2) to help engage students, support their learning and give them different options to express themselves. The importance of teaching students how to use all the technology at their fingertips is something that educators need to think of also. There are many ethical, legal and safety issues that students need to be informed of and shown how to work within.
The Wiki tasks of mobile phone use in classrooms and the practise quiz (Appendix 3) were interesting to do and my first experience using Wikispaces. Both tasks were well set out and easy to contribute to allowing for a lot of information to be gathered in one place on a topic. The task mobile phone (Appendix 4) use in the classroom using the de Bono's hats was an excellent learning experience. De Bono's Six Thinking Hats encourages the person using them to attempt to discover as much information they can about a topic as possible, while thinking about the topic in different ways. This scaffolded learning experience allowed me to see how using a constructivism learning theory (Appendix 5) approach to teaching can support learning by; allowing social interactions within a learning community, thereby having the students learn from their peers. This resembles peer tutoring which is also a great resource.
By contributing to this task I was able to learn from my peers and find new ways of thinking about a topic, even when the same thinking hats were used. The different perspectives on the topic questions were easy to access and comment on. Having all of the students' thinking and understanding of the topic in one place will allow me to; go back to it in the future and still understand what it is I am looking at; find information I wish to revisit and explore further; and if wanted contribute more ideas.
Group one tools consisted of creating a blog (Appendix 6), Wikispace (Appendix 7 blog post) and Weebly page(Appendix 8) (Appendix 9 Weebly blog post). All of the tools have merit and opportunity for use within a classroom. However, from my experiences of using them for the past few weeks, I personally think that Wikispaces has the most to offer. Wikispaces has the options of; allowing for collaborative learning; scaffolding and learning theories/frameworks to be applied; different media to be added and is easy to use and has security option features.
Wikispaces is a fantastic tool that allows multiple participants for collaborative learning, for example; collecting information (text), images, videos and sound/voice recordings of an excursion and class research into a topic. Once all the information is gathered and placed on the site, the link can be sent to either another class; school (even across the world); expert in the field or parents and have further information, comments and content added. It would also be a great way to allow students present their assessments.
My Wikispace can be accessed here: http://amys-managing-e-learning.wikispaces.com/
Group two tools were images, videos, audio and a combination thereof (Appendix 10). The most important of these in my consideration is images (Appendix 11). This is because no matter what types of media are used images are, always the main component if not at least a minimum part of any visual media. Students from Prep to Year 12 use and associate many things in their learning journeys with images. In fact most of everyones' lives consist of image recognition and processing. Magazines, books, textbooks, lectures, newspapers, television, movies, iPods and many, many more digital devices or older types of communication involve the use of images, whether static or moving and with or without sound.
There are many places to use and store images online or on a device and many things that can be done to them (Appendix 12 image manipulation blog post).
However, it is vitally important to research and understand the many rules in using them. Some of which involve; copyright, privacy, security, ethical issues and the permission needed to take and show some images (especially in schools concerning not just the students but any of their work also).
Group three tools consisted of presentation medias such as PowerPoint, Prezi and Glogster(Appendix 13). All of these have great uses in a classroom. The three mentioned are all presentation based. My favourite of the tools in this group is PowerPoint. This is because I am most familiar with it, having used and watched it the most. It is a tool that most people have had exposure to and know how to use.
Though Prezi, with its' zoom in and out feature is an interesting way to put across ideas, I consider it a tool more suited to student presentations then for use in lessons. Glogster is a great tool to use for students to compile information for presentation of their learning. It is essentially a poster - which all students have a fascination with creating - but allows for multiple media formats to be embedded into it. This creates a more interactive and visual aid for students to use to present their learning and saves all the mess of glue and glitter the enemy of teachers everywhere.
PowerPoint also has add-ons such as Mischief Mouse, which allows for multiple student interaction within the slides of the presentation. The educator can construct a lesson with PowerPoint and engage students by having them use a mouse - all students at once- to select answers to questions or, complete tasks on screen by, for example moving objects. What is possible with PowerPoint is limitless; it can be used as a tutorial feature for students who need extra help; as a whole lesson with use of add-ons if wanted; as a student presentation tool for tasks and a number of other things limited only by the imagination of the user. PowerPoint also supports the inclusion of different medias into the slides such as images, videos, text and music to name but a few.
Group four tools consisted of online medias such as Google Earth, bubbl.us and Zooburst. Though all these tools provide great support to lessons and tasks for students I have chosen to focus on an ICT tool, the iPod Touch (Appendix 14).
The iPod touch has been a great resource allowing for learning on the go and raising my engagement in my learning to a new level. I have been able to do everything I do on my laptop on the iPod touch, which has been a new experience and, one that has made me realise how valuable a resource they could be and in some cases already are in schools.
IPods are a less expensive cost for schools to acquire than new computers for all students. They have the option of students taking their learning outside and exploring their environments for answers instead of being stuck in a classroom. Since they are so portable learning can be documented and supported not just in school but on excursions and camps. There are so many applications that can be downloaded to the iPods to support and build learning for students and to provide limitless options for students to express themselves and their learning for tasks.
In conclusion I have come to the understanding that the use of any of the tools looked at and the many more out there and more yet to be invented is only limited by the imagination of the user. It is important as an educator not only to use and teach these technologies but, to allow the students to express themselves; their ideas, thoughts, knowledge and learning in ways they want to, when utilising these technologies. We as educators are not limited by how we could use them to support learning; so too should students not be restrained in their use of them to express themselves. I have discovered just how important knowledge of the digital age and all its tools are to the new generations of students that we will be required to educate. This is because we are educating them for a future that, none are sure of, nor the extent of technology they will be a part of to keep the world turning. As long as we are teaching about all the technologies out there it is also of vital importance that we teach them how to safely, ethically and legally use all this technology at their finger tips.
Everything that I have so far learned and attempted to express about digital tools and their use, has been stated by the Queensland Education Department (2008) with the explanation of, E - Learning:
Reference List
It has been an exciting experience to participate in this course and learn about the different digital tools that educators are able to access. The amount of technology and digital tools that schools throughout Australia are now incorporating into their classrooms, and all the new technology yet to become available, makes studying to become a Learning Manager an exciting prospect. When thinking of what we are learning in this course and its' applications in the classroom, it is amazing to think of all the possibilities and opportunities that are becoming available to transform learning. I am now more eager than ever to get into the classrooms and share all this new information I have learnt with the students; and even more excited to see what; the students can accomplish with all the new digital tools; their enthusiasm to engage in their learning and explore what they can now accomplish.
In this new age of 21st Century (Appendix 1) learning it is important to remember that E-Learning is vital in classrooms as '... students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.' (Prensky, M. 2001) This is because as stated by Mark Prensky (2001) students of this era '... have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using computers, video games, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age'. Therefore, as an up and coming educator, I believe, it is vitally important for all educators to learn as much as possible about technologies, digital tools and learning theories (Appendix 2) to help engage students, support their learning and give them different options to express themselves. The importance of teaching students how to use all the technology at their fingertips is something that educators need to think of also. There are many ethical, legal and safety issues that students need to be informed of and shown how to work within.
The Wiki tasks of mobile phone use in classrooms and the practise quiz (Appendix 3) were interesting to do and my first experience using Wikispaces. Both tasks were well set out and easy to contribute to allowing for a lot of information to be gathered in one place on a topic. The task mobile phone (Appendix 4) use in the classroom using the de Bono's hats was an excellent learning experience. De Bono's Six Thinking Hats encourages the person using them to attempt to discover as much information they can about a topic as possible, while thinking about the topic in different ways. This scaffolded learning experience allowed me to see how using a constructivism learning theory (Appendix 5) approach to teaching can support learning by; allowing social interactions within a learning community, thereby having the students learn from their peers. This resembles peer tutoring which is also a great resource.
By contributing to this task I was able to learn from my peers and find new ways of thinking about a topic, even when the same thinking hats were used. The different perspectives on the topic questions were easy to access and comment on. Having all of the students' thinking and understanding of the topic in one place will allow me to; go back to it in the future and still understand what it is I am looking at; find information I wish to revisit and explore further; and if wanted contribute more ideas.
Group one tools consisted of creating a blog (Appendix 6), Wikispace (Appendix 7 blog post) and Weebly page(Appendix 8) (Appendix 9 Weebly blog post). All of the tools have merit and opportunity for use within a classroom. However, from my experiences of using them for the past few weeks, I personally think that Wikispaces has the most to offer. Wikispaces has the options of; allowing for collaborative learning; scaffolding and learning theories/frameworks to be applied; different media to be added and is easy to use and has security option features.
Wikispaces is a fantastic tool that allows multiple participants for collaborative learning, for example; collecting information (text), images, videos and sound/voice recordings of an excursion and class research into a topic. Once all the information is gathered and placed on the site, the link can be sent to either another class; school (even across the world); expert in the field or parents and have further information, comments and content added. It would also be a great way to allow students present their assessments.
My Wikispace can be accessed here: http://amys-managing-e-learning.wikispaces.com/
Group two tools were images, videos, audio and a combination thereof (Appendix 10). The most important of these in my consideration is images (Appendix 11). This is because no matter what types of media are used images are, always the main component if not at least a minimum part of any visual media. Students from Prep to Year 12 use and associate many things in their learning journeys with images. In fact most of everyones' lives consist of image recognition and processing. Magazines, books, textbooks, lectures, newspapers, television, movies, iPods and many, many more digital devices or older types of communication involve the use of images, whether static or moving and with or without sound.
There are many places to use and store images online or on a device and many things that can be done to them (Appendix 12 image manipulation blog post).
However, it is vitally important to research and understand the many rules in using them. Some of which involve; copyright, privacy, security, ethical issues and the permission needed to take and show some images (especially in schools concerning not just the students but any of their work also).
Group three tools consisted of presentation medias such as PowerPoint, Prezi and Glogster(Appendix 13). All of these have great uses in a classroom. The three mentioned are all presentation based. My favourite of the tools in this group is PowerPoint. This is because I am most familiar with it, having used and watched it the most. It is a tool that most people have had exposure to and know how to use.
Though Prezi, with its' zoom in and out feature is an interesting way to put across ideas, I consider it a tool more suited to student presentations then for use in lessons. Glogster is a great tool to use for students to compile information for presentation of their learning. It is essentially a poster - which all students have a fascination with creating - but allows for multiple media formats to be embedded into it. This creates a more interactive and visual aid for students to use to present their learning and saves all the mess of glue and glitter the enemy of teachers everywhere.
PowerPoint also has add-ons such as Mischief Mouse, which allows for multiple student interaction within the slides of the presentation. The educator can construct a lesson with PowerPoint and engage students by having them use a mouse - all students at once- to select answers to questions or, complete tasks on screen by, for example moving objects. What is possible with PowerPoint is limitless; it can be used as a tutorial feature for students who need extra help; as a whole lesson with use of add-ons if wanted; as a student presentation tool for tasks and a number of other things limited only by the imagination of the user. PowerPoint also supports the inclusion of different medias into the slides such as images, videos, text and music to name but a few.
Group four tools consisted of online medias such as Google Earth, bubbl.us and Zooburst. Though all these tools provide great support to lessons and tasks for students I have chosen to focus on an ICT tool, the iPod Touch (Appendix 14).
The iPod touch has been a great resource allowing for learning on the go and raising my engagement in my learning to a new level. I have been able to do everything I do on my laptop on the iPod touch, which has been a new experience and, one that has made me realise how valuable a resource they could be and in some cases already are in schools.
IPods are a less expensive cost for schools to acquire than new computers for all students. They have the option of students taking their learning outside and exploring their environments for answers instead of being stuck in a classroom. Since they are so portable learning can be documented and supported not just in school but on excursions and camps. There are so many applications that can be downloaded to the iPods to support and build learning for students and to provide limitless options for students to express themselves and their learning for tasks.
In conclusion I have come to the understanding that the use of any of the tools looked at and the many more out there and more yet to be invented is only limited by the imagination of the user. It is important as an educator not only to use and teach these technologies but, to allow the students to express themselves; their ideas, thoughts, knowledge and learning in ways they want to, when utilising these technologies. We as educators are not limited by how we could use them to support learning; so too should students not be restrained in their use of them to express themselves. I have discovered just how important knowledge of the digital age and all its tools are to the new generations of students that we will be required to educate. This is because we are educating them for a future that, none are sure of, nor the extent of technology they will be a part of to keep the world turning. As long as we are teaching about all the technologies out there it is also of vital importance that we teach them how to safely, ethically and legally use all this technology at their finger tips.
Everything that I have so far learned and attempted to express about digital tools and their use, has been stated by the Queensland Education Department (2008) with the explanation of, E - Learning:
'...is about engaging the digital generation, improving individualised learning opportunities, sparking innovation in learning, enhancing teachers’ digital pedagogy and getting the best from schools’ ICT investment. It is a transformative strategy to transition from traditional ways of working to a digital way of working that is meaningful, engaging and connected. The challenge lies in shifting from teaching and learning about ICT to teaching and learning with and through ICT. This means rather than using technology to do old things in new ways, we want to do new things in new ways and use technology to enable and transform teaching, learning and the curriculum. Digital Pedagogy is defined as the convergence of technical skills, pedagogical practices and understanding of curriculum design appropriate for digital learners. Digital Pedagogy used effectively supports, enhances, enables and transforms teaching and learning to provide rich, diverse and flexible learning opportunities for a digital generation. It provides the basis for engaging students in actively constructing and applying rich learning in purposeful and meaningful ways. Digital Pedagogy enhances opportunities for authentic, contextualised assessment that supports learning in a digital context.'All that is now left for us, besides continually exploring ICT and digital tools for future use is, as mentioned in the quote above from Education Queensland; to start the journey of learning how to plan for the effective use of the technologies in our classrooms to benefit the learning of the students we will teach.
Reference List
Education Queensland (2008) Smart Classrooms Bytes. Retrieved from:
http://education.qld.gov.au/smartclassrooms/pdf/scbyte-elearning.pdf
Prensky, M. (2001) On the Horizon. MCB University Press. Vol. 9 No. 5. Retrieved from:
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20-%20digital%20natives,%20digital%20immigrants%20-%20part1.pdf
Monday 12 December 2011
Group 4 tool iPod touch
Uploaded by www.cellspin.net
OK so this is my last post besides my reflective synopsis. The above is a video of me talking about the iPod touch as my Group four technology since I was part of the research group for its' use in the Managing E-Learning course. I kind of waffled a bit I guess but effectively what I was saying is what a fantastic digital ICT tool the iPod was to use for learning. It helped to take my learning anywhere and I was able to do anything on it that I could do on my laptop. I think it is by far the best ICT tool for use in schools. Students as I am in its use, find it more engaging and fun to learn. It opens up so many possibilities for its' use in classrooms as it can utilise any of the tools we have looked at so far. The iPod is definitely something I would encourage the use of in lessons whenever possible.
Tuesday 6 December 2011
Group three and four technologies
For week 5 content we had to look at some more technologies that can be used in a classroom. The technologies looked at were Powerpoint, Globster, Prezi, Google Earth and some others.
This week there was alot of content to look at and though I did look at them all I have not been able to go into using them all fully. I have been having some trouble with my ankle this past week or so and have not been able to do as much as I would have liked.
Even so the technologies covered this week have been great to explore. I have realised that there are many technologies that I could show to students in order for them to learn new applications and techniques in utilising the technoloigies to express themselves in different ways.
The technologies looked at this week and the past few weeks have opened my eyes to the many experiences that I could work into lesson plans to give students more ways to access new information, learn from it and express themselves. The technologies offer many ways for students to express themselves in class tasks or assessments that print and writing do not allow for.
Students can now get their opinions, ideas, thoughts and knowledge across in so many ways using so many different kinds of media. Allowing students to do this would give them opportunities to get their thoughts across using images and animations; or sound and voice overs and a combination of other medias in a way that helps to express themselves that normal methods would not allow or that they may struggle to use to get their ideas across with.
One of the technologies I used this week was Powerpoint. I have used this program many times throughout my schooling, and have viewed many Powerpoint presentations. It is an easy to use program and can be used in many ways other than I have already done. One way is to create a whole lesson using it; including the use of images, videos and text. Another great tool for use with Powerpoint is the Mouse Mischief add-on that allows for interaction with students as a class. It is a great resource to use and is free and easy to embed into lessons.
I have also joined Slideshow which is a site that allows for the upload of Powerpoints and for them to be shared and even embedded into other sites like this blog that nornally you can not do. Here is the Powerpoint I created, again it is nothing spectacular and I only used some of the features not all that are available to use:
Powerpoint is a great resource for the classroom for both teachers and students. It is easy to use and allows for multimedia input into the presentations.
There are many rules for using Powerpoint to engage the audience it is directed at, as well as steps to ensure the presentation flows smoothly. Though many people have uploaded the rules of Powerpoint to the internet my favourite has alwasy been the following YouTube clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpvgfmEU2Ck
Another presentation type technology looked at was the Prezi. This is another great resource not just for students to express themselves but for the teachers to use to impart information on a subject. It is easy to use also and is fun to watch, although sometimes can induce a travel sickness. Here is a Prezi presentation I have created:
This week there was alot of content to look at and though I did look at them all I have not been able to go into using them all fully. I have been having some trouble with my ankle this past week or so and have not been able to do as much as I would have liked.
Even so the technologies covered this week have been great to explore. I have realised that there are many technologies that I could show to students in order for them to learn new applications and techniques in utilising the technoloigies to express themselves in different ways.
The technologies looked at this week and the past few weeks have opened my eyes to the many experiences that I could work into lesson plans to give students more ways to access new information, learn from it and express themselves. The technologies offer many ways for students to express themselves in class tasks or assessments that print and writing do not allow for.
Students can now get their opinions, ideas, thoughts and knowledge across in so many ways using so many different kinds of media. Allowing students to do this would give them opportunities to get their thoughts across using images and animations; or sound and voice overs and a combination of other medias in a way that helps to express themselves that normal methods would not allow or that they may struggle to use to get their ideas across with.
One of the technologies I used this week was Powerpoint. I have used this program many times throughout my schooling, and have viewed many Powerpoint presentations. It is an easy to use program and can be used in many ways other than I have already done. One way is to create a whole lesson using it; including the use of images, videos and text. Another great tool for use with Powerpoint is the Mouse Mischief add-on that allows for interaction with students as a class. It is a great resource to use and is free and easy to embed into lessons.
I have also joined Slideshow which is a site that allows for the upload of Powerpoints and for them to be shared and even embedded into other sites like this blog that nornally you can not do. Here is the Powerpoint I created, again it is nothing spectacular and I only used some of the features not all that are available to use:
Powerpoint is a great resource for the classroom for both teachers and students. It is easy to use and allows for multimedia input into the presentations.
There are many rules for using Powerpoint to engage the audience it is directed at, as well as steps to ensure the presentation flows smoothly. Though many people have uploaded the rules of Powerpoint to the internet my favourite has alwasy been the following YouTube clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpvgfmEU2Ck
Another presentation type technology looked at was the Prezi. This is another great resource not just for students to express themselves but for the teachers to use to impart information on a subject. It is easy to use also and is fun to watch, although sometimes can induce a travel sickness. Here is a Prezi presentation I have created:
Try out of Prezi for class on Prezi
The last of the group three technologies is Glogster for education. Again this is an easy to use site and is free. It is a great resource as it allows the teacher to add students to the account and then allows multiple input into an interactive poster that the class creates. It is a great tool to use to minimise the amount of information that students sometimes try to put into presentations. It allows for the ability to add images, videos and text. It lets student/s create a poster with interactive components and graphics. It is an amazing resource and one students would engage in easily. Here is a Glogster poster I have created:
Again it is not highly scholarly or anything just an example of what can be done with the site.
The group four technologies looked at included; animation and simulations, interactive learning sites, google maps and earth, Adobe Flash, online concept mapping, online timelines, Museumbox and Zooburst. Although I have have not had the time this week to create items with these sites and programs, most of them I have used before.
I have used Adobe Flash and Illustrator to create moving sprites for games to use in Gamemaker8 program, and bubbl.us to create concept maps for everything from maths formula usage to idea mapping for assignments. Google maps and earth I have used mainly last year when I was suck in northern Queensland during the floods to find a way home. Timelines (dipity), Musembox and Zooburst I have never used before but have gone and look at them.
All of the above mentioned group four technologies are great to use in classrooms. They create many ways for a teacher to plan and implement engaging and fun lesson for students. They also allow and even more myriad range of medias and technologies for students to use to express themselves in their learning.
My favorite of this week would have to be Powerpoint. It is a widely know and easy to use program that mostly everyone has access to. This program can be used by and for all school levesl from Prep to year 12. Now also with such add-ons as Mouse Mischief there are even more applications and uses for Powerpoint in the classroom. Some examples of using Powerpoint in the classroom could be to get the students to create a presentation about their school to be displayed as the welcome message on a monitor/tv in the administration building. It can be used as a quiz and help the teacher with answers in the presentation using Mouse Mischief. Students can use it to present information and images collected from excursions and camps to be shown to others. Teachers can use it to supply a whole lesson to a class. Older students can be taught how to use Office in preparing their presentation using the outline feature, and by using a concept mapping tool like bubbl.us to plan the presentation. There are many, many more uses for Powerpoint in a classroom beside what I have listed here, some others from websites are:
Again it is not highly scholarly or anything just an example of what can be done with the site.
The group four technologies looked at included; animation and simulations, interactive learning sites, google maps and earth, Adobe Flash, online concept mapping, online timelines, Museumbox and Zooburst. Although I have have not had the time this week to create items with these sites and programs, most of them I have used before.
I have used Adobe Flash and Illustrator to create moving sprites for games to use in Gamemaker8 program, and bubbl.us to create concept maps for everything from maths formula usage to idea mapping for assignments. Google maps and earth I have used mainly last year when I was suck in northern Queensland during the floods to find a way home. Timelines (dipity), Musembox and Zooburst I have never used before but have gone and look at them.
All of the above mentioned group four technologies are great to use in classrooms. They create many ways for a teacher to plan and implement engaging and fun lesson for students. They also allow and even more myriad range of medias and technologies for students to use to express themselves in their learning.
My favorite of this week would have to be Powerpoint. It is a widely know and easy to use program that mostly everyone has access to. This program can be used by and for all school levesl from Prep to year 12. Now also with such add-ons as Mouse Mischief there are even more applications and uses for Powerpoint in the classroom. Some examples of using Powerpoint in the classroom could be to get the students to create a presentation about their school to be displayed as the welcome message on a monitor/tv in the administration building. It can be used as a quiz and help the teacher with answers in the presentation using Mouse Mischief. Students can use it to present information and images collected from excursions and camps to be shown to others. Teachers can use it to supply a whole lesson to a class. Older students can be taught how to use Office in preparing their presentation using the outline feature, and by using a concept mapping tool like bubbl.us to plan the presentation. There are many, many more uses for Powerpoint in a classroom beside what I have listed here, some others from websites are:
- http://www.vickiblackwell.com/ppttemplates.html
- http://themes.pppst.com/backtoschool.html
- http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech013.shtml
- http://www.internet4classrooms.com/ideas_pp.htm
Powerpoint is a digital tool that covers many of the learning theories such as connectivism, behaviourism, social constructivism and cognitivism. It can also be easily used in the many learning pedagogies such as TPACK, Bloom's, Habits of Mind, Dimensions of Learning; by focusing on one aspect of the lesson or part of a task the students have to complete or as the lesson as a whole. Using Powerpoint allows for the teacher to change or implement aspects of the lesson to cover the learning styles of the students such as auditory, kinesthetic, visual easily and effectively as there are so many components to using the program and what can be added to it.
Though I have chosen Powerpoint as my favorite program there is no reason why any teacher implementing technologies into their lessons and classroom can not use all of the technologies we have looked at over the past few weeks or other as they become available. The use of technologies benefits not only students but teachers as well and create a more profitable learning environment for all concerned.
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