In week 4 of the ICTs for Learning Design course I am completing, just after the instructions to set up this blog, we are then instructed to set up an aggregator to help us follow the hundred and something other bloggs being written by our fellow students. Now I thought I was confused before, and spent hours over several days sorting out this whole blog thing, and somehow (can't find it now) I already set my google account to automatically subscribe to any bloggs that I choose to follow. So when I moved on to this new instruction, I then doubted everything I had done and spent several more hours trying to confirm if I had in fact done the right thing in the first place! Talk about frustrated, confused and stressed! And I haven't got to the Wiki or Mahara yet!
What have I learnt from this experience? That when students are learning new skills which they have no or very little prior knowledge of, they need a lot of moral support, as outlined in Dimension 1(1) under the subheading 'Helping students develop positive attitudes and perceptions about classroom tasks' by helping them 'Believe they have the ability and resources to complete tasks'. This means I would provide my students with appropriate feedback, help them recognise the abilities they have to complete the task, and help them realize that part of their abilities include their ability to seek help. I also think that the subject 'Understand and be clear about tasks' that also falls under the same subheading mentioned above, is applicable in this situation. Working in a flexible study mode as I am is very different to the experience I can offer students in a classroom. By interacting face-to-face and reading the vibe of the room, I will be able to give clear directions as required, and immediately clarify any issues they have about the knowledge they need to have.
The other thing I have learnt is that bloggs could be a useful tool in the classroom. The teacher can encourage students to blogg on a particular subject and enable students to engage with one another, give encouragement to one another and open up new topics for conversation within that subject. For example, if a primary school is currently participating in the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Project (2), the students could blogg with other students in other schools under the same program. The students could share gardening tips, recipes or just talk about how their gardens are doing and inspire one another.
References
1. Marzano, R. & Pickering, D. 1997, Dimensions of Learning, Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning, Colorado.
2. www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au/
Monday, March 29, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
On Using Technology Without Understanding It at Beyond School
Before starting this course, I thought that using technology in the classroom would be limited due to the age the students I would teach (primary) and the fact that I would be working in small rural schools. Once I started the course and started looking around at the local school (it has more than a dozen interactive blackboards, thanks Kevin Rudd!), I was starting to worry if: a) I would be able to use the technology to its full potential with my very limited knowledge of it's capabilities, and b) if students would really be able to be engaged to learning in the real world through the use of this imaginary world. Now I know the value of the www for research and collecting data, and I understand that kids love playing with technology, but I do worry that these little people that are only just developing their interpersonal skills and their own codes of morals and ethics, are then encouraged to spend so much time in this other reality where it is very hard to be held accountable for your actions. I also worry that they will be so taken with the process of using the technology, such as moving things around on the board, playing with the colours etc, that they won't actually be focusing on the knowledge that is to be taken in and internalized. Hopefully these fears are just reflective of my ignorance of how technology is used in the classroom and I will be able to see the advantages of using it once I see it in action.
While looking through the beyond schooling website as suggested in our week 4 work for EDED20491, I found this article printed in a school newspaper that was written by a student who was basically saying that enough is enough with technology, that students need great teachers to inspire and guide them, not just activities to do online 'because that is what kids like to do'. She also highlights the fact that some students feel a sense of accomplishment when they have their assessment in their hands on paper, that hitting the send button on their computer just doesn't give them. I know exactly what she means. With my university studies, I also felt great when slipping that great wad of paper in the form of a report into the assessment box. When I was required to submit one of my assessments online, I felt sort of lost, and worried that maybe my lecturer didn't get it. I didn't have that feeling of "There it is, I've done it! It's finished and off to get marked!". The comments from other individuals posted in regards to this article are varied and very thought provoking. There are arguments from both sides and it gives us a lot to think about in terms of how and why we use technology in the classroom.
On Using Technology Without Understanding It at Beyond School
While looking through the beyond schooling website as suggested in our week 4 work for EDED20491, I found this article printed in a school newspaper that was written by a student who was basically saying that enough is enough with technology, that students need great teachers to inspire and guide them, not just activities to do online 'because that is what kids like to do'. She also highlights the fact that some students feel a sense of accomplishment when they have their assessment in their hands on paper, that hitting the send button on their computer just doesn't give them. I know exactly what she means. With my university studies, I also felt great when slipping that great wad of paper in the form of a report into the assessment box. When I was required to submit one of my assessments online, I felt sort of lost, and worried that maybe my lecturer didn't get it. I didn't have that feeling of "There it is, I've done it! It's finished and off to get marked!". The comments from other individuals posted in regards to this article are varied and very thought provoking. There are arguments from both sides and it gives us a lot to think about in terms of how and why we use technology in the classroom.
On Using Technology Without Understanding It at Beyond School
Saturday, March 27, 2010
New Tech Teaching Habits at Beyond School
I have been looking around the site 'Beyond School' as suggested by Scott in this weeks study guide and found this interesting page about how to use university lecture's and how to adapt them and make them applicabile for the classroom, and also how to use your ipod to help design your lesson plan. I find all of this remarkable! I am also quite proud of myself for working out how to post this link to my blog so I can share it with you!
New Tech Teaching Habits at Beyond School
New Tech Teaching Habits at Beyond School
Hello All,
To open this blog I feel that I need to give a brief description of myself and my learning journey to date.
As a child, I dreamt of being a school teacher, and started a Bachelor of Education in 1993 when I first left school. After 18 months of study, my family and financial difficulties combined with a lack of maturity led me to withdraw from the course, and onto a very different path.
For most of my professional life I have worked in the retail fashion industry. In 2003 I decided to start a Bachelor of Business with a Major in Marketing at CQU to enable me to work within the business development field. My idea was to travel to small rural communities and teach small business owners how to develop/adapt their businesses in the changing rural landscape. In 2004 I met a man, and the following year we married and had our first child. I continued to study while being a stay at home mother, and completed the degree in 2007, two months before my second child was born. For the next two years I focused on being a stay at home mother. After recently divorcing, I have done a lot of soul searching and have rediscovered the real me. I have decided to return to my dream of teaching.
In the last five weeks since starting this course, my perceptions and attitudes towards teaching, and the environment in which we teach, has changed drastically. As you can see from my previous experience, I have not been engaged in a primary school classroom for many years, and have not had experience with many of the modern technologies. In fact, I only purchased a computer and discovered the Internet in 2003 out of necessity to start my business degree. Now that was a steep learning curve, just like this one appear to be!
I am extremely excited about this journey I am taking, and am working hard to learn all of the knowledge and skills that will enable me to inspire and encourage all children to fulfil their individual potential so they can go on and live fulfilling lives. I look forward to documenting this journey on this blog, and hope we can learn from each other.
To open this blog I feel that I need to give a brief description of myself and my learning journey to date.
As a child, I dreamt of being a school teacher, and started a Bachelor of Education in 1993 when I first left school. After 18 months of study, my family and financial difficulties combined with a lack of maturity led me to withdraw from the course, and onto a very different path.
For most of my professional life I have worked in the retail fashion industry. In 2003 I decided to start a Bachelor of Business with a Major in Marketing at CQU to enable me to work within the business development field. My idea was to travel to small rural communities and teach small business owners how to develop/adapt their businesses in the changing rural landscape. In 2004 I met a man, and the following year we married and had our first child. I continued to study while being a stay at home mother, and completed the degree in 2007, two months before my second child was born. For the next two years I focused on being a stay at home mother. After recently divorcing, I have done a lot of soul searching and have rediscovered the real me. I have decided to return to my dream of teaching.
In the last five weeks since starting this course, my perceptions and attitudes towards teaching, and the environment in which we teach, has changed drastically. As you can see from my previous experience, I have not been engaged in a primary school classroom for many years, and have not had experience with many of the modern technologies. In fact, I only purchased a computer and discovered the Internet in 2003 out of necessity to start my business degree. Now that was a steep learning curve, just like this one appear to be!
I am extremely excited about this journey I am taking, and am working hard to learn all of the knowledge and skills that will enable me to inspire and encourage all children to fulfil their individual potential so they can go on and live fulfilling lives. I look forward to documenting this journey on this blog, and hope we can learn from each other.
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