Based on no actual expereince in the classroom, and currently no access to them, I am going to give a synopsis of how I would use Blogs in a classroom.
Each day, I would organise a group activity that the class would tackle together. It could be a discussion about a current news item, or a task that they were required to do some simple research on and collabrate with each other. At the end of each day, students would be asked to post reflections about the particular task to their individual Blogs. Once a week, time would be allocated for students to, through their RSS aggregators/readers, view other students blog postings and post academic opinions/replies to their peers postings. This gives students the opportunity to understand how differently individuals may interpret information.
To ensure that these Blogs are not used for Cyber bullying, they would, of course, be monitored by myself ( their teacher) using an RSS aggregator. At the beginning of the term students would be given information on lawful and ethical use of these ICT's and also informed about Netiquette. Students would be made aware that, should they break any of these rules by posting unlawful or unethical comments to thier own or their peers Blogs, they would be asked to explain their actions to avoid instant failure. Any bullying that is discovered would result in instant failure of the course.
In one of my peers blogs, it was stated that their teaching community had decided not to use blogs as it may result in opening the students up to bullying. I disagree with this action. It seems to me that there may be a lack of understanding of these ICT's on the teachers part, and therefore they chose not to use them. This is detrimental to their students education. Throughout the learning journey within this course, I have found more and more evidence that the teaching community today needs to have a little more faith in our students. Yes, students can be cruel and bully their peers. But this happens in all types of environments. It happens on the oval at lunch time, but you don't see teachers banning the oval? Banning the source of the problem does not fix it, it simply ignores it. In my opinion the benefits of using the technologies positively outweigh the disadvantages. The only way to approach cyber bullying, or any other issues that arise with the use of ICT's, is to properly educate our students about the repocussions of their actions. By implementing these ICT's into the students curriculum, "they also learn many skills associated with team work and cilent interaction that are often not taught in courses" ( Kearsley and Shneiderman, 1999) In my opinions stated above, I certainly do not want to portray that Cyber bullying, or any bullying for that matter, are not very real and important issues for our classrooms today. However, using these issues as reasons or excuses not to implement ICT's in a classroom seem, to me, to be the wrong decision.
References
Kearsley, G. & Shneiderman, B. (1999) Engagement Theory: A framework for technology based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 4, 2009, from http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm
Monday, August 17, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Slideshare
Slideshare is another site that has excellent potential. This site was easy to use, and caters for PowerPoint presentations, Word Documents and Pdf Portfolios. This site would be a great tool for teachers to use to save documents for their curriculum, thus saving valuable time.
Using this tool "Individuals & organizations upload presentations to share their ideas, connect with others, and generate leads for their businesses. Anyone can find presentations on topics that interest them. They can tag, download, or embed presentations into their own blogs & websites." (Slideshare, 2009)
This site has the ability to connect students and teachers around the world. In the report, Effective use of information and communication technology (ICT) to enhance learning for disadvantaged school students, it is stated that "ICT's provide new modes of communication to network locally and globally" (Blackmore et al, 2003) Slideshare is giving our students the opportunity to work collaboratively with each other from different sides of the globe. This would be a great way to teach our students about how their environment may impact on how they learn. A task could be set for students to search for a presentation on a particular topic that is put together by a student from a different country and culture. They then search for another presentation on the same topic, but this time the author would be from a different country or culture again. What would the differences be? I assume the basics would be the same, however, perhaps the pieces of information that would be the main focus for a presentation from one culture would be completely opposite in another culture. Students could find that certain age groups are more advanced or less advanced educationally in different cultures and as a result of this finding, they could explore what factors influence this. These kind of activities give our students a great opportunity to understand different cultures and their influences. Something that I think is a crucial lesson for all to learn.
References
Slideshare - http://www.slideshare.net. Retrieved August 14th, 2009
Blackmore, J., Hardcastle, L., Esme, B., & Janet, O. (2003). Effective use of information and communication technology to enchance learning for disadvantages students. Commonwealth of Australia. Retreived August 14th, 2009, from http://www.dest.gov.au/sectors/school_education/publications_resources/profiles/effective_use_technology_enhance_learning.htm
Using this tool "Individuals & organizations upload presentations to share their ideas, connect with others, and generate leads for their businesses. Anyone can find presentations on topics that interest them. They can tag, download, or embed presentations into their own blogs & websites." (Slideshare, 2009)
This site has the ability to connect students and teachers around the world. In the report, Effective use of information and communication technology (ICT) to enhance learning for disadvantaged school students, it is stated that "ICT's provide new modes of communication to network locally and globally" (Blackmore et al, 2003) Slideshare is giving our students the opportunity to work collaboratively with each other from different sides of the globe. This would be a great way to teach our students about how their environment may impact on how they learn. A task could be set for students to search for a presentation on a particular topic that is put together by a student from a different country and culture. They then search for another presentation on the same topic, but this time the author would be from a different country or culture again. What would the differences be? I assume the basics would be the same, however, perhaps the pieces of information that would be the main focus for a presentation from one culture would be completely opposite in another culture. Students could find that certain age groups are more advanced or less advanced educationally in different cultures and as a result of this finding, they could explore what factors influence this. These kind of activities give our students a great opportunity to understand different cultures and their influences. Something that I think is a crucial lesson for all to learn.
References
Slideshare - http://www.slideshare.net. Retrieved August 14th, 2009
Blackmore, J., Hardcastle, L., Esme, B., & Janet, O. (2003). Effective use of information and communication technology to enchance learning for disadvantages students. Commonwealth of Australia. Retreived August 14th, 2009, from http://www.dest.gov.au/sectors/school_education/publications_resources/profiles/effective_use_technology_enhance_learning.htm
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Sharing beautiful music.
INCOMPETECH is a brilliant site. I was so glad to be introduced to this site. I would certainly use the music from this site in my teaching. Throughout this course, I have found that technology can often be so impersonal and perhaps unemotional. I would use the music from this site to remind my students of the range of emotions that can be sparked by a simple melody. I hope I am not being old fashioned here, because I am certainly all for moving forward and using all of these new technologies, however I would like to think that people could still be moved by music. I would teach my students exactly that, that different tunes and melodies can spark significant changes in our emotions. To do this, I would chose an emotional scene in a current and popular film and have my students watch this particular scene as it is normally, and then again with the sound turned down, or even with a complete opposite style of music, and ask them about how it made them feel each time they watched it. I would then set them a task of creating a presentation of their choice, using music from a site like INCOMPETECH in the background to spark emotions and moods. I believe that this puts a bit of a personal touch on a sometimes very impersonal world.
I chose two pieces from the range provided. They are two contemporary pieces and are complete opposites of each other. One is called Wounded and the other is Eternal Hope. I chose the two pieces based on what I have outlined above, that they may spark two opposite emotions in the listener. I would recommend you listen to them at the first chance you get.
References
INCOMPETECH - Retrieved August 15, 2009, from http://incompetech.com/
I chose two pieces from the range provided. They are two contemporary pieces and are complete opposites of each other. One is called Wounded and the other is Eternal Hope. I chose the two pieces based on what I have outlined above, that they may spark two opposite emotions in the listener. I would recommend you listen to them at the first chance you get.
References
INCOMPETECH - Retrieved August 15, 2009, from http://incompetech.com/
MediaFire
"This seems like a very useful site for individuals, however I am not so sure how relevant it would be to the classroom." This is the original thought that ran through my head when I first discovered this site, however, the more I thought about it, the more useful it became. This site is another simple and easy way of being able to share information with people, which excites me. I am still blown away at the possibilities and opportunities that arise from simply switching on my computer and clicking on connect! Forget emails and attachments, (which I almost always forget to actually attach), by using this site, you can share files and images with a large group of people with ease.
My thoughts are that we should certainly show our students that these types of sites exist and that they may be useful for them to use in future assignments etc, however I can't help but focus on the point that these sites are also extremely useful for teachers helping teachers. My understanding is that at the moment, a change is happening. Teachers may be starting to realise that they need to connect with their students in different ways. As I have stated in earlier postings, I believe that by teachers working together, this can be achieved. Using a site like MediaFire is yet another way that teachers can help each other out by sharing information, and by doing it using the technology that is responsible for the change to begin with. As I have had no direct teaching experience, I apologise if my thoughts or opinions are naive, but I do hope that my thoughts and opinions on how teachers approach teaching become a reality, if not already. Click here to see my file.
References
MediaFire - Retrieved August 15, 2009, from http://www.mediafire.com/
My thoughts are that we should certainly show our students that these types of sites exist and that they may be useful for them to use in future assignments etc, however I can't help but focus on the point that these sites are also extremely useful for teachers helping teachers. My understanding is that at the moment, a change is happening. Teachers may be starting to realise that they need to connect with their students in different ways. As I have stated in earlier postings, I believe that by teachers working together, this can be achieved. Using a site like MediaFire is yet another way that teachers can help each other out by sharing information, and by doing it using the technology that is responsible for the change to begin with. As I have had no direct teaching experience, I apologise if my thoughts or opinions are naive, but I do hope that my thoughts and opinions on how teachers approach teaching become a reality, if not already. Click here to see my file.
References
MediaFire - Retrieved August 15, 2009, from http://www.mediafire.com/
Thursday, August 13, 2009
WebQuests = Life Long Learners
I am not 100% confident that I understand WebQuests, however, the following post will be based on my understanding.
After reading about the WebQuests, I concluded that a WebQuest is a task created by a teacher using various Internet resources. They do not have one single solution, as they are designed to encourage student's to evaluate and analyse certain information to come to a conclusion. Webquests seem to be the perfect task to use in the classroom to encourage students to become life long learners. When completing a WebQuest, Students are not just "eating what they are served" (Prensky, 2005) These activities encourage students to seek answers, rather than to just accept what they are being told is true. Young people these days are more and more likely to challenge the information presented to them, as this is what they do in everyday life. By undertaking a WebQuest, I am sure that students would be much more interested in subject matter as is not just being read to them from a text book. It is being presented to them as a Quest, a mission that they must undertake to seek out answers. Webquests even have the ability to help students grow in confidence, as they are required to "debate, discuss or defend a particular stance with classmates." (WebQuest Direct) This, in turn, prepares them for the 'real world'
WebQuests are also tasks that incorporate all the aspects of engaged learning. "By engaged learning, we mean that all student activities involve active cognitive processes such as creating, problem-solving, reasoning, decision-making and evaluation" (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999). These tasks also contain the components of "relate-create-donate" (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999).
The only con I can see for using WebQuests in the classroom would be that teachers will have to monitor their students closely. The classroom would certainly not be running as it would traditionally, where teachers can clearly see if a student is paying attention and contributing to the lesson. Completing a WebQuest means that the classroom may be more 'lively' and therefore students may be able to be distracted more easily, however a well prepared WebQuest should keep the students engaged in the task at hand.
It seems clear that WebQuests will certainly engage our students, however, are they too time consuming to create for our teachers, and therefore not an effective solution to engaging our students? WebQuests may be very time consuming at the moment, however, just like any new tool, the more they are used, the easier and less time consuming they may be. Due to the rapid speed in which information changes on the Internet, I highly doubt that WebQuests could be re-used as part of a curriculum. They would need to be re-created each time they were used. Perhaps funding could be directed towards a new website where Webquests are created and are available for teachers to use in their classrooms, or at least having a template set up with most of the work done already. I believe that WebQuests offer so many positive outcomes and therefore certainly need to be included in today's classrooms.
References
Kearsley, G. & Shneiderman, B. (1999) Engagement Theory: A framework for technology based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 4, 2009, from http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm
Prensky, M. (2005) Engage Me or Enrage Me - What today's learners demand. Retrieved July 3, 2009, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf
WebQuest Direct (2009). What is a WebQuest . Retrieved August 13, 2009, from WebQuest Direct : http://www.webquestdirect.com.au/whatis_awq.asp
After reading about the WebQuests, I concluded that a WebQuest is a task created by a teacher using various Internet resources. They do not have one single solution, as they are designed to encourage student's to evaluate and analyse certain information to come to a conclusion. Webquests seem to be the perfect task to use in the classroom to encourage students to become life long learners. When completing a WebQuest, Students are not just "eating what they are served" (Prensky, 2005) These activities encourage students to seek answers, rather than to just accept what they are being told is true. Young people these days are more and more likely to challenge the information presented to them, as this is what they do in everyday life. By undertaking a WebQuest, I am sure that students would be much more interested in subject matter as is not just being read to them from a text book. It is being presented to them as a Quest, a mission that they must undertake to seek out answers. Webquests even have the ability to help students grow in confidence, as they are required to "debate, discuss or defend a particular stance with classmates." (WebQuest Direct) This, in turn, prepares them for the 'real world'
WebQuests are also tasks that incorporate all the aspects of engaged learning. "By engaged learning, we mean that all student activities involve active cognitive processes such as creating, problem-solving, reasoning, decision-making and evaluation" (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999). These tasks also contain the components of "relate-create-donate" (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999).
The only con I can see for using WebQuests in the classroom would be that teachers will have to monitor their students closely. The classroom would certainly not be running as it would traditionally, where teachers can clearly see if a student is paying attention and contributing to the lesson. Completing a WebQuest means that the classroom may be more 'lively' and therefore students may be able to be distracted more easily, however a well prepared WebQuest should keep the students engaged in the task at hand.
It seems clear that WebQuests will certainly engage our students, however, are they too time consuming to create for our teachers, and therefore not an effective solution to engaging our students? WebQuests may be very time consuming at the moment, however, just like any new tool, the more they are used, the easier and less time consuming they may be. Due to the rapid speed in which information changes on the Internet, I highly doubt that WebQuests could be re-used as part of a curriculum. They would need to be re-created each time they were used. Perhaps funding could be directed towards a new website where Webquests are created and are available for teachers to use in their classrooms, or at least having a template set up with most of the work done already. I believe that WebQuests offer so many positive outcomes and therefore certainly need to be included in today's classrooms.
References
Kearsley, G. & Shneiderman, B. (1999) Engagement Theory: A framework for technology based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 4, 2009, from http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm
Prensky, M. (2005) Engage Me or Enrage Me - What today's learners demand. Retrieved July 3, 2009, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf
WebQuest Direct (2009). What is a WebQuest . Retrieved August 13, 2009, from WebQuest Direct : http://www.webquestdirect.com.au/whatis_awq.asp
Google Earth
I have used Google Earth before and quickly got addicted. This would be a great tool to use on the classroom as it gives students the opportunity to navigate around the world in a matter of seconds. Today's kids seem to want everything instantly, and why shouldn't they? Instant Messaging, Fast Food, etc, all of these things are what the youth of today are used to. They don't want to look at an old dusty Atlas, or read from a text book, they want instant, engaging, up-to-date information and they want it now! Google Earth certainly caters for today's students. The possibilities of how to use this in today's classroom are endless. It seems to cater for a wide range of subjects, from Geography right through to History and Science. I was really impressed with the new feature which allows you to go back in time and look at the way that a particular landscape may have changed. Perhaps students could be set a task in a science class of looking at a particular landscape 10 years ago, and noting the changes that have been slowly happening. The ice caps melting springs to mind for a project like this.
Being able to switch from sky to earth was also an amazing feature. What a useful tool for an assignment on the galaxies? I'm actually a little jealous that these tools were not available when i was at school. I guarantee that I would have paying a lot more attention.
References
Google Earth. Retrieved July 13, 2009, from http://earth.google.com/
Being able to switch from sky to earth was also an amazing feature. What a useful tool for an assignment on the galaxies? I'm actually a little jealous that these tools were not available when i was at school. I guarantee that I would have paying a lot more attention.
References
Google Earth. Retrieved July 13, 2009, from http://earth.google.com/
iTunes and Podcasts. Fantastic.
Finally some familiar ground! I have actually used these two technologies before and I am a huge fan. However, I was not familiar with podcasts, which I am now a fan of. This is a brilliant tool to use in (and outside) the classroom. When I was a high school student, we had a student in my class who had an illness and was in and out of hospital all the time. I am sure that this student was sent textbooks and subject notes, but this may not have been too engaging. Podcasts would have been perfect for this situation. They are not hard to use, and with an Ipod, this student could have listened to them anywhere at anytime. Podcasts would also be a good tool for tutoring and simply furthering students knowledge. If a student is struggling with a particular section of a subject, they may like to listen to the lecturer/class over again at their own pace. It gives the student the opportunity to catch up in their own time and at their own pace. It also caters for teachers who would like their students to do further reading/research on a particular topic. I believe today's students are more likely to listen to a podcast then they are to read a text book. It's the convenience and portability that makes the podcasts so attractive. Students can listen to them anywhere and at anytime. Podcasts certainly encourage independent learning, give students control of their learning and provides up-to-date information (Blackmore et al, 2003). Podcasts ensure that learning is not confined to the walls of the classroom. By encouraging our students to learn outside the classroom and learn independently, we are setting them up to become life long learners.
The particular podcast I listened to was on teachers teaching teachers. I chose this podcast as I believe that at this point in time, with all the knew ICT's and new concepts floating around the world of education, teachers really need to pull together to ensure that education is consistent across the board. I am sure that at times, there may be a bit of an 'us and them' feeling between students and teachers. Teachers can try and overcome this by collaborating with each other. After a teacher has experimented with an ICT in (or outside) the classroom, they could discuss their results with others. What worked, and what didn't? As I have not had any teaching experience as yet I am unsure of the attitudes and practices of today's teachers. However, I would hope that teachers are working together to ensure that students are getting the best education possible. " we have to find how to present our curricula in ways that engage our students" (Prensky, 2005) Podcasts may not be the most engaging way of presenting information to our student's, but by using them in our curricula, we are at least starting to speak our students language.
References
The particular podcast I listened to was on teachers teaching teachers. I chose this podcast as I believe that at this point in time, with all the knew ICT's and new concepts floating around the world of education, teachers really need to pull together to ensure that education is consistent across the board. I am sure that at times, there may be a bit of an 'us and them' feeling between students and teachers. Teachers can try and overcome this by collaborating with each other. After a teacher has experimented with an ICT in (or outside) the classroom, they could discuss their results with others. What worked, and what didn't? As I have not had any teaching experience as yet I am unsure of the attitudes and practices of today's teachers. However, I would hope that teachers are working together to ensure that students are getting the best education possible. " we have to find how to present our curricula in ways that engage our students" (Prensky, 2005) Podcasts may not be the most engaging way of presenting information to our student's, but by using them in our curricula, we are at least starting to speak our students language.
References
Blackmore, J., Hardcastle, L., Esme, B., & Janet, O. (2003). Effective use of information and communication technology to enchance learning for disadvantages students. Commonwealth of Australia. Retreived August 14, 2009, from http://www.dest.gov.au/sectors/school_education/publications_resources/profiles/effective_use_technology_enhance_learning.htm
Prensky, M. (2005) Engage Me or Enrage Me - What today's learners demand. Retrieved July 3, 2009, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
