Reflective Synopsis

 ‘If students aren’t engaged they are enraged’ (Prensky. 2005).

With technologies continuously being updated and improving, educators need to stay abreast of the changes to ensure learners stay engaged.

Why we use ICT’s in the classroom is more important than knowing how to use the technologies. We must also have explicit outcomes in mind. E-learning in the classroom is important because learners can spend more time researching, discovering, problem-solving and developing higher order thinking. My reflective synopsis will address the legal and ethical issues that arise when using online tools. It also addresses collaborative learning, pedagogy, learning theories and frameworks.

E-learning could be described as the use of technology to support and enhance learning practice. (Mayes and De Freitas, 2013)

 

While encouraging learners to participate in online activities we need to monitor, coordinate and educate our students about safe legal and ethical practices.

During the last few weeks whilst creating blogs, wikis, glogster and engaging in other online spaces, I became more aware of the issues arising from using these tools. Students need to be made aware of the dangers of sharing information online. In the reflections made each week of the online tools to be assessed, I used a SWOT analysis and noted that online safety would be an issue.

It is also our duty of care to take reasonable precaution to avoid others being harmed. This includes while working online. When encouraging students to use online spaces we need to identify hazards, assess the risks, control risk by minimising or eliminating them, provide instruction, training and supervision to students to ensure they are well aware of the dangers of working online.

This youtube clip that would be great to show 8-10 year olds. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_o8auwnJtqE

This one is aimed at 11-16 year olds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hK5OeGeudBM

Plagiarism is also an issue that students need to be made aware of. They need to know that it is not ethical to simply use someone else’s work without giving the credit to the owner. Even using their favourite song in the background of a presentation is not acceptable practice.

Collaborative learning is valuable in the classroom as each learner can bring their experience and knowledge to the group. This gives the group a range of resources with which to work with. Collaborative learning enhances retention and mastery of materials, speeds up problem solving, can increase the production of new ideas and encourages higher order thinking. Collaboration is made easy with the use of ICT’s as students can connect with classmates or with others anywhere in the world. It can be done anywhere as long as there is a device and internet accessibility.

A great example of collaborative e-learning would be a wiki. Wikis are collaborative websites, where students are able to collect, organise content that is created and can be revised by its creators. This is a brilliant way to share information and should be easily accessible. However, it can also be made private and only available to particular users. This type of collaboration also provides contributors with a sense of ownership. Having numerous information donors enables the sharing of information and knowledge amongst its members, enhancing the learning experience. We all contributed to a wiki at the beginning of this course where we were given ample scaffolding and support to enable all students to make contributions on the given example about using mobile phones in the classroom. Scaffolding included the use of DeBono’s Six Thinking Hats. To rediscover my reflection on the uses of DeBono’s Hats, you could follow this link: http://suemarshall-cqu.blogspot.com.au/search?updated-max=2013-07-24T03:54:00-07:00&max-results=7 

Deliberate pedagogical design is needed for effective learning. Educators need to provide careful scaffolding and structure for students to employ their prior knowledge and experiences to create meaning and new understanding. This was again, well-illustrated within the wiki activity that we participated in at the onset of the course. E-learning contexts appear to support the exchange of information, rehearsal, feedback and application.

The use of the T-Pack framework incorporates three primary forms of knowledge:  Content, Pedagogy and Technology. It also emphasises the formation of new kinds of knowledge where they intersect. This framework can influence the way educators can use more effective teaching strategies and employ technologies to assist them.

 

ICT by Teachers (2013). T-Pack framework.

 

The strategies within a pedagogy that need to be employed include facilitating collaborative learning, profile students so we know their individual learning styles, planning problem based, real-life learning situations, relevant learning, ownership of learning, enablement of deep knowledge through higher order thinking. It also needs to value cultural knowledge, be engaging and supportive.

The importance of Bloom’s taxonomy is to clarify objectives for students and educators. It assists educators in planning and delivering appropriate experiences and to help design valid assessment tasks and strategies. A model of Bloom’ taxonomy that is relevant to this subject is shown below.


 

 

Educators in the 21^st Century must consider concepts including Connectivism, Cognitive and Social Constructivism and Multiple Intelligences with focuses on 21st century learning, communities of practice, digital natives and immigrants and learning preferences, when planning and teaching to ensure students are receiving the most beneficial learning experience. It is my understanding that eLearning is related to Connectivism, where learners use prior knowledge to make connections to acquire new knowledge and skills. It is also related to Constructivism, where learners are involved in collaborative and independent tasks, where learners share their knowledge and prior experience to create new knowledge and understanding.

 

In the future, I will be incorporating ICT’s into the day to day working in the classroom. I will need to be aware of my own learning style and the learning styles of the students to be able to best cater for the needs of all learners.

Providing opportunities to utilise ICT’s in the classroom, in the 21^st Century is essential. The right ICT’s can cater for all learning styles, are engaging, increases learner motivation and promote independent learning.

We mustn’t forget to correctly scaffold activities and support learners throughout the journey.

We also have to realise that we shouldn’t just use an ICT just because it is there, it must be an important part of the learning.

 

 

References

ICT by Teachers (2013). T-Pack framework. [image online] Available at: http://ictbyteachers.weebly.com/frameworks.html [Accessed: 10 August, 2013].

Marshall, S. (2013, 10 July, 2013). DeBono's Hats. Managing E-Learning, [web log] Retrieved from: http://suemarshall-cqu.blogspot.com.au/search?updated-max=2013-07-24T03:54:00-07:00&max-results=7 [Accessed: 10 August, 2013].

Mayes, T. and De Freitas, S. (2013). JISC e-Learning Models Desk Study. [e-book] [Accessed: 10 August, 2013].

Prensky, M. (2005). Engage Me or Enrage Me. [online] Retrieved from: http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERM0553.pdf [Accessed: 10 Aug 2013].

University of Hull, UK (2013). iPadagogy. [image online] Available at: http://www.mmiweb.org.uk/hull/ipad/padagogy.html [Accessed: 11 August, 2013].

YouTube (1905). Consequences: Assembly for 11 16 year olds. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hK5OeGeudBM [Accessed: 10 Aug 2013].

YouTube (1880). Jigsaw: Assembly for 8 -10 year olds. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_o8auwnJtqE [Accessed: 10 Aug 2013].

Just for fun

Week 6 Reflection - Animations and Simulations

This week we also dabbled in more tools for use in the classroom. Some of these tools included Interactive Learning Objects, Google Maps, Online timelines, Museumbox and Zooburst.  Initially, I decided to create a Timeline of famous Mathematicians, when they lived and what they were famous for. I researched seven Mathematicians and put all the information on a Word document ready to transfer it straight over to the Timeline, only to discover that it couldn’t cope with dates around 500 BC! I tried to add the date with a negative symbol in front but that didn’t work either, so rather than spending too much time solving the problem, I decided to move on.

I then turned to Google Maps. I simply created a driving route from the town I live in to Nambour, where I have some family. (https://maps.google.com.au/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&authuser=0)

In the maths class, I would consider using google maps as a tool for learning about direction, distance and measuring. Students can also engage in the fundamentals of mapping with longitude and latitude. Students can create their own maps, however, we need to ensure students are aware of the risks involved in sharing locations of places that need to stay confidential. There is the option to keep the maps private and individuals can choose who they are willing to share with.
I believe it would be a program that would be used in conjunction with other resources to get the best experience for learners.

Within Google maps, you are able to toggle between satellite images and terrain maps, get directions for cars, or waking tracks as well as create collaborative maps. Within the Google Maps webpage, there is a button that lead to Map Engines Lite which enable the user to create custom maps by adding drawings, layers, points and be able to visualise data within the map. These tools inspire inquiry and exploration, students can visualise and draw conclusions, these tools actively engage students and encourage real life problem solving.

 

Strengths Ease of use Convenient Accessible Encourages independent learning Real life problem solving	Weaknesses Not catering to all learning styles Internet access required
Opportunities Useful for any subject areas Enhancing teaching and learning Relevent Collaboration Individual Free	Threats Students must be aware of online safety Effective use by students Parental concerns Privacy

 

Week 5 – Presentation Tools

Well, this week we exposed to a number of digital tools, some familiar and some (most) new. I have used Microsoft PowerPoint numerous times, mostly to create photo slide shows for family and friends or for school functions. The most adventurous thing I did was to time the music to the slides or adding transitions. I had also added animations to the slides to make them appear in certain order or direction. I played around and discovered that you can also add video, voice overs and links to make it more interactive. This week, however, I decided to keep it simple and I created a PowerPoint on One-point Perspective for a Graphics class. I added images, text and transitions. Then, I used animations on lines to create an example of One-Point Perspective. The actual PowerPoint that I presented to the class, this week, was presented ‘on click’ not automatically as I have shown here. This was to ensure the information was being digested by the students. I also added to the presentation verbally by briefly describing what each slide was about. Although, I added text to slides that was more to trigger my memory rather than to be read verbatim. I also kept the presentation to ten slides, short and sweet. Unfortunately, when I converted the completed PowerPoint to a .flv (because it included animations) to upload the presentation to Youtube, most of the animations were lost. I used a number of free converters, however, none were very successful.
UPDATE: I have now uploaded the PowerPoint, One-Point Perspective, using Author stream, with much more success!

 

To cater for all types of learners, we can add a variety of media to a PowerPoint. For example, including a voiceover would assist linguistic learners, having information in tables or data can cater to the logical learner, including a song or poem to the PowerPoint, caters to the musical learner, maybe getting a kinaesthetic learner to assist in the presentation or setting up of equipment could encourage this learner to become involved, visual learners would take to the images included within the PowerPoint. Other learners can benefit as well, giving quieter students time to digest the information that is being delivered and having the students discuss the information that is being presented.

Consideration of learning styles must be taken and planning should be done with these learning styles in mind.

Strengths Capture audience attention Private (Unless published publicly) Relevant Customisable Caters to different learning styles Ability to combine media Collaborative information sharing and discovery Assists in building technical and critical literacy	Opportunities Individual Enhancing teaching and learning Convenient Accessible Content creation Unexpected insights Ownership Showcasing students’ work
Weaknesses Time Consuming Internet safety Students may need additional guidance with usage	Threats Accessibility Awareness of copyright and plagiarism Effective use Availability of software from home Must be appropriately scaffolded

 During the week, I also created a Prezi, introducing Distributive Law and a Glogster on Mean, Median, Mode and Range. These would obviously be shown to Junior maths classes. Both of these tools could be used by students to make simple presentations on Maths rules, as I have done, and collated and then exhibited within an accessible site for all students to access as the need arose, for example for assistance with homework.

Week 4 Reflection - Digital Video

This week we were immersed in a number of technologies including use of images, podcasting and digital video. As I was trying these out I decided that I would be able to use digital video to get students to make their own safety videos for the workshop. I would possibly get each student or small group to choose a tool or machine in the workshop and ask them to produce the safety video based on research they would undertake. These videos would be shown to the class as a whole and discussions would be encouraged among the students. Each of the videos could be uploaded onto a class website that could be started for resources that the students find when researching or just looking around on the internet. This would encourage students to carry out their own research and enable independent learning.

‘How to’ videos could be made to remind students of the next step in a project, this would again, hopefully, enable students to become more independent. A student or group of students could be videoed while working on a project and then this could be watched and analysed by themselves to help individuals gain greater insight into their work. This can also increase motivation, self-directed learning, increase confidence and motivates learners to find their own solutions to problems.

In fact, an assignment could be written that each of the technologies could be used, so that many learning styles could be catered for.

 

Strengths Caters to different learning styles Most software is easy to use Encourages independent learning Many digital technologies to utilise Ability to combine media Collaborative information discovery and  sharing	Opportunities Enhances learning and teaching Engaging Relevant and convenient Accessible to all students Content Creation
Weaknesses Internet safety Software and Hardware Compatibility Costs of cameras may be out of reach for some students Time consuming	Threats Available technologies Reliability of information gathered by students Effective use by students Need to be aware of copyright and plagiarism Accessibility from home by students

 

 

I made a very simple example of one way to use the program “Movie Maker” in the Manual Arts classroom. Movie Maker is very simple to use. To create this movie, I downloaded some pictures, however, in the classroom I would expect students to take their own photos. It was very simple to add the pictures to the timeline and once added it was a matter of dragging them to put them in order. I was able to add a title which was customisable, I was able to change the font style, colour and size. I then proceeded to add animations or transitions. I realised that the pictures were being played for far too long so I simply adjusted the speed until I felt that it was correct. Then it got a bit more difficult as I wanted to use royalty free music, I found that many websites needed payment for the use of the music, eventually I found some free ones, however, I was having difficulty with WinZip, I updated it and then I was able to open the zip files. I added the music (and the credits as requested) and was finished!

Follow the link to view the final project.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evO_RXRuPLg&feature=youtube_gdata

Movie Maker has many more options to use that I didn’t even go near. Some of the options that I didn’t use were adding videos, snapshots and webcam videos. You could enhance your video by using an auto movie theme or adding visual effects. There is the ability to format the credits, change background colour. It is a great beginners editing tool.

One downside to using this type of technology within the classroom setting is that some computer networks can’t cope with all of the students trying to access and manipulate video images simultaneously. I discovered this a few weeks ago when class was trying to make movies and it crippled the network. We were able to work around it by storing individual students clips on USB’s.

  

 

This week we have been given a number of activities to try out. A number of them I have added to this blog, however, I have also created a voki and it can be viewed here - http://990207444914996845.weebly.com/week-2.html

Another of our activities for this week is the manipulation of images. Earlier this year, I participated in a one day, Photoshop course. I manipulated a number of images but the one I have decided to share is below. I uploaded this image to Facebook many months ago and use it as my cover photo. Recently, an uncle from England had a birthday and I sent a message wishing him a Happy Birthday. He replied and asked when I went to Paris and why didn't I visit as he lives only an hour away and we could have had a cup of tea and a hug!!! Quite an amusing moment! This proved to me that I am quite capable at using Photoshop and that it is a wonderful tool for manipulating images.


My family in Paris!



 

The next photo is one that I set up so that I could give the picture to a good friend for Christmas. The photo is, again, one of my daughters. I saw a similar photo on the internet and loved what it said and thought that my teacher friend would really like it. I made the sign and asked Katelyn to hold it for me. We went to a number of places in the bush land surrounding our town and I took many shots. I then enhanced some of the best photos and put them on Facebook (hiding them from mutual friends) and asked my friends and family to vote on their favourite one. I then enlarged and printed the photo and had it framed. It is now hanging above her desk in the staffroom, one of the students saw it one day and said that she should have it hanging in her classroom because it was so good.




This week's activities include manipulation of images. The following pictures have been resized. I chose one of my dog when he was one year old (he is two, now). I also chose two of my daughters, Chloe and Katelyn. Chloe turned twenty two today and Katelyn will be 18, two weeks from today. These two photos were taken prior to the School Ball in 2012.

My boy, Mack.

Katie and Chloe

My girls again. (Note: both of them looking at a phone!)

Week 3 Reflection -Websites

This week, I managed to start my own webpage. I decided to use content from the subjects that I am studying for the Bachelor of Learning Management course. The two areas that I am interested in are Manual Arts and Junior Maths. Therefore, my pages are based around these subject areas.

For Manual Arts and Graphics, I would include a daily overview of the lesson with video clips showing examples of how to do the activity shown that day. I would also include information covering Occupational Health and Safety and instructional information on use of tools and equipment. Plans of jobs that are in progress could be uploaded and students work could be recorded by taking photos, these also could be shared on the website. It would be easy to include links for any other tutorials needed. Students could also be involved in group project work and create their own websites. Manual Arts and Graphics students could create business webpages that include their designs and products.

For a Maths website, I would have links to fun, interactive activities. I would also have a daily overview of the work completed each day. This would be a good place to include revision work, even reminders of the homework (therefore parents would also be aware of the set tasks!). A Help thread would also be incorporated to prevent the repetition of some questions. There is also the option of using the website for a ‘flipped classroom’, this is when some of the teaching is delivered through video at home then the students are able to ask questions and problem solve with their peers back at school. This creates a collaborative learning environment.

 

I quite enjoyed the creating of a webpage and found the instructions simple and easy to follow. I managed to add dropdown menus, pictures and YouTube videos. I discovered that I was able to change the font colour, add forms and include written content. I was discussing this activity with my own children (18 and 22), both of them commented that they would have loved to have access to a resource like this when they were at school, as when they had forgotten how to solve a maths problem and they were home they would give up whereas with a class webpage, they would simply be able to review the information on the website.

I would prefer to use the Learning Place Virtual Classroom to create a webpage in as you can put the content from the entire term into the webpage, perhaps over the holidays, with each lesson under a different tab. These tabs are then closed. Then you could open the content in each tab when ready, rather than all at once. The danger of students going ahead too far would be the fact that they could create misconceptions if the information available was not clearly explained or discussed. Another positive is that The Learning Place is not accessible by the public.

Strengths:	21st Century learners, simple format, student centred, ICT, can link to high quality resources, relevant, customisable, can cater to individual learning styles.
Weaknesses:	Open to everyone, students would have access to all content, one author, time consuming.
Opportunities:	Collaboration, increased communication, individual.
Threats:	Students ability to access from home, accessible by all members of the public, parental concerns, would need to be aware of students or school being identified, need to be aware of copyright and plagiarism.

 

You can follow this link to my website (Remember it is 'Under Construction')

http://990207444914996845.weebly.com/index.html

 

References:

Learners Cloud. 2013, 23 April. Bart Simpson in flipped classroom. Retrieved from http://learnerscloudblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/whats-all-fuss-over-flipped-classrooms.html

 

Pretty Good Plan. 2013, 14 June. WWW. Retrieved from http://prettygoodplan.com/2011/06/how-build-a-successful-website/

 

DeBono’s Hats


One of the activities for Week Two was to put on DeBono’s hats and record our responses into a wiki. Until a couple of weeks ago I didn’t even know what a wiki was! I asked a ‘techie’ workmate and he replied that it was an acronym for ‘What I Know Is’.

After completing the set activity and having read about the learning theories I concluded that this wiki’ activity is an example of Social Constructivism. The activity was clearly scaffolded by getting us to use DeBono’s hats, therefore we just had to write our opinions by answering some simple questions. The graphic organiser enabled easy access for input and collaboration. The ‘hats’ also ensure that I considered the question from different perspectives to ensure that I was looking at the whole picture rather than taking a bias stance based on my previous experiences. Additionally, wiki provided the opportunity for peer mentoring as we were able to both publish our thoughts and comment on each other’s responses. This evidently led to the clarification of any prior misunderstandings and a deeper understanding of the concepts covered. Therefore leading to the construction of new and valuable knowledge on this topic.

Use of wiki's in the Manual Arts class could be for collaboration on design ideas.
For an explanation of DeBono's Six Thinking Hats follow this link:
 

http://www.debonogroup.com/six_thinking_hats.php 

 

 

 

 







 

Week 2
Pedagogy

This picture sums it up for me!!

Week 1 Reflection

To be a good learning manager we need to have an understanding of how learners learn.

Learning Styles

Most educators recognise that all learners are individuals and all have preferred methods of learning. Usually, learners have a mix of these preferred learning styles and some have a dominant style.

These styles can change within individuals depending on the task. It is also possible to develop our less dominant styles.

 

Multiple Intelligences Test

In the following model, there are eight learning styles used. These are:

Visual/spatial: Prefers using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.

•Musical: Prefers using sound and music.

•Linguistic: Prefers using words, both in speech and writing.

•Kinaesthetic: Prefers using their body, hands and sense of touch.

•Logical: Prefers using logic, reasoning and systems.

·  Naturalistic: Enjoys working with and understands nature and environment.

•Interpersonal: Prefers to learn in groups or with other people.

•Intrapersonal: Prefers to work alone and use self-study.

The following model was created for myself using the questionnaire found here: http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/index.htm

This model shows me that I am predominantly a Logical and Kinaesthetic learner, which explains why I have chosen to study maths and Manual Arts! Knowing what a learners learning styles are can enable us to consider the way in which we present learning materials to ensure that individual needs are met.

 

Learning Theories

Although, there are many theories on learning, I will be discussing behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism and connectivism

Behaviourism  

John B Watson is often considered the father of behaviourism. It is centred on Behavioural Psychology. Behaviourism is based on the concept that behaviours can be measured, trained and changed. This theory is also based upon the idea that behaviours can be acquired through conditioning and this occurs through interactions with our environment.

It studies behaviours in a systematic and observable manner as it is suggested that other states such as cognition, emotions and moods are subjective. It is argued that behaviourism is one dimensional and doesn’t account for different types of learning.

Cognitivism

Cognitivism is a theory that thought processes determine human behaviours. This is often described as information processing.

This process is when information is picked up by the senses and transferred into memory. It this information is not used immediately, it is discarded, if it is perceived to be important, it goes into short term memory. If this information is reinforced and linked to other ideas, it becomes stored in long term memory.

It could be described as the acquisition of problem solving abilities with intelligence and conscious thought.

Social Constructivism

In this learning process, modelling and scaffolding by a teacher is important. Social Constructivists maintain that social interaction has a large influence on learning and the support of others helps to construct new knowledge. This can be in the form of explicit modelling, collaboration and internalising of new knowledge.

A Constructivist teacher facilitates and encourages learning by engaging learners in interesting activities. They also guide students and encourage them to tackle problems and challenges that are often linked to real life situations.

Social constructivism can be supported in many ways by Information Technology. Tools such as email, wiki, blogs and more, can provide pathways to encourage discussion, debate and dialogue, all which can assist in the social construction of meaning. Simulations can be used to put real world activities in context.

 

Connectivism

Connectivism is the digital age learning theory. It is the idea that learning can come from many different sources and that knowing where to find information is more important than knowing the information. Information can be obtained from the community a network or a database.

I have enjoyed going back over the information that we have touched on in previous subjects. For myself, rewriting the information is a method I like to use remember and get a greater understanding of what we are covering.

Here it is - My first attempt at a blog

Hi, my name is Sue Marshall and I am currently in my first year of Bachelor of Learning Management (Secondary).

I am not feeling particularly confident coming into this subject but I am looking forward to improving my skills.

As you can probably tell, this is my first attempt at a blog and I hope it improves as the subject progresses.

Good luck to all!!

Sue