FionAlisa Bloggle

As the end of semester draws to a close, so too does my blogging on this page.

E-Learning has provided me with the skills, knowledge and confidence to incorporate a variety of technologies and programs in my teaching career, as well as my university education. Over the duration of the course I have delved in to the unfamiliar e-world, taken risks with my learning  and discovered a range of resources and programs that can aid my development. Some of these include; mindmapping on Inspiration, podcasts on Garageband, lesson building on LAMS and blogging here on Edublogs.

So I have learned the bare necessities in using these programs but that by no means makes me an expert. I know that to better my skills and knowledge exploration and practice are needed, as well as keeping a database of what I have used for future reference.

I have included my perception of what e-learning is, having finished the course and recognised the importance of incorporating e-learning in primary school education.

Alisa

Over the course of this semster i have learnt about a range of E-learning technologies and programs. At the start of the semester i thought of e-learning as microsoft word, and applications, windows movie and maker and inspiration. Now at the end of the semester my knowledge of programs has been massively extended, i have since learnt about;

• Blogging;
• Podcasts;
• Videos;
• Interactive whiteboards;
• Programs such as scratch which allow students to create their own games ; and
• how to create animation as well as learn about companies such as Digi Ed.

Most importantly i have learnt that E-learning is not simply teaching a computer lesson and literacy as i first thought it was, instead it is utalising different E-learning technologies and programs and incorporating them into my teaching and student learning across all K.L.As, using a constructionism approach.

Therefore i intend to use more technology in the classroom as well as maintain blogging, because as our teacher pointed out to us on tuesday that we need to keep on top educational technology because once it has been even more than 18 months technologies will evolve and new programs will be produced which we as good teachers need to know about and how to use them.

 
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By Fiona

This is my podcast which highlights some blogging ethics.

Deubel, P. (2007). Moderating and Ethics for the Classroom Instructional Blog. T.H.E Journal. Retrieved 26^th of May 2009 from http://thejournal.com/articles/20292_1

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By Fiona

This is my podcast on Virtual Excursions.

My Podcast was based on the article:

Take a field trip without leaving the classroom By Stacy Hasselbacher.

Multimedia & Internet @ schools. Volume 14 N4 July August 2007.

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By Fiona

I came across Aimee‘s blog on Technology-Enhanced Learning (TEL) desks, which are basically touchscreen computerised textbook desks. I had no idea such a technology existed! Now that I do, I find it pointless and damaging to learning in a classroom environment. Sure it’s an amazing invention, and a great novelty piece of hardware to have around, but the fact is we don’t need it and it simply is not practical.

This new-age technology does have some benefits, as it opens a new door to learning by creating totally new learning experiences for the students. It also consists of a collaborative mode that enables students to communicate with eachother for team learning, which is great. However apart from these pro’s, I fail to see any other true benefits from this technology.

I agree with Brendan‘s post, the idea of monitoring student progress via this medium is intriguing, but it does in fact seem like we’re using “technology for the sake of technology”. Not only does this technology add yet another distraction to our classrooms, but I believe it will hinder student learning through lack of interaction. TEL desks encourage students to remain at the desks with their heads constantly bent. This basically ends teacher-student interaction, something which I consider one of the most valuable connections when teaching and learning.

By Alisa

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By Fiona

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Today, I read  Lauren’s blog “Moving Forward Through ICT” , which talks about using the interactive whiteboard in the classroom. Lauren recalls a school where in a school newsletter a teacher explained to parents why interactive whiteboards are being used in the classroom. I think that that was a great idea as is not educating parents on the new technology which is increasingly becoming apart of schools, it is also communicated with parents how this technology is helping their children in the classroom. Lauren recalls the example in the information where the teacher who wrote it explains how the interactive whiteboard would help with a maths lesson on money.

Not only does this blog give an idea on how to present the topic money in the classroom it also highlights the usefulness of the interactive whiteboard as well as reminding us as teachers the importance of informing parents and keeping them “in the loop”.

By Fiona

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Schools are jumping aboard the highspeed interactive whiteboard train, gathering fans of the technology in it’s wake…

I knew interactive whiteboards were going to make a major impact on teaching and learning in schools, however I didn’t completely understand why until I had read Interactive Whiteboards and Clickers in the Classroom by Diane Trim.

For starters, I hadn’t the vaguest idea of what a clicker was. Now that I do, I can tell you it’s a device given to each individual and can be used as a buzzer-like control for multiple choice quizzes. It helps teachers monitor the students who are paying attention, the ones who understanding the content and those that are struggling. I think this is a fantastic system for observing student participation as it is informative but discrete. The task itself sounds extremely entertaining and successfully engages the students.

From attending a demonstration of Smartboards in the classroom, as well as reading this article, I realise the endless opportunities for teaching and learning that they offer. They assist in providing clearer instructions, creating an interactive learning environment and enhance teacher organisation and lesson delivery.

Unfortunately, at the moment it is unrealistic for all schools, teachers and students to experience the benefits of the interactive whiteboard as they are extremely costly. Not only do you need a computer, LCD projector and the Smartboard itself, but further costs to train teachers also need to be accounted for. In a perfect world, i think every classroom should have an interactive whiteboard because everyone can benefit from it.

I’m aboard the whiteboard train and I have no intention of getting off…

Toot toot!

By Alisa

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Hans and Bhattacharya (2001) state that with constructionism students do not get ideas, instead they create the ideas themselves, which got me thinking, do children create ideas themselves?

From my perspective, if you think about a young child playing or getting an “idea”, i think it comes from that child seeing it or hearing it from somewhere else. It is like as a young child, which i am sure everyone can relate to an experience similar to this, you would watch a movie for example, and then after the movie you would pretend to be that character. It would drive your mum and dad nuts by running around the house pretending you had super powers or turning your bedroom into a mess because you were playing with your toys and pretending they could do what you saw on TV.

Therefore, as you have read i am a tad sceptical of the idea that children can just get their own idea from building something. I tend to think that students get an idea, and then through building and creating they either manipulate the idea to perfect it or they use the idea that they have seen or heard about and use it as a basis to explore.

By Fiona

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After class on Tuesday afternoon, i decided i needed to explore constructionism because i did not have a clear understanding of it. I learnt alot from Hans and Bhattacharya’s article on constructionism. Constructionism is that students learn by actively creating, exploring and investigating.  This is through students actively and physically building and doing hands on activities and then reflecting either within themselves or by sharing with others of their ideas. Essentially, it is children as designers, builders and publishers.

When implementing constructionism in the classroom, Hans and Bhattacharya make the point that it is important to give students your expectations as a teacher of the final product and goals that way they have some direction. Also through allowing time for reflection and feedback, it allows students to revise and reflect on that they have created and how could it be improved again.

Nevertheless, how do we incorporate it into our future classrooms?

As future teachers, we can incorporate it into our classroom through allowing group collaboration, free exploration as well as utilising technologies and using them such as podcasting, videos and blogging, which the children can use to publish and share their ideas with the rest of the class or the whole world!

By Fiona

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