Assessment 2: Analysis of digital technologies.
ELearning can be defined as teaching and learning with the World Wide Web. It is made up of three major components. Digital pedagogy, digital content and eLearning spaces and tools. This assessment asked us to analyse four Web 2.0 digital tools
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Successful eLearning design needs to be scaffolded by digital pedagogy. So before my analysis of the tools began, I referred back to my own personal eLearning design framework. Good eLearning design should enable students to operate with ICT’s, inquire, create, communicate and collaborate with a range of digital tools. The goal should be higher order and creative thinking, critical analysis, and constant reflection, all of which enhances and transforms learning. Appendix A is a link to this framework. http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/elearning-framework-recipie-by-vanessa.html
As part of that eLearning framework, teachers and students will need act ethically, legally and responsibly with ICT’s. These issues should be at the forefront of any eLearning design. A posting on my blog discusses how to ensure students are aware of these issues, and how teachers need to educate and model appropriate behaviour. Appendix B http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/copyright-cyberbullying-and-internet.html
eLearning is not just about working on and with computers and mobile phones. It is not about your students being passive browsers of the World Wide Web, or watching endless Power Point presentations created by the teacher. It should be about your students becoming digitally literate with a whole range of devices so that learning occurs through the use of the tools. This will create new opportunities to enhance and transform learning across the curriculum. It is a “a digital way of learning that is meaningful, engaging and connected. Rather than using technology to do old things in new ways, we want to do new things in new ways”. (Education Queensland, 2008, p.1) The following analysis shows that the digital tools I have chosen all have the ability to do this. They are.
· Wikis
· Podcasts
· Glogster
· Wordle
A wiki is a free online space that falls into the category of a read write tool. The creator and any guests can add, modify and remove content with simple editing tools. I chose this tool because collaborative learning should be a high priority in any classroom. As wikis are open, their power for supporting collaboration is immense. Wikis can be seen as modelling constructivism because learners become active participants in their own learning, and social interaction enables effective learning. Wikis also allow for the true integration of technology into instruction and learning. They are free, they’re flexible and unlike some other digital tools, they don’t have a steep learning curve which makes them ideal for a primary school classroom.
The goal of ICT use should be for students to collaborate on real world authentic projects. To enhance my own learning experience I created a wiki where people could upload information about their favourite children’s books. Appendix C http://vanessahemson.wikispaces.com/
I also chose to collaborate with another GDLT student Julienne Morrison whose own wiki was created to scaffold our analysis of wikis, blogs and websites. Appendix D http://juliennemorrison.wikispaces.com/Blog+Swot+Analysis
After my initial analysis, and almost two weeks after my wiki had been live and online I reflected again about the use of wikis in education. A link can be found here. Appendix E. http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-wiki-one-week-or-so-on.html
Engagement Theory is the idea of collaborative teams working on real world projects that create meaning for people in and outside the classroom. In summary it is the idea of Create-Relate- Donate. (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999) This is exactly what a wiki does. Wikis work best when groups of people work together to create, problem solve, research and develop, build consensus, learn to compromise, and stimulate discussion.
Material is gathered to a central site where people write creatively, share links, review and comment on each other’s work, upload images, videos and a range of other digital tools such as mind maps, Google Earth links, digital images and video to name a few. Different perspectives will begin to emerge. Students will build on their own prior knowledge. Everything is in the one place which makes it easier for the teacher to check progress, offer feedback and monitor the content.
As with all digital tool use in the classroom, the learning experience should be scaffolded with thinking routines so that students are not only engaging with the ICT’s but also inquiring, creating, collaborating, communicating and developing higher order thinking skills. Reflection on the activity should also occur so that students can analyse, evaluate and synthesise what they have learned. As the wiki remains open ended it facilitates this ongoing reflection. This is in line with Bloom’s taxonomy (1956) using synthesis and evaluation constantly.
Year P-3 students could create a wiki listing their favourite books to read. This activity should be scaffolded with a PMI thinking routine so that higher order thinking, different perspectives and critical analysis can be developed. Students could share this book wiki with other students from around Australia or the world. (LOTE: Intercultural). Connectivism is also at work here.
Wikis could also be used as an online collaborative textbook. For Science: Earth and Beyond, Year 3 Students could create a wiki about cloud types, or objects in the night sky with real world links to the National Observatory.
For LOTE: Intercultural Investigations Year 5 students could create a Multiculturalism wiki about all the cultural groups represented at the school. Students, family and friends could all get involved and collaborate. The wiki could transform the learning experience by enabling people living on the other side of the world to contribute giving details of family traditions, recipes enjoyed on special days, language used in the home or even examples of traditional dances and songs in the form of images or a movie. Again elements of constructivism and connectivism apply.
These three examples demonstrate the value of digital tools. Learning has been transformed. It is no longer just a static assignment or lesson but an ongoing, collaborative, online project that reaches much further than the walls of the classroom. Traditional teaching was always limited to the knowledge the teacher had or could access. Web 2.0 tools change the teaching environment dramatically.
Podcasting falls into the second group of technologies. A podcast is a sound file that can be shared with others. It can be accessed online as a file that somebody else has created or it can be a file that you or your own students create, upload and share.
I chose to analyse this as one of my digital tools because it is a purely aural form of communication and many of the other tools involved visual aspects. Whilst it is true that style of learning might neglect visual learners, all students should be encouraged to develop new skills and ways of learning, both visually and aurally. I also felt that the ease and simplicity of use also meant that podcasts could be very useful in a primary classroom to support and enhance learning.
A link to my own podcast and an initial reflection can be found here. Appendix F http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/good-example-of-podcast-for-primary.html
Podcasts allow for the outside world to travel inside the classroom. Imagine students taking a virtual tour of the world’s great National Galleries, a podcast of a tour of New York’s Stock Exchange, interviews with famous authors, scientists working in Africa, educators from around the world or a podcast from a group of Chinese students.
These kinds of experiences would simply not have been possible in the traditional classroom where teachers had to rely on static pictures, information drawn from textbooks or a television documentary filmed months or even years previously. The immediacy of podcasts is one of the huge benefits allowing students to experience real world events as soon as they happen. Connecting with the outside world through using and creating with ICT’s opens new possibilities to enhance and support learning. This is connectivism in action.
Accessing podcasts online can help students evaluate information and construct new knowledge, but students should also be active participants in their own learning. The following examples show that by creating their own podcasts, students further develop and enhance their own digital literacy skills and learn at the same time.
For SOSE: Time Continuity and Change Year 3 Students could create a podcast of interviews with older relatives to find out about life in the past. English: Writing and Designing could also be part of the activity. The teacher could use scaffolding to assist students to write a script and a list of questions for the podcast interviews.
For HPE: Health Year 4 students could create a podcast about nutrition which could be broadcast on the school website making it authentic. This could include interviews with students about healthy choices, a local nutritionist and doctor. Students would need to collaborate and brainstorm things like topics for discussion, a list of interview questions and research into nutrition. This activity shows how use of the technology is integrated into the learning outcomes and that their podcast has an authentic goal in the real world which is a constructivist style of learning.
The third group of tools we analysed were those used to present learning or information. Glogster is a social network site that allows users to create online interactive posters or Glogs. It can accommodate any subject matter and allows the user to upload text, images, sound, video, graphics and hyperlinks to other websites. It appears to be well suited to an education demographic. A huge advantage is that it allows students to interact and create with a range of digital tools within the format. It is an example of a digital tool that makes new learning possible.
A link to my own Glogster creation and a reflection can be found here including specific information about operating safely, ethically and legally with Glogster. Appendix G http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/glogster-and-my-dinosaur-design_30.html
For Science: Earth and Beyond, Year 5-7 students could create a glog representing the four seasons of the year. Images could be captured by their own digital cameras and uploaded onto the site. Hyperlinks to the Bureau of Meteorology could be incorporated into the blog. Small videos or podcasts of local weather events could be uploaded to the site. Students could also share their weather glog with students from the Northern Hemisphere to illustrate the different seasons. (LOTE: Intercultural) This is an example of connectivism. The glog should be done collaboratively within the class. This would also cover Primary Connections- Weather in My World and English: Writing and Designing.
Year P-3 could create an About Me glog to share with the class at the beginning of term. This activity could also generate a discussion to the students about safe use of digital tools. Students need to be aware of their digital footprint and how the release of information such as photos, home address and personal details should be discouraged.
Both examples show that Glogster is a unique and valuable digital tool. The benefits are the ability to gather an immense amount of information through hyperlinks and summarise it all on one page. Students can work collaboratively to incorporate graphics, images, sound, text and video. Once again it is an example of a digital tool taking a static assignment and making it live, interactive, collaborative, accessed by a worldwide audience and authentic to the learning outcomes.
The last digital tool I have chosen to analyse is Wordle which is grouped under the animation and simulation banner.
Wordle works like this. You enter text into the website and it creates a word cloud. Words that are used frequently are given prominence; because of this higher order thinking is encouraged and scaffolded. Students can begin with a simple discussion about why they think certain words or issues were given prominence. The Wordle itself can act like a thinking routine. Students enter the text, Wordle creates, and an analysis can begin.
An initial reflection, guidelines for operating safely, ethically and legally and an example of my Wordle can be found here on my blog. Appendix H http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/mind-maps-and-word-clouds-week-5-tools.html
Year P-3 students could create a Wordle on a topic such as Anzac Day, My Local Area, A newspaper article Wordle, or a poetry Wordle. Teachers would need to scaffold this activity with a thinking routine so that different perspectives could emerge. Students could then present their own personal word cloud to the group and discuss and collaborate. Higher order thinking is encouraged as children reflect on what the Wordle means. Do they agree with the creation? Did they see the poem or event in a different way? Did it make them think about new perspectives?
Several more examples are given in my blog posting. Appendix I. http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/mind-maps-and-word-clouds-week-5-tools.html
The ability to summarise and condense vast amounts of text and information makes Wordle incredibly valuable as a digital tool. The technology does the hard work of summarising the information and gives certain issues and themes prominence. I can’t think of a way that this could have been done in the past so quickly and effectively. As a tool for reflection I felt that Wordle was a great asset in any classroom.
In summary, I have attempted to show that all of these activities and my choice of digital tools ensure that students operate ICT’s, inquire, investigate and problem solve, they create with ICT’s, communicate and collaborate all in an authentic real world context. The outcome of all this is that learning is supported and enhanced.
Web 2.0 tools have changed the way we learn and teach dramatically. We are in a unique position to educate and collaborate with our students while using these digital tools. They will allow us to create new ways of learning that will engage and challenge both students and teachers in the coming years, and that is an incredibly exciting prospect.
References
Bloom, B. S. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives, handbook I: The cognitive domain. Retrieved fromCQUniversity Course Resources Online http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html#cognitive
eLearning for Smart Classrooms. (2008) Smart Bytes, August 2008 1-12 Retrieved from CQUniversity Course Resources Online EDED20491 http://education.qld.gov.au/smartclassrooms/pdf/scbyte-elearning.pdf
Kearsley, G. & Shneiderman, B. (1999) Engagement theory: A framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved from CQUniversity Course Resources Online EDED20491 http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm
Appendices
Appendix A, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/elearning-framework-recipie-by-vanessa.html
Appendix B, Retrieved fromhttp://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/copyright-cyberbullying-and-internet.html
Appendix C, Retrieved from http://vanessahemson.wikispaces.com/
Appendix D, Retrieved fromhttp://juliennemorrison.wikispaces.com/Blog+Swot+Analysis
Appendix E, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-wiki-one-week-or-so-on.html
Appendix F, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/good-example-of-podcast-for-primary.html
Appendix G, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/glogster-and-my-dinosaur-design_30.html
Appendix H, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/mind-maps-and-word-clouds-week-5-tools.html
Appendix I, Retrieved from http://nessatuni.blogspot.com/2011/03/mind-maps-and-word-clouds-week-5-tools.html
Note: Many of the ideas for use of ICT's in the classroom were adapted from ICT Student Expectations Document ( Years P to 3 and Years 4-5) produced by Queensland Government. Smart Classrooms Initiative.
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