REFLECTIVE SYNOPSIS OF ICT DIGITAL TOOLS

We are living in a world where we are surrounded by technology. Information travels from one side of the world to the other in seconds. With the click of a button we can access an array of information from anywhere in the world allowing us to collaborate locally and globally. Technology is at our finger tips, in our homes, offices, schools and even on the streets. Today, we all have access to some kind of technology, whether it is a smart phone, iPod, iPad, tablet, laptop, computer, TV, radio etc. Technology has become an integral part of our lives and it is here to stay, it is our future and we need to embrace it, so why not use it in schools?

ICT is the future of our children's education and as future teachers we need to learn how to use it effectively in our classrooms to achieve the maximum learning outcomes. It is believed that there is enough evidence to suggest that the integration of ICT into the curriculum in various ways can enhance students learning (Leask & Pachler 1999). The UNESCO, 'ICT Competency Standards For Teachers' module states that, 'to live, learn, and work successfully in an increasingly complex, information-rich and knowledge-based society, students and teachers must utilize technology effectively.' (p.1, 2008) The standards also state that the teacher is responsible for establishing classrooms that provide technology supported learning opportunities. As teachers we need to be prepared to use technology and have the resources and skills to effectively teach the necessary subject matter (UNESCO, 2008). This is where the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework comes in. Teachers need to integrate technology into their pedagogical content knowledge, utilising tools that meet all the different learning needs and styles such as visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learners.

When I started this course my understanding of using ICT in the classroom was a very basic one. My vision of using ICT was limited to searching the web for information, watching videos and listening to audio clips. After six weeks of this course I can now see that these tools along with many others can be used in the classrooms to engage learners and meet the different learning needs of students.

This reflective synopsis will be analysing the various ICT tools that I have explored over the past 6 weeks. These tools include wikispaces, audio tools and podcasts, Glogster and Google Earth. The learning theories of Behaviourism, Cognitivism, Constructivisim and Connectivism will also be discussed in relation to each of these tools. In my previous blog postings I have summarised my understanding of these theories, and this can be accessed from  (Appendix 1). 

WIKI ACTIVITY REFLECTION:

I came into this course not knowing what a wiki was and did not understand how a web based activity could be an effective teaching tool. My perceptions however did change as soon as I took part in my very first wiki activity. The mobile phones activity was a very fun and engaging activity that took our classroom beyond the walls and into cyberspace where students from Gladstone, Brisbane, Rockhampton, Noosa and many other cities could all participate in the same activity, sharing their answers and thoughts on one page. Wiki spaces are a great example of constructivist learning. As the social constructivist Vygotski (1962) maintained, 'individuals learn within a zone of proximal development' (CQUniversity Australia, 2012). Students build on each others knowledge moving beyond what they already know and construct new knowledge, with the support of each other (CQUniversity Australia, 2012). 

The use of the de Bono's six thinking hats, tool was a great scaffolding activity as it guided and modelled the discussions for us allowing students to voice their opinions using higher order thinking and in turn encouraging deeper discussions. The scaffolding technique also made the activity clearer and well organised. If the de Bono's hats scaffold activity was not included, I don't believe students would have expressed such deeper thoughts and perceptions. Students would have just given simple straight forward answers. See Appendix 1 for my posting on the mobile phone activity. After completing this activity I can understand the importance of scaffolding and the learning outcomes it produces. 




DIGITAL TOOL 1: WIKI SPACES

The group one tools that we explored were Blogs, Wikispaces and Websites. I had already created and used a blog so I went on to create my first Wikispace and Website. To start off with I found these activities to be quite challenging, however once I had overcome the technical issues, I was able to appreciate their uses in an educational setting. I analysed all three tools in my blog. My reflections on blogs can be seen Appendix 2 in and my website reflections can be seen in Appendix 3. Although these two tools have many positives as outlined in my analysis i have chosen Wikispaces as my group one digital tool as I believe it is the most effective tool in this group. Unlike websites and blogs that have one author, wikis allow multiple authors to edit, add and delete text. Students can learn from each other and build on each others knowledge. It can be used in so many ways than websites, which don't really encourage scaffolding and constructivist learning. Although blogs are similar to wikis in that students can comment and give feedback to student posts, to me it is more of an online journal entry rather than a collaboratively created student project where each participant can own the page. I believe wikis allow greater scaffolding and encourage deeper learning for students. This tool supports the learning theories of constructivism and connectivism. Vygotsky states that, 'it is by means of language that the culture is transmitted, thinking develops and learning occurs.' (Leask & Pachler, 1999, p.200). Connecting and building on knowledge with other students using a wiki supports these theories.

I experimented with my wikispace to see what could be done with it, and you can see my wikispace in Appendix 4. A detailed analysis of my reflection on this tool and how I would use it can be viewed from Appendix 5.  With the TPACK framework a teacher can use a wiki to integrate both technology and content so students are engaged and are practicing higher order thinking with the help of teacher scaffolding, creating and understanding content at a higher level. 

DIGITAL TOOL 2: AUDIO & PODCASTS

The group three tools I explored were images, audio and video. Creating audio and video was not very difficult, however the challenging part for me was embedding and uploading my work to my blog and wiki. I wasn't able to resize my images using Mobaphoto as I couldn't download the program onto my computer. I created a video using iMovie and family photos I had on my computer, you can view this video and my reflections in Appendix 6. Both images and videos are great tools to use during teaching and can be scaffolded into any lesson through TPACK. They are a great way of engaging students and also reaching out to those visual learners. However, using images and videos of children does raise privacy and safety issues which can limit its use in the classroom, especially if parents are against it. Although both these tools are very useful, I have decided to choose audio podcasts from this group of digital tools. An example of the podcast I created can be viewed in my wiki (see Appendix 7) and my reflections and analysis on audio tools can be viewed from my blog (see Appendix 8). I experimented with a Voki and a Podcast and also explored voice threads which supports the constructivist theory. I find audio tools to be easy to use and can be used effectively in a classroom.  Podcasting has less privacy concerns as students do not have to name themselves and there are no images of students displayed (Fryer, 2012). Podcasting support the behaviorism theory as students are recording their voices, and maybe doing this a few times until it is perfect. As students practice a behaviour and follow instructions they become competent at it (CQUniversity, 2013). 

DIGITAL TOOL 3: GLOGSTER

Out of all the tools that we have been exploring since the beginning of this course I found this group of tools to be the easiest to work with and I feel teachers could use these more in the classroom compared to the other digital tools explored. I found Power Point and Prezi to be very useful tools and I experimented with them and created some examples of how I could use them. These examples and my reflections on these tools can be seen in Appendix 9 (Power Point) and Appendix 10 (Prezi). Both these tools can be used in all year levels from Prep to year 12 and also outside of school in business and  conferences etc. They are great tools to use that can combine auditory and visual learning into one lesson. From this group of tools I have chosen Glogster as my favourite. As a future primary school teacher who will be working with younger children who can be very visual and auditory learners, I believe Glogster can be used as a great online scrapbook of student work, motivating students to produce great work for their family and school community to view or for a teacher to present lessons in a visually fun way. It is very user friendly with the drag and drop function and has all the features of embedding and uploading as does the other tools. The benefit of using Glogster is that it can be setup as a private page where the teacher can authorise who can view it, this overcomes any of the privacy, ethical and safety issues that some other online tools can have. With proper supervision of what students are putting on Glogs such as videos, quotes from other resources etc. Students need to be familiar with copyright and referencing of their work before they can fully use this tool. Please go to Appendix 11 for a detailed analysis of this tool and to also view the Glogster I created. I believe this tool supports cognitivism and behaviourism theories as students view the glog created by the teacher they are processing the information presented and storing it in their brains. Through crating their own glogsters or adding to the class glog students are practicing behaviour that supports what they are learning. (Leask & Pachler, 1999)

DIGITAL TOOL 4: GOOGLE EARTH

For my final group of tools I chose to explore Google Earth, as I believe it can be used across many KLA's and most importantly is a tool that we can access easily from our computers, phone or iPads. It is free and easy to use, and allows students to view historic buildings, streets allowing students to leave the classroom and travel the world with a click of the button. Students can also explore other planets and also the depths of the sea. My analysis of this tool can be viewed in Appendix 12. I explored other tools as well such as concept maps and did find them to be a very useful tool that supports the theory of cognitivist learning as students write the connections they are making about a topic and the current knowledge they have and is encouraging deeper thinking. Although there are great online tools out there to map these thoughts I believe this activity can still be done effectively on paper and on the board with students. The use of Google Earth however provides much more for students.

CONCLUSION

In the day and age we live in the integration of ICT into our Pedagogy is essential and as teachers we need to know what is out there for us to use. This reflective synopsis identified a number of these tools however there is so much more out there that can be utilised to make our lesson more engaging for students of this digital era. As stated in the UNESCO standards, through integrating ICT into our pedagogy, 'a country's students and ultimately its citizens and workforce acquire increasingly sophisticated skills needed to support economic, social, cultural and environmental development' (p.8, 2008).

Using the TPACK framework in our teaching design will help us achieve the best results possible for our students and teachers. Increasing greater learning outcomes as students are engaged in the various activities that support the learning theories of behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism and connectivism. 

APPENDICES:

Appendix 1 - Reflection of Wiki Activity & Learning Theories

Appendix 2 - Blog Reflection

Appendix 3 - Website Reflection

Appendix 4 - Wikispace

Appendix 5 - Wiki Reflection

Appendix 6 - Video Reflection

Appendix 7 - Audio Tools Reflection

Appendix 8 - Powerpoint Reflection

Appendix 9 - Prezi Reflection

Appendix 10 - Glogster Reflection

Appendix 11 - Google Earth Reflection

REFERENCES:

Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King. (2010). Australasian Journal Of Educational Technology: How do students use podcasts to support learning?. 26(2), 180-191. Retrieved from:  http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet26/scutter.pdf.

Fryer, W. A. (2012), Tools For The Teks: Intergrating Technology in the Classroom, Retrieved From: http: www.wtvi.com/teks/05_06_articles/classroom-audio-podcasting.html

Australian Government. (2013). Cyber(smart:). Retrieved from http://www.cybersmart.gov.au

Student Code of Ethics. (2013). Retrieved from: http://horizonprofect.wikispaces.com/student+Code+of+Ethics. 

CQUniversity Australia. (2013). EDED20491-ICTs for learning design: online learning materials. Retrieved from: http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/mod/page/view.php?id=115326.

UNESCO ICT Competency Standards for teachers. (2008). Retrieved from: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0015/001562/156210E.pdf

Leask, M., Pachler, N., (1999). Learning to Teach Using ICT in the Secondary School. Retrieved from: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=fNfSQd_c78oC&pg=PA189&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false

DIGITAL TOOL 4: GOOGLE EARTH

Google Earth is an excellent, safe educational tool to use in the classroom. Many educators around the world are using it and the benefits and uses of this tool are incredible. An American Elementary and Middle School Administrator says 'We are using Google Earth to study geography, literature and culture in grades 2-8 as both a research tool and a creation tool. The advanced layers, the earth, sky, sea and flight features are being used by many. Now that we've used it, we can't live without it!' (Google Earth, 2013).

I have explored google earth for myself to see what interesting things I could do with it. I have taken screen shots of a few uses I have made from it.

The above screen shot is of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Google Earth has pre-recorded tours of historical landmarks and so much more of course, that can be viewed. It also provides facts about this landmark which can be seen in the image. Google earth would be a great tool to use in a history lesson as students can see these historical places without having to travel around the world.

Below is another image of ANZAC cove in Gallipoli. This can also be used when students are studying the importance of ANZAC day, students can actually see where this battle took place and how real it was.

Students can view so much on Google Earth and I could write pages and pages of its use in education. There is however a very useful website which explains its uses. The Google Earth For Educators website has so much information on how it can be used in classrooms - they have lesson plans, resources, tutorials & tips,talk-to-teacher forums and student showcase. It is a very useful website and I believe I will make use of it during my teaching.

Below is my analysis of this tool.

ADVANTAGES:

• easy to use and navigate.
• Is free to use and can be downloaded onto any computer.
• students can dive into the depths of the ocean or explore space.
• can view NASA images of space and planets and take actual tours of these planets.
• provides interactive geographic information, weather, points of interest and services.
• students can view and travel the world without leaving the classroom.
• Google Earth can be used to support many KLA's including geography, history, literature and Art.
• The Google Earth Educators website provides great resources to support teachers.
• Google Earth has the potential to reach many different learners. The street view and panorama view allows kinaesthetic learners to find there own way around earth with the click and drag of a button. Visual and auditory learners can see and hear information on important landmarks.

DISADVANTAGES:

• to work effectively you need to have fast internet access.
• some images and views on Google Earth can be cloudy and not very clear in certain areas..
• every street is not captured so you may have trouble finding them.
• Does invade privacy as images of peoples houses and business are taken without their knowledge and can be viewed by anyone in the world.

EXAMPLES OF ITS USE:

• Can use it in a history lesson to explore a famous shipwreck using the shipwreck layer of Google Earth. This layer allows students to gain information on the shipwreck, its location and also a diving video which can actually show you the ship wreck.
• Another history example is using Google Earth to explore Egypt and its history. They can view the pyramids, the Nile river and other historical landmarks in the area. They can have access to images, videos and important facts that can assist them in understanding the historical features.
• Geography lesson: students can use the weather layer of Google earth to explore the climate across the world. They can note the differences in climate and seasons in Europe compared to Australia.
• The National Geographic layer can allow students to explore endangered species around the world. Google earth provides video footage and facts on these species. For example monitoring the Nautilis which has survived for millions of years. Scientist track the movements of these sea creatures to find more information on its survival.
• Students can use Google Earth to explore their local community by identifying point of interests such as hospitals, police stations, parks etc. Students can use the roads layer and map to come up with directions on how to get from one location to another.

Obviously as can be seen from my examples there is so much that can be done with Google Earth. Teachers need to be very familiar with all the functions before they present it to the class. Students would also have to be taught how to navigate through Google Earth before they can benefit from its use. It can be a time consuming task if students don't know how to use it. I believe this tool support the cognitivist and behaviourism learning theories. Students are building on their knowledge by seeing and organising information and through navigating and exploring Google Earth they are becoming competent uses of this tool which they an use in and outside of school.

References:

http://www.google.com/gadgets/directory?synd=earth&preview=on&id=547940477622

Google Earth for Educators, (2013). Retrieved from: http://sitescontent.google.com/google-earth-for-educators/

Group 3 Tool: Glogster

Glogster, what a fun and exciting tool to use in the classroom with students. I really enjoyed creating my first ever Glog and it was so easy to do. Below is my analysis of this tool.


POSITIVES

• An easy to design space where students and teachers can import text, videos, audio and images.
• A number of templates to choose from, making it easy to begin creating.
• Can easily change templates by adding other videos, texts etc. Can move object around by clicking and dragging.
• videos, audio and images can be uploaded from any source (web, computer) and you can search youtube clips straight from the Glogster page without having to open a separate page to search youtube.
• Great alternative to linear presentations like Power Point.
• Online scrap book for student work or a fun and interactive way to introduce a new topic to students.
• provides information and knowledge to student in multiple means on the one page creating greater learning outcomes for the diverse learners in the class. 
• glogster is user friendly and can be used by any year level with ease.
• can be shared by embedding into blogs (like I have done here), websites, wikis or linked onto these pages.

MINUSES

• creating a Glog can be time consuming for students especially if they are not very familiar with this technology or do not have access to the internet or computer at home.
• can be costly for teachers who wish to purchase the Glogster Edu Premium version.
• Teachers need to make time to closely supervise and review student work online to make sure the content reflects their own work, is not harmful or abusive in anyway to others and students need to know what sources of information are reliable on the net.

INTERESTING

• Teachers can create private virtual classroom by registering for a teacher account which allows them to generate students accounts with their login and password details. (Jarc, 2010).
• Teachers are able to monitor students work throughout the learning process, creating a safe learning environment for students.
• The educational version of Glogster offers teachers the added security of supervision of student work (Jarc, 2010).
• Glogs can be used in any curriculum area such as history, literacy, science and even maths. 
• It can be used as an assessment tool, where students can create class projects on the web rather then on cardboard.

Glogster are really a great tool to use in the classroom and having looked at example of glogs on the web I can see my self using it. As can be seen in my analysis above, Glogsters are easy to use so students would not have great difficulty in learning this tool and apply it. The Glog I created was based on a lesson from Sound Waves exploring the letter 'g' and 'gg'. I had my first prac today and during my observations I noticed that the teacher introduced the topic to the class using the whiteboard and verbally explaining the sounds the letter 'g' makes. In this scenario I could envision the use of a Glog like the one I created above. I think it would be a great way to introduce students to a new topic using videos, audio and images on the one page. It could further be used to display student work in literacy where students take a picture of their posters, story or poem etc and also record a podcast or Voki telling the story or reading the poem or describing their work telling us what they did. These two files can then be imported into the class literacy Glog for everyone to see, including parents and grandparents.

I believe Glogster Edu is a great tool that can be used in all year levels and across the curriculum. Of course like with any other digital, web-based tool students will need to be taught the safe and ethical practices of digital communications. Students need to be aware of copyright laws, and ensure they are referencing their work. The ACARA (2013) websites states that students need to 'acknowledge when they use digital products created by someone else, and start to indicate the source', typically by the end of year 4. The teacher will need permission from parents if they choose to use student images, videos and audio recordings in their Glogster. The teacher will also be responsible for monitoring student work on Glogster to ensure they are adhering to the safe practice guidelines. The added benefit of Glogster as mentioned above is that the educational version does have the added security feature for teachers to use.  It can be used as a private or public resource with only the classroom and families viewing it.

Any digital tool that is used online whether it be a podcast, image or video, wiki or blog there is always going to be privacy, safety and ethical issues that teachers need to be aware of and take the necessary steps to ensure the students are aware of these and to monitor the safe use of these technologies.

References:

ACARA v4.2. (2013). Information Communication Technology (ICT) Capability -Learning Continuum. Retrieved from: http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/GeneralCapabilities/Information-and-Communication-Technology-capability/Continuum#page=2

Jarc, J. (2010). Trending Educational Technology: Glogster and Glogster.edu as an alternative to PowerPoint. Retrieved from : http://trendingeducation.com/?p=271

Glogginoggins, (2013). Pro's & Con's of Glogster: The Con's. Retrieved From:

https://sites.google.com/site/glogginnoggins/pros-and-cons-of-glogster/pros-cons-of-glogster-part-2

Glogster Edu. (2013). www.edu.glogster.com. Accessed 09/04/2013.

Group 3 Tools: Power Point

This week I also had a play with Power Point. I created two presentations which can be viewed on my wiki space.

Below is my PMI analysis of Power Point:

POSITIVES:

• easy to use.
• can embed texts, links, audio, video and images.
• Many themes to choose from to make your presentation stand out.
• many layouts to choose from when creating each slide.
• Can record your own voice and embed it into the slide.
• Can add slides at any interval with a click of a button.
• can create a storyboard in word as an outline and then can import it into Power POint to create an instant presentation.
• can be printed in note format for students to take notes on.

MINUSES:

• too much information on power point can disengage audience.
• cannot embed into blogs.

IMPLICATIONS:

• can be a time consuming task to create a very graphic and interactive presentation.
• power points are very linear in nature reducing the topic into bullet points and does not allow audiences to further explore an idea like Prezi does.
• people use power point to have something to present and deviate from focusing on their message.

Although there are some minuses and implications of using Power Point, I still believe it is a very useful tool to use in the classroom. It is easily accessible by everyone who has Microsoft Office on their computers. It is very easy to use and there are many great ideas out there on how to make the most of it in your classroom. 

Group 3 Tools: Prezi

This week I explored Prezis for the first time. I had never heard of it until now and was surprised at how easy it is to use and fun to create. Below is my first Prezi creation. The topic I have chosen for my presentation is 'Sea Turtles'. When viewing make sure you click on the youtube video I embedded into my presentation.





Here is my analysis of this tool using a PMI:

POSITIVES

• Visually beautiful presentation
• Not a linear presentation like a power point, you can navigate to where ever you like or choose the path you created when presenting.
• you can zoom into videos, pictures and words with your mouse like a magnifying glass.
• when zooming students can focus on what is important.
• you can easily embed youtube videos which can be watched directly from your presentation rather than going to a website to watch it like in power point presentations.
• can incorporate images and can paste them where ever you like on your page.
• can include background music on each slide.
• can deviate and explore concepts or ideas even further by adding videos, pictures, definitions etc. to further explain a point.
• a variety of templates to choose from.

MINUSES

• too much zooming in and out can make people feel sick and can confuse audience.
• cannot add hyperlinks to websites like you can in Power Point.
• when zooming in it can be a bit difficult to get the image in the right position on the screen. 
• Unlike Power Point you cannot record and embed an audio to the presentation. You can only add background music.
• does not have spell-check

INTERESTING

• Is an online product that can be accessed and view from anywhere.
• Teachers and students can now create private Prezis for free.
• Prezis can be reused as it has a feature that allows you to offer a copy to everyone for content re-mixing. For example students can play around with an exisiting Prezi created by a teacher, replacing the texts and images with new ones on a new topic. For example the above presentation on sea turtles can be reused to create one about Tasmanian Devils.

In conclusion I believe Prezis are a great tool to use in the classroom by the teachers and students. It is an interesting and engaging way to explore topics. There are many educational ideas on using Prezi in the classrooms. Here is one that I found on a website that has 5 Prezi examples to view.  It introduces colours to a class. It is fun and creative.

References:

Fractus Learning. (2013). Retrieved from: http://www.fractuslearning.com/2012/04/24/prezis-digital-classroom/. Accessed 02/04/2013.

Barlev, Y. (2011). Retrieved from: http://managerialcommunication.wordpress.com/2011/11/19/prezi-vs-powerpoint-which-will-come-out-on-top/. Accessed 02/04/2013.

URL: http://blog.prezi.com/latest/2010/1/24/new-release-features-educational-license-reuse-learn-center.html. Accessed 02/04/2013.

DIGITAL VIDEOS

Creating a digital video was so much fun and watching the end product was even better. Below is the video I created, unfortunately I didn't have the time to record any clips for my movie so I had to use the photos I had on my computer. I think it still turned out ok :)

iMovie is a great tool and was so easy to use. There are so many templates and themes to choose from which makes a great starting point for producing your video. You can use photos to create a photo story like I have, or use videos to really make your digital video stand out. I think students will really enjoy using this tool and it is a great way to engage students in their learning, as they are creating something from what they have learnt. For example students could be asked to create a video for a story they have written in an english lesson. Students can act out the scenes and characters and record them or take photos to describe the story they are telling. There are many things it can be used for and it is a very useful tool for those learners who are visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners. Students are learning hands on as they create their videos using visual and auditory tools, the end result is a learning tool that can reach multiple learners.

Teachers can also use videos as a teaching tool to explain concepts and engage students. Teachers can use animation software like goanimate to create a video for the younger students (younger kids love cartoons). The possibilities are endless for both teachers and students, and I think all teachers should be using them in their classrooms.

Audio & Digital Tools

After hours of trial and error I was finally able to create a podcast. I couldn't embed my podcast to my blog but I was able to add it to my wiki :) Here is the Link. Podcasts are a great tool to use when teaching. Today we live in the digital world where students, children and teachers have access to so much technology. Almost all students these days have access to an Ipod, Ipad or smart phone which they use to listen to music, watch videos or play games, so why not incorporate learning into these tools so that students get the more out of learning. Podcasts gives teachers the opportunity to provide information in a variety of ways to better meet the diverse learning styles of students and the inclusion of current technology that students are using already (Macinstruct, 2013). We can use this technology for educational purposes. There are many great educational podcasts available for teachers and students to use on the internet, such as ABC, SBS, BBC and the Discovery school. I came across this website which lists ten fantastic educational podcasts.

Podcasts have many many benefits in education and for those students who are auditory/visual learners the benefits are even greater.

• can record class lectures so students can listen again in their own time or before an exam.
• 'make up lectures for students who are absent.
• can use as a recording tool during interviews with guest speakers
• ability to replay and review information helps to embed lessons in memory (Macinstruct, 2013)
• can be accessed by students when walking, on the bus, working out etc. can be used during multi-tasking.
• meets the needs of students with varying learning styles.

Here are some examples of how I would use podcasts:

• students can use podcasts to learn new vocabulary - students will record themselves saying the word then spelling it out. This will allow auditory and visual learners to memorise words by hearing and visualising what they hear they can really embed it into their memory.
• students can use it in a project where they are required to explain a topic using a podcast.

The traditional approach to teaching where teachers lecture and students take notes - is being replaced with a collaborative approach where students are creating their own content and learning in the process.

'Many educators have found that the use of technology in the classroom has changed the interest level of many students simply due to the fact that they are using technology themselves for personal reasons and are more interested in material presented through this familiar medium.' (Macinstruct, 2013). In a study done by Brittain, Gllowacki, van Ittersum & Johnson (2006) it was also found that students preferred podcasts to the other formats such as power point and video, possibly because they could listen to the podcasts while engaging in other tasks (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010).

There are also some disadvantages of using podcasts in education, particularly when used by university students. Some academics express a concern that university students will no longer attend lectures and disengage from the academic environment (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). Podcasting is also argued to lead to passive learning with students focussing on the audio facility rather than actively engaging with the content (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). It is argued that podcasting does not support the constructivist learning that is dominant in education today, as the constructivist view maintains that 'deep learning occurs when a learner is actively engaged in learning activities' (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). I don't necessarily agree with this as I believe podcasting is an engaging tool if of course used for the right purpose. The examples I have given above are quite engaging activities that would support constructivist learning in both primary and secondary.

The privacy concerns that are evident when using other tools such as images and videos is not a concern when using podcasts, as students speaking during a podcast do not have to identify themselves by name. Images are not added to any podcast so the privacy issues should be minimal for parents and teachers (Fryer, 2012 ). Despite this teachers should still get permission from parents before they publish any student podcasts. Like with any digital tool students need to be educated with copyright obligations. They may download music into their podcast or use a recording of an interview they have found on the web and have incorporated it into their podcast. Students need to be aware of copyright friendly music files or reference/acknowledge the source of their resources (Fryer, 2012)

Voice Threads

During my exploration of auditory tools I also came across voice threads, which I found very interesting. A voice thread allows multiple people from anywhere in the world to leave a thread of auditory comments/messages. A Voice Thread is referred to as 'a conversation in the cloud' (Voice thread, 2013). You only require a computer and the internet to create your own thread, there is no software to install. Voice threads would be a great way for students to interact with others and share their thoughts verbally.

Here is an example of one that shows how it works and the video below gives us some more information.

VOKI Podcast

  

After a frustrating few days of trying to upload my Voki podcast I finally did it! With the help of a dear friend of cause :). I really enjoyed creating my Voki it was fun and creative. Voki podcasts a great tool that can be used by students and teachers. Teachers can use it during class to introduce a new topic or have students create one to describe their experiences during an excursion, there is so much that can be done with it. I think the younger students would probably enjoy it the most. Using this tool in class will really engage students especially if the teacher records their own voices when creating the podcast. It is a fun, creative way of teaching and learning, and not so boring for the students.



REFERENCES:

Fryer, W. A. (2012), Tools For The Teks: Intergrating Technology in the Classroom, Retrieved From: http: www.wtvi.com/teks/05_06_articles/classroom-audio-podcasting.html

Macinstruct, (2013). Retrieved from: http://voicethread.com/about/features/. Accessed 27/03/2013

Scutter, S., Stupans, I., Sawyer, T. and King, S. (2010). Australasian Journal of Educational Technology: How do students use podcasts to support learning? Retrieved from: http://www.ascillite.org.au/ajet/ajet26/scutter.pdf. Accessed 28/03/13.

Voice Thread, (2013). Retrieved from: http://voicethread.com/about/features/. Accessed 27/03/2013

Website Reflection

I created my first website this week and couldn't believe how easy it was. I was actually surprised that anyone can create a website for free. I used Weebly to create mine and I found it very easy. There were so many themes to choose from, including colours, fonts and format. The adding of pages and their content design was simple. Websites allow you to embed videos, pictures, hyperlinks, podcasts and has so many other features to allow users to be creative with. Below is the PMI I have created after developing a website.


PLUSES:

• can be created and used by anyone
• many templates to choose from
• can have many pages and links to other pages on website
• no one can comment or edit the website
• can embed videos, podcasts, hyperlinks, images etc.
• online storage of information for all students to access anytime, anywhere.

MINUSES:

• must have computer and internet to access
• cannot get feedback from others like wiki's and blog's
• cannot trace each students input into the creation of the website like a wiki

INTERESTING:

• Can be used by teachers as a class website to publish students work & news of what is happening in the class so parents can view.
• can be used by students to create an online project on a topic.
• allows children to be creative
• students can take their classroom and learning into cyber space giving them a different platform to work from.

As can be seen from the PMI table above, there are many benefits and interesting things you can do with websites. My website is one on multiculturalism. I embedded a video from youtube, created a few pages to navigate to and added some pictures. I can see how useful websites can be in teaching and learning. I believe students will find creating websites can be very engaging and fun. I have come across a few websites created by students and it is interesting how it has been used to teach students Here is a website that has links to student websites. These websites have been created by students from different grades and the topics covered range from sports to country, animals and there is even one that represents a hypothetical restaurant (maybe a home economics students?). 

Teachers can create class websites that provide parents with information on what's happening in class, what they are learning this week, who was student of the week?, upcoming effects etc. This could be a huge benefit to students who have gone a way for a week or two, or are ill and cannot come into class. I found a really good class website that you can access from here. I love the way the teacher has recorded the children singing 'Wheels on the bus go..." and the first thing you here when you open the websites are a class of children singing this song. It really shows just how fun learning can be. I think it will inspire students to work harder to have their work posted on the net so everyone can see and to be apart of creating this space will further engage them in learning. This is an excellent tool for constructivist learning.

WIKI REFLECTION :)

I created the above SWOT analysis to assist me in reflecting on how the use of a wiki can assist learning. Looking at the diagram it is easily noticeable that the benefits of using a wiki is far greater than the negative aspects.

Wiki's are a great tool in bringing learner's together and I would describe it as a classroom in the clouds.  It is not however an ordinary classroom of 20-30 students. A wiki is a public space and can have a number of users from anywhere in the world! This is what makes it so interesting to use. Students can have a science professor from a university in England, contribute information to students on their wiki, or provide feedback on  their posts. As stated in the SWOT analysis, a wiki is a great way of gathering relevant, interesting resources into one page, using links or pasting images and videos. This allows easy access to a mountain of information. Compared to a blog, wikis allow more interaction between students as they are all authors and editors of the page and can correct their peers, delete or add relevant comments etc. It is a very useful tool for teachers to post quizzes or sample exam questions so students can all work together to understand and solve the question. For our ICT course we had to collaboratively answer sample quiz questions on a wiki, I found this activity very useful as we were able to exchange ideas, thoughts and correct each others mistakes.

I created my own wiki space this week My Wiki Project, and explored what I could do with it. I first created a project called 'Space & Planets Science Project'. Then within this project I identified 3 teams - Earth, Jupiter and Mars. I created a page for each team and then posted a youtube clip on each page about each of the planets. Then I added some questions to answer, guiding students on where to start from. The purpose of setting up this wiki was to allow students to work in groups to put together a science project on space and planets. Creating each page directs students to the group they belong to and allows proper organisation of information. This is just a small example of what I have come up with, but there is so much you can do on a wiki. I did have some trouble setting up the pages so they link to the project, but in the end I managed to do it. 

Despite the negatives mentioned in my analysis, I will definitely be using wikis in my classroom. With any online activity there is always the issues of bullying, losing information and technical problems. Cyber-bullying can be an issue when using such tools in a school context, as students may write offensive comments about another student, or upload an image or video to the space. Although the teacher may monitor this space regularly it is impossible for them to monitor it every hour, minute of the day, and the damage may already be done. The Education Queensland Authority has developed guidelines for parents and caregivers on Cyber Safety and Cyber bullying which can be accessed from here . To deal with these teachers need to educate their students about the ethical guidelines and also monitor the information they are posting or writing. Students should not be revealing too much information about themselves or others while uses these online spaces. They should be adhering to referencing guidelines and copyright laws when they are using other peoples work, videos or ideas. As for losing information, students need to be very cautious of what they delete when they are editing.

Overall, reflecting on the wiki I can see how the learning theories of connectivism and constructivism are demonstrated in this ICT tool. Students are connecting with other students, collecting information and constructing their own learning through the guidance of their teachers. This activity allows students to build on their knowledge with new ideas through interaction in a shared social environment. 

REFERENCES:

Department of Education, Training and Employment, (2012),  Cybersafety and cyberbullying- a guide for parents and teachers. Retrieved from: http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/behaviour/qsaav/docs/cyberbullying-cybersafetyprintfriendlyguide.pdf

Horizon Project, (2010). Code of Ethics. Retrieved from: http://horizonproject.wikispaces.com/Student+Code+of+Ethics

BLOG REFLECTION

I created the above SWOT analysis to analyse the use of blogs and the potential benefits and weaknesses it may have. 

When I first started this course I really had no idea what a blog was and could not understand how a blog could assist students in learning. Now in my fourth week of this course and I can really see the benefits as I am using my blog. As seen in the SWOT analysis above, the strengths outweigh the weaknesses. Although there are many threats there are also as many opportunities and I believe through teacher guidance and discipline these threats can be overcome or dealt with. 

Blog's are a great example of constructivist learning as students are socially interacting within a learning community. Students are allowing others to comment on their learning and reflections and are learning from each other. As stated by Good & Brophy (1990), 'learners construct their own reality or at least interpret it based upon their perceptions of experiences, so an individuals knowledge is a function of one's prior experiences, mental structures and beliefs that are used to interpret objects and events.' Blog's are a great tool in gaining insight into students thinking. Using blogs in a classroom allows teachers to visibly see what students are thinking, what their understandings are on a topic and can guide students onto the right path using various scaffolding strategies, to support those that are struggling. As identified in the SWOT analysis, blogs only have a single user which means each students blog is their own work of art and any comments posted by others are just feedback, which can be valuable to a student as it can allow students to learn from each other. Students can gain valuable feedback from professionals, teachers or students from around the world and is not just limited to their teacher or class. As stated by Winch & Holliday (2010), students as 'bloggers', are 'sharing their musings and experiences with a worldwide audience.' An example of one way of using a blog in the classroom is creating a blog on multiculturalism. Students as a group are given an opportunity to showcase a variety of cultural information from different cultures, such as photos of clothing, food, festivals and facts about cultural identity. They can embed google maps indicating where the country is. Students from other international schools can also engage in this activity by commenting on the information presented and can answer questions that students may have. This activity allows students to develop their cultural awareness in a fun and creative way and can also stimulate discussion forums. Blog's can be used individually by students or as a group, like in the example I have given, but I believe   that the group blog is more of a group reflection and doesn't really focus on individual development and learning. Individual blog's however, allow students to personalise their learning experience.

I can definitely see myself using blog's in the classroom, whether as an assessment task or project, a lesson summary for students or parents to view, or as a notice board for students, reminding them of assessments, upcoming events, homework, lesson outlines etc.

Although the use of the internet has so many benefits to both the teachers and school community, there are also threats that we cannot ignore. As mentioned in the SWOT analysis, privacy and security is an issue that teachers need to be very cautious about. Without proper guidance students can expose themselves to complete strangers who may use the blog as a source to gain information on a child, for example, what school they go to, where and when they will be going to excursion, can see photos of them and can engage in conversations with them through the post comments. As teachers it is our duty to educate and guide students on what they can and can't do on blogs, and closely monitor their blogs.

Overall I believe blogs are a great way of allowing students to be constructivist learners and to engage in their learning. There is much that students can gain from using blogs if used properly in a controlled and safe environment.

References:

Good, T. L., Brophy, J. E. (1990). Educational psychology: A realistic approach. (4th ed.).White Plains, NY: Longman

Winch, G., Johnston, R.R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L, & Holliday, M. (2010). Literacy:Reading, Writing and Children's Literature. (4th ed.). Oxford University Press, Australia

Reflections on Wiki activity & the learning theories

Over the last two weeks we have explored the different learning theories, trying to understand the different ways people learn. We have learnt there are three basic theories, which are Behaviourism, Cognitivism and Constructivism.

Behaviourism focuses on behavioural patterns being repeated until they become automatic (Schuman, 1996). It is a learning process of reacting to external stimuli. Theorists such as Thorndike, Pavlov, Watson and Skinner have conducted various experiments to test this theory (Mergel, 1998). Watson believed that most human behaviour is established through stimulus-response associations through conditioning and he was credited with coining the term "behaviourism" (Mergel, 1998). I agree with Watson, in that a lot of our learning is through behaviourism, especially during the early stages of our learning, for example when we are learning how to toilet train our children we are constantly encouraging them to go to the toilet when they feel they need to empty their bladders, and when they do the right thing we reward them with either kisses and hugs or a treat. When they don't do the right thing then we punish them and hence we are shaping their behaviours and they are learning through behaviourism.

Unfortunately this theory alone did not explain certain social behaviours as Mergel (1998) mentions, children did not imitate all behaviour that had been reinforced. It was realised that learning is a process of acquiring and storing knowledge (Edudemic, 2012). It is evident that learning is much more than just understanding and remembering but it also involves evaluating, encoding, storage and retrieval of information (Edudemic, 2012). Cognitivism is about how we process information and how we store it in our brains. There are times when someone will try and teach you something but if you have difficulty understanding it then you will not store it in your long term memory. Information stored in your sensory and short term memories are forgotten and cannot be retrieved unless the information has been stored in your long term memory (Mergel, 1998). When looking at this I realise that as teachers we have to be able to reach our students long term memories by delivery lessons that will keep them interested and engaged in what they are learning and appeal to many parts of their brain. The activities we did in week one to see what kind of learners we are just shows how differently each individual learns, hence the reason why we need to be very creative in our pedagogy design. Using ICT tools will help us reach students through visual and media lessons. Concept and mind maps, like the one I did in week one, we can really get in touch with our brains and explore how much we have stored in our long term memories. It is a great way of organising and storing information.

Social constructivism is the third theory we learnt last week and that we have touched on this week through our wiki activity. Social constructivism is where "learners construct their own reality or at least interpret it based upon their perceptions of experiences, so an individuals knowledge is a function of on's prior experiences, mental structures and beliefs that are used to interpret objects and events." (Good & Brophy, 1990). This week we were required to voice our opinion on the use of mobile phones in the classroom on a wiki space using the de Bono's Think Hats tool. The activity was very socially constructive as everyone made interpretations based on their experiences or perceptions and beliefs on the matter. Everyone was able to build on each others comments and agree or disagree. It created a very engaging learning environment encouraging interactions within a learning community. Wendy modelled  scaffolded various questions on the wiki space to guide us in our discussions. This was very effective as the page was designed in a way to avoid confusion and to organise information so it is easily understood. Scaffolding is very important in teaching especially on online spaces like Wikis. I viewed a TED video by Sugata Mitra, titled 'Build a school in the cloud'. In his video he gives an example of how scaffolding produces better learning outcomes, when he describes how he gave a group of children in a remote Indian village access to a computer and tested whether Tamil speaking 12 year olds could learn the biotechnology of DNA replication in English by themselves from this computer. He found that with having someone ask the children questions like how did you do that? what does this mean? children were able to achieve a pass of 50% in two months compared to a 30% success rate prior to scaffolding. Although learning is possible without teaching, the learning outcomes would not be great. Scaffolding is required to achieve optimum learning outcomes for students, to encourage higher order thinking and to organise students thoughts as was evident in the wiki activity we did on mobile phones.

ICT tools including Blogs and discussion forums are a great way of developing constructivist learning. This activity will be something that I would want to use in my classroom as it gives every student the opportunity to express their views and thoughts in an environment where they may feel more comfortable. I know from my own experiences that I am very shy and find it very difficult to voice my opinions in a room full of people. This wiki activity gives students time to gather their thoughts and ideas and to construct their answers in their own time.

The final theory that completes the learning theory framework is 'Connectivism'. This learning theory has developed in the 'Digital Age' and is a process of connecting specialised nodes or information sources (Edudemic, 2012).  The video titled 'The Networked Student' on the Moodle site posted by Wendy (http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/mod/page/view.php?id=115326) really helped me understand what is meant by connectivism, and also showed that teachers roles are changing. they are described in the video as the learning architect, modeller, change agent, connected learning incubator, learning concierge, synthesizer and organiser just to name a few. I experienced this learning theory through our mobile phone wiki activity. We were given the opportunity to connect with other learners and to do our own research and share with others on this virtual space. I really enjoyed this activity and can now really understand the power of using ICT and the positive impacts it has on students.

When I first started reading through the course material, it was very confusing and a lot of information to take in. Now at the end of week two I feel confident and can better relate to the material. Working with others online, discussing and evaluating material and creating new ideas, has allowed me to feel connected to other students and not feeling alone. 

In conclusion I believe that the traditional learning theories alone will not allow this generation of students to have a complete learning experience. Behaviourism + Cognitivism + Constructivism + Connectivism = Complete Learning Theory (Edudemic, 2012).

References:

A Simple Guide to 4 Complex Learning Theories. (2012) [On-line]. Available: http://edudemic.com/2012/12/a-simple-guide-to-4-complex-learning-theories/

Good, T. L., Brophy, J. E. (1990). Educational psychology: A realistic approach. (4th ed.).White Plains, NY: Longman

Mergel, Brenda. (1998, 5 Feb 2001). Instructional Design & Learning Theory.   [On-line]. Available: http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mergel/brenda.htm#Behaviorism

Schuman, L. (1996). Perspectives on instruction. [On-line]. Available: http://edweb.sdsu.edu/courses/edtec540/Perspectives/Perspectives.html