Reflective Synopsis

In this reflective synopsis I will investigate and reflect on four technology based education tools that I have researched throughout the course thus far. I will indicate ways in which my four chosen tools could enhance, support and transform student learning and provide links to my own demonstrations that support my suggestions.
I began this e-learning course as what Prensky (2001) would describe as a 'digital immigrant', with not much previous experience using ICT's. I never used to think much of it until enrolling in teaching, and now this e-learning course has opened my eyes to a whole new world. I now acknowledge that the students I will be teaching will be 'digital natives' (Prensky, 2001) and the way they learn is very different to how I once did. Students today need to be engaged in ways that reflect their lifestyles and future prospects, that is by embracing the new world of technology and all it has to offer (Prensky, 2005). As Siemens (2004) emphasises in his study on Connectivism "technology has reorganised how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn". I believe it is my responsibility as a future teacher to explore and investigate a range of different digital tools that I could incorporate into my teaching pedagogy to support and enhance student learning. This course has made me aware of my own fear and hesitation to delve into the digital world; through its scaffolding and modelling it has given me the confidence to explore and gain competency in using ICT's. This further confirms to me how the constructivist approach to teaching supports students understanding and scaffolds the learning in order to give students the confidence to explore new concepts. I have attempted to adopt this approach myself in my demonstrations by providing scaffolding in both my Wiki and Website. Another reason why it is imperative that teachers embrace technology in their classroom is to engage and target all students learning preferences. Theorists such as Gardner (2001) affirm that we all have individual learning styles and process information depending on our learning preferences, see my preferences, and how they affect my own learning. Technology is a way to promote multimodal learning in the classroom, which is learning that involves two or more modes of communication (Anstey & Bull, 2006). The use of multimodals promote visual, auditory and kinaesthetic modes of learning which supports all students to perceive and process information and therefore enhances overall outcomes (The Department of Education and Children’s Services, 1997).
The first tool I used in this course was the group Wiki, where we were encouraged to collaborate our knowledge, ideas and understandings about chosen topics. We used the PMI thinking strategy and De Bono's six thinking hats on seperate occasions. This was a great example of how technology can be used to share and construct knowledge; as Vygotsky's Social Constructivist theory contends interaction between learners can enhance learning and help with the internalisation of new knowledge. This activity also demonstrated thinking strategies in action and how they can lead to a deeper understanding of knowledge and concepts. We live in a knowledge-based economy which requires 20th century learners to be creative, critical and reflective thinkers (Lynch & Knight, 2010). Teachers need to not only give students the information but teach them how to look at it in a range of different perspectives and reflect on how it affects them. Here is my reflection on these thinking tools.
When it come time to choosing my four ICT's to analyse and reflect on I was quite hesitant to decide as I found that I had so much to say about all of the ones I have trialled, and most of them I can see myself using in my future classroom. For the Group One Technologies I chose to focus on my Website- www.mrsbettsclassroom2.weebly.com. I was very nervous when I first heard we had to go and make our own website. Firstly, I always thought that something like a website would cost money to make, and secondly I pictured it as being a very complicated task. To my surprise I had it set up within minutes; I honestly could not believe how easy it was. The excitement kicked in and my creative juices begun to flow, I felt like a new door had been flung open to me. I feel that as a teacher there is so much you could do with your own website, like what I have experimented with you could organise a lesson on it, or go the whole way and do a unit of work. You can embed links to websites of interest as I have done, and you can upload images, youtube videos that have to do with the topic; you can have everything there at the students fingertips to explore and find information. It gives you the option to structure and scaffold your lessons so that students can work individually or in small groups. You are the only one that can add or edit information, so you are able to monitor the sites and materials that students are using on the internet, therefore ensuring students are engaged in legal, safe and ethical practice. This may seem like the student has no input, although like I have shown on my site activities can be listed and links made to a classroom Wiki for the students contribution. It is there in the Wiki where I have established with the input from students the legal, safe and ethical guidelines for using the computer. I got this idea from one of my fellow students. I would also display these class rules next to the computer as a reminder of the students responsibility when using the computers. Please go and view my SWOT analysis that I have done on this tool, as it gives a good reflection of my experience with Weebly.
My Group Two Technologies tool that I have chosen is the Voki; this tool captured my attention with its cute animated characters. I think these could be used in any classroom to present information to students in a fun and engaging way. It provides both visual and aural stimulation, therefore targeting a wider range of learners. I can also picture students using this site to present their own work, or to create their own classroom personality. I made my own Voki to use in a lesson for my Prep class (see it on the side of my blog), the children loved it and were then keen to make their own, although we ran into some technical problems so could not proceed with the lesson. This is one implication I find very common when using technology, due to power sources, internet connection and speed, or just technical problems sometimes it can be a hit or miss for your ICT to work. See my reflection on why you should always have a back-up plan when using technology in the classroom. I have enjoyed making my own Vokis and found the site easy to navigate, although I did find some computers really slow to upload the Vokis. See my SWOT analysis on my Voki experience.
Thirdly, was my exploration into presentation tools. I downloaded gimp, but struggled to understand what to do with this tool. As my intelligence test showed I am not much of a visual learner, hence manipulating photos is not my thing. However, I did enjoy making wanted posters on glassgiant. The tool I picked though, I found by googling Photostory, it is called VideoPad Video Editor and it states that it is for beginners. I support the saying you need to crawl before you can walk. This site is so easy to use that it got a bit addictive. I have used MovieMaker before and found it frustrating as it seemed very fiddly. Now either I have gained a whole lot more confidence in these last six weeks or this sight is just so much more simplier to use. I have made my own podcast, and also two examples of what students could do with this tool which I have embedded in my Wiki. As a presentation tool it has so much to offer, and I truly believe students would be able to use this tool independently or in small groups to publish their work. It is very straight forward to navigate and students have the options of uploading pictures, photos, music, sounds, videos or taping and recording themselves straight of the computer. The one main implication for using this tool is before you can upload your work onto a Wiki or Blog you need to publish it on Youtube, this may have repercussions as to the teacher's legal responsibility for publishing students' work or photos online. See my SWOT analysis on this tool.
My last tool chosen from the Group Four Technologies is the very easy-to-use brainstorming tool the bubbl.us. I believe that the use of brainstorming and concept mapping is an important part of learning. I have witnessed many teachers use the butcher's paper in front of the whole class to collaborate and present ideas and information; the bubbl.us just puts a techno touch to it. Brainstorming aides teachers in making students aware of their prior knowledge and uses it as a springboard to engage students in the topic (Brady & Scully, 2005). You could use bubbl.us on the interactive whiteboard and get students to come up and add their own bubble to encourage interactive learning, or you can encourage students to use it as a planning tool to foster self-regulated thinking habits (Marzano et al., 1997). I have made some of my own maps, one I have used on my Wiki and the other for a Uni assessment that you can view on my bubbl.us blog along with my SWOT analysis of this tool.
My research of ICT's in the last couple of weeks has shown me that they can be an invaluable resource in the classroom that engage students and achieve learning outcomes. As stated in the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority website "Increasingly, ICT's permeates every area of our society and lives". It is important that as teachers we embrace them and equip students with the necessary knowledge and skills they need to use ICT's in their learning and throughout life. In saying this it depends on the teacher's personal pedagogy to how far they go with incorporating technology in their classrooms, and to what extent they use the tools. My view of technology has definetely changed now that I am more informed; at the start of this course I had never even linked a document or website, now I do it without thinking twice as evident in this blog. I believe all teachers need to participate in regular e-learning courses to keep their knowledge and skills up-to-date, as how are we supposed to teach 'digital natives' if we don't know the language!

References

Anstey, M., & Bull, G. (2006). Defining Multiliteracies. Teaching and Learning Multiliteracies: Changing Times, Changing Literacies , 19-55.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2011). The Australian curriculum: English. Retrieved July 12, 2011, from ACARA Web site: http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/English/Curriculum/F-10

Brady, L., & Scully, A. (2005). Engagement: Inclusive classroom management. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson.

Department for Education and Children's Services. (1997). Early Literacy: Practices and Possibilities (Book One). Campbell Town, SA: Department for Education and Children's services.

Killen, R. (2009). Effective teaching strategies: Lessons from research and practice (5th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Thompson.

Lynch, D., & Knight, B. (2010). The Theory and Practice of Learning Management. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Australia.

Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., Arredondo, D., Blackburn, G., Brandt, R., Moffett, C., et al. (1997). Dimensions of Learning: Teacher's Manual (2nd ed.). Colorado: USA: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning.

New London Group. (1996). A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies: Designing Social Futures. Harvard Educational Review , 60-92.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives: Digital immigrants. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf

Prensky, M. (2005). Engage me or enrage me: what today's learners demand. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf

Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

The social media revolution

This gives a great explanation of why we need to keep up-to-date with technology!

My fourth tool

Bubbl.us
Lastly, the tool I have chosen from Group Four Technologies is bubbl.us. Since I have discovered this tool, I have made a concept map for narrative writing to add to my Wiki, and also used it in my English presentation to help explain the Four Resource model by Freebody and Luke. Every year level uses brainstorming activities, they are a great way to help students research a topic or break down a process. The good old way of brainstorming is to use butcher's paper; bubbl.us is the technological version of butcher's paper and pen.

Strengths:

• It is easy to use.
• The layout of the site is simple and maps can be constructed quickly.
• It promotes concept mapping.
• It makes brainstorming more visually attractive.
• It can be used to collaborate ideas with a whole class on an interactive whiteboard, or for students to use individually.
• It can be uploaded to a class Wiki or Website for students to refer to.
• It could be used in any year level.

Weaknesses:

• It can look very plain and busy.
• You can't use images, which would be good in lower grades.

Opportunities:

• I am a big supporter of brainstorming, both whole class, small group and individual.
• This encourages collaboration of ideas.
• Students can use a concept map as a guide for their learning
• It encourages students to plan
• As Marzano et al. emphasise by having students use graphic organisers they are able to better acquire and integrate declarative knowledge.

Threats:

• Students need to understand how a concept map is used to help organise information
• For whole class brainstorming all students should be encouraged to contribute ideas.

My third tool

VideoPad Video Editor
I found this great tool from a fellow student who suggested I google Photostory. I did, and this is what I found VideoPad.  My experience with presentation tools have previously extended to PowerPoint and MovieMaker which I have used to present uni assignments with. Most of the tricks I have learnt on PowerPoint have been shown to me by other, more experienced students, usually the younger ones. I believe PowerPoint has so much more potential than most users realise, and I was excited to learn more of its tricks in the Group 3 technologies. I plan on experimenting making my own 'Choose your own adventure story' to use in class. I didn't mind Prezi, and found it easy to use, I made one advertisement to get a feel of how it could be used by students in the classroom. Although, I have to admit I have spent most of my time enthralled with VideoPad Video Editor. Let me show you why,  go to my Wiki to view my videos. Also see my podcast made on VideoPad also. I never thought that I would be a producer of my own Youtube videos, and was surprised at how easy the process was.

VideoPad
Strengths:

• You can upload images or videos, or record yourself using the computers camera.
• You can add audio files (music, voice recording, or sounds) to your storyboard.
• You can narrate your story.
• You can add effects.
• It is set up clearly and easy to navigate
• It has a link to publish your work straight to Youtube, Facebook or Twitter.

Weaknesses:

• You need to have your own images and audio to upload.
• You need to have a computer that has a camera and a microphone.
• You have to publish your work on Youtube before you can embed it into your Blog or Wiki. This may incur privacy and copyright issues when you publish students work, or images of students.
• It can be time consuming. Trust me I spent all day using it.

Opportunities:

• Students could publish their stories, make news reports, advertisements and so on. Gone are the days of the cardboard projects, VideoPad is a great way for students to present their work with a touch of creativity.
• Teachers could make podcasts, similar to the ones used on the moodle site, and embed them into a class Website or Wiki to help scaffold students learning.
• Students can publish plays and drama assignments.
• Teachers could make a storyboard to display students' pictures or photos of their artwork and add music to it to play for the students or family and others.
• Likewise, teachers could make a storyboard with photos of the students, for example on sportsday. These storyboards can be published and uploaded to a class Blog that the students' families can access to see what they are doing at school.

Threats:

• As a teacher you would have to know your rights and responsibilities when publishing students' work and photos of students.

My second tool

Vokis
I had a lot of fun with this tool and believe it has a lot of potential to be used in learning contexts.

Strengths:

• It is engaging, it's fun, it's cute.
• The site is easy to navigate. I had Prep students making their own Vokis on the interactive whiteboard using the pen to scroll down and click on their selections.
• Vokis can be embedded into Blogs, Websites and Wikis.
• Students can add their own touch to their character.
• Backgrounds can be uploaded, as I did for my Voki Vicki, I uploaded a picture of inside my Prep class.
• Audio can be added through typing it in, a microphone or by adding a audio file. Nice to have a choice.
• It gives teachers a different and exciting way of presenting information which engages students both visually and aurally.
• Students can practice their oral language skills and enhance their confidence by recording their voices on to a Voki.
• The Voki sight is not blocked in schools by Education Queensland.

Weaknesses:

• I remember people had trouble embedding the Voki into their Powerpoints and Prezis, I have not yet tried this.
• I have had my own troubles trying to record the voice of my Voki with a microphone, it seems to work well with some computers and not work with others.
• On some computers the Voki takes forever to load up on the screen.
• I had some trouble embedding the link into my website, as when I first published my Voki they gave me a link which I copied and it worked well, but when I went to retrieve the link again it was not the same and my Voki had the sites background with it. See my first page of my weebly. This could just be me, but I did find these points (adding the voice and linking), not always smooth sailing and sometimes was dependent on what computer I was using.
• What the students say on their Voki may have to be monitored, to ensure that they are sensible and do not use bad language.
• They don't have every kind of character in their range.

Opportunities:

• Vokis can be used as a multimodal resource to engage students in their learning.
• Students can create Voki personalities to share their work in a fun and engaging way.
• Vokis can be used by younger students to practice the skill of navigating their way around the computer screen.
• Vokis can help improve students oral language skills.

Threats:

• The availability and speed of the internet may restrict teachers from using the Voki site in a lesson.
• If technology lets you down, or maybe your not skilled enough, you may run into trouble like I did, recording the voices on to the Voki. Reminder: when using technology ALWAYS have a back-up plan, just in case. 

The Chosen Four

This was a hard decision chosing which ICT's I will focus on for my synopsis. In the Group 1 technologies I have been very impressed with the Blog, Wiki and Weebly capabilities. I can picture using all three of these to support learning in the classroom. Although,  since I need to chose one I have decided to reflect more deeply on Weebly. I have had a lot of fun constructing my own Weebly and this is what I have found.

Weebly.com
Strengths:

• Not being very tech-savvy, I found this tool very east to navigate. Its tool bar was very self-explanatory
• It is free.
• It had a lot of available images to upload and use for free. This is helpful as you don't need to find images elsewhere.
• I was able to upload You tube videos easily into the Weebly
• The website can be set up to be navigated easily therefore, well scaffolded for learning
• You can add links to other websites
• Only the teacher can contribute content. Unlike a Wiki students cannot add or edit work.
• Teachers can pre-organise their lesson on a website. They can have all the images or websites they wish to use in a lesson already linked and ready to go in the weebly.

Weaknesses:

• Only the teacher can contribute content. It is not a collaborative learning tool, although links to a Wiki can be added.
• The website I made was not allowed by Education Queensland when I tried to show it at school. Therefore, you need to ensure you can use it at your school before spending time creating it.
• The availability of computers in the classroom for students to access the website.

Opportunities:

• Teachers can scaffold the website so that students can work individually or in groups to complete an activity.
• Teachers can link a class Wiki to the Weebly as I have done, and instruct students to follow the link and add their information, ideas and opinions.
• Teachers can add links to other sites that they know are appropriate, safe and ethical for the students to find information or research topics on. This way you know that the students are not wasting time aimlessly googling or searching for inappropriate sites.
• Students work can be uploaded to a weebly to share with the class, parents and others.
• Students could make their own weebly for a class project.

Threats:

• Internet speed and availability can hamper relying on it for a lesson.
• Different computers take longer to link and upload Youtubes.
• Must ensure you always acknowledge things that you upload.
• Must ensure images or Youtubes used in your weebly are appropriate for students. For example, did you know that children in Primary School are not allowed to view PG films. It is important to always know the legal, safe and ethical guidelines for using ICT's in the classroom. This site, by the Queensland Government outline the teachers responsibilities when constructing a website and offers suggestions that will comply with Education Queensland regulations.

How to establish legal, safe and ethical guidelines for e-learning

Once again, thanks to my learning buddies I have learnt a great way to ensure students are aware of the legal, safe, and ethical guidelines while engaging with ICT's in the classroom. After joining Mark Hodges's Manual Arts Forum, I saw that he had a page set up displaying the netiquette rules of using the sight. This I thought was a very good idea, as just like you would do in the classroom, before learning online takes place the teacher should firstly discuss with the students and establish the rules and responsibilities of using ICTs for learning purposes. By including the students in setting the rules and consequences, it is more likely that they will take them seriously. I have dedicated one page on my Wiki to display these rules as a permanent reminder; as a teacher I would also display them on a wall next to the computers in the classroom. 

My new bag of tricks

Well haven't I been having fun. I have been busy adding to my Wiki, please go and check it out, I am quite proud of myself. I have discovered a great tool called VideoPad Video Editor, which I got from googling photostory after a 4th year student suggested I had a look. I love this program, its applications are pretty self explanatory and I have been able to create some great sample videos which indicate different creative ways you could use it to publish student's work. I used MovieMaker last year for my Art assignment, and I feel like Video pad has a lot more to offer. You can tape your own movie with audio, add audio to a movie you make or upload it. After making my Movies I was keen to upload them to my Blog; the program has a link for you to upload it straight to your Youtube account, so I joined Youtube and am now the Producer of three movies. I found this tool very easy to use, so either I am getting better with using technology or the programs are just getting simplier.
Secondly, as you will see on my Wiki, I have been experimenting with bubbl.us mind mapping. Once again I was surprised at how easy this program is to use. I could actually picture using this tool up on the interactive whiteboard in front of the classroom whilst the students contribute ideas to it (ie. like the narrative one I have made). It is a great way to encourage planning and collaborate ideas, that the students can see and refer to when working individually in the future.

I got fish!

Saw this on Bianca's blog and had to have some myself. There is so many great tools out there, it's just knowing where to find them and how to use them. By the way if you didn't already know, to get some cool fishies of your own just go to design in your blog, add gadget, click on more gadgets and scroll until you get fish. What did Vygotsky say again about social interaction having a huge influence on learning. I can see what he means.

My Prezi

My Prezi
You will have to click on 'My Prezi' to view my ad for a hair product, as I have now spent nearly an hour trying to figure out how I can embed the Prezi into my blog with no success. Another thing I'll have to add to my 'need to know' list, it is getting quite long.
Although on a positive note, I finally worked out how to do the zoom thing in my Prezi, and I'm not going to lie, but I didn't go back and read the instructions. I thought I would have a play around with it first and just discovered it as I was experimenting, this definetely confirming once again my kinaesthetic learning style. I must admit working with ICT's can be very frustrating and time consuming, in the case of the Prezi, I had a lot of trouble trying to download Abode Flash player so my computer could run the program, after several attempts and alot of time wasted it happened to be a simple box that I had to change to match my program. Although each obstacle like this one seems to prepare me for the next. I feel like sometimes I am wasting a lot of my precious study time playing around with all these computer applications, but on the other hand I am developing my confidence and gaining a deeper understanding of how these tools can be manipulated which will encourage me to incorporate them into my teaching pedagogy. Through this experience I am also getting a feel for how the constructivist theory supports learning, as each time I interact with these ICT's I am using my prior knowledge to help build and understand the new knowledge. As a student teacher this reminds me of how important it is to make student's prior knowledge evident before introducing them to new knowledge.

I'm excited another presentation tool

Look what I can do now!

Presentation tools

I have gone and tried a Prezi, which I will try and upload later. I think these would be a great idea for upper primary to preasent their projects for something different instead of powerpoint. I had trouble getting the zoom in and zoom out effect on my Prezi, but that could have something to do with the fact that I bypassed the instructions. This is definetely one of my downfalls when learning new programs, as I am not one to sit down and read a manual before using something, I'd rather just wing it and pick it up as I go. This is another indicator of my kinaesthetic learning style. I found a great quote once and have sifted through all my files to find it, because I think it is very true with how people engage with technology.
 "Creators of presentation software complain we can give people the ability and we can simplify the technology, but we can't make people use it. Microsoft calculates, users take advantage of only 10-20% of the softwares technical capability."
That I believe is so true, well, I know I definetely don't. I am aware of this now and will try to make more effort to learn before doing.

Lesson learnt

I was getting right into composing my blog and website, excitedly linking this and adding that, with no thought to the legal and copyright laws of downloading and copying from websites. It was not until I came across an important part of one of our readings that warned us to ensure we acknowledge anything we copy or use, as we can be investigated for plagiarism if we don't. I went in to panic mode and went back over everything I had done, only to find that I had used an image (the Gardner's learning styles image that I used on my blog) without attribution. I have since gone back and fixed my mistake, and are now more aware of the correct and lawful procedures when using materials of the internet.

Relying on technology cont....

So my first experience of using technology in the classroom did not go smoothly. I have learnt a lot though, firstly as a teacher I need to always have a back up plan and secondly always test it out thoroughly before using it in the classroom. I do think this is one of the major reasons that teachers are hesitant to embrace technology in the classrooms. Technology has come a long way, but it's success still relies on factors such as power sources, downloading speed, and internet availability. I believe in time this will all change and their reliability will increase as it has continued to do over the history of technology, and this will encourage more teachers to bring technology into their classrooms.

I'm still here

I am finally back blogging. I have been experimenting with the ICT tools, and have alot to reflect on. I am very old school and still find myself writing down my reflections, so now it is time to share them on my blog.
I enjoyed using visual media tools such as the voki and flickr. Since I am doing my Prac in a prep classroom this year I thought I would create a Voki to show to the students. We were learning about the letter V, so I named her Vicki the Voki and uploaded a picture of inside the classroom for the background. The students were very impressed and keen to make their own Vokis. I was able to use the interactive whiteboard, and the students navigated their way around the Voki sight using the whiteboard pen, easily. They chose their character, the background and accessories, however when the time came to record their voice on to the Voki, I was unable to get the microphone working. The teacher and I tried several times with no luck. This was very disappointing as the children were all lined up for a go and they were all very engaged in the lesson. As a teacher I have learnt that when using technology you need to have a back-up just in case as it is not always the most reliable.
This was not the only time it let me down that day, I was also excited to use my weebly and play the possum magic interactive book to the children. However, on arrival at school I discovered that my website was blocked from the Education Queensland site. I then went and checked if I could just access Mem Fox's website to play the book on that, this worked well. Although, later that day when I had all the children waiting anxiously on the carpet to watch it, do you think it would work for me?

Exploring my new talents

After four weeks of e-learning I am very excited to announce that I am now proud owner of a Blog, a Wiki and a Website, and I have created my own Voki. I feel like a new door has opened up for me, with so many opportunities to create fun and engaging ICT's my brain is in overdrive with creative ideas to teach using these technologies. I have brought a few of these ICT's together in my website and am using them in my lesson next week. Click here and go check it out. I am very proud of what I have achieved in the last couple of weeks, I have used technology more than I ever have and have really enjoyed it. Honestly, I am glad that I have done this course internally as I find that the guidance from the website is useful but as I am more of a Kinaesthetic and Interpersonal learner, therefore I have sourced a lot of guidance and help from my peer learners. I find by someone showing me how to do something and then by practising it I pick things up a lot quicker and easier. I suppose this is a good example of the constructivist theory where through guidance and scaffolding, I have added on to what knowledge I had and further developed it to where I am now. I am so excited about what I can now do, I have surprised myself and am quite amazed at how structured and easy that these ICT's are to use.

Week Two activity

In this week's activity we used Edward de Bono's 'six thinking hats' method to reflect on whether or not we believe mobile phones should be allowed in classrooms. De Bono's strategy allowed us to respond using the six modes of thinking. See link. By collaborating in this exercise we were able to look at the topic of mobile phones in the classroom from all points of view, and discovered points we may not have been aware of. As everyone contributed their ideas and opinions it broadened our own knowledge and understanding of the topic, therefore once again supporting Vygotsky's social constructivist theory that emphasises how our knowledge and understandings about things develop through social encounters. De Bono's thinking hats are a great way to encourage thinking on a range of levels, as is Bloom's Taxonomy (see link). Both these teaching strategies support higher order thinking which is essential for all students to develop, as we are living in a knowledge economy that requires thinking outside the box. These days, through ICT's, we have access to an abundance of information. It is how we process and use this information that determines our success, hence the importance to not only process information on the basic level but also to extend our thinking to the higher level. For instance, it is like doing this course, I have access to all the tools and the information necessary to manipulate them. Although how far I decide to take it is up to me, I could create my blog and wiki and complete this course never to use them again. Or, I could take what I have learnt, get creative, trial it, change it, enhance it and embed it into my teaching pedagogy, and hopefully gain succesful outcomes.

Using screen capture

I used my week one activities blog to practice 'screen capture' which I found the instructions to on the Tech-help box on moodle. With some help from Danielle I was able to use this application in my blog. Danielle informed me of how you have to first copy and paste the picture to paint or a similar program (under a jpeg) to be able to download it on to your blog. I have printed out the tech-help instructions as a reference for my next attempt at screen capture, but I feel after a couple more goes it will become automatic. I have learnt a new skill today. YAY!

Week one's activities

Gardner's Eight Multiple Intelligences (link)
I found the reading on multiple intelligences interesting. We are all so different in the way we best learn, and as a teacher this needs to be considered in our planning as it is easy to fall into a habit of teaching in the same way. Below are the results from the multiple intelligences test I did. I feel this is a good indicator of my learning styles. I believe I do learn easier through being shown and then by trialling it myself, as once I have practised I tend to retain it very quickly. Hence, why I had a panic attack after initially enrolling in this course by flex. I became overwhelmed by all the information I received, and although it is set out very straight forward, I prefer the face to face interaction and confirmation that I am on the right track. See my test results below from Bimingham Grid for Learning, have a go yourself, you might surprise yourself!

Week One Reflection

I found this week very challenging, having to set up a Wiki and a Blog seemed like an overload. After struggling to navigate through both programs I found myself backtracking and searching for more guidance. To my surprise it was all there on the moodle site, clear instructions to follow, and a step-by-step tutorial. This reminded me that when using technology, it is worth taking your time and going over all the instructions before diving in. It made a big difference, saved me time and ended up not being as complicated as I first thought.
Once again I am amazed at how well you can learn over a computer, how someone from else where and at a different time can set up such a clear guide with voice over and graphics to teach you in your own time and place. The reading on connectivism illustrated to me how by sharing our knowledge through networks such as blogs and wikis we benefit our own learning, as the more input and resources shared the more knowledge we gain. My first thought about participating in the wiki was at how time consuming it may be, but after reading the article I realised that the wiki will actually save me time, as instead of reading all the articles individually, we are able to divide them up within the group and inform one another in our own words what the article was about. Therefore, not only are we just extracting the important parts of each reading, but also gaining a range of perspectives of each topic. Also as Danielle shared with me "The best way of learning is by teaching someone else". I found that by reading the article on connectivism and then going and summarising it in a PMI I myself gained more understanding from what I had read about.
The readings for week one highlighted to me the importance as a future teacher of staying up-to date with ICT's; as the student's we will be teaching have grown up in a digital culture and the way they best learn is influenced by technologies, therefore it is our responsibility to keep in touch with the culture and language of ever advancing technologies.