Evaluation week 12

Specialising and being passionate about ICT, I was very interested in how to use English, as a core subject with technology. I found it most interesting to harness my primary knowledge and apply it to other areas to find if they would work. I am personally in agreement with Merchant (2007) that it is important to integrate current technology into our classroom environment to prepare them for life beyond the classroom.

 

This module has continuously shown me that there are simple ways to introduce technology into the classroom and it is not as daunting as first thought. Yes, teachers need the support and training to be able to do it but even with little training, some successful lessons can be developed and the children can use technology within their lessons. The Future Lab (2010) supports this and suggests that it is the teachers who have the knowledge and understanding that can support children’s use of digital literacy, therefor their training is crucial. I also had not thought about using comics in the classroom. I really liked that it could link back to home and get boys more involved in reading (Dean, 2010)

 

I most enjoyed and felt that I gained most from the practical element of using what we had learnt and bringing it into a school and using our skills with real children. It was very inspiring and amazing to see it being used in schools and the children enjoying it so much. It helped me to build new skills, gain more knowledge and experience as well as confidence in myself and the children.

 

One of the key things I have learnt is that I will need to keep up and constantly learn as technology is always developing. To be able to teacher or be the ICT coordinator the next generation of ‘digital natives’ (Palfrey and Gasser, 2008 and Prensky, 2001) I will have to integrate ICT into my lessons and make it become a regular occurrence in my classroom which Beauchamp (2012) supports.

 

This module has really helped me to grow in confidence especially as at the beginning I felt nervous about the introduction of the new national curriculum (DfE, 2013) but it has really helped me understand how I can use it cross curricular, especially with English. Talking about it with teachers and member of staff I feel more confident that it is a positive change and that it will help bring ICT to a new level within the primary classroom and I look forward to being a part of it.

 

Beauchamp, G (2012) ICT in the Primary School, From Pedagogy to Practise. Essex: Pearsons Education Ltd

 

Dean, G. (2010) ‘Rethinking Literacy’ in Bazalgette, C. (ed) (2010) Teaching Media in Primary Classrooms. London: Sage

 

DFE/QCA (2013) The National Curriculum in England, DFE/QCA

 

Futurelab. (2010) Digital literacy across the curriculum. London: Becta.

 

Merchant, G. (2007) ‘Writing the future in the digital age’ Literacy 41 (3)pp118-128

 

Palfrey, J. and Gasser, U. (2008) Born Digital: understanding the first generation of digital natives. Basics Books. New York

 

Prenksy, M (2001) ‘Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part II: Do They Really Think Differently? in On the Horizon 9 (6)

Part 2 week 10/11

 

This week we went back to a Shirley Warren primary school in order to work with year one on creating digital books to teach and inform about children’s rights. The right our group chose to focus on was Article 15: Every child has the right to meet with other children and join groups and organisations (UNICEF, online). We stated planning without the children and discussed our expectations of both the children and ourselves as well as the assessment criteria.

 

We found it difficult to set targets based on the success criteria as we did not know the children in our group or any of their previous experiences or work. If we were to do this again we would have asked the teacher for more background knowledge on our children for this would have made the task easier.

 

On meeting the children, we realised that they knew how to use the iPads to a level we needed them too. They understood the concept of how to film, what and who should be in the shot and the concept of making a digital book. It was clear that they were indeed digital natives (Palfrey & Gasser, 2008). This saved a lot of time in the beginning for we immediately started coming up with ideas. The group had previously come up with some ideas but we wanted to get the children’s input so they could have a sense of ownership on every level of the project.

 

Working all together we went and filmed our material all over the school. The children were initially nervous about being filmed but as they got used to us and the situation their confidence grew and the came out with some great ideas of how to do things differently. They showed great enthusiasm throughout the project and were very interested when we went back to the ICT sweet and started editing. Using apple TV, we were able to put what we were doing on the big board. This was great as all the children could see what was happening and give their feedback as the process was going on. One issue, as in all classrooms, was time management but considering this the children did very well and were able to keep focused. Unfortunately the children had to leave before the whole editing process was complete so we finished the final touches. One positive of this is that the children didn’t see the finished item so would get to see it next week at the Oscar type event which would be very exciting for them.

 

I have learnt so much from this activity including not underestimating children’s knowledge of technology. I have really enjoyed it and would defiantly conduct a similar activity in my classroom. I would make sure to leave lots of time for planning as without a lot of adult helpers, children would need the time to be creative. I am really looking forward to seeing all the finished products in week 12.

 

 

Palfrey, J. & Gasser, U. (2008). Born digital : understanding the first generation of digital natives. New York : Basic Books

UNICEF (2012) Children’s rights. [online] available at:https://www.unicef.org.uk/Documents/Publication-pdfs/betterlifeleaflet2012_press.pdf

Multimedia and multi literalise in the primary school (part one) week 9

This week we were lucky enough to be invited to go into a school in Southampton to look at how they used ICT a primary setting and how they were going to adapt to the new national curriculum in that specific area. We also were preparing to work in groups with a class of children the following week on a project focusing on digital literacy, giving us a focus to use what we had learnt during seminars and practical sessions.

 

 Visiting Shirley Warren was a fantastic and very enjoyable experience. They are doing some amazing things in their school with technology and it was great to see it in action. It was very evident that they used technology on a regular basis and we were shown some of the films the children had created using iPads. It was very impressive the range of classes and topics that they were able to use them is as well as the variety of ages. It became apparent that the staff were very passionate about using technology within the classroom which was very refreshing to see as, most of the schools I have personally seen are worried about the cost of the equipment and the training.

 

Planning next week’s task was tricky in the sense that we didn’t know the children that we were going to be working with, thus couldn’t determine what level they are at or how much they know about using iPads. This proved to be a challenge when planning but we worked around it by making sure we had back up plans in case they were too advanced for our students.

 

It was a great experience to use iPads in the classroom, something which I am personally very passionate about, and to get the opportunity to work with the staff members and share knowledge, tips and lesson ideas. I found it very rewarding especially being able to discuss lesson ideas and see what they had done that had worked well as well as learn all about the different apps they have used. In the next session I hope to work closely with the children and learn about what they know and enjoy about using the iPads.

Copyright in schools week 8

 

Copyright is a very common aspect in today’s society, but what does it actually mean?According to Ross and Kinsley (2007) it is the legal protection granted to the creators of a work-piece over a fixed time period. These copyright law occurs whether work has been published or not, both on the internet and on paper. In 1709, it was introduced as a development from common law, this copyright outlines explicit guidelines to follow for the acceptable use of others work. The original law was known as the statue of Anne. (Patterson, 1965).

 

Copyright is a tricky one in schools because it applies to everything. The most common being images that are copyrighted, used in the classroom, whether on displays or powerpoints. Though for a lot of things copyright doesn’t apply to it being used for educational use. This is called the ‘fair use policy’ and was introduced to allow teachers to have access media found online to use within the classroom (Davies, 2012). It is difficult to know especially when using search engines such as google or bing. Though it is not just pictures that are copyrighted, anything that shows skill, judgment or degrees of labour including writings, songs, art and other original things. It is important to check when using something to if it is breaching copyright.

 

It is important to teach children about copyright so they don’t break copyright laws without being aware while using materials for school such as images and quotes from the internet or books. It is also important for them to know because it can help them protect their original work.

There are many websites that schools can find out about copyright and apply for a licence.The Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA): http://www.cla.co.uk/ is just one of them but it has a useful print out available.

 

Patterson, L. R. (1965) The Statute of Anne: Copyright Misconstrued, Harvard Journal on Legislation, 3 (1). Harvard Law School: Harvard

 

Davies, G. (2012) General Guidelines on copyright, in Davies, G. (ed.) Information and Communications Technology for Language Teachers (ICT4LT), Slough: Thames Valley University [Online] accessed 9.03.14 at http://www.ict4lt.org/en/en_copyright.htm.

Multimodal texts week 7

 

Walsh, (2010) describes multimodal texts are ‘meaning-making that occurs through reading, viewing, understanding, responding to and producing and interacting with multimedia and digital texts’. It takes a whole range of modes into account including images, words, sounds, video and a variety of texts. Children can experience these through paper and technology thus getting a wider spectrum of understanding using different outputters (Marsh & Hallet, 2008)

 

In this seminar we used and explored multimodal texts including using powerpoint to create a book. I had never thought of using powerpoint for this, instead leaning towards apps such as bookcreator. I was very surprised by the outcome and ease of using it in this manner. I have often seen ready-made interactive books used within a classroom but the idea of making them is an exciting one and I feel that, not just the teacher making and presenting, but giving the children an opportunity to create their own books would really support their writing. East Riding of Yorkshire Council [Online]  back this up by stating that multi-modal texts can be created by both children or teachers and are adaptable to suit learning needs and contexts.

 

 Teachers who are new to working with multimodal texts are often reluctant or scared to use them as they associate these texts with computers, therefor technology and show a lacked confidence in ICT (Anstey and Bull, 2010). Though I feel that these tools were very easy to use and with some training or ever a video showing how to use specific apps or programs, it will hold its own place within the classroom and within lessons.

 

I will defiantly aim to use these tools in my classroom. Because of this session I feel more confident in my ability to use them and to help others. I feel a lot of planning would have to go into using these tools in lessons but I think it would be very beneficial and enjoyable to the class.

 

Anstey, M and Bull, G. (2010) Helping teachers explore multimodal texts. ‘Curriculum and leadership Journal’                     [Online]               available at:http://www.curriculum.edu.au/leader/helping_teachers_to_explore_multimodal_texts,31522.html?issueID=12141

 

Marsh, J. & Hallet, E. (2008) Desirable Literacies: Approaches to Language and Literacy in the Early Years. London: SAGE

Why should teachers care about digital literacy and childhood in the digital age week 6

 

Technology is relied upon in most jobs in some form and within the home. Children are exposed to it a lot of the time. Hudson (2013) suggest that because children have grown up with it they are now ‘digital natives’ a phrase that Palfrey and Gasser (2008) also use, stressing upon the fact that, for children now, this is the norm. Hudson (2013) also then goes on to explain that children spend a lot of time games and that this should also be used as a tool in the new and up to date primary classroom. This could be supported by Marsh and Millard (2006) who, as mentioned in a previous blog post, support the idea of using popular culture in the classroom.

 

Within a secondary school setting children are expected to know how to use certain technologies including the interactive white board. Most primary schools have at least one but often one in every classroom. Using an IWB opens many opportunities for interactivity within the classroom. It creates a situation where children can collaboratively work together to find information and explore answers instead of having to do this separately or in pairs on one computer. They can touch the board, move shapes and objects around and click parts to see what happens. Potter and Darbyshire (2005, p.85) state that interactivity is ‘the function of ICT that enables rapid and dynamic feedback’. These characteristics allow teachers to create problems on the board and the children to get instant feedback. This board are often used in businesses therefore it is very important for children to at least learn the basics to support them in the future.

 

From this assignment and module I fully believe that it is extremely important for teachers to have a good foundation of knowledge to be able to teach ICT and use digital media in the classroom. Teachers should care about digital literacy in this digital age because it is important for children’s futures. As I have discussed, children will be using it both at secondary school and in further life on a regular basis and it is vital that children get taught how to use it properly to give them the best chance in the future.

 

 

Hudson, A. (2013) Angry Birds game fires into the classroom (BBC News Technology)

 

Palfrey, J. and Gasser, U. (2008) Born Digital: understanding the first generation of digital natives. Basics Books. New York

 

Potter, F., Darbyshire, C., (2005) ‘Understanding and Teaching the ICT National Curriculum’ London: David Fulton Publishers

 

Millard, E. & Marsh (2001) ‘Sending Minnie the Minx Home: Comics and Reading Choices’ in Cambridge Journal of Education; Vol 31 (1); pp. 25-38. [pdf]

Children in advertising week 5

Advertising has become a part of daily life, whether it is noticed or not. Children see and hear it all the time on TV, billboards, buses and many more. Children have more money to spend now than in previous generations (Gunter, B, Oates C and Blades M, 2005) and more items they want to buy so the consumerist market often targets them directly instead of the parent.

 

Advertising is always going to affect children’s perceptions of themselves, as it does with adults. The key to stopping it going too far is education. Teachers and educators need to teach children about the use and purpose of advertising and the national curriculum backs this up. Maybe if children learnt that they did not need to look a certain way or have a certain toy and that the media were using specific persuasive techniques then maybe it would change their own perception of themselves less.

 

On many occasions I have witnessed the children in my class list what they would like if they won a million pounds or what they want for Christmas. Most of these lists are full of toys, gadgets and games that they had seen advertised on the television that are made to look better than they are. This is a very important topic in which children need to be taught about and in school I have seen children create their own adverts to demonstrate how, using certain techniques, they can persuade someone to buy something that may not be a good product. My group and I have created an example of this. It is important that children don’t see advertising as a negative tool, but as one that needs to be understood, used and harnessed.

 

Though, advertising is not all bad. Kenway and Bullen (2001) believe that advertisements could appeal to children’s wishes and yearnings as it allow children to fantasise about toys they don’t have so they can relate to their peers. I have witnessed this in the playground where children pretend they had the latest toy and battle it out with their friends within the game.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kMHg7wDiJMw

 

Gunter, B. Oates, C. & Blades, M. (2005) Advertising to Children on TV New Jersey, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates pp 1 – 13

Kenway, J., & Bullen, J. (2003). Consuming children: Education-entertainment-advertising. British Educational Research Journal, 29(2), 267-276.