This is a reaction to Mich’s blog on Social Networking as a learning tool, which itself is a reaction to Maree’s blog on the same subject. I agree with both of them that “in theory” social networking sites are powerful tools in engaging today’s students – they are after all, “Digital Natives”. I am trying to think back to the time when I was a student of English at high school, and how much fun it was to exchange information with a penpal. I remember there were organisations that would match your profile to a person in any chosen country – of course from there onwards it was all pen and paper. I guess with social networking sites all of this is quicker and easier, but I do share Mich’s concern about monitoring what is actually going on. Kids are so clever – how do I know that they’re not ‘facebooking’ they’re boy/girlfriends instead of using their French or German? And how do we even find the French/German Facebook user on the other end who is willing to participate? (I am not even mentioning ensuring their credibility and good intentions). And I think that schools share this sentiment, too, which is why social networking sites of any description have been blocked at any Australian school I have set foot in so far. So – maybe best to keep that pad of paper in the drawer for a few years to come?
I am very excited to be partaking in a web-workshop on a new “3D Multi User Learning Environment” designed to immerse kids in meaningful inquiry tasks. It is all about design based research. Part of the reading requirements for the workshop included an interesting article by the creators of QA, outlining their philosophy behind their approach to design based work. They basically ask the question when and why children stop seeing learning as fun and perceive it as a chore – and they’re using a good analogy to demonstrate the impact this has: “Much like eating one’s vegetable before getting dessert, schoolwork becomes a chore rather than an award”. And QA attempts to bridge that gap between learning and playing. They certainly got my attention. I’ll certainly be blogging about my experiences with this, so check back soon. In the meantime, if you want to read more about Quest Atlantis, click here.
This is a Blog about what I call the the perfect solution for the teacher who can log on to the net in their own comfort at home but have nightmares about duplicating that success in a classroom environment. And haven’t we all been there. There it is, the perfect lesson on paper – heaps of challenging and constructionist orientated learning experiences. In your mind you play it all out – the kids love it (and you for it)….all you need in the morning is to connect to YouTube to play that video clip you have centered your unit of work around. But alas – you will soon be reminded of Brecht’s wise word (Die 3-Groschen-Oper): “Go make yourself a plan, be a shining light, then make yourself another, for neither will come right”….but WAIT. This is where Miro steps in. Miro is a free, open source software which allows you to temporarily (5 days) download You Tube and other Video content to your very own desktop. So that you don’t have to be connected to the Internet to watch the clip. It opens up in a neat and user friendly interface. All you need for your perfect lesson is a Projector and half decent speakers. Now, remind me – how do I book those with the IT department again…?
Great article by Brill, J., Kim, B., Galloway, C (2001). It oulines succinctly and with concrete examples what cognitive apprenticeship means and how it translates into the “digital classroom”. Two teaching approaches to the same topic are presented. Naturally, one is inclined to like the second one better than the first one…as it is”representative of a more novel, less familiar approach, one demonstrating many of the characteristics of cognitive apprenticeship”, whereas the first description reminds us of the classic model of teaching and learning – “didactic, traditional, instructivist, or instrumental”. Despite my enthousiasm for the second case study, I think that the first example was and still is the more realistic snapshot. The problems I see with “going all out” in creating a multimedia project with all the bells and whistles are mainly of a logistic nature. To gain access to a computer lab still can be (7 years after the article was published) a mamooth task. Concrete example: I am currently teaching at a school in the City. Staff are encouraged and expected to use the School’s Intranet to communicate with Service Departments (inc. room bookings). Despite the fact that I have finally obtained my laptop, my email and Intranet aren’t set up yet, so online bookings are not possible. Because ONLY online bookings are accepted, this means I would have to ask colleagues to make bookings for me….fine for the first 3 requests…not so cool if you ask them over and over again….Lucky for me, the library also has a PC area and the librarian may be contacted by (wait for it) a FACE TO FACE meeting….recording my requests in an old fashioned A3 sheet which she fills in by hand….! Secondly, I am not sure how ‘tech sazzy’ the kids in my classrooms really are. Facebook, MySpace and itunes – no problem. But to have them scan and manipulate photos for a multimedia project…in my experience asking for a Powerpoint presentation is already challenging for the majority! So – back to the old compromise…a little bit of Ms Beauchamp and some innovative additions by Ms Reeds….,I think this is going to be my reality for a while to come!
Having heard fab reviews about LAMS from all sorts of sources, I figured it was time I dedicate myself to Alexander’s (2008) overview of these so called ‘Learning Activity Management Systems’. It seems it is the next big thing in the digital learning universe. Here I was proud of having designed a few WebQuests around some authentic CONTENT from the Internet (which seemed to be working a treat in my Language Classroom) but after reading the article I had to concede that, alas, simply ensuring that students absorb and engage with material is SO YESTERDAY! Says Alexander: LAMS ensures “greater focus on “context” dimensions of e-learning (rather than simply “content”), a more “activity” based view of e-learning (rather than “absorption”), and greater recognition of the role of “multi-learner” (rather than just single learner) environments. Whilst I would argue that points 1 and 2 are desirable but not necessary prerequisites for language learning, I have to admit that by including a social component, LAMS is tapping into an area which my WebQuests failed to address: It’s all about INTERACTION with peer and teachers, which is key in LOTE, where the outcomes are above all, of a communicative nature. Naturally, I was especially interested to read about opportunities which LAMS offers to the language teacher in this respect: It seems that LAMS, due to drawing on reading and writing skills, lends itself more readily to higher level learners who “feel more confident about ‘publicising’ their ESOL writing” but is not readily offering opportunities to hone listening and speaking skills. Indeed, in the NSW syllabus for most languages, these are exactly the two macroskills on which the emphasis is laid. But having said that, there is unlikely to be one “wunder-tool” that is all things to all people at the same time, and I’d interested to experience for myself what LAMS can do in enhancing my students’ motivation and technique in speaking a foreign language.
This is a reaction to Miao’s blog entry. I had never heard of SIMS or SIMS 2 and have spent the last 30 minutes on a brief research (”Google is your friend”)….I think I get it….whilst I have yet to actually download the game and give it a try myself, the links Miao provides are promising in terms of suitability for the LOTE classroom. But I see one major flaw in making any kind of game a rich, lasting and useful learning experience. In both my practicums to date, access to computer rooms was not readily available. In the first instance the room needed to be booked and it was often impossible to get 2 or 3 sessions in a row. In the second practicum the room was rostered out, so that gaining access for a series of reasons involved major shifting around (and causing inconvenience to other teachers, who, on top of it all may also need their session in the LAB.) So would SIMS work if it was played irregularly? And without the continuity, would the benefits hailed still hold? To get students started – prepare the games, provide language basics and set them up for real ‘playful learning’ (bearing in mind not everyone is a Digital Native and we would want to ensure that everyone gets the most out of it and isn’t just clicking buttons for the sake of it), I would say we need at least 1 or 2 full periods. But learning time (aka full periods without interruptions) come at a premium, especially in the schools that I did my pracs at, where music, cadettes, sport and drama all invariably cut into LOTE teaching time. So whilst I love the idea of making use of games, I fear unless I manage to create a true link back to the syllabus, it’ll remain an option for “what to do towards the end of term when we have finished the programme”. Albeit, I may surprise myself oncs I have downloaded the game and tried it out. So stay tuned……
Throughout Practicum, each class had one language lesson per week scheduled in the Computer Lab. Whilst I didn’t always take up the offer (to the dismay of especially the younger boys), we went there most scheduled lessons. Especially with my Year 10, who had finished the programme for the Year, I felt it was really well worth it and I designed a unit of work on “Life after HSC” which relied heavily on Internet resources. I created activities with and around two authentic French websites giving information to French students in relation to different professions and university courses. That’s why I read March’s article “The Learning Power of WebQuests” with interest. It clearly differentiates between web-based activities and a true quest, which is defined by Dodge (1995) as
“an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the Internet”
I completely agree when March states that we always need to ask ourselves if students can achieve the learning we want them to do online just as effectively without the Internet; and if the answer is yes, we shouldn’t bother switching on the PC. So it seems I did the right thing by insisting we stay out of the LAB and in our normal classroom when using the LAB didn’t enhance the learning experience. Having said that, the WebQuests I designed for the Year 10s, in line with March’s description of the scaffolded learning structure, included initial tasks and activities which required knowing or finding ‘facts’ before requiring the boys to use the acquired information and expertise in a new way. Overall, I feel if March looked at my unit programme and examined the quests I developped, he’d be satisfied that I did a good job. The boys certainly enjoyed it – and stayed motivated until the last lesson of the term, in which I asked them to write a motivation letter for a real job we investigated online (Yes, authentic tasks do motivate!). I’ll be interested to explore the realms of WebQuests for our assignment, Miche!
This is a reaction to Kayla’s entry from the 11 August. I am not from the NET nation. I am from the generation that started playing ‘Snakes’ on Commodore 64s or Ataris that were owned by my friends’ bigger brothers. Computers were for nerds (even if they were good looking). My mum sent me to a typewriting course at age 15. We learned on old fashioned typewriters. A year later she announced I should expand that skill and start taking writing lessons on a computer. That was my first experience on a PC. Whilst I was cross with her at the time, I am today very happy she made me do it. In regards to Kayla’s questions why we are not ‘experiencing what we’re being told to teach’: compared to my own time at school (and first time round at university for that matter), I feel UTS is doing great in terms of digital delivery methods – I wouldn’t want any less face-to-face instructions or more e-readings (give me hardcopy book any time!) than we currently have. I guess because I don’t feel I have missed out by not learning with ICT in the classroom, my feelings towards inclusion take a midle ground approach. I do feel very computer literate and I thoroughly enjoy using multimedia and IT as part of my every day life and aim to do so in my teaching. Yet, I don’t think that Digital Resources are the only way to enable experimental learning and I would wish to be able to teach students the value of ‘real’ as well as ‘cyber’ life.
Digital resources enable experiential learning—something in tune with Net Gen preferences. Rather than being told, Net Geners would rather construct their own learning, assembling information, tools, and frameworks from a variety of sources.
This is a reaction to Ming’s Blog “e-learning 7-12″ and the point she makes that in the traditional schoolong environment, the teacher has always sat/stood in front of the classroom, with the class facing the teacher. To me this is not necessarily contrary to the idea of constructinism. It seems the most logical room layout when you’re trying to reach 20 odd people at the same time, in terms of accoustic and visibility. However, there is plenty of opportunity to arrange the desks the students are on in a way that lends itself to group work and ‚exploring’. At my school in Germany, we voted at the beginning of every school year how we wanted the seating arranged – the U-shape was a favourite. But we also readily moved tables into other formations, depending on the task. In my last prac, the classrooms were a lot smaller than what I am used to from my own schooling and it would have been hard to change the seating on a regular basis – especially since there weren’t any breaks between lessons to change them back (in Germany we always had 5 minutes before the start of the next class). But I compensated for the inflexibility in the layout by making a point of walking around a lot and I think that we have moved beyond the classroom scenario depicted on a picture which Matthew showed in his first lecture. Generally, I think elements of constructionism need to be incorporated in some way, shape or form into any programme. In my opinion students should absolutley be encouraged to become independent, responsible and self-regulated learners, but I also believe they rely on proper teacher modelling and leadership.
I saw this eye catching headline in the SMH today: “Phone a Friend in Exam”: A College in Croydon is allowing the use of computers, ipods and mobiles phones (”Who wants to be a Millionaire”-style) during upcoming exams to give students a ‘real life experience’. Says the Principal “In their working lives they will never need to carry enormous amounts of information around in their heads. What they will need to do is access information from all their sources quickly and they will need to check the reliability of their information.” I think this statement is a dangerous generalisation and encourages kids to take ‘the route of least resistance’ rather than instilling a thirst for knowledge. Besides, I don’t see a doctor telling a badly mauled patient in an ER to “just wait a few minutes to see if there is a reference to this sort of injury on the net”. Or a judge, half way though delivering a verdict, asking for a time out because he or she needs to refresh their memory on a certain past judgement crucial to the case at hand. Yes, it is true that information is more readily accessible today than it was in the past and kids absolutely need to know how to access and properly reference sources of information. And of course there is nothing wrong with playful learning and using entertainment as a tool in ensuring that learning occurs. But I am concerned that real learning will fall by the wayside if kids learn to solely rely on other methods of accessing information. Whilst I am all for making it realistic and teaching lifeskills as well as academic skills, I think we need to remember that if we’re teaching our kids to rely on outside help ALL THE TIME rather than building up an expertise FOR THEMSELVES, there will come the point where there won’t be any friend’s left to phone. I think if this development is anything to go by, we’re seriously on our way to ‘edutaining’, not ‘educating’ our kids.
