Technology
Technology is always moving faster then we can keep up with, children of today have grown up with these technologies and master new ones quickly. The world I grew up in was totally different to that of todays. While I was in high school there were no computers in the classroom and any power point, iPods, mobile phones, wikis or blogs. As a future educator it is imperative that I maintain a grasp on new digital technologies being used in the classrooms of today and stay one step ahead of the students.
The many tools and products available to the teacher using ICT makes choosing the tool for the job a difficult decision. Robyler believes that the first step in design with ICT is to determine the relative advantages of using the ICT tool. Learning as a digital experience can be a different challenge for the teacher as instructional designer and often requires the Learning Manager to see what happens first, then asking questions later (Smith, Lynch, & Knight, 2007, p.51).
Technology, expressly the computer and the Internet, has opened up new possibilities for schooling. Due to these advances universities and schools can now educate students anyplace and at anytime. There are a number of ICT offered to teachers that help engage the students, where it was not possible as in my time at school.
Images
Unlike any other visual image, a photograph is not a rendering, an imitation or an interpretation of its subject, but actually a trace of it. No painting or drawing, however naturalist, belongs to its subject in the way that a photograph does.” (Berger, 1926)
Images in the manual arts classroom can be a very powerful tool. By showing students a number of images then asking them to analyse, interpret and evaluate the images will invoke higher levels thinking. In the design phase of the manual arts project, images can help students analyse and evaluate four of the seven elements of design: points, lines, shape, forms, colours, tones and textures. Not only can students view and analyse digital images to provoke higher order thinking in the classroom. Students also have the ability to create their own images using a digital camera. In the classroom students are able to take photos of their project at different stages, at the conclusion of the project the students are then able to create a power point presentation or a digital video which can be a component of their assessment (Sievers, 2010).
According to JISC, (2010) digital images can be used in the classroom in the following ways to enhance learning:
• To inspire discussion of a topic, looking at multiple aspects and contexts.
• To enforce and extend language and common terms of the object being discussed, using subject-specific terminology.
• To categorise within a subject discipline and potentially build reference collections for student project work and research.
• To teach diagnosis and treatment.
• To lead onto extension exercise tasks, e.g. research and source other images of that topic.
• To stimulate students writing a story/poem about that image - enhancing creative and language skills.
• To encourage team work and foster collaboration and the sharing of learning experience.
• To encourage students to become independent learners.
• To encourage critical thinking skills (e.g. describing a photograph from many different viewpoints)
• To illustrate case studies (e.g. where text may prove to be slightly ambiguous an image can define points)
• To enhance visual communication skills (e.g. decoding the message from a photograph)
• To document an event and analyse practice (JISC, 2010)
PowerPoint
PowerPoint is a high-powered software tool used for presenting information in a dynamic slide show format. Text, charts, graphs, sound effects and video are just some of the elements PowerPoint can incorporate into your presentations with ease. (ACT360 Media Ltd, 2009)
I find that PowerPoint presentations are my favourite of all the ICT tools, this tool not only allows you to display written text but the ability to imbed digital images, movies, graphics, animation, and figures. I find by using these in the presentation helps keeps students engaged especially visual learners like myself (Sievers, 2010a).
Like all ICT tools there are advantages and disadvantages when using power point in the classroom (Sievers, 2010a). By embedding digital images, movie maker and graph carts. Power point becomes more than just a way of presenting information but allows students to become in engaged and enhance learning. By displaying images then breaking for discussions leads to Blooms Taxonomy of higher order thinking which will aid in the learning.
Concept maps
Concept maps were developed in 1972 in the course of Novak’s research program at Cornell where he sought to follow and understand changes in children’s knowledge of science (Novak & Musonda, 1991).
According to Wikipedia, (2010) concept maps are graphical tools used for organizing and representing knowledge. The concept maps are used in a manner to represent associations between images words and ideas in a structured form. These maps start with a key idea, word or phrase which are associated to another and linked back to the original word or idea. Concept maps are constructed to reflect organization of the declarative memory system, they facilitate sense-making and meaningful learning on the part of individuals who make concept maps and those who use them.
The use of concept maps is ideal for the design phase of projects in the manual arts classrooms. This gives the students a focal point in this phase which can be quite difficult of some. Once the focal point has been established, ideas can flow quickly, be built on and shared by others (Sievers, 2010b).
Concept Mapping has many advantages such as: the fitting of ideas together allows for convergent thinking; it allows you to define a central idea; indicates relative importance of each idea; allows for linking among ideas; it’s easy to add new information as it comes to you; helps you see complex relationships among ideas; shows gaps, contradictions and paradoxes in the material. All this adds up to concept mapping being a very powerful learning and evaluation tool (Business Training School, 2010).
Blogs
Blogs are becoming an important part of modern classroom learning. Blogs can be used by students to communicate with other students from different schools around the world on a common subject matter. They are able to comment on each other’s work and keep a record of the conversations for future reference. This can then become a one stop shop where all their information can be kept and stored for quick retrieval. Not only can the blogs be used to communicate with other students but also outside agents e.g. In the manual arts classroom students can establish blogs with outside experts to discuss design and manufacturing ideas on their projects and follow recommendations made by the experts (Sievers, 2010 c). These types of discussions lead to the use of Blooms Taxonomy by
Evaluation: appraise, argue, assess, choose, conclude, critic, decide, evaluate, judge.
Synthesis: compose, construct, create, design, develop, integrate, invent, make.
Analysis: characterize, classify, compare, contrast, debate, deduce, diagram application.
Comprehension: conclude, demonstrate, discuss, explain, generalize, identify, illustrate, interpret, paraphrase, predict, report.
Knowledge: count, define, describe, draw, find, identify, label, list, match, name, quote, recall (Fasso, W 2010).
Teachers are able to follow and monitor student progress and conversations with each other and keep a sense of order. As April James discussed in her blog titled “Blogs in the classroom” teachers are able to monitor issues such as plagiarism and cyber-bullying. If the blogs are not monitored cyber-bullying could become a real problem and distract from the learning it was intended for (James, A 2010).
Normal copyright regulations apply for online use. Therefore the use of copyright images and materials are restricted according to the owner's wishes. This is important for you, the facilitator of learning, as well as your students. You should model and teach ethical and legal behaviours (Fasso, W 2010a).
I believe Blogs in the classroom are a modern adaption of the school of the air, where students from remote areas would conduct classes via two way radio with their teacher. Blog are a great tool to be used in the classroom to engage students, however if not monitored a number of negative issues could arise and divert from the learning intended (Sievers, 2010c).
Conclusion
I believe the generation of today are becoming too heavy reliant on digital technology, with iPod’s, face book, texting and twitter. Young people are starting to lose a very invaluable life skill which is face to face interaction with other people. I have a friend who is a paramedic, who often mentors student paramedics. He says that the paramedic students of today are fist rate when it comes to declarative and procedural knowledge, however when it comes to face to face interaction with patients, they cannot relate to them even on a basic level.
The above digital tools are here to aid us as future educators, if used correct can create a wonderful learning environment of engagement and connectedness for all students. These digital tools are only as good as the people teaching them in the classrooms, with that in mind as educators need to keep developing their own skills in the above mentioned areas and other technology advancements. Teaches still need to establish strong teaching strategies that are not reliant on ICT alone to reach and teach students.
References
ACT360 Media Ltd. (2009). Power point in the classroom. Retrieved 28 November 2010 from: http://www.actden.com/pp/
Berger, J. (1926).John Berger quotes. Retrieved 14 December 2010 from: http://thinkexist.com/quotes/with/keyword/visual_image/
Business Training School. (2010). A Lesson in Concept Mapping. Retrieved 16 December 2010 from: http://www.business-training-schools.com/bus/a-lesson-in-concept-mapping.html
Fasso,W, 2010. Week 2: Blooms Taxonomy, lecture notes, FAHE11001 Managing eLearning, CQUniveristy, Rockhampton
Fasso,W, 2010a. Week 2: Legally, Safely Ethically, lecture notes, FAHE11001 Managing eLearning, CQUniveristy, Rockhampton
James, A. (2010). Blogs in the classroom. Retrieved 9thNovember 2010 from: http://aprilljames.blogspot.com
JISC Digital Media. (2010). Practical Ways to Use Digital Images in Teaching and Learning. Retrieved 28 November 2010 from: http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk/stillimages/advice/practical-ways-to-use-digital-images-in-teaching-and-learning/
Novak & Musonda, (1991). The origin and Development of concept maps. Retrieved 10thNovember 2010 from: http://cmap.ihmc.us/docs/Origins.html
Sievers, S, 2010. Digital Images, viewed 30 November 2010 http://s0173781.blogspot.com/2010/11/digital-images.html
Sievers, S, 2010a. Powerpoint, viewed 30 November 2010 http://s0173781.blogspot.com/2010/11/digital-images.html
Sievers, S, 2010b. Concept maps, viewed 16 November 2010 http://s0173781.blogspot.com/2010/11/digital-images.html
Sievers, S, 2010c. Blogs, viewed 9 November 2010 http://s0173781.blogspot.com/2010/11/digital-images.html
Smith, R., Lynch, D., & Knight, B. (2007). Learning management transitioning teachers for national and international change. Frenchs Forest, Nsw: Pearson Education
Teachnology. (2010). What’s good about power point? Retrieved 10thNovember 2010 from http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/powerpoint/
Wikipedia. (2010). Concept map. Retrieved 9thNovember 2010 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concept_map
Comment List
Ashleigh Reid- http://ashjourney.blogspot.com/
• Digital tool 10: Digital video (30 November 2010)
Comment left: 14 December 2010
• Digital tool 9: Podcasting (29 November 2010)
Comment left: 30 November 2010
: 14 December 2010
• Digital tool 3: Wiki (11 November 2010)
Comment left: 30 November 2010
• Frameworks (11 November 2010)
Comment left: 16 November 2010
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