Week 4 - Roles of ICT in Education

Learning activity 1:

My Educational learning experience – Least to Most effective methods

Least	Copying off board
	Referring to text books and writing a paragraph on that topic
	Reading books
	Verbal
	Television/Films
	Field Trips – only ones that were valued as authentic, purposeful experiences
	Camps
	Teacher interaction/demonstrations
	Interactive/Group Activities
	Hands on/Doing
Most	Genuine activities/experiences

Dales Cone:

Verbal Symbols

Visual Symbols

Recordings, Radio, Still pictures

Motion Pictures

Television

Exhibits

Field Trips

Demonstrations

Dramatized Experiences

Contrived Experience

Direct, Purposeful Experiences

I think my learning experience was quite similar to Dales Cone. I thought during my education experience I had a mixture of these experiences. I would have to agree with Dale’s Cone, that the most effective methods are at the bottom of the cone which involves direct, purposeful learning experiences.

Technology could change the learning design in education as it opens a whole new pattern to the way in which students learn (George Lucas). Technology can change the learning experience from teacher-centric to student centric as it offers the students opportunities to have access to and independently discover new and different types of information (using Google for instance) to a question they might have. They can then maneuver the found information on the computer, for instance through graphic displays designed in their own way and communicate their results amongst the class or out and beyond the classroom experience. Computers could be used as a tool to help the education process, facilitating co-operate, interactive, project based learning (George Lucas). Teachers could also benefit from these technologies, finding new ways to connect with their students.

Children learn out of curiosity (George Lucas) and since technology today is rapidly used (and changing - always new and exciting) in today’s society, students want to discover more about it and find ways to use it. Activities that students find engaging build students’ knowledge. Effective learning happens when students use what they already know and then move beyond it.

Learning activity 2

My blog address for the GDLT program is as follows:

http://jhgdltlearningreflection.blogspot.com/

Learning activity 3 – Beyond School

The beyond school website has so many options! There were many good points on using technologies, with an overwhelming amount of links and subscriptions. I thought Clay showed numerous ways of presenting and making use of all aspects of technology. He presented his information in a way that wasn’t too formal. I think this approach is great for students as it shows them that learning can be enjoyable and they get the impression that the class is a team, with the teacher being a learner also, all working towards the same objectives.

I think starting off small is what builds student trust. If you allow students to use certain technologies such as Google to research information, by them proving that they will do the right thing and actually research what they are supposed to, you can move up using more advanced technologies. Using these more advanced technologies, such as a blog or twitter, shows students that you trust them to do the right thing and research/use the correct information/topic that’s being asked. It’s a great way to create an interactive environment where students and teachers can post their thoughts or comments. Students feel valued if they believe someone cares about what they want and have to say. It’s also a great way to post ideas if you feel threatened confronting someone (maybe a teacher or student) face to face?

Learning activity 4

Students from the GDLT program have been added to my blog feed to keep track with their learning journey. These feeds are a more convenient way to stay updated with their work and to converse ideas with each other.

Technologies such as Email, Blogs, Twitter, Facebook and so forth is the communication channel to interact with each other; not only in school but outside of school. It allows students to produce additional information than what is provided in class (EDED20491, class discussion, 22/3/2009). The internet is becoming an increasingly pervasive and persistent inference in people’s lives. Blogs for example, enable individual participation in the marketplace of ideas. They are convenient as postings are often short and frequently updated. The entries are similar to keeping a handwritten journal, which include posting dates and may contain area’s for other people to post their comments (Glenco & McGraw-Hill, 2000-2005).

Learning activity 5 – Wikis

Below is the link for my wiki site. I have created this site for future brides in the CQ are who are planning their wedding. I have called the site Wedding Bell, because my partner’s last name is actually Bell, so the wiki title could represent actual “wedding bells” and maybe my “wedding, Bell”. The site will include ideas such as wedding gifts (wedding registers) car hire, ceremonial and wedding reception locations, catering, dresses, tux’s, videos of other weddings and more!

Please feel free to start adding some idea’s:

http://wedding-bell.wetpaint.com/

Wiki’s are a great technology communication tool between people/s. Emailing a large document to several people can take time and some people may not receive it due to sending errors or spam filters. By using a wiki one user can share his or her work with all of the users at one time. When communicating through a wiki there is no concern about emails getting lost or thrown away. All communications will be kept inside the wiki, which is a great tool for collaboration.

Wiki would be a great device to use within schools because students can add their thoughts, opinions, questions and not only are they being answered, they are being heard. Students will be engaged in using wiki because since today’s youth are so technological minded, using a wiki would be a much more interesting approach to use rather than writing a paper for instance. The wiki provides all aspects of learning – visual, auditory and kinesthetic. They are able to read, listen (through videos or recording) and physically add things to the wiki.

By putting wiki’s into operation in schools you will be able to, for example, stay on top of student’s group projects and have a better sense of how they are coming along. It gives students the advantage of being able to put many ideas together and then going back to edit them when necessary. Teachers and students will be able to visualize group goals and the actions that need to be completed in order to achieve those goals.

For effective learning to occur, students must be meaningfully engaged in activities (Kearsley & Shneiderman p. 1). Technology provides an electronic learning environment that fosters the kind of creativity and communication needed to nourish engagement (Kearsley & Shneiderman p. 6).

Hopefully going to school won’t have to be like this. (Keep in mind this video was shot in good fun – you only have to watch the first 30 seconds to get the point!):

References

Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of the Educational and Professional Publishing Group of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Using Blogs to Integrate Technology in the Classroom, Retrieved from: http://www.glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/educationupclose.phtml/47

Gadget Girl Accessories. Advantages of using Wiki’s. Retrieved from: http://www.gadgetgirlaccessories.com/2008/09/advantages-of-using-wikis/

Greg Kearsley & Ben Shneiderman, Engagement Theory: A framework for technology-based teaching and learning.

George Lucas "Edutopia" interview retrieved from EDED20491 Week 4 learning activity page