Roman Slideshow

Imagery is an effective ICT tool catering for students with visual intelligence inparticular. Linguistic learners too will find the links between the pictures and the captions easier to grasp. However its benefit is not limited only to a couple of intelligences; the use of images in a learning environment greatly enhances the chance that all students have at learning because it provides a visual demonstration of the subject matter. In essence this makes the subject matter a reality as students are able to understand a more tangible link between their very visual world and the academic matter they are being taught. Bringing this element of reality to a students learning is an important thing to do because it grounds the learning onto a more 'everyday' plane. If students believe that the subject will be useful to them, and it is presented in an interesting and engaging manner, such as imagery as an ICT, then students will be more likely to be willing to learn and be engaged by the material. Simply because the subject is a reality to students so to will the learning be if they are properly engaged, ICT tools such as imagery facilitate this process.

Posting MP3

http://personalweb.about.com/od/linkingideas/a/408mp3files.htm

Gives a step by step guide to posting MP3's on the web. A little confusing though.

http://www.beta-templatetesting.blogspot.com/2006/12/to-include-audio-clip-in-your-posts.html

Gooooood one.

Click on the Gorillas to Play!

Educational games provide a highly interactive demonstration of learning material that is both engaging and entertaining. Educational games cater for a variety of learners; For example visual learners will find gaming very engaging as they can actually see it working in front of them or 'coming to life'. This provides a solid link between the subject matter and reality. Similarly linguistic and logical learners will find the problem solving, involved in english or mathematics games for example, very engaging. In the above ICT the acitvities involving memory will aid such learners particularly well. The scenery involved in some games, such as the setting of the island in the above ICT, will appeal to Naturalist learners, whilst the sound involved will appeal to those who learn well musically. Because many games have points tallies or a correction function students are able to see when they make a mistake and are provided with the correct answers immediately. This provides an instant feedback to students in a far less intimidating environment then if they were face to face with a teacher with their mistakes being discussed. Online gaming privatises mistakes whilst providing instantaneous correct feedback that the teacher may otherwise not get around to, at least not for some time. Consequently online games are highly useful, entertaining and ultimately engaging ICT tools.

Multiple Intelligences!

How Do We Manage Multiple Intelligences In the ICT Environment?

Test what Intelligence you have... http://www2.bgfl.org/bgfl2/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/index.htm
( A teacher could even use this site to get a general idea of what intelligences the students have... Reconnaissance is always a good idea)

In order to manage multiple intelligences in the ICT environment teachers must provide a variety of resources that cater for these intelligences.

http://www.funbrain.com/ - A fun site for younger kids involving educational games
http://www.eduplace.com/edugames.html - A site focused Education games including interactive cloze passages, spelling, maths brain teasers etc.

An example of collaborative learning in an ICT environment that also caters for multiple intelligences may be:

Intrapersonal: Allow a student to progress through their work by themselves. Students with this intelligence will often like to keep a diary of some sort; so maybe get these students involved in blogging. This will also connect them with other students, such as those with Interpersonal intelligence who can encourage others to participate in online discussion.

Video: Julius Caesar Biography

Video is an incredibly useful ICT tool for education, providing a visual representation and demonstration of the focus material. This appeals to multiple intelligences, especially visual learners, whilst also catering for other learning styles in a less direct manner. For example musical learners may find the audio associated with the images within the video easier to comprehend, or similarly linguistic learners may find hearing the subject matter from a narrator whilst associated with imagery a better way of constructing knowledge then merely listening to a teacher in a classroom. This ICT tool does, in essence, bring the material to life and can spark the imaginations of students; facilitating an engagement and resulting in learning. Video is also a useful tool for prompting collaboration, students could even make their own videos as a group and post them on the internet; this would not only provide a recorded visual demonstration of subject material but the learning is achieved through an interactive, collaborative process. Video can also be used as a catalyst for social constructivism through discussion. Because students may interpret the information provided in the video in association with imagery differently, it will provoke differences of opinion and a variety of personal insights in the students. These can be shared in an open discussion with students listening, participating and engaging on a new level. Through this social interaction students will construct their knowledge i.e. social constructivism.

Assessment Post 5: Hattie

John Hattie is an educational theorist concerned with improving student performance through the use of feedback and outcomes based learning. Hattie asserts that feedback is one of the most important factors in a students learning and development but notes that it can have both positive and negative effects on learning depending on the time at which the feedback is provided. Constructive criticism given at the wrong time can result in a dramatic loss of confidence for a student and will not achieve the desired rectification of their mistakes and development in their learning. Alternately given at the right time feedback can strengthen an individuals will to achieve outcomes and improve the standard of their work. Consequently the time at which feedback is provided is crucial to the learning process ( http://web.ebscohost.com.ipacez.nd.edu.au/ehost/detail?vid=4&hid=113&sid=77cb6288-871d-4424-b04f-f935cecc996d%40sessionmgr106 ). Obviously to me as a teacher Hattie’s research is vital because it demonstrates the value of feedback and through that the value of assessment in the learning process. Whilst assessment has a necessary role in gauging the degree of learning that is taking place within our students, the feedback generated by assessment should be carefully considered. For example marking a student without comment is impersonal and may lead the student to believing that they are considered only on a formal level. If I provided the student with a personalized comment and asserted my confidence in their ability, regardless of their result, I believe that I would improve the chances of learning from that task and in the future. This is also Hattie’s belief.
Hattie is also concerned with the idea that teachers should be improving teacher practice and not reproducing past attitudes, such as classroom engagement rather then learning. Hattie believes in an approach that uses such engagement as a path to learning, asserting that the learning is the important part of this process with engagement merely a catalyst for it. This is also my belief; teachers must be held responsible for the learning achieved in their classroom. A teacher cannot be judged effective merely by engaging with their students if no learning is occurring. The best teachers will approach teaching in a way in which relationships are strengthened, students are valued, the students are focused and engaged and consequently outcomes and learning are achieved ( http://www.knowledgewave.org.nz/forum_2003/speeches/Hattie%20J.pdf ).

Assessment Post 4: Glasser

Glasser

William Glasser is a psychiatrist who developed both Reality Therapy and Choice Theory. In education Reality Therapy is implemented and discussion between student and teacher takes place. The aim of this discussion is to determine what the individuals goals are for the future, how they can best achieve these goals and also discusses why they are behaving in certain ways at that moment. Reality Therapy asserts that misbehavior is caused by unsatisfying personal relationships (http://www.wglasser.com/rt2000.htm )
Choice theory asserts that all human beings are driven by five genetically encoded needs:
- Survival
- Love/belonging
- Power
- Freedom
- Fun
These needs compose an individuals ‘Quality World’. Glasser asserts that from birth individuals note what they derive pleasure from e.g. certain relationships, what they may derive pleasure from e.g. desirable relationships, and a variety of other things, e.g. a beautiful sunset pr systems of belief, and store these as their Quality World. Throughout ones development the Quality World is what is being aimed for and is always being contrasted with the Comparing World. Individuals aim to bring that Quality World as close to reality as is possible in that Comparing World ( http://www.wglasser.com/Intro%20to%20RT%20case%20study%20article.pdf ).
As a future teacher Glasser’s theory is of critical importance to the way in which I will not only teach but the way in which I will manage my classroom. Reality therapy allows a teacher to engage directly with a student and form a partnership in overcoming obstacles the child may have in their learning through collaborative effort. Placing this kind of confidence in the student suggests that you are confident that the individual can recognize challenges in their learning and overcome them. This gives the student a sense of responsibility which is vital is satisfying their basic needs. Glasser’s theory provides valuable insight into the cause of behavior problems within the classroom and provides teachers with a goal of satisfying the basic needs of their students; inevitably resulting in improved behavior and a more successful environment for both teaching and learning. This approach allows teachers and students to work as a team to achieve established learning aims; eliminating the possible alienation the student may feel from the teacher in other situations, such as an authoritative classroom. Certainly as a teacher I will be using Reality Therapy both as a classroom management strategy and a reflective tool; this effectively combines discipline with learning encouraging the development of teacher-student relationships. This approach will empower the child and consequently nullify discipline problems at grass roots level ( http://raider.muc.edu/~schnelpl/Control%20Theory%20-%20Overhead.html ).

Assessment Post 3: Bruner

Jerome Bruner was a cognitive psychologist who emphasized that children arrange their world, or environment, into categories (Marsh, 2004 p 23). He identified three stages of development:
1. The Enactive Stage: Learning through action provides one with the necessary understanding of the environment.
2. The Iconic Stage: Children base their actions on impressions gained by the use of their senses.
3. The Symbolic Stage: Individuals employ symbol systems in order to gain understanding. That is that these symbols allow individuals to arrange and store ideas for later reference.

Bruner contended that individuals develop through these stages but that they may employ these different modes of learning at any time, possibly in simultaneously (Marsh, 2004 p 24). Bruner suggests that knowledge is discovered through personal experience and then enacted through these stages ( http://au.geocities.com/vanunoo/Humannature/bruner.html ). Thus if a teacher was to combine concrete, pictorial and symbolic in their presentation of material they will improve results.
Bruner’s work suggests that a classroom must cater to the variety of intelligence that exists within it. Thus as a teacher I should look to teach using methods that combine the active learning and the use of symbolic material. Bruner’s work suggests that students utilize what they already know and build upon it, this is similar to the process of assimilation as asserted by Piaget ( http://www.psy.pdx.edu/PsiCafe/KeyTheorists/Bruner.htm#Research ). Utilising Bruner’s model of Discovery learning whereby students learn through active processes and effectively teach themselves through experience may be a successful way of running my classroom. Such a classroom would be based around experimentation and questioning as a catalyst for self-discovery and consequent learning ( http://copland.udel.edu/~jconway/EDST666.htm#dislrn ).

Assessment Post 2: Piaget

Jean Piaget developed a cognitive theory that demonstrated how individuals develop through a series of stages in their cognitive development. His theory suggests that children adjust their schemata either through assimilation or accommodation. Assimilation is the process whereby a child incorporates new knowledge into existing knowledge whilst accommodation occurs when a child totally adjusts their schema to new information. Piaget asserts that development is a lifelong process with humans constructing and modifying their schemata as they move through stages ( http://marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/fr/piaget2.htm ).
The four stages of cognitive development as suggested by Piaget are:
1.The Sensori-motor stage (0-2 years): Children experience the world through their senses.
2.The Pre-operational stage (2-7 years): Children make use of symbols in this stage. Egocentrism is a characteristic of individuals in this stage of development.
3. Concrete operational (7-11 years): Individuals can use logical thought processes. These processes are still linked solely to concrete objects or problems
4. Formal operational (11 years and above): Individuals are able to consider abstract possibilities and hypothesise. This will often lead to egocentrism as they start to analyse their own beliefs and attitudes

( http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~campber/piaget.html )

Piaget suggested that each individual passes through these stages in the same order; however the age at which an individual moves through stages may differ greatly (Marsh, 2004 p 17).
As a teacher Piaget’s work is important as it raises the possibility that students in high school may not yet have reached the formal level of operations; I would thus have to adjust my teaching accordingly because I would be teaching students at totally different levels of cognitive development. During my recent observation weeks I witnessed the separation of special needs students and regular students into different classrooms. After observing each the distinctions between how the classroom was run was obvious. The special needs students were still within the pre-operational stage of development and consequently the lessons were based on constant activity, for example the creation of art to represent biological processes. The same teacher that taught this class would then also teach a Year 12 Ancient History class with all students operating at a formal level. These lessons were based on discussion rather then activity. This experience demonstrates the diverse nature of intelligence within schools and some challenges I may face as a teacher.

Assessment Post 1: Vygotsky

Lev Vygotsky was a Russian developmental psychologist whose work focused particularly on child development and education. He asserted that social interaction was the major determinant of human development.
Through a child’s constant interaction with a variety of adult figures in their lives they develop communication skills; initially through private speech. According to Vygotsky private speech plays a critical role in cognitive development and he suggested four stages in the development of thought (Marsh, 2004 p 25):
1. Nonverbal thought and conceptual speech
2. Beginning of a merging between thinking and speech:
3. Egocentric speech (overt)
4. Egocentric speech becomes covert

The zone of proximal development is another important facet of Vygotsky’s work. This zone is defined as the distance between actual development level, as determined through individual problem-solving, and the potential development through interaction and problem solving with adults ( http://vygotsky.afraid.org/#EgocentricSpeechInnerSpeech ).
Vygotsky’s findings are of great value to me as a teacher as they suggest that students will learn best through interaction with their peers. Individuals will construct knowledge using their personal experience, the experiences of their peers and through discussion with their peers. This suggests that in order to effectively teach my students my classroom will have to be interactive and interpersonal with a direct focus on developing peer relationships and promoting discussion. Such a classroom could be achieved through the implementation of group based assessment, class discussion or simply small group work. My aim would be to create a social constructivist classroom in which students are both learners and teachers. This would satisfy William Glasser’s suggestion that students should be given responsibility within their classroom environment. A classroom with a focus on the sharing of knowledge between peers would also satisfy Howard Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligences which suggests that some students will learn best through peer based discussion (Interpersonal intelligence). My aim would be the creation of a collaborative classroom where the role of learner and teacher are shared ( http://www.literacy.unisa.edu.au/JEE/Papers/JEEVol6No1/Paper%208.pdf ).

Stephen Downes Presentation

http://www.slideshare.net/Downes/elearning-20/

Fun for all...

Downes

Downes' presentation was useful in that it raised important issues relating to ICT and also provided links to further reading. My feeling is that it was at times a little vague, but the links aided in going deeper into the issues he was raising. Presentations such as this are useful learning tools in that they are interactive, student centred learning and are located in a place where they can be referred to at any necessary time.

Slide 5 raised the issue of Connectivism and stated that knowledge lies in a diversity of opinions. This has obvious links to what we are doing in this blog activity in that we are reflecting and commenting on eachothers blogs and aiding eachother in our learning. Similarly slide 9 talked specifically of the benefits of blogging in that it is user generated teaching and learning and referring to the benefits of a community of learning or a 'network of interactions'. The personal and opinionated touch that Downes refers to allows students to reflect on others ideas and forumulate their own opinions and ideas and share them with others. It is thus an environment where a student can become both teacher and learner.

First Entry; 4134

Cognitive Tools:

- Devices that support the thinking process
- Caters for different intelligences
- Connects existing knowledge with new knowledge
- Fostering metacognition

PowerPoint as a tool to help students convey their understandings on a certain topic
Using video so that students can experience a certain topic and acquire new information first hand (primary source)
The internet as a cognitive tool- for research

What is Effective Learning?

- Student centred
- Learning for understanding
- Process-oriented
- Strategic
- Resource-based
- Collaboration