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Schools of the future..?

I was intrigued by the possibilities offered in the article E-volution of Schools by Hannah Edwards. The idea of a classroom without walls, where your work can be done at any time of day and night really appeals to me, without set times for studying Maths and English as disconnected subjects, similar to the Microsoft ‘school of the future’. I do believe that the lack of simultaneous whole class instruction would make life exceedingly difficult for a teacher trying to keep track of the different things all their students were working on, but also that this could lead to true student-centered approaches, with personal research projects being the focus, rather than a set curriculum. While this offers some interesting alternatives to tradiional education, I still believe that face-to-face teaching and social interaction between students is also vital for students’ development as people. Maybe there is some way of combining these??? A face-to-face discussion time to practice social, debating and conversation skills over a wide range of free choice and pre-determined subjects? The ‘Conversation Clubs’ from Edward de Bono’s “How to Have a Beautiful Mind” come to mind…

Brain boxes: How digital technology can improve maths scores

Brain boxes: How digital technology can improve maths scores by Gordon Cairns

My blog on the use of a Nintendo DS to improve students’ performance in maths. I think the idea has potential… I do have reservations, but we’ll never know whether or not it works unless we give it a try!

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Why e-learning has not lived up to the hype

This article by John G. Hedberg really caught my attention, as my experience with e-learning in the classroom is that it was underutilised as some teachers thinks it takes up too much time and is too distracting, and too much effort to plan when there was already a perfectly good way of doing things. I was particularly interested in the list of obstacles to integrating e-learning into the classroom by Vrasidas & Glass, 2005, p. 8:

The conservative nature of the traditional culture of schooling and classroom instruction.

Teachers’ resistance to changing their traditional teaching approaches.

Lack of time for teachers to learn how to use and integrate ICT in their teaching.

Lack of technology infrastructure.

Lack of specific technologies that address the specific needs of teachers and students.

Lack of ongoing support.

Lack of release time and incentives for teacher innovators.

Incompatibility of traditional teaching with the constructivist framework fostered by ICT.

Need for teachers to unlearn traditional teaching beliefs and practices.

Need to prepare teachers to integrate ICT by integrating ICT in teacher preparation programmes.

Need for policy, curriculum and assessment reform.

For teachers who have not had a thorough training in all these new technologies, it is a steep learning curve. There is little time and support to become an expert in this area with an already crowded currriculum, and the technology itself can often be difficult to use and maintain. Also, for those who have experienced academic success with their students, it may seem quite unnecessary to overhaul the entire system when there is little proof that such a move would be justified. These are some of the obstacles that the system must overcome if e-learning is to play a more full role in the classroom.

Metros (2003) argued that for students to become engaged with their learning, e-learning should be redesigned to move them through three processes: transfer of ideas, translation of ideas and transcending ideas, and I think this idea has potential to work in a classroom. She defined these as involving the following.

Transfer: Transfer conventional instructional tools, strategies, communication and delivery to a technology-enhanced learning environment.

Translate: Redefine and shift conventional instructional tools, strategies, communication and delivery to the technology-enhanced learning environment.

Transcend: Go beyond conventional instructional tools, strategies, communication

Until the school system embraces a more constructivist attitude to learning, and more specifically e-learning, I suspect that e-learning will remain underutilised, with most primary school computer lessons consisting of Paintbox and Tidy-Up. I believe that the prescriptive nature of Outcomes education does not allow for as much discovery learning because a teacher is not as free to let students follow their interests and learn at their own pace when they are accountable for ensuring that each child has met each of the stated syllabus outcomes.

Mel’s blog on Claire’s blog on computer games…

I am writing a response to a response to an article… I have believed for a long time that video games could have a potentially brilliant effect on children’s learning. But I also agree with Mel that there are plenty of children out there who spend far too much time playing video games as it is, and any more time in front of a computer is probably not a good thing, no matter how much they are learning from it. While it is a noble goal to make education fun, I believe that the primary purposes of schooling is to socialise and educate students. Some of the kids I’ve had in my class could benefit far more from a one-on-one face-to-face discussion thancomputer time, even though they would be far more successful with the computer. Varied learning experiences are what we need. By all means, incorporate the computer games, but don’t forget, these kids still need to run around, write and actually SPEAK to eachother and other adults!

Adam’s blog on blogs

Adam’s blog on teacher’s blogs was highly interesting.  I think that a blogging community of teachers could have some great discussions on new things being tried in the classroom, old things being reintroduced, suggestions on how to deal with delicate situation involving, students, parents, staff and the executive and so much more… However, I aslo find it sad that a blogger might fear retribution for blogs or comments taken the wrong (or right!) way. Maybe some anonymity is not such a bad idea? Maybe that is the only way that we will have the freedom to say what we believe without fear…

Claire’s blog- How technology can help disabled students

Claire’s blog on using technology to help students with disabilities become more fully integrated into mainstream classes was very thought-provoking, this is an area that I had not even considered using technology. I believe it is a brilliant idea, as it gives the special needs child an increased sense of self-efficacy and a higher degree of participation in the classroom, as well as exposing the children in the class to new perspectives, making them more considerate citizens (hopefully) as they get to know the person behind the disability and teaching them new uses of technology. The only problem is I would have no idea to find it… or use it for that matter! Maybe THIS is what we should be taught in e-learning rather than just playing with flickr…

Games in Education

This article is on the benefits of including games as part of students’ learning experiences, because of the skills that students can develop, including but not limited to hand-eye coordination, management of complex variables, interpersonal communication, literacy and problem-solving. There seem to be three different ways of using games suggested: using mainstream games in school; creating ‘educational’ games (with both new and existing software); and pulling games to pieces and using them as a tool for young people to create new games or films themselves.

I believe that there is a danger in children creating there own games that they will get so caught up in the aesthetics that the content will suffer. However, with time and training I believe this could be a great way for students to show off their knowledge, or as a form of assessment. Creating a game based on the movements of troops at Gallipoli, moral dilemmas in the schoolyars for PDHPE, saving the environment, how to construct a town… There are so many exciting ways that this technology could be used! And if children rebel at the idea of bringing popular culture into the classroom, ‘like seeing {their} least favourite uncle ‘disco dancing’ to the Libertines’ and turn to novels and letter writing… well, GOOD!

Web Dilemmas…

I think Web Dilemmas have huge potential in the classroom. As this article by Parkes states, they are a great alternative to WebQuests for a time poor teacher.  With three sources for the affirmative of any dilemma and three sources for the negative, they provide sufficient information for students to come to an educated conclusion in a timely manner, and they provide the opportunity for a teacher to sort through the information to make sure it is appropriate and correct. The think, pair, share process promotes higher order thinking and exposes everyone in the class to viewpoints they may not have considered.

Web Dilemmas can be entertaining and informative, a great classroom idea!

Visual Literacy… Digital Cameras in Classrooms

I believe that, as Keith Lightbody states, visual literacy is essential in the classroom. While I believe that learning should utilise all the senses, the memories that I have of my own schooling are predominantly visual. I remember the sight of the hot air balloons we made as a class taking off, although I couldn’t tell you how we put them together or why… I remember watching the BTN episodes that I wrote my reports on (even though I don’t remember the content of my reports)… I remember watching the rehearsals of the Year 5 play ‘Oliver,’ despite the fact I have little recollection of my own part in the play… I remember the things that I have seen, I have few purely auditory, tactile or otherwise memories, it is all about sight.

In this article, there are many benefits of visual literacy discussed. It can contribute to visual-spacial intelligence, visual arts can affect student’s emotions and aid understanding, it shows students how to explore deeper levels of meaning… To me this just backs up what I already believed, visual stimulation increases engagement and is more easily remembered.

Digital cameras, as mentioned in the article, are a fantastic tool. A video of a student performing a dance, or a sporting movement can help a student self-assess and is far more useful than the constructive criticism from a teacher that is so oten taken the wrong way. Photos and pictures can make presentations and worksheets far more interesting than the bland textbook style or writing on the blackboard. Taking pictures for projects allows students to really engage with their research and take ownership of the learning process. A photo in the school newsletter or class website can be hugely motivational. There are so many ways a digital camera can be used with students, every classroom should have one! Visual literacy in the classroom is ESSENTIAL!!!