Students in today's classrooms are considered to be 'Digital Natives', having grown up and been immersed in a range of digital technologies from a very young age (Prensky, 2001). I am constantly blown away by the ICT skills that students have developed by a young age, often exceeding my own. This proves the need for effective and up-to-date teaching of ICT's in all learning contexts, and the need for Learning Managers to regularly up-date their own ICT knowledge and skills. Effective eLearning consists of "Flexible, collaborative, interactive learning delivered and enabled using ICT" (Education Queensland, 2008, p12). A major component of this is the consideration of digital pedagogy. Digital pedagogy refers to a new way of learning with ICT that provides and enhances learning experiences for our students of the Twenty-first Century, with the focal point being on "....a way of working in the digital world" (Education Queensland, 2008, p3). This means that students are not only learning the differing information, communication and technology (ICT) tools and skills, but they are also acquiring the knowledge and skills in order to use ICT tools to enhance their learning , and are involved in organisation, communication, research and problem-solving, as well as other Higher Order Thinking skills, with technology as the tool (Eisenberg, Johnson & Berkowitz, 2010).
The purpose of this synopsis is to examine and reflect on a range of ICT tools for different learning purposes that I have explored and believe to be valuable for the learning of Twenty-first century students. In order to analyse these tools, I will be looking through the lens of such frameworks such as the Big6, Bloom's Taxonomy, the Dimensions of Learning, Productive Pedagogies, and theorists Vygotsky and Piaget. I chose the Big6 Skills framework as I can see a clear link between the this, the Dimensions of Learning, and Bloom's Taxonomy (see The Big6 Skills Learning Theory). Links to classroom pedagogy and content will be made to place the tools in an early childhood context.
Tool One: Learning Management Systems (LMS)
A LMS is a great tool that enables learners to easily access and gain information. Moodle and Blackboard are both examples (See Learning Management Systems (LMS) for more information). I think this tool is a valuable learning aid, as a virtual classroom can be created. "A virtual classroom is a private online space in blackboard that teachers can use to support student learning" (Education Queensland, 2010). Information and content knowledge can be accessed through this tool, as the Learning Manager (LM) can upload a great range of differing learning instruments. Early childhood learners would need to be scaffolded in how to access the site, although as it is a tool that is able to repetitively used, it won't take them long to understand how they site works, and how to access and use all of the sub-tools. A fellow colleague (See Learning Management Systems (LMS) for professional conversation) made me aware to the fact that a limitation of this versatile tool is that it requires plenty of time from an already busy teacher. I agree with this, although if the LM was to regularly spend a small about of time a couple of days a week, then the virtual classroom would continue to be updated, and provide engaging experiences to the students.
A LMS is a great tool that enables learners to easily access and gain information. Moodle and Blackboard are both examples (See Learning Management Systems (LMS) for more information). I think this tool is a valuable learning aid, as a virtual classroom can be created. "A virtual classroom is a private online space in blackboard that teachers can use to support student learning" (Education Queensland, 2010). Information and content knowledge can be accessed through this tool, as the Learning Manager (LM) can upload a great range of differing learning instruments. Early childhood learners would need to be scaffolded in how to access the site, although as it is a tool that is able to repetitively used, it won't take them long to understand how they site works, and how to access and use all of the sub-tools. A fellow colleague (See Learning Management Systems (LMS) for professional conversation) made me aware to the fact that a limitation of this versatile tool is that it requires plenty of time from an already busy teacher. I agree with this, although if the LM was to regularly spend a small about of time a couple of days a week, then the virtual classroom would continue to be updated, and provide engaging experiences to the students.
In relation to the Big6 Skills Framework, Blackboard could be incorporated into stage 3, Location and Access (Eisenberg, 2010). A virtual classroom would allow the learners to locate and use any appropriate information or experiences provided by the LM (Eisenberg, Johnson & Berkowitz, 2010). For example, if the Early Childhood class was completing a unit on weather types, the LM could upload a range of images and digital videos depicting a range of weather types, clothing items, food and activities for the young learners to view and analyse. This also protects the safety of the students as they aren't searching on the wider web, where inappropriate content can easily be located, accidently or not. The privacy and safety of the learners is also protected, as a username and password is required to access the site. Bloom's Taxonomy can also be applied to this ICT tool. When using this tool, in the scenario of the weather unit, students are using Higher Order Thinking, as they are analyising images and videos, classifying them into different weather categories, and justifying why a certain clothing item or activity is suited to a particular weather condition. Thus, a student would be using the higher order thinking skills from Bloom's Taxonomy; application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation (Dalton & Smith, 1986). This ICT is particularly valuable, as students are able to use it a home (if a computer and the internet is available) and show their families what they are learning, thus enhancing the home-school connection.
Tool Two: An Online Concept Map
An ICT tool that enables students to consolidate and refine information is a concept map (see Concept Map: A tool for organising your thinking). "A concept map is a two-dimensional diagram representing the conceptual structure of subject matter" (McInerny & McInerny, 2006, p111). Concept maps are used to organise concepts, ideas, thoughts and information, and get an overview of a concept. For my current context (early childhood) I would use a concept map as a collaborative, whole class tool as, discussed in my blog, it may be too complex for these young learners to complete on their own (see discussion with Ashleigh on using concepts maps in the early years). As a whole class, we could brainstorm ideas on how to answer the following question (relating to unit on weather) 'What is the weather like in Summer?'. Students would provide a range of suggestions, with the Learning Manager (LM) typing these into the concept map. This provides a collaborative, concise, and refined summary, making it easier for students to understand and recall the data. Including a concept map at the beginning of the learning process provides students with "....a stable cognitive structure to which new learning can be anchored" (McInerny & McInerny, 2006, p143). Ausbel details that concept maps (a type of advanced organisers) supports learning as they prepare the students for the material about to be learned, and enable them to make sense out of the material/learning experiences (Mergel, 1998). This links to Bloom's taxonomy, specifically 'application', as students are using Higher Order Thinking to solve a problem, and connect prior knowledge to a new situation (Dalton & Smith, 1986; Johnson & Lamb, 2007). Also, Dimension Two of the Dimensions of Learning is being used as students are organising knowledge within a graphic organiser (Mazarno & Mazarno, 2006). Students are also extending and refining their prior knowledge though the use of a concept map (Mazarno & Mazarno, 2006). Overall, I believe this ICT tool to be a valuable learning aid, providing for a range of learners, learning experiences and environments.
Tool Three: Blog
The use of blogs in an Early Childhood environment allows learners to transform information into a reflective format, allowing new understandings to develop (See Blogs in a 21st Century Learning Environment for more). "Blogs are simple web pages, often made up of short, informal and frequently updated posts" (Infinite Thinking Machine, n.d.). Users of blogs can post images, movies, text, and hyperlinks to other webpages. Through my exploration of blogging, I found it to be a user-friendly, fun and an engaging reflective ICT tool, that could definitely be incorporated into any learning context. Blogs may benefit learners who are not efficient in handwriting, as the reflective writing can be typed instead, and can be enhanced through the addition of images, movies or links. In the Early Childhood environment, a blog could be used as a whole class reflective tool, or as an individual task. I would use it as a whole class at first, to help scaffold learners and model its use and functions. Then I would introduce it individually to allow learners a tool for reflective journal writing online. A colleague suggested that you use a blog as a whole class where at the end of each week the class reflects on new learnings, or what they've been doing (see Blogs in a 21st Century Learning Environment for profession conversation).
Blogs can be used as a space for the young learners to share things they have found, enjoy, or communicate with their peers through comments on others. This collaborative and social learning is a key underpinning oh Vygotsky's theory of social constructivism. As blogs encourage peer commenting, and sharing of information and thoughts, knowledge is able to be mutually and collaboratively constructed with peers (McInerny & McInerny, 2006). Vygotsky believes that it is within these social environments where students construct their own understandings (McInerny & McInerny, 2007). Learning Managers are also able to add comments to the blogs of their learners, and share their blog. "The importance of social interaction between adults and children, and in particular , the role played by adults in guiding and mediating learning for children, is paramount for Vygotsky" (McInerny & McInerny, 2007 p60). This is achievable through the facilitation of educational blogging in the classroom. In relation to the Big6 Skills framework, a blog would be beneficial in stage 6; Evaluation. In this stage, students could use their Blog as a tool to reflect on the creation and process of a particular product. In the younger years of primary, the LM would need to carefully scaffold this, and provide learners with sentence stems, and words to choose from in order for the successful completion. Evaluation can also be on the work of others, and this can be achieved by peer reviewing, then short comments being made on the posts. For example, (continuing with the weather unit) the culminating task the students had to complete might be a drawing (on Paint) for each season, containing related weather conditions, clothing, food and activities. This can then be uploaded and posted on their blog, and then peer reviewed and commented on. To enable Higher Order Thinking, the LM would need to ask questions such as 'Does this image have all the right weather conditions, clothing items, food and activities for the season? What changes would you recommend?' This is using the levels of evaluation, synthesis and analysis as students are investigating the seasons, create a representation and judging and making recommendations to their peers. Blogging enables learners to share and view a range of perspectives, which links to Dimension Three of the Dimensions of Learning where students analyse perspectives. There are many Habits of Mind embedded in the use a educational blogging such as maintain an open mind, respond appropriately to others' feelings and level of knowledge, monitor your own thinking, respond appropriately to feedback and evaluate the effectiveness of your actions (Marzano & Pickering, 2006). Blogging enhances learning as students are exposed to a wider audience, where social construction can occur, and information from a different perspectives can be explored (Zawilinski, 2009).
Finally, an important factor when using blogging in any learning environment (any digital tool actually), is the notion of netiquette. Students need to be explicitly taught what good netiquette is, and how they can work legally, safely and professionally online. This involves modelling netiquette, and exploring the consequences when it doesn't occur.
Tool Four: Digital Movies
The creation of digital movies can be used to present knowledge (see Digital Video for more). Programs such as Windows Movie Make and iMovie are commonly available. In my experience of using both of the programs, the creation of digital movies is very simple, and involves creativity and planning. It is a fun tool that enables learners to share their thoughts, knowledge, creativity and ideas with an audience. This may be useful for shy learners who do not like the focus being on them, as other modes are used to convey meaning such as voice over, text, images and moving images. According to Kearny and Shuck (2006), when students create digital videos, they are communicating, observing, analysing and reflecting. Digital videos would be used in stage 5 (synthesis) of the Big6 Skills framework as students are communicating their results, ideas, thoughts and information to a particular audience. To enhance Higher Order Thinking in the Early Childhood context, the Learning Manager could pose the question: What ways can we use to find out about what they weather will be like today? Students then need to research this idea, and present their findings of the problem in the form of a Digital Video. This would allow students to use a multimodal media to enhance their understanding and meaning making. The students could include such things as images, videos, text, music and even a voice recording, which can often have more meaning than text on paper. The creation process would need to be explicitly taught to the young learners, with plenty of time for exploration provided in order to develop the appropriate skills. The Higher Order Thinking required for this task synthesis, as students are creating, composing, planning, designing, and imagining.
Showing children digital movies from sites such as You Tube would allow learner to develop critical literacy skills as they are able to explore the authenticity and purpose of particular movies or television adverts. This is a valuable thinking experience, which when referring to Bloom's Taxonomy, involves students using the highest level of thinking; evaluation, and also in vital real life learning.
In conclusion, I have found the above tools to be engaging and valuable learning tools which can be easily incorporated into the learning environment. Learning Managers need to prepare students for the new literacies if the Twenty-first Century by explicitly teaching them in the classroom through digital pedagogy. This prepare learners for be ICT literate, and better prepare them for a digital world. This learning journey of mine through blogging has also shown me how much I do not know about the digital world, and that I need to also prepare myself to become digitally literate. I will continue to explore ICT tools available to me, and continue to be on the hunt for more. This will mean that I will be able to better prepare my learners and their ability to be successful in the modern world.
Reference List:
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