Monkey scribbles …

I was fascinated recently to listen to the Learning Lama, as part of a Literature Circle presentation, describe and partially demonstrate  a brief overview of how to setup an IWB for around $50. Yes, that is correct $50 – a fraction of what you pay for a wall mounted/mobile IWB or mimio device … and, all that you require for the setup of this cheaper version of an IWB is a Wii controller, a self-made infra-red pen, a bluetooth device, some special software that can be downloaded and a sense of invention and creativity!!! Possibly, one could say a really good problem solving task involving ICT … For those needing some DIY assistance then using the suggested video link you will get the visual and verbal explanation of how best to got about creating your own IWB, and the IWB guide will pace you through the steps required. 

A worthwhile use of ICT to explore and consider … What do you think??

Gilbert (2009) states that “Teachers should relax about pupil’ mobile phones – they can boost standards and liven up the lesson if used imaginatively”.  He believes that “As teachers we have a duty to show children that these pieces of technology are not taboo items … and that they can have a very real role in the classroom”. He has found that other teachers, like him, are up in arms about students using mobile phones in classrooms. 

Nottingham University conducted a survey recently to consider ways in which mobile phones can really help boost standards. They found that if mobile phones were used wisely and imaginatively then the benefits for worthwhile learning of individuals was enhanced. Examples of the use of mobile phones by students included setting deadlines on digital diaries, using bluetooth to send work to one another, researching issues on the web, and taking videos of the teacher explaining key concepts during a class. An exciting enhancement in mobile phones and one that has a central use to learning is the advent of “e-books”. The use of this tool on a mobile phone allows for not needing to carry around numerous, heavy textbooks or forgetting to bring items required to classes.

As Gilbert (2009) identifies, “… mobile phones are here to stay and are increasingly becoming a vital part of our modern world”. Further, he states that “It’s time for the teaching profession to enter the 21st century and embrace mobile phones as tools for learning, not agents of destruction”.

Reflection

What experience(s) do you have with mobile phones in the classroom?

What strategies would you employ to actively use mobile phones when teaching in your subject area(s)?

Did you know that ….. Thursday 15 October 2009, is Blog Action Day! This is an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. The overall aim is to raise awareness and trigger a global discussion.

The link to be involved with this activity is:-  http://blogactionday.org/ and the topic for discussion is ‘Climate Change’.

By being involved in this activity on the same day, the blogging community hopes to effectively change the conversation on the web and focus audiences around the globe on that issue – interesting!

Maybe you would like to check this link out and blog with everyone else …?

Posting to a weblog can take many forms. The possibilities as Richardson (2006, p.29) identifies in his text “Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms” are endless. By their very structure blogs facilitate what Richardson (2006) thinks is a new form of genre that could be called “connective writing”. For those that are hesitant or still wondering about what a blog is and why it might be worthwhile to record some of our thoughts, discussions and reflections on different things that we see, read or hear about technology, then check out the following YouTube link which provides a really clear, user friendly and constructive overview of Blogs in Plain English

American critic and educator, Neil Postman (1931-2003), provides a thought-provoking attack on television and what it does to us in his book Amusing Ourselves to Death. His main theme under discussion refers to the decline of the printed word and the ascendancy of the “tube” with its tendency to present everything from news to entertainment. First written in 1985, Amusing Ourselves to Death, provided a landmark in the way that Postman considered the way in which electronic media was shaping and would shape our culture. With the advent and major changes in technology today, Postman’s references carry even more significance. 

Postman makes the point that technologies do not add to society but transform it. Wright (2009) states that “It is therefore naive for us to think that modern electronic technologies are merely additives to society. In schools they are changing practice but in the broader sense they are changing the way learners make sense of their world”. Wright (2009) continues by identifying that text messaging, social networking sites, email and blogs have and “… are making major changes to the way we connect, and in particular the way school age students do”. As educators, we need to consider effective ways for using technology. We need to set examples of good practice and encourage learners to engage at higher and deeper levels of thinking and discussion. As Wright (2009) points out, our discussions with learners should consider “… just how technology is changing their world”.

A though provoking read and well worth hunting down in the library, book shop, or even using technology to find it online!

Reference

Postman, N. (1985). Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. Penguin: USA.

Wright, T. (2009). SHORE reports: from the Headmaster. 

I was interested in a post by Kearney (2009) entitled ‘Young people as ‘digital bricoleurs’. The term bricoleurs was the thing that grabbed my attention given it was a term that I had not seen before. Kearney (2009) refers to the metaphor as being “… most suitable for thinking about the type of new media activities some children are participating in”. He continues by stating that “As well as reading, critiquing and listening to new media, these young people are typically creating, ‘mashing’, publishing and ‘talking around’ personally and culturally meaningful artefacts”.  In essence, Kearney is referring to technology and digitilisation; students and their ability to develop, create and accept ownership of artefacts; valuing, culture and change; user-friendliness and accessibility of collaboration tools; and, the audience for whom the artefacts have been created and, how they might “explore, share and interact with others”. 

Reflection

1.  What is your understanding of the term ‘bricoleur’?

2.  What place do ‘Young people as digital bricoleurs’ have in classrooms today?

References (used in Kearney’s post)

Brown, J. (2000). Growing up digital: How the web changes work, education, and the ways people learn. Change, March/April, 11-20.


Hsi, S. (2007). Conceptualizing learning from the everyday activities of digital kids.
International Journal of Science Education, 29:12, 1509 – 1529 

Lees (2008) writes that “Technology is forging new ways of teaching and learning“.  She identifies that “Technology is changing the way we learn. That is a given as school students — the ubiquitous digital natives — come to class equipped with skills and expectations unparalleled in schools in 20 years”. As a consequence, maybe, or rather as a matter of course, technology is also changing the way in which teachers teach. Lees (2008), in reference to the changes occurring to how teachers teach, states that “from how they engage their students and manage their classrooms, to how they shape their working day, manage their professional lives — and indeed how they think about a career in education”. 

Teacher, Wendy Pettit, refers to the impact that technology has had on her Year 5 class and feels that the adoption and change “has been gradual and led by the students”. Dale Spender, an educationalist, sees the shift with technology to be fundamental and states, “There has been a switch from passive to active learners, and active learners need a different range of support staff”. Spender continues by speculating that “skills and new areas of expertise will grow”. Matthew Kearney, a senior lecturer at UTS, “… makes the point that technology will have an impact on how educators manage their career profiles, build their credentials and gain professional recognition …”. He continues by stating that technology will offer teachers “… a flexible and convenient way to develop professionally, providing an opportunity to exchange resources and share success stories”. 

Reflection

1.  In what ways do you think technology is changing the way that we learn?

2.  How will technology assist you as an educator with your class(es)?

Reference

Lees, Kirsten. (April 05, 2008). Teachers on learning curve. The Australian.

Same Suburb Different Park (2009) identify in their post ‘Mobile phones put to good use‘ that some of the other uses of a mobile phone are related to constructive, educational uses within learning. They refer to the 2008 Horizon Report which outlines a variety of uses including the suggestion of podcasted information for museum tours. Whilst technology is constantly changing and the mobile phone is caught up with a paradigm of not always being a phone, schools and educators are faced with interesting challenges. Consideration needs to be given to the effective and responsible usage of mobile phones, as tools, in the teaching and learning process. Same Suburb Different Park (2009) state that “the iPhone and similar next-generation phones have arrived in Australia but are still basically in a stage of infancy”. Some educators today are also in a stage of infancy at realising the changes that have occurred with technology and how these changes might impact on their classroom and the learning by students and themselves.

Reflection

How should mobile technology including phones be used in classrooms?

What constraints are there that need to be considered if mobile phones are used in the delivery of a lesson?

Image Source

Original Chart:  Nokia Mobile Phones; There Is One For Everyone!

Made available under Creative Commons 2.0 Attribution

Licence: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Available at: http://www.mypage.com/smallbiznet/weblog/category/Mobile%20Edition

Shaw (2005) recognises that cellular telephones have been widely available for over 15 years. She identifies in her article ‘Students and Cell Phones: Controversy in the Classroom‘ that schools and legislators have not yet reached a clear decision on their appropriate use in school environments. In her discussions, Shaw considers the pros and cons of student cell phone usage; limiting student use of cell phones; short-term solutions; and, the future of cell phones on the classroom. She states that “Keeping up with technological advances is not easy, particularly when benefits and drawbacks may not be clear, but it is necessary”.

It is interesting to read an article about this topic published 4 years ago and the thought pattern that was around then. We are now experiencing the future and there are considerations that are needing to be made regularly about the use of cell phones in classrooms and by students. Shaw states that “Well-thought-out cell phone policies enable schools to continue to reflect the society they serve”.

As educators, what do we need to consider about cell phone use in our classrooms and/or schools by students?

Image source: http://elearningstuff.wordpress.com/2008/03/