To
live, learn and work successfully in an increasingly complex, information rich
and knowledge - based society teachers and students must utilise technology
effectively (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation,
2008). The implementation of technology as a learning tool in classrooms has
been in effect for many years however its uses are underappreciated and
underused. The pedagogical skills that using technology can support are endless
however the important components include being able to develop communication,
creativity, cognitive skills as well as a deeper intellectual knowledge about
the environments around them. This exposure to the diversity that surrounds
children helps them become more aware of the world and what they need, have and
want to ensure their survival and success as lifelong learners. Collaboration
is not a 21st Century skill, it’s a 21st century essential (educational
origami, n.d.). These collaboration skills are a key component of education as
is made easier by the implementation of ICT's as everyday tools in the
classroom. It provides children and educators the opportunity to have easy
access to school information, external resources, peers and other teachers.
The understanding of how to use technology as a learning resource enable me to identify where and when I would use these products in my classrooms for the benefit of my learners. Through researching the 4 groups of tools I encountered different technologies I didn’t know where available as well as getting a better base knowledge of programs I had used before. By working through the engagement activities each week I was able to build on my foundations for ICT’s by first discovering things like what type of learner I am, researching some experts point of views on technology as a learning resource and try and organise my programs such as my Blog and Wiki. After gaining some firsthand experience with these sites I then analysed them for use in a classroom environment
(http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=548584499325650420#editor/target=post;postID=1596912784530658366)
As I became more educated
with these programs I began to extend myself into more complex technologies,
these included being able to upload pictures, music and videos to websites. It
gave me a great opportunity to sort through programs such as Flickr and YouTube
and filter what I believe would be appropriate if I was using it strictly for
educational purposes as opposed to my personal development. Although the task
seemed hard, after some alterations and review I managed to upload all of them
successfully. (http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=548584499325650420#editor/target=post;postID=3129943268781904632)
The last group of learning tools that I explored was the Group 4
technologies which included much more interactive and personal technologies.
Unlike the previously experimented activities I had never used any of these
programs before. I found it really interesting the different sites that were
available and the affordability of these tools. The tools that I have engaged
in and composed my own work included PowerPoint, Glogster and Prezi. The other
optional tools were engaged in however I provided a brief overview of what I
would use them for in the classroom as. (http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=548584499325650420#editor/target=post;postID=1075682205661035588)
There are many ideas and uses that could be based on the
implementation of these tools to co – align with set curriculum in classrooms.
Activities that involve engagement with peers and educators would benefit from
introducing Wikis and Blogs in their plans. For new and interesting ways of
presenting information, Powerpoints, YouTube videos, music and digital photos
are excellent free resources that children can learn quickly. Glogster’s and
Prezi’s are a great creative tool that children can use to present information
for teachers or use in their free time, however for the Early Childhood
brackets these programs are more sophisticated and require higher order
thinking than that of the general beginner classrooms. The range of other tools
such as Google Earth and Adobe Flash player, are beneficial for all members of
the learning environment, such as helping teachers present new information or
letting students explore information themselves.
As with anything new, its introduction comes with positives and
negatives. The positives have been highlighted in previous text however there
are some down falls that would need to be considered before engaging children
in these tasks. Firstly the over use of ICT’s as well as the incorrect use
could result in permanently damaging the interest of children and the
effectiveness of future programs. Teaching is a complex cognitive skill
occurring in an ill – structured, dynamic environment (TPACK – Technological
Pedagogical and Content Knowledge, 2011). Keeping this idea in mind, educators
need to be aware that although technology is a great tool for use in their
classrooms it’s not appropriate in all circumstances and traditional or
trialled methods are still applicable to today’s learners.
Providing children with
equal access to these resources is another problem schools may face, especially
areas that have low socio economic populations or rural and remote areas. This
is another issue that could be faced with the introduction of the National
Curriculum; there can’t be national standards when there are not national
services. The ability of students to perform in these suggested environments is
also another area that needs to be reviewed as with any new concept, some
children won’t have the same previous life experiences or knowledge base as
other classmates resulting in uneven levels of introductory lessons.
The largest problem with maintaining a healthy and happy
classroom that is heavily reliant on technology is to ensure that legal, safe
and ethical practices are occurring. The risks involved with allowing children
access to internet sites and tools they have limited experience with is that
they lack the mature judgmental skills and life experience to make informed
decisions relating to information procession and social interactions. This
means the a heavy dependence will need to be placed on teachers and parents to
ensure that children are educated in using safe practices but also monitoring
their use of the programs prescribed in case children are becoming over exposed
to certain information or involving themselves in inappropriate age related
activities.
In conclusion, the experiences that I have gained from this, I
believe have given me a deeper perspective on not only the type of teacher I
want to be, but how I will use multimodal techniques to be an excellent
learning manager. Teachers need to be prepared to empower students with the
advantages technology can bring (educational origami, n.d). Taking this into
consideration, I believe that gaining a better understanding of the technology
tools available has left me in a better position to provide informative and
exciting lessons to future students. However I also still hold onto original
beliefs that technology can’t teach everything and there is still a place in
classroom for traditional methods that have succeeded in educating students for
many generations, which relates back to the quote – Informed educators
understand that the optimum design depends on the content, context and the
learner (Cisco, 2008). With the new perspectives I have gained, I look forward
to practicing futuristic pedagogical skills and developing myself as an
educator, whilst learning and growing with my students.
References:
· United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.
(2008). ICT Competency Standards for
Teachers. Retrieved from
· Educational Origami. (n.d.). Bloom’s
Introduction. Retrieved from
·
TPACK – Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge. (2011). Teacher Knowledge. Retrieved from
· Cisco. (2008). Multimodal learning
through media: What the research says. Retrieved from
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