Scott's Blog

Bog Synopsis

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:55:00 +1000

The tools we have investigated are only some of what is available for use in a classroom or learning situation. All of these tools and more would be valuable in different situations to help engage the students and be beneficial for their learning. I have investigated using some of these tools within my own disciplines of business and manual arts. The tools that I feel would be of most use, but not limited to, would be YouTube, Google Earth, Wiki’s and Power Point presentations. Texts such as McInerney and McInerney (2006) and Snowman et al. (2009) discuss the use of technology to engage your students and to extend and refine their knowledge by utilising resources other than just textbooks.

YouTube can be utilised in a number of ways within the learning experience of the students within a manual arts or engineering class. It can be utilised as a tool to display the various practices involved in iron ore mining and metal production or show a tour of a vehicle manufacturing plant such as Ford’s Rouge plant. The ability for the students to see these practices and tours is something that would not be possible without the aid of technology. Also by seeing these video’s students are able to visualise, where the material they are using comes from, and the number of processes it has gone through, before they use it. The old saying “A picture is worth a thousand words” (Frederick R Barnard) is definitely true when you compare the engagement shown by students when just a text is utilised within a lesson or you combine or split a lesson between text and video or YouTube.

Combined with YouTube, Google Earth is another tool that can be utilised by the same class. The class could view a video clip from the Pilbara iron ore mining area and then go to Google Earth, and locate the area and view it from the satellite imagery. The students, could then be asked, to give distances to various smelters and the directions to get there from the mines. The same combination could be utilised with the tour of the ford plant. In a business class, the ability to utilise Google Earth would come into travel costing, where students can define a travel destination and calculate the number of kilometres by road to that destination from a given point. With this information and further research into fuel costs and vehicle consumption rates, the amount of money to be spent, on fuel and other expenses, could be calculated. This scenario could be presented to the students as if they were the manager of a company and they had to explore the most cost effective way, to send a company representative, to a business conference. Incorporated with the information on fuel and expenses could be a comparison to other forms of travel apart from a car.

After the representative of the company in the previous scenario had reached the conference the students could be challenged with designing a power point presentation to be shown at the conference. The students can make the presentation to promote the company or product the company my produce and want to advertise. The various ways power points can be designed allows the students a wide range of options to develop a fantastic presentation. The use of photo’s, animations, movies as well as static slides could be incorporated into one power point presentation.

The use of the audiovisual tools can also be of benefit to students with learning impairments and can cater for their individual learning styles and needs. The use of audio to transfer the requirements of an assignment task or any other form of written communication can be a way for students with reading impairments to both receive information and transmit information to others. The audio can be recorded by the teacher to pod cast or audio file, which can be accessed through a class Wiki site. The student can then place a reply to this onto a flash stick with a media file for the teacher to assess. The use of the videos, photo’s and animations can be beneficial for the visual learners to absorb the required information effectively. This acceptance to use various delivery media and techniques is shown in McInerney and McInerney (2006) and Snowman et al. (2009) as a way of engaging students who may be at risk of not participating in tasks due to their inability to effectively comprehend what is required.

Another tool I have looked at using within my unit delivery for an assignment is a teleconference between my class and a manufacturer of a product we are investigating for the unit. This teleconference would be used to allow the live interaction between the students and the representative for the company. The reason for the teleconference is due to the distance the manufacturer is away from the learning centre and the cost that would be incurred if an industry visit were organised. Another fact is the ability for the students to relate the unit to real life situations and receive the required information directly from the manufacturer. The students are also able to see the importance of making contacts, within real life situations, with industry representatives. With this contact they are able to utilise it to receive required information and make further contact to reciave clarification, rather than just compiling facts from the internet.
As I stated at the start of this entry there are numerous tools available for use throughout a learning experience. The way in which these tools are utilised is to be explored and decided, as I go through my course to be a teacher and once I enter the teaching field with qualifications, on what has worked, what has not and what may work if used in a different way. This exploring process will not stop as the technology expands it will continue as new tools become available so that the students are able to relate to the technologies that are involved in the work environment and the learning environment.

Appendix A: Posted replies

References:

McInerney, D., & McInerney, V. (2006). Educational psychology: Constructing learning (4th ed.) Frenchs Forest, NSW, Australia: Pearson Education
Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak, J., Bryer, F., Barlett, B., Biehler, R. (2009). Psychology applied to teaching. Milton, QLD, Australia: John Wiley & Sons

Responsibilities

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 12:21:00 +1000

The different tools and ideas and material I have used and viewed on the Internet all have different usage laws. There are piracy laws and copyright that effect the ability to use other peoples material. Whenever someone uses material which is not their own then it is always a good practice to make sure no such laws are being broken.

Voice Thread

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 12:13:00 +1000

Voice thread is definitely a different spin on things it seems to be a forum set up around an image where you can actually leave verbal comments rather than just written. A way of incorporating that into learning would be to have a number of different images set up that relate to the topic or task and have students leave their comments. This would be a good way to engage students or have an assignment set up.

The Web and Music

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:56:00 +1000

A big thing I have noticed is the number of younger generation that have an Ipod or some other mass storage device with music on it walking around the streets. The ability to download music (at a price) off of the Internet is definitely more convenient for most people than going to a music store. Back ground music can add flare to an assignment that may include a visual display such as a PPT or Slide show as long as no copyright is broken.

File storage

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:50:00 +1000

Their seem to be a great number of various file storage sites on the Internet. Each having it's own spiel on the advantages of choosing that one over another. The ability to store files in a system that is not clogging up your own storage space is great but there is usually still a cost for being able to do this.

Web Quest

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:06:00 +1000

Unreal what a way to have an assignment given. This is an exciting way to have students engage with their learning. To have the option these days to research via the world wide web is fantastic compared to spending hours on end finding information in books when I attended high school you can now spend the same amount of time on the Internet and increase the compiled data by many times. The ability to set out the assignments on different media is amazing as getting handed paper hand over fist becomes boring and disengaging after a while.

Quizzes in learning

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:57:00 +1000

Quizzes are an invaluable tool to gain feedback on a students understanding of a subject or assignment. The layout of a quiz does not need to be done on boring old paper. We are involved in an e-learning course that is asking us to utilise technology in learning. Imagine how the students would engage in a quiz if it was conducted on a medium they use everyday as a part of their life this can be by messaging on mobiles or create it as a podcast they can download and submit answers back via a forum platform.

Animations and Simulations

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:47:00 +1000

Edheads is a good example of where animations and interaction with simulations is a valuable learning tool. The idea that children are able to visualise the effects of the actions in an animation is valuable.

Flickr

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:39:00 +1000

Having looked through Flickr for some photo's to go along with an assignment theme, I have found it to be a seemingly never ending supply of ideas for different displays of photos'. The problem is choosing from the amount of photos' on offer the few that are the best.

Websites

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:40:00 +1000

Setting up a website is something I have always wondered about as to the ease or difficulty of it. I have seen some good examples of site design and some that seem to be pretty plain. I have a business of my own and have wondered if I should make a site for advertising but have never tried it. The use of a site in a learning site is pretty common these days as they have sites to display their various learning opportunities for prospective students. Within these sites student work is able to be displayed to show various class projects.

Youtube and the use of Video

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:48:00 +1000

YouTube is a tool I have viewed many times as it definitely has some interesting videos showing things from 4wd techniques to farming practices. Since starting my uni degree I have found videos like the ones where the young students have made the instructional video for how to embed a voki to my blog. This is an excellent way to include ICT's into learning and constructively engaging students.

Interactive Whiteboards

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:03:00 +1000

The good people at SMART Technologies manufactured the first interactive whiteboard in 1991. Since then educators have utilised the tool to engage students by utilising digital resources and still being able to interact with the students effectively (Interactive whiteboards and learning, white paper,2006). The technology is definitely beneficial, but is dependent upon its availability at the learning site.

Learning Management Systems

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:41:00 +1000

LMS are what we currently interact with to complete are daily uni tasks as in Blackboard. The use of a LMS is to have all the information required by your students on a particular task stored at a single point and they can view this information and course resources as well as interact with forums to clarify tasks with the teacher. The style of LMS whether it be an open system (Moodle) or proprietary (Blackboard) is dependent upon who is implementing the courses or what system a learning site already uses.

E-Portfolios

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:36:00 +1000

Hey, what a way to store various documents and information that you compile. The use of a single point of storage which is able to be accessed from different locations is invaluable. The ability to have documents and files stored and accessed without the need for actual hard copies to be produced is not only environmentally friendly but also a way not to have to lumber around big piles of documents for meetings where all you need is a laptop and maybe access to a projector and a whiteboard. With the amount of information I myself have relating to my trade CPD is enough to fill a filing cabinet in it's self, let alone what I am compiling while doing my teaching degree.

RSS

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:18:00 +1000

Alright so the RSS symbol I have seen on various websites is more use than just a nice piece of art, it can actually be useful. The Google Reader that I have subscribed to is just one of a number of readers where the latest updates of your favorite sites can accumulate for you to access in a single site. OK so where does this fit into the field of teaching. The time it takes for students to research over a number of different sites would be a major factor, if the students did initial research and set up a reader and syndicated sites, then further lessons would be much more organised with students navigating to their reader first and then choosing from there what sites have the information they require.

Picnik

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 3 Aug 2009 14:29:00 +1000

The photo on top is the picnik version of the photo below. With a bit of creativity you can utilise the tool for a number of different ways, eg: art assignments or assignment covers.

Voki

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Mon, 3 Aug 2009 13:23:00 +1000

Hi All, I have added the voki on the right, pretty cool to do. The opportunities are endless with what you can do. The amazing thing is, to remember how to embed the script I did a google search and found a number of instructional videos' which have been compiled by school students in what looks like a primary school and sounds like N.Z. Pretty cool way to incorporate ict's into a class by allowing the students to do instructional videos' and at the same time learn all about the tools. Maybe an idea to look at within our own classes.

Google Mapping

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:19:00 +1000

View Uni in a larger map

Using Google Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:54:00 +1000

Alright, google earth, so there is more uses than just plotting my fishing points and planning my travel trips. One use would be for engineering students to view the various mines to explain where raw resources come from to produce different metals such as Mt Isa for lead and the iron ore mines in the whyalla region. The students will be able to visually see the the start of the process to produce the metals they use for projects.

Hots and Lots

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:16:00 +1000

Look at the powerpoint on the following site.
education.unisa.edu.au/.../EDUC1066%20Week%208%20lecture.ppt

Dr Wing Au & Dr Alan Barnes
School of Education

Wordle

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 16:28:00 +1000

I have had a look and play with wordle and found it a tool that can become useful as a graphic organiser for students to internalise knowledge they have learnt. Here is the link to a quick wordle I completed on my view of what Uni has meant to me so far.
http://www.wordle.net/gallery/wrdl/1027786/Uni_to_me

Feeds

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:54:00 +1000

This is my feed address.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/cQFL

Trial Video

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:42:00 +1000

This is just a sample video of what we can do with moviemaker.

Group Podcast

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 14:52:00 +1000

A link for the group podcast.

Podcasting

noreply@blogger.com (Quinnie) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 14:03:00 +1000

The lesson today is about podcasting and vodcasting for students to use as a tool for their school work. Podcasting from my view (up until this point) was just another way people could catch up on radio programmes that they had missed. As I said up until this point. This will be continued shortly.

O.K now to continue where i finished. I am still no great expert on pod casting but have found a great information video (Lee Lefever's, Common craft) on another of our teaching tools Youtube. The video explained the tools you require and the fact the podcast is a recording of a show that is uploaded to the web so people can download it to a device such as an Ipod to play it at a time they are able to listen or watch it. The recordings can be TV shows or radio programs.