With digital technology playing a vital role in our world today it is important that we, as future educators, embrace these tools not only in our classrooms but also in our daily lives. By passing on these skills to students to develop their digital technology knowledge, we can enhance and support learning and assist in creating life-long learners who will be prepared for the digital world beyond school. Throughout my blog I have explored numerous pedagogical tools that can be beneficial in any learning environment, whether it be in a classroom, by distance education or at home. This synopsis will focus on several of those tools in more detail and reflect on my blog journey.
While reflecting on the selection of digital tools, I will be using the Big 6 Skills Framework (Eisenberg, 2001) and Dimensions of Learning (Marzano and Pickering, 1997) as a lens to provide an analysis of their effectiveness to transform, support, facilitate and enhance student learning. The Big 6 skills framework assist students in working smarter by helping them develop the skills and understandings they need to find, process, and use information effectively (Eisenberg, 2001). The use of this framework allows learners to use higher order thinking and obtain a deeper understanding by using the scaffolded skills. It is a framework that can be applied across all learning areas as well as for real-life contexts, making it a valuable and effective framework for students and Learning Managers to become familiar with.
Throughout this experience I have found that the use of a blog has provided a great opportunity for collaborative learning to occur and I can see the advantages of this in many learning environments, making information widely accessible (see discussion list below for examples of collaboration). Brady (2006) highlights that collaborative learning involves learners learning through interaction with other learners in the atmosphere of a caring, collaborative dialogue in which learners are encouraged to inquire, challenge, express feelings and opinions and reflect. These are all characteristics developed through a blog and with an effective and appropriate blog, students have the opportunity to engage in collaborative, reflective learning at any time and place where they have internet access.
The opportunity to blog at any time and communicate with others can also be particularly useful to teachers, for example in remote areas where they can use blogs to collaborate and share resource ideas with other professionals in the education field. The use of a blog is supported by the Dimensions of Learning Framework as blogging provides an opportunity for students to provide feedback for one another and develop peer and self-assessment skills (Marzano and Pickering, 1997).
A website is another digital tool that I explored through my blog and created that allows students to not only access information but also present information to others, both elements of the Big 6 skills (Eisenberg, 2001). Like the blog, websites also allow learners to access educational information at any time or place where they have a computer and internet connection. Websites contain a vast array of information however when using websites for educational purposes the authenticity of the sites must be taken into consideration. Students must learn that not all information that they come across on websites is accurate and true and they must develop appropriate skills to access accurate and reliable information (see peer discussion).
Learning Managers can also set up websites for students to access where they can scaffold the learning for students by providing appropriate information for the students to gather on a particular topic and access activities at an individual level. Older students may also create their own website with the research and information that they gather from other websites. These learning experiences can also create opportunities for higher order thinking as students are required to use skills from Blooms Taxonomy such as analysing, synthesising and evaluating (Dalton and Smith, 1986).
Using Bubbl.us I was able to create a concept map which was another digital tool that I found particularly useful and effective, (see blog post). I found this tool simple to use and can see a range of students, particularly visual learners, would be able to use this tool and benefit from it (see comments with peers). Concept mapping allows information to be organised in an easy to read manner. Marzano and Pickering (1997) outline the importance of organising knowledge and suggest the use of graphic organisers as part of the process to store information. This also aligns with the synthesis stage of the Big 6 as a concept map allows the learner to classify, group and present information (Eisenberg, Johnson and Berkowitz, 2010). An example of how this tool could be incorporated into a primary school classroom is through a brainstorming activity in which, as a class, students could map out their ideas and knowledge of a topic, joining their ideas together and seeing how one topic may branch into several smaller groups that different learners could focus on.
Digital video was the tool that I most enjoyed and can see great potential for in the classroom (see blog). Kearney & Schuck (2004) suggest that digital video has a range of common uses in schools, in particular for communication, observation and analysis, and reflection. This clearly aligns with multiple skills from the Big 6 including use of information, synthesis and evaluation (Einsenberg, 2001). Kearney and Schuck (2004) also mention that digital video promotes student engagement as videos often provide a new and different task for learners which inspire students. Digital video also provides the opportunity to be paused and students can be challenged to predict outcomes of a demonstration or experiment. By rewinding video segments it can also be reviewed to ensure students understand key concepts. The use of such programs as YouTube and Movie Maker are examples of ways that digital video can be brought into the class and used not only to deliver information but also as a hook or supporting tool to engage students (see blog entry on YouTube and Movie Maker).
Digital video can promote authentic learning experiences as students engage in real world problems and situations, for example while creating a news program (Kearney and Schuck, 2004). The relevance of relating tasks to the real world is outlined by Marzano and Pickering (1997). Here they highlight the importance that attitudes and perceptions play in student learning and particularly the positive effect that it can have when students are engaged and can see how the information is relevant and useful to them in everyday life (Marzano and Pickering, 1997).
The final digital tool that I will be looking at is Prezi. Prezi allows for text, images and videos to be combined and grouped in the program and allows the user to create a smooth presentation that zooms in and out and follows a particular path of the users design to tell a story or present information. This tool allows students and teachers to present information to an audience in a creative and engaging manner by using different techniques and features that the program has to offer. Once students are familiar with Prezi, they are able to effectively present work and knowledge learnt by creating their own Prezi.
The effectiveness to enhance learning through this tool is supported by Marzano and Pickering (1997) as they suggest that the more senses students use to create mental images of information, the more likely the information is to be comprehended and retained. By creating their own Prezi, students are able to use knowledge meaningfully as they use complex reasoning processes to construct their presentation (Marzano and Pickering, 1997). They also use higher order thinking skills as they go through the design process to create their Prezi for a particular purpose. Students also benefit in the future from developing the skills used to create a presentation as they may use these again to create presentations for work related purposes.
Prior to this course I perceived digital technology as simply an ‘extra tool’ to engage learners and viewed it as something too time consuming to try to incorporate into everyday learning. After reflecting on my blog and undertaking this journey I can now see that digital tools hold a much valued place in the classroom and once you have a go at using them they are not as scary as they seem and are generally quite simple to use. It is evident that when used appropriately, the digital tools explored through my blog provide students with the opportunity to access information, organise and refine knowledge, evaluate and present information. However when working online, learning managers must ensure that both they and their learners work legally, safely and ethically which can be done by taking certain precautions such as pre-loading videos and learning about internet safety and etiquette. With our changing world, digital tools in the classroom are as important as ever to not only enhance and support learning but also ensure that our students are not left behind in this digital era.
Discussions with Peers (Click on individual links below to view comments)
July 15: Concept Mapping
July 23: Concept Mapping
July 23: Concept Map
July 27: Creating a Website
August 4: The Power of Images
August 9: You Tube
August 12: Images
August 13: Using Images
References
Brady, L. (2006). Collaborative Learning In Action. Frenchs Forest, NSW, Australia: Pearson Education Australia.
Dalton, J. & Smith, D. (1986). Extending Children’s Special Abilities – Strategies for primary classrooms.
Retrieved August 10, 2010 from http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/researchskills/dalton.htm
Eisenberg M. (2001). The Big 6. Retrieved August 5, 2010 from http://www.big6.com/2001/11/19/a-big6%E2%84%A2-skills-overview/
Eisenberg, D., Johnson, D., & Berkowitz, B. (2010). Information, Communications, and Technology (ICT) Skills Curriculum Based on the Big6 Skills Approach to Information Problem-Solving. Retrieved July 30, 2010, from http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/file.php/4033/LMC_Big6-ICT_Curriculum_LMC_MayJune2010.pdf
Marzano, R. and Pickering, D., (1997). Dimensions of Learning: Teacher’s Manual. Aurora, Colorado: McREL
Schuck, S. and Kearney, M. (2004). Student's in the Directors Seat: Teaching and Learning across the School Curriculum With Student Generated Videos. [on-line]. Retrieved August 1, 2010. From, Central Queensland University, http://www.eddev.uts.edu.au/teachered/research/dvproject/pdfs/ReportWeb.pdf
