Reflective Synopsis

Reflective Synopsis

Managing e-learning for me is about seeing the educational value in using different types of information technology in regular classroom settings. It is also about being able to use this digital and information technology to underpin all other aspects of  learing theories and strategies such as ‘Productive pedagogy’, ‘Blooms Taxonomy’, ‘Dimensions of learning’, 'Constructivism', 'Connectivism' and content delivery. To view my refelction on learning theories, http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2011/11/reflection-on-learning-theories.html 
To view my opinion on the "Learning" theory 'Connentivism please view http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/connectivism.html
Managing e-learning is about being able to assess whether one tool would be more beneficial to all students learning over another tool and its’ effectiveness within the teaching context. Therefore, being able to evaluate the positives and negatives of different types of technology tools allows us (the learner manager) to understand when and where these tools would benefit learning for all students. Understanding the importance of e-learning is crucial for developing and engaging ,interestingand constructive learning for students in the 21^st century. 
 Although I am a ‘digital immigrant’, see post
 http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/digital-immigrant.html
 this course has not only made me step outside of my comfort zone, it has also opened my eyes to a whole new world in teaching. My reflective synopsis will look at four technological (ICT) tools and provide examples of how they can be used practically in classrooms.  Furthermore, the Queensland Government (2005-2012) states that technology has the ability to support social and emotional lerning (SEL). The same source states that being able to stregnthen SEL students are able to function more successfuly in society by facilitating 'self awareness, self management, social awareness, relationship and responsible decision making skills

WIKI SPACES ONLINE ACTIVITY

The wiki phone group activity was easy to use and the six thinking hats provided a critical thinking strategy to allow for greater depth in discussion. By being a part of an activity that was well scaffolded and monitored it allowed me to see the true value in using such an online space to evoke thought and productivity in students. This constructivist approach meant that we (the students) were accountable to participate in a space that allowed students to learn off each other. It also allowed us to see other people’s perspective which broadens our own ideas and perceptions about the topic. I was surprised to read that most of the students were opposed to the use of mobile phones in classrooms. For example, many stated they thought that mobile phones would cause distractive behaviours in the classroom.

WIKI SPACES

Wiki spaces are a space that can be used for a variety of educational purposes, however, it shines the most when using it as an online collaborating space for students to develop and grow ideas. I have used a SWOT analysis to list all of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats I could think of on my blog reflection which you can view here
http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/wiki-spaces-for-online-learning.html.
 I have been able to make links to learning theories, student developmental domains and other strategies/skills. However, during the past few weeks I have realised that collaborative learning also has its pitfalls. As we know, learning is an individual process and as we know, individuals also have different personalities. Some personalities would cope better in group settings, however, and introvert, shy and unconfident person may not do so well in group settings. Other downsides to collaborative learning can be viewed here http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/downside-to-collaboration.html . To view my attempts at using a wiki space please click here http://sarahannejenner.wikispaces.com

WEBSITES

Websites are another technological tool that can provide a learning space for students. We were asked to build a Weebly website and do an analysis of the positive and negatives of the usefulness of websites as a learning tool. Again I used the SWOT analysis strategy to help organise my information about websites and its effectiveness in an educational setting. Here is a link to my SWOT analysis/ blog reflection http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/blog-post.html . For me websites were the easiest to create. I was also able to see its uses as a technological tool in an educational environment. This is most likely due to the fact that I have accessed websites almost daily over the past four years; therefore, I was able to use prior knowledge to build my own website. My website is not ready for classroom use: however, I played around with it and had fun with it. To view my weebly website click on this link http://www.weebly.com/weebly/main.php . As a learner manager I would like to make individual class websites with my students. I would like to have them help create the look and feel of the website. Additionally, I would have the students help decide what they think should be in it. For example, should it be used for resources or activities and so on. I believe this will create a sense of ownership and therefore it would increase intrinsic motivation and engagement. The website would also create a sense of community in the classroom.

MOBILE PHONES

The third tool I analysed was the controversial ‘mobile phone’. In many schools mobile phones are banned. However, during the course of this subject I have been able to see that there may be educational uses for this small device. At first I was totally against mobile phones in classroom settings as I believed that they were a distraction and were only to be used as a contact device. After careful consideration and thought I believe that this tool may be beneficial for students. Unfortunately, I believe that this device will remain a topic of argument for quite some time still. The reason for this is that mobile phones are hard to monitor and internet access cannot be filtered. Another important issue is finding a way to make strict policies and rules for mobile inclusion. It is my belief that policy needs to be well documented and implemented if mobile phones are going to take a place in educational settings. I used the PMI strategy to evaluate the pluses, minuses and interesting facts about mobile phones. Additionally, I have added a youtube clip that I believe sums up mobile phone use in schools. Please view these at  http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/mobile-phones-in-classrooms.html

The funny thing is, is that my fifteen year old son came to me for help last night regarding  a ‘Rant’ he has to put together for an English assignment. He chose ‘Why are mobile phones banned in schools’. My sons’ choice of topic has now cemented (for me) the fact that there is a need for change into the policies and guidelines in schools regarding mobile phones. It is obviously a topic that is current and that teenagers want change.

POWER POINTS

The last tool that I challenged was the Microsoft power point. Power points are a set of slides that usually follow a sequential pattern with each slide being relevant to the last. Power points are an easy system that teachers can use to present data, information and content. Additionally, pictures can be uploaded to give the slide a more appealing and engaging feel. Power point slides however, can do much more then present information videos and audio can be uploaded to create story books. The down side to power points is that they cannot be uploaded unless you install a slide reader. I recommend that both teachers and students can use power points to format, display, organise and deliver content either in class or for assignments because it is easy to use and does require too much technology knowledge. Other form of presentation tools that students and teachers could use are: Prezi, and Glogster. I used both of these tools and although they are both very good at displaying information in a visually creative manner, I was unable to use them easily. Here are my attempts http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/prezi-link.html

http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/glogster.html

MISCELLANEOUS

Other attempts at using technological tools include:

Voki http://sarahannejenner.wikispaces.com/home

Resizing Photo’s http://sarahjenner-e-learning.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/re-sizing-photos.html

Podcast http://sarahannejenner.wikispaces.com/space/content

SAFE, LEGAL & ETHICAL

There are safe, legal and ethical laws that apply to using technology. Teachers must be aware of the safety issues that may occur in online spaces. Providing an online environment that protects the students personal details is paramount when deciding what tool or space to use for educational purposes. In may reflections of each tool I have listed the safety risks involved for using that particular space or tool. Additionally there are legalities that all teachers and students must follow. Ensuring students follow the laws of attribution and copyright is a right used by others to protect their information, images and /or videos being taken and used by others. For teachers the 'rule of thumb' applies. The rule of thumb refers to 'Fair dealing', and states that the exceptions to copyright fraud allows a portion of someone elses work to be copied for research, study, critism and rebiew purposes (Smart Copying n.d.). Furthermore, there are ethical rights that need to be exercised whilst using technological devices. Ethics refers to the moral principles that apply to acceptable and unacceptable behaviours. For students this means that respecting the rights of others by behaviour in an appropriate manner is an essential practise whilst using ICT. Following the guildelines and/or policies is behaving in an ethical way. For teachers this means providing explicit instructions into the right way and wrong way of using technology. This especially allpys to what is being accessed by the internet.
In any case it is the teachers responsibilty to maintian a safe environment, provide explicit instructions into the legal obligations of students and lastly students need to be given strict guidelines into the ethical practises of online useage

CONCLUSION

Overall, there are practical uses for ICT in classrooms and schools that I can foresee myself utilising as a future learning manager. I have learnt that there are many types of tools that exist either on mobile devices such as mobile phones, camera’s laptops, or fixed devices such as computers. Additionally, the tools found on the internet that can be downloaded or accessed via wi-fi settings is so vast that it would be ‘almost’ humanly impossible to use them all.  These tools will allow students to do tasks in an untraditional and creative manner. Furthermore, teachers are able to create well scaffolded spaces for constructive learning, self-regulated, individual learning (differentiation). Using ICT provides teachers with tools that enable engaging and motivational learning experiences for their students

Reference list

Smart Copying (n.d.). Fair dealing. Retrived from http://www.smartcopying.edu.au/scw/go.pid/373

The State of Queensland (DETE) 2005-2012. Social and emotional learning. Retrieved from   http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/protection/sel/     

Power Points

Power points are a set of slides that gave visual information or cues to deliver content in a way other than verbally. Power points are effective tools to organise and sequentially deliver information or content.
I made a power point for the first time last year. I was very nervous as I had never done it before, but... I was pleasantly surprised at the simplicity of making a power point. Then.... my fourteen year old son walked in and put his usb stick in my computer and continued to show me his version of a power point. What a difference there was between the two. Mine was all factual, no pretty visual effects, no stunning backgrounds, no audio effects, just a simple and sequential set of slides that were filled mainly with information text and a picture here or there. I was feeling quite proud of myself, alas, my power point was a bore compared to my sons.
I think the reason for this is because when I was taught at school there nothing really creative about doing assignments. Teachers didn't want all the pretty stuff or anything that detracted attention from the information itself. These days students are being offered ways to be more creative, they're are being taught to be more creative, they are being encouraged to be more creative. I think this is great and although this does not have anything to do with power point per say, it does however reflect that there is a correlation between how students will deliver information/assignments and how teachers teach.
There is know doubt that I was taught under the reign of the 'Behaviourists Theory' as it shows in everything I do today. It definantly showed in my power point presentation last year.
It is amazing what you can do with a set of power point slides. Students can be as creative as they want and they can make it as interactive as they want. The only downside is that power points can not be uploaded onto other sites, which is a real shame because power points are easy to make and can deliver content/information in many different ways.

Glogster

I really like the concept of glogster as it allows students  to work as individuals but allows the teachers to view the progress of students work. Glogster has a community feel about it 'connectivism' but provides opportunity for indiviual and social expression 'constructivism'. I think this tool is more suited for primary students as it is a one dimensional poster.
I remember when I was in  primary school and we did our assignments on a huge peice of cardboard. we wrote information on it and glued pictures on it and thought it looked amazing. Now, with glogster, students can make even better poster assignments as they can add videos, audio and are able to upload pictures from the internet which has billions of pictures. The choices become almost limitless.
The only down fall with limitless resources it that it can become more time consuming to put a poster or assignment together. I know that I can become so involved in the process of finding the 'Right' video or the 'Right' picture that I don't realise that I've spent 3hours looking for it. So sometimes having access to too much 'stuff' is a distraction from staying on task and managing time, for me anyhow.


http://mammabear.edu.glogster.com/mananging-e-learning/

Prezi Link

http://prezi.com/vpiszyjxe0ni/edit/#15_21833117
I made a very unimpressive prezi presentation, I found it hard to work with as the screen was always enlarging or minimising. I found it hard to know where I was on the map/presentation.
It is cool though, I really like that you just press the play button and it will move sequentially through the presentation. It is more visually appealling than a linear power point.
I did have one issu though and that trying to reference the youtube clip. Everytime I typed it in the reference and clicked ok/enter it just embedded the clip again, so not sure what to do there!!
This would be a really fun way for students to present assignments as it allow images, text and vidoe's to be uploaded into the presentation.
Overall, I found it hard to work with however, I can see it's benefits as a tool for students to learn from or use in an assessment/assignment format.

Photos and video used in this Prezi presentation are attributed to Microsoft Windows
the youtube clip Sam Fox (2006, Mar 21). Funny old women. [Video File]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUfIvpzvjwQ

Learning Theories on Prezi

Mobile Phones in Classrooms

Earth Science Lab (2012, May 10). Cell phones in school [Video File]. Retrived from

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxegOn8iqD8

This youtube clip provides a complete and clear understanding of how and why we should be letting students use mobile phones in schools. It looks at the stregths, weaknesses, applications/uses and the safe. legal and ethical issues.

Mobile phones in schools is always going to cause political, safety and ethical issues and there will always be aurguments for for/against. One thing is for sure is that mobile phones are not going anywhere soon and they are likely to be apart of students social and personal life now and in the future. The only way I see this is to start implementing change in the primary sectors so that rules, regulations, policies regarding mobile phones in schools is ingrounded into their young educational lives adn hope that they transend into the secondary settings. I believe these issues such as distractive off/task behaviours created by mobile phones may be prevented if we start now with the youngsters so that they can value the phone as an educational tool rather than a toy.

I agree with everything that this clip states, so this is my evaluation of mobile phones as a productive learning tool.

Cross Bow Security (2010, Sep 25). No cell phones in class!! Breaks it [Video File]. Retrieved from

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjHWiIXOJ7k&feature=related

This youtube clip is a very quick video showing how not to use mobile phones in the classroom LOL I don't think this teacher will be embrassing mobile phones as learning tools for quite some time.

Mobile phones in classrooms would be a direct link to the 'not so learning theory' Connectivism. don't get me wrong it's not that I don't believe connectivism is a real thing but I think they'll need to find evidence before they say it's a learning theory.
In any case, mobile phones would definantly be a tool used for connectivism.

Here is a  brief PMI review of mobile phones as a leaning tool

PLUS	MINUS	INTERESTING
Is small and portable so that information can be accessed anywhere where there is a wireless network. Is abundant with functions and features such as: ·         Video & voice recording ·         Calender ·         Calculator ·         Image capture/camera ·         Reminder, alerts ·         Events Calender ·         Games ·         Apps ·         Email ·         Contacts All of the above features could be utilised by students to assist learning outcomes and student self regulating learning. Mobile phones are cheaper than laptops	If not used correctly it could increases distractions in classroom Policies will take a long time to change over from current school rules on mobile phones It could increase the gap in the disadvantaged communities It could cause a greater gap in social acceptance for those who come from a low socio economic back ground. There will need to be research to back up new policies which will time consuming and may not take effect for a very long time, which may mean that more and more students will disengage from learning as it does not support interests of the students or students needs	Whilst researching on youtube I came across a video that was created by three high school students. Two students were interviewed and asked to answer questions about mobile phones in school. It was very clear that personal characteristics played a huge part in their response and that those students who are already easily distracted became more distracted, however students who are able to stay on task found that mobile phones in lass did not impede their learning. Unfortunately there cannot be separate rules for those who can and cannot stat on task in class so I think that mobile phones will be the new bargaining tool for teachers to motivate or punish student



Downside to Collaboration

During this subject we have been exposed to all of the postitives that calloborative learning provides.
I have experienced a couple of negative effects from collaborative learning and wanted to share them with you.
Whilst doing the practise quiz, I had posted an answer and justification for that answer (a). However, as I looked through all of the other answers posted I noticed that most others had chosen a different answer to mine. I was convinced that I must be wrong if so many others were chosing the same answer (b). During the quiz this question came up, being influenced by others answer I chose b. Unfortunantly this was the wrong decision as I had the right answer. If feedback had been given on the practise quiz then I may not have been convinced to change my response. I understand that the correct answer couldn't be given as it was a question being used on the quiz, however, feedback such as 'your on the right track but have another look' or 'have you considered this' would have redirected learning in the right direction. Just sayin. It proves that constant monitoring and redirection will need to be given to students to ensure that the learning outcomes are achieved.
Another issue I see in collaboritive learning is that it easy to be intimitaed by others who's ideas overstate your, and who's ability to understand the task is more comprehensive. I experienced this whilst reading another person's blog reflections. It was clear that the other person's ablities to understand this subjsct and provide comprehensive reasonging and skills were far more superior to mine which left me feeling underwhelmed and out of my league.

Websites

Websites are abundant in todays online society. Websites serve many functions and are set up according to the purpose of the site. Almost every business (government, private, local, national, global, corporative, financial and more) has it's own web site. However, the designs, functions and features vary depending on the type of website that has been designed (and of course $$$$). So is it any wonder that websites may have a place in the world of education and classrooms. I say that if you can't beat'em, join'em.
Websites for educational purposes could be used as a very powerful tool for many different reasons.

Strengths

Can be indiviually designed for a set audience
Are easy to create, navigate, edit, upload information into, upload multi-media into.
Students will have a sense normality since they are accessing website for research or personal reasons.
There are so many options to add your own creative flare to the overall look and feel of the website.
Easy to use click and drag options.
All options have visual aids/icons which allows the creator to see exactly how the editing will look.
Templates are readily avaliable and image on template can be changed, therefore, if you like the layout but not the image you can alter it to your own specific needs.
Weebly has the ability to allow all types of digital media to be uploaded onto the individuals website (Dependant on Payment for Pro). This insures all websites will be unique to the owner/opertor.

Can be used across all subject areas

Can break content up into sections to suit learners at differing levels
Layout is changeable

East to navigate tabs

Weaknesses

No clear save button. To save you push publish
Is static
Unable to access all of it's features for free.
No password settings
Is on internet for life
Not as interactive as a wiki space

Opportunities

Provides opportunities for students to view a summary of content that will be covered during weeks/terms 'Self-Regulated Learning' Dol 5
Provides opportunities for teachers to create a space for resources 'Planning', 'Strategies'
Provides oipportunitites for 'Differentiation' by allowing students to access content either ahead of time or after lessons to help intergrate knowledge or go over content that wasn't first understood.
Provides opportunities for students to help create a class website, therefore, maybe increasing 'Motivation' by providing the students with 'Ownership'
Provides opportunties to present resources, stratgies and information to students.

Threats

Malware that is distributed through a webpage. Malware are malicous codes which attack computers/websites, similar to a virus.
Spyware, a traching device which tracks online habits.

Safe, Legal & Ethical

A website can be set up so that anyone without the IP address can not access it. It can also be made public for anyone to see. A website however, can not be edited by others that are viewing the content.
Again, there are legal rights to attribution and reference to information, media and so on that need to be adhered to.
A letter may be signed by parents allowing the students to be involved in the creation and use of a website. Additionally, permission to post photo's of students needs to be signed by parents

References

Marzano, R.J & Pickering, D.J. (1997). Dimensions of learning teacher’s manual (2^nd ed. ) Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Regional Educational Laboratry.

UK Web Hosting. (2012). Providing quality since 2001. Retrieved from http://www.uk-web-hosting.co.uk/website-threats

Wiki Spaces For Online Learning

Ok so we are down to the business end of the term. I have used  SWOT to analyse and evaluate the effectiveness of Wiki spaces as an online learning space. Here's what I found.

Strengths

It is easy to create and edit so that even those who do not have strong ICT skills can use and navagate.
It allows for images, data, videos, power points and most forms of information to be uploaded and stored in one location
The data is never lost. Data is easily retrieved via the wiki recycling bin.
The learner magager can monitor and support online usage
It provides a great space for group work (collaboration).
It provides a great space to solve problem-based activities.
It allows for interdpendent thinking (habit of mind Dol 5)by establishing a space where group thinking activities and a sense of working for the benefit of the group skills can be formed (Mazarno & Pickering, 1997).
It has three levels of security.
                                             Privite Site -No visitors, only those with permission can view
                                             Public Site- Anyone can view this site & it's content , however, they cannot hold accounts on this site without permission
                                             Open Site- Anyone can view, add, delete and edit all content and information
HOWEVER: Seperate pages, files and content can be locked as private so that others cannot view, edit or delete these pages.
                                       

Weaknesses

Does not have an appealing look and feel design.
Unable to design to look and feel of space.
Data can be edited by others
Unable to view other wiki members online
Cannot edit data at the same time as someone else
Would not be an effective learning space if productive pedagogy and scaffolding were amiss
Would not be effective if explicit instructions into it's use and function as a learning site is not explained
Would not be effective if students were not clear about the tasks (Dol1)
Would not be effective if expectations of usage were not explained (Essential skill 1)

Opportunities

Students are able to continue working work outside of school hours.
Allows for interdependent thinking (habits of mind Dol 5).
Callabortive learning with class members, students from other schools nation and world wide (Productive Pedagogy Connectedness)(Constructivism).
Able to gather information from videos, and images assisting visual learners (Learning Styles).
Provides opportunity for 'Productive Pedagogy' Supportive Classroom
                                                      -Social support
                                                      - Academic engagement
                                                      - Student direction
Provides opportunity for 'Productive Pedagogy' Recognition of Difference
                                                      -Cultural diversity
                                                      -Inclusivity
                                                      - Active citizenship
                                                      -Group identity
Provides opportunity for 'ProductivePedagogy' Connectedness
                                                                            -Background knowledge
                                                                            - Connectedness to the world
Provides opportunity for 'Productive Pedagogy' Intellectual Quality
                                                                            -Substansive conversations
                                                                            -Metalanguage
Provides opportunity for 'Reciprocal Teaching' through question generation and clarification
Provides opportunity for 'Augumentation" by taking a position and giving a reason for that position (Social & Cognitive Constructivism)
Allows for 'Generativity' (the sense of responsibility to share knowledg and skills)(Social Development)
Provides opportunity for 'Intersubjectivity' as the learning space produces socially shared experiences, understanding and mutual engagement (Social Development)
Provides ooportunity for 'Socially Shared Cognition' by providing a space to solve group problems and to solve problems as a group member
Provides ooportunity for stregnthening 'Formal Operations' by solving abstract problems and coming up with hypothesis (Cognitive Development)
Provides ooportunity for engaging and interesting tasks, information, textx, media and so on.. therefore, students may percieve tasks as valuable and interesting (Dol 1)
Provies ooportunity for 'Evaluation' by making judgments about the value of ideas or information (Bloom's Taxonomy)
Provides ooportunity for 'Synthesis' by allowing students to put all of the groups information together to form a whole (Bloom's Taxonomy)
Provides opportunity for 'Thinking and communicating with clarity & precision (Habits of Mind Dol5)
Provides opportunity for Essential Skills 6. Descriptive encouragement, letting the students know when they are on task(on task acklowedgement). Essential Skill 8. Redirective learning, when topic or group work is going off tasks teachers can provide redirection (off task correction).

Note:

All of the above opportunities will only occur if the wiki space has been scaffolded, and supported with great pedagogy, interesting content, and explicit instructions on it's functuality.

Threats    

That if the right prvacy setting is not set, sensitive or personal information can be leaked from the site.
Cyberbullying may take place if monitoring of the site is not sufficiant.

 

Safe, Legal & Ethical Issue's

Safety is important on any site where the public can view and obtain personal information. In addition, as previosly stated, issues involving cyber bullying may create an unsafe environment for the students affected.
Legality is an important part of ensuring students make attributions and reference to images, video's and information that has been retrieved from the internet or other forms of media/text.
Additionally, a letter may need to be sighned by the parents to obtain permission for the student to access the site.
Ethical issues may arise if students have not been given explicit instruction on the proper uses of the space. Students may need to sign a contract or a letter of aknowledgement so that they understand their rights and the rights of others using the shared site.
                                       



References

Big Dog Little Dog. (2012). Blooms taxonomy of learningdomains: The three types of learning. Retrieved from http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html#cognitive

Marzano, R.J & Pickering, D.J. (1997). Dimensions of learning teacher’s manual (2^nd ed. ) Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Regional Educational Laboratry.

O'Donnell, Dobozy, Bartlett, Bryer, Reeve, Smith. (2012). Educational psychology. Milton, Queensland, Australia: John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd.
Education Queensland. (n.d.). Better behaviour better learning: Essential skills for classroom management. Brisbane, QLD: Queensland Government

Wikispaces, 2012. Help: Security. Retrieved from http://help.wikispaces.com/Security
Wikispaces, 2012. Help: Privacy and permissions. Retrieved from http://help.wikispaces.com/Privacy+and+Permissions

Re-sizing photo's

After finding the right software I was able to easily re-size these pictures of our family holiday. The pictures uploaded in seconds and it does not look like picture quality has been lost.

These are pictures of my family by which I have permission to upload.

More on Wiki

So here I am again....trying to get through the activities and wrap my head around the technology we are using.
A couple of weeks ago I placed a photo on my Wkik homepage....unfortunantly a little too fast as I had not yet learnt that I needed to re-size the picture first....Now I have an enormous picture of a horeses head (Bronco's logo) on my Wiki's front page and I can not seem to edit, delete or resize.  I went into pages and files and deleted the home page thinking that would do the trick, but alas it deleted the text and embedded you-tube but not the hideous horses head. Fortunantly, wiki has it's own recycle bin so it was very easy to restore the lost data......On reflection I should have used the preview button before saving the picture as my home page image...
Additionally, I made a movie using my webcam and movie maker and uploaded to my wiki. Although it didn't do what I thought it would. I thought it would place itself on the screen just like the embedded you tube clip, however, the movie was placed on a page and needs to be downloaded to be viewed. Not sure if this is right , although, I am happy that it worked as I ahve never done anything like that before...

Wiki Spaces

So all of the posts I have read state that the De Bono hats supported higher thinking, I too agree.
As for the wiki space itself I have been having a go looking at it's functions and features. I have  embedded a you tube link, uploaded an image made a seperate page as a template.
The image I uploaded from my computer is soooo huge, I have tried to shrink it but was unable to figure it out.
In one of the pages I fiddled around with the widgets (don't even know what that is really) I tried to put in a calander, spreadsheet and a link to my blog... all without success.... For the calander and spreadsheet it kept taking me different links within google, link after link it drives me crazy.
The blog link didn't work either not sure why!
I will continue to work with it and see if I can be successful................... will let you know how I go.....
Other things I noticed .... information from wiki's can be downloaded... seems abit of a security risk if you ask me... also wiki had linked me to other wiki's and assumed I wanted to be their friend... again security issue and a breach of privacy for not only myself but also the member of the other wiki space...
I believe wiki spaces have potential though.... they certainly can be set up so that people all over the world can contribute..
I don't like the facebook, google and so on features though......Facebook has gone viral.....it is every everywhere you look......like it on facebook.....it's taking over the world

Deviation.....I'm not sure how many people read the terms and conditions of Facebook... I wouldn't think there would be many........................Facebook has YOUR permission to follow everywhere you go on you computer....it knows all your habits on the internet................big brother is watching oh no that's facebook is watching, following, invading..........tracing .....your every move.

Connectivism

Wow, what a read that was. So, we now have machines that do all of our remembering, retrival,sorting and storing of information for us. We require the minds and thoughts of others to invent new ideas or be innovative. We rely on networks to communicate and learning is no longer an internal function.
Let me get this straight....... We no longer need our brains!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! because we have machines and the collective information of others to do our learning for us.
.............................................We no longer take responsibilty for our own individual learning, as according to the connectivism theory, learning is external (from external sources)
.............................................
Yes the world is changing, yes there are technologies that can do all of these things for us. But does that mean we have to give up our human qualities such as using our memory, experiences and voices to learn................. I think not, I am not totally convinced that all learning should be external............ How will I know who I am if I don't look inside of myself and use my cognition to sift, sort and remember information........................"Black Empty Box Theory"..... that's what will be next.

Weebly Website

http://www.weebly.com/weebly/main.php

Here is a link to my Weebly website, it was fun to create and it's functions can support all types of learning. I have included a home page and individual tabs to discuss some of the scaffolding methods we have learnt about.
I have also included some tabs which I believe would be very important when designing and facilitating learning from a website. For example the tab for support and questions allows the students to send emails to the teacher or other students.
More to come.......
After some thinking, I thought that a static website could be useful for allowing students to view (in pages/tabs) information about topics and lessons for each week/term. In addition, activities for different levels of learners could be posted for students to print off and do for homework.
This would allow students to work/learn within their level of ability, therefore, differentiating. For example some students may work a week ahead of other students or have extra challenging activities presented to them.

TPACK

The TPACK is essential a very basic graph that depicts the outcomes of blending content, pedagogy and technology in the classroom. It states that without good content, smart pedagogy and knowledgeable use of technology lessons will fail and students will not be engaged or learning effectively.
More to come.....

Is This The Future???????

This is one way some teachers have thought up to improve effective teaching and learning.

Is it perfect .... No

Is it different.....Yes

Is it Affective..... ?

Is it innovative......I believe so

Although completely flipping the classroom poses questions like.. How do the students without access to computers recieve their content. And how can we motivate  the students to ensure they watch the content before class? And do we keep them motivated to take time out of their day to watch the content? How do we manage the content and students interactions with the content?

This is why I say it is not perfect, however, maybe by videoing and voice recording individual lessons teachers could upload them onto a site and the students can veiw them any time they like. Basically just like MOODLE. This allows for students to go over work they have not fully understood or need to revise.

What Do You Think?

Activity 1 Week 2

Productive Pedagogies

My Learning Style Preferences

This is about the fourth time I have taken this test and I am sure that it comes out differently everytime. The one thing that stays the same is that I lean towards being an auditory learner(3). I think the reason for this is because I not only remember the words but I remember the emotions or tones attached to the words. This would suit my preference as a sensing learner because I sense (5) by tone and body language of the teacher.
I thought that I would be a sequential learner as I like to build up information slowly, piecing together as I go, however, I have had a global (5) moment when I 'just get it'. Additionally, I believe in self reflection I think I reflect (in my mind usually) everything that happens in my life, whether it be about relationships, learning, the future and the past. Therefore, it is no surprise to me that I lean towards reflective learning(1).
Sarah :)

Teaching for children of Today

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isPj5KgpVqg&feature=related

Here is an interesting look at the world from a digitally native person. It makes sense and it is appropriate to what we are learing in this course. It will become very clear at around 6 minutes so if you have the time watch the whole thing, if not, watch from 6 minutes.

Cheers Sarah:) Just click on the above link

Digital Immigrant

Hi there fellow bloggers, as the title suggests I am a digital immigrant. Not just that, but I actually try and avoided using technology. For me it makes communicating and socialising non personal. It seems that anyone can befriend another on social networking sites such as face book without even knowing each other. It's needless to say I don't have a face book account, however, I did try it and found myself spending so much time on it (on farmville, mostly) that I decided it was too much of a distraction. Furthermore, if I want to talk to someone I will simply pick up the phone and call them.
Prensky's definition of an digital immigrant is a great description of my technological skills. However, like most things in life I believe it has it's place and I definantly understand his reasoning behind digital natives.
Digital natives ability to listen to music while studying is definantly a characteristic I would like to be able to adopt. Additionally, I understand that native digitals need more stimiulation whilst learning because they have been brought up in an over stimulating environment.
As a result, I understand my need to change my negative (reluctant) attitude towrards technology to be able to educate students in the 21st century.
Over and Out
Cheers Sarah