Collaborative Online Planning

Collaborative Online planning

28th July, 2016

Alex shares some of his recent experiences in online shared planning

At my current placement each year level works together to collaboratively plan what they are going to teach for the term, from that they decide what to do each week. This is the usual method of schools in regards to planning and has a number of benefits; cohesion across the year level classrooms, discussion of ideas, and support for beginning teachers. However, many schools are also adopting the use of online methods to share their planning with each other. My placement school currently uses Google Drive, Google Docs and Dropbox to allow its teachers to share resources and collaborate on their planning. It works wonderfully; here are a few reasons why.

Everyone can contribute during planning. Gone are the days of one teacher hunched over a computer acting as the scribe, typing into a closed document while several other people squabble about ideas. With Google Docs everyone can be writing in the same document at the same time. It seems like a small thing but it balances out the power of group dynamics and allows people to quickly brainstorm ideas.

Resources are always shared. One of the main problems with sharing resources is finding the time to actually give them to other people; you need to scan them, send them and sometimes teachers feel they just don’t have time to do that. With Dropbox, you store your resources in one communal online location, which means that people can share resources quickly and ultimately it lightens the burden for everyone.

There’s cohesion as everyone can see what’s coming. My placement creates term planners which are available to be viewed and edited in Google Drive. This has been fantastic for me, and the other teachers, as we can all see what is coming up in the next few weeks and anyone can add in more information as we progress. It means that everyone is clear about what is happening and people have the freedom to plan ahead.

Although many schools have already taken to using some form of online planning tool, it is clear that not all of the teaching community has made the transition. I would recommend getting familiarised with the available online sharing platforms, as they provide numerous benefits when planning and will be of great help when you start teaching!

- Alex

The New Digital Technology Curriculum

The New Digital Technology Curriculum

11th May, 2016

Alex explores the new digital technology curriculum beginning in Victoria next year and some resources that may be of help

A curriculum is a dynamic and multifaceted concept that, while guiding the education profession, is prone to sway with the political agenda of the time. So it isn’t surprising that over my four year university degree I have explored three primary curriculums; AusVELS, the Australian Curriculum, and the soon to be introduced Victorian Curriculum. As of December 2016, the AusVELS website is to be archived (see the AusVELS homepage) and the Victorian Curriculum will become compulsory in government schools. A recently introduced aspect of the Victorian Curriculum, which is causing some concern, is the inclusion of digital technologies.

I have never completed a compulsory unit at university regarding the teaching of digital technologies, and I imagine many pre-service teachers would be in a similarly daunting situation. It also helps to bear in mind that many graduate and expert teachers will have little to no knowledge of what best practice teaching digital technologies looks like – putting pre-service teachers and qualified teachers on an unlikely level playing field. I thought this might be an opportune moment to explore the new digital technologies curriculum, unpack some its concepts, and suggest some resources and methods to go about teaching it.

What does the curriculum say?

The curriculum is split into three bands for primary education (F – 2, 3 – 4, 5 – 6) and there are three strands to the digital technology curriculum (VCAA, 2016);

Digital systems

“Focuses on the hardware, software and network components of digital systems”

Data and information

“Focuses on the properties of data, how they are collected and represented, and how they are interpreted in context to produce information”

Creating digital solutions

“Explores the interrelated processes and associated skills by which students create digital solutions”

A basic scan through the actual content of the curriculum reveals that the F – 2 band engages in mostly exploration of different digital concepts, hardware and ideas. As the curriculum progresses to the higher years, the content becomes more directed to action and the use of digital technologies to solve problems.

 How will I teach it?

After listening to various different talks regarding the teaching of digital technologies and how best to approach this challenging task, I thought it would be best to provide some resources that can be used to assist you in the process.

Little Bits

LittleBits are very simple programming blocks and digital tools that are designed to be used by children. They are colour coded and magnetically attach, allowing for independent exploration and play, without the need for constant supervision. The website offers packs for educators and overall I believe this resource could be used to explore the Digital Systems and Creating Digital Solutions strands.

Scratch

Scratch is a simple coding platform that many pre-service teachers would have heard of. It allows students to explore coding in a way that is accessible, while still providing the technology concepts needed. It will be useful in addressing all the digital technology standards.

VCAA

The Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority has this specific advice for curriculum page regarding digital technologies, which is fantastic. It has resources on assessment, progression, external resources and links to sites such as the Digital Learning and Teaching Victoria (DLTV) – which offers free membership to PSTs! Definitely check this site out.

I hope I have been able to provide a basic overview to both pre-service and qualified teachers about what the digital technologies curriculum is asking and some resources for how to meet the task of teaching it. I truly believe that the digital curriculum is going to be a focus point in the future and, if we can get on top of it, a fundamental part of primary education.

-Alex 

Approaches to Technology in the Classroom

24th February 

In his final post on approaches to technology in the classroom, Will looks at excuses and the real damage they are doing.

This post will explore the teachers that use excuses to avoid or reduce technology use in their classroom. There are countless excuses that teachers may put forward but these are just a few that I wish to highlight. These are the ones that frustrate me most and/or are so easy to overcome.

"In preparing my lesson, the technology works perfectly. When implemented with students something always goes wrong."
Yes, technology breaks down. We have all experienced a network error, Wi-Fi problems, connectivity issues, blue screens and error codes. Firstly, it is possible to think it ‘always’ breaks down because you keep recalling that one bad experience and fear trying it again. When technology does fail, a Plan B is necessary. However, I argue that a Plan B should always be in place for any lesson (not to mention a Plan C through to Plan Z). Have you ever had a non-tech lesson finish too early, lack discussion or not be able to print your precious worksheets because the photocopier is broken? These too require a fast thinking (calm) teacher to carry on with the lesson. In my experience with technology problems in the classroom, often it takes just a couple of minutes to troubleshoot and resolve the problem. In upper primary this can often be a chance for students to offer solutions and work on their problem solving and collaboration skills. After all, they are going to encounter ‘error codes’ in their real working lives.

"I have always taught this way; it works so there is no need to make it more complicated."
This is all well and good for you but think of the invaluable experiences and skills the children are missing out on. This is often the view of teachers who have been teaching longer than I have been alive. I do not dispute that they can bring immense experience and knowledge of teaching to a school but if they are reluctant to grow as a teacher into today’s technologies then students will fall behind. Moreover, it is important to keep in mind that students are likely to be exposed to technology in their lives outside the classroom. To deprive them of this familiar tool will leave students feeling confused.

"Students get easily distracted on iPads and computers."
In any classroom, especially at the start of the year you sit down with the students and establish classroom rules. These are mutually agreed upon and throughout the year you, as the teacher, enforce these rules. If a student runs across the classroom with a ‘no running inside’ rule, they know it is likely they will get told off. The same goes for technology. It is up to the class (teacher and students) to set ground rules for technology use and if these are broken then there will be consequences. If general class distraction is a common theme in technology lessons maybe it is time to look are the quality of the lesson. Is it engaging students? Is there clear expectations and learning intentions set for the session? Students can’t just be handed a computer and be told to learn. Technology or no technology, a teacher still has the same role to play – to facilitate learning and maintain a safe, supportive, engaging and fun learning environment.

To summarise, excuses like these are ultimately limiting children reaching their full potential and their exposure to the technological world. This is the final post of 3 which looked at different approaches to a 21st century classroom. Ensure you approach technology with a positive and open mindset - I urge you all to constantly experiment with new ways of teaching and push the boundaries of technology use in the classroom. 

- Will

21st Century Learners

"Wait, are you telling me that MySpace is NOT a website about planets?!"

  21st Century Learners

15th October, 2015

Will reflects on the children in classrooms today, their technology-rich environments and the impact this has had on the curriculum.  

 

In 2006 I started secondary school and was part of the laptop program. My shiny new ‘portable’ device was bulky and weighed the best part of a brick, but I didn’t care because I had my generous 256 megabyte USB. Jumping forward just nine years we can pick up a 16 gigabyte USB for around $10 (a storage increase of over 6000%). Technology advances exponentially and it is clear to see we are in the rapid growth stage when you consider computers double in capabilities every 18 months. 

 

So what does this have to do with PSTs, teaching and the 21st century classroom? Well, have you considered that the students you will teach in the near future were all born in the 2000’s or even the 2010’s? (I know, they were deprived of the glorious 90’s). What must be considered is the fact that students today are technology natives. The 90’s generation were the 1st generation of technology natives; they grew up and adapted to 21st century technology. Children today are 2nd or even 3rd ‘Net-generation’ and born into a world saturated with digital technology that enhances connectivity and accessibility. For some of us, this may mean accepting that little Johnny’s ICT skills are far superior to yours. 

 

So how can we prepare ourselves for such an environment? Whilst I find it astounding that my current course does not have a core unit solely devoted to the topic, I was fortunate enough to do an elective on technology in education. In an upcoming series of blog posts I hope to share some valuable insights I gained. One resource I would encourage you to start using (if not already) is Twitter. Twitter is an interconnected web of educational resources, ideas and experts. To get started I would suggest following some of these: 

@DLTVictoria  

@ipads4learning 

@misskyritsis 

@AusLessons 

@jjash 

@LeighGMurphy 

 

One of the general capabilities in the Australian Curriculum is Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This means ICT is a dimension that will be harnessed across all learning areas and as 21st century educators, it is our job to facilitate an environment where students can use ICT to: 

• Access, create and communicate information and ideas 
• Solve problems
• Work collaboratively

Furthermore, technology in education does not just exist for students. In the minefield of software and applications in the Education category, technology can also be used by teachers and parents to implement fresh approaches to feedback, assessment, planning, collaborating and communicating. 

To finish, I would like to pose a question: in what ways have you seen technology used in the classroom? Before you answer, exclude the obvious, overused and generalised answers of ‘Microsoft Word’, ‘PowerPoint’, ‘Interactive Whiteboard’ and ‘iPads’. What specific ways has the technology helped the student or teacher in the areas discussed and how did it shape them as 21st century learners?

- Will