I have finally finished assignment three and all there is left to do is proof read and add the tidy up the final touches. This professional experience really made me consider how ICTs can be included into a variety of learning areas and experiences. Even in the prep class it was relatively easy to incorporate the different ICT devices to enhance my learning experiences. Over the course I believe I have learnt a lot about varying ICT devices as well as myself and how capable I am with using a variety of ICT. I really enjoyed engaging in the different learning journals and activities throughout this course and found some to be very interesting. In the future I feel as though I won’t be as hesitant in using ICTs in education and learning and I think that they will be one of the first resources that I will look at included in the future.
The Future of ICTs in Education
As technology is increasing in everyday society it will be important that students have the necessary ICT skills to keep up with it. Teachers are going to need to integrate ICTs into all learning areas to provide their students with the necessary skills they are going to need. ICT resources such as interactive whiteboards and IPads are common resources in most classrooms today. In the future I can see classrooms having individual IPads for students to complete daily activities on. It will also be a part of every school to have computer labs and specialised ICT teachers to conduct specialised classes. This interesting article discusses how blackboards and textbooks could be replaced by digital technologies. The link for the article is here, http://www.futuregov.asia/articles/2010/jan/05/how-will-ict-change-future-education/
The end of Professional Experience
I am a bit disappointed prac has come to an end as I was really enjoying working with the mentor teacher and the little kids in my class. In saying that though prac was an extremely stressful and busy time for me but it was well worth it. By the end of the three weeks I was confident enough to take the class for a whole day which I felt really proud of. I was really grateful for the feedback I received from my mentor about my teaching strategies and classroom management. The feedback I received was always helpful and I was eager to fix up any errors or problems that she had picked up on that I thought was ok. I believe receiving critical, constructive feedback is essential in all learning and is crucial when we are out on prac as we are able to hear what our mentors say even if we may not want to hear it at the time. Here is a website that Ii found and it explains that feedback is important to learning http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/implement/youth-mentoring/monitoring-gathering-feedback/main
CLEM Model
One of the learning books this week was about CLEM. This is an acronym for Community, Literature, Examples and Model. This model provides basic scaffolding to assist the teacher in learning about a new ICT tool or device that will enhance a students learning. This week we have been asked to complete a table about different theories and models we have been introduced to this semester as well as in previous courses and explain the purpose of them in education and how each of these may be used during our professional experience. The learning book can be found by clicking on this link, http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/book/view.php?id=244682&chapterid=12617
All About Interactive Whiteboards
This week is all about Interactive Whiteboards. After visiting the school and the class I will be teaching I know they have an interactive whiteboard. I have used one of these boards before in a previous prac and I thought it was an interesting and fun tool that allowed the children to participate in some of the activities that are being taught. I did a bit of research on interactive whiteboards as I believe I will be using them a lot during my professional experience and Ii found this website about how they benefit children’s learning and enhance the learning experience by the children being more engaged http://www.bbcactive.com/BBCActiveIdeasandResources/Whatisaninteractivewhiteboard.aspx
Prac is Almost Here!!
I have been out to see my mentor teacher. We have sat down and started to plan out next week together and talked about what I will be teaching during my time at the school. I can say that I am really excited to begin prac and wish it was Monday already (only 4 more days). I have been researching some behaviour management techniques and just general classroom control practices as I have a few children within the class with minor behaviour issues. This website was very interesting and you can see it here, http://www.theguardian.com/society/joepublic/2010/feb/09/pupil-behaviour-management-tips I hope everyone else is as excited as I am about their prac. Good Luck everyone!
Last Weeks Task for This Week
I have just completed all of the modules on Connect.ed this site can be found by clicking on this link, http://acma.janison.com/acma/portalcontent.aspx?type=section&ctl=4b033598-53e1-4ec3-9978-45c925f7938c&act=d70137e3-3830-4e12-bb11-c731bdddcdc4&dat=
It was very interesting listening and watching the videos, completing the quizzes and tasks as well as reading different statistics. I learnt new terminology and the meanings of these words which was also very interesting as well as participating in the different simulations. These were very interesting as you could lead the situations in whichever direction you felt like to create different scenarios.
Catch Up
I have not made a post for a little while, I have been swamped with assignments and all the rest of it. This week will be a catch up week as I have not engaged with all of last week’s activities yet. I was very glad to see assignment 2 gone as I have now handed it in.
Prac is coming up very quickly, and I am very excited with where I have been placed as I completed my previous prac at this school and loved it. I am very excited to begin prac as the school has lots of ICT equipment in the classrooms and within the school. I have contacted my mentor and am meeting up with her later this week to discuss everything. I suppose I better begin catching up.
Week 9- Light at the End of the Tunnel
I have almost completed assignment 2, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. All I have left to complete now is the 500 word justification about the ICTs I chose to use in my unit plan. I was doing some research into iPads and whether they are beneficial in the classroom for learning and came across a blog which shows different studies that have been completed in the U.S. I thought I would share it with everyone as I found it very interesting to see how iPads have influenced people of different ages and in all learning areas. This is the link here, http://www.securedgenetworks.com/secure-edge-networks-blog/bid/86775/8-Studies-Show-iPads-in-the-Classroom-Improve-Education
Stop and Reflect
This week I have been asked to stop and reflect on the importance of ICTs in education and how I think they effect a child’s learning. I did some research into the topic and found this website very interesting and I thought I would share it on my blog for everyone else to see http://www.mpict.org/ict_education_defined_importance.html After reading a variety of websites and articles it is evident that they all support the idea that ICTs are important to children’s education. The skills they learn in the early years of schooling can be used and expanded on throughout their education and into future employment and everyday life.
Stephanie Mitchell 