Assessment Task 1 - Part A

Thinking back to when I first enrolled into this course, I was very excited to take this subject on, as I love using technology and have used it daily in my classroom (childcare and kindy) for many years. I can see the enjoyment it brings to the children in my class and being able use the many different resources within, allows for a different type of learning and engagement to occur. As I worked through each week of the course I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with all these new tools I was trying to implement on my blog and wiki, considering I had never used these before taking on this course, I felt my current computer skills would help me get through the course, and looking back it did in parts. I was then able to offer my help to peers where needed as I enjoy working in a collaborative environment.

I have learnt a wide variety of new skills throughout the course, such as concept mapping, embedding and iframe codes, to using a decision matrix. With some assistance from my peers and lecturer I managed to overcome my fears of exploring these online tools and can see the importance of using them within my classroom. Having gone through the fearful stage of feeling lost and not knowing what to do, I feel now that I could better assist my students if they were to feel the same way, by allowing them adequate time to explore, discuss and have a go.

By forming a online group and working in a collaborative way, even though it was done via online, I found this strategy, for me was a big help at achieving what was expected of the weekly tasks. Knowing I wasn't alone and we were all learning together, allowed me to feel comfortable in asking questions when needed, and no question was a silly one. We all wanted to help each other as much as we could to achieve completion of the course. I would use the experience of participating in your own design challenge and therefore design cycle, in my classroom by splitting students into small groups and allowing them to work through the design process as we did, for a certain purpose that could entail a certain subject, idea, improvement etc.

However in saying all of this, I did come across one issue throughout my design. This occurred throughout using the peer feedback process. Which is one that I would expect to come up also within the classroom, as humans we tend to think and understand on different levels to one another which can lead to misunderstandings. With clarification from my lecturer I was on the right track, we were all able to move forward with open communication on the matter, allowing myself to make the final changes to my design which then allowed for final peer feedback to occur. Remembering about this will allow me to apply in my classroom to make sure clarification on what is expected on the task and that everyone is on the same page to minimise any misinterpretations that students may have before continuing on with the tasks.

Looking back on my design in my wiki, I was able to follow the design cycle which incorporated strands of the Australian Curriculum – Technologies – Design and Technologies strand under the year 5 and 6 band description of Food and Fibre production, I used my interest in gardening and sustainability with my work experience in early childhood with the indigenous community to come up with a design that created an sustainable edible garden with links to local indigenous bush tucker. In my challenge I designed 4 alternative gardens and and then through elimination chose an ultimate design. However in my classroom with a 5-6 grade I would challenge them to design different types of this type of my final design of garden and we would. as a class, use each groups design with the decision matrix to work out which groups garden would be the best suited to the space given within the school grounds, similar to what I was required to do in my challenge. I chose to challenge the years 5 to 6 age as I feel that being older and more mature they would be able to grasp what was needed of the design challenge and give them ownership of this new space within the school, allowing these students to share in their achievements with the rest of the school as this space would then be used with all year levels as deemed appropriate by the teachers.

I have learnt a lot of new knowledge and useable tools that I cannot wait to use within my classroom to educate students in the Technology strand. Reading and learning about the co-constructed learning, I feel this is a way of teaching I would love to incorporate into my own teaching strategies and can see the positive outcomes for my students. I finish this blog entry feeling ever so excited to what else I will learn, the more tools I will come across and get to have a go, building up my confidence and experiences that I can use now in my current workplace and to my future students in the classrooms I endeavour.

Week 6 - Infographic

easel.ly

This week we were asked to design a infographic. I used the website http://www.easel.ly/ to create my inforgraphic. I chose to use a template and change it to my journey through my university degree. I found this an easy tool to use as it worked much like word and powerpoint. This would be a great tool to use within the classroom for students to create and share them with their peers. Depending on the year level and expertise of the students would allow more detail to be put into the infographics.

Infographic - "Infographics combine visual literacy with data analysis to portray  a visual representation that leads the reader to a clear conclusion".

Week 6 - Binary Numbers

What is binary?

Binary code is a number system, similar to the decimal system except that it represents numbers to base 2, rather than base 10.

I found this youtube video to help explain what Binary is (for us adults) and how to work with binary numbers. However first we need to understand how base10 numbers work (decimal number system).

To use binary within the classroom as an activity -

Game 1 - Scrambled Spelling

By using the Character to Binary work sheet, the weekly spelling words will be written on the board but scrambled - the class have time to change the binary code to the corresponding letter and then unscramble the letters to create the weekly spelling list.

Game 2  -  Scavenger Hunt

Groups of 2-4 with clip boards to go around certain area of classroom, building or school and have to crack the codes at each station -  Each station set up will have 10 items to crack before being able to move onto the next. Each station will be split into 2 - containing 5 Binary numbers that need to be changed to decimal numbers (base10) and then 5 decimal numbers (base10) that need to be changed to Binary numbers (base2).

Once everyone has been to the stations set up the class comes back together and each group has a turn at sharing what they found at one the stations so they whole class can discuss if they were right or not.

Week 5 - Multimodal & Co-constructed learning

Power of learner control

After reading Teachers and pupils incorporated - Developing a co-constructed classroom by Blackberry and Woods (2015) it made me think back to my primary school years when computers were fairly new within the classroom and to how my year 7 teacher must of thought how she was going to teach this new ICT within her class.

I can remember it being a co-constructed learning environment, not the teacher up the front being "sage on the stage" but more of a "guide on the side". We all explored and learnt together and used this opportunities to share our findings with the whole class. This allowed it to be more enjoyable by the students, and we all found in interesting and wanted to learn more.

Children today have such a wide range of different technologies that can be used - Skype, twitter, internet (WWW), email, wiki's, blogs - the list just continues which can all be incorporated within this co-constructed learning environment, as all teachers will be at their own individual levels of using ICT and how comfortable they are at using them within their own classroom.

Benefits of co-constructed learning for pupils:

• students are more engaged and motivated
• students become more independent
• students interests and learning needs identified and incorporated - individualization

Benefits for teachers

• gave more time during class with individual students
• reduction of anxiety, feeling needed to know everything
• student motivation - increased productivity and decreased time spent on tasks
• self-sufficient

Having this in mind, and with my personal interest in using ICT within the classroom, I will endeavour to use the co-constructed learning environment within and we can all learn together as a class as no doubt by the time I am teaching, there will be all this new technologies we will be using that children these days are learning and using from such an early age.

Week 5 - Online Peer Assessment

Lu and Law (2012) study breaks peer assessment into two forms that effects learning of both the assessors and assesses - Peer Grading verses Peer Feedback.

Peer Grading - 

• criteria applied for assigning grades
• challenging and time consuming
• beneficial for critical thinking
• learn more effectively

Peer Feedback - 

• evaluative feedback more important than grades
• more effective than grading
• enhances learning
• gain reflective comments
• share ideas on improving work
• given in timely manner, more frequently
• less threatening

Effects of Peer Feedback on Assessors and Students

Improves learning of both the assessor and student. Teacher can see what students know and what they need to refocus on in further classes and benefits the students as they themselves can gain knowledge with this feedback to what areas they are lacking and can improve on to help increase their learning and grades. However in saying this, as a Teacher it needs to used appropriately within the classroom and may only work for some older grades. 

I found this when doing our Design process and offering peer feedback to each other. I used the feedback I received in a positive way and used the extra knowledge and ideas given to improve and enhance my own design in ways I never thought of. Using peer feedback allows to tap into other peoples thoughts and knowledge as we all think differently which helps focus on other areas we may not have thought of ourselves. 

Week 5 - Pedagogy involved in taking a futures approach

"Futures thinking" is to think about the possible futures that we ourself would like to see occur. Not only for ourself but locally, nationally which leads to globally. Thinking about this increases the chances of the preferred future to happen.
Within the Australian Curriculum, teachers are expected to guide their students learning in developing skills:

• Anticipating the future
• Accepting consequences
• Envisioning alternatives
• Making wise choices
• Taking responsible actions

As students progress through their studies in the Technologies learning area they are developing an appreciation of the needs and consequences considered for sustainable future for generations to come.

Week 4 - Final Design Challenge

This week I had to complete my final design challenge by firstly deciding on 4 alternative designs to go up against my first design. I used the wise mapping tool to create a mind map of these alternate designs which I then added photos for each design so that my group could clearly see how I intended for these designs to look.

By using the decision matrix tool I was able to use the excel template of this, and put in the numbers for each design to work out which one of the 5 designs would be the winner and best design to go with.

By using the collaborative process with my group I was able to gain great feedback to help me complete the whole process of my design. At first I was a bit unclear at what exactly I had to do with my wiki but as I gained clarification from my Lecturer Wendy and discussion with all my group I was able to gain the knowledge needed to complete my final design challenge. In the end I have learn a lot of new things with technology including using blogs, and wiki's and how to embed codes into these so they show up properly for the readers to be able to see them properly on their screen.
At the beginning of the course I was feeling very excited about doing Technology however it's been completely different to how I imagined, however I am enjoying taking on these new challenges each week and learning lots of new things on the way.

Week 4 - Reflection on Web 2.0 and Classrooms

Web 2.0 and Classrooms

By Mandy Peace

Technology has reshaped learning and teaching in the 21st  century.

As a summery of Web 2.0 and classrooms it is beneficial to all teachers in today's teaching and those gaining knowledge to teach to know and understand that technology is ever changing, constantly evolving. Teachers need to learn, maintain and understand the new content to be able to engage, and teach to students of the 21st century. As quoted in the book which brings forth very bold and true statement from philosopher John Dewey "If we teach today as we taught yesterday,then we rob pupils of tomorrow." (1944, p. 167). As the things we have learnt and been taught when we were in school are different in today's ways of teaching. that every day there is some knew knowledge to gain. in the classroom the curriculum is always being reviewed, evaluated to see what benefits or changes can be gained or addressed. Web 2.0 gives teachers and students a place to collaboratively come together in learning and evaluate and review with technology. Using wiki's, bogs, pod casts other social outlets creates spaces for students to work as individuals, as groups in an on line setting where all are able to see and participate. Their are concerns for safety by parents for having there children in such an on line world, however it is brought forward as we need to teach students the safeties of on line like you would teach them the safeties of the offline world. The benefits of individually working on line and collaboratively working on line is gives students the opportunity to be creative,solve problems,cooperate with others, learn how to review, reflect and critique. Web 2.0 can be used cross curriculum which helps in the support and development for teachers and students to come together in a collaborative learning environment. 

References: 
Younie, S., Leask, M., & Burden, K. (2015). Teaching and Learning with ICT in the Primary School (2nd ed.). Abingdon, Oxon & New York, NY: Routledge.

Week 3 - Reflection on how children learn technology

Watching the video's this week of the children bought back memories of myself as a children. Wanting to explore and learn all I could about new technologies.

Technology has grown so much from when my parents were children and even to now when I was a child in the 80's to the now with my own children growing up in the 2000's. I enjoyed watching the 3rd video of children exploring the old Rotary telephone, and laughed at some of the comments the children answered with. I just had the share this video on my Facebook page for all my friends to watch and get a giggle out as well.

The 2nd video, I thought to myself while watching this was WOW!!! These children are so smart and I would of loved to attend one of these workshops. Seeing the children's faces light up when there creations worked, you could see the sense of achievement and accomplishment on their faces.

The 1st video made me think of my own girls, to my flat mates little boy to what will our baby be doing and exploring as they grow over the years to come. You can see the toddler girl has used an Ipad/Iphone before and has that finger movement programmed in her brain to make things happen on the screen, however when looking at the magazine, swiping her finger across did not make anything happen to the picture. Maybe in the distant future this might occur but we aren't there yet. Going back to my own girls they were older when they explored the new iphones and touch screen so knew that this would not work in a book or magazine however my flatmates boy was under one when he already could unlock his father's iphone and find the Peppa Pig app. Between 2 and 3 years now he has learnt further to find youtube and watch Peppa Pig episodes himself. Just scares me to think how much technology is taking over our lives and how we will be living 10 years, 20 years to 50 years time.

With hands on experience I feel children learn technology best. Not having a teacher up the front going through the ABC's and 123's of technology. This is how I learnt myself growing up, I taught myself by exploring, having a go, and trial and error. As I understood technology well, others would come to me for guidance even the teachers at times.

Week 3 - Reflection on Design Process

This week we have gone through the design cycle process which can been seen below.

After completing the investigation stage of my initial design of the Sustainable edible garden with links to local indigenous bush tucker, I had to decide on 4 alternate designs using the wise mapping tool that I had learnt to use in week 1 https://app.wisemapping.com/c/login;jsessionid=9B22BE1E25923F5E4C87989440A42E45

I felt I could jump right in and create the concept map fairly easily and took less time then the first. After needing some help from Wendy in week 1 to allow the map to show up as the correct size on my wiki page I was able to use this previous knowledge and tried 3 different sized options until I liked what it looked like on the screen. I was then able to embed the widget onto my wiki page and making sure when it was saved to check that it showed up how I intended for others to see when looking at my page.

Then by using the decision matrix (was a little confusing at first) but as I watched the videos over a few times I was able to complete the excel template (have used excel before which helped) and change a few things to how I needed it to look, I was able to see which number design was the better of the 5 options when breaking it down into different categories.

Overall this has been a great learning experience for me, taking my new understandings of these new online tools and help assist my students in my classroom when needed as students learn basic technology skills from a very young age.