ICT Portfolio 3 Task

ICT Portfolio Task 3

The first article that I read was ‘Does ICT contribute to powerful learning environments in primary education?’ by Ed Smeets (2005). This article focuses on asking if computer educational software can: allow children to become active learners; ask high order questions of children; enhance group work and co-operative learning; be a tool of differentiation. Smeets (2005) identifies two types of educational software: skill based transmission software and open-ended constructivist software. I would have liked some examples of each of the types of software as I am unclear of the precise definitions for the categorisation.

Smeets (2005) considers past research that suggests, “Teacher’s skills with regard to ICT used play an important role.” (Smeets 2005, p. 345) Smeets (2005) also suggests that access to ICT resources, location of resources and teacher perspectives all have a role in the use of ICT in the classroom. Smeets (2005) suggests that in the ideal classroom, “pupil use of learning technologies is woven integrally into the patterns of teaching.” (p.345)
Smeets (2005) discusses the quantitative research study that he carried out to gain further insight to these issues. The study was located in Holland, asking a sample of 773 teachers of 11-12 year olds to complete a questionnaire, 331 responses were received. Interestingly 84% of the responses were from male teachers and 75% of the participants identified their use of computers as good or quite good. I think that this suggests that the majority of participants are those teachers who use ICT most in their teaching as they are confident to participate in the study and of their skills. I am concerned that the majority of the responses were from male teachers as I think that this suggests that there may be a gender issue with teaching ICT and confidence in ICT abilities, which if it is the case needs to be addressed through training and development of teachers. These findings cannot offer a real view of ICT in the classroom because the responses are not a realistic cross section of teaching staff and may all be working at well resourced schools in wealthy suburbs.

The results of the study show that the majority of the participants felt that ICT contributes to children’s active learning at least in some way. The majority also felt that ICT could adapt the curriculum to individual needs. However the majority also felt that ICT had only a slight or no contribution for co-operative learning, which I find slightly surprising. I think that ICT can be used as a tool for group work or paired work, especially non-computer ICT that can include a talking point or children scaffolding each other’s learning about how to use the technology. I find myself wondering exactly what ICT Smeets (2005) is researching; does he consider ICT to be purely computer based, or is he including other ICT in his questionnaire? The participant’s interpretation could have an impact on their responses.

Smeets (2005) found that teacher’s using open-ended software had more computers available to children, were more confident in their ICT skills and felt that ICT contributes to active and autonomous learning. Smeets’ (2005) study also found that female teachers were less likely to use open-ended software in their classrooms than their male counterparts. Smeets (2005) concludes with the argument that computers are used, “to complement rather than change existing pedagogical practice”. (p.353)

The second article I have read is ‘The Ambiguous Embrace: Twenty Years of IT (ICT) in UK Primary Schools,’ by John Robertson (2002). This article also considers the use of ICT in Primary Schools; however it discusses more specifically the reasons why ICT is not being used to its full potential. Robertson considers research that suggests that ICT is not currently being used well to support children’s learning or taught well by teachers, “revealed ICT to be the “least well taught” of National Curriculum subjects,”(p.404) according to Ofsted (1999).

As Robertson discusses there has been a considerable expenditure of ICT resources into schools in the last few decades. However, I still don’t think that there are enough ICT resources in Primary Schools and those that are in place are unmaintained due to a lack of staff training, or external support staff that means ICT is often made obsolete in schools, wasting the few resources that are currently available.

Robertson (2002) suggests that the software is not sufficient enough to complement creative, child centred learning, instead it replicates the old style of teaching and current software is similar to the instruction texts common to teaching in the 1960’s. Robertson does not specifically discuss the open-ended software that Smeets (2005) discusses in his article. With my limited experience of ICT software available in schools I think that Robertson is incorrect with this argument. I found that the software, if used well by the teacher could be very engaging and is child focused, but as Smeets (2005) would argue its use is dependent on the capability and confidence of the teacher.

Robertson (2005) argues that key factors that have affected the use of ICT in schools could be the practices of senior management, the effectiveness of staff development and of teacher training education in preparing new teachers to use ICT in the classroom. Robertson (2002) argues that despite conditions that were identified for successful implementation of ICT practices in the Primary classroom being adopted and maintained ICT is still not reaching its full potential. He argues that teachers are very fluid and adaptable in many other curricular areas and have been very successful with many new initiatives despite similar constraints to those that are seen with ICT, so he asks why it is that ICT cannot appear to reach its potential. This is one of the key points and I don’t think that we know the answer to this yet, but it is the question that needs to be investigated with earnest.

I agree with the argument that both of these articles make that ICT is not reaching its full potential in the classrooms and I suggest that there is not one clear cut reason for this, instead I think that the arguments made by these articles combine to give a starting point of reasons that need to be investigated further and even added to as well as being addressed and conquered.

Final Posting of this Blog

I'm actually rather sad to say that this is the final post of this blog, I have rather enjoyed writing it and think that it is a really good way to communicate as it helps you be reflective and allows you to think about what you want to say as well as allowing you to revise it easily before posting it. I think that it would be really good as a system set up for paretn teacher communication, to allow teachers to tell the parents how life at the school and in the class is going in general and keep them up to date with any key dates or events.

I also think that this is good for children, but has limited uses. I still think that email is a better way to communicate specific details, such as home learning progress, or if a child is off sick. In the school I am in a lot of the children don't have access to a computer at home and if they do they don't use it for emailing. I do think it is good for the class to communicate with another school, possibly abroad though. It could be done as a whole class activity on the IWB and they could add pictures and links and learn a lot at the same time.

ICT software at school, well it's rather limited at the school I've been in, digital camera that you bring in yourself, digital microscope that doesn't work as well as a normal microscope, IWB, which I love, but I hate to write on it - even if it's only just been aligned it still doesn't write where it's supposed to!! Um...... actually that is pretty much it. The children use Textease all the time, as the school doesn't have a license for Office for the children to use, which I think should be compulsory for year 5 and 6 as they will be expected to use it for pretty much ever more.

I have also used some good software, mult-e-maths, knowledge box, internet sources galore on the IWB which enhances the children's learning, oh and I used BBC i-player for the first time ever last week when I played a tv show about explorers to the children that had been on tv a few nights earlier - what a fantastic new tool - 4OD is Ch 4's equivalent, they are really great! The worst thing about school technology though, apart from the lack of it and the lack of contact the children have with it was the fact that they have blocked U Tube on all the computers. The number of brilliant resources that I could have used for my lessons that I found on there that couldn't be accessed at school was very frustrating, ebay is fine though.....??!!

We had a class wedding this week in front of the whole school and we even had a photographer and let the children look at the photos afterwards, they loved this!!

Anway to sum up a rather jumbled blog I must say that I think that the more ICT in school the better. The children love it and they love any chance they get to use it. I know it is expensive, but it is easy to use and it's engaging and enhances both my teaching and the childrens learning and who can complain about that!!

PS. Keep this blog task in for next year, I've found it amazingly beneficial both as a practical activity to familiarise myself with this technology as well as a reflective tool, which has enhanced my skills.

Thanks, see you back at uni.....

School Week ending 25th January

Okay, so this week I am seriously tired!! I taught all day on Wednesday and am really paying for it now!! It was the first time and I did mostly practical activities all day! We made bread in Maths/Science using measuring and micro-organisms units, it was just for the record, absolutely fantastic bread, which I even ate having ensured the children scrubbed theri hands and the tables first!! The children did it all themselves and did a fantastic job! Anyway, in English we did hotseating as Captain Cook and Decision Alley, which was a useful drama skill, that I will use again in a more developed method in the future. The children in my class are really inexperienced at thinking for themselves and making their own decisions. This kind of activity really benefits their skills development. I then did more Science with another experiment and then writing it up and then RE which is currently the topic of weddings and the children made their own Order fo Service. In Science I used the digital microscope for the first time, it was okay, but not as good at detail as I would have liked it to be, the children got a bit frustrated that it wasn't in more detail.

One of the schools targets this term, actually their main target is thinking skills, so I've been doing a lot of work on this, including a good lesson today. I taught English after break and when the children came in I had all the curtains closed and the lights off and I was playing mysterious music through the computer and a PowerPoint continuous slideshow of Easter Island images. The children came in and sat silently as they ate their fruit snack looking at the images and then had to write at least 10 questions that they would like answered about the images. They came up with some fantastic ideas.

Tomorrow I am going to use Google Earth to show the children where Easter Island is and where some of the Moai are located and some of Australia too. This is a good tool to use to show the children what other environments look like.

Anyway, over and out!!

W/e 20/01/08

Okay, so week 2 of the placement has gone well too! I have still been using IWB for most of my lessons, but pretty much the same as last week, Powerpoints, which is actually really good as I wasn't overly thrilled with them before. I have been teaching Maths all week, as well as Science for 2 hours and RE. In RE we watched a video of a wedding ceremony, which was a good use of ICT.

I have started to do my lesson plans on the computer too.

One of my favourite things that I did this week was create some questions for a Captain Cook comprehension, that was really fun and I felt like I had created a really valuable resource.

I find that I use the internet a lot in my research for resources and lesson topic ideas, but that I also waste a considerable about of time at the same time. It takes me ages to find things that I could use and then I end up most of the time still having to make them for myself anyway, so I've started to spend less time doing this as I am working until about 10-10.30 most nights as it is!!

On that note I'm tired and have to write another one of these and still look at the lesson I have planned for my observation!! Night!

1st Week of SBT1 Block Placement

Well it is a day into the new week, but it slipped my mind at the weekend, so I'm a couple of days late, but I have lots to say!

It seems like ages since I last wrote. I've had a very relaxing Christmas and New Year in between, but by the time the 3rd January was here I was itching just to get on with it and by my first day on 7th January I was almost climbing walls!! So day 1 was an Inset day, which I must say was an experience!! I always used to think Inset days were great - a day off school - not anymore!!!

Day 2 was as my CTM put it a Baptism of Fire!!! The children were rather excitable and the hour and a half lesson after lunch on Science was a very sharp learning curve! Luckily I have a fantastic CTM, who was able to reasure me that it hadn't been a total disaster, that I could take positives from it and build on it the next day. Luckily the next day was a huge improvement and rebuilt my confidence nicely and I've kept on going up since then.

I've just had my observation today and my Link Tutor said she was impressed at my ICT useage in the classroom, which I thought you'd be happy with!! I've been creating my own PowerPoint's and Word documents to put on the IWB, as well as using it in almost every lesson I teach to demonstrate things to the children. I have also used a digital camera with them, which they found quite exciting and I am hoping to use the digital microscope in a Science lesson, but I need to still improve my behaviour management before I attempt that. I have also played some games and quizzes with them on the IWB, BBC Science Clips is very good.

We have also looked at photographs, of my wedding for an RE topic that I am teaching and my friends photos of Africa in a Geography lesson, the children were mesmerised by these and their behaviour was fantastic, which shows just how engaged ICT can make them with a topic.

My CMT took away his white board just before Christmas, so it has really helped me to use the IWB as a fantastic teaching tool. However the children only get 30 minutes a week in the ICT 'suite' which I think is too little in todays world, where they would be hugely benefited by having increased accessibility in the classroom. There have been some lessons that I would have loved to have a computer for each child so they could research something, or make a presentation to show the class. However the classroom does have 3 computers in it, which is more than most, so I shouldn't complain.... but I will, after all we want the best for these children, otherwise we wouldn't be here.

Over and out until next week!