Problems I May Overcome and Solutions to These

Digital Camera Exercise:

Problem: Resources - It is unlikely that there will be enough digital cameras to provide one for each student. Solution: The students will divided into small groups. They will collect field data as a group, however their journals are to be completed separtley.

Problem: Resource Failure. Solution All cameras should be checked to ensure proper functioning prior to the field trip. Batteries should be fully charged and a set of spares should be packed. In the case that a camera fails to work during the field trip, that particular group will be divided up amongst the other groups.

Problem: Misuse of Resources - Students may abuse the privilege of using digital cameras. Unfortunate issues such as theft, damage or inappropriate use of the camera may come about. Solution: The cameras will be used under the best supervision possible for such a task. The cameras will be signed out by each group and signed back in at the end of the trip. There will be consequences for any group that fails to return their allocated camera back in it's original condition.

Problem: "Digital literacy" of students - There may be students that are not equipped with the knowledge of how to use this digital technology. Solution: Prior to commencing the filed trip, I will give the class a brief run down on the basics of using the camera (eg. taking photos, zoom, videos and preview). The students will be working in small groups so peers will be able to provide support for each other.

Blogging

Problem:"Digital literacy" of students - Students will have varying degrees of digital literacy. Solution: I will attempt to give each student a basic understand of the blogging site by running through basics step-by-step. The computer lab lessons will not have a lot of content in them in order to allow me to facilitate help where required, whilst more digitally capable students work ahead.

Problem: Online risks - risks include cyberstalking and identity theft. Solution: Before signing up, I will talk to the students about online safety and we will have a group discussion on the importance of keep safe online. Each student will be provided with a handout of online safety tips. Students Will be under strict supervision when signing up and will be required to use their student ID number as their display name. They will be instructed to provide no personal information, including their name. Each student will be required to set their page to 'private'.

Problem: Site blocking - Most schools have blocked access to social networking and blogging sites. Solution: Research into a safe and reliable blog site is essential. The school may in fact have its own 'edu blog' which may be a good option. Failing this, permission may be requested for access to an externally hosted service provider.

Problem: Cyberbullying & page vandalism Solution: Prior to signing up student will be given a talk on appropriate use of Internet, which will cover cyberbullying. By having their pages set to private, the students should not have anyone accessing their page other than their class mates. In the occurrence of a student cyberbullying or vandalising another student's blog page there Will be serious consequences.

Teaching and Learning Strategies

Theorist Jerome Bruner believes that learning is an active process by which learners construct new ideas  and concepts based on prior knowledge (O'Malley, Vavoula, Glew, Taylor, Sharples, Lefrere, 2003. p15 ). By allowing the students to collect their own field data they are building on what they already know and strengthening their understanding of the topic.

Bruner's theories also entail that learning should involve active dialogue (O'Malley, Vavoula, Glew, Taylor, Sharples, Lefrere, 2003. p15 ). By encouraging group discussion on the field trip findings, the students are able to critically think about their findings by asking questions and coming up with solutions, therefore broadening the way they think about and understand the topic.

By presenting their findings on a blog, the students are able to further critically think about the task at hand as they read and analyse each others findings. They will learn from each other by not only reading each others  blogs but also by receiving comments and feedback from each other.

Sources: 

O'Malley, Vavoula, Glew, Taylor, Sharples, Lefrere. (2003). Guidlines for Learning/Teaching/Tutoring in a Mobile Environment. http://www.mobilearn.org/download/results/guidelines.pdfS.[accessed 1 August 2010]

Teaching and Learning Activities

Lesson 1 & 2 (double lesson)

Field Trip (Molonglo River Corridor) - This teaching episode aims to give students the capacity to use prior in-class knowledge identify and assess environmental change in the area. Using digital cameras, students are able to demonstrate their understanding and ability to identify environmental change.

Because the students are looking at examples of environmental change first hand, they will be able to get a better understanding of the issues and the effects they will have. The task aims to trigger group discussions amongst the students. As a teacher, I will be able to point out and discuss any issues in greater depth.

Lesson 3 (computer lab)

-Introduction to appropriate Internet and computer usage. Class discussion on approriate use of internet. The class will be provided with a hand out on internet usage expectations.
-Internet and blogging safety.Class discussion on internet saftey. The class will be provided with a handout on internet safety.
-Set-up blog sites - Going through step-by-step instructions, the students will set up their blog sites.
-Teacher will give students a brief introduction to the capabilities of the blogging site. Students will have the opportunity to experiment with the site and get to know the tools and applications.

Lesson 4 (computer lab)
- Teacher will provide the class instructions on uploading data onto their blog. Students will then upload their own data onto their blog.
-The remainder of the lesson may be used for students to work on their journal entries. Students may wish to do further research to add to their entries.

Lesson 5 (computer lab)
- Teacher will provide the class instructions on how to "follow" peers. Students will then demonstrate this task themselves. Each student should follow at least 2 of their classmate's blogs and will be asked to read and provide comments and feedback after submission of the assignment.
-The remainder of the lesson will be used to work on journal entries.

Why mobile learning and blogs?

Often referred to as 'digital natives', twenty first century students are growing up surrounded by digital technology. Digital cameras, computers, IPhones, IPods, and Web 2.0 technology are second nature to the majority of youths today. The fact is that this technology is so convenient and relatively easy to use on a basic level. My aim in this teaching episode is to enable the students to engage in the project by using tools that they are able to relate to. By doing this I hope to help build their understanding of the topic. In saying this, I have chosen to integrate ICT into the lesson through the use of mobile learning and blogging.

Giving students tools that they can relate to will help the students to better engage in their own learning. Yelland states, "Theories of learning (e.g. Bruner 1977; Piaget 1972; Vygotsky 1978) that underpin Western education systems are grounded in the belief that humans learn best when they are engaged and actively constructing meaning." (Yelland, 2007, p8) . Sources from "The Perry File" state that 73% of students would be interested in using a mobile device in their studies (The Perry File, 2010), while The Neilson Company found that, “Globally, social networks and blogging sites are the most popular online category".  So by giving my Year 9 Ecology students a digital camera and allowing them gather their own findings, they are not just looking at pictures and reading or listening to information. The students are in fact finding the information first hand and presenting and sharing their information in a way that will hopefully trigger interest.  Therefore the students are able to reap more benefits from the task.

Mobile learning proves to be a convenient tool, particularly for use in fieldwork. Because of their light-weight, small and quick to use abilities, mobile learning tools can be a much more effective way of collecting multimedia field data, in comparison to the traditional pen and paper. Students are able to record photographs, video clips, video recordings and interviews.  Not only is this a more effective way of data collection, it is for the most part, a lot quicker and much more appealing.

Blogging allows the students to creatively present their work online and share it amongst peers.  The students are then able to share, read and comment on each other's work. Essentially the students are then able to learn from each other.

In summary of these points, I will take advantage of the popularity of ICT's by integrating them into the learning episode. The integration of mobile learning will act as a convenient research tool for the students. Presenting their findings on a blog will provide the students with a creative way to express their findings and enable them to share these findings with their peers. 

Sources:

-Yelland, N. (2007) The Millennials. (online) https://docutak.canberra.edu.au/eres/docs/24700/yelland.pdf. [accessed 29 July 2010]

- nielsenwire. 2010. Led by Facebook, Twitter, Global Time Spent on Social Media Sites Up 82%. http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/global/led-by-facebook-twitter-global-time-spent-on-social-media-sites-up-82-year-over-year/[accessed 29 July 2010]

-The Perry File.2010. Why use ICT in the the classroom? Justification for using Mobile Learning. http://elpc.tumblr.com/[accessed 29 July 2010]

Learning Outcomes

Looking at Curriculum Framework for ACT Schools, Every Chance to Learn, the Year 9 Biology & Ecology unit is centered around the following out comes:

-20.EA.2 - Some of the processes by which human activities change natural environments in positive and negative ways.
-20.EA.3 - Population growth impacts on environmental systems.
-20.EA.6 - Conduct case study investigations into local and/or national systems to identify changes and predict their impacts.

(Every Chance to Learn – Curriculum Framework for ACT Schools, 2009, p200)

Using these, I have developed a specific set of learning outcomes for the students to achieve from the task:

-Ability to identify and asses changes to the environment.
-Illustrate understanding of the causes and effects of environmental change
-Analysis of the prevention or solution to environmental change.
-Provide evidence of environmental change using digital imagery.
-Display the task using a blogging site.
-Analyse and critique the work of peers.

Teaching Episode

As the teacher of a year 9 Ecology class, I will be setting my students an assignment task.

In class the students have been learning about environmental issues and impacts of erosion, salinity, water flow, water quality and wildlife. To support and develop the student's understanding of these issues, the class will be taken on a field trip to the Molonglo River Corridor, where they will be asked to identify and assess the environmental damage in the area.

The students will be utilizing mobile learning. Working in small groups, they will be provided with a digital camera and asked to show evidence of 2 examples of environmental change in the area. This may be shown as one or a series of pictures, or it may be shown as a short video.

The students will then be given 3 lessons in the computer lab to set up their own individual blog page, upload their pictures or video and reflect on their findings. They are to write 2 entries (one for each example), and should answer the following questions:
-What type of environmental change has occurred?
-What is the cause of this change?
-What further impact will this change have on the area ?
-How could this change have been prevented?

After submission of all the assignments, the students will then be required to read 2 of their peers blog sites and give a brief comment on their findings.

A few final words

This course has definatley been an eye opener for me, as I had no idea about all the different uses of technology in relation to education. Sure, I am a 'digital citizin'. I have a mobile phone, I frequently use the internet and I log onto social networking sites more than occasionally, but I had never given much thought of how this technology could be used to help educate students. Probably because when i went through school, the only experiences with digital technology was a monthly trip to the computer lab to research on the multimedia encyclopedia.

With Web 2.0 technology, students are able to have the whole world (or at least the whole world wide web) instantly at their finger tips. The ways in which classes can be made to much more interesting and interactive amazes me, for example, using Google Earth to conduct social science or language lessons, or using simple video animation. Even the more basic tools like using digital cameras and voice recorders have the ability to create a more attractive learning environment. As I follow my path to a career in education, I now have the knowledge to embrace ICT as a tool for creating a rich learning environment.