Research Journal Entry Summary

It’s the 21st first century and we are living in a world of technology, and the education world is no different. The days where students sit at their desks with a pen and paper in hand, reading from the chalkboard and the teacher drumming information at them appear to be diminishing. With all the new technology in the world today, we have been introduced to Information and Communication Technology (ICT), a great tool for learning but has technology gone too far?

ICT has been introduced into both primary and secondary schools in order to support and encourage learning as well as teaching. The ways in which ICT is being integrated into the classroom is increasingly stepping out of the box. Where before the main technologies being used were computers with simple programs. Now we are seeing tools like interactive whiteboards, voting systems, digital cameras, Nintendo Wii and high-speed internet access with online interactive learning programs where parents can get involved.

The use of technology in class seems to target the student’s interest. A study in Europe of the impact of ICT in education shows positive effects on student’s motivation, learning, teamwork and collaboration. In the study they find that 86% of teachers across Europe see an increase in motivation, and attention when computers and internet are used in class (Balanskat, A. Blamire, R, Kefala, S. 2006. p30 online). The studies show that teachers preferred not to look at the student’s actual attainment but rather the effects that using computers and internet have on behaviour, motivation, communication and processing skills and find a common theme in the positive effects it has in these areas,

“ ‘The children …are completely committed to doing that work, finishing
that task ... you can certainly see the motivation. They will all want to go on the computer and the work they produce is far superior, and not just in terms of presentation … they have more time to consider the consequences of what they are learning’ (Year 6 teacher and literacy co-ordinator, Westbrook Primary School)”
(Balanskat, A. Blamire, R, Kefala, S. 2006. p30 online)

The study then goes on to find that, “….multimedia and interactive content on interactive whiteboards is engaging and motivating, particularly for primary pupils, and that students pay more attention during lessons thanks to the stimulating nature of the presentation” (Balanskat, A. Blamire, R, Kefala, S. 2006. p30 online)

With such high motivation to be involved in the learning process, it would be assumed that the students would in turn see an improvement in academic results and abilities.

By integrating ICT into the classroom there is a dramatic change in how the students learn. Where previously the teacher would be feeding the students information, the teacher would now act as more of a guide to students. When students are using ICT, they may be more involved in independent learning as well as collaborating between students. This allows students to ask more questions and research answers therefore broadening the way they think.

Using ICT in classrooms does not only affect the students but the teachers as well. Jenkins discusses the significant changes in the teacher’s role:

"• Change in relationship with pupils
• Change in role to facilitators and managers who support learning
• Change in the content and scope of teaching
• Change locus of control, from teacher to learner"

(Jenkins, J.1999. p3 online)

For many teachers, in particular the older generation of teachers, this change may prove to be challenging for reasons such as personal pedagogical beliefs on teaching and the ‘art of teaching’, fear or inability to change the configuration of the class from ‘teacher teaching’ to ‘teacher guiding’, or may simply find it too difficult to learn and keep up with the new technologies. The European ICT Impact report tells us that, “Teachers’ poor ICT competence, low motivation and lack of
confidence in using new technologies in teaching are significant determinants of their levels of engagement in ICT. These are directly related to the quality and quantity of teacher training programmes.” (Balanskat, A. Blamire, R, Kefala, S. 2006. p5 online).Therefore it is crucial that in order to effectively integrate ICT into the classroom, teachers need to be well equipped with knowledge of the technology. Another barrier is limited access to ICT resources, be it due to poor funding or organisation or resources. The Australian Government has introduced a scheme called the Digital Education Revolution, which promotes the integration of ICT in the classroom by providing sufficient ICT resources (computers, programs, high speed internet access) to schools (years 9-12), as well as providing education and professional development courses to teachers. By giving teachers the knowledge, understanding and the resources to effectively use ICT into their education programs, they are then have a more positive outlook on the technology and are more like to do so.

In answer to the question I asked myself earlier, is technology taking over the classroom? My answer is no, I don’t believe it is taking over the classroom (yet). Teachers are still organising and providing a basis to support student’s learning. Teachers are using technology as a powerful tool and this integration of ICT in the classroom seems to be a positive step for learning. Looking at the clip “Robot Teachers Taking over the Classroom” is where technology begins to cross the line. Once the classroom loses the human element of teaching is where it will start to see issues as it will be a long time before technology will be able to provide the human qualities that constitutes great teaching.


Sources:

Jenkins, J. Teaching For Tomorrow. The Changing Role Of Teachers in the Connected Classroom. p.3(accessed 29/06/2010) from http://www.eden-online.org/papers/jenkins.pdf

Balanskat, A. Blamire, R, Kefala, S. 2006. p30. The ICT Impact Report.accessed 1/06/2010 from http://ec.europa.eu/education/pdf/doc254_en.pdf.

Video:Robot Teachers Taking Over the Classroom. (2010) video retrieved 26/06/2010 from http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=89874776

Entry Four - The Government Support of ICT in Schools

http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/DigitalEducationRevolution/Documents/DERNatPartnership.pdf

This is the National Partnership Agreement on the Digital Education Revolution. Basically the Australian Government is supporting the use of ICT in schools by investing $2.4 billion over seven years (2008-2014).
The funds will go towards providing ICT equipment to secondary year students, high speed broadband internet connection to schools, professional development and learning for teachers, online curriculum tools and resources and online learning with parent access.

The aim by December 2011 is for there there to be a 1:1 computer to student ratio for secondary students with high speed network access and digital resources.

The government believes that this will bring beneficial change to teaching and learning in Secondary schools.

Entry Three - So who is the teacher?

http://www.eden-online.org/papers/jenkins.pdf

In this entry I am looking at the role the teacher plays since integrating ICT into the classrooms.

The source is slightly old (1999) but I found it an interesting and inviting read. Plus its points are still relevant to today.

The source discusses that ICT has significantly changed the teacher's role but by no means has lessened it.
Ict is a valuable tool that can encourages learning. However some of the changes are a cause for concern, for example the impact on teachers. Are the teachers comfortable changing their role from being a projector of information to simply supporting learning?
I know myself, a young woman who been using technology everyday for as long as I can remember would feel well out of my comfort zone using ICT in the classroom (at this stage), so I can easily see that an older generation of teachers may find it difficult to learn to integrate ICT into the classroom, particularly if they are technologically challenged, or have strong pedagogical beliefs about teaching. To me the solution to this is educating the educators about the benefits of integrating ICT and allowing them to learn the technology. This then leads us back to the Digital Education Revolution policy that enables professional development for teachers.


Jenkins, J. Teaching For Tomorrow. The Changing Role Of Teachers in the Connected Classroom. (accessed 29/06/2010) from http://www.eden-online.org/papers/jenkins.pdf

Entry Two - Technology Changing Education

http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=digital_learning


This paper is an interesting read, giving a brief overview of the world wide web and its uses. It goes on to discuss the Digital Education Revolution policy which is a positive step towards providing greater ICT in schools.

White goes on to discuss trends in ICT and the fast development of the web which has now become so powerful and information is so easily accessed. Further more we can not only access this information from our computer but so many other more portable devices which mean we have the information right at hand when we want it and we can share information and connect with others much more easily.

Some good points that categorise benefits of ICT in education.

One paragraph in particular interested me, that discussed a recession in the printing of newspapers yet saw that a huge amount of people were accessing the newspaper online. The statistics got me thinking that yes, technology is making its way into the classroom, but this to me gives a small insight into the fact the our current society is one of technology (obviously with all the gadgets etc), but now the classroom is adapting, including and using this technological world.

White, G. ICT Trends in Education (2008) accessed 28/6/2010 from http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=digital_learning.