The end is nigh!

Hi all,

I really resonate with Lea’s post regarding mobile phone use in the classroom. I believe I may have already discussed this but  so many schools have a ban on mobile phones for reasons that I completely understand but what if we could use it for good and change the current approach? I was most impressed with one of my mentors during this placement. Some students could not access the computers to do their work so he allowed them to type up their assignments on their phones. What a marvellous and positive approach. Another thing I like seeing is when the student is seen with their mobile phones in class- their property was not confiscated. instead, the teacher discreetly approached the student and said ‘Hey, put it away’ to which the student would not be seen with the device for the rest of the lesson. Student at large are reliant on their mobiles (even us perfect teachers and adults 😉 ) but surely we should be identifying their value and incorporate ways to, when appropriate allow the use of them to enhance learning and even show the students that you understand technology and the benefits of it.

Why not, I say!?

brittbrady

Cybersafety Connect.Ed

Hi all,

I finally completed the modules throughout Connect.Ed on cybersafety. Cybersafety is a sneaky thing. One thing I found most riveting about the modules was the incorporation of the fake stimulated social networking site ‘Friendships’ to allow us to pretend to be in the shoes of the student. Can I tell you I actually found this VERY exhausting. Pretending to be a young teenager with first-world problems really took it out of me and I even found myself getting genuinely frustrated with the fake students that were bullying me. My initial desire was (in my adult mind) to just log out or constantly ignore the posts, though I had to pretend I would do what a typical 14 or 11 year old would do. So I went along with it- part of me never wants my children to had social-networking. But it is inevitable and we instead need to refocus. Our task as educators and even parents should not be to hide our children from the world but equip them with the tools to instead use these things for good.

brittbrady

Laptops. Will you work today?

Greeting guys and gals,

For those of you on your EDC3100 placement I’m just wondering how you’re all going with implementing ICTs to enhance teaching and learning?

I feel as though my attempts are lame and insignificant! At least I tried.

Today (and for pretty much the entire week) students in my Year 8 English class have been typing up their assignments. In that time about 5 students have had laptops issues- issues with administration rights (no idea why) or having no password to log on. One cool thing that we were allowed to do though was giving them the chance to type their assignments on their mobile phones instead. That way students could still work and keep a copy of their work. We had a few more condition for those students however. They had to show us their work at the end of the lesson so that we could monitor whether we could continue letting students work this way when/if the laptops failed us. Not a bad plan B. Not amazing but it made the students a little more keen to ‘type’ their assignments.

Where do you stand with students using their phones at school? I’m aware this is a touchy topic. This article discusses the pros and cons. I think I’m more on the pro-mobile phone team- it just means more monitoring and there will always be a correct time and place. I remember a school that I used to go to had a ban on mobile phones. If we were caught with them at lunch break then they would be confiscated. At the next school I was at we had free access to our technology. Times are changing for sure!

brittbrady

Coding at school

Hey guys,

Something I found interesting while on my prac is that a thought that I had for assignment 1- when we had to do the artefact- was how coding could be implemented into teaching and learning. While for the assignment I went a bit off task by including this idea in my website, I certainly wonder if it means anything to anyone e.g. parents that may have viewed the site.

Anyway, my point is that my prac school has recently started running recess classes for students wanting to learn the basics of coding. Unfortunately I have not been able to attend a session yet but I hope to. I’d love to know how they are approaching it and what the students are actually learning. In my artefact I drew upon this site, where you can learn the basics of coding but this one looks more student orientated and more age appropriate.

It would be so cool to try this in a classroom setting – even for English.

brittbray

Learning through the little things

Back again!

Students learn in everything they do. I learn in everything I do. Lea shared how she got to take a double lesson with grade 8 students where they needed to use the computers to type and print their research. If you check it out here you’ll read how she had the chance to teach students the basics of computing and printing. Similarly I’ve had the chance to show students how to effectively use Google to search for information by using key words. This was with a year 8 class also. It takes them a while to get their heads around it- but they get there 😉

A world of learning it is!

brittbrady

ICT delays

Hi all,

Earlier this week I experienced my first ‘Oh my what am I going to do’ moment with using ICTs. It all turned out well but the computers were slow to start and then logging on would not work straight away. All up 10 minutes of the lesson was eaten up with the delay which obviously meant that I could not cover all of the content I needed to for that lesson. The Yr 12s were kind though (ropbably because it meant they didn’t have to work). So far it’s been hard to implement different ICTs because students are now rushing around getting their assignments finished. Either way it’s all a learning curve.

Word of advice? Don’t lose it. Even with the little things.

brittbrady

Loving Paula’s chance to use ICTs!

Hi all,

I just read Paula’s post about how the Year 6 class she has on Prac are encouraged to use ICTs. They have iPads and use them well- AND what’s even better is that her mentor is so keen to use ICTs to improve learning. I’m finding it particularly difficult to experience this and this is nothing against my mentors at all. The school I am at does not have iPads (although when I went to school there they did in the music class) and computers must be booked. I understand why computers must be booked prior to use but it certainly makes it feel like they are less accessible. I’m also not too sure how many are available. I’ll have to double-check. I would LOVE to be able to use Skype in some way with my Year 11 and 12 English students. I’d love to Skype a professional overseas to help them see the purpose of oral presentations. I think it would be amazing for students to hear advice from an outside source- someone not a teacher but instead someone living out the skills obtained from public speaking skills. My problem however is time and internet access. I’m not sure how I can use ICTs in a really awesome way.

brittbrady

Woo! Public Speaking

Woo!

I’ve just completed a series of lesson plans on public speaking for a Yr 11 English class. They have to present a legal summation to the class as their assessment, so my task is to try and help them brush up on their skills (and confidence!).

I’m showing them two amusing examples of public speaking gone wrong in the first lesson. You can check them out here and here if you wish. I’m using this lesson as one of my attempts to incorporate ICTs into the classroom. While I know it’s not an amazing use of ICT it is at least a nice way to break into it. It’s quite difficult when I want students to converse and learn from each other. I know I could do that through blogging though it’s not as personal that way- nor is it as time friendly. Any ideas? Feel free to put them out there. I find senior classes are great to have class discussions with. They actually like talking and sharing their thoughts- a nice Skype session with a professional speaker would be amazing though probably unachievable given the time frame- their assessment is due in about 2 weeks.

Happy learning!

brittbrady

Videos to engage the student

Hi all,

So one week down for prac and the big days lie ahead. I’m starting a Romanticism unit with year 12 English, taking year 11 English through presentation skills and Year 8 English through their assignments and recapping on the TEEL structure. This all starts next week. I have come across a similar situation to Lea actually. Lea discusses how she wants to use videos in her lesson but doesn’t have access to the internet. I am fortunate enough to have the internet at my school but it occasionally drops out. For this reason I was thinking about how I could download the video clips from YouTube onto the school laptop so I can access it that way just in case. A teacher informed me of the program ‘Save Video’ (or something similar)to do this. Though, when looking for the program I can’t find it. The best I can find is this site with a list of other software to download from YouTube. My question is, however, is this legal?

Until soon,

BrittBrady

…assignments while on prac

Hi again!

I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that I am a bit concerned about all of the assignments I have due during my placement and straight after. Time management must be my friend over the next 3-4 weeks. Crazy days ahead!

In other news though- it’s possible that I’ll get to attend a parent-teacher interview night during my prac. Sweet! Now I know a few teachers sigh when they have to do these nights (and probably some parents too!) but I’m keen to see them in action and in open communication with the parents. No doubt it may also be a little confronting! Learning how to communicate effectively 101 I think!

BrittBrady