Adventures in Teaching and Learning

I was just browsing, catching up on the latest on Ewan McIntosh’s blog, when I came across this link to the Wolverhampton LA Mobile Learning project.

On the TTP literature we got, EDAs/PDAs were mentioned … I didn’t really know what they were, but having read through this summary, I want one! Or, rather, I want all my pupils to have one! (I think …)

It’s okay, I know I have loads of things to try out already – and I was using my DigiMemo to useful effect again today in my A Level revision classes – but it is so exciting to read about all the exciting new technologies that there are, that we may be able to use at some point in the future in our schools.

Which reminds me, I had a good chat with some friends about the educational use of technology. They are using new technologies in order to educate people about global justice issues, and are finding that lots of people don’t really understand the pedagogy behind the technologies. That’s definitely something that we need to consider, perhaps more explicitly as we continue on our journey with new technologies – I think I’m still a bit at the “look at all the exciting things I can do with my computer!” stage, still on the way to “this is my learning aim … can any of the new technologies I have access to help me achieve this aim more effectively than what I do at present?” stage.

That’s annoying. I was almost finished this post when the computer crashed. Nevermind. Here are today’s “episodes”: an mp3 and a .m4a enhanced podcast about Virtue Ethics, for my AS class. Hope you can access the enhanced version okay … I spent ages doing some of the screenshots. Then realised they were too big so you can’t read them all.
virtue_ethics.m4a

virtue_ethics.mp3

Interesting post on Lloyd’s blog about the terminology used in blogging circles. He got the info from Wikipedia. Could be useful when writing my research paper!

(I’m glad the blog is back up and running again!)

Last lesson of the last day before half term. How might you imagine that?

Well, yes, it was a bit hectic at times, and I’m sure anyone walking past would have wondered what was going on. However, at the end of the day I was able to sit down and show our Head of Year, and another form tutor, some quite moving and honest work, one piece the result of two boys whom you would not necessarily imagine working together. I’m hoping to get their permission to show you the resulting CrazyTalk animation.

The other group worked on another roleplay, which I look forward to editing later. I’d really like them to edit it, but it is hard trying to give everyone an opportunity to use the computer.

It was also good to have the TA again in the lesson. He was able to work with the group recording inside while I supervised the actors outside. It was also an advantage having another beautiful sunny day!

I’m trying to think of what I can do with that group after the holidays. I think we ought to have another project, but I’m not sure what. I wonder if there is a computer room free now that the Year 11s have left? Maybe I could trial my blogging research?!

I listened to a very interesting report on Radio 4 yesterday, which I thought I’d share with you. Since I am enjoying the collaborative, supporting and sharing nature of the professional networks I think we are building up here, I am also interested in the more “social” side of networking.

A former colleague and a (still!) friend of mine sent me a link and request to join Facebook. I had previously chosen not to join, because of privacy issues – there have been a number of news reports about people perhaps not getting jobs because of drunken photos on Facebook and such things. However, I thought I’d go and have a look. In order to have a look, you have to join, and at present I have 8 friends, which include a few present colleagues and a cousin.

In the news report, Rory Cellan-Jones asks whether these “social networks” are just for young people. I have to say that I do feel too old for Facebook – I don’t think enough of my friends have (or will) register for it to be any “good”, at least without me asking them to join and seeming even geekier than I probably already seem by having half a dozen blogs already. Interestingly, when I asked my sixth formers about Facebook, they said it was for “old people”, and that myspace was for younger people. I don’t know much about Bebo, so I’ll make no comment on that.

I think for me there is an element of “what’s the point?”. With professional networking, you can share ideas, ask questions and provide support, whereas Facebook seems to be on the more frivolous side of life, which I suppose is fine if you have a healthy social life and you’re using it to plan your weekend get togethers, and it is convenient for quick wall-to-wall chats, but I don’t think it necessarily lends itself to more serious discussion … at least not from what I’ve seen in the week or so I have been registered. I’m loath to spend too long browsing … !

What do others think? Have you tried it? Are you on it? Will you be my “friend”?! Is there an age issue? Comments below, please!

MindMeister – another link to another collaborative mindmap website. Wonder if anyone else would like to try it out? I’ve not really had a chance to explore yet, and since I’m not at home I haven’t added it to del.icio.us yet, so I’ll need to share it with you here!

A Blog about AfL and Blogging – This was linked to the AfL blog … might be useful for my research!

I’ve decided to add some more links below … with thanks, once again, to Ewan McIntosh, and this time his del.icio.us page! I suspect there will be a few more as I have time to search for useful blogs. Our group were a bit underwhelmed by some of the blogs and websites that we looked at on Monday, and I think some people still need a bit of convincing that blogs can be helpful in supporting T&L … I hope some of these links can be persuasive!

St Mary’s Bannockburn Blog – the key here is that comments are not moderated until after pupils have all completed their answers, so they can’t copy each other’s ideas. However, once the comments have been moderated, they can obviously add more ideas and comments on each other’s comments!

A Student’s Blog – A great example of a very organised pupil using a blog to support her own learning.

Outside the Cave – a New York based blog, reflecting on pupil blogging to support co-operative group work.

To Tessa: I wanted to add this as a comment under our spiders conversation!

This blog comments a bit on the whole idea of private/public – thanks to Lloyd for the link!

Ewan McIntosh on the Guardian

Well, I eventually had to come up with one, and I think this is it …

“An investigation into the effectiveness of using blended media, in particular blogging, in supporting AfL with a KS3 (probably Year 7) RE class.”

Any comments appreciated!

I am loving blogging, but most people on the course are not blogging that much, and most people I have spoken to over the past couple of days have been quite sceptical about the benefits of blogging. It’s difficult to find blogs that really seem to support Assessment for Learning, although I have been impressed by the Nodehill Middle School RE blog. I therefore plan on seeing if I can use it in an effective way that supports pupil learning, and in order to do that I will set up a Year 7 blog and try to get time in an ICT room once a week for two or three weeks at the start of term. Might be a bit hard to get it all done and written up before 1 October though!

First go on Kar2ouche! (Susan_conversion_movie.mov)

This is my first go on Kar2ouche – what do you think?!