Reflective Synopsis

  ‘There and back again’ an ICT tale by J. F. Tolkien Backen.

GIF Source: Giphy (n.d)

So there’s a pun in the title there because I liken my journey into the world of ICT’s with the up and down adventure of a hobbit's journey through middle earth. Frodo got the ring, I got ICTs, Frodo had to exit the shire and leave behind the safety-net of home, I had to step out of my comfort zone too, the ring took Frodo on a journey full of adventure and craziness, ICT’s have taken me on an adventure and made me feel a tad loopy at times, Frodo throws the ring into the fires of Mount Doom and that’s where our stories part ways, because I am not throwing ICT’s away I’m keeping the ring of power!

Check out my ICT journey through Middle Earth.

Base map source: Steam Community (2012)

ICT + Pedagogy = E-learning 

 

Garrison (2011) discusses e-learning  as the convergence of pedagogy and technology in higher education and refers to the rate of growth as explosive. One of the most arresting facts is that the students are keeping up with these technological developments, alternatively educators seem to be falling behind or hesitant to move forward. One cannot simply introduce ICT's into the current educational design, if so it will fail, and contribute to the school of thought that ICT’s are used in the classroom for the sake of using an ICT, this is exemplified by the paper ‘ICT for ICT’s sake: Secondary teachers’ views on technology as a tool for teaching and learning’ authored by Bertram & Waldrip. As educators we need to re-think, re-structure and re-design learning experiences whereby ICT's serve a particular and established purpose (Garrison, 2011).  This is not always clear cut, one way to do this is the SAMR Model, (illustrated by Puentedura, 2014), by assessing the current learning experience against criteria which support the integration of ICT's. This may result in the use of ICT's or may prove that ICT's will not enhance the learning experience in any way These criteria are, Substitution, Augmentation, Modification and Redefinition, see Reflection 2 Week 3, Reflection 3 Week 4 and Reflection 4 Week  5 for examples of ICT integration using the SAMR model. The below brief list outlines some specific ICT tools encountered in the Middle Earth journey, and where they may be useful.

• Wordle: this tool will help build and record classroom discussions about various topics and be distributed to students in real time.  See Blog 1 Week 1 and Reflection 1 Week 2.
• Bubbl.us: real time concept mapping tool to record class/group discussions or to connect concepts. See Reflection 1 Week 2.
•  Voki, Fodey, Gifs: fun tools to 'hook' your learners. See Reflection 2 Week 3.
• Methods such as PMI and SWOT analysis to evaluate ICT’s. See all Reflections for examples.
• Websites: a tool to disseminate and organise information see http://johannabacken.wix.com/assignment1eded20458 for an example where I have attempted this.
• QR Codes & Apps: See Reflection 5 Week 6 for a list of Apps that could be used in a science class.
• Consider the SAMR model when planning learning experiences: Will an ICT tool make the task more engaging? Easier for the student/teacher? Allow opportunities to display higher order thinking skills?
• Wiki-space: even though it is my personal Mordor (I just need more exposure and experience), this on-line tool provides a great platform for collaborations such as developing and guiding a group through such activities as the De Bono's Hat exercise. See Reflection 1 Week 2. 

The Multi-Modal Discussion

 

We know students have diverse learning styles and in the education community we categorise this into three domains:

1.  Visual
2. Auditory
3. Kinesthetic (Hendersen, 2012).

In a traditional classroom it can be difficult to simultaneously incorporate these modes into learning experiences, though in a complete juxtaposition ICT's by their inherent nature, address the multimodal learning needs of students instantaneously. Though this can indeed be difficult to quantify, see Reflection 3 Week 4 for a comprehensive list of benefits of using ICT's as a multi-modal learning tool. In general when used effectively ICT’s can successfully engage students where you may have otherwise struggled for example, introducing or re-enforcing difficult concepts, focusing students at the beginning of class or developing a ‘hook’ by using a familiar or particularly exciting ICT tool to grab attention. They provide opportunities to better address the cognitivist theory of learning discussed by Culatta (2011), by creating captivating scenarios to convert sensory input into long-term memory, and opportunities to identify and categorise learning experiences at all levels of Blooms Taxonomy  (see Blog 1 Week 1 for detailed information on learning theories and Reflection 1 Week 2 for the Blooms Taxonomy hierarchy). ICT's can also facilitate the production of higher-order thinking skills by providing sophisticated and engrossing platforms and tools that require critical thinking to participate with and operate.

As the use of ICT's requires access and engagement with communications technologies in the public and private arena teachers must be conscientious of on-line safety protocols, governing privacy, reputation protection, cyber-bulling and other forms of cyber-crime, between students, teachers and the general public (Wishart, 2004). Having information so public generates issues relating to copyrights and plagiarism, this has been addressed in detail in Reflection 3 Week 4, this particular blog entry also contains and example of the complexity of digital copyrights in the reference for the audio track used in the movie.

This weekly blog assignment has highlighted the links between good pedagogy and the use of ICT's in meaningful ways. It has also provided an out-of this world journey littered with opportunities to explore a vast range of technology tools, and cyber-issues which may have otherwise not been encountered, which will be useful moving forward in the teaching profession.
   

This was me:

 Image source: Team Pwnicorn, 2013

References

Bertram, A. & Waldrip, B. (2013). ICT for ICT's Sake: Secondary teachers' views on technology as a tool for teaching and learning. Australian Educational Computing. 28(1). Retrieved from http://journal.acce.edu.au/index.php/AEC/article/view/9 

Culatta, R. (2011). Innovative Learning. Cognitive Theories of Learning. Retrieved 10/03/2015 http://innovativelearning.com/educational_psychology/cognitivism/index.htm

Garrison, R. D. (2012). E-learning in the 21st Century: A Framework for Research and Practice. Retrieved from http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=aodjWyjxYbYC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=importance+of+e+learning+in+education&ots=-zlIvXRiR_&sig=qNy0rP8i0hUdCpWTMwmNqNTUu3E#v=onepage&q=importance%20of%20e%20learning%20in%20education&f=false

Giphy. (n.d.) Lord of the rings animated GIF. Retrieved from http://giphy.com/gifs/lotr-lord-of-the-rings-ring-uK6kIWoswaHBK

Puentedura, R. (2014). The SAMR Model: Enhancing technology integration. Retrieved from http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/  

Steam Community. (2012). Middle Earth Large. Retrieved from https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=103994494

Team Pwnicorn. (2013). Adventure Time: This is how I feel when someone wakes me up in the morning. Retrieved from http://www.teampwnicorn.com/adventure-time/  

Wishart, W. (2004). Internet safety in emerging educational contexts. Computers & Education. 43(2). 193-204. doi:10.1016/6.compedu.2003.12.013