Week 5 Reflections

PowerPoint

Throughout my university degree I have used PowerPoint as a means of communicating information, representing ideas and of course wooing an audience. I have also used PowerPoint during my placement to ensure that students had the opportunity to engage with some form of technology. I found that my PowerPoint presentations were effective; students were instantly hooked and ready to learn! Based on this experience, I recommend PowerPoint within an educative context.  

With PowerPoint, I tend to stick with what I know, that is, the basics of what this tool has to offer (insert text, insert image, insert music). However, I have had a play around and discovered there are various functions that can really draw you in (an overwhelming amount in fact).

I read through the interactive PowerPoint component as suggested on Moodle and gave it a go. It made me ponder on the idea of using this tool in a way that I hadn’t really considered. There is student involvement to some degree (questioning and discussing imagery or content), however using the functions to create a slide that allows for student involvement WITH the tool, is well, pretty amazing! I tried it out and I learnt that I needed to review the steps again and again before my interactive slide could be achieved. The end product is not up to scratch at all, but I am proud I stepped out of my comfort zone nonetheless!

Technical aspects

PowerPoint has an array of functions students can use to create personalised slideshows! Students must first select an appropriate template before beginning their journey. The option of inserting text, images, videos or audio can be accessed on the right hand side of the tool bar. Students can choose a colour scheme for each slide; adjust font size and style and bring content or images to the front or back of the slide. Animations and transitions allow for text and image motion. Choosing these functions can enhance the slideshow presentation, providing entertainment and promoting engagement. Chart types offer the option of adding 3D graphs (pie charts etc). This can be useful in a mathematical teaching context. Smart art also encourages use of graphic organisers to organise or simplify information. Students may wish to review their work before submitting the final draft. This can be achieved by clicking the red ‘preview’ button on the tab.

Classroom application

Use of PowerPoint in the classroom:

·      Create research-based presentations (reports).

·      Create and present own literature (narratives/persuasive texts).

·      Peer assessment (students compare and critique each others work- what could be added to enhance meaning e.g. photo).

·      Teacher can use PowerPoint to pose questions or display stimuli to prompt writing tasks.

·      Group tasks and assessment (Science experiment: Recount of events during experiment).

·      Recount of holiday experiences (useful for start of term).

·      Support student’s oral presentations.

·      Create a new ending for a narrative (select appropriate images to match).

It is worth noting that overuse of PowerPoint can of course disengage learners. To prevent this from occurring, educators must integrate this tool in meaningful ways.

SAMR model: Narrative

Substitution: Learners can begin drafting (writing) their narrative sequence on slides.

Augmentation: Learners can begin to select accompanying images to match with narrative and edit text using grammar check and thesaurus.

Modification: Pair students for peer editing and feedback.

Re-definition: Students add voice over (audio function) to become narrators of their very own story.

Prezi

PREZI

http://prezi.com/ilxuxgsip-be/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

I am not entirely ‘new’ to Prezi as this tool has been utilized to support previous group presentations.  During group tasks, I have never been offered the role of the Prezi creator not did I put my hand up willingly for this role. Because I haven’t had direct experiences with this digital tool I therefore lack a sound understanding of how to use it (until now). What I do know is that the structure of Prezi is very effective. Addressing the ‘big picture’ and narrowing in on concepts based around this makes information easy to assimilate.

Technical aspects

·      Sign up (this takes less than one minute).

·      Read over the steps (provided immediately before getting started).

·      Choose a template.

·      Select a design.

·      There are steps outlined on your selected design on how to add text. Simply click on the circles and add information!

·      The font size/style can be changed, images, videos, background music, arrows, and personal files can all be inserted!

·      You can customize the background colour by selecting ‘customise’.

·      Prezi saves as you go!

·      The numbers are an indicator of the sequence you wish to use for your information.

·      To view just click PRESENT and you view your marvellous creation!

·      Once you are happy- you can share publicly, via social media sites, or download.

The simplicity of this tool makes it a valuable tool used to communicate information.

Classroom application

The use of Prezi in the classroom:

·      Presentations

·      Interactive classroom sessions

·      Group tasks

·      Teachers can use Prezi to introduce a new topic and engage students in learning

·      ‘About me’ to introduce learners to each other at beginning of year

·      Biographies

·      Embedding YouTube clips (e.g. to teach students about advertising/marketing strategies used to persuade the viewer)

·      Use Prezi as a mind-map or for a class brainstorming session

SAMR MODEL: Advertising commercial (with class mind map)

Substitution: Learners add ideas to Prezi mind map in joint construction with teacher.

Augmentation: Learners begin to develop advertising commercial by adding text into each section & customizing background.

Modification: Learners embed audio, video and imagery onto Prezi.  

Re-definition: Learners share onto public view. Teacher selects Prezi created by a student from another class and displays for class to view. Learners analyse, evaluate and compare Prezi with their own. Students question use of language, imagery, audio and video elements.

Glogster

http://joannabarker.edu.glogster.com/glog-from-brisbane-au-aug-12-2015-1174/

I have never heard of this digital tool! I am quite intrigued by its name! I’m looking forward to exploring Glogster and what it has to offer my students and myself as a future educator!

A summary of Glogster

Glogster is a website that allows individuals to present information in interactive and meaningful ways. There are various options embedded into this digital tool to assist teachers and students in building a type of virtual canvas to convey information in creative and personalized ways. Glogster can be integrated by the teacher to support educational concepts or explored by students and used as a means of conveying information.

Technical aspects

·      Sign up- choose discipline area you want to use your globster for.

·      Once template is chosen you can insert many amazing things onto the your page (audio, video, images, hyperlinks and text).

·      By clicking on each box you can add and change font size, style & colour.

·      You can also insert images that are either saved on your own computer or chosen from the pictures globster has to offer. These are found under different categories for example; Art, Science, Math, English (most relating to educational subjects).

·      You have the option of saving your blog onto your computer and sharing it with others via globster.

·      You can get lost in ‘glogpedia’ which is a page that offers you hundreds of already completed glogs. Surprisingly, this isn’t overwhelming as the glog pages are separated into categories (Health, Science, Art etc).

·      Once you stumble across a Glogster you like- you can either; add to favourites; embed into page; send to friends or share for others to view!

Classroom application

·      Start of year student introductions. Glogster can be personalised by each student allowing personal information- (where I live, what I like doing, my family, pets etc) to be shared with the class. This can assist learners in getting to know each other.

·      Assessment pieces.

·      Classroom newsletters- to share with parents and caregivers the latest news and upcoming events.

·      Collaborative learning tasks – students can work together to research selected topics and create a Glogster to represent findings.

·      Create historical timelines.

·      Teacher’s use- Set classroom expectations, display this every Monday as a reminder.

·      KWL charts via Glogster- when introducing a new topic, have students create a KWL.

·      Display for classroom field trips/excursions/important events.

·      Artwork- students can upload their artwork and present this to class. Students can research techniques adopted, inspiration, favourite artists.

·      Homework tasks.

·      Projects- engagement in science projects. Students can upload images, audio and video of their journeys.

·      Literacy- Evaluation of online texts.

·      Explanation of types of natural disasters, species, environments….the list goes on!

SAMR MODEL: Art (year5/6)

Substitution:  Learners add text about artwork created over the term.

Augmentation:  Learners upload photographs of artwork and design the Glogster in personalized ways.

Modification:  Students research artists they have previously explored over the term and begin to summarize and add information to their Glogster. Students reflect on their artwork and make connections to famous artists that may have inspired their work.

Re-definition: Students are arranged in groups to discuss work. Teacher can access the webpages as students share their Glogster links. The teacher can mark students’ work online.

Learning theory and safe and ethical practice in a digital environment

Educators must adhere to safe and ethical practice when implementing the aforementioned digital tools into the classroom. If this is not achieved, certain challenges and concerns may arise in relation to teaching practice and student learning (Gedera, 2014). The repercussions of failing to acknowledge ethical online practice may jeopardize the teacher’s position of employment at the school. The educator must explicitly teach students about these practices, for example; using and referencing authoritative sources, online cyber safety, setting profiles to be privately viewed and so forth.

Constructivism is a student-centered approach whereby learners are actively involved in their own learning (Cooper & Barber, 2012). This approach is reflected, as students are required to individually engage in the process of creating, defining and analyzing information with the use of the digital learning tool. The teacher acts as a guide and assists students when necessary.

In the digital classroom, students develop a sense of ownership of their learning as they are engaged in creating, collaborating, sharing, innovating and publishing their own work (DETE, 2014).

References:

Barker, J (2015). Forty ways to innovative teaching using Glogster. Retrieved from: http://blog.edu.glogster.com

Cooper, L., & Barber, D. (2012). Using New Web Tools in the Primary Classroom : A Practical Guide for Enhancing Teaching and Learning. Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Department of Education and Training (2014). Queensland Government    Smart Classrooms: The Digital Classroom. Retrieved from: http://education.qld.gov.au/smartclassrooms/enabling-learners/digital-classroom.html

Gedera, D. P. (2014). Students' experiences of learning in a virtual classroom. International Journal Of Education & Development Using Information & Communication Technology, 10(4), 93-101.