Vokis for Learning

Well I have just successfully created my first Voki. It took me quite some time, not because of its complexity (it was really quite simple to use) but because it is just so much fun! I think I changed my Voki about 20 times before I was finally happy with its hair colour, skin colour, lips, background and voice. Voki is a free service that allows you to create any sort of avatar which can then be saved and utilised in blogs and emails. My first thoughts of a Voki was to utilise it purely as a ‘hook’, to grab the attention of my class. Now I have been thinking about it, you could (if you were committed) create a Voki that is almost like another member of your class. You could have the Voki introduce new students to the class, ask questions during the day, respond to questions students may have and congratulate the class on successful completion of an activity (I am really just thinking out loud).

Marzano and Pickering (2006, p. 29) state that ‘...learners must perceive that tasks are valuable or interesting or they will not put much effort into them’. by using a variety of different ICT’s such as a Voki, student attention and interests in the activities of the class may increase. For example, instead of simply asking students what they know about the sun, use a ‘hook’ such as my above Voki to engage them in the activity. Because the Voki is situated at the beach, is quite sunburnt and is a young person, it gives the topic (the sun) a sense of authenticity as students can relate to being at the beach and getting sunburnt. The fact that the Voki then asks students to tell her about what the students know about the sun and how to protect themselves from its UV rays, gives the students a challenge to find out more.

The Voki has successfully drawn the attention of the students, introduced the topic for discussion and posed some interesting questions. Identifying that the focus of the lesson about the sun is to enhance students declarative knowledge, their understanding of the facts, concepts and generalisations (Marzano and Pickering 2006), we may then utilise the KWL strategy which was developed by Donna Ogle (1986, cited in Marzano and Pickering 2006, p. 55) to work in groups and identify what the students know (K), what they want (W) to know and what they have learned (L) about the sun.

The students may then respond to the Voki’s question by developing their own Voki, identifying what the sun is and ways for us to protect ourselves from its UV Rays. To ensure students feels as though they are making a contribution to an outside audience which is identified as being a basic principle in engagement theory (Kearsley & Shneiderman 1999), they may then place their Voki on their school website to promote safety in the sun.

I hope this sort of explains how I may utilise a Voki in class.

Reference List

Kearsley, G & Shneiderman, B 1999, 'Engagement theory: a framework for technology-based teaching and learning', CQUniversity e-Courses (EDED20491)

Marzano, R & Pickering, D 2006, Dimensions of learning teachers manual, Hawker Brownlow Education, Heatherton

Get a Voki now!

REALLY SIMPLE Syndication

For me, the idea of the RSS aggregator can be summed up in that age old saying ‘work smarter not harder’. I love the idea that new information can be sent to you without having to visit hundreds of different websites.

Using Google Reader has been great in trying to keep up with all the blog postings from people in this course. I simply go to my Google Reader account and highlighted are all the new postings that I have not yet read. There is no way I could remember to access every single persons blog and keep up to date with their postings. Instead, I let their postings come to me, fantastic!

Thinking further down the track, I plan on utilizing RSS aggregators to keep up to date with blogs or websites relating to education. This will save a lot of time and effort tracking down websites and searching for new resources.

Wiki

With the importance that is placed on the collaboration of teaching ideas and resources by educators, the use of digital tools such as wiki allows this collaboration to occur at any time and with groups of people (Ferriter 2009). I believe wiki will be a highly useful tool for me, especially as a new teacher. If I join a school that already has a well functioning wiki, I may be able to gain access to a vast array of information and resources that have been specifically chosen and suggested by colleagues. A collaborative staff wiki will also allow me to include any resources or information that I myself come across and believe that others may find useful. A wiki then, could act like a continual professional development website.

What is really exciting about wiki however, is its potential use in the classroom. Kearsley & Shneiderman (1999) state that ‘students must be engaged in their course work in order for effective learning to occur’. The authors go on to discuss the three (3) primary needs for engagement to occur. That being, ‘Relate, Create, Donate’ (Kearsley & Shneiderman 1999).

The principle of ‘Relate’ talks about the importance of collaboration between students (Kearsley & Shneiderman 1999). Wiki as described by Bill Ferriter (2009 p. 37) ‘is designed for collaboration among groups of users’. Therefore students can collaboratively work together using a wiki to create a class project. As an example, I have created my own wiki titled ‘Our Class Trip Through Cambodia’. Students can work together on the assignment by adding their own pieces of information to the wiki or even by working in smaller teams to contribute to a particular page on the wiki.

It should also be noted that the idea of face-to-face classroom collaboration/teamwork with other students can be quite daunting for some children. The use of wiki encourages students who are normally uncomfortable in classroom group activities to participate more freely via the internet (Wang & Hsua 2008).

The principle of ‘Create’ discusses the idea of making student learning creative and purposeful (Kearsley & Shneiderman 1999). I believe choosing a topic for the Wiki is possibly the most important aspect in getting the children to actually utilise the system. Providing students with options for project topics and allowing them to develop the wiki themselves may give them a sense of ownership and therefore may increase their motivation.

Kearsley & Shneiderman’s (1999) final principle ‘Donate’ talks about the advantage of students feeling that they are making a contribution to someone other than themselves. The idea that a class wiki such as ‘Our Class Trip Through Cambodia’ will have readers other than the teacher who’s marking the grades or the proud parents could be an exciting, even slightly daunting concept for the students. They become aware that their work is being ‘published’ on the world wide web. Other children from other schools may read their page to gather ideas for their own assignments. People who are planning an overseas trip to Cambodia may take a glance at the site as well, the potential visitors are endless.

As a student teacher I am extremely excited at the thought of using wiki in my classroom. I love this idea so much, that I think I will have to be careful not to overuse it and result in my students becoming bored with the concept. The thought that students can become ‘publishers’ of their own work, work that they have created together as a team, ideas and concepts that they have developed themselves is such a moving thought. I simply cannot wait!

Why not have a quick look at my current attempt at a wiki page - http://ourclasstripthroughcambodia.wikispaces.com/

Reference List

Ferriter, B 2009, ‘Learning with blogs and wikis’, Educational Leadership, vol.66, no. 5, pp. 34-38, (online Ebscohost)

Kearsley, G & Shneiderman, B 1999, ‘Engagement Theory: A Framework for technology-based teaching and learning’, CQUniversity e-Courses (EDED20491)

Wang, S & Hsua H 2008, ‘Reflections on using blogs to expand in-class discussion’, TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, vol. 52, no. 3, pp. 81-85, (online Ebscohost)

Blogging

Well this is my first real professional blog on my ‘Yellow Brick Road to a Teaching Career’. So far, discovering blogs, RSS Aggregators and Wiki has been an extremely time consuming but eye opening experience. Week four especially has shocked me. I realise that I don’t know as much about the internet as I thought I did.

The idea of using blogs for many purposes is now very exciting to me, especially the idea of utilising a blog for further student development.

Students would be able to gain access to my blog for the purpose of their own continual learning. They may have been particularly interested in a topic that has been discussed in the classroom and are eager to know more about it. I could place further reading, video links or even extra activities for the student to complete.

Students themselves may create their own blog as an online journal. In a study conducted by Barry Bachenheimer, director of instructional services for Caldwell-West Caldwell Public Schools in New Jersey (cited in Ramaswmi 2008), the use of blogging as a journal can improve the writing skills of students as they are required to write more frequently and respond to fellow student comments.

What has passed my mind recently however is the idea that the promotion of utilising blogs in the classroom may also, if not managed appropriately, create another outlet for potential bullies. As stated by Kirby and Kaillio (2007, p. 17) ‘the content of blogs is unpredictable and potentially offensive or threatening’. In creating journal blogs for use in the classroom, it will be critical that they are created with the ability to have teacher/parent monitoring.

Apart from blogging for the purpose of student learning, it is also a useful tool for parents to keep up to date with classroom activities, projects and important news. The blog would also allow parents to communicate with the teacher.

Finally, the use of a blog for my own professional development as a teacher is what especially interests me. I have never kept a handwritten journal before but the idea of a journal that others can read and make comments on is really exciting. The idea that I can post my own thoughts, ideas, resources, and concerns, and have others make comments providing further ideas, resources, potential websites to look at, means my own learning and development can occur every day.

Reference List

Ramaswami, R 2008, ‘The Prose of Blogging (and a Few Cons, Too)’, T.H.E. Journal, vol. 35, no. 11, pp. 21-25, (online Ebscohost)

Kirby, E & Kaillio, B 2007, ‘Student Blogs Mark a New Frontier for School Discipline’, Education Digest, vol. 72, no. 5, pp. 16-23, (online Ebscohost)

Hi bloggers,
I just wanted to share this amazing YouTube clip with you. It reminded me that the use of ICTs does not simply engage and challenge 21st century children but it can change lives in the most incredible way. See for yourself!

More Simple Than I Thought!

I must admit, after I left the first residential school for GDLT I was worried about mainly one thing, CREATING A BLOG! I thought it would be the most complicated thing to do but wow! about two minutes and its done, simply incredible. I might create a million blogs now!

This blog that I am starting is, as my blogging title reads, 'My Yellow Brick Road to a Teaching Career'. I will be blogging my way through the triumphs and many many trials of attempting to complete my studies (successfully) and become a fully fledged teacher.

I will attempt to make regular entries and hopefully not bore to many of you.

Cheers!

Jaimea