A WebQuest is “an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the Internet” (Dodge, 1995). Prior to engaging with the courseware of this course Managing e.Learning, I was familiar with what a WebQuest was as I was required to make one last year during the Sustainable Communities (S.O.S.E) course. As part of our second assessment task for that course we were required to work with a peer (Sheila Challacombe) to create a WebQuest based upon a sustainability topic. Our WebQuest was based around Water Conservation, and if you would like to view my WebQuest you can do so by clicking the following link.
Water Conservation WebQuest:
http://www.webquestdirect.com.au/webquest.asp?id=908
There was one main disadvantage which I found when creating the Water Conservation WebQuest, and that was the issue of time as I did find it quite time consuming as you were required to extensively research information about a topic, rephrase the information and then create the WebQuest using the free program on WebQuest Direct, whilst keeping in mind that the pages needed to be appealing to the students. Therefore, I feel that teachers would also experience the same disadvantage of time when designing WebQuests to use within their classroom. As it does take a bit of time to create a WebQuest, a fair amount of curriculum, therefore, outcomes from the Essential Learning’s, would need to be covered in the WebQuest in order to make the WebQuest which you have designed a “time effective alternative to traditional methods” (Central Queensland University, 2009). For example, if you made a WebQuest and it only covered a very small amount of the curriculum and took a while to complete, it would be more beneficial for teachers to stick to traditional methods of teaching as more outcomes of the curriculum could be achieved in the same time frame.
In regard to how classrooms might operate compared to a more ‘traditional approach’, by using a WebQuest ICT’s are incorporated into an engaging learning experience for students which consists of students completing an authentic task in order to enhance their learning, rather than, working in a ‘traditional approach’ by enhancing their learning in tasks which do not incorporate the use of ICT’S and are therefore most likely unengaging for the students (Central Queensland University, 2009). In my future role as a learning manager, if I feel that I do not have enough time to create my own WebQuest from scratch, in order to incorporate the use of ICT’s into learning experiences by using WebQuests I will consider using one of the many WebQuests available to use on the internet which have been made by other people.
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Dodge, B. (1995). Some thoughts about WebQuests. Retrieved August 16, 2009, from
http://tommarch.com/writings/wq_power.php
Friday, August 14, 2009
Google Earth
Google Earth is a wonderful learning tool that I am familiar with using, and regularly use within my classroom environment during practical experiences. Google Earth contains a large amount of educational content as it allows students to discover for themselves places throughout the world, along with, extend their knowledge about the natural world, in particular, about maps, the weather, traffic, streets, buildings, terrain and roads (Google Earth, 2009).
I usually use Google Earth throughout activities based upon achieving outcomes in the key learning areas of Science and S.O.S.E, although I strongly believe that Google Earth could be used throughout most of the key learning areas. I think that older students, such as, upper primary and secondary students would find the program more useful than year one students as they are capable of understanding the technical terms used throughout the information displayed. However, authentic learning experiences for all year levels could definitely be created, for example, year one students could take on the role of being an explorer and mark their journey which they are going to take around the world, where as, year five students could compare the weather and traffic in different places.
Reference List:
Google Earth. (2009). Google earth. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
http://earth.google.com/thanks.html
I usually use Google Earth throughout activities based upon achieving outcomes in the key learning areas of Science and S.O.S.E, although I strongly believe that Google Earth could be used throughout most of the key learning areas. I think that older students, such as, upper primary and secondary students would find the program more useful than year one students as they are capable of understanding the technical terms used throughout the information displayed. However, authentic learning experiences for all year levels could definitely be created, for example, year one students could take on the role of being an explorer and mark their journey which they are going to take around the world, where as, year five students could compare the weather and traffic in different places.
Reference List:
Google Earth. (2009). Google earth. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
http://earth.google.com/thanks.html
Podcasting
Podcasts are audio media files which are uploaded onto a podcasting server, such as, iTunes, which can be downloaded and replayed on technology sources, for example, computers and MP3/4 players (Central Queensland University, 2009). Prior to engaging with the courseware for this course I was aware of what Podcasts were as I regularly listen to them on my iPod. Although I do listen to Podcasts which are just audio files, recently I have also been watching video files and assumed that they were still called podcasts; however, I now know that they are called VodCasts.
Podcasts are media which can be used in a delivery or student centered manner within the classroom environment in order to create an effective learning environment for students. In a learning environment Podcasts are considered to be a ICT and ICT’s are a cross curriculum priority throughout all Education Queensland schools, therefore, it is essential that a range of ICT’s are used in various ways throughout the learning environment in order to help keep students engaged. When designing learning experiences that incorporate the use of ICT’s by using Podcasts, although many students have access to MP3/4 players, it is important to keep in mind that some students may not have access to this resource.
Kearsley and Shneiderman believe that engagement by students in their task is essential when wanting learning to be effective, and I strongly agree with their opinion. The Engagement Theory is a framework which was developed by Kearsley and Shneiderman based upon the Relate-Create-Donate process, and I think that this process could effectively be used within learning environments by students making their own educational podcast which they could share with their peers (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999).
It would be fair to say that the majority of the students within school classrooms today are digital natives, as according to Prensky a digital native is a person who is “born into and grow up enveloped by digital technology and therefore develop a specific language and syntax around the technology” (Central Queensland University, 2009) & (Prensky, 2001). Therefore, as the majority of students are natives to technology and become engaged in their task when working with technology sources, Podcasts would be a useful tool for a teacher to use as a students learning would be enhanced, and there are a range of Podcasts readily available for teachers to use which contain educational content that can easily be linked to students’ real life experiences and units of work.
In the learning design topic, Uncle Ernie’s Holistic approach was also covered and it is a framework that has been designed to help learning managers embed Indigenous Perspectives throughout their learning experiences (Grant, 1998). Personally, I have observed a low level of Indigenous Perspectives embedded throughout learning experiences during my practical experiences, and I think that this holistic approach is a framework which I will use during my future learning experiences. As mentioned throughout the approach, the Aboriginal culture is more about oral information, rather than, written information (Grant, 1998). Therefore, I believe that Podcasts and VodCasts would be perfect to be used when incorporating Indigenous Perspectives throughout learning experiences as it would help learners' knowledge to be enhanced as Indigenous people from a range of different settings throughout Australia could orally explain their information, and it could be delivered to students through the use of Podcasts.
It is important to remember that one of the main benefits from listening to a Podcast in comparison to a person visiting the classroom and speaking, is that if you miss a part or would like to refresh your knowledge at a later date you can do so, as you can replay the podcast as many times as you like, therefore, learning is effective.
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Grant, E. (1998). My Land My Tracks: A framework for the holistic approach to indigenous studies. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://education.qld.gov.au/schools/indigenous/docs/uncle-ernies-framework.pdf
Kearsley, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1999). Engagement theory: a framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 16, 2009, from
http://home.sprynet.com/%7Egkearsley/engage.htm
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
Podcasts are media which can be used in a delivery or student centered manner within the classroom environment in order to create an effective learning environment for students. In a learning environment Podcasts are considered to be a ICT and ICT’s are a cross curriculum priority throughout all Education Queensland schools, therefore, it is essential that a range of ICT’s are used in various ways throughout the learning environment in order to help keep students engaged. When designing learning experiences that incorporate the use of ICT’s by using Podcasts, although many students have access to MP3/4 players, it is important to keep in mind that some students may not have access to this resource.
Kearsley and Shneiderman believe that engagement by students in their task is essential when wanting learning to be effective, and I strongly agree with their opinion. The Engagement Theory is a framework which was developed by Kearsley and Shneiderman based upon the Relate-Create-Donate process, and I think that this process could effectively be used within learning environments by students making their own educational podcast which they could share with their peers (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999).
It would be fair to say that the majority of the students within school classrooms today are digital natives, as according to Prensky a digital native is a person who is “born into and grow up enveloped by digital technology and therefore develop a specific language and syntax around the technology” (Central Queensland University, 2009) & (Prensky, 2001). Therefore, as the majority of students are natives to technology and become engaged in their task when working with technology sources, Podcasts would be a useful tool for a teacher to use as a students learning would be enhanced, and there are a range of Podcasts readily available for teachers to use which contain educational content that can easily be linked to students’ real life experiences and units of work.
In the learning design topic, Uncle Ernie’s Holistic approach was also covered and it is a framework that has been designed to help learning managers embed Indigenous Perspectives throughout their learning experiences (Grant, 1998). Personally, I have observed a low level of Indigenous Perspectives embedded throughout learning experiences during my practical experiences, and I think that this holistic approach is a framework which I will use during my future learning experiences. As mentioned throughout the approach, the Aboriginal culture is more about oral information, rather than, written information (Grant, 1998). Therefore, I believe that Podcasts and VodCasts would be perfect to be used when incorporating Indigenous Perspectives throughout learning experiences as it would help learners' knowledge to be enhanced as Indigenous people from a range of different settings throughout Australia could orally explain their information, and it could be delivered to students through the use of Podcasts.
It is important to remember that one of the main benefits from listening to a Podcast in comparison to a person visiting the classroom and speaking, is that if you miss a part or would like to refresh your knowledge at a later date you can do so, as you can replay the podcast as many times as you like, therefore, learning is effective.
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Grant, E. (1998). My Land My Tracks: A framework for the holistic approach to indigenous studies. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://education.qld.gov.au/schools/indigenous/docs/uncle-ernies-framework.pdf
Kearsley, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1999). Engagement theory: a framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 16, 2009, from
http://home.sprynet.com/%7Egkearsley/engage.htm
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
YouTube.
YouTube was the next part which I covered in the Digital Technologies topic, and I must say that prior to this course I was familiar with using YouTube and I absolutely love it! The thing that I love most about YouTube is the fact that is has basically anything you want on it, readily available for you to use whenever and wherever you want. Although YouTube does contain a lot of unsuitable classroom material, it does contain a large amount of educational content which is of a high quality. Therefore, in order to ensure that students are viewing appropriate material you do have the option to upload your desired video onto your class website, or use the free service on the internet called KeepVid as these options ensure that the students are watching the material that you have selected (Central Queensland University, 2009).
After exploring both YouTube and a similar website called TeacherTube (Central Queensland University, 2009), I have decided that I prefer to use YouTube as I am familiar with it and find it easier to find educational material to meet my learning experiences’ intended learning outcomes. However, I look forward to exploring TeacherTube in a greater depth in the future as I am sure that I will find material on there that is useful for my classroom environment to suit a range of my learning experiences.
In order to incorporate ICT’s into my mathematics lesson during prac next week, I have decided to use a video off of YouTube. Lately during mathematics it has been noticed that the students have been unengaged when completing their work as they usually just complete a worksheet. As the students will be focusing on 2D and 3D shapes I am going to use an educational song off of YouTube as the hook of the learning experience during the introduction, as I know that the students respond well and usually immediately become engaged with their task when music is involved. I particularly like the video which I have chosen as it allows the students to see various 2D and 3D shapes which are related to their real life experiences, and because students are challenged in the video by being asked to look around their environment and count the different shapes which they can see. I have embedded the video which I am going to use into this post, and you can access it by clicking below:
Shapes from ‘Classroom’- DVD for children to learn basic concepts (ClassRoomContents, 2008).
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
ClassRoomContents. (2008). Shapes from ‘Classroom’- DVD for children to learn basic concepts. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm_mb0HTv-o&feature=related
After exploring both YouTube and a similar website called TeacherTube (Central Queensland University, 2009), I have decided that I prefer to use YouTube as I am familiar with it and find it easier to find educational material to meet my learning experiences’ intended learning outcomes. However, I look forward to exploring TeacherTube in a greater depth in the future as I am sure that I will find material on there that is useful for my classroom environment to suit a range of my learning experiences.
In order to incorporate ICT’s into my mathematics lesson during prac next week, I have decided to use a video off of YouTube. Lately during mathematics it has been noticed that the students have been unengaged when completing their work as they usually just complete a worksheet. As the students will be focusing on 2D and 3D shapes I am going to use an educational song off of YouTube as the hook of the learning experience during the introduction, as I know that the students respond well and usually immediately become engaged with their task when music is involved. I particularly like the video which I have chosen as it allows the students to see various 2D and 3D shapes which are related to their real life experiences, and because students are challenged in the video by being asked to look around their environment and count the different shapes which they can see. I have embedded the video which I am going to use into this post, and you can access it by clicking below:
Shapes from ‘Classroom’- DVD for children to learn basic concepts (ClassRoomContents, 2008).
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
ClassRoomContents. (2008). Shapes from ‘Classroom’- DVD for children to learn basic concepts. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm_mb0HTv-o&feature=related
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
ClassMarker.
Prior to this course I had never heard of ClassMarker, however, after making my account with the service I must say that it is a tool that I will definitely use within my future classroom environment. ClassMarker allows you to develop your own quizzes for your class and allows each student to complete the quiz, and it will automatically mark their quiz for you and give you the results. Personally, I think that this is a brilliant tool as it would not only be engaging for our digital native students as they are being assessed using technology (Prensky, 2001), rather than, using a paper and pen, but it is also efficient to use and saves time for teachers, as they would no longer have to individually mark each students quiz.
Although younger students do not complete many quizzes, I think that ClassMarker would be great for older students as their teacher could develop a quiz on the website and use it as part of their student’s formative assessment, as students could test their knowledge which they have learnt and find out the areas which they need to further revise in order to enhance their learning (Central Queensland University, 2009).
I have created a trial quiz for my list of students based upon my unit of work Australian Animals in Captivity which was previously uploaded onto my Mahara account. If you would like to take my quiz you can do so by clicking the following link.
http://www.classmarker.com/quiz/?test_id=58079
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
Although younger students do not complete many quizzes, I think that ClassMarker would be great for older students as their teacher could develop a quiz on the website and use it as part of their student’s formative assessment, as students could test their knowledge which they have learnt and find out the areas which they need to further revise in order to enhance their learning (Central Queensland University, 2009).
I have created a trial quiz for my list of students based upon my unit of work Australian Animals in Captivity which was previously uploaded onto my Mahara account. If you would like to take my quiz you can do so by clicking the following link.
http://www.classmarker.com/quiz/?test_id=58079
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Retrieved July 23, 2009, from
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
Picnik.
WOW! That was my immediate reaction to the services offered on Picnik; it is just what I have been looking for. This site is amazing, as it allows you to manipulate your images in a number of different ways for free. Prior to part-taking in this course I had never heard of Picnik, therefore, I followed the steps on the Moodle website and created an account (Central Queensland University, 2009).After creating my account I uploaded the above picture of my dog Bonnie onto the website. After fiddling around with the features offered to manipulate your images on the site, I decided to crop my picture, along with, add text to it, and change the exposure and colour of the image. One of the main changes which I like the most about the manipulated image is that it looks like my dog is boogying in the sunset. Below you can see how I manipulated my picture, the results are amazing!
As the Picnik website does not store your images for you, I chose the option to store my manipulated image to my Flickr site. I think that this Picnik program could be used in association with the Flickr website within school settings, as students could manipulate their images and reflect upon the before and after look of their image on their Flickr account, along with, collaborate with their peers by providing them with feedback about their manipulated images. I strongly believed that the services provided on Picnik and Flickr could be useful in the learning environment when implementing learning experiences based upon the learning engagement theory, as there are unlimited opportunities for students to be provided with tasks that are delivered in a collaborative context, that are project-orientated and contain an outside authentic focus (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1999).
Reference List:
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
Kearsley, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1999). Engagement theory: a framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved July 16, 2009, from
http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Flickr.
“Flickr is an online repository for images” (Central Queensland University, 2009), therefore, I consider Flickr as being an online photo album. I think that Flickr is a wonderful tool which could be utilised well for a range of educational purposes as it is a program which is quick and easy to use and maintain as the site quickly uploads a number of your photos and allows you to sort them into whatever order you desire. The main advantage of using a program like Flickr is that the way in which the program is used can be modified to suit all year levels and key learning areas, for example, younger students could upload photos into folders based upon each key learning area which they are studying, where as, older students could use the program in association with other tools, such as, blogs.
This program is also advantageous for learning managers, as it is well known that when students go on excursions a large amount of photos are usually taken and never to be seen again due to time restraints and storing issues involved with viewing the pictures, therefore, this site would be perfect for storing photo’s from students learning experiences as they can be accessed quickly and easily simply by logging onto the internet.
Within learning environments at times it can be hard to get students to reflect upon their learning experiences, however, I think that it would be easy to engage students in reflecting upon their learning by using Flickr as a tool as students could reflect upon their learning journey by writing comments about their pictures displayed on the site.
When I graduated from primary school each student in my class received a cd with a range of pictures on from our class’s learning experiences throughout our schooling years. Half of my friends who were in my class at school have lost their graduation cd and often comment upon how they wish they still had their cd so that they could look back and reminisce about their learning journey. Therefore, I think that Flickr would be an excellent tool to use for occasions like graduations as it allows whole class’s learning journeys to be stored in the one place and be accessed from anywhere in the world for many years to come.
During my experience with Flickr I came across the above picture of a Sumatran Tiger from a National Zoo in Malaysia (Abdhakamabdah, 2007), and it got me thinking of how else this program could be used within learning environments, and I think that Flickr would be particularly useful and engaging if students were learning about Explorers in one of their units, as the program could allow the students to take on the role of an explorer and explore the entire world from their school in a matter of minutes by looking at these spectacular pictures found on the site.
Reference List:
Abdhakamabdah. (2007). Sumatran tiger. Retrieved August 12, 2009, from
http://www.flickr.com/photos/abdhakamabdah/487984685/
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
This program is also advantageous for learning managers, as it is well known that when students go on excursions a large amount of photos are usually taken and never to be seen again due to time restraints and storing issues involved with viewing the pictures, therefore, this site would be perfect for storing photo’s from students learning experiences as they can be accessed quickly and easily simply by logging onto the internet.
Within learning environments at times it can be hard to get students to reflect upon their learning experiences, however, I think that it would be easy to engage students in reflecting upon their learning by using Flickr as a tool as students could reflect upon their learning journey by writing comments about their pictures displayed on the site.
When I graduated from primary school each student in my class received a cd with a range of pictures on from our class’s learning experiences throughout our schooling years. Half of my friends who were in my class at school have lost their graduation cd and often comment upon how they wish they still had their cd so that they could look back and reminisce about their learning journey. Therefore, I think that Flickr would be an excellent tool to use for occasions like graduations as it allows whole class’s learning journeys to be stored in the one place and be accessed from anywhere in the world for many years to come.
During my experience with Flickr I came across the above picture of a Sumatran Tiger from a National Zoo in Malaysia (Abdhakamabdah, 2007), and it got me thinking of how else this program could be used within learning environments, and I think that Flickr would be particularly useful and engaging if students were learning about Explorers in one of their units, as the program could allow the students to take on the role of an explorer and explore the entire world from their school in a matter of minutes by looking at these spectacular pictures found on the site.
Reference List:
Abdhakamabdah. (2007). Sumatran tiger. Retrieved August 12, 2009, from
http://www.flickr.com/photos/abdhakamabdah/487984685/
Central Queensland University (CQU). (2009). FAHE11001- Managing E-Learning: Moodle site. Rockhampton, QLD, Australia: Scot Aldred.
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