“My name is Amy Redmond and I need help…with digital technologies! Having struggled with some computer-based aspects of the course so far (sometimes even logging onto the macs!), I feel it has cemented my wise choice in undertaking this module.” (Redmond, A. 2018)

The above quote was by an Amy Redmond, a digital native if you must. I am please to say that Mrs Redmond’s journey to being a digital goddess is well on the way! Okay…I am in no shape or form a digital goddess, but I can say that my progress and knowledge gained on the possibilities, qualities and enhancement capabilities of technology in the classroom has 100% improved!

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Digital Technologies. Being able to actually create and “tinker” with all different types of software and Apps has gave me so many ideas to think about and advance further. This module has gave me many opportunities to reflect on my own knowledge, as well as the possibilities that the technology in question can give to the children and teachers in the classroom.

Something in particular that has stuck in my mind is the impact that the introduction of new technologies can have on teachers who hold very little or no experience with it. Confidence is a big part of the role and image that teachers have to depict. I know how I felt when trying out new Apps that I have not used before (Scratch Jr was not my friend!), I felt quite frustrated by it and inadequate in a way! Therefore I think it is paramount that teachers get the training necessary to keep up-to-date with advancing technologies, in order to be able to allow children to experience it in the best ways possible.

It has been made very clear that the advances in technology in the classroom and also the fact that children are surrounded by it at home too, means that it is vital to being incorporated into childrens learning. This has to be done in the correct way, as a means to enhancing activities and giving children the ability to feel included and able to join in with all learning in the classroom.

An example of how positive technology can help children, particularly those who may struggle with certain elements, was one I witnessed when on my two week placement. Whilst working alongside a primary 4 pupil, I noticed that her handwriting was mostly unrecognisable.  When speaking to the child, I found it hard to understand what she was saying. I found this very hard, as did the child. She was getting frustrated with me, and I was annoyed at myself for not being able to pick up what she was trying to communicate with me.

The activity at the time was based on Halloween, the children were to write a ghost story, using lots of descriptive words and promoting use of their imagination and ideas. After the children had written their stories, they were to type them, using Word in their computer lab. I decided to assist the child whom I had spent some time with. I was astounded at what she had written! A story filled with fabulous describing words and super ideas. It showed me the value that technology has for some children. Here is a small part of her work:After I read the girls work I was so impressed and showered her with praise. The smile on her face will stick with me for a long time, I could tell that she felt very valued and was very proud of her spooky story.  Therefore I think that this quote is spot on:

“Digital technology can make a substantial contribution to this improvement agenda by enriching education across all areas of the Curriculum for Excellence.” (Scottish Government, 2016).

I would like to give thanks to my classmates for their enriching collaborations with myself and for their help when I was perhaps, maybe, possibly being a tad impatient with certain things. It has been a tough few months in The Redmond household with illness, so their help is very much appreciated.

I would also like to give special thanks to our lecturer Rae. You have been fantastic, patient and just such a lovely person. You have made me feel at ease and made all activities a pleasure. I hope that I can depict your calm, knowledgeable demeanour when I become a teacher.

Over and out.

Digital goddess (still in progress).

References

• Scottish Government. (2016). A Digital Learning and Teaching Strategy for Scotland. Edinburgh: Scottish Government. [Online].  Available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/enhancing-learning-tearning-through-use-digital-technology/pages/2/. [Accessed: 05 January 2019].

“Outdoor learning experiences are often remembered for a lifetime. Integrating learning and outdoor
experiences, whether through play in the immediate grounds or adventures further afield, provides
relevance and depth to the curriculum in ways that are difficult to achieve indoors.” (curriculum for excellence through outdoor learning, 2010)

In this weeks class we were focusing on the capabilities of outdoor learning and the implementation of QR codes. I was not able to attend this class…once again because of poorly children! The idea of taking teaching outside excites me as I know how much my children thrive being outdoors.

Outdoor learning can be a difficult thing to implement due to our particularly unfavourable Scottish weather! However the enhancing possibilities towards learning are truly rewarding. With the use of nature and technology, many areas of the curriculum for excellence can be combined and explored. In the curriculum for excellence through outdoor learning  document, it describes the many ways in which the outdoors is vital to enhancing and promoting interplay through each area of the curriculum. It provides information of how the use of outdoor learning can provide depth and other opportunities in which the classroom cannot offer. An idea to bring the outdoors and technology together, could be the use of QR codes.

QR simply means quick response and is an image based hypertext link. QR codes can also be described as a two-dimensional barcode and a standard barcode can hold up to 30 numbers! A QR code can link to many different things: text, audio, website, phone number, email address, map location or a calendar advent. A good activity could be the idea of a treasure hunt, or a shopping list. Incorporating the outdoors as an area to explore and find the things on the list or hunt. I feel this would be very appealing to children and bring excitement and maybe a sense of competitiveness. With a list of clues and puzzles to solve, children could work collaboratively in groups to try to interpret where the QR codes may be hidden.  Children could feel a great sense of pride and accomplishment when their “mission” was complete!

The vision for outdoor learning in Scotland is that:

• “all children and young people are participating in a range of progressive and creative outdoor learning experiences which are clearly part of the curriculum”
• “schools and centres are providing regular, frequent, enjoyable and challenging opportunities for all children and young people to learn outdoors throughout their school career and beyond”
• “teachers and educators embed outdoor learning in the curriculum so that learning in the outdoor environment becomes a reality for all children and young people.”  (curriculum for excellence through outdoor learning, 2010)

It is evident that the government are taking this area very seriously and quite rightly so. I think its even more important in the digital world that we live in today, as some children may not access outdoors as much as they used to…or should, so combining the two is dynamite!

The use of materials in nature could be used for all kinds of activities, using imagination and creativity the possibilities are endless! Children could make use of camera functions on an iPad to take photos of materials outside to depict fractions or sums. Children could take pictures of whatever they want and then write a story surrounding their picture, using describing words etc to enhance their literacy skills.

The benefits of children just being outside in the fresh air has its very own health boosting positives! There are many things to explore in the outdoors, from weather to landscape, from investigating bugs to the local environment. Here are a few experiences and outcomes that can be explored with outdoor learning and with the help of technology, these activities could be packed with fun and lots of learning!

• Using digital technologies responsibly I can access, retrieve and use information to support, enrich or extend learning in different contexts.
  TCH 1-02a
• I can explore digital technologies and use what I learn to solve problems and share ideas and thoughts.
  TCH 0-01a
• I explore and discover the interesting features of my local environment to develop an awareness of the world around me.
  SOC 0-07a
• I explore and appreciate the wonder of nature within different environments and have played a part in caring for the environment.
  SOC 0-08a
• While learning outdoors in differing weathers, I have described and recorded the weather, its effects and how it makes me feel and can relate my recordings to the seasons.
  SOC 0-12a
• By using a range of instruments, I can measure and record the weather and can discuss how weather affects my life.
  SOC 1-12a
• Having explored the landscape of my local area, I can describe the various ways in which land has been used.
  SOC 1-13a
• By exploring a natural environment different from my own, I can discover how the physical features influence the variety of living things.
  SOC 1-13b

It is evident that the outdoors, combined with technologies such as QR codes, have many benefits to enhancing childrens learning. It is full of adventure, wonder and endless possibilities!

References

• Learning and Teaching Scotland (2010). Curriculum for Excellence through outdoor learning.
• Education Scotland. (n.d.) Curriculum for Excellence.[Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/All-experiencesoutcomes18.pdf [Accessed: 27 March 2019]

Bray (2012) states that games based learning has the most transformational impact when it is combined with good learning and teaching.

I have been thoroughly looking forward to this class! I cannot imagine how using games in the classroom could NOT engage children and enhance learning! (when used the right way obviously!) Today we were focused on the hugely popular game Minecraft.

“Minecraft is a worldwide phenomenon. Since it was first released back in 2011, its been taken to the hearts of thousands and thousands of gamers.” (How to do Everything in Minecraft, 2014. p.3)

Minecraft is a game in which the player can build a variety of things using 3D blocks, the world in which the gamer creates is limitless and the use of creativity and imagination is paramount. Minecraft have created an Education edition of Minecraft, which I think is absolutely wonderful!!

“WHAT IS MINECRAFT: EDUCATION EDITION? Minecraft: Education Edition is an open-world game that promotes creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving in an immersive environment where the only limit is your imagination.” Mojang, Minecraft, 2019)

Here is a link to the Minecraft website, which is absolutely bursting full of ideas of how the game can be used in the classroom, to cover a multitude of subjects, from Chemistry to Mathematics. The use of this game in education is limitless!! https://education.minecraft.net

Our task today was to think of a way to use Minecraft effectively in the classroom, using our imagination and creative sides! We decided to focus on second level and choose renewable energy as our topic for our activity. In the game, the learner would need to build their homes using renewable energy and also keep their world going economically. The children would need to do prior research in the topic of renewable energy, focusing on:

• Its pros and cons.
• The different types of renewable energy.
• The difference between these.
• Understanding how climate and cost can affect the use of renewable energy.

The children would work collaboratively in groups, choosing their preferred energy of choice and a suited region in Minecraft, which would work well with their chosen source of energy.  In the photo bellow, it shows the experiences and outcomes in which we hope the activity could cover.

I think that the use of game based learning in the classroom is crucial to our evolving learners and teachers! To be able to use a game like Minecraft to empty out your never-ending realms of imagination and creativity, is just fantastic! The positives for children with learning and behavioural difficulties are huge: Inclusion, Collaboration, diversity, strategic thinking (without the need of pencil to paper), communication, planning. The positives are almost endless…of course, there is negatives…possible negatives! The ability to get children moving onto another task may prove to be difficult if they are completely in the zone and engaged. But as this sort of activity would be on-going, the knowledge that they will go back to it may just be enough!

I have really enjoyed looking into the possibilities of Minecraft and its endless ways of implementing various areas of the curriculum for excellence!

References

• Bray, O. (2012) Playful Learning: Computer Games in Education. https://www.slideshare.net/Microsofteduk/playful-learning-computer-games-in-education [Accessed 20 March 2019]
• Magbook (2014) How to Do Everything in Minecraft
• Education Scotland. (n.d.) Curriculum for Excellence.[Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/All-experiencesoutcomes18.pdf [Accessed: 20 March 2019]

“Stop-motion animation started at the beginning of the last century with the arrival of film, but it really came of age with the arrival of video & computers. Before that you didn’t know how your animation was looking until it came back from the developers, and if something was wrong, your only option was to shoot the whole thing again. But now, with video & computers to assist, we can be absolutely sure of what we are creating, as we create it.” (Moving Image Education, 2016)

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the class today due to my Daughter being unwell.

However, as I was present in last weeks class, I still felt involved with the task that my group had continued with in my absence. I was kept up to date with messages in our group chat of the progress and final product. Our group were focusing on using animation to portray a Tsunami. Our group used Lego figures and hand crafted material to help visualise the effects of a tsunami. Our group decided to use an app called Stikbot, a member of our group had experience with it before and felt it would be better suited the our task. I feel that my group did an excellent job with their animation and I can imagine this being done with children, creating a fun and enhancing learning experience. Although I do feel it would be very time consuming, therefore would need to be a continuous activity.

•  By exploring climate zones around the world, I can compare and describe how climate affects living things. SOC 1-12a
•  I can describe the physical processes of a natural disaster and discuss its impact on people and the landscape. SOC 2-07b

It is evident that the use on animation in the classroom can bring so much more to an activity. It gives children the opportunity to be creative and face challenges. I feel that children would really engage in this as it is a means of getting results quickly and visually seeing progress right in front of their eyes. It allows children to work collaboratively and communicate with each other about the task. The use of animation and ICT as a whole gives children the relief of being able to fix mistakes quickly and move on without many problems. The use of digital technology can help diminish insecurities within children, particularly those whom experience learning difficulties or with challenging behaviours.

Once again it comes to light the importance of teachers feeling confident in their ability to use digital technologies. I can sympathise with this massively as I do not have great experience in all things technology based.

“Although teachers may be worried by new technologies…we need to be sure that this is not transmitted to young children” (Beauchamp, 2012. P.66) 

I understand the importance of this statement by Beauchamp, but I also realise the difficulties that teachers must face daily in the classroom, particularly those who have been in the profession for many years, and those who have had inadequate training in that department. I feel that if the government wants to drive the vast implementation of technology in schools, then teachers must be given the time to be trained so they feel confident and are able to use these technologies to the best of their ability.

References

• Movingimageeducation. [Online] Available: https://movingimageeducation.org/create-films/animation [Accessed: 16 March 2019]
• Education Scotland. (n.d.) Curriculum for Excellence.[Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/All-experiencesoutcomes18.pdf [Accessed: 16 March 2019]