Today in class we were learning about multimodal text.  This wasn’t the first time that we had discussed this topic, as we studied multimodal text last year during a literacy lecture.  I was very interested to learn more as I already knew what some of the benefits that multimodal text bring to children in the classroom and their learning experiences.  Benefits such as interaction, collaboration, memorable and engaging, some of which will be discussed during this blog.

So what is a multimodal text? A multimodal text is is a piece of text that includes two or more semiotic systems.  Here are the five semiotic systems; linguistic, visual, audio, gestural or spatial, so by using two or more of these features you instantly have a multimodal text. Enabling you to create text for lessons that will have positive impact on young learners.  As studied by the Scottish Government (2015), digital technologies is an appropriate way to improve most literacy and numeracy skills, this has been seen particularly in primary school settings.

The application we were using today was called ‘Activinspire’, this is an interactive application that is both user friendly for children and teacher.  Like ‘Power Point’, it allows you to create and design your own slides, thus meaning you have complete control when it comes to adapting text for each level throughout education.  “The multimodality of technology…allows teachers to present an idea in a variety of different ways to help pupils understand it” according to Beauchamp (2012, p.8).

Together in pairs we looked at which area and level of the curriculum we would like to focus on and we brainstormed our thoughts and ideas.  We decided we would create a lesson for first level, the lesson would cover numeracy and mathematics experiences and outcomes and the subject would be ‘time’.  We chose time as we agreed that young learners could relate with time, therefor they would be engaged during the lesson and they could discuss outside activities which would contribute to the lesson. Below is the curriculum experiences and outcomes that we though would best fit our multimodal text.

MNU 1 – 10a:  I can tell time using 12 hour clocks realising there is a link with 24 hour notation, explain how it impacts on my daily routine and ensure that I am organised and ready for events throughout my day.

Activinspire is as I mentioned before, is both teacher and pupil friendly, as it can be changed to a studio format which is more formal and less likely to be used by children and more by the teacher. The application that the children use is also interactive by touch, for example on a smart board the children can write an answer or use a dragging motion to move images on the screen, depending on the text and task set. “Touch displays can become a social learning tool encouraging hands-on experiences, thereby helping children to learn by doing.” according to Prandstatter (2014).  This is a great oppertunity for communication in class as not all children actively speak out but are more than happy to participate with interactive technology which you may not have seen from the child if the task included a text book, reading book or worksheet.

I have witnessed this type of activity in a classroom environment and it does create great interaction within the children, as they all are so keen to participate and use the technology.  It is hard to explain the sheer excitement in the classroom when this type of activity is happening, children you thought were timid or shy are now desperate to participate and the children also laugh as they collaborate with their peers .  As stated by Beauchamp “There has been much research in recent years in the United Kingdom (UK) that explores how ICT contributes towards talk in the classroom.  This is particularly true when using the interactive white board, especially in the context of whole class teaching.” (2012, p.81).

I think it is of great importantance to have such a high mood in the class room, as it has huge positive impact on a child’s day and on what was learned that day.  I know that it works as I have witnessed it for myself while out on school placement and as I gain confidence with digital technology through my digital technology module, I will almost certainly be looking into using applications like this for interactive lessons in my future career.

 

References

• Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary School. [Online] Available: dawsonera.com/readonline/9781408251379 [Accessed: 25 January 2018].
• Education Scotland. (2004) Curriculum for Excellence; Experiences and Outcomes. [Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/scottish-education-system/policy-for-scottish-education/policy-drivers [Accessed: 25 January 2018].