Today was our last class for this module and I had been speaking to others about my growing anticipation to find a connection between digital technologies and outdoor learning. When I was at school, there was never any digital technology involved in outdoor play, just simply a pair of wellies and some waterproof clothes.

I was very excited to know what the learning intentions would be for the day and this is when we were introduced to ‘Quick Response Codes’ (QR Codes). A QR code is a type of bar code that is made up of black modules on a white background, unlike a normal barcode that has 20 alphanumeric character limit, a QR code can hold thousands of characters. QR codes were created in 1994 and are used mainly on smartphones and tablets however you may see them on signs, business cards and when sharing multimedia content such as an ebook (techopedia) and by downloading a QR reader App will allow you to scan any QR codes.

The QR codes that we used today were set up in the style of a treasure hunt and this is when I had the chance to see the connections between digital technology and outdoor learning. Our lecturer had placed many QR codes around the gardens of the university campus, we then had to seek out and scan each QR code using our mobile devices, which were iPads. Each QR code held a question with a multiple choice answer, when all the questions were answered correctly there was a jumbled up word to guess, then lastly we had to scan the final QR code and the team first to complete this were the winners. When we met back at the classroom, we created a ‘Pic Collage’ on an iPad, which was fairly simple and would be great tool for children in a classroom as the app allows for creativity and design.

Being outside was brilliant and memorable which the Scottish Government believe is part of the outdoor learning experience. I myself certainly remember my own childhood school trips and outings, as they were so much fun. I can only imagine how excited primary school children would be if they had the same oppertunity.

As a student teacher, it is important for me to experience as many different approaches to teaching as I can, as not all children will and can learn in a set typical environment. In order for this to happen we had an in-depth class discussion about  ‘GIRFEC’ (Getting it right for every child).  GIRFEC is a policy that is used in Scotland to ensure the wellbeing of our children and by using this we can put the differentiated needs of children and young people first (Scottish Government). GIRFEC is broken down into 8 areas of the SHANARRI Wellbeing Wheel which we related today to outdoor learning:

1. Active – Getting outside and exercising.
2. Respected – Looking after the environment.
3. Responsible – Behaving in different surroundings.
4. Included – Opportunities for children to shine.
5. Safe – Developing risk management skills.
6. Healthy – Promotes a healthy lifestyle.
7. Achieving – Personal development such as problem solving.
8. Nurtured – Building positive relationships.

I had my own oppertunity to create a lesson using the iPad and QR codes. The lesson was based on modern languages and for this I created a Spanish quiz. The quiz worked very similar to the treasure hunt and I can clearly see how easily adaptable lessons like these can be. While planning my lesson, I was aware of advice from my lecturer to ‘bundle’ CFE experiences and outcomes. I found that with activities like this bundling was happening by it’s self as ‘Digital Technology’ has so many positive outcomes, such as health and wellbeing, technology, numeracy and literacy etc.

Below are the areas of the CFE I have chosen for my lesson:

MLAN 2-11c I experiment with new language, working out the meaning of words and phrases using vocabulary I have learned so far.

TCH 2-04a I explore and experiment with the features and functions of computer technology and I can use what I learn to support and enhance my learning in different contexts.

HWB 2-11a I make full use of and value the opportunities I am given to improve and manage my learning, in turn, I can help to encourage learning and confidence in others.

As you can see there is a wide range of experiences and outcomes, this has been the case throughout the digital technology module.

I mentioned at the beginning of this blog, that today was our last class, so I would like to conclude that I am so grateful for what this module has taught me. It has really opened my eyes to the world of technology and it’s many uses within education.

During this module, our class had opportunities to work in groups, this has meant that we have been communicating and collaborating throughout the module. Having the oppertunity to experience this, has helped us to understand what it may feel like, feelings such as confidence barriers and communication difficulties that some children may experience.

Our class lecturer has repeatedly explained to us how important it is to make things relevant, as it captures and holds a learners attention. I have experienced this for myself during my short time at university and college last year and I will ensure that relevance is something that I will take with me into the classroom as a future teacher.

The module has been so beneficial to me as my confidence in technology has increased, I know this because of the questionnaire I completed at the beginning and at the end of the module. This has shown a great increase in my confidence and knowledge. I will most definitely be getting involved with technologies in the future, my aim is to continue to build on my knowledge and also my confidence, this will benefit me as a student and as a teacher.

References

• Scottish Government. (2008) The Curriculum for Excellence. [Online] Available: http://www.education.gov.scot/Documents/all-experiences-and-outcomes.pdf [Accessed: 27 March 2018].
• Scottish Government. (2010) The Curriculum for Excellence Through Outdoor Learning. [Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/cfe-through-outdoor-learning.pdf [Accessed: 27 March 2018].
• Scottish Government. (2017) What is GIRFEC? [Online] Available: http://www.gov.scot/Topics/People/Young-People/gettingitright/what-is-girfec [Accessed: 27 March 2018].
• Techopedia. [Online] Available: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/2915/quick-response-code-qr-code [Accessed: 27 March 2018].

 

This week we continued looking at Game based learning and the game we covered today was ‘Minecraft’. When I asked P6 school pupils what Minecraft was, I was told “it is just like playing with Lego but you will never run out of bricks”. The global phenomenon that is Minecraft was designed in 2011 by a Swedish game designer called Markus Persson, who has since sold Minecraft to Microsoft and it has an estimated value is $2.5 billion, according to Hern and Stuart (2014).

I had the opportunity to play the game today as our class lecturer had arranged for a group of local P6 school pupils to visit us and help us to discover more about Minecraft. The pupils were very enthusiastic about the game and they all had a great wealth of knowledge. They lead us through worlds that they had created and explained how worlds were made and edited, they explained the process of visiting other worlds created by friends and that it was possible to interact with friends online whilst playing the game.

I must admit that I was completely out of my depth and I was so overwhelmed to see them race through the app on the iPad, it was second nature to them. Here I witnessed great communication skills between the children, problem solving, collaboration and creativity. The teacher mentioned to us that some children gave up play time to come into class and work on the worlds, which is realistically class work however the children see it as fun.

It is easy to see how Minecraft can be linked to many areas of the curriculum such as literacy and technology, some Experiences and Outcomes could be;

LIT 1-09a – When listening and talking with others for different purposes, I can exchange information, experiences, explanations, ideas and opinions, and clarify points by asking questions or by asking others to say more.

TCH 1-01a – I can explore and experiment with digital technologies and can use what I learn to support and enhance my learning in different contexts.

MTH 1-13a – I can continue and devise more involved repeating patterns or designs, using a variety of media.

 

In class, we read an ebook called ‘Playful Learning: Computer Games in Education’ by Ollie Brays, a national development officer in his profession. Here he discusses ideas such as play based learning and its advantages, some of which teachers have always used for example, board games or reading games. However the use of technologies in play can simply be seen as a natural progression. It is the action of doing, playing and experiencing that engages children and the learning flourishes from there, according to Bray (2012). Theorists such as Piaget also agree by doing, there will be an increase of knowledge, Higher Education Academy (2017).

As 21st century learning increases in the classroom, it is import that teachers and educators can stay upto date on the games that are available. It is not critical that we all know how to play a game however it is critical they we are aware of the games content. For this we can use the (Pan European Games Information) PEGI rating. Similar to gauging movie content we can use the PEGI rating to quickly choose which games are suitable for what ages and stages using the labelling system. The labelling system can inform the class teacher what the game contains and reasons they might not want to use it such as violent content or bad language, according to Bray (2012).

Beauchamp (2012), constructed a list of skills that young learners could develop by simply having the opportunities to use digital technologies in the classroom. Included in the list below, are two common themes that I have identified throughout my blogs for this module;

• Strategic Thinking
• Planning
• Communication
• Application of numbers
• Negotiating Skills
• Group decision-making
• Data Handling Skills.

Beauchamp (2012, p.10).

Throughout my blogs, I have noticed common themes developing, these are; collaboration and communication. These skills are part of a skill set that we can build upon throughout our lives. If we can include such skills across the curriculum, we will enable young learners to better prepare for transitions such as, early years on to primary education, then on to secondary education. Thinking even further ahead, preparing them for the realities of the outside working world.

References

• Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary School. [Online] Available: dawsonera.com/readonline/9781408251379 [Accessed: 17 March 2018].
• Bray, O. (2012) Playful Learning: Computer Games in Education. [Online] Available: https://www.slideshare.net/Microsofteduk/playful-learning-computer-games-in-education [Accessed: 17 March 2018].
• Hern, A and Stuart, K. (2014) Minecraft Sold: Microsoft buys Mojang for $2.5bn. [Online] 15 September. Available: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/15/microsoft-buys-minecraft-creator-mojang-for-25bn [Accessed 17 March 2018].
• Higher Education Academy. [Online] Available: https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/gamification-and-games-based-learning [Accessed: 17 March 2018].
• Image Source: [Online] Available: https://pixabay.com [Accessed: 17 March 2018].
• Scottish Government. (2008) The Curriculum for Excellence. [Online] Available:  http://www.education.gov.scot/Documents/all-experiences-and-outcomes.pdf [Accessed: 17 March 2018].

Today we were introduced to the term ‘Game Based Learning’. Here young learners have the oppertunity to play gaming devices in class, such as a Nintendo Wii or Xbox. “Digital Games-based Learning is the integration of gaming into learning experiences to increase engagement and motivation”, Higher Education Academy (2017).

The actually playing of the game however is a very small part of the term game based learning and this is because the majority of the learning stems from lessons and activities based around said game.

I discovered this for myself today in class, as the class were set a task of designing our very own ‘Super Mario Kart’. The design we decided to move forward with was one of the students in our small group, he had created a Kart that had pizza as wheels.

 

This lead to the start of our ‘Interdisciplinary Planning’ (IDL). By reading through the CFE we soon realised there were going to be an endless amount of E’s & O’s that we could link to the little pizza wheeled Kart. All these ideas were coming from a simple task that we were set to design our own Super Mario Kart. The areas of the curriculum that we decided to move forward with were Maths, Literacy, Technology and Health and Wellbeing all of which would develop learning and enhance understanding.

Note by this point we hadn’t even touched a gaming device yet the idea was allowing us to plan a full topic for a class of young learners. Below is a draft of our IDL and some examples of the E’s & O’s we decided to use.

MNU 1-07B – Through exploring how groups of items can be shared equally, I can find a fraction of an amount by applying my knowledge of division.

LIT 1-24a – I can present my writing in a way that will make it legible and attractive for my reader combining words, images and other features,

TCH 0-02a – I can use digital technologies to explore how to search and find information.

HWB 1-29a – I enjoy eating a diversity of foods in a range of social situations.

When directed to a website called ‘Edutopia’ I found an article by Miller (2012), he explains about the ‘top three 21st century skills’, two of which are collaboration and communication, which we covered in class. He refers to ‘utilising a team’ to achieve goals which I experienced today in class and also ‘generating effective team directions’ which again we had to do in class today in order to choose a design to use and to decide which areas of the curriculum that we were going to use in our IDL.

These 21st century skills can be related to the following theorists Piaget and Vygotsky as they studied the social groups and were ‘Constructivists’, which believe by doing, playing and adopting roles in groups such as collaboration and cooperation is a vital part of learning and brain development, Higher Education (2017).

In conclusion, I found this very fascinating! Previous to this lesson I would have been quite against game based learning. I thought it would have involved hours of class time playing games and I would not have seen the immediate benefits. Having the oppertunity to speak to our class lecturer and for him tell us of his own reflections of how game based learning works in a classroom has completely changed my views on game based learning. “One of the biggest misunderstandings about games, and people who play them, is that games don’t “teach” anything. It’s assumed that there is no value in the experience”, according to Miller (2012).

I look forward to using similar ideas in the future with my class of young learners.

References

• Higher Education Academy. [Online] Available: https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/gamification-and-games-based-learning [Accessed: 10 March 2018].
• Miller, A. (2012) Game-Based Learning to Teach and Assess 21st-Century Skills. [Online] Available: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/game-learning-21st-century-skills-andrew-miller [Accessed: 10 March 2018].
• Scottish Government. (2008) The Curriculum for Excellence. [Online] Available: http://www.education.gov.scot/Documents/all-experiences-and-outcomes.pdf [Accessed: 10 March 2018].

This week in digital technology we were looking at mobile devices and discussing, ‘should mobile devices be used in primary schools?’. Our class lecturer posted this question on the digital technology moodle forum allowing us to post our own thoughts on the discussion. To gain further knowledge or opinion on the matter we were directed to some online articles about technology in the classroom.

After reading a few of the articles, particularly ‘The Telegraph’ article, I understand there has been a lot of money invested in technology. There seemed to be a common trend, that many teachers agree that technology is useful in the classroom, as it engages the young learners. However due to a lack of training, many teachers were fearful of technology and also that they struggle to place it within the curriculum, according to Curtis (2014).

I personally feel after seeing technology being used while I was out on school placement that is really does engage the children. Technology doesn’t need to be over the top or complicated for teacher or pupil for example having that class registered on the smartboard allowing the children to register their attendance or for the teacher to play a ‘you tube’ video that may promote Health and Wellbeing etc.

I also believe that technology can engage some children a little too much as I saw on placement that it seemed to be the same individuals interacting with the technology and falling behind on their other written work or scencery work. To over come this, I motitored them over the day/week and encouraged them to prioritise their work load.

Our task today using the Easispeak Microphone was really fun and I look forward to using the main ideas in the future. Working in pairs we wrote a short poem using a template given to us by our class lecturer. We made a Microsoft Power Point presentation where each slide contained; a line from our poem, a picture inspired by the particular line of the poem and a voice recording of us from the easispeak microphone.

This task was very enjoyable as it allowed us to be completely free with our ideas and because we were working in pairs it also involved us working together and deciding as a pair who was doing what and what our poem would read like, sound like and look like. In a classroom with young learners, some may find that collaborating with classmates quite difficult at first, which again makes this a good challenging lesson and part of the CFE experiences and outcomes;

When I engage with others, I can respond in ways appropriate to my role, show that I value others’ contributions and used these to build on thinking. LIT 2-02a

I consider the impact that layout and presentation will have and can combine lettering, graphics and other features to engage my reader. LIT 2-24a

I can create, capture and manipulate sounds, texts and images to communicate experiences, ideas and information creative and engaging ways. TCH 1-04b/TCH 2-04b

References

• Curtis, S. (2014) Digital Learning: How technology is reshaping teaching. [Online] Available: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/11051228/Digital-learning-how-technology-is-reshaping-teaching.html [Accessed: 28 February 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: 28 February 2018].