A real awakening

Hi again,

I seem to of not lost this page yet and even managed to get a few followers!! How very exciting!! I am going to start off by talking (?) about my previous technology experiences- It really wasn't that long ago when I was learning how to type on a typewriter in school (ok maybe it was a few years ago but it doesn't seem that long ago) and that the only really inexpensive way to communicate to overseas family and friends was to write letters and actually post them in a mailbox. Now we sms each other, chat on msn and via facebook. They really do seem just around the corner rather than thousands of kms away. I wonder what will be happening communication wise in a few more years time.

And with that thought in mind I turned to my younger cousins and friends and asked them about their day at school. Yes they had had a fun day, yes it was greatly interesting, nah couldn't remember much about what they had learnt. So how does your teacher teach you in class- oh we watch her on tv. What? On tv? Yeah she says we watch loads of tv and so the only way we might learn is if she is on tv so she pre-recorded the lesson and just helped us out while it was on. AND it gets better the other had watched her lesson via podcast on her ipod!! This is a local high school that people I know attend. How am I as a futures orientated teacher going to be able to do all of this??

I had prac the next day so I discussed this with my classroom teacher plus our lecturers input of us getting our digital licences as an extra way to be noticed and hired when we graduate although it is quickly becoming an essential requirement of the job. My teacher is now looking into gaining her digital licence and is open to the discussions we are now having in regards to us both learning about this new world.

What can we do in the classroom we ask ourselves? The students are young and interested in technology. They love listening to cds and watching dvds. They love playing interactive games on the smartboard and on our in room computers so lets go with that we decide.

My first lesson was a shapes games which I set up on the smartboard. I pre-drew the shapes (no mean feat for a beginner) and got them to guess the shape from the clues given then trace their finger (in a colour or design of their choosing) around the shape so that their peers could see the shape. Everyone appeared to enjoy the experience except one little fellow who was having difficulty with the task so he coloured in the shape instead. Afterwards the classroom teacher and I discussed it and I got him to complete the activity on paper (I chose several students so he wasn't singled out) so we could find out if he was unsure of the technology element of moving his finger on a smartboard or if he had trouble with understanding the directions. It was the directions so really I was the only one unsure of the smartboard so from now on I am determined to use the smartboard for as many teachable moments as I can so I can gain the confidence my little ones already have!!

Rissa.