My thoughts on the Module!!

I've really enjoyed this ICT module, I have found it very interesting and extremely useful to my future teaching. I have learnt a lot of useful skills from the session tasks and I hope to use a lot of these in my next placement. I did know that it was possible to do some of these things in the classroom, but for most of them I was unsure of exactly how to do them. I was surprised at how simple most of the tasks were to complete. I struggled initially with some of the tasks, but after a few minutes trying out various different ways of using the equipment/software I seemed to pick it up relatively quickly, which I was quite impressed at!

I have found the task of the blog also more beneficial than I thought I would. It has given me a way to reflect on the weekly sessions as well as see what other people have thought about them. I think that this has been one of the better tasks, because it is ongoing and you can really get into the reason for completing one. I think that these would very useful in schools, especially during topic work to see how the children are developing!

I have seen how having some skills can help with the understanding of other tasks, I have used some of the skills that I learnt in the interactive mapping session to enhance the Powerpoint that I am using for my presentation. I feel that I have learnt many things and have broken down several barriers throughout this module with my thoughts on ICT. I feel a lot more confident in teaching a variety of ICT skills in my future placements now because of this module. I now hope that I have the opportunity to demonstrate this skills at some point!

Flowchats using Flowol!!

I found this task quite interesting as I have never tried to create a flowchart using a computer programme before. Initially I found it quite difficult, because I didn't put in enough commands to make everything link together! Once I had figured out how to delay everything, so it made sense as the Ferris Wheel rotated! My flow chart is quite long and complex, because I had not realised you could have several smaller flowcharts working at the same time. I shall remember this for next time I try to complete one or if I use it in schools.

I quite liked the flowchart task, because it did not take me that long to complete the task and I like how it works. It makes you think in a different way to some of the other tasks that we have had to complete during this module. I think that it could be quite useful in a primary classroom, but it will be more limited with its uses compared to some of the other tasks like the animation. I still think that if there is an opportunity to use it, then I will try to during my teaching.

The Module so Far!!

We are starting to head towards the end of the module now and this weeks lecture was about how technology has changed and what changes are happening at the moment. I didnt enjoy this lecture as much as some of the others, but I think it was because I already knew some of the information we were being told! I did however, learn a lot about some of the new technology that has been developed recently, some of it is incredible, all of the mood sensors etc really fascinated me and I find it amazing at all of the things that they have now created! Everything is changing so rapidly at the moment and I am starting to wonder where the limit will be, surely they can not keep developing the technology, or is it limitless?!

I am really enjoying this module of ICT. I have found the weekly tasks very interesting and I am looking forward to trying to use them next time I am in school! Everything that we have looked at, has been aimed at what we can do within any primary classroom and I think that this is a huge benefit of the module!

Geo-Technology!!

I found this weeks lecture and seminar very interesting and again it made me find out new ways of using ICT. I have been aware of some of the things that were mentioned, like Google Earth for example, but I have never used it in the ways that were suggested. I am interested in learning more about how I could use such programmes within the primary classroom, so I will be trying them out to see what could be used for different topics.

I enjoyed this weeks task, but not as much as the animation or podcasting task. It was useful to see how I could use an interactive map within teaching and I learnt several new skills for powerpoint etc, which will be very handy for future work. I did not find the task as interesting as previous tasks, but I think if I had been more involved with making the links for the map instead of just finding links on the internet then it would have been more worthwhile, I shall remember this for future teaching and make sure that the children are as fully involved as possible within the making of the interactive map.

Podcasting!!

I had never used podcasting before this week, or even downloaded one to watch, so I was quite intrigued by it, but also a little apprehensive. I thought that the task was going to be quite difficult and I wouldn't really know what I was doing, but once the seminar had started I had a quick chat with my tutor and all was explained really quickly!! I really enjoyed creating a podcast and I could see how well they would work within the primary classroom. I think that they are more useful than a radio show, because they can be created and downloaded at any time to listen again. I also think that they could be a great way to cross-link the curriculum, they can tie in ICT, Literacy and any other subject you want to talk about. The podcasting programme was quite straightforward and most children would be able to use it without much input from the class teacher. I was really impressed with how clear the podcast turned out and as long as you make sure you have some decent microphones, not a lot else can go wrong! I will definately be wanting to use this is when I am next in schools.

The Internet!!

There are many ways to get new ideas for teaching, but one of the easiest and most varied way is by using the internet. It generally is very quick to give you all of the ideas that you could want. There are several websites that I use when I am on placement to further the quality of the lessons that I teach.

www.primaryresources.co.uk

www.sparklebox.co.uk (It was not until my last placement that I started to use this site, but it is so useful, especially for children who have learning difficulties).

www.teachernet.gov.uk (This website is brilliant, full of loads of ideas and they link to the national curriculum really well).

There is one last piece that I would use during the teaching of my lesson when children needed to complete there own research, instead of letting them use the internet, espresso is brilliant. Your school needs to subscibe to it, but a lot of schools do and it is complete with its own filters and it is directed to the children, so they enjoy using it too!

Hope that some of these come in useful to you!

Music and ICT

This week we looked at how ICT can enhance the learning of Music. I found the task quite interesting, but there are sides to it that I did not always agree with it. I like the idea of being able to present and record music using ICT, but I do not always think it is as effective to produce music using ICT. I still think that it is important to give the children actual instruments that they can use and experiment with. Most schools are fortunate enough to a variety of instruments, but if that is not the case, then the ICT programmes could be used. The title of 'radio show' that we were given was too vague for my liking and in future I think I would be more specific with how I presented the topic to the children to complete. I did like how the music programme recorded the music and how simple it was to add or take away instruments. I also think it was interesting to hear how some instruments sounded on the programme, because from personal memory I thought some of them were slightly strange. The music programme was useful, but to me, nothing will compare to using real instruments to compose music and then maybe use ICT to record the compositions and listen back to them! It was an interesting session, because it made me realise that ICT may not always be the best idea for a lesson, but it always offers an alternative way of teaching.