ICT - I can use technology!

This was an extremely beneficial course and I just wanted to share a little acronym about what I thought that technology meant to me.

• T - TEACH

• E - EVERY

• C - CHILD

• H - HOW

• N - NEW

• O - ONLINE

• L - LEARNING

• O - OFFERS

• G - GREAT

• Y - YEARS OF KNOWLEDGE

Technology, the universal learning tool.

The course EDRL 6004 ICT in reading has finally come to an end and I must commend the lecturers for doing such a fantastic job on organizing and executing such a challenging course in a very short time. I have been informed about technology that I have always heard of but never really saw the need to use until now. The Web 2.0 tools are so beneficial for us as teachers, reading specialists and parents.

Wikis, podcasts and blogs can be used in a diverse number of ways to teach reading in our students. A wiki is a programme that is based on adding, deleting in essence editing information at any given time. Wikis are best used in the creative writing process but it can also be implemented in other reading areas as vocabulary, morphology, decoding, comprehension and fluency. Blogs on the other hand are used for adding comments to the topic of interest but the writer of the topic is the only one who can edit and others can only add comments. Blogs are not appropriate for writing but it can be used in the other areas of reading. According to Lewis (2010) “podcasts provide your students with excellent opportunities to access and create authentic digital audio and video material,” (p. 69). Students can therefore use podcasts to discuss their creative writing pieces, to discuss topics such as verbs in English Language and even narrate stories, or comment on a news-piece and present this as digital audio. Podcasts can be downloaded to mobile players therefore making it easily accessible that is to say you do not need to have a computer to view a podcast.

Digital story-telling and e-books are great ways to teach fluency, vocabulary, morphology and even comprehension. The concept mapping software is also beneficial to the classroom and us as developing reading specialists. All these forms of technology that I have learnt in this course are lifelong learning tools for my students, my children and me.

Podcasts in the classroom.

Podcasts are just another way in which one can record digital audio and video material. What makes podcasts different from other forms of technology is that they can be downloaded to other mobile devices so a computer is not always needed to view a podcast. Podcasts are also different since the recordings move away from reading scripts as outlined by Lewis (2010). Therefore there is a need to ensure that one notes his main ideas to be discussed on the podcasts. One needs to plan what he wishes to record as well as what format the podcast will be in, be it an interview, a commentary, a report or even a radio play as Lewis (2010) also discussed.

Digital audio recordings can also be edited numerous times until the final version is satisfactory and then it can be published. These recordings vary in lengths because of the number of participants during the recordings. Podcasts can be used by children to recite poems and broadcast it or even discuss topics of interest with their friends in particular reading topics. Podcasts encourage collaborative learning amongst children. It is a very simple recording to produce and can be accomplished in very little time.

Podcasts promotes individual creativity for the persons who speak for the digital recordings. I was a bit disappointed though that we were unable to fully engage in creating podcasts in the computer labs. I retain more knowledge when there is verbal guidance as was done with the other web 2.0 tools but time was insufficient and now we have to do some independent learning.

The Kindlemania

Kindle according to the dictionary means to stimulate. Stimulate your mind your brain with reading. The kindle is the radically novel way to enjoy reading a book. The ‘kindle’ is another noteworthy gadget to acquire for the avid reader. Reading a book is made easier and more accessible for this busy world but I wonder if Trinidadians are ready for this. At present I have not seen anyone using it but it’s not to say that the locals do not use it. The kindle is in its’ own way beneficial to man but will it eventually replace the age old tradition of relaxing and reading a book?

I honestly will not like to see this happen because people are depending too much on technology and one day it can all crash. With technology there is always need for backup because technology is unpredictable and you never know when it can fail you. Indeed technology is the way forward and the way for progress but as humans we must be aware that it is not always trustworthy. Is it possible to that in a few years time there will be no need for textbooks? You can have all your texts in the palm of your hands as well. The rate at which technology is changing this world nothing is impossible.

The kindle is a very creative piece of technology with boundless benefits. If our nation’s children have access to such a gadget I am quite sure that they too will be most interested and motivated to read. Children will be encouraged to read because of the new format that the reading material is presented in. Kindlemania is a universal trend with millions of people banking in on this gadget.

Bringing life to still pictures through - Digital Storytelling.

This style of moviemaking was the way of movie makers very long ago but the only difference is that there were no high tech computers as what exists today. I must say though that digital story telling is truly for me one of the most interesting pieces of software that I have tried since the inception of this course. I was amazed by what can be done to a picture and the way that you can move from a real life picture to one that looks like a drawing by simply clicking. As usual after this session on digital story telling I asked myself again, what will Mrs. Aisha Wood-Jackson amaze us with next.

Digital story telling can be used in other ways apart from telling a story. It can be used to teach children about life-cycles, to teach sequencing, to teach History, Language Arts and even Mathematics. Digital story telling can become the new teacher in the classroom. We as teachers can use it to prepare our lessons by getting the appropriate pictures and explanations to teach a concept. This will be a time-saver for most teachers and will pull teaching away from the traditional text to using the computer. By using digital story telling a teacher no longer relies on the overhead projector to show illustrations and neither does she have to lecture. Instead the lesson can already be prepared as a digital story and presented to the class. Such a teaching strategy will definitely motivate children to learn.

We as teachers can even use digital story to assist us in delivering reading workshops. As aspiring reading specialists this is an excellent way to conduct workshops in schools. The audience will be most interested since the mode of delivery for the workshop will not be a one man or woman lecture but rather a more interactive and fun approach.

Digital photography in the school.

Photographs encapsulate memories of a lifetime that one will forever treasure. However there is an art to photography that each must consider for it is not an inherited talent at least for me. I enjoy photography and sometimes wonder why this was not my profession. Despite this I still love my teaching career. In primary school we never had the opportunity to use cameras because back then photography in teaching students was non-existent. Today our children have enormous opportunities awaiting them to explore.

I have used digital photography in my Standard Five class in 2008-2009. I documented school activities, school festivals and school field trips in hopes of using it on a multimedia projector for their graduation in 2009. However this was not achieved because I was on sick leave at the time so I missed their graduation. This year though one of my fellow teachers did present a beautiful multimedia presentation on the graduates and I think that parents were most impressed. He also permitted students to bring in their digital cameras to take pictures of our teaching staff, ancillary staff, their friends and the school landscape so that they could create their very own school year book.

This was rather interesting because they were able to print and distribute it. By doing such a creative activity, students unleashed their hidden talents. For example they designed posters to inform teachers about a PHOTO DAY. That was the day when the members of staff had their photos taken by these students. I must say that I do intend to do these activities as well with my new Standard Five students after the 2011 exams. My plan hopefully will be for them to photograph and document their journey in Standard Five. The photographs from this activity can then be used by them to create a digital story.

The World of E-books

Electronic books, yet another super interactive way to teach reading and even writing to our students. I just wished that I was in school to implement this now and see the joys and enthusiasm from my second year class. They absolutely love computer time and I can see them having immense fun and learning in a session using e-books. E-books break the monotony of holding a book in your hand and flipping pages to read. It is just so fresh that children will surely not stop reading. E-books are like a mini-movie with words in it to tell the story and we all know how much our children love a television screen.

My plan although I am not in school is to create an E-book with my son. He is the only one that I know will truly benefit from such technology at this time. An e-book on numbers or the alphabet are simple ones to construct with him. He will definitely enjoy adding sounds and looking for pictures in the creation of this e-book. I can also see e-books being used as a format for a project instead of the traditional types of projects.

E-books can certainly be used with the de-motivated struggling reader. E-books present interactive learning so reading is fun and not a difficult task. Oldfather (1995) as cited in Tompkins (2010) stated that students were highly motivated when they had opportunities for self-expression as part of the literacy activities. When de-motivated readers are given the opportunity to create an e-book they will surely give their all into accomplishing this task since it is an opportunity for them to voice their opinions. I am certain that this is a valuable teaching and assessment tool that will promote reading and writing for our children. This is yet another simple ICT tool that makes learning enjoyable.