Blog 10

Post-school visit informal blog

This week I undertook my second visit to school, where we began working with the children to complete the task of creating a talking book, surrounding a chosen article from the Convection of the right of the children. The article of focus for my group was article twenty nine, which stated; the right for every child to be the best that they can be (UNCRC, 1989). 

Initially, we had a period of planning before being assigned a group of children to work with. This I found valuable, as my group and I had the opportunity to discuss over additional ideas, as well as to plan how we would approach creating each section of our book. We also constructed three assessment targets that we sought to focus upon throughout the morning, including children’s knowledge and ability when using the technology, and in particular what skills they demonstrated and developed in doing so. Although this was extremely valuable for my own understanding of assessment, I was equally aware that the issue of assessment was one that was a continuous process and would require closer consideration and planning, throughout a unit of work or over a school year. As the (Future Lab, 2010) advocates; it is important to consider that fostering digital literacy is an on-going process, and that there is no quick-fix to its development, but instead, it should be a part of a student’s learning as they progress throughout their education.

The second part of the session involved us meeting the children and using the ipads to put together our book. It was clear that although the children were in year one, their confidence and capabilities at using the ipads were very advanced, and this was extremely stimulating to see. In support of this, evidence suggests that young children enter primary education having accrued a range of competencies in relation to digital technologies (Blanchard & Moore, 2010; Marsh et al., 2005), and this is alleged to be due to their development within the current digital generation (FutureLab, 2010). I was equally surprised at how eager the children were to participate throughout the task and to share their own ideas, and also how they worked so effectively as a group. Wheeler et al (2002) asserts that collaborative learning can enhance knowledge acquisition, and, when coupled with the use of digital technologies, can aid a generation of creative thought processes which encourages learners to take risks, make mistakes and think critically as they work together.

While the morning was extremely productive, we faced minor challenges in regards to timing. As Allen et al (2007) states; the issue of time when using ICT to support literacy can be an implication for teachers. However, in reflection of this, it is important to consider that our visit to the school was to provide us with an introductory experience in regards to utilising technology without the classroom and therefore in reality, the time given to teach a unit of work surrounding digital literacy would be considerably longer.

Overall, I found this experience extremely rewarding and beneficial for my development and future practice as a teacher. I look forward to exploring and experimenting with technology when on my final placement and look forward to returning in week 12 to share our talking book with the children and to observe the work of others.  

 

Allen, J., Potter, J., Sharp, J. & Turvey, K. (2007) Primary ICT: Knowledge, Understanding and Practice. Exeter: Learning Matters.

Blanchard, J., & Moore, T. (2010) The Digital World of Young Children: Impact on Emergent Literacy. Pearson foundation White Paper, accessed November 20, 2012: www.pearsonfoundation.org/downloads/EmergentLiteracy-WhitePaper.pdf

FutureLab (2010) Digital Literacy Across the Curriculum (Sections 3.1-3.4 Digital Literacy in Practice) http://www2.futurelab.org.uk/resources/documents/handbooks/digital_literacy.pdf

Marsh, J. Brooks, G., Hughes, J., Ritchie, L. Roberts, S. & Wright, K. (2005) Digital Beginnings: Young Children’s use of Popular Culture, Media and New Technologies. University of Sheffield (Section 2.10 p.46; Sections 3.2 & 3.3 p.48/49)  

Wheeler, S., Waite, S. & Bromfield (2002) ‘Promoting creative thinking through the Use of ICT’, Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 180 (3): 367-78  

United Nations (1989) United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), Geneva: United Nations.