10. The Use of Colors & Designs in Learning

Type: reactionary to Libby

I have just read Libby’s post on article titled ‘Web design features’, it was a short article, but meaningful in a way that it was so straight forward.

As I haven’t been doing creative arts for long time, I remember the last time that I had an art lesson was in…yr?? yr 8? I’ve never been creative ever since I was a little child. But I’m extra conscious in colour matching in both clothes and decorations at home. Because I believe a good use of color match could really brighten up the day, (also see color principle chart at Libby’s post).

I strongly agree with Libby when she said “some people definitely overdo their websites with annoying flashy images and an overuse of colour which really don’t need to be there.”

I’ve almost forgotten about how colors could capture and arouse young children’s attention. One day if I were becoming a teacher, I’d have to create all sorts of teaching tools and materials, e.g. worksheet, sight-word list, LAMs or even creating my own teaching website. Let’s imagine that all worksheets from school are in black and white, I don’t think children would find them interesting and want to explore the content, this is only my personal opinion.

Hopefully I can further refine my skills in the use of colours in my teaching materials, so it can arouse children’s attention and interest in the future.

Reference

Article: Web Design Features

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/61564361@N00/417514326

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

9. Sand Castles Go Digital??

Type: Reactionary post to Libby

I have read Libby’s blog about the website Mamamedia, and the supporting article ‘Sand castles go digital’. I agree with Libby and found it meaningful at the same time, that it combines play with learning. It binds closely with the constructionism way of learning and student-centered method.

The author suggested that children are playing to learn and learning to play and is the most powerful way of learning: constructionist learning. It also stated that children learn best when they are in the active roles of designer and constructor, which I whole heartedly agree with both author and Libby.

One of the limitations of building a sandcastle on the beach is that it’s not a lasting learning environment. While the digital beach replaces the difficulties that people have accessing a physical beach. As anyone can access the digital beach (shell party at mamamedia) at home, where children can have fun playing the game, while they’re learning things about the beach at the same time. Disregard the factors that prevent people from going to the beach, such as, poor weather, cold climate, or simply they just don’t have the time.

Reference

Article: Sand Castles Go Digital

Mamamedia: http://mamamedia.com/

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/65414509@N00/2819175465

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

Anna’s Mid-Semester Overview

Here I go half way through the semester, I have found this subject both interesting and challenging. Before engaging in this subject, I thought that I was quite technology-literate, I can use all sorts of technologies just like everyone else is using, e.g. emailing, facebook, text messaging, performing online search. But soon after the subject started, I have discovered that I’m falling behind, as every week we’re introduced to new educational software that I’ve never seen or heard of, then I started to struggle.

By reading the literature and posting my thoughts on the blog has been a real eye-opening experience for me on how children learn and how technologies incorporate into different KLAs. I’ve never thought of children as little as Kindergarten year would be able to make a video or a podcast. I’m amazed how kids are picking up new technologies so quickly.

I remember at the age of 19, my family had bought the first computer, due to the fact that I have so many siblings. As a result, I didn’t really have the chance to use the pc. At that time we’re using ‘dial-up’, it connected through a phone line, and the speed was so slow. An ordinary page took at least 15 seconds to load.

Throughout my studying at primary and high school, computers weren’t so popular both at school and at home, partly was due to the fact that it was quite expensive. Not to mention how technologies could enhance learning? We had to do assignments in hand-written form and perform our search merely based on looking for books at the library.

If technologies were so popular and could incorporate to learning in different KLAs just like today, guess I’d have performed much better academically. As it does really enchance learning in a way that’s more interesting and interactive. 

Reference

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/64707145@N00/3220820691

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

8. Bricoleur…??

Type: Reactionary post to Libby

By browsing around Libby’s blog, suddenly there was a heading that captured my attention…a term that I’ve never seen or heard of – ‘Bricoleur’. Libby’s post was based on Matthew Kearney’s blog titled ‘young people as digital bricoleur’.

Soon after I’ve read both Mathew Kearney’s and Libby’s blog. I’ve perform a search on a few online dictionaries, but none of them offered this term. At last I’ve found it at Onelook and I’ve discovered the definition wasn’t really related to the theme. I believe Libby’s definition (where she found it at Wikipedia) was more accurate.

I agree with Libby that the bricoleur method is a way for children to learn through trying, experimenting and exploring. It is a problem solving method where learners use discovery approach to learn, which is a learner-based method.

Matthew mentioned about Web2.0 spaces, which I’ve never heard of, but he wrote “it enables young people to actively participate in tasks, giving them a ‘voice’ and a strong sense of audience as they explore, share and interact with others”. It seems like a good educational tool to assist children to learn. I think I have to do a search on that.

I’ve found these 2 blogs meaningful as I’m a fan of student-centered learning, I believe children would learn best through making their own discoveries and  it would be much easier for them to memorise what they’ve learned.

Reference

Article:

Brown, J. (2000). Growing up digital: How the web changes work, education, and the ways people learn. Change.

Hsi, S. (2007). Conceptualizing learning from the everyday activities of digital kids.
International Journal of Science Education, 29:12, 1509 – 1529.

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/73645804@N00/2908834853

Dictionary:

http://home.comcast.net/~wwftd/abc.htm#bricoleur

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

7. Constructionism Vs. Constructivism

Type: Reactionary post to Libby

After reading Libby’s post and the article, I have to agree with Libby that the article is extremely long…but interesting.

I often heard people talking about the term ‘constructionism’ in class, but I don’t have a clear understanding of it, the only thing that I could relate it to was Jean Piaget’s theory. This article provides an insightful point of view of constructionism, learning by design and project based learning.

The article started off with a recount of a meeting hosted by Kayla Johnson, it was a good example of project-based learning, as participants were given assigned tasks and in 6 weeks time, they’d share their results, exchanging thoughts and even write critique and comment on other people’s works.

I’ve also found the difference between the terms ‘constructionism’ and ‘constructivism’. I agree with Libby that children learn best when a learner-centered approach is used. Where teacher acts as a brainstormer instead of a lecturer. Children discover and explore new knowledge, rather than just learning from books. Both the process and the result are important as children learn through working on project-based learning and hence they could even share the results, understanding and thoughts with other people, I believe that is what children would be highly

motivated to do.

Reference

Article: Constructionism, Learning by Design and Project Based Learning

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/34427470616@N01/3207199806

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

6. Games are Teaching Kids to THINK!!

Type: Reactionary post to Penny and Libby

Please find article here. 

After reading Penny and Libby’s post I have an urge to read the controversial article-‘high score education’ written by by James Paul Gee. I intend to find out why both Penny and Libby didn’t seem to agree with it.

Penny wrote “which respective child will ever understand mathematics, or write a report by playing the Legend of Zelda?” I do agree with her. Because children could never improve their literacy and numeric levels just by sitting in front of the TV playing video games.

I haven’t played videogames for years, but my personal experience on playing ‘final fantasy’ and ‘resident evil’ when I was in high school did draw out a bad example. I was the kind of player who once started a game, then I’d have to finish it in one go. It took me slightly over a week to finished ‘resident evil’, and I didn’t sleep that whole week. Excessive playing of videogames does have a bad impact on health.

I do agree when the author stated that “good videogames incorporate the principle of expertise. They tend to encourage players to achieve total mastery of one level, only to challenge and undo that mastery in the next, forcing kids to adapt and evolve.” I do agree with it in a way that videogames do play a role in encouraging players to conquer all the obstacles and challenges in order to get to the next level. But apart from that, I’m thinking if I were spending time studying instead of playing the videogames, maybe I could have achieved a lot better at school. Videogames are too time-consuming, especially the good ones, once the player has started, they’ll have to spend a great deal of time to finish it.

Reference

Article: High Score Education, Games, not School are Teaching Kids to Think

Image:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/51035614490@N01/418263959

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

5. ‘Digital Youth Portrait – Olivia’

Type: Regular, self-sourced, informal

Find the video in here.

‘Digital Youth Portrait – Olivia’ is a 7 mins video that I’ve found in Edutopia. It’s about a 17-yr-old, typical senior high school student in California, USA, and how she views technology.

Olivia uses technologies everyday, she’s not just having internet access from school and from home (to study online, to search information for her assignments, to hand in homework), and to communicate with friends, (email, my space and facebook). But also she’d carried a mobile phone (calls and text messaging) and i-pod (stored over 200 songs) with her everyday and everywhere she goes. All that doesn’t stop her from being a good student, in fact, it’s actually helping her in her educational needs.

After seeing this video, I’m surprised how students are using technologies at an overwhelming level, it seems like people can’t live without them. I feel that in order to become a good, well-informed teacher in the future, I’d need to familiarise myself with different technologies to keep up with the students’ needs.

One of the most important technologies for me to learn would be the Smartboard, but there are only 3 Smartboards in my practicum school, hopefully when I return next semester, my Kindergarten class would have a smartboard installed, so that I could experience it. Or else I’d have to visit the 3 classes which have it.

Reference

Video: Digital Youth Portrait – Olivia

Image: Children using iphone 

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

4. Technologies Enhance Visual Learning

Type: Regular, self-sourced, formal

You can find the article by clicking here.

This is a self-sourced formal literature on how technologies enhance learning. By reading this article I’m amazed how straight forward learning can be? As the authors suggested that a well-equipped classroom will need to have internet access to resource, such as Scholastic’s Visual Dictionary. For instance, don’t know what a ‘tidal pool’ is? Simply type in the word and perform an image search, then the student will understand, because a picture is worth a thousand words.

The students can also be asked to create graphs by using Microsoft Excel spreadsheets that are quickly turned into charts, and they’ll be highly motivated to explain their product to the class. This is one of the ways where technology mixes with maths lessons.

A digital image can also stimulate creative writing for students, teacher can show a digital photo to the children and ask them to write up a story about it in a form of a narrative. This could make a really good English lesson, where learning takes place when students are creative, rather than just following instructions. This is a very good example of how creativeness combines with literature.

Reference

Article:

Lambert, M., & Carpenter, M. (2005). Visual Learning: Using Images to Focus Attention, Evoke Emotions, and Enrich Learning. Multimedia & internet @ schools.Retrieved 9^th June 2009.

Image:

www.flickr.com/photos/98055656@N00/124341130

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

3. Making History Come Alive

Type: Regular

Please find the article here.

I really enjoyed reading this article, it’s a real eye-opener to how technologies could enhance learning. It’s about a group of yr 10 & yr 12 students that conducted a video-based interview on European Holocaust survivors.

Due to the students experienced first-hand information through interacting with the survivors, they could even feel the emotions that the war had left behind: blood, sweat, love, death. This is a very good way of learning history that I’ve never thought of, if I were given a chance to interact with the war survivors in a way like this and make a video, instead of learning history merely from books, I think I’d have done a lot better.

Students’ interviews are not published at the museums or researcher centers, where only a limited numbers of people could see. Their works are published on the web sites for public access, so that everyone could benefit from watching their interviews.

Even though, the interviews weren’t produced by students from K-6, I’ve found it meaningful and useful in a way how technology could incorporate into learning in the KLA of history. A real example of making history come alive.

Reference

Article:

Levin, H. (2003). Making history come alive: Students interview Holocaust survivors and publish their stories. Learning and Leading with Technology 31(3), 22-27.

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/81464596@N00/3420128218

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma

2. Computer as Paint Brush

Type: Regular

Please find the article here.

I strongly agree with the author that “we need to start seeing computers not simply as information machines, but also as a new medium for creative design and expression.” I believe that teacher should always be flexible and open-minded not only to the KLAs on how children perform and learn in class, but also the new technology that incorporate in teaching. As we’re preparing today’s students for tomorrow’s society. In order to use the best possible way to teach the children, we have to constantly learn new technologies so we can keep up-to-date.

Research found that learners become deeply engaged by “hard fun” – in other words, learners don’t mind activities that are hard as long as the activities connect deeply with their interests and passions (Papert, 1993). The article also stated that many of children’s best learning experiences come when they are engaged not simply in interacting with materials but in designing, creating, and inventing with them (Papert, 1980; Resnick, 2002). Perhaps the above quotes explained the terms ‘hard fun’ and ‘edutainment’. Where learning takes place when children are exploring and discovering in an interactive environment, rather than just sitting up straight in class, listening to what the teacher’s instructions.

Reference:

Article:

Resnick, M. (2006). Computer as Paintbrush: Technology, Play, and the Creative Society. In Singer, D., Golikoff, R., and Hirsh-Pasek, K. (eds.), Play = Learning: How play motivates and enhances children’s cognitive and social-emotional growth. Oxford University Press.

Image: www.flickr.com/photos/27315689@N00/749317332

Anna =)

Add comment June 21, 2009 emmmmmmma