Audacity January 28, 2008
Posted by cre8tor in Creative use of ICT, Developing and training teachers and students.add a comment
Some members of my department mentioned that they wouldn’t mind putting together some podcasts for Year 11s to use for their revision. I showed them how to use Audacity to create Audio very simply. For the more advanced I showed how you could easily add other sound tracks for either background music or to emphasize a point to make the points more memorable. To help them with this I quickly showed them a number of great sites for free sound clips and effects.
Office Planning January 28, 2008
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Planning Wizard used in Year 10 Business and Communication Studies for students to plan their own office environment after covering theory about open plan and cellular office and discussing the different needs of different types of business. Also thinking about the motivation of employees and how the working environment can have an impact on productivity. This tool could also be used in a number of other subjects when discussing work space.
After an initial pilot by me I briefed other staff in both Business and ICT about the success and gave them a demo and links.
I am also experimenting with Google Sketch Up to check out its flexibility and ease of use to gage how it could be used in the classroom.
Forums January 26, 2008
Posted by cre8tor in Creative use of ICT, Developing Student Attainment, Developing and training teachers and students.add a comment
I have used Forums within Business Studies to form part of homework to provoke discussion about a topic, an issue or news stories we have covered in class. I have also used it as a way to conduct peer assessment where students comment, give feedback and using a mark scheme grade each others work. Students can comment on each other comments where they disagree or want to clarify the discussion points.
This has also been used in othe subjects now after some informal training with interested teachers who heard what I had been doing.
Online Questionnaires January 26, 2008
Posted by cre8tor in Continued Professional Development, Creative use of ICT, Developing and training teachers and students, Experience outside the classroom.add a comment
I have helped a wide variety of staff to develop online questionnaires to help them gather feedback quickly and easily from parents and staff. These have ranged from transition questionnaires to gain feedback from Year 7 parents to PSHE questionnaires to gage curriculum feedback from students.
I have also used surveymonkey.com in the classroom to allow students to collect Market Research information as part of the Business and ICT curriculum. Students have found this really useful and has also ensured students deal with real data and more of it. Many students post their questionnaires on Forums or email thems to their sample which acheives an excellent response and is far easier and quicker than asking individuals.
Ripley TV and Radio January 26, 2008
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Launched this week the call to develop a Ripley TV and Radio stations. The vision is to have students running their own TV and Radio station by organising themselves and producing news articles about all things Ripley, from sport to articles about new staff and extra curricular activities. Initially, all media will be recorded and edited but eventually the opportunity to stream live using mogulus.com.
Camtasia and Captivate January 26, 2008
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I have started to use Camtasia over the past year to produce tutorials and vodcasts that students can use to develop their ICT skills and complete coursework. This has been great as a way for students to have a teacher there with an explanation 24/7 and they can even download and watch on their video Ipods. It also allows me as the teacher to spend more time with struggling students and helps students develop their indpeendent learning skills.
I am also looking to start using Camtasia for students to use as a way of explaining why and how they have used software as an alternative to endless screen shots.
At Trinity Academy I introduced Captivate as a tool for the Business, Information Technology and Enterprise (BITE) to produce interactive tutorials and tests. A brief overview of the software was given during a department meeting which led to 6 of the department producing learning resources.
Video conferencing January 26, 2008
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The first time I used video conferencing in an Educational context was 7 years ago while working at BAE Systems. We used it as part of the 2 week work experience project I organised for 20 Year 10 students. This allowed students to communicate with employers of BAE Systems all over the world to gather information for their ‘Bid’ they were working on.
As a teacher I have used video conferencing to allow students to receive presentations from business people who would otherwise find it hard to spare a day coming to the school but are more than prepared to give up an hour through video conferencing and using WebEx. More recently I have been investigating using MSN and Skype to allow students to collaborate and work with businesses.
I have also faciliated the Science department with Year 8’s to take part in a video conference with 4 other schools where each school took it in turns to present a project they had been working on.
Video January 26, 2008
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I have used video in a variety of contexts including students producing Health and Safety videos, Revision guides and topic summaries as well as acting act business scenarios.
Using video has led to other staff becoming interested in using it within their subjects which have naturally provided me with the opportunity to give informal training on how to organose the activity and also give them suggestions on how they could produce a series of lessons to include video production and editing.
Animation in RE January 26, 2008
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I demonstrated to the RE department how they could use animation as an activity for students to demonstrate learning. Whether it was recreating a story from the bible, looking at different traditions in other a variety of religions or simply as an outlet to explain or argue the students own point of view.
Due to being at a very early stage we simply used Microsfot Movie Maker and a web cam to produce the animations. Before I left I suggested for them to look to use a variety of programs including I Can Animate (Kudlian) which I considered easy to use and very cheap for a specific animation software.
MSN Messenger January 26, 2008
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I have used MSN messenger to help communication with students using as a virtual drop in sessions on certain days and times. I have also used it as a way to engage converstaion about a topic or an issue.
This gave students especially those who found it hard to contribute in a class discussion to interact and allowed me to assess them in another way. This approach I found students to enjoy and even though they were working and developing their thought process.
Whole school Moodle Development January 26, 2008
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In my current position I have the responsibility to develop and implement Moodle across the curriculum. This experience has meant quickly learning the new technology so I am an authority on it within school. It has also meant developing an understanding of where departments and individuals are upto in terms of using technology to allow me to taylor suggestions on how they can start to use Moodle. I have also arranged and delivered training to staff on an individual, departmental and formal cross departmental level. It has also required introduction training to my classes I have developed online courses for.
Please click the image below to take a look at the Ripley St Thomas Moodle site so far…
ICT across the Curriculum Inset Training January 26, 2008
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I have also run an INSET event giving staff many ideas on how they could use ICT. The content included covering aspects such as video, audio, animation, vle’s, video conferencing. It also highlighted some top resources from websites to organisations. The training was very successful and gained me the reputation of “I.T. Guru” and led to development of basic ICT skill workshops ranging from interactive whiteboard training to basic use of powerpoint. The training also introduced the possibility of integrating and using technology that students have access to in new and innovative ways for example use of mobile phones and hand held gaming platforms such as Playsattion Portables.
Enterprise Days January 26, 2008
Posted by cre8tor in 14-19 Agenda, Creative use of ICT, Experience outside the classroom.add a comment
I have organised and led a number of Enterprise Days in two different schools in the most recent students were split into company teams ranging from BAE Systems to Sony. The activities were very practical but integrated the use of ICT in some of the tasks that allowed teams to pick up bonus marks.
Scenario
The Djibouti government after years of civil war and recent discovery of huge gas and oil reserves are ready to spend big to improve the infrasture of the country.
The 11 companies have been invited to discuss customer requirements, negotiate contracts, then produce the items on time and to the required specifications as outlined by the contract.
Successful day
The feedback from students was exceptionally positive with many enterprising skills being developed throughout the day. There was a big focus on feedback, communication, financial capability, risk taking and organisation.
The short video provides highlights of the day:
If you can not see a video above please view it by clicking here
Blogging training January 26, 2008
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To meet the need to allow teachers to develop their own understanding in their own time and in a time and place to support them I developed a blogging training resource. This helped support sessions that I ran but also allowed me to direct students to the blog for them to develop their skills (which actually led to 60 year 7 and 8 students developing their own blogs at lunch and in their own time). To see the blogging guide please click the image below.
