Multimedia and multi literacies in the primary school: Linking theory and Practice - first school visit

The first visit to the local Primary School was a thoroughly enjoyable, insightful experience.  I have not witnessed much enthusiasm around the use of technology and media in my previous school experiences, therefore seeing this in the school was delightful.  From the outset, the ICT co-ordinator expressed passion regarding his specialist subject which shone through, immediately engaging me.  Therefore, I can only assume that the children would feel the same way.  It is important to note, therefore, that enthusiastic teachers are essential for productivity.  I was immediately surprised at the vast amount of technology and media resources the school possesses, in particular the professional radio station.  It is evident that ICT is a key component of the school day as its integration into the curriculum was highlighted.  It interested me how the radio station was used to its full potential by working towards reducing the amount of children being late to school, as children cherish this opportunity.

There was a large amount of IPads already present within the school which shows how technologically advanced the school already is.  The world is quickly changing technologically and we need to equip children with the specified skills to be digital citizens in the future.  Male and Burden (2013) emphasize that personal digital devices can challenge traditional pedagogy.  As schools are beginning to introduce the IPad, children will have access to the internet.  This raises safety issues, but also the authority and expertise of the teacher may be undermined as children are gaining more ownership (Burden et al, 2012 in Male and Burden, 2013).  Therefore, teachers should find an appropriate balance towards children’s freedom within learning and teacher facilitation.  Additionally, it was noted by a head teacher speaking in Male and Burden (2013:9) that “corporate systems that lock everything down” can obstruct learning opportunities.  Such devices in school can offer fantastic learning resources, but this may be a challenge that I have to face in the future.

Having trialled some of the apps on the IPad, ready for use with the children next week, I feel a little nervous as this is the first time I have used the majority, apart from ‘Book Creator’ which we used in a university seminar.  However, I am looking forward to creating a ‘Talk Book’ with the children as it will be a challenging, yet worthwhile experience.  This will include various media sources, including video, animation and Tellagami.  As is mentioned by Brook (2010:117), “lack of skills, time a money” are issues that are most likely to prevent teachers from making films and using creative media in the classroom.  Nevertheless, I am aware that the children are familiar with the use of an IPad and the apps, therefore I will make use of these connections next week and make it a joint learning experience. 

Another challenge will be the amount of time we have available as it is only a short session.  Some of this time will be used getting to know the children as it will be the first time in which we meet.  I believe that it is important to build a professional relationship with children in order to gain the most out of a learning experience.

A question that arises for me as a result of today’s visit is how the children will react to my group’s ideas for the article we have chosen.  I believe that the children’s ideas should be fully integrated into the project.  However, due to the time available we have already created a basic plan.  Moreover, I am curious to see if the children are familiar with the specific apps we would like to use within the project.

Bibliography

Brook, T. (2010) ‘Digital Glue: Creative Media in the Classroom’ in Bazelgette, C. (Ed) Teaching Media in Primary Schools. London: Sage

Male, T. and Burden, K. (2013) ‘Access denied?  Twenty-first-century technology in schools’ Technology, Pedagogy and Education

 

E-safety and Ethics

With the ever-growing technological world, children are going to inevitably access the internet and it is up to parents and teachers to monitor this.  As Prensky (2001) indicates, today’s children are socialising in a very different way from their parents, with over 200,000 emails and instant messages being sent and received all before the child leaves school.  Today’s children are ‘digital natives’ and are growing up in a technological world.  92 per-cent of children aged 9-19 have accessed the internet at school, with 71 per-cent owning a computer, 38 per-cent owning a mobile phone and 17 per-cent owning a digital television, all with internet access (Livingstone and Bober, 2005) (online).  Therefore, E-Safety is an aspect which needs to be closely considered, both at school and home. 

 

Technology and ICT is becoming more prevalent in schools and it was noted by a head teacher speaking in Male and Burden (2013:9) that “corporate systems that lock everything down” can obstruct learning opportunities.   Such devices in school can offer fantastic learning resources, but there is always the issue of E-Safety, which could cause a dilemma.  However, children are constantly going to be exposed and able to access inappropriate material, which brought about a view by Becta (2010:3) (online) signalling that children “should learn to manage risks, whenever and wherever they go online, and understand safe and responsible behaviour in using technology at their learning provider, in the workplace, in the home and beyond”.  The Byron Review (2008) (online) supports by suggesting that we need to empower children to manage these risks, as opposed to focusing on media causing harm.  Therefore, addressing these issues and educating children about them can provide a safer home and working environment. 

 

However, this could cause controversy within today’s world due to parental anxiety.  This is witnessed within outdoor play as parents can restrict children’s physical activity, play and freedom outside supervised environments (Palmer, 2006), which could be the case for the media and internet.  If children are not exposed to the risks and learn how to overcome them, there may be the issue of continuous naivety and vulnerability.  Nevertheless, The Byron Review (2008) (online) recognises E-Safety within the school as “reducing availability, restricting access and increasing resilience to harmful and inappropriate material online”.  Restricting access links back to possible obstruction of learning activities, highlighting the controversy surrounding this issue.  However, trying to restrict access to inappropriate online material can be seen positively within the home.  Palmer (2006) considers the control of electronic media by parents by reinstating the television, computers and console games into the family space.  This could be a way forward for E-Safety and Palmer (2006) suggests the educational benefits of such media.  Internet surfing, word-processing and the creation of own websites and video presentations all involve “higher order thought processes and command of language and literacy skills” (Palmer, 2006:268).  Therefore, the control of technology within the home supports children’s education, together with E-Safety.

                                 

The Byron Review (2008:5) (online) indicates the three Cs of E-Safety as content, contact and conduct, with the two main issues being grooming and cyber bullying.  As has been previously stated, educating children regarding the risks of the internet is the main way forward for protecting children from inappropriate material.  The website, ‘KidSMART’, is a useful, child friendly site for educating children about internet safety.

 

Moreover, there are organisations available for dealing with issues regarding children’s internet safety and it is the teacher’s responsibility to behave professionally and appropriately when dealing with suspicions or disclosures.  There is an online protection centre called the ‘Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre’ which is available for reporting such suspicions. 

 

To conclude, although there can be safety issues regarding the internet, many beneficial aspects arise from using the internet which should be celebrated.  Teachers should be aware of all aspects of the internet and the current legal requirements, national policies and safeguarding guidance available to promote children’s well-being.

 

Bibliography

Becta (2010) Safeguarding in a digital world: An overview for learning providers. Coventry: Author (accessed 25/03/14) http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/behaviour/qsaav/docs/safeguarding-digital-world-learning-providers.pdf

 

Byron Review (2008) Safer Children in a Digital World: The Report of the Byron Review. Nottingham: DCSF (accessed 25/03/14) http://dera.ioe.ac.uk/7332/1/Final%20Report%20Bookmarked.pdf

 

Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre http://ceop.police.uk/ (accessed 25/03/14)

 

KidSMART http://www.kidsmart.org.uk/beingsmart/ (accessed 25/03/14)

                                                                     

Livingstone, S. and Bober, M.  (2005) UK Children Go Online: final report of key project findings. London: LSE Research (online) (accessed 25/03/14) http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/399/1/UKCGO_Final_report.pdf

 

Male, T. and Burden, K. (2013) ‘Access denied?  Twenty-first-century technology in schools’ Technology, Pedagogy and Education

Palmer, S. (2006) Toxic Childhood: How The Modern World Is Damaging Our Children And What We Can Do About It, London: Orion

Prenksy, M (2001) ‘Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part II: Do They Really Think Differently?’ On the Horizon 9 (6)

 

Shirley Warren Week 2

During our second visit to Shirley Warren we worked as a group to create a ‘talking book,’ using the app book creator. Our goal was to produce a double page spread incorporating a range of digital media, about children’s rights. Our group contained five children and three adults, providing substantial support for the task in hand. Using our planning from the previous session we focused on encouraging the children to work collaboratively to maintain the desired outcome, as well as taking into account learning objectives we wanted the children to cover. Due to our chosen article and theme for the task, ‘all children have a right to privacy,’ we were able to ask the group suitable questions to suggest the right to privacy when being online. This made a good quality link towards to the new National Curriculums learning intention for Key Stage 1 to learn using ‘technology safely and respectfully’ (DfE, 2013: 179).

Throughout the day we included a lot of discussion within the group to enable the inclusion of ideas and for the children to feel in charge of their work and learning. I was surprised at how well the children participated within the group and contributed to the task. Considering they were participating and experiencing a new learning experience shared with adults they had not met before. I found that I had underestimated the age group and their ability to use, in this case ipads, so sufficiently. The children’s responses and contributions throughout the session demonstrated their ability to think completely independently but to bring their ideas together as a group. For example, as a group we were trying to work out how to crop a video using the app imovie, one of the children contributed and said, “Maybe if you drag this” whilst carrying out the corresponding movement with his fingers. This demonstrated the child’s creative thinking in order to solve the problem. Cennamo, Ross and Ertmer (2014: 55) argue that creative thinking is higher order thinking, which can promote deep learning once teachers put real problems into context. This example of the child’s contribution has modelled the child engaged with the learning whilst demonstrating higher order thinking to independently provide a solution to the problem.

Using a range of media and therefore different apps throughout the task was challenging due to different questions and barriers that arose for each app. Thankfully we could turn the minor hiccups into problem solving tasks. However the day would have run more smoothly if I had felt completely confident using the different apps with the children. An implication for my future practice would be to always associate myself fully with a new piece of technology or app before carrying out a lesson, which will allow me to plan for the best learning opportunities for that lesson. Brooks-Young (2007:34) suggests the importance of feeling prepared to use technology in the classroom and the positive effect it can have on teaching, ‘as your level of confidence with technology grows, your ability to make adjustments in technology use will also increase’.

Overall the ability of all the individuals within the group went beyond my expectations and in fact I learnt a lot from them!  It answered many of my questions (found in the previous blog) and allowed me to practice communicating to the children using the relevant vocabulary - which I had not much previous experience in. Also a note to say the children's reactions and focus was excellent therefore we finished the task in hand with time to spare! This experience has set implications for my future practice, that I should not underestimate a young child’s experience and confidence when using different digital devices and media. Thus demonstrating the profound ideology of Palfrey and Gassers ‘Digital Natives’ and the impressive effect growing up in a digital world can have on a child’s knowledge and experience when using digital devices.

Brooks-Young, S. (2007) Digital-Age Literacy for Teachers: Applying Technology Standards to Everyday Practice Washington: ISTE Publications

Cennamo, K. Ross, J. and Ertmer, P. (2014) Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards Based Approach, 2^nd edition, Wadsworth: Cenage Learning

DfE (2013) The National Curriculum in England 2014 [online] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/244223/PRIMARY_national_curriculum3.pdf (Accessed 23rd March 2014)

http://www.unicef.org/rightsite/files/rights_leaflet.pdf (Accessed 23rd March 2014)

Thoughts on use of technology in a local Primary School

I found it very surprising that there was a huge amount of technology in this school, it seems very well equipped, which I think is not the case in every Primary School (2005, More than words 2). I am a bit worried about the children’s skills in filming and animating since they are only 5. But to help the children get the most of it they are working in small groups so that we have a chance to assist them as much as needed (2012, The Impact of Digital Technology on Learning).

I am a bit challenged with the time frame, as my general experience tells me that when you are working with technology and children it can take more time than planned. We only have 2 * 45 min to do 2 pages of a multi modal book. If we had had a week we could have engaged the group to cooperate as a team on deciding what to represent on the pages (Evans, 2008). But since we do not have the time, it is important that we have a clear plan made in the group before entering school.

Since I am afraid that my own skills on the iPad could be weak I will have to test all the Apps that we will use. That must be important for a more effective teaching. This is also one of the things that concern me about using technology in the classroom. It is constantly changing (Walsh,2010) and you need to be up to date with the newest technology all the time. Most apps and programs I have been tought those last months are all new to me. The ones we use in Denmark are different ones. So I am excited to go into school next week and see how the output will be.

Bibliography

QCA/UKLA (2005) More than words 2: Creating Stories on page and screen.  London: QCA

2012, School of Education. (The Impact of Digital Technology on Learning) [pdf] Durham University: Education Endowment Foundation. Available at http://learn2.winchester.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/286045/mod_resource/content/1/Higgins%20et%20al%20Impact%20of%20Digital%20Technology%20on%20Learning.pdf [Accessed 22 March 2014].

Evans, A.E.. (2008) 'The joys of text' Think, educate, svare [Online] 1, (1) 1. Available at http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=394636 [Accessed 22 March 2014

Walsh (2010) Australien journal of language and literacy. Vol 33 no.3 pp.211-239

Internet Safety in the Classroom

The use of digital devices in the classroom is becoming more and more familiar. Therefore more safety precautions and training is needed to uphold e-safety, particularly for children when using the internet. Palfrey and Gasser (2008:2) describe the generation after 1980 as ‘Digital natives’, people and more specifically children of the population, who have been born into a digital world, resulting in them being constantly exposed and connected to the digital world thus connected by a common culture. The recognition of Palfrey and Gassers, Digital Natives is reflected in the new Primary National Curriculum, stating that the purpose of study and learning the subject computing is to ‘ensure that pupils become digitally literate... as active participants in a digital world’ (DfE, 2013: 178).

Ofcom (2013) highlights the magnitude of time primary aged children are spending on the internet weekly. The statistics expose 5-7 year olds are spending up to 6.7 hours a week, whilst 8-11 year olds are spending 9.2 hours online per week. These figures count for the time children are spending online at home and therefore could be doing so without guidance or suitable controls. Furthermore, research carried out by Livingstone and Bober (2005:3) shows that 46% of children have given out personal information to someone they have met online. Therefore the need for educating young pupils about e-safety is imperative for the amount of time they are using the internet alone and unsupervised.

Teachers play the principal role in providing a good education for children; they have the responsibility to ultimately empower children to handle problems that are likely to arise online (Palfrey and Gasser, 2008). This presents a demand on teachers to educate children so that they can effectively protect themselves online at school and at home. Moreover, Cohen, Manion, Morrison and Wyse (2010: 61) argue computers are not a substitute but a powerful tool which teachers can choose to use effectively to ultimately enhance learning. Not only does this emphasize the knowledge teachers are accustomed to know in order to improve and develop learning but the pressure they have to empower and educate children on a matter of such high importance alongside this.

The concern of e-safety does not stay within the school environment. Livingstone and Bobers (2005) findings illustrate that 75% of 9-19 year olds have access to the internet at home as well as 19% of computers being situated in private rooms. Therefore providing children opportunities to surf the internet at home and unsupervised, risks the exposure to accessible harmful material. Palfrey and Gasser (2008: 82) argue parents have the same responsibility as teachers, to aid Digital Natives in making good choices about their personal information whilst being online, especially sites such as social networks.Teachers only have the ability to supervise the use of the internet and devices at school and not at home. This can become an issue when schools find themselves dealing with cases of inappropriate behaviour online but outside of the school; this is a grey area as there is no clear statutory plan or approach in place for whether schools should intervene or not (Giant, 2013:27).

The charity, NSPCC, provides training, information and resources for teachers and parents on how to keep children safe online. This resource can be used as an important tool for teachers and parents to help children make the right choices online to keep them safe from the dangers the internet can expose. Katz (2012) highlights the urgency of providing support and advice for young and vulnerable people. Further, Kutz (2012, 116-117) provides a summary of e-safety programme elements which can be implemented by all schools to recognize the importance of e-safety and support this within each school ethos; including ‘educate parents’.

Cohen, L., Manion, L., Morrison, K. and Wyse, D. (2010) A Guide to Teaching Practice, 5th edition, Oxon: Routledge

Giant, N. (2013) E-Safety for the I-Generation: Combating the Misuse and Abuse of Technology in Schools London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Kutz, A. (2012) Cyberbullying and E-Safety: What Educators and Other Professionals Need to Know London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Livingstone, S. and Bober, M. (2005) UK Children Go Online: Final report of key project findings [online] London: Department of Media and Communication http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/28_04_05_childrenonline.pdf [Accessed 15th March 2014] http://www.nspcc.org.uk/help-and-advice/for-parents/online-safety/online-safety_wdh99554.html (Accessed 15th March)

Ofcom (2013) Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report [online] http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/media-literacy/october-2013/research07Oct2013.pdf (Accessed 15th March 2014)

Palfrey, J. and Gasser, U. (2008) Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives Basic Books: New York




Below is a link to Shirley Warrens, Year 4 animation video on e-safety. I think this is such a good example of using digital literacies to cover and educate others on an important topic. It provides a good link to the recurring concern, within this blog, to do with working online and how we can effectively educate and empower children to protect themselves online.


http://www.shirleywarren.co.uk/page/?title=E%2DSafety&pid=32

Apps for Literacy Learning

During the session we were introduced to a number of different IPad apps including ‘Sock Puppets’, signalled at Key Stage 1, and Big Cat Phonics Books, signalled at Key Stage 2.  The app in which I trialled was called ‘Book Creator’, which I can see potential educational value within both Key Stages as it can be very versatile and adaptable.  My group created a fact book about pancakes, relevant to Shrove Tuesday, whereas others created stories and poems, some of which were original or variations of traditional stories.  Therefore, it can already be noted how this app can be used for many different purposes due to its creative format which is left completely up to the creator. 

‘Book Creator’ has much potential for literacy learning in the classroom.  It can give children a new format for creating stories in a multi-modal way.  As has been mentioned in previous blog posts, traditional print-based writing should not be dismissed from the classroom, however this app allows for a new and inventive way for children’s writing.  Children would be able to import pictures, videos and various animations to create this multi-modal text, perhaps supporting children’s enthusiasm for writing.  Children can create stories without the need for writing words due to the multi-modal aspects it encourages.  This could be beneficial for those children who excel at the communicative aspects of telling stories, but struggle to transcribe.  Additionally, this app would work well within a group, as was experienced within the seminar.  Therefore, children would be able to help each other with the various skills needed.

Not only does this app support children’s story writing skills, it also aids children’s speaking, listening and reading.  As was stated earlier, ‘Book Creator’ allows for video making and voice recording, encouraging children’s speech.  Children can then listen back and edit as they wish, ensuring they listen attentively.  Additionally, children can read stories off of this app that have already been created by the teacher, or simply from the sharing of each other’s books.  Studies undertaken by Simpson, Walsh and Rowsell (2013) suggest how children with mixed reading abilities are more disposed to working collaboratively whilst reading using touch screen as opposed to printed text.  Therefore, this could benefit struggling readers’ motivation.  Consequently, it is evident how the skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing can be intertwined within this resourceful app on the IPad.

As is stated by Dean (2012: 52), being literate in today’s world constitutes having the skills regarding non-print material and understanding “the kinds of truth – and untruth – that can be created through images and sounds”.  The ‘Book Creator’ app lends itself primarily towards this definition, giving it validity in the classroom.  I will definitely use this app on the IPad in my future practice as I believe it can encourage literacy, as well as ICT, learning in many different ways.  Initially, it took me some time to figure out how to work the app, but once I understood where everything was it was simple to use.  Therefore, I would ensure that children have the opportunity to become comfortable and confident with the app.  It disengages me when I use something I am uncertain of, thus ensuring children are content with the app is a necessity to certify using the app to its full potential.  An implication for me would be to engage more with the app before I bring it in to the classroom.  For example, using web links for copying and pasting into ‘Book Creator’ took some time to get used to.  I would give adequate time for this experience as this multi-modal technique supports children’s meaning-making skills, as is highlighted by Simpson et al (2013:1) who indicate that this is an interaction with the “semantic plane through touch” to accomplish such meaning-making. 

Therefore, the use of apps on the IPad, in particular, ‘Book Creator’, is beneficial within aiding literacy learning in many different ways and I will look forward to trialling this in the future.

Bibliography

Dean, G. (2010) ‘Rethinking Literacy’ in Bazalgette, C. (ed) (2010) Teaching Media in Primary Classrooms. London: Sage

 

Simpson, A. Walsh, M and Rowsell, J. (2013) ‘The digital reading path: researching modes and multidirectionality with iPads’, Literacy, 47 (3)

 

Rethinking Literacy: multiple literacies & multi-modal texts

As has been expressed in various previous blog posts, digital literacy is a key component of the National Curriculum 2014 (DFE/QCA, 2013) as children should be “able to use, and express themselves and develop their ideas through, information and communication technology – at a level suitable for the future workplace and as active participants in a digital world” (DFE/QCA, 2013:188).  Similarly, the Primary National Strategy states the necessity for reading and writing both on paper and screen for different purposes, giving screen-based texts equal value (DFES, 2006).  Therefore, it is clear how multiple literacies and multi-modal texts are key components in the primary school classroom.  Medwell, Moore, Wray and Griffiths (2012) support the Primary National Strategy’s encouragement of expanding the definition of literacy as electronic texts are becoming more established in the classroom due to computers’ dominance in today’s world.  This is highlighted by Kress (2003:1) indicating that literacy incorporates “social, technological and economic factors”.

Creating a multi-modal text in the seminar expanded my view of the use of power-point.  I understand how children’s creation of multi-modal texts on power-point is beneficial for both their literacy and ICT skills.  Moreover, it is a creative stimulus as a teaching tool for reading stories as it can aid visual, audio and also kinaesthetic learning styles as it incorporates interactivity.  This can be seen through drag and drop activities with the use of a word bank, as experienced in the seminar, supported by Medwell et al (2012) who recognise electronic texts as a dialogue due to capabilities of computers able to adapt to individual learning styles.  This differs from a printed text’s passive features.  Reading multi-modal texts can nurture children’s recollection of words and comprehensibility as computers offer this support, as Reinking and Rickman’s (1990) research in Medwell et al (2012) suggested.

Additionally, the use of image is important within multi-modal texts, as has been debated within a prior blog post regarding comics and graphic novels.  As Jewitt (2008) advocates, image is as powerful as word, emphasizing the fact that there are other resources available for meaning making.  Within the multi-modal text I made, I included pictures to enhance the reading experience, as pictorial content can add educational value.  Children’s work can be redesigned through engagement with modes, image, animation and hypertext.  Therefore, children should learn which features are prominent within a multi-modal text.  Children need to learn how to access the elements in these (Jewitt, 2008) in order to gain educational significance.  This is because they have different functions from a sequential print-based text (Walsh, 2010).  However, the educational value can be questioned.  Many processes required for multi-modal accessibility are featured within recent digital products such as the iPhone (Walsh, 2010). Walsh (2010) queries if the processes involved actually develop cognitive abilities that are different from those used within print-based texts.  If there are no advanced cognitive abilities accessed within using multi-modal texts, the educational purpose could be questionable.

To conclude, the use of multiple literacies and multi-modal texts are becoming prevalent in the primary school classroom.  It is important to note that they can enhance teaching and learning opportunities as teachers still need to encourage children’s reading and writing using print (Walsh, 2010).  There are many educational factors within multi-modal texts as it can be a more interactive and engaging task, enthusing children’s learning.  I was motivated in creating my multi-modal power-point story as it was something different that I had not experienced before which involved much creativity.  Therefore, children should cherish using multiple literacies.  I will definitely incorporate the use of multi-modal texts in the classroom to support children’s reading and writing, together with speaking and listening skills.  Additionally, children’s ICT skills will develop.

 

Bibliography

DFE/QCA (2013) The National Curriculum in England, DFE/QCA

 

Jewitt, C. (2008) ‘Multimodality and Literacy in School Classrooms’ Review of Research in Education, 32, 241-267

 

Kress, G. (2003) Literacy in the new media age. London: Routledge

Medwell, J. Moore, G. Wray, D. Griffiths, V. (2012) Primary English Knowledge and Understanding. London: Learning Matters

PNS (Primary National Strategy) (2006) Primary Framework for literacy and mathematics. DFES, Department for Education and Skills

Walsh, M. (2010) ‘Multimodal literacy: what does it mean for classroom practice?’ Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 33 (3) pp. 211-239