I am dealing with early years. My institute has taken the E-TAC initiative this year. This is a new experience for me. I am trying to integrate the lessons with ICT appropriately. Most of the time I use ICT for demonstration.ICT is providing deeper learning through visual aids. However, keeping in mind the age of the learners, I have few concerns as follows.
1. What are the ways to promote active learning and authentic assessment, to what degree and how the young learners can learn by doing rather than just listening and watching?

2.How can ICT be used in a better way and how learners can be encouraged to be active as participant?

3. What are ways through which learners can be encouraged to demonstrate independent learning and progress of their own pace?



Edited 2 times. Last edit at 25/02/12 14:57 by Sarwat Aamir.

The first thing that needs to be considered with the use of ICT in Early Years is the choice of a right, an age appropriate tool in relation to the targeted objectives and students’ interest and abilities. Here it’s important to consider the elements of interactivity it can provide to the learners in order to help them build the required skills and knowledge. The second important thing is the student-centered teaching approach in designing the learning experiences for the young learners. For example using simple educational packages designed for this age group like 2Simple series can give students freedom to express through creating their own stories and various other electronic modes of publications. The type of work produced as a result can be compiled as students’ e-folios.
Recordings and digital photos of students when on task can be used as concrete evidences to represent various developmental stages and explain their entire process of learning. ICTs can be used in all six learning areas to develop learning potential of pupils. Cameras can record imaginative play, such as puppetry or dressing-up, and students can play back their recordings. This can give children a real audience and appreciation for their creativity. Moreover when they talk about what they did and how, will lead to their language development. The use of video for self-reflection is the most effective for the physical and creative strands of the EY curriculum.
Students talking on microphones and recording their own voices not only helps in developing their speaking and listening skills but also help them to reflect and assess their own learning. This way using ICT children will be learning at their own pace and will start taking ownership of their own learning.

Dear it is good to see your interest in the use of ICT in the classroom .The only answer to all your questions is the hands on experience to the learners and constant monitoring

As you have started ETAC, so my suggestion for improving quality and measuring impact is that you must take feedback of learners, e.g. resources were supportive? problems in help sheet or how to guide? uploading or saving was easy? etc.

Although I have not taught early years I have observed some wonderful lessons where I have seen students working independently using interactive websites for maths. I have seen them helping each other to find the right answer for the simple maths problems appearing on the screen.

I agree a great deal of effort is required to find the right resources, however, if we share our experiences with each other we will all be better off.

Hi i am teaching Middle and secondary school and we have very strict policies to maintain school discipline. But this is common observation that while online interaction and communication has its own merits, I would like to know how to keep a check and balance in this regard. Students, especially teenagers, do waste a lot of time in idle chatting. Moreover, the abbreviated language used in chat rooms is effecting students' use of standard English which is a must in English language assignments/ assessments.
They are counseled and rules are often made with different strategies but it is not very easy to monitor the students all the time especially when they have access to a lot of technological tools at home too!

Samreen, yes it is not very easy to monitor students while using different technologies in the classroom/school. In my opinion, we have to constantly impart digital citizenship in our students to minimize the risk of distraction. we must bring the community, specially parents on the board to practise the same norms. We need to face this challenge as a community. We cannot expect a betterment in that while working in isolation because technolgy has become a very essential part of our daily lives.

Dear Neelam,

Thanks a lot for your wonderful contribution to my concerns.
I agree with you that the selection of tool should be appropriate. I am already using Interactive White Board Resources for foundation age and ixl website for Mathematical Development of my learners. My School has installed the soft wares like 2-simple, 2-animate, 2-publish and Kid pix. Our E-TAC ambassador has given the workshops to the teachers to use them effectively. Now we all need to explore the features of these soft wares in detail before implementation but lack of time is the main barrier.
I like your idea of recording the imaginative play of learners in learning stations and then play back.I have multi media in my class and I can do it very easily. I feel this act will encourage young learners and will be beneficial and supportive in teaching and learning.
Sometimes we do have ample of resources but we don't know how to utilize them effectively.
Thanks again for giving me a new direction!

Regards
Sarwat Afshan

Dear Uzma,
You are right,its really very difficult and time taking to find and thrash out an appropriate resource for a particular topic or a subject. The selection of wrong resource and its implementation can effect the impact of ICT in both teaching and learning and the results may be worst.

I do agree,although teachers have a very busy schedule, selection after careful probing of appropriate ICT resource for a particular lesson is imperative. I also feel that the greatest inhibition we often have in implementing ICT in our lessons is the lack of know how and the confidence to use a given resource effectively. Our students, who are digital natives, are at times more adapt at using certain resources. But practice and training augmented by support from colleagues will help to build the confidence to use all the available resources appropriately.

I am sure using ICT with very young learners would be a challenging task,however as I am mostly dealing with middle and secondary level a more pressing concern for me is to ensure that not only the ICT resources are used appropriately to enhance learning but also that the learners are following netiquettes. Close monitoring is vitally needed and as such teachers' role as a facilitator becomes all the more prominent during ICT embedded lessons!



Edited 1 times. Last edit at 09/03/12 05:21 by Rakhshanda Asad.