c. Selecting ICT Resources

The teacher in the case study is completely at home with the skills behind most of the options we have looked at above, though he does not know of any really focused dedicated CD-ROM material for the area of work. He has used video, he already has some word-processed materials, he has seen some good Geography sites on the World Wide Web, and he knows how to use a CD-ROM. Although he has some experience of using Access and Excel to run simple databases and spreadsheets for his own administrative purposes, he has never taught Geography by using these packages.

You may not be in the same position as he, so we shall look at the options in the context of your experience. Think about the following as they apply to you:

Use discussion and chalk-and-talk on the area only, and not use any ICT (or other technology) at all.
I have a bit of a problem with this (I would say that, wouldn't I?) in as much as my own experience of working with discussion alone is that it can be hugely enjoyable, but that learners often have little general and even current affairs knowledge on which to build Geographical skills. In terms of the objectives set for this case study, there is such a wealth of material available from the World Wide Web and CD-ROM that I really would want to get the most out of the curriculum, the technology and the pupils by combining some of the options.

Use a word processor package to create worksheets for the topics, perhaps placing some images into the worksheets to promote understanding.
Here the question is one of how much the pupils will develop their skills if the teacher spends his time on creating stimulus material using a word processor, and how much they would have done so anyway. My own view is that the use of well organised stimulus material will help learners focus on the topic in hand, as well as giving them examples of how information can be found and managed. It also seems likely that the time spent on creating high quality resources of the sort the teacher wants is likely to be returned in the adaptability and re-usability of the resources.

Use video material of the sort available from broadcast and educational publishing organisations.
This isn't strictly an ICT option, but it would be if it were done in conjunction with the word-processed worksheets or some work on the World Wide Web looking at other views on the topics. The best thing about it is that looking at video material provides a range of stimuli to the learner, and can provide them with case study examples from around the world (alternative explanations and interpretations of the Geography).

Use a CD-ROM to have students gather information on the topics to form the basis of discussion.
Almost any CD-ROM encyclopædia will give you background information on plate tectonic activity, though getting focused data from a CD-ROM is always difficult. You probably know about Encarta and Britannica, and other products such as Hutchinson and Compton provide inexpensive if inconsistent sources of data. The point here is that for this case study you would be looking for clear data on the frequency, distribution and effects of earthquakes. The biggest problem that arises with mass market CD-ROM resources is their US orientation - good European, British and especially Welsh focus is very difficult to find.

Use the World Wide Web to gather information - particularly statistical information about earthquakes.
The following web addresses provide interesting background resources:

Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics

http://quake.wr.usgs.gov
United States Geological Society Survey, information and images.

http://disasterium.com
Living almanac of disasters.

www.athena.ivv.nasa.gov/curric/land/todayqk.html
Updated earthquake data.

www.branches.co.uk/earth/quake.htm
Plate boundaries and links to British Geological Society.

In this case study, you are also concerned with finding the sources themselves, and the following search engines can provide a useful starting point:

Have pupils present their findings using a database such as Access, regardless of how data was found.
However pupils have gathered information, they can store statistical information in a database programme for later presentation or for integration with a word-processed document. Where pupils are able to get access to a great deal of information, and where this can be copied from the web in particular, using the ICT to automate certain data-analysis or numerical procedures can be very useful.

Now that you've looked at my ideas about the options, you need to make your own choices. The teacher in the case study has decided to use all options, and to combine two or more in particular sessions over a three-week period out of a total of six weeks working on the topic. You need to plan to do something of this sort. On the next page, make a copy and fill out the summary to help you focus on what you will do. I've put in some suggestions - use these as you like. Think of some uses of your own, and make a short note on what you will have to do to make it work, what you expect the benefit to be to your pupils, and what difficulties you expect to encounter when you do it in the classroom.

Resources Selected for Work on Earthquakes