d.
Developing Your Own Knowledge of the Resources
Having
made decisions about using some of the resources and opportunities
in tandem, it is important for the teacher in the case study to
get to know the resources well enough to feel confident about
using them in the classroom. It is also important that the pupils
will feel comfortable about using resources.
We
can focus on this with a specific exercise. Searching the World
Wide Web for sites related to use of Information Technology, in
the field of business (for example) could lead the student to
an enhanced understanding of application of IT.
Firstly,
try the following two search methods using the Web:
- Go
to any of the search engines
featured earlier, and type in the phrase information technology.
Take a note of the number of 'hits' you achieve from the search,
and look at them to see how relevant they are.
- Repeat
the search, this time typing in "information technology". Note
again the number of hits and relevance.
Take
a look at your search results, and visit a sample of the sites.
Note the information contained in these sites, and consider how
the information might be used to develop the learners' understanding.
Try
the same technique for the CD-ROM. Also though, use the topic
and subject index for the disk and note where in the subject structure
of the disk the topic has been placed.
Then
answer the following questions, just to give you some focus to
begin with:
- When
you searched for the words "information" and "technology" together,
what happened to your search results?
- When
you searched for the words "information technology" together
(as one search phrase or search 'string'), what happened to
your search results?
- Describe
how useful you felt the information gathered would be to your
class?
- Which
did you feel the most useful resource - CD-ROM or World Wide
Web - and why?
- Do
you know how to copy segments from the web or the CD-ROM for
insertion into your own worksheets and learning resources? If
you do, are you aware of the copyright laws governing this action?
When
you have looked at the material in light of these questions, and
perhaps modified some worksheets of your own to go with the source
material, you should discuss with your mentor what you want to
do with the resource in the classroom. This can be done in a mentor
visit, over the telephone or by email, and should serve merely
to satisfy you that you are on the right track with your use of
the materials.
 e.
Planning the Work of Learners
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