Part 2:
Teaching With ICT
a.
Structuring Lessons
In
the case study we are dealing with, the teacher has a fairly regular
pattern to her sessions. She tends to start with a teacher-led
introduction to the session, outlining the area to be covered.
In an hour-long lesson, she might restrict herself to just one
specific aspect, for example using tabs, page alignment, or copying
and pasting information. From the introduction, she will set each
individual student tasks, using printed worksheets, a section
of a CD-ROM, or specific investigations on the World Wide Web.
This work is structured, and she monitors progress around the
class. Individual progress can be evaluated to feedback in the
next session.
Again,
you might not work in exactly this way, but you probably do have
a pattern that you favour as a teacher. Characterise this pattern
to yourself now, and consider how the use of ICT as a resource
might fit into it.
Over
something like a ten-week period, spending three weeks on development
of formatting and copying skills, the teacher in this case study
has wanted to introduce the ICT based work at about the fourth
week. The first two will be spent ensuring using other means that
all pupils were reasonably familiar with the word processor. First
let's recall the main learning objectives the teacher has for
her pupils in this area:
-
Find, explore and develop information for two different purposes.
- Present
information for two different purposes.
The
topic for evaluation is Health and Safety. Below is a summary
of how weeks one-four are structured to use ICT to meet these
objectives. Take a look at this summary and then produce your
own account, and your own lesson plans, showing how you would
use the ICT resources we have been discussing to do the same job
on another aspect of IT, for example using spreadsheets. You might
wish to extend or contract the time, and to fit the plans, duration
and work around your own experience of working with this or a
similar text.
Case Study
Lesson Structure
Week
1 - Introduce the goals of IT Key Skills, assessment procedure
to be used over the four-week phase of work and rules for using
the computer lab.
- Class
introduction to Information Technology, rules and regulations
for use. Proper operational procedure re: starting up and shutting
down.
- Explanation
of requirements over next few weeks - research with the goal
of production of a health and safety presentation, saved onto
disk (cumulative target, not necessarily to be produced within
the four weeks).
- IT
Skills test (if felt relevant) and questionnaire, to enable
benchmarking of students IT skill level.
- Bullet-point
summary of issues discussed, prepared by the teacher in word
processed handout.
Week
2
- Class
introduction.
- Initial
instruction given on searching a CD-ROM and saving results.
Handouts provided.
- Initial
instruction given on searching the World Wide Web and saving
results. (Pre-set sites only selected at this stage). Handouts
provided.
- Students
tasked to use individual learning time to research health and
safety issues via the World Wide Web and via CD-ROM. At least
one relevant article to be bought in the following week.
Week
3
- Class
introduction - using information gathered.
- Each
student instructed to open the article they have saved, so that
it opens on screen.
- Initial
instruction given on highlighting text, copying and pasting
it into a new file/word processed document - results saved under
a different filename.
- Students
asked to format text into a particular typeface and size (for
example: Arial size 14) ready for presentation - again changes
saved under a different filename.
- Demonstration
of presentation package using ICT Projector.
- Students
open presentation package. Handouts provided.
- Students
instructed to format page (name, group/class etc) and save changes
under a different name.
Week
4
- Class
introduction - combination exercise.
- Each
student opens their formatted presentation file, selects text
they feel is relevant to health and safety from the CD-ROM or
website selected earlier, copies and pastes it in (excerpts
only at this stage) into PowerPoint (presentation package).
- Students
save results with unique filename; file left on-screen for viewing/observation
by tutor.
- Feedback
provided to each individual student - innovation rewarded by
highlighting use of IT (depends on how well the teacher knows
the student - this could have a counter effect of being off-putting).
 b.
Managing Learning in the Classroom
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