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 an exercise that should provide some focus on the relationship between generic CD-ROM encyclopędia material and more focused web-based resources. First, take a look at the version of Encarta your school holds as part of its Swansea Bay Online Learning Partnership contract. This will be available from your mentor or your school's SBOLP contract manager.

Then answer the following questions - just to give you some focus to begin with:

  1. How far does the CD provide you with textual, graphical and video resources you could find useful to merely set the scene for this area of work?
  2. Do you know how to copy and paste elements of the CD to your own worksheets, and are you aware of the legal constraints on your activity in this respect?

When you have done this, take a look at the following web sites and answer the questions:

http://www.bp.com
British Petroleum.

http://www.gas.co.uk
British Gas.

http://www.bnfl.co.uk
British Nuclear Fuels.

http://www.electricity.org.uk
Electricity Association.

http://www.cat.org.uk
Centre for Alternative Technology.

http://condor.stcloud.msus.edu/~dmichael/eco/
Environment and Sustainable Living.

  1. If you were able to look at two or more of the sites, how would you compare them in terms of relevance to the objectives the teacher in the case study wants to meet?
  2. Do any of the sites offer opportunity for two-way communication, and how would you use this to the benefit of pupils?

When you have looked at a CD-ROM and the web in the light of these questions, and perhaps written some worksheets of your own to go with these resources, you should discuss with your mentor what you want to do with the material 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