d. Developing Your Own Knowledge of the Resources

It is important that you are familiar enough with the ICT resource to feel confident about using it in the classroom. The software and hardware that the children may use needs to be test-run.

Most major data-logger suppliers run effective technical support services. Locate the company phone number, try to be on the phone at the computer with the data-logger. Most will talk you through setting up, upgrading or any problems encountered. If you have an adequate support arrangement, you should not need to worry how little you know, they take you through step by step.

As for the spreadsheet, you can make this in advance and provide pupils with copies of it to be run alongside the other software. With some data-logging hardware and software, pupils will be able to feed the real results directly into an Excel spreadsheet, with others they will need to record the data and then input it later. Even if the data can be directly relayed, you might have decided to separate the two parts of the process, according to what you expressed as a view in the last section. This is a matter you should feel comfortable about from a pedagogic point of view before making practical arrangements.

e. Planning the Work of Learners