Reading and the PC

First year secondary students are currently being furnished with brand new computers as the fulfillment of an election campaign promise made by the new government. The reported cost is about $84million dollars, it was stated that this will be the beginning of an exercise , continuing for the next four years, by which time all secondary school students will have personal access to laptop computers.

The implications of this exercise is vast. I am concerned with the impact of computers on the reading achievement of challenged students . How would they be used in the classroom? Are teachers properly trained in computer assisted instruction? How and for what purpose will a struggling reader use this technology? Additional concerns by the citizenry range from , who would service and upgrade the computers to concerns about the safety of students taking laptops to and from school in crime ridden Trinidad. To me, the overarching question is , is a computer necessary to facilitate reading achievement among struggling readers?

The research continues in this area but I’ll make reference to two, Simic (1996 ) refers to research by ( Reinking , 1988) to indicate that computer instruction is effective for a variety of reading skills and concept areas. In another study the researcher found that multimedia presentations could improve retention and comprehension of information . In order to sustain these positive trends in literacy outcomes Simic (1996 ) suggests the following guidelines:

o Computer instruction in reading should focus on meaning and stress reading comprehension.

o Computer instruction in reading should foster active involvement and stimulate thinking.

o Computer instruction in reading should support and extend students' knowledge of text structures

o Computer instruction in reading should make use of content from a wide range of subject areas.

o Computer instruction in reading should link reading and writing.

Only time will tell if this money was well spent.

Reference:

Simic , Marjorie ( 1996 ). Guidelines for Computer-Assisted Reading Instruction . Retrieved on 25^th October,2010 from http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content2/guidelines.computers.html#credits

Intruders on the blog

Some of my friends have asked me if I had embraced a new style of music since becoming a student at UWI. This was prompted by the four or five "hacker videos" that are revolving on my video bar.

I did not choose these videos, I specifically selected those which were appropriately about reading , but those seem to be in the background while the intrusive videos are up front and centre.I have reset the bar a few times but it frustrates me because it switches back almost immediately. I find it takes away from the professional look of the blog and I am tempted to remove them altogether, but there are so many great,videos on You Tube that I just feel it a duty almost, to point readers to that space to sample whats available on all topics related to reading.

Does anyone know how to remove those offensive videos?

Digital Natives - The Multitaskers?

If ever you are in the home where a teenager resides there is bound to be this type of conversation, well not conversation really,because there is usually no audible response. A snippet goes like this:
"How could you study in such noise? turn off the T.V !"
"And you can't hear me, why you always have to be wearing earphones?
Of course , this is happening while the youngster is researching on the Internet. I do not have to mention that the ubiquitous cellphone is also nearby.

The impression we get, is that teenagers are concerned that they'll miss out on something important, so they stay connected all the time.Inspite of a feeling of being able to cope, studies have shown that there is a level of distraction that is evident academically and socially.

A study in the U.S revealed that 46% of teenagers send texts while driving.We know the consequences of that! Researchers also found that students assumed that distraction had no effect on their academic performance, what they concluded was, although they were able to accomplish academic tasks, they required more time to achieve the same level of performance on those tasks.

So when our "digital natives",(Prensky,2001) wired to the hilt,feel they are in control of the pervasive communication media, they are in fact controlled by it.

Reference:

Glasser, U. & Palfrey, J. Mastering multitasking.Educational Leadership. Vol 66,6.
15-19.

Prensky,M. (2001). Digital Natives Digital Immigrants. On the Horizon.9,5. 1-2.

Two styles of photostory

So now we are up to date with the 21st century method of storytelling - digital story telling - Awesome!

I was so motivated, I surfed across to You Tube and found these two examples of photostory. They incorporated different elements to make the presentations unique . Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

Free WEB2.O Technologies

I have been searching the Internet for free stuff, Web 2.0 tools specifically, and the selection is overwhelming. I tried the links to some of them but access was denied due to glitches in the system. This suggests to me that tool creators are working at a pace to have something new in cyberspace every day and just maybe, testing and fine tuning might still be required to remove those annoying “bugs”. Nevertheless, there is a wealth of tools with a lot of potential for motivation and reinforcement in support of curriculum.

I do advise caution in the overuse of these technologies though, as they are not the panacea for every teaching/ learning problem that exists. I believe they are meant to enhance learning and to revitalize boring topics and methodologies in and out of the classroom.

I have not done an evaluation of these sites , they are presented as available choices that may be of some use to someone.

On this site maintained by Judy Brown , an Emerging Technology Analyst , she compiles a list of tools with descriptions , you can locate her at http://www.judybrown.com/tools.html .

Here is another good site, this one is by John Costilla, he is an educator and has a very active blog called CLASSROOM 2O.In this selection, he offers a list of one hundred tools at http://www.classroom20.com/profiles/blogs/649749:BlogPost:180818 there is some duplication here, but additional ones are included. Although he specifically selected them for the primary school teacher, they lend themselves to adaptation for any level.

The final site I ’ll share is this one maintained by Dr. Cheryl Wissick of the Univ. of South Carolina http://www.ed.sc.edu/caw/toolboxfree.html it was specifically compiled to support reading.

These are just a few of the many sites featuring Web 2.0 tools that teachers may access in an effort to make their instructional practice come alive.

A good shot

I do not own a digital camera , neither am I a camera buff and I do not intend to run out and purchase one any time soon .The nearest I had come to owning was in winning a small one in a KFC promotion many years ago. It is still in the box after all these years. Now, with the camera feature embedded in cellphones , I have one at my disposal, though not the best for photostory, as Murella advised me.

That does not mean to say that I am unable to appreciate good photography. I have always been interested in the type of pictures in which the photographer is able to capture tales of opposites within a single shot. I am interested in photos of people in which the subject is totally oblivious to the photographer’s presence so that the true self is revealed . I am also seduced by old wedding pictures and photos of babies.

So I was very interested to hear Aisha’s lecture in the technicalities of achieving a good shot and I appreciate the fact that in order to get the type of shots that I like , the photographer would have had to shoot countless times , being mindful of factors like range, focal point, lighting , exposure, centrality, perspective , background, subject matter etc.

This lecture set me thinking … maybe I should go out and buy one , huh?

Blogging and the challenged student

It is very very late and I am still in the process of completing an assignment before Monday. It think it will be done. I have taken a break to write this post.
I have chosen to to write about blogging and the efficacy of the strategy for developing writing abilities in students. It dawned on me that some consideration should be given to the literacy challenged student in activities like this.

What will the student do when he is required to post to a class blog? What will he do when he has to write a comment? How would he feel when he is unable to contribute to the activity? How would the the teacher facilitate this student? As I reflect on students who are constrained by challenges yet possess a desire to be accepted as valued members of the learning community it becomes painful that for many of them, full realization of that human potential may never be a reality for any number of reasons. I have encountered students like these over the years,and some of them have attempted to solve their problems by staying away from school. But I believe that incorporating technology in the classroom is one way to build self esteem and demonstrate that blogging could be a motivator if done well.

I think the teacher has to make the concerted effort to bridge the gaps among students on different points on the learning continuum and the school should be in full support of what the teacher is attempting to achieve. It may be necessary to design blogging activities specifically for those learners, not too dissimilar from the activities of the general class but at the " zone of proximal development" according to Vygotsky, where some level of success can be attained.This is certainly not the solution in its entirety but it can cause us to consider situations like these with which we may be faced as Reading Specialists .

OH EBOOKS !!

Now tell me, why didn't we have ebooks when I was going to school? Don't answer, I know, I know.I cannot get over my excitement over what I see as the almost endless possibilities that ebooks, and the creation of ebooks promise. Think of the scope of creativity it could "unleash" yes unleash, if children are properly introduced to it.

I am a strong believer in the authenticity of learning, the social applicability of education is for me,the reason for its efforts .Through etechnology, I can see the school equipping students with skills and abilities that could be personally beneficial while at the same time, useful to the community in which they reside.

When I think of etechnology in the school setting ,in my mind's eye, I see classrooms of excited and motivated children collaborating, thinking, talking, reflecting, editing, selecting,questioning,writing,displaying,applying rules and skills and sharing as they seek to perfect their creation of ebooks .This is where interest is sustained ,this is when the learning takes place.

Now compare that with the traditional classroom where children sit in isolation writing an assignment for the teacher to mark, which would you rather be a part of ? Me? I like to be where the action is, I want to be where I could facilitate learning by incorporating a plethora of skills through active engagement in useful endeavours.

Storyboarding and Literacy

You can find this article from Max Fischer (2004) ART: AN AVENUE FOR UNDERSTANDING THAT CAN'T BE IGNORED at http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice131.shtm in which he uses Gardner’s theory of spatial intelligence to support educational usage of storyboarding . I believe he gives the best reason for incorporating storyboarding in the literacy class.

So what exactly are storyboards? Well these are graphic organizers initially used by movie studios to depict, in words and pictures, the sequence of activity that would most likely end up on the screen. It would also give the production team opportunities for reviewing , and editing content before filming begins. Essley ,Rieff and Rocci (2008) at http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3750735 however go further back in antiquity and locate their function in the early cultures of China and Egypt .

In the hands of teachers therefore, it becomes an effective tool for motivation and development of reading and writing abilities. It is essentially then, a graphic organizer in which students can depict a story or narrative through a series of sequential illustrations of major events in a story. The good thing about it, is that it could be used for pre writing , where students are able to, visualize, plan and organize ideas, as a during writing activity where students can edit their ideas and then review , as a post reading activity .The added bonus is its potential for developing comprehension among users.

References.

Fischer, M . (2004).The Art of Comprehension. Education World retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice131.shtm

Essley, R. Rocci, A.L. Rief, L.(2008). Visual Tools for Differentiating Reading & Writing Instruction: Strategies to Help Students Make Abstract Ideas Concrete and Accessible . Retrieved from http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3750735

Children and computers

On a slow day last week, a colleague brought his five year old to the office. Within fifteen minutes he had found his way to a computer. I paid him no mind until I heard the unmistakable sounds of a game coming from his direction, I glanced over at him only to see a look of pure joy, ecstasy even, on the face of this young child. Well of course I had to walk over to see what was the reason for this rapturous delight . Sure enough, he was engrossed in some car crash game ,expertly manipulating the directional keys to get desired effects. "How did you do that?" I asked , "I figured it out." he answered nonchalantly. I was impressed.

I sauntered back to my desk after a while . What is it about children and computers? how are they able to master these skills so easily? do they acquire these through osmosis? what are the benefits of such early computer behaviours? The latter intrigued me enough to seek out what the literature was saying about it.

There they were, many studies about the the advantages and disadvantages of computer use and young children. Here is one , www.newman.ac.uk/students_websites/~s.e.howells/advs.htm. I also found quite a lot at EBSCOHOST but I would like to highlight a few quotes from an article written by W. A. Shilling (1997).

• Through their play children develop a knowledge about the forms and functions of written language at an early age and learn about the rules of written language. (Neuman and Roskos 1998).

• They serve to stimulate a variety of beneficial cognitive encounters for young children through graphics, touch screen, mouse manipulation, sound and immediacy of response among others. (Hoot 1986, Watson, Neda and Shade 1986).

• Through exploration with written language in a playful setting, children were observed to discover relationships between graphemes and phonemes and began to formulate their own rules. They also gained insights into how to control and use a variety of functions.(Piazza &Riggs 1984 and Piazza & Tomlinson 1986).

There are , as I hinted earlier, many arguments against young childrens' use of computers at home and school but from what I have seen so far, it appears that the positives far outweigh the negatives . I will conclude therefore,that computer usage by minors requires guidance and monitoring from responsible adults as they master the functions that they will use in the future. That done - Let the children play .

Reference : Shilling , A .W.(1997). Young children using computers to make discoveries about written language. Early Childhood Education Journal , 24 , 4, 253-259.


Mary Grant

ICT's in schools

Last week,I passed through a familiar secondary school to see a friend who is a teacher, she was at a computer entering data on Excel . As I looked on (and chatted) I was also thinking about the use of computers in our schools. I believe we have been fortunate to have computers in primary and secondary schools, of course, not in the quantities we would like nor in the classes as we would like but they are there!

I decided to surf the Internet to see what was out there with reference to computers in schools in the USA and worldwide. They were all consistent in concluding that planned and integrated use of computers in schools improved the quality of teaching and learning among its users. Can the same be true for our schools in Trinidad and Tobago? Three factors may complicate that outcome here , one, I recently learnt that limitations have been placed on Internet access in schools by the Ministry Of Education two, I know of no studies which have looked at computer usage in schools in Trinidad and Tobago and three , for what I have observed so far,it appears that the focus is on basic computer operations.

Dr Kalicharan writing in the Trinidad Guardian of June 2nd adds another dimension with regard to the promise of free computers for SEA graduates. He questions the reasoning behind this gift given the high levels of illiteracy among students ,the penchant for social networking and the fact that this would be the only group in a school with computers.These have implications for the extent of integration required for academic outcomes in the truly wired school as well as the relationships among students at the school.

I agree with his conclusion that training of teachers , and I would add transformational training, would be a necessity to move us in the direction of 21st century schools.

Mary Grant.

Webspiration Inspiration

I have used concept mapping before but not Webspiration , so imagine my pleasure to use this application.

I have discovered that it makes brainstorming easy, it stimulates thinking, allows a logical organization of ideas, it provides a visual organization of the thought process and it does look pretty on the page. This is a cool tool teachers can incorporate into any subject area with ease.
As I think of creative writing now, I imagine that teachers and students would use it for brainstorming topics,organizing words and phrases, creating links with like ideas to form paragraphs,structuring the paragraphs and then writing the story. What I think is perhaps its best feature of all, is its collaborative capability.

I believe students would love to use Webspiraton to create and share concept maps as a prewriting activity.
So lets perfect its use and demonstrate to teachers how perfect this tool is for motivating reluctant writers.

Mary Grant

Blogging in the classroom

As you know,I have been learning to blog and I am experimenting with the features that add distinctiveness to my space. I am having fun and I imagine our students will too, when they are exposed to the fun things they would be able to do online.

I want to share though, some thoughts on the benefits of blogging as I see it:

• it is an ideal forum for sharing ideas and knowledge
• it is an opportunity for users to develop and refine their ideas
• it is a space for integrating language skills
• it develops critical thought
  

This is by no means exhaustive, but I'll leave it here for now.

Before leaving this page ,I would also like to express my concern about confidentiality issues .It
bothers me that whatever I write will be online for a long time and I am a private person.


Enjoy this video


Mary Grant

Learning to use ICTs - a reflection

I am grateful to all those who commented on my first blog post, "Why I became a Reading Specialist". I hope to continue sharing my experiences on this journey of learning and teaching with you.
Today I would like to reflect on my adventures in learning to use wikis and blogs. We have a competent lecturer and knowledgeable tutors but somehow I always feel frazzled and overwhelmed in the classroom setting. I cannot understand why I never seem to master the sequence of activities necessary to post ,while the tutor is explaining . Somehow, the computer never cooperates and while I am focusing on that lapse, I miss salient points of the discussion. I look around the class and see the lucky ones arriving at different points on their way to posting or to carry out some necessary function. Me? I am frustrated, I am way back still trying to get on site while the computer rejects my requests again and again!

What I have decided is this, do as much as I am able to in the class ,document everything the lecturer says and I mean everything, then replicate the steps at home. I usually get in at the first go. Does anyone else have this experience?

Mary Grant

Why I became a Reading Specialist

Why I became a Reading Specialist

The problem of illiteracy has always fascinated me. Why is it so difficult for some students to master such basic ,“natural” skills , isn’t it like breathing? Well of course in my family it appeared to me that reading was acquired naturally. As I encountered struggling readers in my experience as a teacher, I realized that the process of becoming competent readers was indeed a complex one. My interest led me to experimentation with resources and approaches , to critically assess my beliefs about struggling readers and to question some of the decisions that our school made on their behalf .

I felt I needed to know more and to do more to serve my community as a qualified professional , as a Reading Specialist, I believe that I would be able to contribute to critical decisions made to alleviate the suffering of those who struggle to read as well as enhance the competencies of those who can .

Mary Grant