Legal safe and ethical practice with ICT

 Incorporating ICT resources into the classroom presents issues in regards to the safe, ethical, and responsible uses of these technologies. In the educational environment it is important teachers apply codes of practice for safe, secure and responsible use of ICT's (ACARA, 2014). 

Teachers need to be vigilant and aware and should make sure they secure and protect digital and personal information. Teachers continually need to set values and review the use of ICT in terms of safety, ethical practice, legality and responsibility. And consider students rights and cultural differences and be sensitive of these when accessing and delivering information on-line. By continually reflecting and evaluating the use of ICT and its impact on students and other stakeholders teachers will ensure a range of preventative measures to address issues concerning the well-being and safety of all stakeholders.

Younie, Leask, & Burden (2015, p.235) advocate that "we need to raise awareness about online identity and digital footprints and highlight becoming responsible digital citizens."

Digital Resources

Info-graphics and other digital resources.

Info-graphics or interactive web pages provide teachers a way to present data, learning content, teaching ideas and content in a variety ways. Teachers can tailor these resources and deliver lessons relevant to their student’s diverse needs and interests. What is more, technology and digital resources such as these can encourage independent learning or become a tool to extend learning in an enjoyable way.

Binary codes and numbers:

All digital technology including Computers, mobile phones, fibre optics, and satellite communications use binary numbers. The binary number system consists of zeros and ones and is used to convey information.

Digital Technologies.

The opportunities for educators use Digital Technology to educate students are endless. While presenting information from a textbook or in plaintext is becoming a pedagogy of the past, by utilizing technologies like infographics or interactive web pages provides teachers a way to present learning content and ideas in a variety of ways.

Reflection Ass task A

Throughout this process I have learnt that in today’s environment technology is changing the way we interact with the world (Anazagasty, 2010). From the beginning, I felt encouraged and excited by the opportunities for technology to provide teachers and students with the ability to teach, learn, create and express ideas in a revolutionary way.

Throughout completing my design challenge I have acquired a wealth of knowledge about the practical and pedagogical issues emerging from this task. Design challenges are a great way to educate students about technology. I have learnt that by incorporating a range of activities throughout the design process helps to cater for diverse learners. And by utilizing a variety of visual literacies and teaching strategies has been shown to improved education outcomes (Younie, Leask, & Burden 2015). I am now aware that modern classroom practices in technology help connect the students with the real world (Lewis, 2009). In this way, I feel my design project enabled students to realize learning can be practical, inventive and lead to a greater independence.

Throughout this process and through the course readings it has become evident it is beneficial to use variety of pedagogical approaches (Younie, Leask, & Burden 2015). I feel by taking a student centered approach to teaching has assisted to engage students and facilitated understanding of the design process. What is more, it was interesting to discover that the lesson approaches, objectives and outcomes may change as the lessons evolve. 

I know appreciate the benefits of planning and feel you can never plan enough. It is agreed, the more details considered the smoother and effective the other components work (Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations 2014). I have learnt to ensure activities are age appropriate and at the same time deliver an enjoyable engaging experience for all stakeholders. For myself, creating a blue print and other activities of the design cycle from start to finish really helped target the required learning outcomes and scaffold student learning in a productive way.

Receiving and giving peer feedback has been extremely beneficial by giving me confidence in my design project and by providing additional useful ideas to improve my own thinking process and design. In addition by giving feedback on others designs has provided me with a wealth of additional ideas and inspiration. I have found using the wiki to communicate and express ideas has been beneficial despite losing a group members in the middle of the course. By completing a risk assessment also aided my thinking and reflective process by analysing every detail ensuring every step is safe and appropriate. Most of all I have realized the importance of an ongoing reflective process in the interest of ongoing deeper understanding and refinement (Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations 2014).

The main challenges I experienced included time management and considering student prior knowledge and personal attitudes towards what is considered healthy ingredients. Although through guided group discussions and research and other planning tasks, students were able to acquire a good understanding of what are healthy ingredients. In addition, sourcing and keeping fresh ingredient and keeping costs down was also a factor.

As stated in (The Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, ACARA, 2014) our ever changing and complex world is becoming increasingly technological. It is imperative to develop knowledge to respond to the challenges and realize that the use of technologies has a huge impact in the education environment. Throughout each step, my thinking and understanding evolved by considering every detail and reflecting on the practical side of the tasks. By incorporating and embedding curriculum links throughout the design process has assisted me as an educator to target required content and learning outcomes. It has also helped me to acquire a deeper understanding of the students ability’s, needs and challenges (Lewis, 2009). I feel that throughout this design process I have made numerous links to the Foundation to Year 2 Content Descriptions and achievement standards (see wiki links to curriculum doc.) Furthermore, I have been encouraged by the opportunities to extend and embed  learning to a variety of other subject areas.

As stated in (ACARA), technologies enrich and impact on the lives of people and societies globally. Furthermore, Australia needs enterprising individuals who can make decisions and independently and collaboratively develop solutions to complex challenges. I feel my project will help contribute to this desired outcome. I feel the activities engaged students in critical and creative thinking and instilled in students and myself the value of planning and the reviewing processes to realize ideas. As an educator, by incorporating what I have learnt and by taking students through the design process has been beneficial to the student’s ongoing education.

References

Anazagasty, J. (2010). What is technology? A learning module. Retrieved from. http://cnx.org/resources/77b0af39b23bb25e9a8706aba3c20b34/Technology%20definition2.pdf

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2014). The Australian curriculum. Retrieved from. http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/

Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. (2014). Educators My Time, Our Place. Retrieved from. files.acecqa.gov.au/...Framework.../educators_my_time_our_place.pdf

 Lewis, T. (2009). Creativity in technology education: providing children with glimpses of their inventive potential. International Journal of Technology & Design,19(3), 255–268. doi: 10.1007/s10798-008-9051-y

Mind tools, (2015). Decision Matrix Analysis. Retrieved from. http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTED_03.htm

Younie, S., Leask, M., & Burden, K. (2015). Teaching and learning with ICT in the primary school (2nd ed.). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Reflection 4

Throughout the process of teaching this design project the benefits of being reflective and adaptive has become evident. I have realized that throughout the process opportunities arise to incorporated additional learning and ideas and even extend concepts to other learning areas. By creating a blue print of the design cycle from start to finish really helps target required learning outcomes and scaffold student learning in a productive way. Due to the planning process and nature of the project I identified limited issues or complications, although I have realize teaching time is limited and a precious resource. By receiving and giving peer feedback has been beneficial to gauge what peers think and allowed me to reflect and consider alternative ideas.

 I feel by students engaging in this task and by taking a student centered approach to teaching this project will benefit learners in a number of ways including, understanding and engaging with the design process, understanding what healthy eating is and the benefits and by gaining independents to produce a healthy sandwich on their own in their future and applying this knowledge in a holistic way. In addition by completing the risk assessment has also contributed to the planning process by identifying hazards and allowing additional opportunity to reflect and improve the leaning process. 

I have found using the wiki to communicate and express ideas has had some benefit, although it has been at times frustrating losing group members in the middle of the course and often losing files and being denied access a number of times.

Reflection 3

The decision-making phase-

The design cycle phase a decision-making process was used to select the most evaluate suitable ingredients and designs for the project. This activity assisted to select the most appropriate processes and designs based on hard evidence. By considering student research on what are healthy ingredients, functionality of design, preferred tastes and availability and cost of ingredients identifies how students work through the process to meet the desired need of the design. Students then have the opportunity to compare, discuss and reflect on their design and make improvement if necessary.In addition students could revisit earlier research and leaning to evaluate if their design meets the desired criteria and reflect on how this learned skill may benefit their lives eg. health ect.

Reflection 2

Reflection of design project

Throughout this process it has become evident of the importance and benefit of an ongoing reflective process. The reflective process has helped me to acquire a deeper understanding of the students ability's, needs and challenges and has helped me to embed and scaffold additional learning and content. I have been encouraged by the opportunities to extend learning to a variety of subject areas. There is so much you can incorporate the hardest part is fitting the learning into limited time frame. In addition it is interesting when taking a student centered approach, that the lesson outcomes may change as the lesson evolves. 

By incorporating and embedding curriculum links throughout the design process assists me as an educator to target required content and learning outcomes. By receiving and giving peer feedback has been extremely beneficial by giving me confidence in my lesson design and to provide useful ideas  to improve. In addition by giving feedback on others designs has provided a wealth of additional ideas and inspiration.

Project Designing a healthy sandwich.
Taking a student centered approach, through research and discussion students will identify what are the components and design of a sandwich and  what ingredients make a healthy sandwich.

• Students will then consider research and leaning to design a sandwich
• Students will then reflect on design
• Students will them construct sandwich and eat.
• Student will then reflect on taste and design and opportunity for improvement and opportunities to incorporate  learning to other projects and independence in the future.