Digital Fluency Intensive Program Week 9

                                                                Agenda: Revision                        Friday, 8th May 2020

Ubiquitous learning can be defined as an everyday learning environment that is supported by mobile and embedded computers and wireless networks in our everyday life . It is aimed to provide learners with content and interaction anytime and anywhere .The learning process includes the real-life experience augmented with virtual information and is adapted to the learner and learner’s environment. 

The content objects, activities, and the interaction with the system and with other humans (including instructors and peers) are customised according to learner’s current goals of learning, interests and preferences, cognitive characteristics, history and current state of competency in the subject matter in hand, the characteristics and demands of the location, the technology being used as the medium and facilitator for learning, and the context of the situation in which the learning is taking place.

DFI, on the whole, has been an amazing experience for me. I came into it with a reasonable degree of digital fluency, but I have still learnt a lot from the experience and I walk away in a much better place in terms of my digital skill. Digital learning is replacing traditional educational methods more and more each day. With how rapidly classrooms are changing, it is best to forget methods you may remember from when you were in school and start thinking about newer teaching and learning techniques based on digital learning tools and technologies. The inclusion of digital learning in the classrooms can vary from simply using tablets instead of paper to using elaborate software programs and equipment as opposed to the simple pen.


It has been great to learn about Manaiakalani over the course of the DFI, and I am very much looking forward to what the future holds!

In 2020, the Ministry of Education expects that schools will be using the revised learning area to provide students with even broader opportunities to learn in and about technology, informed by the new content around computational thinking and designing and developing digital outcomes.


"Design and plan culturally responsive, evidence-based approaches which reflect the local community and Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership in New Zealand."

Digital Fluency Intensive Program (Week 8)

Date: 1 May2020 Agenda: Computational Thinking

Today is the second last day of the DFI program. This session, we started with Connecting. We connected in our regional groups and shared our pedagogies and strategies which work in our teaching and which don't.

Dorothy starts  session by talking about empowered. As an educator, you’re in a position to empower your students to become better learners and better people. Most of the time we recognise the positive influence we have on our students, but there may be times when we feel we need new ways to motivate them and create a culture of involvement.

Every teacher wants their students to feel involved in the learning process. Knowing how to empower students is a valuable skill. Student empowerment is an approach to teaching that puts students at the center of the learning process, allowing them to make decisions about their education and giving them the confidence to achieve their goals.

                                                               

Then, Gerhard continue session by describing computational thinking and Hangarau Matihiko.  A digitally fluent person can decide when and why to use specific digital technologies to achieve a specific task or solve problems.  A digitally capable person can create their own digital technologies solution. Teachers are supported to acquire digital fluency required for effective teaching, planning, assessment and professional learning

Teachers learn how digital technologies used effectively can have a significant impact on accelerating achievement outcomes

Supporting teacher digital fluency and confidence to deliver the curriculum in a digital environment in a 1:1 digital learning environment.

In education, computational thinking is a set of problem-solving methods that involve expressing problems and their solutions in ways that a computer could also execute. It involves the mental skills and practices for 1) designing computations that get computers to do jobs for us, and 2) explaining and interpreting the world as a complex of information processes. 

An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. –  Benjamin Franklin

Online Teaching WEEK 2

Distance Learning WEEK 2

KIA ORA

This is second week of online teaching.

In a synchronous virtual classroom, there are various options that are possible. The teacher can use their webcam so that the students can see them. The students can link up through the cameras on their phones, tablets or computers. Teachers can share videos on screen with the whole class watching. You can choose to use a combination of the three. Students can turn their mics on and off as you call on them to reduce background noise and interference.In synchronous classrooms the chat function can be incredibly useful. It can supplement video or audio input from the teacher (and students), with students typing their answers to questions in the chat box. The chat box is particularly useful for brainstorming activities, or concept check questions in presentations. It’s also good for quick warmers where students post short three or four-word answers to questions. Text is very common in asynchronous forum tasks. The teacher can set up a task and then students respond by posting a text. I am already using a coursebook for their face-to-face classes, and I am using same resource for their online classroom (Level 3 Biology). Students can use coursebook for their own learning.(e.g. reading texts, listening texts, writing tasks, language presentations). 

• can do on their own.
• need you, the teacher (e.g. clarifying concepts, correcting and upgrading language, giving feedback on assignments, general motivation and direction).  
• Use these decisions as a basis for structuring your classes. You may want to follow a flipped classroom approach, setting some individual tasks that need to be completed before a synchronous lesson so that you can build on them in your virtual classroom. Alternatively, you may want to use your “live” class to set up and explain the individual and group tasks that the students need to do after the lesson. Both approaches work well and your decision will depend on your students and your context.😁

Sometimes, teachers suddenly faced with the challenge of how to continue their students’ education. While this might seem a daunting task, there are several ways teachers can utilise the technology and resources already available to support online learning and ensure students still receive a quality education.     It’s important to note that there is no one size fits all when it comes to learning. Different       groups have different priorities and the resources that should be used are context dependent. There are also special considerations to think about for  students who might not have access to high-speed broadband.
However, teachers should take some comfort in the fact that there are hundreds of online resources to guide them as to how to teach online. We have rounded up some of the best here to help ease the transition from the classroom to the web.

‘I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.’ –       Albert Einstein

Week 7 Digital Fluency Influence Program DFI

 24 April 2020                                               AGENDA: DEVICES

This day focuses on the devices our young people use and we will experience Learn Create Share using Chrome books and iPads. Today we heard Fiona share her competence on all things Cybersmart. She explained very beautifully about Cybersmart learners. What are smart learners, who

• Understand and demonstrate responsible use of their device as described in the Kawa of Care Responsible Use Student Agreement
• Confidently navigate and harness their device and learning applications 
• Are mindful that being Cybersmart is staying up-to-date with our Cybersmart learning. 

To make the most of their Chromebook or iPad and Google Apps, Smart Learners follow the Kawa of Care and learn to use their device confidently and in clever ways to Learn Create Share. While each Cybersmart category has specific learning outcomes, how teachers engage learners  will be in response to the school community and interests of their learners. To empower learners it is critical that learning sites are visible and accessible and that learners are able to confidently navigate the site to access learning. Smart Learners' always know how to interact with others online and make smart decisions about what information has shared. 

They maintain positive and supportive online relationships and can make smart decisions about how and who they interact with online. Moreover, they understand what to do when something doesn’t seem right. And know what to do when things go wrong.

Gerhard's session on Chromebooks was really interesting. He explained how to use Chromebook simulator.How to Use the Chromebook Simulator. For example, to get started using the Chromebook simulator, fire up your browser, and head to the simulator’s homepage. From here, you can use the panel on the left to browse through the categories for a guide or click on one of the “Popular Topics” at the bottom of the page. You can even use the search bar to find what you want from the topics covered.






Our next session was on Screen Castify, and it was fabulous. Maria explained what is screen castify and how to use it. Screencastify is a Chrome extension used by people to easily record, edit, and share videos. It is especially popular with teachers who make screencasts and webcam recordings to share with students. Link how to use screen castify.




"Select teaching approaches, resources, and learning and assessment activities based on a thorough knowledge of curriculum content, pedagogy, progressions in learning and the learners."

"Gather, analyse and use appropriate assessment information, identifying progress and needs of learners to design clear next steps in learning and to identify additional supports or adaptations that may be required."

Week 3 Digital Fluency Intensive Program (DFI)

       
            March 20, 2020                   AGENDA: MEDIA

The Last session at the Manaiakalani was Overwhelming because of the amount of
information that worked for us since the last we met.

All the teachers discussed their experience, learnings and shared their response in the session. Today's agenda of the program was 'MEDIA.'

Connecting with each other	Connecting with Manaiakalani	Resources shared
Learn	Create	Share

We started with Google hangouts with the teachers who were not in the meeting, due to some emergencies. It was a bit of different feel because it was my first time to connect with other teachers via digital technology. However, this experience was excellent.😄

After that, We learned about how to make our channel on Youtube and customised it. We showed how to make a playlist that will only play what you have selected so that our students cannot confuse and follow the illogical pathway. 

After that, it was a session of Google drawings. In this session, we practised drawing around an image and filling in the image with our chosen colours. We had the pleasure of viewing some work from students of Panmure Bridge school who had really developed this skill and then used it in animation movies that they had made.

                                                 


I enjoyed Dorothy's presentation on Google slides/Powerpoint for the presentation. She presented very beautifully how to create a slide, make it animated, design and publish it. She emphasises on Design and Publishes of slides by using tools to built into google slides to enable learners' and teachers' to 'CREATE'.

In the end, we practice Google drawings, Google Sites and presentations. When I made my Google presentation on greenhouse effect for year 10, it was terrific. I shared it with my students, and they loved it. It is a considerable achievement and motivation for me.✌

The motive of this Digital program is, during the nine weeks all the participants will be supported to connect with a range of digital tools and apps that are required for effective teaching, planning, assessment and professional learning.

"What we learned with Pleasure, we never forget." -------Alfred Mercier

Week 1 Digital Fluency Intensive Program (DFI)

O6/03/2020  AGENDA: CORE BUSINESS

Hi, my name is Palvi Sharma. I am Science, and Biology teacher at Tamaki College, Auckland.  The college is proud to offer a wide range and variety of study courses and programmes for students Tertiary and Trade based education. The school has fully embraced technology, and it is a true blessing for me to be a part of this organisation.

School connects with Manaiakalani Education, which is suitable for teachers' and learners' harmonious development. Today was my first day at Manaiakalani Digital Fluency Intensive Programme (DFI). 

Manaiakalani is a group or cluster of 13 schools in the Tāmaki Community, Auckland, New Zealand. This is the home of NZ's oldest government housing community and is occupied mostly by NZ Māori and people from the Pacific Island nations. This community has partnered with their schools, the Manaiakalani Education Trust, Google & other providers to seek improved education outcomes.

It was great to hear about the backstory of Manaiakalani. It is excellent, sturdy and liberating. I am inspired by the usage of technology in the education sector. I am very impressed by the ways we can use technology and digital presentation for students in the classroom. Today, I also learned how we could connect technology in different ways with the learners.

Today, I created my docs in google drive and also make links for them. I also learned about blogs, how to create professional blog and classroom blog. It is my first blog which I learned and prepared during my session.

I am enjoying this course. Before this course, I didn't know how beautiful and exciting it is technology. I will use this technology in my classroom. My students will love it. I am very excited to use these different techniques in my class.

I hope I will learn a lot each week and help other educators in my school.

Thank you.