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Hi David,
Thank you for your post here. Identifying the importance of regular assessment and evaluation of where you are at with digital technology use is a key part of a school’s improvement journey. I fully agree with you that a functioning digital ecosystem can make the school run more efficiently. Your post highlights an understanding of the important messages within the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 – aligning any improvement or change initiative with the principles of this will stand a school in good stead.
Hi Conor,
Welcome to the online element of this course. Thank you for your post. You have identified many interesting points regarding the use of digital technologies in classrooms, and the links that can be forged with SSE. One of the key things you have mentioned is the importance of identifying the outcomes you want to achieve – if a change initiative is to be successful, the overall goal needs to be shared. Together with the teaching staff and school leadership, you can then set about making small goals that will help you on your way. The provision of real-time feedback for both the teacher and the children is something which can really help you clarify misunderstandings ‘in the moment’, and I’m delighted you have identified it here.
Hi Deirdre,
Thank you for your post and for contributing an outline of the SETT plan and interventions you would put in place for this fictional child. It is clear that this child has a range of complex needs that emanate from a physical disability and a learning difficulty. Identifying this helps you to see that a range of different interventions at low-tech, medium-tech and high-tech are likely to be required over a period of time to achieve the best results. Obviously, the pupil would benefit from a high-tech assistive tool like Dictate to make the writing process more attainable. However, other interventions such as a visual timetable, move and sit cushion, movement break, etc. may need to be factored in.
Hi Claire,
I feel you have hit on a key point and caveat with regard to the use of digital technologies in that they must be used correctly. In order to ensure this, the teacher must have the required level of technical and pedagogical knowledge. There is so much scope to incorporate digital technologies into learning and to use them to broaden the learning experience. The virtual manipulatives available on the Toy Theatre website are amazing for maths lessons, and can really broaden and deepen understanding. As you have said, our digital technology use should lie within the domains and dimensions of LAOS and the DLF – the SSE process can be a really effective tool in getting whole school buy-in.
Hi Nicola,
I couldn’t agree more with regard to taking small steps. It is important not to overwhelm yourself as teacher or the pupils. Small, steady steps will be really effective and once a level of comfort is reached, you will be able to branch out and experiment with new methods and tools. Seesaw is the ideal platform to use with Junior Infants. The ease of sign-in with QR codes, and the ability to create short, snappy interactive activities really suits the younger classes. I love the ideal of using the portfolio to create an audio recording that showcases their in-school learning.
Hi Grace,
Thank you for your post and detailed overview of the module’s content. As you have said, it’s important to have some interventions and aids at each level of the SETT Framework – a series of low-tech interventions may make a significant impact for some pupils, whereas others will require some medium- or high-tech interventions. It is so important that ‘schools evaluate the effectiveness of AT based on individual learning experiences’ – we must reflect on how the AT worked with the child in question – Did it meet the student’s needs? Why? Why not? Once we have built up a picture around this, we need to continue/modify our approach to best meet the needs of the child.
Hi Conor,
Thank you for your post – Teams is certainly an excellent platform for use in schools and the more you work on the platform, the easier it becomes and the more comfortable you will be. It is certainly a great way to share resources as a staff and it really lends itself to the creation of a ‘digital staffroom’. Being able to access and work on documents at home/in school is essential for those who cannot stay after school for collaboration, etc. due to differing family commitments. Recording on PowerPoint has been around for a number of different versions of the app, but is certainly a feature that remains under utilised.
Hi Conor,
Thank you for your post. As someone who shares your role in my school, I know only too well of the level of workload that goes into IT maintenance and development. You have raised a very important point and one which those who are against the use of technology in education fail to realise – digital technology is a tool through which learning can happen. It needs to take place within a wider spectrum of strategies and approaches to learning. It should not permeate every lesson. Reading, writing and arithmetic are still hugely important aspects of schooling. Hands-on experiments with raw materials is also important. Variety is essential and digital technologies are particularly useful as they make some elements of learning easier and more accessible for all.
Hi Aileen,
Thank you for your post and for sharing your thoughts on the attached article. In Maeve’s response below, the importance of interrogating resources and looking at them through a critical lens was discussed (through the growth of AI)> I find your thoughts intriguing and they certainly cast the article and its content in a different life. It is fair to say that different generations have faced different challenges, and it is difficult to compare ‘like with like’. In response to your final comment, I couldn’t recommend Jamboard highly enough as a collaborative workspace which allows pupils to plan and extend learning further through shared learning experiences.
Hi Marie,
Welcome to the course. I fully agree with you in regards to your thoughts on the DL Planning website. It is certainly a ‘go to’ for me as a digital coordinator and really maps easily to the domains and dimensions of the DLF and LAOS. Book Creator is a brilliant app and resource to use as part of the writing process over the school year – there are a number of ‘good practice’ videos on the DL Planning website that focus on Book Creator. For younger children, a similar app/website called WriteReader is a useful alternative.
Hi Maeve,
Thank you for your post and for sharing your thoughts on such a pertinent issue at present. The rise of AI is something which is taking the education world (and wider areas) by storm in recent months. This is becoming a bigger concern as I have heard of people who believe whatever Chat GPT produces is true. Being able to identify fake news and critically analyse what you are reading is a key skill within our Primary Language Curriculum. We really need to promote a culture of interrogating what we are reading for truth, bias, etc. The example you have provided about Russian history textbooks is an important example of this, and is a timely reminder of the importance if prioritising this.
Hi Alan,
Very often, large-scale projects are very effective at developing 21st century skills as they mimic real-life problems and scenarios that occur in many workplaces. Being forced to collaborate and co-operate with different departments and groups responsible for other elements of a project are all part of many 21st century workplaces. The large-scale project you have outlined affords so many learning opportunities, particularly in the areas of SESE and language. You have also skilfully interwoven many digital skills, through the use of some Office 365 apps. Indeed, there are also a variety of mediums through which learning can be demonstrated (typing, presenting, audio recordings, etc.)
Hi Sinead,
Thank you for your post and for sharing this SETT plan with us. It is clear that this pupil has a number of challenges, and that the classroom environment in itself poses a number of challenges for their progress. In such a large class, it can be difficult to address the needs of all children. A plan like this allows us to think about what we want to achieve with this child and the different interventions at each level that will help us get there. The Nessy Programme, Dictate and Immersive Reader are all suitable AT’s for children with literacy difficulties. Some other low-tech or medium-tech interventions could be used if access to devices was limited at certain times.
Hi Marie,
Thank you for your post and for sharing your many wonderful ideas with us. Your use of Google Forms shows a detailed understanding of the main ways in which this medium can be used for assessment. You have mastered the use of banners and backgrounds, and the awarding of point values for each question. I love the extension activity involving the use of Google Earth. I can only imagine how labour-intensive it must be to have to make many Gaeilge-themed resources from scratch. One of the few ways to make this easier is to ensure as much collaboration as possible within the school. Setting up a Google Site for each class level might be a good idea, where everyone contributes the resources they have made for each topic/theme. This would also help when teachers move between classes. Over a couple of years, a large repertoire should be built up.
Hi Aileen,
Thank you for your post. One of the greatest features of Classroom is the variety of approach that it supports. It can be used as a medium for sharing information and helpful links (potentially for a flipped classroom approach), as a means for children to submit multimedia items or as a way of promoting different forms of dialogue among the students. In terms of student commenting, setting clear boundaries around what is/is not acceptable is very important. Within the teacher settings, commenting can be turned on and off at different times – for example, over weekends/school holidays, etc.
