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Hi Patricia,
Immersive Reader is a fantastic tool for any SEN (or mainstream) setting. Whilst the needs of the children in your ASD class will be so varied and unique, Immersive Reader really hits on all bases that are needed for emergent literacy. Reading the text aloud to the children may benefit auditory learners, while the varied backgrounds might provide a calming effect when reading for others. Being able to pick out parts of speech and represent them through colour could help those with developing literacy skills.
Hi Aisling,
I love your approach to this activity. It is clearly rooted in 21st century learning. The use of the ‘screen share’ function of the iPad is great for the Clevertouch boards. For those using Promethean, a similar function is available if the ‘MyPromethean’ app is downloaded onto the tablets. This is also available as a Chrome extension for chromebooks. In terms of using the internet to research information, the use of child-friend search engines such as Swiggle would be recommended. In ddition to this, reliable sites like ‘DK Findout!’ and ‘Encyclopedia Britannica’ are great for research. A handy (for teachers) feature of DK Findout! is that students cannot copy and paste information across to a PowerPoint.
Hi Maire,
Thanks for sharing your slideshow with us. Within it, you have been able to showcase a number of digital skills and use text, images and video as different modes of communication. Changing the background is something I find the children love to do, and you have incorporated one that matches the theme of the presentation. The use of embedded video is very effective if you are giving them this presentation to study at home as part of a ‘flipped’ approach.
Hi Therese,
Welcome to the course. My school also uses Google Workspace. From my experience, there is little difference within a school setting between the two platforms. There are some things such as Chrome and Sites that Google do better, while Teams and OneNote are certainly superior to their Google equivalent. The key is to ensure your school is consistent in the platform that you go with.
I think ‘Screencast-o-matic’ and ‘Screencastify’ had many expletives directed at them over the course of our periods of remote teaching. ‘Loom’ is another alternative that works well with the Chrome browser. Creating a staff ‘Team’ is an excellent way of sharing information and creating a sort of ‘digital staffroom’.
Hi Donnacha,
Welcome to the course. As you have said, we are in a constant battle to keep children engaged and to keep learning ‘fun’ in the classroom. I like the way you have acknowledged how these tools can ‘supplement’ the learning. It is not about replacing old pedagogy, but rather using the digital technologies to extend and deepen learning.
Multiple-choice quizzes are a great way to assess knowledge. Forms does also allow for longer responses to be provided for more open-ended questions if you wanted to vary to tasks over time.
Hi Patricia,
I have to agree with you in terms of your comparison between Seesaw and Teams. In the senior primary classes, Seesaw can be quite limited and the children can get so much more from either Google or Microsoft products.
The Teams functions you have listed in your post are all so beneficial for schools. Consistent use of Teams and the calendar function can really assist collaboration and communication within a school. However, it’s important that there is a consistent use of the platform across the board – this will ensure all staff are regularly checking it and prevents any form of miscommunication.
Hi Julie,
As someone who also teachers in a large school, I fully understand the infrastructural challenge that exists. It can be very challenging to ensure the children have access to the resources that will really extend their learning. It’s unfortunate that all of your staff were unable to engage in the Microsoft training. However, those who have could take on the role of ‘digital champion’ (or similar), and provide training/assistance to those starting out. This could form the basis of a school improvement plan within the domain of teacher’s collaborative and co-operative practice.
Hi Claremarie,
Both improvement plan topics mentioned are of a great importance. I’m sure they have made a significant impact around your school. The use of technology as an SET can take many forms and will be very much dictated by the needs of the individual child/group. In some cases, this will take the form of digital literacy, while in other cases the focus will be on how AT can be used to support this particular child. Part of their SEN time could be spent training them how to use their AT to support their learning within the mainstream setting. The mainstream class teacher could also be involved to ensure everyone is on the same page. Lego WeDo and Scratch are excellent apps for both the mainstream class and SEN setting. I am not familiar with the Kloog App but will be sure to look into it for September.
Hi Aisling,
Thanks for outlining your thoughts on how the O365 tools can be used to enhance collaboration. I like how you’ve broken it down into both administrative and classroom advantages. The beauty of the Microsoft tools is that they are effective in both domains. It’s good that you have been identify some challenges as this will help with a whole-school rollout. While there is merit in each of them, there is nothing that cannot be overcome with some practice and ‘trial and error’ within the classroom before using it in a more mainstream fashion.
Hi Michelle,
Thank your for your detailed contribution here. Often, the ‘right answer’ is something that both students and teachers get consumed by. In the last SSE cycle, we looked at developing problem-solving strategies in maths. We used some of the NRICH problems, and children often could be seen to get frustrated when asked to come up with different ways of solving the same problem, or having the try different approaches. This was done to move towards a class culture where mistakes and valued and struggle is seen as productive.
In terms of working towards skilled communication, the ‘jigsaw approach’ would be very suitable. Promoting multi-modal communication and the use of a rubric is highly effective in developing this 21st century skill. Providing criteria that you’re looking for or the ‘WILF’ is important in showing the children exactly what is expected of them.
Hi Jean,
I will 100% be using the phrase of ‘greater proficiency leads to greater efficiency’ going forward. It is so true, especially when related to digital technology use in schools. Much of the problems you have encountered are similar to every school in the country. The procurement of devices is both a costly and labour-intensive exercise. I personally find the maintenance and general upkeep of our devices to be one of the biggest challenges. WiFi is another area where we have had consistent problems over a number of years – however, a ‘Siro’ connection has recently become available in the area and this has provided us with ultra-fast broadband. It has been transformative and while it is expensive, I feel it is a worthwhile investment. There is little point in continuously purchasing devices of you don’t have the WiFi to power them and use them to their full potential. It may be something to look into if it’s available in your area.
Hi Laura,
I’m not 100% sure of the cause of this issue for you. I think it may be down to the permissions as set on your school domain. Potentially, the admin for the account has the assignment feature set to ‘off’? I have checked my own Teams channel and the assignment tab is working perfectly.
Hi Maire,
Your sample activity really does capture the use of ICT (and many other skills) as a 21st century skill. I really like how the activity allows for so much progression, and how the different Google Workspace apps are being used by different groups.
As you have mentioned Google Maps, there is another useful Google tool called ‘My Maps’. This allows you to drop pins at various locations from history and chart historical journeys, etc. through ‘layers’. Certainly one that could be tried with senior classes when covering the Irish Revolution, World War 2, etc.
Hi Maire,
I think you have really captured the potential for a ‘flipped’ approach to instruction in your post. As you have said, it allows children opportunities to access material in a number of ways, one of which will likely match their learning style. Exposing the children to a base level of content before they come to class ensures that they all have some background knowledge on the topic. This can save time that would often be taken up with introductory lessons – thus, freeing up more time for richer and deeper learning experiences. It also promotes independence and self-guided learning which are important skills to develop.
Hi Jean,
Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts here. In my own school, we alternate between Seesaw and Google Workspace as our learning platform for junior and senior classes. I feel that Seesaw can be quite limited for the older pupils, and that their learning can be extended so much further by using either Google or Microsoft products.
‘Buy-in’ is the biggest hurdle to cross for any new initiative. It is becoming more challenging to ensure this is the case, and it is a huge area of concern for all ISM Teams. In this regard, the use of Teams would clearly benefit both the teaching and learning, and administrative side of school life. Whilst it’s important to start small nd build incrementally, sharing the vision of what could be possible with full integration is important. Explaining the rationale could help to quell discontent and reluctance to engage.
