Support Staff, Teachers & Execs. from Tallowood, The Hills, Caddies, William Rose Windsor Park, Kurrambee and Halinda Schools all came together for Development Day this term.
Many workshops were held that catered for specific concerns and learning of Western Sydney Region SSPs. IWBs and internet based support for learning were key focus areas.
Dr Tom from the North Metro area gave a talk on supporting carers via consistent structured plans posted via blogs on the net. Mathew Dollisson gave a talk on IWBs, Intranets and Teaching Futures. All SSPs are increasing their exposure to web technologies and IWBs.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Good Teachers do good things with good teaching tools
Technology can be seen as a labyrinth for a teacher landing in a Special School.
On top of all the heightened strains of the Support learning environment, the ever changing fast paced world of technology can seem like a test. For the teacher who has to educate where mainstream schools can't cater to the specialised degree involved, a technology curriculum can seemingly be harrowing, complex and expensive.
But there are some quite easy to use and readily adaptable software tools that are very useful to the wise 'Special' teacher and even may be seen as standard kit.
Something as common-use as Power Point is a staple in the staffroom professional learning environment, but it can also be a great and easily accessible fund of daily learning and activity in the classroom. Digital stories can be set up using common routines and individualised priorities for students. Immobile and high support students can gain excellent 'click-through' reward from interacting with this program.
Publisher can deliver a blank comic book for an age appropriate activity in the savy teacher's classroom or a set of flash cards to the particular needs of a student.
Photo-story makes photos come alive for student projects. It is simple to use and rewarding for involving young minds with new ways of looking at images.
I have used Movie Maker with my secondary students as a social learning tool, involving role play and with primary students as a a part of daily routine and mass practice. Students can rehearse what they see, and the higher functioning student can collaborate with peers to generate personalised content relevant to their interests, keeping them engaged and learning as well as sharing.
Each of these software packages are standard in the DET and Special schools can use them readily for daily teaching and learning.
On top of all the heightened strains of the Support learning environment, the ever changing fast paced world of technology can seem like a test. For the teacher who has to educate where mainstream schools can't cater to the specialised degree involved, a technology curriculum can seemingly be harrowing, complex and expensive.
But there are some quite easy to use and readily adaptable software tools that are very useful to the wise 'Special' teacher and even may be seen as standard kit.
Something as common-use as Power Point is a staple in the staffroom professional learning environment, but it can also be a great and easily accessible fund of daily learning and activity in the classroom. Digital stories can be set up using common routines and individualised priorities for students. Immobile and high support students can gain excellent 'click-through' reward from interacting with this program.
Publisher can deliver a blank comic book for an age appropriate activity in the savy teacher's classroom or a set of flash cards to the particular needs of a student.
Photo-story makes photos come alive for student projects. It is simple to use and rewarding for involving young minds with new ways of looking at images.
I have used Movie Maker with my secondary students as a social learning tool, involving role play and with primary students as a a part of daily routine and mass practice. Students can rehearse what they see, and the higher functioning student can collaborate with peers to generate personalised content relevant to their interests, keeping them engaged and learning as well as sharing.
Each of these software packages are standard in the DET and Special schools can use them readily for daily teaching and learning.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
IWB Teachers tips
Thinking about some aspects of tech in class today.
1. Engage with Content, don't be content just to engage them !
2. Trial, Plan and deliver.
3. When it goes wrong, move on.
[Have an analogue 'lo-tech' plan B]
4. Trial, Plan and deliver some more.
[Remember we're all learning here]
5. Share.
Mathew Dollisson.
1. Engage with Content, don't be content just to engage them !
2. Trial, Plan and deliver.
3. When it goes wrong, move on.
[Have an analogue 'lo-tech' plan B]
4. Trial, Plan and deliver some more.
[Remember we're all learning here]
5. Share.
Mathew Dollisson.
Action Research - Quality Teaching and the beauty of invisible tech.
Technology functions best for educators when it is 'invisible'. That is, when it is working.
The delivery of lessons needs to be enhanced, not hampered or completely waylaid by incompatible technologies, faulty hardware or lack of time and support. A teacher at any school needs to be able to go to the IWB and trust that the lesson that they want to pull up is available within the attention span of the student. Teachers at SSPs need to have this capacity in spades !
High support special needs students benefit from routines that deliver their priority learning needs at call.
A Quality Teaching action research project at Halinda this year looks at delivering Higher Order Thinking skills to the capable student through appropriate technologies and carefully prepared teaching materials. It is a steady task. Teachers assess the needs of students and consider how IWB content can be tailored to deliver replicable results.
We have focused before on the delivery of engaging materials via technology, and this is almost a given with students of the 'online' age. Now we turn to encapsulating a mode within IWB delivery that fosters higher learning and experiences.
The delivery of lessons needs to be enhanced, not hampered or completely waylaid by incompatible technologies, faulty hardware or lack of time and support. A teacher at any school needs to be able to go to the IWB and trust that the lesson that they want to pull up is available within the attention span of the student. Teachers at SSPs need to have this capacity in spades !
High support special needs students benefit from routines that deliver their priority learning needs at call.
A Quality Teaching action research project at Halinda this year looks at delivering Higher Order Thinking skills to the capable student through appropriate technologies and carefully prepared teaching materials. It is a steady task. Teachers assess the needs of students and consider how IWB content can be tailored to deliver replicable results.
We have focused before on the delivery of engaging materials via technology, and this is almost a given with students of the 'online' age. Now we turn to encapsulating a mode within IWB delivery that fosters higher learning and experiences.
2009 the rise of the Intra Net !
This year technology continues to complement the hard work of the staff and students at the special school that is Halinda.
The School Intranet is in growth madoe this term [term 1] and new content is added each day. There are over 70 Smart files in place already which provide lesson for classes equipped with IWBs. Classroom teachers can now access support materials for their hands on lessons in the class room with the speed of logging on to their class computers.
Mass learning and rehearsal opportunities are vital to SSP outcomes. Students benefit from being able to practice lessons from desktop terminals in classgroups, in the school library and at their own desks if they have access in their rooms.
Learning can be delivered at the IWB then students can be assisted to carry on at their own pace at PCs!
Sturdy computers with access to an increasingly tailored Intranet environment presents continuing learning opportunity for our students.
The School Intranet is in growth madoe this term [term 1] and new content is added each day. There are over 70 Smart files in place already which provide lesson for classes equipped with IWBs. Classroom teachers can now access support materials for their hands on lessons in the class room with the speed of logging on to their class computers.
Mass learning and rehearsal opportunities are vital to SSP outcomes. Students benefit from being able to practice lessons from desktop terminals in classgroups, in the school library and at their own desks if they have access in their rooms.
Learning can be delivered at the IWB then students can be assisted to carry on at their own pace at PCs!
Sturdy computers with access to an increasingly tailored Intranet environment presents continuing learning opportunity for our students.
Friday, December 5, 2008
2008 a busy busy year
This year Halinda has grown and expanded it's use of Interactive Whiteboard technologies. Now with IWBs in a majority of classes the sharing of lesson delivery techniques and familiarity with the tool has allowed some inventive uses of the medium for Quality Teaching.
Special school students are quite often visual learners and this predilection finds the IWB an especially useful and adaptable vehical for connecting with the communication needs and specific abilities of students.
The Special school environment needs to be a highly responsive setting where priorities for individuals are tailored and reviewed constantly. It must also be a consistent mass practice zone that allows students the full benefit of cognitive routines that can be applied across various settings. The IWB has proven a reliable and adaptable addition for the skilled Special Ed teacher.
In 2009 our classrooms will increase their alignment with at least three more IWBs for the school.
Special school students are quite often visual learners and this predilection finds the IWB an especially useful and adaptable vehical for connecting with the communication needs and specific abilities of students.
The Special school environment needs to be a highly responsive setting where priorities for individuals are tailored and reviewed constantly. It must also be a consistent mass practice zone that allows students the full benefit of cognitive routines that can be applied across various settings. The IWB has proven a reliable and adaptable addition for the skilled Special Ed teacher.
In 2009 our classrooms will increase their alignment with at least three more IWBs for the school.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Halinda Stepping Up: Lessons for Todays Child
The classroom is a changing place. Gone are the days of "chalk and talk", alone, as lesson delivery. Long gone. Well provisioned classrooms are places where students can step up the front of the classroom and learn actively ... interactively. If you step into a classroom where the teacher and student have an IWB you have just as much chance of seeing students using technology as staff. The interactive nature of IWBs means the classroom can be decentred, students are not passive empty vessals for filling up with teacher wisdom but active learners, action researchers. Learning by interacting with learning materials.
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