Module Three: Anyone

Education is a truly diverse process. It is not bound by age, race, wealth, gender or knowledge. Physical and mental ability will hinder, but does not limit one’s educational learning process (Marsh, 2008). Through this discussion factors that inhibit one’s learning and processing ability will be discussed, as well as cultural and socially-affiliated factors that can impact on student learning. It must be stressed that although these factors will not be an ultimate impedance of education (O’Rourke, 2009). Changes to a teachers pedagogy, their on-going philosophy of learning, their actions and pedagogy will be made teaching a diverse range of students, which is one of the many things that makes teaching challenging and interesting.

Arguably, the two largest issues currently are teaching disabled and/or culturally diverse students.

Cultural differences are one of the many ways a student can be diverse in a classroom. Aboriginal students tend to take a more global perspective in relation to learning (Harrison, 2008). This means they will be more likely to willing study a topic or are more likely to grasp meaning from an issue if they can see the big picture. Often learning will be incorporated into stories, or bigger events in order for the learners to be able to process this knowledge. It is a broader form of learning, that can then taught specifically to how each individual learns, i.e.; visually, auditory or kinaesthetically (Snowman, Dobozy, Scevak, Bryer, Bartlett & Biehler, 2009).

Disability is the largest and possibly most challenging student difference. Due to the wide range and severities of disabilities, each case needs to be treated individually and therefore the learning process should also be individual (Snowman, et al, 2009). Temple Grandin, once described the role of educating children with a disability , saying “Continually trying to work out what to do and what to say is like doing quadratic equations in your head” (Koop, 2009). This is where I believe the relationship must be built to allow that constant reflection from the educator, where your actions and directions become a learning focal point for the student to begin to emulate. Teaching is a multi-dimensional interaction between a facilitator and a learner.

Disability Standards of Education (2005) state that education providers must make reasonable adjustments that ‘assist a student with a disability to participate in education and training on the same basis as other students’. This is a view that argues disability should be embraced in schools and classrooms be made inclusive of the student, whilst ensuring the student is able to complete the task, but still doing similar work to every other student. This allows the student to integrate with the community, and build valuable life skills, while the class is able to also be introduced to a diverse member of our society.
“Every child is just as important as every other kid in the class, and you have to make it work for them” (Video on Inclusion, 2009).

References:
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. Disability
Standards for Education (2005). Retrieved September 24th, 2009 from
http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/25EC2234-3667-4A3E-9529-
32F51D4428B6/15408/DisabilityStandards_COMPLETE_004_screen.pdf


Harrison, N. (2008) Quality teaching practices for indigenous children. In Teaching and learning in indigenous education South Melbourne, VIC: Oxford University Press

Koop, P. (2009). Guest Lecturer Peter Koop. Audio lecture EDF1304. Accessed from my.monash.edu.au on (24th September 2009).

Marsh, C. (2008). Becoming a teacher: knowledge, skills and issues (4th ed). Frenchs Forest, NSW; Pearson Education Australia.

O’Rourke, J. (2009). The Perceptions of Secondary Teachers and Students about the Implementation of an Inclusive Classroom Model for Students with Mild Disabilties. The Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 34(1).

Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak, J., Bryer, F., Bartlett, B., Biehler, et al. (2009). Psychology applied to teaching. Milton, QLD, Australia: Wiley
Video on Inclusion, Accessed from my.monash.edu.au on (20st August 2009).
Williams, J. (2009) Audio lecture EDF1304 Module 3 Teaching Anyone – Teaching for Diversity. Accessed from my.monash.edu.au on (31st August 2009).

Teaching an Learning Anywhere- Globalisation and ICT’s

An eight year old boy is planting a tomato plant in his school’s kitchen garden; a fifty year old mother of three is studying for her first bachelor online whilst waiting for the water to boil, a sixteen year old French student in Melbourne is chatting online to her French friend in Paris.

These students are representative of where learning is today. The classroom of the future is no longer contained to rows of desks in classrooms. With massive advances in technology and communication education has developed from the traditional class setting to a global classroom where information and learning is shared internationally.

So what role do teachers play in this modern, tech savvy world? This movement towards greater use of ICT’s in classrooms is “indicative of a wider move in society” where there are “changed expectations from teachers” (Townsend & Bates, 2006). Even in the last decade there has been a recognisable shift from learning ‘about’ computers in IT to learning ‘with’ computers, integrating them into all aspects of existing curriculum.

With the amount of information and knowledge available at the click of a button teachers are no longer required to hold ‘all the answers’. Their role has significantly changed whereby they are now responsible for giving students the tools, inspiration, curiosity and knowledge to become lifelong learners.

New technologies have altered the “organisation and structure of schooling itself” (Townsend & Bates, 2006). Traditional models of set timetables and classrooms have been challenged by the introduction of ‘virtual schools’ whereby learning can be both face to face and via other technologies such as the internet.

This “rapid free flow” of communication, technology, capital and employment has led to a “global village effect” (Cumming et al, 1999). This move from local to global is reflected in the classroom whereby multicultural understanding and sensitivity is a critical element that needs to be taught for the future. In these collaborative learning societies one of the challenges facing future teachers will be relating to students from diverse cultures. Study and work abroad programs such as ‘Teachers Across Borders’ have been recognised by a number of resources as being a “highly valued” experience which gives teachers “increased efficacy” (Roane, 2008)and “global awareness” (Young, 2001).

As teachers of the future generations we have the responsibility of preparing our students to work, live and succeed in a society with greater communication, connection and knowledge than any other generation previously.

References

Cumming, G., Okamoto, T., Gomez, L. (1999). Advanced Research in Computers and Communication in Education. The Netherlands; IOS Press.

Teachers across Borders. (2009). http://www.teachersacrossborders.org/

Townsend, T. & Bates, R. (2006). Handbook of Teacher Education: Globalisation, Standards and Professionalism is Times of Change. The Netherlands; Springer.

Roane, W. (2008). Home Culture, Host Culture, and Identity: Student Teachers' Understanding of Self and Others. Online Submission, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association(New York, NY, Mar 22, 2008)

Young, R. (2001) Assessing the Impact Areas of an International Study Tour for Teachers

Module Five: Anything

Teaching in modern society has changed the focus of curriculum from the traditional formal content-driven learning many current educators will remember. Traditionally teaching was solely a transfer of knowledge and facts from teacher to learner, and did not encompass any hidden learning principles (Williams, 2009). They did not have knowledge of sufficient depth for a life of change and diversity. It was a knowledge that was appropriate for a time that imagined itself as ordered and controllable (ACDE, 2001).
The current focus of curriculum and education is preparing students for the future, facilitating a learning based on a global perspective that allows students to model themselves socially, emotionally and intellectually empowering them to learn for themselves. Students gain these beliefs, values, morals and knowledge through formal and informal interactions with their teacher (Latham, Blaise, Dole, Faulkner, Lang & Malone, 2006). This is where it becomes imperative for educator’s to be able to understand the role of curriculum and the assessment of this.
Marsh (2008) defines curriculum as “an interrelated set of plans and experiences which a student completes under the guidance of the school”. Assessment of learning and curriculum is imperative to the learning process. “Assessing student learning is something that every teacher has to do, and usually quite frequently” (Snowman, 2009). Current curriculum allows student’s learning to be structured into three main core focuses; for, of and as learning.
FOR- designated as one of the most important functions of assessment as it guides the teacher in planning for learning.
OF- conducted for grading and reporting requirements; its function is to provide a summary of student’s achievements.
AS- attaches importance to classroom assessments because it is an indicator of what students have and have not learnt (snowman et al, 200)

The current movement towards self-assessed and self regulated learning as opposed to teacher assessed learning is intended to inspire students to gain strong learners identities. This allows them to recognise and develop their own learning strengths and weaknesses. Assessment of learning and the subsequent results may be used for different intentions but the most productive purpose is to improve student learning and motivate students for further learning (Tognolini, 2005).

Approaches to curriculum and assessment are dynamic and always changing, as the world, our classroom, changes with it. As future teachers it is our responsibility to stay flexible, informed and willing to learn in order to develop curriculum that will best equip the students we teach for whatever their future may hold.

References:
Australian Council of Deans of Education (ACDE) (2001). New Learning: a charter for Australian Education. Available online at: http://www.acde.org (accessed 21 September 2009)
Latham, G., Blaise, M., Dole, S., Faulkner, J., Lang, J. & Malone, K. (2006). Learning to Teach: New Times, New Practices. New York: Oxford University Press.
Marsh, C. (2008). Becoming a teacher: knowledge, skills and issues (4th ed). Frenchs Forest, NSW; Pearson Education Australia.
Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak, J., Bryer, F., Bartlett, B., Biehler, et al. (2009). Psychology applied to teaching. Milton, QLD, Australia: Wiley
Tognolini, J. (2005). Using on-line assessment to inform teaching and learning in primary and secondary schools. Paper presented and Using Data to Support Learning, ACER research conference 2005. Melbourne.
Williams, J. (2009). EDF1304 Module 5 Lecturer notes. Accessed from my.monash.edu.au on 24th September 2009.

Module Four: Anyway

Today we live in an age where a diverse range of teaching strategies and approaches must be used to ensure the best possible learning outcomes. In the industrial age, pedagogy was all about rote learning and knowing the correct answers. People who were taught through traditional styles of education did not have enough variety of knowledge for a life of change and diversity (acde, 2001). These days, it is widely recognised that as well as teaching children content, teachers also need to help children learn the best ways of learning through utilising a variety of instructional modes.

“Teachers have an important role in helping learner’s acquisition and development of knowledge and skill, and in striving for educational equality” (McLeod & Reynolds, 2007). In the modern pedagogical age, teachers are often urged to use a variety of teaching strategies and approaches to ensure that diverse student interests and abilities can be accommodated (Marsh, 2008). “Research shows that learning outcomes are influenced by the learning environment involving a number of interrelated components such as teaching method and assessment, course structure and teacher effectiveness” (Patrick & Smart, 1998). Marsh (2008) states that “the teacher who works at developing a varied combination of instructional modes of teaching is moving strongly to becoming a flexible teacher and most likely to becoming a very effective one.” There is a wide variety of instructional modes available to teachers including:
· Small group work
· Independent study
· Lectures and presentations
· Oral reports
· Constructivist (problem-based) learning
· Direct instruction, and many more
As it can be very difficult to identify learning styles of students, the use of many different teaching strategies and approaches is encouraged. Students either “accept the mode of instruction, or attempt to modify it or, on rare occasions, reject it outright” (Marsh, 2008).

One particular instructional mode that is becoming more and more influential in the classroom is the use of information and communication technology (ICT). In preparing children for success in the technology-rich environment of the workplace, teachers must facilitate learning through tasks that specifically reflect this environment (Mantei, 2007). Some forms of ICT that are prevalent in the modern classroom include, “radio, educational television, programmed instruction, computer-assisted learning, electronic whiteboards, palm held computers and virtual learning environments” (Hartley, 2007).

REFERENCES
Australian Council of Deans of Education (ACDE) (2001). New Learning: a charter for Australian Education.
Available online at: http://www.acde.edu.au/docs/CharterForAustralianEducation2004.pdf. (accessed 22 September, 2009)

Hartley, J. (2007). ‘Teaching, learning and new technology: a review for teachers’. British Journal of Educational Technology. London, 38(1), pp. 42-62.

Marsh, C. (2008). Becoming a teacher: knowledge, skills and issues (4th edition). Frenchs Forest, NSW; Pearson Education Australia.

Mantei, J. (2007). Literacy Learning Through Computer-based Technologies: Rethinking Small Group Work. Literacy Learning: the Middle Years. 15(1), pp 17-23.

McLeod, J & Reynolds, R. (2007). Quality Teaching for Quality Learning: Planning Through Reflection. South Melbourne; Thomson Social Science Press

Patrick, J & Smart, R. (1998). An Empirical Evaluation of Teacher Effectiveness: the emergence of three critical factors. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 23(2), pp 165 – 178

Module Two: Anytime

As a child, school was always a place where “the teacher teaches [and] the students learn” (Groundwater-Smith, Ewing & Le Cornu, 2007, p. 23). However, “rapidly changing social, cultural, and technological conditions” (Australian Council of Deans of Education [ACDE], 2001) has forced change to this concept with the role of the teacher moving from instructor to a facilitator “identifying, negotiating, interpreting and analysing student learning within the social context of our times” (Groundwater-Smith et. al. 2007, p. 40). The introduction of technology to classrooms has revolutionised classroom learning, with us – the teachers – in the centre of these changes (Groundwater-Smith et. al. 2007).
But while computers, the internet and interactive whiteboards are finding a place in almost every classroom, it requires more than their presence to become a valuable educational resource. Some of my peers “are not prepared to make technology a critical element ... of classroom instruction” (Lacina, 2009, p. 270) due to a lack of professional development leading to a lack of confidence or competence. In fact, many educational institutions delay the introduction of computers (Malone, 2006) because of the initial cost of the equipment and constant updating required to maintain its quality (Lacina, 2009).
The Australian Education Charter states that “more sophisticated learning will happen using computers” (ACDE, 2001) as such technology engages students – especially visual learners – while allowing interaction between the class and the content (Lacina, 2009). They also consolidate classroom tools such as calculators, thesauruses and dictionaries, reduce paper consumption, streamline the drafting process as well as provide multiple mediums for expression (Johnson, 2008).
Whether technology belongs in the classroom or not, there is no doubt that it has changed the context of learning and education. As “many students have access to computers and the internet at home” (Groundwater-Smith et. al. 2007, p. 140), school is no longer the only place in which students can obtain knowledge as learning can now occur in many settings “outside traditional educational institutions” (Malone, 2006, p. 7). The role of the teacher in the use of such new technology has been rendered virtually useless, as most students are self taught in this area (ACDE, 2001; Malone, 2006).
In order to keep up with this changing technology, teachers must be able to adapt and learn as fast as students in this new generation where computer literacy plays a huge role in the globalisation of our world. Instantaneous knowledge in a “world connected through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and social relations” (Malone, 2006, p. 2) has revolutionised the teaching profession and one day may overtake the traditional education institutions. For now, however, we must attempt to move with the “big changes affecting the nature of knowledge” (Malone, 2006, p. 1) and “rethink ourselves as teachers and learners” (Malone, 2006, p. 1) to keep pace with this world so different to that of ours when we were the students.

REFERENCES
Australian Council of Deans of Education. (2001). New Learning: A Charter for Australian Education. Retrieved from http://www.acde.edu.au/docs/CharterForAustralianEducation2004.pdf

Groundwater-Smith, S., Ewing, R. & Le Cornu, R. (2007). Teaching Challenges and Dilemmas (3rd ed.). South Melbourne, Victoria: Thomson.

Johnson, J. (2008). Can a laptop change how the world teaches? Knowledge Quest, 36(4), 72-73. doi: 1538736811

Lacina, J. (2009). Interactive whiteboards: creating higher-level, technological thinkers? Childhood Education, 85(4), 270-272. doi: 1705200601

Malone, K. (2006) New learning in new times. In Latham, G., Blaise, M., Dole, S., Faulkner, J., Lang, J. & Malone, K. (Eds.) Learning to Teach (pp. 1-16). Retrieved from http://images.lib.monash.edu.au/edf1304/04133667.pdf