My Reflective Synopsis

The last seven weeks of managing e learning has opened my mind to the vast and interesting ICTs that are available in assisting in learning opportunities and the engagement of the students. As a future secondary and VET teacher it is vital to have an understanding of how to use technology tools in the classroom and in conjunction with effective pedagogy can assist in scaffolding a rich learning environment.This draws from Vygotsky's constructivist theory in providing a scaffolded, student centred and authentic learning context (Brady, 2006). Smith et al. (2007 p. 44) supports the idea that "what teachers need to be experts in is the instructional design strategies that inform learning with ICT, so that the learning is the focus rather than the technology." The tools that will be the focus in this synopsis will be Blog, Web site, Powerpoint and Skype as I can see myself using these tools and more within Hospitality.

The Web log (blog) is a tool best used as a personal journal, ideal for reflecting on a group assignment or it can promote critical and analytical thinking. The advantage of this tool is the possibility of uploading (posting), editing, sharing and the online collaboration that it can offer. It has the added benefit of not being able to be defaced or tampered with by anyone else other than the owner of the blog but it also offers the ability of receiving comments from peers. Engaging learners in a meaningful, authentic way, with their peers and with their own learning construction is a focus in the implementation of this digital tool. An example of how I would use a blog and web site together in a Hospitality assignment is explained on my blog. Within the students blog they are asked to reflect on their learning (Queensland Government Department of Education Training and the Arts n.d., 2010). I will monitor the appropriate use of these via an RSS aggregator and I will post questions to students' blog to encourage higher order thinking (Eisner, 2000). There will be a forum for students to ask questions, discuss the assignment or chat but also I will use this forum to post important information that is needed for the assignment or problems that other students are having. Another advantage of this forum is the ability of adding links to other web sites that are important to their assignment such as working legally, safely and ethically while online.

Teachers also have a duty of care to students. Schools have internet filters in place to prevent students from being confronted with inappropriate material on the internet. The Australian government has developed a site 'NetAlert' (Queensland Department of Education and Training, 2009) that provides advice for parents, teachers and the community on internet safety.

Web site or Weebly is another useful tool that can assist the learners in higher order thinking by comparing and contrasting of the information, judging and justifying, and then to designing and creating of the web site. By allowing the learners to evaluate their design process through interactive ICT tools they apply knowledge and understanding about designing a product that could be used in real life context. As stated in the Technology Essential Learning for Year 9, "Students demonstrate evidence of their learning over time in relation to the following assessable elements:
* Knowledge and Understanding
* Investigating and designing
* Producing
* Evaluating
* Reflecting " (QSA, 2007).
Web sites facilitate teamwork and collaboration among students (Dodge, 2001) while teaching students where and how to find information, using connectivism, (Siemens, 2004) to help students construct their learning around the topic (Kearsley & Schneiderman, 1999). A well designed web site will scaffold the students' learning (Dodge, 2001) by background information with a breakdown of the steps required to complete the task. McInerney and McInerney (2006) believe that the feeling of motivation to create a web site by the students will be increased as there is a sense of ownership towards the site as they are involved in the designing process.

Powerpoint presentation has changed dramatically from the uninteresting dot point information to the motion animation picture with sound. The added advantage of powerpoint is the ability of linking other ICT tools inside the presentation such as a YouTube clip to assist with engaging the learners into the topic and assisting with constructing meaning. This tool would be mostly used within Hospitality as it is easily set up and used, as most schools have the resources to accommodate for this tool. In conjunction with the visual aspect of powerpoint and thought-provoking questioning from the teacher, it will lead to students using complex reasoning skills. Marzano and Pickering (1997 p.113) state that, "The most effective learning occurs when students develop an in-depth understanding of important knowledge so that they can use that knowledge in school and in life."

The video camera is another vital ICT tools that I would use in Hospitality to engage and assist in learning for the students by an example shown on my blog. These forms of demonstrations are often used in the initial presentation phase of the teaching and learning process. Often they are able to show processes and systems which can not easily or safely be seen. Another advantage is that they allow the learner to view and review the demonstrations a number of times. With the help of this tool it creates a feeling of real life (Snowman et al., 2009) compared to reading out of a text book. This tool can also assist with their assignment by filming a class-member cooking a dish for their menu and then downloading that to their web site. The ability of commentary as the students are filming is an added advantage of this tool but it is limited by time that it takes filming and then editing. So now this leads me to my final ICT tool, Skype.

Skype is a free and easy way for teachers to open up their classroom and their students to a world, way beyond their class. With Skype, students can learn from other students, connect with other cultures, and expand their knowledge. Whether the studnets are conducting the interview or the class is being interviewed, Skype facilitates the interview process. Individual students can interview other teachers or school staff, sending the skype feed to the classroom for all to watch. Videoconferencing in the classroom is made possible by Skype which is exciting for the students to talk to celebrity chefs or restaurant owners and receive valuable information for their assignment. Registering the school and class to ePals (which is an established Internet resource) will help with connecting like-minded educators wanting to collaborate. By indicating the type of collaborative exchange the class is interested in (such as students and teachers of a particular country), ePals will connect you to a school with similar interests, which will help with saving time and assist with the safety of the students. Skype is an example of a potentially disruptive ICT tool because it can fundamentally change the teaching and learning environment if there are technical problems or delays.

I have only written about a few ICT tools that are relevant to Hospitality but there are so many other tools that could be used for other discipline areas of teaching such as wikis, concept mapping like bubbl_us, prezi, images like flickr, podcast/vodcast, google earth, blubberize, e-portfolios, interactive white board, The Learning Place LMS, mobile phones and online quizzes. As you can see the range of e-tools available can be of great benefit when teaching, as long as we do not use them in a superficial manner.

As a pre service secondary teacher it is vital that my pedagogy is the focus of my teaching not the tools that I use. By using selective ICT tools which will help enrich my students deeper understanding of the process needed to higher order think. Each of the tools discussed has offered an opportunity to engage students and enhance their learning whilst using schools resources efficiently.

Reference List

Brady, L. (2006). Collaborative learning in action.French Forest: Pearson
Education Australia.

Dodge, B. (2001). 'Bernie Dodge: five rules for writing a great webquest', San
Diego State University WebQuest.Retrieved August 19, 2010, from
http://webquest.sdsu.edu/documents/focus.pdf

Eisner, E.W. (2000). 'Benjamin Bloom', UNESCO: International Bureau of
Education.Retreived August 19, 2010, from
http://www.ibe.unesco.org/publications/ThinkersPdf/bloome.pdf

Kearsley, G. & Schneiderman, B. (1999). Engagement theory: a framework for
technology based teaching and learning.Retreived August 21, 2010, from
http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm

Marzano, R.J., & Pickering, D.J. (1997). Dimensions of learning: teacher's
manual (2nd ed.). Aurora, Colorade, United States of America: McRel (Mid-
continent Regional Educational Laboratory).

McInerney, D. & McInerney, V. (2006). Educational psychology: constructing
learning (4th ed.). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.

Queensland Government Department of Education Training and the Arts n.d.,(2010).
Guidelines for pedagogy: Teaching excellence. Retrieved on August 15,
2010, from http://education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/framework/p-12/docs/teaching-
excellence.doc

Queensland Studies Authority. (2007). Technology essential learnings by the end
of year 9. Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Queensland curriculum,
assessment and reporting framework: http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au

Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: a learning theory for the digital age.
Retrieved on August 14, 2010, from
http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

Smith, R., Lynch, D., & Knight, B.A. (2007). Learning management: Transitioning
teachers for national and international change. French Forest, NSW,
Australia: Pearson SprintPrint.

Snowman, J., Dobozy, D., Scevak, J., Bryer, F., Bartlett, B. & Biehler, R. (2009).
Psychology: Applied to teaching. Milton, Qld: John Wiley & Sons
Australia.

The State of Queensland (Department of education and Training),(2009). The
learning place: The curriculum exchange resource centre: NetAlert.
Retrieved August 25, 2010, from
http://learningplace.eq.edu.au/cx/resources/item/website/ed4c3f76-3a11-cbac-ff44- e9904d57bbd6/1/ViewItem.jsp

The Video recorder YES another etool

I was trying to think of a tool to use for a demonstration for Year 11 and 12 Hospitality class because they are faced with meat cuts in their cert.3 in Hospitality. In most cases the students have to read it out of a book and it is hard for the students to analyse or evaluate because of the material is unengaging and boring.
So imagine recording a butcher cutting up a forequarter of Beef, Lamb and Pork and having him narrate what he is doing and the cut of meat that is known to the students and also what can be done with it.
The tool that came to mind was the video recorder and the possibilities that it holds in this situation would out do any other tool.
Advantages of this tool is the ability to stop the recorder so students can compare the different cuts and determine what cut of meat would come next. A disadvantage is the limited chance of questioning to the butcher by students.

Using Skype as an e tool for Hospitality

For me Skype is a tool used to talk to my relatives all around Australia and overseas without the high cost of phone calls and the added advantage of seeing them.
I can see such an advantage of using this tool in Hospitality from talking to world known Chefs such as Jamie Oliver to celebrity chefs from television shows such as Master Chef. The motivation for students to talk face to face with these people is something that could not happen without a tool such as this.

Using Web site and Blog in Hospitality

This is how I (as a teacher) would use a Web site and Blog in Hospitality.

Year 9 Hospitality Assignment

Task A:
As a class, the students are to create a Web site for a Restaurant. The students will be group into 5 areas with 4 students in each. The groups will be assigned a section of the web site to complete and post. The 5 areas are:

1) Design the front page which needs to be informative, appealing and useful. Covering areas like:
- time the restaurant is open
- days the restaurant is open
- pictures of the front of the restaurant at night and day
- pictures inside the restaurant when the tables are set

2) Create a dinner menu which will link from the front page. There also must be a link from each dish on the menu to a picture with ingredients. The menu will need to be 3 entrees, 3 mains, 3 desserts.

3) Create a function menu with links from the front page. There also must be a link to pictures of the dishes on the menu. The function page should:
- pictures of the function room decorated from small funtions to large functions.
- price of room hirer
- range of function menu prices
- link to function menu which will contain 2 sit down menus. Each menu will contain 2 entrees, 2 mains, 2 desserts.

4)Create a history page which will contain a 500 word story about the restaurant that needs to link from the home page. Covering areas like:
- When the building was built showing pictures back from when it was built or that era
- Where the owners are from and their history in the industry.
- The style of the restaurant
- The history of the chef

5) Design a contact page with links from the home page. Covering areas like:
- phone number
- fax number
- email address with a hyperlink
- postal address
- address of the restaurant with a link to google earth

Task B:
Each student has to create a personal blog. Within the blog each student will need to post details of their assignment. Topics that could be discussed are:
- Problems that they are facing with their group work
- Things that have worked well as a group
- Information that they have learnt by this assignment
- Comparing other web sites that are within the subject area

On the last posting before it is to be handed in each student is to rate the web site. Making recommendations to other groups on how it could be done better or what was done well.

talking dog

Comments on Digital pedegogy from Simon's blog

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