Effective Communication in Teaching and Learning

1

• Effective Communication in Teaching and Learning

2

• Communicating Online with other Teachers
• The virtual community concept for
  communications between teachers whether for
  discussion of classroom resources , aspects of
  teaching and learning or professional development
  offers great potential but has been slow to take
  off
• National and international agencies as well as
  other educational providers have created online
  web-based forums for the main forms of which are
• discussion thread (asynchronous)
• mailing list (asynchronous)
• chat (synchronous)
• Most of these sites are combined with extensive
  links to classroom resources

3

• Starting with some basics
• Do you have a mailing list for your method group?
• Are you bookmarking (or adding to favourites) key
  web sites?
• Are you copying and pasting web site references
  onto a separate list for colleagues and/or
  pupils?
• Do you see the web as the worlds largest
  photocopier for classroom resources or something
  with greater potential for community and
  professional development?

4

• Some key UK government web sites
• The National Grid for Learning (NGfL)
• NGfL Resource Index
• NGfL Teacher Resource Exchange (register to
  obtain password)
• NGfL Virtual Teacher Centre (to which you will
  contribute a lesson plan later)
• The British Educational and Communications
  Technology Agency (BECTA)
• The Department for Education and Skills (DfES)
  teachernet
• The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA)
• The Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED)
• The Teacher Training Agency (TTA)
• Now try Activity 1 which invites you to view and
  join in NGfL discussions

5

• Some UK education sites from non-governmental
  providers
• Schoolmaster
• Schoolzone
• Teachernet
• Edulinks
• BBC Education
• Channel4Learning
• and from Europe
• European Schoolnet

6

• Some school web sites
• Netherhall School , Cambridgeshire developing
  the virtual school model
• Oundle School , Northhamptonshire noted for
  its contribution to mathematics and science
• Tuckswood First School, Norfolk Guardian award
  winning site
• And a teaching practice site from Reading student
  Grant Strudley
• Does your practice school have a web site? How
  might this develop in future? Can you contribute?

7

• Pupils communicating online
• Some of the sites already identified (e.g.
  Schoolmaster) have special facilities for the
  development of pupil virtual communities of
  interest
• There are other sites specifically for developing
  international links. Some of the key ones are
  indexed and linked at Teachernet. These include
  those of the British Council (Montage), the
  Commonwealth (CENSE), the Central Bureau (Windows
  on the World), European Schoolnet, Global
  Schoolhouse and ePALS. Activity 2 also identifies
  the BECTA and World Bank sites for international
  links and projects
• Go through Activity 2. Find out whether there are
  any projects involving international links via
  the internet in your school. Consider the
  contribution such projects might make to good
  citizenship

8

• Presentation Skills
• Activity 3 requires you to consider design and
  layout.
• Concentrate on steps 3 and 4. You can use the
  INTEL module 3 material (CD) if you wish, but
  better to try building a worksheet of your own.
• Try designing a worksheet for your school work
  using MS Word to practice the techniques
  described in Activity 3.
• Next week we will look at MS Publisher (available
  on University network)