Design and development of ICT-based educational material

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Design and development of ICT-based educational
material
Invited lecture given at the University of the
Aegean, Rhodes, May 2003

• Tim Brosnan
• t.brosnan_at_hampsteadschool.org.uk

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Learning objectives of the session

• To know three issues in the design of ICT-based
  learning material
• To understand better why these issues are
  important and the consequences that follow from
  the choices that can be made in each area
• To use this knowledge better to discuss the
  design and effectiveness of ICT-based learning
  materials

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Three Issues
Approach
Computer- based material
Involvement
Assessment
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APPROACH

• Three possible approaches to the ICT part of
  educational materials
• Skill-based
• Ad hoc (no emphasis on ICT)
• Capability-based
• Each gives a different focus (and therefore form)
  to the material

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Example 1 making a newspaper (1 of 2)

• Activity to make a newspaper
• Question what do you want the children to learn?
• The answer to this will provide the approach for
  the activitys educational material
• Answer - skills Focus learning to use
  Word (or Publisher)
• Answer - ad hoc Focus - writing
• Answer capability Focus making a
  newspaper (cf newsletter)

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Example 1 making a newspaper (2 of 2)

• The skills-based material pays no attention to
  what the finished product looks like only to
  technique
• The ad hoc approach only pays attention to
  content
• The capability approach starts by thinking what
  the product will look like how to achieve the
  desired effect on the audience
• Two examples of materials (for 10-13 year
  olds)Looking like a paper Reaching the
  audience

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Example 2 making a PowerPoint presentation (1 of
4)

• Activity to make a PowerPoint Presentation
• Question what do you want the children to learn?
• The answer to this will provide the approach for
  the activitys educational material
• Answer - skills Focus - learning to use
  PowerPoint features
• Answer - ad hoc Focus - writing slides
• Answer - capability Focus - conveying your
  message to this audience

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Example 2 making a PowerPoint presentation (2 of
4)

• How not to do it (1) fancy animation effect,
  letters from everywhere and distracting sounds.
  Takes away from the message.

Just in case you missed that here it is again

• How not to do it (1) letters from everywhere,
  distracting sounds. Takes away from the message.

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Example 2 making a PowerPoint presentation (3 of
4)

• How not to do it (2) far to much written
  material with little thought about emphasising
  and highlighting the main points or
  distinguishing between the PowerPoint and spoken
  parts of the presentations but children will
  often do this to make sure they have all the
  facts. Worse they will often value
  presentations like this because they have a
  lot in them, and need educating to In order to
  have all the facts you also need to make the
  font small again masking the message from the
  audience.

• Much better clean, simple display which uses
  Master Slides to ensure consistency

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Example 2 making a PowerPoint presentation (4 of
4)

• Again the skills-based approach thinks only of
  technique
• The ad hoc approach only to content
• The capability approach focuses on conveying
  the message to the audience
• Two products (by 10 year old children)Rainforest
  s Vertebrates

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Summary of approaches Skills-based

• This is the way ICT is taught in most schools in
  the UK today we do word-processing, tomorrow
  spreadsheets
• It has the advantage of being easy to organise
• BUT it
• Is an approach divorced from use and purpose
• Needs an artificial context created for it
• Emphasizes the easy but trivial (skills) at the
  expense of the difficult but important
  (capability)

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Summary of approaches Ad Hoc

• This is based on the notion that ICT is just a
  tool and is the way most cross-curricular ICT
  is taught in the UK
• Easy to develop individual activities and
  material
• BUT
• Fundamental misapprehension about the nature and
  importance of tools
• No sense of planning
• No notion of progression

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Summary of approaches Capability

• This is the basis of the UK National Curriculum
  for ICT and of Hampsteads cross-curricular
  approach to its teaching
• It is difficult to organise and plan
• BUT it
• Focuses on what is important
• Has clear notions of progression and development
• Grows from authentic contexts and purpose
  strengthens involvement

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INVOLVEMENT

• Children need to be involved with what they are
  doing
• (At least) three aspects
• Purpose
• Context
• Interaction

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Purpose but whose?

• Two types of purpose the pupils and the
  teachers
• Teachers purposes
• What do I want them to learn?
• What role do I want the ICT materials to play?
• Pupils purpose
• Why should I learn this?

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Teachers purposes (1 of 2)

• What do I want them to learn?
• About the subject?
• About themselves?
• What role do I want the ICT materials to play?
• To lead them to the right answer or to allow them
  to explore/express their ideas?
• To motivate or to do new thingsExample
  ModellingSpace Coastal erosion

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Teachers purposes (1 of 2)

• Is the material there to replace me or to augment
  my lesson?
• What roles could the teacher have when pupils are
  using this example? Microscopes
• How would the effectiveness of the material
  change as the teachers role changed?

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Pupils purpose

• Why should I be doing this?
• Because I am told to do so
• Because in 10 years time it will help me
• Because I see it as interesting
• Because I see it as useful
• Because I see it as important
• Useful and important for what? And to whom?
• Context provides the answers to these

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Context the conveyor of purpose

• Because I see it as interesting
• Example Musical pictures
• Because I see it as useful
• Example Teaching how to text
• Because I see it as important
• Example Crime survey, Messengers.org
• Or (ideally) more than one of these!

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Interaction but of/with what?

• All educational materials claim to be
  interactive
• What is the nature of the interaction in these
  examples?Snowman Minibeasts Free Cell
• Key issue Minds on rather than hands on
  (Ros Driver)
• Or if you prefer it in Greek

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ASSESSMENT

• Starts from what you want the pupils to learn
• Need learning objectives not (just) activities
• To know/understand cf to make a slide
• The materials must allow you to assess that
  learning
• The pupils need to be involved in their own
  assessment

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Materials that allow assessment

• Material needs to be structured to provide
  evidence of learning
• What do these examples let you know about the
  pupils learning? Mr. Zippy Word tutorial
  Your texting material
• Two questions
• What evidence will I have of the extent to which
  the Learning objectives for this session have
  been met?
• What could I do to get more evidence?

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Involving the pupils

• The pupils need to be involved in their own
  assessment and that of others
• To help them learn
• To help you learn what they know
• Example 1 A pupils evaluation of a house he
  build in Logo
• Example 2 Evaluating presentations

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Three Issues
Approach
Computer- based material
Assessment
Involvement
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Three key foci for successful material
Capability
Computer- based material
Psyches cf Somata
Self- evaluation
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A reference

• Brosnan, T. (2002) Teaching with ICT in
  Pachler, N. (Ed.) Lehren undLernen mit IKT.
  Innsbruck Studienverlag.