Week+2

Guest Lecturer Richard Grignon

Today we had a guest lecturer who helped us learn about the world of google docs and the use of clickers in class. Richard Grignon is a teacher with OCDSB and he showed us a number of different tools that we can use in the classroom.

The class opened with a demonstration on the use of clickers in class. These tools are useful I think but also somewhat overrated. The premise is intriguing, all the students can actively participate in the lesson and have their results and contributions instantly recognized. But at the same there is the ever present technological downside that something could go wrong and there would be a malfunction of some sort. Furthermore there is the added pressure on a teacher to make sure to reserve the equipment (which is expensive), ensure all the batteries are in working order and that the clickers function. Not to mention creating the interactive lesson. I would say that at least once per unit this method could be used but to expect to have a number of lessons incorporating it might be difficult to manage. That being said there is a great aura of fun that is highly infectious when using the clickers, it gives the students a feeling of power that is not generally associated with school. The great thing about clickers are that they ensure that all students are participating and by polling the class the teacher can see which areas of the curriculum need to be addressed.

After that we began to work with Google Applications which are tremendously useful. The abilities they grant students for working in groups without having to meet is unparallelled. They offer a wide range of functions from creating slideshows to surveys and teachers could implement them in a number of classes, there is no class that could not benefit from this type of resource. The other great thing about this site is that it makes any lesson student centred and the ease of use of the programs also ensures that students can get to work quickly and not waste time learning how to use them.

For example in class we were asked to make our own. Please view my questionnaire and powerpoint:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dDBMQjdkbC1INVRVQnphbkRSLTVxTUE6MA

http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dfd9d7qg_1drzjwzhg

Afterwards we spoke briefly on the subject of smartphones and school policies towards them. The idea came up that since most students have smartphones could you imagine the interactivity that could be achieved by their use in class? The difficult part would be changing school stances towards them because as of now they are currently not allowed to be turned on and on the students' person. Changing the way we do things in education is important because it falls under the TTWWADI idea mentioned in our week 1 readings. It would be an exciting change for a school board to change how it views smartphones and their use in classes. We know this change is coming and I for one am willing to see it implemented because of what it could represent for the future of education.