This week's activity involved the use of media tools such as the podcasts, images and videos. My reflection will focus on the use of images in classrooms. I managed to download photos and resize images using Mobaphoto. Below are two photos that I took using my Samsung phone and resized the photos and uploaded on my blog and wiki. I took the first photo at a mine site during a visit to the mine. Originally this photo was 1.81 Megabytes (Mb) on my mobile but when I used Mobaphoto to resize the image it became 51.3 Kilobytes (Kb). I have discovered that the use of Mobaphoto enables easy downloading of photos and it also saved space on my wiki and blog. The second picture of the giraffes was taken using a mobile phone at a zoo and its original size was 1.71 Mb but after resizing the photo it became 36.4Kb. The size and quality of images is important when using them in a classroom setup. In choosing images to use when teaching science subjects (biology and chemistry) I would consider images that would attract and motivate the students to be involved in the learning.
I found the use of Mobaphoto very useful because I could use Mobaphoto in my own science classes to resize photos and display the students science projects and experiments on a class or school web page. Interaction with other schools on certain science topics can be enabled by using wikis.
Due to the size of the photos, communication via email with parents on the progress of their children would be made easier by uploading resized images of students' projects. This will enhance learning as parents can motivate their children to take part in various science related projects. Images can be very useful in teaching science, before handing the students text about a particular topic, I would attach photos on my classroom wiki and the students will work in groups to try and identify the objects on the image and to explain what these image mean to them.
As a teacher I would utilise images to achieve good learning outcomes by using the TPACK framework and an appropriate scaffold(CQUniversity Australia, 2012).
In chemistry I would use images to document steps and procedures for students to follow when doing experiments on chemical reactions and titrations. Students will be able to visualise and follow the steps. An image of the titration colour of the end result of the experiment will be shown to the students so that they can try to achieve the same results.
The image above taken at a mine site could be used to teach science topics such as environmental pollution. As a teacher I would ask for permission to visit a mine site so that students can be made aware of the operations and the environmental implications that emanate from the activities at the mine site. I would ask for permission from the mine personnel to take photos. I would also discuss with the parents about the field trip and I would ask the parents for permission for students to be allowed to participate in activities such as capturing images. As a teacher I would ask the students to bring in phones, digital cameras or anything that they can use to capture images. If the school provides these resources it will be an advantage. During the field trip I would encourage the students to capture images that they think will demonstrate environmental degradation as shown by the picture above. When we get to the classroom the students will work in groups to upload images of interest and discuss each images in relation to environmental degradation. This will ensure high order thinking and as a class we will have permanent records of the images that we could keep referring to if need be. I could use the De Bono's six thinking hats as a scaffold on a wiki for students to explain mining and environmental implications.
This photo of giraffes was a captured at a zoo. This image could be used to teach about animal habitats and ecosystems. As a teacher I would capture photos of different animals in different habitats. Each student can then describing the habitats of the animals as demonstrated by the images.
One important issue about images is to know where to get them without breaching copyright issues. As a teacher I would ensure that my students are aware of these copyright issues and I would urge students to reference any images that may breach any legal conditions. My students will be aware of ethical, legal and safe guidelines. I managed to use Flickr and the link below is for a picture on blasting that I accessed on Flickr. I found Flick easy to use and I was aware of the copyright issues as I was using the images.
Images support the Constructivist Learning Theory. Students will be actively involved in the process of learning and knowledge. Learning will build upon the knowledge that student already knows. By identifying images students can use the knowledge of what they already know and relate to new ideas.
Uses of images at each stage of the SAMR model
Substitution
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Augmentation
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Modification
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Redefinition
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Instead of using textbooks and workbooks the teacher can use an image to introduce the students to a particular topic in science. The students will explain what they see on the image in relation to the science topic. The image will be posted on a wiki and instead
of using pencil, pen and paper, students will easily edit on the wiki space.
Instead of using the situation where the teacher assumes a directive and authoritative role the images will enhance class discussions.
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Students
can work in small groups and they discuss the images on different topics. They can post their discussion answers on a wiki which allow the students to edit their peer’s work and provide
comments on each other’s’ work.
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Students
can interact or collaborate on collaborative issues. Projects can be cross
curricular and multidisciplinary by utilising the strengths of the students
in different classes. For instance as a teacher I might ask my students to research about the habitats of animals found in a country like France. Instead of going to France my students can work collaboratively with the students who are already in France. My students can ask those in France to capture images of different animals in different habitats and they can share the information through classroom wikis. My students can they complete their research by analysing the shared images.
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Strengths
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Weaknesses
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Opportunities
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Threats
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Images can be used to introduce a topic or summarize a unit
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Students can have different views and meanings about an image. Images
are evocative and they can initiate a variety of associations. ‘A picture
says a thousand words’.
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Students can be motivated and stimulated by using images and they become
more observant and express themselves
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It can be difficult to reach an agreement or conclusion about an
image as students may have different perspectives on a particular image. This
may create confusion in some students.
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By using images, reality of certain issues and the outside world can
be brought into the classroom.
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Images can help clarify misunderstandings about certain topics.
Images allow imagination and objective thinking. This increases the
learning potential of students and it encourages high order thinking.
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Images are convenient to use in classroom setup. Finding pictures and
capturing images using mobile phones, cameras and other devices is easy and
does not take a lot of time. Images can also be downloaded from various
sources such as the web
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If students are given permission to capture images using their mobile
phones they can divert the use of the phones for other purposes such as Facebook.
This will divert the attention of the students from the learning process. It
can also be expensive for some parents to buy cameras and mobile phones for
the students.
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Images can be permanently stored in mobile phones or uploaded on a
wiki and students can have access to the images when need arises.
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If images are downloaded from the web copyright issues may be
breached. Students and teachers must be aware of crediting the owners of
various images.
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Reference
Flick image : Blasting http://www.flickr.com
CQUniversity Australia. (2012). EDED20491- ICTs for learning design:
Flick image : Blasting http://www.flickr.com
CQUniversity Australia. (2012). EDED20491- ICTs for learning design:
online study guide. Retrieved from
Thanks Elizabeth.
ReplyDeleteNice post with good balance of technical skill and curriculum links. The use of the SAMR and SWOT to scaffold your thinking was excellent. Keep up the good work.