The importance of Practitioners' skills and knowlegde when using Technology in the Classroom.

In my opinion, I think that for practitioners to incorporate the concept of ICT within their classroom, it is important for them to have a sound sense of knowledge and have developed a good understanding on how to the technology. For children to understand and use the technology correctly, practitioners should be required to attend training sessions to develop these skills and become confident users of technology so that they can enhance a child’s learning experiences by being trained to use these different technological devices.

While various modes and mediums of technology such as iPads and the Interactive Whiteboards are simple and convenient to use in the classroom, most practitioners are apprehensive about using them, although training has been provided. In a piece of research into the confidence and competence of practitioners’ use of technology in the Early Years Foundation Stage, Marsh (2005) discovered that there was a lack of confidence. This came as the result of the level of confidence. This demonstrates that practitioners are not competent users of technology and therefore, this can have a substantial impact on the learning experiences of the pupils as practitioners will be unable to demonstrate how the technology is used.

However, we must consider the skills and mindset of the younger generation who recently have or plan to become involved in the teaching profession. As technology within the classroom is a recent occurrence and there has been a rapid advancement of technology over the years, newly qualified teachers are at an advantage of having the opportunity to acquire the skills and confidence within their initial training. This enables them to operate the technology and enhance the learning, not of their pupils, but also possibly the older generation of the teaching profession when it is required. (Aubrey & Dahl, 2014) 

Aubrey, C. & Dahl, S. (2014) ‘The Confidence and Competence in Information and Communication Technologies of Practitioners, Parents and Young Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage’ Journal of International Research & Development. Vol. 34 (1), pp.94-108  

Practitioners skills and knowledge within ICT

I believe that practitioners should be fully trained on how to use ICT otherwise they will not be using ICT effectively, such as people tend to only do what they currently know, and they don’t expand on their knowledge, therefore the students will be missing out on what ICT has to offer. Research shows that teachers have admitted they have ‘lack of confidence in using technologies’ (Aubery & Dahl, 2014).

Trainee teachers wanting to come into the profession are being taught new ways with technology, however to be taught this they need to be imaginative and creative (Sutton, 2011). This allows trainee teachers to come into the profession of knowing how to use ICT effectively, therefore the students can learn effectively with the ICT and the pedagogy will adapt to include new technology to benefit children.  

This video shows how much technology has changed our education. I believe, if practitioners are not trained and they don’t have the confidence then this allows a class to be taught with limited technology. However this video shows the benefits of using technology and how it helps children at every level and at any age.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyz6-taovlaOkPsPtK4KNEg?v=y17l-hxFz1M

Aubrey, C & Dahl, S (2014). ‘The Confidence and Competence in Information and Communication Technologies of Practitioners, Parents and Young Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage’. Early Years: An International Journal of Research and Development, 34(1), 94-108.

Sutton, R (2011). ‘The Preservice Technology Training Experiences of Novice Teachers. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 28(1), 46

Practitioners Skills and ICT

Although technology is the future of education, it is the teachers’ guidance that allows this way of teaching to be successful. Hew & Brush (2007) said, “integration of technology is typically affected by the following three factors: teachers’ technology skills, teachers’ technology beliefs, and teachers’ perceived technology barriers.” Therefore without the correct technological skills and knowledge, it is uncertain whether or not the true impact of learning with technology will influence children, “teacher inexperience and skill deficiencies may often be an important factor inhibiting the effectiveness of ICT use in education by students,”( http://www.infodev.org/articles/teachers-teaching-and-icts, no date)

     With the continuous evolution in the world of technology, it is clear that the skills set that teachers presently have will no longer suffice.  “Children should be finding out about and identifying the uses of technology in their everyday lives,” (Siraj- Blatchford, 2000), therefore it is obliged for teachers to expand their ICT skills to accommodate children’s rights to learn with various multimedia. Therefore it is important for the pedagogy to change in many schools. In comparison with my personal experiences, the ICT skills that my teachers had were very limited compared to what is required with teachers in today’s classrooms because the quantity of multimedia in my class were very limited and occasionally absent so the teachers’ and the pupils ICT skills were very basic. In my primary school, the teachers’ skills were limited to just the computer and maybe an Interactive Whiteboard. But for the future of education, practitioners need further training to use Interactive Whiteboards, ipads, apps and become familiar with the futuristic virtual tools that are becoming more common in classrooms to keep up with the technology rather than the technology taking over their occupations, which is already proven in existence with the Steve Jobs Schools and the increasing influence of Gamification in schools.

Hew, K., Brush, T. & Glazewski, K. (2008). Development of an instrument to measure preservice teachers’ technology skills, technology beliefs, and technology barriers. Computersin the schools. Vol 25. pp.112.

Siraj- Blatchford, I. & Siraj- Blatchford, J. (2000). More than Computers: Information and Communications Technology in the Early Years. London.

http://www.infodev.org/articles/teachers-teaching-and-icts (no date) Accessed 18 January 2017.

Podcasts and Vodcasts

Podcasting is defined as ‘the process of capturing an audio event, song, speech or a mix of sounds and then posting that digital sound object to a website or blog’ (Meng, 2005) On the other hand, Vodcasting is described as more or less identical to podcasting where the content is displayed as a video.  

Podcasts and vodcasts have become a more commonly used within the education sector by investing a considerable amount of resources and money after success has spread across several different domains such as healthcare, nursing and science. By using podcasts and vodcasts in their lessons, educators can create a learning environment which can engage and stimulate a child’s learning experience by allowing them to access material they need where ever they are. (Gay et al, 2006).

In addition to this, modes of technology such as a podcast can benefit a child who is visually impaired or learns better through narration as they have the capabilities to provide audio stimuli. Comparable to this, vodcasts can also assist children who learn better by watching.

Meng, P. (2005) Podcasting & Vodcasting: A White Paper, Definitions, Discussions & Implications. Available at: http://www.tfaoi.com/cm/3cm/3cm310.pdf (Accessed: 18^th December 2017)

Walls, S et al. (2010) ‘Podcasting in Education: Are Students as Ready and Eager as We Think They Are?’ Computer & Education.Vol.54(2) pp.371-278 

Podcasts and Vodcasts

Podcasts are becoming very popular in people’s lives these days on a daily basis, they are created for people to enjoy whenever they want, whether it is commuting to work, exercising etc. some are created as mini talk shows and some are introducing you to the latest news, whether it is music, politics etc. Podcasts can be created by anyone who decides to show their passion about a topic as it could interest others too. However, vodcasts are very similar, but they provide images and videos (Orden, 2013).

People listen to podcasts and vodcasts to get ideas, learn about new things, and they are able to gain knowledge whilst commuting. Podcasting/vodcasting in schools allows children in groups to create a podcast/vodcast, all they need is an electronic device with a camera to record, people and a topic to talk about. Teachers could set tasks and review at the end of each lesson to see if the students are understanding the topic. It is a fun way of learning and explaining what they know. Educational podcasting can be highly effective, it could potentially build a child’s confidence and self-esteem, they could work with a group of friends they feel comfortable in, and express their opinion without the rest of the class seeing (Poore, 2016).

‘Flipped learning’ is highly beneficial towards teachers and also students, teachers are able to have a head start with their lessons and students are able to learn more within their lessons because they have done the work beforehand. However ‘an effective flip requires careful preparation’, therefore, time and effort still needs to be put into this (Educause, 2012).

This video shows a school in America using flipped learning, I have decided to use this one as it mentions about flipped learning benefitting pupils with different levels of abilities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a7NbUIr_iQ

Educause, (2012) Things you should know about flipped classrooms. [Online] Available at: https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eli7081.pdf Accessed on: 17/01/17

Orden, J (2013) How to Podcast. What Makes Podcasts Different and So Popular to Listen to? [Online] Available at: http://www.howtopodcasttutorial.com/what-is-a-podcast.htm Accessed on: 17/01/17

Poore, (2016) Using Social Media in the Classroom. London. Sage

Podcasts and Vodcasts

            There are many new advances in the technological world that could potentially increase the worries that technology is replacing teachers. This could be because new ways of delivering lessons, research and education are arising in classroom settings, such as Podcasts and Vodcasts. "Podcasts are media files that can be distributed via the Internet and played on computers and handheld devices such as iPods or other digital audio players,"  and Vodcasts can be recognised as having the same principles, but rather with images and videos, (Mathieu, 2009).  In my opinion, I think that these new ways of distributing information could be good for children and teachers to gain access to any files or videos that they require quickly and efficiently and can gain access to a wide variety of sources outside of the country to facilitate in learning which can enhance their interests in the specified topics. Examples of  digital learning in some educational settings are Ted Talks, Times Educational Supplement, Newsround, Flipped Learning and The Bedley bros, all of which seem to have an impact on how individuals learn now and in the future.

As a group, Sophie, Jodie and I represented the idea of podcasting and vodcasting by creating a video of a tour around the campus of the University, using image and audio. The link is below:-

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAZZ1tf0cU4

Mathieu, J. (2009). Blogs, Podcasts, and Wikis: The New names in information Dissemination. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. Vol.109 (5).pp.6-8.

Multimodal and Multimedia

Our conceptions of language and communication have increasingly been changed by the introduction of technology and its digital capabilities. Also, by the increased availability of different modes of displaying digital information, it is no surprise that many more schools are encouraging the ideas of multimodal and multimedia in classrooms. "Learning environments that provide learners with multiple representations offer opportunities for greater interactivity, and complementarity," (Gilakjani et al, 2011).

    The correlation between multimodal and multimedia is crucial because it allows teachers to not only use several ways of producing content but also allows multiple ways of displaying information to support the needs of all children. Beauchamp, (2012) suggests, “Multimodal capability describes the facility of ICT to combine various modes (multimodal), such as visual, sounds and text, which are displayed through a variety of media (multimedia).”

The different modes for teaching act as ‘vehicles for learning’ because children can participate with their preferred way of learning, such as Visual, Aural, Gestural, Spatial or Linguistic through various ways of media such as Screens, tablets, noticeboards, apps, etc.

Due to the expanding nature of multimedia that exists, it is not surprising that innovative methods are being used in schools. Many of the methods that are progressively being used, include, Virtual Reality Headsets, Aurasma, QUIVER which is increasingly popular due to its ability to bring images to life, and Holograms. These methods are based as the future of education and will certainly impact on the individuals learning because it will expand their minds with the unthinkable. The exposure to these methods will inevitably become important because children can experience different worlds within the comfort of the classroom and expand their minds for the good by using their own creativity without the need for teachers to be present in class. But it should not overshadow the importance of the basic writing and language skills that children require to experiment with the new technological ways of learning.

Beauchamp, G. (2012) Chapter 1: What is ICT in the Primary School?: Tools and Techniques. In ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to practice. Pearson- Books.

Gilakjani, A., Ismail, H. & Ahmadi, S. (2011). The Effect of Multimodal Learning Models on Language Teaching and Learning. Theory and practice in Language Studies. Vol 1 (10), pp. 1321- 1327.

Multimodal and Multimedia

Multimodal and multimedia is a very common way of learning these days throughout compulsory education. This way of learning is highly beneficial to a child’s development in education as it allows the child to engage more in the tasks as it seems to be a ‘fun’ way of learning for the children. This type of learning allows the teachers to teach in many different ways to help the children understand. ICT has many unique features which enable teaching more beneficial, such as, speed, creativity, automation and interactivity (Kennewell and Beauchamp, 2007).

The difference between multimodal and multimedia are combining the different modes (multimodal) and then the way these modes are displayed through media (multimedia) such as an app, website etc. There are five different modes which are; visual, linguistic, spatial, gestural and aural (Twiner et al, 2010).

Compulsory education these days involves using many apps on the Ipads, most apps have multimodal learning included, and they enable children to engage with all different modes and to feel more motivated. Children can create their own stories by using ‘book creator’ and ‘story dice’, this allows children’s imagination to expand. Classrooms are now bringing ‘skype’ into learning, a way of communicating, in my earlier post I mentioned technology is becoming an issue for teachers as technology could possibly take over. Skype has a stable audio quality and allows group video chats, I think multimedia will become more popular in the future years (British Council, 2016).

However, multimodal and multimedia do have their challenges, such as the internet isn’t strong enough to work properly, and the cost of the technology, some schools may struggle to pay for Ipads, laptops etc. A big issue with this way of learning is the teachers not being trained to teach the children. Teachers tend to stick to the way they usually teach because they are unaware on how to use the technology.

British Council, (2016) Teaching English online: opportunities and pitfalls. (Online) Available at: https://www.britishcouncil.org/voices-magazine/teaching-english-online-opportunities-pitfalls Accessed on 15/12/16

Kennewell, S & Beauchamp, G (2007) 'The features of interactive whiteboards and their influence on learning', Learning, Media and Technology’. Swansea School of Education, UK. Pp.231

Twiner, A, Coffin, C, Littleton, K. and Whitelock, D. (2010) 'Multimodality, orchestration and participation in the context of classroom use of the interactive whiteboard: a discussion', Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 19: 2, pp.211 — 223

Multimedia And Multimodal Technology

Multimedia and Multimodal Technology is known to play a fundamental component in the learning and development of a child within the classroom setting. I have created a multimodal presentation through a piece of multimedia known as EMAZE.. https://app.emaze.com/editor/@AWQIQFRZ. 

Mobile Technology: Teachers v Technology

Mobile Technology has become a frequent way of learning in educational settings and has become more of a way of teaching multiple subjects rather than only be an object for learning in ICT classrooms. Boticki, et al (2015) stated, "Mobile Technology provides a range of new ways to learn, such as promoting authentic learning environments in the classroom thanks to mobile technology, allowing students to make connections to their classroom lessons on learning."
   But the main question is, is this new profound way of learning more important than teachers?
Keengwe et al, (2008) said, "Technology is not a substitute for good instruction; effective teachers should strive to integrate technology into their lessons to engage multiple learning styles of diverse learners and abilities in the classroom." Therefore it could be said that teachers will always be a part of teaching but may become the 'facilitators' rather than the prominent individual in the learning process.
Although technology introduces upgraded ways of learning, it is the influential role  and abilities of teachers that allow technology to be a part of the curriculum, therefore a balance between the teachers instructions and technological advances could be the improvement that education settings need for the future.


Domingo,M. and Gargante, A. (2016)Exploring the use of educational technology in primary education: Teachers' perception of mobile technology learning impacts and applications' use in the classroom. Computers in Human Behaviour, 56, pp.21-28.

Leonard, J. (2013) How Early Childhood Educators are initially integrating tablet technology in the curriculum. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. pp.5-6.

Mobile Technology

Mobile technology is described as ‘all those technological devices, which are portable and lightweight and either through data cables or through wireless connections and have internet capability.’ Keengwe & Bhargava (2014, cited in Beauchamp, G pg.89). Devices such as iPads, tablets and laptops seem to be more commonly used to support and enhance learning and development within the classroom as they provide apps such as Puppet Pals and Padlet for both practitioners and children to use. As technology is continuously developing and becoming more affordable for schools to purchase, can we assume that technology could potentially take over the role of teacher.

Keengwe & Bhargava (2014) Mobile Technologies in the Classroom. In Beauchamp, G. (2017) Computing and ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to Practice. Second Edition, Routledge. Pg. 89 

Mobile Technology

Mobile technology is the term used to describe the advanced technology that we have available to us in modern day. It mostly refers to the use of handheld, portable devices that are used by millions of people around the world on a daily basis for a variety of reasons. Even though mobile technology is highly beneficial to everyone daily, there are some negative effects such as decreased social development and many accidents caused due to distraction. Mobile technology is becoming a problem for teachers as many people are wondering whether or not teachers will be replaced by mobile technology. (Quillen, 2012) states, "The highly charged response reflects the fear many teachers are beginning to feel that technology could push them out of their jobs, especially in an era of persistently tight budgets." It is important to be critical seeing as though this quotation is from the United States, so this could be different for the UK. 

Quillen, I. (2012). Can Technology Replace Teachers? Quality Debated as Districts Tap Tech over Teachers. Education Digest: Essential Readings Condensed for Quick Review, 78(4),4-10. United States.

My Personal Experience with ICT: Was my Education ruled by Technology?

"electronic media has a significant influence on childhood and suggest that children's early literacy and play experiences are shaped increasingly by electronic media." (Facer et al.2003; Marsh, 2004)

From my personal experience, technology was and will always be a part of my education because it surrounded many aspects of my learning. Technology offered me the support I required to discover information and allowed me to communicate in many different forms.

But in my opinion, technology did not rule my education or childhood as a whole because many other factors influenced my way of learning in school such as play, communication between friends, family and teachers, the outdoor environment, personal accomplishments and the use of basic resources such as books, pens and paper.
The use of Technology was quite limited in my primary school compared to the present day therefore we were not obliged to depend on technological instruments to learn and the use of books, the whiteboard and the teacher's knowledge was enough for my learning in Primary school.

(Hayes, M., Whitebread, D. (2006) Chapter 3: Literacy and ICT in the Early Years in, ICT in the Early Years. Open University Press: New York; 40)

Personal Exepriences with Technology

I feel that I’m at that age where it’s a difficult moment to pinpoint my first experience with technology as I have grown up with it. However, I can see that there has been huge advances in technology since I was young. When I was in primary school we had access to the “old” style large computers with the white square monitors and they were “new” then. They helped us with creativity and different styles of learning. That being said, as children we had no difficulty learning without the involvement of technology in the classrooms. We would rarely use the computers, and I recall the teachers relied much more on textbooks and blackboards rather than interactive whiteboards and the internet.

Growing up with Technology as a 90's child - Personal Experiences of Technology

When growing up, technology was very basic. Being a 90’s child meant laptops were the new thing and not many people could afford them. As a result of this most households possessed a desktop computer, which allowed you to carry out the very basic of tasks, such as processing word documents using word pad and being creative using a programme called Paint. In addition to this, as broadband or Wi-Fi didn’t exist, we had to wait forever for our internet to connect as the dial up connector was so slow.

Here is a video link showing what technology was like in the 90’s compared to technology today:  https://www.youtube./watch?v=4T2tcXh8044&spfreload=10