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An example of a different approach for the assignment 1 artefact that came through my feeds today.  It's a Wordpress blog that has been used to create a "presentation through hypertext of an alternative vision for a school". Not only is this a good example of trying something different in a webs ite.  It is about re-thinking education influenced, in part, by some of the factors we're talking about in this course. FYI, the clickable image on the front page is implemented using what is called an "imagemap".  Google that term and you'll find some resources/tools that can help

Post about "Bouncy Balls" as a classroom management tool, in particular to encourage learners to work quitely

A description of the 1st one-to-one laptop program in the world (at a Melbourne-based private school). The important aspect of this is the purpose behind this program and how that differs from what has happened since. Arguably, how computers and computing devices are being used in schools has radically decreased even though the capability of the technology has radically increased.

I found this article really interesting after an experience in two year seven classes a few weeks ago. I was asked to help two grade 7 classes for the first 2 periods for three weeks. In that time, I wandered around quietly paying particular attention to what the students were actually doing on their laptops. I noticed on many occasions, several of the children were actually entertaining themselves by just "pottering" around on their laptop, even while the teacher was explicitly teaching. I was really curious to know how much the majority of students were actually learning. The class environment was relatively quiet compared to schooling in my day (in the '70's and '80's) but I had the thought, if laptop programs are NOT successful, we have a big problem that may not be confirmed for a decade or so. The other thing I found interesting is that the majority of the year 7's had done extremely poorly on their ICT exams.... interesting...

I came across a fantastic app for students called 'Popplet' which is a tool for students to make graphic organizers to visually represent their ideas and thoughts on a particular topic. This app can be used for sharing and collaborating and is an effective pedagogical tool to use in all learning areas.

I used Popplet the first time last week during class and I must say, it is a fantastic app. The students enjoyed brainstorming ideas through the use of this digital tool and were probably the most quiet they'd been all week. I will definitely be exploring this app in greater depth and using it in the classroom whenever the opportunity arises. Thankyou for sharing.