A journey to success

Well I'm sure I am dragging out my goodbyes to this subject however here is a digital story made to support my final reflection!

Final Reflection

Well as you probably guessed from the last post I have now finished my class Integrating Learning Technologies which was of course the driving force of this blog, however before I signed off I felt I had more to say!

As a requirement of my course I have completed a final culminating statement that will not be posted here due to it official use. However I mentioned the aspects that of this course have been important to me and I just thought I'd add to it!

Through this course I am pretty dam impressed with myself, for someone who only uses facebook because I got told off from my friends for not using it, I have gone on to write a weekly blog (sometimes more than weekly), make two official digital stories (one and two)  (some extra with home pics), develop a wiki with my friends to share our university resources, I have podcasted, and vodcasted and am even now contemplating buying an iPad! In my final statement I mentioned that learning technologies are not a possibility they are the reality and the future and I remember hearing a statement similar at the beginning of the semester but did not truely believe it! Now through my own learnings I know this is very much the truth and I also no that by not staying up to date and providing my students with experiences similar to mine (over this semester) I will be significantly disadvantaging them and myself professionally!

I can safely say now I acknowledge their potential be it in regular classroom activities, for special needs, professional development, for motivation or even assessment. I am excited to teach with them and about them, I am excited to learn so many new skills and I am proud of how much I have learnt!

Thanks to this flickr'

3,2,1 Action

Well this was my first v-log I hope you liked it!

Who's too cool?

Reflecting back over this semester I have learnt a great deal, about technologies and learning technologies. I mention them separately because they are not one, I can not think of one technology that was only designed for educational purposes or to 'learn' on or with. However, as educators we use technology, how and why do we? Over this last week I was fortunate enough to read the article Too Cool For School? No Way! by Mishra and Koehler which introduced me to the TPACK model. TPACK stands for Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge, what a mouthful right? Well simplified this model breaks down how teachers should use technology in the educational arena. As pre-service teachers we are both learning both pedagogy (teaching style) and content (what to teach) however as beings of the real world to we everyday immerse ourselves in learning about technology. The TPACK model suggest that as teachers we should have a great understanding of how the content, technology and pedagogy will all intersect as one. I could not agree more with fellow blogger Kate's idea that too often we are overwhelmed with the new fancy toys that we do not know how to use them to their potential. My learning about the TPACK model was greatly supported by fellow class mates Belinda and Kate's presentation.

Thanks to this flickr'

I'll be your best friend?

Well to conclude the national cyber safety week I thought I would share with you a new website that similarly to fellow blogger Belinda has recently been introduced to me. 


I'll be your best friend?! is a term frequently used on the primary school playground. However, today that playground is moving to a cyber world and I have to ask the question if these primary school students are still throwing around friend requests in this world? This is just one of the many worries I would have when taking a class into the cyber world via their computers. As adults we have an understanding of the level of security that is needed when we are on the web, do children? Do they also understand the idea of virus and many other issues that we just take for granted?

Well budd:e is a online website designed by the government to teach students about such issues as the ones mentioned above. Whilst looking over it I think it may well teach me a few things, the website is set out in a child friendly design that allows students to complete tasks that will ensure their 'cyber safety'. Whilst I was reading about this fantastic sight I was also intrigued to find out that it can be provided as a package included two activity based learning modules, this is definitely a program that I wish to implement when I have my own class! 

do you have the magic e?

So has anyone noticed these days everything has an e in front of it email, elearning, eteaching, well now I bring you ePortfolio. This term was recently brought to my attention through an article well almost a guide by Helen Barrett. It focuses on the traditional concept of students making portfolio's of their work but like most things these days making it electronic! 


Barrett's article mentioned a very interesting trend that is occuring, ePortfolio's seem to be growing in popularity among high school education however it is in fact in primary particularly in lower primary that portfolio's are normally seen, kindergartens' making scrapbooks of their learning to take home each term. Why is it that in the technological world we are not all embracing the e in front of everything!


Jane Logan, Janna Weber and myself analysed this interesting topic and have represented our ideas in a presentation which will be shared for you all to look at. 


The most significant aspect of ePortfolio's for me was the fantastic opportunity it provides students with to reflect on their own learning and recognise, their own achievements and set their own goals for future learning. 

Barrett, H. (2010). Balancing the Two Faces of ePortfolios. Educação, Formação &

Tecnologias, 3(1), 6-14. [Online], disponível a partir de: http://eft.educom.pt


Thanks to this flickr'