Monthly Archives: November 2011

Defining Digital Creativity Strand – working on my new #ictcurric

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I realised yesterday I hadn't actually posted my definition for my digital creativity strand.  This was quite an easy strand to write as the topic speaks for itself really.

At our school we recognise that technology and digital tools can be used as a creative tool as well.  The basis of many arts today rely on the effective usage of digital tools to create a product whether it is audio editing, movie computer effects or photo editing.  Digital tools can also be used to create new art forms as well.

We therefore feel it is important to not only provide experience in as many different digital creativity fields as possible but seek to encourage pupils to develop their own talents and ideas using digital tools for creativity.

Defining Digital Citizenship strand – working on my new #ICTcurric

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I have now finally got round to writing my first version of what I think the digital citizenship strand should be.  I struggled a bit with this one but eventually finished it by focussing on what I thought are the important parts of digital citizenship; e-safety, communication skills and legal rights.

The next stage now is to start thinking about topics for each strand.  I have a list of topics which @ChrisLeach78 has developed for his prep school ICT curriculum which also uses similar strands (and is very well worth a look).  I will start to extend these topic lists as my curriculum needs to extend into secondary school as well.  

Digital Citizenship

At our school we recognise that pupils should not only be taught how to use technology but also how to use technology appropriately in society.  Pupils should understand that online communications whether from an individual or an organisation or government can have both a positive and a negative impact on themselves and society.  They should also understand that they themselves can contribute to society through their own communications online.
 
Through the three other strands pupils will be producing digital products.  In this strand pupils will explore how their work is legally protected but also how to use legally acceptable work produced by others.  Pupils will understand their digital rights online but will also be expected to learn about the the digital rights of others.

Defining Digital Technology – part of my work on ICT curriculum strands #ictcurric

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Here is my next definition in my work on my version of an ICT curriculum.  Originally I had called this strand simply Computing however after reading some of the work  @chrisleach78 is doing on his own version of the ICT curriculum strands where he has defined it as Digital Technology I can see how this would open up the strand to focus a lot more on other aspects of pure technology development, functionality and usage.  Accordingly after doing a little bit further reading up I now have a definition of Digital Technology I am happy with as a first version.  Opinions and comments always welcome.

Digital Technology

At our school we recognise that pupils will be using hardware and software throughout their career and will need to understand how that technology and hardware works.  However in order to become proficient users of technology pupils should also understand how systems work and are built and also how to design, build and improve systems themselves.

Our pupils are therefore taught the basics of programming, networking and how to build a computer.  These skills are applied in relevant contexts to show pupils the relevance of these skills.

Designing an iPad app for our school

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 Recently I met with an app developer (who himself has only just set out but at least has a couple under his belt) about designing and creating our own school app.  It was a very productive and creative meeting giving me a lot of ideas to work with.

The process so far will be:

·         Design mock-ups using iMockups on iPad or Balsamiq on Desktop

·         Download Titanium developer

·         Learn Javascript

All three will need to happen side by side and there is a lot of work to be done but hopefully it will lead to



Defining Digital Literacy – part of my work on ICT curriculum strands #ictcurric #diglit

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Recently I have been posting on my work on rewriting my own ICT curriculum to fit within four learning strands.  As part of that work I have been starting to write my own definitions of each strand before linking units with those strands.  After spending some time reading some work on digital literacy (mostly @dajbelshaw's presentations and a bit of his thesis – for which I am indebted) I have written the following definition of digital literacy.  This is a first draft and will be discussed with my own department however any online comment would be very welcome.

Digital Literacy: 

At our school we recognise that we need to prepare pupils for a digital world through a sustained engagement with technology and  media relevant to their context.  We show pupils how to use digital tools to control their relationship with the digital world.  Pupils develop cognitive skills that enable them to process both the information they encounter online and the tools they need to make sense of that information and produce their own information.  Units of work which form a part of the Digital Literacy strand are designed to meet these needs through challenging and engaging work which seeks to produce pupils who are literate in digital technology and relevant processing and thinking skills.

Building definitions for the 4 ICT curriculum strands

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Recently I posted a proposal for structuring an ICT curriculum around four separate strands.  These are Digital Literacy, Digital Creativity, Computing and Digital Citizenship.  I got a pretty good response from a couple of peers on Twitter and now I’m looking to take this process of developing these strands to the next stage by starting to focus on what each strand should mean.

For each strand I would like to develop the following:
  1. A definition of what that strand means and its impact on the pupils
  2. Examples of work and resources related to that strand
  3. Supporting material and sources
The definition is obviously the key aim here and through it I hope to be able to provide something on which I can then hang each of the units of work which pupils do throughout their school career.  The definition does not need to be outright academic in nature as both parents and pupils should be able to read it and understand it.

I have therefore created a Google docs presentation through which myself and another member of staff at my school who handles the junior school ICT are going to begin to develop a set of definitions.  However I would very much welcome any input from others as well so if you would like access to edit please let me know on twitter.