Handheld Learning

Our focus this week has been on handheld learning.  Our task was to create a learning scenario for a group of primary 6 children that incorporated handheld devices (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad).  We decided to do a QR treasure hunt.  Below is a picture of a QR code I have created:

QR codes are similar to barcodes.  Once a QR code is scanned, information appears on the device you used.  Should you wish to learn more about how QR codes work and the differences to a conventional barcode then please read this guide by Laura Marriott.

In our activity, the children worked in groups of 3 where they scanned QR codes with an iPhone.  They then completed the task which appeared on their iPhone, and then followed the instructions to find the next QR code in the treasure hunt.  When designing the QR codes for our treasure hunt, we did so in a structured and organised manner, making the activity run smoothly.  The children really enjoyed this part of the activity and benefited greatly from using the iPhones in the treasure hunt. 

Attwell (2004) lists five benefits when using handheld learning effectively:

“• allows truly anywhere, anytime, personalised learning

• can be used to enliven, or add variety to, conventional lessons or courses

• facilitates both individual and collaborative learning experiences

• can be used to remove some of the formality which non-traditional learners may find unattractive

• has been observed to help young disconnected learners to remain more focused for longer periods”

Attwell J. (2004) cited Tonner S. (2012).

These benefits were evident when the children were engaging in the QR treasure hunt.  They were completely focused on the task and thoroughly enjoyed themselves in the process.  The children also worked together and exchanged ideas effectively to complete each task, thus enhancing their social development and communication skills.  The children also problem solved in many tasks as we didn’t give initial instructions of how to use all applications on the iPhone.  For example: where to find the video recorder and how to use it.  We let the children explore and discover the iPhone themselves in order to complete each task, fulfilling the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) principle challenge and enjoyment.

On completion of the QR treasure hunt, the children were back at the University room where they began.  Our lecturer, Sharon, then explained how to use the application iBook Creator which the children then used to make a scrapbook of their adventure on the QR treasure hunt.  The children did not seem to engage with this as much as they did on the QR treasure hunt and I believe this was the case for a number of reasons.  However, I believe the main reason was because 3 children were sharing an iPhone, making it difficult to all participate at the same time due to the screen being so small.  I believe for this reason it was physically not possible for all 3 children to be actively engaged and participating at the same time when using iBook Creator.

In my opinion, the ideal situation would be for each child to have an iPhone to themselves where they could work on their own scrapbook but also communicate with the members of their group, helping one another.  The reality, however, is unfortunately unlikely at this time in primary schools due to a lack of funding.  Then again, the Government has made it clear that “technology should no longer be treated as an optional extra but as a necessity” Pinder A. (2008).  Going back to my previous post, the Future of Handheld Learning, you never know what is around the corner.  In a few years time each school may have invested in a set of 33 iPhones that can be shared within the school, allowing children to obtain the most learning when using these handheld devices.  I most definitely hope this does happen as I believe it will certainly provide an opportunity where the CfE principle personalisation and choice can be met.

References

Attwell, J. (2004) cited Tonner S. (2012). Handheld Learning. Dundee: University of Dundee.

Scottish Government (2008). Curriculum for Excellence: Principles for curriculum design. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/understandingthecurriculum/howisthecurriculumstructured/principles/index.asp  [Last accessed: 21.2.12]

Pinder A. (2008). Andrew Pinder on Handheld Learning. (Don’t know where it was published): Learning Without Frontiers Ltd.

Available: http://www.handheldlearning.co.uk/content/view/58/60/ [Last accessed: 19.03.12]

Future of Handheld Learning

Today we were discussing the future of handheld learning.  Our lecturer, Sharon, directed us to a website which has a mission to “inspire and educate creatives across the planet” Inspiration Feed (2012).  I believe their website does just that.  We viewed an article called '5 apple concepts we wish were real' and the ideas were shockingly amazing – entirely innovative and creative.  They were:

                                                               1. Apple iDesk Concept 

                                                        

 2. Apple Tribook 

                                                             

                                                                      3. iCom

                                                                     4. iCar

                                                                5. Flexible iPhone

You can access the article, here, which has more information and pictures for each concept.

I really like the concept of the Apple Tribook and can definitely see something similar to this being created very soon.  People already have alternatives to this, when sinking two computer screens together, but this could certainly be the future of that, and I believe it will be.  I would love one of these and can see many clear benefits to having one.

I believe the iCar is also an amazing concept.  Who would not want this package available to them, when purchasing a new car?  However, I believe some of the ideas that go along with it may be slightly far fetched.  For example, being able to control home appliances via your car, like pre-heating the oven.  Yes, that would be nice, but in reality – how likely is that to actually happen?  Maybe if you were a billionaire, then yes as many other inventions would need to be made and purchased prior to that taking effect.  For example, an iCooker.  This seems laughable, but who knows what the future holds.  One day, many years ago, I’m sure if the concept of a mobile phone was put to my grandmother, she would have laughed.  But for me, as long as I can remember, mobile phones have always been a part of everyday life.

When researching the future of handheld learning for myself, I came across an invention that has already been created, tried and tested at the beginning of its life.  It is called siftables.  Basically, a siftable is an interactive computer the size of a cookie.  They would usually be presented in a group, e.g. 10 siftables, so learners could have the opportunity to grasp information physically and arrange it in the way that they want.  Using siftables allows the user to think and solve problems.  I would love to see these being used in the primary school as I believe they would motivate children to learn in a new way.  Should you wish to hear about some of the activities and learning that can take place through using siftables in the classroom, please watch the video below.  I would highly recommend you do.

Video – David Merrill demonstrates Siftables

“Experts predict that advances [in technology] will continue to accelerate for at least 10 to 15 years” Brooks-Young S. (2010, p.5).  I most definitely agree with this statement.  Reflecting on the handheld learning has already gone before; I believe more of the same and better will appear on the market in the near future and will continue for many years to come.

References

Inspiration Feed (2012).  5 Apple concepts we wish were real.  (Don’t know where it was published): Inspiration Feed.

Available: http://inspirationfeed.com/inspiration/industrial-inspiration/5-apple-concepts-we-wish-were-real/  

[Last accessed: 19.03.12]

TED (2009). David Merrill demos Siftables.  New York: TED.

Available:http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/david_merrill_demos_siftables_the_smart_blocks.html 

[Last accessed: 19.03.12]

Brooks-Young, S (2010).  Teaching with the tools kids really use – learning with web and mobile technologies.  London: Sage Ltd.

SCRAN

© James Gardiner. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk.

A nice picture of a flower!

Context for Games Based Learning

This week our task was to develop a context for learning using a piece of games technology for a class of primary 6.  We chose the game Just Dance for the Wii for a number of reasons.  Firstly, we were all familiar with the game therefore felt confident and competent to use this as a context for a learning experience for the children.  Also, we believed most children would have played on a Wii before, and maybe even have played the game Just Dance before so we thought it would be interesting and motivating for the children.  Finally, from a practical aspect we thought the Wii was a good choice of console as we could have four children playing the game at the same time, thus making the organisation of the activity more manageable.  I have previously talked about the benefits of contexts for learning, so if you would like to read those points please visit my blog post Digital Literacy and ICT.

Using the game Just Dance as a context opened up a wide range of opportunities for learning experiences.  Our focus learning, through the context of Just Dance, was to create an attractive and informative poster advertising a dance performance.  Below is a copy of our full lesson plan should you wish to read and understand it in greater detail.

Class/Group: P6 group (8 children)           Lesson: Just Dance          Date: 16.2.12

Previous Experience We are not sure if they have experience with Just Dance on the Wii, but we think mostly all children will have had some sort of experience working with computer consoles.  We assume children will have had some experience making a poster before.
Working towards outcomes of a Curriculum for Excellence I can select ideas and relevant information, organise these in an appropriate way for my purpose and use suitable vocabulary for my audience. LIT 2-06A I can develop and communicate my ideas, demonstrating imagination and presenting at least one possible solution to a design problem. EXA 2-06A
		ASSESSMENT
Learning Intentions WALT: -          create an attractive and informative poster		Success Criteria I will be able to:  - make my poster eye-catching and colourful  - include relevant information e.g. venue, cost  - create a name and logo for my dance crew	Methods -          Thumbs up, thumbs down -          Checking children’s posters and assessing it against the success criteria
Timing				Resources
5 mins  5 mins	Setting the context/Beginning the lesson (Introduction) Introduce ourselves and let the children introduce themselves.  Let everyone put a name tag on, including us Q – Has anyone ever seen a dance performance before? (real life, tv…) Q – Has anyone ever participated in a dance performance before? Show them a dance performance they may be familiar with – Diversity on Britain’s got Talent (youtube clip) Teaching the learning intentions (Development) Diversity’s clip has led quite nicely into what we will be doing today – focusing on dance performances. Our learning intention today is to create an attractive and informative poster. We have two activities for today: 1. To explore Just Dance 3 on the Wii. (Children will be trained on the job). 2. To create a poster advertising a dance performance.  We would like you to do one each but you can all discuss it together and help each other out. Resources on table – help yourselves. Logo examples on table to give you some inspiration for creating your own logos. Go over the success criteria which are on the ‘think about…’ sheet and answer any questions the children may have about the task.			Paper, pens, sellotape Youtube clip Projector Screen Wii console, 4 controllers, just dance game A4 & A3 paper, pens, pencils, rulers, logo examples, ‘think about’ sheets

15 mins  5 mins	All children will start working on their poster, minus one group of 4 children who will go straight onto the Wii. The children will take it in turns (in groups of 4) on the Wii, having the opportunity to complete two short songs in each turn. The children will continue to rotate in this manner. Ending the lesson (Plenary) Stop the children and do ‘thumbs up, thumbs down’ so see if they feel they have met the success criteria. Q – Have you had experience with two stars and a wish before? Inform the children they will be giving todays activities two stars and a wish.  Give the children a post it note each and once they have finished they can stick it on a big piece of paper on the wall.		A3 piece of paper, post it notes
Success Criteria Results		Next steps for the children
EVALUATING MY PRACTICE
Going well (what worked and why?)		Areas for development (what didn’t work and why?)
Next Steps for Me

In planning our lesson, we decided to introduce it with a video clip from ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ winners Diversity.  We chose this dance group because we believed they would be meaningful and relevant to the children as we thought most children would have seen them before.  Also we believed their type of dance would appeal to both boys and girls therefore allowing all children to be engaged through the context.

For the vast majority of children our context was really engaging and enjoyable.  One child was slightly hesitant about joining in with the dancing but did so and enjoyed it, then went on to produce a fantastic poster.  However another child was completely disengaged from the dancing context, meaning he was then disengaged with making a poster as he was so upset by the whole dance experience.  I believe we could have avoided this situation if we allowed an element of personalisation and choice to the context.  This was difficult to do as we had no communication with the children before they came to the University.  However what we could have done was: create two contexts with a different task for each one, then let each group of 8 children choose between them which context they wanted to engage in.  Another factor contributing to this child’s disengagement was because we didn’t know the children.  When I spoke to their class teacher about the situation she said she knew this would happen with this child as he thinks he is too cool for such things and has acted like this before.  This reinforced the importance of knowing the children in your class so you can cater to individual’s needs and interests.

A further observation from today was that the final group (3 groups in total) engaged most in both the context and in making the posters.  This could be due to a few reasons.  It could be because by our third time of presenting the context and activity we made it more exciting, meaning the children responded better to the context.  Or it could simply be that the children in the third group were the most interested and motivated by dance in comparison to the children in the other groups, so it was always going to happen that way.

The vast majority of children really enjoyed engaging with the game Just Dance on the Wii and making a poster.  The general opinion of the children’s feedback was that they enjoyed being active but wanted to spend more time exploring the game Just Dance and have longer to complete their poster.  To be very honest, I thought this would be the case.  If I was to use this context in the classroom myself I would have split the lesson over two classes so all children could engage in the Just Dance game together.  Then later, all children could engage in making their posters together without being distracted from what was going on around them (which I believe happened).  Due to the rushed nature of the learning experience I am not sure the children fully understood the relevance Just Dance had to making their poster.  Brooks-Young says:

“…students need to be provided with opportunities to reflect on their gaming experiences to be sure they understand the content learning” Brooks-Young, S (2010, p.95).

I believe that if the exploration of the Just Dance game and making the posters was done in two separate lessons then the children would have more likely seen the relevance of the context to their learning experience.  Also, we as teachers would have had more time to make this clear to the children.

A final point to consider would be the organisation and management of this activity if I were to do it myself in the classroom.  Today we had a ratio of 5 students to 8 pupils.  I felt this was far too many students to the number of children and made it an uncomfortable environment for me to work in as I often felt I had no purpose.  However I do realise if I were to do this activity myself in the primary classroom it would be a whole new difficult as there would be a ratio of 30 children to 1 teacher.  Saying that I quietly feel confident I would manage the children’s learning effectively.

References

Brooks-Young, S (2010).  Teaching with the tools kids really use – learning with web and mobile technologies.  London: Sage Ltd.

Games Based Learning

Today we were visited by three lecturers at the University of Dundee who presented us with some research they had gathered through different experiments they had carried out in primary schools.  The purpose of their studies was to find out more information in relation to using games technology in the primary classroom, with a hope of being able to successfully prove that they can enhance learning.  David Miller and his colleague, Derek Robertson, researched Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game for the Nintendo DS.  Divya Jindal-Snape researched the effectiveness of guitar hero during the transition between primary school and secondary school, which my friend Nicole has discussed in great detail.  Jill Shimi, and three colleagues, researched the game Nintendogs for the Nintendo DS to see whether it was successful in promoting valuable opportunities in teaching.  My friend Susan discusses this in greater depth.

All three studies were done using commercial off the shelf (COTS) games.  This means that these games were not made with the intention of being used for educational purposes in the primary school, but for the sole purpose to make a profit.  However, through these investigations we have discovered that each COTS game can support and enhance children’s learning and development if used appropriately.  The cost of the COTS games is a huge disadvantage but there are ways around such problems if effective organisation and management is in place.  For example: each school could buy one set of 30 Nintendo DS’s and Brain Training games, then have a rota where each class gets them at a different time each day.

Today I am going to reflect on David Miller and Derek Robertson’s classic experiment with Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game for the Nintendo DS.  The purpose of their investigation was to find out if Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game enhanced children’s learning, but more specifically to see if it helped children improve their number bonds and their processing speed.  Miller and Robertson’s investigation is summarised nicely by Rachel.

Brooks-Young says “games are an engaging way to…reinforce a variety of skills” Brooks-Young, S (2010, p.89) and I believe Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game allows just that.  This is identified in the video below:

Scottish Government (undated).

Games based learning (GBL) has the opportunity to develop many principles in the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) which I have discussed in my previous blog post, Digital Literacy and ICT.  Alongside these, Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game has clear links to a number of the CfE principles for specific reasons.  I believe the game has clear links with relevance, firstly due to today’s children being born into a digital world but also because it is a COTS game, so it is likely the children have seen it (or something similar) before therefore it will have more meaning to them.

I believe the game also fulfils the CfE principle challenge and enjoyment, as due to children growing up in a world of technology, learning through games will likely achieve a high level of motivation and enjoyment.  Challenge can be found through the games requirement for speed but from this challenge, increased social interaction can take place in the classroom as children not only want to do their best but want to help their friends do their best to “enable each individual to achieve his or her potential” Scottish Government (2008).

Through the range of different activities available in Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game, the CfE principle, personalisation and choice is drawn on.  Personalisation is available through this game as it allows each child to work at their own individual ability.  Choice is evident in this game through allowing children to choose what they focus on each time they play the game, for example: arithmetic skills, reading etc.

The final CfE principle I see strong links with Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game is progression.  By allowing children to play this game for twenty minutes each morning it is allowing them to “build upon earlier knowledge and achievements” Scottish Government (2008) thus continuing their progression in learning.  Through Miller and Robertson’s investigation, they have proved that progression does take place as when comparing the children’s first arithmetic test to their second one (after ten weeks of using the Brain Training game) there was a significant improvement.

Miller said that they did not yet know whether Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training game made cognitive transfer possible, however I would disagree.  Through the 10 week investigation, teachers noticed a huge improvement in the neatness of children’s handwriting.  I believe this was because if you do not form numbers or letters correctly on the Nintendo DS your answer is marked incorrectly, therefore I believe children made a conscious effort to improve their handwriting in order to get the best score.  I believe this improved handwriting was then transferred into other aspects of the children's school work.

In my opinion, GBL needs to be used more often in children’s educational development than is currently being done.  The only glimmer of games technology I have ever seen in a primary school was a play station 2 which was used only for golden time.  Teachers have a duty to “prepare students for this new world…based on the assumption that they have some idea of what to prepare them for” Brooks-Young, S (2010, p.5).  I am not certain all teachers know how to prepare children for the 21^st century and I think one of the main reasons is a lack of confidence in technology themselves.  The world is changing therefore changes in education need to be made.  I look forward to going on my next placement and using GBL as a tool to enhance learning.

References

Miller D., Robertson D. (2010). Educational benefits of using game consoles in a primary

classroom: A randomised controlled trial.  Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

Available:https://my.dundee.ac.uk/@@/D99F5ACD8523C387DF10E1D16A484267/courses/1/ED22018_CAS_D65_201112/content/_2971228_1/MILLER%26ROBERSON2010b.pdf  [Last accessed: 20.2.12]

Brooks-Young, S (2010).  Teaching with the tools kids really use – learning with web and mobile technologies.  London: Sage Ltd.

Scottish Government (undated).  Video Bank.  Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/video/d/video_tcm4625482.asp [Last accessed: 20.2.12]

Scottish Government (2008). Curriculum for Excellence: Principles for curriculum design. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/understandingthecurriculum/howisthecurriculumstructured/principles/index.asp  [Last accessed: 21.2.12]

Digital Literacy and ICT

Today we were visited from four of Fife’s ICT education advisors.  They were extremely enthusiastic, knowledgeable and up-to-date with how digital literacy and ICT can be developed in the primary classroom.  It was an insightful experience and I am excited to try out some of the software they shared with us today.  They talked about: Comic Life, Pivot, Sequal, Skoog and games based learning.  My friend Nicole talks about Sequal and Skoog in great detail and my friend Susan talks about Comic Life in more depth.  Today I am going to focus on digital literacy in games based learning (GBL).

Many people believe digital literacy is simply being able to use a computer or some software packages, however digital literacy is much more than that:

“Digital literacy is the skills, knowledge and understanding that enables critical, creative discerning and safe practices when engaging with digital technologies in all areas of life” Futurelab (2010).  The diagram below helps us understand digital literacy more fully.  It is a wide range of components that overlap each other.

A few years ago there was a lot of bad publicity in regard to GBL.  One of the gentleman from Fife said that if children were to play a violent game (e.g. grand theft auto), which presents a violent context; only violent learning will take place.  He then went on to say that if children were to play a non violent game then positive learning can take place.  However Prensky disagrees:

“For whenever one plays a game, and  whatever game one plays, learning happens constantly, whether the players want it to, and are aware of it, or not.  And the players are learning “about life,” which is one of the great positive consequences of all game playing” Prensky (2002, p.1).  I understand what the gentleman from Fife was saying, however I agree with Prensky as I believe learning always takes place when using games technology.  I no not believe violent games are the best form of GBL nor should be encouraged as they do not represent good values or the ‘real world’ in it’s true form.  Nevertheless, I believe learning does still take place.  For example: hand eye coordination and problem solving, (e.g. learning the rules of the game and the controls to play the game).  Yet I do believe that much richer and fuller learning can take place through positive contexts in GBL.

Our main focus when using ICT should always be to improve the digital literacy of our children.  GBL can motivate children and provide many opportunities to develop literacy, numeracy and problem solving skills.  When using GBL it is very important that we apply it in a context that can be used for a range of learning across the curriculum.  I believe this meets the curriculum for excellence (CfE) principle breadth.  (Examples further down).

“Research is beginning to suggest that computer games can help to stimulate a successful learning environment and provide motivational learning contexts that suit many learners” Scottish Government (undated)”. 

One of Fife’s ICT education advisors introduced us to an open sourced web game called Super Tux.  I was absolutely amazed!  It is such a fantastic resource for creating a context to develop digital literacy through GBL.  The game Super Tux is very similar to Super Mario, but because it’s an open source web game there are no copyright infringements attached to it.  The main advantage however is that you can edit the game (name of the game, background, character, level design) meaning that you can make the context relevant to your children’s age or class topic.  This meets the CfE principle relevance.  For example, if your class is doing a topic on castles then you could change the game to make it a more visually relevant context, so the children can be more inspired.

When using Super Tux to develop digital literacy, you would first let the children explore the game themselves.  This would draw on the CfE principle challenge and enjoyment.  Learning would take place as the children develop their hand eye coordination, problem solving skills and communication skills.  For example: they would perhaps need problem solving and communication skills to work out the controls to play the game and they may do this by talking to their friends.

Once the children had thoroughly explored the game, you would then issue them with a task.  It is very important that the children play the game before they do the task as the game is a key element in helping the children visualise a context.  For example: if the children’s task was to write a story about a penguin who went on a skiing holiday – many children may find this very difficult as they may never have seen a skiing slope before, so you must give them that experience through a visual context.  Also, by allowing the children to play the game first, they can then use contextual clues from the game for writing the setting of their own story.  A relevant visual context focuses the children’s thinking, allowing a better piece of work to be produced by the child.

I believe there is huge scope across the curriculum in what you could do to develop digital literacy through Super Tux, which fulfils the CfE principle breadth.  For example, you could allow the children to play the game, ask them to write a review of the game, ask them to create ideas for a new level, ask them to make a new level (which will obviously need a lot of preparation and guidance) and ask them to write a set of instructions explaining how to play the game Super Tux and their new level.

I have grown up in a world of ICT and games technology, as have all of the children I will go on to teach.  I feel confident and competent to engage in GBL with children and a lot more so now after listening to Fife’s inspiring ideas.  I know that if I engage in GBL it will help my teaching, thus having a great impact on the children I teach:

“For many students, using technology is inherently motivating: it’s part of their culture.  Engagement is a necessary component in learning” Green T., Brown A., Robinson L. (2008, p.13). 

This again meets the CfE principle relevance, as children today are being born into a world of technology therefore learning through games technology would somewhat seem natural to them.  I look forward to having the opportunity to implement GBL in the primary school as I know so much learning and enjoyment can be gained from it.

References

Futurelab (2010).   Digital literacy across the curriculum.

Prensky, M (2002). What Kids Learn That’s POSITIVE From Playing Video Games.  Marc Prensky.

Available:http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20%20what%20kids%20learn%20thats%20positive%20from%20playing%20video%20games.pdf  [Last accessed: 15.2.12]

Scottish Government (2008). Curriculum for Excellence: Principles for curriculum design. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/understandingthecurriculum/howisthecurriculumstructured/principles/index.asp  [Last accessed: 15.2.12]

Scottish Government (undated). About game based learning.  Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/usingglowandict/gamesbasedlearning/about/aboutgamebasedlearning.asp [Last accessed: 15.2.12]

Green T., Brown A., Robinson L. (2008). Making the most of the web in your classroom: A teachers guide to blogs, podcasts, wikis, pages, and sites. London: Corwin Press.

Moving Image Education

I have not had any experience with Moving Image Education (MIE) in the primary school, so it is all new to me.  I also unfortunately missed the input on MIE so I have done my best to research it.  I apologise in advance if this post is not too great!

The term 'moving image education' refers to learning and teaching practices which develop moving image media literacy. Creative Scotland (2009).  This includes learning through cartoons, films and adverts.  This makes a strong link to the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) principle relevance as television is significant in the vast majority of children’s present lives, therefore children are likely to “see the value of what they are learning” Scottish Government (2008).

MIE can be used to encourage children to discuss what they see and hear:

“Moving Image Education is about helping young people to question, analyse, explore and understand the meaning of what they’re watching and hearing” Creative Scotland (2009).

It helps develop children’s higher order thinking skills, which is extremely important to their educational development.

Children can develop 21^st century literacy as they analyse in MIE.  If children are to spend time analysing other people’s films, they can hugely improve the quality of their own creative work.  I believe this again links to the principle relevance as there is a great purpose for children analysing other people’s films and if this is explained to them, they will be able to see the importance of what they’re learning and how it benefits them.

“'Exploring' moving images involves enjoying a wide variety of films and using them as springboards into lots of different areas of culture” Creative Scotland (2009).  This links to the CfE principle breadth, as here a range of subjects can be covered across the curriculum.  I also believe it meets the CfE principle coherence as clear links between proposed learning would be evident and there would be many “opportunities for extended activities” Scottish Government (2008).

ICT can be a remarkable enhancement to learning, if used properly.  “Many believe that moving image education should be an integral part of literacy work across the curriculum, rather than a separate 'subject'” Creative Scotland (2009).  I agree with this, as I do with ICT as a whole.  I think ICT should be used to enhance learning across all areas of the curriculum, to engage children deeper and to make learning more enjoyable.

References

Creative Scotland and D fie foe (2009). Moving Image Education.

Available: http://www.movingimageeducation.org/ [Last accessed: 11.2.12]

Scottish Government (2008). Curriculum for Excellence: Principles for curriculum design. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

Available:http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/understandingthecurriculum/howisthecurriculumstructured/principles/index.asp  [Last accessed: 11.2.12]