ICT Training for Teachers|
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Introduction
| Module 1 | Contents |
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Information and Communication Technology sometimes seems like an invention tailor made for English teachers. I know we've been able to write works of enormous depth and importance using pen and paper, and the back of the envelope will probably continue to be the major source document for story-lines, poems and shopping lists. But as Jack Kenny says in a recent article in the TES:
'Any computer bought recently enables you to talk to people across the world, run films, record sound, edit video and images, synthesise and sequence sound. If you're lucky, you can even talk into it and see your words produced as text. You can paint, draw and produce fonts. You can link pages and ideas with pages and ideas across the world. You can publish your work for the world. You can collaborate in real time with someone thousands of miles away. You can store books, music, sounds. You can link all these together in multimedia form. All that is impressive but still the most powerful avenue open is the enhancement of the writing process, particularly editing.'
We hope that these web pages will guide you through some of these exciting ideas, and help you to become as excited about the possibilities of ICT in teaching and learning as we are. We hope that teachers new to ICT in English will discover for themselves why other teachers, and most of their pupils, are exited by the medium; and that more experienced users will discover new ideas and methodologies to enhance further their lessons.
Remember: NOF training is all about learning how to use ICT to enhance subject teaching and learning.
It is of course impossible to learn how to use ICT in an English lesson without learning how to use ICT, but you should never lose site of the focus.
If you find that you are using ICT for the sake of using ICT, it is time to stop and to ask yourself about the English outcomes of the activity. If there aren't any, then this is an inappropriate use of ICT!
In many ways the most significant contribution that ICT can make to the English lesson is contained in that potentially off-putting last word in the quote from Jack Kenny: editing. The creative process has been described as 10% inspiration, 90% perspiration. We all have good ideas, but few of us have the capability or the inclination to put in the spade work to turn these ideas into presentable or usable form. The very act of writing text onto a sheet of paper can be so daunting for most of our pupils, that to ask them to draft, redraft, correct, edit, is to ask for something beyond their capabilities. But with electronic text, editing is a relatively trivial task, the text need never be rewritten, insertions and deletions are easily accomplished, the order of writing is no longer critical, the final form is potentially never reached until we decide to call a halt and print out the 'latest version'.
And ICT has far more to offer the English teacher than the creation and editing of text!
Have you fallen into the 'copy-typing' trap, where you ask the pupils to type up something they have already drafted in full on paper? If so, what did the pupils gain from this extra layer of work?
On the other hand, have you been disappointed by their results when using word processing for developing writing from scratch? If so, how could you have supported them to ensure better results?
There is a document from Becta which was sent to every English secondary department which gives 'A Pupil's Entitlement' to ICT. You can find the full document on the English pages of the Curriculum IT Support section of the VTC (Virtual Teachers Centre). We shall refer to this several times on this web site. Let me quote from the introduction:
ICT in English can help pupils to:
Before we start on a more detailed look at these ideas, you might like to have a look at the Primary English materials, which contain many ideas which apply to the secondary sector, and which have a number of useful links for you to explore. They will also give you an idea of what primary colleagues are doing with their pupils before they come to you.
You could also have a look at the support materials which can be found on the Lewisham ICT Advice site (look at the sections on Resources and the Internet). And for those who want to rush ahead, there are some particularly useful materials to be found on the Curriculum IT Support pages of the Virtual Teacher Centre. There are many further ideas and useful links on the main English pages of the VTC.
Task 1
- Are you using ICT already either directly in your teaching or in your preparation (such as for gathering on-line materials or for producing worksheets and other materials)?
- If so, review your current use in the light of the ideas above.
- If not, think about the kind of activities you already use in your English teaching and think about ways in which ICT could enhance their effectiveness.
Write up your ideas, preferably using a word processor, so that you have a record of where you are now. You will find this useful to refer to later on when you come to review your progress.
- Are you an IT-sceptic?
- Look at the list of ideas above and review your scepticism.
- Why are you sceptical about the use of ICT in the teaching of English?
- Write out your reasons, and see if you can argue against yourself!
It can be easy to be seduced by the power and excitement of ICT. How will you keep sight of your teaching aims and learning outcomes as you incorporate ICT into your teaching and learning? Have another look at Jack Kenny's list of ICT applications in the second paragraph, and discuss how they apply to English teaching.
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