Question responses – so far Teachers

How would you describe your own level of ICT knowledge/confidence For this I am looking at 23 responses (change in wording of the questionnaire). When asked about their own use:13 are very confident,5 are confident with 5 are fairly confident When presenting to other adults: 7 very confident, 8 confident, 2 fairly confident and 2 are not confident. When presenting to pupils: 9 are very confident, 6 are confident, 4 fairly confident, 1 is not confident. In demonstrating a program to pupils: 7 are very confident, 9 are confident, 3 fairly confident and 1 is not confident. When the pupils use computers: 5 are fairly confident, 9 are confident, 5 are fairly confident and 1 is not confident.

Classroom resources From the responses, not all had access to a classroom computer or computer suite. This might be balanced by the use of laptops. It was significant that only 15 had access to a data projector in their classroom and 12 had an interactive whiteboard. Graphics calculators figured in 9 responses and handhelds in 2.

On use of hardware Those who had classroom computers were using them themselves, with about half letting pupils also use them. In suites it was pupils using them, individually or in groups - as might be expected. Laptops and netbooks were used by both teachers adn pupils Although some said they had graphics calculators not all were being used by pupils.

On the use of software The internet was being used by both teachers and pupils in the majority of cases. On-line programs such as Mathsnet and MyMath were also in common use. Spreadsheets, word processors and PowerPoint were in use by the majority of respondents, both by pupils and teachers, databases were less commonly used by pupils. Teachers used PowerPoint more than pupils. Dynamic geometry and graphing software is in use by eight respondents but not all of them use them with pupils. The response to games indicated that some teachers were recognising this as a valid learning tool. Few were using integrated learning systems such as SAM Learning or Successmaker.

Finding out about programs The most common way seems to be from other people, followed by the internet. Courses then follow these. Teacher’s magazines are named as being a more common source than computer magazines. No other way was suggested.

INSET styles excellent good poor ineffective no experience Exploration 5 10 3 Demonstration 2 1 Hands-on 12 6 Sheet 11 One to one 8 Video tutorial 7 On-line 4

Timing of INSET Score 1 = low, 8 = high whole day 2 8 7 8 4 8 7 2 6 6 4 3 7 1 8 am 6 4 6 2 4 4 4 7 1 4 2 8 pm 5 3 5 4 3 5 3 8 2 5 3 twilight 4 1 2 3 5 2 5 2 7 3 7 2 days 1 8 8 1 1 1 1 8 3 6 8 6 2 x am 8 6 8 5 8 7 2 6 4 1 5 2 x pm 7 5 7 8 8 7 8 1 5 5 2 8 4 2 x twilight 3 2 3 6 6 3 7 1 8 6 8

Positive responses for using ICT Lessons are more alive – engaging Children enjoy learning Visual image – ease of description Discovery themselves – e.g. Finding relationships using Autograph Accurate when doing geometric drawings on white board. Fast, reproducible, reliable, labour saving Practical demonstrations sometimes easier Students like a variety of media, engages disaffected learners Prepares students with essential skills

Negative responses to using ICT Technology does not always work! Students ‘fiddling’ Too much of use and not using other teaching methods Outdated hardware and software If used in wrong context can remove the thinking of the learner (as with mental methods and calculator) Access for all when setting homework Too much time and effort – using because you should rather than being useful in that context More difficult to control time than using traditional methods

Support of other staff If it is an expectation that you use it you should (hopefully) get the support and vision to use it If watching other staff use programs successfully it inspires me to try Several respondents said that they had no support or almost none.

On using stills cameras or video For record keeping Pupils recording each other’s presentations about results of an investigation Video recording myself teaching probability trees then showed the class Recorded correct use of MATS then showed class Web conferencing for distance learning Videoing of how students do a task – watch it back to reflect. Making comparisons with other teachers to make improvements to my teaching skills

Some problems My laptop is outdated and slow Teaching a class of over 30 with only 30 computers (and some not working) Lack of evidence for recapping later Problem with poor maintenance of equipment Problems of access to the computer suite Slow internet/intranet connections Interactive whiteboards can be slow to react A lot of preparation time needed Sudden room change How effective with regards learning – not sure

On-line questionnaire If you are willing to take part the questions they are on http://go.warwick.ac.uk/ep/pg/edrfbo Then follow links My research and questionnaires