UNIT 7 Computers and Computer-Based Media Presenters: Euroy Forbes, Clines Hanson-Whitely, Alecia Whitely, Terriann Dixon and Chesan Cain-Miller

Roles of computers in teaching and learning Integrating computers into the curriculum Presenter: Euroy Forbes

Roles of Computer in Teaching and Learning Computers help children to: be in control of their experience set their own pace select the level of challenge with which they feel comfortable use all of their senses to extract information

Computers help the development of: Fundamental skills Good educational software enables children to develop and practice a broad range skills. Emotional skills By using a computer children develop self-confidence and self-esteem. Social skills In the classroom setting when their friends or parents are available, children often prefer working with one or two partners over working alone, which leads to the development of social skills.

Computers benefit children with special needs... Computers have proven extremely beneficial to kids with certain speech, audio and motor limitation. What they achieve through using a computer enhances their self-esteem and provides them with a greater sense of control and engagement with the world.

To replace writing on the chalkboard/white board: Enables the students to read what has been written more easily than instructor's handwriting. This can then be saved as a record of class then e-mailed to the whole class. Students can work in small groups and use laptop computers to take notes on their group's discussion.

Why Integrate Technology into the Curriculum? Technology is everywhere, touching almost every part of our lives, our communities, our homes. Yet most schools lag far behind when it comes to integrating technology into classroom learning. Many are just beginning to explore the true potential technology offers for teaching and learning. Properly used, technology will help students acquire the skills they need to survive in a complex, highly technological knowledge-based economy.  

Why Integrate Technology into the Curriculum?   Effective technology integration must happen across the curriculum in ways that research shows deepen and enhance the learning process. In particular, it must support four key components of learning: active engagement participation in groups frequent interaction and feedback connection to real-world experts.

Effective technology integration is achieved when the use of technology is routine and transparent and when technology supports curricular goals. Technology changes the way teachers teach, offering educators effective ways to reach different types of learners and assess student understanding through multiple means. It also enhances the relationship between teacher and student. Technology helps make teaching and learning more meaningful and fun.  

Integrated learning systems Presenter: Clines Hanson-Whitely Software Selection Presenter: Clines Hanson-Whitely

Integrated Learning Systems The Integrated learning system provides much more comprehensive approach and covers curriculum areas for a range of grades.

Integrated Learning Systems The Integrated learning system is highly interactive for learner. The Integrated learning system increases the variety of learning experiences. It gives teachers greater control instructing students experience. Provide feed back to students to increase retention and understanding.

Software Selection Choose a software package with accessible knowledge. Analyze your needs to select the best suited software. Talk to your peers and see which software work best for them.

Presenter: Alecia Whitely Hypermedia Multimedia Kits Presenter: Alecia Whitely

Hypermedia Hypermedia refers to “linked media.” The entire approach of Hypermedia is that it is exploratory in nature. As such, hypermedia is “interactive, user controlled, and often determined by a user’s interest and curiosity”

Hypermedia allows the user to access multiple forms of media and text instantly and use those forms interchangeably and interactively.

Hypermedia incorporates images, sounds, and video into the document. This allows for a more graphical interface to information. Most web pages should be considered Hypermedia instead of simply Hypertext.

Benefits of Hypermedia in the classroom Increase motivation Students’ control over their learning experiences Ability to meet demands of students of different abilities.

Multimedia Multimedia simply means “multiple media” or “a combination of media.” The media can be still pictures, sound, motion video, animation, and/or text items combined in a product whose purpose is to communicate information.

Multimedia Kit A multimedia kit is a set of teaching materials that have been designed using instructional technology and are ready at hand to be used in the classroom.

Multimedia Kit A multimedia kit can have: CD’s Maps (image) DVD’s Speakers

Multimedia and Hypermedia The combination of videos and audios with text makes them multimedia; the ability to get from one media element to another makes them hypermedia.

Presenters: Terriann Dixon & Chesan Cain-Miller Interactive Media Virtual Reality Expert System Presenters: Terriann Dixon & Chesan Cain-Miller

What is Interactive Media? Interactive media normally refers to products and services on digital computer-based systems which respond to the user’s actions by presenting content such as text, moving image, animation, video, audio and video games.

The Effects of Interactive Media in Learning Interactive media is helpful in following four development dimensions in which young children learn: social and emotional language development cognitive and general knowledge approaches toward learning. Using educational computer software in a learning environment helps children increase communication skills and their attitudes about learning.

The Effects of Interactive Media in Learning Children who use educational computer software are often found using more complex speech patterns and higher levels of verbal communication. A study found that basic interactive books that simply read a story aloud and highlighted words and phrases as they were spoken were beneficial for children with lower reading abilities. Children have different styles of learning and interactive media helps children with visual, verbal, auditory, and tactile learning styles.

Benefits of interactive media in the classroom Classroom Collaboration Replacing the traditional blackboard, interactive whiteboards have grown in popularity in schools. Fun and Engaging Using interactive technology can boost engagement and motivation in the classroom.

Benefits of interactive media in the classroom Encouraging Independence Interactive technology empowers students to discover their own resources and take control of their learning Flexibility and adaptability Interactive technology is extremely beneficial to classes of different abilities as it plays a key role in differentiation.

What is Virtual Reality? Virtual reality is the creation of a virtual environment presented to our senses in such a way that we experience it as if we were really there. It has both entertaining and serious uses.

Effects of Virtual Reality on Learning Most students respond to a visual style of learning which virtual reality is more than able to provide. The graphical nature of this technology combined with an explorative approach, physical interaction and an intuitive interface makes it an ideal vehicle for delivering information to a mixed ability classroom.

Virtual Reality in the classroom There are two ways of using virtual reality in the classroom: traditional desktop set up in which the student explores a virtual environment using a computer, keyboard and mouse. The second set up is fully immersive and requires the student to wear a head mounted display and data glove for interaction within a virtual environment.

Virtual Reality in the classroom

What is expert system? An Expert System uses human knowledge captured in a computer to solve problems that ordinarily require human expertise.

Components of the expert system Every expert system consists of two principal parts: Knowledge base Reasoning or inference

Purpose of the expert system in learning People can learn using expert systems by: asking questions reading the answers asking the system to give feedback.

Advantages of the expert system The knowledge base can be updated and extended. They can contain a large amount of information

Disadvantages of the expert system They are not able to learn from the mistakes They cannot creatively come with new solutions for the issues It’s not easily achievable to mimic the exact knowledge of an expert in the computer program.