MOM BLOG: A Means to Learn Something Each Day

For Mother's Day this year, The Learning Curve asked six delegates to the annual Mom Congress to send us their educational wish lists. These "mom blogs" constitute an honest look at what's lacking in our school systems, a maternal reprimand of the current discourse, and a description of the dream school of the future. 

My wish is for every child to be allowed to go through school learning at their actual instructional level, instead of being automatically arranged by chronology and averages. Each child has different skills, different needs, different abilities in different areas, and I wish that our educational system would be responsive to these differences instead of trying to fit each child into the “average” box because of what their birth date dictates.

See further here.

The Effects of ICT on the Promotion of Children’s Literacy

By Eirik Jakobsen

Fall semester, 2004

University college of Stavanger, Faculty of Arts and Education

Master’s degree in literacy studies,

Module II: MLI 120 – Literacy from Developmental Perspectives

Introduction

The rapid technological progress in the last years has heralded a new era in our understanding of promoting literacy. Grabe and Kaplan (1996:298) present some of the advantages of using Information Communication Technology (ICT) in the classroom and, even though one can recognise and even acknowledge these advantages, there are also aspects of ICT which may hinder the development of pupils’ literacy. The underlying assumption is that ICT can be a valid and useful tool for the promotion of literacy among young learners, and that the disadvantages presented can (and should) be avoided with a qualified supervisor. Instead of focussing on a specific age group, this essay will in general deal with children in a western society of up until school-leaving age, (15) and will only specify the age of “young learners” where applicable.

            In addition to discussing how ICT can be used in the classroom, this essay will also include the use of computer technology at home. A recent study on American families with children between the ages of 0-6 has shown that nearly 3 out of 4 families have a computer at home, and that 70% of children between the ages of 4-6 have used a computer (Rideout et al. 2003). Additionally, parents cite the computer as the most useful electronic medium for educational purposes. Consequently, it is vital that this essay also acknowledges the value (and pitfalls) of ICT in a home environment.

            But what is Information Communication Technology? When using a broad interpretation, the technology used to communicate information could encompass telephones, fax machines, mobile phones, SMS, or even the telegraph. In today’s digitalised world, however, the term “ICT” has become mutually interchangeable with “computer technology”, and it is that aspect which will be relevant to this essay, in which the computer, and the way young learners use it, will be the subject of scrutiny.

Because “computer technology” is an abstract concept, it is important to note which specific aspects of ICT will be the focus of this essay. It will include a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages on literary development of three domains of computer technology: word processing, the Internet and software. First, how does word processing affect the way young children learn to produce writing, and is that type of development beneficial or harmful to children’s literacy? Second, will the various types of language on The Internet enrich a young learner’s own language, or will it be detrimental to the pupil’s development as an author of proper, grammatically correct writing? David Crystal (2001:236) addresses this issue and claims that: “The bending and breaking of rules, which is a hallmark of ludic[1] linguistic behaviour, [often present in online communication among young learners – my note] always presents a problem to those who have not yet developed a confident command of the rules per se.” Third, when a child interacts with an electronic dictionary or a game, does this experience affect the child’s own ability to read and write? By answering these questions, I aim to show that, despite any negative influences ICT may have on a young learner, the advantages to the development of literacy offered by computer technology far outweigh the disadvantages of this relatively new tool for literacy learning.

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[1] Definition: “Ludic discourse is language whose primary function is to be part of play, or a style of speech that involves a creative manipulation of the structures of the language.”

(http://www.language-archives.org/REC/discourse-20021121.html)

See this site to read further.

Using ICT to Support the National Literacy Strategy

Introduction

The activities suggested in this document are not all encompassing, but are a taster for the ways in which ICT may be integrated into teaching and learning as far as literacy is concerned.  No reference has been made here to the use of Integrated Learning Systems, electronic dictionaries, listening centres, etc, but these are all valuable ICT resources.

ICT and literacy are inextricably linked - whenever children write, they could do so using a wordprocessor or DTP package.  Computers in the classroom and ICT suites are great resources for independent, group and class work.  They remain great motivators and encourage collaborative work and are therefore too valuable a tool to remain unused during the literacy hour.

Not to be forgotten is the computer as an excellent tool for making teaching resources, especially in the production of ‘texts’.  The Internet can be a wonderful source of texts and electronic books. We have included lots of useful sites for both of these.

To achieve a balance in software , we recommend each class is equipped with an ICT toolbox.

To read more, click here.