Activity 4

For this reflection I am going to use Rolfe’s Model of Reflection to support my thinking.

Rolfe’s Reflective Model (Otago Polytechnic, n.d.)

What?

When I started my Action Plan I had thought that my biggest issue was going to be how I was going to keep students personal thoughts and work safe from the public, while still allowing access to peers and whanau. My biggest dilemma that has come out of this action so far is that of students not being on the sites they are meant to be on. There are firewalls set up at the school – but the kids have shown me the various ‘proxys’ they use to get around them and access sites that they shouldn’t be, such as instagram, gaming sites and general distractions to their work. This has led to a lot of time walking around, making sure students are on task, rather than giving attention to those that genuinely need assistance. Seeing as we only have the COWs two periods a week, this has made it hard to get work done, I am aware of students not having access to internet/computers if they are with a certain parent for the week, or some not having access at all – this makes it difficult to send work home that has not been completed during school time.

So What?

As discussed in activity 3 – it is important to understand how students think and learn, if students are truly engaged in a topic or activity they won’t be on other sites or being silly with their friends. Alton-Lee (2003) maintains that learning should be a collaborative approach and that teachers have a vital role in shaping cultures within the classroom.  “Learning is supported when structures for caring, opportunities for collaborative learning and appreciation for diversity are established in classrooms.” Maybe starting with the computers has not been the best way to implement this plan. Perhaps taking it back to hands on, collaborative activities, would have benefitted the students, and helped them come to a collaborative understanding, before sending them off to work individually. Which in turn leaves them to feel like they don’t know what they are doing, or that something might be too hard, so they turn off and do something else instead.

In this link I have included Ehrich’s ethical decision making brainstorming plan on how I can overcome such ethical decisions.

Now What?

Now, I need to go back to the basics, and leave the computers alone for a bit. If I understand more about how the students learn, and what hinders their learning, I will be able to create engaging lessons that keep the students on task and facilitate them to learn something about the topic. I will do this alongside their Cyber Safety Health Unit before letting students back onto computers.

References

Alton-Lee, A. (2003). Quality teaching for diverse students in schooling: Best evidence synthesis. Wellington: Ministry of Education.

Ehrich, L. C., Kimber M., Millwater, J. & Cranston, N. (2011). Ethical dilemmas: a model to understand teacher practice, Teachers and Teaching: theory and practice, 17:2, 173-185, DOI: 10.1080/13540602.2011.539794

Otago Polytechnic. (n.d.). Reflective Writing. Retrieved from https://www.op.ac.nz/assets/LearningAdvice/Reflective-writing.pdf