Assignment 3 – Research and Community Informed Practice

This is our second year using Personalised Learning Devices (PLD) at our school in Years 7 & 8, and students are loving using them to create and collaborate.

At the moment we are using Google Apps for Education and view students learning through the Hapara Teacher Dashboard. This is a fantastic tool to monitor students learning, provide feedback and share with others in the classroom.

However, processes and artifacts of learning are not as often shared beyond the classroom, except for on our class wiki, which is usually chosen by the teacher as opposed to the student and initiated through, “Would you mind if we shared this on the class wiki?” Student’s are not reflecting on work as much as they could be.

How can we effectively use our technology to support students in collaboration and the sharing of their ideas and artifacts with others, to reflect on their learning processes and determine next steps with greater responsibility and authenticity? How can they document their learning journey to support their own progress and achievement, as well as develop the range of 21st Century skills that are required of them as they tackle an ever-changing future?

Hence my literature review tackled the overarching theme of “Utilising technology effectively to document students learning to support progression and achievement.” 

In particular, I compared research around blogs and ep0rtfolios and the following points were noted:

• Most research relates to teacher education and higher school education, despite paper portfolios starting at K-12 level.
• Blogs are a useful tool for reflection, documenting processes of learning, and sharing with others,however not a lot of research has been undertaken around the specific features and functions of blogs relating to different contexts (Yueh et. al., 2013).
• We need to develop strategies that better support reflection in the learning process, … to improve learning.” (Barrett, 2010, p.8)
• Eportfolios can provide for formative and summative assessments however purpose and criteria need to be considered before implementation.
• Sharing work with others and building online communities not only benefits the learner themselves, but also those around them to support learning, identify next steps and increase effectiveness of teaching and learning. (Krechevsky et al, 2010; Neal & Collier, 2006)
• “…ideally, assessment is primarily for the student and the student should own big parts of the assessment process.” (Darling-Hammond, 2015, retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/comprehensive-assessment-introduction).

As quoted directly from my literature review,

“Questions arise such as, is the students learning really at the centre of the process? And how can we utilise the technology so all students engage with the process without imposing parameters that turn them off it altogether? Do younger students even see e-portfolios and blogs as useful for progressing their learning and achievement? Further empirical research around use of blogs and e-portfolios in classroom practice, is needed in the Primary sector of education…”

Hence I wish to research the use of blogs and eportfolios in the Primary Sector, to see what students and teachers think about the use of these digital tools to support students learning and achievement, in order to make informed choices around determining whether we choose to implement such tools in our school learning environment, and how to do so most effectively.

References noted:

Barrett, H. C. (2010) Balancing the Two Faces of ePortfolios. Educacao, Formacao & Tecnolgias.3(1), 6-14.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2015). edutopia: How should we measure student learning? Five keys tocomprehensive assessment. Retrieved fromhttp://www.edutopia.org/comprehensive-assessment-introduction.

Krechevsky, M., Rivard, M., & Burton, F.R. (2010). Accountability in Three Realms: Making LearningVisible Inside and Outside the Classroom. Theory Into Practice, 49: 64-71.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00405840903436087.

Neal, T. & Collier, H. (2006). Weaving kaupapa Maori and e-Learning. Journal of Maori and Pacific7:2, 68-77.

Yueh, H.S., Lin, W., & Lu, T. (2014). Users’ Perceptions of blog functions: educational vs. personaluse. Electronic Library and Information Systems. Vol. 48, No. 1, 41-52.http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/PROG-10-2012-0058.