The value of using short-format podcasts to enhance learning and teaching

This paper presents the findings of a podcasting trial held in 2007-2008 within the Faculty of Economics and Business at the University of Sydney, Australia. The trial investigates the value of using short-format podcasts to support assessment for postgraduate and undergraduate students. A multi-method approach is taken in investigating perceptions of the benefits of podcasting, incorporating surveys, focus groups and interviews. The results show that a majority of students believe they gained learning benefits from the podcasts and appreciated the flexibility of the medium to support their learning, and the lecturers felt the innovation helped diversify their pedagogical approach and support a diverse student population. Three primary conclusions are presented: (1) most students reject the mobile potential of podcasting in favour of their traditional study space at home; (2) what students and lecturers value about this podcasting design overlap; (3) the assessment-focussed, short-format podcast design may be considered a successful podcasting model. The paper finishes by identifying areas for future research on the effective use of podcasting in learning and teaching.

Teaching science in primary school : a handbook of lesson plans, knowledge and teaching methods.

Este manual proporciona una guía completa de planificación de lecciones y estrategias para la enseñanza de la ciencia en una escuela primaria. Abarca los conocimientos y los enfoques de la ciencia en esta etapa. Incluye actividades de aprendizaje adecuados. Establece los usos de la información y la tecnología para apoyar la enseñanza y el aprendizaje. Ofrece criterios prácticos y estrategias para la evaluación.

Teaching primary art and design.

Esta guía ayuda a los profesores en período de formación inicial a superar el Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), aunque también abarca áreas clave del currículo de arte y diseño para las etapas de infantil y primaria. Para ello, utiliza estudios de casos como ejemplos para el desarrollo práctico de los marcos curriculares en el aula. Asimismo, ofrece consejos prácticos sobre identificación de temas, preparación de recursos en aprendizaje, planificación y evaluación.

Learning and teaching in primary schools.

Esta guía ayuda a los profesores en período de formación inicial a superar el Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). Trata temas fundamentales para el aprendizaje y la enseñanza en las escuelas primarias de hoy y en la formación del docente, tales como el comportamiento, la comunicación y la creatividad.

100 ideas for teaching primary mathematics.

Es un recurso para los profesores y personal de apoyo que quiere completar y mejorar el programa de estudios de matemáticas de primaria, aunque aquí predominan los conceptos de números. Todas las ideas expuestas se han utilizado con éxito en las clases y las actividades y juegos fomentan la colaboración en parejas o en grupos entre los niños.

Understanding mathematics for young children : a guide for Foundation Stage and Lower Primary Teachers.

Guía para tener una comprensión más clara de las matemáticas y de los materiales que se utilizan en el aula con niños de tres a ocho años. Muestra cómo ayudarlos en el desarrollo y la comprensión de las matemáticas por sí mismos, en lugar de aprender recetas y rutinas. Al final de cada capítulo se incluyen algunos ejemplos de actividades que pueden ser utilizadas en las distintas edades. Contiene estrategias para el cálculo mental.

Adopting web-based learning and teaching: a case study in higher education

Most universities worldwide are becoming distance education providers through adopting web-based learning and teaching via the introduction of learning management systems that enable them to open their courses to both on- and off-campus students. Whether this is an effective introduction depends on factors that enable and impede the adoption of such systems and their related pedagogical strategies. This study examines such factors related to adopting a learning management system in a large multicampus urban Australian university. The research method used case study approaches and purposively selected the sample consisting of innovative teaching academics from across the university, who used web-based approaches to teach both on- and off-campus learners. The data were analyzed using a combination of Rogers' theory of diffusion of innovations and actor-network theory and revealed a series of enabling and impeding factors faced by pioneering technology-adopter teaching academics, some of which are technology related while others are policy related and common to large multicampus institutions. The study found that safe adoption environments recognizing career priorities of academics are a result of the continuous negotiation between the evolving institution and its innovative and creative staff. The article concludes with a series of conditions that would form a safe, enabling, and encouraging environment for technology-adopter teaching academics in a large multicampus higher education setting.

Planning and teaching mathematics lessons as a dynamic, interactive process

We are researching actions that teachers can take to improve mathematics learning for all students, with particular attention to specific groups of students who might experience difficulty. After identifying possible barriers to learning, we offered teachers mathematics lessons structured in a particular way. Teachers’ use of the model outlined in this paper seemed productive and their resulting planning and teaching proved to be dynamic and interactive. This paper uses excerpts from a conversation between two teachers to illustrate specific aspects of the model.

'Learning to cooperate': a study of how primary teachers and children construct classroom cultures

This paper reports on the findings of a study, the 'Constructing Classroom Cultures' project, funded by a small Australian Research Council grant at the University of Melbourne. Located in three primary school classrooms in Melbourne, Victoria, this study investigated how teachers and grade 3-4 students develop shared values and understandings concerning formal and informal codes of behaviour. Drawing on classroom observations, individual interviews with teachers and focus group interviews with children, this paper discusses the ways that teachers and children together build classroom cultures. Practices that work to produce supportive classroom environments as well as problem areas are identified. Examining classroom cultures at the micro-political level offers scope for considering how power relations can contribute positively to educational processes. Additionally, the ways in which informal interactions between teacher and students and among students call into play collaboration, compliance and resistance are opened up for examination. These case studies aim to contribute to understanding how productive classroom cultures are constructed in day-to-day interactions, a significant area of concern for teachers and teacher education students.

Development and evaluation of a glass-box interpreter for teaching novice programmers

This study evaluates the efficacy of a low-level program visualisation tool as a learning aid for novice programmers and develops and evaluates features which might further enhance the benefit of a low-level program visualisation tool (called Bradman). Bradman is an interpreter which makes visible aspects of the programming process which are normally hidden from the user.

Book review : Teaching secondary school mathematics : research and practice for the 21st century

Book review of Teaching Secondary School Mathematics : Research and Practice for the 21st Century by Merrilyn Goos, Gloria Stillman & Colleen Vale