Posts

web 2.0 info

Web 2.0 technologies are far more social than the original world wide web applications. This social aspect, including collaboration, community based input , content sharing and other features all make this particularly exciting from an educational standpoint. It gives the users a chance to work together seamlessly on work, or to share ideas in exciting new ways. Moodle, pintrest and other collaborative tools are great examples of this. Cloud computing allowing for VLEs and other systems now prevalent in education are also elements of web 2.0. 

Technologies for learning

I've updated the wiki with information on technologies for learning. I have focused on an area we had no information for so far, Bring Your Own Device. This is a key idea for learning institutions moving forward, to be able to allow learners to bring their own devices with them for use means they have technology they are familiar with, and have used before. This should allow them to work well on the devices, but may also lead to distractions, as they are likely to have their own games and other apps installed. Many reasons for BYOD exist, and I think it's a great way to encourage technology in the classroom without a huge outlay by the school to purchase the devices themselves. Access to class quizzes, collaboration and participation means that all students can get involved without needing to put their hands up etc or speak out in class. This is a great idea for those who are not as socially confident or possibly have special educational needs. Things can be made anonym...

Colour choices and learning styles

I've done a lot of research into the colour combinations and other options available to me for the aretfact for this project. I have been using online resources to find ideal colour combinations to use. The folllwing sites have been helpful: https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/visual-processing-issues/understanding-visual-processing-issues http://www.kars4kids.org/blog/visual-processing-disorder-is-this-what-your-child-has/ This artefact will struggle to help those with visual closure issues, although that is just an inherent issue with the design of the artefact. I have updated the wiki with a section on whether the commonly accepted learning styles are real, if they work and if there is a better alternative. This has been from a few websites I used to gain information and have mentioned experts in the field and the research they have done.
What is the simplest way to code... 1. Each question is a sprite, the sprite is shown, and a answer is clicked. Then the sprite moves over to the questions panel and is changed to the relevant costume. tick or cross 2. Each question is a sprite, it's shown, and is then hidden while a second sprite is created and moved over. So you could clone the tick or cross, have it start in the middle and move over to the correct location. I gave myself some time to think about the above problem, and decided to go with option 1. This seems a far far easier approach, as dealing with clones can be a pain. I have been working on the introduction pages for my artefact. These need to give a good idea of how the game will work. So I've developed a few pages to introduce the idea of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to the user, with animated apples to try to show what's happening. Colours choices are good for dyslexia or a visual perceptive disorder, I will talk ...
This week I have made some decisions on my artifact and that is progressing well. I have also uploaded a link to the wiki concerning colour theory as I feel this could be a strong component in every artifact to make them easier to understand, to promote a specific feeling or avoid it being too negative. For the colour theory ideas, I've posted the following two links: https://colormatters.com/color-and-design/basic-color-theory http://www.colour-affects.co.uk/psychological-properties-of-colours The first link shows the basics of what colours work together, how to implement this and if followed will lead to a far more pleasant looking artifact. The second link shows the psychological properties we often assign to colour. This can have a huge impact in how people learn from something. For example we'd usually use a red cross for a wrong answer, would it be better to change the colour used and aim to make the feedback less negative for the user. For my artifact I have d...

Initial Ideas and Wiki Links

So far I have decided upon some basic ideas for my artefact, and worked on collecting some information for the wiki page, although I've not actually uploaded anything yet. Artefact This will be a scratch based game, that will ask a user questions based upon an online resource (to be decided). It will be a racing game, where a car moves around the track, racing against a "computer" controlled car. If they get a question right, the car will advance quickly, If not, the car will advance slowly. This means that in order to pass the test and win the race, the user must answer questions correctly to get ahead. Colour theory will be used in the game to improve the impact of the VLE. Congratulatory screen. Car (example) moves to show constant progress/feedback for the user. Final screen with results etc.