Maniakalani DFI: Day 8 Computational Thinking

Over the last week I have introduced the idea of a Matariki page as well as a T shaped literacy activity based on Matariki to the other teachers in my studio.. They thought it was a great idea to create a resource that we can keep and add to for the following years. During my observation from Sharon she was able to see the engagement levels and knowledge the students had built up through the use of T shaped literacy. It also helped me a few times over the week helping the students on their chromebooks after last week's practise on one.

This week is all about Computational Thinking.

The discussion at the start of our day is always informative as we get to hear about how the others are travelling along. Everyone is so much more confident and are trying lots of new things. I have asked to look at Anna's Matariki site that she has created recently to get some ideas for ours. Campbell another teacher in our group asked if he could make a copy of our T shaped Matariki slideshow as he really liked it. This is what it's all about, sharing ideas to make life easier.

We then looked at the Maniakalani Pedagogy of Empowered.

Dorothy firstly talked about the differences between Agency and Empowerment. Agency is a piece of educational jargon that has a negative connotation, especially with lower decile families due to their contact with agencies such as OT. Teachers were having to explain what agency is and that it is about empowering our students and whānau. 

"Lets use EMPOWERMENT!"

Communities in low social areas increasingly find it hard to feel empowered in this day and age due to low budgets. They are facing things like health issues and lack of quality health care, students arriving at school with mean performance levels of a 3 year old and 1/3 of students moving schools every year which leads to them feeling disempowered from the outset.

 

Students need to experience freedom which inevitably lead to empowerment. Digital technology has been proven to have the ability to set these children free. Our experiences through the lockdown gave a lot of empowerment to students. If they were not interested in what we were providing they would switch off and go onto Fortnite or Youtube as it was far more engaging. We noticed that and changed what we were doing due to the feedback we were getting.

I feel Rāwhiti School has done an exceptional job in empowering our learners by providing 1:1 devices. They are building their skills and knowledge around the use of digital tools and giving them every possible chance to feel success by enabling them to share their creations. It is also a great way for whānau to see the value of devices and the engagement that their children have.

We then looked at signing up to the Google Exams, which I am feeling confident about (at Level 1). It was really nice that Sharon went through the whole process and made us feel all very calm. Why not "Give it a go".

The next session was focussing on The future of tech.  Moral Machines website

What does future tech mean for our ākonga? Breakthrough Technologies

This was quite interesting as we looked at where technology is leading (AI, facial recognition, robotics etc) and what are the positives, what could go wrong and what values are involved. What is the outcome for our students who will be living with these technologies? I often think about how these technologies are going to affect education and what is going to be expected of us in the future. Are we going to have to teach our students how to cope in this new world? Are robots going to be the new teachers? What about privacy? Is the digital curriculum aimed towards these new technologies? 

This is where the next session with Vicky came in. She discussed Computational Thinking

Interesting points:

• Students should not just be users, but creators of digital solutions.
• The progress outcomes for the Digital Curriculum have to be are not reporting tools nor a recipe for what to teach, they are guides rather than maps. 
• It is geared to provide our ākonga with the best possible tools and knowledge for a life in a digital world
• There have been lots of resources created already to help with designing digital outcomes.
• It was interesting seeing where I am in the journey by looking at the Find out where you are on the journey - an example andragogy slideshow.

The afternoon session was focussed on coding and sorting and implementing it into our programmes. We were introduced to Twine which is an open-source tool for telling interactive, nonlinear stories. The lesson plan  really helped when creating interactive fiction. I really liked Twine and once I knew the basics found it easy to use. I will definitely show some of my students who I know have a passion for writing and this will give them another option when creating pieces of writing. I began creating my own story and I already have some great ideas for the students.

Things to sort out this week:

• Our admin won't let us insert add ons, I will chat with Elizabeth about this. 
• Show my advanced writers Twine and see how they fund using it.
• Make sure I'm clear with what is involved in the Google Exams next week.

Overall reflection of the day.

Today was quite interesting as I had to get my head around a few new things and be mindful of our learners at school. The question I have is 'Are we empowering our learners?' We are on a great path at school that we will continue to travel along it. It was quite a fast paced session with Viv and Maggie but I took out of it what I wanted and I will continue practise with Twine.

Thanks, Sharon, Emily, Viv and Maggie, this was another excellent day.