Digital Pedagogy

Analysing any of the sessions we had in the autumn 2018 (by referring to the recordings). Choose a session where in addition to the Adobe Connect tool some other digital tools are used.

In the second session where the topic was Implementation 1 - Focus on virtual/online teaching, groups made use of Power-Point for presenting, Padlet for discussions and Mind-map for describing more of a topic. In Topic 5: Competence in Research and Development, a group made use of Digital Newsletter which is an interesting concept of presenting the topic. The digital ways of teaching will be explained below with the pros and cons that come along.

Power-Point

Power-Point is the most popular presentation software used in almost all sessions held in autumn 2018 as it is the easiest and more accessible methods. PowerPoint also works well in Adobe Connect by converting the PowerPoint slides into PDF when uploading in Adobe Connect. Power-Point is advantageous to use as:

• It is easy to create slides with designs and colours
• It is easy to modify
• Using bullet points make it simple to present
• It can re-order the presentation easily
• It gives easy access to integrate other products such as spreadsheets, graphics and other documents.

Although Power-Point is more commonly used, it comes with some drawbacks such as:

• Abundance of features making presenters get carried away with too many animations or designs which overlook the content of the presentation.
• Sometimes using only bullet points make the presentation too weak to support the topic or content of the presentation
• Poor speakers use PowerPoint to reduce complicated messages which make them unable to represent the complexity of certain topics
• The design used are sometimes pointless as it gives the illusion of content and coherence.

Padlet

Padlet is an online virtual wall tool that is free to use. People often use padlet to express their thoughts in group discussion. It can also be used by teachers and students to have discussion or post notices. Padlet provide access to use it with URL in order to share with people. Picture 1 below shows an example of how a Padlet looks like. I actually created this padlet during my teaching sessions.

Picture 1: Example of a Padlet

Padlet is beneficial to use as it is:

• Free and easy to use
• Easily login access in Google Account
• Allow to share the links and do not sell information
• With privacy setting, it helps to control what others can do in your wall
• The wall space has no limit

Padlet has also proven disadvantages to use as:

• Teachers have no control what students may post
• Inappropriate content may be created by other users on the site
• Browsing wall may contain materials not appropriate for children
• Padlet install a cookie in the computer to gain access to the wall which affect the virus protection software.

Mind-Map

A mind-map helps to organise ideas through a diagram which is used to illustrate a content or topic in more details. It acts as a hierarchical diagram by organising information where the relationship of each piece of information is connected to the whole. Bubbl.us is a free online software to build up a mind-map by brainstorming new ideas, collaborate with groups and present more effectively. Picture 2 shows an example of Mind-Map in bubbl.us website.

Picture 2: Example of designing Mind-Map in Bubbl.us

As every coin has two-sided, the mind-map also has pros and cons. Mind-map pros are that:

• Easy to use and edit
• Widely adaptable as a human mind works exactly the way a mind-map grows
• It enhance memory by creating in hierarchical diagram
• It shows concise information
• It helps to get people focused as the layout is illustrated from hypernym to hypernym.

Using mind-mind also comes with some cons such as:

• Creating a mind-map is time consuming
• Text is limited to use in the mind-map
• When using mind-map tools, there are some rules to follow as we are not able to freestyle our map.

Digital Newsletter

A digital newsletter is an excellent opportunity to connect with the audience through texts and images. Using a digital newsletter in teaching is an innovative method which helps to communicate regularly and deliver the information in a simple way. Smilebox Teacher's Toolbox is an interesting website to create a digital newsletter for teaching. It is free to create an account as a classroom teacher. Picture 3 shows an example of the Teacher's Toolbox in Smilebox website to create newsletters.

Picture 3: Example of designing Digital Newsletter in Smilebox Teacher's Toolbox

Digital newsletters is beneficial to use as:

• It helps in promoting creative learning environment
• Appropriate aims of the topic are well illustrated in digital newsletters to easily understand
• It is a cost-effective tool in teaching and marketing.

Two main disadvantages of using digital newsletters are:

• It is limited to provide detailed information in a newsletter
• Too much information in a newsletter can be boring and difficult to understand

There are also some others ways of digital teaching used in whole autumn 2018 sessions

Prezi

Prezi is a presentation software that uses canvas instead of slides. It allows to incorporate Power-Point slides to design a much better Prezi presentation. Prezi allows to pan and zoom different parts of the canvas. Prezi however does not work well with Adobe Connect. Picture 4 shows an example of my Prezi presentation for a company namely Musti ja Mirri. By clicking on the next button in Prezi zooms in each part aids to read and modify. Prezi can be easily downloaded and converted into PDF.

Picture 4: Example of a presentation in Prezi

Prezi comes with many advantages such as:

• It is free to use and has variety of templates
• It is appropriate for all ages
• It helps to do the presentation in a unique way
• It allows pictures, graphs and links to zoom
• It imports Power-Point to conversion.

Prezi is also identified as having many drawbacks when using:

• The way Prezi zoom in and out and moves from slides to slides make many users feel dizzy.
• Prezi works only with internet when sharing the links
• Some users have identified that it has limited tools
• If users do not understand the tutorial well, it becomes difficult to use.

Video Learning

Multiple senses are connected and encouraged when using video as an educational medium. Having texts, sound and moving pictures make learning easy and interesting as they allow to understand the concept better and deeply. YouTube is the most common video platform. Vimeo also is a common video software where you can make, manage and save your videos. Picture 5 shows an example of Vimeo. Having a MacBook, i normally use Quick Time Player to make or edit my videos as it is free and user-friendly. Teaching with the use of video is more beneficial as:

• Learning from a visual medium helps to remember for a longer period than text
• Teaching through video is more creative that attracts students to learn faster
• Videos are easily accessible and make complex things look clearer
• It is easy to pause and rewind when needed

Video learning for students can be disadvantages:

• If audio quality is poor, it is difficult to understand
• For slow learners, video learning can be harder to focus
• Videos are hard to edit

Picture 5: Example of Vimeo

Ways to connect with groups during autumn 2018 sessions

WhatsApp

It is the most common and convenient way to communicate with our groups. When needed and when  it was urgent, we were also doing calls through WhatsApp although group members were in different part of the world.

Skype

The second most easiest way to communicate with the group was through Skype, which is a telecommunication application that existed before WhatsApp. All the group meetings were done through Skype to ensure each group member can express his/her point well.

FaceBook

When we get to know our group members during the teaching in autumn 2018, we also added them in our FaceBook so that we can know our group members well. There were time where we were communicating in FaceBook Messenger also if we found our group members online.

Google Docs & Google Drive

When preparing the teaching, we were sharing the documents in Google docs so that each group member has the opportunity to edit or add lectures needed. The final work was then saved in Google drive to ensure the work is protected well to avoid being lost.

Substitutes of using Adobe Connect for online teaching

Zoom

It is a great tool for collaboration. It is the most common conference platform used in Mauritius when teaching. It helps teachers to hold a class with around 500 students and students are provided access to chat with another student or with the teacher. 

Advantages of using Zoom:

• The quality of call is much better
• Annotations of screen sharing is very useful
• It is cost effective

Disadvantages:

• It has securities issues such as Zoom Bombing
• The working model is not so appreciated by many users

Easyclass

It refers to creating a digital classroom where teachers can store course materials online, manage assignments, exams and quizzes. Teachers can also provide students with their grade results and feedback in the digital classroom.

Advantages:

• It is easy to learn and use
• It combines traditional and electronic learning methods
• Flexible for students to learn anywhere and anytime

Disadvantages:

• Lack of direct interaction with teachers
• Lack of friends as no such interaction with other students
• The workload is often bigger than traditional education