Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is no longer an instructional tool in education. Constructivist learning has led to ICT as a cognitive tool to promote meaningful learning (Jonassen, Peck, & Wilson, 1999). Education today must to demonstrate the effectiveness of their educational effort and improving learning through effective instruction, which will strengthen the individual learning. The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) identify the authentic use of ICT across their standards. Standards 2.6 and 3.4 make particular reference to the use of ICT in the planning and implementation of effective lessons and standard 4.5 outlines the importance of responsible and ethical use of ICT (AITSL, 2011). The …show more content…
The lesson was a preamble into a frog dissection laboratory, which would take place the following week. The lesson instructions for this virtual dissection are included as artefact 1. The students access a specific internet site, where they will work through a virtual dissection of a frog at their own pace before answering a series of multiple-choice questions (artefact 2). As Bundaberg State High School has a ‘bring your own device’ program (BYOD) prior to the commencement of the activity, the class is reminded of the school policy for responsible and ethical use of technology. The use of ICT was twofold; the students were able to engage in an informative and interactive learning, which introduced the key concepts of the laboratory they would perform the following week (Marsh, 2010) and the students learnt to effectively follow instructions and navigate this type of medium proficiently (ACARA, 2014). Barak (2006) suggests this use of technology fosters ‘contextual learning’ and ‘active learning’ and increases students’ interest in learning, but remains mindful that using technology will not solve basic educational …show more content…
Additionally, as the students worked through the lesson, the teacher was able to assess the students’ cognitive understanding of not only the frog dissection but also their ICT capabilities. Subsequently the dissection laboratory could be adapted to promote higher-order thinking or scaffold as the individual student required (1.5, 3.2 & 3.6 AITSL, 2011). During the interactive lesson, the students were introduced to specific vocabulary thus augmenting their scientific literacy (ACARA, 2014). Overall, the lesson was an effective and engaging way of incorporating responsible use of ICT into the classroom. The inclusion of a multiple-choice questionnaire and printed handout (artefact 3) reinforced the keys concepts of the particular lesson and promoted deeper understanding (Hattie, 2003). Furthermore, the lesson allowed for construction knowledge about the topic at a cognitive level suited to each individual student (Hattie,