E G G S O NL I N E
E-learning at
Epsom Girls Grammar School The advantages of a student owned device E-learning research and the NZC Staff professional development EGGS Online - our online environment E-learning snapshots A guide to buying the right device Digital Citizenship Keeping safe online Our School Infrastructure
The advantages of student owned devices
We recognize that the world is changing rapidly and school is now one of many sources of learning. Our students use digital devices as an important tool for their learning and communicating outside of school. We want to see those devices being used to enhance their learning within school.
The advantages for students bringing their own devices are many and varied. A student owned internet capable device can be an important part of a student’s toolkit, giving them instant access to unlimited resources and enabling them to support, extend, communicate and share their learning in a way that will prepare them for the future.
We invite all students at any level to bring their personal devices to school to integrate their learning both inside and outside of school. Those devices might be a netbook, a laptop, a tablet or a smart phone – any internet capable device can assist learning.
Advantages of student owned devices include: •
Over recent years the school has invested significant resources in ensuring that we have the very best infrastructure to allow us to move into this new age. For two years our staff has been involved in an ICT Professional Development Contract to help them to embrace e-learning and to recognize the benefits of this for our students. We are not saying everyone has to have a device. We are saying if the student has one, bring it along and make the best use of it at school. If you are planning to buy one, we can give you some guidelines on what to consider in making your purchase. Technology is always changing but the important requirements are constant.
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We invite you all to be part of this exciting development at EGGS.
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Anytime, anywhere access to class resources, support and extension activities through Moodle The ability to develop “digital” folders and exercise books for their classes (that can’t be lost, and never need replacing) through Google Apps The ability to develop a portfolio of their learning using Google docs and MyPortfolio Anytime, anywhere access to the school library e-books, database and catalogued web resources through Oliver Greater ability to communicate with teachers, parents and peers to support their learning through instant access to their student email Anytime, anywhere access to unlimited resources and information on the internet The ability to draft, redraft and publish their work at the click of a button Allowing students to become active partners in their learning
Discovering tomorrow together
The advantages of student owned devices
A message from the Principal
Noeline Wright’s (University of Waikato) literature review looking at ‘e-Learning and implications for New Zealand schools’ highlights the following benefits of e-learning afforded by access to internet capable devices: • Improved motivation and engagement • Greater independence and personalised learning • Improved critical thinking and development of multiliteracies • Greater access to information, resources and experts • Greater opportunities for collaboration in wide contexts, including international ones
E-learning in the NZC Information and communication technology (ICT) has a major impact on the world in which young people live. Similarly, e-learning (that is, learning supported by or facilitated by ICT) has considerable potential to: • assist the making of connections by enabling students to enter and explore new learning environments, overcoming barriers of distance and time • facilitate shared learning by enabling students to join or create communities of learners that extend well beyond the classroom • assist in the creation of supportive learning environments by offering resources that take account of individual, cultural, or developmental differences • enhance opportunities to learn by offering students virtual experiences and tools that save them time, allowing them to take their learning further.
Staff training /support Here at Epsom Girls Grammar School we recognise that a student bringing their own device is not enough to make a real impact on student engagement and outcomes. If we want our students to benefit from the opportunities that e-learning and access to online resources and tools offer, we have to ensure our teachers understand the potential of e-learning and working online. Epsom Girls Grammar School is involved in a three year $360,000 Ministry of Education ICT professional development contract. This contract is assisting in providing staff with on-going professional development and support around how best to use ICT to improve outcomes so that students are active partners in their learning. The central goal for this contract at Epsom Girls Grammar School is to improve student engagement through the integration of ICT strategies to enhance student centred learning and strong learning relationships between teachers, students and caregivers. The funding from this contract has also provided the staff with e-mentor support. Each Learning Area in the school has one staff member who is appointed as an e-mentor who is given extra non-contact time to provide targeted staff support. The e-mentors have led a wide range of ICT workshops for teachers throughout the year. We see on-going teacher professional development and support as the key to ensuring successful use of ICT. This combined with an unerring focus on good teaching and learning practices (effective pedagogy) and the specific needs of the student (rather than just focusing on the ICT tools) as the key to making this work!
Schools should explore not only how ICT can supplement traditional ways of teaching but also how it can open up new and different ways of learning. (NZC, 2007)
Discovering tomorrow together
Staff professional development
E-learning research and the NZC
Research citing the potential benefits of e-learning
EGGS Online - our online environment
EGGS online - Our Online Environment
Oliver
Moodle
Oliver is the Epsom Girls Grammar School Library catalogue (database) of resources we have in the library and elsewhere in the school. It is available through Moodle 24/7 and on the library and school computers. Other useful information on Oliver include the Reading Lists, which are on a variety of topics, for example, books on themes or suitable for reading logs. Library staff are also adding a selection of excellent information websites to Oliver, so if you are searching a subject, you might be able to use a link to a suitable website on that topic as well as seeing what books and DVDs we have.
Moodle has already been set up to provide students with 24/7 access to course outlines, hand outs and exam information, on-line discussions, calendar, links to websites, blogs , wikis, lessons, formative assessment, submission of assignments, teacher mark books, chat, mind maps and glossaries. This is the “hub” for all Learning Areas, departments and subjects, other software may be integrated into it. These may include Google Apps and other software and sites chosen by departments because of being a “best fit” for the specific teaching and learning needs of particular subject areas and students.
Google Apps Google Apps is an easy-to-use online word processor, spreadsheet and presentation editor that enables students to create, store and share documents instantly and securely, and collaborate online in real time. You can create new documents from scratch or upload existing documents, spreadsheets and presentations. There’s no software to download, and all your work is stored safely online and can be accessed from any computer or student owned device .
MyPortfolio
MyPortfolio is a nationally available ePortfolio cloud service that runs on the open source ePortfolio software, Mahara. MyPortfolio is the Ministry supported ePortfolio system for NZ schools. MyPortfolio provides students with an easy way of recording and sharing their learning experiences, achievements and evidence of learning. They can also join groups dedicated specifically to their learning.
E-books EGGS Library is currently investigating making e-books available for students to borrow to read on their own device.
EGGS Media EGGS Media is a digital media system that allows staff and students to upload and share video and audio files with staff and students within a secure EGGS environment. All files uploaded by students are approved by staff to ensure appropriate use. The uploaded digital files can then be linked to or embedded into other school online environments such as Moodle, Google Apps or MyPortfolio.
Parent Portal The school is currently developing a parent portal. The purpose is to allow parents to become more involved with their daughter’s progress at school. By going online, they will be able to view student timetables, up to date attendance information, course details and some student results. During 2012 the school will be conducting trials with what has been developed so far to see what works best for students and parents.
Discovering tomorrow together
E-learning snapshots
E-learning Snapshots Using Google Sites in English This year the English department have been using Google Sites for students to maintain an online record of their reading. The purpose of this is to encourage their wide reading to develop some level of critical response. We hoped that the use of this ICT tool would enhance student engagement, encourage student centred learning and help facilitate strong learning relationships. In term one each class set up their online reading logs. Some students set up their own site so that they had ownership of their online space while others chose to set up one site for the whole class with each student being assigned their own page. Once the sites were set up the students were encouraged to respond to their reading by making regular entries on their site/page. This method of recording reading has advantages for both students and teachers. The students who had their own site enjoyed setting it up and altering the design to suit their personality. Once they saw how easy it was to access and maintain their site/page, most of them did not need much more encouragement to use it regularly. Teachers have found that having students’ reading logs available online at any time is very convenient. Teachers are able to read their entries and give specific feedback on each entry and the information is kept safe all in one place. Students and teachers are able to carry out focussed and meaningful online dialogue about their reading progress. Students who bring their own internet capable devices will be able to take greater advantage of these opportunities to work online.
Using Moodle in Science The Sciences use Moodle in various ways. Senior classes largely use it as a repository for resources. The emphasis of departments has been commonality, ensuring all students have equal access to good quality resources. For example, one Year 10 Science has sections for each topic covered. A sample of what is under the Acids and Bases section is as follows: • A folder containing the course hand outs (in MS Word format) • Resource Pages (Moodle) including • Specific Learning Objectives • Key concept summary • Instructions and link to an online homework task (accesses BBC site) • PDF of a slide show used in class • Revision sheet answers (in PDF format) • Four Quizzes covering various aspects of the topic • A Forum question set as a homework task The benefits for the student are that they can access the tasks at any time. There is a variety of levels of student buy-in at the moment. I find the best way to get everyone to attempt a task is to set it in the classroom. Students who bring their own device will be able to take advantage of this. The more ICT-savvy students have quickly completed online tasks and participated in voluntary online forums. Moodle will become increasing important as student owned devices become more commonplace in student’s bags.
Discovering tomorrow together
Using a Mimio in Maths
In 2011 some senior history classes have been using Google docs, especially for essay writing. A collection was set up for each group and students were given access to that collection. In that folder (collection) they can find examples of topic sentences, essay templates, mark schemes and handy hints from the lesson, including power points that have been used in class. Each student knows that they have access to an essay template which they then make a copy of and “share” back to the teacher. Students are then given time to draft their essay knowing that the teacher will visit Google Docs to give them feedback in their drafting.
In 2011 the Mathematics Department acquired 4 Mimio Teach and Capture whiteboards. The hardware changes any ordinary whiteboard into an interactive one. It has been used to encourage participation at the whiteboard and facilitate sharing of student work.
The experience this year, especially with the Year 11 class has been beneficial. Students are keen to have their drafts checked as they still retain ownership of their work. Added to this- they are more likely to re-draft as they do not have a piece of paper which looks uninspiring and can be forgotten and that in their eyes has been destroyed by red pen. There’s also an added depth to the teacherstudent relationship because of the individual chat/discussion that can take place. Students have an online record of their development which is great and is always of use to see progression. The next stage will be for each student to share a collection with the teacher so that the teacher and student can chart their development together and assess work. In the lead up to examination time Google docs can be used for collaboration so students can peer assess work. This provides a great model for students who bring their own device, demonstrating how they can “digitise” their folder, which has great benefits for students and teachers alike.
For the teacher there is ready-to-use lesson content from the resource gallery or website. The lessons have been enlivened by the use of audio, video and flash files. Each lesson can be recorded and reused whenever you want. You can import audio files using the computer’s microphone. They can also import existing lessons from Microsoft PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat Reader and annotate over them. Mimio Ink Capture allows the students to save their mini-whiteboard notes and drawings to their computer for future use. For example, a group of students studying Statistics can create a dot plot and a box plot on a mini-whiteboard and then Mimio allows them to share their group work with the whole class. The Mimio Capture system automatically saves everything on the whiteboard, so your students are free to interact with the learning materials and participate fully in class and students who are absent can easily be filled in on what they missed. This is a great example of how ICTs can be used to provide “studentcentred” learning.
Discovering tomorrow together
E-learning snapshots
Using Google Docs in Social Studies
Battery Life – Should last 5-6 hours to be able to get through a school day without recharging. Weight – Should be light enough for your daughter to carry around all day, anything more than 1.5kg including the case might be too heavy. Wireless – Must be dual-band capable, and state that it has a/g/n, or a/b/g/n. RAM – Should be 2GB or more, or else programmes may be much slower to run. CPU – Faster is usually better, but may also reduce battery life. Intel Atom CPU’s mean longer battery life, and Core i3 or i5 are more powerful but reduce battery life, so discuss your needs with the supplier. Hard Disk Drive – Should be at least 160GB. Some newer devices may feature SSD drives, which are faster, lighter, are more reliable and give longer battery life, because they have no moving parts, but they are also much more expensive. Robustness – Your device should be strong enough to survive a fall onto a hard surface. Insurance – While we take care to protect students’ property, we cannot accept responsibility for devices lost or stolen, so make sure it is covered for these possibilities. Accidental damage insurance may also be available if desired. Warranty – Minimum warranty is 1-year, but you may want to consider upgrading this to a 2 or 3-year warranty. Another factor is how long the device will be away for should it require repair under warranty, it could be a few days, or as long as a few weeks. Optional USB DVD – Some devices such as Netbooks do not have a built-in DVD drive, so you may want to consider a USB DVD to be able to load any additional software you may purchase. Anti-virus Software – Anti-virus and anti-spyware software is essential to protect the data on the device, and prevent the device being used to spread this malware to other devices at home or at school. Removing this malicious software from devices is one of the ICT Helpdesk’s most frequent requests.
Digital Citizenship Internationally there is an increasing focus on developing the capability of young people as participants in a digital society or ‘digital citizens’, and the capability of teachers as guides of the digital society. Drawing on the values and key competencies of the NZC we can begin to define a digital citizen as someone who: • is a confident and capable user of ICT • uses ICT to participate in educational, cultural, and economic activities • develops and demonstrates critical thinking skills through ICT • is literate in the language, symbols, and texts of ICT • is aware of challenges presented by ICT and can manage them effectively • relates to others in positive, meaningful ways through ICT • demonstrates honesty and integrity in their use of ICT • respects the concepts of privacy and freedom of speech in a digital world • contributes and actively promotes the values of digital citizenship as defined here
Digital Citizenship Contract All students at EGGS are required to sign a Digital Citizenship Contract agreeing to: • be a safe user whenever and wherever they use information and communication technology (ICT) • be responsible whenever and wherever they use technology and support others by being respectful in how they talk to and work with them and never write or participate in online bullying. This includes forwarding messages and supporting others in harmful, inappropriate or hurtful online behaviour • report to an adult if they feel unsafe or uncomfortable online or see a friend being unsafe or being made to feel uncomfortable by others. (a copy of the full contract can be found on the school website under e-learning)
Discovering tomorrow together
Digital Citizenship
A guide to buying the right device
Buying the Right Device – Recommended Specifications
School Infrastructure
Epsom Girls Grammar School believes open communication between parents, teachers and students is the best way to keep students safe. Students will often share concerns with each other online. It is important that they tell a teacher and/or parent/caregiver when they are feeling uncomfortable or threatened online. If you have any concerns about this agreement or internet safety contact your school or visit http://www.netsafe.org.nz
Supporting the school’s e-learning environments such as Moodle, Google Apps and other Internet services requires a modern, state of the art network infrastructure.
NetSafe is an independent non-profit organisation that promotes confident, safe, and responsible use of Cyberspace.
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The school has made a significant investment to provide this infrastructure through several major projects that have recently been completed:
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The School Network Upgrade Project (SNUP) has resulted in a complete redesign and replacement of the school’s entire wired network, providing reliable, high-performance Gigabit data connections to every classroom, and enabling access to ultra-fast broadband (UFB) Installation of 70 high-performance (300 Megabit) Wireless Access Points, providing wireless network access for Netbooks and other mobile devices in all classrooms and main facilities Ultra-fast broadband Internet access over a 1 Gigabit Vector fibre optic network cable, providing up to 100 Megabit bandwidth to national e-learning resources, up to 60 Megabit bandwidth to international resources, currently uploading and downloading more than 60 Gigabytes of data each day
In addition, all classrooms include data projectors, and an increasing number now include interactive ultra-short-throw projectors. The school also employs a small but highly professional team of specialists to implement and maintain this infrastructure, and provide ICT support to students and staff.
Discovering tomorrow together
Our School Infrastructure
Keeping Safe online
Keeping safe online
Silver Road, Epsom, Auckland 1023 Phone: +64 9 630 5963 Fax: +64 9 638 9143 www.eggs.school.nz