QTS Q22 – Timothy West

Evaluation of OCR Nationals A06 Databases

By adminPGCE, POT 3, TeachingNo Comments

Over the last term I have been teaching a series of lesson bassed on the ICT OCR Nationals syllabus. The syllabus is broken down into 6 modules and the pupils have to complete each module at pass level in order to get what is equivalent to half a GCSE.

I have been specifically teaching them the AO6 Databases module over the last 7 weeks.

Please see my medium term plan here >> http://bit.ly/lewvPv

The challenge with this unit was to make it interesting and engaging for the pupils. Databases can be a bland topic to teach as it is quite a formal and rigid skill that does not allow for much creativity. The easiest way I found to make it interesting was to try and choose a topic that allowed them to engage with the program. As a department we came up with an idea for the pupils to create a music festival and to allow the pupils to choose the types of bands that they would like to perform. This allowed the pupils to create the tables in the database with information that was relevant to them.

Each skill needed to be chunked into small tasks as at times the pupils got lost when doing the long processes of creating queries and reports. It was also important to explain why they would do certain tasks in the program so that they could see the benefit of using an automated program like this.

I found the use of the powerpoint template was helpful to scaffold the pupils work and give them direction however after a while the pupils lost interest and became obviously quite bored with the process of combing in again and again and gathering screen shots for each skill they have shown and annotating it. In the future i will try and find more activities that allow them to do the work quicker and more independently. To give time allow for more creative teaching.

After we had finished this i was able to collect the work through the automated Joint assessment system program and I am currently in the process of marking it to give pupils feed back.

>> powerpoint template = http://bit.ly/iwZw8P

31/05/2011

Evaluation of the Apprentice Year 8 Unit

By adminPGCE, POT 3, Reflection, Teaching124 Comments

Evaluation of Year 8 Apprentice Unit

Over the last 5 weeks I have been teaching Year 8 a new module that I have created a medium term plan for. This unit has been called the Apprentice unit. The main concept for the project is to come up with a product that they can sell to pupils at their school. The product needs to be small and affordable with the average pocket money that pupils have per week.

To start with I asked the pupils to think about what sort of people they are targeting and what sort of products they might like. I gave them some clues to get them started with the product one of which was a usb lipstick product that could sell to females.

Above is an example of how I designed a simple poduct in firework and then asked them to create a similar sketch for their product. This particular idea really gave them the chance to be creative with their product. It was important that they undertook this task so that they could have an idea of what the product would consist of for the production phase. This lesson worked particularly well with some fantastic produces being produced.

They also had to think about how they would brand their product and come up with a logo. This was a good chance again to use the program fireworks to design it. It was important to give them a few examples of different logos and take them through the program in steps otherwise the pupils forgot it by the time they had a go.

Finally the pupils had to go through and sort out the finances of the product to figure out how much money they intend to make. This needed to be done with an element of competition.

At the end of this unit the pupils will be assessed via a presentation and they will have to present their PowerPoint that they have collated their research in and pitch it as if they where in a boardroom.

All in all this was a great project that is suited for an end of year project to consolidate a series of skills .

Please see this folder for all the resources files and folders. http://bit.ly/ivXjSw

21/05/2011

Year 9 OCR Nationals Database Lesson

By adminPGCE, POT 3, TeachingNo Comments

What we did & Learning objectives!

We where having a look at databases and how to create a simple query that filters for a YES in the criteria. The table was for people attending a music festival. We also where creating a report for the bands that where playing and the order of their events they created.

What went well?

I had created a good lesson plan for this lesson and it was very thorough and I was able to really get to grips with Microsoft access before using it.

I found I was able to assert my authority and lay down so ground rule although these where not respected as well as I would have liked. I was able to

Students Learning

What could have been done better and what will I do about it?

I accidentally started creating a query in the wizard view rather than design view which threw me but I was able to reel it back in.

Behaviour wise I found there was little mutual respect dispite the clear guidelines being issued which meants that next lesson the first person that steps out of line will be in Time out the sanction area. I was able to issue two time out warning to pupils demonstating my high expectations and standards.

Students Learning

Pupils where actively not egaging with the content and not listening. This is because of the nature of the OCR nationals and it is quite a mundane topic.

Feelings

Not the greatest lesson which I will need to work hard on next lesson to pull them back in. I will need to just be short and sweet as far as sanctions and warnings and not be afraid to use the time outs. I will also need to look at how to make it more interesting.

After the lesson i asked my subject mentor for some advice on how to best impliment the policies and practices for behaviour in the classroom . On Speaking with him we identified that the reason why it was initially due to the fact that the demonstration did not go well and from then on I had lost them. He also said that if i would like to i could on the whiteboard write down who is causing truouble in the lesson and give them a warning or a merit for doing wel. This way they know if they are needing to be quiet or to offer more.

Please use this link to view my full lesson plan >>

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z4oZSUqSpyCrlbE0wo8OEo1zwIqoEvZkaP3wLxL0P74/edit?hl=en

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B7AadLDLtxQLNzJiNzgzNWUtZTBmOS00NDY3LWJiNWMtODNjY2Q1ODlkNmRi&hl=en

11/05/2011

Photoshop lesson 2 – Year 7

By adminPGCE, POT 2, Reflection, TeachingNo Comments

Lesson Reflection Document

Class Year 7

What we did?

We were creating an Elvis at the Abbey project with a pop theme to it.

Lesson 2 was all about working and making tweaks to the sky using a gradient tool on Photoshop.

Please look at attached lesson plan

What went well?

It was great to see that the pupils where using their inner creativity to create some really good-looking items of work.

They where able to grasp the points that I needed to re-enforce through questioning

I made sure the chairs where set out as they came in as it really helped the pupils focus and be really quiet for the introduction. I have noticed how when I don’t do this it is slightly more chaotic and hard to get through the introduction well

I was able to introduce AB tutor well to the classes at first I found that they where really excited about the whole concept but if I just did it and asked them to put their hands of their laps it stopped that initial excitement. The AB tutor really helped with the finer details that I had to explain with for example the new layer creation and add to selection tool box.

The time at the end of the lesson was a good time to show of the pupils work and give constructive criticism.

I found I was able to be more confident with the lesson the more I had taught it showing that experience is so valuable to self-development.

I set some good extension tasks of finding and adding in another “Friend of Elvis” to be put in from the Internet.

I used some good classroom discipline to keep them under control when the noise level became too loud.

What could have been done better?

In my earlier lessons I found that my explanation was quite rushed and not as thorough as It could have been this had a repocusion later on as there where so many questions almost too many for me to handle at once. I found in the last lesson that I did when my delivery was clear and concise they where able to really get on with the work with out too much guidance.

I need to keep an eye on pupils that are running behind due the extremely hi ability sometimes the less able can get missed.

I have to make sure I keep the plenary time for assessment of learning and ict skills not just an artistic critique on their work.

Conclusion

All in all I feel it was a good set of lessons that where executed with good pace and clear guidance.

11/03/2011

Adobe After Effects Lesson 1 – Year 8

By adminPGCE, POT 2, Reflection, TeachingNo Comments

Class

Year 8

What we did?

We have been starting an advertising scheme of work using the Adobe After Effects package. We mainly started by looking at a YouTube clip which was the Honda Cog Advert. I then asked them questions on what makes a good advert and what they enjoyed in the advert. I found that if i did the questioning before about what makes a good advert it was a good pre-curser into the actual video followed by the video and then questions on what they enjoyed in that advert that made it a good advert. We then went on and looked at adobe after effects and the mini bath advert project. I had to show them basic features of the After Effects package such as the composition area where I explained how 16:9 was a good native resolution for modern screens. I also talked to them about the Presets tab on the left where you have all the content and media imported. Timeline, transform and text editing was what I showed them next.

What went well?

The YouTube video was certainly a hit and I shall be using more and more of these as YouTube is not filtered and the pupils really enjoy it and it is a great way to tease out questions based on live and real examples from current media and advertising.
I found that chunking the sections of the deliver most effective as many of the pupils found it hard to remember the complex steps of adobe after effects. I found that when i did do too much I didn’t have enough time to really get them on task quick enough.
The managing of questions in this was interesting and I had to make queue system by giving them numbers.
I used AB tutor to subtly keep an eye to see if they were on task.
I also used AB tutor to display their finished work I also got them to gather around a PC and view their work.
I made sure that I gave them clear guidelines as to what to do and what I expected of them before the end of the lesson.
I could have got them to save and submit their work to a folder for assessment and comments so I am going to create folders on the shared drive that they can cope and past their finished work to.
I need to give more time for a plenary so as to give time for assessment of learning by questioning.
I found that demonstrating up the front was a little bit tough to show them the finer more intricate tools effects that where hard to see.
Adobe after effects is a hugely complex program that requires great concentration. I found the explanation of key frames quite challenging i think the only way to rectify this specific step would be do a written set of instruction that are very basic.
I feel my behavioural management was good in the lesson and i controled the pupils well

What could have been done better?

Overall these where good lessons that I thought where effective and produced good work. I believe they learnt a fair bit on how to use adobe after effects but joining the theoretical side of advertising to the technical side was rather tenuous as they could not create something as good as what they saw on the youtube clip.

04/03/2011

Copyright – Year 9MQB4 – OCR Nationals

By adminObservations, PGCE, Reflection, TeachingNo Comments

Formal Lesson observation

This was my first formal lesson observation from my university tutor. I was quite nervous about it as I really wanted to impress. I found myself planning all evening and tried my best to make sure that all my resources and activities were just right.

The actual lesson went well with no major issues. I was happy with what I delivered and though they could have achieved a bit more written work I think they would have enjoyed it and I could tell they had learned something. It was an ambitious lesson to try and I feel that I managed it well.

I tried to use some post it notes to get the kids thinking about how all they have to do is write something down to copyright it and so i aske them to do this. I then had some great advice which was to extend this by saying how would you feel if i went and sold each one of these to pay for my next holiday to Kenya. This would have been a great way to get the higher level of blooms taxonomy.

I found that my feed back from my tutor was far but quite hypercritical which was hard to swallow at first as I really did try my best. I think I am still having to come to terms with the fact that I am not going to perfect yet and actually teaching is always about seeing how you can do things better next time. So the advice was great and I can see why they push us and try and find areas of weakness.

I need to concentrate on listening more to the responses from the pupils during questioning time and then if they
are good expanding on this and asking other pupils to engage with it.
Identifying the areas of strength and spikes in learning and praising that highly.
I need to really make sure that they get on task quicker and give them options if they are not starting the work
and making clear the expectation on them to work or get a sanction.
Continued work on low level disruption.

All in all I think that it’s necessary to be humble and then strive to be the best.

Please take a look at the following to get an idea of how the lesson worked and what resources i used followed by my observation report.

Lesson observation report = http://bit.ly/gZBzno

Copyright PowerPoint = http://bit.ly/e9SdK4

Lesson Plan and Evaluation of lesson = http://bit.ly/i04wPg

25/11/2010

Researching Online – photos and text – Year 8MQB1

By adminPGCE, Reflection, TeachingNo Comments

What we did & Learning objectives!

In this lesson we had a look at good ways to research content online with a focus on text and pictures. The purpose was to give them some structure and guidelines on how start to populate their websites with good looking content.

To find out some key points about your topic like using effective search techniques – what it is – history of how long it’s been an issue – a few key facts and figures e.g. how much GM food is produced in the UK. Also include one news article
To gather some relevant images and pictures from Google image search and from a stock photo website like corbis images

What went well?

I laid down the ground rules to start with and set high expectations which went well and I was able to control the class without to much trouble.

I was really happy how I was able to start with a recap and get them on task quickly. I was able to use this time to make sure that each pupil was up to scratch.

The pupils were on task and achieved a good amount of work in the lesson. They are really beginning to create a website that looks good and could be actually used on the web.

Some of the questions were answered well

The where able to use their english and skills to write the work they had researched to create the work in their own words. I had to make sure that pupils where comming up with sentices and paragraphs that where realated to the work and to make sure that it was relevant. It was interesting as some pupils literacy levels where much higher than i expected which makes sense as this is a top set.

What could have been done better and what will I do about it?

I asked them to find content for their website and did not show them how to import it straight into their website. I should have said compile it in word and then paste it into frontpage. I think in the future I would make sure I have each instruction completely clear that allows them to completely get on with the task.

I was meant to show them a few more options to find stock photos so will need to make sure I plan for demonstration time a bit better.

Its was hard to just talk about some of these websites on the PowerPoint with out demonstrating them again I think its best to have a live example of the website rather than just image.. screen shots could be taken to achieve this come to think of it.

Feelings

It was a busy and fairly tiring lesson but this was because it was the last lesson of the day and everyone was tired. How ever they did get a decent amount of work done.

I was really enjoying it and feel that it went well.

It was interesting as I enjoyed the time also when my mentor left the class room as this gave me complete freedom. This is not at all to say that I don’t like him there. It is just at times you want to please and glance over at your mentor for approval which shouldn’t be the case we are teaching the kids not our mentor.

Please use this link to view my full lesson plan >> http://bit.ly/bWh9yP

05/11/2010

Website Design – Lesson 1 – 8MQB4

By adminPGCE, Reflection, TeachingNo Comments

This was my first lesson that I had full responsability over and all in al it was realyl good. I really enjoyed it and found it really rewarding. i have completed a full lesson plan an evaluation doccument for you to read. I dont want to waste any more time on talkin about the lesson as it is all in the google doc.

I will be doing full lesson plans and evaluations for one lesson a week.

Googe Docs Lesson Plan and Evaluation Doccument http://bit.ly/9UOrCH

I was also formally assesed by my mentor and the link is here. http://bit.ly/9deKwR

I will also being doing shorter reflections in this format.

What went well?

I brought the kids in well

The use of ICT was an obvious standards that was ticked of well her and will be throughout my teaching. I have seen that pupils base level of ict capability is fairly good and this is something that i will be able to build on.

What could have been done better!

I will need to keep incorporating how to use english and maths well in my ict teaching.

I need to set my learning objects up on a PowerPoint that I can use clearly at the beginning of the lesson to say what we are going to achieve this lesson. So just list theses on a slide show with a nice format that is nice to look at..

I then need to use the objectives to aid my plenary and to check over that they all understand how to do the relevant areas.

I need to predict the areas that might be technically challenging and have a good explanation of these and trouble shoot response

I need to have further extension task for the pupils that finish early.

03/11/2010

Bits and Bobs – SD Seminar Week 9

By adminPGCE, SD - ICT, SeminarsNo Comments

Today we are having a looking at a series of bits and bobs.

We are going to look at a series of gadgets that will help us in our teaching that are fun and practical. Things like web cams, and microphones, Control devices like the Bee-bot using,

Death by PowerPoint

We watched this video that was really funny

Automated response units are a a good way to get feed back from the kids in a voting fashion.

Block poster is a great tool to make a large posters

http://www.blockposters.com/

Audacity is a great free audio capture program http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Posterous is a free online podcasting application

https://posterous.com/

have a listen to our pod cast that we have uploaded to posterous

http://trcwest.posterous.com

Cue prompter is a great website for doing a scrolling auto cue prompter and its free

http://www.cueprompter.com/

We have been given loads of great links from Andy my tutor.

For the audacity part we used a large condensor mic that has a usb port and we used that to record out sound. We then used audacity to record all the tracks.

We had to just plan out our script and let it role on the script prompter above.

Once we had all the tracks sorted we put them into one linear time line normalized the volume and used a few fun effects to change the pitch and speed of the voices.

Its was great fun today and really enjoyed working in a team and collaboratively.

02/11/2010