Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the most collaborative of them all...

I'm so reflective these days I feel like a freaking mirror!

Bad jokes aside, this is my first reflection on our second major assignment, (which I feel needs a bit of an atmospheric introduction, like a DUM, DUM, DUM......) The Digital Learning Event. AlthTough it looks crazy complex, I don't think it really is. There are just a lot of components I think, and a bunch of processes to go through. I feel relatively in control of it though at the moment.

So, I thought I would show my processes thus far...

Firstly, we went through the task itself, which seemed quite daunting. Then Mim did a lovely breakdown for us, which helped as we discussed it as a class and asked questions.

The mindmappy version of our assignment

Next, we scooped and tweeted an idea of a learning activity that we brainstormed in class, and then collaborated with others in the class on our concept. My original concept was to have my Year 10 History class create an edutainment video on the rights and freedoms of Aboriginal people in Australia since the arrival of Europeans in 1788. I wanted it to tie straight into the Rights and Freedoms unit which is part of the Year 10 curriculum. As I started collaborating with Mim and the class though, I realised that it was very specific and quite limiting considering that the idea is to create an open ended and student centred and owned learning activity. So then I came up with a mindmap that looked like this:

The first step in the collaborative process

I realised that by opening up the range of topics to rights and freedoms around the world, and by making the topics current, that this would make the assignment more relevant and engaging for students.

Since then, Mim has asked us to present our ideas again for class this Thursday, so today I decided to put together another mindmap, this time in Prezi. This time I've really thought more about the project, made it more open-ended (by opening up the format and genre of the video), thought about what students will need to know in order to complete it, brainstormed ideas for collaboration not just within the small group, but between the class, researched some more digital tools, thought about what information and support I would need to provide as a teacher etc. I've quite enjoyed this process actually, I like the way it has made me think about assessment in general.


This is my learning activity so far. I'm opening it up for any and all suggestions... come and collaborate with me!

The neverending story...

In my very first blog post I had done the first week’s course work and realised that I was a bit conceited and I had gotten very comfortable, and I really wasn’t as good as I thought I was; I had been humbled. I wrote that I was ready to level up. Well I have levelled up. I’ve also realised how many more level-ups I’ve got to go, because I’m never going to be finished climbing the ranks in this digital game! This course so far has been such a positive learning experience for me. It has drawn together practical examples of digital technologies, placed them in a framework of good pedagogical practices and learning theories, and shown me how to use them in a classroom in a safe, legal and ethical manner. I thoroughly enjoyed reading through my last six blog posts again, because I realised both how much I have grown, and how much further I have got to go. It's the neverending story, the tale of a lifelong learner. As I was reading I noticed a few key themes in my posts, that nicely link together the theory, the pedagogy and the technology.

Technological and Personal Development

One of the things I have loved most, and mentioned several times over the weeks, is the fact that this course promotes technological AND personal development. I have learned to use applications and programs such as WikiSpaces, Weebly, YouTube Editor, Prezi and Evernote (just to name a few). I can now edit videos and build cool websites. But more importantly, I have worked on some equally (if not more important!) non-technological skills such as perseverance, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration, all of which are skills that the 21st century student needs to learn in the classroom. The building of skills is what Constructivist Learning Theory is all about. Jean Piaget's beliefs about the educator as a facilitator (and mentor, consultant, coach) rather than just a teacher, fits in with my own fledgling pedagogy. (Teachnology n.d.)

Higher Order Thinking

I found the DeBono's hats task the hardest and most frustrating of all the weekly tasks, but I believe also the most beneficial in terms of changing my mindset. My biggest revelation was really understanding the value of higher order thinking. It was the first time I had seen Bloom's Taxonomy in action, and I was amazed at how well this could be applied to any number of classroom lessons. That activity really encouraged me to look more deeply at learning design, and how I am going to approach my next prac. Even what I thought were simple things like using images in classes can be (and should be) taken to the next level by teaching students visual literacy; deconstructing images to reconstruct meaning. This ties in with digital literacy; it's not just the ability to use a range of technologies, it's the analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information to create new information/media/technology.

Creativity and Real-World Engagement

This course has changed my approach to planning; I think that it is imperative that we use digital technologies to apply lessons in real-world contexts, because that is how we will most effectively engage learners. I found the SAMR model at times challenging, but incredibly helpful in pushing myself to aim for a redefinition level in the learning tasks I created every single time. With an awareness of available technologies and some creativity, we can create a huge range of incredible learning tasks that support students in the way they learn best. Real-world engagement means real security, legal and ethical issues too, and I believe it is so important that this is put into real-world contexts for the learner. If they can understand that the internet is almost a living being, not just information on a computer screen, they may start to be aware of their online presence, both the pros and cons, and they can think more critically about the information they put out there on the world wide web.

Shared Learning and Collaboration 

Long gone are the days where learning is for the elite; with movements such as hackschooling and unschooling starting to show the shift in traditional pedagogy, the time for regulated individual learning is really over. Students can manage and control their own learning, particularly through the amazing treasure trove of OERs and MOOCs available online. Shared learning was something I loved in this course, particularly when we worked in small groups; not only did I learn three times the amount of information on the technology, but I got to see other people's views and interpretation on the processes and learning. Collaboration has so much of an advantage beyond completing the end product; it has learning outcomes that go beyond the cognitive sphere, feeds right back into personal growth, and promotes all the skills that are required of the 21st century learner. Reflecting on my personal collaboration in this course, I feel like it is an area I certainly could have done better in. Our on-campus group is unusually tight-knit, and this has become a stumbling block for honest, constructive feedback. While I have made a few more detailed and constructive comments on the blogs of those outside our Noosa group, I found that I struggled to provide honest feedback to those in my class. I understand now that this blocks the collaborative process; if no one makes suggestions for improvement, or questions something, how is the end product supposed to evolve?

This class has been fantastic; it has shown me the value of higher order thinking and collaboration, made me really think about creative learning design for real-world engagement, and has propelled me into technological and personal growth. My learning clearly links in with each of the eight pedagogical principles that I feel will really inform my teaching, particularly leading into my prac next term. I am so grateful for the opportunities I have been given in this class; if I have learned all of this in only seven weeks, I can't wait to find out what the next five hold!

References

Teachnology. (n.d.). Piaget's Theory of Constructivism. Retrieved from http://www.teach-nology.com/currenttrends/constructivism/piaget/

Always listen to your mother...

I really need to listen to my mother more when she tells me about cool new apps she's found. She must have mentioned Evernote to me half a dozen times at least (she gets slightly obsessive about new discoveries and likes to tell everyone... it's obviously where I get it from), and I've always just done the smile and nod. But then, when I realised that I needed to find a technology to talk about, I thought I might have a little poke around and see what it was all about. Thank goodness, because I love it!

Evernote is essentially a place to compile a whole lot of information, and keep track of it all. It allows you to incorporate notes, photos, audio, websites, videos and lists. Furthermore, you can have multiple notebooks, attach documents and multimedia, insert tables, annotate notes (premium feature - adding text, drawings, stamps etc.), add audio clips to notes, add reminders, add tags, search your notes, chat with others on Evernote, share notes, present as full presentations (premium feature), and keep an 'atlas' of your notes (organised by location). It works best when downloaded on a computer, and as an app on a smartphone, as the two programs sync the latest additions to your notebooks. It's very versatile in terms of authorship; you can have a private notebook, or share the link via email or on a website/blog for public viewing. With the premium version you can have multiple authors with a share notebook. It has multiple add-on apps that work in conjunction with Evernote to increase capabilities (eg. Evernote Scannable which scans documents into pdf format from your phone camera, Evernote Food which allows you to save and share recipes, photos of meals, restaurant recommendations, Evernote Skitch which allows you to add annotation, shapes and sketches, or one of the many other Evernote add-ons available). Evernote is not a beginner tool; although it is simple to use, one must have their head around the concept of all its abilities to be able to use it.

Evernote encourages many learning outcomes; the primary purpose of the app is for users to organise thoughts and information; it provides an avenue for finding, and then annotating or commenting on information; it allows collaborative investigation and work; it allows the user to combine a number of digital technologies in one place; it gives the user a way to track the progression of information through time. It can be used as to produce visual guides and virtual tours, as an e-portfolio, as a digital information centre for teachers to provide to students, as a way of students submitting homework and assessments to their teachers, as a lesson planner and as a program for creating presentations. Evernote is pretty much a super-app. 

A screenshot of Evernote on my computer.

At the Substitution level, students create an Evernote notebook which can be used to store notes, multimedia, and websites for their research on a history assignment. 

At the Augmentation level, students can write notes, take photos and clip websites for the history assignment research, tagging each entry (either by subject of content, or by introduction, point 1, point 2, conclusion etc.) so that they can quickly search and access the information at a later date. They can also annotate their entries (which convert to PDF's), adding comments, shapes and text boxes. 

At the Modification level, students create their history notebook with notes, files and annotations, but also evaluate their sources as they go, recording an audio clip that is attached to each file, justifying their selection. Students can use the chat feature to talk with other students or the teacher about the assignment, then when they are finished they share the link with the teacher. 

At the Redefinition level, students use the app on their smartphone while they are on a history excursion, and they take notes, add photos and commentary to relevant historical artifacts they have seen on the day. This information is synced with Evernote on their computer, where they create a presentation (premium version) in a class shared notebook (premium version). Each member of the class provides feedback to other students on their presentations. To take it even further, the class could collaborate to create a joint presentation which can be shared on a blog or website for viewing around the world. Ranking the capabilities of Evernote on Bloom's Taxonomy, it allows students to utilise skills at every level.

If you'd like to see one of my Evernote notes, click here. 

So next time my mum tells me that I have to check out a really cool app, I'll probably have a look at it a bit sooner.

Night at the Virtual Museum...

Week 5 seems to be the week in the term where I get most run-down and stressed. This is my fifth piece of assessment due within the last week, and it's no wonder that I'm behind on course work! I rocked up to class yesterday tired and a little worried, because I didn't even know what the topic was about. I seriously hate being behind, it makes me anxious! There was no need to be though, because the fabulous Mim paired us up to work on this week's task.

Brent (of William Wallace Inspired Theory fame) and I worked on PowerPoints this week. But not just any PowerPoint! Thanks to the brilliant Brent, who had worked ahead and found some genius templates, we were able to create a virtual museum! I was genuinely so happy about this. Only last week I had been brainstorming ideas on using video at the redefinition level, and I had actually thought 'I would love to do a virtual history museum'. I Googled a few things to try and work out how you could do it with video, but hadn't found what I was looking for, so I had to change my example. This week, to my surprise and delight, I was handed the answer on a silver platter! The digital gods must have heard my prayers.

Virtual museums are now my new favourite thing (has anyone noticed a recurring theme here? I just realised how many 'favourite things' I have!). I'm looking forward to using them in my prac this year, I think they are a marvellous way of challenging technical abilities, asking students to find solid information, making students think twice about the way that they organise the information, and allowing creativity in presentation. I know, because those were the key challenges that I was faced with yesterday! I was quite lucky because I had Brent to give me a rundown of how the PowerPoint template worked, and also because I have a fair amount of experience in PowerPoint, even though I'd not used a template like that before. Even still, we had technical difficulties towards the end; because I had moved some of the text and shape boxes out of the way to rewrite text, and obviously not put them back in the same place, the room links weren't working correctly when we went into presentation mode. I had to quickly try and readjust the alignment by trial and error to get them all working correctly before we presented. It was good to have another technical stretch this week, I am still loving the amount of practical information and ideas we are getting in this course. I think this is the most helpful course I've done in my time at uni so far! 

In terms of reflecting critically on yesterday's lesson, I've put a few notes down in dot point, mainly because my head is only working at about a 50% capacity right now and it seems the easiest way! 

* Working in pairs was good. I tend to prefer individual work because I'm quite independent, but yesterday I was so grateful to have guru Brent by my side. It made the whole task really easy, and we work well as a team because we have great rapport. 

* In having each of us complete the same task, but with different methods, and then each team presenting their work, I actually felt like I could comfortably jump on to either Prezi or Thinglink and know what I was doing. 

* Working collaboratively brought more ideas to the table than I would have had alone, and in presenting it to the others I was more aware of presenting a high standard of information because I wanted to give them the best understanding that I could. 

*An activity like this doesn't just expand your digital capabilities, but pushes your teamwork, empathy, understanding, cooperation, confidence (needed for presenting to a class), standards (achieving a high level because it's not just your own knowledge you have to worry about) and time management. 

I look forward to each of these lessons. I love the subject, I love the practical ideas we get, I love our class and I love the wonderful Mim who teaches it all to us! I know it's a lot of love, but I feel it's all justified. This class continues to make me grow as a person and as an educator, and that makes me so very happy.

Video killed the radio star...

When I first saw that the weekly topic was on images, podcasts and video, I figured it would probably be a little 'blah'. I mean, I understand that video has a lot of capabilities, but how much can you really do with images and podcasts? As I went through the readings, checked out some websites and went through the exercises, I got a familiar feeling as the same thought that occurs to me weekly now popped into my head; 'You're an idiot Mandy' (which in my imagination, in case you wanted to know, sounds a lot like Hagrid's voice, similar to 'You're a wizard, Harry' but not as life-changing).

I know this is technically irrelevant, but... I heart Hagrid.

I was really challenged by the idea of deconstructing images and looking more deeply at visual literacy. I had done a little bit of work on analysing images in a course I did some years ago where we looked at interpreting art, the power of advertising, semiotics and signs, etc. I had pretty much forgotten everything I had learned then about how important it is to learn to analyse and evaluate images. I also really loved the ideas around the student creations of podcasts; I think that the teacher who got the class to make their own museum audio guide was a genius. What a way to learn! Mr Bloom would be pretty stoked with that idea I think.

I decided to focus on video this week though, mainly because I had never created a video. I've filmed videos before, but have never gone through the editing process, or even really thought about it. It's always been in that 'too-hard basket'. At this point though my too-hard basket is starting to look a little empty, because all those digital things that I had put in there are coming out as I quickly realise they're never as hard as they seem.

Video is quite versatile. It can encompass both static images, video recordings and audio, and the visual components can be real life, digitally enhanced, or digitally created from scratch. Although this medium is not multi-author in the strictest sense, it certainly allows for multiple contributors, although more than one or two editors might feel like too many cooks in the kitchen. Videos are highly customisable, particularly with a good editing program, but only require a limited amount of experience if using a very simple program like the YouTube editor.

Video could be used in many aspects of a classroom. Presentations could be filmed for feedback and improvement, programs like Flipgrid enable users to answer questions in video format, students can create advertisements, news reports, or mini-movies, they can share their thoughts and experiences in vlogs, or keep a visual portfolio of work. In creating projects, students tend to put a higher value on their work, and working collaboratively with other students on larger projects is beneficial in the affective domain. Using video also builds on skills in the psychomotor domain as they build proficiency in a new area, or advance to a new level in their current skillset. Cognitively, creation is the pinnacle of Bloom's Taxonomy, and depending on the complexity of the project, video can easily be used at all levels.


There are a large number of ways that I could use video in my teaching. At the substitution level, students could film an oral presentation instead of speaking in front of the class, which may be a good substitute for incredibly nervous students in some circumstances, or for students who are away from a classroom. At an augmentation level, students create a video clip on a historical figure that uses static images, audio and captions or notes. At a modification level, the students film and edit a clip, using actors to play historical roles, adding in narration and static images of relevant artifacts and post this on YouTube for the world to see and interact with. At the redefinition level, students work collaboratively to create a multimedia film project that includes images, film clips, maps, interviews with experts they have video conferenced with during their research, a discussion feature on the video using Vialogue and an interactive quiz at the end using Blubbr. In making this a public project, it would encourage students to work all the way through the levels of Bloom's Taxonomy to ensure that they were presenting a well-researched, informative and creative project to the world.

I unfortunately didn't have time to work through all the amazing video tools out there this week (though I'm sure I could happily spend hours and hours doing it!), but here is a short video clip showing a few of my favourite places around the world. Bon voyage!

I think I've found my new favourite pastime...

I have probably spent more hours than I should this week playing around with my shiny new website. I had way too much fun getting the right pictures for the headers, playing with buttons, writing my About Me and even creating the mock 'English assignment' pages as evidence for this week's task. I was so excited to play around with the capabilities of the Weebly site I set up, and particularly happy at how easy it was.

Weebly allows you to set up a standard website, but also gives you great add-on features such as a blog and a store. It has the ability to add multiple editors with varying levels of permissions; Admin allows full viewing and editing, Author can view and edit selected pages, and Dashboard Only allows only the viewing and managing of stats, forms and comments (although the latter two are only available on the Pro upgrade of Weebly). This could be an advantage in the classroom if setting up a class website. Weebly also gives the option to add members and allow people to register with your site. This gives you flexibility to create protected areas (including optional password protection) for different groups of viewers; I could imagine this feature working well for a teacher if they had their own website with different access areas for each of their classes.

Weebly sidebar

Weebly itself is very simple to use, working on an almost fool-proof 'drag'n'drop' interface that allows even a beginner to create a very professional looking site, but still gives advanced users the opportunity to use their own coding if they want to. It has a huge number of customisable tools to insert in the page, including embedding YouTube clips, Google Maps, buttons, slide shows, polls, forums and more.

A website can be as limited or as versatile as you make it. In terms of learning outcomes, learners can work their way up through Bloom's Taxonomy, from remembering and understanding (reading
content on a website), to evaluating and creating (collaborating with users and experts from around the world to create a new project which is then shared with the world). Students can be asked to research, identify, assess, evaluate, compare, critique, design and construct websites, and these can be applied to any subject or class, and almost every year level. There are so many activities that could be created around websites due to the large number of customisable tools that can be created and embedded in a site. For example, if a class started a website on a topic like Ancient Rome, they could not only create a central source of relevant information, but also embed a short edutainment clip from Youtube to get readers hooked (or alternately, create one themselves!), pin points of interest in a Google Map, create a slideshow of Roman monuments, take a poll on the most influential Roman Emperor, start a forum for those who would like to discuss different aspects of Roman life, and even create artworks or costumes which could be sold on the store! As a website is live and public, it encourages students to check things like spelling and punctuation to present the best possible source of information to the world.

A screenshot from the website.

I created a mock English assignment website, showing a number of tasks based around the book series Anne of Green Gables, to show the website working in another context, and at a number of levels in the SAMR model.
In this English task at a substitution level, students could read information about the author L.M. Montgomery on a website rather than a handout given by the teacher. This would use the remembering and (possibly) understanding levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.
At the augmentation level, students could be given a list of focus questions, and they would research online for the answer, using correct research methodology, which would ask students to remember, understand, apply and evaluate.
At the modification level, students could make a website as a portfolio of work that incorporated activities such as a book review (with links to other book reviews on the net), biography of the author (which could be presented by a Voki animation), character profile, embed a movie trailer, and a discussion of themes. This would require students to remember, understand, apply, analyse, evaluate and create.
Finally at the redefinition level, students could take a virtual tour of the Green Gables house, and then contact and Skype interview experts at the L.M. Montgomery Literary Society, recording and embedding the video file and a public forum on the same page to allow further exploration and collaboration between students, experts and the rest of the world! Again these activities guide students through all levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.

This week's task was great in two ways; firstly, having to look at different levels of the SAMR model made me really think hard about whether I was simply substituting or augmenting, or if I was reaching the upper levels of modifying and redefining; and secondly, I loved 'providing evidence' in the form of my website, it's another outlet for creativity! I will definitely be using a website in my prac this year, even if it's just to provide a central source of information and activities for classes I'm teaching, but I feel that with some careful consideration and planning it can be so much more. I'm loving the learning that this course is bringing me, and which can be summarised so beautifully in the words of Anne of Green Gables...

Put on your Thinking Hat(s)…

The only theory I like in my life.

While I love learning, I’ve always avoided the ‘theory’ of learning. It’s not just educational and learning theory that this applies to, but also recipes, music theory, sewing patterns, manuals, and literary theory (the current bane of my existence). I tend to avoid things that requires me to sit down and battle strange vocabulary, concepts and logic. I think I do a lot of things instinctively and at a very fast pace, so anything that slows me down to a grinding halt frustrates me, and I avoid it. While I had heard of Bloom’s Taxonomy and de Bono’s Hat’s from other courses, I of course had probably skim read some course material at some point and moved on. When I realised that this was part of an assessment, I sighed, got into a comfortable position on the couch and began to read about Bloom’s Taxonomy again from the beginning. Now I understand what all the fuss is about.

When I reflected on my prac experience last year, I thought a lot about higher order thinking. For a first year prac I think I did a pretty good job, and I incorporated a respectable number of activities and discussions in each class that were designed to stimulate higher order thinking. But as a first prac, my main focus was on knowing enough information to be able to teach, and just getting through it all! After I finished my prac last year I made a promise to myself that I would think more deeply about the learning design of my lessons, and would look more into scaffolding and higher order thinking.

So this activity found me slightly conflicted, with my frustrated, fast-paced, theory-avoidance self, facing off against my determined-to-be-better, slightly intrigued, wiser, teacher self. Obviously teacher self won.

When I first looked at the deBono Thinking Hat exercise, I thought it was a little bit primary school-ish in design with its coloured hats (which I’m sure I do remember using in my younger years). When I started the exercise though, I really began to see its value. The mobile phone question is one that I would say most educators have a strong opinion on, and seems to inspire a very quickly judged yes or (mostly) no answer. I myself would have said no if asked on the spot, and I’m sure I could have easily written a quick justification if required. But the Thinking Hats demanded you to slow down and think from different perspectives, and in doing so, encouraged a much more complex and higher order of thinking.

I really liked that the different perspectives stimulate thinking at a number of levels from Bloom’s Taxonomy. The first things that came out, probably in most of the sections, pros and cons of technology that I remembered from other discussions. But to put this down required understanding, I had to write my interpretation of these things, and apply them specifically to the school arena. I had to take the questions under each hat (eg. What is wrong with this? Why will this not work?) and answer them in relation to the specific mobile phone question, applying a context to the concept. The hats require you to analyse the information available, and evaluate the benefits and disadvantages (judgements) of the mobile phone argument. The hats even asked me to create a new solution for the problem using the ideas and information I had gathered within the exercise. In short, instead of allowing me to give a short answer on a seemingly simple discussion, this exercise led me through a deeper thinking process not just on the subject of mobile phones in the classroom, but on the entire learning process. I just took a brief journey through Bloom’s taxonomy.

As for the design of the technological side of the activity, Wiki Spaces is a great space that supports learners at all stages of the scaffolding ladder. For the learners who are ready to dive in, they are able to go in early (as seen in the first groups) and provide a point of reference for those who come to the party a little later. The ability to see other contributions provides a feeling of security for learners who might be apprehensive about sharing ideas. The ability to edit what is written at a later date, or to contribute more than once, also supports learners at all levels of the scaffolding. Allowing collaboration from contributors from all over Australia (and indeed the world) really opens up the learners to a diverse range of perspectives and ideas that they might not get in a classroom that may only represent a small range of backgrounds. 

Extra features like discussion posts, the ability to embed widgets ranging from videos to calendars, to polls and maps, has the ability to transform this activity from a basic response to an interactive and higher order thinking activity. While we may have only done the Hats activity at the augmentation level (using added features like embedded photos and videos, collaborating with students from around Australia etc.), it would be possible to open the activity to start a poll about the issue, invite people to vote through the social media widget, record data and upload/edit in the spreadsheet widget, include a map that showed the location of voters to see whether answers were affected by economic areas, and an RSS feed to let you know when something new had been posted! In fact, the facility to take what could have been a simple classroom discussion about the deBono hats all the way through (if we wanted) to a worldwide survey and analysis of opinions, means that Wiki Spaces can operate at the redefinition level of the SAMR model if the learners choose to take it further.

I can definitely see myself using the Wiki Spaces Hats exercise in my classroom this year during prac. I would be able to start a discussion and group work in a history class for example, then use the forums to add increasingly complex discussions for homework/class work each lesson. The students could vote on opposing ideas and form new teams to research and work on different points of view of events like wars or revolutions, throwing out the poll to other students they know. Requiring students to participate, but giving them the opportunity to view the contributions of others will help to support students who struggle with certain areas, and will encourage other students to form more complex and original ideas to add to the discussion.

Overall, this whole task has made me critically evaluate and analyse myself. I like that a uni course doesn’t just require academic development, but also personal development. I love that I am being made to look at myself in the mirror and not just be digitally transformative, but personally transformative. I like wearing my Thinking Hat(s). 

I'm ready to level up.

When I first read the brief for Digital Pedagogies, I had to admit that I was a little worried that the course would simply be teaching us how to use things like Wordle and encourage us to be more tech savvy. While I'm a Millenial (a new word for my vocabulary thanks to the course materials) who knows her way around technology, I know that I sometimes often get comfortable in my current digital knowledge, and resist the call to 'level up' because it's just an effort. I figured that my use of PowerPoint presentations and collaborative research projects in classes during my last prac scored me pretty decently compared to many of the teachers and classes I saw in the school. I honestly didn't think that as a reasonably tech-savvy Gen Y I would have too much to learn. I know, I can be a little conceited sometimes.

I was thrilled (yes, I do get thrilled about uni because I'm a study nerd) to find the course materials drawing on the likes of Sir Ken Robinson (who is my ideal man; he's intellectual, inspirational, creative and British), and neuroscientists (I'm really interested in neuroplasticity even though I only understand about 1 in 3 of the scientific words they use). Even better, the materials offered great practical resources and websites for teaching on a silver platter, which makes the thought of my next prac so much more delightful.

One of the things that kept coming back to me as I watched these videos, was that that the onus is on the teacher to engage students. It's a daunting thought to be honest. I don't think that we, as educators, can sit back anymore and say "well, if they don't want to learn then what else can I do?" The old adage, 'you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink' seems to be one applied to students quite frequently from what I've seen, but have they thought about why the horse won't drink? Maybe the horse has issues getting it's head down to the water. Maybe the water is dirty and undrinkable. Maybe the horse doesn't like water but prefers cordial.

Although I'm only starting my second year in education, I love teaching, I really do. It's like I've found my hidden talent, and realised my full potential. Sometimes though I think about all the effort, all the energy required to become the incredible teacher that I envisage in my head, and I get absolutely exhausted just thinking about all the work I have ahead of me (I have a pretty powerful imagination, so this actually does happen). I then think, is this what I really want to do? But it absolutely is. I had seen Sir Ken's video many times before, but watching it again brought new inspiration to me, rekindled the passion I have for imparting knowledge.

I think the mindset shift I have to make though is from teaching to facilitating, something that Judy Willis and many others have started discussing. Gen Z will not learn from your lectures at the front of the classroom, nor will that style of teaching set them up for 21st century life. They need to learn skills such as researching, critical thinking and reasoning, collaboration, creativity and innovation, and this all has to be done through technology. As the Digital Futures text said, we need to dispense with the 'E'-learning, and just have naturally occurring learning in a digital world.

If I want to become the incredible teacher that I envisage in my head, then I need to change my mindset from that of teacher in a Gen X and Y world, to that of a facilitator in a Gen Z digital world. Thanks to a little kick in the butt from Sir Ken and the rest of the course materials, I've decided that I'm ready to level up.