Rationale of Multimedia - Essay Example

RATIONALE OF MULTIMEDIA Multimedia presentation refers to the presentation of material using both words and pictures (Mayer R, 2001). According to Lach V (2006:72) ‘Multimedia on computer is a way of communicating, transforming information that offer different features such as: sound, images, video text...Also the combination of text, images, sound, animation and video’. Therefore it is established that having multimedia presentations incorporated in the National Curriculum would be beneficial to the students as it provides the potential of introducing and demonstrating new concepts, as well as ideas that can be thoroughly and effectively understood and most importantly, learned. This essay will be focusing on the effectiveness of power point presentation and the use of ICT in supporting children’s learning. The essay will also look at the age range of the children for which the presentation was designed for, the related learning objective and how ICT facilitated children’s towards achieving this objective and also in relation to influential learning theorists. . According to the National Curriculum( 1999:21) ‘ The key skills of information technology includes the ability to use a range of information sources and ICT tools to find, analyse, interpret, evaluate and present information for a range of purposes……Opportunities for developing this key skill are provided explicitly through…..use of ICT across the curriculum’. This presentation was created on power point software and was used on an IWB to make it accessible to all the children. Duffy J (2006) states that ‘Multimedia presentation is more appealing when combined with an interactive whiteboard’. It was designed for children in a nursery class whereby 75% of the children speak English as an additional language. The teacher is to provide activities which are intended to meet the individual needs of the children. Specifically, it was used as an introduction for a science lesson on ‘healthy diet’. The learning objective is ‘To know about healthy diets and food values’. This links to the statutory framework for the Early foundation stage (2008) in the area of science of the National Curriculum covering “knowledge and understanding of the world”, in particular, the Early learning goals for exploration and investigation”, forms the foundation for later learning in science. The National Curriculum (1999: 85) states that ‘Pupils should be taught about the need for food for activity and growth, and about the importance of an adequate and varied diet for health’. The children were introduced to the different nutrients that constitute a balanced diet in the previous session. So the multimedia presentation was used in this session to hold children’s attention and help them focus directly on the activity/task. They will progress further by planning their individual menu in this session. . . Lach V (2000) states that ‘Multimedia authoring is useful because it can be motivating for students, especially those who find learning and communicating difficult using more traditional methods’ ICT was applied to help meet the learning objective because multimedia presentation possessed a lot of features that held the children’s focus on the task/activity, thus facilitating a range of learning outcomes. For example, the presentation had lots of colourful images/visualisation such as pictures that supported the text (appendix 2a). These picture-clues played an important role in conveying the intended message or ideas/concepts to the children. All the children were involved in the class discussion as they were made to be able to identify the different foods types just by looking at the pictures. Again, some of the EAL (English as an additional language) children who found it really difficult to express themselves in English were able to describe their ideas through the image presented. This very much impacts on Mayer’s Spatial Contiguity principle which states that ‘Corresponding text and images should be placed next to each other to improve learning…….….In the process of trying to build connections between words and pictures, learners are able to create a deeper understanding than from words or pictures alone ( Mayer 2001) Again, the children were presented with sounds in between the slides and animations, that is, the movement of the images which added to and provided a stimulating atmosphere for learning – more entertaining and therefore a good way to hold the children’s attention. And so, as expected, the children’s attention was held throughout the session and enabled them focus on the activity. Lach (2000) states that, ‘The combination of communication modes (aural and visual) offers greater understanding – much more efficient and effective’. However, the sound would have better facilitated the children’s understanding into achieving the objective if it gave extra details if it was linked to the written words. In addition, the children were also presented with a game on healthy diet showing a variety of food such as hamburger, milk, chicken, bread, cheese, bananas and apples. The game gave them immediate feedback on their choice of food (healthy or unhealthy), helped them retain the information as it was deemed to be light and fun, and also took them to higher levels on successful completion of the lower levels. This stimulated and developed the children’s motivation and curiosity, thus making them more receptive into learning about the topic at hand. It also enhanced the children’s learning and memorisation through visualisation and manipulation. Cuthel J (www.virtuallearning.org.uk, accessed 2009) states that, ‘Through games, competitive elements and constant feedback, learning becomes fun’. This was highly commended by the peer assessment of the presentation (appendix 2b). They commented on how this could provide opportunity to effectively assess the children’s understanding of healthy and unhealthy foods. Gardner (1983) identified different types of learning. He used ‘multiple intelligences’ to describe the ways in which individuals learn. According to Gardner ‘Learning can be seen as playing with different capabilities: the verbal/linguistic; logical/mathematical; visual/spatial; musical/rhythmic; bodily/kinaesthetic; social/interpersonal and personal. (http://www.virtuallearning.org.uk/changemanage/pedagogy_practice/Learning%20theory%20and%20e%2339137.pdf accessed 2009) It can be argued that this presentation enabled children to meet different kinds of learning styles because it combined text, images, sound and animation. For example, the visual learners benefited from a variety of pictures, the music and songs from the sound between the slides, the bodily/kinaesthetic from the manipulation of mouse as they played game; the verbal/linguistic through text and discussion, and the social/interpersonal through discussion. It is a good way to apply ‘multiple intelligences’ into the learning strategies. Cothel J (www.virtuallearning.org.uk, accessed 2009) states that The combination of play elements – the ludic ……the use of language as part of the process, together with visual stimulus, means that the computer provides a focus for different types of learning Again, Vygotsky’s discussion about the role of the teacher as a provider of scaffolding and ensuring that teaching and learning takes place within the ‘Zone of proximal development’. It can also be argued that appropriate scaffolding will be provided in this session to fit the pupils ‘zone of proximal development’ through the use of higher order questioning, for example, explain why the body need food, what should we include in our diet and why? This will develop the children’s higher order thinking and social bias of learning as they discuss and share their ideas in talk partners and as a class. This would allow the children to develop their reasoning and logical thinking. Again, this allows opportunity for the more able pupils to guide the lower attaining pupils who may find some difficulties to understand the task on their own, thus facilitating them to achieve the learning objective. ‘Collaborative work between two or three children in front of a computer working on any type of problem-solving activity can create an environment in which children within the group can provide scaffolding that they need in order to progress’. Ager R (2003: 16) . Furthermore, through the active and participative learning during this session, the children will be constructing knowledge which essentially impacts on Piaget’s theory of cognitive constructivism. It worth noting that the benefits of ICT within this presentation were to engage and hold the children’s attention through the provision of a variety of learning styles which made them achieve the objective. The peer assessment of the presentation (appendix 2C) highlighted that the game was a positive attribute to the presentation as it was very interactive and consolidated all the learning done in the presentation. They also highlighted that the use of visual images including the food pyramid was a good way of involving the children and meeting the needs of the EAL children. However, images showing some consequences of unhealthy diets should have also been included in this presentation to extend children’s understanding about unhealthy diet. Piaget’s developmental theory focuses on the key ideas of adaptation – adapting to the world through assimilation and accommodation. This theory is very much implemented by the use of multimedia presentation and can therefore stimulate learning effectively and efficiently. The peer assessment also commented on the fact that the idea of getting the children to devise their own menu was really good because it allowed children to participate on an individual level. It allowed them to practice Piaget’s key idea on classification, which allows them to group objects together on the basis of common features (healthy and unhealthy foods). However, from self assessment, even though the animation held the children’ attention, it would have better supported children’s understanding if it showed some processes, for example, how human body increases in size after eating an unhealthy diet. This would allow them to see the result, specifically the consequence, of a particular activity – especially one involved in a process. According to Duffy (2006:96) ‘Making an animation is a way of showing off what is happening rather than describing it, for example, plant growing or insects flapping wings. Animations make concepts easier to understand, for example, movement of electrons in an atom’. As has been noted, the presentation was designed for a nursery-level class with its content simple and basic, but, could also be adapted to those in the upper/higher years. For example, for an upper year group I will use more images in the presentation and more written text, providing them with more details appropriate for their educational level, whilst keeping their attention held with pictures and illustrations that may facilitate more effective learning. I will also add some pictures/images showing the effect of eating unhealthy diets such as obesity, which was highlighted by the peer assessment of this presentation. This is an effective medium which will give children an insight of the effect of eating unhealthy diets, especially that these foods – fast food and junk food in particular – are very much a part of modern society’s food staples. In addition, I will also incorporate a recorded sound linked to the written words to support the non readers and auditory learners. With such, it would be highly beneficial to every student and not just the ‘visual’ students, those who can learn much better with pictures, images, and illustrations regarding the topic. Some students who learn better through listening would benefit from this approach as well. This would be in context to the application of the concept of ‘multiple intelligences’ into the learning method. According to Duffy (2006:95) ‘Hearing an explanation can be easier to understand and memorable than the same explanation being read. In conclusion, ICT can be definitely used to enhance children’s learning. Also note that if it is used effectively it will be able to incorporate a variety of learning styles. Some students learn by simply reading about the topic, some learn by watching the process, some learn if they are entertained (not bored) and feel like having fun, whilst some learn best if they feel as though it is a game. However, this strategy should be absolutely well planned with the aim and objective in mind, especially with regard to the learning objective in order to improve and achieve the quality of teaching and especially, learning. The science presentation above facilitated the children’s learning effectively because it held their attention. They were shown a number of pictures which was then followed by a simple game which effectively stimulated them and made them very much focused, which in turn resulted in effective and efficient learning. Bibliography Lachs V (2000) Making Multimedia in the classroom, A teacher’s guide. RoutledgeFalmer: London The National Curriculum (1999) Handbook for primary teachers in England, London: Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. Mayer E ( 2001), Multimedia Learning University Press, Cambridge John P. Cuthell : Learning theory and e-pedagogy http://www.virtuallearning.org.uk/changemanage/pedagogy_practice/Learning%20theory%20and%20e%2339137.pdf Conventional Pedagogy Ager R (2003) Information and Communication Technology in Primary Schools, 2ND ED. Fulton: London Duffy J (2006) Extending Knowledge in Practice Learning Matters: Exeter Read More