First Field Trip to the Martin-Luther-Schule (MLS)
On November 16th the class had its first field trip to the Martin-Luther-Schule. In order to gain as much information out of the "guided tour" we were asked to prepare 5 questions to ask the designated teacher. Here are my five questions:
Q1. How often are the computer rooms used?
Q2. How do you provide internet security for the pupils working on the computers?
Q3. To which extend are the computers used in the lessons? (Just Power-Point-Presentations, internet research, interactive tasks, training programs, ...)
Q4. Compared to "classic" use of media: Is the productivity of pupils working with computers satisfying?
Q5. Do pupils enjoy working with new media?
Discovering New Media at the MLS
Before we started our tour, the designated teacher gave us some general facts about the MLS:
About 1200 pupils and 90 to 100 teachers are currently enrolled at the MLS. The medial infrastructure consists of 2 PC-rooms (plus five computers located at the library) and several portable media like the PW-suitcase (a portable notebook-beamer-audio system). Some of the classrooms have recently been equipped with permanently installed flatscreen-TVs. These TVs are hidden inside a massive wooden box in the particular classrooms. The teachers can show movies and films on dvd or even show online material using a connected notebook. Additionally it is possible to play audio files from a portable audio device.
In fifth grade the pupils get a so-called "digital schoolbag". This USB stick is optimally used by the pupils until he or she ends school, but unfortunately no "usable" software like MS Word, MS Excel or MS PowerPoint is installed.
In order to discover how the MLS is involved with and uses New Media the class met at the teachers lounge where the online-room-and media-bocking-system was presented to us. With this system every teacher has the possibility to book either a PC-room or one of the portable media devices stored in the teachers lounge. The teachers are even able to book these rooms or devices from home, if they come up with a spontaneous beneficial use of New Media at their lesson preparations at home.
Finally we were led to one of the computer rooms located in the third floor of the school building. The school offers about 20 to 25 computers for their pupils.
Unfortunately the computer rooms are not used by every teacher regularly. Only 30 to 40 percent of the teachers use these computers at all. A student learns with these computer 2 to tree times a month in average. According to our tour guide most of the teachers seem to be afraid to or do not know how to involve media learning into their lessens. Mathematics- and computer sciences classes are obviously the main users of the computers, but sometimes the computers are used by language teachers as well. In the language lessons teachers organize and assist the pupils on solving so-called WebQuests, but most of the time the computers are used for internet research or translation. (Q1 + Q3)
In terms of internet security the PC-room computers are equipped with a very clever software similar to the software in the PC-pools in the university: It is called Master-Eye. With this tool the teacher is able to freeze or blacken the pupil's monitor, to use one of the pupil's monitor as the source for the beamer signal or is even able to manipulate the pupil's actions by mouse or keyboard. According to our guide the last two techniques are predominantly used to keep the pupils from private surfing in class. (Q2)
As stated by the tour guide, pupils love to work with the computers. Given the right task for an appropriate amount of time the pupils can be very productive and effective. (Q4 + Q5)
Now you have an overview about the use of New Media at the MLS in Marburg, but even with these information at hand and the, in my opinion, only average coverage of New Media, it is hardly understandable why pupils are learning with New Media only two or three times a month. In times of globalization and the recent technological development (private as well as educational) it is strongly recommended to expand the use of New Media in school lessons. Sure, some teachers are afraid of the use of New Media or they have doubts about the applicability of New Media in their lessons, but according to our tour guide the media training seminars for teachers are poorly attended as well.
Maybe a shift of teacher generation is needed in order to direct the school's evaluation of New Media towards a appropriate level of importance...
Q1. How often are the computer rooms used?
Q2. How do you provide internet security for the pupils working on the computers?
Q3. To which extend are the computers used in the lessons? (Just Power-Point-Presentations, internet research, interactive tasks, training programs, ...)
Q4. Compared to "classic" use of media: Is the productivity of pupils working with computers satisfying?
Q5. Do pupils enjoy working with new media?
Discovering New Media at the MLS
Before we started our tour, the designated teacher gave us some general facts about the MLS:
About 1200 pupils and 90 to 100 teachers are currently enrolled at the MLS. The medial infrastructure consists of 2 PC-rooms (plus five computers located at the library) and several portable media like the PW-suitcase (a portable notebook-beamer-audio system). Some of the classrooms have recently been equipped with permanently installed flatscreen-TVs. These TVs are hidden inside a massive wooden box in the particular classrooms. The teachers can show movies and films on dvd or even show online material using a connected notebook. Additionally it is possible to play audio files from a portable audio device.
In fifth grade the pupils get a so-called "digital schoolbag". This USB stick is optimally used by the pupils until he or she ends school, but unfortunately no "usable" software like MS Word, MS Excel or MS PowerPoint is installed.
In order to discover how the MLS is involved with and uses New Media the class met at the teachers lounge where the online-room-and media-bocking-system was presented to us. With this system every teacher has the possibility to book either a PC-room or one of the portable media devices stored in the teachers lounge. The teachers are even able to book these rooms or devices from home, if they come up with a spontaneous beneficial use of New Media at their lesson preparations at home.
Finally we were led to one of the computer rooms located in the third floor of the school building. The school offers about 20 to 25 computers for their pupils.
Unfortunately the computer rooms are not used by every teacher regularly. Only 30 to 40 percent of the teachers use these computers at all. A student learns with these computer 2 to tree times a month in average. According to our tour guide most of the teachers seem to be afraid to or do not know how to involve media learning into their lessens. Mathematics- and computer sciences classes are obviously the main users of the computers, but sometimes the computers are used by language teachers as well. In the language lessons teachers organize and assist the pupils on solving so-called WebQuests, but most of the time the computers are used for internet research or translation. (Q1 + Q3)
In terms of internet security the PC-room computers are equipped with a very clever software similar to the software in the PC-pools in the university: It is called Master-Eye. With this tool the teacher is able to freeze or blacken the pupil's monitor, to use one of the pupil's monitor as the source for the beamer signal or is even able to manipulate the pupil's actions by mouse or keyboard. According to our guide the last two techniques are predominantly used to keep the pupils from private surfing in class. (Q2)
As stated by the tour guide, pupils love to work with the computers. Given the right task for an appropriate amount of time the pupils can be very productive and effective. (Q4 + Q5)
Now you have an overview about the use of New Media at the MLS in Marburg, but even with these information at hand and the, in my opinion, only average coverage of New Media, it is hardly understandable why pupils are learning with New Media only two or three times a month. In times of globalization and the recent technological development (private as well as educational) it is strongly recommended to expand the use of New Media in school lessons. Sure, some teachers are afraid of the use of New Media or they have doubts about the applicability of New Media in their lessons, but according to our tour guide the media training seminars for teachers are poorly attended as well.
Maybe a shift of teacher generation is needed in order to direct the school's evaluation of New Media towards a appropriate level of importance...
