Rationale+Part+1+How+will+each+resource+enhance+student+learning


 * __Cass's editied rationale part 1__**

**__ Interactive whiteboard (IWB) __** The IWB will be used to assist with tuning the students into the topic. Tuning in, according to Murdoch and Hornsby (2007) relates to prior knowledge and student interest in the topic. It will be used to display images relating to the topic in order to gain and hold the student's attention and assist with focusing on the inquiry question. The shared activities that involve the use of the IWB create collaborative discussions allowing students to co-construct ideas that lead to individually internalising concepts which become part of the student's cognitive development (Woofolk & Margetts, 2007). **__ Class wiki - created on wikis-spaces __** The class wiki will be used as a forum for discussion and collaborative learning. It will give students the opportunity to communicate their ideas and impart an immediate response, offering alternate suggestions or contributing more information and thus hold the students’ interest in the inquiry topic. The wiki will enable the sharing of a range of different opinions and ideas, as guided by the teacher, at any point in time which can be used for future reference during discussions and the development of presentations. It will give those students who are less confident in contributing to group discussions a voice and ensure that all students are contributing to the inquiry.

The laptops promote internet navigation skills and in doing so provide the opportunity for the application of critical reflection and thinking skills. They also enable students to perform and exercise keyboard skills and make an individual contribution to the inquiry therefore promoting student ownership and autonomy. The learning resources [|Why Recycle] and [|Ollie's World]  will be used in the investigation and exploration of the topic by students. They will allow students to gather information and apply critical thinking skills to ensure that information is relevant to the inquiry topic and discern that which is useful. The Microsoft products, Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Publisher enable students to practice their typing and navigational skills, provide opportunities to express their understanding of the inquiry topic through graphing the results of the survey and publishing information in various forms. These products enhance skills such as reading, typing, interpreting and presenting information The school intranet provides the students with a forum for showcasing their work. It will be used as a form of community learning that enables students to share information with peers, parents and teachers.
 * __ Laptop computers     __**
 * __ [|Why Recycle] and [|Ollie's World]     __**
 * __ Microsoft Word, Excel, Publisher and Powerpoint     __**
 * __  School Intranet     __**

The use of the IWB in lesson one assists with students being able to tune in to the topic. Tuning in, according to Murdoch and Hornsby (2007) relates to prior knowledge and student interest in the topic. The application of visual images relating to reduce, reuse and recycle such as images of waterways, can be presented to the whole class where they can view the images immediately. Student's attention is held and assists with focussing on the inquiry question. This allows the teacher to adress questions to the class and a collaborative discussion can result. As implied by Woolfolk and Margetts, ideas co-constructed during shared activities leads to the individual student to internalise the concepts which becomes part of the student's cognitive development (Woofolk & Margetts, 2007, p.50). The use of the class wiki enhances student learning as it provides a forum for discussion and collaborative learning. Learning is considered more successful when students' are actively involved in gathering and sorting out information, working collaboratively allowing for skills and problem solving strategies to be applied to the inquiry question, and prior knowledge is built upon. When these aspects are present the students' have the opportunity to express their opinions and perceptions in a number of formats catering for the varying learning styles. The students' are empowered because they can reflect on their learning, there is an immediate response and the learning is purposeful. Students are also able to perform and exercise keyboard skills. Students' share their ideas and can impart an immediate response, offering alternate suggestions or contributing more information. Opportunities to share in the forum of the class wiki keeps students' interested. The class wiki is also a means to display the students' work which follows on to promoting self esteem in individual student's and as a group. The class wiki provides students’ to collaborate and communicate their ideas about reducing packaging around the school. It enables a range of different opinions and ideas to be shared at any point in time and used for future reference either for discussion or development of presentations. The teacher can guide the student’s ideas and opinions as well as ensuring that all students are making a contribution to the inquiry. It gives those students who may not be as confident as others in contributing to group discussions, a voice.
 * __Describe how you will use each of these resources to enhance student learning__**
 * __ Interactive whiteboard (IWB) __**
 * __ Class wiki - created on wikis-spaces __**

Laptops allow for students to individually contribute to the inquiry enableing student ownership and autonomy. The use of the laptops provides instantaneous production of information as there are enough laptops for each student in the class. Productivity is increased because students' have instant access to information and can produce their contribution on the class wiki, for example. The learning resources of 'Ollies world' and 'Why recycle allow students' to explore and tune in to the topic. Gathering information and applying critical thinking skills to ensure that information is relevant to the inquiry topic and discern information that is useful. The Microsoft products, Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Publisher enable students' to practice their typing and navigational skills, provides opportunities to express their understanding of the inquiry topic such as graphing the results of the class/school survey or publishing information in the form of a poster. These products enhance skills such as reading, typing, interpreting and presenting information Presenting information on the school intranet enhances learning because students' can showcase their work to the school community. The intranet is a format for community learning where students' can share their information with peers, parents and teachers. According to Roblyer and Doering (2006), the learner is continually applying and drawing on critical thinking and problem solving strategies. The inquiry question places students' in a problem solving environment, according to Roblyer and Doering (2006) which creates increased levels of motivation for students', peaking their interest in the inquiry topic allowing them to collaboratively work in small groups to solve problems such as organisation, decisions such as slecting survey questions, and choosing the type of poster that adequately expresses how to reduce the amount of packaging at school.
 * __ Laptop computers __**
 * __ [|Why Recycle] and [|Ollie's World] __**
 * __ Microsoft Word, Excel, Publisher and Powerpoint __**
 * __ School Intranet __**
 * __ Not sure where this fits __**