breaking barriers peer learning activity

THE DIGITAL TOOLKITWhat it is NOT

BREAKING BARRIERS

A Peer Learning Activity7th September 2016

WHAT MAKES A TOOLKITOutline• The toolkit concept;• What does or does not

belong to a toolkit; • A case study: GBL4ESL -

a digital toolkit for game-based learning

• Breaking Barriers: where we are now

THE TOOLKIT CONCEPT• The traveller’s metaphor for a toolkit;

• What would you pack in your bag?

• What would you wish for as an aid to your teaching?

• Log in to: https://padlet.com/vanessa_camille/breaking_barriers0916 and write your thoughts

• What are your thoughts about the differences between a toolkit and a digital toolkit?

• Think of a toolkit in terms of :• Grouping of information in categories;

• Direction on how to use information;

• Information grouped according to target audiences, level of competences and expected outcomes;

• content that includes purpose, outcomes and performance expectations;

• interactive content;

• content that can be printed or captured.

WHAT THE TOOLKIT IS NOT

• A repository for handouts;

• A repository for links;

• A repository for lesson plans;

• A curriculum plan;

WHAT THE TOOLKIT IS• A collection of ideas, hints and strategies

to apply in a classroom grouped by category such as subject/age/competence level;

• A collection of best practice guides in implementing tools, applications and scenarios;

• A shared contribution of ideas, examples, and experiences by teachers for teachers;

A CASE EXAMPLEGame Based Learning to Alleviate Early

School Leaving GBL4ESL

THE PROJECT• This Erasmus+ KA2 project

targets the development of a toolkit based on international best practices and games-based learning research and offers the possibility of making a game-based learning framework for Maltese and international teachers. A database with scenarios driven by experts, teachers, the media-education-research communities and students can be used to teach a variety of subjects and age group.

GBL4ESL; SCOPE• Build an interactive online GBL platform and

database that serves as an educators' toolkit tailored to their respective levels of expertise in GBL and is supported by open-source games and other educational resources;

• Facilitate peer collaboration in the creation of GBL learning scenarios based on European and international best practices that focus on English and Mathematical competence building and the use of open-source, serious educational games.

GBL4ESL - WHERE WE ARE AT

• The Digital Toolkit (beta version) is now live at: http://toolkit-gbl.com/start

• The Guidebook (draft version) is available for teachers to give feedback on

• A training activity will be held in Malta between 12-16th September for the school partners

THE TOOLKIT

How does it work?

THE GUIDEBOOK

How is it used?

WHERE ARE WE NOW?

BREAKING BARRIERS• Web Platform for the Digital Toolkit;

• Why?

• How?

• What?

THE CONCEPT MAPWhy?

• Needed to categorise information under level competences, expected outcomes and targeted performance

• Concept map headings follow the LOF designed for Maltese schools (these follow EQF)

How?

• Using Bloom’s taxonomy, learning outcomes are transferred to a tangibly assessed competence;

• Competences can be measured in terms of level order thinking skills: recall, comprehension, analysis, synthesis, evaluation & creation

What?

• Using the expected performance outcomes, we can build activities that can relate to the outcomes, and use these activities to map scenarios about how such activities can be used in the adult classroom.

SO WHAT IS NEXT• A toolkit is about sharing;

• It is not complete without input from people who use it;

• In the upcoming workshop you will be asked to design a template for a form, that can be used in the toolkit, so that teachers can fill in information.

• The questions you have to ask are: “If I were to use the toolkit what information would I like to see? What level of categorisation would I want? What information would help me in class?”

–Mark Van Doren

“The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery.”

THANK YOU