Review of 'Delicious'

You know that 'Favourites' tab or that Star at the side of your page that you click when you want to save a webpage? Well Delicious is basically just that. It is somewhere you can store all your favourite links.

Except, unlike your favourites page on your computer, you set up your own account and you can sign in and access delicious from any computer or device. This means that your favourite useful link isn't left on your computer at home where you desperately need to access it at work but cannot remember the name of the webpage - Delicious is a useful means around that dilemma.

My first thoughts:
I could see the advantages, but as a person who never 'favourited' many pages I didn't think I would have much use for it.

However, since I have started teaching and have endeavored to gather a range of resources I have found a huge number of useful websites that I have stored on Delicious. Overall, it has been very, very handy.

How technology has changed the way we learn...

There is no denying it - technology has changed the way in which we learn. There is a plethora of ways in which technology has altered learning but for the purpose of my short post, I have only selected one way in which technology has changed the way in which we learn:

The Interactive White Board
From the chalk board to the white board to the Interactive White Board.

I'm not very old but I was taught via a chalkboard in Primary school. Granted my teacher was the 'old school' type, but my point is that the chalkboard is not too distant a memory for me. The development of the IWB, I think, is massive in the way teachers now deliver lessons and the way in which students learn. Higgins agrees that, "the use of the IWB may be the most significant change in the classroom learning environment in the past decade."

Gone are the days where the teacher would stand in front of the class and write out all the necessary points in neat, clear handwriting (unless you're in my position and your placement doesn't have an IWB)

As Hillier (p 150) points out the development of IWBs is another potential method to engage learners. She explains benefits of motivating students by being able to involve students with an activity using the IWB (such as physically moving text), other interactive quizzes, having students label an image (see picture above). She also states that it helps to provide spontaneity. Further, you can use sounds, images and videos to reinforce your point. Brazburg also states that it encourages critical thinking, for example, the class can brainstorm together.

There is fantastic potential in this technology - provided that it is used to its potential. If it is just used merely as a projection screen then it needn't be 'interactive' and then you risk falling into the trap of death by another boring presentation. However, in the instances when it is used fully then it can produce valuable learning and teaching.

For more information on the IWB, I have found a useful link that explains the benefits and limitations here. 

Barriers to effective use of technology

Ertmer, 1999, organised the barriers into two categories: external (hardware, access, the technology itself) and internal (teacher's confidence and own beliefs of technology). With the advancement in technology it is fair to say that the majority of external problems are reduced. That's not to say that everything works all of the time, of course things go wrong, but it is true that technology is better than ever and more accessible than ever. What has remained, however, are the internal barriers to learning.

*Taken from Hew and Brush, 2007.


One key internal barrier identified by Hammonds, Matherosn, Wilson and Wright, p.36m is:

 "Often teachers perceive they cannot act as authority figures in their classrooms if they bring in tech tools. Teachers must be at least minimally comfortable with technology use and see the value that these tools can bring to their daily lives before they can consider technology integration as anything more than one more thing required of them."

This is important, as the key barrier to the use of technology identified is the teacher and not the limitations of the technology itself.

In her research, Ertmer identified one teacher who stated that many teachers are intimidated by technology. It is the lack of skill and knowledge of ICT that appears to be holding back many educators from developing their use of ICT in the classroom.

However, the strongest barrier is the teacher's own beliefs and attitudes towards technology - if they feel that it is not useful then quite simply, it will not be useful. Some teachers even reported the use of computers as means just to keep the children busy.

In order to overcome this barrier, teachers will have to be shown that the use of technology will provide meaningful outcomes to the learning. For many teachers, it is likely that the use of ICT will be limited until they can see that it has an impact on the learning that takes place as opposed to merely using ICT because it is another box to tick to state that you have done it.

Despite these barriers, it is important to remember that 'these tech tools are just that - tools' (Hammonds, Matherosn, Wilson and Wright, p.40). This is a reassuring reminder, especially for myself, when I am beginning to fill out a lesson plan and come to the part with ICT and worry that I am missing it out. Of course I use ICT in the classroom - the register is online and my PowerPoint is on, but I rarely have lessons where the students use it. I am probably one of the teachers whose own beliefs, experiences and attitudes impact on the use of ICT with students and until I evidence that the use of ICT benefits my students learning Law, then I will likely continue to limit the amount I use it.

A teaching idea: 'Market Place'

My mentor shared with me what I thought was a brilliant teaching method called 'Market Place'.

My lesson: 

I had to teach the advantages and disadvantages of trial by jury. I had gathered a range of resources that I wanted to share with the students (e.g. cases, statistics, research, newspaper articles etc) that they would have to understand and incorporate into their answers when evaluating the jury.

My mentor suggested that I use 'market place' to deliver the lesson. Basically, I set the classroom up like a market, on each table (or 'stall') would be a different resource. My students (the customers at the market) would go and visit each table and write down the significance of it i.e. whether it was an advantage or disadvantage and why. They had 30 minutes to do this and then 30 minutes we would feedback and I would draw a table on the board putting each resource in a certain category with a title.

How it worked in the classroom:
Despite me telling the students that they could get up and walk around, no one did, they all sat in their seats and read the resource in front of them which was disappointing.
However, I had students, mostly boys, who usually answer very few of my questions but are very interested in their own conversations, discussing in depth the resources. I was so pleased that I had actually managed to engage these learners that I let the activity run on. We had to finish the topic the next day but I felt it was worth it just to have them discussing cases and the law.

This is also a very easy lesson to deliver because as the teacher I did absolutely nothing - they did all the work.

The Drawback:
When I asked my students whether they had enjoyed the lesson and would like to do more, similar activities in the future the answer was very underwhelming.

Although I thought the lesson was fantastic and my mentor agreed (she was also very happy to see engaged learners) the students reported that they prefer just me talking. I was gobsmacked. And there was me thinking that I was boring the life out of them.

However, this has not put me off from putting on more lessons like this. Although the students were not so keen, the fact that I had them all discussing what I wanted them to talk about means that I achieved what I wanted to achieve in that lesson - whether they realise it or not.

How I have been using ICT...

I honestly do not know how teachers managed to teach without ICT.

I don't mean to sound like an ignorant child who can't possibly comprehend a world without technology but seriously, I use it for absolutely everything.

One thing I have quickly learnt from teaching is that teachers steal everything off the internet. I mean absolutely loads, it's just copied, pasted, print, photocopy and there's a lovely little resource for the students.

Aside from the flagrant theft of other's work and falsely leading my students to believe that I have prepared detailed handouts for them, the internet is an ever so handy tool. I know I'm stating the obvious but the amount of resources that I use from the internet - I do not know how I would have coped teaching without it.

Also, my students like having 'booklets' - a resource that I make (I do actually make and not steal, although if a good enough one existed on the internet I would most definitely have it) that contains everything they need on the topic. So it has all the relevant cases, legislation, essay questions, discussion points etc. I would never be able to produce these if I didn't have a computer.

All the class registers are through an online system. ICT is everywhere. And I honestly would not be able to be teaching as effectively without it.

However, I am starting to withdraw from PowerPoint as a crutch. Initially, I needed it - it was my safety device, my school doesn't have touch screen whiteboards, so I had to sit behind the desk to go to the next slide - this made me feel secure. I have recently removed myself from behind my desk and have started to find my feet walking around the classroom and have delivered lessons with nothing other than me and my voice (and a few handouts stolen from the internet, naturally).

Inspirational Video

This is a video of Tim Minchin, a comedian who gave a speech at a graduation of an Australian University. I remember watching this video months ago and I always go back to re-watch it and remind myself of it. I think it's full of wonderful advice for everyone.

I appreciate it is a long video (well it's only 10 minutes but our attention spans have become so limited that 10 minutes is considered 'long'!) but if you can watch it all the way through then do so.

He gives all sorts of advice but he does specifically mention teaching at 7.58 and I just love what he says -  please be a teacher.

"Even if you are not a teacher, be a teacher. Share your ideas, don't take for granted your education, rejoice in what you learn and spray it."

Mobile Technology in the Classroom

This has always been my experience with mobile technology in the classroom. It has always been a 'no phone allowed' policy - after all, if you're looking at your phone you're not paying attention to the teacher.

I haven't ever used mobile technology in the classroom but have, however, used it outside of the classroom to enhance the learning experience.

I had a previous lecturer who had Twitter and encouraged us to follow him. Although he was using Twitter in a personal capacity, he would retweet and post links to relevant legal news and developments. If he found an interesting article that related to a lecture he would state that it was for his class to read. He even began to use Audio files to record mini-lectures so that we would be informed on the class before arriving.

He was young for a lecturer (under 30!) and maybe this had something to do with it, but he was the only one ever to use mobile technology in this way and I really benefited from it.

Using mobile technology in the classroom is clearly a developing area, the investments in iPads made by schools are unbelievable. However, as a person who has only been teaching for a couple of weeks, I already feel the frustration and annoyance at seeing a student looking at their phone and start texting while I am speaking. I find it infuriating, rude and disrespectful.  So, now, being the other side of the classroom I can completely understand the need for a no-phone policy and I am struggling to think of a situation where I would ever permit a class of 16 year olds to get out their phones to improve their learning - because as far as I can see at the moment, it's just another means to distract them from their boring class.

First week of placement...

Well first of all I'm really happy to say that my placement is going very well. I have lots to think about, have already delivered a lesson and have a load more to plan - all makes for a very busy and content Sophie!

I think I will be taking over all first year AS Law classes and will be doing some of the A Level classes... one minor issue is that the Law they're studying is all new to me. I've spent the entire evening reading my old textbook on defamation. It was all going so well until I decided to Google it to see what other resources I could come up with... and then I found out that there is a new Defamation Act that came out in 2013 and all the Law I had been teaching myself was effectively out of date. Worst thing is, I don't think the Law teacher on my placement knows about the new Law either. So this should make teaching extra fun this term!

I'm also doing tutorials for 2 students who have only swapped over to the Law course this week and so are 2 months behind on work. I'm really looking forward to these as they're so relaxed and informal - and I can get to know them a bit better too. I suppose we're both helping each other feel more comfortable in the class as we're both new.


I will also be teaching some of the AS and A Level Politics classes - again feel a bit outside my comfort zone but I keep forgetting how simplified their course is compared to a degree.


I'm teaching Welsh Bac to Year 10s and Year 11s. To say that they are a tough class is an understatement. All I'm going to say is pray for me. I need it. I was NOT mentally prepared for teaching under 16s. Think I am going to have to do some serious reading on behaviour management and will most definitely be sitting on my hands to prevent throttling. Not that I condone violence against children, you'd just really have to see this class to understand...

I'm currently working on perfecting this face:

Encouraging Students to Read

A few thoughts from observing one of my mentor's classes this week. 

It was a class/'course' that she had been asked to create for the 'More Able and Talented' (MAT) students. As it isn't an official class, she has been given the opportunity to do whatever she wants/thinks is important.

The main focus of the class is to start thinking about University - the grades to get in, personal statements, extra curricular activities, types of degrees etc. But she also wants to reinforce the idea that as a student, you have to be more than just your grades, you must start to try to develop your person, you must develop other skills and opinions and views - it's pretty much getting them to think about being a more well rounded individual. In the lesson I observed today she was discussing Literature and the importance of reading.

They were given an activity in which the had a list of book titles and they had to pick out the author and match them up. Honestly, I felt quite sad at how little they knew. Some books they had never heard of, let alone had a desire to read them.

The teacher then talked about a new trend/nomination on Facebook, in which you are selected to list your top 10 books that have stayed with you/influenced you.

The students were asked to write down their 10 and they couldn't. When they were asked to do it in a group, they were better - except one group included in their list of Top Ten Most Influential Books, "The Hungry Caterpillar" and "50 Shades of Grey". On the same list. Yep. That is what I am faced with. Even more shockingly, some of these were doing A Level English. Literature students who don't read - seems almost an oxymoron.

Don't get me wrong - there were some students in the class who read an awful lot and gave some excellent answers. But the overwhelming majority did not consider reading enjoyable and I felt the same stigma that I felt when I was at school - it still is not cool to be a book worm. And I think that that is a very sad thing and I don't know how teachers can get around it. I had the MAT class sat before me - students who were performing top of their year and yet they find reading books a chore or a geeky thing to do. Can't help but feel that the education system has got it wrong somewhere as it is producing students who can achieve the top grades but yet have never heard of  the likes of Sylvia Plath, Mark Twain or JD Salinger.

Anyway, I wanted to leave on a positive note: At the end of the class one girl stayed behind and asked us what we would recommend reading and if we had any of those books that she could borrow, she decided to borrow the book, 'Lolita' from my mentor. I guess if her class had an impact on at least 1 student to encourage them to go out and read then it was a success.


And in the interest of encouraging others to read, I have put down my top 10 books that have always stayed with me:

1) To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee - My absolute favourite. There's a life lesson on every page. Just a beautiful book, I cannot recommend it enough

2) Great Expectations -   Charles Dickens - I studied this for my AS Level English and I just love it, it led me on to reading all the other Dickens novels

3) Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger - I was told that I should have read this when I was younger (ideal for an angsty teen apparently) but I still enjoy it now, amazing the power such a short book can have on you

4) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - JK Rowling -  I don't care what anyone says, I love the Harry Potter books and I think they're brilliant. Loved the last one especially as it just tied up everything. One of those great, enjoyable reads for me. 

5) Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck - Studied this for my English GCSE. Some people think that studying something in so much detail can detract from the overall enjoyment of reading the text as a whole and not picking it apart - but for me, I feel I understand a book on a much deeper level whenever I've studied it in detail, the same can be said for this book. 

6) The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald -  Again, is amazing how such a short book can have such a great impact. A brilliant book, one I wish I could have studied and dissected. It's regarded as the greatest American novel.

7) The Time Traveller's Wife Audrey Niffenger - Ok so not one the great classic pieces of literature I know, but I enjoy it and love to revisit it. It's also a lot better than the film. 

8) The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro - Another book that I studied for my English A Level, very different from what I normally like but when you study something in so much detail you can't help but find enjoyment in it

9 Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson - Not ashamed to say that I only picked up this book because I love the film Muppet's Treasure Island. Kermit and Gonzo do not make an appearance in the book (sadly) but it's still a fantastic story

10 The Help - Kathryn Stockett - A book set in the 50s/60s about black house maids working for rich white women, there is a film based on the book too, but the book is much better

The value of mobile technology in learning and teaching

The mobile phone is, 'a force to be reckoned with' (Reece & Walker, p156). Nearly every child in the classroom has a smart phone in their pocket. Mobile technology (which includes mobile phones, tablets and iPads etc.) has become so ubiquitous in our society that children have become accustomed to using it so effortlessly that they are completely (and blissfully) ignorant to a life without such technology. I even know of a five year old who had an iPad for Christmas because his mother felt pressure to buy one after learning how heavily they are used in the classroom and because 'all the other children have them'.

Research (Folger, Burke, Waker, Hansen, Randall and Mia Kim - yes, a lot of researchers!) have found close to 300% increase in the use of mobile technology in school children. Project Tomorrow, 2012 found that institutions/schools are specifically looking to recruit staff who can use mobile technology in the classroom and there has been a significant increase in the number of schools investing in iPads.


Considering the heavy reliance and love of such mobile technology, it would seem only logical that teachers beyond Primary school begin to incorporate more mobile technology to further advance the learning achieved. However, there is a danger. We need to ask is this necessary? Does it and can it actually improve teaching and learning? Before using mobile technology in the classroom, Petty (p391) advises us that we ask ourselves whether the use of an iPad will help the teacher deliver the lesson? Will it help you teach what you want the students to learn? It should be clear that mobile technology should not be incorporated simply because it is the current trend.

However, there is an argument to suggest that the use of mobile technology actually reinforces the learning. Gardener's learning cycle involves the learner receiving feedback. Sheng (and others) argue that this speeds up the learning cycle as mobile technology provides instant feedback. Although, there are no figures to verify this theory and I would say that if it is still the teacher who is providing feedback, be it through traditional paper or online via mobile devices, then the feedback is only ever as quick or 'instant' as the teacher is at providing it.

Conversely, Dr. Elliot Solloway puts forth an argument in favour of the developing use of mobile technology (in fact, there are lots of useful videos of him on YouTube):

I think he makes an excellent point - we have  come to depend on our mobile devices everywhere else except in schools. Although, from watching another one of his videos, I am very apprehensive about the way in which he suggests schools should do this. He discusses the Carpe Diem School in Arizona and this is one of their classrooms:

Many would be opposed to this dramatic change in the classroom and a great deal of schools would resist such a change - and perhaps, rightly so. Our education system appears to be working so why would we change it so dramatically? 

I think I would be one of those people to resist this change purely because of my subject. The love and enjoyment I have for Law is borne mostly from watching incredibly articulate and persuasive lawyers, how they construct an argument, their ability to weave their way through a complex debate - being able to posses the most impressive public speaking skills you could ever imagine and just having such a fantastic command of the English language - I think that this would all be lost on a computer. Lawyers do not absolutely need a computer/mobile technology to do their job (of course they use them, but it's not essential) and so I am failing to see how anyone could make it essential in teaching Law.

I think that the value of mobile technology will lie in using it as an external tool outside of the classroom by using it as a means for communication with students and for homework/extra activities. The main advantage of mobile technology is that it is available for, 'anyone, anywhere, anytime and at an affordable cost' (Keengwe and Bhargara, p739). Our responsibility as teachers, though, is ensuring that we are using it correctly and where necessary and not simply for the sake of it. 

Explain Everything Review

I have never heard of the app, 'Explain Everything' before.

From playing around with it, my initial reaction is that it is an advanced form of PowerPoint - but I feel that this is probably me being ignorant about the features of the app and its potential.

I've tried to create my own 'Slideshow' for my presentation. As you can see, I've just used it as another method for a presentation and it could have been achieved through a number of different programs. You've also probably noticed how absolutely awful my 'presentation' is - I couldn't really get to grips with it.

I hope to spend some more time with the app and exploring its features - such as the recording device, which I think could be very useful e.g. having a presentation with an explanation over it, it could be a lecture at home. Although I doubt I could get my students to listen to me talking about Law in their own time, it's hard enough to get their attention in the 1 hour a day that I have them.

Alternatives to PowerPoint

 This is our PowerPoint on Alterntative to PowerPoint. The alternatives we considered: - Prezi - Pinterest - Spicy Nodes

I have already reviewed Prezi on another post.

Review of Prezi

The first is a prezi on the benefits of Prezi:
Sometimes it is showing, sometimes it's not - if you can't see it, you can find it here

 This is just an example showing how it can be used. Personally, I am not a big fan of Prezi, it does tend to make me feel nauseous with all the moving about. I am just as happy reading of a plain, boring piece of paper and I don't require a more stimulating method of presentation.


 There have been two important lessons taught on this course:

 1) You, with your knowledge and experience, are your greatest asset - more so than any technology, any presentation, any game etc. Just you and your brain is more valuable and more beneficial to students and their learning than all of the other gimmicks.

2) You, the teacher, are the presentation - not your presentation.

I think these are very valuable lessons and I like to remind myself of them when I am worrying about delivering a lesson without a PowerPoint to accompany it.

That is why I cannot see myself using Prezi in the future. I don't want it to be a distraction from me and what message I am trying to get across.

However, I do have an example of how Prezi can be used in the classroom. It is a Prezi that one of my Law lecturers created for answering legal problem questions.
(Click here to if you can't see this one either)


 My opinion of this is that, firstly, it is brilliant advice and tips and secondly, it helped me greatly. However, (because there's always a 'but') this was something he shared with us outside the classroom (on Twitter actually). Although PowerPoint is done to death and it is unoriginal and uninspiring etc I think to use something more interesting like Prezi would only serve as a bigger distraction.

My experience with Microsoft Applications

My earliest experience with Microsoft Apps was in school and having to spend a lesson creating a presentation on Word or PowerPoint.

This reminded me of a tweet I saw a few months ago (but can't for the life of me remember who tweeted it) and it made me laugh, but it basically said:

"The hardest part of any IT lesson was deciding which one of these to use for your presentation"

The first half hour of an IT lesson was literally spent selecting one of these to use and then choosing a colour scheme. And that was the extent of my experience with Microsoft apps at school. Oh, and there was one lesson using Excel where they talked about using 'cells' and that's all I remember and I haven't ever used it/needed to use it since.

A more recent experience is using Microsoft Word to type up essays/coursework for University. I think that referencing on Word has been the most horrifying and traumatic experience. Unfortunately, my University required us to use 'OSCOLA' referencing, which is a specific referencing format for Law. This meant using footnotes. This then led to massive problems when you needed to re-number them and had to manually alter around 100 footnotes individually. Absolute nightmare.

BUT I was very impressed with the Harvard referencing tool available with Word that Mandy introduced to us. I'm hoping it will make referencing far less tedious and painful in the future.













That's as far as my experience with Microsoft Apps go, I don't use any of the others, so I do feel as though I'm spending a lot of money when I purchase the Microsoft Package because I only ever really need to use Word.

I would like to know if there are any other useful tips and tricks to Microsoft Word that I don't know about that would make my life much easier.

Blog Review

So me and Aled have been looking up blogs related to Law. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything to do with teaching Law but I did find:

http://ukcriminallawblog.com/   and http://www.theguardian.com/law/guardian-law-blog

They are both very similar in that they are reporting current legal news. As they are both very similar and offer the same type of posts, we thought it would be pointless to both review just one as we would be saying the same thing and thought it would be more interesting to compare and contrast both blogs to see which we preferred, sicne they both serve the same purpose. Therefore, I have decided to review the Criminal Law Blog and Aled is reviewing the Guardian blog.

This blog is pretty self explanatory - it's about criminal law. 

It has a section concentrated solely on current and high profile cases, as well as sections relating to explanations on areas of the criminal law. It has a an easy to navigate layout. The purpose of the blog, as found on their page*:

*Using the Snipping Tool for the first time, and to think that all this time I've been print screening and pasting to Paint...

Anyway, keeping up to date with topical issues and developments is extremely important for teaching law, as a judgment handed down by the Supreme Court today will alter what you will be teaching to your students tomorrow.

Of course, I could just keep track of the news in order to stay up to date with cases. However, the advantages of this blog is that it explains things in much greater detail and corrects a lot of issues that are sometimes poorly reported in the media. Decisions/judgments are rarely 100% clear and there will always be uncertainty so it's essential to read around and find out what others in the profession are saying about it. Aled has said something similar about the Guardian blog, in that he thinks it's important to read a blog with different authors so as to get a varied opinion. The same can be said for this blog that I'm reveiwing.

Also, it aims to invite discussion on the topics - the comment section can actually be more interesting than the post itself... 

I prefer this blog over the Guardian blog just because the Guardian blog isn't updated regularly - as Aled concludes:
"the Guardian's law blog provides a valuable teaching tool not only for up to date legal issues but also for interesting discussion. This is what I would write if it was 2012. At the minute the blog does provide an interesting selection of opinions but with a lack of recent posts its use is very limited. If it were to start again with frequent posts however I may revise my verdict."
  
Whereas this one is far more frequent and has a wealth of posts overall.


I will definitely be using this blog for keeping track of legal developments - especially when students may ask me about a case that I don't fully understand myself!
 

Reflective practice and Bubbl.us

 I think that Bubbl.us is be an amazing tool for making mind maps, just because it can be so easily edited.

I've always found mind maps to be useful for starting essays. Students (myself included) often see an essay title and think 'where do I begin?' and become stuck because they can't think of an opening sentence. Mind maps is a way around that linear way of thinking (i.e.first write an introduction, then the main body, then the conclusion). Mind maps are a really handy tool for just putting all the ideas down and then provides you with the option of connecting points and linking them up and it's then easier to visualise how the essay will flow.

I think I would use it a lot with students for revision purposes.

However, you have to pay, which is a shame as I think many students would benefit from Bubbl.us.

Unfortunately, the Bubbl.us I made a few months ago and posted to this very page seems to have disappeared (perhaps the link/account has an expiry and my free trial is up). I found a Google image of Bubbl.us.

My first one was detailing reflective practice and all the necessary components relating to that. I couldn't find one on the same topic, but did find this amusing one on world domination. Although I am little concerned about this individual's post-domination plans - 'eat all the Pokemon?' - this, nonetheless, demonstrates the basic concept of Bubbl.us

This is a more academic one on the use of ICT in the classroom. Probably more apt for this blog than world domination. 

Today's Meet Social Media Discussion

Unfortunately, my 'TodaysMeet' has expired and so the embedded link ceases to work.

Review:
I think this is an incredibly handy tool. It allows the creator to post a question and members of the group can reply and view each others responses also.

I can see this being very beneficial in lecture environments - i.e. where the lecturer wishes to ask a question to a large group of students, but anticipates that with such a large group size he/she will be unable to facilitate any sort of organised discussion (and possibly where everyone is too afraid to speak and answer for fear of embarrassment of getting the answer wrong). So the lecturer could instruct everyone to the TodaysMeet page, post a question and watch all the responses feed through.

Benefits:
No one can get in the group unless they are given the link - security is essential for students safety
The group has an expiry - so it cannot be left to be view and added to, once it has served its purpose it can be closed
Nearly everybody has a smart phone, or access to technology that would allow access to this type of app - so it is just a method to utilise the technology students are already carrying around in their pockets.

Limits:
This would be difficult to implement in a small class setting - as many students may ask the teacher 'why don't you just ask us directly? Why do we have to answer online?' Therefore, it may be suitable to implement as an outside the classroom activity - the issue is then student participation (or lack thereof!)

An introduction...

My name is Sophie.

 I am a Law graduate.

I'm currently training to be a teacher in the post compulsory sector (hopefully in Law).

My legal areas of interest are Criminal Law, Law of Evidence, Medicine Law and Law of the European Union. They all sound thrilling, I know.

Law covers every aspect of life. From birth to death - everything is regulated, controlled or permitted by the Law. Therefore, I believe that to study Law is to study life. That sounds a bit more interesting (and prentious)!

I'm hoping to learn new ways of making Law interesting to students. Often, learning Law can be dull and boring and can seem like a memory exercise. I want to find new ways of communicating with students besides just talking at them.

I also have a dog who I talk about an awful lot. So expect to see photos of him too. Seriously, look how cute.

Tecnhology

Firstly, I have to say I agree with Louise and Dave on the typewriter. You may be interested to know that there is a new (free!) app out, called ‘Hanx Writer’. It is a simulated typewriter complete with authentic sounds. It was developed by the actor Tom Hanks because he loves typewriters too. So, if you’re like me and just enjoy the clicking of a typewriter it’s a pretty cool app to type your work on.

Anyway, describing the technology that I have without being specific is tough. The vaguest way I can think to describe it is:

- I have technology that helps me with my work (e.g. PC)

- I have technology that I use for leisure (e.g. game consoles)

- I have technology that I use for communicating (e.g. smartphone)

Mandy also mentioned writing about the technology that I would like to see. Honestly, the first thing that came to mind was the film, 'Minority Report' - here's a small clip if you haven't seen the film. 

Maybe one day?