Day 6: Enabling Access

 

Day 6: Enabling Access
Google Sites (Paenga Kūkura) and Developing a Learning site for your students

Dorothy talked about how we can lead learning using google sites and how we can use google sites to best help learners connect with all aspects of the DFI pedagogy and make learning accessible. I like the idea of one platform for all learning areas that encompass the DFI Kaupapa of empowering learners, being visible, ubiquitous, and connected.
Vicki talked about how fluid the transition from school learning in 2020 to lockdown learning was within Manaiakalani cluster schools because the students had been practising using online learning prior to lockdown using google sites. This familiarisation enabled students to continue mahi without too many disruptions.

She talked about how it was purposeful to put learning on a site for whānau to see and links for students to the Hāpara workspace and Class blogs. These are things I am still yet to do with my class site. My class site is published and students have been accessing it to complete quizzes and I've found hot tips along the way (thanks Kerry), for example, making sure all the content on the class site is in a shared folder so it can be viewed by anyone on the site. I'm certainly putting it to the test with my social studies class.

I really enjoyed the collaborative task of viewing sites (including my colleagues) and critiqueing the sites. It makes me think of what I will include for ease of accessing relevant work. I then opened my unfinished site and showed my group and this is the response. I can definitely make it more interactive and include multimodal learning activities. Here is my feedback from my class members about my class site.

Google sites enables consistency across all year groups to access their learning. Good google sites ideas: inserting a google form for the students to ask the teacher a question; make sure the site is clear and easy to access and the content is visible. Making sure the images are free to use and share, use 'Unsplash' (free-usable images). I have bookmarked 'Unsplash' for free images. I need to practice making buttons in google draw. I have already been planning the 'visual appeal' of my site and different pages for my Year 9 and 10 English classes. I like the idea of '3 clicks' from the home page to the learning that they will be doing.

This is my class site before the changes:

This is my class site after the changes: 

It is a work in progress. Today I achieved 2/3 of my goals. I uploaded some work for the students to do next week onto the Year 10 English page and I made a ScreenCastify introducing myself and a pepeha in pepeha.nz for the students to do next week too (new classes). I would like to make my site brighter - I just need some time to play around and get familiar with the different functions. I need to develop my confidence using google sites further as I'm feeling slightly anxious about using it next week with my new classes!