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I would get the pupils involved in the creation process much,
much earlier. I spent a great deal of my own time creating
activities to use with the class when it may have been better to turn
the ICT directly over to the pupils. We could have studied the
information using existing materials and then they could have created
their webpage as each topic area was completed.
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Assumption of skills - when the first lesson started, I had planned
to get the pupils to use PowerPoint to create a presentation on Martin
Luther, I assumed they would be familiar with PowerPoint. Assume
nothing - most of the class had never used PowerPoint before. This
meant the ICT took over and the history took a back seat. I think
it was after this lesson that I decided to create a number of online
materials for the pupils to use, rather than totally focus on their own
ICT work. Using word pupils were far more productive. This
would be the ideal program to start with.
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Developments - all the time the pupils and I kept coming up with new
ideas and ways of presenting the website. During the term I kept
thinking how I wished we'd done certain exercises differently. At
the end of the term when the pupils created their pages they kept coming
up with ideas. More was gained and learned in the process of
creating the materials than was at any other time. Having
completed this project I would, in future, establish clearer ground
rules and set cut-off points. Too many pupils wished to redesign
instead of produce more content.
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Quality of information and presentation. I dislike the
colours many of the pupils have used, but this is the design they chose.
Some work is needed on readability. As this site has been slowing
improved with input from the after school sessions, I've been strongly
tempted to edit and attempt to improve the pupil materials. I
haven't touched them though. There are areas that need far greater
coverage and improvement. Yet I wanted to put the existing work
they had done online with my editing. Yet is this suitable for
public
consumption on the Internet?
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Templates - we made use of Microsoft Word, but I didn't prepare or
encourage the use of templates. I will do this next time.
Using a template pupils could be given the freedom to create within a
common design. This would create a more of a common theme running
through the site.
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Time - there was never enough. The finished webpages are rushed
and incomplete. The webpage project was completed in two lessons -
I feel with more time every aspect of the site could have been improved.
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Software used. At the start of the project we only had Microsoft
Office to make use of. Through investment in ICT at the school
pupils can now make use of the enhanced features of Macromedia
Deamweaver XM and FrontPage 2002. These will enable webpages to be
produced to a much higher standard.
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...and I'm sure there's lots more!
