The Curriculum Through ICT Program

Ideas Bank

Hot Air Balloons: Demonstrating Learning with ICT

THE TASK

Students were asked to demonstrate their understandings about how hot air balloons fly. ICT enabled the students to use a variety of ways to demonstrate their learning. This in turn provided rich evidence for assessment.

Prior to this task, early childhood students engaged in learning activities to develop their understandings about how hot air balloons fly. Using the technology process they made working models of hot air balloons and tested them.

The students took digital photos of their models before and during testing. These photos were imported into slide presentation software (for example Kid Pix®, MaxShow© or PowerPoint). Students recorded audio to explain their understandings about how hot air balloons work. Some also added text and/or graphics, such as arrows, to the photographs.

The use of multimedia, including recorded audio, digital video and digital photos, can be used to consolidate the learning of many concepts across different learning areas. These tasks also provided rich evidence of learning.

ICT ENRICHMENT

• ICT allows students to use different media (photos, audio, text and graphics) to complete the task, addressing different learning styles.
• The learning is consolidated through the multi-modal nature of the media.
• Use of different media enhances the assessment value of the task.
• Audio explanations at this phase of development provide richer evidence of achievement than any written form can do.

ASSESSMENT

• This task allows all students to explain their understandings, using audio, text and/or graphics.
• Typically, the students were able to explain themselves in greater depth by recording audio alongside photographs.
• The assessment task was archived digitally as evidence of learning against the Energy & Change outcome.

LEARNING AREA OUTCOMES

Technology & Enterprise
Technology Process
Materials

Science
Energy & Change

Learning activity developed by Julie Bettenay.