• As you are planning how the laptops will be used, develop a Plan B.

• If you don’t have one already, work on developing a flexible and “go with the flow” disposition.

• Remind students to bring their UWI Student ID Cards and memory sticks to class on days that the laptops will be used.

• Communicate expectations for how the laptops should be used to students.

• If the laptops will be used from the beginning of class, save class time by putting up a slide with instructions so students can get the laptops prepared for the activity.

• Speak from behind students to monitor their screens.

• Ask students to close or lower the laptop monitors during activities that do not require laptop use.

• End the class a few minutes early so that the laptops can be returned in an orderly fashion.

• Monitor the care of the laptops as if they were your own.

Advice on planning and managing laptops in your classroom

Tips for Lecturers

Laptop Cart Orientation UWI School of Education ICT Professional Development http://ictprofessionaldevelopment.wordpress.com

September 30, 2009

What activities can you design to make your technology-enhanced lessons helps student explore the connections between technology, content, and pedagogy? Here are some ideas…

• Internet Searches

• WebQuests

• Concept mapping

• Wikis for capturing group work

• Content/discipline specific software

• Others _______________ _____________________ ______________________ ______________________ ______________________

Ideas for Laptop Use

The School of Education has acquired 30 laptops that can be used by Lecturers to facilitate technology-enhanced activities outside of the computer lab. The information in this newsletter provides some tips and guidelines for Lecturers and Students. It also outlines the policies and procedures that govern use of the laptops.

2

Microsoft Office 2007 Acrobat Reader Roxio CD/DVD Creator Google Earth Inspiration Windows Movie Maker Podcast/Screencast Related iTunes University (via iTunes) Audacity Camtasia Studio 3 Photography Related Photo Story 3 for Windows Picasa 3 GIMP Research Tools QSR NVivo SPSS 16.0 Audio/Video Players QuickTime Player Windows media Player Web Browsers Microsoft Internet Explorer Mozilla Firefox Safari SeaMonkey Web Page Design Software SeaMonkey Macromedia Dreamweaver

Software List Reservations

• Because we have limited equipment, priority bookings will be given to classes needing computers for the duration of the course, which cannot be accommodated in our existing computer labs. The priority for all other bookings will be based solely on a first request basis.

• Lecturers interested in using the laptops must attend an orientation at the start of every semester.

• At least 48 hours prior to the class date, Lecturers should send an e-mail to the SOE_AVTech group in Outlook to schedule their use of the laptops.The e-mail should include the:

o Course code and title

o Class date, time and location

o Time the laptop should be picked up after class

• Note that Individual laptops cannot be reserved.

• A Technician will respond to the e-mail to confirm that the laptops have been reserved.

• If there is a change in the schedule, Lecturer’s should inform the Technicians via e-mail.

Receiving the Laptops

• Lecturers should meet the technicians in their classroom 15 minutes prior to the start of class. Lecturers must have their id cards to sign-out the laptops.

• Technicians will inform Lecturers of known technical issues prior to signing out the laptops.

• Lecturers checking out the laptop assume responsibility for the entire cart and its contents.

• When laptops are distributed in class, they will be assigned to each student. To facilitate this process, students must have their student identification cards.

• Laptops should not be removed from the classroom they are assigned to.

Using the Laptops

• Students should not save their work on the laptops, as the information will be deleted upon restart.

• After the class is finished, the Lecturer should ask that students shut down and reconnect each laptop to its assigned power cable in the cart.

Returning the Laptops

• 15 minutes prior to the end of class, a Technician will return to the class to confirm that laptops have been shut down, reconnected, and secured.

Support

• It is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that the laptop cart is in good working order.

• Lecturers should notify the Technicians if there are any technical issues with the laptops as failure to do so may result in the next Lecturer experiencing problems.

Policies and Procedures

Accessing the Net If the connection screen appears when accessing the Internet, students should enter the following: username: sastudents/id number

Password: UWI password (not the mySecure area password)

3

• In order to checkout a laptop, bring your UWI Student ID Card to class.

• Arrive to class with sufficient time to checkout a laptop before class begins.

• Reserve laptop use to activities related to class.

• During activities that do not require laptop use, close the laptop or lower the monitor.

• Save your work on your memory stick, as all information will be deleted from the laptops after they are shut down.

• Take care of the laptop as if it were your own.

Guidelines for Students References

Efaw, J., Hampton, S., Martinez, S. (2004). Miracle or menace: Teaching and learning with laptop computers in the classroom. Educause, 27(3), 10-18. Retrieved from www.educause.edu/library/eqm0431

Waker, M., Roberts, S., Babcock, E. & Colombo, M. (2004). Implications of a Laptop Initiative in a Teacher Education Math Program. In R. Ferdig et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference 2004 (pp. 3772-3776). Chesapeake, VA: AACE. Retrieved from http://www.editlib.org/p/13466.

Scenarios for Discussion Scenario 1 Lecturer A planned a dynamic lesson in which the students were asked to compare two internet sites on the same topic using a set of questions that the class had jointly constructed. They were then asked to upload their findings to a class wiki. Five minutes into the lesson a message arrived that the wireless network was being repaired and the Internet could not be used for the rest of the day.

Scenario 2 Teacher B spent hours on Sunday preparing an exciting lesson. She wrote the website she wanted the students to use in the lesson on the board. She didn’t intend to see the website until half way through the lesson but by the time she’d noticed the students had already opened their computers and reached the site and were happily navigating around it even though the rest of the site wasn’t related to the lesson. Notes ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Scenarios adapted from the Leading my faculty website at: http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/digital_rev/leading_my_faculty/lo/laptop/index.htm