Kia ora / Talofa lava / Greetings




Kia ora / Talofa lava / Greetings

 Ko Claire Northcroft ahau.  Nō Ngāti Tūwharetoa.  I am a co-manager at a branch (Poupou) of Literacy Aotearoa based in Taupō.  I have been working in the field of adult literacy and numeracy for 8+ years now.  My entry into this role was more a case of being in the right place at the right time, mixed with a good dose of a genuine wish to support learners with their learning.  However, not having come from a teaching background, it has meant that I have had to do an awful lot of learning to gain a thorough understanding of the sector, and about adult literacy and numeracy teaching and learning.  I enjoy working with learners, but the demands of my management role means that I rarely get to do much tutoring these days, apart from with the occasional, mostly one-to-one, learners.

 In my blog I intend to write about the advantages of using digital technologies for adult literacy and numeracy learning, as my personal experience to date, is that its use complements a teaching and learning programme well.  As an example, I have used some of the online audio readers (if that’s what they’re called? – eg. http://www.starfall.com/n/fiction-nonfiction/wolves/load.htm?f) as part of a learning session with some of our low-level readers, as it gave the learners full control over the reading process – they could click on words they were uncertain of, when, or even if they felt they needed to.  In stating this however, I am aware that I will be balancing my ideas with counter-arguments, as I realise there are also issues related to the use of digital technologies.  In the case of the audio-readers for example, some of our learners have wanted to share these books with their children at home, but don’t have digital devices at home, nor can they afford internet access.  Navigating their way around some of the websites would also be quite challenging for some. 




I look forward learning with and from you on this programme, and to an insightful exchange of thoughts and ideas.

Ngā mihi / Tōfā soifua / Bye for now

Claire


Comments

  1. Helen6 August 2017 at 16:03

    Hi Claire, I really like your audio readers inclusion and your belief in the power of games. The first two suggested blog posts relate to your use of digital technologies and how that impacts on your teaching and the second is on your philosophy. More information is in Blackboard.

    ReplyDelete

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