Use in the Classroom
There are a variety of different ways that Tellagami can be integrated into the life of the classroom. Activities that link to the Australian Curriculum as well as cater for all students have been outlined below.
History
For History, the students in 5M created a piece that outlined the role of an individual or group in shaping a colony in the 1800s (ACHHK097). For this piece students needed to pick one person or group such as an explorer, farmer, entrepreneur, artist, writer, humanitarian, religious or political leader or Aboriginal/ Torres Strait Islander people to describe. In thirty seconds, students needed to describe that person's role and the effect that they had on the rest of the colony. Since this was only a short piece, it was also accompanied by a diary entry of their chosen person or group.
This unit catered for for all learners due to the two-part nature of the assessment piece. Students who are not strong in writing thrived when performing their video as they were able to more easily articulate factual information. This also worked well with students who are not confident in speaking as they were able to articulate factual information as a fictional piece in the diary entry. Some students were also given a topic based on their ability levels. Students with low abilities were inadvertently given an easier topic than other students.
If we were to compare these observations to a key framework, they would be relevant to Gardner's Multiple Intelligences (Woolfolk & Markets, 2010). This piece of assessment was designed to appeal to students with these intelligences:
* Verbal/ linguistic
* Logical/ mathematical
* Spatial/ visual
* Bodily/ kinaesthetic
This unit catered for for all learners due to the two-part nature of the assessment piece. Students who are not strong in writing thrived when performing their video as they were able to more easily articulate factual information. This also worked well with students who are not confident in speaking as they were able to articulate factual information as a fictional piece in the diary entry. Some students were also given a topic based on their ability levels. Students with low abilities were inadvertently given an easier topic than other students.
If we were to compare these observations to a key framework, they would be relevant to Gardner's Multiple Intelligences (Woolfolk & Markets, 2010). This piece of assessment was designed to appeal to students with these intelligences:
* Verbal/ linguistic
* Logical/ mathematical
* Spatial/ visual
* Bodily/ kinaesthetic
Geography
In History, the students created a series of Tellagami videos to describe the impact of a bushfire or flood on communities and how people can respond (ACHGK030). For this piece, students were to work in groups of three or four to create multiple Tellagami videos (at least one per student) to communicate how a bushfire or flood impacts a community and the many ways that people can respond to these disasters. The students then needed to present these videos to the class accompanied with a short drama presentation to act out these responses outlined in each video.
This unit challenged the students as they needed to research and present each aspect in a group setting. This assessment piece helped reveal how students work with others to achieve task such as which ones took on the role of a leader, which ones sat back and did very little and which ones would try to control everything. It also allowed students to do well in specific tasks that they may be interested in. For example, one student in the group may be talented at creating a succinct video, whereas another may be passionate about drama and performing in front of the class. Some students in this activity had to be allocated a group to minimise inappropriate behaviour and maximise group participation in the task. Some groups also needed assistance with the direction that they were going to go with their performance.
Again, if we were to compare these observations to Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, this assessment was designed to appeal to these intelligences:
* Verbal/ linguistic
* Logical/ mathematical
* Spatial/ visual
* Bodily/ kinaesthetic
* Interpersonal
This unit challenged the students as they needed to research and present each aspect in a group setting. This assessment piece helped reveal how students work with others to achieve task such as which ones took on the role of a leader, which ones sat back and did very little and which ones would try to control everything. It also allowed students to do well in specific tasks that they may be interested in. For example, one student in the group may be talented at creating a succinct video, whereas another may be passionate about drama and performing in front of the class. Some students in this activity had to be allocated a group to minimise inappropriate behaviour and maximise group participation in the task. Some groups also needed assistance with the direction that they were going to go with their performance.
Again, if we were to compare these observations to Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, this assessment was designed to appeal to these intelligences:
* Verbal/ linguistic
* Logical/ mathematical
* Spatial/ visual
* Bodily/ kinaesthetic
* Interpersonal
English
By using Tellagami for these assessments, students are inadvertently fulfilling the English curriculum. Both of these assessment pieces require students to plan and deliver a presentation of some sort for a specific audience (ACELY1700) as well as a plan, draft and present an informative text (ACELY1704).
Resources
ACARA. (2015). Australian curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au
Woolfolk, A. & Margetts, K. (2010). Chapter 4: Learner difference and learner needs. In J. Tylman, S. Lewis, J. Davis, E. Driver & E. Gaulton (Eds.), Educational Psychology (2nd ed., pp. 130-182). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson.
Woolfolk, A. & Margetts, K. (2010). Chapter 4: Learner difference and learner needs. In J. Tylman, S. Lewis, J. Davis, E. Driver & E. Gaulton (Eds.), Educational Psychology (2nd ed., pp. 130-182). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson.