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Reason for Wiki[[image:http://i.factmonster.com/images/australian-student.jpg width="153" height="178" align="right"]]
This wiki is a learning portfolio which contains many educational resources for upper primary aged children focusing on the SoSE subject Civics & Citizenship that utilises online teaching resources.

Learning Outcomes in Learning Plan:

 * 1) To use Information & Communication Technology (ICT) more - i.e. create a Wiki and utilise online teaching and learning resources.
 * 2) To become confident and learn more about how to teach Civics and Citizenship focusing on Democracy and Government.
 * 3) To become more confident with teaching upper primary aged children and 21st Century learners.

My Personal Education Philosophy:
//Tell me and I forget.// // Teach me and I remember. // // Involve me and I learn. // Benjamin Franklin

My personal education philosophy focuses on the inquiry based, student directed learning process. Students should have a say in what they learn and how they display that learning. I believe that effective teaching caters for all the **different learning styles and abilities** of the students in a classroom. Student's individual abilities and multiple intelligences need to be identified and catered for. Teaching strategies used should be varied and cater for the different learning styles of students who learn best visually, auditory and/or kinaesthetically. Classroom activities and assessment items should be diverse and multi-layered to cater for all students regardless of their abilities or level, including both remedial and advanced. Learning activities and assesment tasks should not just be limited to writing or reading text. Teachers should use many different teaching resources (for example videos and pictures) and different teaching strategies (for example role-play and creating art work) to motivate, stimulate and educate students. Students should have the opportunity to use ICT to both research information (i.e. the World Wide Web) but also to present information (i.e. PowerPoint presentation). Students should also be encouraged to express their learning achievements in a variety of ways to cater for their interests and abilities.


 * Cooperative learning** and **peer teaching** are teaching strategies that should be used often in the classroom and students should be encouraged to work in cooperative groups and peer teach as much as possible. Cooperative groups, or team work, allows students to participate at their own level and work with a team to achieve a common goal. Team work benefits both the more capable and less capable students. The less capable students benefit from watching the learning strategies the other students use while the more capable students benefit from refining their knowledge base and peer teaching other students in their group. A teacher needs to explicitly teach students team working skills and encourage students to value their team member's diversity and opinions etc. Peer teaching gives student the opportunity to reinforce their learning while teaching others. All levels of students should be given opportunities to peer teach, not just the advanced students. Peer teaching can take place both in formal teaching strategies such as "Peer Experts" and also in informal learning situations such as a student explaining a lesson to another student who was absent from class. Often less capable students benefit hugely from peer teaching others, not only does it give them the opportunity to re-enforce their owe learning, but also it boosts their self-esteem.

Teaching strategies should allow students to get up from their desks and out of the classroom as much as possible; going on excursions outside the classroom and role-play inside the classroom are two ways to achieve this.


 * Excursions** are a wonderful teaching strategy and motivate and stimulate learning. Excursions enable students to become active participants in their community. The teacher should have a clear understanding of the learning outcomes to be achieved during the excursion. Also pre and post excursion discussion and activities are important to maximise the learning outcome of the excursion.

Role-play promotes lifelong learning and facilitates a rich approach to learning that increases each learner's un derstanding of the real world. Role-play is active learning which is driven by student interaction, immersion and engagement and suitable for students of all ages and ability. There are many strengths and benefits of role-play (see below).
 * Role-play** activities are a very powerful teaching and learning strategy that I think should be used often.

**Benefits & Strengths of Role-play:**
This diagram summarises the strengths of role-play. It is based on Edward Errington's book //Role-play// (1997).

//I hear and I forget.// //I see and I remember.// //I do and I understand.// Confucius

My educational philosophy that "//learning activities should not just be limited to writing or reading text. Teachers should use many different teaching resources (for example videos and pictures) and different teaching strategies (for example role-play and creating// //art work) to motivate, stimulate and educate students. Students should have the opportunity to use ICT to both research i////nformation (////i.e. WWW) but also to present information (i.e. PowerPoint presentation). Student////s should also be encouraged to express their learning achievements in a variety of ways to cater for their interests and abilities",// relates to the 21st Century learner and recognises their ability and desire to use communication and information technology in their learning - both in the gathering and learning of information and also in the presentation and demonstration of learning.

By using the resources outlined in this wiki you will be able to confidently leap into teaching upper primary students all about Civics and Citizenship and Politics, while combining role-play teaching strategies and utilising online teaching resources... ** Have Fun!! **