BA C K G R O U N D
Northallerton Grammar School is a 14-18 school with 800 students drawn from a large rural catchment area which includes many scattered villages across the Vale of Mowbray and the western edges of the North Yorkshire Moors. Local employment is dominated by many small industries with a leaning towards retail, tourism and agriculture.
Post-GCSE provision includes 250 students on ‘A’ Level courses (20 subjects offered), and a large number of students following the Diploma of Vocational Education and BTEC courses in conjunction with York College of Further Education. A large number of adult students attend day and evening courses, especially in Information Technology, Word- Processing, Modern Languages and Business Studies. The school is the local Open University Study Centre and caters for approximately 2,200 full and part-time students.
ANALYSIS O F LEARNING N E E D S
Two key areas of development at Northallerton Grammar School are the Learning Resource Centre and the development of strategies to increase the use of computer- assisted learning across the curriculum. Although interactive video had not been previously used in the school, the Flexible Learning co-ordinator had identified the potential of IV as a resource that could make an important and growing contribution to learning, enhancing many of the developments within the Flexible Learning programme. In order to make decisions on issues relating to the purchasing of equipment, a number of INSET sessions were organised. The presentations were designed to introduce teachers to Interactive Video and the potential opportunities it provides for varied use across the curriculum, enabling teachers to consider possible departmental involvement in the project.
The Flexible Learning co-ordinator produced an evaluation sheet to allow the teachers a quick feedback channel, supplying useful information that could be used for forward planning.
By using the evaluation results from the presentation, the project could be designed to accommodate the needs of the students and take into account the training needs of the staff. Particular emphasis needed to be placed on training the IT technician who would provide ongoing internal support. Other project aims were to:
• increase awareness of IV across all departments • stimulate interest in video disc technology
• integrate IV into the learning programmes of students by supporting interested departments
• support the departments with necessary time for development to enable specific end- products to be evaluated.
CU RRICU LU M PLANNING
Following the presentations, a project development group was formed which included the FL co-ordinator, the IT technician who had responsibility within the learning resource centre and five department representatives. The aims of the group were to:
• share developments across the five departments • monitor and evaluate IV as a learning tool • plan future developments of IV in the school
• disseminate findings to all colleagues ( aided by a newsletter).
An interactive video system was purchased based on a PC platform, along with Opensoft. A number of IVIS (Interactive Video in Schools) video discs was borrowed from Allertonshire School, a feeder school which had been involved in the IVIS project. A successful way of disseminating information throughout the school was through a newsletter, which was designed to keep the teaching staff informed of project developments and to report on the IV projects that involved the other four schools. As a follow-up to the more general presentations, individual workshops were designed to focus on specific subject areas. Although a number of departments had shown interest in the possibility of using IV, setting up projects relating to specific subject areas was restricted by the video discs that were available to the school at the time. The main project therefore focused on the Geography department.
CU RRICU LU M IMPLEMENTATION
Within the development programme a time schedule was planned to incorporate workshops with the staff and students who were to be involved in the project. The Geography project involved year 12 students using the IVTS Geography disc. The video, audio and still images contained on the disc related to desertification and
Agriculture. Following a quick but comprehensive introduction to video disc technology, Opensoft and the Geography disc, a group of four students selected and edited the video images to form the basis of a multi-media presentation on irrigation.
The students prepared the text to support the chosen video during their Geography lesson and came to the next session prepared to add the text and complete the
presentation. The material produced was used to disseminate the use of interactive video to other members of the teaching staff and irrigation techniques to other students. The process involved the students in research, collaboration and discussion and also required the use of analytical and presentation skills. Cross-curricular links were identified with Environmental Studies, Technology and Economics.
S T U D E N T FEEDBACK
The four students from the Geography department were very quick to understand the practical elements involved with authoring video discs and after the first introductory session needed very little help. They were enthusiastic and collaborated well as a group, dividing the tasks up evenly and planning their own strategies.
Comments made by the students in response to working with interactive video were: • “We talked a lot about the major ideas which should be included and this tested our
understanding.”
• “We discussed the best sequence many times, so it helped our development of the ideas into a logical order for someone else to follow. It was good getting to grips with technology.”
• “It was fun working as a group of four and deciding on our own ‘programme’ and what we wanted it to do. The finished product looked good.”
• “It was a new experience, beyond the bounds of classroom teaching, a look at the possible future more stimulating than a text book.”
• “Having to compose a detailed sequence of video and text with continuity helped me to remember as well as understand.”
• “It was for me a different and more rewarding way of learning because we were more in control of our learning.”
Closing snapshot o f Northallerton Grammar School
IV System
Location
Project Areas
School Support
Further Developm ents
PC-based
Learning resource centre library
G eography
Staff, year 12 student production IVIS Geography Disc, Opensoft
Access
Secrets of Study, pre-programmed disc for use as open access
M odem Languages
Staff, ‘A’ Level French Art discs Development Team
Five members of the staff including: FL co-ordinator
IT technician
Disc Production, Media Studies Science development
Evaluation, dissemination supported by IV Newsletter .