Ptlls_4

Review the range of teaching and learning activities available to the teacher, which can widen learners' participation. The IT Essentials 2 course is run in a dedicate classroom, this classroom was set up to accommodate this course and each student has a computer to use. The IT Essentials 2 course also has a dedicated computer lab where the practical assignments and practical teaching sessions take place. The labs computers are on a private internal network and do not have internet access or local area network access, this is by design and allows more flexibility when students are configuring and using the labs computers. The computers that are used to access the online material have dedicated software installed and they meet all aspects of the vendors’ requirements, these computers are the primary computers and they have full local area network and internet access, the students also use these computers for the online assessments and research. The room was designed so that students could sit comfortably at the computers and when necessary turn and view the interactive whiteboard easily. The only real problem with the classroom is it sometimes gets a little hot, this has been raised with my line manager several times resulting in the promise of air conditioning. Appropriate teaching and learning activities might include; • Question and Answer • Interactive Presentation • Cooperative Learning • Simulations • Practical Tests • Practical Assignments • Practical Demonstration (Tutor) • Practical Demonstration (Students) • Online Knowledge Assessment • Practical Assessment • Discussion • Quiz • Case Study • Homework and Self Study • Group Discussion Less appropriate activities might include; • Tutorials • Small Group Project Work Some students may be unable to attend all the sessions, this may be due to social, economic or personal circumstances, It is important to cater for these students and one way to do this is to provide material that can be taken home or accessed from home. When students are signed up to the IT Essentials 2 course they can access their particular class from anywhere with an internet connection by logging on to the Cisco website, this site allows the students to read the online curriculum, participate in simulations, post on forums and take part in live group discussions. I also make a point of making the presentation material available in printed form. To widen participation, we must concentrate, at least initially, on those with few if any qualifications: people who usually also experience social and economic disadvantage. FEFC (1998, p8)