We are not learning to use computers; We are using computers to learn.
The approach that we have taken in this module is to examine your needs as an educator and to concentrate on helping you to produce documents that you can use. This module is not about learning a whole list of things that you can do on the word processor.
You are therefore learning skills as you need them (just-in-time) and not just for the sake of it (just-in-case). Your authentic context of use (circumstances that are meaningful to you) is your work as an educator. Your learners' most meaningful context of use is going to be the work they do as learners.
We would therefore encourage you not to put learners on term-long word processor courses as part of a computer literacy programme. Rather let them learn word processing skills within the context of their school work.
Your learners will learn the skills they need as they develop the need for them. The learning experience is far more meaningful in this context. This module will give you a few ideas on how to integrate (include) word processing with learning in the classroom. In the activities, you will be encouraged to reflect on (think about) ways of integrating the word processor with class work from time to time. You will be sharing these ideas with your group.
Research of a varied nature has highlighted several main issues when considering how learners use the word processor in classroom:
- Writing quality does not improve when time is spent developing word processing skills. Writing quality improves when time is spent developing writing skills.
- Learners tend to be more motivated to write when using a word processor.
- Learners tend to write more spontaneously in their first draft. This means that they take less time from having the idea in their heads to putting thoughts on paper (or in a document in this case). The advantage of using a word processor is that learners can go back to the work on the document, open it, and edit it at a later stage.
Having access to a computer is an important issue. Given class sizes and school size, one will probably always have the problem of access. This just means that one must carefully plan use of word processors with one's class and the activities they do.
The word processor is a basic tool that helps learners to organize ideas and gather information. Learners need to communicate ideas and write essays and reports in a number of subjects or learning areas. We will be encouraging you to think about possible ways in which your learners could use the word processor as a tool. It is more than a mere writing tool, and we hope that you will be able to discover new ideas as you explore this throughout this module.
You do not have to be an expert user of the word processor before you teach your learners to use the word processing tool in class time. It would help if you had basic skills such as opening and closing files, but beyond that there is a lot that can be learnt when the need arises.
Learn together with your learners. Learning is a lifelong activity.