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At LEH Foshan, we believe technology is a wonderful tool to support learning. It enables students to research and access material quickly and to complete tasks faster than by other means. In Prep School, our young students have been enjoying using iPads to enhance their learning experience.
In this article, we invite our British classroom teachers to share with you information about the use of technology in Prep School.
Mr Robert Jones
Y4 Teacher
- Nearly 10 years of experience as classroom teacher and ESL teacher in China
- A capable school governor who covered the position of vice principal responsible for foreign teacher management and communication in his previous role
Mr Connor Lewis
Y5 Teacher
- 5 years of teaching young students in international schools in China
- Master of Education in Advancing Teaching from The Univeristy of the People
- Chinese HSK Level 5 Proficiency
Mr Alexander Tennant
Y6 Teacher
- Nearly 10 years teaching in the UK and China
- Rich experience in ELL teaching and in building excellent student relationships
- Wing Chun coach for adults and children
The reason we choose iPads is that they support seamless learning, allowing learners to easily switch learning contexts – from formal to informal or personal to social – and to take control of their own learning. It gives them endless access to different medias to access their learning and allows them to develop 21st century skills that their future employers will strive for. They also have a user-friendly interface that is perfect for our younger learners.
Students use their iPads to access, enrich, and keep track of their learning; and with the integration of Microsoft 365 are able to access their work both at school and at home. Best of all, keeping their learning stored digitally allows for more organisation and less paper-based learning engagements – allowing children to learn sustainably. Specifically, in computer science, children will learn skills such as programming and robotics, which their iPads will provide a platform for.
Enrich Learning Experience
iPads enhance skills by engaging children in a more exciting way than some traditional approaches, and compliment content taught in lesson. Learning spelling changes from memorising words into interactive learning experiences such as games. Writing an article changes into a multi-media project where children also improve their word processing or web design skills. Assistive technology also allows children with learning difficulties to access their curriculum with subtle advances, such as text to speech, the ability to rewatch and slow down media, and easy to read fonts that support students with dyslexia.
Encourage Collaborative Learning
It is a public concern that digital devices and technology might lead to social isolation. In Prep School, we believe, on the contrary, devices and tech have the potential to bring people together. In classroom, we use devices to bring children together. They are the perfect tool to help children collaborate on research tasks, and through office software like Pages, Keynote and the Office 365 suite, children are able to collaborate in real-time on group projects – both in school and at home. These kind of collaborative projects and tasks improve communication skills by giving children a goal to work towards, and give them a chance to experience working together like they will need to in their future careers.
At LEH Foshan, we encourage healthy habits when using iPads such as good posture, regular eye breaks (such as the 20/20/20 method), and time limits in class. The same is true with any reading or writing, so children are taking regular breaks from any near-eye work. Outside of classroom, we have a full rounded curriculum thanks to our ECA and PE programmes, so children have the opportunity to go outside more, using their far distance vision, which helps maintain eye health.
The 20-20-20 rule is a way to prevent eye strain by taking frequent breaks from screens. In short, it means taking your eyes off the screen every 20 minutes and looking at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
Learning with technology gives children a new perspective to education, and gives them a new attitude to how fun learning can be. However, there is often a concern that in the digital age tech can make learning ‘too’ easy. We combat this by ensuring children are aware of how to use technology to enhance learning, rather than replace it. Through lessons on how to research, cite, and avoid plagiarism, we are able to ensure children continue to develop a healthy relationship with technology that gives them ownership over their learning whilst still challenging them in all learning engagements where it is used.
Children in Prep School agree to our ICT policy before they are allowed access to iPads. They understand that when we use technology, we need to be safe, smart, sensitive and sustainable. The first of these is emphasised in everything we do, and during the first topic in Computer Science every year, we focus on delivering a series of engaging lessons to ensure children are aware of how to stay safe online, and why we need to be aware. This is also reinforced in our PSHE lessons, and through regular safe use with technology.
Just as technology itself is constantly evolving, technology in education will continue to prepare our young learners for their future world. With new technologies such as AR (Augmented Reality), AI (Artificial Intelligence), and VP (Voice Platforms), we are constantly on the lookout for ways we can adapt our whole curriculum, including Computer Science and STEM, to support future technological breakthroughs. Your children will have the chance to be a part of this future world, through the skills and passions that they will building using technology here, starting from LEH Foshan Prep School.
