Field Trip
The Field
Trip to the “Martin Luther Schule”
gave a little impression what the new area of media means to schools, what
problems come along with them and how they can be handled. The “Martin Luther Schule” took many
interesting approaches to making the new media accessible to the pupils in a
productive and useful way. In the last couple of years they tried to integrate
more and more technologies into the everyday lesson, so that the pupils learn
how to use them in an educational and proper way. Furthermore, they fight the
challenge to motivate and support the teachers in using the new media, which is
given to them through “Medientage” and a well structured technology
infrastructure.
In order to introduce the multimedial inventory of the school I am going to show you around on a virtual tour.
In order to introduce the multimedial inventory of the school I am going to show you around on a virtual tour.
Teachers' Lounge
We will start our tour in the teachers’ lounge, which includes two
computers for the staff where one can make several reservations for
rooms or media-equipment and a media-shelf where for example the
Presenter-Unit and other equipment is stored. The presenter-unit is a portable multimedia-device, which inlcudes a projector, speakers and a notebook. It is rendable for teachers if they want to show their class a presentation on a big screen projected to the wall.
Library
In the school's library the pupils have access to four computers, a very
well organized stock of books and one copier. There are two big
group-tables on which the students can work or read. To be allowed to
access the computers children up to the tenth grade need an
Internet-Passport which requires the signature of their parents. The users
have full access to the whole internet without any restrictions. On the
one hand the pupils can do their research properly but on the other
hand they could stroll around on the internet stumbling over
unappropriate content. Either way, this unlimited access might have a
highly educational effect on the learners.
Classroom
This is one of many multi-media-units which you can find in every second classroom in the school. It contains speakers, a DVD-player including a multi-access-port for USB-devices and MP3-players, a remote control and one large flat screen TV. In order to secure the TV and to protect it from vandalism the equipment is lockable. This Unit is so well equipped that even the kids in the last row are able to hear and see everything that is going on in front. Another possibility to work with would have been an interactive whiteboard i.e. "Smartboard". But more on that in the next paragraph.
"Smartboard"
The picture on the left shows one of the school's two "Smartboards". From the school's view the costs of these interactive whiteboards do not cover the learning enhancements satisfactorily. Only the biological and the art faculties use one "Smartboard" each to raise their classes' quality. One big benefit is that the teacher is able to safe the work of a lesson immediately and make it accessable to his or her class easily.
further multi-media assistance
Besides the presenter-unit there are many other helpful devices, which include new media in everyday lessons for example the laptop-trolly. This unit contains 16 laptops and a wirless LAN router. This enables the teacher to give every student the chance to do some research in class, without going to the computer lab. Many teachers use this possibilitiy to introduce learn-tandems. This trolly is stored in a small room, where teachers are also able to get some work done including two further computers with internet access.
Computer lab
The computer lab is the multi-medial heart of the MLS. It contains 25 computers with internet access. The teacher always has the opportunity to deny access to certain internet pages and can even "force" a planned content onto the pupils screens via "Mastereye Solution". Every teacher who uses the lab with a class has to enter some data into a little booklet showing when he or she was there, who was there, which class was there and then there is one column for further notes. So one is able to relate to the person or group who used the computer lab in case anything does not work somehow.
Servicing and obtaining multi-media
The MLS invested 50.000€ for this new equipment. Many teachers have to look after certain units in order to maintain their duty. The school has to restock their equipment every five years in order to keep up to date, but this is hardly fundable.