Programming with ActionScript in Yr 10 Kevork Krozian, Forest Hill College k.krozian@fhc.vic.edu.au

1. Programming with ActionScript in Yr 10 Kevork Krozian, Forest Hill College k.krozian@fhc.vic.edu.au

2. Session Objectives • To share the experience of a new approach to teaching Programming in Year 10 • To discuss student successes, responses and reactions • To share and support others venturing into this area • Any other ideas

3. What did students do previously? • Students did VB.NET and VB6 prior to that for many years • Subject was very rigid, mathematical, highly structured, incremental with regular testing, hugging the VB texts in the market. Eg. A form to calculate the pizza order based on toppings, the volume of a sphere, temperature conversion C to F etc • Heavy documentation, problem definition, algorithmic representation with NS diagrams before a line of code could be written, strict adherence to achieving a quota of exercises • Final project requirement and student presentation to class was required

4. Why the departure from this setting ? • Students were 50-50 internationals to locals. • Internationals had little English so heavy documentation was not going to work • A desire to move away from the documentation regardless • A more web friendly, multimedia focused environment was sought • A high level of artistic and spatial skill set was a strength with Flash and ActionScript in addition to writing code • The old VET Cert III Multimedia course was the starting point for ideas, tasks and activities

5. Delivery Structure MyFHC Intranet Course Outline – Task list Journal kept recording learning experience, reflection, discoveries, problems etc Assessment based on total number of tasks completed and level of departure from the script as well as independent learning Reporting – rubrics descriptors transfer to report and VELS level

6. Why the change ? Focus on the Thinking Curriculum • Learning centred vs teacher ( teaching ) centred • Process driven vs content driven • Students setting own questions vs students answering only others questions • Shared experiences and learning vs private thought processes • Developing independent, critical, creative and caring learners • More ‘just in time’ vs ‘just in case’ learning • Mistakes to be learned from vs mistakes to be avoided or feared • Teacher fellow learner/collaborator vs expert Focus on the ‘constructionists’ model – students learn by creating • more meaningful and transferable learning will result when students are given opportunities to construct knowledge from their own point of view • Different options for selecting project topics • Training students • Collecting information • Scaffolding process • Organising • Evaluation • Assessment

7. Why and what change ? Teaching to, and awareness of, multiple intelligences • Linguistic intelligence • Logical-mathematical intelligence • Musical intelligence • Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence • Spatial intelligence • Interpersonal intelligence • Intrapersonal intelligence Enhancing application of learning beyond classroom • College web site to feature a splash screen in Flash/actionscript to be maintained through student work • Exemplary tasks to also feature on a “Current student work” section of College web site

8. Current Year 10 Programming Elective – 1 semester only 3 x (72min) periods per week

9. Task samples

10. Programming in Actionscriptwhere to now ? • To imagine the possibilities, to excite the staff and students • To join the journey of discovery and share the rewards of achievement and learning • I will be working on an improved package of ActionScript tasks for 2009 or 2010 • Invitation to join and participate on mailing lists • Specific Junior IT list has colleagues and resources for sharing. • Many ideas in this presentation came from this and related lists • http://www.edulists.com.au