Making it easier for staff and pupils

There are a number of things you can do to make using the computer in the classroom easier for yourself, classroom assistants and pupils. The aim should be to use the technology, not to spend all your time setting things up each day!

Software settings and files

The purpose of ICT in the class is not to teach children how to navigate around the ‘Start’ menu in Windows, or the Finder on a Mac – unless the subject being taught is Technology. Fiddling around with files and folders just increases confusion and wastes time that could be used productively. Instead, ICT in most classroom situations is there to enhance learning, and encourage and enable children to create. Therefore, it is important to set up the computer so that staff and pupils can easily find the programs they need, and the files and documents they are working on. The aim should be to minimize the time to start the machine and get going.

Desktop short cuts and folders

Computer desktops tend to accumulate a lot of folders, short cuts and other bits and pieces. These can be confusing and distracting, so the desktop should be tidied regularly leaving only those files required by the pupil. The desktop ‘background’ itself should be clear and of high contrast so that icons can be easily seen – no tartan backdrops or multicoloured teddy bears!

An effective way of organizing the desktop is to create shortcuts (Windows) and aliases (Mac) on the desktop for only those applications which the pupils will be using – clear the desktop of any other distractions. Or, if the class is small enough, create a folder for each pupil, containing a shortcut or alias for the applications, together with the pupil’s own files.

If the pupil has particular settings or files – such as word predictor lexicons – then these should be stored in the pupil’s folder as well.

See Appendices 1 and 2 for more information on how to organize the Mac and Windows desktops.

Templates and stationery files

Another useful technique is to create a ‘template’ or ‘stationery file’ which has the pupil’s preferred settings (for example, font, size, background and foreground colour, plus a header with the pupil’s name, class and date). Then to start work, the pupil just has to open his or her folder and click on the application, file or template to get going.

You can create different templates for different tasks – in effect as blank ‘on-screen worksheets’ ready to be completed on screen. The templates shown here are small, self-contained tasks which can be completed on the computer, or printed out and completed using a pencil. These activities do take time to prepare, but like paper worksheets, once they are done, they can be used again and again. Their main advantage over ready-made programs, where the content is fixed, is that the teacher can create activities that suit the pupils’ skills and curriculum level, and the current class topics.

All three templates were created in ClarisWorks – the standard word processor / desktop publishing program available for Macintosh and also Windows – but many other programs such as TextEase would also be suitable.

In this first activity, the pupil has to click on a blue circle and drag it to all the objects that begin with a ‘b’. It was created using various bits of clip art from different programs.
The Oxford Reading Tree activity involves dragging items to make a picture, and then writing a short piece with support from the key words. The Oxford Reading Tree clip art is published by Sherston Software, and available from many suppliers.
The maths activity is a simple counting task where the pupil has fill in the correct number in the box. The clip art was supplied with the Clicker program.

Display, desktop and application appearance

The overall appearance of the desktop and programs on the computer can be adjusted to suit pupils with special educational needs, or simply to make the computer more attractive.

• Screen display
  Most computers can use different resolutions for the display. The most common resolutions for school computers with 14” or 15” monitors, are either 640 × 480 pixels, or 800 × 600 pixels. ‘Pixels’ are the dots that make up the monitor display, so with more pixels you can display more pictures and text on screen, but what you see is smaller. Young children, those with a visual impairment or pupils with learning difficulties may prefer a larger, simpler display setting such as 640 × 480. The screen settings are adjusted within the Display (Windows) and Monitors and Sound (Mac) Control Panels.
• Appearance
  The overall desktop patterns and colours can be adjusted to suit individual preferences and the font and size used for icons, menu titles and other text can also be changed. Windows has a selection of high contrast settings that enlarge the menu bar and window titles, and set them to white on black, or another scheme with high contrast. The size of the icons on both Macintosh and Windows computers can be either small or large. Again, these options are available in the Display and Monitors and Sound Control Panels.
• Toolbars
  With many programs (e.g. TextEase, ClarisWorks and Microsoft Word), the toolbar at the top of the screen can be simplified or customized. This is particularly important for ClarisWorks and Word, which have many options. By customizing the toolbars, only those options that are actually needed are displayed. It is also possible to increase the size of the tool buttons to make them easier to see and click on with the mouse.

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