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258272

An investigation of the incorporation of

Information and Communication Technology
and thinking skills with Year 1 and 2 students
n
Marlene Walters
St Johns School, Thomastown East

Heather Fehring
RMIT University, Melbourne

It is often assumed that young children, commonly called digital natives, are
coming to school already computer literate, albeit through the use of electronic
games or the practice of text messaging. In this article it is argued that the use
of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) for classroom curriculum
purposes nevertheless needs to involve explicit teaching as well as experiential
learning. This paper reports an investigation into the enhancement of learning,
specifically thinking skills, through the utilisation of ICT with Year 1 and 2
students. The study was set within a context of inquiry curriculum practices, and
teaching and learning techniques incorporating the de Bono thinking strategies.
The research design incorporated case study and practitioner action research
approaches. The results of the study document four stages exhibited by the children
as they learned to use ICT within the classroom environment: Discovering and
Engaging; Demonstrating; Analysing; Synthesising. The implications for teachers
incorporating ICT in order to enhance students learning are illustrated through
teaching and learning activities relevant to each of these four stages.

Introduction

Learning through the integration of thinking processes with technology is

fundamental for curriculum planning in schools (Department of Education
and Early Childhood Development (Victoria), 2007). Much of the current
interest in teaching thinking skills has been prompted by technological
changes in the nature of work and the implications of these changes for
student learning. In the information economies of the twenty-first century, the
emphasis is on the acquisition of
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transferable thinking skills rather than content knowledge or task-specific skills.

They [students] particularly require an ability to learn how to learn new things
since accelerating technological change is making old skills (and knowledge)
redundant and generating needs for new skills (and knowledge). (Wegerif, 2002,
p.3)

Active learning

Basic human learning can occur in a variety of ways such as by rote, mimicry,
the unquestioning acceptance of facts and the experimental and experiential
exploration of different environments but learning has the capacity to
be a far richer experience, with consequences that are more complex. One
can learn in a potentially transformative way that endows our experiences
with meaning and which empowers us to perceive differently, to value and
appreciate differently and to adapt and create new ways of behaving. Atken
(1999) asks the critical question, What is the nature and value of learning?,
and this question needs to be addressed when researching education for
learning.
Learning should not be about passive reception of information but
about active participation in the process of meaning-construction. Learners
do not just take in and store up given information. They make tentative
interpretations of experience and go on to elaborate and test interpretations
(Perkins, 1992, p.49). Active learning entails student interaction, connections
among schools, collaboration between teachers and students, the involvement
of teachers as facilitators, and an emphasis on technology as a tool for learning.
Incorporating teaching and learning strategies with ICT capabilities in order
to enhance thinking skills becomes the real challenge for schools.
Many educationalists strive to support the development of students as
active, independent and reflective learners by providing a wide range of
teaching strategies and learning opportunities to enhance thinking skills. In
the past this has not necessarily occurred. If learning, in a formal setting, is

Walters & Fehring Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, Vol. 32, No. 3, 2009, pp. 258272

This paper reports on one aspect of a larger study investigating the effects of
integrating Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into childrens
thinking and learning processes. It describes an inquiry-based approach to
learning (Murdoch, 2004), the introduction of ICT skills and thinking processes
(de Bono, 1992) in a Catholic primary classroom in metropolitan Melbourne.
The research design incorporated case study (Stake, 1995, 2000) and practitioner
action research (Cherry, 1998; Kemmis & McTaggart, 1990, 2004) approaches.
The results of this study document four observable stages exhibited by the
children as they learned to use ICT within the classroom environment. The
stages identified are: Discovering and Engaging; Demonstrating; Analysing;
and Synthesising. The implications for teachers incorporating ICT in order
to enhance students learning are illustrated through teaching and learning
activities relevant to each of these four stages of students experiential learning.
In the following sections of this paper, active learning is first defined, followed
by a discussion of ICT in the classroom. The current investigation is then
described in terms of theoretical background, research cycle findings, and
implications. The paper concludes with a comment on the childrens learning
experiences within this study, and recommendations for further research.

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more concerned with the acquisition of content knowledge about the world,
than question such as how and why, then students independent thinking
skills may not be enhanced. What is most important in the learning process
is thinking about knowledge and experience, and constructing personal
meaning; successful learners make intellectual connections, experiencing
the world in terms of meaningful patterns and organised wholes (Rogers,
1994). Feeling and emotion are integral parts of the learning process. Human
learning involves constructing and reconstructing meaning, and while
foundational knowledge is needed in order to continue learning, the challenge
for educators has become to discern essential facts from procedures and skills
necessary to further learning and thinking.
The integration of ICT supports students as they learn through a process
of inquiry. New perspectives and tools can enhance the quality of education,
and ICT has the potential to be integrated into meaningful and purposeful
activities and learning for the classroom (Jones, Valdez, Nowakowski &
Rasmussen, 1995). Indeed, ICT in an educational setting plays an invaluable
role in student learning, as Seymour Paperts findings suggest:
Imaginative progressive teachers who had computers in the classrooms and were
prepared to give students the time and support to learn often created wonderfully
fertile learning environments children can learn to use computers in a masterful
way; learning to use computers can change the way they learn everything else.
(Papert, 1993, cited in Casey, 2000, p.1776)

Much research has shown that the benefits of ICT go well beyond the
classroom (Casey, 2000, 2001; Shields & Behrman, 2000). A study conducted
by the U.S. Department of Education (1996) has revealed that when schools
provided students with home computers and modems so they could connect
to the schools networks, students increased the amount of time spent on
educational activities outside of school. Furthermore, students with home
computers spent less time watching television, enhanced their problem
solving and critical thinking skills, improved their writing and math skills,
and showed greater computer literacy.
During the past decade, Australian schools have been endeavouring to
keep abreast of rapid advances in ICT. As for example, in Victoria, schools
such as the Navigator schools (Department of Education & Training (Victoria),
1998) and LaTTiCE1 Learning and Teaching Technologies in Catholic
1 The LaTTiCE project supported school-based professional learning teams in the
effective integration of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in
the learning process. During 2001 & 2002 LaTTiCE schools were supported in the
development and implementation of Quality Teacher Programme (QTP) projects
which explored the use of ICT in the learning process. These projects informed the
professional development of teachers facilitated by staff of the Catholic Education
Office. It was a requirement of the LaTTiCE and Quality Teacher Programme that
LaTTiCE schools provide professional development to teachers in other Catholic

Technology in the classroom

Issues of learning and technology are more critical today than ever before. The
advances being made in technology continue to both increase and astonish
users. However, it is important to keep in mind that the real measure of the
effectiveness of technology-enhanced educational programs is the extent to
which they promote and support student learning. Early use of computers
and various forms of information technology had a focus on the technology
itself, or its use within narrow confines. Todays ICT impinges on all aspects
of daily life including school life. Electronic mail can incorporate text,
photographic images, video clips and sound. Chat rooms exist where people
from geographically diverse locations can communicate in real time for relatively little cost and with the possibility of visual interaction using webcams.
Users do not have to be in the same room or even the same country in order
to participate in a variety of interactive games. ICT allows virtually instantaneous communication and access to information across boundaries of space
and time with impressive quality. What this has led to is a change in teaching
and learning practices across the curriculum.
If teaching is a process of helping learners to construct and reconstruct
their own experiences, changing practice as a result of the incorporation of
ICT is essential. In the past, technology has been largely used in education to
learn from, but technologies are more effectively used as tools with which to
think and learn with, and to construct knowledge (Jonassen, Peck & Wilson,
1999). Researchers are positing ways of looking at learning that promote
engaged meaningful learning, involve challenging and real-life tasks, and the
use of technology as a tool for learning and collaboration. Engaged learners
are both responsible for and energised by their learning, both strategically
and collaboratively (Jones et al., 1995).
Schools. LaTTiCE Teams offered professional development in the effective
integration of ICT in the curriculum. Professional development was provided
through central CEO programmes, network meetings, negotiated school visits,
staff meetings, school closure days and workshops conducted at LaTTiCE schools.
(Catholic Education Office Website, 2004)

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Education (Catholic Education Office, 2004) schools were established in order

to fully utilise the latest developments in ICT. These schools have fostered
an approach to learning and teaching that enhances student access to ICT
and promotes independent thinking. Students are challenged with complex,
authentic tasks with an emphasis on multidisciplinary projects, cooperative
learning groups and flexible classroom curriculum scheduling. In this paper,
active learning is defined as the level of engagement displayed by the children
as they participated in the four stages of interactive learning identified:
Discovering and Engaging stage, Demonstrating stage, Analysing stage, and
Synthesising stage.

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Broadly, the development of thinking skills is enhanced by the application

of ICT in three ways: as tutor or teaching machine; as cognitive tool; as
facilitator of learning conversations (NESTA, 2002). Each of these aspects of ICT
is important to the development of thinking processes. ICT can engage learners
quite differently than a classroom teacher. As for example, ICT capabilities
can provide instantaneous and unambiguous feedback, and concept maps or
programming languages can be used for teaching transferable thinking skills
that may be enhanced by pair or group work. In addition, the articulation
and discussion of ideas may be facilitated within groups and even beyond
the classroom by such features as email, webcams, Intranet and Internet chat
rooms. This has been the case where students have been involved in designing
and implementing an Intranet that was used to facilitate discussion and foster
collaboration throughout the school community (St Vincent de Paul School
Strathmore, cited in Catholic Education Office, 2004).
Potentially, ICT allows students to work at their own pace, encouraging
initiative and independent learning. Jonassen (1994) describes technological
tools as intellectual partners and powerful catalysts in the process of
learning, scaffolding the processes of articulation and reflection which are the
foundations of knowledge construction.
Taking these challenges as the starting point the current study set out
to investigate how the incorporation of ICT into the curriculum of young
children can be enhanced by utilising thinking skills as a focus.

Underlying theory of the current study

In this study, the classroom teacher was the action researcher, or practitioner
researcher. The investigation involved a qualitative design (Denzin & Lincoln,
1994; Geertz, 1973; Guba & Lincoln, 1994), incorporating a Case Study approach
(Stake, 1978, 1980, 1988, 1994, 1995, 2000) and an Action Research methodology
(Cherry, 1998; Kemmis & McTaggart, 1982, 1988, 1990, 2004). These approaches
were chosen because of their appropriateness for a reflective, practising
teacher, who desired to carry out an investigation in the natural setting
of her own classroom. The classroom became the case about which it was
intended to draw insights. The cyclical process of action research planning,
implementing, monitoring, assessing and evaluating complemented the
educational process of the classroom. Data collection methods were similar
to those regularly used in classroom practice: journal keeping, observations,
reflective practices and artefact collection.
This paper reports of the use of de Bonos six thinking skills to identify
the childrens changing abilities to use ICT as a tool in the classroom. A
framework based on Murdochs inquiry approach (Murdoch 2004, 1999, 1998,
1997, 1992) guided the integrated curriculum direction. The work of Kemmiss
and McTaggart (2004) and Cherry (1998) on Action Research provided a
framework that guided not only the inquiry learning but also the Action

Action Research Process and Curriculum Inquiry Process

Table 1: Broad outline of ongoing Action Research and
Curriculum Inquiry processes
ATTENDING, NOTICING, DIAGNOSING, FOCUSING AND REFOCUSING
(Cherry, 1998)
TAKING ACTION (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992)
Identifying or defining a problem, an issue or opportunity. The research topic was An
investigation of adopting, adapting and integrating of ICT and incorporating the explicit
teaching of thinking skills across the curriculum.
ACTION PLANNING (Cherry, 1998)
TUNING IN (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992)
Developing a strategy for collecting data or solving a problem or implementing an idea:
beginning to identify questions/problems and finding ways to determine known/
unknown for future learning experiences
ACTION AND EXPERIENCE (Cherry, 1998)
SORTING OUT (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992)
Collecting, organising and classifying data or information
FINDING OUT/INVESTIGATING (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992)
Cyclical process; use of ongoing teacher observation; data gathering: in-depth
interviews; collection of artefacts; participant observation (reflective journal); embedded
in classroom culture; involvement of independent observer
Assessing and evaluating work samples; Implementing planned tasks; reviewing
and modifying process; planning next part of cycle; determining data collection and
selection of artefacts
GOING FURTHER (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992)
Problem solving; testing ideas; implementing action
OBSERVING, EVALUATING AND CONCLUDING (Cherry, 1998)
An independent observer had been an ongoing presence in the classroom during the
fourth term of the year, recording observations of planned, specific sessions in which
the participating students were engaged. As well as the observations recorded for each
session, a summary that revealed the independent observers insights and opinion as
to the overall picture presented was sought. The independent observer presented these
insights as an evaluation tool in the form of a grid under various headings related to the
goals and indicators of engaged learning (Jones et al., 1995, 1994).
DRAWING CONCLUSIONS (Murdoch, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1992
Studying the consequences of action/Specifying learnings /Making sense of experience:
Analysing data ; establishing themes; describing findings; making conclusions;
generating assumptions

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Research cycles. The Action Research component of the study took one year to
complete including both data collection and analysis.
The following table outlines the research process, identifying the stages
and cycles of the research and the underpinning studies that provided
the theoretical basis for each design decision. Figure 1, subsequent to
Table 1, provides an example of how the research cycle was planned and
implemented.

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ACT

P L AN

Use Averkey to
model how to
turn on machines
log on to network
access simple
programs
exit programs
shut down machines

shut down

Most students able to

do task independently
or with support
Further support for
small group needed
(Journal, Feb 2002)
RE F L E CT

2002)

Establish
routines for working
in the laboratory and
computer partners.
Include support of
parent helpers for
Model process
he lpers for

Model process

Use of checklist to
record which students
are able to follow
process.
Additional comments
noted if relevant.
O B S E RV E

Figure 1 sample of one stage of the ict curriculum inquiry cycle

Figure 1 illustrates one stage of the curriculum cycle, showing the process
utilised in the study. This figure highlights the very simple initial tuning-in
tasks that occurred to determine prior knowledge of these Year 1 and 2
children and to begin to paint a picture of the way in which to proceed. The
student participants were able to access the Internet with Internet Explorer,
and given access to Microsoft Office and other software such as: Baileys Book
House, Gizmos and Gadgets, Hyperstudio, Kid Pix and Sammys Snake House. In
the home-room, students had access to a small bank of networked machines
with a Macintosh operating system. Group instruction in the laboratory was
enabled through the use of an Averkey, a device that connects a computer to a
television monitor in order to provide a larger display.
A learning-centred teaching process was utilised for the explicit ICT
instruction. The teacher first modelled a new strategy and then talked through
what the strategy referred to, when it should be used, and how to go about
doing so. Following this, the teacher engaged in the task with the students
helping out. This lead to the students taking over the task using the strategy,
with the teacher helping and intervening as needed. The final outcome was
for the students to use the strategy independently (Wilhelm, Baker & Dube,
2001).
Alongside the initial introduction of simple ICT tasks with the gradual

I lend (learned) aboat (about) mass and gravity and

wolds (worlds) and galices (galaxies) and space and I
do work and think and lison (listen)
February 2002

Thinking and Learning Journal

Students response to a learning experience.

Figure 2: Classroom resources: Thinking and Learning Journal

Results

During the implementation of this research, patterns of behaviour displayed

by the participating students began to emerge. Graphic representation of the
iterative cycles, as presented earlier, serve to clearly indicate the engaged
learning tasks that were utilised in this process, and student responses to
those tasks illuminate phases or stages through which the participating
students progressed in their journey of discovery. These major and observable
changes were identified as stages of progress: Discovering and Engaging,
Demonstrating, Analysing, and Synthesising. Information and artefacts in
subsequent sections are illustrative of each successive phase.
Discovering and Engaging: students knew very little about articulating their
thinking or ICT, but were interested in both and began to participate and
engage in related activities. This stage involved lots of experimenting and

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inclusion of more challenging, increasingly complex tasks was the

implementation of a thinking skills programme. The implementation of de
Bonos (1992) Six Thinking Hats for Schools: Book 1 occurred as the explicit
teaching of ICT was taking place. Explicit teaching was concerned with
teaching relevant skills in thinking and ICT in conjunction with the continuous
use of correct and appropriate terminology. A thinking and learning journal
helped students express their thoughts and ideas. In addition, this journal
provided documentation of the learning processes occurring. Figure 2 is
excerpted from one students learning journal.

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experiential learning. All the participating students went through this stage
and beyond.
Computer Task: This task was part of the inquiry cycle Tuning In (Table 1 and
Figure 1). It involved students in experimenting with keyboarding skills.

Figure 3: Example showing learning activities for early ICT tasks and
building of skills
Demonstrating: students were beginning to use ICT in their daily routines, but
were still in the stage of trial and error and consolidating their understandings.
All the participating students went through this stage and beyond.
Computer Task: This task was part of the inquiry cycle Finding Out (Table 1
and Figure 1). It involved following directions accessing network and word
processing

Figure 4: Example showing responses from computer tasks

Analysing: students were using both their thinking skills and ICT
continuously. These had become intrinsic to their daily practices and were

Light
The sun is the main source of light. Light also
helps us to see.
Light is a form of energy, travels in straight lines
and can be reflected.
There are other sources of light like light bulbs,
torches, fluorescent light and flash lights.
One Indian story tells us that light came from
buffaloes. A group of buffaloes were running
down the dusty roads. Sparks came from the
ground from the buffaloes hooves and made fire.
They used the flames for light.

Final draft (undated).

Independent writing and
publishing
Participation in
Small-group
conferencing for
authorial content
Studentchild editing
conference

Figure 5: Example displaying a computer-generated published report

Synthesising: students had established skills and were using them to explore
and go further. The students used the computers in a variety of ways in
order to build computer skills: logging on to the network and the Internet
with usernames and passwords; accessing online information and games;
printing, saving and bookmarking web sites for subsequent recall. Students
could create new Word documents, insert pictures, save, print, retrieve and
simultaneously have fun! They displayed the ability to open a document,
move the cursor to the appropriate section, key in information, save and print.
Most of the participating students were operating comfortably within this
stage by the end of the school year.

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used as a matter of course. Most of the participating students were working

within this stage towards the end of the school year.

Findings

The students involved in this study moved through stages in their learning
that clearly indicate that they did in fact adopt, adapt and integrate ICT and
thinking skills into their learning and daily practices. Student moved through
the Discovering and Engaging stage, Demonstrating stage and Analysing stage
over the course of the year. Several students were clearly displaying attributes
of the Synthesising stage as others were beginning to operate within that
stage. The major findings of this study were interpreted as being embedded
in engaged learning practices and progressing through key stages in an ICT/
thinking learning process, as represented diagrammatically in Figure 6.
The term engaged learning and its features, as outlined by Jones et al.
(1995), best encapsulate what occurred in the research classroom, represented

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Figure 6: Diagrammatical representation of engaged learning

and key stages of process
by data and artefacts together with an atmosphere a learning ambience, a
positive learning environment in which students worked collaboratively,
actively and independently on authentic, meaningful learning activities
and inquiries. The features of this learning environment are represented
diagrammatically in Figure 7. From our study it may be surmised that the
environment in which learning occurs is as important to its success as the
explicit teaching of ICT and thinking skills.
Extrinsic factors can have significant impact on a research project. Aspects
that impacted on the implementation of this study, particularly in the area of
ICT, were those of reliable computer hardware and infrastructure. A great
deal of time needed to be devoted to ensuring that the technology was ready
for student access on a daily basis, and this is an area that has considerable
implications for the implementation of ICT in the classroom.

Discussion
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The students use of technology across all curriculum areas increased over the
year. In the early stage of discovering and engaging, the students often used
technology as something they went to after they had completed set tasks,
rather than as part of completing that set task. They had limited knowledge of
computer programs and the possibilities that computers offered, so they relied
on simple published software for access. This was an important aspect to

Constructive

Intentional

Collaborative

Conversational

Complex

Contextualised Reflective
Figure 7: Parameters of meaningful learning: guidelines for designing
constructivist learning environments (Jonassen, 2005)
discovering and engaging as these published programs offered development
of the simple skills opening and accessing documents, mouse and keyboard
skills, saving and exiting programs necessary for general computer usage.
These programs were visually engaging and provided success for learners in
that early stage by consolidating learning from the language arts and helping
build confidence. However, it was important for student learning and for the
purposes of this study that the students were moved on from this view of
computer usage and became aware of the more advanced levels of technology
use that was both desirable and clearly possible.
The students ability to incorporate thinking skills as part of their daily ICT
practice indicates that students have the capacity to develop thinking skills as
well as learn specific content; and that these skills may in fact be central to
cognition and learning (Black and McClintock cited in Nanjappa & Grant,
2003). The current study explored this connection through the explicit teaching
of thinking skills within the context of the regular class programme.
Students in the current study learned about, used thinking skills, and
became reflective about their own learning. They articulated ways in which
explicit thinking skills assisted them in their learning, and independently
transferred these skills to new situations they learned how to be learners;
they learned how to be thinkers; and become active participants not passive
recipients in their own learning journey. Give a man a fish; you have fed him
for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.

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Active/
Manipulative

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Implications and conclusion

The current research demonstrates how the integration of ICT, explicit

teaching of thinking skills and inquiry-based practice can facilitate student
learning across the curriculum. The study supports the work of researchers
conducting studies in the constructivist paradigm who consider that thinking
skills, learning and technology are closely related and should be further
developed (Wegerif, 2002; Swain & Pearson, 2001; Jonassen, 1994). The four
stages identified in the current study have implications for structuring the
learning and teaching environments of classrooms responding to curriculum
and technological imperatives for future schooling.
In this article, we have discussed how learning developed through the
explicit teaching of thinking skills in conjunction with the focused teaching
of ICT in a Year 1/2 classroom. The young learners in this study developed
transferable skills and became active and engaged learners who were able to
utilise skills and knowledge in both familiar and new situations. However,
this study also points to the need for ongoing research to document the impact
of ICT on childrens learning and curriculum design so schools can continue
to adapt to the ever-demanding requirements of technological change.
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