Children as explorers

In the third chapter of the last section we encountered a number of theories that emphasised the importance of giving children autonomy in relation to the learning process. It was suggested that one of the ways in which this could be expressed was to try and move from a form of teaching that ‘fed’ information to children to one in which children ‘fished’ for it in more active and independent ways. Within this context we encounter the principle that learning to ask appropriate questions and to develop methods and strategies of enquiry was of equal importance to ‘learning’ knowledge in a mechanistic sense. We now turn to the notion of children as ‘explorers’. In particular, we use this

chapter to consider the role of Web 2.0 tools in order to help children to engage with the wider world. The child’s world should no longer be limited by the physical confines of the classroom walls. Children should now be using technology to look beyond their immediate vicinity in order to learn from a more diverse array of experiences. Technology should be used to help learners access virtual territory so that they interact with the community outside school, become aware of national and international issues and engage with the broader themes of globalisation. Indeed, the role of the internet in encouraging this type of learning cannot be underestimated. Here, the links with the global aspects of the citizenship agenda need to be acknowledged and the teacher needs to be able to realise the opportunity Web 2.0 gives for children to achieve some of the themes associated with this subject. Interestingly, features typically related to citizenship education share commonalities

with Web 2.0 technologies. For instance, Claire and Woolley (2007) define the characteristics of citizenship education. Amongst others, the concepts and skills named include critical thinking, participation, enquiry and investigation, empowerment and having a voice that is heard. These are all areas of learning we have discussed in relation to the new technologies that feature in this text. These authors go on to note that effective, creative citizenship teaching is composed of:

mirrors and windows and roots and wings. Mirrors are needed to reflect our world, and windows opening out to wider horizons and possibilities; roots so that we know who we are and feel strongly connected, and wings so that we can fly, fantasise, hope and dream.