71 Test practice: Scripting labs for children (Transcript and key) Ladies and gentlemen, It is a great pleasure for me to be here and to be able to present our new project to you as our potential supporters. The project which I would like to talk to you about is a scripting lab for our children. Over the last two or three decades, programming has become a major skill, especially for the upcoming generations as they will have to deal with computers or similar devices in all walks of life. In addition, artificial intelligence will take over many of our tasks, so that we are free to do other, more complex things. These aspects will shape your future lives. But you may ask: Why so early? The reason is simply that research has shown that young kids aged between maybe six and ten are easily able to learn a simple programming language to do equally simple tasks. Instead of playing on a computer or a tablet they can perform real-life tasks, can think of strategies to solve straightforward problems, learn how to cooperate with their friends to create the code that is necessary for such applications. Apart from their computer skills, these kids will also learn social skills like teamwork or how to give feedback. Up to now using computers in the classroom has often had a bad reputation as many people think that teaching and learning cannot take place properly with machine-based activities. From the small-scale pilot projects, which we organised last year, we can say that quite the opposite is the case: If IT tasks are set up properly, they will lead to more social interaction and improve communication skills among participants – provided they are allowed to cooperate to accomplish a task. So what are the issues we have to address when we embark on such a project? The technical aspect is the most obvious one. Programming can only be successfully done if you have access to a tablet or any other device to write the code and try it out immediately. In our case that means that we would need around 35 tablet or laptop computers, preferably tablets as they are not as heavy as laptops and they are also very popular among our pupils. But there is more to it than just devices which you can buy in a shop. We need teachers who are properly trained in digital learning and especially programming. Only if children accept their teachers as their mentors and also as people who know how to do the things they are asked to do, they will follow their example. We would suggest that we train our teachers first by sending them to IT courses and to encourage them to acquire the skills that are needed to do the job. Yes, I agree that is costly but at the same time we are sure that this is the right way forward. The young generation is demanding that we deliver … (fade out) 0: c, 1: a, 2: d, 3: c, 4: b, 5: b, 6: d, 7: c Test practice: Student representatives (Transcript and key) Well, what are my experiences as a student representative? OK, where shall I start? Student representatives play an important role at school because they mediate between the students and the school authorities, the teachers and the head. Their task is to improve the cooperation between these groups and to voice the concerns, the needs and the opinions of students. That’s why communication skills are all-important. In the end it’s often the case that the right form of communication is essential to bring about a solution to a problem and to make students’ voices heard. Now what sounds like a laid-back job is quite demanding in many ways, I’m afraid. First, it’s quite time-consuming to attend meetings with fellow students and staff, time which would be needed to do your course work. Actually, the problems you have to deal with are often complicated and – and that means that you keep thinking about a solution when really you should be doing other things for school. Now, ultimately all this might have a negative effect on your grades if you’re not careful, and that’s where clever time management comes in. When you are negotiating with the school authorities but also with the student community, you need to be very clever in order not to cause more problems than you already have. After all your job is to work for your peers, the students that you represent, and to reach compromises with the school authorities. Erm ... the issues you have to deal with are mostly academic challenges, campus safety concerns or resource shortages. Now this can be done best if you cooperate with other student representatives from other sections of the school, and that’s the real challenge, I suppose. There’s no doubt that one of the really rewarding aspects of being a student rep is that you can make suggestions how to improve life at school, that you can initiate projects and contribute to social life at school and beyond. Teachers are sometimes very glad if students get involved and – and show some active interest in what’s happening at school. And, in general, students who participate in social activities are usually easier to handle for teachers and common projects create a kind of team spirit that helps 3 + 22 4 + 23 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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