Give it a Real-life Context

Recently my family and I moved back to Australia and one of our first tasks was to buy a car, a process that made me realise the usefulness of mobile technology and the importance of having well honed research and critical literacy skills.

I was amazed at how car sellers, private, dealers, and auctions, have embraced technology and enabled prospective buyers to do most of the leg work from the comfort of their home - I could even register for the auctions online and do the bidding from my computer or phone.  Doing the research enabled me to walk into buying situations armed with knowledge and information (and confidence) that leveled the playing field.

Over a 10 day period I was amazed by how much my knowledge of the car market grew.  I was also amazed by how refined my research skills became and by how much more proficient I became at using the available technologies to meet my needs.  Throughout this process it became very apparent that real-life problems (tasks) generate authentic and real-life learning.  I kept thinking what a great project this would be for grade 11 or 12 students; give them a virtual budget and have them do the research to virtually buy a car, something that would be relevant and meaningful to them. This could then be accompanied by a justification for their choice that highlights the reasons for their decision based on their research along with a reflection of what worked and what they would do differently next time.

Tools that I used:

• A number of different sites to find cars for sale and view images
• Forums and review sites to gain information on particular vehicles
• Google maps to locate auction sites and addresses for private sellers
• Email to communicate with sellers

Tools that I would use when doing this again:

• A smart phone would be invaluable for accessing information when at the auction site or at a private sellers home
• Twitter would be valuable for gaining feedback on particular models and makes of cars
• Google docs to collate and share information on vehicles of interest
• Diigo to share links to vehicles with my wife

Providing students with real-life problems that require real-life skills generates authentic interest and engagement in the learning.  Assessment tasks placed in a real-life context provide opportunities for a wide range of knowledge and skill application and the utilization of technology to consolidate and transfer understanding.