The sequence of lessons outlined on the website above were designed with the explicit aim of aiding students with their creative writing skills. The EN3-7C outcome states that students should be able to think creatively and imaginatively about texts and in turn develop the ability to create their own works (Board of Studies NSW, 2012). The three lessons have strong links to this outcome with a clear focus on the creation of characters and the structure of a narrative. By stage 3 students should be able to create increasingly complex pieces of work and the lessons outlined provide a new medium in which they can accomplish this aim.

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The three lessons seek to give the students the opportunity to be creative in their English work. As Beghetto and Kaufman (2013) state, creativity involves a combination of both originality and task appropriateness in order to function effectively. The three lessons have been designed in such a way that they are clearly scaffolded for student use but also offer the students the opportunity to create something original. Beghetto and Kaufman (2013) also believe that for creativity to operate successfully the student must operate within guidelines but still have an original idea. In the lessons the students are told how to complete the task but are given free rein in what they want to create to fulfil the aim. Though there are examples included in the lessons, these are there mainly to offer assistance to any students who might need some help. The lessons were designed to give the students creative freedom but still ensure they meet the outcome is being met.

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Augmented reality has been utilised to help aid in the teaching of creative writing due to its engaging nature. As Lu and Liu (2015) found, augmented reality has been shown to increase the student’s levels of engagement and cognition when undertaking a task. To aid in the engagement of the lessons, the first lesson’s main role is to simply allow the student the opportunity to engage with the technology. This should hopefully draw the student’s interest which will give them an incentive to complete the other two lessons. It is due to the high levels of interactivity afforded by augmented reality which should help maintain the student’s interest. Squire and Klopfer (2007) state that the reason why augmented reality is such a valuable learning tool is due to the high levels of active learning which takes place. By providing lessons in which the student is continually interacting with the technology the student should remain engaged and complete the lesson cycle.

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In terms of assessment, the lessons do not seek to assess the student’s creativity but instead focuses on the English outcome which underpins each lesson. An example of this would be the ‘quick question’ at the end of lesson 2 which is asking the student to think about the importance of personality in character. This will enable the student to reflect on their learning and promote discussion in the classroom. However the main assessment would come from the completion of the tasks themselves. By analysing the student’s final product a teacher or parent will be able to see whether the child has fully understood the goal of the lesson. For example in the final lesson, a parent will be able to see whether the student fully understands the structure of a narrative through how they have planned and designed the storybook. The student’s creative ideas are not assessed just the English outcome that underpins the lesson.

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References

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Beghetto, R. A., & Kaufman, J. C. (2013). Fundamental of creativity.  Educational Leadership, 70(5), 10-15.

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Board of Studies NSW. (2012). NSW syllabus for the Australian Curriculum; English K-10 Syllabus. Sydney: Board of Studies NSW.

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Lu, S., & Liu, Y. (2014) Integrating augmented reality technology to enhance children’s learning in marine education. Environmental Education Research, 21(4), 525-541.

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Squire, K., & Klopfer, E. (2007). Augmented reality simulations on handheld computers. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 16(3), 371-413.