What were the criteria that you used to select these papers?

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Current Epidemiological Studies: Critical Review

For your dropbox assignment, using the South University Online Library or the Internet, research and select three current epidemiological studies regarding risk factors that are associated with any health problem. You can also use the following websites to search for studies as they are often used as the major sources of information for health research and often report on the most current health problems affecting the United States and global populations:

  • U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • World Health Organization

Based on your research, create a report in a 3- to 4-page Microsoft Word document addressing the following questions:

  • What were the criteria that you used to select these papers? (For example, only English language, peer reviewed articles, only a specific age group, only United States studies, etc.)
  • What were the types of risk factors studied in your chosen articles? (For example, environmental, socio-economic, behavioral, etc.)
  • Which study design was used for this study? Why do you think the researchers chose this specific study design? Provide examples from your research.
  • What are the proximate or underlying determinants of risk factors that are associated with any health problem for each study?

Answer the questions posted below in the Template for Assessment of Causality for Reviewing Epidemiological Studies, for each study. You should number each study, list the title, and state each question in the format it appears in the template.

Digital technologies knowledge

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What does Digital Technology look like in the classroom?

So what does teaching Digital Technology look like in a primary school classroom?

Let’s examine the accompanying table showing a small cross section of content descriptions and elaboration examples. While the table below doesn’t include all the content descriptions and elaborations within Digital Technology, hopefully, it will help you to develop a practical image of the type of activities for primary students appropriate to each year levels from F-6.

Scope and Sequence

To further help you understand what teaching Digital Technology looks like at a primary school level, have a look at the Australian Curriculum: Digital Technology Scope and Sequence Chart (ACARA, 2014).

Alternatively do a wider exploration of the overview and curriculum (ACARA, 2014).

As you explore take note of:

  • the three band structure F-2, 3-4, 5-6
  • the content structure
  • digital solutions
  • how the concept of preferable futures is embedded within this learning area.

Years F-2

Digital technologies knowledge

Content Description
Recognise and explore patterns in data and represent data as pictures, symbols and diagrams.

Elaborations
sorting objects and events based on easily identified characteristics and using digital systems to represent patterns in data, for example sorting birthdates and presenting the patterns using seasonal symbols.

Digital Technologies Processes and Production Skills

Content Description
Work with others to create and organise ideas and information using information systems, and share these with known people in safe online environments.

Elaborations
using different types of data to create information for sharing online, for example creating a multimedia class profile that includes a photo of each student, a personal audio recording and a written message.

Years 3-4

Years 5-6

AC: Digital Technology (ACARA, 2014)

Learning about the impact of Digital Technology

Teaching students about Digital citizenship

For the last part of this week, we will focus on teaching safe digital practices.

Fostering an awareness of the responsible use of Digital Technology is an important part of teaching Digital Technology to young learners. This goes beyond guiding your students on how to use safe practices online, and involves you helping them to develop a deeper understanding of what is termed Digital citizenship.

The norms of appropriate, responsible behaviour with regard to the use of digital technologies. This involves using digital technologies effectively and not misusing them to disadvantage others.

Digital citizenship includes appropriate online etiquette, literacy in how digital technologies work and how to use them, an understanding of ethics and related law, knowing how to stay safe online, and advice on related health and safety issues. (ACARA, 2014).

Digital Safety

Developing a sense of digital safety is about helping your students to understand that their actions have wider consequences.

In particular two key considerations are that students should have are:

  • Awareness of passwords and how someone else may misuse them.
  • Awareness of how online material may affect others.

Explore the following website developed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (2014) cyber(smart:) which includes resources and support for cyber safety and digital citizenship.

This Northern Territory Department of Education (2011) webpage Acceptable computer & internet usage agreement for students will further help you get an overview of the safe digital practices.

So what are the key features of Digital Technology?

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How do you teach Digital Technology a primary school level?

As students progress through primary school, they incrementally develop their Digital Technology knowledge and skills across three year level bands: F-2, years 3-4, and years 5-6.

Teaching Digital Technology at a primary school level is mostly integrated with other subject areas so that the skills and knowledge in this subject are developed in conjunction with other learning areas.

However, it is important you understand the distinctive knowledge and skills that are important to Digital Technology, as this will enable you to draw out important learning concepts particular to the subject that will be progressively built on over the course of their school life.

Problem solving is a key skill highlighted within Digital Technologies in the Australian Curriculum (2014), with an emphasis on designing, implementing and evaluating digital solutions. Students are taught to create and share information using Digital Technology to support their learning investigations.

As a useful overview, watch this short introductory video on Digital Technologies in the Australian Curriculum (ACARA, 2014).

Consider some of the following questions as you watch:
  • Why do we need to ‘future proof’ the curriculum?
  • Why are some attitudinal dispositions seen as important in learning Digital Technology skills?
  • Why is it important to give student multiple opportunities to experience the subject?

Digital Technologies: An introduction (2014)
<http://bit.ly/1qXTHKD>

So what are the key features of Digital Technology?

According to ACARA (2014), in studying Digital Technologies students use computational thinking and information systems to design and implement digital solutions. To illustrate what this might look like at primary school level, one example activity is for year 2 students to create a multimedia class profile that includes a photo of each student, a personal audio recording and a written message. This activity develops an awareness of digital systems through the use of hardware such as a digital camera, as well as using basic computational thinking to plan, organise and systematically arrange various forms of data on each student.

The broad aim of Digital Technology is for students to:

  • Design and manage innovative digital solutions
  • Use computational thinking and data collection to create digital solutions
  • Confidently use digital systems to transform data into information
  • Use protocols safely and ethically
  • Develop their awareness of systems thinking and how information system impact on society (ACARA, 2014).

How is the curriculum organised?

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How is the curriculum organised?

Let’s have a basic look at some of the important organizing elements of the AC: Design and Technology subject. Like many other Australian curriculum subjects, Design and Technology comprises of two interrelated strands. These are: Design and Technologies Knowledge and Understanding and Design and Technology Process and Production Skills. The accompanying table should help to develop your understanding of how they are related within the curriculum.

Take some time to explore the curriculum page yourself. However, as we have stated before, at the time this unit was written the technology subjects in the Australian Curriculum were in the final stage of being officially endorsed.

Knowledge and Understanding Processes and Production Skills
Technologies and society

  • the use, development and impact of technologies in people’s lives

Technologies contexts

  • technologies and design across a range of technologies contexts.
 Creating designed solutions by:

  • investigating
  • generating
  • producing
  • evaluating
  • collaborating and managing.
Curriculum organisation (Australian Curriculum Design & Technologies n.d.)
<http://bit.ly/1vQlShP>

Learning in Design and Technologies

In studying Design and Technology younger learners develop an awareness of the systematic process involved in the creation of products:

“Students learn about technologies and society through different technologies contexts (knowledge and understanding) as they create designed solutions (processes and production skills)” (ACARA, 2014).

It is important that students have and opportunity to engage in the design process:

“In Design and Technologies students are actively engaged in the processes of creating designed solutions for personal, domestic, commercial and global settings for sustainable and preferred futures” (ACARA, 2014).

There are two important components to teaching Design and Technology. These are Project Management and Design Thinking.

Project management

Project management develops student understanding of how to manage projects through to completion, this involves learning how to plan, organize, and monitor activities. Project management also includes considering constraints, assessing risks, and developing an understanding of the wider impact of the design solutions.

Design Thinking

Explaining the design process

Let’s spend some time exploring design thinking. This is the systematic approach to design that sequentially works through a process to arrive at a solution to an existing problem. To help you teach Design and Technology it is a good idea to have a strong understanding of the design process. The key point we hope you have gained from the introductory video is that when we talk about design, we are talking about an active and sequential practice. Watch Jonathan Ive in the video Design – Apple Mac (Sambaza2, 2011), Apple’s head industrial Designer who created the iPod, iMac, and iPhone, describe the design process.

Design – Apple Mac (2011) 
<http://bit.ly/1wlora9>

Let’s try and summarise the design process and its different component parts. The accompanying model sums up the design process into three stages. While more complex models exist, this conception of the design process will help you to teach design thinking to younger learners. The conceptual process of designing is succinctly summed up in this 3-stage model: