The Story Behind the Dolphin System

The idea for the Dolphin System of computer training germinated at Dolphin School in the spring of 1997. Children were enthusiastic about using computers, but the resources were under-utilised.

The culture of the school was one where children were given as much freedom as possible and were encouraged to develop a responsible attitude to the use of equipment. It would make sense, therefore, to allow the children to use the computers during break times. But would the children be responsible enough to use the machines with only minimal supervision?

The solution was to invent a computer licence, which, like a driving licence, would qualify children to use the computers unsupervised during break times. And so the award in Independent Computer Operation was born - a simple series of skills which, once mastered, ensured that the child knew how to switch the machine on and off correctly and trouble shoot common errors.

The next challenge was to find a way of training the children and assessing their expertise. It was clearly unrealistic for teachers to train and assess every child individually. But perhaps some of the more responsible pupils could take on this role?

Children were already naturally assisting each other when using the computers. Perhaps this process could be formalised and the expertise of the more computer literate children harnessed in training others?

A test was devised in question and answer format and written up on the computers in the form of a simple web page. Children began to train each other, and before long a system of bronze, silver and gold awards had been created, indicating how much a pupil knew, or whether he or she was competent to train or assess other pupils.

Other awards quickly followed. A printing award was devised, to ensure that children knew how to get exactly what they wanted from the printer rather than finishing up with fifteen copies of their work when the printer was off line!

Other modules were put together to assess the pupils' competence in desk- top publishing and graph making skills.

Over the course of the next two years the Dolphin System, as it became known, was developed into a comprehensive ICT skills training programme. New modules were added and combined to form the Ladder of Success, a step by step progression of activities which would ensure that children gained all the necessary skills to become thoroughly competent independent computer users. After school courses were run for pupils from Dolphin School and other schools, where each new module was thoroughly tried out, modified and then tested again. Finally, the system was incorporated into classroom teaching.

Every part of the Dolphin System as it stands today has been thoroughly tried and tested in real classroom situations. Other primary schools have worked with the materials and given suggestions. Children using the scheme have made their own suggestions for improvements and modifications. What has resulted is a flexible yet powerful method of ICT skills training, which, we believe, can be adapted and used, in some form, in virtually any school with any level of computer resourcing.


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