Blog 3

BLOG 3:
MAKING CONNECTION BETWEEN YOUR ESE AND THE MASTERPLANS FOR ICT
IN EDUCATION

Describe which achievement(s) of the three

masterplans for ICT in education are evident in the

school/classes that you are attached to for your ESE. You

may want to refer to your blog post about your ESE.

In New Town Secondary school, teachers set assignments and practices for students that require them to record themselves reading aloud using Podcasts. It allows for peer evaluation and teachers are able to provide feedback easily to their students. This would help to improve the students’ oral and presentation skills. Hence, the use of Podcasts is specifically tailored to meet the students’ learning needs, that is, to polish up his communication skills. The teacher has a clear agenda on the desired outcome that would be achieved with the use of a particular ICT tool. This is in line with MOE’s Masterplan 3, which states that “teachers need to still base effective outcomes on sound pedagogical principles when they use ICT tools to bring out a learning point”.

The Masterplan also emphasises on the need to move beyond the use of powerpoint slides to achieve a higher degree of sophistication in ICT-based learning. Tools like blogs and e-portfolios could not only be used to hone students’ writing skills, but also for teachers to keep themselves updated on what their students are doing. Blogs or online journals also enables teachers to get a better understanding of students’ personal lives, their family backgrounds and the environments they grew up in, as well as how these multiple factors influence the way they think and learn. This allows teachers to modify and adjust their teaching methods to suit their students’ learning styles.

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In your opinion, why do you think it is important for MOE to develop the three Masterplans for ICT in education?

It is important for MOE to develop the three Masterplans for ICT in education as it encourages students to be more pro-active in their learning and teachers to be more forward-looking, innovative, flexible and adaptable to different settings. ICT could be used for didactic and constructivist purposes without compromising the teacher’s role as the chief facilitator in the classroom. Through ICT-based learning, students are reminded of the need to assume responsibility and ownership over their own learning instead of being complacent, lackadaisical and habitually dependent on their teacher for answers to their queries. Through ICT learning, students are encouraged to make their own investigations into issues that directly affect them instead of being supplied with a ready pool of solutions. ICT allows teachers to easily supervise and monitor their students’ performance and to give instant feedback to them so that they could progress further. It conditions students to reflect on their achievements and to make bold leaps forward in their work. Students should be able to practise applying the skills they learn in the simulated world to the real-world context to gauge the practicality of using ICT in teaching.

There should be authentic learning beyond the classroom in order to develop cognitive skills in students, as well as to raise awareness about the importance of critical, independent thinking. Some ICT tools such as blogging serve as alternative platforms for students to gather their ideas and to organise their thoughts so that they are able to present their findings and arguments about a certain topic in a more orderly fashion.  Besides that, in the process of developing their ideas, it is possible for online guidance to be made available and accessible to them at any time of the day and from wherever they are. Hence, with the assurance of online support from their peers and tutors, students are less likely to be lost and confused with their work. Teachers could then play an instrumental role in directing the students toward the direction of self-directed learning.

Has any of the Masterplans impacted you as a student? Share your experience of how ICT had been used in the classes you attended as a student (if applicable).

My secondary school Geography teacher often used ICT in his lessons in order to offer clear-cut explanations of complex concepts. The colourful, animated diagrams successfully captured our interest and benefitted visual learners tremendously. For instance, he would show us video clips that meticulously demonstrate the specific steps involved in the formation of volcanic structures, as well as illustrate the various factors that contribute to climate change. Sometimes, he would also play documentaries on tsunamis, earthquakes and volcanic explosions that carry essential information that about such phenomena. He encouraged us to take notes as we watch the documentary so as to prepare us for the class discussions that were held almost every tutorial. It certainly made Geography lessons a lot more fun and exciting for most of us, who initially found physical Geography dry and boring. He would also set online quizzes that effectively challenge and test us on our knowledge of the key concepts that have been taught. The quizzes serve as supplementary exercises for us to practise at home in addition to what we have learned in class. He gave us his feedback, comments and explanations to the quizzes via email so that he could focus more on tutorial discussions during lesson time. This ensures that we have sufficient practices to prepare us for the ‘A’ level exams.

Based on your enhanced school experience, how do you think the current Masterplan 3 may affect your role(s) as a beginning teacher ?

As a beginning teacher, I would have to challenge myself to constantly come up with innovative ways to conduct lessons by making the best out of ICT tools that are made available to me. I would also have to be more mindful and attentive to technological changes so as to establish a kind of connection and rapport with my pupils that extends beyond the classroom. I intend on attending IT courses every now and then to keep myself updated with skills and knowledge of using the latest technology that could possibly be applied to classroom teaching. Facebook, for instance, could be used as a platform for holding online debates/ discussions about current affairs and social issues. If the majority of the students in a class are iphone users, the teacher could also learn how to develop iphone applications that are applicable to the subject he/she is teaching for students to access on their phone. Teachers who are more proficient in IT skills could volunteer to share their knowledge and ideas with their colleagues. They should be appointed as ICT mentors and advisers to other teachers who might be struggling to cope with ICT-centric learning. These teachers could tap into their area of expertise so as to offer guidance and support to those who are lagging behind in the use of ICT. In fact, this has already been practised in New Town Secondary School, the school that I have been sent to for my Enhanced School Experience. During one of the professional development meetings, one teacher share with the rest of his colleagues about how he used the discussion forum on AsknLearn as a platform for him to discuss with his students about the impact of social media in the recent General Election. The use of ICT offers a wide array of options for teachers to explore alternative ways of making learning enjoyable and relevant to the lives of their students. When teachers play around with ICT tools, they are also engaging in the process of learning. This promotes a more learner-focused environment that would be beneficial to both teachers and students.

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ENHANCED SCHOOL EXPERIENCE:

PREPARATORY TASK FOR ICT FOR MEANINGFUL LEARNING

Enhanced School Experience: Classroom Observations of ICT Use

(I)                         Specific Observations

School Name:

Class:

Profile of the class: (For e.g., the students’ academic abilities,  stream and other characteristics) The students are in Sec 3E1, the first class of the Express Stream (after banding). They are diligent and eager to learn. There are no disciplinary problems and the teacher need not spend time maintaining order in the classroom. The students are very attentive, well-behaved and cooperative with the teacher.

Subject:

What ICT tools are used in the lesson? The teacher uses Cover-it-live, a live blogging site, to engage students in their discussion of an argumentative essay topic, “Are gay marriages acceptable?”

Describe how ICT is used for teaching and learning in the lesson. Students key in their responses to the questions posted by their instructor. As a result, the instructor is able to get instant feedback on how the students are performing, as well as to comment on students’ answers swiftly and spontaneously. Students are able to keep themselves updated on the constant and steady flow of information posted by their teacher. In addition, this method puts the teacher in a position where she is able to engage in an effective dialogue with her students instead of allowing her to monopolise the entire interaction between her and her students. This enables the teacher to learn more about her students’ thoughts and opinions while her students enjoy the process of actively participating in the discussion.

(I)                         General Observation:

How do teachers in the school feel about the use of ICT for teaching and learning? (For this question, you may want to speak to the HOD/ICT and other teachers you know in the school.)

Most teachers in New Town Sec School are conservative about the use of ICT in classroom teaching as they are used to the traditional whiteboard-and-marker approach, as well as the employment of the visualiser in the classroom. They feel that ICT has to be utilised purposefully and support the learning objectives. However, some teachers acknowledged that the use of Google Docs and discussion forums, for instance, would help to promote self-directed and collaborative learning as students learn to work as a team by performing a task together. This enables class bonding and develops social skills in students. These are also effective synchronous tools to engage the students and stimulate their interest in the subjects as it gives them equal opportunities to participate in class discussions. It also encourages quieter students to voice their opinions and share their ideas with their classmates. The vice-principal expressed the view that even though teachers should be equipped with ready IT skills to meet challenges in the 21^st century classroom, the ultimate goal of applying ICT to the classroom setting should be to enhance teaching, as well as the students’ learning experience. Hence, ICT should act as a complement, and not as a substitute, to traditional pedagogical methods. ICT should be the means to achieving success and obtaining desired outcomes and results in the classroom. Instead of completely taking over the teacher’s role as the chief facilitator of classroom learning, ICT should play a supporting and auxiliary role. The teacher should be able to manage and manipulate ICT to suit the needs of their students and not to use it just for the sake of using it. One Geography teacher I spoke to told me about his initial scepticism and apprehension about conducting his lessons in the computer labs as there are only 2 IT labs in the school, and there might be occasions when students claim that they fail to log in or that they have forgotten their passwords to their school accounts. This would contribute to the delay of class time. Also, there are worries that students might be easily distracted by social-networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter while navigating the World Wide Web. If the students are unable to exercise discipline and self-control while having lessons in the computer labs, it would be hard for the teacher to sustain the momentum. However, his use of online games proves to be successful in capturing students’ attention as it serves as a stimulus for them to understand the topics better. In order to educate his students on the dangers posed by natural disasters such as floods, tsunamis, earthquakes and hurricanes, he makes them play the Stop Disasters Game, a simulation game devised by the UN/ISDR. Students feel motivated and determined to perform well as they compete to outshine one another in their scores. Some of his students were so fascinated by it that they took the initiative to find out more about the prevention and mitigation measures to such natural hazards on their own. He also makes his students post their comments, as well as write about their prior knowledge about a certain topic via Linoit, a website that allows users to post online stickies. As a result, he is better able to adapt and cater to their learning needs. Students could access Linoit from their home, in the classroom or any other places. This makes it an easy, efficient and convenient tool for the students to interact with their teacher.

During one of the Professional Development meetings that were held every Wednesday, an English language teacher shared with us her practice of giving students assignments that require them to use podcasts to record themselves speaking so as to hone their confidence in oral and communication skills. She sees podcasting as a useful means to boost her students' oral prowess as they are able to listen to their voices over and over again, as well as to assess and reflect on their mistakes so as to improve upon their previous performances. Hence, to her, the use of podcasts carries the potential to serve as a constructive tool as it furnishes students with opportunities to polish up their spoken English.

Another teacher told me that simply having the necessary IT support and infrastructure is inadequate as sufficient time and effort should be invested in the training of teaching personnel so that they possess the know-how and confidence to utilise the software and apply it for classroom teaching. She feels that teachers should also lend a personalised touch to the use of ICT in classroom teaching. Students should also be taught to distinguish between facts and opinions while conducting research online. They should not accept and take ideas that are offered to them at face value without analysing and interpreting them. Over-reliance on online research could also discourage students from thinking critically and independently, as well as brainstorming for creative solutions to problems.

Some of the older teachers in the school, especially those teaching Mother Tongue, are not very open and comfortable with the use of ICT in their teaching as they feel that it does not necessarily aid the students in their understanding of the key concepts that have been taught. The more adventurous teachers, on the other hand, feel that IT resources in the school are limited, obsolete and inadequate to support ICT learning. As of now, the school has yet to try Live Class, a function in AsknLearn that allows teachers to broadcast live e-lectures for students to access from anywhere in the world even as they are aware that it has worked wonders for students in other schools.