ICT now a teaching tool

PUTRAJAYA: The education policy in the country has taken a new leap forward and it is set to embrace Information and Communications Technology (ICT) as the main tool for teaching, said Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

The policy aims to use ICT as a vehicle to encourage creativity, collaborative learning, critical thinking and problem solving skills.

“The teaching and learning process is no longer a teacher centric or one-way process. A teacher is now a classroom facilitator, who is equipped with ICT knowledge,’’ Muhyiddin said, adding that the new approach would uplift the quality of education in the country.

“Through this policy, all ICT programmes in the ministry will work towards the same goal, which is to increase student achievements and to ensure that every student has access to quality education.”

Audio aid: Muhyiddin trying the Audiocity software at the launching of the Policy on Information Technology and Communication in Education in Putrajaya yesterday. Looking on is Education Ministry Director- General Tan Sri Alimuddin Md Dom (right).

At the launch of the new ICT policy in education yesterday, Muhyiddin, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, said that education ICT practices in developed countries would be used as a benchmark to ensure that the ICT component in Malaysian schools are of international standards.

The policy, which was developed by the ministry in collaboration with Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), was a continuous effort from the Smart School initiative launched in July 1997.

The policy will focus on eight main fields, which include a structural realignment of ICT management, education administration and management, technology infrastructure, teaching and learning, and community involvement, amongst others.

He added that there would be four supporting components – third party outsourcing, collaboration with the community of practice, public and private partnership, and involvement of the extended community to ensure the policy’s effectiveness.

“The ICT policy in education will also go through a Central Management Programme which will be responsible in organising all the ICT initiatives in education, in order to increase administrative efficiency and to save resources.”

Muhyiddin hoped the policy would align the quality of Malaysian education to the vision of making Malaysia an excellent education hub, in line with the status of an advanced nation by the year 2020.

By ALYCIA LIM
educate@thestar.com.my

ICT a practical tool

An article written by Magdalena Bobek

ICT, a practical tool

Chain dictation

This simple activity gets young learners in the class really motivated for an exercise that can

otherwise be quite boring. I call it ''Chain Dictation''. I'm sure you've heard of it and maybe

even tried it.

After having finished teaching a text, prepare short extracts of the text on pieces of paper. Put

the pupils in groups of five. They stand or sit one behind the other. The last pupil in the group

has one of the extracts in hand. He/she whispers the text in parts to the schoolmate in front,

who does the same thing to the schoolmate in front of him/her until the text gets to the first

pupil in the row. That pupil very diligently writes down what he has heard. Now instead of

writing, the pupil can be sitting at a computer and typing the sentences he hears. Most pupils

type quite well, so there should be no problem working with the computer for this exercise.

You must put a time limit for the exercise, so that it doesn't become redundant. Once the

pupils have finished dictating, the whole group can go to the computer and examine how well

they worked together as a group in getting all the sentences correct.

The hidden animal

In almost every language course book there is a unit

dedicated to animals. After finishing the unit, a great

follow-up activity would be to find out some facts about yet

other less known animals in the world. This may take one

or two lessons to complete.

Step 1:

• divide the class into groups of four/five

• each group gets an envelope in which there is a picture

puzzle and name of an unknown animal

• their first task is to put the picture puzzle together

Step2:

• two pupils from the

group go to the

computer (Google

Search Engine) and type in the name of the animal. Eg:

sea horse

• they search the Internet to find out at least three

different things about that animal (ie. Where it lives,

how it multiplies, what is eats, whether it is becoming

extinct…)

Step 3:

• after discussing this information in the group, the pupils

decide on three main things that they have learned about this new animal and a pupil from the group writes them down on a small piece of paper,

which is accompanied by the picture puzzle from the envelope

Step 4:

• all this information is then put on a big poster along with the information of animals from

the other groups to form the overall class project.

The biggest / The highest / The tallest

Once you have exhausted the pupils with information and exercises on the adjective, you may

want to make the grammatical point a bit more interesting by letting them do some research

on their own.

Step 1:

• each pupil chooses a country of interest

• using the Internet they find 5 superlatives about that country

Eg: the longest river, the highest mountain, the oldest person, the most popular singer…

Step2:

• the pupils report their findings to the rest of the class

• they can bring pictures from the internet or magazines for support

Step 3:

• taking this one step further, they can make a webpage of their findings as a conclusion to

the topic of which they will be very proud.

International projects

Getting pupils involved in international projects can be very exciting. However, because the

situation is different from school to school, it is sometimes almost impossible to make it

happen. Some schools still do not have enough computers to make things like this work. The

curriculum is so overloaded that teachers simply do not find the time or energy to do extra

work. This is all very true. However, it may be time to do something INSTEAD OF

something else. Teachers can change the way they do things. This will create something new

and it will motivate the class. Instead of preparing work for the pupils on worksheets, ICT can

be used to do the same task. It is important to remember, however, that this is not a one-man

job. From time to time help from colleagues is very welcome.

The easiest way of getting pupils involved in international projects is by simple

correspondence with pupils from other parts of Europe and the world. Sending short e-mail

messages to peers in other countries quickly and effectively lights a spark of motivation. Once

contact has been achieved, the teacher can begin moulding it into an international project by

adding activities that the pupils can share with their newly acquired friends.

Some examples of ICT collaboration:

1. Two years ago 41 of our pupils were involved in a project with five other schools in

Europe. The project involved a survey on waste recycling, water and electricity.

Read more: (link: http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/springday/science1.htm ) 2. Exchanging ideas with peers from other countries can make music an experience of its

own. We collaborated with primary and secondary schools from Hungary, Ireland, Turkey

and Israel. In preparation for the activity we exchanged the words, melody and notes of songs

that we thought to be special in each country. Each school then chose one or two of the songs

for their pupils to learn. This way the pupils in each country not only learned a new song, but

also a few words of a new foreign language. Read more: (link:

http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/springday/music.htm )

3. Getting kids involved in chats and video-conferences has always proven to win them over.

Of course, these have to be well organized in advance. The topic of discussion as well as the

time of the chat or video conference have to be established and tested in advance. Video

conferences are a great way of not only hearing, but also seeing the person you are talking to.

They motivate everyone involved. Read more: (link:

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/pd2006/vc.htm )

Have a look at more of our projects and activites:

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/quiz/

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/pd2006/

http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/Springday2004/Elpeop.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/Springday2004/Italy/Food.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/springday/index.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/Springday2004/pivkasp.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/%7Eospivka/Springday2004/video.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/Spring05/main.htm

http://www2.arnes.si/~ospivka/pptgr.htm

So, there are quite a few ways of getting your pupils involved and making your job more

interesting for you. Have fun creating with your pupils.

I read this article and found it very interesting.

Thanks to Magdalena Bobek.

ICT, a tool to improve and enhance teaching and learning

There are many ways to make what you do in the classroom worthwhile for your pupils and to make what they learn, matter. Pupils love challenges and giving their work meaning will motivate them to want more of it. This is a proven fact and it works both ways. It allows the pupils to be the focal point in the learning process and it gives you, the teacher, recognition. You must remember that everything you do in the classroom with your pupils can go beyond. One way of making this happen is by using ICT as a tool in the learning process. However, when using the computer, it is important to be fully aware of its limitations. Let's remember some of its drawbacks. The computer is unable to judge the mood or feel of the pupils; it lacks the human touch; the feedback is limited; it cannot evaluate the level of pupils’ knowledge and it cannot reflect back. However, despite its negative side, the computer is becoming one of the most widely used pedagogical tools in education. Teachers are using ICT in their lessons because it motivates pupils to learn. There are no disciplinary problems. It gives immediate feedback and a wide access to information. It makes self-study possible. It is reliable and doesn’t have ‘off days’. As a tool it stretches the pupils’ knowledge beyond the classroom and gives it more meaning, because they can work with their peers from other institutions and countries. Teachers can make global participation possible. They can exchange ideas about their teaching practice and improve their already existing curricula. It enables them to design new teaching methods more easily and add their own ideas to the resource sites.

Tablet are good, Content are better and teachers are the Best Educational ICT investment

by Wayan Vota

.

Tablet form factor computers are undoubtedly an exciting way to interact with technology, especially, when they are touch screen enabled. The intimacy and immediacy of the personal screen and the ease of use and intuitive design of modern touch screen operating systems greatly eases user fears and facilitates user adoption.

This ease of use is exciting technologists and educators, both of whom are thinking of new ways to use technology like the iPad in educational systems of the developing world. Now I agree with them. I believe the iPad’s sleek user interface and ease of use will transform the ICT in education experience – but not for everyone.

As part of the Slide2learn conference in Queensland, Australia this week, I made the following presentation to deep dive into the promise and pitfalls of an iPad education in the developing world. Watch the video or read on for details for why I think that tablets are good, content is better, and teachers are the best educational ICT investments

Content is Better

Yes, the iPad has great promise, especially since there are now thousands of apps that provide an almost limitless assortment of learning experiences through the touch screen tablet form factor. From simple acts like counting numbers and recognizing letters to reading interactive books and connecting with social media, it’s the wealth of digital content that keeps teachers and students engaged.

Yet where is this content in the developing world? The iPad may be amazing when connected to iTunes in the English-speaking world, but it’s of limited use if there is no digital content. For example, the Wikipedia’s article count by language shows millions of English language articles, but the 8 million people Xhosa speakers – 20% of South Africa’s population – are served by only 118 articles in their language. And not a single iTunes app.

There are a number of initiatives that seek to build educational digital content in local languages, and even ones focusing on developing content that aligns with national curriculum in the developing world. These efforts are nascent at the moment, though they are expanding rapidly as more electronic devices are present to access them.

Teachers are Best

What isn’t growing, what is lacking are the skilled teachers that can take a digital device – any digital tool – and incorporate it into the classroom, into student-centric learning.

Right now, the vast majoring of teaching that occurs in the developing world is rote memorization. This “chalk and talk” teaching instruction is often just transposed from analog to digital form when technology is deployed. In OLPC Peru, the largest 1:1 laptop deployment using XO laptops, students use their 400,000+ computers to transcribe texts from notebooks or chalkboards to their laptops. Are you surprised then that pedagogical use of the laptops has decreased among students and teachers over time?

Teachers require training to understand how to teach differently. How methods like student-centric learning can be applied to the classroom, and shown how this learning style will increase educational outcomes. Yet who is investing in teacher training? If you look around, Ministers of Education get excited about shiny, flashy things, not human capacity building. And who can blame them? It’s a lot easier to show off a technology implementation than a trained teacher, and children and their voting parents can see a quick difference with a computer that isn’t so noticeable with a trained teacher.

So regardless of how amazing the iPad is, until we invest in trained teachers who know how to use technology to improve their teaching activities, until we have parents and politicians focused on learning outcomes and not iTunes apps, regardless of how many apps or how easy the technology is, I fear that iPad educations in the developing world will be wasted.

Weebly Class Website

Create a free class website and let your students built sites too.
Just click http://education.weebly.com/

ICT Skills in the Early Years

* To kindle children's excitement, curiosity and appetite for more

ICT in the Early Years

Posted on November 30, 2010 by miriamschembri

Technology is an integral part of children’s everyday lives and at home they come in contact with mobile phones, television remote controls and toys that have buttons and particular functions. Whilst outside the home they see cash registers, bar-code scanners, traffic lights, automatic doors, security cameras, the list can go on and on. Our early years settings need to reflect a familiar technological environment where we can build on children’s experience and out of their natural curiosity they will be able to explore not only how technology works but how it fits into their world.

ICT supports learning across the curriculum and can enhance educational opportunities. It encourages creativity, problem solving, risk taking, discussion and purposeful and exploratory play. This demands early childhood educators to be skilled and confident in ICT. They must understand that through ict children are developing an emergent digital literacy whilst also developing skills on how to use tools and applications. We need to provide opportunities for children to learn about ICT as well as to learn with ICT. They must be given opportunities to access applications which whilst they are fun are full of educational potential. A variety of applications are needed to encourage a range of development including language, problem solving, self expression and creativity. This in turn will lead to the children being intrinsically motivated to learn.

Integrating ICT with play and project work will make it relevant to the children. ICT needs to be a natural part of the learning environment and used in a meaningful context. Digital drawings can be made into cards for special occasions. Stories can also be created from the children’s digital drawings. During role play which is central in young children’s process in learning,digital toys and manipulatives which are functional or pretend technological toys and artefacts provide symbols for children to engage and interact with.

Integrating ICT into the curriculum recognises the notion that it is used as a tool and not as just a skill. Continous use of integrated ICT by young children living in this technological age ensures the development of childrent’s emergent awareness and positive disposition towards digital literacy.

Role of ICT in learning

We are living in a constantly evolving digital world. ICT has an impact on nearly every aspect of our lives - from working to socialising, learning to playing. The digital age has transformed the way young people communicate, network, seek help, access information and learn. We must recognise that young people are now an online population and access is through a variety of means such as computers, TV and mobile phones.

As technology becomes more and more embedded in our culture, we must provide our learners with relevant and contemporary experiences that allow them to successfully engage with technology and prepare them for life after school.

It is widely recognised that learners are motivated and purposefully engaged in the learning process when concepts and skills are underpinned with technology and sound pedagogy. Learning and Teaching Scotland aims to provide resources for practitioners, parents and pupils to engage with these technologies in order to inform and enhance the learning experience.

These resources include, but are not limited to:

• Glow - the world's first national schools intranet which provides access to a range of tools and resources for pupils and practitioners




• examples of innovative uses of technology in practice, including game based learning through computer games and the use of mobile technologies




• support and advice on internet safety and responsible use for all




• video material on iTunesU




• communication via social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook.

Spelling Activities

http://www.slideshare.net/digibots/spelling-homework-slideshow-8159201?src=related_normal&rel=7770707

Spelling Activities

Spelling Activities in the classroom - by Evergladelearners

It is a fun way for spelling.

Teacher Sul: ICT Teaching and Learnig

http://sharpjacqui.blogspot.com/

Sharing is caring. Have a look and I think it will be great if you teachers out there can adapt it with your class. Allthe best teachers.

ICT Teaching and Learning

http://sharpjacqui.blogspot.com

This is one of my favourite blog where I can adapt to my teaching. Most of the activities done are related to the school syllabus. I would love to share this blog with friends out there. Have a look and you know what is best about it. Thanks to Jacqui Sharp.

Toondoo- World fastest way to create cartoon

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http://www.toondoo.com/

What is dyslexia?

DYSLEXIA

The differences are personal.
The Diagnosis is clinical.
The treatment is educational.
The understanding is scientific.

Margaret Byrd Rawson and Roger Saunders -1988

The word dyslexia comes from the Greek – dys meaning difficulty and lex meaning speak, hence dyslexia can be defined in its simplest form as difficulty with words and languages.

Dyslexia is a neurological based learning disorder which interferes with the acquisition and processing of language. Characteristics of dyslexia range in degree from the very mild to the extremely severe. It is manifested by difficulties in receptive and expressive language, including phonological processing, in reading, writing, spelling, handwriting, and sometimes in arithmetic.

It can be seen as a developmental variation in the way a person learns language skills. Just as some people have difficulty in learning various skills like drawing, music or even playing ball games, in the same way, a dyslexic has difficulty with language skills.

Children and adults with dyslexia typically fail to master the basic elements of the language system of their culture despite traditional classroom teaching. Since language is the necessary tool upon which subsequent academic learning is based, people with dyslexia often encounter difficulty in all educational endeavors.
http://www.msl-orton.com/about_dyslexia.htm?gclid=CLfB7O-o4asCFc2GpAodN0x3Pw

E-Books

E-book
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Amazon Kindle 3, a typical e-book reader.
An electronic book (also e-book, ebook, electronic book, digital book) is a book-length publication in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, and produced on, published through, and readable on computers or other electronic devices.[1] Sometimes the equivalent of a conventional printed book, e-books can also be born digital. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines the e-book as "an electronic version of a printed book,"[2] but e-books can and do exist without any printed equivalent. E-books are usually read on dedicated hardware devices known as e-Readers or e-book devices. Personal computers and some mobile phones can also be used to read e-books.
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Timeline
2 Formats
3 Comparison to printed books
3.1 Advantages
3.2 Drawbacks
3.3 Digital rights management
4 Production
5 e-Readers
5.1 eReader applications
6 Market Shares
7 See also
8 Notes
9 References
10 External links

IslamicFinder: Accurate Prayer Times, Athan (Azan), Mosques (Masjids), Islamic Center, Muslim Owned Businesses, Hijri Calendar, Islamic Directory worl

IslamicFinder: Accurate Prayer Times, Athan (Azan), Mosques (Masjids), Islamic Center, Muslim Owned Businesses, Hijri Calendar, Islamic Directory worldwide.

Teacher Sul: http://elearningclassroom.wikispaces.com/

Teacher Sul: http://elearningclassroom.wikispaces.com/

Digital Clock Ornamental Button - Islamic Clock Widget

Digital Clock Ornamental Button - Islamic Clock Widget