12.11.2010

We were told beforehand that we will be covering SecondLife for today’s ICT session. To tell you the truth, I do not have any idea what secondlife is all about till today’s introduction.

We had our last round of demo presentation and Weiqiang’s groups and mine were presenting. His group covered more or less the introduction to second life and some important and key aspects to this programme. My first response was “Wow!How cool is this!” I was totally intrigued and fascinated with what we can do with it.

SecondLife (SL) is a virtual world developed and it is a free software available on the internet. It allows its users (called “Residents”) to interact with one another through their own avatars and practically it allows you to do whatever you can do in real life and perhaps even more to an extent. It allows you to customize your own avatars, (hairstyles, clothings, built, size etc) and you can control the avatar to purchase items, attend functions, fly, meet people etc.

One of the advantages in SL is that one is able to do things which one dares not do/ is not able to do in real life. For example, you can choose your avatar to be a male/female and find out how it is like and the interactions you engage in with other users.

However, after googling and reading up reviews on second life, forums and how users can spend almost hours after hours on it, I begin to stop and ponder over it. If we are too immersed into SL or the virtual world, will we have problems differentiating the difference between virtual and reality?

5 november 2010

I have just completed my e learning blog post and after my final full stop in my last paragraph, the screen went blank and when I went back to retrieve my saved draft, it seemed that the system hasn’t been saving all these while! How annoyed I was! It made me realize that technology can fail us at times and sometimes real bad too!

This session is on digital natives and to understand more about their characteristics and preferences.

Characteristics of digital natives:

-IT savvy

-Short attention span

-Multi tasking

-Fast paced

-Active

-Connected

-Fun

-Likes Graphics

-Do not like reading

-Multimedia oriented

-Web-based

-Instant gratification

-Less textual, more modalities

-Share a common language

-Risk takers

-Striving to be independent

-Information overload

-Egocentric

The points from instant gratification to egocentric have been researched and taken from (http://lraines.wordpress.com/2007/03/28/characteristics-of-a-digital-native/)

I guess the above characteristics have somewhat covered the bad and the good points in digital natives. It sets me thinking that technology is constantly advancing day by day and how can we teachers, (the digital immigrants) find effective ways to teach so as to reach out to the digital natives at present or in the years to come?

I have chosen to work on Olivia.

This is the link to her video:

http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-profile-olivia-video

In her case, Olivia does not have a computer and she does not always have a cell phone. Even though she does not have all these high tech gadgets, it does not hinder her in learning and in fact it evoked curiosity into finding out more about technology. She uses the computer in her school or the computer at the ground floor of her building and enjoys it. Most of the times, Olivia will be on “myspace” and helps her mum and mentor with their personal web pages too.

In general, most of the teenagers in Singapore do not match Olivia’s profile as I believe computers and handphones have become more of a need than a want in this day and age. However, there is a handful of teenagers who belong to the same profile as Olivia like those who come from financially unstable backgrounds and such.

Taking NorthLight School for an example, I realized that there are many who are not that privileged but when they are in the computer labs, they get very familiarized with the computers very quickly as it is a platform which engages and taps on their interest.

To be able to teach and reach out to the digital natives today, I feel that we have to know and understand their likes and dislikes so that effective and enjoyable learning can take place. Games’ based learning is one way to engage our students as they are able to learn, experience fun and experience different aspects to meaningful learning.

As you look into the possible future of the educational landscape, what sort of impressions, fears, or possibilities crossed your mind?

From the video, I can envision our future to be very much inclined towards technology and everything will be fast paced. As technology is catching up as I have mentioned earlier, perhaps in the future, it wont be necessary for teachers to be there physically to teach and students can learn in the comfort of their homes with high tech gadgets. As we may depend a lot on technology in the future, I am afraid that many of us will turn lazy as everything can be processed with just a touch of a finger.

How is NIE preparing you to prepare your students for this possible future? How might you prepare yourself?

I must admit that NIE is gradually preparing us for our students in the future by equipping us with the necessary skills and knowledge. Modules like ICT where we are exposed to new and advanced ICT tools to facilitate and to engage our students in interesting ways and educational psychology modules for us to understand in depth into classroom management skills and the different learning styles of diverse learners.

I will try to keep in pace with technology, to be aware of the things which are happening around us and lastly to be open and to accept changes.

29.10.2010

Today, Dr Ashley summed up the essence and wrapped up games based learning after the past few weeks of games playing. I feel that it is very important to have a closure after this activity so that it will not seem as if we are playing just to have fun but to also learn from the games and to understand how we can tap on lessons learnt and adopt them to traditional classroom teaching.

Basically, Dr Ashley touched on the learning outcomes gathered from games based learning. They are mainly:

1.-Games provide concrete experience like the Darfu game which we played several weeks back, it made use of real world context and scenarios. We had to think on our feet for solutions. There was a sense of being there in the camp but not being there physically.

2.-Promote complex and systematic thinking

eg:allowsus to stop and reflect theories/ lesssons which can be applied in real life

3.-Its okay to try to fail, as long as you learn from mistakes.

4.--Promoting informal learning accidental learning,(instructions)

meaningful learning (smoking experience which Dr Ashley shared when a group of boys desperately want to smoke but they are afraid of being caught and thus devising plans to get away with it. In this case, it supports informal learning as the other boys who are clueless will want to learn a trick or two from the experienced boys. I believe that there is an element of collaborative learning in this.

5.-Having fun does not mean

a) not learning or

b) not putting in effort

I was quite puzzled with this learning outcome because I was not able to reconcile fun and putting in effort together. These two terms do not go inline to some extent.However, Dr Ashely proved me wrong and said that playing games do require lots of effort especially when many spend hours after hours on the computer, the psp, the wii and so on. How true is that!

I was impacted with a statement which was said by Dr Ashley which triggered my thinking...

"We must be able to reach them to teach them"

22.10.2010

Today, we covered our last two stations before rounding up this topic on game based learning. I must say that this session of game based learning has been the most enjoyable of all. Perhaps it maybe due to the fact that we played stations 1 and 2 which are the Mcdonalds and the new blood wii game respectively. When Angela and myself were playing the Mcdonalds game, we lost and ran out of money shortly after commencing the game! We were totally clueless of what we were required to do and what must we do in order to win. After trying a few rounds, we understood the game and personally i found the game quite complex. It didnt seem as easy as I thought it was!

We had to run the restaurant well and had to consider factors like cash flow problems, if we had sufficient cows for beef, the management of the restaurant, workers etc. It was a difficult task indeed! I finally understood how to run a restaurant well virtually. Then after, we adjourned to the wii station. The game played was called "new blood" and our task is to save the patient by removing all the glass pieces, putting ointment,bandage the patient, etc within the stipulated time. Bryan and Isa were the first to try and it seems quite a challenge especially when we have to have steady hands to do the required tasks. Angela and Irma were next and they did a better job compared to the first pair because they learn from their mistakes and Bryan and Isa were teaching and guiding the two girls as they proceed to the next few levels of difficulty.

From this, I could sieve out the few advantages of game based learning. It is alright to fail as long one learns from his/her mistakes especially when we learn from one another. Han and myself were the last to try and this time round, Bryan, Isa, Angela and Irma were teaching us. Not to mention, we were the most privileged of all because we had 4 sets of brains to help us! I enjoyed this game tremendously! After returning to our seats, I was pondering and reflecting on the two games which were just attempted and I realised why I enjoyed the new blood game the most. Its because I was slightly better than the rest of my group members when playing new blood.

We can bring this experience/theory of thinking into teaching. It is very important to be aware of our students' talents/ achievements (this can be referred to non-academic achievements), tap on them and recognise them in order for students to boost their self esteem, have a sense of belonging and be motivated intrinsically for effective learning and teaching.

15 oct

Finally all of us have submitted our ict lesson plan essays! What a relief! One essay down, many more to go(at least for other modules). Today, we continued with our station games and we were to cover 2 stations. As for my group, we had to go to stations 4 and 5. I was a tad excited, waiting to lay my hands on the wii controllers as soon as we are given the green light to begin playing the games.

Some of my team members played wii tennis and from the first round, I could sense the adrenaline rush just by observing how intensive they were while playing tennis. It felt as if they were holding an actual racket each as they were swinging their arms. The rest of us, who weren't playing, were cheering them on! Then, it was my turn to have a go. I played wii boxing against Angela and I lost! I must say that I felt quite breathless after several rounds and my hands were a little tired. It must be due to the lack of exercise which explains why I was that weak! Though a little tired, I enjoyed myself and has fun!

After the bell rang, we moved on to station 5-which was the coding of the QR code. It was quite interesting and engaging as we took turns to scan our iphones to detect the missing word and to rack our brains as we tried to think of all the common themes for the various stations.

Reflecting on what was done today, it is quite true to say that while playing the several station games, we were not exactly absorbing or registering any learning takeaways. At least for me, I am just interested in having as much fun as I can. Before every game, there will be instructions pertaining to the game and a few from the class raised that we do not really read and understand them till we have attempted the games, that we realize and know the proper way in achieving the goal. This can be in relation to traditional classroom teaching where teachers just deliver their lessons and they give out instructions. Students on the other hand may seem like they do understand plainly by listening.

However, the real test comes in when they are required to do the exercises. And it is only learning by doing that they will be able to fully understand and fully comprehend whether they are on the right track.

Another learning lesson which I have learnt is that it is very critical to fail in game based learning in order to improve. It is only after failing once, that one will be aware of his mistakes and to improve and avoid them in the future. For example, before playing the game, we were briefed beforehand on what to take note, the do's and dont's of the game (basically the rules). I thought that it would be a piece of cake for me till my I tried it myself that I realized it wasn't that easy. I failed on my first attempt and the subsequent rounds, I got better and better. Once one has failed, it is natural (or rather human nature) to be more motivated to do even better for the future rounds.

Quoted from social studies central, digital games are mainly "Purposeful goal-oriented, rule-based activity that players perceive as fun". All in all, I feel that game based learning is a different type of learning outside the usual context of textbooks and whiteboards where students can experience a different dimension to learning and at the same time be able to bring home valuable lessons of learning with them.

081010

When I first stepped into the game room on friday morning, I gasped aloud and was overwhelmed with the number of IT gadgets in the room! It felt as though I had been teleported to a whole new world of high technology and it seemed like time had been fast forwarded to 20 years later. Everything seemed futuristic indeed!

I was fascinated by the QR (quick response) codes which were pasted around the room. We began our lesson with the first two groups' presenting their demo projects; introducing possible ICT tools which we can incorporate in our future lessons. I always feel that we can use the first presenting group as a benchmark as to how we present in future and I had a clearer idea of what it was required, rooms for improvement and what had they done well in which we can adopt.

It was then followed by a short briefing by Dr Ashley on the different available stations.

I was introduced to new theory by Dr Ashley- the Shit Sandwich theory and I agree with him that we should start commenting with nice words, the hurtful truths and nice comments to round it up.It was really funny having to discover such a interesting 'theory' and I believe it will come in handy in future when we are faced with such circumstances.

Then after, my group was assigned to station 3: Online Flash Games. We had to go into any of the links stated in the portal and attempt the flash games. I was quite puzzled as to why we had to go to the particular station when all of us had access to the internet from our own laptops. Nonetheless, we followed the instructions and logged onto any of the stated links available.I tried a few games on mathematics, art and science. I did not find them exceptionally fun perhaps it maybe due to the fact that those games which I've attempted are catered for younger kids, so there was not much of a challenge. A handful of my classmates were assigned to the wii station and from their loud noises of "ooh" and "ahhhhhh", I reckoned they might have enjoyed themselves tremendously. There was a tinge of jealousy in me when I was observing how much fun they had while playing wii while I was playing my online game. Dr Ashely told us that it will be rotated and that everyone will have a chance to try out all five stations at the end of everything.

Though the online games were not as fun as the wii games, I could say that I have gathered new insights to game based learning. Game based learning uses competitive activities and gets students to challenge themselves competitively in order to have fun and to motivate them to learn effectively. There were problems and questions during game playing and it is required for students to think on their feet in order to proceed to the next level. An added advantage? It is fun, engaging and interactive!

How to teach with games? I was googling and was trying to search for answers to this question and from what I have gathered, it says that we can reward students for accomplishing certain goals in the game to spur them on to do better the next time round.

All in all, games based learning is one of the ways in which students are able to experience fun in learning.

1 october reflection 3-2-1

I must say that it was really an eye opener for me when we were introduced to the steps in doing up a lesson plan and the many considerable factors to review upon like the lesson objectives, goals, required resources , time frame for each individual activity etc.

I do not have any prior knowledge on lesson planning and do not know what is it all about. Before this class, I always had the perception that the HODs plan everything including the curriculum and all we teachers, have to do is just to conduct the lessons according to the given lesson plans. Till I learnt more on lesson planning that it came to my realization that teachers have to fully take charge on how to plan lessons too!

To know and identify the fine line between goals and objectives was a little tricky for me. I was simply clueless and lost when Dr Ashley told us that there is a distinct difference between these two terms and I thought that they were interchangeable! I believe there were a few of classmates who were confused too from their puzzled looks on their faces. Nonetheless, after listening to Dr Ashley’s explanation and after some impromptu research, I could understand a little more on the definitions of goals and objectives. Goals refers to the big picture; more general in context whereas objective is more specific and detailed.

Most importantly, I have learnt not to think of the technology tool first and ways to incorporate the technology tool into the lesson instead we should start by structuring the problem or scenario and think of ways or channels which will solve these problems. I agree with Dr Ashley that many a times, we are so caught up and overly excited of wanting to incorporate the technology tool into our lesson plan that we forget that ultimately our lesson goals and objectives are the main focal issues and not the technology.

2 Things that I can apply

After reviewing and critiquing each other’s lesson plans, I have learnt that even though one has drawn up a beautiful lesson plan, this will not mean that the lesson will go as planned in actual fact. This maybe brought about by external factors like, insufficient time; due to delays from the previous class or perhaps there had been a quarrel in the class and the class needs more time to settle down etc. I can take this into consideration when doing up a lesson plan in future; to try and foresee any concerns which may crop up unexpectedly so I can adjust the lesson plan appropriately.

The ABCDs of drafting a lesson objective are useful guidelines which I can pay attention to in future so as to ensure that I am on the right track. The ABCDs are Audience, Behaviour, Condition and Degree. Touching on drafting an appropriate lesson plan, we also have to take note to always state the objectives from the individual learner’s point of view and not the teacher’s.

1 thing that I want to know more about

Nothing at the moment(:

session 3-reflections for 24 sept

Today, we've touched on topics in relation to self directed learning, collaborative learning and cooperative learning. What is the difference between these three types of learning?

Based on what I know prior to today's session, self directed learning means independent learning and I thought that collaborative and cooperative learning shared the same definition of learning in a group till Dr Ashley explained the difference between these two terms.

To kick off the session, we were told to view a music video which portrayed a very brief example of how collaborative learning works and I cannot deny that I was intrigued by it instantly! How nice it would be if we are able to do something like that for our lessons in school! I'm sure the students will enjoy it! After the video, I had a clearer idea as to what it meant and Dr Ashley gave us a short lecture on their definitions, examples and scenarios. I have learnt that there's a slight difference in cooperative and collaborative learning. Cooperative learning is when the work is divided equally among the learners and then merging the parts together as a whole. As for collaborative learning, there's much more meaning to it than just dividing the work equally. It involves meaningful negotiation and shared understanding among the learners.

Then after, we had to watch videos and attempt questions pertaining to the topic of learning and the three main categories are:

1. Using real-world contexts

2.Tapping on students' prior knowledge

3.Learning by doing

1.Using real-world contexts: An example will be incorporating real world contexts in the use of smartboards. When I was teaching at NorthLight, I realized that the school utilizes their smartboards quite frequent and instead of just teaching the students integers, the teachers teach mathematics by bringing in real life scenarios, taking Macdonalds into context. For example, If the student has 8 dollars, which Macdonalds value meal will he/she buy with the amount given and then how much of change will he/she receive upon paying for the meal. This was defitnitely an eye opener because I have never imagined that learning can take place using real life scenarios!

2.Tapping on student's prior knowledge: An example will be during an art class where students have to use their prior knowledge on shapes and colours and then to jot down items which with the required shape.

3.Learning by doing: For example if the students are learning fraction and proportion in mathematics, we can incorporate home economics to mathematics by asking the students to split the pizzas proportionately. They will enable them to have a better understanding of the real life problem scenarios.

One of the questions which was posted to us is: What are the few factors which hinder self-directed learning in Singapore schools? Honestly, I always thought that there aren't many hindrances when self-directed learning is concerned till I heard some of the answers raised by my classmates. A few answers were:

a.Exams

Since Singapore is a result orientated country, teachers are constantly worrying over grades and exams. As a result, they have to complete the structured syllabus and to make sure that they are constantly on track with the syllabus coverage.Therefore, it leaves them with not much time for students to cultivate the practice of independent learning.

b.Budget/Cost

I believe budget plays a role to some extent in self directed learning. There are several schools which may not have the luxury of bringing in new and advanced teaching tools due to budget constraints.

c. Teachers have to teach

Presumption that teachers should always teach so that students learn. Due to this, students may not have any opportunity to adopt self directed learning.

Personally, I feel that it is very important for our students to cultivate self directed learning as they can learn to be responsible learners, to be in control of their own learning, to set their own goals in achieving the tasks and as well as to experience meaningful and worthwhile learning.

What I already KNOW?

Self directed learning means independent learning and cooperative learning meant learning in a group.

What I want to LEARN?

I want to learn the differences and similarities of the 3 types of learning and how and why are they important in teaching and learning

What I LEARNED this week?

I learnt their definitions and their implications in learning.

What QUESTIONS do I still have?

Does self directed learning have any negative implications?

Cheryl Chua-reflections on ICT 17sep

Do we study just for the sake of excelling in tests and not wanting to face with the embarrasement in the presence of our peers? This question is indeed mind boggling to me and I believe that it is a question in which we should give some thoughts to since we are all living in an ever competitive society especially in SIngapore where academic excellence plays a very vital role.

I came to this conclusion after seeing so many of my classmates (i was of no exception), frantically browsing through session one slides, trying their very best to grasp and memorise whatever important information they can take in for the test to come. Personally I feel that if instructions were just to read the notes and not tested, perhaps only half of the class will make an effort to read? Why can't all of us do it for the sake of our own personal growth or learning? Is it due to the way we are being brought up and taught?

Today, we were asked this question of defining the definition of cyberwellness? To me, it means to be responsible, to be aware of the dangers and to protect oneself and other users when using the internet.

As information can be shared, sent, received so easily and freely on the net especially in the aspects of blogging, online chats, cyber gaming and social networking sites like facebook and twitter, there maybe a likelihood that users who may not have sufficient background knowledge on cyberwellness maybe at risk or danger in the cyberworld. Therefore, it is essential for internet users to be equipped with the essential skills, knowledge, possible risks when surfing the net.

I acquired a new learning tool called the linoit and I feel that it is similar to mindmesiter, just that it is in post-it forms instead of mindmaps. Linoit is a platform where anyone in the shared community can post their ideas, thoughts and views on a particular subject or topic. One of the advantages of adapting this concept is that we are able to learn and gather ideas from other disciplines and learn from one another collaboratively. However, I feel that linoit may appear to be messy and disorganised when viewed as a whole as the notes are all cluttered together and this may confuse the viewer.

What I already know?

I know that cyberwellness is to ensure that one practices responsibility when using the web.

What I want to learn?

I want to learn on how to incorporate the use of linoit when teaching art.

What I learned this week?

I learnt more about linoit and the importance of cyberwellness.

What questions do I still have?

-

Cheryl Chua-reflections on ICT 13sep

As the profile of the students has changed, it is important for us to look for ways to use the method that can resonate with the students. Many of the students belong to the digital age and they can multi–task all the time. Teachers can make use of technology to enhance learning.

When I was teaching in NorthLight School, I noticed that many of the students can identify with the interactive smart board. Many of them failed maths but when the smart board is used, now 8 in10 are beginning to like mathematics. As many have short concentration span, every time a student moves up to the board to interact with the board , it will help them to increase another 15 minutes. Many are able to use the digital camera and video recorder as a tool for learning. Many of them are poor and do not have a computer at home but by teaching them how to use the computer, it will narrow the digital divide. The school is also a wireless campus and everyone can go into the internet anywhere. This also show that there is such a thing called “borderless classroom”.

I was also very impressed when the teachers conducted a learning trail at the Changi airport. This was for 240 students and they are divided into groups of 6 with a notebook for each group. They have to complete 20 learning stations. I was very impressed when the students were communicating with the teachers through MSN. The teachers were all in Macdonalds and each teacher is in charge of 7 groups. NorthLight takes in students who failed their PSLE and yet they can do such an activity is really remarkable.

There was another instance which I remembered when I was teaching at NorthLight. I had to relieve a class for digital art and I was instructed to supervise the class as they worked on their projects and that was to construct their dream hotel using google sketch up. Personally, google sketch up is one such software which I do not have any background knowledge on and I was quite apprehensive to relief that particular class. All that was running through my mind was: What if a student asks me for help? How would I respond since I do not have the basic knowledge on the software? Fortunately, all the students were comprehensively knowledgeable and I was deeply impressed with their software skills! Seeing how a class of 13 year olds managing such a complex software was really quite a sight!

After this incident, it dawned on me that technology indeed plays a very huge role in our youths today and many of them are exposed to technology influences at a very young age. It will be very important and crucial for us teachers to acquire the necessary skills and to tap on these commonly used tools to cater to the students' needs and their way of life.

What I already know:

Wiki is a platform in which information can be exchanged and shared among people and that information posted on the wiki page may not be 100% true/reliable.

What I want to learn:

I would want to learn how to incorporate wiki in our lessons to engage our students for meaningful learning.

What I learned this week:

I have learnt more about wiki and a new learning tool called the "mindmeister". It adopts the concept of mindmapping online where various users can create, share, edit mindmaps.

I believe this is one of the ways to engage the students as well as to bring across the message that learning can be fun and can take place outside of textbooks.

What questions do I still have?

Are they any negative impacts of mindmeister?