Self activity

The module which we will be looking at this year is entitled ICT in Schools.

I am very fortunate to be teaching in a school surrounded by computers...not technology.
There is a computer in every classroom for teachers to take roll, show powerpoints, send emails, but I do not believe that they are ebing used to improve the quality of the delivery of the curriculum.

I read the five rationales for the use of computers in school, and they are lovely in theory. However, I do not think that they mesh with the curriculum which we in Trinidad have to deliver.

The third rationale is one that stood out to me:

Rationale 3: To use the technology to enhance the existing curriculum and to improve the way in which it is developed. Computer-assisted learning programs, in which the computer takes over some of the activity of the teacher, fall within this rationale.

 

In Trinidad and Tobago, Form 1 students are fortunate to receive lap top computers upon their entry into secondary school. It was my dream to have students listen to music, skypeing with native speakers, using software to practise pronunciation. However, the infrastructure regarding the network is lacking, students do not take care of the computers and there is always a story about why it is not working. So I just use it to reinforce work that was done in class..a time filler.

I have given research projects relating to Spanish culture, students copy and paste from the Internet, even though strict guidelines are given. Students do not have basic word processing skills so time has to be taken to help students with assignments. Students are engaging in cyber bullying via Facebook.

At my school, technology is used mainly by teachers for administrative tasks. Technology has also taken the place of the blackboard, so instead of writing notes, I show a powerpoint. Not enough imagination is put into using the technology. But I do not blame us. We have to prepare students for a national exam called NCSE at the form 3 level and CSEC at the form 5 level. We are just trying to finish the syllabus and not enough emphasis is placed on using the technology to enhance the curriculum.

ah well...next term....

Using spreadsheets as a learning resource

I like Nicole's teacher. She seems very patient and her instructions were very clear.

I am seeing the many uses of Excel thanks to this course and I am very excited to explore this application. I have already asked a colleague of mine to help, so by the end of term, I will be able to analyze my results better.

Activity 6

I just completed Activity 6 and I am a bit annoyed with myself. When I did my Dip Ed, I figured out how to create graphs all by myself. I guess pulling an all nighter releases creative juices. Just now when I was going through the tutorial, nothing was registering. It was as if I were doing it for the first time.
They do say when you don't use it, you lose it.

Core2A assignment

Doc	Role of the educator	Application	File Name
1	Assessor	MS Excel	EOT marks.xlsx
2	Assessor	MS Word	Form One test.doc
3	Interpreter	MS Word	Student objectives.doc
4	Leader	MS Excel	Student analysis.xlsx
5	Pastoral	MS Word	Letter to Parents.doc
6	Scholar	MS Powerpoint	Multiple Intelligences.ppt

 I started teaching in 2001 at a recently constructed institution. The school was outfitted with more than one computer lab (which was a big deal back then), projectors and other new technology. So from the start of my teaching career, I have had to use ICTs in my teaching.

   However, one challenge I do have is properly tracking student academic progress.From the tutorial on Excel that I worked on, I see that Excel can provide me with information based on results very quickly. There are many co workers of mine who are proficient in Excel and over the upcoming months, I intend to sit with them and learn more about this great application. I was very apprehensive about using it, but as an assessor I will use it to aid my students' progress.

As a learning area specialist and scholar, I can use Powerpoint to share the information that I have gathered in a creative fashion instead of just recommending an article or book. This way I know that the department has been introduced to the information and may be willing to do their own research at a later date.

In order to have a good rapport with parents, contact information is very essential, so Access or Word can help me gather this information and use it to reach to parents to arrange meetings for the welfare of their sons. This will be a great time saver as I would usually have to go to the administrative office and look through files to find contact information. I will have more time to engage in my pastoral role.

As head of department, there are many administrative functions that I must fulfill in a very timely manner and Word and Excel are key to this leadership role.They help with writing up reports and doing performance appraisals.

It is clear to see based on the collaborative activities that ICTs have a valid place in education and can streamline many teacher responsibilities and I hope in a few years, pen and paper are a thing of the past.

EXCEL

I have never been friends with Maths. I got a II in Maths and that was before a III was a pass. I have always struggled with Maths, so to spend my weekend trying to figure out all the formulae for Excel was quite challenging, But I got through it.
I use Excel to record and calculate my marks. I look back now and I actually used to plug in all those marks into a calculator. If I lost track of where I was, I had to start over. Now all I do is auto fill and in two shakes of a duck's tail I am done.
This activity also gave more perimeters that I can add to my mark book like highlighting  the number of students who passed, information I need when doing my end of term reports for the Principal.
My daughter wreaked havoc in the apartment, but I believed I learned something new.

Administrative duties

I have always complained that I have too many administrative duties to perform in addition to my teaching. I have to record monies collected for fund raising, I have to file excuses, take roll for all my classes, keep track of text books. From Activity 1, there are so many programs that can save time.

For activity 2, I created a database that really will help me when the term starts because I made a personal commitment to contact parents more, but alas! it could not be opened on the tutor's computer. Then an email was sent to use a Word document. So I created a sheet to send to parents to get contact information. I hope it is sufficient.

Role Of Educator

Wow! Those two assignments came with a bang. My daughter has a fever, so it was a bit tough to multitask, but I got it done.

The article was a very interesting one. I identified with the pastoral role as I think this is one that is time consuming and also heart wrenching and frustrating. Based on my contribution as well as those of my colleagues, ICTs really can help in that area, but not many parents and teachers are not open minded with regards to technology. We have a long way to go.

In reflecting on the assignment, I make use of a lot of ICTs at work on a daily basis, like excel to take roll and record mars, youtube videos to show students about other cultures. It really is helpful.