Module 8: Reflection on Activity 4 (One Computer Classrooms)

In this activity I was selected to work with three other members from my group to complete our posting to the wiki web page. We were all asked to work together on different aspects of it. Hence, I did my research and contacted another colleague to make sure we were on target. I then posted my version to the wiki webpage.

On completion of this activity I have learnt that sometimes working together can have positive outcome and at times negative outcome, especially if group members do not work collaboratively to achieve the given tasks. This exercise has definitely impacted on me as a student doing this course and as a teacher. It helped me to see that as teachers we must set the pace for our students to follow and it is very important that when working together we must all do our part to ensure that complete success is carried out. 

Module 8: Reflection on Activity 3 (Learning Labs)

While working on this activity, I have reflected on earlier periods in life where the uses of ICT in schools were not present in the teaching learning process. Today, the integrations of Learning Labs in schools have made it possible for teachers and students in the Caribbean to be on par with other developing countries.  These labs have helped tremendously in developing our learners’ competencies and helped them to access information readily at their own convenience.

In completing the activity on learning labs I have learnt a great deal of valuable information through various researches and from discussions held by my colleagues.  Some points stood out most from these researches and discussions by addressing the pros and cons of learning labs. These pros and cons will help aid the development of the teaching learning process.

Pros:

• Each student has a machine to work with which help in his/her learning process.
• Learning labs allow for differentiating instructions which give a variety of options to help students successfully reach targeted standards.
• They serve diverse academic interest and are not focused on specific topics or areas of study.
•  Students are given the opportunity to work collaboratively on given tasks.

Although there are several benefits from learning labs problems can also derive which may include:
Cons:

•  Lack of supervision (not enough teachers to monitor students.)
• Students visiting inappropriate websites.
• Limited access as a shared resource.(The learning lab may not be available because it is often shared by other classes.)
• They generally do not lend themselves to rearrangement which can be frustrating for teachers and students.
•  It portrays that technology is removed from the classroom which sends the message that technology is separated from what students is learning in the classroom and may hinder the learning process.  

Module 8: Reflection on Activity 2 (Classroom Management with ICT Integration

The activity on classroom management with ICT integration has caused me to reflect on several things. I reflected on earlier experiences I had when I first started integrating ICT into my lessons. I must state that at the beginning I encountered few problems with classroom management where students were doing their own things like surfing unsafe sites, having their own conversations in class on different matters beside the lesson, and chatting with friends online. After those experiences, I have learnt to plan more effectively to ensure that my students were actively involved and learning took place among all my students. I also ensured that all rules and regulation were followed and equipments were made readily available for my lesson delivery. In so doing, I turned my classroom into a teaching, learning environment where students interacted well with my approaches in using technology.

Therefore, I must state that classroom management with ICT integration must be well planned and executed in order for learning to take place among students. 

Module 8: Activity one (Reflection on Principles of Classroom Management)

I really enjoyed completing the activities in activity one. At first it was a learning process for me to set up my own wiki account and getting familiar with the features of it. After doing so, I did the readings on classroom management and put my interpretation of it into practice. I then used the wiki page where I edited it by inserting my own version to the discussion. This was fun for me because I saw the other comments added by the group members, where I also added more to information where it was deemed necessary .  

In another activity, I also made comments on the experiences I had with ICT integration into the teaching and learning process. It was good to share how I viewed the new experiences I have, with ICT integration, and re-encountered old experiences, both with ICT integration and without, into my teaching and learning processes. 

Module 8

At the start of this module we had to introduce ourselves to the new tutor Mrs. Avery. This part of the activity was very straight-forward and simple. The introduction aspect also helped me to  know a bit about the other learners taking part in the module.

Activity 11: Using digital resources in the classroom

In the environment project clean up; activity 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 were well executed. This is because the students were motivated and showed enthusiasms towards the school environment clean up. They compared the materials found from observation to confirm their prediction and were able to achieved mostly all the objectives planned for the sets of activities. However, activity 6 was not well executed because some students had difficulty maneuvering Microsoft publisher software and did not get to finish the poster design on time. This however made me aware of students’ competencies at creating and designing posters. In the future I will give the students who had difficulty more practices at poster designs so they will be better equipped to handle other given tasks which require the use of brochures or poster designs. 

Module 5 (Activity 5a: Exploring Websites Resources)

In today’s modern technology there are so many useful tools that can be used to help make teaching so much easier. The websites offer online provide a variety of useful teaching resources for students, teachers and parents. Before these resources came into existence teachers rely mainly on books to get their information. Now with different software made available for the different subject areas; teachers, students and parents can be on par with other countries who are advancing. The websites below are just a few I use to help me enhance my teaching, learning process and can be used with students from Grade K to 8.

http://www.education.com/  (This website caters for a variety of different subject areas such as Language Arts, Science, mathematics and more. It offers games, activities, worksheet, workbooks, articles, Science fair and more. However, to be a user you have to sign up to get in on the site.

http://www.mathsisfun.com/geometry/index.html  (Mathisfun software is a very useful software. It provides a variety of topics in which users can benefit from. Some of the topics highlighted are data, geometry, algebra, numbers, measurement, etc. The software also has games, a dictionary, worksheet and activities in which users can practice from.

http://www.makemegenius.com/# ( makemegenius website provides useful resources for K1 to K8 (year 5 to 12.) There are videos on Science for Kids, cool facts, educational Power-Point, Jokes for kids, see and learn videos and Science test, Quiz and questions.

http://kidshealth.org/     (This site is one I use a lot with my students because it caters for kids, teens, parents and educators. It also has a lot of useful material to work with. For example, video clipping, activities, quizzes, word find and an article with an audio player which reads the content offered.)