~ My Journey, My Reflections, My Memories ~

Faithful and True

2009-05-24T15:17:00.011+08:00

The God I Know

This song brings tears to my eyes when I first heard it during worship in church. Truly God, You are faithful and true, my tower of refuge, my comfort, my strength and my all despite all that happens in life. Thank you, Father, It's all because of You, You alone.

"God did not promise days without pain; laughter without sorrow; sun without rain - But He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way."

A Visit to my practicum school and pupils =)

2009-05-22T14:36:00.011+08:00

Today I walk down memory lane to my previous school where I had my teaching practice last semester. Wow...

It was great having to meet all my former pupils during practical last semester (July-Sept '08). Im so glad and overwhelmed by their hugs and welcome when I visited them this morning. Almost a year has passed, and they have all grown from Year 1 to Year 2, and subsequently for all the other standards as well. I had the great opportunity to teach 4 classes from Year 1 to Year 4 during my practical and it was truly a rewarding wonderful experience!

Thank you dear pupils for your lovely gifts and wishes.. I felt like a teacher once again! =)

Year 6

Year 5

Year 4

Year 3

Year 2

with some of the Year 3 pupils in computer lab

with Sangeetha and Shalini (Year 2) in the staffroom

I know that the journey as a teacher is a challenging yet impactful one.. There's still a long way to go and I've exceedingly many new things to learn throughout this pathway..

Let this be a new beginning, and may I learn to see things that come my way in His light, in His Purpose :)

University Days~

2009-05-07T14:52:00.022+08:00

These are memories to treasure during our days as undergrads in UM. Photos taken during the final week of lecture before we go off for study break, and our last few days in campus. Despite the short duration of uni life, we have certainly gone through a mile and journeyed a remarkable learning experience together.

Group photo after our final paper~ 4th May '09

All smiles~

Final paper~ Future Studies in the ESL Classroom~

On Ko-K Day~ 9th April '09

Yun Mun and I~

Alison and I~

Yun Mun and I~

Shin Chin, Kia, Yun Mun, Mei, me and Alison~

(future teachers-to-be ^^ do we look like one? eheh *grin*)

Alison, Akma, Loura, Farah, me and Shin Chin~

The dawn of final sem sinks in~

2009-05-07T02:16:00.046+08:00

As the semester drew to a close this final sem of my studies in uni, Im filled with mixed feelings I myself am not sure of.. happy as I'll soon be free from all the hard and seemingly endless assignments and tests, sad and reluctant, as leaving uni would mark the end of my student days which I treasure the most, regrets in life, the many things which I should have done but how I've let opportunities passed me by, and the things I would change if only there is the 'undo' button, yet I know that everything happens for a purpose and reason, and most of all, thankful to Him who is more than able to hold me through all the seasons time and again, and allowing me to experience such wonderful exciting journey in life, where each day is a new discovery, an open door for me to grow and mature.

This whole semester has indeed been a tough yet refining one which challenged me to the max in every area, be it intellectually in my quest to complete the tonnes of heavy time-consuming assignments, studying and cramming for tests, and final exams, physically drained out of energy and strength with the many late late nights, emotionally tired and a fusion of other feelings. Everything got really sardined-packed towards the last week of the semester with all the deadlines and tests piling up one after another.. leaving no room to catch a breath. Huh! phew.. Looking back it was all great great time and memories of student life. And yes, they are still the best!

I am totally grateful and amazed at how the Lord sustained me, faithfully stayed my pillar of strength, picked me up when I fall, and never failed to send wonderful friends and blessed bros and sis in Christ to bring cheers at the time when I most needed it. Thank you dear friends.. and comrades

April 9th marked the last day of our lecture in uni (Future Studies with Prof Moses).. and it was also the day we had 'Hari Ko-K' for the academic session 2008/2009 for some of us who were involved in it this semester.

~ It was truly an insightful time of learning throughout the whole course of exploring the 'Future of English' =)

Alison, me, Prof Moses and Shin Chin ~ thank you Prof for everything. We've learnt many interesting new thoughts in all your classes.

mini luncheon before the class ended.

This semester, I had the opportunity to dance on stage before leaving uni.. and I really had a good time on the day itself despite the tiring practices and replacement classes prior to that. Enjoyed myself as all of us had fun =) I took up 'Asas Tarian Rakyat Cina' for Ko-kurikulum where we were introduced to the basic dance combination for Malaysian Chinese Dance and were later separated into 2 different groups of dances (Flower & Warrior Dance)to be performed during Ko-K Day in Dataran Tunku Canselor (DTC) UM.

some of us from the 'Flower' group.. *looks more like cabbages on our heads! haha*

the 'Warrior' group.. all geared-up for war... lolz

Ai Sian and I ~ before the show

That's us, doing the 'flower' movement~ so funny lolz

with my lovely coursemates~

Mun Siong and I~

Ying Ying and I ~ after the performance

Ai Sian and I~

Find Us Faithful

2009-03-03T17:49:00.007+08:00

This song caught me thinking a lot about the legacy we leave behind to the people in our lives, and around us. I first heard of it during Camp Cameron '08, a life-changing camp I attented in my 3rd Year of Uni life. I was truly touched by the deep meaning behind the song and was especially impacted during the mime performed by the (Fellowship of Evangelical Students) FES staffs during the camp closing and the commisioning of all the participants.

Truly,
Have I ever thought about the impacts I would leave behind...

Have I been an encourager, a listener, a friend...

Have I been a good and faithful servant...

May all who come behind us find us faithful...

With All I Am

2009-03-03T17:16:00.008+08:00

Into your hand
I commit again
With all I am
For you Lord

You hold my world
In the palm of your hand
And I'm yours forever

CHORUS
Jesus I believe in You
Jesus I belong to You
You're the reason that I live
The reason that I sing
With all I am

I'll walk with You
Wherever You go
Through tears and joy
I'll trust in You

And I will live
In all of Your ways and
Your promises forever

I will worship
I will worship you forever

Indeed, I choose to commit everything in my life, in total surrender to Him, the Giver of life and the lover of my soul. With my whole world in His hands, I am assured that He will never let me go. Thank you, JESUS.

Trust His Heart

2008-07-01T21:34:00.009+08:00

A wonderful song.. the words of the Chorus were shared to me by a Christian teacher duirng POTs and later during Camp Cam by one of the Aunty. A great assurance that God is indeed in control of everything. He holds my world in the palm of His hands.

All things work for our good
though sometimes we can't see how they could
struggles that break our hearts in two
sometimes blinds us to the truth

Our Father knows what's best for us
His ways are not our own
So when your pathway grows dim, and you just can't see Him
Remember you're never alone

Chorus:
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart

He sees the master plan
And He holds our future in His hands
So don't live as those who have no hope
All our hope is found in Him

We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and the last
And like a tapestry
He's weaving you and me to someday be just like Him

~ Babbie Mason

Back to KL.. New Sem Awaits..

2008-07-01T20:43:00.009+08:00

22 June 2008 (Sun)

It's time to be back to Uni. Ready for another hectic schedule of studies. This sem will be a really heavy and tough one as I'll be having my practical for a duration of 10 weeks beginning from 7th July. Monday, 23rd June, is the day of briefing for our Teaching Practice (TP) and that will be the time when we'll be informed of the school we're assigned to for the whole TP. Really thank God that the school that my friends and I are attached to is not that far away from PJ.

During our first visit to the school, we're informed that the school academic session is in the afternoon. We're required to be given 10 periods of lessons per week. Time table on the subjects given will be given some time soon.. Till then, we've yet to know the class, and subjects assigned to us.

Am excited, nervous and anxious.. all at the same time..

God, prepare me..

Home Sweet Home..:)

2008-06-07T15:10:00.013+08:00

There's no place like home.. Reached Kuching on the evening of 1st June. Mum and Dad, Grandma, Aunty Kim, Uncle and cousins were at the airport. So glad to be back at home seeing all of you after one whole semester of studies in uni.

It's the Gawai festive season here in Sarawak. Mum and Dad brought me to the two new shopping malls in Kuching, Boulevard and the Spring.

Mum and I, at the Spring

Mum and I

Dad and I

With cousin, Lee Ting

With cousin, Olivia, at Grandma's house..

Mum and Dad, Grandma and cousin Gordon.. at Uncle's house

Back from Camp Cam '08~ Once in a lifetime camp ~

2008-05-31T21:55:00.009+08:00

~memories in camp cam '08~ taken in front of Chalet 9

Turn my eyes away from worthless things... Give me life in Thy Ways.
~Psalm 119:37

Goodbye Camp Cameron '08. A life-changing point of my life. God who journeys with me in my odyssey, God who comforts, God who charts my life, God Almighty, Everlasting Father.

Me and Sis Ee Yin during our first outing to Boh Plantation =)

My camp family after International Night ~Chalet 8~

Jesus take me as I am
I can come no other way
Take me deeper into You
Make my flesh life melt away

Make me like a precious stone
Crystal clear and finely honed
Life of Jesus shining through
Giving glory back to You.

Thank you Lord Jesus, for this time and place of meeting and hearing from You in this Camp Cameron. Make my life wholly thine.

Exam's Over!!!

2008-05-06T17:42:00.006+08:00

Woww, I'm so glad that exam is finally over now.. Just a few hours ago:) hehe.. Final paper off my shoulder. God, help me do well in all my papers. I submit everything into your hands.

It would now be a perfect time to get myself snug with the books I've borrowed from the church library, in my little corner and just read... read.. read.. Ooh, how nice it is:)

It's also time for me to prepare and get packing for Camp Cam!! Yeah, a 3 weeks' camp from 12th-30th May organised by the Fellowship of Evangelical Students (FES) to build foundations of faith and life in the Word of Life and learning to live life in God's ways. It's going to be a whole new learning experience of 3 weeks in Cameron Highlands. I yearn to experience the awesome presence of God and to hear His still inner voice in the quietness of the heart seeking Him to "Give me life in Thy ways" (Psalm 119:37) which is the theme of the camp.

Yah.. got the book :)

2008-04-28T10:28:00.009+08:00

Went to church yesterday with Irene. Since we're early that day, we went to the 'Burning BUSH' (Books You Should Have! :) bookshop in church. It has been quite some time I haven't had the time to drop in the bookshop. I was browsing through the books.. And guess what...the book which I have been searching for was there.. it was the sequel to the book by the bestselling author Joshua Harris. Yah, finally.. got the book..:)

I presume that I'll only have the time to read it after Im done with all my exams in about 10 days' time. Yeah, can't wait for the day when my final paper arrives:)

CeLebraTions..

2008-04-27T23:13:00.011+08:00

Last Thursday, 24th April 2008, was my CG leader, Carol's birthday. Vera, invited us out for a treat to celebrate her birthday. After studying for my French Language paper for the past few days after my first paper on Monday, I decided to take a short break for dinner to celebrate Carol's birthday. We went to Sushi King, Section 14. Cool.. my first time there.. Haha.. :) Thanks Vera:)

Me and Carol.. :)

A b'day toast:) Vera, Carol and I

I had my Bahasa Perancis (Peringkat 1) exam the next day in the afternoon. Thank you Vera for your sms prayer at that time when Im usually nervous, tension before an examination. Could even feel the butterflies in my stomach. And the prayer calmed me down and help me to be focused. The paper went well and I learn to submit it all to the Lord.

That night, I went for my church CG. The Word session from Elie's sharing with reference to Genesis 25:29-34 kept me thinking on my destiny in God. Points to ponder upon:

i) Know who our 'Shepherd' is: deepening a strong and close relationship with Him through our quiet time,

ii) Each one of us have a God-given destiny designed for us personally. Don't trade your destiny for something else which seems better at that temporal moment of our lives,

iii) Are we often the 'voice of the distractor' to our friends leading them in the wrong way, or Are we the ones who guide people whom God has caused to cross our paths into the right path in life?

I thank the Lord that wherever He puts me, He has blessed me with wonderful friends, brothers and sisters in Christ to hold me through this journey in life. I thank Him for His assurance and always being there for me, my best Friend whom I know I can always turn to Him and He's there to answer. For He holds my world, and I put my trust in Him alone, a loving Father who would give the very best for His children.

We celebrated Carol's birthday as a CG before we end the session.

Blessed b'day, Carol :)

Make a wish.. :)

A Day Out...

2008-04-17T14:03:00.012+08:00

Sunday (6th April 2008)

Went to church for the Sunday celebration in DUMC today. It's really good to be in the house of God giving Him praise and seeking Him, and listening to Him through His Word.

After that, i went for my class farewell gathering for the course 'Ethics and Teaching Profession' with my coursemates and lecturers, Mr Razak and Pn Azni, both wonderful lecturers who taught us the subject for this semester. Thank you!! The class gathering was held in KFC, Section 14, just within walking distance from DUMC.

Sze Mei and I (during the class party at KFC)

Then, i met up with Elaine, my friend from my home church in Kuching who is now studying in KL. It has been quite some time we've not met each other since we were both busy and occupied with studies and all.. We went for lunch at Mid-Valley and watched the movie '27 Dresses'. It was a good and light romantic comedy.. hahah.. Had a great time out together :)

With Elaine Poh.. popcorns for movie:)

Yeah, FinalLy...It's The FiNaL WeeK..

2008-04-17T13:53:00.008+08:00

Wow, I can't believe how fast time flies.. it's already now the final week of the semester!! It just seemed like yesterday when the new semester just began.

Yeah, im filled with both gladness and anxiety at the same time.. Glad because it's the final week of assignments, final tests, final micro-teaching, and final week of hectic class schedules.. haih.. this semester has really been like a roller-coaster.. a tough one.. ups and downs for the whole 14 consecutive weeks.. even the 1 week CNY mid-sem break was filled with assignments. There was so much of work to be completed with all the due dates zooming in at the same time. Thank God that the due date of our final 2 assignments was given an extension to be submitted during our study week which was also the same day which we had 2 final tests. I must admit that i didn't really had much time to prepare for the two science tests.:(

Anxious.. yeah, Im really anxious cos come next semester we'll be having our Teaching Practice from the 7th July -12th September. Im not sure if Im really, truly, seriously prepared for my practical. We would only be informed of the particular school that we are attached to for the Teaching Practice by June. Hmm... ''Would I be able to handle all the pupils in the class? Classroom management? Lesson Plans? Convey the lessons well to my pupils during the teaching-learning?" Questions just keep arising.. During the beginning of the study week, we had a session with a school headmistress which she shared and imparted precious lessons to us as future trainee teachers, the experiences on the life of a teacher in a primary school. It's a truly insightful session we had as well as an eye-opener in helping us prepare for our practical in school later.

Waahh... this semester has also been a really challenging one with the involvement in the Easter Musical 'Entangled' organised by the PKVUM. Juggling between heavy workload of studies, never-ending assignments and commitment in the Easter publicity meetings, with continuous late night sleep, i really thank God that everything went through smoothly and that He sees me through every moment of it all. It is really through His grace and strength that carried me through and guided me throughout this whole semester. Praise the Lord!!

Finally, it's now time to concentrate on studying for my exam which is very near the corner in less than a week's time. First paper on Monday, TITAS II. MeMoRiSE. MeMoRise. & MeMoRiSe!!! That's what I need to do for this subject. Help me, God.
I know He's there for me. My shelter, my comforter. Thank you, God.

How Could I Live Without You?

2008-03-31T23:35:00.007+08:00

How could I live without you?

How could I survive,

Without Your love, without Your touch

You're the one who heals me

Strengthens my heart

And sets me free...

Now I come right before You

With my hands lifted up

And my heart humbly bowed

At Your work on the cross

As you hung there and died,

You were paying the price

For my life, for my life...

For Your love is higher than the heavens

Deeper than the sea

All I want is You in my life

No one else can satisfy my soul

Make me feel this way

Only You Lord, only You.

I first heard this song sung in the campus CG.. It really touches me at how much Christ has paid the price to redeem back this life, so precious to Him. And all I can say is 'How could I live without You? How could I survive?' I need You O Lord, come and fill me with Your love.

Post-Entangled ;)

2008-03-30T16:16:00.015+08:00

26th March 2008

It will be a nite to remember.. , a journey to cherish..., an experience to be treasured.. All thanks be unto God the Father, Christ the Lord who has been the source of our strength, wisdom and guidance for each and everyone of us through this event, an Easter musical production for Him, and above all else, for the Lord of our campus. Without Him, we would not have been able to put up this play for "He so loved the world that He gave us His one and only Son, That whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." Amen.

PKVians.. Post- Entanlged moment. KPS Auditorium, 26th March 2008

Sweet Sharon and I.. :)

With Jia Hua and Sharon...

Hey, isn't that 'Edmond'..? :)

With dear Rachael.. :)

Entangled~ An Easter Musical '08

2008-03-30T15:55:00.003+08:00

An Easter Musical '08 by the PKVUM (Persaudaraan Kristian Varisiti Univeristi Malaya) on 26th March in the KPS Auditorium.
Visit http://www.entangledthemusical.blogspot.com/ and get entangled in the story of God's forgiveness and love and experience with us the making of 'Entangled' the Musical.

Happy Valentines' Day ^^

2008-02-16T11:43:00.005+08:00

For God so loVed the world,
That He gAve
His onLy
BegottEn
SoN
That whoever
Believes In Him
Should Not perish,
But have Everlasting life.

God loves us like no one else ever could. He showed us love when He sent His Son, to be our Saviour. He's the best companion we'll ever have.
God bless!

Morning has broken...

2008-01-28T19:23:00.001+08:00

Find this very meaningful.. Am comforted and touched by it~
God bless.

Do Not Be Anxious

Do not be anxious when the living
Of your life brings grief and sorrow.
Offer God your glad thanksgiving,
Thank Him for each bright tomorrow.
(Phillipians 4:6)

Do not be anxious when your giving,
Is not returned by even one.
Trust in God; have no misgiving,
He sees every deed that's done.
(Matthew 6:1-4)

Do not be anxious for tomorrow,
Is that not what God's Word does say?
From it's trouble never borrow,
Suffice the evil of today.
(Matthew 6:34)

Do not be anxious in the "warring",
Of your soul with sin and doubt.
In God's love you'll find restoring,
Grace and power to bring you out.
(1Peter 5:10)

Do not be anxious in the hurry,
And the pressures of the strife.
Who of you by fret and worry,
Can add one hour to your life.
(Luke 12:25)

Do not be anxious, never waver,
When the dark clouds dim your view.
Cast every fear upon our Saviour,
For He loves and cares for you.
(1 Peter 5:7)

Ku MiLikki KaSihMu~

2008-01-24T19:59:00.000+08:00

Ku milikki kasihMu,
Yang tak ternilai bagiku
Meskipun tak kupunya,
Siapapun juga

Sungguh indah kasihMu,
Yang tak bersyarat untuk ku
Walaupun tak ada yang mengasihiku

Chorus:
Kau Tuhan adalah Bapaku
Yang sangat menyayanyi ku
Tak pernah sekali pun, ku dapati
Kau sakiti hatiku

Kau Tuhan adalah Bapaku
S'lalu memperhatikan Ku
Tak ada alasan ku ragu-ragu
Ku serahkan hatiku

KepadaMu

Back to Uni..

2008-01-20T14:43:00.001+08:00

It has now been the 4th week Im back to uni for my 2nd sem of Year 3. I thank God for a wonderful, fruitful holiday back at home after missing home for one whole sem.. God is good.. and He is good all the time!!

Yes, A new beginning, a new start which lies ahead an array of challenges right in front of me.. Challenges I can foresee, challenges I've yet to know, yet challenges that would just send worries and concern down my heart. Life is just full of worries and Im just troubled thinking, pondering, dreaming about them.. Sometimes, I just don't know, I really do not know.. What am i supposed to do? Should I or should I not? Whatever it is, it just doesn't seem right.. Is it my lack of faith, is it my inability to comprehend? But yet, I know, and Im rest assured that He holds my world, and my God is too good to allow a mistake. So, when I don't understand, when I don't see His plans, when I can't trace His hand, TRUST the heart and WALK in faith.

UPs AnD DoWns...

2008-01-15T22:12:00.000+08:00

In my distressed moments, the Lord is my pillar of strength, whom I can onto and depend on. As I ponder upon the ways of how I can be strengthened, encouraged, or refreshed in the Lord when Im feeling discouraged, I am reminded to:

~Remember what God has done~
It helps to list the ways He has cared for us in the past, and how He has provided for us or answered a prayer request.

~Remember what God has promised~
"Be Strong and of good courage; .... for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).

Like David, let's learn to strengthen ourselves in the Lord, and then let's leave the rest with Him.

Our greatest strength is often shown in our ability to stand still and trust God.

Ist Kuching Brigade Caroling at home, Dec '07

2008-01-10T22:02:00.004+08:00

19Dec 2007

'We bring you good news of great joy. This very day in David's town, a Saviour is born. He is Christ, the Lord.'

Indeed, Christmas is a truly a time to of great joy as we remember the love that Christ brings into the world. A King is born!

It's the day for the Boys' and Girls' Brigade Caroling. Thank God for the good weather and for bringing all the members who turned up throughout the practices and the actual day. Although this year we only went to 4 houses in a night, it's a joyful and meaningful time of spreading the good news to all hearts that are open for God's salvation love.

Happy Birthday Ah Ma:)

2007-11-28T17:00:00.003+08:00

Happy Birthday to dear ah Ma,

Celebrated on the 25 Nov, 07 at the Mien Ann Restaurant. Im so glad to be back at home at this time for this special occasion with dear loved ones.

Wonderful time of fellowship and get-together among all cousins and relatives.

Most of all, a memorable time to celebrate Grandma's b'day.

GB Cadets' Camp

2007-11-28T16:59:00.003+08:00

23-24 Nov 2007

St. Thomas Cathedral, Kuching.
Girls' Brigade Cadets' Camp.

It was a good and rewarding time taking care of the little ones during these 2 days of camp.

For me, I learn a lot in managing the girls in my group for the activities carried out during the camp. I truly thank God for such lovely children who brings with them an open heart as they learn and grow together as children of God in the Girls' Brigade. Each of us (helpers) were given two girls under our care throughout the camp. My two girls were good and obedient children so I didn't have much difficulty putting them to bed after the vesper session. During the workshop session, we taught them craftwork for different age group. For my group, Amanda and I prepared some pop-up Chrismas cards for the 8 years old girls. Im impressed by the creativity of the different children as they completed their cards. Some of them could really make beautifully-decorated cards for their friends or family members. Overall, I thank God for this precious opportunity to be involved in this Cadets' Camp and to be in contact with these little children.

~CaRoLs~

2007-11-16T00:27:00.001+08:00

Im back from carolling practice today. It's been a long time since I last joined the 1st Kuching Girls' and the Boys' Brigade Carolling when I was in my secondary school days.. And it's just so nice to have the opportunity to be part of this carolling family again as Im now back in Kuching for my semester holiday till after Christmas. This is our second practice for the carolling this year.. and it's a bit disappointing to see the very small number of members who turned up for the past two practices. We used to have a large group of members joining the carolling in the past with so much fun and laughter. GB and BB Carolling has been one of my most memorable and fun days which I remembered. I hope that more members will be coming and sing carols for the LORD as we celebrate His precious gift of love into the world.

Hmm.. Im really glad that Im able to be back and join in the Girls' Brigade activities as we are now planning for the Cadets Camp coming up soon on the 23-24 November in church.

A Beautiful Psalm

2007-11-04T22:16:00.000+08:00

A beautiful psalm which reminds me of God's constant goodness and love for us, His children. Just call upon Him and trust in His guidance. Lean not on my own understanding.

PSALM 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
He leads me beside quiet waters,
He restores my soul.
He guides in paths of righteousness
for His name's sake.
Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
Your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Yeah.. two more papers..

2007-10-30T15:03:00.001+08:00

Yeah, today I had my second paper, TITAS I after so much of reading, scrutinizing, & memorizing.. trying to squeeze in as much facts as possible into my tiny little brain. haha.. Im currently in a state of disappointment at having made some mistakes which I realise upon checking the answers when I reach home.. ARRghh.. Yet, it's a relief that it's now over and I believe that I've put my best in it.. only regretting in certain areas where my memory fails me.. :(

Yesterday was my first paper, a one-hour paper on Kemahiran Maklumat. I'd revised what had been taught in class and read through our coursebook. My worries for this paper would be identifying the relevant different names of databases or 'Pangkalan Dalam Talian' which I'd no idea of regarding the content area of each of the database given.. Huh, tough trying to figure out the options given.

I shall now get back to prepare for my next paper tomorrow - Muzik Melayu Asli (my elective paper this semester). A reminder for myself:- No time for relaxing ya.. Study time.. Hope i wont fall asleep.. ^-^

Will be back soon! :)

~ He Knows my Name ~

2007-10-28T21:35:00.000+08:00

He Knows my Name,
God knows our every thought, sees each tear that falls
& hears us when we call.
For the One who made heaven and earth,
knowing a few billion people is not a problem.
God loves you immensely (John 3:16)
He thinks about you all the time. (Psalm 139:17-18)
He knows your name. (John 10:3)

God knows each winding way I take,
And every sorrow, pain, & ache,
His children He will not forsake-
He knows & loves His own.

Finals Tomorrow!!

2007-10-28T21:14:00.002+08:00

After a mere two weeks of study week, it's finally the time for final exam which starts tomorrow. Besides spending my time revising and studying for my exam, I'm glad to have the opportunity of attending conferences during the Raya break and last weekend which has truly been a fulfilling time after a whole semester of lectures, assignments, and work! I thank God for the wonderful time and all the messages that He has dawned upon me as I learn to lean on Him in my my life and trust in His ways for me.

It's also been quiet time on my own in preparation for my exam which will begin throughout the whole of next week.. (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday).. Hmm.. well, I hope all the papers will be fine. I would do my best and trust in God, my Helper.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye."

~Psalm 32:8~

~Setia PadaMu~

2007-10-20T10:17:00.000+08:00

Shared to me by one of the teachers I met from the camp:
Im greatly inspired and a constant reminder for me of His presence.

'Setia PadaMu'

Maafkan aku, ampuni aku
Kadangku tak peka 'kan suaraMu
Seringkali ku, melayaniMu
Hanya untuk kepuasanku
Ajarku 'tuk berjalan
Sesuai kehendakMu

Ke mana pun jua Kau membawaku
Aku ikut bersamaMu
Dan apapun ja yang Kau mahu
Ku 'kan turut kehendakMu

Kerana ku di sini
Penuhi panggilanMU
Ajarku 'tuk setia kepadaMu

~I'm back ^^ ~

2007-10-20T10:07:00.001+08:00

Im back from the iPOT's conference from the 12-16th October 2007 at Peacehaven, Genting Highlands. It's a conference organized by the Fellowship of Evangelical Students (FES) for the Professionals of Tomorrow consisting of students from these three fields; Hots (Healthcarers of Tomorrow), LOTs (Law graduates of Tomorrow) and TOTs (Teachers of Tomorrow).

It's truly a remarkably life-changing and enriching experience for me and I believe for most of the participants as well. I've learnt so many things and am renewed in mind and spirit as we were challenged to be willing vessels to be one of the few called into these professions as faithful servants of God. It's a challenge for me to really let go of my self-centredness and 'Let GOD' to take charge over my life. Im amazed by Him as Im deeply encouraged by all the sharing from the beginning teachers as well as those who are seniors in the teaching profession during the TOT's workshops and forum session. I begin to see the beauty of teaching in a totally new perspective especially in the area of postings, knowing that He goes before me in the school that Im placed in.

It's also been a memorable time of making new friends and getting to know a bunch of wonderful students from different colleges and uni. I truly thank God for a refreshing and rewarding time throughout the iPOTs camp in Peachehaven. Thank you for making it possible and for the impactful messages that You have spoken to me.

Participants from UM..

Games.. Yeah, let's cheer for our team!!

The 'Professionals of Tomorrow!!'

~A Round-Up WiTh A Surprise~ Quiz in our FiNaL CLaSs!!

2007-10-05T00:46:00.000+08:00

3rd October 2007 (13th Class)

Wow, Im amazed at how fast time flies.. It's already the 13th week of our course.. We're fast approaching the end of this semester. I must say that Im filled with mixed feelings of excitement and yet overwhelmed by a sense of sadness, reminiscing back at the time spent in equiping myself with ways to integrate technology in the classroom throughout this 13 rewarding weeks. Reflecting back, I have truly learnt a mile and picked up many little things in improving my ICT skills along my pathway of this course PKEY 3101. This journey of learning would not be possible without the guidance and relentless effort of Prof. Maznah and facilitators.. Ms Ng, Ms Chin, and honourable guests.. Ms Fenny and Ms Nazirah. Thank you so much for your time in preparing and guiding us to be well-equipped with ICT skills before we step out into the real teaching classroom in the time to come.

We also had the opportunity to be a part of Ilham's respondents in her survey on teachers using the IWB in the primary classroom. I penned down my thoughts and responded to her questionaires on my experience of designing a software using the Smart Notebook as part of our assingment. She then left us with her ever so sweet smile.. All the best to you, Ilham in all your undertakings.

Then, Prof brought us into the forum on our 'Soft-skills Acquisition' and encouraged all of us to contribute to the topic posted. She then introuduced us to the 'Fish Philosophy' which I find it very enriching and insightful. I am stirred by the important role that we play in our lives as a teacher and how we can make a difference to each of the pupils we teach. The four main principles applied by the 'fish philosophy' are 'Play', 'Make Their Day', 'Be There' and 'Choose Your Attitude'. This philosophy can be applied in teaching our pupils as we bring into class the element of 'play' or 'fun' in designing activities for our pupils. Learning should truly be fun and enjoyable for young learners to create a conducive learning environment. Indeed, it makes so much different when we choose to start each day with a positive note, walking around trying to make the day special for another person, and most of all, be a good listener and make it a point to be there for a person in need. We never know how an act of love and care can touch the lives of a pupil. Wow, Im just amazed that.. There's actually so much to learn from people around us.. the fishmongers!! Thanks Prof for bringing to our attention this beautiful philosophy in life and your sharing on your trip to Seattle. In fact, it reminds me of the movie 'Sleepless in Seattle' each time the name of the place comes to mind..:) It's just a beautiful movie that I love and remember.

As the title for this post suggests, yeah.. I'm throwned into a state of 'Surprise' with the announcement of a 'Quiz' which carries 5% of our overall grading for this course. I really do not know what to expect.. And at the first sight of the quiz paper, I was like.. "Hmm.. I remember this in class, but I just don't seem to recall the complete answer for it.. Aarrggh.." I tried my best in the quiz and it was another surprise when we were told to do peer-marking for our quiz.
Well, I'd put on my best effort and I really hope to do well in this course.

Prof briefly discussed through the questions we did for our test last week on the 'Airset', 'Yahoo Group', and 'Podcast'. Then, she gave us a round-up of the whole course with much valuable piece of advice for us to bring back home as this is our final class for this course. Many thanks to you, Prof and all the teaching team. I've truly learnt a lot and be refined in my perspective towards ICT as I learn to integrate technology into the classroom.

The class ended smoothly with Ms Chin bringing us through a list of useful sites on Yahoo Groups which we can be part of and learn from many other teachers around the country by joining the group http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/DipEd_2007/files

All the best to all my dear coursemates and may we leave this place a different person as compared to when we first stepped into MK1 and MK2 in the beginning of the course. As for me, I know that I have truly been enriched and hope for the best in our quest of being an 'Educator', the best profession that opens doors for us to touch the lives of children whom we keep in contact with.
Let's run this race together!!

The TEST!!!

2007-09-26T21:52:00.000+08:00

26th September 2007 (12th Class)

Today is 'The Day'. It's the day for our 'Test', the only test for this course. Wow, to be honest, I truly do not know what to expect for this test.. So, I would say I had basically read up on what we have been exposed to and taught in the class throughout this course. And, Yes, almost all of our tasks and assignments, in fact, ALL of them are ONLINE.. in other words, PAPERLESS! So, I basically go through the online learning tools which we are currently using- The Moodle, and the Airset which we all signed up and were subscribed to the SMART tech where we were connected to all the teachers and other users of the IWB software. I personally find it a very useful and helpful source of getting connected and be informed of the updates in technology and have truly benefitted a lot from these effective Learning Management System. Prior to this course, I was not very much engaged in the usage of such Learning Management System softwares and Im very glad to be able to use it and be involved in these online learning support system. Truly, I marvel at the wonders of technology and how it has lift a great burden from every human who is constantly lacking of TIME. With the availabilty of technology, it connects mankind regardless of where we are.

The test was a two-hour paper, from 12-2pm sharp in MK2. Fully essay questions, we had to answer 2 out of 3 questions. My respond to the questions at first look was, 'Err.. I know some of them, yet I have practically no idea about some of it..' So, after much contemplating, and thinking, and reflecting, and jotting down of all my thoughts, I decided to attempt questions 1 and 3.
Well, and the rest was history. I tried my best to recall and put to paper what I remembered from the notes and what I learnt in class. And, the rest was history.. I hope I had recalled the facts correctly and applied it appropriately.
We were allowed to leave after we have completed the test.

That's all for now.. I've got to be on my bed now cos it's way past my sleeping time.. **yawning

IWB Presentations..

2007-09-22T15:48:00.000+08:00

19th September 2007 (11th Class)

We shall continue on the presentations today. Prof wrote down the names of the remaining group which have yet to present our Smart Notebook Assignment today; namely, 'Devil, Authentic Educators, Rejuvenescence, Eureka, Prestije, Technothinkers, Winter, Undecided, Max IT'. Each of these groups presented their best product to the class followed by a brief comment done by another group which is evaluating the particular group's presentation. Yea, peer evaluation is what we have been doing.. I believe this is really a good practice for us to get critical and be able to point out the plus and the minus of our friends' presentations. For me, I learn to give constructive comments as I observe and learn from each group's presentation. As for my group, Gladys represents our group with her very interactive activity for an English lesson on 'Prepositions'. One of the interesting activity involves the pupils in locating the missing objects in a bedroom such as the 'pen, hat, and clock.' Pupils can hear a whistle being blown if they manage to find the object.

Below are some of the photos taken during the group presentations.

Alison and her science lesson on 'Food Chain'

Peer-evaluation -Azlan commenting on Alison's activity.

Gladys in action- English lesson on 'Prepositions'

Another fulfilling day of learning from the group presentation and be amazed by the wonders of IWB in a primay classroom.

GraNd FiNaLe of IWB AsSignMenT

2007-09-15T14:30:00.000+08:00

12th September 2007 (10th Class)

IWB Assignment is to be uploaded to AirSet today. All of our progressive work and development of activities for Smart Notebook for the past 4 weeks has come to an end. We would now be able to view the works of all our friends through the wonderful online technological tool known as the 'Airset' survival kit which offers the best life organisation and group collaboration service.

Wow, im so impressed by the wonderful masterpieces of my coursemates filled with real-interactive flowing ideas to be incorporated in the primary classroom. What a great and fulfilling time of learning from one another.

O ya, one thing to note. We're visited by a friend, Ilham, one of Prof's International student from Iran. She's a beauty and truly sweet to behold. Well, she's apparently doing a research or study on the usage of Smart Notebook in the classroom. Hence, Prof has invited her over to join us as we share and learn from each other in class.

Ilham, in the midst of discussion with Prof.

Well, should I say, at the start of the class, we were thrown into an unexpected predicament when the IWB was not in its usual day as it failed to operate as normal. Our presentations are put to a temporary standstill while Ms Ng and Ms Chin both tried to bring it back to live again. Well, well, this is when technology fails us and I believe as teachers, we should always be well-prepared for such situations and be prompt to take follow-up actions, just like the saying 'Teachers always have Plan B'. Similarly, Prof had another activity for us. She brought up the topic 'Teacher Readiness, Teaching Pedagogy and the Learning Outcome' which she posted on the Forum on the Moodle. We are then to respond to this topic in our groups to the class. Kudos to those who have intelligently attempted to her topic on the forum and she prompted the rest of us to share our thoughts and ideas too.

Then, in the midst of all these, Ms Ng broke the good news that the IWB has been restored back to its original operation. Yeah!! And there goes the first group with their presentation and followed by five other groups for the day. Each group would select one IWB activity from the members which they felt is most interesting to be presented and shared with the class.

Here are some of the shots taken during the group presentations, namely group by Teoh, Lee Jeng Yong, Siti Haslina, and Mellisa. Indeed, I truly enjoy and learn a lot from their ideas on what IWB can do for a Science, Mathematics and English lesson.

As for my group and all the other remaining groups which have not presented due to time constraint, we will be presenting next week. Till, then, we cannot wait for the time to watch what our friends have prepared to show us in another 7 days' time.

What an insightful day!!

OnLiNe ReSourCes CUM DeVeLoPMenT oF IWB AsSignMEnT

2007-09-15T14:25:00.000+08:00

5th September 2007 (9th Class)

A vast array of educational online resources is shared to us in today's class by Ms Chin. She has brought to our attention the various educational websites which are useful to us in our vocation as a future educator as these sites provide us with interesting ideas and made us aware of online resources which we can use in the classroom.

Among some of the websites which I have gathered are:

http://www.tutor.com.my/tutor/daily/eharian.asp?

This site contains 'e-tuisyen' which provides quality sample questions set by trained and experienced teachers which are aligned with the latest exam format. The 'question bank' provides questions for UPSR, PMR, SPM, STPM, Pre-School, and Pre-University level. In the link 'Bilik Guru', we can obtain teaching plans/ Rancangan Pengajaran, ETeMS materials, and the latest Syllabus, and the Curriculum Specifications.

http://eleaston.com/spelling.html

This is a wonderful and comprehensive site on learning the English Language with details which ranges from its alphabet, rules, phonics, pronunciation, phonetics, homographs, and many more.

http://www.usingenglish.com/quizzes/33.htmlenglish.com/quizzes/33.html

This is another site on using the English language equipped with games and quizzes to make the classroom learning more fun and enjoyable. We can even get online quizzes for the pupils from here after we have taught a particular topic.

http://portalbahasamelayu.fateback.com/index1.html
http://www.bmspm.cjb.net/spm.cjb.net/

These two sites above are useful for more in-depth learning and mastery of the Bahasa Melayu language. The first one provides links to notes, activities and exam questions while the second site provides soalan peperiksaan percubaan for the school/ zone/ district/ state level as well as detailed notes on the literature component for SPM or 'Komponen Sastera'

http://www.karyanet.com.my/

This site is provides a variety of interesting online activities for children also known as 'karyanet laman kanak-kanak', suitable for pre-schoolers or young learners.

At the later part of the session, we were glad to have Prof joining us for the class. She checked through some of our progress on the IWB assignment and gave constructive comments such as getting our Learning Outcomes right for the lesson which we have planned. She emphasized that we should make sure that the 'Learning Outcomes' are not of a very low level of comprehension as expected from the pupils to complete the activities we have designed. We should give learners the opportunity to practice higher level of thinking such as the Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluating instead of merely testing the level of Knowledge, and Comprehension. The Learning Outcomes should also be behavioural in nature which can be measured and observed by the teacher. Hence, the word 'Understand' should not appear in the initial part of our Learning Outcomes. Prof called upon two of our coursemates to share with us their progress and to point out the comments which she has made on their Learning Outcomes.

Here, I would like to share on my development of my IWB assignment on 'Plants'. I have searched and browsed through several sites to get my little brain into working and feeding it with ideas to come up with interesting activities using the IWB software. Among some of the links which I find helpful are: http://www.bbc.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/7_8/plants_grow.shtml

http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/science/powerpoint/Plants.ppt
These sites provide me with ideas into creating activities on learning about the basic needs of plants such as having the right amount of warmth or temperature in order to grow well through the game-like activity from the first website.

Here are some of my IWB slides which I have completed based on different activities after gaining some ideas browsing through the websites.

Click on the link and play the interactive game of discovering 'The basic needs of a plant'

Matching the functions of the different parts of a plant.

PRoGreSs in IWB AsSigNmenT

2007-09-15T14:24:00.000+08:00

29th August 2007 (8th Class)

The class is in the 'Merdeka' holiday mood. Everyone is looking forward to the long weekend as we do not have any any class on tomorrow and the day after, making this the last class before everyone heads back home. :)

Ms Chin facilitated us through the class today.. She explained and clarified to us again the requirements of our Smart notebook assignment. Each person in the group is to produce several activites of at least a minimum of 5 slides. Ms Chin also gave us another round of viewing the samples of work which was shown by Prof last week.

We realised that most of the activities shown are done to cater to pupils from the Lower Level of Primary School whereby the level of difficulty is not that high such as filling in the blanks, matching and completing the missing letters. As for our assignment, we are required to design activities for pupils of the Upper Level which indirectly reflects activities with a higher demand on the cognitive ability. However, I felt that the activities designed using the features of a Smart Notebook are more suitable for pupils in the lower level due to the simplicity of activities which require the pupils to only 'drag and drop' or complete the missing letters with much guidance given. We've raised this concern to Ms Chin and she has advised us to think of higher level of thinking order questions which require the pupils to analyse and apply their background knowledge before obtaining the answers. Another alternative is also to increase the difficulty of the vocabulary expected from the pupils to answer without a choice of words given to them. Hence, pupils would be required to think for themselves the appropriate words to fit into the blanks given.

Another thought that pops out in my mind is the amount of slides that could accommodate all my activities and the list of target group, topic, previous knowledge, and learning objectives for the particular lesson.

Here, I would like to share the progress of my Smart notebook activity. I have decided to do on the topic of 'Plants' for Year 4 pupils. The content focus for my lesson is the basic needs of plant, parts of plant and the seven life processes of plants. These are my first few initial slides which I have done presently.

The activities in these slides require the pupils to complete the parts of a plant and some matching exercises. Other activities include filling in the blanks of sentences which describe the functions of different parts of a plant. Pupils are also allowed to check their answers after they have done just by dragging the box in colour to the space next to the blanks.
Indeed, throughout the process of developing these activities for the IWB assignment, I have learnt to get more 'acquainted' with the Smartboard by many trial and error learning process.

I am glad that through this opportunity, I am able put into practice what I have been exposed to in the previous lessons. Yea, I believe that it takes the boldness to keep trying and exploring this inventive tool in order to discover its true uniqueness and usefulness to be incorporated in the classroom. So, I will keep on exploring.. Yeah!!

Play an interactive online game on 'The Basic Needs of a Plant'

Label the parts of a plant.

Complete the sentences on basic needs of plants.

IWB Slideshow

2007-09-02T22:45:00.003+08:00

'HOTMAIL' Power POint Slides (AFTER)

2007-09-01T19:15:00.001+08:00

~ PosTeR DeSigNinG ~

2007-09-01T17:03:00.001+08:00

Prelude to IWB AssignMenT..

2007-08-28T17:02:00.000+08:00

22nd August 2007 (7th Class)

A timely and gentle reminder from our Prof. on the progress of our blogs at the swift passing of time as we are now halfway through the semester which means that we ought to produce at least a minimum of 5 blogs of our reflections on the past five lessons. Our blogs should be academic blogs describing our learning development throughout the course and how we have benefited from it. Well, well, for me, this really strikes me at how fast time flies and sometimes I am just left in wonder.. where has all the time gone to? As I listen to Prof., I was just left in deep thoughts whether or not I have truly made full use of the time I have in learning and upgrading my own knowledge and applying what I have learnt in class. Have I been made a more critical person with more awareness and knowledge in this area of ICT in the Primary Education? Well, I believe that time has truly changed my perception in ICT as I begin to learn the many interesting facets of ICT that can be incorporated into the primary classroom.

We are also reminded to take the initiative to read up our friends' blogs and leave constructive comments for them. As for me, this practice of leaving comments is really good and encouraging as it actually prompts us to blog more of our thoughts as we sense the presence of a reader as our message is being conveyed in a communication.

Forums are another aspect of online communication which we are expected to be involved in throughout the course. Prof has kindly called us to 'Keep contributing' and even start a forum topic of discussion. We are told to always be participative and voice our piece of thought in the forum. "Don't just stand by and watch the world goes by..." as said by Prof. Wow, what a firm and real statement, reflecting on the true lackadaisical attitude of people being contented with what life has to offer and never seek to improve and get into action instead of just watch every precious second passes by..

Then, Prof further explained to us on the requirements of our Smart Notebook Assignment on the Interactive Whiteboard which is set to due in another four weeks time. As we are all assigned in our own groups of five, this assignment requires each one of us in the group to come up with an interactive activity for either English, Science or Mathematics using the Smartboard to be carried out in the Primary classroom. In other words, each group is to come up with five different products which comprise of the three subjects.

We had a clearer glimpse of the basic layout required for this assignment when Prof showed us samples of her former students' work on the IWB assignment including those from our seniors. During this session, one of our coursemate, Sze Mei, was asked to demonstrate one of the sample activity on 'Storytelling' based on the story 'The Little Red Riding Hood'. Wow, indeed, I must say that she had done a good job on this impromptu activity. And Mei, I enjoyed the session you carried out. In fact, this activity simply depicts the function of the IWB in replacing the conventional 'Big Book' story telling session. Undoubtedly, it is certainly a more interactive form of material to be exploited in the classroom as the reader could magnify or reduce the size of the images displayed on the IWB board while telling the story to capture the pupils' attention. In addition, media background such as music or video clips could be added into the story to enhance the pupils' understanding and imagination while listening to the story as they can truly 'hear' and 'see' the characters in the story movements as portrayed in the storyline. Other activities which we saw from the samples are 'Fill-in-the-blanks, Matching exercises, Labeling, and sentence construction. Well, of course, to fully incorporate this method into the lesson, a teacher has to be well-equipped and knowledgeable in using the Smartboard to ensure the smoothness of the lesson as planned out. Hence, essential efforts need to be taken to ensure that the incorporation of IWB in the teaching and learning activity would be an effective form of teaching resource or method instead of a stumbling block if the teacher is not well-equipped with the knowledge of using the IWB.

We were also reminded of the different aspects of a lesson as required in our assignment. Among the must-haves for each of our IWB activity are:

Target group/ Year
Subject

Topic

Previous Knowledge

Curriculum Specifications

Learning Objectives

Procedures/ Guidelines for each activity

Rationale for each activity

After having seen the sample of works, I had a clearer idea on what is expected and required of us to produce this assignment in our team of five. We agreed to draw lots in order for us to determine who will be doing a particular subject. From here, two of our group members, Gladys and Mastura will be doing activities on English, Zizi and Izzah will be doing on Mathematics while I will be working on activities on Science. Having decided on our different parts, we agreed to start working on our own activities before we meet again next week to further discuss and exchange ideas.

The class ended with each one of us signing up for the 'Airset', an online learning avenue, introduced by Prof as another online communication tool for us in the course in addition to the 'Moodle' which we are currently using. 'Airset' is actually a survival kit for busy people who are occupied with personal individual appointments yet having to connect for various puroposes but may not be able to meet up with one another. Hence, 'Airset' has made it possible for us to juggle between the various hectic schedules and to reduce stress as we are more able to control the plans and commitments in life. By joining the 'Airset' group, we would be able to gain access to lessons, sample works uploaded on the group to be shared to all members. We could also made use of the other features avalibale such as the personal calendar, email accounts, contacts, address books and notebooks for our own recording purposes as it ensures an easier retrieval of information all arranged according to different categories or files.

Upon signing up, we were advised to further explore on the different uses of the 'Airset' and to make full use of it via http://www.airset.com/. Ya, so there goes my day.. clicking on the various icons for more information on the features available. Cheers!

Ist InTro To The SMaRT BoarD!!

2007-08-28T16:58:00.000+08:00

15th August 2007 (6th Class)

Today, Prof. is unable to join us for our class as she has something to attend to. However, we are very priviledged to have a special guest, Ms Fenny, whom Prof. has invited to impart to us her expertise in the area of using the Interactive White Board (IWB) or also known as the 'Smartboard'. Well, as for me, Ive come across the usage of the IWB several times but I've not truly been introduced to the usage and its many advantages especially in teaching young learners. Hence, I was very much motivated to pay full attention to the soft-spoken and knowledgeable Ms Fenny as she bring to our attention the many wonders that Smartboard can do that truly impressed me and Im sure for my other coursemates as well.

To start off the class, Ms Fenny introduced herself and briefly explained to us the basics that is needed of a Smartboard in order to function well. Basically, for an IWB to function, you need:

a computer

an Liquid Crystal Diode (LCD) projector

connection cables
a whiteboard

the IWB software

Important Things to note while handling the Smartboard:

make sure that the pens are placed back in the correct positions according to the colour allocated after using them. This is to avoid confusion by the user on the different colours of the pen. The board is equipped with sensors to detect the particular colour of the pens as the colour is not determined by the pen itself.

avoid using the two different colours of pen at the same time or using the pen and the eraser at the same time as this will cause confusion to the Smartboard.

Among the many wonders of a 'Smartboard' which cannot be done using a normal whiteboard are:

Ability to convert or recognize handwritten words into the printed form just by clicking on the option 'Recognize'.
Flexibility of font sizes- The letters just by dragging it at the corner of the box where the word is formed.
Mobility of the position of the words- The words printed can be easily moved in location just by dragging it.
Multiplication of words in infinity- The particular word typed can be multiplied just by clicking and dragging on the corner of the box formed.

Group & Ungroup- This enables the pupils to form another new word by ungrouping the original word given. Example: the word 'plane' or 'pen' can be formed from the word 'Aeroplane'.

Mobility and cloning- The images can be cloned at an infinity to allow teachers to display the concept of calculations in teaching Mathematics. Example: Pupils can clone the images of coins in the Malaysian Ringgit to add up to the amount of money specified by the teacher.

Checking of answers- Pupils can check their answers after doing an activity by dragging the coloured patch of box to the particular area of the slides where the answers are 'hidden'.

Adjustable- The IWB is user-friendly as it allows the user to adjust the height according to the suitability of the learners.

Gallery Function- There are well-provided templates and images such as expressions which can be imported for use in the slides.

World Map- The picture of a World map allows the teaching of 'Geography'' in relation to the locations of different countries in specific by using the world map.

Pictures from the Internet- The IWB allows user to capture any online pictures from 'Google' Images to be imported into the gallery for usage.

These are among some of the many functions of an Interactive White Board (IWB) to be used in a classroom. We were told that there are many other interesting features of the smartboard which we could explore such as inserting video or flash files from the computer. However, due to the time limitation, these are the main features pointed out and taught by Ms Fenny.

After an hour of an introductory session to the Smartboard, it's the time for us to put in what we have gathered and learnt into practice. We were required to discuss in our groups to come up with one simple activity using the Smartboard. My group decided to design an activity on the topic of 'Colours' by having the pupils to drag and drop the correct colour into picture which shows the different parts of a bedroom with a boy in the centre of it. As for me, it is my first time trying to design an activity using the IWB features. It took us some time to 'try and error' the usage as taught by Ms Fenny a while ago. Things look pretty different when we are really hands-on
trying out the software as compared to just listening to the steps taken to use the IWB. Hence, it is a good first-start experience for me and my group as a whole. Each group then presented their activity to the class after the discussion. Please refer to my post on 'IWB Slideshow' for a clearer view of the activites through the pictures taken during the presentations as well as the demonstration of input from Ms Fenny.

Below are my reflections on the IWB activity:

1) Do you understand the basic knowledge of using Notebook function in SMART board? If yes, which part that you understand most. If not, why did you not understand?
Well, my answer to this question would be a 'partial Yes' as I believe that what I know are only some of the basic knowledge of the Notebook function using an IWB. Through the mere limited knowledge that I have, we manage to design some activity after much trials and exploring through the software. As we are still at our initial stage of learning the IWB, the basic knowledge that I am most aware of and understand is to unlock the images to allow us to drag and drop the particular image to the locations we desire. If we do not want the image to move about, we need to 'lock' it in its position.

2) Do you understand the basic knowledge to use gallery feature and attachment picture in SMARTboard incorporate for teaching English vocabulary for Standard 4 students?
Yes, I understand the basic usage of incorporating the gallery feature and attachment picture uisng the Smartboard to teach pupils on English Vocabulary. However, I believe that there is so much more room of improvement for me in this area of importing pictures and other features such as videos or flashfiles which I have yet to learn.

3) Do you find that SMART board is a useful tool to support in Teaching-Learning? If yes, why is it useful? If not, what is the problem?
Yes, absolutely! I feel that the Smart board is a useful teaching tool to be incorporated in the classroom teaching-learning as it offers many interactive activities which allows the pupils to take part either individually or even in groups. The colourful pictures and captivating background layout attracts the pupils' attention besides allowing them to learn more efficiently with 'No dust, No dirt and Time-efficient' as images can be cloned within seconds in a click. Besides, the IWB allows pupils to view flashfile which pupils enjoy most in the learning process as they are provided with concrete visual experiences. Another feature which helps children in their learning is that they are able to check their answers almost instantly. This would really help them to reassure their ability in completing the activity as they are given confirmations to their answers.

Generally, I am truly glad to have this opportunity offered by this course to be exposed to the usage of IWB and its many unique features to be incorporated in the classroom. In my opinion, this is indeed a precious piece of knowledge that we, as future educators of this highly technological era, would find it very useful in our vocation. However, a nagging thought kept me thinking "How far could we actually put this piece of knowledge into use if the schools that we are posted to do not possess such luxury of using the IWB as their teaching facility in the school?" I am wondering, "To what extend can we truly apply the usage of IWB as a wonderful teaching tool in majority of the real schools out there?" These are just a few thought bubbles that are formed in my process of learning to use the IWB for effective teaching-learning in the classroom. Hmm.. Seeking and fetching for cool ideas.. :)

PoSteR DeSigNinG - HapPy MeRdeKa MaLaYSia !!

2007-08-25T14:56:00.000+08:00

8th August 2007 (5th Class)

As usual, we are all in for a 'Surprise' for today's lesson. But before we were revealed on the activity planned for us, we were brought into the concept of 'Pembestarian Sekolah' which is also known as 'Sekolah Bestari' or 'Smart Schools' by Ms Chin. This concept is one of the ICT initiatives mooted by the government in the education field. Ms Chin also introduced to us another important link in this area for our own reference: http://www.moe.edu.my/tvp.

After the brief introduction to this concept, Prof. further elaborated and clearly explained to us the 5 initiatives which are:

i) Smart Schools (Pembestarian Sekolah)

currently there are 87 schools
5809 computers with 261 servers
have access to the Internet through the SchoolNet programme

ii) PPSMI/ ETeMS

teaching-learning materials
104 teachers had been trained

iii) SchoolNet

It is a broadband which allows teachers and students to have access to the Internet through http://myschoolnet.ppk.kpm.my/indexg.htm

It works with the presence of a satellite disc

iv) Computer laboratory (Makmal komputer)

The amount of computers provided for each school depends on the size of the school.
Provides access to all the teachers and students to use technology.

v) TV/Radio Pendidikan

This is used for the teaching of local dialects or mother tongue to the pupils especially those in Sabah and Sarawak.
It is currently shown on Channel 9.
It also has the additional WebTV feature which allows teachers to upload videos or movies to be used in teaching.

Prof. then introduced us to several important acronyms which we might not be aware of but essential to our knowledge as future educators in schools.

PKG- Pusat Kegiatan Guru

BTPN- Bahagian Teknologi Pendidikan Negeri

PSPN- Pusat Sumber Pendidkan Negeri

Now comes the time for the 'surprise' which is in stored for us - POSTER DESIGN.

Yea, one of Prof's former student who is currently studying in Multimedia University, Ms Nazirah, is in the midst of conducting a research on the DISC project (Designing for Interaction adn Students' Collaboration). Hence, she has introduced herself and told us that she has chosen us to be the lucky 'subject' for her research which is basically on designing A4 posters in conjuction with our nation's 50th Jubilee Anniversary with the title "Malaysia My Country". This research is meant for Primary Pupils from Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Bintang Utara.

When I first heard that we are supposed to design a poster with the given templates and pictures as well as the must haves to be included in the poster ( Title, picture, caption, name of the designers), I was just wondering, "Hmm... How is it possible for us to come up with a poster using a power point?" Ms Nazirah then showed us some of the samples of good posters which she had selected. Then, after being briefed on the instructions to be followed in our poster designing which is to only use the template and pictures provided for us, we gathered in our groups and worked diligently. We were given 45 minutes to discuss and come up with the most creative and attractive poster design which depicts our country's road to independence. The next one hour is for each group to present their poster designed with explanations on the rationales behind each signigicant design of the poster such as the font size, colour of background and the caption.

My group had divided the job equally among each member as we believe in team spirit in order to produce a good harvest with everyone contributing their piece of idea in the product. As there are 5 of us in a group, two of us (Gladys and I) worked on the 'Title' and 'caption' for our poster while our three friends (Izzah, Zizi, and Mastura) thought of interesting ways to include the image chosen into the poster. Within that half an hour, we put on our thinking caps and dig for ideas. After much contemplating and careful thoughts, we have decided to portray on the theme of 'UNITY' by using a picture of a multi-cultural Malaysian in pieces of puzzle. Our Title reflects our theme which is 'Malaysia, the Unity Puzzle'. Our caption further explained the meaning of our image which is God being the Most High Masterpiece, We, as his pieces of jigsaw puzzle that form a united nation, complete and unique in a multiracial community. Please refer to my 'poster designing' slideshow on my next post to view the picture of our poster.

Then, it's time for presentation. Our group was elected by Ms Nazirah to keep the ball rolling by by being the first group to present. Well, it's a good question and answer session by our facilitators as it kept us thinking. We tried our best to clarify the reasons behind our chosen design and then one question came unexpected by Ms Nazirah.. "Why do you choose the font for the caption to be different from that of the Title?" Well, well, being the first group we have no idea what type of question will be asked. Hence, we had to be quick and thank God an idea struck me and answered that we had chosen a cursive handwriting for the caption to represent the 'joined' hearts of all the multiracial community and the unity we are trying to portray. We are glad that our facilitators are satisfied with our explanations. It was overall a fulfilling and rewarding experience for us as a group as I learnt the possibility of creating a beautiful poster by using the art of Powerpoint. It's just wonderful.

Below are my reflections for this poster designing session:

1. Did you face any problem during the session? Why?

My group and I do not face much problem throughout the session as we had equally and carefully divided the task among ourselves according to our ability our inclination. As I am not as gifted in the area of creative images, my partner and I thought of interesting and catchy slogans as the Title and the Caption. Of course, we had discussed and agreed as a group that we will be doing on the theme of unity. With that, our three other group members thought of ways to produce an image that best reflects 'Unity'. After that, we combined our parts and tried out several background colours that would suit the overall poster the best so that the words printed will be clear and distinct to be read. As a whole, we had a good team work throughout the session as we took into consideration each of our members' opinions.

2. What do you think of the instruction?

I feel that the instruction given to us is clear and easy to follow by. However, by only allowing us to include the pictures provided, it would somehow restrict the creativity and freedom of poster designing. The template given to us which is to have the Title, Image, and Caption was also quite restricting as it confined us to only position our image and catption in a particular area. During the presentation, we could see that some of the groups did not actually abide by this rule or instruction given to us. I wonder why?

3. What improvements can you suggest?

Probably it would be better if freedom of choice is given to the pupils on the images to be included in the poster. By doing so, pupils can express their creativity and ideas by searching for the other appropriate pictures which suit their theme best. Isn't this a good way of cultivating their CCTS (Creative and Critical Thinking Skills) as they are also required to think of rationales behind their choice of pictures and captions. Other than that, I feel that the whole activity is conducted in a good effective way as it managed to engage all of us into participating.

4. How would you carry out this design session with Primary Level students?

For Primary Level students, we should always bear in mind the cognitive stages that they are in which is the 'Concrete-operational Stage' from ages 7-11 according to Piaget's Cognitive Theory. This explains the need of concrete examples and guidance from the teacher in completing a task given to them. Hence, to carry out this design session with the Primary students, we should ensure that the pupils are first equipped with the computer skills of using the Powerpoint. If the pupils do not have the skills, then the teacher would teach the necessary skills or steps for them to manipulate the templates given. Throughout the designing process, teacher need to provide scaffolding for each group to ensure that the pupils are working in the right track. Hence, we need to ensure that they are enough facilitators to monitor the work of each group in their poster designing.

Well, this is just my two cents thought and opinion on this activity carried out. Any comments are most welcomed. :) I believe we all yearn to learn from one another and seek for rooms of improvement.

LeARniNG pRInCiPleS Of ICT iN PrIMaRY ScHooL

2007-08-21T11:43:00.000+08:00

1st AUGUST 07 (4th Class)

Time really flies.. we're already fast moving into the mid-way of the semester, the first day of a brand new month of august..

This is my 4th week of my journey towards equipping myself with the bountiful knowledge of discovering the vast benefits of the technological tools in the Education system. Indeed, each new lesson offers a brand new thought and valuable insight for me to further explore on its exploitbality in the Primary classroom.

To kick off the lesson, Prof. Maznah has shared with us her experience during her visit to SMK Datuk Ahmad Badawai in Penang, a school which has been selected to be the subject for the pilot test of "INTEL Teach to the World" project. This project aims to provide each student with a CMPC personal computer, thus making the ratio of 1:1 computing laboratory a reality in the ten schools chosen to go through this project. For these schools, all the classes are carried out using computers with each student having a PC of their own. Wow, what and advancement of technology in the Education arena. Well, this project is currently still under the observation of 3 evaluators and we're proud to say that our Prof. is one of them. So, what's the feedback from the teachers in the school who are required to make use of technological skills to be used in their lessons? According to Prof., from her discussion sessions with the teachers there, there were "PROBLEMS, PROBLEMS, PROBLEMS!" In fact, teachers feel that they need to take up a longer time to plan their lessons, having to include the use of technology in their lessons for the pupils. Teachers who are not keen on incorporating ICT in their lessons would find this project a chore and there would be complaints and unending complaints.

As for our Prof., teachers should take up the initiative to equip oneself with the skills and think of creative ways to add more fun and interactive sessions in our lessons. It all boils down to the teachers' perspective and attitude towards teaching and learning process and we, teachers should be the catalysts to bring about changes in the classroom learning environment. I believe that is the core reason why we are learning this course on ICT in the Primary Education, to expose us to the various ways and methods of integrating technology in the classroom especially to the Primary pupils who are curious and enjoy visual and audio input during the lessons.

After the introduction to the INTEL Project, Prof. mentioned about the teaching courseware provided by the government such as the ETeMS (English for the Teaching of Maths and Science) or PPSMI (Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran Sains dan Matematik dalam Inggeris), MyCDs for the textbooks, and e-bahan on the Internet. Prof. threw us a thought to ponder on: "Are Teachers really Using These Materials?" Well, in my opinion, these materials can be considered still quite new in the classroom teaching and very few have actually taken the steps to exploit it in their lessons. As a result, these materials are left untouched and served as display purposes only to some teachers. However, I believe that with the much emphasized ICT programs and effort made by the government to help teachers to adopt technology in the lessons, more and more teachers would eventually take up this challenge and make full use of these materials. Let's all be optimistic and take up the Government's effort to rise up a generation of IT-savvy citizens starting from the young learners who are still fresh, and active to learn new things. Teachers need to plan, support and access children's learning with the ICT to develop their interest and understanding of ICT use as a tool in lifelong learning.

One of our coursemate voiced the question on e-portfolio and how we can use it in the class. From here, Prof. then lead us into a brainstorming session on what is e-portfolio and the benefits of having e-portfolio.
What is e-portfolio?

consists of knowledge and skills (Teachers will need to teach the pupils the skills and to monitor their work)

a collection of pupils' work

shows progress or development of work

reflects one's ability to organize eg. logical sequencing, mapping, grouping

Why choose e-portfolio? Among the reasons mentioned are:

to get comments

to promote oneself

to share information/ express creativity such as blogs/ photos websites

easy retrieval

to keep a progress (for an Evaluator or a potential employer)

And the best part of it is the only tool that we need is: the INTERNET.
Just with the access to the Internet, teachers and pupils are able to keep a record of online learning or to practice e-learning.

The next session is taken over by Ms Chin who patiently went through the important points on the Learning Principles of ICT in the Primary School Curriculum as found in Chapter 1 of Brennan. The 3 main approaches/ ways in using ICT in the Teaching and Learning are:

Leanring About ICT

Learning With ICT

Learning Through ICT

Specific Aims of ICT Use:

Use ICT tools

Develop ICT skills

Foster confidence

Develop understanding and practice safe use of ICT

Overcome barriers of access to learning

Support learning (through the courseware provided by Education Ministry)

Inform students the benefits of using ICT (eg. learning at their own pace, allow repetition and revisions to be done)

Develop social skills (eg. cooperative and problem-solving)

The Principles of Learning ICT in Primary Curriculum are:

Child's sense of wonder & natural curiosity

Child as an acitive agent in his or her learning

The developmental nature of learning

Child's knowledge and experience as a base for learning

Learning through language

Aesthetic dimenstion

Social & emotional dimensions of learning

Integration of learning

Transfer of learning

Environment-based learning

Learning through guided Activity & Discovery

Higher-order thinking & problem-solving

Collaborative Learning

Taking account individual differences

Indeed, some of these principles of teaching young learners are our previous knowledge which we have been taught on the characteristics of young learners such as having a curious mind and learning through real-life contexts or environment-based learning. However, this lesson has opened up my view and knowledge on the rationales of incorporating ICT lessons based on the pupils' learning behaviour.

We were then given our next assignment which is to find out on the various forms of ICT initiatives taken by the Ministry of Education (MOE) such as the ETeMS, MyCD projects, e-bahan and to share it with our friends on the power point.
Ms Chin also gave us several websites as additional links for us to search for information on this assignment:
www.tutor.com.my/tutor/etems
http://myschoolnet.ppk.kpm.my/indexg.htm
http://apps.emoe.gov.my/lpm
http://www.on-sl.edu.my/

The class ended with each of us browsing through the websites given to explore on the efforts taken by government to ensure that ICT is used and becomes a culture in schools.

What an eventful lesson. In fact, ICT is never my cup of tea as I am no expert in it but now I can at least utter: "It's fun learning ICT and I begin to learn to enjoy it". Isn't this a positive sign?

EFFECTiVe Power Point Presentation..

2007-08-15T00:25:00.000+08:00

25th JULY, 2007 (3rd class)

After a lesson of trials and putting on our skills of preparing our own powerpoint slide presentations on the topic given, we were now given the much interesting input on the effective ways of enhancing our slides as to engage the target audience in a more interactive, persuasive & effective manner. I believe Prof Maznah must have felt that we have still a long way to go in equipping ourselves with the skills of making EFFECTIVE power point slides that serve its purpose in converying the message across by first CAPTURING the attention of the audience. This interesting session was conducted by Ms Ng, our very sweet but stern facilitator.

Prof Maznah first introduced Ms Ng to us as this is our first encounter with her as our facilitator. My first thought of today's lesson would be the typical type of talk presented with the objective to help us learn to produce a better powerpoint slide presentation. However, I was totally immersed and engaged by the many interesting tips on presentation slides which dawned upon me the moment Ms Ng begins to impart her valuable and essential knowledge on this area. I must say that she is a real expert. Well, she has captured my attention with her well- explained points on making our power presentation as simple as possible with the intention of getting the ideas across and not 'turning off' the audience who are listening. Ms Ng is truly an effective presenter with excellent classroom mangaement skill. Throughout the lesson, she manged to keep the class attentive, and participative while at the same time getting her lesson across.

To start the ball rolling, Ms Ng has shown us a comparison of a few slides which contain good features such as clear and distictive highlighted points, visibility of fonts as well as the negative features of the slides such as blurred or hidden images due to the wrong choice of colour background, or too wordy slides.
Among the important points to pay attention to in the preparation of powerpoint slides emphasized by Ms Ng are:

SimpLicity- keep the phrase short and simple.
VisibiLity- ensure the font size is large enough to be read by the audience
- colour chosen for the background is does not 'hide' the words printed.
Catchy Phrase- get the message accross!
Focus- 'YOU'- Presenter is the main focus to convey the message across.
GraPhics- Relevant pictures to the point mentioned
Pictures in Grey Scales- the Focus is NOT Switched to the pictures.
Have 'TITLE' for every slide - keep the audience focused and aware of the topic presented.
No Plagiarism!- include the references for images taken from the Internet.

To be honest, I have always been reminded of some of these points mentioned above such as font size, visibility, and suitability of colour chosen for the background of the slides. However, there are of course some other points which I have never thought of or been warned of. I must say that I never thought that including pictures or images from the Internet in our slides to elaborate our points without stating the references is a Crime- PLAGIARISM. Hence, after today's class, I believe that we are now more aware of the 'dos and dont's' of power point slides and would be more careful in preparing power point slides in the future.

Before Ms Ng assigned us our next task, she has also shared with us several interesting samples of powerpoint slide presentation done by International organisations which contains the positive features of powerpoint such as keeping our slides short and simple to ensure its effectiveness.

While I was attentively listening to the points she raised, it makes me wonder the 'effectiveness' of powerpoint slides that we have often been exposed to which are normally lengthy in form. She has clarified the idea that powerpoint slides are meant to be brief enough with the keywords focused as the presence of the presenter is to further explain and elaborate on the points put forward on the slides. If our audience requested for a copy of notes on the topic we presented, this is when our preparation notes for the topic comes in handy as we could then give them a copy of our notes instead of the powerpoint slides which only serve the purpose of presentations with the presence of the presenter.

Indeed, I have truly understood and had a full grasp of the ideas and tips she has delivered to us. By the end of the lesson, Im sure we have all turned into a much better equiped learner in preparing powerpoint slides for presentation purposes. We were then required to work on our powerpoint slides which we had prepared and presented last week on the "HOTMAIL" before uploading it on the MOODLE. By applying the useful information gathered and learnt from this lesson, we modified and improved on our slides to make it more eye-catching and attractive. We try to abide to the rule given by Ms Ng which is to include only a single point on a slide so that audience would not be swayed to read on the other points when the presenter is explaining on a particular point. Please refer to my post on 'HOTMAIL' Power point Slides (AFTER) to view my group's powerpoint after the makeover from the points we learnt in today's lesson.

While we were thinking of ways and means to improve on our slides, Ms Chin introduced us to the link http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/pkey3101/blogspot?wpid:571027
where we can browse though our seniors' blogs on this course. Interestingly, there are good blogs which I personally feel that it is a good opportunity for us to learn from as well as some blogs which could be improved on. I truly count myself blessed to be presented with samples of our seniors' blogs which we can lean on as examples. The class ended with each group browsing through the net looking for insights from our seniors' blogs as well as improving our slides on the powerpoint presentations last week.

A lesson as a "HOTMAIL" promoter !!

2007-08-01T23:01:00.000+08:00

18th July 2007 (2nd Class)

Hie:) I'm back!

Today's my second lesson on technology in the Primary Education. Yea.. coming to class without any idea on today's 'agenda' but certainly with much expectation and anticipation for the lesson, I am all ready for the "SURPRISE" that's in store for us.

Under the watchful eye of Mr Sarel, our facilitator, we were instructed to form our own groups consisting of 5 or 6 members. A kindly reminder from Mr Saril: "Your are to stick to your group for all upcoming activities for the whole course. SO.. choose your group wisely."
After all the hush and buzz, we were all settled in our respective groups. The next thing to do was to appoint a group leader and to create a special unique Name reflecting each group.. And Walaa.. our group has unanimously agreed upon the name "REJUVENESCENCE".. yeah, that's the spirit. We shall together be rejuvenated, energized, and liven up as a team, as a group, in unity.

Then, came the awaiting moment when we were given the very First presentation assignment for this course...Guess what? We are all going to be 'part-time promoters' for a certain technological device such as the Digital Camera, Hotmail, Yahoo, e-mail, and other useful tools in today's digital world. Each team leader drew lots on the particular 'product' for us to work on in advertising and promoting the gadget or device, resembling what it takes to be an 'Apprentice'! haha.. We are judged on our persuasive skills in 'selling' our product through our techniques in developing good and effective Power point Slide Presentation of 5 minutes. Given the mere 45 minutes, we worked diligently in our group to come up with the Best Power point Presentation in promoting the "HOTMAIL" as the best e-mailing program. Browsing through the various search engine, we worked collaboratively, each trying to extract for information, images and advantages regarding the HOTMAIL. In the midst of this, we were really grateful to Prof Raja Maznah's visit to our Makmal and gave us a really useful and handy tip in using the "Print Screen" to be inserted in our Power point Presentation. Many thanks, Prof!

After much toiling and preparation for our slides, it's time for the "Presentation" from each group. For each group's presentation, we also had peer-evaluation whereby the particular group's presentation is being evaluated by another group as members of the audience. Some of the group really showed team work where each person in the group has a role to play during the presentation. I personally liked that idea as it reflects on the team spirit of a group. My group truly put up a good show as seemed to enj compliment from our facilita, Mr Sarel that wapture our audience's attention and bring them along as we journeMAIL. Yes, 'CONNECT WITH A CLICK' - that's the mottol we had come up with as we shout it out together as a team towards the end of our presentation.

Yea.. it was a truly insightful time as we not only gained more information regarding each of the different technological gadgets as presented by our friends, we were also enlightened on the various key points in making an effective slide presentation from our facilitator. He gave his comments and ideas on improving the visual aspect of Power Point slides such as taking into consideration the tone of the background and the impact of wordy slides on the readers. Well, he emphasized, "What is most important is to get the message across to your audience." Always keep the audience focused. And we should try our best to do away with having all the lengthy explanations printed on our slides. That's a useful reminder that I will always keep in mind.:)

As a whole, it was a good experience to practice our presentation skills being as persuasive as possible in our speech. Well, that's the whole point: selling our Product! Im glad my group did a good job. I would like to take this opportunity to name them Gladys, Izzah, Zizi, and Mastura. Thanks to u all, my dear group members. :)

an AsSiGnMenT.

2007-07-17T22:24:00.001+08:00

11th JULY 2007 (1st Class)

Hie :)

Hmm.. What should i say, how should i put it, err.. anyway, i'll just put my thoughts to paper..oops, did i say paper? aha.. thoughts to my blog.
Yea, that's it. that's a new practice, a new habit, that i'm learning to adapt to.
Well, my assignment's on creating a blog.

Ya, reflecting back on my first few days in the uni is just like any other ordinary days, like how days used to pass by with little significance.. bUT i do not deny the extraordinary part of it.. thanking each day as a blessing from God. One of those that leave a footprint would be the ever challenging and interactive way of learning and going through lectures with computers right in front of me. I'm loving it! :)

First class in the "Technology in the Primay Education" (PKEY3101). What does the topic encompas? It's a wide topic which covers the changes technology brings to schools in the 21st century. Technology brings about a diversity in the methods of teaching, enhancing teaching and learning, developing pupils' creativity and IT skills, and most of all it makes learning easier, adding more fun to a learning environment beyond the four walls of the classroom. The concept of 'soft skills' is also brought to mind. It includes communication, CCTS, team work, entrepreneurship, moral ethics, and leadership. Well, with technology comes changes or transformation. What is the most difficult element to undergo changes in a school? Among some others would be the culture, rules, mindet or attitudes of the school community, bureaucracy of the school, and the climate or environment of the learning institution.

Another new concept learnt in this class is the POEIT- Pedagogy of Engagement Integrating Technology. This acronym exposes me to the learner's ways of learning which is through engaging, personalising, empowering learners as well the environment which plays an crucial role to ensure effective learning takes place. In short, the learning process is encapsulated in the word with the highest rate of courtesy level, "PLEASE", which spells out 'Personalised, Learning, Environment, And Student Engagement.'

Well, that's basically what I've gathered in the first class. Hope to learn and be equipped with many more IT skills at hand, realising the importance of technology in the primary education in my quest to be an effective educator to the young learners.

Ideas to add? comments? All are most welcome! Thanks.