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
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Saturday, September 22, 2007
IWB Presentations..
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.
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.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
GraNd FiNaLe of IWB AsSignMenT
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 s
weet 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!!
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 s
weet 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
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:
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.
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.
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.
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'
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 obs
erved 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.
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:
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.
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.
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'
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 obs
erved 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
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.
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.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Prelude to IWB AssignMenT..
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 st
udents' 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:
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!
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 st
udents' 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
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!!
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:
Important Things to note while handling the Smartboard:
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.. :)
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.
- 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-ontrying 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.. :)
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