GESL REFLECTIONS
(i) What tasks did I do during GESL?
During GESL meetings, I reflected on my team members’ contribution and provide constructive feedback where possible. Also, if my experiences allow, I would contribute ideas during our discussion. More specifically, I came up with some ideas for the games for day 2 which were well received. After various refinements and throwing about of suggestions in the leading meetups, the entire team agreed on a comprehensive two day programme for Marymount Convent.
Due to my passion for photography, I was responsible for the photo taking documentation of both days's programme for the event carried out at Marymount Centre as well at Woodlands Waterfront. Hence, I selected the camera and lens that were suitable for taking children’s photos and prepared the necessary equipment such as memory cards and extra batteries. As a result, I did not have as much interaction with the children as most other members in the gesl group but I felt this was necessary and okay. I also assisted other members who needed help during the day such as keeping control of the groups and coordinating their movements. Setting up of the various stations was also a joy for me.
After the actual event, I edited the photos that I took, making sure the colours and composition were of an acceptable standard for the organization and NIE.
(ii) What did I do well?
I guessed I did what I did best, which was taking photographs so it was pretty okay for me. Also, due to my experience in organizing events in the past, I was able to make myself useful when the need arised such as helping a child who had fallen and to carry various logistical items around the area.
(iii) What were some difficulties I faced? How did I overcome these?
Our group lacked some group dynamics at the start of the entire semester and being the shy person I am, it was hard for me to speak up when everyone else is very conservative and not vocal. Also, due to the fact that we were from different tutorial groups or even different course, there was not much opportunity for us to interact besides our weekly meetings. It did not help that GESL meeting was usually at the end of the day and most members were already quite drained. I decided to make some new friends slowly along the way and it helped that people eventually opened up to each other and this climaxed at the event and after event meetups where every one seemed to be like old friends.
For the actual event itself, day 1 was indoors and quite cooling. The minor problem was that some girls were quite camera shy and it was challenging for me to get good shots sometimes but I used a super zoom lens and secretly took their pictures. Of course, the centre would get a copy and decide whether to keep them and the shots were of their joyous faces having fun during the games. On the second day of the event, the weather was very cruel with sunlight shining upon us mercilessly. Our skins were baked to a golden brown like fried chicken and this was a challenge to phototaking as well as it became too bright to take a shot sometimes even when the aperture was adjusted to the minimum. To overcome this, I used a neutral density filter to shut out some sunlight. Also, as the area of activity was quite large, I had to run around to ensure that photos were taken of everyone involved.
(iv) How well did my group work?
I felt that though there were some disagreement to the direction and implementation of the project, these proved to be secondary to the more important task of learning from the entire experience. Differences were eventually set aside and everyone did that part for the group, and the unhappiness disappeared like the wind. Also, the team comprised of people of all ages and background, leading to some interesting synergies and insightful discussion cum outcome along the way.
(v) What have I gained from working on this GESL project?
I have gained some fun and joy in seeing the smiles of the marymount centre children. It has been a long time since I see happy faces on children which was the reason why I joined teaching in the first place. Also, I gained some first hand experience on working with teachers on extra curriculum projects. This is important as everyone has different working styles and being a teacher you need to manage the students, parents, other teachers, police, etc.
(vi) In working on this project, what prior knowledge had I made use of?
I have made use of prior knowledge of what children like as well as my photography skills.
(vii) What new skills and knowledge have I learnt from working on this project? How can I apply these in my work or personal life?
I have learnt the skills of not being surprise by others and knowledge that everyone is unique and has different talents. I will make use of my skills to survive shocks and maximize the efficiencies of the work force.
(viii) What do I see as my 2 most important contributions to the project?
The two most important contributions to the project is providing ideas during brainstorming sessions and taking and editing the photos for the event.
(ix) What would I do differently the next time I embark on such a project?
I would give some suggestions as before and maybe improve the communications network.
(x) The NE initiative was introduced by the MOE to schools to develop national cohesion, cultivate instincts for survival and instil confidence inSingapore’s future. The objectives of NE were crystallised into six NE messages
• Singapore is our homeland; this is where we belong.
• We must preserve racial and religious harmony.
• We must uphold meritocracy and incorruptibility.
• No one owes Singapore a living.
• We must ourselves defend Singapore.
• We have confidence in our future.
Bearing in mind the NE initiative in Singapore, please comment on how your GESL project experience was relevant to National Education.
We worked with people from other races and religions and through the interactions, we were reminded that we must be sensitive and mindful of our thoughts and behaviours at all times. Besides, our activities stimulated the children’s self-confidence and helped them to build it up, therefore they would have more confidence in their future and we would have more confidence in ours as well.
(xi) GESL was intended to develop social & emotional competencies & skills necessary for you to recognize and manage your emotions, develop care and concern for others, make responsible decisions, establish positive relationships, as well as to handle challenging situations effectively. To what extent did you develop the skills of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship management, and responsible decision-making?
I have developed these skills to a certain extent as a result of the GESL project as I have prior experience similar to this. I did not gain much self-awareness in fact as I already knew myself quite well but it was always a pleasant surprise to hear people say I am easily bullied when in fact I know I am not easily bullied. In terms of self management, I have to say that the workload was still manageable so not much improvement to be made as well. For social awareness, I became aware of convents and first hand interaction allowed me to understand their procedures and sensitivities. It reminded me to be neutral when commenting about religions as it might offend people from another religion. Relationship management was okay too as everyone was very cordial until the last few days when they started to open up and became friends. As for responsible decision-making, I was a voter for certain key decisions in the group’s directions and I weighed the pros and cons very carefully before casting my votes. I had the well being of the group and the learning goals in mind when I voted.
THE MERANTI PROJECT REFLECTION
It was a struggle to get to NIE from my home during a Saturday as the journey was long, but I reminded myself to have a positive mindset so that I can actually benefit from the Meranti Project and not make it a waste of time, moreover negative emotions would also spread to others and I did not want to be the person to spoil other people’s day. With that, I reached NIE with moderate anticipation as I had to think about all the issues in my life for sharing. Though, I would say I am a confident person in teaching and my general capabilities, my journey in NIE has really humbled me and the Meranti project actually boosted my falling confidence as others shared similar experiences as me. During the share life story activity carried out during Meranti, I was able to understand how I came to be what I am today and to re establish the factors that aspire me to be a teacher and served as a reminder that I should not give up no matter how tough it becomes.
Meeting the boys with at-risk backgrounds confirmed what I thought I know of how students form opinions of their teachers from the very first day they entered the classroom and I kept a note in my journal to watch out of my outlook and behaviour for my incoming practicuum adventure.
On the second day, we also tackled issues that were usually taboo such as opinions of other races and religions. We were invited to pour out our thoughts on these issues freely without fear of the Internal Security Department finding out. To my shock, my people had quite radical opinions towards the other races and religions that I thought were myths and legends. Nonetheless, it showed me that we still have a long way to go in respecting each other regardless of race and religion. This means we have to be more mindful in school as even adults can fall victim to such unfair judgements, children being innocent will be even more easily swayed.
The Meranti Project had been a fulfilling two day event. I was able to learn more about others as well as myself. It has reaffirmed my decision to be a good primary school teacher.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Monday, November 14, 2011
Reflections on the Communication Skills for Teachers' course
What are your communicative strengths and weaknesses?
What do you do well?What do you want to improve?How will you work on these skills?
My communicative strengths are similar in oral and written format. Firstly, I am aware of my target audience and always make a conscious effort to set the right tone and register. For oral presentation, I would make sure that my voice is projected enough for the farthest audience to be able to hear me. As a result, loudness in communication is never an issue for me. This is very important as the audience might subconsciously complete my message if they cannot hear the entire message properly. This would result in miscommunication many a times and is highly dangerous.
Also for both oral and written, I always craft my message to be clear and concise as too much information would confuse the listener resulting in miscommunication again. Of course, this is also relative, i.e. speaking to an audience comprising of professionals is going to be very different from speaking to an audience consisting primary one pupils. Hence, I am aware of the nature of my audience as well.
Also, I would set the context of my message to be one that is complete. This ensures that I am not wasting the time of my audience and inspire confidence in the motion that I am proposing. Alternatively, it also helps in communicating the correct message.
I feel that my weakness lies in my nonverbal skills, namely posture and hand gestures. When I get nervous, I tend to repeat a certain hand gesture that does not help to relate a certain message. This might be confusing for the audience. Also, I slouch a lot and this does not exactly inspire confidence and it also affects how I project my voice. I think I need to practice speaking more often in front of a mirror to correct all the mistakes above.
Also, for written communication, I tend to be neglectful in my language used including grammar and vocabulary. As a role model of english teacher, I must work hard to be mindful on this.
What do you do well?What do you want to improve?How will you work on these skills?
My communicative strengths are similar in oral and written format. Firstly, I am aware of my target audience and always make a conscious effort to set the right tone and register. For oral presentation, I would make sure that my voice is projected enough for the farthest audience to be able to hear me. As a result, loudness in communication is never an issue for me. This is very important as the audience might subconsciously complete my message if they cannot hear the entire message properly. This would result in miscommunication many a times and is highly dangerous.
Also for both oral and written, I always craft my message to be clear and concise as too much information would confuse the listener resulting in miscommunication again. Of course, this is also relative, i.e. speaking to an audience comprising of professionals is going to be very different from speaking to an audience consisting primary one pupils. Hence, I am aware of the nature of my audience as well.
Also, I would set the context of my message to be one that is complete. This ensures that I am not wasting the time of my audience and inspire confidence in the motion that I am proposing. Alternatively, it also helps in communicating the correct message.
I feel that my weakness lies in my nonverbal skills, namely posture and hand gestures. When I get nervous, I tend to repeat a certain hand gesture that does not help to relate a certain message. This might be confusing for the audience. Also, I slouch a lot and this does not exactly inspire confidence and it also affects how I project my voice. I think I need to practice speaking more often in front of a mirror to correct all the mistakes above.
Also, for written communication, I tend to be neglectful in my language used including grammar and vocabulary. As a role model of english teacher, I must work hard to be mindful on this.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
blog 3 making connection between your ese and the masterplans for ict in education
For your third post, describe which achievement(s) of the three masterplans for ICT in education are evident in the school/classes that you are attached to for your ESE.
Most students have shown that they possess the necessary skills to complete ICT-based projects/assignments. Many of the primary five and six students are tech-savvy enough to participate actively in the podcast exercises that the mother tongue department has pioneered. In these exercises, students would recite an oral passage in the manner they would during an actual examination and record it using podcasts. Their friends would then listen to these podcasts and advise each other under the supervision of the mother tongue teachers. The other levels have their respective ICT projects such as producing a simple powerpoint presentation at the primary 3 level and so on.
Most students are competent in the use of the Internet and simple word processing. Admittedly, due to the demographics of the student population in my school, there are still many lower primary students who are unfamiliar with using the computer. They would require assistance with switching on the computers or accessing the programs required for the lessons.
All full time teachers have the basic competencies in incorporating ICT in their lessons, and are receptive of using ICT as a pedagogical tool. Many FAs are not trained in IT and are not keen to using ICT in their lessons though. It might not be an easy task training them in using ICT as according to Erikson's Life-Spanish Development Theory, certain skills have to be attained at certain stages of life.
The provision of the necessary physical and ICT infrastructure for ICT-based teaching and learning with the proper networking and student to computer ratio is also evident.
In conclusion, my school had, at the time of writing, attained the achievements of Masterplan 2 to a certain degree but is still a distance away from those of Masterplan 3.
Most students have shown that they possess the necessary skills to complete ICT-based projects/assignments. Many of the primary five and six students are tech-savvy enough to participate actively in the podcast exercises that the mother tongue department has pioneered. In these exercises, students would recite an oral passage in the manner they would during an actual examination and record it using podcasts. Their friends would then listen to these podcasts and advise each other under the supervision of the mother tongue teachers. The other levels have their respective ICT projects such as producing a simple powerpoint presentation at the primary 3 level and so on.
Most students are competent in the use of the Internet and simple word processing. Admittedly, due to the demographics of the student population in my school, there are still many lower primary students who are unfamiliar with using the computer. They would require assistance with switching on the computers or accessing the programs required for the lessons.
All full time teachers have the basic competencies in incorporating ICT in their lessons, and are receptive of using ICT as a pedagogical tool. Many FAs are not trained in IT and are not keen to using ICT in their lessons though. It might not be an easy task training them in using ICT as according to Erikson's Life-Spanish Development Theory, certain skills have to be attained at certain stages of life.
The provision of the necessary physical and ICT infrastructure for ICT-based teaching and learning with the proper networking and student to computer ratio is also evident.
In conclusion, my school had, at the time of writing, attained the achievements of Masterplan 2 to a certain degree but is still a distance away from those of Masterplan 3.
blog 2 masterplans for ict in education
in your opinion, why do you think it is important for MOE to develop the three Masterplans for ICT in education?
Singapore has since independence evolved from a manufacturing economy to a skill-based economy and is now transiting to a knowledge economy. As the small country we are, resources are limited and we have to transform into a knowledge economy in order to continue to prosper and develop. As the pillars of our economy, our students, the future of Singapore, must be equipped with the necessary information technology knowhow and inculcated with the correct mental disposition in school.
It is important that MOE takes a leading role in ICT rather than taking a backseat and expecting the students to pick up the necessary skills themselves. As a government organization, MOE has the resources to plan and implement an effective Masterplan that can become reality. Competencies in the essential information technology skill sets can be achieved much faster in this manner.
Has any of the Masterplans impacted you as a student? Share your experience of how ICT had been used in the classes you attended as a student (if applicable).
As Masterplan 1 was implemented in 1997, I was already in secondary school. Being in an independent school, I was not exposed to the Masterplan. Also, my school did not have the culture of using ICT in their lessons. The only ICT lesson I had was one particular Biology lesson.
Based on your enhanced school experience, how do you think the current Masterplan 3 may affect your role(s) as a beginning teacher?
During my stint as a contract teacher, I have been amazed and impressed to see ICT being widely infused in the school. It was indeed a stark contrast to my own experience as a primary school student more than a decade ago.
Teachers are not only conducting face to face lessons but they are also designing ICT infused lesson packages which are then presented in class. In my opinion, this opens up a new dimension to teaching and is an invaluable asset to a teacher. If the implementation of Masterplan 3 can be faster, I would foresee myself having access to new resources and learning in the process of teaching. It is inevitable that every teacher has to embrace ICT in their lessons, refusal to do so would definitely cause a loss of interest in their lessons, to say the least.
Singapore has since independence evolved from a manufacturing economy to a skill-based economy and is now transiting to a knowledge economy. As the small country we are, resources are limited and we have to transform into a knowledge economy in order to continue to prosper and develop. As the pillars of our economy, our students, the future of Singapore, must be equipped with the necessary information technology knowhow and inculcated with the correct mental disposition in school.
It is important that MOE takes a leading role in ICT rather than taking a backseat and expecting the students to pick up the necessary skills themselves. As a government organization, MOE has the resources to plan and implement an effective Masterplan that can become reality. Competencies in the essential information technology skill sets can be achieved much faster in this manner.
Has any of the Masterplans impacted you as a student? Share your experience of how ICT had been used in the classes you attended as a student (if applicable).
As Masterplan 1 was implemented in 1997, I was already in secondary school. Being in an independent school, I was not exposed to the Masterplan. Also, my school did not have the culture of using ICT in their lessons. The only ICT lesson I had was one particular Biology lesson.
Based on your enhanced school experience, how do you think the current Masterplan 3 may affect your role(s) as a beginning teacher?
During my stint as a contract teacher, I have been amazed and impressed to see ICT being widely infused in the school. It was indeed a stark contrast to my own experience as a primary school student more than a decade ago.
Teachers are not only conducting face to face lessons but they are also designing ICT infused lesson packages which are then presented in class. In my opinion, this opens up a new dimension to teaching and is an invaluable asset to a teacher. If the implementation of Masterplan 3 can be faster, I would foresee myself having access to new resources and learning in the process of teaching. It is inevitable that every teacher has to embrace ICT in their lessons, refusal to do so would definitely cause a loss of interest in their lessons, to say the least.
blog 1 enhanced school experience
ENHANCED SCHOOL EXPERIENCE:
PREPARATORY TASK FOR ICT FOR MEANINGFUL LEARNING
Enhanced School Experience: Classroom Observations of ICT Use
Specific Observations
School Name: Blangah Rise Primary School
Class: 3 Emerald
Profile of the class:
(For e.g., the students’ academic abilities, stream and other characteristics)
The students are of mixed abilities, with roughly equal numbers of MA and LA. There are no HA students in this particular class. Due to the nature of the school, the students are mainly from the less privileged families. Hence, only about a third of them have access to computers and the internet from home.
As such, the computer and the internet are novelties to the students and they really look forward to English lessons that are conducted in the computer lab.
Subject: English
What ICT tools are used in the lesson?
Litespeed and AsknLearn are the two vendors BRPS has approached for ICT infused lesson packages, AsknLearn being the new vendor replacing Litespeed. The prescribed/recommended computer lesson for English is once per week, and the English teacher has the liberty to decide whether to carry out the lesson or not. This usually depends on whether the Stellar syllabus can be completed in time.
ICT infused lessons are carried out in the computer lab, which is equipped with enough terminals for every student. Headphones are also made available as the lesson package includes audio components. Besides these computer lab lessons, the teacher has also used ICT during normal classroom lessons, including Litespeed, Powerpoint presentations and youtube videos.
Describe how ICT is used for teaching and learning in the lesson.
The computer lab lessons are used mainly for teaching grammar, as the English Stellar syllabus is not very comprehensive in the aspect of the teaching of grammar.
Litespeed has a rather comprehensive grammar learning package, being organized into the different areas of grammar. This allows students to know concisely what they are required to know and why they need to know that particular aspect of grammar. Moreover, at the end of each lesson package, there are assessments to check their understanding. The teacher would monitor the results from these assessments and personally tutor any students that cannot do well in these. The learning process is rather self-directed and carried out an one's own pace. The teacher does not rush the students but rather expect quality learning from these ICT infused lessons.
As the lesson packages include animations or interesting plots, students are very engaged.
For this particular lesson....
At the start of the lesson, students are briefed on the objectives and expectations of the lessons. The teacher asked questions and evaluated the students' level of competencies in the topic before beginning the lesson. Ten minutes before the lesson concluded, he asked the students about what they had learnt to gain an understanding of how ICT has benefited them.
General Observation:
How do teachers in the school feel about the use of ICT for teaching and learning? (For this question, you may want to speak to the HOD/ICT and other teachers you know in the school.)
As my RO is the HOD/ICT in the school, I had much opportunity to interact with her and to observe her strategies and plans of ICT implementation in the school. Most teachers are very receptive towards infusing ICT into their lessons, including all subject teachers and even art teachers.
Regular training for teachers on new ICT programmes are carried out by various members of the ICT department, and electronic mailers are used to keep everyone updated on the latest developments or events that the department has done. This creates and maintains a culture whereby ICT is regarded as a valuable tool/resource in a teacher's arsenal.
Interactions with various other teachers during our mutual free time-slots reflected the above observation, and the general consensus is that ICT has really made learning a more enjoyable process for the students, benefiting them more than regular classroom teaching has.
PREPARATORY TASK FOR ICT FOR MEANINGFUL LEARNING
Enhanced School Experience: Classroom Observations of ICT Use
Specific Observations
School Name: Blangah Rise Primary School
Class: 3 Emerald
Profile of the class:
(For e.g., the students’ academic abilities, stream and other characteristics)
The students are of mixed abilities, with roughly equal numbers of MA and LA. There are no HA students in this particular class. Due to the nature of the school, the students are mainly from the less privileged families. Hence, only about a third of them have access to computers and the internet from home.
As such, the computer and the internet are novelties to the students and they really look forward to English lessons that are conducted in the computer lab.
Subject: English
What ICT tools are used in the lesson?
Litespeed and AsknLearn are the two vendors BRPS has approached for ICT infused lesson packages, AsknLearn being the new vendor replacing Litespeed. The prescribed/recommended computer lesson for English is once per week, and the English teacher has the liberty to decide whether to carry out the lesson or not. This usually depends on whether the Stellar syllabus can be completed in time.
ICT infused lessons are carried out in the computer lab, which is equipped with enough terminals for every student. Headphones are also made available as the lesson package includes audio components. Besides these computer lab lessons, the teacher has also used ICT during normal classroom lessons, including Litespeed, Powerpoint presentations and youtube videos.
Describe how ICT is used for teaching and learning in the lesson.
The computer lab lessons are used mainly for teaching grammar, as the English Stellar syllabus is not very comprehensive in the aspect of the teaching of grammar.
Litespeed has a rather comprehensive grammar learning package, being organized into the different areas of grammar. This allows students to know concisely what they are required to know and why they need to know that particular aspect of grammar. Moreover, at the end of each lesson package, there are assessments to check their understanding. The teacher would monitor the results from these assessments and personally tutor any students that cannot do well in these. The learning process is rather self-directed and carried out an one's own pace. The teacher does not rush the students but rather expect quality learning from these ICT infused lessons.
As the lesson packages include animations or interesting plots, students are very engaged.
At the start of the lesson, students are briefed on the objectives and expectations of the lessons. The teacher asked questions and evaluated the students' level of competencies in the topic before beginning the lesson. Ten minutes before the lesson concluded, he asked the students about what they had learnt to gain an understanding of how ICT has benefited them.
General Observation:
How do teachers in the school feel about the use of ICT for teaching and learning? (For this question, you may want to speak to the HOD/ICT and other teachers you know in the school.)
As my RO is the HOD/ICT in the school, I had much opportunity to interact with her and to observe her strategies and plans of ICT implementation in the school. Most teachers are very receptive towards infusing ICT into their lessons, including all subject teachers and even art teachers.
Regular training for teachers on new ICT programmes are carried out by various members of the ICT department, and electronic mailers are used to keep everyone updated on the latest developments or events that the department has done. This creates and maintains a culture whereby ICT is regarded as a valuable tool/resource in a teacher's arsenal.
Interactions with various other teachers during our mutual free time-slots reflected the above observation, and the general consensus is that ICT has really made learning a more enjoyable process for the students, benefiting them more than regular classroom teaching has.
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