Education - The importance of Technology in the Classroom

I am currently working on a thesis regarding the use of technology in the classroom. Below is an excerpt from my dissertation:

The use of computers and the Internet is fast becoming an important tool in the education sector. It is becoming very common for technology to be used for assessing, training and educating students. According to a number of studies conducted by Barbara Means et al. (1997), the use of technology in the classroom has a number of advantages including, better collaboration between students, enhancing student motivation and adding to the students’ perception that their work is credible when properly referenced from the internet. Most educators are overcoming the barrier posed by these ever-more sophisticated technological tools and they now understand that technology is a particularly important tool for assessing their students. The fact that modern students are very dependent on technology proves how important it is that their teachers employ more modern methods in their classroom so as to meet the interests and capabilities of their students.

The use of technology in the classroom can certainly make teaching easier and more efficient by saving us precious time. I am currently in the process of creating an online application (which is part of my thesis) to be used by teachers and their students. I had been searching online for the ultimate teaching tool for years and I failed to find it. The applications that I found were too complicated, limited in functionality, or required a monthly subscription payment...so I decided to create it myself. This will be a website created by a teacher for teachers and it will be 100% free. As you might have noticed, the website will be called Mentor Buddy (www.mentorbuddy.com). I'm putting the last finishing touches to the whole thing and hopefully it should be launched sometime in late October. In the meantime the internet has a wealth of resources for teachers: from lesson plans to tests ready for printing. The internet can make our job so much easier, the trick is to know how to search for the proper information.

Teaching: staying creative

It's easy enough for new teachers to let their enthusiasm create creative and fun lessons. However, more seasoned teachers usually struggle to deliver a certain level of creativity in their lessons. Enthusiasm may start running dry after some years, particularly if you are being given students who just don't seem to appreciate your efforts.

None-the-less, there is no excuse for delivering boring lessons. Here's a list of things to do to give that little extra-something in your classroom:

• Care about your students: Knowing your students as individuals and understanding their needs, will give you a big motivational boost.
• Games: the internet is the best way to get great ideas for games to be included in your lessons. Games don't need to be fancy. Simple crosswords, word puzzles can be easily included in exercises and they make such a big difference.
• Re-use old materials: there is nothing wrong with re-using lesson plans, games, activities, etc, from previous years. Just make sure that you deliver the lesson with the same enthusiasm as the first time.
• Be modern: stay up to date with what's going on in the world. You might never know when you'll be able to use the latest cartoon character or movie star in your lessons. You need to understand what students are interested in and then incorporate that in your lesson. All it takes is to ask some direct questions...you don't need to be a detective :)

That's it for today. I'll keep you posted.

Teaching: Effective classroom management

I have already written a post about effective classroom management. This should hopefully be a more detailed and direct post tackling the subject.
As a teacher you MUST avoid:

• Over-appeasing students: some teachers will do anything to be the students' best friend. Keep in mind that before you are the students' friend, you are their teacher. If punishment is needed then use it.
• Ambiguous questions: questions need to be direct and easy to understand. A good way of overcoming this problem is to tell students who have understood a question to explain it to their peers.
• Not learning students' names: it is very difficult to conduct an effective lesson when you don't know the names of your students since directing questions to particular students or correcting student's behavior becomes overtly-complicated.
• not acting on bad behavior: verbal threats alone will not accomplish anything.
• Ignoring bad behavior: this is a definite no-no. Bad behavior will not stop simply by ignoring it. Act immediately on it. Set down some ground rules and give out punishment if students challenge these rules. Punishment may involve writing lines, take away a fun activity, whole-class punishment (use this sparingly as a last resort)
• Standing in the same area of the class during lessons: While conducting your lessons, move around the whole area of your classroom. This will discourage bad behavior.
• Silent classes: unless the students are working on a test or an individual exercise, your classroom must not be silent. It should constantly be a flurry of ideas and information.
• Being too serious: Lessons need to have some fun elements in order to make it interesting otherwise students will get bored and break your class-rules. Crack some occasional jokes and use lots of media for your lessons. On the other hand you must not over do this, otherwise students will not take you seriously.
• Overpraising students: don't praise students for doing things that they are expected to do.

That's it for today. As always, If you have any questions or ideas that you want to share with everyone, feel free to leave a comment.

Teaching: Using Videos in lessons

Videos can be extremely effective educational tools when used properly. They're a great way of breaking the usual monotony of ordinary lessons (although lessons should never be monotonous) and offers students a new and more exciting way of learning. Let's take History an an example: is there a better way for students to learn than showing them actual footage of real places? It's like a field trip without the included hassle. However you cannot simply rely on a video to do the lesson for you. You need to make sure that the lessons is geared towards the right direction and that the students understand the main points of that particular lesson.


The following list will hopefully help you understand how to incorporate the use of videos in your lessons:

1. Make a brainstorming session on the main subject and, on the white-board/chalk-board, write all the important points.
2. Instruct students to write down the points in more detail while watching the video. For example, if the video is about the effect of heat on objects, and one of the points is 'effects of heat on metal', then students should be able to write down more information while watching the video, such as: "heat forces the molecules of the metal to vibrate, this vibration allows the metal to expand..."
3. Allow yourself to pause the video when it reaches a specific point, and take the time to reinforce what the students have just heard. This will help students to easily understand which points are important.
4. After watching the video, the students should be more knowledgeable about the main subject. Go back to the points on the white-board/chalk-board and help students use the notes they took during the video, to give detailed explanations.
5. Tell students to write down a report on the subject. This is a great reinforcement exercise.

I hope that this article will help you deliver more interesting and entertaining lessons. As always, don't hesitate to leave comments.

Teaching: Physical Classroom Layout

Teachers who have their own classroom need to avoid the traditional classroom layout, i.e. straight rows of desks facing towards the white-board/chalk-board. Such classrooms are boring and, often, make teaching and learning less effective. A classroom needs to be dynamic, it needs to accommodate each lesson and facilitate different methods of teaching. Let's take group work as an example. Traditional classroom layouts were designed in a way to avoid interaction between students. However we are now aware of the importance of peer-tutoring. Education is all about communication and the classroom needs to allow this to happen. Arranging small 'islands' of desks is a very effective way of encouraging group work in the classroom. the best way of doing this is to arrange four desks facing each other. Arrange them in a way so that students can still see the board. Such classroom layouts will also allow you to move freely between desks. You cannot allow yourself to stand in just one area of the classroom. Moving around will allow you to interact better with the students and to easily supervise their work. You need to experiment with different layouts and don't be afraid to ask the students for feedback. Involving students in such decisions will allow for a better understanding between you and your learners.
For elementary teachers, it is a good idea to divide the class in different areas. For example, the 'Science Area' will include a small exhibition of materials used in previous lessons or a display of the students' own work. The "Reading Area" will allow students to spend some quite time reading, make this area as comfortable as possible, throw some cushions or small recliners. Make students understand that reading can be a fun way to relax. The reading area may also be used by students who have finished class assignments earlier than their peers.

Education: Dealing with shy students

Teachers tend to think that they are the only ones allowed to talk in their classroom. However, as you might have noticed in my previous posts, I strongly suggest that students are allowed to engage in active discussions about the main topics of the lesson. However it is important to know the different ways of going about doing this. Class discussions are not enough and many students, particularly shy ones, will find it very difficult to engage in such discussions. Such students are usually terrified of the prospect of being at the center of attention. On many occasions I have asked a shy student a question and I see them cringe when I tell the rest of the class to be quite so that they can hear what the student has to say. I've made it a personal goal not to try to put shy students in such situations. Many teachers erroneously think that forcing shy children to speak in class is an effective way to "bring them out of their shell". This is very far from the truth since making a shy person feel inappropriate makes them dread theses situations even more. Such students need to be respected and given their space. In time they will overcome their shyness, but this needs to happen on their own terms. Never treat shy students differently; just because they don't raise their hands does not mean they don't know the answer. What you can do is give them an opportunity to show the class, and themselves, their true capabilities. You need to understand their niche area and help them excel in what they are truly capable of doing. A few examples: recognize their capabilities and praise them for it .Do not exaggerate this, shy students are not stupid and when they realize what you're trying to do they will not trust your 'reactions' anymore. Another effective method is to divide students in small groups, give them an assignment and have each student present their work to their group. It is much easier for shy students to present their work to a small group rather than to the whole class; remember that even the most seasoned speaker sometimes gets stage fright. Another successful method is to hold 'contests' based on the target student's capability. For instance: if the student is a good artist, organize an art challenge and put the student's art-piece on display in the class. This is a good way of boosting their self confidence.
In the end, treating students the same is key to a fair and successful teaching/learning experience.

Please leave comments :)

Education: Designing a successful lesson plan

One of the most important thing to keep in mind when designing a lesson plan is the time you have at your disposition. You don't want to be too ambitious with your lesson. Likewise, you really need to make sure that there is enough content to make a successful lesson. Timing is key and it's all about the content you're presenting and the way the content is being communicated to the class. You need to take into consideration the learning abilities of individual students. Make sure that no one is excluded. These are the stages that all lessons should include:

1. Introduction: A good way to start a lesson is by engaging students in a small discussion. Ask questions about the topic so as to understand what the students already know. Another good idea is to make a brainstorming session and, on your chalk-board, write a list of all the important points brought up by the students. You can use these points later to further develop the students' ideas.
   
2. Presentation: chances are that most of the students will not be very knowledgeable about the lesson's main topic. This is the chance to present the main points to the class. Make sure that you engage your students in the lesson. Ask lots of questions and highlight the main points of the lesson. Write these points on the chalk board.
3. Active engagement: if you have not engaged students in a discussion, then it is important that you do so. Active engagement can also involve students working out exercises in the classroom. This reinforces the new knowledge that students have just learned.
4. Feedback: Ask your students questions about the new topics. This will help you understand if your students have learned the main topics of the lesson.
5. Follow-up practice: You may refer to this as homework and may involve your students in conducting research, writing essays or working out exercises. This further reinforces the main points of the lesson.

Any other ideas? Feedback? Please leave comments.