A considerable amount of research has been done to develop elaborate checklists to be used to determine if a child is ready for school. After the child is tested and weighed and assessed, and is deemed ready, she will arrive at school ready to be taught.
Throughout their stay at the school, children will be subjected to various forms of testing and assessment, often to determine if they are ready to move on to the next grade. There is an obsession with tests and examinations. Senior certificate examinations are used by many as a yardstick to determine if the child is ready to leave the school system.
Though assessment is valuable and should have a place in education, it has been observed that, no matter how often you weigh a pig, weighing will not make it any fatter. Yes, the weighing process should be the tail and not the body of the education dog.
In spite of all this testing and assessment, there is one question that is seldom asked: "Is the school ready for the child?"
Is this a relevant question? Of course, it is. The presence of class rooms and teachers may be viewed as indicators of readiness, but we all know that far more is involved.
In particular, we are interested in the ICT readiness of the school. This is the small role that we, as people interested in using technology as a quality enhancement factor in schools, can play: we can assist the schools to be ICT ready.
Our emphasis should not be on elaborate testing of teachers, and certification levels, and other ways of assessment. In our efforts to make the school ICT ready, perhaps we should slaughter the holy cow of assessment and stop weighing the pig and rather concentrate on fattening it; a fat pig will contribute more to the ICT readiness of a school than a thin weighed pig.
By the way, how does one fatten this pig?
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Over the past few weeks teaching nearly came to a standstill in many schools as a result of the strike. Many teachers were torn between supporting the cause of the industrial action and the welfare of their learners. This was indeed an ideal opportunity for those schools that are blessed with technology, to use it to ensure that the learners were not losing out.
In schools with computer laboratories, educational software products with strong teaching components (such as MasterMaths) could have been used in the absence of a teacher. Secondary schools with Mindset could have used this marvelous tool to instruct learners; yes, in the absence of a teacher.
This is what could or should have happened; invariably it did not. One would assume that if a school has a computer facility, it would be used to its maximum benefit; however, not everything you see is what it appears to be . This is the moral of one of Aesop's fables, the one about The Dancing Monkeys.
A prince had some monkeys trained to dance. Being naturally great mimics of men's actions, they showed themselves most apt pupils, and when arrayed in their rich clothes and masks, they danced as well as any of the courtiers. The spectacle was often repeated with great applause, till on one occasion a courtier, bent on mischief, took from his pocket a handful of nuts and threw them upon the stage. The monkeys, at the sight of the nuts, forgot their dancing and became, as indeed they were: monkeys instead of actors. Pulling off their masks and tearing their robes, they fought with one another for the nuts. The dancing spectacle thus came to an end amidst the laughter and ridicule of the audience.
Where does the problem lie: the monkeys, or the nuts?
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Are we encouraging or discouraging learners to play games in our computer laboratories? Should we use valuable computer time for something as frivolous as games?
Please read an article that appeared last year (but, with the wonder of the web, is still available at the press of a button): http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4608942.stm
The title of the article is "Computer games 'motivate pupils'". It shows that, according to a survey in the UK, a third of teachers are using computer games in the class room and that most of them do it in the belief that they improve pupils' skills and knowledge.
Are there perhaps games that we could introduce in our schools that may benefit learners? Would it be in order to consider games that could encourage reading and doing research, or developing analytical thinking skills?
The point that I found very interesting in the article is that a survey of 1 000 teachers in England and Wales suggests that a quarter of them personally use games in their free time.
If teachers love computer games, is this perhaps a hook to get them interested in using ICT as a teaching tool? First the bait: the game for themselves. When they are hooked, encourage them to find games for their learners. Let them take it to class. Once the learners start using it, and some educational benefits accrue, the line and sinker have been swallowed. The next step may be using ICT as a curriculum tool on a more extended basis.
Or is this wishful thinking? Should we ban computer games from our schools' computer facilities?
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It is not easy to accept new concepts. To recognize the value of a new idea, one has to understand it; only then can one embrace it. Such understanding includes a good knowledge and grasp of the principles underpinning the concept.
Using ICT as a teaching tool is a new concept for many educators. ICT itself is not new, but the suggestion that it can be used as a tool for teaching requires a shift in thinking.
Many teachers, even after exposure to ICT, and training in its basic concepts, have not succeeded in making the required paradigm shift. It is clear that more work is needed in helping them to come to a proper understanding of the role that ICT could play in teaching and learning. Consider the following:
• ICT is an important tool to impart knowledge to learners.
• Computers provide an easy access point to learning material; this is highly desirable in schools with limited learning resources.
• Lessons can be repeated any number of times by learners; this may save teachers many hours of repeating lessons to learners who did not understand the first time.
• Computers can be used for assessment, with immediate feedback to both learners and educators, hence reducing the educator's workload.
• Computers provide an alternative way of learning to learners who may battle with traditional teaching styles.
• Technology grabs the attention of young people and retains their concentration for longer periods than would be the case with normal class room teaching.
• Technology changes the role of the teacher: from one of teaching to one of facilitating the learning process.
It is perhaps the last point that is the most problematic. Such a role change may be perceived as a threat to some teachers; however, if they grasp the other benefits it may be easier for them to accept this change.
Are we using every possible opportunity to help teachers to gain a proper understanding of the personal benefits to them if they embrace the use of ICT?
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We grew up with encyclopaedias: those big books which contain information about any topic under the sun.
Now we have the internet, which is a global encyclopaedia with information about everything under the sun, above the sun and even the sun itself. At no time in the history of the human race has so much information been available to so many people. You can find details of every Nobel Prize winner; get a recipe of your favourite dish; obtain free software; look up the meaning of words and phrases; there is no limit.
The internet even helps you to get a better understanding of the very medium on which it lives. Yes, there is a Webopedia on the internet. It claims to be “the #1 online encyclopedia dedicated to computer technology”.
Have a look at it at http://www.webopedia.com/
You can type in any technology term and the chances are good that you will get a comprehensive explanation of the term. Try “ Zombie ”, the topic of the last posting, and see what you get.
While we are helping educators to come to grips with technology, would it be useful to make them aware of the Webopedia?
When we demonstrate the use of the site, the term " backup " can be used for illustrative purposes. Two birds can be killed with one stone! Do you think it could work?
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