This observation was done at the SciTechHuMatics Fair in Hougang Secondary School. I was the facilitator at the Geography Station and was in charge of briefing the teams on their tasks. All the participants were Secondary 3 students and they came from the Express, Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) streams. Students represented their classes in groups of 5 and these groups were further categorized into different teams so as to facilitate movement around the different stations. The aim of the fair was to integrate ICT into an multidisciplinary experience as they travelled to different stations and explored the theme of environmental conservation. Students were generally technologically-competent. Most of them had smartphones and were allowed to use them during the fair.
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At the Geography station, students had to log into a WordPress account based on their classes. They then had to use the compass application on the HTC phone they were given (or any smartphone that they had) to navigate themselves to the next station, where they had to read an article on water conservation on WordPress and then answer a question. If they answered the question correctly, they were then given a password which they could use to unlock the next WordPress entry and get directions to the next clue. There were a total of 4 stations to navigate to and the students were told that these were related to water resources that could be found around the school. Thus, the students were able to use technology to navigate themselves as well as learn about water conservation methods in an innovative and engaging manner. However, most of the groups were not able to complete all 4 stations as they only had about 20 minutes.
At the Math Station, students were also told to pen their thoughts on why there was a need to show respect for the environment on the SciTecHuMatics Facebook page. At the Art station, students had to create multimedia posters with Glogster. The teams came up with very creative posters on environmental conservation that included pictures and videos.
More posters can be viewed here.
The SciTecHuMatics Fair was a great hit as the students really enjoyed learning about environmental conservation through different disciplines and platforms. It succeeded in getting the students engaged in this topic with the use of technology and games.
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Teachers in Hougang Secondary School are generally quite open to the use of ICT for teaching and learning. Most of the lessons that I observed were conducted with the use of either powerpoint slides or the visualizer, hence ensuring that the students had visual aids in their learning. The English Department, in particular, has made significant efforts in integrating ICT into lessons. Students are encouraged to develop their short stories into e-storybooks with the use of videos, illustrations and animations. They also receive personalized feedback on their narrative skills as they have to record podcasts whilst practicing for their oral examinations. The school is also preparing for the acquisition of more laptops that can be brought to class instead of having the students work in the computer lab. They believe that this will allow lessons to be more efficient and also interactive. Hence, ICT is increasingly gaining prominence in HS and becoming an integral part of lessons.
As I've already mentioned in my previous comment, I think your school is one of the good examples of how ICT has been used effectively to engage students in particular subjects. I can only imagine the logistical hassle that the organising committee had to go through with the fair that recently passed. The activities must have been so interesting and fun filled for the students and I am sure it has led to some form of self directed learning since they have to rely on the tools they have (and their own brains) to go about completing the tasks.
ReplyDeleteWow this sounds like it was very interesting. The school which I did ESE at also attempted some form of hands-on activity for Geography during one week which had been set aside for 'innovative' ways of teaching/learning. However, they did not utilize smart phones but relied on (paper) maps. I think it's good that your ESE school took into account the development of new technologies.This would allow them to better simulate the work of 'experts' (Geographers) in the selected field (surely Geographers today wander around with more than just a tattered map in their arsenal of equipment/tools..)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Carol that this school is much ahead in incorporating ICT tools for meaningful learning. Though in most of the lessons that I observed in my school, the ICT was generally confined within power point and visualiser. But the use of compass application sounds wonderful and amazing how easily the pupil gets the chance to looka beyond the four walls of the classroom and explore the world morepractically. It gives them better option to explore and know more and as carol says fecilitates self-directed learning. the use of compass in place of a paper map or the use of visualiser or in EL classes gives them better perspectives, I believe
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Carol mentioned. It does seem extremely fun for the students to participate in such activities as they really do get to apply the concepts and what is taught in class onto practical subjects of the everyday life. However, what I feel needs to be tackled here is the logistical demands and requirements. Alot of the teachers i spoke to tend to not want to organise such events etc simply because it requires too much hassle and should the students be taken out of the school, too much paperwork needs to be done. If such is not too stringent, I believe teachers might not avoid it.
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