ICT IN EDUCATION

Below are some articles which I had read recently  ......

For technology touch in schools

By Chandra Devi, chandra@nstp.com.my

Our teachers are often encouraged to" embrace computer-related technology to enhance the teaching-learning process but many remain clueless as to how and when they can use such technology in the classroom effectively. This situation is a consequence of the various technology training programmes for teachers which only seem to address the need to provide basic knowledge on various applications while leaving the rest to their own imagination.

While gaining knowledge about technological tools such as the internet, CD-ROMs, PowerPoint presentations and spreadsheets is essential, it is more valuable if educators are taught to know how to implement their technology knowledge and experience effectively in the classroom.

Technology training programmes for teachers should take into consideration the varying levels of understanding and comfort with technology among teachers. Ideally, we should introduce training programmes that take teachers through several successive stages, instead of one-off programmes.

The ultimate goal of all technology training programmes for teachers should be an adequate level of technical expertise to improve student performance. These programmes should aim to develop a techno-constructivist mindset among teachers.

Techno-constructivist is a term used to describe teachers who integrate technology into the curriculum to bring a totally I new approach to teaching. I They evolve from teachers who are techno phobic or uninterested to become teachers who utilize various technological tools, and allow their students to become active participants in the learning process.

The term was used by Scott Noon, director of US-based Connected University, in his four-stage model for technology adoption among teachers. Techno-constructivists are the stage four teachers in a training programme, who are aware of the ability of technology to assist children build on their own experiences, construct their own meanings, create products, and solve problems successfully.

These teachers will then become the mentors or trainers for others in the other three stages.

At stage one are educators who basically are unfamiliar with technology. Either they never had an opportunity to adopt new technology or are uninterested in learning how to use it. The goal at this stage of training must be to take away fears and the training must be designed to show them the benefits technology can offer them.

Then at stage two are software technicians or teachers who are adept in several applications such as electronic mail (e-mail), Internet and word processing for their own use. Teachers at this level understand that computers can serve useful purposes in the classroom setting.

The objective at this stage of training is to expand their applications skills and introduce the concepts of curriculum integration such as using the Internet in lesson plans, online projects and team teaching with educators worldwide.

And at stage three are the electronic traditionalists. These are teachers who are proficient in using technology in the classroom but their technology usage is limited to conventional functions. The aim at this level is to help the teachers see new possibilities and approaches in learning that technology enables.

The four-stage framework .for teacher technology assimilation as drawn by Noon offers 8, means to train teachers with an ultimate goal in mind - developing teachers who are apt at integrating technology into the curriculum for better learning outcomes.

Training should be matched to participant's level of knowledge, which from there on should not , only be continuous but also progressive.

Element of multimedia technology

By Raphael Phan Chung Wei, itp@nstp.com.my

Nowadays the word "multimedia" is a commonly used term in a person's conversation, be it a university lecturer, politician or student. This is especially so in Malaysia when the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) project was initiated in 1997. All of a sudden, "multimedia" became a buzzword on everyone's lips.

When I first heard of the word in 1997, I thought it was something associated with arts or graphics design. In fact, multimedia covers much more than that.

The word "multi" means more than one while "media" refers to a medium, so multimedia would literally mean more than one medium.

"More than one medium for what?", some might ask. My former lecturer, Dr Ewe Hong Tat once defined multimedia in terms of !the five basic senses that we humans have: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. He said that we use our five basic senses to interact with our surroundings.

When we talk in these terms, then multimedia would refer to the various mediums through which we humans interact electronically with information, most of the time coming from computers, televisions or other entertainment devices.

Multimedia also refers to the technologies and techniques used to enhance the way information is' presented to us and it includes elements of text, audio (or sound), graphics (or images), animation (or motion), and video. Nowadays, multimedia is not just limited to how information is presented to us. In more advanced multimedia technologies, there is an extra element: interactivity. This means we are not confined to be solely on the receiving end of information but can also give feedback and control the way that information is presented.

Text. The first and most simple element of multimedia is text, which appeals to our sense of sight. Text refers to words, sentences, paragraphs or anything that is written or displayed as a sequence of alphabets and characters.

For example; this article consists purely of text. By forming characters into a particular pattern, text gives meaning to humans. Text was among the very first forms in which humans used to communicate information with one another, and was the first element that was used by computers to convoy information to the users.

Veteran computer users would recall the first-generation computers with monochrome (single-colour) displays that had only text to relay the information and relied on text to obtain information from the users. Nowadays, text can be stored in various file formats in the computer, the most popular being the pure text file format with the .txt extension.

Audio. Audio is another element of multimedia. Vibrations in the air or other mediums cause a sensation that is detected by our human ears and is known as sound or audio. It appeals solely to our sense of hearing.

Audio could be a human voice, a song, the beat of musical instruments, digitized sound effects or any other sound used to enhance our understanding of the information presented to us. Audio was also one of the earlier forms in which the computer used to interact with human users.

The most common example would be the beep. sound emitted by the computer's internal speaker to tell users that an error was detected or to let them know that a certain action is being performed. computers support audio file formats such as Wave, Midi or MP3.

Wave files contain sound information and have the extension .wav while Midi files contain audio information that are digitally generated by electronic equipments rather than traditional musical instruments. These files have the .mid extension.

Finally, Mp3 files mostly contain full-length songs in compressed format and have the .MR3 extension.

Graphics. The third element of multimedia is the graphics, another element that appeals to our sense of sight. Graphics or images refer to the visual effects that provide a clearer illustration of the information being presented.

"A picture is worth a thousand words"; so the saying goes. In most cases, it is indeed true. A hard-to-grasp concept might be understood better if a picture or illustration is provided, rather than having to describe it in detail by using purely words.

Those who started using computers since early 1990s would appreciate how computer graphics technologies have improved over the years. The graphics back then were simply a collection of monochrome of dots grouped together to form a certain pattern. Then came the 16-colour technology, followed by 256 colours, and the computer games became somewhat presentable in a sense.

Compare that to now with 32-bit (232 = 4,294,967,296) colours, the computer graphics technology these days really helps enhance presentation of information.

Popular graphics formats are the joint photographic experts group (JPEG) and graphics interchange format (GIF).

Graphics are still images that provide a static illustration. Imagine if you have a collection of images and you display them one at a time, at a fairly fast speed. You then have a simulation of movement and this is called animation, yet another element of multimedia, again triggering our sense of sight.

However, the speed at which the images are displayed must be fast enough in order for the transition from one image to another to be smooth and decent for viewing.

Cartoons are examples of animations. Today, computer programs are also available such as Microsoft PowerPoint that help computer users create simple animations based on a series of still images.

Common types of files that support animation are GIF files. When you visit a certain Web site and you notice ii certain image that is changing at a certain rate, bring your mouse over and right click. Choose "Save Picture As..." or "Save Image As...". You will find that those are GIF files.

Video. Video refers to the signal that contains the timing (synchronization), luminance {intensity or brightness) and chrominance (colour information) that when displayed
would provide a visual representation of continuously moving images. Note the similarity between animation and video. Perhaps the factor that distinguishes between the two is the degree of continuity.

Video provides viewers with a sense of continuous motion of images while animation is less stringent and has a slower rate of motion between images.

Also, most videos are captured visual representations of real-world movements while animations are created by continuously displaying still images at a certain rate with the intention of simulating a constantly changing scene. Popular video file formats are the audio video interleave (avi), moving picture experts group (MPEG) and MOV.

With the current advanced multimedia technologies, an extra multimedia element has been added into multimedia presentations: interactivity.

This element makes it possible for users to have two-way interaction with a presentation, and choose the way in which that presentation is given, the sequence in which information is displayed and so forth.

An example of interactivity would be digital versatile disc (DVD) videos which provide an avenue for viewers to choose how the video is shown. Menus are present on almost all DVDs to allow viewers to select the video content to be shown, and how it is shown.

There are even DVDs with multiple camera angles that allow viewers to view the video content at different angles. This is the start of a new generation of interactive multimedia presentations.

Knowing about the elements of multimedia: text, audio, graphics, animation and video sheds some light on what multimedia really is and what the MSC is all about. It is the centre of multimedia activity that will spearhead Malaysia's vision 2020 where technologies concerned with the elements of multimedia are explored, researched and applied.

This would involve expertise from various fields such as the engineers who handle the hardware in multimedia elements, the computer scientists and information technologists who write software programs as well as animators and illustrators who create the graphics, animations and videos for multimedia presentations, and finally the multimedia-Iiterate managers and administrators who co-ordinate and oversee the multimedia activities.

Equiping the young with ICT

By ANUJA RAVENDRAN, anuja@nstp.com.my

As Malaysia moves towards becoming a knowledge-based economy (k-economy), it is imperative for us to equip our young with information and communications technology (ICT) knowledge.

We need to install in them ICT skills which they will be able to leverage on later in their lives when they embark on college education or enter the working world.

Recognizing this need, the Education Ministry's Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) has come up with the Technology Development unit which houses the Computer in Education Unit programme.

This programme refers to the use of computer as a tool in the teaching and learning process. as well
as learning how to use computers.

Since 1986, the Education Ministry has carried out pioneering projects to study the relevance and effectiveness of the use of computers in the teaching and learning process. The Computer in Education unit is responsible for the planning and implementation of research and development (R&D) pertaining to the use of ICT in education. It also plans, implements and monitors ICT activities carried out at schools.

These include activities like Computer Literacy, Computer Aided Learning, the Education Network and the Information Technology (IT) Curriculum for schools. Through the programme, the Ministry hopes to be able to improve the academic performance of students using the computer as a tool of learning.

Students will also be able to learn how to access, assess, select and use the necessary information for their studies. Information is available in abundance, but in order to use it effectively, students will need to know what is required and what is not. The programme is also expected to help students improve the quality of their work (assignments) utilizing suitable computer applications.

Another aim of the programme is to offer opportunities for students to gain more 'knowledge and skills in order to have more confidence in themselves once they finish school.

The main objective, however, would be to develop a pool of skilled-IT human resources through early exposure to IT curriculum from the early stages of learning.

Schools are also equipped with the necessary infrastructure such as a computer lab, ICT hardware, software and Internet access in order to make the programme a success.

The effort undertaken by the Ministry is highly commendable. The main aim is to prepare students for the future they will be facing upon completion of secondary school.

All this while, a typical Malaysian student's learning experience, unfortunately, has been very much locked in a paper chase that forces a student to regurgitate what he or she has learnt, says Informatics College's academic director Albert Lim.

He suggests that in order to move away from this, our curriculum must begin to include elements of creative thinking, heuristic learning techniques, and to convey explicit as well as tacit knowledge.

This, he adds, will simulate better problem-solving skills and innovative use of knowledge in an ever increasing dynamic working and academic environment beyond tertiary education.

He believes that a dynamic ICT curriculum will enable students to master the fundamentals of software application and basic programming when they enter the tertiary education level, be it in the public or private institutions of higher learning.

"This will in turn allow the students to focus more on developing creative and innovative applications and solutions in ICT."Even if these students decide to begin .working upon completion of secondary school, they can confidently take on jobs in the IT field as the fundamentals have already been set and they have the basic knowledge required."

Albert says that in order to be well-poised for the challenges in the future, the nation must produce graduates who will have a minimum expected competency level with the ability to demonstrate learned skill successfully and consistently equip students with the ability to apply knowledge in "open-ended" situations.

"It is not about what you know, but how you use it as well," he says. "While there have been efforts to move in this direction, we need a bigger leap to change and drive the way we deliver our educational system, in line with the philosophy of life-long learning and a chance for an education for every citizen.