Phase 3 teacher graduation- celebrating our success!

On Saturday 28th of March, the hills of Cofimvaba came alive with the sound of jubilation! After a whole year of intensive training and dedication on the part of facilitators and teachers alike, everybody (yes everybody-100% pass rate) graduated in grand style. This occasion was held at the Cofimvaba Senior Secondary hall and took the form of a banquet lunch. Representatives from the National Department of Education as well as the Eastern Cape Provincial Department of Education were present to celebrate our success with us.

Apart from all the teachers completing all of their compulsory badges, 58% of them earned merit awards which means that they have achieved at least half of the challenge badges as well. This reflect the enthusiasm that the teachers have shown. Even though they were under severe pressure towards the end to find the time to implement each badge strategy, they came through with flying colours and now own their tablets as a result of their hard work.

As part of the celebration we had a cake that represented each of the 3 phases and ICT4RED cupcakes to make sure everybody felt part of this success story. The hall was dressed up in celebratory banquet fare and there was an atmosphere of achievement and joy.

Each school was represented by a champion who was chosen on the basis that they were recognised by their peers as being a model of implementation and a support to their colleagues. They had to do a presentation of their favourite strategy and tell the story of how they implemented each strategy in their classroom and school.

There was lots of singing. The facilitators and the teachers composed various ICT4RED songs to show how they have enjoyed this intervention and the ST James choir did a wonderful rendition of our beloved anthem. This graduation has special meaning to all present and this is what some of the teachers, district and facilitators had to say:

Some of the photo moments that were captured on the day:

• Maggie Verster's photos
• ICT4RED photos
• Youtube videos (to be loaded soon)
• If you have uploaded your photos let us know in the comments and post a link to it!

Created with flickr slideshow.

Module 8 Virtual gallery walk Activity 3

You have experienced a physical gallery walk where you set up exhibits against the wall and use stickies to comment on the various scenarios that you were presented with. Sometimes we are not in the same physical location but needs to work together and share ideas. A virtual gallery walk is just the thing!

Another advantage is that we can build a great professional and personal learning network by collaborating and sharing within a virtual environment. In the next exercise you will summarize your thoughts for every exhibit and share it using blog comments.

Instructions:
Let every member of your group choose an exhibit and go and participate in the exhibit discussion by leaving comments on that specific exhibit blog e.g.
Member 1: Exhibit 1: Digital identities
Member 2: Exhibit 2: Phishing
Member 3: Exhibit 3: PLNs pr PLCs
Member 4: Exhibit 4: Online safety

You can consult your notes/wall stickies from your physical walk for ideas. Feel free to go and comment on the other exhibits as well if you have time left during the session. You can also carry on the discussion whenever you have internet access at home or at school.

Game Based learning Module 7

I can't believe that we are already on Module 7. Time just flies when you are having fun. During the week of the 27th to 30th of October the hills of Cofimvaba came alive with the sounds of music, fun and laughter while we play-acted our Game Based Learning strategy.

Even though the entire ICT4RED TPD course has embedded elements of gamification that drives it, we have one whole module dedicated to exploring just how it can be used to create fun and exciting learning opportunities. The facilitators met on the Monday prior to the weeks training to fine-tune arrangements and to make sure that they can model the fun elements required to invite their teachers to participate in the fun.

The first activity demonstrated how traditional gaming apps ( in his case Angry birds) can be used to
focus learners while they learn important lessons that could enhance their 21st century skill set. We explored what Game Based learning really means and what constitutes a game. Is a game just a game? The teachers set about defining elements needed to make a game a game. It was mentioned that most games requires at some rudimentary set of rules. Healthy competition helps to fuel interest and to focus learners. By embedding learning objectives connected to the CAPS within games, enthusiastic learning is guaranteed (as was demonstrated by the teachers). One of the added benefits of incorporating the Angry birds app into this lesson structure was that it gave some of the teachers who still was a bit scared of technology the opportunity "to fly". We also looked at other apps that can be used in the classroom and apps specifically geared towards promoting education outcomeswithin a fun environment. For more ideas on how and why to use Angry Birds in the classroom, refer to the following slideshow by Edgar Joe.

Angry birds in education from edwardjoe

The teachers then had to get to grips with the various pitfalls of copyright, fair use and creative commons licensing and prepared to take each other on using a quiz game show. Competition was tough and in two of the sessions there were a dead draw which resulted in a frantic scramble for the highest score. Everybody agreed that this was a great way to do revision or to make sure if learners have grappled with topics in a flipped classroom scenario.

Our final gaming activity had the creative juices flowing with the teachers using their tablets to compose songs about the project. We looked at how assessment rubrics can be used to make game adjudication more fair.We solicited esteemed judges from the district office to help with the process.

Now the teachers will go and implement this fun strategy with their learners and we are looking forward to see what they come up with! Let the (edu) games begin!!

For all the photos from our sessions click on the links below:

• Lumka's group at St James
• St Marks centre
• Wisiwe's group
• Luvo's group

Mind mapping as a teaching strategy (Module 5)

During the last week of September, the ICT4RED teachers in Cofimvaba explored how to use Mind mapping as a teaching strategy in the classroom. The weather was foul and cold with hail and the #ICT4RED team feared that the teachers would not be able to get to the training centres, knowing in what bad condition the roads are even when it is not raining! But as per usual, the teachers showed us how dedicated they are to their professional development! They were there!

In Module 5 we stopped for a while and explored what is hidden on our tablets. Up to now, the teachers have not focused on technology at all, but has acquired mobile skills seamlessly embedded within the different classroom strategies and content. In other words, they learned how to use their tablets in classroom scenarios without having to learn how their tablets worked exactly. Within each activity there where some mobile skills that had to be mastered, but as they were doing it as part of the content, they did not really focus on the "howto" part of technology. This Module was therefore designed to take a good look at what the tablet can do by investigating apps.

Most of the teachers did not realize how many educational apps were installed on their tablets. They were just using the apps referred to in the activities. Quite a few of the teachers expressed surprise at what the tablet could do and they were eager to go and try out more of the apps in their classrooms. Most of the apps were chosen for offline use as connectivity has been a problem in this rural district and the schools have not yet been connected to the internet. A list of the apps initially installed on the teacher tables can be found here.

We started off by doing a fun icebreaker where the teachers had to do various app activities as a collaborative inter group competition. During this activity they learned how to manage their apps and how to help one another in achieving the outcomes. Every teacher had to master the mobile skill and this forced everybody to REALLY work together. As per usual there were lots of incentive prizes to keep the game based atmosphere alive with laughter!

Another useful activity to entice people to share what they really are feeling is to let them draw what they feel. In the next activity the teachers had to express what they felt at the start of their mobile journey. They could choose between using "old" technology (crayons and paper) or "new" technology (a drawing app on their tablet). Both methods had to be presented in digital format which meant that the paper version had to be captured using the tablet camera or a handy little scanner app called Camscanner. This also showed them that learners could still use old ways to do things and it can be captured digitally. (for instance -they can do maths calculations on paper and you can scan it with your tablet and project it for everybody to see)

We then proceeded to look at what mind mapping is and how we can use it in the classroom, They had to explore all the apps on their tablets, see what the various apps can do and how they can use them in the classroom. They had to create a mind map categorizing the apps, first in paper format and then using an offline mind mapping app called Simplemind.

After 4 modules most of the teacher tablet home screens looked quite busy and they struggled to find the various apps. In the last activity, they could use their app mind maps to create folders for their apps on their home screens. They now were gurus in tablet and app management.

As always, the teachers have to go and implement what they have learned during the session, in their classrooms and the two badges up for grabs in Module 5 are the compulsory Mind Mapping badge and the optional App evaluation badge. The app evaluation questionnaire can be downloaded here. The session was concluded with brainstorming some ideas around how mind mapping can be used in the teachers' classrooms with specific emphasis on what they are doing within their CAPS framework. We are looking forward to seeing the innovative implementations. Cofimvaba teachers rocks!

The sessions photographs can be viewed here:

• St James (Finca's group)
• St James (Lumka's group)
• St Marks (Wednesday group)
• St James (Tuesday group) 

The train has left the station!

This week we were back in Cofimvaba for Module 4 of our #ICT4RED  Teachers professional development training course! The teaching strategy that we tackled is called Learning stations. The idea is to set up specific places in your classroom where the learners can learn a few new concepts or skills at a time. They then rotate from station to station and get a short period of time to explore, create or learn something new.

We used Learning stations to get a better understanding of what a digital library is. At each of the stations the teachers explored the different elements of what a digital library entails.

At the first station they were introduced to different kinds of ebooks. They had to  look at  the differences between the various book formats like pdf's, epubs and mobi formats as well as ebook apps. They also used various ebook platforms to open the books. Quite a few remarked that they were not aware that their tablets have such a rich amount of different books on it. Some of the advantages mentioned was that the learners could have access to a whole world of books within the confines of a handy mobile device.

The next station stop dealt with tutorials. In this case we used an origami tutorial to explore how a step by step instruction sheet "under glass" can teach learners how to follow instructions. There were a great deal of collaboration to make sure that all members complete their shapes in the short time allocated. The importance of good instructions were highlighted. We also discussed the value of tutorials in our classrooms.

Simulations are great tools to use when you don't have access to the real thing, or it might to be too expensive or dangerous to do the real activity. For instance, science experiments lend itself to using simulations as not all schools have laboratories or access to expensive chemicals. In our session, however, we chose something that is universally loved, namely baking and eating, cupcakes. The teachers were excited about how their learners will enjoy interacting with life like simulations.

Our learners always have their earphones ready to listen to something on their mobile devices which brings us to the next digital library tool, namely podcasts. We explored how handy it is to learn something using simple audio files. At this station the teachers learned how to say hello and goodbye in Irish. Creating simple lessons for the students to listen to in their own time is effortless and the end result is always positive.

The last station showed how videos can be used to demonstrate skills. The teachers had to build water pumps by watching a handsome Russian take them through the steps. You can find instructions for almost anything on Youtube. Teaching with videos can be very effective and the teachers also had to think about how they could create their won videos for their learners. It is also important to mention that videos should not be a passive learning tool, but should engage the learners in active participation. For instance they must start, stop and do, start, stop and do.

The teachers now have to go back to their classrooms and come up with CAPS aligned learning stations of their own in order to earn their badges from this session. There are 2 compulsory badges up for grabs from this session namely the Learning Station Badge as well as the Content Creation Badge. We are looking forward to sharing some of the lovely Digital Library artifacts shared by our teachers!

We want to thank our great team of facilitators who went the extra mile to make sure that the sessions are fun and engaging.

The photos of our sessions can be found here:

• Siyabala (Tuesday)
• St James (Tuesday)
• St Marks (Wednesday)
• St James (Thursday)

Role play as a teaching strategy

During the week of 12-14 of August,  the ICT4RED Phase 3 teachers gathered to investigate Role Play as a teaching strategy in their classrooms. This time round we could not do the training at the various schools as most of the schools were to remote and we opted for schools that we could reach. The schools were clustered together and as per usual, great fun was had by all!

Role play, our third teaching strategy, aims to address issues that may arise when implementing mobile devices in the classroom. It is a great strategy to unpack possible problems and we have added the condition that the role play has to include innovative solutions. The teachers were randomly given scenarios that they had to brainstorm and find solutions to. They then had to "act it out" while one of the group members video the role play.

The process

In putting together the role play, we followed a process that resulted in the teachers anticipating issues and finding solutions. The scenarios were designed to help teachers and schools cope with change management when implementing tablets into the classroom e.g. 

• Should learners be able to take the tablets home as they may lose or damage it?
• How do you manage resources like mobikits within a school scenario?
• Parent's fear of their childrens' safety when taking devices home.
• Teacher's struggling to deal with the demands of implementing devices into their classrooms 

Assessment

We used peer assessment to evaluate if the teachers succeeded in unpacking their scenarios. They swapped devices and used a scoring sheet to find a "winning team". This resulted in an animated discussions of how fair peer assessment really is and in one instance we had to do a role play to defuse a potential riot situation! 

Some problems

There is never a dull moment to be had in Cofimvaba.. On the first day of training, our generator did not want to work and we proved that we could use tablets in not only a non connected environment, but also without any electricity! As most of the training were held at primary school venues, we struggled to get our slightly larger bodies to fit into the tiny desk spaces! We also had trouble blue-toothing all the videos to each other as it is a time consuming process and you can only do one video at a time. 

But despite some minor challenges, great fun was had by all and role play as a teaching and learning strategy got the thumbs up from all the teachers. We are looking forward to seeing how it will be implemented in our teachers' classrooms!

We want to thank the whole #ict4red team present who helped to bluetooth, install apps and offer encouragement. ICT4RED rocks!

All the photos from our Role play module can be found here:

• http://goo.gl/1KZNaN