| Sunday, October 12, 2008 |
| Implementing CALL in the Malaysian Secondary Classroom |
If you had the chance would you utilize ICT (CALL) in your teaching?
This really depends on the school or class itself. I'd have to consider students AND environment into the mix first. Say my students were a rowdy bunch who would definitely not be doing what I instructed them to do if they had a chance to use computers independently, I'd reconsider. Or if the classroom or computer lab was badly maintained that some computers aren't able to access what I need my students to look at or doesn't have programmes that I need for them to do their work, then I don't think I would. Ideally, though, I'd really love to be able to. It's not that I'm lazy but it makes a lot of things much easier, like looking for information. If I want to be creative in my lessons, (say I ask my students to bring pictures of fast food items, referring to my WWW lesson plan) I don't have to wait nervously to see if they bothered bringing anything. They'd be able to use the net to look for them. But then I'm not sure if most schools are ready for that. The school I went to during practicum had a two-storey building made specifically for the computer labs with two huge labs equipped, but when I tried to use it, I found out there was only one set of speakers (for the teacher) and even those weren't working. I was quite disappointed because the lab itself was quite impressive.
How do you think it would help (or would not help) your students to learn English?
It would help in the sense that dictionaries or references would be available at the snap of a finger, should they have any questions. I mean, teachers aren't perfect. Sometimes, students ask questions that a teacher might not be able to answer immediately. Now, imagine having the option to make students find out themselves, on the spot while you look for the answer too? This is what I mean: Student asks question, teacher tells student to look it up right then and there and present to the class. It's a way for them to be resourceful AND it helps with speaking skills as well. Of course, the teacher cannot be lazy. She/he has to look it up too to make sure it's correct.
Okay, having said that, it would not help though, if, with the access to computers, students might take advantage by not doing what they're supposed to.
What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of implementing CALL in the Malaysian schools?
Advantages
1. Information is at the fingertips (cliche, but true)
2. Allows for creativity and hands-on activities (which students love, from my
observation)
Disadvantage(s)
Computers (especially those with internet) might prove to be a huge distraction for the students. While the teacher is giving instructions in front, students might be too focused on doing something else (surfing, playing games, etc.) As such, teachers may find it difficult to determine whether students are really listening or has their attention on something else that is unrelated to the lesson. This can actually be overlooked if students are able to complete assigned tasks on time, but the risk is high that the students would just ignore the task and concentrate on what is more fun during the whole lesson.
What are the barriers in implementing CALL in the Malaysian classroom?
There are several issues:
1. Some teachers are unwilling to learn how to use ICT in order to teach in class. This might be due to the fact that they don't really know how to utilize it or just couldn't be bothered. I found out from some students that in a year, they get to use the lab maybe once or twice because most teachers found it a waste of time.
2. Low maintenance of the equipment. As I mentioned in one of the questions above, the equipment in schools aren't maintained all that well. Besides the computer lab example, I found that most of the projectors which were fitted into each classroom were spoiled, and nobody was addressing the problems.
Please also include any other comments/thoughts/ideas on this topic
Utilizing CALL in Malaysia is a good idea, but a lot of things need to be taken into consideration. Teachers (the ones already in school) need training and professional development. They need to be convinced that it's a good idea and that they want to use it.
Someone has to make sure that all the equipments placed in schools are checked upon and maintained satisfactorily or they'd get spoiled and just gather dust. What a waste of technology.
There needs to be ample ways for a teacher to monitor students. Maybe set up a main computer that can observe what the other computers are doing to minimize time wasted. If students are aware that teachers can observe what they are doing, they'd devote more energy to the task than whatever else seems interesting to them. This is up to the discretion of teachers, however. It might be alright to let some activities slide as long as students seem to be completing the task at hand.
Overall, I like the idea, but it would probably take time and a lot of energy as well as criticism before it would be accepted widely. |
posted by Zurin @ 3:48 PM  |
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| 2 Comments: |
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What about using laptops that are specifically designed for classroom use? The NE02, by Renaissance Learning / Alpha Smart provides numerous learning features (mostly included in each laptop)without the distractions of the internet or the steep learning curve for teachers.
With built in wireless printing, wireless student response systems (aka clickers), wireless access to Google Docs (again without distractions of surfing the web or email), Text 2 Speech capability for ESL (coming Jan/Feb 2009), built in keyboarding instruction all encased in an ultra durable laptop that weighs only 2 pounds, runs for 700 hours on 3 AA batteries, and has a full-size keyboard. All of this (sans Text 2 Speech) priced under $250.00 a computer.
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TQVM. Excellent