Technology in the classroom

Read about the African Leadership in ICT Course

test

ICT Education

Information and Communications Technologies is becoming the global standard term for all computer, software and communications technology related fields. From a big picture perspective, which is important in developing policies or educational systems, it is useful to consider as one thing all of the closely interrelated, rapidly developing and converging fields related to computers, software, communications technologies and associated management practices.

In the U.S., ICT and its various sub-fields are called many different things, ICT educational departments have many different names and focuses, and there are important differences in ways ICT is taught, and in ways ICT degrees and certifications are packaged.

The Mid-Pacific ICT Center is primarily focused on ICT education in community colleges, but it is also engaged with the ways ICT is taught and presented to students in K-12 schools that feed students into community colleges and in 4-year colleges and universities where community colleges students go to continue their educational careers. MPICT endeavors to demystify often confusing ICT educational and career issues and to harmonize many ICT educational efforts and communications in its region.

Intel® Teach Program Worldwide

Professional development to help educators inspire excellence in the classroom

Transforming education to meet the needs of today’s learners requires ongoing support for teachers as they implement new teaching practices. Intel® Teach is a proven program that helps K–12 teachers integrate technology effectively into classrooms and promote student-centered approaches, engaging students in learning and preparing them with critical skills for success in our digital world.

With more than 10 million teachers trained in 70 countries, Intel Teach
is the largest, most successful program of its kind.

Intel® Teach Program courses

These courses improve learning by helping teachers of any subject foster critical thinking skills, such as collaboration, creativity, and communication. For more information, see the portfolio of Intel® Teach courses.




Courses for K–12 classroom teachers (all subjects)

• Getting Started course: This course provides an introduction to software productivity tools and student-centered approaches.
• Essentials course: Learn how to develop units that integrate technology into your existing classroom curriculum and promote student-centered learning.
• Advanced Online course: Work with other teachers to build communities to advance integration of technology and 21st century learning. 
• Thinking with Technology course: Develop project-based units that use online tools to enhance students’ higher-order thinking skills.

Courses for ICT teachers
Skills for Success: Get training in a curriculum that develops students’ technology, problem-solving, critical-thinking, and collaboration skills.
Courses for school leaders
Leadership Forum: Network with other leaders on promoting, supporting, and implementing effective technology integration in schools

Intel® Teach Elements courses are informative online courses that help
teachers learn new skills for engaging students with technology.

Intel® Teach Elements courses

Discover professional development that provides deep exploration of current learning concepts. This series of high-interest, visually compelling eLearning courses is available online in 24 languages. Take a course >




Courses for K–12 classroom teachers (all subjects)
Watch the following videos to learn about these courses:

• 
  
• Video: Collaboration in the
  • Video: Assessment in 21st century classrooms >
  digital classroom >
• Video: Designing blended learning >
• Video: Project-based approaches >
• Video: Thinking critically with data >

Course for K–12 science teachers

• Video: Inquiry in the science classroom >

Course for education leaders

• Video: Educational leadership in the 21st century >

test

10 minutes with a head of ICT: is it possible to future proof the curriculum?

ICT teachers and brothers, Matt Britland and Mike Britland, discuss the new computing curriculum and debate whether it's balanced enough to prepare students for the workplace

Debating the new computing curriculum: Britland brothers Matt and Mike discuss the changes to ICT in schools. Photograph: Christina Kennedy/Alamy Christina Kennedy / Alamy/Alamy

How has the teaching of ICT changed in the past eight years?

When I first started teaching ICT, it was based on using applications and these are skills that are still important now. I remember teaching students how to create video games some four years ago. With the new curriculum, things are going less towards using computers and more learning how they work. This includes programming, networks, algorithms and computer hardware among others. We have gone from one extreme to the other and have completely missed a balanced approach which would be better for our students and would have gone some way to future proof the subject

Is there anyway we could future proof the curriculum?

It will never be possible to completely future proof the curriculum, but things could be improved. I look at the curriculum and it is like taking a step into the past. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as some of the new programme of study, such as coding, is important for the future of technology and software. Future proofing should mean ensuring that our students are able to walk into the workplace when they leave school and have the practical and creative skills, as well as some theoretical skills. This will prepare them for a variety of workplaces.

How do schools go about the process of trying to future proof the curriculum?

There should be some guidelines for schools on what digital skills students should be taught across the curriculum, these guidelines could be updated every year. This would help fill some gaps. The problem at the moment is that some schools don't always have someone to advise them how to implement digital skills across the school. Things are moving so quickly schools need someone with their ear to the ground.

How do you think teachers are preparing for the change and are they ready for it?

Some teachers are very excited about it and are busy developing their existing skills and subject knowledge. There are lots of conferences and training courses going on at the moment and I know from experience that these are very popular. Unfortunately, some teachers are burying their heads in the sand and pretending the change isn't happening. They have decided they are not happy with the changes and not co-operating. Some schools are not giving teachers the opportunity to get out of the classroom and attend training sessions, leaving many teachers disheartened. I know of a number of schools who have done away with computing in year 7 and 8, and just run GCSEs in year 9 and above. This is not good, in my opinion.

Is it understandable that schools take this approach if there is a lack of qualified teachers out there to deliver it effectively?

Perhaps, but it is their job to make sure that their teachers can deliver a subject effectively. It is their responsibility to send their teachers on courses or get people into their schools to help retrain members of staff. Without computing in years 7 and 8, how can we expect students to take it at GCSE? Will they even know what computing is?

How will schools go about delivering digital literacy now that there will be no specific subject that will deliver it?

The new curriculum contains a minimum of what schools are expected to teach. If there is time in the curriculum, digital literacy can be taught during computing lessons. However, there are a lot of schools who only give one lesson a week or less to computing ICT, this is barely enough time to teach the curriculum as it is. The other alternative is to teach it across the curriculum, which should be happening anyway. Each school needs to have a member of senior management to ensure that this takes place.

Is there much difference between state and independent schools in relation to ICT provision and facilities?

I think it will very much depend on the school. The last school I worked at had five state-of-the-art computer suites, equipped with new iMacs and wireless projectors and that was a state comprehensive. I have been to independent schools who have not been equipped with the latest technology. It really does depend. Money is tight for many schools and it will depend on who is charge of the schools digital strategy.

How can schools marry the advances in technology with decreasing budgets?

Schools need to do their research. They have access to so many great websites that can be used to create work on and many are free, such as Google Apps for Education. If you take the virtual learning environments you don't need to spend a fortune on them, sites such as Edmodo can easily replace more established and expensive ones. If you look at hardware, this doesn't have to be expensive either. You can pick up a Raspberry Pi for next to nothing (£24) and budget Android devices are also worth getting hold of. The key is ensuring that you know what you are going to do with them – do your research, read blogs and get yourself on Twitter.

Effective Discipline Techniques for 4-Year-Old Children

4 year olds are interesting little characters. Although they can be at many different developmental levels, many are showing an improved ability to follow the rules. They should have a better understanding of negative consequences.
Disciplining 4 year old can be a little tricky. They want you to know that they aren’t babies anymore but they certainly aren’t in the same league as the big kids. Focus on helping them increase their auto

Discipline Techniques

Of course the best way to deal with misbehavior is to prevent it. Stay a step ahead of your child and be mindful of situations that are likely to be difficult. Establish a daily routine so your child knows what is expected of him throughout the day. No matter which of the 5 types of discipline you prefer to use with your child, there are some specific discipline techniques that tend to work with 4-year-old kids.
no my while also showin

The future of technology in education

Future students will learn easily and quickly because of modern technologies for education which are being developed for the future. The main goal is to create an educational environment which encourages students to read more and learn from anywhere in the world. So these future technologies are being created in mind that they have to be user friendly and also affordable to any student or any school . Teachers will use these future educational technologies to tailor lessons basing on students interests. Forget about the classroom where you’re taught what you do not like, in the future, students will learn only what they like most and this will boost innovation amongst students and teachers.
Educational leaders and ministries have to notice that the rules and curriculum of education will change in the future, so they have to be ready for these changes and they have to create an infrastructure which will accommodate these changes in education. For example, the introduction of E-Mobile learning has and will make education more mobile. Mobile phones are portable and now days we have smart phones which can access internet and they also have big storage hardware which can be used to store electronic books and notes for students. So long distance learners can easily use their smart mobile phones to attend a lesson in Harvard University or any other academic institution; they can also use the same device to download course units and books for further reading about a specific subject.