HOW ICT CHANGED MY WORK?

 

 

It is my belief that ICT plays a vital role in high quality learning and teaching. Advances in technology have opened up new possibilities for the way in which teachers educate their classes, giving potential for innovative ways to encourage students to become more engaged in their schooling. ICT increases student’s motivation to learn, engagement in learning and their independence in learning. It provides a variety of learning experiences and creates joyful learning in students. It improves their academic achievement also. The common fear that ICT shall replace a teacher is totally unfounded. Realization now seems to be slowly dawning on the teaching community that ICT is primarily to empower them and not to replace them. ICT is, therefore, not to be feared but to be embraced so as to empower our future generations by providing them high quality ICT- enabled education.

ICT has totally changed my work. With use of ICT now I am able to create my own material and thus have more control over the material used in the classroom than they have had in the past. It enabled me to deliver more material to students and it also eliminated several basic problems such as poor handwriting, poor artistic skill, contrast, lighting and visibility. I found that involving students in the creation of useful material as a part of a learning exercise is a way to make class more meaningful for students. Internet has also opened a new gateway of unlimited information and knowledge. Each and every information with photographs and video can be accessed everywhere and every time through internet. Information was not so easily accessible before using technology. ICT has helped me to develop my skills and knowledge to become more effective in the classroom. By participating in online forums, I can share my best practice and discuss new ideas and developments in teaching.

No doubt, I faced with some challenges as like lack of proper infrastructure & their maintenance, power back-up, ICT phobia in teachers, lack of qualified teachers to teach ICT in schools, limited internet access, lack of interest in students, guardians and higher authorities, lack of initiative by the community leaders. But these challenges could never obstruct my keen desire to implementing technology in teaching & learning.

Since last five years I have started a Virtual Class Room Project for sharing resources and service of expert teachers of different schools in my district, state and country. More than 60 schools have been connected through this project so far and we are very efficiently using the resources of one another. Both students and teachers participate and interact each other with great interest and learn with zeal. This project is a boon to government schools facing shortage of teachers. Now I am extending this project beyond country, so that the students of one country can be benefitted from expert teachers of other countries and can also interact with their students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

INDIA: ENABLING ALL SCHOOLS WITH VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS

 

To take advantage of the reach of the IT, India Government is setting up virtual classrooms as Communication Linked Interface for Cultivating Knowledge (CLICK) and online courses for school education. Rs 100 Crore have been allocated for this initiation for the budget year 2014-15.

I was lucky enough to attend a meeting yesterday in Jaipur with higher officials of School education Department. We have discussed about the implementation of this initiation in Rajasthan state. We have also had a Video Conferencing with higher officials of department of Electronics and Information Technology, Govt. of India regarding this.

ICT IN EDUCATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

ICT IN EDUCATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Today is International Day of People with Disability. The educational needs of people with disabilities are extremely diverse. As with all other members of society, people with disabilities must acquire the knowledge and skills required for the community in which they live. However, they face additional demands (often referred to as special educational needs) caused by functional limitations that impact in different ways upon their ability as learners to access standard educational methods of instruction. These limitations often prevent educational progress and achievement.

In this context, the application of ICT is very important as it plays an essential role in supporting high quality education for learners with disabilities. The advantages of ICT usage in the teaching and learning process are based on the possibilities it offers for alternative means of communication, providing access to educational resources in a more convenient way and to enhancing learning motivation. By overcoming obstacles of time and space, supplementing vital human functioning and supporting the development of crucial skills, these technologies contribute to the increased effectiveness of educational processes by enabling people with disabilities to actively participate in meaningful learning experiences.

World Computer Literacy Day

December 2, 2014

Launched back in 2001, World Computer Literacy Day which falls each year on December 2nd aims to curb the digital divide that exists in the world today. The Day aims to increase awareness of this ‘divide’ and increase access to information technology for disadvantaged communities.

From the Internet and mobile phones to TV and broadcast radio, the rise of information and communications technologies (ICTs) is often said to be creating a ‘global village’. But as yet, this is a lopsided community. ICTs, in particular broadband Internet access, are still heavily concentrated in the North despite fast-growing use in rural Africa and in some emergent economies, such as Brazil and China.

The North-South gap in access to, and the capability to use, modern information technology is a major barrier to the development of these countries. By gaining a foothold in affordable ICTs, the poor can access the knowledge and services they need to boost their livelihoods.

The benefits and impact of ICT are well-documented. In education, outcomes include an ‘increased knowledge of school subjects, improved attitudes about learning, and the acquisition of new skills needed for a developing economy’. It is also suggested that ICT helps to ‘close the gender gap’, and aid students with special needs. Poor ICT capacity constrains national development at all levels, with the lack of ICT access hampering the opportunities of the next generation and undermining their employment potential.