Teaching of Science as recommended in National Curriculum Framework, 2005

 Teaching of Science as recommended in National Curriculum Framework, 2005

National Curriculum Framework 2005 provides scope for the holistic development of the learners. According to the NC F 2005, the science curriculum should aim at the development of process skills like observation, classification, measurement, communication etc. encouraging inventiveness as the children are considered to be young explorers. The aim is to make science more meaningful to the learners - what students learn in the classroom resonates with their everyday life and environment . 

 It recommends various initiatives and approaches such as activity-based learning, experiential learning, collaborative learning etc. To promote curiosity, inquisitiveness and creativity among the learners,  NCF suggests to engage learners in

 learning activities, 

science fairs, 

experiments 

project work, 

learners' science congress, 

co-curricular activities etc. 

Criteria for ideal Science Curriculum according to NCF, 2005

 The specific criteria laid by NCF,2005 for an ideal science curriculum are:

Cognitive validity

Cognitive validity ensures that the content and its presentation should be in accordance with  the cognitive level or age level of the learners, it should be understandable to the learner, still  challenging them appropriately .

Content validity

Content validity of an ideal curriculum means that the curriculum should be accurate and rich by covering  the fundamental principles of science thoroughly, ensuring that students get an  understanding of the subject matter.

Process validity 

It means that the curriculum should engage learners in activities and experiments so that they focus on "learning to learn', and develop cognitive skills, curiosity, creativity  and scientific knowledge. The processes in science are demonstrated and experimented. 

Historical validity

It enables the learner to appreciate how the concepts of science evolve over time. 

Environmental validity

It refers to the need of relating learners curricular experience with learners' environment. 

Ethical validity

Science curriculum promotes the values of honesty, objectivity, cooperation , freedom from fear and prejudice etc. It inculcates in the minds of learner, a concern for life and preservation of environment.

WHAT and HOW OF TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN EDUCATION

 

WHAT DOES TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION MEAN IN EDUCATION?

Integration of technology in education simply refers to the use of technology to enhance the student learning experience. Utilizing different types of technology in the classroom, including a virtual classroom, creates learners who are actively engaged with learning objectives. The implementation of technology also creates pathways for differentiated instruction to meet the unique needs of students as individual learners within a broader classroom climate.

HOW TO INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM

There is a common misconception that the integration of technology in the classroom can be a financial burden for school districts, but students do not necessarily need their own tablets or laptops to succeed with technology. The use of technology during whole-class instruction can foster student engagement for auditory and visual learners. Integrating simple technologies Power Points, games, internet homework assignments, or online grading systems can be difference makers in students' growth in the classroom.

                           

Technological Devices - Identification and its use in Teaching and Learning

Technology resources means any and all technologies that produce, manipulate, store, communicate, or disseminate information. These resources include, but are not limited to, wired and wireless data, video and voice networks, computers for processing information, and other devices for storing and archiving information.These are a collection of resources used for creating, storing, managing and communicating information. These technologies can be used to support teaching, learning, research activities, collaboration learning and inquiry. Active Learning with Technology Tools in the Blended/Hybrid Classes.

Using Technology to Enhance Teaching & Learning

• Canvas. SMU uses the course management system Canvas. ...
• Presentation Software. ...
• Classroom Response Systems ("clickers") ...
• Online Projects and Collaboration Tools. ...
• Information Visualization Tools. ...
• Flipping the Classroom. ...
• Podcasts. ...
• Games.

Below are links to resources on using specific types of teaching and learning tools.

Canvas

SMU uses the course management system Canvas.  For help creating Canvas courses and learning the basics, consult Academic Technology's Canvas help page, as well as the Canvas online tutorial on our Canvas Hacks page. Access your Canvas courses here.

Presentation Software

Sometimes it's helpful to provide visual aids to complement teaching, stimulate discussion, or allow out-of-class teaching. Tools designed for this purpose, such as PowerPoint and Canva, can be used well or used badly. Click here for resources that provide advice for thoughtful use of PowerPoint. Click here for a Canva tutorial designed for college instructors.

Classroom Response Systems ("clickers")

One way to encourage student engagement is by using electronic devices that allow students to record their answers to multiple choice questions and allow you to instantly display the results. The anonymity encourages participation, and their answers help the teacher know when further discussion is needed.  Use of clickers can also serve as a catalyst for discussion.  

Online Projects and Collaboration Tools

Technology can support student collaboration on creating new knowledge, reflecting on what they are learning, or working together to achieve a deeper understanding of course material.  These articles provide ideas about their use and misuse.

Information Visualization Tools

Technology can also clarify and stimulate thought through transforming words into pictures.  Here are some tools to help lead your students to think more critically by encouraging them to visually structure information.

Flipping the Classroom

How can we make the best use of the classroom time we have with our students? Sometimes a great way to move them toward higher levels of understanding is to move the lecture out of the classroom, and use in-person time for interactions that require applying, synthesizing, and creating. "Flipping" doesn't have to use technology, but tools such as videos, podcasts, online quizzes and the like can help in and out of class activity work together. These resources explain the theory underlying this teaching method and provide practical suggestions for making it work.

Podcasts

Whether for a flipped class or just as a resource for your students, you may want to create a podcast that conveys information students need for initial learning or review.  SMU's Academic Technology Service can provide instruction on creating podcasts, and will loan you a podcasting kit.  

Games

What could be more engaging than a good game, used well? A game may lead to deeper learning and give some examples of their use in higher education.

Teaching with Tablet Computers

We're only beginning to explore their many possibilities for higher education.  

Converting a Face-to-Face Course to an Online Course

Teaching online, whether in a hybrid course or a wholly-online course, requires different techniques and different tools.  Without the F2F contact, professors will need to be even clearer about setting and articulating expectations for digital work and participation.  Encouraging interaction between professor and student and among students is an additional challenge, as is monitoring student learning as the course progresses.  The online environment requires the use of basic technologies to digitize course materials as well as mastery of the university's learning management system.  And various tools like Skype allow synchronous communications, while blogs and Twitter can encourage asynchronous interaction. 

Techno -pedagogical competency

 

 Techno -pedagogical competency (adapted)

Pedagogy refers 'Science and Arts of teach- ing'. The word  'Techno' is  derived from Latin word 'Texere' which means 'weave or construct'. Techno pedagogy can be referred to the weaving of techniques of teaching into the learning environment itself (Gloria, 2014). 

Techno -pedagogical competency is the ability of teachers to make use of technology effectively in teaching.  

There are many faculty members who still continue to teach through old, boring, uninteresting lecture method. Now it is the time to increase the  efficiency and ability of the teachers  by using technology. The teachers should take care that the  teaching in the class should not be boring or dull or tiresome . Instead, it should be vast-open, interesting, creative and should provide a new meaningful environment. It  is  possible if the faculty

 1) uses different technology techniques or kinds of media to enrich the academic excellence of the student 

2)   integrates  techno pedagogical skills along with content knowledge.  

So it is expected to increase and integrate techno pedagogical skills along with the content knowledge to raise the growth and achievement of the students, which in turn will help the teacher to be updated and motivated.

There are three areas of knowledge in techno-pedagogy, namely: content, pedagogy, and technology. 

Influence of Techno-Pedagogy through TPACK

Nowadays, teachers are in great need of technical teaching ability in guiding and preparing for learning because it encourages feasible education and learning. Technical teaching ability is nothing more than a teacher's ability to effectively use creative ability in teaching. At that time, teachers can build technical teaching ability; they can try to use this ability frequently in teaching, which in turn will make the learning process basic and feasible. In technical pedagogy, information includes three areas, in particular, substance, guidance method, and innovation.(i)The content is the topic to be directed(ii)Technology includes advanced innovative technologies such as computers, the Web, advanced video and computing projectors, writing pads, and ordinary advances in books(iii)Pedagogy describes the collected disciplines, forms, techniques, strategies, and instruction and learning strategies. In addition, it contains information about teaching, assessment, and student learning 

Innovative integration methods in instructive teaching innovative teaching methods and material information (TPACK) are essentially technology-centric . The integration of technology in teacher teaching is largely influenced by this method. 

Figure 1 

Technology pedagogy and content knowledge (TPACK)

TPACK combines the introduction of the concept of using technology:

•  information about the useful use of innovation to guide substance,
•  information about complex or encouraging learning concepts, and 
• information about ways that innovation can help to help understand troublesome topics and relevant information and innovate the information that is used. 

The TPACK system is the complex exchange of three essential shapes of information:

•  content knowledge (CK), 
• pedagogical knowledge (PK), and
•  technology knowledge (TK). 

The TPACK approach goes past seeing these three information bases in segregation. The TPACK system goes advance by emphasizing the sorts of information that lie at the convergences between three essential shapes: pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), technological content knowledge (TCK), technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK), and technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) .

DIGITAL NATIVES and DIGITAL IMMIGRANTS ; TODAY'S TEACHER - DIGITAL NATIVE - CHALLENGES

 

• Teacher should be smarter than the students in technological issues
• Effective  teacher can address the various social and emotional issues that can affect learners' learning
• Teacher can make changes when the learning seems to be going ineffective. 
• The teacher has a responsibility to help promote learning preconditions such as working habits, attitudes, knowledge and motivation. 
• Thinking through various teaching methods and assessing which possibilities they offer for learning is not just important, but also challenging for the teacher.

RECENT RESEARCHES IN SCIENCE LEARNING WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS TO INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES AND ASSESSMENT PRACTICES

 RECENT RESEARCHES IN SCIENCE LEARNING WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS TO INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES AND ASSESSMENT PRACTICES

Recent researches in instructional strategies 

1. Edutainment learning strategy

2. Gilly salmon's five stage model of e-learning

3. Blended learning strategy

4. Fish bowl learning strategy

5. 7E learning cycle

6. Brain based learningBr ai n-B ase d L e arni ng The  ‘Dec a de  of  t he  B ra in’ spa wne d a  m ul t i t ude  of brai n re se a rc h a nd e duc a ti ona l

7. Problem based learning

8. Cooperative learning

Recent researches in Assessment Practices 

1. Rubrics

2. Portfolio Assessment

3. Self Assessment

4. Peer Assessment

5. Online Assessment

INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE and SELF-INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE - DIFFERENCES

 

INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE and SELF-INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE - DIFFERENCES

Instructional module 

1. It has specific learning goal.

2. It is a self contained unit.

3. It contains information material for students and groups, multimedia learning experience.

                                            Self - instructional module

1. Learner can study at his own pace. 

2. It is a way to learn a new topic based on students interest

3. It can be treated similar to a guide for learning.