learning styles and multiple intelligences

If you are a teacher and have the desire to improve your methods and consequently reach your teaching goals and objectives then you need first to learn about your learners and identify their needs to have that in mind when you prepare your lesson or lecture.

Learners needs vary according to their abilities and preferences but what is meant by that. learners differ from each other, even brothers prefer learning  the same lesson in a different style and here comes learning styles which we as teachers and educators need to take into consideration while teaching.

But what does that have to do with different types of intelligence or multiple intelligences, the difference between both learning styles and multiple intelligences is illustrated here as following:

The theory of multiple intelligences says that individuals are born with the innate capacity to succeed in a particular domain, and education should help to identify and develop students’ innate capacities.

The idea of learning styles predicts that each student has a particular way of learning that works best for them, such as visually or through hands-on activities; therefore, teachers should ensure that students can learn in the style that best suits their preference.

To conclude, what can be inferred here is that if you want to be a good educator and productive and effective in your teaching you must adopt these in your plans.

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privacy makes you safe

when surfing the internet especially when using social media, we must have in mind the concept of privacy or private issues.

what then do we mean by the word “private” and how can we make the best out of online social media without having our privacy violated or violating others privacy?

we all agree that every person has his own issues which he prefers  keeping for himself or at least for those whom he knows and trusts. So we all need to keep ourselves safe when we are online using internet.

Be aware of what can happen if you left your private information seen to everyone on FACEBOOK for instance. It can turn into a disaster, you may find yourself in trouble as it happened to me. Once I was surfing the internet in a cyber net cafe and forgot to log out and the troubles began, someone hacked my account and started to insult my friends using a very bad language which put me in a bad situation.

To conclude we must keep in mind these tips:

do not accept anyone friendship unless you know him.

do not use your personal information online.

do not log in to any suspicious sites.

do not trust strangers easily.

look at these various platforms which can offer you the issue of E-safty in a more attractive way:

here

and here

and here

and here

these platforms will give you hopefully what will change you mind.

 

A brief analysis of M.Warschauer article “dissecting the digital divide a case study in Egypt

Education is the process of helping learners to gain new knowledge and information through various methods such as technology. Technology can be a magic stick if used properly and in corporation with other aids. Here I try my best to analyse the article wrote by M.Warschauer about the true meaning of using technology and the convenient ways to do so. The most useful thing is that the article about Egypt and the/or the use of technology in Education.

After reading that article I think that the writer mentioned several facts or problems that should be taken into consideration by the decision makers in Egypt if they really have the desire to improve our educational system. I believe that to define the problem is half the way of solving it while I also believe that to know a problem and not solve it is lack of responsibility. Here I will try to share my thoughts with you about our educational system problems-reasons and possible solutions-according to Warschauer.

First of all, I am convinced that at least from the day that article was released until that very moment nothing changed and the problems still there consuming our educational system and the way we build our youth and future, no one moved to do something.

As a teacher working for the public schools sector and in one of the most poor areas of Egypt where the facilities are only the book and the board and -to be fare in my judgement- a room full of technology but with a big lock covered with dust. so I found myself a perfect example of what mentioned in the article.

Our educational problems as defined by Warschauer are:

large sizes of classes, lack of teacher training, low wages, low status, and the curriculum content and I totally agree with that and I think most Egyptian teachers do but the most difficult problem I think is the fact that our decision makers is acting as there were no problems at all.

the writer aims at dissecting the digital divide which is found clearly in Egypt yet almost not mentioned. Digital divide is the inequality of opportunities, how to fight that in Egypt is I believe the biggest challenge a teacher can face.

Most people were convinced that technology is the solution to all problems, they thought that the mere provision of computers and software without knowing how to use them properly will solve all the problems, I think it could help but not alone.Technology must be well used to make an influence, it should serve social purposes also.

I think to over come our educational system problems we must give that article the concern it deserves and think of solutions to the problems mentioned above. As for technology it has to introduced through the for categories the writer mentioned;physical, digital, human and social resources these four combined is the perfect way to use technology, another problem is the restrictions that face creative teachers that also needs to be addressed.

 

What discussions taught me about creativity in teaching and OERs

Lately I had one of the best and most useful discussions I have ever had. I discussed with my instructor and colleagues the idea of creativity in relation to teaching or in other words the ways that could be used to introduce a lesson or a lecture in an attractive and creative way. Before we had the discussion, I was completely convinced that when we say creative we mean unusual or new and that is what made me write my last blog post this way but I changed my mind, now I think that when we intend to be “creative” we must have in mind “attractive”, the outcome you aim should grab the attention of your learners.that discussion made me see the whole picture, it made me try to learn how to be creative how can a lesson be extraordinary for those who learn so I filled with a desire to find new methods or new sources which I can use effectively to deliver the lesson successfully.
As I mentioned before in my previous blog post my objective was to present to my fellow teachers the importance of technology in both life and education, and after my recently gained knowledge, I headed my search to finding free and open resources that could be of use in my lecture.
At first the search was very difficult or to be clear it was a vast search which one gets lost inside, but after some other discussions and advanced search, the job became a lot more easier as I knew how and where to search.
One of the most benefits I had out of that course I am taking and the discussions within is the OERs or (open educational resources) which makes you feel that you are not alone or as if there are some other teachers standing right over there just to offer you some assist and believe me they make the job a lot more easier.
Back to my aimed lesson, as I said I was searching for materials that can be used to introduce technology to teachers. and if you can see the topic is more general than specific so the job is not easy but on the other hand it targets teachers not young learners so it does not have to be simple yet it can be medium difficult and with some teacher illustrations it can be understood.
Having in mind the support OERs could offer, I started my search for the materials I need, there was a plenty of resources some were difficult others were easy but the most evident feature of them all is that whatever you need is there, you just need to look . Before I start talking about the resources I find it my duty to state that  the main objective of such resources which is from my own point of view is “not only to give you materials but also to offer you new ideas through these materials which you can use to build your own”.

One of those resources is Merlot which -and I mean it -forces you to stay on it to the state in which you forget why you entered in the first place.I just wrote in the search box the word”Technology” and the first result I got was”free technology for teachers” which represents some very useful readings about technology.

Another resource which can be used to assist and make it easier is the use of infographics which we can use if reading is not effective. while we need to keep in mind the notion that these resources will not give you the exact content you aim yet they can offer some creative ways.

Also I added some pictures which represents some of the roles technology can play in life, and according to what I have been taught recently they have to be CC LICENSED or free, while searching for such images I came across a very useful site for places to find such images and that is where I found that oasis:

technology makes it easier

To conclude, we must admit that openness is essential in teaching and learning , in fact it is essential in life you should not be selfish and keep saying it is mine. cooperation is one of the virtues that every sane man should have or it will be a jungle where no one cares for no one. I prefer saying it differently”share what you own, and make use of what others share with you”

After I changed my prospective about creativity-and I hope you also do-, I am convinced that creativity has many methods so I tried another platform to represent my goal in a completely different way.

How can technology be lectured?

Can we do without technology?

How to present the concept of technology and its role in our life is a great effort and a great responsibility, for me I was convinced with the ability of doing without technology so I needed first to see it from a different perspective which was also easy and evident after what I have been faced with through the course.

Now I must show my colleagues what I know to help them open their eyes as I did, with all the recent knowledge I gained I felt like as if I can open their brains and just put it right there to be used but alas it does not go this way.so here is a simple lesson plan on how to lecture the importance of technology in life and Education.

Objectives of the lesson:

1-illustrate the role technology plays in every aspect in our life.

2- persuade other learners of what technology can offer.

3- learners complete the lecture fully aware of uses of technology in almost all fields of life including Education.

Warm up:

start by posting the title of your lesson as a question on the board.(can we actually do without technology?)

ask your learners for answers but do not comment on any of their answer.

Next use a bag and ask them to put their technological devices or electronics in that bag, i.e, mobile phones, watches, even calculators if found and take the bag away from their sight to give them the feeling of (zero technology) then ask them again the same question you started with.

start your lesson:

use some certain images that shows the different uses of technology such as:

 

 

 

 

 

show these pictures one by one stating the field shown in the picture.you can ask with each picture : was it useful with…..?

Next step is your presentation I have made one that could help lecturing that topic, you can read it here:Technology matters

that presentation will do most of the job for you, all you need to do is to highlight certain points in the presentation.

Assessment:

Ask them what can be illustrated from that lesson.

How do you think we can use technology with education

Do you think could I explain the lesson without technology and could you understand it?

Assignment:

found in the presentation.

Judging my own writing

I tried to be balanced when possible in my lesson plan, I chose my aids from few but various sources.why did I chose that topic? is the most important here as I thought it is an urgent issue that needed urgent illustration. in my point of view technology is one of the best known ways to represent a lesson and that is why I chose it to help me with my lesson.

How are plagiarism and copyright related to principles? a question that needs to be answered

In my seeking for ways to represent the concepts of plagiarism and copyrights I had some short and brief but rich discussions with some of my colleagues and some others who are not in the field of teaching, I was shocked when I found that most of those whom I had asked are quite familiar with those concepts.

There were different opinions among those who knew the terms we were discussing, a math teacher said”I do not need them, in math rules are known facts to everyone as the owners of the theories, so we do not need to mention their names.

Another who teaches social studies i.e, history and geography said”I do not need them too because in my subject I teach incidents and information which are known facts.

In fact, I believe that if we take into our consideration the fact that “men are good by nature”or in other words, everyone knows what is right and what is wrong and as a result, respect his given principles in that case it will not be a problem.

Therefore I think that the most efficient method to represent those concepts we need to follow some steps which are:

1- start with an introduction of morals and the concepts of right and wrong.

2-introduce a definition of each term of the two you are aiming.

3-try to relate the connection between the right and wrong on one side and the plagiarism and copyrights on the other side.

4-hit the nail and make your point crystal clear.

We can use a kind of a wall magazine which will be seen to everyone, and we also can produce the steps one by one per week.

A good sentence that can be used to attract the attention is “what you do when nobody is watching is the only truth that defines or marks your deeds, so take a minute with the self and ask am I doing right or wrong?”

To sum up I think in the Egyptian society, it will be easy to make a notable difference with the practice of those concepts if we realized that Egyptians are naturally raised close to God whether Muslims or Christians, so when faced with their beliefs some will change.

copyright versus plagiarism

When faced with the concepts of copyright and plagiarism one can feel confused about the difference between both concepts, not only that but also confused about how common those definitions are in our communities or in other words to what extent are we acquainted with them.

To define both concepts we need to differentiate them first. As for plagiarism -in my opinion- I think it is more an abstract than concrete in its influence but to be more clear we can define it as if you are giving yourself someone else credit or praise which I dare to say you steal what someone else exerted efforts to obtain so it is k ind of stealing -if you did that you are a thief- you deprive someone from what he rightfully deserved.

When it comes to copyright it is a little bit different and similar to that of plagiarism. It is different as it represents a more concrete than abstract which is on the contrary to plagiarism, when defining it we can say that it is to take someone work and make benefits or profits for your own which is also stealing.

so to conclude we can see that both concepts are interjected and related in a way you can not mention one without mentioning the other in relation to another important concept that deals with the idea of what you do when no one is watching meaning you and your conscience and principles.

Concerning the way to introduce such concepts to learners or even colleagues I think we can use the method that includes presenting certain issue and asking Do you think it is right or wrong? and start a discussion, then move to analysis and finally to concluded definitions. 

So far so good

At first I was frustrated with idea of technology, as I was illiterate or you can say unaware of its importance or benefits.so I joined the PED program aiming to get rid of my technological ignorance but-and to be honest- first I was lost, I did not know where to start and what to do but then my ignorance started to reach an end and the cloud started to vanish. In that course I learned many things in a very short time, to be more clear I had my first hand on some social networks such as twitter.Another great lesson was how to create my own blog and how to use it to express my own thoughts and how to accept comments on what I think and say.beside that, and on another aspect I learned some other important issues some were ethical and others were academic, as for those which were ethical I learned how to respect the rights of others like copyrights and intellectual rights also I knew what is meant by plagiarism and the difference between it and copyrights.last but not least I find myself obligated to say that this course is starting to make me change differently.

 

Into new ways of learning : a comparison between Tahrir/Khan Academies and moocs

In my own point of view, I think they are mainly concerned with the idea of taking learners away from the traditional ways of learning through school based classes to a more new and amusing method which is through watching video. As learners can access and watch any lesson they need anytime and anywhere they want, in other words, if you did not get a certain point you can pause or rewind it and watch it one more time and if you not free today you can watch it some other time it will not go anywhere.

But I think the most distinctive and evident merit of such videos is that they can be watched from anywhere. A student in India can watch a video which a student in Egypt is watching at the very same moment,

In fact the basic benefit from these new methods of learning is briefly stated in their videos.the first video is on Tahrir Academy, it was stated that the academy is mainly an attempt to liberate learning in Egypt.

the second video is Salman Khan video on TED when he stated that he had a comment on his first video on Youtube from a parent of autism child who said that the video helped his son to learn.

these words implies certain facts which are that those videos help to improve new ways for learning which will help in building new generations and also will help learners with learning difficulties.

I believe that the academies can be of great benefit in teaching as teachers can use these videos to simplify their lessons or they can allow students to watch them more than once, beside that students can use videos to learn about what they need.

these videos can be very useful for shy learners who are afraid to ask.they also offer the opportunity to watch more than once for those who need repetition.

On the other hand comes the Moocs which are online courses, I think these are also useful as they help learners to join certain courses of their choice learn new subjects.

but when it comes to the influence on learners and professional development, i think as for learning the academies are more useful than the moocs. as they offer an ability to choose when and where to learn which makes you feel fine.

but on the contrary comes the concept of technology illiteracy which is widely clear in our societies and consequently that will affect the whole idea. Another demerit is that those videos are not going according the curriculum which will also represent a problem.

finally, we can conclude that both the academies and moocs are of great benefit but also with lacks.

Another important point is that teachers influence the characters of their learners during lecturing them which means that when the whole world uses the same source for learning that will ruin the concept of variation.

accept my sincere respect.