10th Week

Week 10, It’s the submission week for the lesson plans and also the teaching aids that we have been working on since before Raya holidays. Fuh!, it is a big relief to complete the entire task and submit it.
Next, we used today’s class to complete the remaining of module 2. As we all know, module 2 is about photo editing and it is really an exciting task. While working on the task, suddenly Pn.Foziah asked us to view our senior’s photo editing collection. I was amazed looking at the product. Photos are beautifully edited and the editing is very neat as well. There were about 280 photos and I viewed all of them. It was a tour of photo editing for me. From the module 2, I have learned how to edit photos, and now I have learned where and how to apply it.

After that, Pn Foziah gave a task for module 3. First is to create a ringtone. Next to cut and combine 2 songs and lastly to edit M.Nasir and Siti’s dua insan song. The submission of module 3 and the task is on 28th September.

9th Week

Pn. Foziah is away this week but she had already assigned the task for this week. It’s MODULE 2. Module 2 is about editing pictures. As in the previous modules, this module does require some software such as Adobe photoshop. Adobe photoshop CS3, Photoscape, Iphoto, ACDsee, Microsoft paint, Photobucket and Triscape Fxphoto.

This module is also exciting as the module 3. There are many things that can be done to the photos using the software above. The pictures can be cropped, resized and we can reduce noise, adjust brightness, add text and frame and many more. Adding frame to the photos captured my attention as the Photoscape software provides wonderful frames to be added to our photos. I have used the software to edit some of the pictures in my own collection too.
Since this is the first time I am using most of the software, I do face some difficulties. Firstly, I found difficulties to identify the icon mentioned in the module. It was quite hard as some of the modules just show the icon but does not show where to look for the icon. Secondly, I found difficulties in making the effects as mentioned in the module. This module requires a lot of patience as I need to explore the functions of the software in order to complete the software. If one step is missed, the expected effect will not turn out. After a long exploration on the software, I managed to identify all the icons and complete the tutorials.

For the time being, I have completed most of the tutorials and I am still working on the rest. The deadline for this module is 27th September 2010 and I really hope to complete it before the deadline because we will be receiving another module on the 27th.

8th Week

There is no class for this week BUT there are a lot of things to be done. Firstly, we have to complete module 3 which is about audio editing. Next, Pn. Foziah assigned us to prepare 3 half an hour lesson and a 1 one hour lesson. Lastly week need to prepare teaching aids.

When I saw module 3, there was a small relief in me because this module is not as thick as the module 1. Module 3 is basically about audio editing using software such as Audacity, Wavepad, Sony Vegas, Karaoke Anything, Music Editor, Nero Wave and lastly Sound Forge. Fuh!!! It seems that there are a lot of software to be explored in order to complete module 3.

Working on this module is much more exciting and fun compared to module 1. This is because in module 3, we are creating something on our own not merely getting something from the internet. Through module 3, I have learned how to make ringtones, making minus one, changing speed, cut songs, combine 2 songs and many more. That was really exciting and fun working with this module.

The next task assigned to us was the lesson plan. We were required to prepare four continuous lesson plans for a particular year. My group have chosen Year 4 as the target group and the topic was about food.

Lastly, we were also required to choose a topic from the syllabus for each year (year 1 to 6) and prepare teaching aids. The teaching aids include both technological and non-technological materials. Since the teaching aids are prepared for young kids, we used colourful and attractive pictures, videos, powerpoint presentations, puppets, task sheets, and big book.

In conclusion, lesson plans and teaching aids are very essential in carrying out a lesson successfully. Therefore we have prepared appropriate lessons and teaching aids which can really aid in carrying out the lesson.

7th week

Last week’s 'fever' is still on till this week. Yes, I am still working on the module 1. As Pn Foziah said, I kept on thinking about the module wherever I go and I spent a lot of time working on it.

While working on the tutorials in the module, I realised that there are many things that I am unaware or do not know about internet and internet skills. The module was an eye-opener for me into the world of technology especially internet skills. Through the module, I was exposed to many software and also websites which will be useful for me as a future teacher.

The software such as Audacity which is used for the encoding tutorials is amazing. YES, there are a lot of things that we can do with this software. Since this is the first time I am using this software, I was really excited to explore the software and learn new things from it.

The websites such as ‘Photobucket’, ‘4shared’ and ‘esnips’ are totally new and unfamiliar to me but with the examples given by Pn. Foziah, I managed to sail through the tutorials with very less difficulties.

There was some confusion while doing the tutorials but it was not a big deal as I still managed to complete the tutorials. The confusion may be due to some changes in the websites as they upgrade the websites. Whenever we face any difficulties or confusion we were required to write comments beside the slide and I did so. The comments will be very useful to improvise the tutorials in the future.

The only part where I found most difficulties was the file conversion part. In this part, we were required to convert files into different formats such as MS WORD to PDF, PDF to PPT and so on using software and also some online conversion websites. This was a real new experience for me; I do not know anything about these till the time I did the tutorials. Besides that, some of the conversion could not be done exactly as in the examples given by Pn. Foziah which makes me to look for different alternatives to convert those files. At last I managed to complete the tutorials.

Although the module took a lot of time to be completed, when I look back at the completed module, I feel so happy. I can see my hard work on each and every slide. WOW that’s really amazing.

6th Week

Hi everyone.... Here I am with another entry in my blog in week 6.

Time flies very fast Huh!..... Ok without wasting anytime, let’s go into today’s events.

The major event of this week’s class is the ‘Module’ Yes, the MODULE... The moment Pn foziah enters the class; she informed us that she’s going to distribute the Module 1 to us and asked few volunteers to get it. I was waiting eagerly for the module but when I saw the module, OMG what is this? The module is sooooooooooooooooooooo thick.

How am I going to complete it? That was the question that was in my mind when I saw the module. Wait, that’s not the end of it, there is another shocking news from Pn Foziah: The modules should be completed in 2 weeks. I was speechless when I heard it. How am I going to complete the THICK module in 2 weeks?

Then I realised that, no point in thinking how I am going to complete it but better to think when I am going to start doing it. Yes, I started immediately. It was quite fun doing the module and I have learned many things from doing it. I feel that, completing this module equips me with various technological resources which will be useful when I become a teacher later.

In this 21st century, Teachers should equip themselves with enough ICT skills. Equipping themselves with the skills is not sufficient but they must practice it in classrooms. Teachers nowadays, rarely use technology in their lesson due to lack of exposure to ICT. By completing this module, I hope that I can get enough exposure and able to equip myself with various resources which can be helpful to face the challenges as a 21st century teacher.

That’s all for this week, there’s a lot of work to be completed. See you all in the next entry, bYe...

5th Week

5th week, 5th week, 5th week. This week’s class started with a good deed I should say. The whole class helped a PhD student to answer his questionnaires. Hope that questionnaire really helps him with his research.

After that, Pn. Foziah showed us on how to use Moyea to download videos. Although Moyea was already introduced in the previous week, this week’s demonstration was really useful.

Next, Pn.Foziah assigned us a task. For the task we need to work in pairs and the pair should be from different gender. My partner and I were assigned the topics Places in school, Animals and pets and Liza’s Family. The task is basically to find resources or teaching aids which matches the topics given. To simplify our work, Pn. Foziah created a template in which we have to include the stages, the kind of teaching aids, rationale for choosing the teaching aids and final column is for comments. The template served as a very useful guide for us to complete the task. Thanks Pn. Foziah.

Talking about resources or teaching aids, it is actually a part of our life. Why do I say so? because as future teachers, we will be collecting, creating and using different types of teaching aids in our lesson. Teaching aids is actually a very good resource to enable the pupils to understand the lesson taught. It actually helps the pupils to learn in a fun and enjoyable way. For example, young kids will be excited and interested to see colourful pictures, videos, catchy songs and language games. When the pupils are excited and interested, it would create a warm environment for them to learn. The pupils will actually learn indirectly by playing the games, singing songs, watching videos and many more. Young learners cannot be separated from fun and play. Therefore, the only way for a teacher to bring in fun and play in the classroom is through teaching aids. As future teachers, teaching aids is very important to carry out our lessons successfully. The task assigned to us will be a stepping stone for us to have a compilation of various teaching aids in the future.
That’s all for this week, see you all in the next entry. Bye....

4th Week

Fourth week of PBEY3102, there are still four groups left to present from the previous week’s task. 4 groups to present, meaning that I am going to learn and absorb a lot of things today.

The first group presented on “working with young language learners”. Basically, children are born with innate abilities to absorb language therefore they do not come to school with empty hands. Young learners have the ability to understand what we say although they do not understand each and every words uttered by us. As a teacher, we should understand this situation and should not label any student negatively. With proper teaching learning process, the pupils will be able to grasp the language. Therefore, it is the teacher’s responsibility to carry out activities which suits the pupils in order to enhance their understanding.

The second group presented on ‘Children’s Instinct for play and fun’. Play and fun, these two things are very essential in the development of a child. Even adults love fun and of course young learners love it too in their learning. The major point here is how the teachers can carry out a lesson which does no bore the pupils who loves to play and expecting fun in everything they do. As a future English language teacher, this would not be an awkward situation for us. We can use colourful and beautiful pictures, use songs, videos, carry out plays, dramas and introduce language games such as ‘Hang-man’ and many more.

Next, the third group presented on ‘children’s creative use of limited language resources’. We know that young children are able to convey a message although the words and the sentence are grammatically incorrect. Young children uses or actually imitates gestures to convey messages as well. Although with limited language resources, young children are still able to convey a message due to the creativity which they learn and expanded through their daily life experiences.

The role of imagination, this is the last topic and it was presented by my group. This topic is mainly about how imagination plays a vital role in a child’s development and how we as teachers can encourage their imagination. There are many ways where a teacher can encourage imagination in a child. For instance, teachers can carry out activities such as ‘hot seating’, ‘role play’ and many more. Besides, teachers also can carry out their lessons using the Desuggestopedia method where the pupils are asked to close their eyes and imagine while the teacher narrates a story. This will provide ample space for the pupils to develop their imagination as well as grasp the input given by the teacher.

After the presentations, Pn. Foziah introduced us to MOYEA. By using this software, we can download songs and videos very fast. This software is very useful as it saves time and we can download the songs and videos whenever we want as it only takes a few minutes or even less than that. Next, Pn.Foziah showed us a module on ‘how to search a song’ and taught us how to print the screen. The input given by Pn. Foziah, was very useful as it is new for me. Hope to learn more from Pn. Foziah and our resources class.

With this, i would like to attach a video which is related to children's imagination.