PHILIPSBURG:--- Last week approximately 80 staff members of Seventh Day Adventist, Asha Stevens and Helmich Snijders Christian Schools spent two afternoons on training themselves in the use of ICT and Technology in the classroom. The level of excitement was very high and overall teachers were very happy with the practical approach of the workshops.
A total of 21 workshops were conducted. Teachers had the opportunity to choose from 12 different topics based on their interest and skills. Among the different workshops were sessions that focused on how to integrate technology in the FBE learning centers, focusing on differentiated and personalized learning. Teachers Prince and Williams shared with their colleagues the advantages and possibilities of combining the use of ICT and our national curriculum.
Another very popular workshop, presented by Ms. Clara George, introduced teachers to the miracles of Augmented Reality. Mrs. Georgiane Henriquez introduced participants to the wonders of digital storytelling, the modern way of the old-fashioned way of telling stories. The Philipsburg Jubilee library let the teachers practice with the use of 'Animoto', a very user-friendly program that allows easy video making. Myrna Richardson explained on how ICT can be used with children who have special learning needs and Uredise Stanford let the teachers practice with QR codes and document cameras. Marcus Nicolaas conducted two workshops focusing on computer arts and the digital board software 'Classflow',which was launched last year and can be used with any digital board.
A webinar was held for teachers who wanted to learn more about 'Easytech' an online ICT curriculum model that offers ready available ICT classes, but also allows teachers to create their own lessons using ICT in the regular subject areas.
The IT managers of the schools gave some deeper insight in the working of SkoolControl, the management software program that supports the network and all devices for students and teachers.
Teachers received the workshops very well, which became obvious through the evaluation forms that were filled out at the end of the sessions. With a grading scale of 1-10, the average score of all workshops was 8.4, which can be considered as an excellent score and shows the quality of the workshops and the high interest of the teachers. Almost all teachers shared that they had an excellent experience, that the content of the workshops was really helpful for their daily teaching and that they are looking forward to more ICT related professional development training.
The Foresee Foundation/DigiKidz team is planning to have a full two-day regional conference on the integration of ICT in teaching later this year. This conference will be sponsored by UNESCO, who encourages 21st century learning and the increased use of technology in schools.
