iPhone 5

Reblogged from kaseekeat0n:

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With all of the rumors flying around it is hard to not be extremely interested in the iPhone 5! It is said Apple will be sending out the master build of iOS 5 to carriers for approval September 23rd. The carriers will be expected to give that approval by October 5th, so that the new cellular device can hit shelves sometime in October.

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Teachers Curriculum Decisions

If we are to “teach” specified, prescribed curriculum with specific verbiage, of what value are teachers? How can we be innovative in our job?

Recently, technology in education is receiving increased attention among policy makers as well as educators in the Maldives. Schools have begun to invest heavily in computer and other technological advances such as Internet. The number of schools with computer laboratories, SmartBoards, interactive multimedia resources, high-speed Internet connections and other technological tools is increasing rapidly. Ministry of Education has started number of projects such as “One Laptop for Every Teacher”, “Teacher Resource Centers”, Maldives Teachers Resource Website and, the development of National ICT curriculum (Education Development Center, nd) as means to increase access to technology in the schools and facilitate technology integration. (See Appendix A for more complete description.)

Although there is a rapid increase in availability of computers through number of initiatives, it is dubious whether these bring the desired outcomes in terms of successful integration of technology in schools.  Many researchers in the field agreed with Cuban (2001), when he took a stringent rebuke of the proponents of technology such as Seymour Papert by claiming that the influx of billions of dollars failed to provide promised benefits in terms of technology use in education( Ertmer,1999 ; Becker, 2001). That said, researchers continue to find some root causes for this situation such as the incompatible beliefs of teachers towards technology integration, lack instructional and pedagogical support for the teachers to integrate technology and the lack of sufficient professional development for teachers( Becker 2001, Cuban 2001). Thus, it is important to study these major factors starting with the teachers’ beliefs about technology integration in order to support the teachers to effectively use technology in classrooms and to ensure effective integration of technology in education.

H: A: P: P: P: Y T: E: A: C: H: E: R: S D: A: Y 2010

Wish all my teaching colleagues a very Happy Teachers Day 2010!!
Thank you for answering the call to be teachers.
Thank you for the enduring impression you’ve made in the lives you have touched.
Every community needs people like you.
Your contributions are immeasurable. Your lessons are permanent. You improve our world.

Teacher Education vs Teacher Learning!!!!

Teacher Education is a Myth…

It can be argued that there is no such thing as teacher education since there is no such thing as a agreed upon core curriculum of teaching principles and practices.

Big Question in ANOVA?

It’s been a several weeks from the beginning of this semester since I am introduced to this concept of Analysis of variance or ANOVA. All semester up untill now, I have been thinking about ANOVA and what it is meant to use this statistical analysis? So many wonderings that are not very clear up until last week.
Last week, while I was trying to answer the take home mid term exam, it occurred to me what the big question in ANOVA is and all these different types of ANOVA’s trying to answer one big question. This means that, I should be able to use Wiggins & McTighe’s Understanding by Design. approach to look at this topic.

Big Question:
“Are these things different from each another?”

With this big question in mind, it makes more sense and little easier for me to look at visual representation of how the ANOVA is trying to answer the big question. I found the VISUAL ANOVA tool from Utah very useful tool for this purpose.

Visual Anova is a Flash Move which demonstrates visually how variability between and within experimental groups contributes to the F ratio. It is not a numerical calculator; rather it visually and holistically demonstrates the relations among important concepts. Visual ANOVA is supported by online instructionsand by an extensive online lecture explaining the theory behind the Analysis of Variance. The online lecture is supported by two types of assignments: 1) Online computer-graded homework, and 2) A pdf file that gives students the opportunity to do handwritten homework problems with answer keys.