ICS NOTES

CHAPTER ONE

INFORMATION AND COMPUTER STUDIES (ICS)

ICS stands for Information and Computer Studies which are applicable in teaching and leaning process

Teaching ICS is the process of producing knowledge and skills of Information and Computer Studies during their classes.

Learning is the process of getting knowledge and skills of Information and Computer Studies inside and outside the class.

The importance of teaching and learning ICS

·         To introduce life skills ideas and lesson into program

·         Assist with writing, producing and recoding program

·         To analyse and interpret ICS curriculum materials for ordinary secondary schools

·         To facilitate the teaching/learning of data processing, interpretation and dissemination of information.

·         To learn practical skills in the use of computers.

·         To facilitate the teaching/learning of computer networks and security issues in the networked environment

·         To assess the progress of students’ learning

·         To develop self-reflective skills

·         To use action research to improve teaching and learning of ICS.

The uses of ICS in daily life.

ICS have greatly changed many ways of life. It has been used in various key areas such as in schools, hospitals, banks, accountants, shops and offices, transport and communication, entertainment, engineering and defence services.

ICS in education

ICS are being used in education in a variety ways. ICS are also widely used in the teaching and learning of other subjects, a student can learn any subject using ICS.

For example, in subjects like chemistry and physics, laboratory experiments can be stimulated on the computer. The experiment can be repeated many times without having to use actual chemicals or equipment.

To conclude, ICS at school can be used to assist student in:

·         Gathering information from internet

·         Develop science project

·         Teaching and learning

ICS in health

Provide better service in hospitals. They are used to monitor a patient condition like temperature and heart beat and sound alarm if there is any change from normal.

In the field of medicine, ICS are used for

·         Diagnosing illness

·         Monitoring patients health development

·         Assisting surgeons

·         Medical students can practice operation on computers

ICS at home

Today many people have computer at home. People use it for recreational activities, like playing cards, games such as chess and others; they can use for educational purpose, for writing letters, e mail, listening to music etc.

Principles

• Active approaches to learning in which students spend more time doing than listening.
• Explicit sharing with students so as to produce the desire outcomes
• Motivation e.g. application in the other fields.
• Formative assessment aimed at providing opportunity to practice new skills
• To create supportive, productive and safe environments where students can try out explanations and ideas without fear.
• To encourage an effective learning process that promotes enquiry mind
• To treat students as individuals with particular abilities.

Limitations stated by national council of educational technology

·         Do not assign tasks to pupils who are irrelevant to anything at school or at home.

·         Do not assign pupils to computers before preparing theme for the task they will be doing.

·         Do not let the pupils sit at computers while you are talking to them at the introduction of this lesson.

·         Do not leave pupils for the whole just working on their task without remaining them of the educational purpose.

·         Do not end the lesson without doing a refection on the lesson.

·         Do not relay on the technology to run the lesson.

CHAPTER TWO

Computer Laboratory Management Skills

Computer laboratory is the room or building whereby computers and other peripheral devices can be stored for practical purpose.

Devices can be stored in a computer laboratory are monitor, printers, keyboard, Mouse, speakers, earphone, headphone, flash, blower, CD-R,CD-RW etc.

The room of the laboratory

The colour to be painted to the computer laboratory is white, flow is tiled and it contain fire extinguisher, aluminium windows, aluminium door, projector which is permanents titled etc.

Computer laboratory setup

The location of the computer should be in a position where both staff and students can have an easy access to the computer resources. Other things to be considered in the setup of the computer laboratory include the space in the room, lighting, power installation, ventilations and safety measures.

In schools, computer laboratory can be set as follows:-

·         In centralized computer laboratory where computer are available for both students and teachers.

·         Separate computer laboratory for teachers and students.

·         One or few computers in a few classes or teachers staff room.

·         Mobile computers e.g. laptops shared between classes.

It is important for the laboratory to be settled so that students and teachers can easily use theme. Students may need the computer for completing assignments while teachers use computer for teaching purposes.

The following things should be considered when setting up a computer laboratory.

·         Enough space in the computer lab/ class

·         Computer table accommodate monitor at eye sight

·         Availability of printers

·         Appropriate storage media. Such as CD-R,CD-RW, flash

·         Appropriate software which are compatible with the syllabus and also it allow cost maintenance due to availability of spare parts.

·         Local Area Network for easy sharing of scarcity of resources

·         Up date anti virus software is highly recommended

When using laboratory, there are many problems which happen. Some must be taken into consideration when designing the laboratory

Advantages of laboratories

·         A laboratory facilitates activities such as word processing, tutorial application, remedial and extension programmes. Also facilitates a range of implementation methods.

·         Hardware and software can be provided more cheaply in a network configuration made possible by the location of the computing resources in one area.

·         The resources can be organised and managed by a single person who would be able to provide assistant to teacher wishing to make use of the computing facilities. There is also central and manageable location for other computing resources.

·         The convenience of having all students able to be involved with computer at any one time, encourage teachers to consider computer related activities as part of their teaching programme.

·         Extra curricular uses are made possible when the facilities are organized in this fashion.

·         The laboratory enables the equipment to be maintained and protected more easily than when dispersed around the school such as dust, static, power fluctuation and equipment movement, all able to damage computer, can be minimized.

Disadvantage of laboratories

·         The laboratory situation separates the computers from the normal teaching programme of the teacher.

·         The use of laboratory can be inconvenient requiring in feature planning on the part of the teacher and preventing informal and unplanned use.

·         The computer can easily become the focus of the lesson. In situation away from the classroom, it is easily for students and teachers to see the computer as the important part of the lesson from the material or content being developed.

·         The laboratory can become the domain of more knowledgeable and more interested teacher. Others in the school may not be inclined to use the laboratory feeling that more experienced teachers could be doing far more with it.

·         Placing the computer in a laboratory and away from classroom does not encourage all teachers to become familiar with them, dispersion around the school provide a better opportunity to achieve this.

·         Security problems because thieves only have to target one room.

   

TOPIC 3

Planning and Preparation for Teaching ICS topics

Introduction

This unit highlights various stages of preparing scheme of work and lesson plan for ICS, teaching/ learning method, preparation for teaching and learning resources and the ICS curriculum materials.

Meaning of curriculum materials

Curriculum materials are the physical resources used to support the presentation of and interaction with the curriculum content. Conventional curriculum materials include textbooks, workbooks, manipulative, charts and posters, etc.

Curriculum is: Anything and everything that teaches a lesson, planned or otherwise. Humans are born learning, thus the learned curriculum actually encompasses a combination of all of the below -- the hidden, null, written, political and societal etc. Since students learn all the time through exposure and modelled behaviours, this means that they learn important social and emotional lessons from everyone who inhabits a school -- from the janitorial staff, the secretary, the cafeteria workers, their peers, as well as from the deportment, conduct and attitudes expressed and modelled by their teachers. Many educators are unaware of the strong lessons imparted to youth by these everyday contacts. 

Types of curriculum materials

Textual materials

Are all written documents of different nature and type. For example

·         ICS syllabus

·         Student book and reference book

·         Teachers guide and teachers manual

·         E- Learning resources such as CD- ROMs, flash disk, video tapes, mobile phone, radio, TV.

Non textual materials for example

·         Computer hardware, video, pictures, internet service, CD/DVD

Teachers guide and teachers manual

These are curriculum material used by the teacher in his/her daily teaching process.

Teachers guide

·         It is books which help a teacher to teach more effectively, when teaching a given topic/subject matter.

·         It is specifically for teachers, because they give advice to teachers on how to use textbooks or how to teach a specific subject.

·         Comprise pedagogical skills, techniques, strategies on several topics and also can suggested evaluation strategies.

·         Can serve purpose of in-service teaching.  

Importance of teacher guide

·         Additional learning objectives

·         Alternative teaching and learning resources

·         Teacher preparation activities

·         Teaching techniques and strategies

·         Student activities

·         Evaluation techniques to be adopted

·         References

·         It is useful to teachers who have limited in-service training and where pre-service training was of crash programme type.

·         Updating and advancing the teachers own pedagogical competence and skills.

Teachers manual

·         It is a documents which show ‘how’ to do thing i.e. procedure of doing things e.g. experiments

·         It is a book having teaching information, consist of systematic stage to be followed during instruction, manuals govern teaching lessons in classroom and laboratory experiments.

·         Manual can also be used by student.

Importance of teachers manual

·         Enables different teacher to follow the same procedure, hence easy to make evaluation.

·         Useful to new teacher who are not used to work.

·         Create confidence to learners

Text book

·         Is the book which are  applicable by the student

·         It is a book having the title, levels of student, contents and the author of that book.

Importance

·         Enables different student with different school to follow the same procedure, hence easy to make evaluation.

·         It is the first reference of the learner.

·         Create confidence to learners

THE SCHEME OF WORK

A scheme of work is your plan of what you will teach during every lesson throughout the academic year.

A scheme of work defines the structure and content of a course. It maps out clearly how resources (e.g. books, equipment, time) and class activities (e.g. teacher-talk, group work, practical’s, discussions) and assessment strategies (e.g. tests, quizzes, Q&A, homework) will be used to ensure that the learning aims and objectives of the course are met. It will normally include times and dates.

The scheme of work is usually an interpretation of a specification or syllabus and can be used as a guide throughout the course to monitor progress against the original plan. Schemes of work can be shared with students so that they have an overview of their course.

A scheme of work is a plan of what will be covered in each week or session of the learning Programme or course.  It can be very detailed or brief. A scheme of work may, for example, consider how many lessons will be needed to cover a specific theme. 

It can also support communication and planning between departments. Once it has been finalized, a scheme of work can be used to write lesson plans

When designing a scheme of work, there are a number of factors that should be taken into consideration.  The following questions may help you to focus your thoughts

THE STARTING POINTS

·         Who is the course for?

·         What is the likely number of participants?

·         What is the overall aim of the course?

·         What will participants learn?

·         What skills will participants develop?

·         Is there a syllabus?

·         Does it lead to a qualification?

·         Is it part of a larger curriculum?

·         Where is it likely to be held?

·         What restrictions does this impose?

·         What resources are available?

·         What resources can be "begged, borrowed or stolen"?

·         What resources can be designed or developed?

COMPONENTS OF A SCHEME OF WORK

ORGANISATION:

Refers to the organisation/institution one is working or training in. for example korogwe t.c.

TRAINEES LEVEL:

Part 1 refers to the grade level in training e.g. technician. In case of colleges and other institutions, some means of identification are used e.g. K.T.T.C. contribution Tech. part 1.

SUBJECT:

This refers to the subject being schemed which may be theory or practical. This refers to a particular term within a given year. Years may vary from organisation to organisation depending on time of entry.

DATE OF PREPARATION

Refers to the time the scheme of work is completed. This should be before instruction commences.

DATE OF REVISION

Due to overlapping or under planning experienced during instruction or unforeseen interruptions, it is necessary to revise the scheme of work in order to accommodate the unexpected difficulties. This date should be indicated in the space provided in the form.

SYLLABUS TOPIC

The topics in the syllabus needs to be rearranged in the order in which they are supposed to be taught. This is because some topics are build up e.g. before one learns to multiply he should have done additions, e.t.c. The syllabus topics should then follow that order.

WEEK

Most organisations are specific in time allocation and each week should be spelt out in the week column. The numeral representing the week should be distinctly written centrally in the week column.

Weeks should be separated by a line running across the page especially when the same scheme of work form contains more than one week.

NUMBER OF PERIODS

The subject may have one, two or more periods in one week. Some periods may be single, double or triple. Numbering of the period can take the form either ordinal or cardinal system. Ordinal systems refer to the order in which periods for that subject appear on the timetable. In either system, numbering should be done as reflected on the time table for that subject. A line, beginning from the column of periods should be drawn straight across the page to separate the periods. When two spaced periods are indicated on the timetable in the same day, then there should be two distinct rows for two periods. The numbering process should be repeated for the other weeks.

SUB-TOPIC: LESSON TITLES

This should be clear and definite. The instructor should single out all the sub-topics/lesson titles in a particular syllabus topic. He should then estimate what sub topics/lesson titles will require a single period, double period or triple period, and then scheme accordingly.

OBJECTIVES

Each sub-topic/lesson title should be followed by an objective(s) which is meant to pinpoint the anticipated learning behaviour of the learners. The specific nature of the sub-topic/lesson titles does not permit broad objectives which might not be realised by the end of that period. The objectives must be stated in such a manner that there is a measurable aspect manifested by the end of the lesson e.g. the lesson title Simple interest might have the objective - “students should be able to calculate simple interest on given principals using methods of (a) direct production, and (b) simple interest formula”. The lesson title conduction of heat in metals might have the objective - “trainees will be able to classify good and bad conductors of heat after carrying out the experiment, described in the worksheet 4”, e.t.c.

KEY POINTS/METHODS

These are the central ideas which the teacher anticipated to use during the lesson. They are an elaboration of the sub-topic/lesson title. They form the backbone of the lesson. Key point should be stated in a specific, precise manner, preferably in form of phrases which conveys the full meaning intended.

Under no circumstances should key points be stated as activities or active in sense.

APPLICATION

(Student activities, assignment, homework, practice).

For any concept learnt, the teacher would like to see his/her learners put it to practical use. In this column the teacher should think of specific activities that the learners will perform while in the class and Nos. 11, 12, 18 for homework, students will answer comprehension questions after reading the passage on page 35 or their class text book e.t.c. Applications must be designed in order to realise and consolidate concretely the objectives of the lesson.

(Tools Equipment, Apparatus, Chalk Board, Chart e.t.c.)

Resource materials for specific content coverage used in scheming are necessary and should be noted down with their relevant pages for ease in reference during lesson planning. References include books, handouts, worksheets, journals, reports, etc. It is necessary for the teacher to indicate the books, their authors and relevant pages. Teaching aids are an integral part of an effective lesson. Aids that the teacher intends to use should be indicated in the scheme of work. Teaching aids are usually in the form of apparatus, equipment, materials and of course the real thing if readily available and appropriate. The teacher should not indicate a teaching aid which will not be available in class.

NOTES

Most student teachers forget to include teaching aids in the scheme of work.

REMARKS

DATE WHEN TAUGHT

Remarks in the scheme of work should be made immediately the lesson is over. The teacher is supposed to indicate whether what was planned for the period has been covered, whether there was over planning or failure of lesson and reasons for either case, e.t.c. remarks suggested are meant to help the teacher in his consequent and future planning.

Remarks such as “excellent” “done”, “OK”, “well done”, “satisfactory”, “taught”, etc. might not be very useful to the teacher. Such remarks as “the lesson was not very well done because of inadequate teaching aids”, or “pupils were able to apply concept learnt in solving problems as evident from supervised practice”, e.t.c. are appropriate. After the remarks, it is necessary to write the date when this lesson was taught.

A Sample Frame for a scheme of work

Subject: ____ Year ____ Term ____  Name of Instructor

Month	week	period	topic	Sub-topic	Learners activities	Teachers  activities	Teachers  activities	Teaching and learning aids	Reference book	Remarks

LESSON PLAN

A lesson plan is the instructor’s road map of what students need to learn and how it will be done effectively during the class time. Before you plan your lesson, you will first need to identify the learning objectives for the class meeting.  Then, you can design appropriate learning activities and develop strategies to obtain feedback on student learning. A successful lesson plan addresses and integrates these three key components:

• Objectives for student learning
• Teaching/learning activities
• Strategies to check student understanding

Specifying concrete objectives for student learning will help you determine the kinds of teaching and learning activities you will use in class, while those activities will define how you will check whether the learning objectives have been accomplished (see Fig. 1).

Steps for Preparing a Lesson Plan

Below are six steps to guide you when you create your first lesson plans. Each step is accompanied by a set of questions meant to prompt reflection and aid you in designing your teaching and learning activities.

(1) Outline learning objectives

The first step is to determine what you want students to learn and be able to do at the end of class. To help you specify your objectives for student learning, answer the following questions:

• What is the topic of the lesson?
• What do I want students to learn?
• What do I want them to understand and be able to do at the end of class?
• What do I want them to take away from this particular lesson?

Once you outline the learning objectives for the class meeting, rank them in terms of their importance. This step will prepare you for managing class time and accomplishing the more important learning objectives in case you are pressed for time. Consider the following questions:

• What are the most important concepts, ideas, or skills I want students to be able to grasp and apply?
• Why are they important?
• If I ran out of time, which ones could not be omitted?
• And conversely, which ones could I skip if pressed for time?

(2) Develop the introduction

Now that you have your learning objectives in order of their importance, design the specific activities you will use to get students to understand and apply what they have learned. Because you will have a diverse body of students with different academic and personal experiences, they may already be familiar with the topic. That is why you might start with a question or activity to gauge students’ knowledge of the subject or possibly, their preconceived notions about it. For example, you can take a simple poll: “How many of you have heard of X? Raise your hand if you have.” You can also gather background information from your students prior to class by sending students an electronic survey or asking them to write comments on index cards. This additional information can help shape your introduction, learning activities, etc.  When you have an idea of the students’ familiarity with the topic, you will also have a sense of what to focus on.
Develop a creative introduction to the topic to stimulate interest and encourage thinking. You can use a variety of approaches to engage students (e.g., personal anecdote, historical event, thought-provoking dilemma, real-world example, short video clip, practical application, probing question, etc.). Consider the following questions when planning your introduction:

• How will I check whether students know anything about the topic or have any preconceived notions about it?
• What are some commonly held ideas (or possibly misconceptions) about this topic that students might be familiar with or might espouse?
• What will I do to introduce the topic?

 (3) Plan the specific learning activities (the main body of the lesson)

Prepare several different ways of explaining the material (real-life examples, analogies, visuals, etc.) to catch the attention of more students and appeal to different learning styles. As you plan your examples and activities, estimate how much time you will spend on each. Build in time for extended explanation or discussion, but also be prepared to move on quickly to different applications or problems, and to identify strategies that check for understanding. These questions would help you design the learning activities you will use:

• What will I do to explain the topic?
• What will I do to illustrate the topic in a different way?
• How can I engage students in the topic?
• What are some relevant real-life examples, analogies, or situations that can help students understand the topic?
• What will students need to do to help them understand the topic better?

(4) Plan to check for understanding

Now that you have explained the topic and illustrated it with different examples, you need to check for student understanding – how will you know that students are learning? Think about specific questions you can ask students in order to check for understanding, write them down, and then paraphrase them so that you are prepared to ask the questions in different ways. Try to predict the answers your questions will generate. Decide on whether you want students to respond orally or in writing. You can look at Strategies to Extend Student Thinking, http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/P4_4.php to help you generate some ideas and you can also ask yourself these questions:

• What questions will I ask students to check for understanding?
• What will I have students do to demonstrate that they are following?
• Going back to my list of learning objectives, what activity can I have students do to check whether each of those has been accomplished?

An important strategy that will also help you with time management is to anticipate students’ questions. When planning your lesson, decide what kinds of questions will be productive for discussion and what questions might sidetrack the class. Think about and decide on the balance between covering content (accomplishing your learning objectives) and ensuring that students understand.

(5) Develop a conclusion and a preview

Go over the material covered in class by summarizing the main points of the lesson. You can do this in a number of ways: you can state the main points yourself (“Today we talked about…”), you can ask a student to help you summarize them, or you can even ask all students to write down on a piece of paper what they think were the main points of the lesson. You can review the students’ answers to gauge their understanding of the topic and then explain anything unclear the following class. Conclude the lesson not only by summarizing the main points, but also by previewing the next lesson. How does the topic relate to the one that’s coming? This preview will spur students’ interest and help them connect the different ideas within a larger context.

(6) Create a realistic timeline

GSIs know how easy it is to run out of time and not cover all of the many points they had planned to cover. A list of ten learning objectives is not realistic, so narrow down your list to the two or three key concepts, ideas, or skills you want students to learn. Instructors also agree that they often need to adjust their lesson plan during class depending on what the students need. Your list of prioritized learning objectives will help you make decisions on the spot and adjust your lesson plan as needed. Having additional examples or alternative activities will also allow you to be flexible. A realistic timeline will reflect your flexibility and readiness to adapt to the specific classroom environment. Here are some strategies for creating a realistic timeline:

• Estimate how much time each of the activities will take, then plan some extra time for each
• When you prepare your lesson plan, next to each activity indicate how much time you expect it will take
• Plan a few minutes at the end of class to answer any remaining questions and to sum up key points
• Plan an extra activity or discussion question in case you have time left
• Be flexible – be ready to adjust your lesson plan to students’ needs and focus on what seems to be more productive rather than sticking to your original plan

Presenting the Lesson Plan

Letting your students know what they will be learning and doing in class will help keep them more engaged and on track. You can share your lesson plan by writing a brief agenda on the board or telling students explicitly what they will be learning and doing in class. You can outline on the board or on a handout the learning objectives for the class. Providing a meaningful organization of the class time can help students not only remember better, but also follow your presentation and understand the rationale behind in-class activities. Having a clearly visible agenda (e.g., on the board) will also help you and students stay on track.

Reflecting on Your Lesson Plan

A lesson plan may not work as well as you had expected due to a number of extraneous circumstances. You should not get discouraged – it happens to even the most experienced teachers! Take a few minutes after each class to reflect on what worked well and why, and what you could have done differently. Identifying successful and less successful organization of class time and activities would make it easier to adjust to the contingencies of the classroom.

Conclusion

To be effective, the lesson plan does not have to be an exhaustive document that describes each and every possible classroom scenario. Nor does it have to anticipate each and every student’s response or question. Instead, it should provide you with a general outline of your teaching goals, learning objectives, and means to accomplish them. It is a reminder of what you want to do and how you want to do it. A productive lesson is not one in which everything goes exactly as planned, but one in which both students and instructor learn from each other.
Components of lesson plan

1.      The preliminary information

Date, subject, class, period, time, duration and number of students
2. Topic competence
3. Topic
4. Sub-topic
5. General objectives
6. Specific Objectives
7. Teaching Methods and techniques
8. Teaching and learning aids
9. References
10. The lesson development- it contain the column of stage, time, teachers activities, student activities, assessment.
11. Evaluation
12. Remarks

PORTFOLIO

What is an e-portfolio?

An e-portfolio is an electronic format for learners to record their work, their achievements and goals, to reflect on their learning, and to share and be supported in this. It enables learners to represent the information in different formats and to take the information with them between institutions.

Why use e-portfolios?

• An e-portfolio reflects the learning process better than on paper.
• The e-portfolio encourages and facilitates the learner’s support network to participate and provide feedback on their learning.
• The quality, not just the quantity, of feedback is enhanced and facilitated via social mediums.
• The e-portfolio encourages and enables the process of reflection, self-evaluation, and action planning as a process for lifelong learning. The e-portfolio not only develops skills, it develops approaches to learning.
• Students can carry their e-portfolio throughout their learning journey and use it to record, assess, eval[i]uate, and reflect at any time.

---

[i] Prepared lugulu k