Nalini's Philosophy of Teaching and Learning
Let's learn, unlearn and relearn. I positively believe in lifelong learning. When we stop learning, we stop progressing. I simply love my profession as an educator and lecturer. I am honored with my profession and married to my profession. I am proud of my career development as a lecturer in UniSZA for almost 14 years. I am progressing my career path as a lecturer according to current trends with the bits of help of ICT. I won't say the journey was very smooth but I really had my fun moments while grooming my students and myself in redesigning the teaching and learning methods.
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today” - Malcolm X
“Change is the end result of all true learning” ~ Leo Buscaglia
“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest” ~ Benjamin FranklinI positively believed that a vigorous education system is a fundamental essence for a vibrant and innovative society. As our world becomes more complex and interconnected, there are extensive discussions taking place in terms of how our educational institutions should teach our young people (ETS, 2002; Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2008; Wallis, 2006). Globalization and economic liberalization, digital technology evolution, the ability to foster innovation, and more importantly support an entrepreneurial culture consider the key drivers for an education system which exerting our 21st Century students to acquire a different set of capabilities to live and work. In addition, it implies a transformation of the education system to cope with the changes (Dede, 2007; Kozma, 2005). As mentioned in Malaysia Education BluePrint 2015-2025:
"Internet penetration in Malaysia currently stands at 67% — the seventh-highest penetration rate across Asia. This puts Malaysia in a good position to harness the power of online learning to widen access to good quality content, enhance the quality of teaching and learning, lower the cost of delivery, and bring Malaysian expertise to the global community. There are significant opportunities to achieve the desired outcomes first set forth in the National e-learning Policy (Dasar e-Pembelajaran Negara or DePAN). Malaysia needs to move from a mass production delivery model to one where technology-enabled innovations are harnessed to democratise access to education and offer more personalised learning experiences to all students."(Malaysia Education Blueprint 2015-2025, p.23).
There are plenty of shreds of evidence proved that a huge number of countries understand the vital role of ICT in transforming their education systems to meet the demands of 21st-century society. As an academic institution, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin plays a crucial role in molding and shaping the youth, especially undergraduates with necessary tools that able them to face/respond to the fast-paced, complex, and multi-dimensional challenges of today’s society.
Learning for the 21st Century
What used to be a rather stable setting with fixed roles-educational policymakers setting the scene for learning through curricula; educational publishers developing the learning materials building on the curricula; and schools implementing the curricula issued by policymakers and using the textbooks produced by publishers – is now changing.
(Hylen, 2010)
There are significant scholars reviews verified that, industrial model of education which dominated most of the 20th century is not appropriate for the 21st-century education system. Table 1 captured several changes and proved that there is a serious need to redesign the education (Leland and Kasten, 2002) .
Table 1: Characteristics of Industrial and Inquiry Models
Industrial Model
Inquiry Model
Purpose of Education
· Conformity, obedience
· Prepare learner for a factory job
· Critical thinking
· Prepare learner information/technology
Learning model structure
· Behaviorism
· Classes graded by age
· Homogeneous group
· Social constructivism
· Multiage Classes
· Heterogeneous group
Curriculum
· 3 R’s, narrow, fact-based
· Multi-faceted, problem solving
Instruction
· Text based, transmission
· Multiple sources, transaction
Assessment
· Uniform, standardized
· Authentic, diverse
Role of learner
· Passive, receive knowledge
· Active, construct knowledge
Role of Teacher
· Foreman, clerk
· Co-learner, facilitator
Role Parents
· Follow dictates of school
· Partner in decision- making
Role of Administrator
· Supervisor, manager
· Instructional leader, co-learner
Type of literacy required
· Decoding, defining, analyzing
· Translation, critical
(Leland & Kasten, 2002)
21st Century Learning Environment
In 21st century, teachers/lecturers are more attentive towards students knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs in this 21st century. Moreover, students are encouraged to ask questions and engage in social discourse. The role of teacher’s changes to coordinator/facilitator rather than a transmitter of content.
Characteristics of 21st Century Learning Environment
· They are teaching and learning communities where students are actively engaged in learning with teachers;
· They create an environment that guides and support self-directed learning;
· They enable effective relationships between students and their teachers;
· They support differentiated instruction that includes distributed learning, cross-curriculum links, diverse instructional groupings, and diverse broad-based assessment;
· They use professional development for site-based research and opportunities for on-site application, discussion, research and reflective practice to build knowledge thoughout the school;
· They integrate feedback from students, parents and other stakeholders and evaluate and analyse change over time.
(McKinn, 2007).
Characteristics of 21st Century Teacher
As a teacher/lecturer, we need to be constantly updating our own knowledge and skills rather than transmitting the knowledge. We should:
· Be knowledgeable about how students learn and understand available resources (including ICT)
· Be involved in reflective practice.
· Adopt a collaborative approach that embraces change and flexibility of the methodology
· Develop productive relationships with students that support their engagement with learning
· Practice differentiated instruction that encompasses distributed learning, diverse evaluation and diverse groupings.
(McKinn, 2007).
Characteristics of 21st Century Student
21st-century students grown up with the Internet and with a broad range of communication and collaboration tools. Whereas, the teachers who taught them were trained under the industrial model of education. Therefore, there is a severe need for teachers to embed ICT in their teaching modules to capture the 21st-century students who seeking different paradigms of learning. This new paradigm shift will enable students to:
· Experience joy, satisfaction, and passion for academic excellence and lifelong learning;
· Actively engage in learning;
· Accept ownership of their learning – that involves the ability to be self-directed, a decision-maker, and manager of priorities in and out of school;
· Use technology to achieve personal learning goals and to succeed in various learning activities;
· Learn multiple languages and develop an appreciation for cultural patterns and expectations; and
· Access learning opportunities that involve multiple modalities and include choices. (McKinn, 2007).
Am I Knowledge Transmitter or Transformer?
As a teacher/lecturer, I aware of the demand of 21st century learning environment. I have to acts as a knowledge transmitter as well as knowledge transformer to meet the needs of 21st-century students. I have to be very attentive to students’ knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs. I have to be constantly updating my knowledge and skills and applying it in my classes. So that, the learning will be exciting and joyful not only for the students but for me as well.
References:
Dede, C. (2007). Transforming Education for the 21st Century: New Pedagogies that Help All Students Attain Sophisticated Learning Outcomes. Retrieved April 26, 2010, from http://www.gse.harvard.edu/~dedech/Dede_21stC-skills_semi-final.pdf
ETS (2002). Succeeding in the 21st Century What Higher Education Must Do to Address the Gap in Information and Communication Technology Proficiencies. Princeton, NJ:ETS.
Hylen,J. (2010). “Can digital learning resources spur innovation?’. In OECD (Ed.), Inspried by Technology, Driven by Pedagogy. A Systemic Approach to Technology-based School Innovations (pp. 45-64). Paris, France: OECD Publishing.
Kozma, R.B. (Ed.). (2003). Technology, innovation, and educational change: A global perspective. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Leland, C.H and Kasten, W.C. (2002). “Literacy Education for the 21st Century: It’s time to close the factory”. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 18, 5-15.
McGinn, A. (2007). “Senoir High School Education in the 21st Century”. The Educational Forum, 71(4), 331-344.