THE ENJOYMENT OF MATHwith the Help of ICT

Portia P. PadillaUP Diliman

UP Open University

"In mathematics, you don't understand things. You just get used to them."

-- Johann von Neumann

TECHNOLOGY has changed language.…has changed reading.…has changed learning.

TECHNOLOGY has changed the way we live,

the way we think,the way we learn.

Prang klan lng d p us0 ang WinXP, CD, SIM, @ flat TV. Walang MMS at DSL. Hndi SOP tndaan aNg PIN ng ATM. D klangan kmausap ng CSR. mGA pgkain pro may MSG, gmit $a bhay may CFC. DOA anG psyente s ER pg d! nddl ASAP. Kc wlang msakyang FX, LRT, at MRT. Wlang LTFRB. Wlang 4x4 AUV o CRV. At FYI, wlang knattkutang ASG o PNP. LOL.

From “Stainless Longganisa” by Bob Ong

Learning and Technology

• The Internet has increasingly displaced print from its focal position in the learning process.

Technology: Tools for Learning

• Virtual Learning Environment

• Social Networking Site

• Cellular Phone

Learning and Technology

• Digital forms of learning have started gradually moving books and other static printed materials away from their long held position of being at the center of learning.

Virtual Learning Environment

Of all the ICT's we used… this is what I like most.  The forum allows me to express my thoughts without the pressure of classroom setting and the comforts of home. It also allows me to read about my classmates’ thoughts and comment on them. Also, UVLE serves as mini library of readings and lectures used in the course. Students enrolled in the course can easily access these materials.

…I prefer it to the Yahoo! Groups. In just one page, I can see the updates, and recent uploads and forums of a certain subject. If I were to use the Y! Groups, I’d have to sign in to Yahoo!, a very large website with a lot of features that I don’t really need to use. UVLE was specifically designed for academic purposes. Because of this, using it for class activities is easier than having to use the Y! Groups. Using the UVLE, we posted our assignments in forums, which enabled me to not only easily post my homework, but also to know my classmates’ answers and insights. It may not have games, but it’s much more interactive (in the sense that the class interacts with one another) than the Y! Groups.

Social Networking Site

On the first day of the class we were asked to  take …the quiz on Facebook. Most of the class had FACEBOOK accounts and were only very excited to open their accounts for class purposes. It was very interactive and engaging.

Cellular Phone

I think the reason why the FB and cellphone activities were pleasant for me is because they were very close to home. I frequently use those two so using them as classroom activities didn’t make me feel that they were classroom activities per se. It felt as if I was just texting. However, at the time I knew I wasn’t just texting for conversation or sharing of information, but for learning…as well.

Issues

• equity

• access

• pedagogy: instructional design

Issues

….a one-hour session in computer perhaps costs 15-20 pesos per hour

… the use of Facebook in class must be done with the teacher’s guidance. A student can surf anything, even if it’s not in the lesson. If this happens, the Facebook won’t serve as an I. M. but a mere tool for entertainment.

Even “older people” are getting convinced.

Facebook quizzes are fun to do.  Sometimes the results are strikingly accurate.  These may be used in the classroom or lessons to liven up the discussions…That is, tailoring the lessons to what is popular to reach out to the students of today. 

Even “older people” are getting convinced.

I always really thought that social networking sites are just like that – to connect people. Never did I realize that the same website that parents reprimand their children about can be used as a learning tool. I was so impressed with the Facebook experience that I told my classmate who happens to be a public school teacher in Caloocan about it.

Even “older people” are getting convinced.

…the…quiz was the very first one that I took in Facebook and I would say that it served as a catalyst for me to be a regular quiz taker.

I love reading blogs because through this I learn vicariously and made me more open to a lot of views. The UVLE experience is like reading a blog and as a bonus, ideas are more academically/intellectually-stimulating.

TECHNOLOGY has changed language.…has changed reading.…has changed learning.

TECHNOLOGY has changed the way we live,

the way we think,the way we learn.

…but only as much as we allow it to…

…as much as make it.

Technology is a tool that is supposed to make learning easier and better.

It is a means to an end, not an end in itself.

“Don’t let the technological tail wag the pedagogical dog.”

Instructional Materials

Instructional materials are to be used for reinforcement, enrichment, and mastery of learning, should provide in-depth information on selected topics (i.e., the least learned content or the most difficult to teach content), and must be appropriate for elementary pupils and / or high school students. These should facilitate the teaching and/or learning of specific concepts, skills, and values in the indicated subject areas.

- Philippine Department of Education (DepEd)

Technology as IM

5 E’s

• Effective

• Efficient

• Economical

• Engaging

• Enjoyable

FUNCTIONS

• activate prior knowledge• motivate the learners• introduce a new lesson• sustain learners’ interest• make learning pleasurable• link up past lesson with new• review past lesson

• concretize abstract concepts• clarify or enrich concepts• provide models/examples• organize thinking• give directions/guidelines• provide background information• monitor learning• assess performance

TECHNOLOGY has changed language.…has changed reading.…has changed learning.

TECHNOLOGY has changed the way we live,

the way we think,the way we learn.

…but only as much as we allow it to…

…as much as make it.

"In mathematics, you don't understand things. You just get used to them."

-- Johann von Neumann

REMEMBER

“If two things don’t make a right…

… then try three!”

I hope that I have somehow convinced you to at least try using these ICT-mediated activities

– whether for personal or mathematical reasons –

…no matter how young or old you may be.

And I hope you would blog about it.