The Potential of Web Resources in Enhancing and Modifying Teaching and Learning of Literature in English.

 

I am an English language and literature in English teacher. From my research on the internet I have discovered a variety of information regarding the Literature in English subject which is useful to the learners as well as the teachers. Aside from The Government Inspector, I have noticed that there are more Web  Resource Sites with information on other Literature books such as Romeo and Juliet, To Kill a Mocking Bird, The Burdens, Prose, Poetry, the list is endless. Some of the Sites offer content information that enhance teachers understanding of the text The Government Inspector by Nikolai Gogol. The information they offer range from the themes of the text, character role and characterization, plot, setting, language and style not to mention background information on the authors. Examples of such Sites include; http://www.sras.org/gogol_the_government_inspector_in_text_and_presentation_1836_1938
http://study.com/academy/lesson/methods-of-characterization-in-literature.html.

There are Resource Sites that offer very useful information to learners about the same play and two of them are,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Government_Inspector#Plot_summary

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Government_Inspector.

There are also Resource Sites with interactive educational activities that are very interesting and suited for learners and would enhance the learning environment as well as promote collaboration for effective learning and one such site is; 

http://www.brown.edu/about/administration/sheridan-center/teaching-learning/effective-classroom-practices/interactive-classroom-activities.

Let me also include some Resource Sites on the lesson plans that could be useful for Literature teachers such as; 

http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/hi-can-some-one-someone-tell-me-where-can-find-470714

http://teachers.net/lessonplans/subjects/literature/

These Sites are authoritative. They have credibility, authenticity, currency, authority, accuracy and their scope of information is wide. There are so many links coming off these Sites and each addresses a particular aspect of literature. I have curated these Sites and added them to my Library "Serabidde2014 Public Library Diigo" and I hope to revisit them in the near future and to use the information to teach my Literature class. I recommend that you visit the above resource sites you won't regret. With Literature in English, I shall go with the organization Sites and the commercial Sites which seem to offer a lot of information. On YouTube I can definitely view the videos but the important thing here is identifying what is helpful to both the students and the teachers in the process of teaching and learning

 

 

A Day at the Office

Amongst the software I have viewed in this lesson I would say that some of them are good as a resource for teaching and learning of Literature in English. There are a variety of tools that one could choose from but it is also important to choose the most appropriate of them for that particular subject. The subjects differ in presentation as well as in content and can therefore not use the same App across the board. Maths is not English just as History is not physics. The choice of the App to use depends on the subject the person teaches.

I have tried out some like Microsoft Excel and discovered that the arrangement of the cells is not the best for subjects that use so many words. In their nature they have cells and literature rarely needs them apart from when one is just highlighting points without using so many words. However, in cases where the teacher or learner is interested in brief outlines, it serves the purpose well. Microsoft Excel would do well more with numbers and keeping of students data regarding grades and marks. Just like Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access is structured in cell like divisions and good for keeping a tab on students performance as well as the important things about them (Bio-data).

Literature being a wordy subject requires an App that allows for as many words as one would love to use.  Microsoft PowerPoint on the other hand uses slides that can accommodate the alignment of points as one would wish to present them and also offers space for giving comments or adding notes and is therefore a more appropriate instrument to use in Literature. I have actually enjoyed myself working with Microsoft PowerPoint. It has designs you could choose from to make your product more attractive to the learners and hence chase boredom. You can also put sounds in the background of the text as well as decide how you would wish the slides to move. All those options are there and they are geared to give us the skills to have more interesting products and also make lesson more interesting as we discover more and more about technology. If students were to use Microsoft PowerPoint, they would find it very interesting and captivating because of what it has to offer.

Another tool that I have grown so accustomed to using is Microsoft word processor. This is also a very valuable tool as it allows for spelling checks, can offer substitute words and has dictionary facility that learners can use in the process of typing. Mine being a subject that requires one to get the spellings of words right, this is an appropriate instrument of technology integration for teaching and learning processes.

I do not think that these software stifle in any way the depth of knowledge of activities. Personally I think it depends upon what the person who is using the App wishes to include. It is up to the learner or teacher to choose whatever App is appropriate for the task at hand, and having the choice to do so gives one the opportunity to choose the best.

Where in Tech are We?

In this lesson I have learnt how to apply or integrate technology in my teaching. I have discovered that technology can be integrated into teaching starting with the simplest and basic ideas and moving onto the more complicated and modified forms of integration. Slowly by slowly it is easy to introduce the learners to this method of teaching and learning without scaring them into thinking they are getting into something that is more modified and challenging.

I have learnt the four stages into technology integration substitution, augmentation , modification and redefining from watching the SAMR model videos.  The first stage of substitution is not any different from the old way of teaching because you only get the students to transfer what they could have written down in pen into a microsoft word document.  A simple process but captures the interest of the students since they are doing it hands-on. Then Augmentation which is also similar to substitution improves a bit on the original format of task i.e allows the learners to do spell checks using the computer, access online dictionary and using clip art or digital pictures where they would have done it manually. Modification on the other hand allows for complete transformation of task through redesigning it such that the students can do the task but cannot complete it without using technology. e.g creating something like a book report or comic out of a book report. Redefining is almost similar to modification but it emphasizes use of technology. The students have to do something with technology in order to complete task/assignment. In this case the students would need to have all the materials they are to use lined up. In this process, the more one interacts with the technology the more they get used to it and the more they feel at ease with it. The process is simple and clear and it keeps taking you into the next step and by the time you realize it you are already there and ready to use TPACK.

TPACK is basically integration of technological knowledge with content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge. In integrating the three there is need to have the technical knowledge and know how it relates to content. Know what it is that you want to pass to your learners. What is that that you wish them to learn. After which you should know how to teach, what technology you are to use to teach the content you want to pass on.