Seminar 1Aral Pinoy conducts RI Seminar for FREE
Reflective Inquiry (RI) on Learner-Centered (LC) Teaching Beliefs and Practices is an initiative undertaken to inquire on how LC the participants are in terms of their teaching beliefs and practices and eventually recommend specific course of actions based on the results and findings of the said inquiry.
What is a Reflective Inquiry?
Inquiry as a method encourages and enhances thinking. Critical Thinking as a process constructs meaning and confirms understanding. Reflective Inquiry is where critical thinking integrates the reflective and shared activities of a community of inquiry. Thus, inquiry and reflective thought are conjoined (Garrison, 2004).
An inquiry learning experience (1) is problem or question driven, (2) typically has a small-group feature, (3) includes critical discourse, (4) requires self-direction, (5) is frequently multi-disciplinary, and (6) incorporates research methods such as information gathering and synthesis of ideas” (Institutional Learning Plan, 2003 as cited in Garrison, 2004).
Garrison (2004) describes Critical Thinking as, "(1) the means to personal meaning, (2) (re)construction of knowledge, and (3) an educated person. The addition of the adjective – critical – reflects the essential element of questioning and skepticism. To think critically is to make sense of things through questioning, debate, and confirming understanding collaboratively."
In terms of its educational implication, Garrison (2004) claims that, "thinking does not occur in a vacuum; it is thinking about something." Thinking is best taught as (1) an integral aspect of a course of studies and (2) acquiring a deep understanding of specific content. Reflective inquiry is seriously compromised by an excessive emphasis on content (Donald, 2002 as cited in Garrison, 2004). That is, teaching of thinking must occur in concert with the teaching of content (Garrison, 2004).
What are the results and findings of the Inquiry?
The wealth of data drawn from the participants through their surveys, reflections, discussions and recommendations will be collected in a systematic manner so that results and findings of the said activity can be strongly validated and supported through and by other sources or data from other areas/departments within or outside a school.
Painter & Rigsby (2005) provide below these two phases of the said activity, namely (1) data gathering through Reflective Inquiry and (2) the course of actions or the products produced based on the results and findings of the inquiry.
Reflective Inquiry:
* Teacher thinks about why he/she "does something in a certain manner" and talks about how to improve.
* Has a central question that is being explored; Q. remains static throughout project.
* Teacher uses journal to write reflectively and collects some data systematically.
* Teacher has gotten feedback from others to refine his/her inquiry. But. generally, does not systematically consult to get other perspectives
* The subjectivity of the view is checked by only a few types of data
* Researcher begins to show how research is tied to others' research
Course of Actions/Product Produced:
* Improved classroom practice/new teaching techniques
* Reflective writing may be sculpted into a short essay with some back-up evidence.
* Contains findings that can be backed up by some evidence.
* Presentation story: Tells a personal story that is backed up by some specific pieces of evidence about how to improve teaching practice.
Seminar 2Aral Pinoy runs Modules on RYPPT w/o AC for FREE
A. Project Objectives
Running Your PowerPoint Presentation Without A Computer (RYPPT w/o AC) is a project that aims to come up with an innovative-alternative for doing electronic presentations that can improve and maximize the use of TV in a classroom for the purpose of efficiency of learning and teaching.
B. Description and Rationale of the Project
Running Your PowerPoint Presentation Without A Computer is a self-paced tutorial modules and trainor's manual that will guide the users/trainors the step-by-step on how to convert PowerPoint presentations to play on a digital still camera and view them on a TV screen. Today digital cameras come with video-out cables that connect to a TV monitor's video input jack, you are no longer tied up by PC in running your presentation. A Digital still camera does not only capture pictures to be used for presentations. It also serves as digital storage and a player for PowerPoint slideshow. But how is it done? You maybe are thinking that you could simply save your PowerPoint file to a digital still camera and it would just run. It does not work that way. But it is not that difficult. Of course you still need a computer to create your presentations. However, when you display your presentations, a computer is no longer needed. But how is it done?
Running Your PowerPoint Presentation Without A Computer consists of the following six modules on:
* Presenting PowerPoint slides run without a computer
* Optimizing PowerPoint slides on TV
* Resizing PowerPoint slides to 8.89 x 6.67 inches (or 640 x 480 pixels)
* Converting PowerPoint slides in JPEG File Interchange Format
* Storing PowerPoint slides on a digital camera
* Viewing the PowerPoint slides on TV with a digital camera
Why Run Your PowerPoint Presentation Without A Computer? It is an excellent tutorial module for:
* Showing your presentations without the need for a computer
* Offering you cost-effective presentation digital appliance and method
* Providing you an alternative for instruction delivery
* Designing more effective visual aid for presentation
* Creating your new learning and teaching materials
* Maximizing your class time and minimizing equipment failure
* Increasing the speed with which your students acquire knowledge, learn more and better
* Helping you learn new skills in instruction and learning materials development
* Giving your presentations more of a TV feel (and a movie feel)
* Sharing your slideshows to your colleagues and students through digital cameras or memory cards
C. Output
Each module is laid out through the following sections:
* Title is basically a short description that provides you a clear idea of the module.
* Topic is the perspective of the module which gives you a brief outline of the matters to be dealt with and presenting you what exactly the module intends to explore and demonstrate.
* Objectives serve as guidelines on what specific results being expected from you as module users/trainors
* Discussion is the content of the whole lesson where instructions and screen shots explain the concepts and take you step by step visually through each procedure. This allows you to engage in performing and learning with ease, speed, flexibility and enjoyment through varied tasks.
* Summary 5 is the recap of the major concepts and procedures that are presented and the methods that are covered in the discussion section
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