Group Activity 3- Reflections on the online collaborative exercise and the Learners' Charter.

ICT is multifaceted. Many contributors indicated ICT as a tool that affords:
1. Access to information
2. It caters to all learning styles
3. It has a wide scope for interaction between persons
4. Quick access to assessment of one's progress is a possibility
5. The scope for it to be used to create ideas to solve a problem or to cater to a need
6. Above all it is fast and quick and its use is not restricted by geography

I do not believe that this tool's capacity has been fully explored as to the way it can really help people learn.  However, this course I believe is just one of the many efforts across the world to bring awareness to educators that ICT has a wide capacity to cater for and answer many of the educational questions regarding the teaching learning process.   We as educators have a great responsibility to get onboard and stop being traditionalists but rather open minded to change.  ICT is fast becoming the official language for learning.

Module 2A: Activity 1: ICT and the Roles of the Educator.- Reflective Comments

The Educator’s role is diverse.  Diversity calls for flexibility and versatility. A tool that adequately fits these descriptives is ICT.  ICT can play a vital role in assisting an educator to fulfil all the roles outlined below. 

1-      Mediator- The educator deals with many mediating influences.  These include school climate, the need for professional development, policies, resources, personalities of teachers, pedagogy.  The educator has to be a resourceful person who can tap into information that can assist teachers in executing their tasks effectively , without them feeling overwhelmed over  the factors that influence their ability to work. Rather the educator uses his or her understanding of these influences to be creative and bridges any divide that can impede progress.

2- Designer – Teachers can use ICT to be creative:

-Construct Tests

-Create worksheets

-Design lesson plans whether through the use of powerpoint presentations

-Design of software to meeting a particular educational need

3- Administrator- A key area as an administrator is record keeping and organization.  This tool can be used to store valid data such as registration of students, statistics, students’ scores, monitoring and evaluation records for teachers and schedules
4- Scholar- As a research tool, the educator can use this medium to access information that is relevant to his or her context.  Since knowledge is progressive an educator has to be constantly informed.
5- Pastoral-  Communication is vital in relationship.  A school is seen as a community and can also be dubbed as a family. Hence, the need to keep in touch becomes necessary.  The emails and social networks help to bridge the gap where the telephone is not feasible.  Teachers can communicate with parents regarding issues challenging students and instead of being confined to coming to the school, a simple chat online may be more accommodating.  A teacher can send a quick email to find out what is happening in the life of a student.  It can also serve as an informal way of creating a paper trail for key issues.

6- Assessor- Monitoring and Evaluation is crucial to progression.  The educator can device instruments through the use of ICT that appraise particular objectives such as classroom management,  teaching of lessons and general observations.  These instruments will highlight weaknesses and strengths so that proper planning can be made.
7- Specialist-  ICT affords specialist to explore and peruse varied learning strategies and methods across the educational continuum.  This allows the educator to be versatile and competent at a particular task when it is demanded.  An educator needs to be a jack of all trades, as it were.  The great wealth of information available can make the educator proficient at any task.