SPIRIT BUTTER FINGERS

Pygmalion Effect : Self Fulfilling Prophecy

2010-01-28T20:15:00.000-08:00

Terdapat satu kajian yang menunjukkan bahawa sekiranya guru fikir bahawa seorang pelajar mempunyai masalah pembelajaran, pelajar itu akan menghasilkan pencapaian yang rendah. Tetapi sekiranya guru percaya bahawa seorang pelajar ada potensi tinggi, maka pelajar itu akan menghasilkan pencapaian yang tinggi.

Terdapat satu kajian dimana guru di sebuah kelas dimaklumkan bahawa ada beberapa murid di kelas itu yang akan mengalami perubahan mendadak dalam kebolehan mereka untuk belajar. Guru-guru di kelas itu percaya maklumat itu, selepas enam bulan, pengkaji member satu peperiksaan untuk kelas itu. Keputusan peperiksaan itu menunjukkan bahawa murid-murid yang dikatakan luar biasa mendapat keputusan yang tertinggi.

Sebenarnya murid-murid itu sama kebolehan mereka. Tetapi ekspetasi guru untuk murid tersebut terlalu tinggi, mungkin ini mempengaruhi cara guru berkomunikasi dengan murid-murid tersebut. Mungkin murid-murid tersebut juga percaya bahawa mereka lebih pandai daripada yang lain. Akhirnya, pencapaian mereka lebih baik daripada yang lain.

Implikasi kajian ialah sekiranya sistem pendidikan memberi label yang negative kepada seorang pelajar, maka konsep kendirinya akan turun dan pencapaian akan turun.

PENGENALAN KEPADA DISLEKSIA

2010-01-28T20:01:00.000-08:00

Definisi Disleksia
- Masalah bacaan dan masalah tulisan.

- Guru boleh mengetahui murid disleksia sekiranya ada huruf yang terbalik di dalam penulisannya.

Sejarah Pendidikan Disleksia di Malaysia dan Luar Negara

Malaysia : -
Pelajar yang ada masalah disleksia sering diletak di kelas yang dinamakan Masalah Pembelajaran. Kelas itu diasingkan dan terdapat pelbagai kerumitan dalam pengurusan kelas itu. Masalah pembelajaran ada kesan negatif kepada konsep kendiri dan keluarganya. Kelas itu juga dinamakan kelas pemulihan.

Satu masalah kelas pemulihan ialah pelajar yang masuk kelas pemulihan tidak mengikut kelas Bahasa Melayu dan Matematik di kelas biasa. Oleh yang demikian, mereka ketinggalan pembelajaran. Guru boleh mengatur kelas pemulihan di luar dari jadual waktu kelas biasa. Dengan cara ini, murid yang perlu sokongan dalam masalah pembacaan dan penulisan akan menghadiri kelas pemulihan dan juga kelas biasa (BM/Maths).

*Cadangan : Guru pemulihan yang merupakan guru pakar dalam disleksia boleh melatih guru biasa. “Specialist teacher” boleh mengajar bersama guru biasa. Teknik itu dinamakan “Team Teaching”.

Luar Negara : -
Di luar negara, sokongan pemulihan diberi masa yang tidak menjejaskan pelajar itu menghadiri kelas biasa. Sebenarnya, adalah melanggar undang-undang sekiranya pelajar tidak menghadiri kelas biasa kerana semua pelajar mesti diberi peluang yang sama di dalam konsep “Education For All”.

Di dalam sebuah persidangan dunia di Salamanca Sepanyol, dimana Malaysia turut berserta satu kenyataan yang dinamakan “The Salamanca Statement” untuk memastikan bahawa semua pelajar harus menghadiri kelas biasa di sekolah yang dekat dengan rumah.

All About Dyslexia

2010-01-25T08:40:00.000-08:00

Testing and Assessment

No Single Test

IMPORTANT: Dyslexia cannot be officially diagnosed using one single test. That's because dyslexia can be mild, moderate, severe, or profound.
Also, dyslexia can impact many different areas.
That's why a Dyslexia Testing Specialist will use from 10 to 12 tests to investigate every area

Why Test?

If you're already convinced that your child (or a student) has dyslexia, do you have to get them tested? No. But I do recommend it – even if that child is being home schooled – and here's why.
Although dyslexia is the most common reason a bright student will struggle with reading, spelling, or written composition, it is not the only reason. And until you know for sure why a child is struggling, you won't know the best way to help.

For instance, the programs you use to improve the skills of a child with dyslexia are quite different than the ones you use for a child with a non-verbal learning disability, often called NLD.
So the most important reason for getting an accurate diagnosis is to help you pick the right tutoring program to help that child. A program that is supported by rigorous, independent, scientific research.

That way, you won't waste precious time (and money) on the wrong type of tutoring, program, or therapy.

Also, a properly written diagnostic report will allow a student with dyslexia to receive classroom accommodations through a 504 Plan.

Should the School Test?
Many people know that public schools are required to test children who live in their service area, whether those children attend that public school or not.
But what you may not realize is that most public schools do not test children for dyslexia. They test them to find out if they are eligible for special education services.

There is a huge difference between eligibility testing and diagnostic testing.
Federal education law does not require public schools to test children for dyslexia. Schools only have to test to find out if a child is eligible for special education services, and if so, under what category. If a child with dyslexia is eligible, they will be placed in a category called Learning Disability.

So before you allow the public school to test your child, ask them this question: "Will you be testing my child for dyslexia?"
You may be shocked at their answer.

Some public schools will give one of the following excuses for NOT testing a child for dyslexia. They might say that dyslexia is just a catch-all term and there’s no test for it. Or that your child is too young to test. Or that only a doctor can test for dyslexia. Or they might even say that dyslexia is the same thing as a learning disability.
If you hear comments like that, do not allow them test your child for dyslexia because not one of those statements is true.

Dyslexia is not LD
Most children with dyslexia are not severe enough to meet the school’s criteria, and the legal definition, of a learning disability.

In fact, according to the research, only one in ten children with dyslexia qualifies as having a learning disability. That means nine out of ten children with dyslexia are either never sent for testing, or when they are tested, they do not qualify as having a learning disability.

So only children with severe dyslexia qualify. But so do children who are struggling for other reasons. That’s why it is not true that dyslexia is the same thing as a learning disability.

And that’s also why most children with dyslexia are not receiving special education services. Only those who qualify as having a Learning Disability receive special education services.
Yet children who do not qualify (because they are not severe enough) will continue to struggle tremendously in the areas of spelling, writing, and reading if they have dyslexia.

Dyslexia is not Medical
If you ask a public school to test your child for dyslexia, they may tell you that dyslexia is a medical issue, and that only a doctor can test for it.
But if you ask a doctor to test your child, the doctor will probably tell you that they do not test for dyslexia.

Doctors do not test children for reading, writing, and spelling issues because those are not considered medical issues. They are educational issues. So a doctor will probably refer you back to the school or to an educational psychologist.Many educational psychologists are former school psychologists, and most of them only test for a learning disability. But dyslexia is not the same thing as a learning disability. So that type of testing is not appropriate.

When to Test?
A child can be professionally diagnosed with dyslexia as early as five-and-a-half years old.
Although most public schools are reluctant to test children before third grade, and often encourage parents to wait and see if their child will "outgrow" his or her reading, spelling, or writing difficulties, research shows that waiting is the worst thing you can do.

If it's dyslexia, a child will not outgrow his or her difficulties. And it takes less time to fix the reading and spelling difficulties when dyslexia is discovered at age six than when it is not discovered until age 9 – or 19 – or even older.

Testing Process
A Dyslexia Testing Specialist must have enough evidence of dyslexia ahead of time to justify putting a child through the testing process.

So the tester will meet with the parents for at least two hours to gather a complete genetic, developmental and educational history on the child. The tester will want copies of the child’s report cards, as well as reports from any other testing that may have already been done. He’ll also want to know if the child has received any type of tutoring or speech therapy.
The tester will also ask to see samples of recent school work to see if it contains the classic mistakes that people with dyslexia make.

As a last step, the tester will ask what the child is really good at because dyslexia is an unusual combination of both strengths and weaknesses. So the tester will want to find out if a child’s strengths and gifted areas also match the dyslexia pattern.
If the tester uncovers any issues during the interview that are not related to dyslexia or ADD, the tester should stop the process and refer the parent to a neuropsychologist for a complete evaluation.

Only if there is enough indirect evidence of dyslexia at the end of the parent interview would a professional tester agree to test the child.

Which Tests?
There is no single test that can prove or disprove dyslexia. And dyslexia can vary from mild to moderate to severe to profound.

That's why a dyslexia testing specialist will use a combination of 10 to 12 tests to investigate every area that could be impacted by dyslexia.
It is more important that every area be investigated than the names of the specific tests. That's because many tests have been developed that can be used to investigate each of the following areas.

Memory
Dyslexia makes it very difficult to memorize random facts (like multiplication tables), or to memorize a sequence.
That’s why a child will be asked to write something that requires memorization – either their address, the alphabet, the days of the week in order, or the months of the year in order.
Memorizing a sequence, or random facts, is very difficult for a someone with dyslexia.

Auditory Processing
Many people still believe that dyslexia is due to a visual processing problem. Yet research has proven that most of their difficulty is due to auditory processing problems.
That’s why tests of phonemic awareness, auditory memory size, and word retrieval – which is the ability to quickly and accurately retrieve words from auditory memory – should always be given.A weakness in one or more of those auditory processing areas is a hallmark of dyslexia.

Phonics
Phonics is not the answer for children with dyslexia. That’s why they can learn phonics in isolation, but they are not able to use that knowledge to sound out an unknown word.
Phonics teaches children to associate letters with sounds. But to be able to use phonics, a child must be able to memorize and have good auditory processing skills to be able to hear each sound within a word. Both of those areas are weak in people with dyslexia.

That’s why a symbol-to-sound and a sound-to-symbol test should always be given. Those two tests will find out if a child can look at printed letters, letter pairs, or vowel teams and make the sound they represent. And if, when presented with a sound, they can write down the appropriate letter or letters.Children with dyslexia have great difficulty on symbol-to-sound and sound-to-symbol tests despite being exposed to phonics for many years.

Reading Words
Some people still think that a child with dyslexia can not read at all. But that is not true. People with dyslexia can read up to a point. But they usually hit a brick wall in reading by third to fourth grade (if not sooner) because their dyslexia forces them to use very different strategies when they read. Their unusual strategies will start to fail them by third to fourth grade.

Yet children with dyslexia are so smart that they can fool you for awhile. They get very good at using picture and context clues, plus a predictable story line, to guess at the words.
That’s why if you take words they can read in a story, and put them on flash cards, they often, will not be able to read the words. That’s also why they can read a word on one page, but they won’t recognize the very same word on the next page.

Even if they’ve been taught phonics, they can’t use it to sound out an unknown word. That’s why they hate hearing you say, “Sound it out.” In fact, the inability to sound out an unknown word is a classic warning sign of dyslexia.

So the best way to check their reading ability is to ask them to read a list of words – or even nonsense words – out loud. That’s because a list of words does not contain any pictures or context clues.

When reading a word list, people with dyslexia look at the shape of a word instead of looking carefully at the letters. So when they make a mistake, they often say a word that has a similar shape, they insert or delete sounds (or get the sounds in the wrong sequence), they ignore or change suffixes, they really mess up the vowel sounds, and they are very confused about Silent-E.But you’ll only hear those mistakes if they read the word list out loud.

Reading Fluency
People with dyslexia usually read much more slowly than everyone else.
So a professional tester will also check their out loud reading rate, which is sometimes called reading fluency.

They will ask a child to read a story out loud for one minute. It will be a grade-level story, but one that they have never seen before, and the story will not have any picture clues.
The tester will compare the number of words the child can read correctly in one minute to the published reading fluency benchmarks.

Children with moderate to severe dyslexia will usually have a reading rate that is much lower than the benchmarks listed on the Dibels website, http://dibels.uoregon.edu/.

Dysgraphia, Copying from the Board
Dysgraphia is a fancy word for extreme difficulty with the physical act of handwriting. Most people with dyslexia also have dysgraphia.

That’s why they have such an odd pencil grip, why they have difficulty getting their letters to sit on the line, why they form some of their letters with such odd beginning and ending points, why they often have difficulty putting letter tails below the line, why they hate cursive, and why they have extreme difficulty copying from the board.

In fact, that’s another important test for dyslexia. First have a child read something that’s on the board, then watch while they try to copy it onto paper.

Due to their poor visual memory for printed words, a child with dyslexia will have to glance up at the board every one or two letters, then look down and stare intently at what they are writing. Their head is constantly going up and down while they are copying, and when they look back up at the board, they may have a hard time figuring out where they left off.
That's why they sometimes lose their place, and make mistakes even when copying words that they can read.

Writing Sample
A writing sample is just three or four sentences that a child composes and writes without any help or feedback.

Written expression is the weakest skill of all in someone with dyslexia because it requires them to integrate many weak skills. That’s why children with dyslexia usually hate to write, and it often takes significant coaxing to get them to write anything.

Their writing sample will usually reveal their difficulty with spelling. But some children hide their spelling difficulties by only using simple one-syllable words that they’re sure they know how to spell. In that case, you’ll notice that their sentence structure is quite repetitive. Each sentence may start with the same phrase, such as “I like to paint. I like to draw. I like to play soccer.”

Or you may discover that they don’t yet understand the concept of a sentence. They may run 3 or 4 sentences together without any punctuation to break them up. Or their sentences may start with lower-case letters, end with the wrong punctuation, or may be fragments instead of complete sentences.

You may also notice that the words they write down are much more basic, or less sophisticated, than the words they use when they talk.That’s why a writing sample is so revealing, and why it should always be included when testing someone for dyslexia.

Who should NOT test?
Parents, please be aware that using the right tests is only half the battle.
A person who is not an expert in dyslexia may give the right tests but may not know how to correctly interpret the results.

That’s why testing should be done by a professional who is an expert in dyslexia, and who has also received intense, specialized training in how to accurately give and score the tests, and to interpret the results.

Unfortunately, most school psychologists have not had that type of training. To find out, ask them this question: “What specialized training have you completed that qualifies you to test a child for dyslexia?”
In fact, you should ask that question before you hire anyone to test your child.

Who should test?
To receive a free list of Certified Dyslexia Testing Specialists in your area, or a list of questions you should ask before you hire someone to test your child.

Cost of testing
Testing done by the public school system is free, but as you know, most public schools do not test children for dyslexia. That means a parent will have to hire a professional to do the testing.
The cost varies tremendously from state to state. So you’ll have to call the professionals on our referral list and ask what they charge.

It may cost less than you imagine. That’s because no one becomes a Dyslexia Testing Specialist to make a lot of money. They do it because of their compassion. They often know from personal experience what happens to kids who have dyslexia but are never identified and never get the right type of help.
By the way, since dyslexia is not considered a medical issue, testing for it is not covered by medical insurance. Nor will the school pay for it because schools are not required by law to test children for dyslexia.

So a parent should be prepared to pay for the testing themselves.
It is the best investment a parent can make in their child’s future.

Texas Dyslexia Handbook
Texas Dyslexia Handbook Texas was the first state in the nation to pass a dyslexia Law. Over the years, that Texas law has become a wonderful model for other states to follow. The Texas law recognizes the importance of early intervention.

Any parent or teacher can request a free dyslexia assessment for any kindergarten, first-grade, or second-grade child who struggles with reading, writing, or spelling.If the assessment test confirms dyslexia, that child then works intensively with a dyslexia specialist, who uses one of the "research-based best practices" reading programs designed specifically for children with dyslexia.

The child usually receives classroom accommodations on a 504 Plan, too. The dyslexia program in Texas is completely separate from special education, because Texas knows that early intervention will close the academic gap more quickly, and less expensively, than the "wait to fail" special education approach.

Dyslexic? You're not alone...

2010-01-09T05:18:00.000-08:00

Dyslexia is a syndrome of many and varied symptoms affecting over 40 million American children and adults. Many with dyslexia and related learning and attention disorders realize quite early that they are not like their peers. Their learning and coordination or klutzy difficulties often lead to ridicule and/or self-recrimination — leading them to feel dumb and depressed-isolated. As a result, one can only wonder just how many potential creative geniuses — how many Einstein’s and Da Vinci’s — have been stigmatized and pushed aside?

All too often, learning-disabled children grow up to be underemployed adults, shunted into routine, dead-end occupations for life. Some have difficulties maintaining families and raising children properly. Many drift into drugs and alcohol — even crime. Their loss and cost to society is incalculable. And tragically, this staggering loss was, and is, preventable!

Since dyslexia is often a self-compensating disorder that can often be overcome with time, effort and understanding, it is crucial to provide dyslexics with success stories of well known individuals so that they don’t give up and indeed persevere. Thus for example, there have been many dyslexics that have made tremendous contributions to mankind. They include famous entertainers, designers, architects, writers, athletes, jurists, physicians, scientists, and political and business leaders.

These successful dyslexics learned to overcome or sidestep their barriers, permitting them to accomplish their dreams and desires. In fact, at times their disorder was found to be a catalyst for success — forcing them to develop and utilize hidden talents. Often, their most crucial "life-saving"characteristic was perseverance. They never gave up no matter how difficult the task before them seemed. Their successful lives, despite dyslexia, shows us that "miracles" can be accomplished so long as dyslexics are encouraged by loving parents and caring teachers to believe in themselves.

An inspiring sample of some self-compensated famous and successful dyslexics follows. But just remember — for every famous or well-known dyslexic, there are thousands and thousands more who have made it, despite their disorder. Sadly, there are millions that have not — that could have!

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Pablo Picasso

Pablo was born in 1881 in Malaga, Spain. He was a famous, controversial, and trend-setting art icon. Pablo attended local parochial schools and had a very difficult time. He is described as having difficulty reading the orientation of the letters and labeled a dyslexic, and despite the initial difficulties was able to catch up with the curriculum. However, dyslexia made school difficult and he never really benefited from his education. Dyslexia would trouble Picasso for the rest of his life.

Pablo’s father was an art teacher in Malaga, and encouraged Pablo to attend. Pablo enrolled in the school in 1892. Despite the difficulties that his learning disabilities posed, it became clear that Pablo had an incredible talent. From an early age Pablo Picasso had developed the sense of how people wanted to be seen and how others saw them. Over the course of his career he developed a unique sense of beauty and style that seemed to call to people. Pablo painted things as he saw them — out of order, backwards or upside down. His paintings demonstrated the power of imagination, raw emotion, and creativity on the human psyche. As others before him, Pablo Picasso took art to a new level. A prolific painter, some of his famous works includes The Young Ladies of Avigon, Old Man with Guitar, and Guernica.

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Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise was born fighting. He grew up poor, and his family moved around a lot while his father looked for work. Tom never spent a lot of time any one school because the family moved around a lot. Tom, like his mother, suffered from dyslexia and was put into the remedial classes at school. Tom is right handed when writing, but does most things left handed. While Tom was not an academic success, he focused on athletics and competed in many sports. A knee injury derailed his hopes of a promising athletic career.

Tom Cruise then spent a year in a Franciscan monastery, but the priesthood was not for him. While in high school, he appeared in a number of plays, and with his mother’s encouragement and support, pursued a career in acting. Tom focused all his energy on developing his acting career, once again revealing his drive and dogged determination. He never let his learning disability stand in the way of his success.

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Richard Branson

Richard Branson, founder and chairman of London-based Virgin Group, didn't breeze through school. In fact, school was something of a nightmare for him. His scores on standardized tests were dismal, pointing to a dismal future. He was embarrassed by his dyslexia and found his education becoming more and more difficult. He felt as if he had been written off.

However, his educators failed to detect his true gifts. His ability to connect with people on a personal level, an intuitive sense of people, was not detected until a frustrated Richard Branson started a student newspaper with fellow student Jonny Gems. The incredible success of the Student was but the start of a richly diverse and successful career.

Despite the difficulties and challenges posed by his dyslexia, by focusing on his inner talents, Richard Branson successfully overcame his difficulties. From his first taste of success and believing in himself, Richard Branson never looked back.

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Leonard Da Vinci

Born in 1452, Da Vinci was sent to Florence in his teens to apprentice as a painter under Andrea del Verrocchio. He quickly developed his own artistic style which was unique and contrary to tradition, even going so far as to devised his own special formula of paint. His style was characterized by diffuse shadows and subtle hues and marked the beginning of the High Renaissance period.

Da Vinci dedicated himself to understanding the mysteries of nature, and his insightful contributions to science and technology were legendary. As the archetypal Renaissance man, Leonardo helped set an ignorant and superstitious world on a course of reason, science, learning, and tolerance. He was an internationally renowned inventor, scientists, engineer, architect, painter, sculptor, musician, mathematician, anatomist, astronomer, geologists, biologist, and philosopher in his time.

Da Vinci was also believed to suffer from a number of learning disabilities including dyslexia and attention deficit disorder. Some believe that the initiation of many more projects than he ever completed suggest that he had attention deficit disorder. Strong evidence in Da Vinci’s manuscripts and letters corroborates the diagnosis of dyslexia. It appears that Leonardo wrote his notes backwards, from right to left, in a mirror image. This is a trait shared by many left-handed dyslexic people. In addition to the handwriting, the spelling errors in his manuscripts and journals demonstrated dyslexia-like language difficulties.

Da Vinci overcame his learning disabilities by funneling his creative talents into visual depictions of his thoughts. His creative, analytic, and visionary inventiveness has not yet been matched.

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Thomas Edison

Born in 1847, Thomas Edison was a brilliant scientist and inventor. He was thrown out of school when he was 12 because he was thought to be dumb. He was noted to be terrible at mathematics, unable to focus, and had difficulty with words and speech. It was very clear, however, that Thomas Edison was an extremely intelligent student despite his poor performance in school.

In the late 1860s and early 1870s electrical science was still in its infancy and Thomas Edison was keeping abreast of the latest developments. He was an avid reader of the latest research of the day and frequently contributed articles about new ideas in telegraph design to technical journals. Over the course of his career Edison patented 1,093 inventions. Edison believed in hard work, sometimes working twenty hours a day. He has been quoted as saying, "Genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration."

Hard work and perseverance helped Thomas Edison focus his keen insight and creative abilities on the development of ingenious tools that have laid the foundation for our modern society.

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Jay Leno

Jay Leno has worked very hard all his life. A mild dyslexic, he did not do very well in school getting mainly C’s and D’s. Jay, however, was determined to accomplish his goals. Despite his poor grades, he was determined to attend Emerson College in Boston. While told by the admissions officer that he was not a good candidate Jay had his heart set on attending the University and sat outside the admission officers’ office 12 hours a day 5 days a week until he was accepted into the University.

Jay credits his dyslexia with enabling him to succeed in comedy. He credits his dyslexia with helping him develop the drive and perseverance needed to succeed in comedy, and life in general.

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Whoopi Goldberg

hoopi Goldberg, born Carolyn Johnson, is an outstanding American entertainer, having acted in major motion picture hits like Ghost, Sister Act I and II, Made in America, Jumping Jack Flash, The Color Purple, and Star Trek: Generations.

Whoopi had a lot of difficulty in school, but it was not until she was an adult did she learn that she had dyslexia. When Whoopi was growing up, she remembers being called dumb and stupid because she had a lot of problems reading. It was clear to her teachers and family that she was neither slow nor dumb, but had some problem that had not yet been well defined.

Despite her dyslexia, Whoopi Goldberg has gone on to have a successful film and television career.

Masalah Pengamatan Dan Cara Mengatasi

2009-09-03T20:33:00.000-07:00

Dalam mengatasi masalah pengamatan, seseorang guru boleh memberi latihan-latihan pengamatan yang terlibat dalam latihan pengamatan bentuk, penyelarasan bentuk motor-tangan, menyalin, ingatan penglihatan, diskriminasi penglihatan dan pendengaran.

Dua jenis masalah pengamatan yang utama :

Kelemahan pengamatan penglihatan
Kelemahan pengamatan pendengaran

1. Kelemahan Pengamatan Penglihatan

Diskriminasi penglihatan
Penerimaan penglihatan
Perhubungan penglihatan
Ingatan visual (visual memory)

2. Kelemahan Pengamatan Pendengaran

Diskriminasi pendengaran
Penerimaan pendengaran (auditori reception)
Perhubungan pendengaran (auditori association)
Rumusan / melengkap pendengaran
Cantuman bunyi atau percantuman pendengaran
Ingatan pendengaran (auditori memory)

Penerimaan Penglihatan

a) Penerimaan penglihatan dikaitkan dengan kebolehan memahami tanda-tanda yang seseorang itu melihat.

b) Sesetengah kanak2 sukar untuk mentafsir atau menterjemahkan simbol-simbol yang dilihat.

c) Pemulihan dijalankan untuk menolong kanak-kanak ini memahami simbol, pergerakan badan, isyarat, gambar, dan lukisan supaya ia dapat menceritakan makna objek-obejk itu.

Cadangan Aktiviti :

1) Ajar murid untuk mengenal dan membeza pelbagai bentuk benda-benda yang mudah dan telitikan perbezaan saiz, warna dan kedudukannya.

2) Adakan permainan seperti menyoal – siapa yang boleh lihat dengan banyak menda-benda yang ada di sesuatu tempat dan namakannya. Contoh, bilik darjah, kedai buku, pasar, dapur dan sebagainya.

- Diskriminasi Penglihatan

Dikaitkan dengan kebolehan mengasingkan secara visual akan persamaan dan perbezaan yang ada pada objek, gambar, huruf dan perkataan.

Untuk membaca seseorang kanak-kanak mesti tahu mendiskriminasikan perbezaan antara ‘m’ dan ‘n’ atau pun ‘lari’ dan ‘lori’.

Diskriminasi penglihatan juga termasuk dalam bahagian orientasi arah atau kedudukan seperti ‘lagu’ dan ‘gula’, ‘daki’ dan ‘baki’.

Sekiranya kanak-kanak menghadapi kesulitan-kesulitan ini, maka mereka haruslah diberi bimbingan dari peringkat awal bacaan supaya kemahiran ini dapat berkembang dengan baik.

Cadangan Aktiviti :

1) Mencari gambar, bentuk, huruf dan simbol-simbol yang tidak sama.

2) Perbezaan dan persamaan objek. Contoh : kerusi, meja, papan hitam dan sebagainya.

3) Objek-objek yang hampir serupa yang boleh diperolehi daripada gambar haiwan, bunga dan daun-daun.

4) Memadankan huruf-huruf dengan perkataan.

5) Menekap corak, bentuk dan huruf.

Renzulli’s Enrichment Triad Model

2009-08-10T09:26:00.000-07:00

Type 1 Enrichment Activities

Are designed to expose students to a wide variety of disciplines, topics, occupations, hobbies, persons, places, and events that would not be covered in a regular classroom.

Type 1 experiences can involve the following:

Contacting speakers.

Arranging demonstrations, trips, and/or performances.

Using varied materials such as films, slides, videos, print and non-print media.

Type 2 Enrichment Activities

Promote the development of thinking and feeling processes such as:

Creative thinking, problem solving, and critical thinking skills.

A wide variety of specific learning how-to-learn skills Skills in the use of advanced-level reference materials Written, oral, and visual communication.

Type 3 Enrichment Activities

Involve pursuing “self-selected” areas (within guideline topics) for advanced content acquisition and process training in which students assume the role of first-hand inquirer.

The goals of these type activities include the following:

Providing opportunities to apply interests, knowledge, creative ideas, and task commitment to a selective problem.

Acquiring advanced-level understanding of knowledge (content) and methodology (process).

Developing authentic products Developing self-directed learning skills in the areas of planning, organization, resource utilization, time management, decision-making, and self-evaluation.

Developing task commitment, self-confidence, and feelings of creative accomplishment.

"Evergreen Happy" - Pocket Charts

2009-08-10T09:22:00.001-07:00

December Pocket Charts

2009-08-10T08:29:00.000-07:00

December thematic vocabulary, with matching cards (without the picture) so students can take a word to their seats during writing time.

An Example Of Flannel Board

2009-07-30T07:30:00.000-07:00

This felt-board pattern stands on its own, is lightweight, collapsable and has pockets on the side to store your objects. Make one side with light blue felt for daytime scenes and the other side with dark blue felt for nighttime scenes.

You can make a custom felt board with whatever shapes you can dream up. Quilters cotton, fleece, and wool, sticks right to the felt without velcro. You can cut the shapes out from solid fabrics or buy printed fabric with pictures to cut out. I bought a yard of Eric Carle's 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear' fabric and cut out all the different animals. I made leaves for trees out of wool sweater scraps.

What you need:

· 4 26" canvas stretchers
· 4 32" canvas stretchers
· Staples and heavy duty staple gun
· scissors
· 2 yards of felt (1 yard in light blue 1 yard in dark blue)
· 2 2" long hinges and screws (need a screw-driver to attach hinges)
· Thread to match the felt and a sewing machine
· 2 yards lightweight fusible interfacing

Steps:

1. Assemble your stretchers so that you have two 26" by 34".

2. Cut the felt so that you have about 1.5" extra all around.

3. Use you heavy duty staple gun and staple the felt around the stretcher, like you would a canvas. Start in the middle of the bars, going around, end with the corners. The felt should be taught and even all around.

4. Attach the hinges on the back side of the stretched felt boards, across the 26" side.

5. Cut two triangles 23" across the bottom and 36" tall. Cut straight across the tops of the triangles 2" down so they have flat tops.

6. Cut Pockets: 2 6"X6" 2 11"X9" .

7. Sew pockets onto side triangles, one big and one little onto each side.

8. Staple side triangles to the backside of the felt boards. This part is a bit tricky, pinning first may help. Use something to prop up the felt board while it is on its side. Staple as close to the edge as possible, with staples about 1" apart.

9. Use your imagination and make objects to stick onto the board. You can use the them to tell a story or children can make up their own.

10. If you are using quilters' cottons, you can iron-on lightweight interfacing onto the back to give the fabric more support and prevent fraying.

Fabulous Flannel Fun!

2009-07-30T07:12:00.000-07:00

Here's a project to make that is inexpensive, easy, and fun-- a flannel board, which may also be known as a felt board.

A flannel board is simply a board covered with flannel or felt, and is used by placing shapes, symbols, and story character cutouts on it. After making a board, you will likely find it useful in many various ways.

A flannel board offers a nice alternative way to share stories with children; it can be used to help little ones count, add, and subtract; and, in addition, it is helpful when explaining other skills, such as letter, shape, and color recognition.

HOW TO MAKE A FLANNEL BOARD

There are various materials you can choose from when creating a board, such as plywood, cork, and heavy cardboard. Make it as big as you like, but do consider storage. A rectangular board that is about two feet high and three feet long will be plenty big without being too large.

Cover the board with felt or heavy flannel. This will provide a background base for your cutouts. Black and light blue colors work well for this. Measure your board, and allow for a two-inch overlap on all of the sides. (Once I covered a board with the underside of an old vinyl table cloth, and it worked, too.)

When securing the fabric, avoid using glue on the front side of the board under the fabric. Glue will interfere with the static electricity needed to make the cutouts adhere to the board. I have, however, used a hot glue gun to secure the fabric on the back side of the board.

To use, you might find it comfortable to sit on the floor, and lean the board against a chair, or you may prefer to set it on an easel.

CREATING CUTOUTS

Cutouts can be created with any material that will cling to the board. Here are some recommendations: felt, interfacing, construction paper, etc. When using paper shapes, covering them with contact paper, or having them laminated is recommended; Doing so will make your pieces sturdy.

Attaching some pieces of felt or sandpaper to back sides of the covered paper pieces will ensure that they will stick to the board, too.

Coloring books are an excellent source for finding simple patterns to use when making your cutouts. Trace the pattern onto paper, then transfer it to felt, or just use the paper picture itself.

To add accents and embellish your cutouts, some good choices are: felt pens, colored pencils, fabric paints, craft paints, water paints, and crayons. If you use crayons and colored pencils on interfacing, you can set the colors by placing the interfacing between two sheets of wax paper, and pressing it with a warm iron.

Using Tacky glue to attach layers of fabric or paper onto a cutout figure looks very attractive. To do this, cut out the base shape first, such as a simple body shape made from felt or interfacing. Then cut out the clothing for the figure from other felt pieces, and, applying glue along the edges, attach the clothing to the character's body.

STORAGE

To store your flannel board cutouts, manila envelopes come in handy. Label each envelope so your child will be able to find the story he or she is looking for. If your child is a pre-reader, draw or glue on a picture depicting the story inside the envelope. Place all the envelopes upright in a box.

FLANNEL BOARD TECHNIQUES

Know a story well, so that you can tell it to your child, using the flannel characters as visual aids. Keep story figures out of sight, such as behind the board, then bring them out and press them onto the board when it is the appropriate time in the story for them. This adds an element of surprise for the children.

Chinese Brush Painting

2009-07-16T22:46:00.000-07:00

Chinese yin Yang fish painting, the ornage fish is poting upwards, which represents male or Yang. The black fish represents Yin or woman. There are some examples of the black fish pointing upwards on our site, though it is not common for Chinese artists to paint the black fish pointing upwards, its a "male" ego thing I guess, though it is also tradition in China.

This is a brush painting of the Chinese golden dragon palying with a fireball. In some cases the painting will be intentionally split, right through the fireball, which is meant as a symbol of career advancement.

Lotus flowers are symbols of purity, because the rise from the muddy waters but themeselves are not soiled. The symbolism is that you can remain pure even when you live in an environment that is not.

In Chinese culture and Feng Shui tigers are said to drive away evil and when you see this Chinese brush painting the reason for this belief is obvious. One look at the gaze of this tiger makes it clear why the tiger is considered the king of beasts in China. If you want to drive away bad luck and evil from your home or office this is the perfect painting to hang on your wall.

The Chinese symbols on this painting from the top left, counter clockwise are: Fu (blessings), longevity, peaceful and healthy. These characters are written on a 7x7 piece of rice paper and the painting is ready to be framed. The meaning of the characters written on this Chinese calligraphy painting is "blessings for a long, healthy and peaceful life".

Wonderful Paintings

2009-07-16T22:27:00.000-07:00

Amazing Tattoo

2009-07-15T01:23:00.000-07:00

Sarawak Borneo

2009-07-15T00:29:00.000-07:00

Enam Topi Berfikir - Edward De Bono

2009-07-13T20:57:00.000-07:00

1. Topi Putih

Topi putih digunakan untuk mengumpul secara objektif segala maklumat yang berkaitan dengan apa yang sedang kita amati. Setiap pengguna topi putih tidak seharusnya memberi sebarang penilaian atau pendapat terhadap sesuatu maklumat.

Topi putih seringkali digunakan pada permulaan perbincangan untuk mencorakkan latar belakang sesuatu masalah. Ia juga boleh digunakan sekali lagi pada akhir perbincangan bagi memastikan sesuatu cadangan atau keputusan yang telah dibuat itu adalah berdasar kepada maklumat yang telah dikumpulkan.

2. Topi kuning

Topi kuning digunakan untuk mencari nilai-nilai positif. Ia juga digunakan untuk berfikir secara logikal daripada perspektif yang positif dan konstruktif.

Gaya pemikiran menggunakan topi kuning amat penting kerana ia dapat menggalakkan kita untuk mencari nilai-nilai positif sesuatu idea termasuk idea yang pada mulanya kelihatan tidak begitu menarik.

3. Topi hitam

Topi hitam digunakan untuk menganalisis idea atau meneliti sesuatu cadangan secara logikal dari aspek undang-undang, keselamatan dan lain-lain agar kita lebih berhati-hati sebelum menerima sesuatu keputusan atau cadangan.

Topi hitam juga dapat membantu kita menjadikan perancangan yang dibuat itu lebih kukuh dan fleksibel. Ia juga membantu kita dalam menjangkakan risiko-risiko yang mungkin berlaku sebelum membuat sebarang keputusan.

4. Topi merah

Menggunakan topi merah kita akan melihat sesuatu masalah itu dengan menggunakan emosi atau intuisi sama ada secara positif atau negatif tanpa perlu menjelaskan sebabnya dan bukan digunakan untuk mengubah sesuatu perkara atau idea yang telah dibuat. Ia juga cuba untuk memahami macam mana orang lain akan bertindak dengan emosi.

5. Topi hijau

Topi hijau pula mewakili kreativiti. Ia melambangkan tenaga pemikiran yang melihat sesuatu perkara dari perspektif yang baru dan juga mengeluarkan idea-idea yang kreatif dalam kaedah penyelesaian masalah.

Topi hijau membantu kita untuk bergerak kehadapan dengan menjanakan idea-idea alternatif yang lebih baik berbanding idea asal. Ia juga digunakan untuk menyelesaikan atau memperbaiki masalah yang dilihat melalui topi hitam.

6. Topi biru

Topi biru mewakili kawalan proses berfikir secara keseluruhannya ataupun dalam bahasa yang lebih mudah ia digunakan untuk mengawal kegunaan topi berfikir yang lain. Kebiasaannya, ia digunakan oleh pengerusi mesyuarat atau ketua perbincangan.

Ia boleh digunakan pada awal perbincangan untuk menjelaskan perkara yang akan dibincangkan, menjelaskan tujuan sesuatu perbincangan dan merancang corak pemikiran yang akan digunakan dalam perbincangan tersebut.

Pemikir yang memakai topi biru boleh bersuara semasa perbincangan sedang berlangsung untuk mengawal perbincangan agar tidak kelam kabut dan pengunaan topi lain adalah mengikut peraturan.

A Borneo Girl Was Talking 2 Buddha

2009-07-12T19:38:00.000-07:00

我對佛說：讓我所有朋友永遠健康快樂~！
I was telling the Buddha: Please bring health & happiness forever to
all of my friends!

佛說：只能四天~！
The Buddha said: Only 4 days

我說:好,春天、夏天、秋天、冬天。
I said: Alright, spring, summer, autumn, winter

佛說：三天。
The Buddha said: Three days.

我說：好，昨天、今天、明天。
I said: Alright, yesterday, today, tomorrow.

佛說：不行，兩天。
The Buddha said: No way, two days.

我說：好，白天、黑天。
I said: Alright, daytime & nighttime.

佛說：不行，就一天~！
The Buddha said: No way, just one day~!

我說：好~！
I said: Alright.

佛茫然問到：哪一天？
The Buddha asked vaguely: Which day?

我說：在我所有朋友活著的每一天~！?
I said: Each day my friends live ~!?

佛笑了……說：以後你所有朋友將天天健康快樂~
The Buddha smiled and said: Your friends will be healthy and happy everyday ever after.

天氣多變...加倍保重！(把溫暖傳下去哦∼)
No matter what the weather ... please take a good care! (Spread the warmth O~)

p.s佛說好朋友不可以都沒連絡！
p.s. The Buddha said, best friends must keep in touch woh!

Crystal Ong王雪晶 - 茉莉花 Mo Li Hua

2009-07-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

茉莉花－中音Ｃ調陶笛（AC Ocarina）

2009-07-07T07:07:00.000-07:00

青花瓷(Qing Hua Ci )-曲笛（Chinese Bamboo Flute）

2009-07-07T06:54:00.000-07:00

古箏 zheng 周杰倫 Jay chou 東風破

2009-07-07T06:33:00.000-07:00

Inclusive Education

2009-07-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

Inclusive Education

The core activity of the Inclusive Education team has traditionally been associated with Special Educational Needs. This aspect of education has long been a focus of interest and research strength in the Shool of Education and is associated with specialist programmer of study at Master and doctoral levels.

Research Interests

Within the Special Educational Needs strand, research interests include learning difficulties, motor impairment/movement difficulties, deaf education, and developmental disorders.

the characteristics of effective inclusive provision
children with movement difficulties
intervention using parents and teachers
early intervention and family support
home-school partnership
pupil participation
the deployment of teaching assistants
sign bilingualism among deaf children

Plus, Minus, Interesting for technology

2009-07-05T20:12:00.000-07:00

Plus :

Potential
The technology available today has made a wealth of knowledge available to students, which offers great potential for the speed and style of learning. Information is presented in so many ways that any type learner, whether gifted or disabled, can find and use the necessary material. This fact relates not only to the Internet, but to all the many technological improvements in learning, from smart boards to handheld dictionaries.

Access to all
Education is no longer the elitist privilege it once was. The information on the Internet is there for all who have access, without discrimination. People of all social strata are able to use technological advances, which is a fairly new academic development in America.

Minus :

Loss of Skills
With this increased access to knowledge also comes a probable loss of communication skills and interactive abilities between students and teacher, and students to peers. These skills are not as necessary in a classroom of computers, where individuality is a component of learning and is encouraged. Aside from learning, conflict resolution and socialization used to be two prominent reasons children came to school. The emphasis now has shifted away from these areas.

Poor remain poor
While general access is not denied, some children may not be exposed to computers and other technology because of socio-economic status. A child may live in a home without a computer, and chances are he will attend a poor school district with limited numbers of computers available. A student may get to use a computer for a short time, or only as a once-a-week activity instead of a regular class period. This puts these children at a disadvantage in learning technological functions. Poor districts are also most likely not to be the recipients of other technological modes of learning.

Interesting :
The computer age is here; this cannot be debated. Is it better for children to have access to computers with all their data at the loss of interpersonal skills? Is it acceptable that a student can talk to someone halfway around the world via instant messaging but not be able to get along with the student sitting next to her in a classroom? Technology can enhance traditional methods of learning but cannot replace the human touch.

Benefits of technology

2009-07-05T20:02:00.000-07:00

Benefits of Technology

To live, learn and work successfully in an increasingly complex and information-rich society, students must be able to use technology effectively. Within an effective educational setting, technology can enable students to become:

Capable information technology users:

3rd grade students using teacher generated links to learn more about Australia
5th grade students learning historical flight information from multimedia presentation
Middle School students using electronic databases for biology research
High School students developing multimedia presentations about course concepts
High School world language students listen to streaming audio of foreign language radio broadcasts over the Internet.

Information seekers, analyzers, and evaluators:

4th grade students researching pioneering activities on the web
5th grade students researching composers for comparison purposes
Middle School students utilizing online databases for specific subject research
High School science students collecting and analyzing real time data to study forces and ecosystems.
High School students completing Internet research (including finding sources, evaluating sources, and looking at advantages and disadvantages of the internet as a research tool).

Problem solvers and decision makers:

1st grade students using an Elmo projector device to share three-dimensional math problem solving
solutions for whole-class feedback
5th grade students using Excel to monitor progress in their simulated westward wagon trip
Middle School students use Geometer’s Sketchpad to investigate geometry properties
High School students, as part of Mock Congress, participate (role play) in online bulletin boards/discussions with members of their assigned constituency groups and political parties

Creative and effective user of productivity tools:

1st grade students using forms to create and publish poems and class books
3rd grade students beginning formal keyboarding
Middle School students creating multimedia presentations of medieval images
Middle School students constructing a spreadsheet and scatter-plot of temperature change data
High School students creating multimedia presentation that investigates issues of the colonization of Africa

Communicators, collaborators, publishers, and producers:

3rd grade students creating fables with words and graphics
4th and 5th graders publishing their work on their own web pages
Middle School students creating multimedia autobiographies
Middle School students creating multimedia presentation containing charts and graphs representing the data gathered classroom labs as well as research and images retrieved from the Internet.
High School students peer editing
Crest students creating multimedia presentations on a country’s culture

Informed, responsible and contributing citizens;

Middle School students investigate current events in debate
High School social studies and science students listening to news reports on current issues and events relating to government and the environment on streaming audio over the Internet

Beauty of Math!

2009-07-01T21:36:00.001-07:00

1 x 8 + 1 = 9
12 x 8 + 2 = 98
123 x 8 + 3 = 987
1234 x 8 + 4 = 9876
12345 x 8 + 5 = 98765
123456 x 8 + 6 = 987654
1234567 x 8 + 7 = 9876543
12345678 x 8 + 8 = 98765432
123456789 x 8 + 9 = 987654321

1 x 9 + 2 = 11
12 x 9 + 3 = 111
123 x 9 + 4 = 1111
1234 x 9 + 5 = 11111
12345 x 9 + 6 = 111111
123456 x 9 + 7 = 1111111
1234567 x 9 + 8 = 11111111
12345678 x 9 + 9 = 111111111
123456789 x 9 +10= 1111111111

9 x 9 + 7 = 88
98 x 9 + 6 = 888
987 x 9 + 5 = 8888
9876 x 9 + 4 = 88888
98765 x 9 + 3 = 888888
987654 x 9 + 2 = 8888888
9876543 x 9 + 1 = 88888888
98765432 x 9 + 0 = 888888888

Brilliant, isn't it?

And look at this symmetry:

1 x 1 = 1
11 x 11 = 121
111 x 111 = 12321
111 x 1111 = 1234321
11111 x 11111 = 123454321
111111 x 111111 = 12345654321
1111111 x 1111111 = 1234567654321
11111111 x 11111111 = 123456787654321
111111111 x 111111111 = 12345678987654321

Now, take a look at this...

101%

From a strictly mathematical viewpoint:

What Equals 100%?

What does it mean to give MORE than 100%?

Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%?

We have all been in situations where someone wants you to GIVE OVER 100%.

How about ACHIEVING 101%?

What equals 100% in life?

Here's a little mathematical formula that might help answer these questions:

If:

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Is represented as:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.

If:

H-A-R-D-W-O-R- K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

And:

K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

But:

A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

THEN,

look how far the love of God will take you:

L-O-V-E-O-F-G-O-D
12+15+22+5+15+6+7+15+4 = 101%

Therefore, one can conclude with mathematical certainty that:
While Hard Work and Knowledge will get you close,
and Attitude will get you there,
It's the Love of God that will put you over the top!

Why Does Bottled Water Have an Expiration Date?

2009-06-30T04:46:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered why that bottle of Poland Spring has a “drink by” date on it when common sense dictates that water doesn’t go bad? You can thank the great state of New Jersey. A 1987 NJ state law required all food products sold there to display an expiration date of two years or less from the date of manufacture. Labeling, separating and shipping batches of expiration-dated water to the Garden State seemed a little inefficient to bottled water producers, so most of them simply started giving every bottle a two-year expiration date, no matter where it was going.

Now, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has never established or suggested a limitation on the shelf life of bottled water as long as it’s produced in accordance with regulations and the bottle remains properly sealed. Makes sense, because it’s, you know…water. Even Dirty Jerz caught on to this fact and amended the law a few years ago. But the expiration date has been an industry norm for so long that many producers have just kept it on there.Better WIth Age?

While “expired” unopened bottled water isn’t going to do you any harm, it isn’t going to get better with age, either. The plastic that water is packaged in — usually polyethylene terephthalate (PET) for retail bottles and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) for water cooler jugs — is slightly porous, so the water can pick up smells and tastes from the outside world. Keep a case of bottled water in the basement for a year or so and it’s going to pick up some interesting flavors. There’s nothing better on a hot summer day than a 2007 Evian, with hints of dust and a crisp kitty litter finish!

What Michael Jackson Did on His Last Day

2009-06-29T20:45:00.000-07:00

Michael Jackson spent the last night of his life doing what he had always done: performing. The singer was in rehearsals at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, running through a full slate of songs from his upcoming 50-concert London event flanked by friends and colleagues. He marveled at the major set pieces that had finally been installed in the rehearsal space. "He was just glowing, and you could see it, that he was finally seeing it all come together," says Dorian Holley, the vocal director for Jackson's upcoming tour. "Up until Wednesday, it had always been [just a concept], but that last day you could see it in him, that he was seeing the show finally come together for the first time. It was a big moment."

Holley says he left rehearsals just before midnight on the night of June 24, as Jackson headed off to attend yet more meetings. About 12 hours later, a 911 call would be placed from Jackson's home in Holmby Hills, reporting urgently that "he's not breathing ... He's not responding to CPR, anything."

The pop icon had seemed different during these rehearsals - not ailing by any means, but perhaps more contemplative - says Holley, who has coached Jackson on solo tours since 1987. In preparing for previous tours, Holley said auditions for backup singers and other performing roles would usually be held via videotape, and it wouldn't be all that uncommon for the two to speak directly only two or three times over the span of a year. But for "This Is It," the London concerts scheduled to begin in July, Jackson was much more present and available, attending auditions and eagerly talking with everyone in the crew about the larger mission behind the tour.

"It almost sounds crazy to say that the show wasn't about him, but ... he'd put it in perspective all the time, saying, 'This is what we're here for, to spread a message of love and taking care of the planet, that we want people to understand it's very, very dear and not to take it for granted,'" Holley tells TIME.

Until the last hour of rehearsals, Jackson maintained a ferocious, perfectionist pace, says Holley, who, after decades working with the singer, says he was still astonished by his vocal and physical prowess. Some in the public questioned whether Jackson, at 50, would still be able to command a stage, and recent reports published Sunday in Britain's Daily Mail said that Jackson had been too feeble to dance, sing or, at times, even speak in the weeks leading up to his death. But, Holley - despite his own early concerns about a lack of rehearsal time leading up to the first London shows in July - says the star's presence and energy during his final week was unequivocal. "He'd take the stage with this group of dancers, all in their 20s, but you couldn't take your eyes off him ... Many of his songs have six or seven parts, and he would often come over if we were missing an important note in our mix, and he would sing through all the parts rapid-fire to show us what he wanted. We would just sit there with our jaws open - it was awesome," Holley says. "He could still do everything ... The only difference now was that he would sometimes talk about how it made him sore."

"This time around, we had the technology to isolate just his microphone and listen to his singing separate from everything else. I had no idea what a genius he was. The way he's able to use his voice as a percussion instrument, lyricist, jazz singer all at the same time. I'm sure as people mine his works in years to come, they're going to discover how much is there," he says.
It was a text message on Thursday afternoon that gave Holley the first hint of bad news - a note saying Jackson had been rushed to the hospital. Neither he nor the crew knew how to react to the uncertainty, so they did what they always did - they went in to rehearse. Except this time, as fans all over the world from Los Angeles to New York City to Tokyo to Buenos Aires played his music, sang his songs and emulated his dance in tribute, Holley says the crew couldn't bring themselves to touch the music.

Jackson had been preparing to take the world back, Holley says, and during the singer's final night, he finally knew he was ready. "You would think that, on the one hand, the world has kind of beaten him up, and you could forgive him for having some trepidation and fear. But he didn't have any of that," says Holley. "Words fail to describe what people would have seen with the tour. I couldn't even imagine until last week when it became physically apparent [on the set]. He was ready to show the world, and I so wish there could have been just one concert so the world would have seen."

View this article on Time.com

Related articles on Time.com

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/08599190760100

Robert Gagne

2009-06-29T06:52:00.000-07:00

Gagne Principle

1. Gaining Attention
Teacher tells learners how she has used Kidspiration in the classroom.Shows an example diagram made using Kidspiration on projection screen/TV monitor.Asks learners questions about diagramming.
Giving background information creates validity.The use of multimedia grabs the audience’s attention.Asking questions in the beginning creates an interactive atmosphere.

2. Informing the Learner of the Objective
Teacher says, "Today I am going to show you how to use a multimedia presentation software called Kidspiration."
Make learners aware of what to expect so that they are aware and prepared to receive information.

3. Stimulating Recall of Prior Learning
For this particular group of learners, they have learned previously about Mind Mapping and Schemata. Teacher associates this knowledge with lesson at hand.
When learning something new, accessing prior knowledge is a major factor in the process of acquiring new information.

4. Presenting the Stimulus
Teacher gives students step-by-step tutorial on using Kidspiration. (My eCoach Kidspiration Guide) and has installed Kidspiration software on their computers.
The goal is information acquisition, therefore, the stimulus employed is written content and the actual software program.

5. Providing Learner Guidance
Teacher demonstrates how to create a diagram on the video projection screen/TV monitor. Teacher shows students how to use Kidspiration tools to type in text, add links, add symbols, use sounds, etc.Learners are allowed to try the tools demonstrated in partners on their computers.
Teacher uses "discovery learning" because learners are adults and it gives them the freedom to explore. Teacher facilitates the learning process by giving hints and cues when needed. Since the audience are teachers with some basic level of technology skills and the software program is easy to follow and understand, guidance is minimal.

6. Eliciting Performance
Teacher asks students to demonstrate Kidspiration tools.
Requiring the learner to produce based on what has been taught enables the learner to confirm their learning.

7. Giving Feedback
Teacher gives immediate feedback to learners after eliciting responses.
Regular feedback enhances learning.

8. Assessing Performance
Assign a practice activity - Create a diagram that focuses on Farm Animals.Teacher checks work.
Independent practice forces students to use what they learned and apply it. Assessing such gives instructors a means of testing student learning outcomes.

9. Enhancing Retention and Transfer
Teacher asks learners to create activities using Kidspiration for 2nd grade students.Teacher also charges learner with teaching another learner how to use Kidspiration.
Applying learning in real-life situations is a step towards Mastery Learning.

Sources
Conditions of Learning: Gagnehttp://tip.psychology.org/gagne.html
Robert Gagne’s Instructional Design Approachhttp://www.gsu.edu/~mstswh/courses/it7000/papers/robert.htm
Driscoll, M.(1991) Psychology of Learning for Instruction: Allyn and Bacon.

Spirit Butter Fingers Team Song Lyric..come sing with us~!!

2009-06-27T06:40:00.001-07:00

Barney - I Love You lyric

I love you,
You love me,
We're a happy family,
with a great big hug,
and a kiss from me to you,
Won't you say you love me TOO!

I love you,You love me,
We're best friends like friends should be,
With a great big hug,And a kiss from me to you,
Won't you say you love me too..

Conditions of Learning (R. Gagne)

2009-06-26T21:11:00.001-07:00

Conditions of Learning (R. Gagne)
Overview:
This theory stipulates that there are several different types or levels of learning. The significance of these classifications is that each different type requires different types of instruction. Gagne identifies five major categories of learning: verbal information, intellectual skills, cognitive strategies, motor skills and attitudes. Different internal and external conditions are necessary for each type of learning. For example, for cognitive strategies to be learned, there must be a chance to practice developing new solutions to problems; to learn attitudes, the learner must be exposed to a credible role model or persuasive arguments.

Gagne suggests that learning tasks for intellectual skills can be organized in a hierarchy according to complexity: stimulus recognition, response generation, procedure following, use of terminology, discriminations, concept formation, rule application, and problem solving. The primary significance of the hierarchy is to identify prerequisites that should be completed to facilitate learning at each level. Prerequisites are identified by doing a task analysis of a learning/training task. Learning hierarchies provide a basis for the sequencing of instruction.
In addition, the theory outlines nine instructional events and corresponding cognitive processes:

(1) gaining attention (reception)
(2) informing learners of the objective (expectancy)
(3) stimulating recall of prior learning (retrieval)
(4) presenting the stimulus (selective perception)
(5) providing learning guidance (semantic encoding)
(6) eliciting performance (responding)
(7) providing feedback (reinforcement)
(8) assessing performance (retrieval)
(9) enhancing retention and transfer (generalization).

These events should satisfy or provide the necessary conditions for learning and serve as the basis for designing instruction and selecting appropriate media (Gagne, Briggs & Wager, 1992).

Scope/Application:
While Gagne's theoretical framework covers all aspects of learning, the focus of the theory is on intellectual skills. The theory has been applied to the design of instruction in all domains (Gagner & Driscoll, 1988). In its original formulation (Gagne, 1 962), special attention was given to military training settings. Gagne (1987) addresses the role of instructional technology in learning.

Example:
The following example illustrates a teaching sequence corresponding to the nine instructional events for the objective, Recognize an equilateral triangle:
1. Gain attention - show variety of computer generated triangles
2. Identify objective - pose question: "What is an equilateral triangle?"
3. Recall prior learning - review definitions of triangles
4. Present stimulus - give definition of equilateral triangle
5. Guide learning- show example of how to create equilateral
6. Elicit per formance - ask students to create 5 different examples
7. Provide feedback - check all examples as correct/incorrect
8. Assess performance- provide scores and remediation
9. Enhance retention/transfer - show pictures of objects and ask students to identify equilaterals
Gagne (1985, chapter 12) provides examples of events for each category of learning outcomes.
Principles:
1. Different instruction is required for different learning outcomes.
2. Events of learning operate on the learner in ways that constitute the conditions of learning.
3. The specific operations that constitute instructional events are different for each different type of learning outcome.
4. Learning hierarchies define what intellectual skills are to be learned and a sequence of instruction.

References:
Gagne, R. (1962). Military training and principles of learning. American Psychologist, 17, 263-276.
Gagne, R. (1985). The Conditions of Learning (4th ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston .
Gagne, R. (1987). Instructional Technology Foundations. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc.
Gagne, R. & Driscoll, M. (1988). Essentials of Learning for Instruction (2nd Ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Gagne, R., Briggs, L. & Wager, W. (1992). Principles of Instructional Design (4th Ed.). Fort Worth, TX: HBJ College Publishers.

Relevant Web Sites:

The following web sites provide further information about Gagne and his work:http://www.e-learningguru.com/articles/art3_3.htmhttp://www.my-ecoach.com/idtimeline/theory/gagne.htmlhttp://www.ibstpi.org/Products/pdf/appendix_A-C.pdf