Education is a major game changer. Even more so when students are equipped with the right tools during the course of their education. In my sons' school, ever since a new management team came on board about 3 years ago, the tools that are being adopted into the curriculum have been getting more and more interesting. They are engaging students in a way that, well, makes learning fun! Learning really should be fun. It should make you want to keep learning, asking questions, exploring. Moreover, the new things that you come across should challenge you, not bore you or be a source of pain and nightmares (I should know!).
During the first year under the new management team, we were introduced to Mad Science, Buzan mind mapping, and Singaporean Math. After a few months, it became apparent to both students and parents that math could actually be simple and science is not only for nerds.
In the second year, the PACE self-study learning program was added to the curriculum. Essentially, the school believes that children are smart, can learn on their own, and have different ways of learning. Students did their PACEs in the morning and then had regular classes in the afternoon. Funny that they should use "regular" to refer to their afternoon sessions; the way lessons are taught is anything but regular. Teachers began using SMART Boards, which made learning interactive and hands-on for the students. As a result, the kids did more practical application than written work during these classes. I remember being a bit miffed about having to buy notebooks when these weren't used so much anyway during the entire school year. But I guess that's such a tiny thing to frown upon when there is so much more to rave about. The best one? No homework. Wait, let me rephrase: no tiresome homework. Especially for us parents! And by "tiresome", I mean wasteful projects that your parents end up doing. Like dioramas, posters, report papers, blah blah blah...
I think it was also during the second year that the Excellence Tracks were introduced. These are non-graded yearlong programs that give students an opportunity to get better at something they're interested in or learn something new. Think of it as a summer workshop on something you like but it goes on for 9 months and it's held in your school after class hours. Among the choices are basketball, ESL, taekwondo, ballet, painting, and musical theater (instruments).
In the third year, the school administration began exploring a new way of communicating with parents: via social media. I gotta say though, at first, it was a major "tech fail" situation. But, it's reassuring to see that they're open to advice and focused on improving their services. They upped online and paperless (love that!) interaction with parents by sending neatly-formatted colorful newsletters and opening a Facebook page. Recently, they hired a new communications director who seems to be a lot more social media-capable. The school's Facebook page is now filled with so much content: blogs, photo albums, announcements. The school's website is getting a facelift. And, check it out, they're now on Twitter, too!
Another nifty tool that our school discovered last year was the use of Self-Portrait™ Learning Style Profiles. If I'm not mistaken, this specialized approach made the school's management cap the number of students per level at 20, which only makes sense because a smaller class gives teachers a better opportunity to really know their students. The learning profile becomes especially helpful when a student is having a hard time with certain lessons; teachers help by using the learning style that works best for the child. It's definitely a big shift from traditional teaching methods. For one thing, it renders the overrated "honor roll" irrelevant. Academic excellence is still acknowledged, of course, but because students are seen as unique individuals, what stands out now is character, which the school celebrates publicly.
This year, based on what I've learned so far, they are adopting four new tools:
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| Robotics program by Mad Science's FunWorks, Inc. |
In the second year, the PACE self-study learning program was added to the curriculum. Essentially, the school believes that children are smart, can learn on their own, and have different ways of learning. Students did their PACEs in the morning and then had regular classes in the afternoon. Funny that they should use "regular" to refer to their afternoon sessions; the way lessons are taught is anything but regular. Teachers began using SMART Boards, which made learning interactive and hands-on for the students. As a result, the kids did more practical application than written work during these classes. I remember being a bit miffed about having to buy notebooks when these weren't used so much anyway during the entire school year. But I guess that's such a tiny thing to frown upon when there is so much more to rave about. The best one? No homework. Wait, let me rephrase: no tiresome homework. Especially for us parents! And by "tiresome", I mean wasteful projects that your parents end up doing. Like dioramas, posters, report papers, blah blah blah...
I think it was also during the second year that the Excellence Tracks were introduced. These are non-graded yearlong programs that give students an opportunity to get better at something they're interested in or learn something new. Think of it as a summer workshop on something you like but it goes on for 9 months and it's held in your school after class hours. Among the choices are basketball, ESL, taekwondo, ballet, painting, and musical theater (instruments).
In the third year, the school administration began exploring a new way of communicating with parents: via social media. I gotta say though, at first, it was a major "tech fail" situation. But, it's reassuring to see that they're open to advice and focused on improving their services. They upped online and paperless (love that!) interaction with parents by sending neatly-formatted colorful newsletters and opening a Facebook page. Recently, they hired a new communications director who seems to be a lot more social media-capable. The school's Facebook page is now filled with so much content: blogs, photo albums, announcements. The school's website is getting a facelift. And, check it out, they're now on Twitter, too!
Another nifty tool that our school discovered last year was the use of Self-Portrait™ Learning Style Profiles. If I'm not mistaken, this specialized approach made the school's management cap the number of students per level at 20, which only makes sense because a smaller class gives teachers a better opportunity to really know their students. The learning profile becomes especially helpful when a student is having a hard time with certain lessons; teachers help by using the learning style that works best for the child. It's definitely a big shift from traditional teaching methods. For one thing, it renders the overrated "honor roll" irrelevant. Academic excellence is still acknowledged, of course, but because students are seen as unique individuals, what stands out now is character, which the school celebrates publicly.
This year, based on what I've learned so far, they are adopting four new tools:
- IXL Learning - IXL.com is a web-based math learning system. Essentially, it's your math activity books put online. You get points and medals at the end of each course (just like most online games).
We've been doing some of the courses the past few days. The lack of clear instructions on some test items is making me roll my eyes but, overall, it is as fun and gratifying as most online games tend to be. My kids get competitive and bent on getting that cheery "Correct!", which makes them whoop out a triumphant "Yes!"
I especially like how it creates a parent-child bonding opportunity. Maybe that's why the instructions aren't super clear, so that an adult can do the activities with the kids. Hmmm...
- Intelligent Notebook - acc. to the newsletter writeup: "the Intelligent Notebook is designed to help students take more effective notes that will lead to deeper learning, better information retention, and overall improved comprehension...One bundle includes five (5) notebooks, one for each major subject (Math, Science, English, History, Filipino). Each bundle also comes with a student planner to be used for date-keeping, reminders, and listing homework." Basically, it's like a school binder and organizer in one. Nice.
- iPad - my youngest son was all bright-eyed yesterday, telling me that they're using iPads for reading in school. Awesome! We knew that iPads would be integrated into the curriculum this year. The school principal informed us that they didn't have a computer class because, let's face it, kids these days don't need one. Allowing the touchscreen tablet technology into the classroom is like the school saying, we know you kids know about this so we might as well use that know-how to our advantage. This is certainly progressive thinking. Why fight technology? Make it work for you ;-)
- Filipino theater - this wasn't announced officially and was just shared with me and my husband by the school principal. We were talking about how Filipino is still hard for students to grasp and appreciate, at which point she told us that they were considering using theatrical techniques to help students with pronouncing, comprehending, and using the Filipino language.
Sidenote: Personally, I think integrating History (which my son hates) and Filipino might make for a better appreciation of the Filipino culture. I don't mean teaching history lessons in Filipino. How about using storytelling methods to teach history lessons (like what Carlos Celdran and Ambeth Ocampo does)? If kids actually liked history and are able to imagine what our people experienced, wouldn't it make learning that people's language less of a chore and done with some empathy? Even a sense of pride?
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