Kang Chiao Spotlight Issue 8 (小學部)

　　What's in your mind when you think of a typical classroom? Do you still imagine a teacher writing on a blackboard with chalk and students writing with a pen on paper? That's not what we usually see in the grade 5 and 6 English classrooms at KCIS. Technology and the internet have brought substantial changes to our lives and also to education. Implementing the Chromebook and digital learning allows teachers to increase their efficiency and productivity and facilitates students to learn beyond the classroom. In our latest survey, most of our teachers and students of grade 5 and 6 agree that technology helps homework, collaboration, project-based learning and makes learning more fun and interesting.

　　Time goes by quickly. It's hard to believe that there is less than a month of school left. We have almost finished English Open Day for all grades. We are proud of how hard our students worked towards their presentations. I'd like to thank our teachers and staff for all they have done to help the students, and also the parents who attended Open Day. Your participation sends a powerful message to your child about the importance of learning and growing together.

　　當您想到教室，腦中呈現什麼景象？您還在想像老師在黑板前解說，學生拿筆抄寫？科技和網路改變了我們的生活方式，也對教育造成很大的改變。數位學習的導入和Chromebook的運用，讓教學更多元、更有效率，也讓學生的學習不再侷限於教室裡，從Mr. Claassen的問卷分析，發現大多數高年級的老師和學生都認為數位科技有助於資料蒐集、與同學協作、作業完成並讓學習更有趣。

　　隨著每周一個年級的青山Time和English Open Day的發表，眼看這學期只剩下一個月，充實的日子過得特別快，各年級的家長出席率創下歷年新高，感謝所以家長的出席，您的參與讓孩子明白您對學習的重視，也是對老師和孩子們最大的鼓勵。

　　Kang Chiao International School is starting to incorporate more technology into our classes to prepare students for a technological future. This is the 3rd school year we have provided a one-to-one initiative that gives every fifth through sixth-grade student a Google Chromebook. Their Chromebook is just another tool in their school bag which promotes project based learning, collaboration, engagement and equips students with all the necessary digital skills for the 21st century. The International Department did a recent survey with all grade 5 and 6 English Teachers and students to get more feedback on using technology in and out of the English classrooms.

　　Google Classroom is a platform used by our teachers and students to distribute, collect and even grade homework. Around 71% of our students feel that doing homework on this platform is far better than doing it on paper. Some students mentioned that having it online takes away the stress of losing or forgetting homework. Our teachers also find it very useful. One teacher emphasized, “I only need to click a few buttons on Monday morning. It takes five minutes to distribute, and Google Classroom now grades homework too, so that takes no time at all.”

　　Technology is a powerful learning tool that teachers can harness to make learning meaningful, relevant, and rigorous. One teacher quoted, “It’s nice to have literally the entire world, in digital form of course, at the touch of a button.” When technology is integrated into powerful instructional approaches, like Project-Based Learning, learning can go deeper. Students can do more in-depth research, create surveys and use online educational programs to create videos, storybooks, blogs and online reviews. Technology also makes it possible to involve a larger audience when publishing projects, creating authenticity. Students are significantly more enthusiastic knowing their work will be seen by real people outside the classroom. 87% of our students feel it’s a great resource for projects. One student stated that, “Anything that anyone in the world knows is on the internet. With technology you can go anywhere, and find anything.”

　　Working with G Suite allows students to co-edit documents, spreadsheets, and presentations in real time. 84% of our students agree that technology makes collaboration on tasks so much easier. “We don't need to move our seats to work on projects. We can simply share and collaborate on one document.” 86.7 % of our teachers also feel that with Google it’s easier to collaborate and share documents among students, teachers and administration. One teacher wrote that, “The nature of the Google platform makes collaboration a breeze for all.”

　　After this survey we can confidently say that technology helps promote homework, engagement, project-based learning and collaboration. We are excited for next year as we are planning to utilize technology in such a way that it helps streamline projects and teach skills that will better assist students to accomplish writing and learning tasks. In this renaissance of technology, we must be leaders and innovators. We have the means and the ability to raise students who are prepared for whatever the future might bring. At KCIS we are already thinking about the future!