“You can't expect to meet the challenges of today with yesterday's tools and expect to be in business tomorrow.” - Unknown Source
It is my
contention that if we had more computers available at all the schools
offering Computer Applications Technology (CAT) in the Western Cape, we
would have had more learners offering CAT at every single one of these
schools. CAT is arguably the fastest growing NCS subject in the FET
Band. CAT empowers learners with the most essential skills and knowledge
that are needed to exist in the 21st century… the competence and confidence to engage with information and communication technologies as problem solving tools.
How
successful learners will be in the acquisition of these skills and
knowledge will depend on how determine school communities (teachers,
learners, parents and administrators) are to rid themselves of the
legacies of the past, and take ownership of the responsibility to invest
in our youth. Only those school communities prepared to do so will
yield the dividends of an ICT literate youth capable of using ICTs to
solve real-life day-to-day problems. Those schools communities who shirk
this responsibility will leave our learners exposed to solve current
problems with out-dated tools and expect them to be productive in the
future!
Challenges
CAT
is without a doubt (together with Information Technology) the most
difficult subject to administer and manage. Particularly because
policies and practices need to honour the volatility of the technology
on which curriculum delivery of CAT is based. Conducting the practical
examinations has proven year on year to be most stressful examination
for all concerned, from learners to invigilators to administrators!
The
biggest challenge facing schools offering CAT, and the one that will
hamper the growth in the subject the most, is the cost of maintaining
the computers. Particularly as technology has a turn-over rate of
months, if not weeks. In one year the practical examinations are
conducted in a particular version of an office suite, just for that
suite to be redundant the next year! What are today's new trends and
current technologies are tomorrow out-dated and old hat!
Longevity in offering CAT at schools will lie in adopting one of the following strategies, or employing a combination thereof:
- Schools must take ownership of maintaining its computer labs. This is, to my opinion, best done by raising funds to employ the services of third party companies to regularly housekeep, maintain and upgrade the computers so that curriculum delivery can take place seamlessly and uninterrupted.It is national policy that every learner must work on his/her own computer for four hours per week tuition. It goes without saying that every learner must have his/her own computer for assessment.
- The national education department needs to look into the granting of ring-fenced funds to schools offering CAT (can be via the Norms and Standards allocation) for sustaining computer labs.
- Provincial education departments need to look at providing additional posts to Districts for the appointment of a computer lab administrator to tend to the housekeeping, upgrading and maintenance of computer labs at schools offering CAT within a circuit.
It
can be irrefutably stated that CAT provides learners of all communities
with, literally, the world at their fingertips. For this to remain,
proactive decision-making, budgeting and foresight need to be up-front;
especially when it comes to the issue of sustaining computer labs. If we
fail here we shall fail many of our youth in not providing them with
current tools to solve future challenges in order to be marketable and
productive in future.
LEARNER NOTEBOOKS
There is a
misconception that because Computer Applications Technology is a
practical subject there is no need for learners to have a
notebook/exercise book. This is so far off the mark!
CAT
consists of practical and theoretical sections; therefore CAT is about
the acquisition of operational knowledge (theoretical side) and skills
(practical side). However, even if CAT was only about the acquisition of
skills, learners should still have a notebook.
And, yes,
I do acknowledge that with the introduction of the National Curriculum
Statement Grades R – 12 (CAPS) the textbook as an invaluable resource
for learning and teaching became more prominent… but having a notebook
does not mean rewriting the textbook. Having learners take notes is all
about active learning… about being engaged with the material!
“Learning requires repetition - meaningful repetition. This is why
active study techniques are so vitally important. The "recording disk"
of the brain accepts new material much faster if it "hears," "sees,"
"feels," "tastes," and detects motion (kinetic energy) during input or
recording time.”
Make sure you are an active listener. Active listening is a thinking activity. The more you think about the ideas you are noting down, the more you will understand and remember them at a later date, and make connections.
Why make notes?
- Notes make you concentrate on what you are learning
- Notes make you put ideas into your own words and so aid understanding
- Notes help you remember things better
- Notes are excellent for revision
What should be recorded in a learner’s notebook?
- The date (should be aligned with dates in teacher’s work schedule)
- The section of work covered (content)
- Page reference to the textbook, activity, web site, etc.
- A summary of the content to aid the learner’s understanding of the content. So the notes taken by different learners may differ, as the understanding of the content for each learner differs.
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