TACTics Journal

A Publication for and by TOC for Education Practitioners

March 9, 2001

 

CONTENTS

Networking

    (1)       The Malaysian Experience 3, Part 3: Using the Tools for Curriculum Design, Khaw Choon Ean

Editors’ Notes

   (2)     Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

Connections

    (3)     5th Annual TOCFE International Conference/First Annual TOCFE International Student’s Conference, Cheryl A. Edwards

 

NETWORKING

(1)     The Malaysian Experience 3, Part 3: Using the Tools for Curriculum Design, Khaw Choon Ean, Malaysia

 

During the past two weeks, we have featured Khaw Choon Ean’s experience in leading a team of educators in the use of the TOCFE tools to design a curriculum for Year-One teachers.  Part 1 described how the tools were an inspiration for “sama-sama belajar,” a Malay term that means, “let’s learn together.”  Part 2 gave the account of how they used the tools to plan the workshop needed to design the curriculum.  And this week, Part 3 lays out the fruit of their labor.

“The amazing thing was to see these people who had been called from all over the country, some of whom were meeting here for the first time, getting down to really focused discussion.  They had a simple and effective tool in their hands that obviously empowered them to build a module from scratch.” — Khaw Choon Ean

 

The Design for the Program Using the AT Tool

This is how the AT tool was used to design our curriculum program.

 

The Main Goal was a Successful Transition Program.

 

a)      The Obstacles that were identified under this goal could be identified as the program’s area of concern.  The intermediate objectives for the obstacles became the areas of concern of the program.  These areas of concern would become the Module Units.

 

      Example: 

OBSTACLE:  Teachers do not have adequate knowledge of different teaching and learning strategies for Year-One children. 

 

INTERMEDIATE OBJECTIVE:  Provide teachers with knowledge of different teaching and learning strategies for Year-One children and train them.

 

      AREA OF CONCERN:  Teacher Preparation

 

      MODULE:  Year-One Teacher Preparation Module

 

   

b)      Prioritizing was done at this point to decide what was needed to be achieved before another in the program.

 

      Goal:  An all-around successful Transition Program

 

      PRIORITIZED INTERMEDIATE OBJECTIVES:

      Workshop example:

      1)   Before we develop a preparation plan for preschool children for differences in primary school environment and routine, we  must create a relationship and cooperation between preschool teachers with the feeder primary schools for their preschoolers.

 

      2)   Before the primary school administration learns to plan a suitable transition program for their own school, we must develop a preparation plan for preschool children for differences in primary school environment and routine.

 

3)      Before we give teachers knowledge of different teaching and learning strategies for Year-One children, the primary school administration must learn to plan a suitable transition program for their own school.

 

4)      Before we prepare a conducive school and classroom environment for transition children, we must give teachers knowledge of different teaching and learning strategies for Year-One children.

 

5)      Before we inform parents of  the reasons for the program to prevent or reduce resistance to the new program, we must prepare a conducive school and classroom environment for transition children.

 

6)      Before we have an all-around successful Transition Program, we must inform parents of the reasons for the program to prevent or reduce resistance to the new program.

 

c)   The IOs were the Important Focus and the Steps to be taken from the IOs became the Content of the Important Focus of the Module. 

 

      Example:

INTERMEDIATE OBJECTIVE:  Provide teachers knowledge of different teaching and learning strategies for Year-One children and train them.

 

IMPORTANT FOCUS:  Teaching and Learning Strategies for Year-One Teachers

 

      ACTION PLAN / STEPS:

         Expose teachers to different child development theories

           Give teachers different teaching-learning strategies suitable for Year-One

           Train teachers to spot problem cases

           Train teachers how to handle problem cases

           etc.

 

     

CONTENT OF MODULE UNIT:

            Different child development theories

            Different teaching-learning strategies suitable for Year-One

            Training to spot problem cases

           How to handle problem cases

           etc.

 

USING THE MODULE DESIGN

The workshop participants were given the 2-hour slot on TOC on the evening of Monday.  It was my first official delivery of TOC.  The next day, the workshop participants were given a quick recap of the AT tool and it was down to business.

 

Everybody had a go at using the tool collectively in identifying the areas for a successful Transition Program.  We had done it ourselves on the quiet before this session so we were more or less prepared to make sure some areas were not left out and to accommodate those we ourselves had not anticipated. 

 

A format had been prepared using the AT tool as well as the sample of how the tool could be used to design and develop a module.  Then we rearranged priorities and narrowed in on what modules were important. Participants were divided into groups.  No time was wasted because we were focused.

 

The groups were given appropriate modules that they could draw on their experiences, e.g. preschool people were set to work on the module for preschoolers and preschool teachers, state education people and head teachers worked on the administration module, teachers and teacher training college and university lecturers were assigned the Teacher Preparation module, and whoever could not fit in any particular module was slotted for either the Parent’s Module, Program Planning and Implementation Module, or the information for the General Guidebook section.  Each module group was encouraged to use the AT tool and the design format derived from it to further explore their modules.

 

The amazing thing was to see these people who had been called from all over the country, some of whom were meeting here for the first time, getting down to really focused discussion.  They had a simple and effective tool in their hands that obviously empowered them to build a module from scratch.

 

Halfway through the morning, a participant who came from a state education department, came up to me and said, “You know, I like this tool.  I can see myself using this in my department meetings and cutting down time wastage and errors.”  Of course, I was thrilled to hear that.

 

The next amazing phenomenon was to find out that the groups had all finished building very detailed modules by the end of ONE day, including typing them out nicely on the computer.  Now, talk about efficiency and working fast!

 

And to cut a long story short, we were able to take back with us the first drafts of many modules prepared for the program, much to our immense satisfaction.  They were not perfect editions but we had now in our hands a compilation of modules we could work with now to build the program.  For a project that started with a serious time constraint, we could not be more pleased.  Of course, it took a few more editing and quality control sessions to get to the final version but we knew it as the beginning of many good things to come.

 

Again using the AT tool ourselves, we could plan out the problem areas of our project.  How we needed to try out at pilot schools to see whether our manual and kit could be easily read and understood for the program to be put into practice before we could plan our orientation course for the whole country and a host of other things…THAT is another story!

 

EDITORS’ NOTE

Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

Next week, we will feature the conclusion of “The Malaysian Experience 3.”  If you would like to read the article in its entirety, please visit our website at www.tocforeducation.com.  We hope you are planning to attend the “5th Annual TOCFE International Conference/First Annual TOCFE International Student’s Conference,” which will be held in Detroit this year.  Information for planning follows in Connections.  If you would like to share with us, send your ideas by mail to Cheryl A. Edwards, 2253 S. Hill Island Rd., Cedarville, MI 49719, USA.  Or, send hyperlink to <redwards@sault.com> or <bucknek@earthlink.net.

 

CONNECTIONS

(3)        5th Annual TOCFE International Conference/First Annual TOCFE International Student’s Conference

From Cheryl A. Edwards

 

The best way to predict the future is to create it through TOC."

TOC for Education, Inc. presents the 5th Annual TOCFE International Conference and the First Annual TOCFE International Student’s Conference!

 

Date:                                June 25-28, 2001

 

Location:                                Detroit, Michigan USA

 

Hotel:                                Northfield Hilton

                        5500 Crooks Road

                        Troy, Michigan 48098

                        248. 879. 2100

The Northfield Hilton is adjacent to Interstate 75 at Crooks Road, Exit 72

 

Reservations:                                1. 800. HILTONS

                        Ask for TOC for Education’s special room rates.

                Single or Double Occupancy

Per night $139.00 U.S. + Tax (6% Michigan Sales Tax and 7% Occupancy Tax).  This rate includes breakfast for two.

 

Transportation:                                Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW)

 

 

To view TACTics in its intended formatting and to read previous issues,

visit the TOC website at: www.tocforeducation.com