ICT Post 3

In Bukit Batok Secondary School, the infrastructure development for ICT is very evident. All the classrooms have the appropriate equipment for projecting movies, slides, and are wi-fi enabled. Moreover, the principal has tapped on her contacts at A*Star to help in the building of a classroom of the future, which I unfortunately did not have a chance to see. Moreover, every teacher is issued with a laptop to help in the delivery of lessons. The embrace of ICT goes far enough such that the school has a dedicated room set aside for broadcasts and podcasts.
Apart from the infrastructure, there have also been funds set aside for subscription to online databases as well as for the maintenance of online portals. Timetables, organisational charts, meetings, holiday homework, class announcements can be found on these portals. Moreover, the ICT head organises regular ICT lessons whenever there is a need for updates.
Every Friday, the school allows various student groups 15 minutes in the morning to make a presentation during their assembly period. Apart from the great experience the students gain, one notable feature was the use of videos sourced online.
Additionally, ICT plays an interesting role in the way emergency exercises are conducted. After the advent of the H1N1 scare, a system was put in place whereby there would be a relay system to pass urgent messages. Apart from this system, most classes and CCA groups have a Facebook page which acted as a backup to the relay system.
The use of videos in literature has also clearly been a hit with the students. They would get an accompanying movie of Macbeth in addition to the book. The extreme horror and imagery evident in Macbeth was very suited to the vivid depictions in the movie. This allowed the students to situate and place the story in a context that they could feel and understand, not simply read. This translated to greater effectiveness in comprehending the text.
There has also been the use of propaganda videos in history classes to show the importance of certain messages. This helps students understand motives, point out contradictions, and generally understand how intuitive some of the skills necessary to history are.