Category: Teaching

My 1st tuition class this year (2022)

I was involved in the tuition classes as an enrichment program that the school organized since 2018. Back in 2018, I had a little choice to say No as I was a part of the teaching staff. But I was entrusted to teach the low achievers who knew they were labeled as such based on their performance. I had a blast with them even though it was challenging to boost their self-esteem and improve their performance at the same time. I continued to teach tuition classes in 2019 but in 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and whatsnot, the tuition classes had to stop for a while.

I was contacted by Ita last Monday (4 July 2022) if I was available to join their enrichment program again this year. I immediately said Yes even though I know that I will be a bit preoccupied with examination thingy and stuff this month. So, I looked up my old notes that I used when I taught English in 2018 and tried to find information about the current SPM format. Well, they have changed the SPM format for English paper (Writing). No more 350 words. Now, the word counts are between 200 to 250 words for continuous writing. Well, I learn something new with the new formatting. There is also a revised rubric to evaluate Part 3: Continuous writing. Having a former student who is also an invigilator cum examiner of the Paper 2 is a blessing. I contacted my former student and asked about the latest things to update myself.

She laughed at me when I said that I was nervous as I was entrusted to teach the high achievers this time around. She said: “I bet you will love it! Teaching such students is a challenge in itself, but rewarding. Just try it” I came a few minutes late as I stopped at Pekan Tiram to photocopy some materials. Cikgu dan kedai fotostat berpisah tiada. Indeed.

The shop owner and I had a small talk and he remarked “Lama dah tak nampak cikgu datang kedai fotostat“. I just smiled but he could see me smiling as I was wearing my face mask. Alhamdulillah I wore the face mask at that time, so I could hide my uneasiness after hearing him saying that.

I had a quick background check with Ita about the students. Knowing that some of them are from B40 families, I predict that they might not have foolscap paper. I brought some papers which I took from old examination booklets. So, I can give it to anyone who does not bring or have any foolscap paper.

What should I do with this examination booklet? There are few unused pages. The student had graduated (I checked with her personally).
Since UTM is really into sustainability and whatever, I will reuse the unused pages as foolscap paper. Tada…. I got more than 20 unused pages which I took from several examination booklets which had been used. There are 10 students in the tuition class. So I only used 10 pieces of paper.

There are a couple of students who brought their own foolscap paper but upon seeing that I have the left-over papers from the examination booklet with UTM logo, they requested me to give them too. One of the students tried to sniff the paper. “This is not a perfumed paper.” I told the student while rolling my eyes. With a cheeky smile, he said “Saja nak bau. Mana tau ada bau UTM”. Huh?

UTM does not have that budget to have perfumed examination booklet (tongue in cheek remark!). Our students are not that lucky to have such paper. Nevertheless, the paper from the examination booklet is thicker than the foolscap paper that they have.

While collecting the papers from them, one of the students said to me “Teacher, pelajar di UTM guna kertas ni ke ketika peperiksaan?” Well, with that question, I had to tell them the truth by saying “Well, I took this from the examination booklet. These are the unused pages in the booklet. I shredded the used pages and threw it away. I kept these as foolscap paper” . While nodding her head, she replied back by saying, “Saya suka lah guna kertas ni. Saya rasa bersemangat nak tulis karangan dengan baik” Errmm… should I believe that or what?

Part 3 – MyDigital EDUCATOR@MOHE program: Rubric!

One of the things that our mentor reminds is always refer to the given rubrics. There are three rubrics. One of the rubric is to evaluate our assessments that we assign in our module. So, as I scrutinized the rubric, I was shocked. One of the criteria is “Apply relevant rubric to measure learner’s knowledge and achievement”. My initial thought was “If I use MCQ and True/False questions, the answer scheme is straight forward so I do not need to prepare any rubric. So, what does this criteria mean?” As I looked at the descriptors of the performance levels, I notice the highest mark is given for “Use, modify, integrate and validate the rubric to measure”. What rubric that I have to create now?

So, I asked my mentor. He is very prompt in assisting me. In the end, after a quick discussion through WhatsApp, I understand that I have to create an open-ended question assignment with its rubric. So, out of three assessments, one has to be open-ended question. Then I remember that my mentor showed an example from his module in which he uses an activity worksheet. That gives me an idea about doing a similar thing: An activity worksheet in which the instruction given demands students to answer several questions.

I search existing worksheets that I have but in the end I need to craft it from scratch. So, I look at some examples of rubrics (my own collection) and from there I modify to suit with the new activity worksheet. There. Do I fit into the descriptor for the highest mark? Well, I do it the best I could so I will leave it to the rest. It is up to the evaluator to assess the materials. I just hope that whatever I do will make sense to others and if this module is offered, it might benefit anyone who uses it.

Part 2 – MyDigital EDUCATOR@MOHE program: When you have a passionate mentor

We are assigned with a mentor for MyDigitalEducator program. Our group is blessed to have a mentor who is passionate in teaching. Well, he holds an admin post at this unit which responsible with things related to teaching and learning. Thus, it does resonate with his actions.

One of the things that he did was had a briefing with all mentees. After that, he checked the title that we sent for the module that we have to develop. There were some of us who give generic titles. He reminded those individuals to change the title. He also reminded us to inform him if we have any technical problem or directly inform the webmaster from UUM. Alhamdulillah the PIC from UUM is very helpful especially in rectifying technical problems that we might have.

Other than briefing, our mentor also set a date for progress reporting via WebEx after Eid Adha. Sigh…. I was planning to take a long break but apparently I cannot do so as I have to complete 50% of the module by that time. Technically, I have less than 2 weeks to do so. One might be wondering, if I have lack of time to complete the module, why do I have time to create this post, right? This is a way for me to “capture” the moment that I am having at this time. So, I can reflect at it later on and see what are the things that can be improved.

In a way, this is the way I do my CQI for my teaching.

IUCEL 2022: Gather Space

I am struggling to get myself familiar with this Gather Space platform. When I got the tentative program, my turn for presentation is on 29 June 2022 (Wednesday) from 2 to 5pm. During the briefing, it is suggested that we wait nearby our poster during the evaluation session. If we want to move out from the session, we can do so but we need to let the evaluators know. However, I do not know how to do it at first but after several attempts, I find that there is a space in which I can type a notification about my status. This is really interesting!

UPM has done a well done job in preparing this year IUCEL using Gather Space platform. I know from Dr Chong about Gather Space and he mentioned about using it for his students. They interact using metaverse mode in Gather Town. For someone like me who takes extra time to learn new things like Gather Town, knowing this platform gives me an idea about what I can do for the MyDigitalEducator module. But it might be a bit too overidealistic on my part as I am still struggling to create a content/collection in Wakelet (LOL to myself). It is a challenge that I set for myself but I will take it in a stride.

What can I conclude from the briefing?

During this briefing, there are so many things to digest though. I feel a bit cognitive overload but I will try out according to my own pace. Chill!

How to share Wakelet content/collection with your students?

There are two options that we can choose to share the content/collection with students.

  1. Share without allowing students to write or add any response.
  2. Share by allowing students to add their work, leave comments and such.

Either way, first we need to set the sharing option. After clicking the Share button which appears like a locked lock on the right side, we will see this

This is the normal setting. The collection is private. So we need to change it either to Public or Unlisted. Based on the videos that I have watched, it is suggested that we select it as unlisted because it will only appear to those which whom we share the share link. If we select Public, any Wakelet user can get access to our content/collection.

Option 1: Students cannot add anything

Once we click Unlisted, we will see this option. For this option, students will be able to access the materials but they cannot add any comment or cannot upload any link, PDF file or image. To share the collection with students, just copy the link and we can share the link with students via Telegram, Elearning and such. Other than link, we can use QRCode or embed method. If we have Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft Teams or Google Classroom etc., we can use that method as well.

Option 2: Students are the collaborator of the content/collection

To enable students to be collaborators in our content/collection, click INVITE COLLABORATORS. There are few options that we can add them as collaborators. Option ONE: Copy link and later on share the link with students. Personally, I think this is the straight and direct method. Option TWO: Copy code and share the code with students. Option THREE: Click the Microsoft Teams or Google Classroom icon to share the collection to students who are already in Microsoft Teams or Google Classroom list. Option FOUR: We can invite students who might be Wakelet users or invite them via email. Don’t forget to click the Invite button to activate the action.

Note: Wakelet has an academy (Wakelet Academy). I double check my notes by referring to the Wakelet Academy. Some of the points are similar in YouTube videos too. So, if I leave out anything, you may directly refer to Wakelet Academy to find out more information.

I created a note for myself to remind myself the steps that I should follow when creating a content/collection in Wakelet. I put it HERE for anyone to use.

How to create a content/collection in Wakelet?

This is the note that I took while watching Youtube videos. This is also a reminder to myself the steps that I need to follow to use Wakelet to create a content or known as collection. I categorize the steps into three parts. It seems that Wakelet is useful to organise materials, activities and assessments as a one-stop center. Wakelet is free. It is a good alternative to Padlet (I subscribed to Padlet and since there is a change of the pricing, I am thinking about unsubscribed it)

Part 1: Before (Things that are needed)

a) A topic

  • Have a topic that you want to create a content/collection in Wakelet. In my case, the topic is a weekly topic. So, I might have sub-topics but it will be included under one content/collection only.
  • In addition, if the topic has many sub-topics, it is suggested that there is a picture or a banner to separate the sub-topics. It will give students the direction of the tasks that they need to complete.

b) Weblinks

  • Be prepared to have few weblinks that you are intended to use in your lesson. The link could be link to your own videos uploaded in YouTube, online assessment that you have created in different platforms like Quizziz, Kahoot, Socrative and such or any links related to your topic. It could be a link to a journal article (this is when you do not want to upload a PDF version of that journal article).
  • If you do have your own videos uploaded in YouTube or elsewhere, this is one of the tips that I got from Wakelet. “Try copying and pasting any link from the web. A YouTube video, news article, podcast or website is usually a good start!“ – Wakelet

c) Personal touch

Share your own creative work in Wakelet.

  • If you have a video in Youtube, Flipgrid or a video that you save in Google Drive, you can link the video as well.
  • If you have a frame in Padlet which contains instructions for an activity, you can link that as well. No problem!
  • CHOOSE the layout first before you add items. But according to Wakelet Academy, they suggest you choose the layout after you have added items. Errmm…. a bit tricky for someone like me to adjust the layout later.

Part 2: During (Let’s get started!)

a) In your home area, click ‘create collection’, and start by giving your content/collection a title and description!

b) You can add a cover image. If you do not have any image of your own, just browse through the integrated Unsplash library and you may find interesting and eye-catching images. You are spoilt with lots of choices.

c) This is just an additional option. If you want to add a background, you may add the background like you add the cover page.

d) Now, you can add some items to your collection by clicking on the plus (➕) icon to begin. You may choose to add text, image, file and so many more! If you have a video on YouTube, Flipgrid, Tik Tok etc., just copy and paste the link. You may add a thumbnail, title and description for your items. If you make any mistake while doing this, you may change the thumbnail, the title, and the description of each item.

Here you go! You have a content/collection. Basic one. If you want to spice up your content/collection, you may look at more steps on Part 3.

Part 3: After (Want to spice up your collection?)

a) It is suggested that you explore collection layouts! There are five different ways (layouts) you can organize your collections on Wakelet!

I took this image from Wakelet Academy

b) To get access to the layouts, click the palette icon.

On your content/collection frame, on your left side corner, click the palette icon.

The videos that I have watched on YouTube use either media or compact layout. So, I also use either media or compact layout. But it depends on your preference and imagination. I am still struggling to use Wakelet and thus, I just follow whatever examples as shown in the videos that I watch. But apparently, if you choose the layout setting AFTER you have add items, some of the items might be missing.

Now, your content/collection is ready to be shared with your students. Let’s look at the steps!

Wakelet ke Padlet ke Trello?: Tibanya masa untuk bertukar angin

Aku menghadiri sesi perkongsian tentang e-content pada Khamis lepas (16 Jun 2022). Aku mengakui aku memang kerap menghadiri sesi sebegini kerana aku perasan ada sahaja maklumat terkini yang dikongsi oleh fasilitator. Jadi, aku kena memastikan aku mendapat maklumat terkini tentang e-content dari mereka meskipun sesi sebegini dilaksanakan hampir setiap semester.

Apa yang aku pelajari kali ini ialah bagaimana membina bahan e-content yang padat, jelas dan terperinci bagi pelajar menggunakannya tanpa memerlukan bantuan pensyarah menerangkan secara bersemuka (ataupun secara alam maya menggunakan medium WebEx atau Zoom dan sebagainya). Dr Nihra menunjukkan contoh Trello yang digunakannya selain dari Padlet. Baginya, Padlet adalah sesuatu yang tidak menarik lagi perhatiannya. Bagi aku yang telah melanggan Padlet dengan bayaran tertentu, suka atau tidak, menarik atau tidak, aku memaksa diri aku menggunakan Padlet semaksima mungkin untuk memastikan bayarannya berbaloi dengan penggunaannya. Kalau aku menggunakan kurang dari 10 kerangka (frame) dalam Padlet setahun, setiap satu kerangka itu berharga RM14.40 (Setahun aku membayar RM144.00).

Padlet telah menaikkan harga langganan pada tahun ini. Harga langganan terkini bagi Premium adalah RM199.90 (atau RM19.90 sebulan). Kenaikan harga sebanyak RM50 bagi tahun ini. Ini membuatkan aku terfikir untuk menukar jenis langganan bagi tahun depan (2023) sekiranya Padlet “memaksa” aku untuk membayar RM199.90, bukan RM144.00 apabila aku perlu memperbaharui langganan.

Trello bagi aku lebih sesuai bagi pengurusan projek. Versi percuma mempunyai 10 kerangka sahaja yang dibenarkan dan ada ciri tertentu yang tidak boleh digunakan kecuali apabila menukar ke versi langganan. Mungkin aku boleh menggunakannya untuk pelajar di bawah penyeliaanku untuk memastikan kemajuan pengajian mereka. Akan tetapi mengikut pengalaman sedia ada, aku menggunakan aplikasi yang lebih ringkas pun mereka tidak menghantar dokumen yang diperlukan untuk menunjukkan kemajuan pengajian mereka. Terpulanglah kepada mereka. Aku sebagai penyelia adalah tidak beretika sekiranya aku yang menulis bab untuk mereka. Tiada penulisan dari mereka, itu masalah mereka. Buku penulisan tesis melambak. Video tentang tips penulisan tesis pun banyak. Sebagai pelajar yang dianggap sebagai berdikari, aku perlu melayan mereka sebagai individu yang berdikari. Sekiranya mereka tidak dapat berdikari, adakah aku perlu memimpin tangan mereka seperti kanak-kanak melintas jalan? Apa pun buat masa ini, aku masih lagi mempelajari Trello dan buat masa ini, aku masih lagi terkial-kial menyelongkar ciri-ciri yang ada di Trello.

Dalam masa yang sama, aku terjumpa Wakelet. Rupanya seramai 75 orang (pada saat aku menulis catatan ini) telah mempunyai akaun dan mungkin telah menggunakan Wakelet dari UTM. Bagaimanakan aku mengetahui hal ini? Aku mendapat email dari Wakelet dan ada tertera maklumat aku adalah orang ke 76 yang mempunyai akaun Wakelet di UTM. Cuma aku tidak mengetahui identiti individu tersebut. Kalau aku mengetahui identiti mereka, telah lama aku menghubungi mereka untuk mendapatkan maklumat lanjut,

Buat masa ini, Wakelet masih percuma. Apa yang diperlukan ialah email rasmi organisasi untuk membuka akaun. Tiada kategori Premium, Gold atau sebagainya seperti Padlet. Trello mempunyai persamaan dengan Padlet di mana ada kategori yang percuma tetapi mempunyai had dari segi saiz penyimpanan maklumat. Senang cerita, versi langganan mempunyai banyak keistimewaan dari versi percuma. Harganya sedikit mahal dari Padlet (dalam US5 sebulan atau USD60 setahun. Kadar pertukaran wang adalah mengikut pada tarikh kita membayar langganan tersebut).

Oleh yang demikian, aku rasa sekiranya aku ingin menjimatkan perbelanjaan pada tahun hadapan, aku akan bertukar kepada Wakelet sepenuhnya. Ini adalah kerana aku hanya menghadkan jumlah tertentu sahaja untuk langganan aplikasi yang membantu aku dalam pengajaran. Ada rakan mengusik, “Kalau naik pangkat ke Prof Madya, dengan gaji Prof Madya lagi banyak boleh kau langgan aplikasi-aplikasi ni“. Lagi banyak aplikasi yang perlu aku guna, lagi banyak masa diperlukan untuk mempelajari aplikasi tersebut, bukan sekadar aspek kewangan sahaja yang perlu diambil kira. “Anda rasa saya ada masa untuk sakit kepala?” – Panadol Malaysia

Nota: Setelah meluangkan masa melebih dari 48 jam untuk menonton video di YouTube dan merujuk kepada nota di Wakelet Academy untuk belajar cara menggunakan Wakelet, akhirnya aku berjaya menghasilkan satu bahan pengajaran digital dengan menggunakan Wakelet ini (harapnya boleh lah dapat 5 markah bonus untuk e-content – tongue in cheek remark!). Ini adalah bahan yang aku bina sebagai salah satu tugasan MyDigitalEducator@MOHE dan oleh yang demikian, tidak akan dikira sebagai bahan pengajaran e-content mengikut kursus yang didaftarkan di UTM.

Genially? Canva? Mana yang best?

Ada orang bertanya pendapat saya tentang Genial.ly dan Canva. Sejujurnya, terpulang kepada masing-masing bagi menentukan mana aplikasi yang sesuai digunakan untuk membina bahan pengajaran. Kalau mempunyai bajet yang tiada had, Canva boleh dijadikan keutamaan.

Bagi saya yang mempunyai bajet yang agak terhad untuk melanggan aplikasi yang saya gunakan untuk pengajaran, saya memilih aplikasi yang lebih murah dan mempunyai ciri-ciri yang mudah untuk digunakan. Saya memilih Genial.ly. Saya diperkenalkan dengan Genial.ly apabila mengikuti satu webinar yang dipengerusikan oleh Prof Abd Karim Alias (USM) pada tahun 2020 (ketika pandemik COVID-19). Selepas itu, saya mula mencari video tutorial yang mudah. Salah satu video yang bagi saya, pengajar itu dapat menjelaskan langkah-langkah yang ditunjukkan dalam video tersebut dengan ringkas dan mudah ialah video yang dibangunkan oleh Meghan dari Vestal’s 21st Century Classroom. Selepas menonton videonya beberapa kali, saya dapat menghasilkan satu bahan.

Cara saya menggunakan video tersebut ialah, saya menonton langkah-langkah sambil menulis dalam buku nota. Selepas itu, saya akan terus mencuba membina satu bahan dengan langkah-langkah tersebut. Ketika itu, saya belum lagi melanggan Genial.ly. Selepas menghasilkan satu bahan, saya menunjukkannya kepada pelajar saya. Saya meminta pandangan mereka. Apa yang mereka tidak suka dengan bahan tersebut. Bahan yang dibina ini saya gunakan ketika sesi tidak segerak (asynchronous session).

Akan tetapi, versi percuma mempunyai beberapa ciri yang terhad dan video yang saya lihat rata-rata menggunakan versi berbayar (termasuk yang Prof Abd Karim guna – tetapi beliau mengaku yang beliau melanggan Genial.ly). Prof Abd Karim telah menggunakan Genial.ly sebelum pandemik COVID-19 lagi. Jadi ketika orang tercari-cari aplikasi yang sesuai untuk digunakan ketika pandemik COVID-19, beliau telah mempunyai beberapa video yang dibangunkan dengan menggunakan Genial.ly. Amat mengagumkan kerana meskipun beliau bukannya dari bidang komputeran atau multimedia, tetapi pengetahuan beliau agak terkini.

Bagi saya, sekiranya mempunyai masa yang lebih untuk belajar sesuatu perkara yang baru, boleh mencuba mencari alternatif selain dari Genial.ly dan Canva. Tetapi, bagi saya yang mengambil masa agak lama untuk memahirkan menggunakan sesuatu aplikasi, saya agak memilih. Saya hanya menumpukan masa untuk memahirkan diri dalam satu aplikasi bagi satu tempoh masa tertentu. Setelah betul-betul mahir, baru saya akan mencuba sesuatu yang baru dan sekiranya ianya perlu dilanggan, saya tidak meluangkan masa yang lama untuk meninjau ciri-ciri yang ada dalam satu aplikasi tersebut.

Meskipun saya telah menggunakan Canva beberapa tahun untuk membuat poster, kad ucapan dan penanda buku, saya tidak pernah membangunkan video menggunakan Canva. Buat masa ini, saya masih lagi belum mahir menggunakan Genial.ly (asyik ada ciri-ciri yang lagi menarik tetapi perlu dipelajari). Genial.ly mempunyai beberapa ciri yang agak kerap berubah (kepada yang lebih baik) jadi saya mengambil masa sedikit mempelajari ciri baru yang selalunya akan berubah dalam beberapa kali setahun. Kadang-kadang ada templat baru yang lebih menarik (pun kena biasakan diri menggunakan ciri yang ada dalam templat yang berbeza).

Apapun, sekiranya diberi pilihan sama ada Genial.ly atau Canva, buat masa ini saya lebih cenderung untuk menggunakan Genial.ly.

Part 1 – MyDigital EDUCATOR@MOHE program: What???

Since UTM will subscribe the basic Google with 30GB storage, I need to clean up my email inbox, Google Drive etc. Accidentally, I deleted an email from MOHE. I only realize this after asking another colleague and she asked me if I was accidentally deleted the email while cleaning up my inbox. Opss….. I might did that unintentionally. Don’t ask what I was thinking at that time! I might be in a panicky mode with lots of deadlines end of May and thus, that thing happened. Later, I received an email on 2 June 2022 in which I was given a password to get access to the webpage. When I looked at the modules, it made me realize what a deep ……. (fill in the blank) I was in.

After watching a recorded video (which I missed) on 30 May 2022, I started to explore the webpage. I experienced my first technical glitch. I contacted the person-in-charge who is so patient to guide me to solve the technical problem. I could not solve the problem which made him gave me few more solutions. Both of us were nearly gave up. It was 12 noon so I told him that I would try again after zuhur. Alhamdulillah. Things were ok after zuhur. Miracle?

So, I spent few hours to start looking at the materials in 8 modules (7 modules plus 1 module – introduction). The seven modules are:

  1. How to personalize your course?
  2. Engaging participants in online learning
  3. Developing digital content
  4. Developing digital content: Part 1
  5. Developing digital content: Part 2
  6. ID in digital content development
  7. Implementing and evaluating of digital content

When I go through the materials closely, I identify some materials are similar with certain courses that I have attended before. Well, it is by the same instructors so it is understandable. But the irony is, even though I have attended the similar courses before, it feels like as if it is the first time I am seeing it. It does resonate with the fact that I am still struggling to understand certain concepts. Repeated exposures do not change much of my understanding. It is my fault. I should spend more time to practice but I realize that it is time consuming to learn many things within shorter time. But it is a challenge that I have to face.

Other than the materials, I need to prepare 9 materials (digital content, digital activity and digital assessment) for 3 topics. My first thought is “Which course that I will choose to create those materials?” I need to use that materials in front of another 2 or 3 colleagues. Sigh…. I feel cringed already. I am still learning and thus my materials are not perfect. It is not something that I will proudly share with others. I have to complete this assignment by the end of July. July will be the busiest month because of final examination and whatsnot. Sigh

UTM Open Day