Enhancing Effective Teaching and Learning of ICT in the Schools for the Blind in Ghana.

The paper examines role of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Special Education in Ghana. Taking the relevant literature as the guiding principle, the paper addresses the opportunities, barriers and challenges posed by the integration of Assistive Technologies devices in schools for the blind and visually impaired in the teaching and learning process. The paper shows that inadequacies of teachers’ knowledge and skills in Assistive Technologies coupled with lack of these technologies are some of the greatest hindrances to effective teaching in the schools for the Blind in Ghana. Educators and policy makers acknowledge Evidence-Based Teaching as one of the most effective strategies for teaching the blind and the visually impaired.The paper highlights that effective integration of Assistive Technologies into schools will help bridge the digital gap between the blind and the sighted in Ghana

Enhancing Effective Teaching and Learning of ICT in the Schools for the Blind in Ghana

The paper examines role of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Special Education in Ghana. Taking the relevant literature as the guiding principle, the paper addresses the opportunities, barriers and challenges posed by the integration of Assistive Technologies devices in schools for the blind and visually impaired in the teaching and learning process. The paper shows that inadequacies of teachers’ knowledge and skills in Assistive Technologies coupled with lack of these technologies are some of the greatest hindrances to effective teaching in the schools for the Blind in Ghana. Educators and policy makers acknowledge Evidence-Based Teaching as one of the most effective strategies for teaching the blind and the visually impaired.The paper highlights that effective integration of Assistive Technologies into schools will help bridge the digital gap between the blind and the sighted in Ghana

Affordances, Architecture and the Action Possibilities of Learning Environments: A Critical Review of the Literature and Future Directions

This paper critically reviews the body of literature on affordances relating to the design and inhabitation of school buildings. Focusing on the influence of learning spaces on pedagogical practices, we argue that links between affordances, architecture and the action possibilities of school-based environments have largely been overlooked and that such links hold great promise for better aligning space and pedagogy—especially amidst changing expectations of what effective teaching and learning ‘looks like’. Emerging innovative learning environments (ILEs) are designed to enable a wider pedagogical repertoire than traditional classrooms. In order to transcend stereotypical understandings about how the physical environment in schools may afford teaching and learning activities, it is becoming increasingly recognised that both design and practice reconceptualisation is required for affordances of new learning environments to be effectively actualised in support of contemporary education. With a focus on the environmental perceptions of architects, educators and learners, we believe affordance theory offers a useful framework for thinking about the design and use of learning spaces. We argue that Gibson’s affordance theory should be more commonly applied to help situate conversations between designers and users about how physical learning environments are conceived, perceived and actioned for effective teaching and learning.

Teaching methods applied in higher education during C0VID-19 pandemic in Africa

The outbreak of COVID has imposed a lot of challenges globally to effective teaching since the first COVID 19 pandemic in Africa. In 2020, different African countries have witnessed a drastic change in economic, social and political sphere of life. In order to avoid further spread of COVID-19 and with strict preventive measures, physical contact teaching was cancelled until further notice. The suspension of physical classes at the universities has brought unique challenges to students and educators in the process of delivering contents of the curriculum and achieving value in the education sector across Africa. Our empirical research aimed at finding out the effective teaching methods adopted by higher educational institutions during COVID-19 Pandemic in Africa. The study employed qualitative study design rooted in a descriptive case study, semi structured interview was used to collect data from ten lecturers from seven countries in Africa. The study found greater satisfaction with teaching and learning methods used in African universities. However, both adaptation and application of new teaching methods in higher learning institutions in Africa are still facing various challenges. Throughout this study, we recommend that each university should invest in technologies and research, consistent internet availability, training and skill acquisition in computer operation.

Making Educator Professional Development More Accessible and Inclusive With Mobile Teacher

This chapter describes how curious and reflective TESOL educators can engage in ongoing appreciative inquiry by participating in a unique global community of practice facilitated through an app called Mobile Teacher that also works offline. With the aim of recognizing and sharing the expertise of non-native English speaker TESOL educators who are primarily BIPOC and women working in the majority world, teachers are encouraged to watch short videos of colleagues' effective teaching practices, try out the practices with their students, and in turn share videos describing or demonstrating their own proven techniques. Through a case study of using Mobile Teacher with teachers in Ecuador, the author provides a self and group reflection guide based on the 4D appreciative inquiry framework to establish a definition and examples of effective teaching practice, and a video script template to complete in preparation for recording and sharing an effective teaching practice.

ATTRIBUTES OF EFFECTIVE FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHERS: INSIGHTS FROM UKRAINE

The paper set out to explore pre-and in-service foreign language teachers’ perceptions of attributes of effective teachers in Ukraine within a framework developed by the authors of the study to unravel the construct of effective language teaching. Two groups of pre-service (n=105) and in-service (n=127) teachers were recruited using a snowball sampling technique. The independent samples t-test and MANOVA statistical procedures were utilised to analyse and compare data generated from a self-report questionnaire. The findings indicated that the highest value was assigned to the performance category of teacher effectiveness, followed by the prerequisite category, including teacher competence, with the lowest value attached to the output category. A considerable degree of convergence was observed in students’ and teachers’ views on many attributes of teacher effectiveness. Both groups endorsed such attributes as clear teaching, target language proficiency, knowledge of language pedagogy, active engagement of learners, downplaying the importance of learners’ test scores. Nevertheless, a statistically significant difference was detected between the perceptions of the two groups of subjects. The students accentuated teachers’ personality and rapport domains, as well as motivating instruction. They also endorsed traditional approaches to language teaching in giving preference to form-focused instruction. Conversely, the teachers associated effective teaching with competence, careful planning and ongoing professional development. Teachers gave precedence to current methodological approaches in favouring meaning-focused instruction. A conclusion was drawn that teachers form more sophisticated cognitions of effective teaching in the process of professional maturation, thus implying the necessity for closer attention to the development of prospective teachers’ cognitions in teacher education programmes.

Technology Integration Models and Frameworks in Teaching and Training

The purpose of this study is to review the existing models and frameworks which has been implemented for technology integration during teaching and training. As discussed in the numerous literature Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK), Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, Redefinition (SMAR), TPACK-based ID models such as TPACK-Comprehension, Observation of instruction, Practice of instruction, and Reflection on TPACK (TPACK-COPR) model, Introduce-TPACK, Demonstrate, Develop, Implement, Revise - a TPACK-based lesson, and Reflect on a TPACK-based lesson (TPACK-IDDIRR1) model, and TPACK-IDDIRR2 model have been applied by today’s instructors and trainers to achieve the specific goal for effective teaching and training. This paper intends to highlight the key features of the above-mentioned models and frameworks with few hurdles as found in the empirical-based studies. It also discusses how those hurdles could be mitigated by addressing the extraneous cognitive load of instructors as well as trainers to carry out technology integration with future recommendations for the research. It was found that specific frameworks and models are limited to the macro-level concept but today’s instructors, as well as trainers, are required to have adequate instructional guidance in chronological steps so that they could implement those models and frameworks in their teaching and training for productive outcomes.