IDM: Possibilities and Challenges

In the keynote address, MOE’s Director of Curriculum Planning and Development, Ms Ho Peng, and Director of Educational Technology, Dr Koh Thiam Seng, highlighted that given the interactive nature of digital media, students will no longer be passive receivers of but active participants in their own learning journey. This “participatory culture” is changing the relationship between the teacher and the learner. It creates new demands on educators to be more creative and imaginative to harness IDM to engage today’s students.

In addition, the pervasiveness of technology in the lives of young people, who are increasingly plugged in to the Internet through activities such as blogging and gaming, can blur the lines between the real and virtual worlds. More than ever, educators need to empower students to think critically and equip them with the right values to help them to handle ambiguous situations.

Engaging the Audience the Virtual Way

IDM took centrestage during the keynote address - it was facilitated by Ms Chitra Jenardhanan, an MOE Curriculum Planning Officer, and Joe 1.0, a virtual animated character played by Mr Graham Perkins, Assistant Director at the School of Technology for the Arts, RP.

The character was designed using sophisticated motion capture technology, which captured and showed Mr Perkins’s facial expressions and words “live” while he was hooked up to the technology in a separate room. The format of the address and the use of the virtual facilitator vividly demonstrated the possibility of using technology to engage an audience.

A Showcase of IDM

More IDM projects were on show at the Forum, grouped according to six modes of learning: interactive devices, games, podcasting, 3D technology and animation, media literacy programmes and interactive textbooks. For example, Canberra Primary School displayed a lesson module that was converted to a virtual game designed by the teachers of the school and students from Temasek Polytechnic; it incorporated blogging and photography into the school’s multi-literacy programme for English Language. Pathlight School showcased how IT is used in the pre-vocation curriculum for students with special needs.

IDM in Action

But learning and sharing did not stop at the Forum. A series of post-Forum activities were organised, such as a learning journey to Sungei Buloh nature reserve, where school leaders learnt how IT devices like laptops are used to support learning beyond the classroom. There was also a ‘Games For Learning’ workshop, where they learnt about how games could be used for educational purposes and tried out for themselves games like Darfur is Dying and Food Force.

Further enhancing this experience was a tour of the ‘Classroom of the Future’ at the National Institute of Education. Here, participants were shown how by harnessing technology, learning in the future no longer has to be confined within schools or classrooms.

Technology has opened up a world of possibilities and is revolutionising the process of teaching and learning. It can never replace the human touch of a caring teacher, but it can certainly add new dimensions to the education experience.