Changes

Every profession has its own professional association for learning and sharing. These associations are a method of continuous interactions with fellow practitioners (peers) and allow methods of learning beyond the college or university. You would have learnt about [[wikipedia:Social_constructivism|social constructivism]] and peer learning. Teachers, as professionals too need to connect regularly to their peers, for sharing their experiences, practices as well as insights. They also need to be able to contact peers as well as mentors for seeking support.  

Every profession has its own professional association for learning and sharing. These associations are a method of continuous interactions with fellow practitioners (peers) and allow methods of learning beyond the college or university. You would have learnt about [[wikipedia:Social_constructivism|social constructivism]] and peer learning. Teachers, as professionals too need to connect regularly to their peers, for sharing their experiences, practices as well as insights. They also need to be able to contact peers as well as mentors for seeking support.  

While professional communities and associations have been there for a long time, ICT have made possible ways of connecting and communicating with each other simpler and more accessible. Online communities are often a good way of continuing interactions beyond the restrictions of meetings of physical time and space. Online communities can be mailing forums or discussion groups and can be accessed either through your phone or the computer. The [http://ncte-india.org/ncte_new/pdf/NCFTE_2010.pdf National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education] (NCF-TE, 2010) talks envisions teacher education with the following key components: (i) collaborative networks for learning and sharing, (ii) continuous learning (iii) Different paths and spaces for learning. It regards peer learning as an important component of Teacher Professional Development.

While professional communities and associations have been there for a long time, ICT have made possible ways of connecting and communicating with each other simpler and more accessible. Online communities are often a good way of continuing interactions beyond the restrictions of meetings of physical time and space. Online communities can be mailing forums or discussion groups and can be accessed either through your phone or the computer. Mailing forums are a good way to keep the teacher community in contact with one another and serve as a complement to physical interactions, and provide for learning beyond the workshops.  

Mailing forums are a good way to keep the teacher community in contact with one another and serve as a complement to physical interactions, and provide for learning beyond the workshops. Teachers can use the mailing forums to share their experiences, share resources created by them (including question papers, share activities and ideas for CCE), ask for clarifications, seek feedback, discuss issues in school administration as well.

The [http://ncte-india.org/ncte_new/pdf/NCFTE_2010.pdf National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education] (NCF-TE, 2010) talks envisions teacher education with the following key components: (i) collaborative networks for learning and sharing, (ii) continuous learning (iii) Different paths and spaces for learning. It regards peer learning as an important component of Teacher Professional Development.

Professional Learning Communities is a recent method for continuing professional development and by providing teachers with peer support, it can be a sustainable method of development. You will form a ICT based learning community of all your classmates, and use this network over the course to share your ideas, experiences and learnings, seek support and feedback of classmates for collaborative learning.

Professional Learning Communities is a recent method for continuing professional development and by providing teachers with peer support, it can be a sustainable method of development. You will form a ICT based learning community of all your classmates, and use this network over the course to share your ideas, experiences and learnings, seek support and feedback of classmates for collaborative learning.

==== Participation in online, email and mobile-based forums ====

==== Participation in online, email and mobile-based forums ====

Since the internet is a network of computers, you can send messages (called 'emails' or simply 'mails') from your computer to others, who can access it on any computer connected to the internet.  

Since the internet is a network of computers, you can send messages (called 'emails' or simply 'mails') from your computer to others, who can access it on any computer connected to the internet.  

{| class="wikitable"

{| class="wikitable"

|'''Student activity time''' - You will need to create an email-id for yourself, this is like a digital post-box or digital address. You can create an email id using a Gmail on <nowiki>http://gmail.com</nowiki>. Login by providing your 'user id' and then 'your password'. Compose an email and send to another student whose id you know. You can send it to your classmate. Compose an email discussing some of the resources you saw on your topic and ask for your classmate to give suggestions and feedback on your resource. Copy your teacher's email id in the 'cc'.  

|'''Student activity time''' - You will need to create an email-id for yourself, this is like a digital post-box or digital address. You can create an email id using a Gmail on <nowiki>http://gmail.com</nowiki>. Login by providing your 'user id' and then 'your password'. Compose an email and send to another student whose id you know. You can send it to your classmate. Compose an email discussing some of the resources you saw on your topic and ask for your classmate to give suggestions and feedback on your resource. Copy your teacher's email id in the 'cc'.  

Receive emails in your 'inbox' from your classmates. Open and read them.  

Receive emails in your 'inbox' from your classmates. Open and read them. 'Reply-to' the sender of the mail and give your comments on the mails from your classmates.  

'Reply-to' the sender of the mail and give your comments on the mails from your classmates.  

Your teacher would have created a 'class group' mailing list. You can send a mail to this list id, which will go to all students, who are members of the list.  

|}

|}

=== Developing personal digital libraries (PDLs) and evaluation of digital resources ===

 

 

==== Developing personal digital libraries (PDLs) and evaluation of digital resources ====

===Equitable access to ICTs===

===Equitable access to ICTs===

Digital resources, including software and content always have an associated 'license' of use. In case the software or content is licensed as [[wikipedia:proprietary|'proprietary']], where the creator has all the rights, and has not given any rights to others, then using the digital resource is illegal, without paying the required license fee, as well as unethical. Such use is called 'piracy'. You may find it technically very easy to just 'copy-paste' an article from the Internet or copy a proprietary software program from another computer, or download a movie from the internet which is not licensed to be copied. All these would be unethical practices and must be avoided. For the same reason, your school computer lab must not have any pirated software. If you find any pirated software or content in the school computers, please do bring it to the notice of your teacher.

Digital resources, including software and content always have an associated 'license' of use. In case the software or content is licensed as [[wikipedia:proprietary|'proprietary']], where the creator has all the rights, and has not given any rights to others, then using the digital resource is illegal, without paying the required license fee, as well as unethical. Such use is called 'piracy'. You may find it technically very easy to just 'copy-paste' an article from the Internet or copy a proprietary software program from another computer, or download a movie from the internet which is not licensed to be copied. All these would be unethical practices and must be avoided. For the same reason, your school computer lab must not have any pirated software. If you find any pirated software or content in the school computers, please do bring it to the notice of your teacher.

One way of avoiding this unethical practice, is to use and promote Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and Open Educational Resources (OER). FOSS and OER movements aim at providing digital resources that are licensed to allow you to make copies. In addition, you can modify the software / content resource and share again. It is ethical to use FOSS and OER. It is unethical to pirate proprietary software or content.  

One way of avoiding this unethical practice, is to use and promote Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and Open Educational Resources (OER). FOSS and OER movements aim at providing digital resources that are licensed to allow you to make copies. In addition, you can modify the software / content resource and share again. It is ethical to use FOSS and OER. It is unethical to pirate proprietary software or content.

'''Remember that if a digital resource has no explicit copyright clause mentioned, it means it is owned by the creator with no rights for others.''' Hence when you create a digital resource, please take care to explicitly mention that it is an OER. You can do this by providing the copyright clause such as - "Copyright - Creative Commons CC BY SA 4.0", you can mention this in the first page itself, below the title of the article.

'''Remember that if a digital resource has no explicit copyright clause mentioned, it means it is owned by the creator with no rights for others.''' Hence when you create a digital resource, please take care to explicitly mention that it is an OER. You can do this by providing the copyright clause such as - "Copyright - Creative Commons CC BY SA 4.0", you can mention this in the first page itself, below the title of the article.