TE year1handbook/Year1 Unit1 Mode of transaction

Program implementation broad guidelines

Institutional ICT Infrastructure

The program requires each TE institution to have an ICT lab, with following assets:

Hardware

1. This can be desktop computers or laptop computers. The number of computers could be decided based on the student strength in the school. Schools could also be provided with a limited number of alternate cheaper devices like tablets, raspberry pi to supplement the computers. However, the kind of active learning envisaged requires that ICT lab have sufficient computers, over time, this should reach at least one-third the number of students in the largest section in the school.
2. One of the computers will be designated as the ‘server’. This will host the content shared by the DSERT
3. The computers must be networked, preferably through a wireless LAN. Internet connectivity must be made available through broadband.
4. Projector – a minimum of one LCD project is essential in each institution, over time as the use of ICT increases, more than one LCD projector could be provided so that teachers could use it along with a laptop in their classrooms for ICT integrated teaching, apart from sessions in the lab.
5. Printer (cum scanner cum copier), digital camera, speakers, head phones are other items that must be part of the ICT lab hardware
6. The institution must organize regular 'health' check-ups of the infrastructure for preventive maintenance.

Software

1. Each Lab will have the 'software' - the operating system and other software applications distributed as part of the 'custom distribution' provided by the DSERT
2. Software should be periodically upgraded as per norms suggested by DSERT
3. Since the GNU/Linux operating system is being used, anti-virus will not be required, however the precautions related to internet safety must be strictly followed
4. Student teachers and teacher educators will be interested to download additional applications from the internet, for which the institution should frame clear guidelines. Free and open source software that has educational uses can be downloaded based on need, without any license fee payment or sharing constraints. Teachers should also be able to download new applications for use in their own learning and in classroom teaching.
5. The ICT lab coordinator will be responsible to ensure that no software or content is being downloaded and used in violation of license requirements. The simple method of implementing this is to ensure that no proprietary software or content is stored in the computers.

Content

1. The source book and hand book, along with the digital resources required for transaction, will be made available by DSERT.
2. Student teachers should also be able to create OER, for use in their own learning and in classroom teaching. They should be encouraged to access existing OER for this purpose. Translation of existing OER (in English) into Kannada and other languages used in the state will support OER creation.
3. Teacher educators and student teachers must follow the legal and ethical aspects of accessing available software and content and must avoid downloading software or content that is not free and open. Teacher educators must also exercise oversight over the content downloaded by student teachers and ensure that no inappropriate content, or copyrighted content is downloaded.

Online and offline distribution

The program has three possible ways of being implemented, depending on the availability of internet and the computer up-time.

1. On-line: The entire textbook and hand book can be made available on-line. Teacher educators and student teachers can access these and practise on your computer. However, this will need continuous Internet connectivity
2. Off-line: The entire textbook and hand book is available off-line in the ICT Lab in an 'off-line' mode. This method requires the computers to be working and electrical power to be available.
3. Non-digital: In case the lab is not operational due to different reasons, such as non-working computers, or no electricity, then the the print edition of the text book can be used. This can be support classroom discussions on a unit or project activities such as collecting data for surveys. Even during this time, the on-line version could be accessed on a phone or tablet if there is data connectivity. Teacher may be able to demonstrate activities using a laptop and a projector, if electricity is available.

Institution level program management

1. Each institution must designate an Teacher Educator - ICT co-ordinator (TE-ITC), based on norms suggested. The key responsibilities of the TE-ITC include
   1. custody of the Lab and Lab infrastructure and making available as required
   2. preventive and breakdown maintenance of the ICT assets
   3. keeping a simple log of the lab usage
   4. supporting teacher educators to transact ICT lessons in the lab and scheduling of these ICT classes
   5. keeping the institution informed of any requirements, problems faced and work for their solution
2. The TE-ITC role could be periodically (once in 2-3 years) rotated among the staff. At the same time, the ICT lab is a school infrastructure, so the school staff has a shared responsibility in its upkeep.
3. Similarly, 1-5 student teachers could be designated as Student teacher - ICT coordinators (ST-ITC), who will help the SITC in managing the lab, facilitating repair of the equipment as required.

Regular maintenance

1. ICT lab requires much higher maintenance than most school assets. Computers and other equipment are likely to fail or develop problems which need to be attended to, especially since they will be used intensively
2. The SE-ITC must pro-actively address issues to ensure high up-time of computers
3. Contact information of individuals or institutions who are appointed for the maintenance and repair of the hardware must be clearly put up on a chart in the lab itself, along with do's and dont's for effective use of the infrastructure.
4. Software needs to be periodically upgraded. New versions could be upgraded every 1-2 years, while security related upgrades must be done more frequently, say once a month. this would require internet connectivity.
5. The institution will need to have budgetary provision for maintenance of the ICT Lab and for consumables

Academic processes

Based on the student strength in different sections, the school must prepare its time table and student lab assignment, considering following possibilities

1. Up to 3 student teachers could work together on a computer. The selection of these learning groups must be carefully done by the teacher to support peer learning possibilities, and not be random
2. If the number of student teachers is more than three times the number of computers, the section could be split into two (or more as required), such that one group works in the lab and the other group(s) are assigned other classes, including discussing topics / exercises from the ICT source book
3. All students must participate in the ICT classes. It is ideal if the transaction is shared among few teacher educators, instead of assigning it to a single teacher educator. Institutions should explore ‘team teaching’ where 2 teacher educators (one the SE-ITC and the second the subject teacher educator teaching the subject, to which the transaction may pertain) could take the class together in the lab.
4. For each topic in the text book, for the hands-on activities, students will need to become comfortable using the relevant software applications. The teacher educators will need to orient the students on the software application as required for the topic. Student teachers of course can and will explore any software tool for learning additional / advanced features. All software applications can be learnt through the 'Explore an Application' section, which is provided as part of the on-line and off-line distribution of the source book and hand book.
5. During practice sessions, some student teachers (who may be more proficient in ICT) may also be roped in to support their peers during the hands-on sessions.
6. For each designated activity, each student teacher is required to maintain their digital records / portfolio, in relevant folders. Ideally the resources created / accessed / connected to each activity should be in a separate folder.
7. Each student must have her/his login into the school system. (The Ubuntu GNU/Linux system allows multiple user logins to be set-up on a computer). Each student will be able to create folders and store their work on the system, which will be secured through their login. These folders will grow and be enriched over the two years of the transaction.
8. The teacher should be able to easily access the student portfolios for assessment, either over the network (using an administrator login), or will need to copy the students files using pen drive/ external hard disk.
9. In addition to these formal assessments, the school should also organize digital competitions for student teachers, illustrative list of areas is provided below
   1. Poems and essays (all resources shared digitally)
   2. Digital Art
   3. Short film/ documentary
   4. Photo essay (natural events, birds, animals, nature)
   5. Cartoons
   6. Biopics
10. Some of these competitions could be individual and some team-based. School can also organize an exhibition of the digital products created by students.

Teacher Educator capacity building to transact the subject

Every teacher educator will need training on ICT integration in education. During the training, the participants can be made a member of mailing groups, for continued learning and peer support. These virtual forums are meant for teachers to share ideas, experiences and resources and also for seeking help and peer support. It is expected that based on the workshop learning and the continuing self and peer learning through the forums, the teacher educators will build capabilities to transact the ICT text book.

Transactional Strategies

The theory and practice of ICT will not be split into discrete sections in terms of transaction, these will flow into each other; the underlying concepts will be discussed before, or along with, or after the hands-on sessions in the ICT lab. Many of the elements of ICT mediation course require practical work, however, the theoretical basis for many of these activities will be introduced through class talks, lectures and group discussions. Practical sessions will be conducted in the ICT laboratory, which must be equipped with a laptop connected to a slide projector, white board and students-teachers having access to computers with Internet connectivity.

Lecturing, conducting small group  and whole class discussions, reading, watching films/videos,  arranging guest lectures and organising class talks are modes of transacting this paper. Student-teacher assignments, notes, resources prepared can be uploaded on an institutional Wordpress or MediaWiki or Moodle platform for wider sharing.

A mailing-list of student-teachers and faculty should be created in the beginning of the term and student-teachers must be encouraged to actively participate in virtual discussions on topics covered in the classes and labs. Guest faculty can also be invited to participate in these lists. The mailing-list can also serve to share information and announcements with student-teachers.

For providing opportunities to students for working in the ICT lab, the teacher will need to create login-ids for each student. A separate login-id for each student will enable to keep the work of the students secure and easily accessible, this is necessary for assessment of the students work over time and at the end of the year. It is likely that the number of students exceeds the number of computers in the ICT Lab, hence more than one login-id will need to be created on a computer. Teams of 2-3 students can be formed, and each team will work on a computer designated for it, on which the login-ids of member students have been created. All the digital materials created by each student will be secure within their own part of the data stored in the computer, and no student will be able to access the data of another student since it will require the login by that student.

Unit 1- ICT for connecting and learning

Suggestions in the curriculum are briefly explained in this section. The activities listed here are by no means exhaustive or meant to be prescriptive. They are meant to provide pointers for teacher educators to build on further.

Unit Topic	Major objectives	Suggested activities for classroom transaction / ICT Lab activity	Suggested Assessment techniques
		Unit 1- ICT for connecting and learning
History of ICT	1.1 Understand the history of ICT, including digital ICT	Class talk - History of ICT in the context of technological change in society and what distinguishes digital ICTs	1.  Write an assignment/ present a project on evolution of ICTs across human history which would be presented in class in teams of 2-4 students. 2.  Reflect on any one change that has had a profound impact on society; compare it with the change ICTs have brought
Basic familiarity with ICT devices and applications	1.2 Develop digital literacy, through familiarisation with commonly used ICT devices and ICT infrastructure	Type the lessons in the typing software such as Tux Typing and Mouse handling skills using Tux Paint e.g. Single clicking, Double clicking, Right click, Drag hold and drop etc Reference: Explore a computer, Learn Ubuntu	Opening the computer cabinet and identifying the different internal components. Installing a FOSS educational software on the computer
ICT for connecting and learning - Accessing the global digital library	1.3 Learn to use the internet for accessing curricular resources	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Use different browsers - Firefox, Google Chrome to explore features and of browser window: Address bar,  History , Bookmarks, Favourites etc. Reference: Learn Firefox	Assessing the resources downloaded related to your topic from different sites.
ICT for connecting and learning - Professional learning communities of teachers	1.4 Learn to build collaborative networks for supporting peer-based continuous learning	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Creating a student cohort group and sending / receiving emails. Reference: Learn Gmail	Review of the email discussion threads for quality of contribution
Creating your own personal digital library	1.5 Understand how to create your personal digital library	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - creation of a PDL on a topic Reference: Learn Ubuntu	PDL quality and comprehensiveness
Equitable access to ICTs	1.6 Understand possibilities for equitable access to ICT	Class talk, Presentation and discussions - Role of FOSS and OER in supporting free and open creation and sharing of digital resources, using digital tools, in universal access to ICTs	Accessing information and preparing a note on the Free Software movement and Open Educational Resources movement in India and Karnataka
Ethical use of ICT	1.7 Understand the ethical and inclusive use of ICT	Class talk, Presentation and discussions - ethical use of ICT - avoiding plagiarism	Searching for articles on ethical use of ICT from the internet and writing a summary note on the same
Internet Safety	1.8 Understand the safe use of internet	Present and discuss newspaper articles on frauds and crimes committed through Internet / social media	Contribution to presentations and discussions
		Unit 2 - ICT for creating (generic resources) and learning
Concept mapping	learn the use of digital methods for creating, revising curricular resources in text (concept map) format	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - creating concept map on identified topic. Reference: Learn Freeplane	Assess the portfolio - Concept map on the topic identified for building personal digital library.
Text editing	learn the use of digital methods for creating, revising curricular resources in text format	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Reference: Learn LibreOffice Writer	Assess the portfolio - Text document on the topic identified for building personal digital library.
Making a slide presentation	learn to present a digital lesson / story created	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Reference: Learn LibreOffice Impress	Assess the portfolio - Slide presentation on the topic identified for building personal digital library.
Creating an image resource	learn the use of digital methods for creating, revising curricular resources in image format	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Reference: Learn Tux Paint, Learn Screenshot	Assess the portfolio - Image resources on the topic identified for building personal digital library.
Creating an audio-visual resource	learn the use of digital methods for creating, revising curricular resources in audio-video format	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab - Reference: Learn RecordMyDesktop	Assess the portfolio - audio-visual resource on the topic identified for building personal digital library.
Combining text, images and audio-visuals to tell a story or teach a lesson	learn to combine curricular resources in different digital formats to write a lesson or a digital story	Demonstrate and practice the student activity in the ICT lab -	Assess the portfolio - a multi-media resource on the topic identified for building personal digital library. The student teacher should create a digital resource for a topic they will transact in their practice teaching. Feedback on the practice teaching should also form part of the assessment