5 WAYS TO USE EXCEL FOR SCHOOL MATHEMATICS

Dyscalculia is one of the common disorders observed in understanding and working with numbers.  Learners not only need to understand the core principles of mathematics as a subject but learn manipulations of the numbers and their operations to tune it to their benefit.

Excel is the simplest tool which can be used in school mathematics to understand the number manipulations

The basic format of excel incorporates some special features as given in the images below

Common use of excel sheet used in classrooms can be

1. Number systems – Set numbers in ascending (A to Z) or descending (Z to A), sort, filter compare etc.,
2. Basic operations and calculations – Understanding how operations works on various number system like – Integers, fractions, decimals etc., can be studied using excel sheets
3. Statistics – Finding out mean, median mode, deviations, variance is part of data analysis and the best tool which suits the purpose is excel
4. Graphs and Charts – Learning about various representations of data is essential, what best feature than use excel and manipulate data to see how the graph changes
5. Trigonometry – Best way to understand the angles and length variation in triangles is the use trigonometry in excel.

REFLECTION METHODS USING TECHNOLOGY

z

Chinese proverb says…..

                                            Tell me, I forget,

                                            Show me, I remember,                                                                         Involve me, I understand.

Learning is passive until the students are engaged. 

Involvement revolves around understanding.  Understanding develops only when curiosity is present and curiosity builds on questioning.  Questioning is one of the many ways of reflection the learned.

Technology provides us with multiple options in this area.  What to choose when is a big question.  IT giants like Microsoft, Google and Apple have made multitude of investment in this area.  Other than them the Learning management software’s from Moodle’s, Pearson, and Blackboard etc., are also competitive enough in the field of reflection process.  The option of choosing the right type of thought process of reflection lies in the hands of the academicians.  Some tips for such process can be as follows

•          Immediate reflection:  Hard core, confusing, process and procedure based requires immediate reflection.  This can be handled by classroom response systems.  They give an immediate understanding about the learners learning level.

•  Understand and reflect: Picture based, life processes and graphical basis can be emphasized using this method.  Learning management systems will help in inserting this aspect towards learning.

• Delayed Reflection:  Learning management systems also provide option for learners to read and attempt the questions.  The learner reading is tracked through the pages they have visited to allow answering and re-attempts for ESL based comprehensions or listening activities

•  Reflect and Comment: Socio-economic or political cartoons or data reviews need keen eye.  Developing such critical skills can be done using platforms like Moodles, google classrooms etc., 
• Brainstorm:  The clash of ideas to evolve new thinking or to create a win-win situation is a must 21^st century skill.  The research involved to submit arguments with valid proof is what technology is all about for brainstorming.
• Collaborate: Discussions are key part of learning.  Online learning platforms like Edx and Future learn provide lot of scope for discussions in the learning platforms.  International school collaborations through Skype, Duo, Whatsapp video call are all some of the platforms which can be used for collaboration with technology.
• Research: ‘Do not know the meaning? – Google it!’  The tag line for finding the unknown has shifted from dictionaries and encyclopedias to Google.  Google has become an important part of learning.  Information is vast and authenticity for such information is provided under another branch of Google – Google Scholar.
• Social media reflection: Social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest are some sites which allow learners to share information and reflect on their learning.  Portfolios and blogs when attached to social media provides good learning opportunity for the viewers as well as themselves.
• Extensions: Learning is not a one-time opportunity but it is a life time opportunity.  Learning does not stop with the graduation or certification, it continues.  Enabling this feature are the technologies innovations like Webinars, and Video conferences.  The panel discussions or virtual conferences and presentations each carry multitude of information and learning opportunity for the viewers. 

Technology is widening its scope into the education sector 

with the introduction of –Online games, 3D printing and ‘AI’.  Our schools widely need to focus on building a very broad and open minded, culturally aware citizen.  The ‘art of right thinking’ can be highlighted only through reflection.  Developing the thought process on the lines of positive outcome is what reflection is all about.  With limited time, schools and teachers need to sort the best method of reflecting the learnt.  Ultimately, it is not the ‘what’ that is important, it is the how’s and the why’s of learning that is tested with time.

INSIGHT TO REFLECTION STRATEGIES

REFLECTIONS TYPES IN CLASSROOMS

Reflection is the heart of learning.  It is well understood that until the brain recalls and reviews the learnt fact, actual process of thinking and learning does not happen.   How does reflection generally happen?

• Can you reflect on what we have learnt?
• Can you recall on the aspects we have gone through?
• What do you think about this process?
• Design your own idea about the procedures we have reviewed?

These are some of the questions routinely asked to go through the level of learning that has happened inside the classroom.  Uniform learning is scientifically proven false, so is the uniform input of subject concept in classrooms.  Then, how can reflection be adapted to encompass all the non-uniformity inside our classrooms?

Design of reflection strategies based on the students, the lesson and the teacher is very important to achieve its projected outcome or MLLs (minimum learning levels).  Design of varied strategies within classroom space will be both personnel and time constraint philosophy.  Hence, reflection strategies must be based on the environment which is easily adaptable and accountable for most learners.  This includes catering to the types of learners – auditory, visual and kinaesthetic within the classroom conditions.  The lesson or the concept flow need to be taken into consideration while designing the reflection process.  The lesson or concept can be interlinked to any other aid which was previously taught or seen.  The general flow can be as follows.

There are various reflection strategies which are compatible for various lessons.  A pattern of its adaptability can be derived from the given table below.

Some common reflection techniques that can be used based on the subject under consideration:

• Picture based analysis

a.       What does this picture depict?

b.      What inference do you get from the given picture?

c.       Write a story based on the given picture?

d.      Observe and critically review the artistic, cultural and geographical elements of the picture.

e.      How does this picture stand different from the process or culture followed today?

f.        What does this picture tell about the society of the period under consideration?

• Projects

a.       Hypothetical statements and their validity

b.      Questionnaire and their analytical results

c.       Statistical analysis of business data and communication

d.      Society, development and its impact on environment

e.      Scope for socio-economic development of the region

f.        Industrialisation and effect on nature

3.      

• Technical 

a.       Social media Collaboration – Comments on updates, image, video or discussions

b.      Online testing and analysis

c.       Presentations

d.      Classroom Response systems

e.      School podcasts and video channels

f.        Extensions to design and building in technology.

Understandably, teacher recognition of all possible strategies and its implementation will consume a lot of positive engagement from them.  However, planning with proper scheme will benefit learner with positive learning.  Reflection when merely reduced to ‘class tests’ provide no scope for challenge or engagement.  This results in monotony and redundancy in student tendencies towards learning.  Reflection should show case the actual priorities for the application of the learnt.  Mere question and answer type of reflection may be beneficial to a select few, leaving a large gap in the learning outcomes. 

Reflection is not only for reiterating the learnt but also to provide thinking cues to extend the topic for further learning.  Reflection when designed with the right insight kindles interest and ability to extrapolate it to career building skills.   21^st century skill building is more to focus on reflection strategies than the classroom delivery process to build a future ready citizen of the globe.

A Jingle on 'Mode of Nutrition'

Food preparation - Autotrophs

Food consumption - Heterotrophs

Plant for food - Herbivores

Animal for food - Carnivores

Dead animal for food - Scavengers

Dead plant for food - Saprophytes

Live on other plant or animal - Parasite

If neuroplasticity is true, then why is change difficult?

Brain is the most complex organ in our body.  It remained a mystery for many years.  Now, Brain research has opened this ‘Pandora's box’ and new evidences point towards areas which were considered sedentary.  Engaging, challenging, moving and involving has become key terms for an active brain.  Understanding the intricacies of learning has taken a new step with the knowledge of neuroplasticity.

What is neuroplasticity?

Scientific evidence has shown that brain can learn at all ages.  Brain is not a solid frigid organ, which stops learning at a young age as previously thought, but more flexible and plastic in nature.  The ability of the brain to transform and translate comes with its ability to be plastic.  Brain based learning researches have proved that brain accepts new facts and processes when tuned to it.

However, learning has always been a challenge among students as well as adults and the question is why?

When our brain is so tuned to learn new things and understand new surroundings, training and implementing new practices is the most difficult process.  Is it because of the complexity of the new process or the basic emotional response associated with learning new things?

It is well understood the logical brain is the newly evolved brain while the primitive brain is the one which responds first when we come across any situations.  The primitive brain or the evolved brain sets its focus only on ‘fight or flight’ both emotionally opposing factors. Adult brain which carries the bitter experiences of childhood relates new experiences to the old harsh ones and the response being ‘fight’ or ‘flight’. 

Stressors or stress signaling incidents relate response to fear.  The ultimate ‘fear of failing’ makes the learner take a back step.  The problem of ‘fear’ may not be based on the current job or situation, it can be a response to traumatic childhood experiences or personal family problems which does not allow the individual to move forward towards new engagements.  Risk taking is a challenging aspect, only learners who have the ability to bend or attune this fear will overcome the hurdle of learning in a new facts in a new environment. 

The safety of the environment is also a deciding factor in learning.  Learner needs to feel safe in the environment of learning.  Organisations which do not provide this factor in terms of safety of the employee, related benefits and their functions would face failure in changing their learning attitudes.  Behaviors, systems and practices of organisations decide the continuity and the learning potential of individuals.  Google is a best example for such organisations.

1.       Do organisations provide scope for making mistakes?

2.       Are you comfortable in making mistakes?

Mistakes should help us understand the criteria’s required for the process completion, as Thomas Edison rightly puts it ‘I have not failed, I have found 10,000 ways that won’t work’.  When mistakes are pointed out claiming – waste of time or money, learning stumbles. 

Emotionally unstable or stressed brain does not function towards achievement.  When learning environments overcome such factors, change is the result.  It is important to understand that classrooms where our children learn are no different.  When the environment children are, is not emotionally safe, learning and change does not occur. As

Rita Pearson says – “Kids don’t learn from a person they don’t like’, the factor of ‘favoritism’ is based on the emotional connection the teacher or the mentor makes with the student or mentee respectively.  This emotional connection constructs memories which help in change.  Without an emotional contact, not established between organisations and teachers, teachers and students, students and parents, change will still be a far fetched dream.

Land and sea breeze

Land and sea breeze

In the day, in the light

Land is hot, Water is cold,

Air on land, it gets hot

And up it moves

Air on water is still cold

Takes its place.

This movement is the breeze of land.

In the night, still a fright,

Water is hot when land is cold

Air on water up it moves,

Air on land takes its place

This movement is the breeze of sea.

Language learning and its variations

Language is a medium to transform ideas to reality.
Language holds the rings of communication.
Language represents expressions in words
Language dictates power in the words of poets
Language is what makes world a village.

It is universally accepted that language is the central to our existence as ‘Global citizens’.  Human evolution for long has stamped its travel adventures in history.  Moving across the globe and wandering, civilizations have communicated from sign to sounds to letters.  Defining a language and learning its rules to communicate has fascinated mankind all along.  Ever wondered, how people learned a new language.  It is not an easy task. 

Moving to a new place was considered difficult just because the person had to converse and live with a new language.  I still remember the good old days when my mom had to move to a new place and she found it difficult to master the language there.  However, the same has not been the case with me.  Though, the 90’s and early 2000’s were not so tech savvy, thanks to the communication networks, televisions and local networks saved us from the burden of embarrassment in making mistakes while learning a new language.  Movies and news were the major programs which helped develop a language then for the non-native speakers.

Today, apps like ‘Duolingo’, ‘HelloTalk, Babbel etc., provides a better opportunity for such migrating speakers.  The comparison of a foreign language, its structure and grammar with that of a local language has become possible.  Language learners, see a wide opportunity in learning new language.  Pronunciation was also a bitter task during the yester years, the speed of native speakers become non-adaptable for non-native listeners.  With the prominence of such language building apps, and the speed that can be controlled, pronunciation checks are better amongst its users.

Free courses offered by online platforms like Edx or Allison or Canva has also provided scope to interact and learn, not only within leaners of the native country but also to those outside the country. 

Focus on language learning is prioritised on building the four basic skill development in the order as – Listening, speaking, reading and writing.  The development of these four basic orders of language learning has also become possible through technology.  It is astonishing that not only can we learn the fundamentals of the language here, but also correct ourselves through recording our voice and analyse in comparison with the original pronunciation.  Sentences can be translated into the language of learning and it is automatically corrected, which gives the learner immediate feedback on the learning process.

Art and architecture transcended boundaries even in the era when technology was non-existent.  With a larger platform of social media available for sharing common interests and to review the works performance cannot be outmatched.  Language learning has crossed barriers of culture in the form of ‘motion pictures’.  Characters of ‘Tom and Jerry’, Mickey Mouse, and Doremon are all household names.  These cartoons have also claimed most vocabulary of both local and foreign languages.  The use of such cartoons on an intentional ground can be used to develop language among our children.  Attracted to these snippets, alienating may not be the answer in developing a good notion.  The same has happened to the English speaking land where Chinese and Indian movies have created landmark success.  Today, language is not a barrier but a bridge.

Reality has set in to seek light in the dark and try to convert every failure as an opportunity to success, language which was once the major restricting factor has this innate potential capable of building bridges of human emotions and allowing compassion to flow in directions which was not once thought off.  Dramatizing and giving a creative opportunity for learning is valid even in building equity among its learners.  The language of ‘humanity’ now has the capacity to connect and collaborate in different ways.  Let us build our world together crossing the boundaries of nations.  One language – One world.

LEARNING THE JINGLE WAY….

Music soothes heart.

Rhythm provides practice.

To memorize your facts,

And steer your tracks.

Memory is considered a gift in disguise. Though focus of education has shifted from knowledge to skills.  The significant of value of remembering does not change.  Appreciation of all forms reach only to those who can recall and remember.  New terminologies become ‘tongue twisters’ for youngsters in the early stages of learning.  Training them to pronounce and remember spelling is an uphill task for the teacher to achieve.  ‘Jingles’ provide scope for such training.  Understanding that earth is a combination of many spheres can be diagrammatically and poetically represented as follows.

“EARTH – a sphere

Land in it, is lithosphere

Water on it, is hydrosphere

Air around it, is atmosphere

When we all live - its Biosphere”

Tapping makes people happy

Music and dance are form of expressions which gives emotional connection to learning.  It is well known fact that engaging or interesting facts are not easily forgotten.  Similarly, when emotions are associated with learning, it is rarely erased.  Institutions come across many types of differentiation among its learners and teachers. The mode of learning and the learning styles, though not always a constant shows the variation among the learners.  Among teachers, the differentiation is the ability of some to take up the ‘dull’ subjects and change it to ‘entertaining visuals’ while some take up ‘most disturbing’ segment of students to convert them to ‘most obedient’ mates.  The key aspect behind such conversions are ‘strong emotional bonds’ created when learning happens both for the learner and the teacher. When educationists can cater to this part of emotion, learning shows a positive influence.

Many testimonials have shown that music enhance learning.  Clarity of sound, words and rhythm develops with music.  Jingles help develop such aesthetic sense among the students. A well-known jingle of conjunction is an example for this

Conjunctions: 

Rhythmic text goes long way in building a healthy brain.  Text when converted to such brilliant strokes it makes learning memorable. ‘Schoolhouse Rock’s’ adverbs is another of such rhythmic development of learning

  Adverbs:

Mathematics has some of the most confusing terminologies.  Reinforcement and repeating of the concept helps build a concrete understanding of the most basic facts.  Fractions here shows the way.

Fractions:

Creating such jingles can also be promoted in a classroom.  It can be done by the teacher or by an interested student for the benefit of others.  Such work when appreciated provides scope for developing such skills further.  Most often, concepts are presented from different perspectives. Journey of a river, is presented as interesting experiences by many writers and poets, from the language perspective, example ‘River of Life’ by Thomas Campbell compares the flow of river with the stages of life.  This is literature perspective, however, when the concentration is towards developing terminologies the same concept of river can be changed with some amount of literary aspects.

Journey of a River – Geographical terminology perspective.

“River, river! You are clever

Straight from a source,

Moving down the slopes,

Waterfalls and streams,

Making your way green,

Down in the plains,

Meandering the fields,

Tribute and distribute,

Along the state,

Alluvial to the delta,

Settling at mouth agate.”

Note: Word ‘agate’ signifies the ‘healing property which brings balance to a tempered soul’.

The philosophy of learning has taken a shift in its approach towards ‘lifelong learning’.  To acquire immense knowledge and develop capacity to learn is to be tuned towards individual abilities and capabilities.  Conceptual understanding is hyped in classroom when process and procedures are set as routines.  Plain sentences seldom draw the students towards learning.  Knowing pretty well, the attention span among learners is not always a constant, it becomes difficult to achieve the goal of learning the concept.

New ways have always interested educationist, however, old ways of singing while teaching has reached a stage of fossilization.   Jingles and Rhymes still steal the hearts of children, proof of such an ability can be seen when some of the advertisement jingles are famous than the product themselves. Good Jingles go a long way in memory retention.  However, rocking music for lessons is still a distant dream.  Developing good jingles  can be a way to achieve a ‘learning generation’.

TRAINING THE TRAINERS

CHANGE IS PERMANENT, FLEXIBILITY IS A SKILL, ADAPTABILITY IS FOR THE TRAINED

Training is the backbone for the growth of an organisation.  Changing according to demand of the situation is more valid in today’s global world.  Institutions look forward for the ability to adapt, learn and facilitate learning among its employees.  These qualities has taken a lead in the 21^st century job skills.  It is well accepted that the ability to adapt and learn is not so natural among its people.  ‘Fear of the unknown’ is what dominates during the process of ‘change’.  It is here that ‘trainers’ play their magic.  The question which dominates in such a scenario are

·         ‘Are the trainers natural or well trained?’

·         How are trainers trained?

Obviously, not all abilities are natural some are trained and practiced.

Trainers are generally quick learners who are able to connect and correlate their working atmosphere to the learned techniques.  Training them should focus on the direction of the instructional flow.

DIRECTED FLOW OF INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDE RIGHT DIRECTION IN GROWTH

Formal training sessions do not include all the nitty gritties of practical experiences. The main reason for this is the ‘lack of time’ and ‘practicality of the situation’. However, it becomes essential for the trainer to design and train on the possible problem areas.  Trainers carry, load of experiences and expertise on their working platform. Generally, they are excellent communicators and negotiators.  Training them would require the super trainer to concentrate on the policy matters and implementation concerns. 

Organization policies need to be strategized in a manner that it sustains until it penetrates the grassroots. The organisation design on training should emphasize on the vision statement and set the achievable and deliverable based on this statement.

1. Identify quick learners and risk takers:

Selection for the trainers is based on qualities like – Good communicator, negotiator, avid learner and risk taker.  These are most essential qualities during and after the training process.

2. Set your objective:

Organisation sets its objective as its ‘vision and mission’, the statements are filtered and applied for the working process and procedures.  The training need to focus on the organizational objective rather that path and procedures.  The deliverable and achievable become the process of attaining such objective.

3. Train and train:

Established norms are then trained as per the process.  It is key to understand that all learners do not have the same level of learning.  To achieve practicality of the learnt, it is a must to focus on individual learning ability and adaptability.  Making mistakes are always part of learning, providing scope for making mistakes allow training to become successful.

4. Refine and allow practice:

Demonstration of the trained skill is essential.  With demonstration, the ability of the trainer to handle various practical situations is well understood.  The objective of training can be reiterated and allowed to follow as and when diversions happen.  Remember, ‘Unlearn to Relearn’ needs time and practice.

5. Reflect on trained

Training does not end with the training phase.  It is a continuous process.  During the sessions, and after the sessions, feedback is essential for the trainer to improve in areas of delivery and expertise.  Once the process is implemented the analyzed feedback of it gives an immense ‘know-how’ of the extent of the validity of the implementation path and procedures.

Support during implementation is as essential as the training itself.  It is during the starting phase the ‘hesitation towards implementation’ is observed.  On time action is what is needed to push the work towards the rolling phase.

Training has become an integral part of every organisation.  It is now more than ever the requirement of trainers is in demand.  The success of every organisation is very much depended upon the understanding of its employees on the ‘Organisation philosophy’.  Working towards this goal becomes possible when the trainers are well equipped with the process that determines its achievement.

Providing scope for improvement in all the nitty-gritties are essential to accept and adapt to change.  Trainers and the trainees are to be made aware of the same as, ‘Change is permanent and is here to stay’.