The Fifth Reflective Journal (TLL)

Using technology to teach thinking skills

By

 Tri Okta Ervina

The using of technology cannot be separated with all the activities in this world. It uses for working, studying even teaching. Nowadays, teaching and learning process are almost using the high technology in the classroom. All of the kind of skills can be taught by using technology, those are speaking, listening, writing, reading, moreover thinking skill. How great it is for our education. In this case, I want to explain more about using technology to teach thinking skills because the technology to teach speaking, listening, writing and reading have already explained by me in the previous reflective journal.

Thinking skill is the skill which includes critical thinking abilities. Everyone has their thinking abilities but the level of it is different for each people. By existing the technology, everyone can be helped by it when doing everything, especially when they have difficulty in thinking of something. In the teaching and learning process, technology also helps the students to be creative for increasing their thinking abilities. As the high quality of teacher candidates, we have to know the good way to teach the students by using technology to support their thinking abilities.

Teacher is the important element in this case because the technology can be used to support thinking skills if the teacher allows some requirements. The requirements for making the classroom active in using technology to support the students thinking skills are setting some learning activities in the classroom by encouraging the student’s cognitive processes, selecting the technology tools that are appropriate for the students to support thinking and problem solving activities, and the last is the using of the tools in learning approach based on understanding of inquiry, problem based learning and language learning.

So the conclusion is the technology can help the students to support thinking skills if the students recognize, understand and apply the technology itself in appropriate manner. Beside that, the tools which are used have all the kinds of menus in helping them based on the students’ need. Selecting the tools is the important one for the teacher to help the students for increasing their thinking skills.

The fifth Reflective Journal (PETA)

Reviewing models of instruction

By

Tri Okta Ervina

Before doing mid-term exam, we were reviewing the materials which have not been understood yet by us. The most difficult part was models of instruction. Miss Ine asked us to work in a group of five or six and every members of the group had their own duty. The members could be a facilitator, illustrator and other kinds of duty. The purpose of dividing duty for every member was to manage the time. Thus, it did not take a long time in the discussion. After dividing the group and duty, one of the members had to take the questions that have been prepared in the envelope.

Every group had the same question but different topic of discussion. The result of the discussion must be written in the flipchart and should be hung on the wall. It looked like a gallery wall, three members from the home group explained to the guest and the rest of the group walked around to other groups. It was quiet confusing because we did not really pay attention to the instruction. It was clear after the lecturer gave the second instruction. Again and again, we misunderstood about the instruction because of our mistakes. The worst part happened when I and my friends visited one of the galleries, but no one stayed over there. Finally I asked Miss Ine and she said to me that I had to ask to one of the home group to explain the material. It was messy at that time.

After finishing doing gallery walk, we realized that we still confused about the models of instruction. The lecturer explained the part of the material which we thought it was difficult and there was a discussion in the class. It took a long time because there were so many difficult parts; every student could ask which part was difficult for them. The last session was written test about the models of instruction which have been learnt, it could measure the students’ understanding about the material.

The fourth Reflective Journal (TLL)

Technology to Teach Writing

Writing is one of methods to express or deliver something besides speaking. Based on SLA, there are four major approaches to guide us in writing instruction; those are form-focused approach, process-focused approach, content-based approach and reader/audience-dominated approach. All the methods have different focus on their own approach. We can guess the approach easily from the name of approach itself. For example: form-focused approach focus on the form, so that’s why we are not confused to identify each approach. After knowing the focus by guessing the name, we can know deeper about the content of it.

The accuracy belongs to the form-focused approach because it focuses on grammatical and discourse structure. Emphasized on the pattern of the sentence, paragraph, topic in the sentence, and other kinds of pattern are the main focus on form in writing. The existence of technology helps the writer in writing for focusing the form by providing some website which is content of some grammatical and discourse structure guideline.

 If you focus on what’s your expression, your draft about something by using your brainstorming and communicate with authentic audience even you publish your writing, it means that you emphasis in the process of writing. It refers to what the writer writes, how the writer writes and the evaluation after writing. Accessing web database, electronic bibliography writes, composing with the word processor and networked peer response group are some of the example of using technology in process-focused approach.

Writing a science report or academic writing needs the high critical thinking. Of course it needs some literatures as the sources to make a good writing and rich of content. A good writing is supported by giving the data and proof to make sure that the writing is a valid writing. In this case, the technology supports the writer to look for some literatures because the internet connection can search the proof easily. Yet, there are so many data which is invalid. We have to be careful in looking at the proofs in the internet.

If a writer focuses on the readers, the result of the writing has to be the important thing for the writer. The readers are not only the individual person but also the community who has large number of members. Thus, the content and the form are very important. Publishing into media is a part of reader oriented. The media it self can be magazine, newspaper or through internet. So the technology really helps the writer in writing.

Humanistic studies 1

Identity among Others

Everybody has their own identity. They really admit that they are in a part of their identity. It is very important for them. However, people live in the world by having differences. Sometimes the differences make the beautiful life, but in other side it makes a complicated problem. If each people with the different thought of something do not understand each other, it will make a serious problem in that case. It also happens in different identity. They can not live together if they do not respect one another.

The statement above is just a part of some theories which the people always use. We can reflect in our daily life about the difference of identity. The example could come from all the status and sides. The students of the university usually find and feel it when they were in the first meeting and face other kinds of people characteristics. Moreover they are still a young people so it is possible if the simple problem can create a big problem because of identity. In the age around teenager, some people like to be admitted their selves or their identity. So that’s why the students of the university have problem in admitting their selves and difference identity among others.

As mentioned in the first sentence in paragraph one, all of people have their own identity and they like to be admitted based on their identity.  For example the students of the university said that they are Javanese. It can take a meaning that they want to be admitted as calm people because the stereotype of Javanese people are calm, or it can also mean that they proud of to be Javanese people.

That is an example of identity in the university students. We can take the example from a couple of husband and wife who come from different city and have many neighbors come from all the different towns. All of them have to respect one another. The couple itself has their own identity; they should respect each other. They live together all the time; it means that it is not easy to understand each other that come from different background. They also live in the society who has different identity. It is difficult enough problem if the husband or wife doesn’t really pay attention on it. Let say the wife comes from Javanese who has the high quality of feeling something and the husband comes from Bataknese who has different character with the husband. Both of them like admit their own identities. Only understanding and respecting each other all of problems will not be a serious problem in this life.