Best posts made by Housna

@BRYANb8875625e5

Hello,
Hope you are doing well too Bryan. Educators are fully equipped to determine whether a child needs special attention and should be referred to a SEN school, of course with the consent of school administrators and Educational Psychologist.

But unfortunately parents are unwilling to accept their wards have certain challenges to overcome as you highlighted.
They perceive SEN as being a stigmatized institution and do not favour the decision of the administrators.

It is in the best interest of the child to be transferred in a SEN school as educators are more qualified there to cater for their needs.

@Bilim
Hello Bilim,
According to PISA results, 15 year old teens report lower creativity, I personally think it depends upon the Curriculum being followed. Creativity is indeed a significant factor which needs to be developped throughout the educational process. I normally integrate inquiry based learning in my teaching practice, which is an effective tool to develop creative skills of students. In addition projects are given to develop their problem solving skills and creative writing also.

@Sahar730dd459d2
Hello Sahar,
I will advise you to use the Nearpod apps. It is an interactive tool where students are effectively integrated. As you mentioned your school provides tablets to students, pupils can download this app. Several topics can taught through it, for instance scientific concepts. The apps has various features such as AR, VR and field trips. You can easily evaluate and assess your students via this apps. You can design a matching exercise for formative assessment.

Sankoré is a project which promotes the integration of ICT in primary schools. It is available in all primary schools in Mauritius. Infact the Sankoré project is a Franco-British partnership which aims to educate some 16 million African children from Anglophone and Francophone countries. It aims at helping Africa to achieve the Education for All ( EFA) goals through digital empowerment. The Sankoré is an interactive whiteboard. It is an effective tool as it promotes student centered approach. Pupils of mixed abilities are integrated in the teaching and learning process. Students normally enjoy the aspect of physical interacting with the board. The Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) motivates the learners by making the lesson more enjoyable and interesting, resulting in improved attention behaviour and because of the multi-sensory input, all types of learning styles do benefit. Educators were trained to implement this project. They have the opportunities to prepare their lesson and upload it. It is an effective tool as teachers and learners have access to a wide range of educational lessons. It can be said that the Sankoré provides education through innovative technology. The newness of the technology is highly welcomed by pupils and motivates them to participate in the classroom. Indeed IWB classes generated more enthusiasm and attention from the students.

@BRYANb8875625e5
Hello Bryan,
Hope all is fine. Great initiatives taken on your behalf to value students having disabilities. Indeed teachers should recognise the importance of dealing with the emotional intelligence of students. As you are working with autism students, the 2qaw intelligence should be well catered for so as to make them included. You highlighted the use of AI, which effectively helps in managing the emotional intelligence of autism students. I completely agree with you that technology is one of the best approaches to deal with the emotional intelligence of students as it enables them to navigate their emotions.

@Vanny

Hello,
My proposal would be, you can divide the class into small groups then assign each group a specific topic concerning the 17 goals. Students will do their own research and in the classroom they will proceed on with group discussions. Then they can create their own PowerPoint under the guidance of the teacher and each group can present it to classroom. This activity will promote peer tutoring, collaborative learning and sharing of ideas. Learning will be fun and the eductor will add on by providing examples concerning each goal.

@BRYANb8875625e5
Hello Bryan,
To some extent teachers can influence public policy decisions. The decision concerning educational reform is taken mostly by the authority without consultation with the educators. Everytime there is a new regime, new policies are implemented b

Bullying is a prevalent issue in all institutions globally, implying primary, secondary, tertiary level. You can refer to an action research or conduct a survey through a reflective diary. You mentioned about allocating resources, can you please be more explicit about the resources. Different frameworks are available to curb the issue of bullying, choose the one which is more appropriate for your institution. You can also integrate greening education and gamification as strategies to mitigate bullying acts at school. Students who always manifest bullying acts can be exposed to new teaching styles through the integration of ICT such as virtual reality and augmented reality and according to research digitalisation has a positive impact on their behaviours.

@BRYANb8875625e5
In my country the rate of girls who choose IT in Grade 11, is relatively low compared to boys. Mauritius is known as an IT hub in the Indian Ocean. When ICT was firstly introduced in 2002 in primary schools, mostly females staffs applied for the post. They were recruited without any know-how and expertise in the IT field. They were offered continuous professional course so as to educate the young minds. It has been observed that most boys choose Computer Studies for O and A level. It's at tertiary level, that girls choose this field. Therefore, girls should be encouraged to opt for this subject at O and A level itself. The syllabus for A and O level is mainly programming. Girls are not motivated to I personally think initiatives should be taken to motivate girls. It can be involved them in inquiry based learning. Equal opportunities should be given to students to master this field.

Hello Ekaterina,
Good initiatives and measures are being taken by teachers, administration and stakeholders in your organisation. Indeed the issue of bullying can only be tackled by the collaboration of everyone in the school. Bullying hampers the teaching and learning process and ultimately disturbs the smooth running of the school. It is important to note that it has a direct impact on the academic performance of student's. The head of school can propose various strategies such as gardening projects, innovative pedagogies and IT related projects where there is teacher and pupil involvement so as to cater for both the perpetrators and victims. I completely agree that regular talks, meeting with parents and reference to Educational physcologists will mitigate the issue of bullying acts in your organisation.

Hello everyone. I'm Housna from Mauritius. I'm currently teaching in a Zone d'Education Prioritaire (ZEP) school, where most of pupils come from a low socio-economic background. The concept of ZEP was first implemented in France, in 2002 this strategy was introduced in several primary schools around the island especially those in marginalised regions. Various initiatives are being taken on behalf of administrators and stakeholders so as to provide quality education and create long life learners. The use of innovative pedagogies such as gamification and greening education are encouraged at school level. Teachers are provided with all the required resources such as tablets in lower primary, Sankoré is also available to improve the teaching and learning process. The integration of ICT in all subjects is encouraged. The curriculum promotes inclusiveness and all facilitaties are provided to teachers so that no child lags behind so as to meet the Sustainable Development Goals. My hobbies are sports and gym.

Bullying amidst pupils has remained a persistent issue in almost all primary schools in Mauritius as it is the case worldwide. Effective education can be dispensed and absorbed if bullying is not skillfully tackled. Having a consistent pass rate of below 40% for several years, the school where I work, has been recognized as a “Zone d’Education Prioritaire (ZEP) school. The school being located in a rural and marginalized region, the pupils feel demotivated, unenthusiastic and thus excluded.
Most of the pupils come from a low socioeconomic background and are severely affected by poverty and difficult living conditions, living in houses made of iron sheets, precocious exposure to s*x and violence and other various social problems as most of them come from broken families, stay with grand-parents, single parent or care-givers as their parents are either dead, incarcerated, or addicted to hard drugs. They are also exposed to domestic violence, aggression, fights, drugs and alcohol. This result in the manifestation of several types of indiscipline: disruptive behavior, absenteeism, truancy and bullying. While absenteeism and truancy affect the academic performance of oneself, bullying affects other pupils’ learning and socio emotional development, for the immediate and in the long term . Also, the bullied ultimately resort to absenteeism and truancy too. Indeed, bullying is hampering the teaching and learning process in all grades and consequently this will have a negative impact on the end of year and PSAC Result.
Bullying issues have to be promptly dealt with, as they affect and involve the bullies, the bullied, the school staff and also the parents. If not dealt with, promptly and tactfully, bullying cases can quickly degenerate and pollute the school climate where everyone is very heavily and negatively affected.
Acts of bullying, be it verbal, physical and psychological and/or social/relational are being reported to the office on a daily basis by pupils (victims and bystanders), educators, non-teaching staff, the gatekeeper and parents. It has also been observed that pupils who are bullied are frequently absent. It leads to various problems in the schools such as drop outs, high rate of absenteeism, and truancy. This has been negatively affecting the school climate, creating a tense atmosphere and thus preventing the school from running smoothly. It has ultimately resulted in poorer and poorer academic performance of students as seen in the end of year assessment results.
The bully shows dominance in the classroom and forms and leads groups, to bully the weaker ones by teasing and spreading rumours about them. For example, a boy of Grade 6 asserts dominance because of his height. He bullies his peers on a daily basis by calling them fat, skinny, just to make them feel ashamed and humiliated. These acts deteriorate during recess time as, without the supervision of their teachers they can now hurt, kick or damage the belongings of other children.
Moreover, the intimidators typically make profit of their larger musculature. Daily, they torment their victims by tagging them with disrespectful names and remarks, to degrade the latter. These acts deteriorate during recess time; these experiences worsen as, without the observation of their educators, the bullies can now amplify the intensity of their acts. Most students have unrestricted and unsupervised exposure to Social Media and messaging platforms where they communicate among themselves. This results in Cyber bullying pre and post of school bullying

In my teaching experience, I have witnessed several cases of bullying at school which have affected the academic performance and which have scarred them for life. Therefore it is the prime duty of the Head of school to discourage, diminish and why not eradicate these detrimental acts of bullying in collaboration with various stakeholders.

Inclusive education is seen as a major process which facilitates successful education. It is believed that if all children with special educational needs (SEN) are given the proper means and support such as the integration of gamification and assisted technology they will be able to develop to their full potential.

An inclusive educational system, starting in the early years of development, and aimed at responding to the educational needs of each student through a child-centered pedagogical approach and a flexible and adapted curriculum has been implemented for each child of Mauritius to develop to his full potential.

In order to create an inclusive educational system, the government, through its Ministry of Education embraced the following specific policy guidelines for action plan outlined below:
 Access to education and recognition to all children with special educational needs having the same right and enjoying equality of education opportunities as their counterparts.
 Relevance and Quality through the setting-up of structured systems aimed at meeting each child’s needs.
 Achievement in terms of teaching and learning as well as provision of support services within the classroom and the school through the collaboration of all school personnel and the multi-disciplinary team.
Assisted Technology is another change that has taken place due to inclusive education in our primary schools. Our philosophy is no child should lag behind irrespective of his disabilities.

According to researchers, assisted technology can greatly enhance the school curriculum experience for SEN learners and those requiring alternative pedagogies. Learners need such technology to assist them in their learning and to support their communication, interaction, mobility, and general participation within the classroom. Before the implemention of the National Policy Documents and the Strategy Plan no such facility was made available to SEN learners.

Assistive technology refers to a range of technological devices or systems designed to improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities and enhance their quality of life.
Learners may have learning difficulties caused by a physical disability; a problem with their sight, hearing or speech; emotional or behavioural problems; or difficulties with reading, writing, speaking or numeracy.

Accordingly, use of assistive technology such as magnifiers, talking devices such as a talking thermostat, screen reading software, braille displays, text-to-speech systems using Optical Character Recognition (OCR), and tablets with large tactile specifications are effective and essential enablers for learners, serving to augment their potential and create wider learning opportunities.

@BRYANb8875625e5
@Bilim
Dear colleagues,
Indeed EDUCATION is the most powerful mean for SEN students to position themselves in the society. They feel included and welcomed irrespective to their disabilities.

@BRYANb8875625e5
Hello Bryan,
Hope you are fine. Thanks for the sharing these links. They are useful for both the teachers and students.

Inclusive education is seen as a major process which facilitates successful education.

Several researchers pointed that if all children with special educational needs (SEN) are given the proper means and support such as magnifiers, braille displays, talking devices for instance a talking thermostat, screen reading software, text-to-speech systems using Optical Character Recognition (OCR), and tablets with large tactile b**tons, they will be able to develop to their full potential.

An inclusive educational system, starting in the early years of development, and aimed at responding to the educational needs of each student through the use of innovative pedagogies which promotes child-centered pedagogical approach.

A flexible and adapted Curriculum emphasizing the use of technologies has been implemented for each child of Mauritius to develop to his full potential.

In order to create an inclusive educational system, the government, through its Ministry of Education embraced the following specific policy guidelines for an action plan outlined below:
 Access to education and recognition to all children with special educational needs having the same right and enjoying equality of education opportunities as their counterparts by providing them the appropriate digital tools.

 Relevance and Quality through the setting-up of structured systems aimed at meeting each child’s needs.

 Achievement in terms of teaching and learning as well as provision of support services in terms of technologies within the classroom and the school through the collaboration of all school personnel and the multi-disciplinary team.

There are various changes which took place for an inclusive education to cater for pupils with learning difficulties. The Ministry’s positive approach to creating an inclusive culture in schools was a milestone.

Inclusive education challenges the traditional models of schools, offering a paradigm shift needed for the sharing of the common vision that all children must be able to reach their potential in inclusive educational settings whatever their abilities and learning needs.

The inclusive school gives access to all children who learn together, regardless of any difficulties or differences they may have. The inclusive school recognizes and responds to the diverse needs of the students by integrating assisted technology in the teaching and learning process.

Assisted technology can greatly enhance the school curriculum experience for SEN learners and those requiring alternative pedagogies. Learners need such technology to assist them in their learning and to support their communication, interaction, mobility, and general participation within the classroom.

Before the implemention of the National Policy Documents and the Strategy Plan in Mauritius, no such facility was made available to SEN learners. Assistive technology refers to a range of technological devices or systems designed to improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities and enhance their quality of life.

Learners may have learning difficulties caused by a physical disability; a problem with their sight, hearing or speech; emotional or behavioural problems; or difficulties with reading, writing, speaking or numeracy.

Accordingly, use of assistive technology is an effective and essential enabler for learners, serving to augment their potential and create wider learning opportunities. The Curriculum was structured and resourced to enable it to welcome and accommodate all children regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other abilities and needs.

@Bousl2336873cb4
I totally agree with your slogan that 'It's Earth Day everyday' because protecting our environment should be an ongoing process. The educator should consider greening education as important as core subjects. Our planet Earth is suffering due to the impacts and consequences of Global Warming. To ensure sustainability, everyday the class teacher can organise discussions, a role play or AI to create awareness among his students about the importance of protecting our environment. The use of virtual and augmented reality are effective tools to sensitize our young learners about the importance of protecting our planet Earth. A whole school approach is more appropriate and children will be encouraged to promote a greener society. As a school leader, I will organise activities concerning an Eco friendly school where all students, teaching and non-teaching staffs, parents, NGOs, the community and other stakeholders will be involved obviously with the approval of our Ministry. Today we have digital kids, ICT tools have a positive impact on the teaching and learning process. Normally it's the educator who conducts the class through the integration of innovative pedagogies so as to make learning fun and enjoyable. As I opined above with your statement, I personally think that students of upper grades can do a presentation in the morning assemby by integrating the Nearpod apps. It will have a significant impact on the behaviours of small kids seeing their peers caring for the planet.

@Ana_moderator
Hello Anastasia,
I would like to highlight that the Mauritian National Curriculum Framework (NCF) for primary education highly emphasised on Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4). The vision of our Ministry is to ensure that an inclusive and equitable quality education is encouraged in all primary schools as well as promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

It is important to note that by 2030, all young learners in our small island should acquire the knowledge and skills to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development, sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace, non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture's contribution to sustainable development.
Due to the fact that I work in a public school, so various trainings programmes are offered by the Ministry to educators to implement the SDGs at school. As one of the SDGs is to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts for a sustainable world. Therefore, the Ministry in collaboration with NGOs provide continous professional development for educators concerning 'Climate Change' so as to implement Eco friendly projects at schools.
My school will participate in a Eco friendly competition organised by the NGO named Coral Reef which is funded by the EU. The evaluation phase is in August 2024. This activity will be conducted on a whole school approach where teachers, students, administrators, non-teaching staffs, parents, the ZEP Unit, and other stakeholders will be involved to promote an Eco friendly school in the community.
The project will make students aware and conscious of environmental problems and boost their interest in caring for and improving the environment. It will also broaden their ecological knowledge in subjects such as energy, landscapes, air, water, natural resources and wildlife. Children will therefore develop a lifelong appreciation for nature and a commitment to protecting it and creating a sustainable future.

I firmly believe that pupils of special needs have to be integrated in the teaching and learning process through innovative pedagogies. Educators have to embed varied learning styles so that no child lags behind in the classroom. If the latter is working with slow learners in a low performing school, he should integrate the differentiated approach so as to meet the needs of diverse learners.
Inclusiveness is a value which is considered pivotal for an educator and it is highly recommendedby the National Curriculum Framework of Mauritius. The Nine Year Continuous Basic Education also favors the concept of inclusion. This philosophy implies that children with special needs will be provided with an education adapted to their learning needs and abilities.
There are various opportunities provided to educators so that they can integrate inclusiveness in their teaching profession.

• Assisted technology is available at schools so as to facilitate the teaching and learning process of students having sight, hearing or speech, emotional or behvioural problems or difficulties with reading, writing and speaking.

• Magnifying software and screen reader software are also available to enhance the learning experience of students having visual impairment especially in SEN schools.
  There is also the possibility of accommodating and modifying the curriculum as per the learning needs of students.

@Ana_moderator
Hello,
In today’s education, using technology effectively is crucial for engaging students
and enhancing teaching and learning process. The Nearpod is a popular education technology platform that aligns well with the SAMR model.
Nearpod is an instructional platform that I normally use to create engaging and interactive lessons, quizzes, and even virtual reality experiences for my students. Indeed it is a useful platform as it promotes student centered approach. Instead of writing the notes on whiteboards or draw a small model, I normally upload a powerpoint slide on Nearpod from which all students can get access through their devices. This substitution saves time, reduces paper usage, and provides a convenient way for students to access learning materials. I highly recommend to embed this platform as it engages the learners irrespective of his abilities. With Nearpod’s Collaborate Board, teachers have an opportunity to connect
technology with pedagogy in the classroom. Students work to understand how their
individual thoughts, ideas, and contributions fit into a larger shared collection of
thoughts in Nearpod. Whether you are new to Nearpod or an experienced user, an
individual feature like Collaborate Board can offer many unique ways to bring
student-centered discussions to life.