Author Archives: Ayodele Ogegbo

Hahaha: Social media is ruining childhood

Wahoo…what an interesting debate. Just as the supporting speakers argued that the use of social media affects the mental health of children. This statement comes with the understanding that children begin to develop their cognitive and reasoning abilities during the stages of 2 to 7 and 8 to 13 years old. As a result, they are not mentally developed to make decisions or take responsibility for themselves. They learn from everything they watch or hear. Exposing them to social media at this age can only do one thing…” add more to their problems in terms of picking behaviors that are unethical and/or not morally aligned “. As a mom, I have a three-year-old son who likes watching YouTube videos on Natsya. However, I realize that he has the yearning to always have the TV remote to himself whenever he comes back from daycare and he cries profusely if he does not have the remote. Moreso, nobody dares change the TV if he is watching his program. This is what social media is causing: anxiety, not sleeping early, and mimicking everything he watches on YouTube. So yes, social media is ruining childhood and there is need for parents and all educational stakeholders to have policies and strategies in place to combat the effect of social media on children.

Technology in the classroom enhances Learning

This week, we listened to the debates on whether technology enhances learning or not. Speakers from both sides did a great job of driving home their points on this topic. I agree with the opinion that technology does improve the quality of learning in the classroom.  For instance, in a traditional classroom, teaching is done as a once-off task and teachers find it difficult to re-explain a topic over and over again until students understand. However, with the use of technology, students can easily listen to the lessons repeatedly until they are able to comprehend the lesson in a better way. This also makes learning more enjoyable and fun for students.

However, I view technology as a tool that can only used to support learning if combined with the right pedagogical approach..This implies that not all technology enhances learning outcomes. So, teachers need to know the type of technology that can be used to support the specific topic they intend to teach. This is where the knowledge of a teacher’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) becomes very important.  Within the PCK framework, the teacher should have knowledge of the pedagogy, content, and technology required to effectively enhance students understanding of the lesson taught.

My typical day with the use of Technology

Hello, my name is Ayodele Ogegbo. With a background in science education, I’ve served as both a secondary school science teacher and a university lecturer for over 10 years. Currently, I am a researcher at the University of Johannesburg. My daily routine as a lecturer and researcher heavily involves the use of technology for teaching, learning, and research purposes. This requires me to conduct virtual classes and supervise postgraduate students through Microsoft Teams, where I share lesson contents and ideas using PowerPoint presentations that incorporate video and audio clips as well as online tools like PhET simulations.

To further enhance positive interaction and classroom engagement with students, I sometimes use Slido and Kahoot for online quiz purposes to check for students’ understanding. I also use Google Forms for collecting open-ended and closed-ended responses from research participants.

As a researcher, I use Turnitin to check the integrity of my work. In addition, I also try to use WhatsApp to communicate with my colleagues and other students, especially when there is a need to discuss urgent matters.

 

My first four Months in Regina

Hello and welcome to my first blog and exploration in the city of Regina. I can’t believe that time is running so fast that I have spent close to four months in this wonderful city.          

I think I’m loving it here in the city and have found a few friends that I try to hang out with whenever I am less busy. However, I still look forward to exploring what the city has in stock for me as I continue with my Job hunt.