IRBID -- The first group of teachers to graduate with an ICT in education diploma received their degrees at Yarmouk University this week.
The diploma is part of a programme run by Change Agents for Arab Development and Educational Reform (CADER) in association with Yarmouk University and INHOLLAND University in the Netherlands, which is designed to train teachers to integrate ICT and modern pedagogies and empower them to become more effective educators.
In his address at the graduation ceremony on Saturday, Yarmouk University President Mohammad Subbarini said the educational system needs modernisation with new teaching models.
"The university supports CADER in order to stay in line with current developments in teaching pedagogy. Specialising in technology and communication, the university's goal is to improve education."
Abdul Rauf Ben Yassin, a teacher at the Tubneh/Al Kurou School in Irbid said he benefited from the programme although he has been in the profession for 17 years.
"The programme is very good. We were able to use the information we learned directly in the classroom," Yassin told The Jordan Times.
Halaf Francis Judallah, a teacher at Ajloun Halowa Primary School, agreed.
"We were taught how to explain new technologies and programmes to the students. We learned different ways to think about teaching, a new pedagogy to teach with," Judallah said.
The CADER programme uses a combination of lectures and in-school visits over a period of one scholastic year, encompassing three semesters (48 weeks). The programme, which has five major themes, consists of 27 credit hours and accounts for 704 load hours.
The first theme discusses experiments in the classroom and a basic introduction to the programme, the second talks about ways to include ICT in education, while the third covers different learning styles and types of classroom management. Learning materials and implementation strategies in the curriculum make up the other topics.
"The programme helps the students by giving the teacher the tools to educate them about technology and communication. As teachers, we get new curriculum to teach our students, who benefit because we are able to better teach them," said Khaled Qazaq, a schoolteacher from Irbid.
Ron Kooren, dean of the School of Education at INHOLLAND University, said the main reason his university is cooperating with the programme is because "CADER seeks to equip people to get a higher level of education."
"This programme can mean a lot for Jordanian society and also for the Arab world. We chose to cooperate with CADER and the Arab world to build bridges for a better future for all of us."
By Ramsey G. Tesdell
© Jordan Times 2007
