RAP Annual Summer Convention 2007

The RAP Annual Summer Convention 2007 ended last April 28, 2007 with a great big sigh from convention chair, Dina Ocampo of the UP Reading Department. It had 480 participants, the biggest so far, and along with it came a hundred problems too. Like anything else in life, when the end comes, you only remember the good ones and the shinning moments of its existence. Unless you are a pessimist, you'd linger on the guilt, the mistakes, and the little faults. RAP Officers, as I was made to see in those two days were not made of that stuff.

Over all, it was a very good conference where in teachers, administrators and educators convened and experienced how theory, research and practice are put into play. How I wish Filipino Librarian Associations can adapt the same format for a conference. The last I heard of plenaries and con-current sessions done by PLAI was two or four years back.

The field of Library and Information Science is ever expanding, ever evolving. Research on the profession and the practice of it must be shared with others, librarian or not. Imagine what Filipino Librarians can learn from research so that theories are tested and questioned, thus, professional practice is improved. In my opinion, we are not there yet. We still patronize one-man seminars and talks. Nothing wrong there since we are getting the best resource speakers in our field of specialization, but, we need to be more scholarly by reading, knowing and listening to research and best practices done by other librarians.

It is amazing how the RAP has networked with IRA so seamlessly in the past years that the investment is paying off. Having the VP of IRA, Barbara Walker, was very beneficial to all present. She gave new perspectives to the teaching and study of comprehension. Her presence was inspiration to those who are "there" and motivation to those who are "striving" to be.

On a perosnal level, I enjoyed the convention. I even got to chair a session on children's literatture to my delight! It is so good to listen to two professionals give their results and study on gender issues on Filipiniana published books for kids. Some research presentations are familiar that it enriched existing knowledge and content base. I believe that, as a school librarian, I have to always be reminded of my connection to the discipline and the art of teaching. It is not enough that I know and do the work of a librarian. It is necessary to know the langauge and the craft of the people I work with becuase there lies the root of collaboration.

From Words to Worlds

The first day of the RAP Annual Summer Convention is over. These are my highlights:

1. I met old friends from the teaching industry.

2. I met new ones, too.

3. I saw Teacher Portia Padilla's students perform a storytelling gig. It is to me, very special because, I gave them a workshop on Storytelling last November during my lean months.

4. Barbara Walker's and Dr. Nemah Hermosa's plenaries. Reading Comprehension is proces; active conversation; and community. Reading Literacy has a changing face, a changing idfentity. Therefore, reading teachers must be able change paradigms too.

5. I had a SRO for my presentation on ICT integration. But the room was so hot I was profusely sweating.

More plenaries and concurrent sessions tomorrow!

Integration of ICT PowerPoint Presentation

Integrating ICT & Reading Comprehension

Below is the abstract for the professional paper that I will be presenting in the Reading Association of the Philippines (RAP) Annual Summer Convention at St. Paul Quezon City. It will be tomorrow, April 27, 2007. The convention will run for two days and the program promises to be an enriching and engaging convention. With Manilyn Reynes as special guest and Nani Cruz of the TNL, it's one convention that combines education and entertainment in a most effective fashion.

With the advent of new technology and its drawing power on children and teens, more and more, schools are investing on gadgets and electronic learning resources that enrich and enhance instruction. Teachers undergo training on the utility of computer software and hardware. The appropriate infrastructure and manpower are also being provided for technical support. Although traditional learning tools can still be trusted upon to help in the delivery of instruction, experiments and initiatives on technology integration are being implemented by teachers in basic education.

This paper discuss the importance of well thought of activities and strategies that integrate technology in the content area classroom. Issues and concerns pertaining to the use of technology are also explored to see relevant factors that may affect the success or failure of such integration. The focus, however, is mainly on web enhanced teaching strategies that lead to a better understanding of concepts and skills taught.

The IRA’s Position Paper on Technology Integration and the NETS Technology Standards are presented as guide to aid teachers in the planning and implementation of such strategies. Actual projects and class activities are identified to show concrete examples of web enhanced teaching strategies. A directory and bibliography of resources are included to further inspire and motivate the classroom teacher in using the Internet as a valuable instructional material in the content areas.

For questions about the convention, contact docamporap@gmail.com.