HSNC University Mumbai
Bombay Teachers’ Training College
Re-accredited 'A' Grade By NAAC.
Our Vision: To Emerge as a Centre of Excellence in Teacher Education
Best Practice: Scaffolding Digital Competencies (SDC)
Title of the practice:
“SCAFFOLDING DIGITAL COMPETENCIES (SDC)”
(MENTOR-MENTEE PEER MENTORING PROGRAMME)
The best application of learning is to teach and share the knowledge and skill and then pass it on to others who can benefit and gain from our learning. Keeping this thought in mind the B.Ed. student teachers undertook the challenge to learn a few technological skills and study about a few online tools and then extend this learning to their community and people around them.
The best practice of the college institutionalized as ‘Scaffolding Digital Competencies’ in 2019-2020 by Dr Rajeev I. Jha, is based on the principles of social constructivist learning theory of the Mozart of psychology, Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky. It essentially consists of mentoring programme and peer teaching. The student teachers assuming the role of mentors often lead to reciprocal teaching enriching the teacher educators in the adoption and adaptation of digital tools and virtual classroom context.
To motivate and applause the meritorious performances of the students in this best practice, Dr Rajeev I. Jha has instituted a prestigious Trophy namely “‘Late Shri Indramani Tularam Jha Rotating Trophy’ in the Best Practice ‘Scaffolding Digital Competences’ for Exemplary Performance since 2019-2020. This Trophy is awarded in the Annual Day of the college.
The students play the role of mentors under the intensive guidance of Mentor Dr. Rajeev I. Jha. They thus systematically train the students of the other classes for virtual classroom teaching during the pandemic.
This methodology of observation and experimentation helped everyone get richer in their knowledge banks and also built confidence in students to present and express themselves in front of other classmates, seniors and professors.
Demonstrations are the core component of SDC. The student teachers have been mentored to demonstrate the digital tools in a comprehensive manner. Thereafter, mentoring sessions in small groups enable clarification of doubts and provides hand-on-experience to the rest of the class in the guidance of student mentors.
The institute appreciates the performances of student teachers at the Annual Function by giving an award of in recognition of the outstanding work done by him/her during the academic year.
Technology is ever growing and older technologies get out-of-date very soon. So, keeping pace with emerging digital tools is a challenging task.
There are limitations to the features and capacities of the digital apps in the free version or the trial version. The cost of purchasing various apps is also a constraint for students, if they wish to utilize the complete features of an app.
Multiplicity of apps poses a saturation of exploration, practice and time available in the hectic B.Ed. programme to student teachers.
Organizing mentoring sessions requires online breakout rooms and accommodation in the time table.
The practice has given student teachers an experience of team work as the activity requires a lot of cooperation and team effort. The practice has also led to a constructivist approach and experiential learning.
Our student teachers who were mentored as the Mentors successfully conducted Faculty Development Programmes for school and college teachers at the National Level Webinars organized by the college.
The integration of technology by our BTTC student mentors has been explained and demonstrated very well. The pandemic has proved that technology was the link that could maintain the ongoing process of teaching-learning-assessment. BTTC has indeed emerged as the leader in the training of student teachers in various digital tools and virtual classroom techniques through a successful run of Best Practice ‘Scaffolding Digital Competencies’ under the Mentorship of Professor Dr Rajeev I. Jha.
The Official BTTC YouTube Channel hosts live streamed and uploaded recordings of demonstrations of digital tools by B.Ed. students, with dedicated playlists for the same.
The way the SDC has taken shape, it can be rightly said that it will go a long way in acting as a catalyst in shaping the professional lives of the student teachers.
Strong Wi-Fi connectivity, computers and laptops, mobile devices with latest android versions, memory space, YouTube channel, Zoom / Google meeting with breakout rooms, microphones and headphones, webcams, digital tools and apps (free versions and subscribed), cameras, video-cameras, etc.