Impression

I always had a profound desire to learn about educational technology. I read, joined a diploma on Integrating Technology in the Classroom in an attempt to find about how education is delivered in the western world, to see what we should use to enhance education in Egypt. The diploma courses delivered insight into some of the greatest educational practices and experiments underway and also a source of generation of ideas whereby I can develop practices which are relevant to my teaching style. Through MOOCs I want to explore about different forms of learning as well.

The future of education is Egypt in where children will be given the freedom to think, put their thoughts into action, a bulging spirit of enquiry, where teachers will turn into directors. Teachers have a great role to play, they can help individuals expand beyond their normal capacities, help bring out their best. In the past half a century the rate of inventions, research, development in culture and arts have dried up here at Egypt, this according to me is because the education system is not delivering.  Even those who invent are not celebrated and their inventions are underestimated.

 We need to develop practices which get the children to start thinking and dreaming of endless possibilities. I believe our future is going to be rich with creativity, innovation, filled with life only if we move towards progressive practices of discussions, group activity, conveying lessons using films, enacting events and others. Children will perform their best in the absence of fear. There is a difference between fear and pressure. Pressure to perform helps individuals grow, while fear is detrimental to growth.

Environmental Pollution in Cairo

Though we a full-time Minister of State for Environmental Affairs  for nearly 20 years things are getting worse. We have all kinds of pollution air pollution, noise pollution, and water pollution. I LIVE IN A DEADLY COUNTRY IN WHICH I AM TRAPPED TO DEADTH.

The air pollution in Cairo is a matter of serious concern. The air quality in downtown Cairo is more than 10 to 100 times of acceptable world standards. Cairo has a very poor dispersion factor because of lack of rain and its layout of tall buildings and narrow streets, which create a bowl effect (bad ventilation and consequent trapping of pollutants). The most notable sources of the dust and small particles is transportation, industry and open-air waste-burning. Another significant source is the wind blown from arid areas around Egypt (e.g. Western Desert). The air in Egypt is very thick, gray and there is a haze over Cairo. This makes people depressed as they feel they live in a dirty, dump, and humid place.  All people who went out of Cairo felt the difference and all who go abroad know the difference. Furthermore, other forms of air pollution in Egypt are: sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in urban areas, and  carbon monoxide (CO) in streets, due to the excess amount of cars exhaust and factories pollutants. The sky is gray rather than blue, which is very similar to the gray skies in Mexico City and Beijing. These pollutants, of course, create a lot of respiratory diseases and the  risk data is highly above the safe limit, the risk of developing serious respiratory disease and cancer from inhaling particles (dust & soot, hydrocarbons, and heavy metal compounds) is: 2 persons for every 1000, a disastrous percent.

Noise pollution in Egypt makes life hard. It really depresses me and I have no sense of tranquility.  From blaring car horns to wedding parties, rising noise pollution in the 24-hour metropolis of Cairo has reached alarming levels, leading to health problems. Living in the city centre, where noise levels reach an average of 90 decibels (dB) and never drop below 70 dB, is like spending all day inside a factory, a 2007 study by the Egyptian National Research Centre (NRC) said "What's striking about Cairo is that noise levels on different streets at different times of day are well over limits set by the environmental protection agency (EPA)". Noise pollution can contribute to many health problems.

  Environmental Awareness


Environmental Education in Egyptian Schools


The Egypt of Today


 Water Pollution in Egypt and Environmental Education

Learning in a Flexible Environment

       Isn't it amazing how much information that we all have access to and how it affects our learning and thinking? We have a lot of resources: our old books, library books and most importantly internet resources.   

        Learning in a flexible environment, with constant exchange of ideas, is a valuable and never-ending process. But are we accustomed to flexible environments? Do we believe in different modes of learning? We are only accustomed to learning in the classroom or the lecture hall. By practice I found out that I learn through different ways: face-to-face, lecturing, watching videos, discussion, learning by doing and reflection.

      

      As a teacher, I want to be a part of an interactive mode of learning where each talent is tapped and valued without so much pressure and insistence on the traditional teaching and assessment form. This is the disconnect that many educators feel in their lives. They work for an organization with a very specific theory of learning - but believe a different theory of learning is more powerful for students. 

I feel a lot of frustration in my job, there is a disregard to my subject: English language. The whole educational system in Egypt creates disqualified teachers. The students dislike education.  They feel education is humbug. They have to memorize in order to get marks. They do not understand how they will apply the information.

     It is important to understand and have a variety of learning opportunities available to everyone. For teachers they should be professional opportunities, scholarships for all teachers whether working in the governmental sector or the private sector.

    As for students we should open up their minds to new ways of getting information, practicing and applying new material. We should also listen more to their thoughts. This is definitely a hard job.

Learning environments

A teacher should...

A. PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

-Regularly ventilate the classroom.

-Open shutters and curtains to let the sunlight into the classroom (or close them a bit, if there is too much light and heat).

-Keep the classroom temperature under control.

-Make sure the classroom is clean and danger-free.

-Decorate the classroom with the students.

B. EMOTIONAL ENVIRONMENT

-Smile.

-Manipulate his/her voice (intensity, tone).

-Discuss a lot with students.

-Provide constructive feedback on students' work rather than just a grade or too much praise.

-Be calm, stable and avoid having outbursts. This way, students will know what to expect from him/her and see him/her as a person they can count on, as someone that makes them feel safe.

-Make students feel that he/she is not against them, he/she there to judge them, but he/she is hear to form a team with them and work on a specific goal.

C. INTELLECTUAL ENVIRONMENT

-Regularly use assessment practices accompanied by feedback.

-Combine different VARK strategies.

-Involve all of Bloom's taxonomy objectives but focus on the Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS), because they are more engaging.

-When teaching the curriculum, keep in mind students' needs and interests.

-Constantly present new information.

SWOT Analysis and Education in Egypt

The SWOT analysis is a valuable step in your situational analysis. Assessing your firm’s strengths, weaknesses, market opportunities, and threats through a SWOT analysis is a very simple but highly important process that can offer powerful insight into the potential and critical issues affecting a venture.

The SWOT analysis begins by conducting an inventory of internal strengths and weaknesses in your organization. You will then note the external opportunities and threats that may affect the organization, based on your market and the overall environment. Don’t be concerned about elaborating on these topics. At this stage; bullet points may be the best way to begin. Capture the factors you believe are relevant in each of the four areas. You will want to review what you have noted here as you work through your marketing plan, or improvement strategy. The primary purpose of the SWOT analysis is to identify and assign each significant factor, positive and negative, to one of the four categories, allowing you to take an objective overview of  your business. The SWOT analysis will be a useful tool in developing and confirming your goals.

Some experts suggest that you first consider outlining the external opportunities and threats before the strengths and weaknesses. This will allow you to complete your SWOT analysis in whatever order works best for you. In either situation, you will want to review all four areas in detail.

Strengths

Strengths describe the positive attributes, tangible and intangible, internal to your organization. They are within your control. What do you do well? What resources do you have? What advantages do you have over your competition?

You may want to evaluate your strengths by area, such as marketing, finance, manufacturing, and organizational structure.

Strengths include the positive attributes of the people involved in the business, including their knowledge, backgrounds, education, credentials, contacts, reputations, or the skills they bring. Strengths also include tangible assets such as available capital, equipment, credit, established customers, existing channels of distribution, copyrighted materials, patents, information and processing systems, and other valuable resources within the business.

Strengths capture the positive aspects internal to your business that add value or offer you a competitive advantage. This is your opportunity to remind yourself of the value existing within your business.

In education, I believe, the strengths are the teachers willing to learn, many are in love with their job and really want to improve and help in improving the level of the students. Most students are willing to improve and try new methods.

Weaknesses

Note the weaknesses within your business. Weaknesses are factors that are within your control that detract from your ability to obtain or maintain a competitive edge. They include the areas you might want to improve?

Weaknesses might include lack of expertise, limited resources, lack of access to skills or technology, inferior service offerings, or the poor location of your business. These are factors that are under your control, but for a variety of reasons, are in need of improvement to effectively accomplish your objectives.

Weaknesses capture the negative aspects internal to your business that detract from the value you offer, or place you at a competitive disadvantage. These are areas you need to enhance in order to compete with your best competitor. The more accurately you identify your weaknesses, the more valuable the SWOT will be for your assessment.


In Egypt, their are no equipment,  no healthy environment, no political or social willing to enhance education just mere complaints and no real action. Teachers are not qualified enough. Even basic training is not given to teachers. Teachers get peanuts so many have no real incentive to work. They have no control over their work whatsoever and they face daily hazards everyday to get to their schools.

Opportunities

Opportunities assess the external attractive factors that represent the reason for your business to exist and prosper. These are external to your business. What opportunities exist in your market, or in the environment, from which you hope to benefit?

These opportunities reflect the potential you can realize through implementing your marketing strategies. Opportunities may be the result of market growth, lifestyle changes, resolution of problems associated with current situations, positive market perceptions about your business, or the ability to offer greater value that will create a demand for your services. If it is relevant, place time frames around the opportunities. Does it represent an ongoing opportunity, or is it a window of opportunity? How critical is your timing?

Opportunities are external to your business. If you have identified “opportunities” that are internal to the organization and within your control, you will want to classify them as strengths.

In Egypt, opportunities are clear in the will of many private companies will to promote the educational system in Egypt. It is seen in the will of the ministry of education to pay for the exams of the Microsoft Professional Educator.  Opportunities are also clear in the way many teachers want to enhance their Knowledge, skills and abilities. Many teachers are willing to increase their professional and education skills.


Threats

 Threats include factors beyond your control that could place your strategy, or the business itself, at risk. These are also external – you have no control over them, but you may benefit by having contingency plans to address them if they should occur.

A threat is a challenge created by an unfavorable trend or development that may lead to deteriorating revenues or profits. Competition – existing or potential – is always a threat. Other threats may include intolerable price increases by suppliers, governmental regulation, economic downturns, devastating media or press coverage, a shift in consumer behavior that reduces your sales, or the introduction of a “leap-frog” technology that may make your products, equipment, or services obsolete. What situations might threaten your marketing efforts? Get your worst fears on the table. Part of this list may be speculative in nature, and still add value to your SWOT analysis.

It may be valuable to classify your threats according to their “seriousness” and “probability of occurrence.”

The better you are at identifying potential threats, the more likely you can position yourself to proactively plan for and respond to them. You will be looking back at these threats when you consider your contingency plans.

In Egypt, the threats are related to not applying what you learned, the unwillingness of some people to learn new stuff, and the fear of change.

To me, I believe the solution to the problem of education is leadership and funding. If we have a leader like Mahatir Mohammed who used to meet parents and students on Friday to orient them and boost them on weekly basis to make the parents help their children, make them study and experiment for long hours, the educational problem will lessen as better calibers will be available, training teachers and application of new methodology would be part and parcel of the system.