E-Learning at American Prep
American Prep International School has positioned itself as the trend-setting e–learning school in Thailand. This is a major claim for a school that is barely one year old! The purpose of this blog is to elaborate somewhat on what the school means when it makes this claim.
E-Learning is not “distance”- education
- The first point of clarification is that “e-learning” at APIS should not be understood as “distance” or “correspondence”-education. In other words, the students at American Prep do not live away from the school while pursuing their their studies by means of online- or e-learning.
E-Learning tools at American Prep
- Teachers in the Middle School make use of e-learning tools such as Edmodo or Moodle to support their normal face-to-face classroom teaching. Certain aspects of the curriculum are taught using either of the above platforms and students can work independently at their own pace and place. Classroom instruction is not replaced, but is supplemented with online learning outside the confines of the school building.
Laptops and E-books at American Prep
- E-Learning at APIS further means that all middle school students have their own laptop computers and all their text-books are “e-books” rather than printed books
Other digital tools
- E-Learning at APIS also implies that teachers use a wide variety of internet tools to compliment traditional teaching. This includes: integration of YouTube, Thinglink, Digital Story Telling as well as frequent internet research, into daily teaching activities.
Skillful blending of many digital tools
From the above it is clear that e-learning at American Prep International is not a single concept or methodology but rather the skillful blending of modern e-learning tools and digital/social media to enhance traditional teaching and thus to provide a quality education that prepares and equips young people with skills and attitudes that will help them live meaningfully and responsibly in the world of the 21st century and beyond. A practical example of this type of integration is described in the blogpost: Your School Website as an e-Learning Tool.