International Teacher Education Conference 2014 1

International Teacher Education Conference 2014
Turing Teaching of Science Easy, Friendly, Intriguing and Innovative,
Employing Various Teaching Aids
M. Masroor Akhtar Khan a Moin Uddin b *
ª b Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh-202002, India
Abstract
Students must be at the center of the successful educational change that requires time, effort and on-going
support. Collaborative practices are the key for sustaining the changes that support student learning. To make
teaching of Science more easy, friendly, comprehensible, and Innovative is a big challenge for teachers,
educationist and governments. Identifying effective teaching strategies, therefore, is the need of the hour. One
should assess the effectiveness of one’s current teaching style and consider innovative ways to make the
teaching interesting, comprehensible and efficient as per the desired standard of teaching-learning process.
Teaching devices are extraordinarily helpful tools for teaching in a classroom as well as for solo-learning.
Teaching devices may help improve learning and other skills e.g. illustrate or reinforce a skill, fact, or idea, and
relieve anxiety, fears, or boredom of the students. The computer application is a broad introduction to the
features of education techniques in addition to achieving the high learning and teaching quality. We should no
more stick to the traditional lecturing methods, using a blackboard or simple display charts. The basic principles
of learning, i.e. observation, experimentation, discussion and interaction, evaluation, and individual attention,
have been prevailing for many years. But, the methods used to implement these principles have always been
delayed. The pace of the world has accelerated; fifty years ago students were required to imagine and act out
much of their learning and their play, while today many children watch animated programs with highly realistic
simulations. To enhance the quality of teaching for under-graduate and post-graduate students, we are using a
variety of teaching aids in India, particularly in our University. Importance of teaching aids include clarification
of the subject, direct experience, creation of concept of live and active classroom, discouragement of cramming,
increasing the attention of students to the subject, motivation among students, and saving time and money. At
present, we are using different teaching devices including, the Whiteboard, Display cards, Models, Specimens,
Mnemonics, Overhead Projector and Overhead Transparencies, Film-strips and Film-strip Projector, 35-mm
Slides and 35-mm Slides Projector, Microslide System, Audios and Videos, Computer Slideshows, (PowerPoint
Presentations) etc., which has led to improved teaching standard, teacher’s performance and enhanced learning
skills in the students.
Keywords. Science teaching, teaching aids, innovative teaching, classroom aids, teaching resources, education widening
INTRODUCTION
Role and Significance of Teaching Aids in Successful Teaching
Teaching aids are integral components in any classroom. The many benefits of teaching aids include helping
the learners improve reading comprehension skills, illustrating or reinforcing a skill or concept, differentiating
instruction and relieving anxiety or boredom as a result of presenting information in a new and exciting way.
Teaching aids also engage students' other senses, since there are no limits in what aids can be utilized when
supplementing a lesson.
Reading Comprehension
As students are reading less and less on their own, teachers are finding reading comprehension skills very low
among today's students. Teaching aids are helping teachers to close this gap and hone the reading
comprehension skills of the students. Using magazine and newspaper articles, print-outs, ads and even comic
books are viable teaching aids that assist in helping students comprehend the text.
E-mail address: masruur@gmail.com; moinuddin.bt@gmail.com
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