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This paper reports an exploratory study on Singapore secondary and primary school students' perceptions and behaviors on using a variety of Chinese input methods for Chinese composition writing. Significant behavioral patterns were uncovered and mapped into a cognitive process, which are potentially critical to the training of students in inputting Chinese via computers. Due to the cognitive complexity of Chinese computer input, there seemed to be a misalignment between the perceived effectiveness of these input methods and their actual benefits. They will only be effective if the composition writers possess appropriate language abilities and technical skills. In addition, as secondary school composition writers had higher level linguistic and technical skills, for example, the ability to guess the correct pinyin (a Romanized phonetic scheme that is required for Chinese text input) based on experience, they were more likely to view the input system favorably than primary school students. This has implications in how to prepare primary school students for information and technology mediated composition writing in Singapore. Pinyin and technical skills should be introduced as early as possible for them to appreciate the benefits of computer-mediated Chinese text input and subsequently, composition writing. (Contains 1 figure, 3 tables, and 2 footnotes.)

This collaborative inquiry project brought together 14 Chinese Language teachers, 4 researchers and 2 Ministry of Education (MOE) curriculum specialists to co-design the Chinese Language curricula with the integrated use of information and communication technology (ICT). Three qualitative data sources--one-to-one interviews, focus group discussion, and the field notes--were collected and comparatively analyzed. The findings indicate when the participants in the three parties (teachers, researchers and ministry officials) brought their own agendas and interests to the project and this resulted in various tensions initially. The participants experienced gradual changes in knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and practice after coming out of their comfort zones. When they reached a consensus to enhance Chinese learning for primary school students, they actively contributed their respective strengths to the project. The findings indicate that the collaborative inquiry model is one possible way to resolve tensions arising from education reforms and to build-on diverse ideas for contextually viable innovations. (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.)

The purpose of the study is to explore student teachers' intentions and actions in technology integration in their classrooms. A postgraduate teacher education cohort of 118 Singapore student teachers participated in the study. The results suggested that student teachers in Singapore showed positive intentions to integrate technology to facilitate student-centered learning in their future teaching. However, they reported that they were more likely to use technology as a supporting and instructional tool during their student teaching rather than using technology to promote student-centered learning. Qualitative findings from 10 purposefully selected participants showed consistency with the quantitative results. The results of the study helped to better exemplify the student teachers' intentions and their actions in integrating technology into their classrooms. (Contains 4 tables.)

As part of a two-year, mixed methods study, the focus of this paper reports the qualitative findings that are related to nine beginning teachers' learning to teach with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) during their first year of teaching. It aims to explore how these teachers deepen their understanding performances of technology integration in their first year. They demonstrated consistent, varied perceptions, frequency and ways of using ICT for classroom teaching and learning from their initial teacher education to their first year teaching. They developed diverse understandings of technology integration from their own practice, and chose to play different roles, such as, follower, doer and emerging teacher leader for technology integration. Suggestions to schools on providing beginning teachers with ongoing technical and pedagogical support and capitalizing on their tech-savvy strengths are discussed. (Contains 2 tables.)

This paper outlines an adaptable collaborative writing approach employing a wiki to address the typical weaknesses of young Singaporean Chinese students learning Chinese as second language (L2) in Chinese writing. These students' problems in writing include limited and incorrect use of vocabulary, English-style grammar, badly structured passages, and so on. The collaborative writing approach, V.S.P.O.W., can be characterised as a recursive, bottom-up writing process that requires the students to collaboratively carry out wiki-based "word/phrase pooling" (V), "sentence making" (S), "paragraph writing" (P), and "outlining" (O); and eventually individual essay writing (W). We analysed the potential learning effects of the writing process among Primary 4 (10-year-old) students--especially in addressing and leveraging students' individual differences. Through teacher and student-initiated customisation of the original V.S.P.O.W. process, we hope to improve the students' micro-skills for writing. The results of the pilot study show that the target students' micro-skills for writing were significantly improved, which could be attributed to emerging peer coaching practices among them. (Contains 4 tables and 2 figures.)

This paper reports one major finding from a large two-year, mixed-methods study that investigated the process of beginning teachers' learning to teach with information and communication technology (ICT). Among the ten participants involved in the qualitative portion of the study, three stood out from the rest in their effort to use ICT in student-centred teaching approaches and translating their constructivist orientation learned from the university into classroom practice. They began to develop leadership potential to influence their university peers and their cooperating teachers during their ten-week period of student teaching (Gao, Choy, Wong & Wu, 2009). During their first year of teaching, they continued to develop their leadership potential for technology integration by teaching with their "technology savvy" strengths, leading their colleagues in school-wide technology initiatives, and supporting other beginning teachers. This study suggests that beginning teachers can learn to teach with ICT and lead in technology integration at the beginning stage of teacher development. (Contains 2 tables.)

The focus of this paper is to present the major qualitative findings from a one year, mixed methods study that explores a cohort of preservice teachers' process of learning to teach with information and communication technology (ICT) across their teacher preparation program in Singapore. This study suggests a variation in the preservice teachers' technology competency, stances, decision making and actions in using ICT for classroom teaching and learning. The majority of the participants seemed to be unable to translate into teaching practice their increased technological competency and espoused constructivist orientation gained from the coursework. They tended to use ICT to improve and enhance teacher centred instruction on a regular basis during the teaching practicum. However, three focus participants were also able to use ICT to engage their students in student centred learning. They began to demonstrate their leadership potential in influencing others to use ICT for enhancing student learning. The findings suggest that preservice teachers may need more guidance, modeling and collaboration to develop a better understanding of technology based pedagogy from their own practice so that they can synthesise their constructivist orientation, student centred teaching approaches, and effective use of ICT. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)