Dagmara Mathes-SobocińskaTowarzystwo Wiedzy Powszechnej – Oddział Regionalny w Bydgoszczy,Niepubliczne Kolegium Języków Obcych w Toruniu

Common Knowledge Association in Toruń is one of 29 branches of the nationwide educational organisation, which was founded in 1923 in Warsaw as the association to the Folk University, which was the answer to tremendous educational needs of the young and adults who were deprived of education due to the Great War or previous partitioning of Poland  

• 57 years of experience in life-long education• 5 higher education colleges• 7 foreign languages teachers’ colleges• 98 post-secondary schools in Poland• 450 000 students every year• experienced trainers, lecturers, and educators

Teacher trainer in TWP’s teachers’ college, an expert in drama techniques and modern technologies application in education

Lecturer at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland, ESP including archaeology, history, arts, the history of art, ethnology and literature

Representative and Facebook group coordinator for the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language in Poland (IATEFL Poland)

Mother of two (5.5 and 2.5 years old) – Max and Matylda

Nursery/kindergarten – 4 mths-6 yrs non-compulsory Primary school – 6/7 yrs-13 yrs (last year when children can be 7) Lower secondary school (gimnazjum) 13 yrs–16 yrs (education compulsory

up to 16) Upper secondary school

Liceum – 16 yrs – 18 yrs (general knowledge schools) Liceum profilowane – 16 yrs – 18 yrs (general plus technical

knowledge schools) Technikum – 16 yrs – 19 yrs (technical schools)

Post-lower secondary vocational schools (szkoła zawodowa) Post-upper secondary schools (szkoła policealna) Universities, higher schools, colleges (Bologna system – licencjat, B.A.,

B.S. B.Ed after 3 yrs and M.A., M.S., M.Ed after 2 yrs, PhD after 4yrs minimum)

On the level of kindergarten no ICT is used although most of the children have a free access to computers at home, most of them play games not provided for their age group, some watch cartoons online.

On the level of primary classroom the Ministry of Education started a program of introducing an interactive board in every 1st grade, which is a huge success, however the software for the schoolbooks is very expensive and far from very interesting. There are computer rooms in every schools, with internet connection but they are mainly used for IT classes thus rarely used by other teachers. There is also a new programme of the Ministry of Education providing a netbook for every pupil in 1st grade so introducing full ‘connectivity’ in terms of IT in schools and homes. Many primary schools introduce virtual registers for their students (age 10-12) and parents including a possibility to ‘meet’ teachers online, which was applauded by parents who believe that they will have better control over their children. The children are digital natives using computer in heavy internet traffic, writing their blogs instead of diaries, using chatrooms, facebook and other social networks every day. They play computer games both off and online.

Lower secondary schools also have computer classrooms and IT as a school subject. Students’ knowledge of IT is rather presumed and the Ministry of Education advises using new technologies in the classroom for all other subjects. It is also quite rare that a classroom has an interactive whiteboard, or a beamer with a computer to be at the disposition of a teacher. Most teachers bring their own notebooks to the class to show some multimedia during their classes. However, some webquests or listening to podcasts as a homework are given to students.

The same can be repeated for the upper secondary schools, although some introduced e-registers and e-platforms for easier communication and additional learning materials.

Universities have an e-register (usosweb) all around Poland – a transfer of students from one university to another is very easy as all registers are unified. Most of the universities also use Moodle platform as it is a free software, some have a paid platforms like Adobe or Lectora. Modern technologies depend on a faculty’s money and sometimes the faculty has a beamer, internet connection and a notebook in every room and sometimes there are one or two notebooks per whole faculty and they are still not used. Most universities are connected by a free wifi access called Eduroam available to all students and employees logging with their personal certificates. Most universities have free access computer rooms in all faculties for those students who do not carry their own notebooks.

In TWP we teach both pre-SET and in-SET teachers. The teacher’s training college takes up to 3 years and includes an IT class and using modern technologies in the classroom while teaching languages. There are also courses from 2 hrs to 3 months on different subjects using modern technologies (designing curriculum, using internet in the classroom, improving teaching methods, etc.). We use Moodle, internet, webinars, podcasts and skype for learning and teaching.

In Poland most teachers also work on weekends and in the afternoons that is why I believe that teaching via e-resources and further development through forums, Teachers’ TV, social networking can be very beneficial as done in spare time, which sometimes means during nights or very early in the morning. There is a huge demand for learning and further development of teachers as the Ministry of Education gives higher earnings to those who improve over the years and gain teacher’s titles such as ‘nauczyciel kontraktowy, mianowany, and dyplomowany’.

We do not know what the future holds for us in terms of new technologies. Most of teachers are still afraid to use them thinking that it is an unnecessary ‘ornament’ to hard science. The scientific research proves that modern technologies such as using mobile phones for learning languages, interactive boards for games and media oriented lessons, e-learning platforms and social media cater for students with different needs. As most of the young are kinaesthetic, aural, and visual learners modern technologies provide necessary input for the comprehensive study of new knowledge.

So did you know how our world changed from the moment you started your education?

Dagmara Mathes-SobocińskaNicolaus Copernicus UniversityForeign Languages CentreUl. Gagarina 1187-100 ToruńPoland

dagmara.sobocinska@umk.plTel +48 698662133