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By Mrs Theresa Lai, HOD (Craft and Technology), Ngee Ann
Secondary School |
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| Checking
food labels to ascertain the nutritional value of
the products. |
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It was an exciting week for all the Sec 2 students when they
were told that they would be going to the Tampines G’ value
supermarket during their Home Economics lesson. The students
looked forward to this experience and “welcomed the break from
the standard classroom lesson”, as one of the students commented.
The students had the opportunity to polish their writing skills
when they sought permission from the supermarket's management
to browse through the shelves and interview the customers. A
week in advance, they had to read up on convenience foods and
the effects of additives on one’s health. On the day of the
lesson, the students, who worked in pairs, had to complete a
worksheet and to interview some customers on their choices for
either processed or fresh foods. As part of the task was to
develop students’ communication skills, the Home Economics teachers
also prepared questions and primed the students on interviewing
techniques.
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| Interviewing
customers at the supermarket to develop communication
skills. |
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It was all thumbs up as the students appreciated the teachers’
efforts in organising the trip during curriculum time. Feedback
from students showed that the lesson was an enriching experience
because instead of learning in a classroom setting, they could
source for information from the public. The hands-on experience
had provided a unique learning opportunity for the students
to integrate theory with real life. Though some students met
with some difficulties during the interviews, the learning points
far outweighed the problems.
The students said that learning to interpret food labels (especially
those on the shelves) was useful knowledge because it would
help them to choose and buy convenience foods that would meet
their health and nutritional needs. They were so convinced of
the harmful effects of additives that they decided to share
the information with their parents.
I have personally benefited much from organising this lesson
myself. I am glad to know that the effort is a successful one.
The rewards clearly are that through this approach, we are able
to encourage more independent thinking and learning, and at
the end of the day, inspire our students to take greater ownership
of their learning in a fun way.
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