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Abstract-It is increasingly important that next generation of students must acquire problem solving, critical thinking and collaborative skills to succeed in their career aspirations in the 21st century. Technology plays a crucial role in assimilation of these skills. Among flourishing arrays of technologies, robotics provides challenges and opportunities to the learners in developing innovative ideas, disruptive thinking and higher order learning skills. In recognizing these potentials, educational authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) undertook an important step in distributing Lego Mindstorms kits to schools to encourage teachers to use in their teaching. This paper explores the educational use of robotics in schools and how teachers can integrate this new technology into the curriculum. The paper also suggests the effective strategies in using robotics as an educational tool and how it will impact students' interests in STEM related subjects. Some recommendations to enhance learning activities in the classrooms are provided.

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Personal epistemological beliefs influence one's cognitive and metacognitive operations in a significant way. They also influence how teachers conceptualize teaching. It is therefore essential for teacher educators to understand the epistemological beliefs that pre-service teachers are holding to foster mature epistemological outlooks that could facilitate educational reforms. This study surveyed 537 Singapore pre-service teachers' epistemological beliefs. The results indicate that Singapore pre-service teachers were fairly homogenous in their beliefs. They place much emphasis on learning effort. Although they seem to be inclined to believe that knowledge is uncertain, they also tend to believe in the experts. Generally, the profiles suggest that it may be necessary for Singapore teacher educators to foster more mature epistemological outlooks among its pre-service teachers. Les croyances épistémologiques sur l'enseignement et l'apprentissage. Une enquête auprès des futurs enseignants à SingapourLes croyances épistémologies personnelles influencent le fonctionnement cognitif et métacognitif de la personne de façon significative. Chez les professeurs, elles influencent aussi la façon dont les professeurs conçoivent l'enseignement. Il est donc essentiel que les formateurs d'enseignants comprennent les croyances épisté-mologiques des futurs maîtres, ceci, pour favoriser une vision épistémologique mûrie susceptible de rendre les réformes éducatives plus aisées. La présente étude porte sur les croyances épistémologiques de 537 futurs enseignants de Singapour. Les résultats montrent que les futurs enseignants de Singapour ont des croyances épistémologiques assez homogènes. Ils mettent un fort accent sur l'effort d'apprentissage. Bien qu'ils semblent enclins à croire que la connaissance est incertaine, ils ont aussi tendance à croire les experts. D'une façon générale, les profils relevés amènent à penser qu'il faudrait que les formateurs des maîtres de Singapour suscitent des visions épistémologiques plus mûries chez les futurs professeurs.

Abstract. Educational computer game has many similar characteristics like any other genres of games. However its particular aspect is designed to teach, and in which main objective involves in learning a topic. To develop an effective educational computer game, different game genres, learning activities and techniques, and learning styles are important issues for consideration. This paper presents an analysis by comparing and establishing relationships between the game genres and learning techniques based on the types of learning and potential game style of Prensky [1] and learning styles based on the study of Chong et al. [2].

Teaching in the classroom today can no longer sustain the interest of students and be effective if the process involves traditional approach -teachers as sole provider of content information. In recent years technology has played a significant role in transforming education to more progressive and interactive activities. However the use of technology itself does not produce positive results in quality of learning and students' achievement. Teachers must be competent in subject knowledge, pedagogical skills and technological know-how. The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge or TPACK as a conceptual framework can guide teachers to understand the complex relations between the six components of the model. There has been numerous studies on TPACK in international contexts beyond cultural and language boundaries. This paper examined recent studies on TPACK in various countries and reports findings from a study conducted with student teachers in the UAE.

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