Sunday 17 June 2007 - Rage against the machines...

Top of the day to you all!

So, what type of student are/were you? Prensky observes and classifies three kinds of students as follows:

1. The students who are truly self-motivated. These are the ones all teachers dream about having (and the ones we know how to teach best). They do all the work we assign to them, and more. Their motto is: “I can’t wait to get to class.” Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer of these.

2. The students who go through the motions. These are the ones who, although in their hearts they feel that what is being taught has little or no relevance to their lives, are farsighted enough to realize that their future may depend on the grades and credentials they get. So they study the right facts the night before the test to achieve a passing grade and become at least somewhat successful students. Their motto: “We have learned to ‘play school.’ ”

3. The students who “tune us out.” These students are convinced that school is totally devoid of interest and totally irrelevant to their life. In fact, they find school much less interesting than the myriad devices they carry in their pockets and backpacks. These kids are used to having anyone who asks for their attention—their musicians, their movie makers, their TV stars, their game designers—work really hard to earn it. When what is being offered isn’t engaging, these students truly resent their time being wasted. In more and more of our schools, this group is quickly becoming the majority. The motto of this group? “Engage me or enrage me.”

Even though these descriptions only really apply to today's generation of digital natives, I can still see shades of myself in number _! For those who know me, I'm sure you know which one already!

So, engage or enrage me eh? Reminds me of that power anthem by Rage Against The Machines who famously sang:

The present curriculum

I put my fist in 'em

Eurocentric every last one of 'em

See right through the red, white and blue disguise

With lecture I puncture the structure of lies

Installed in our minds and attempting to hold us back

We've got to take it back

Holes in our spirit causin' tears and fears

One-sided stories for years and years and years

I'm inferior? Who's inferior?

Yeah, we need to check the interior

Of the system that cares about only one culture

Okay, okay, not all the lyrics exactly match this context but you get the drift, ya? But we, as educators in the 21st century, have to fight back and sing from the same song/page:

We gotta take the power back

Come on, come on!

We gotta take the power back

So you know which side of the camp my feet are firmly placed in. Today's students are a totally different beast to the ones that we were - "the kids back then didn’t expect to be engaged by everything they did. There were no video games, no CDs, no MP3s—none of today’s special effects. Those kids’ lives were a lot less rich—and not just in money: less rich in media, less rich in communication, much less rich in creative opportunities for students outside of school. Many if not most of them never even knew what real engagement feels like."

Today's children are surrounded by and permanently engaged to technology and without it, feels like losing a loved one. Makes me kinda glad I don't teach them! How are we meant to compete with this? Can we rise up to the challenge and engage them with 'old school' curriculum? Prensky seems to think so because it's not about fancy, expensive graphics (eye-candy) but rather about ideas (gameplay) and I couldn't agree more. Why do I still mostly prefer games from days of yore than now? And the answer's not because I'm an old fogey and yes, retro games like Chuckie Egg, Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy is still a class apart!

The BBC, for example, has been given £350 million by the British government to create a “digital curriculum.” They have concluded that almost all of it should be game-based, because if it doesn’t engage the students, that will be £350 million down the tube, and they may not get a second chance. But they are struggling in this unfamiliar world.

I wonder how they're doing with this. The Prensky article was published in 2005 so maybe we could be seeing the fruits of this curriculum soon?

Tuning out...

Michael

References

1. Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

2. Prensky, M. (2005) Engage me or Enrage me

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Activity 4.5

Hi all

Although there are no case studies of effective ICT integration available to me in my current place of work, “stories of activities and projects that worked well in other teachers' classrooms are indeed helpful to us, but in a manner perhaps different than the one with which you may be familiar.” Can you really just ‘plug and play’? (Harris, J 1998)

However, I can read about it from the following useful websites:

1. http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/resources.shtml - they have various ICT articles, eg. podcasting, blogs, webquests, using the internet, etc.

2. Knowledge on the Net - http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/download/radio/kotn/kotn.shtml

When I worked at the British Council, I was trained up to be an “expert ICT user” or “power user” (they’re big on terms) and was responsible for cascading training and support to colleagues. The BC were so heavily into ICT they even had an ICT Exploitation team with Exploitation managers based strategically around the world - yes, they have one in Hong Kong! They also have something called an “ICT skills audit” which assesses teachers’ ability to use technology for teaching purposes as well as an intranet with plenty of practical integration ideas and tons of IWB support. For my two cents worth, I think the BC are the leading pioneers of ICT in TEFL with their bold moves such as introducing interactive whiteboards into all their classrooms in their teaching centres worldwide, initiating the digitization of coursebooks for IWBs (http://www.longman.com/nced/), etc.

I’m afraid I don’t have any “warts and all” story to share with you lovely folks out there because I haven’t had that many chances of integrating ICT into my teaching in the last few years apart from the obligatory ones where IT is at fault, eg. slow server due to a class of 20 computers simultaneously opening the same software program, internet links not working because of some filtering software, unknown crashing, etc. Not terribly interesting I know but it certainly IS interesting to read about all your experiences – I can avoid all the pitfalls mentioned now!

Michael

PS. I can certainly count myself as part of generation Y, Petrea!

References

Harris, J 1998, Wetware: why use activity structures?

Saturday 16 June 2007 - Native or immigrant?

Hola amigos!

My last post brought up the issue of being digitally fluent but now my thoughts drift to whether I'm a digital native, digital immigrant (Prensky) or something else?

According to the article "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants", a digital native is a native speaker of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet whereas a digital immigrant is someone who was not born into the digital world but has, at some later point in our lives, become fascinated by and adopted many or most aspects of the new technology.

The importance of the distinction is this: As Digital Immigrants learn – like all immigrants, some better than others – to adapt to their environment, they always retain, to some degree, their "accent," that is, their foot in the past. The "digital immigrant accent" can be seen in such things as turning to the Internet for information second rather than first, or in reading the manual for a program rather than assuming that the program itself will teach us to use it. Today’s older folk were "socialized" differently from their kids, and are now in the process of learning a new language. And a language learned later in life, scientists tell us, goes into a different part of the brain.

There are hundreds of examples of the digital immigrant accent. They include printing out your email (or having your secretary print it out for you – an even "thicker" accent); needing to print out a document written on the computer in order to edit it (rather than just editing on the screen); and bringing people physically into your office to see an interesting web site (rather than just sending them the URL). I’m sure you can think of one or two examples of your own without much effort. My own favorite example is the "Did you get my email?" phone call. Those of us who are Digital Immigrants can, and should, laugh at ourselves and our "accent."

Very interesting perspective but fairly extreme for my liking as I tend to fall in between the two descriptions. I may not have been born into a digital world but I also don't have any of the above mentioned immigrant accents either - perhaps I'm "digiterate" (think 'sniglets' from Wetware: why use activity structures?) or have a very slight accent. I think I prefer to coin myself a new term, the Digital Surfer or Survivalist, ie. someone who may not necessarily be fascinated by or adopted the new technology but who has kept up-to-date with it by literally riding a 'wave of information' cause he/she knows they need to in order to survive in today's world! (And they ride round on a silver surfboard heralding the arrival of Galactus just before your planet gets consumed!...)

I love this quote by Douglas Adams which was brought to my attention by someone's post on the discussion forum:

Anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just part of the way the world works. Anything that's invented between when you're fifteen and thirty five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.

Thankfully, I've just past the 35 landmark so maybe that's why I don't feel like a digital immigrant!

Michael

References

1. Harris, J 1998, Wetware: why use activity structures?

2. Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

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Activity 4.1

Hey all

It really is an eye-opener to read everyone's different backgrounds and how ICT has changed education around the world. Some of the stuff happening elsewhere is amazing and makes me positively jealous!

I've been teaching for almost a decade now and I'm certainly feeling it, my age that is! Thinking about all the changes in the last 10 years is not that easy for me as I have a hazy memory at best, but I'll try my best to pinpoint some of the major changes that have occurred in my educational context (TEFL).

When I began teaching, it was just a blackboard (whiteboard if you were lucky), tape recorder and VCR. Nowadays, it’s all pretty much a whiteboard (interactive whiteboard if you’re lucky), all previously mentioned as well as a CD player, DVD player (sometimes combined with a VCR) and computer with LCD projector.

Although we have a wealth of equipment, I don’t really think educators in the TEFL field have fully exploited the potential of ICT. “Teachers need to restructure their presentations and delivery, not simply add technology to their current approach. If they restructure their teaching in a way that incorporates technology as a central tool for enhancing pedagogy, real changes can occur.” Instead “technologies are used simply to reinforce outmoded approaches to learning” and "approaches to teaching and learning remain largely unchanged." CDs replace cassettes, DVD players replace VCRs, etc. but the pedagogy remains the same.

Of course, we have the occasional ICT-themed lessons but all that means is taking students into a classroom laboratory and going through skill, drill and practice programs or a web-based lesson. That's not to say there's no innovative & creative stuff happening in the world of TEFL. I've seen some real creative young learners' writing projects involving PowerPoint and specialised software but it's just rare!

In my experience, most “staff is willing to integrate technology into the program only when they see how it can help them” to improve students’ English “and improve student performance, but they are quite reluctant to use technology for technology’s sake.” Unfortunately, “change doesn’t happen in a school simply because you install new equipment” and “teachers have seen bandwagons come and go” and “are appropriately skeptical about untested, expensive changes that seem peripheral rather than central to their purpose. They want to know how this venture will improve student performance.” Professional development and planning resources is crucial but “the focus has been squarely on the equipment.”

Michael

References

1. Constable, P 2003, ‘For the long term’

2. Mckenzie, J 2000, ‘Making good change happen’

3. Resnick, M 2002, ‘Rethinking learning in the digital age’

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Activity 4.2 - 4.3

Hi all

To be honest, the internet hasn’t changed teaching and learning in my classroom as much as I would have hoped. It’s definitely more a tool for me than for my students.

Referring to the mind-reading article, “Wetware: why use activity structures?”, it lists pretty much what I do with the internet in the opening paragraph:

- information searching

- online publishing

- using electronic mail

- using discussion forums

- realtime chatting

- audio/video conferencing

Reading other people’s posts - it is true that the internet has helped with and speeded up lesson planning with the world’s information at your fingertips but it can also slow it down and it invariably has with me. For example, the number of times I’ve tried to search for a decent activity to practice the ‘Past Perfect’ and just find countless, boring grammar exercises when I could have just consulted a photocopiable resource book which has exactly what I want…

In the good old days, I used to collect in homework assignments. Now with the advent of the internet and email, students email it to me and it can be corrected using “track changes” in Word or printed out and marked the old fashioned way.

Sometimes, when I take a class into the Multimedia Centre to do a web-based activity, I feel a bit guilty about this because most of them have already spent their whole day sitting in front of a computer at work and here they are again (déjà vu)!

Once upon a time (about 5 years ago), I was involved in a short-lived “Online English” programme. Basically, it was exactly the same as a regular course except everything (grammar, reading, listening, writing, vocabulary, etc.) was done online, except for the speaking part when students would come in at pre-arranged times for their speaking practice. I guess at that time, video-conferencing wasn’t quite ready then. The aim of these courses was to allow students flexibility in terms of when they wanted to study as HK adult students are notoriously known for not being able to attend classes because they are far too busy with work and overtime. (In a 2002 survey, it was found that the average working week in HK was 55 hours and 75% of people work late into the evenings – I can certainly vouch for that!) A regular course meant attending classes regularly at a fixed time for about 30 hours over a period of 2-3 months. An online course meant doing the same thing but doing it when it suited students. Of course, there were deadlines, etc. but these were relatively flexible. As a coordinator for some of these courses, I was responsible for initiating discussions in the course material, marking assignments, teaching the face-to-face sessions, etc. I actually thought it was a great idea but these courses were eventually dropped due to poor enrolment. I guess that students were far too busy to enrol for these flexible courses!

Having been exposed to blogs and wikis on this course, I would like to begin to use these tools in my teaching for collaborative writing projects, dialogue journals, discussions, brainstorming, listening (audioblogs), etc.

At the university, we also have a Moodle platform and in the past I have tried to look into the possibility of using this but unfortunately it is restricted to full-time students only. The students I mainly teach are part-time students so this is a major stumbling block.

I would also be interested in learning more about ‘activity structures’ – it sounds ideal!

Michael

References

1. Harris, J 1998, Wetware: why use activity structures?

2. Richardson, W 2004 Blogging and RSS — The "What's it?" and "How to" of powerful new web tools for educators

3. Work Life Balance in Hong Kong - http://www.communitybusiness.org.hk/documents/WLB%20full%20report.pdf

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Activity 4.4

Hi all

Looks like I'm not alone in this boat of 'no documentation' that refer to the integration or support of ICT even though we have a fantastic IT department which is responsible for the following:

- provision of telephone, television, video and data networking services throughout the university

- provision of basic information technology training and user consultation services

- provision of teaching support and multimedia services

- provision of hardware and software installation and maintenance services for PC's and related equipment

- provision of computer operation services for all the main and distributed machine rooms across the campuses

I’ve mentioned before the small (fish) department I work in and now I’ll tell you why I keep saying that. We only have 3 full-time academic staff (including me) and 2 admin staff and I’m pretty much responsible for anything IT/ICT related!

Other (bigger) departments probably have policies or guidelines regarding ICT integration but I have no way of accessing that information.

Michael

Thursday 14 June 2007 - Are you digitally fluent?

Bonjour mes amis!

Another busy week, another day and another dollar! Eh? Anyway, why is it that the level of work one has can never be constant? If it could, it would certainly make life a helluva lot easier including studying this Masters! Then again, it would also make life predictable and boring?

So, to continue this digital reflective artefact - thanks Petrea for allowing this to represent that although it won't be easy to summarise all my thoughts for the whole semester in a space on my blog as this whole blog is the space where all my thoughts are collected including all the mini-assignments that have been done throughout! Okay, I tend to go on a bit, but if one looked carefully enough, most of my thoughts (apart from the really personal ones) are here for all and sundry to digest!

Just had my eyes prodded open to the wider possibilities of computers in education after reading "Rethinking learning in the digital age" by Mitchel Resnick. Wow! I've usually used them as technologies "to reinforce outmoded approaches to learning" but the analogy made with finger paint really rammed home the point that there's far more to it than meets the initial eye.

"Indeed, the computer is the most extraordinary construction material ever invented, enabling people to create anything from music videos to scientific simulations to robotic creatures. Computers can be seen as a universal construction material, greatly expanding what people can create and what they can learn in the process." (Resnick 1998).

"Unfortunately, most people don’t use computers that way today. When people are introduced to computers today, they are typically taught how to look up information on the Web, how to use a word processor, how to send e-mail. But they don’t become fluent with the technology." I couldn't help but exclaim, "Right on!" when I read this. So, are you digitally fluent? Because if "being digitally fluent involves not only knowing how to use technological tools, but also knowing how to construct things of significance with those tools" then I'm a complete beginner!

But as I read, I kept on thinking how I could shrink the "fluency gap" as I was also one of the "small handful" who are not able to use the technologies fluently. Of course, I could become more digitally fluent myself but how could I use "the revolutionary potential of the new technology for transforming learning and education" in my educational context? After all, I just teach English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) to adult students and they come to us already pretty much IT savvy so what more could I possibly add? If I was working in the primary or secondary sector, yes, I can make a difference but adults and adult education? Unless I teach IT...

There is constant talk/literature that "teachers need to restructure their presentations and delivery, not simply add technology to their current approach" but I think that this applies minimally to teaching English. Of course, I can see the benefits of using blogs, wikis, etc. but is there anything else? The students I teach are here for short courses (usually 24 hours per course and each lesson could be 2 or 3 hours) and have specific needs, eg. to improve their business writing, their spoken English, etc. so I really don't have that much time to integrate "technology as a central tool for enhancing pedagogy" into the curriculum so that "real changes can occur". So, in essence, that's why I'm here!

Michael

References

1. Constable, P 2003, ‘For the long term’
2. Resnick, M 2002, ‘Rethinking learning in the digital age’

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Activity 3.7

Hi all

Seems AVG is quite popular here - could that be because it's free? Saying that, I use that on my home computer as well! I used to use Trend Micro's PC-cillin until the licence ran out and an IT friend asked me why I bothered buying it. So he recommend AVG (http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1)! I'm from the old school of thought that certain essential software must be purchased - after all, you DO get what you pay for but if you can save the occasional dollar here and there, then why not?!

McAfee Anti-Virus was recently adopted by the university as the virus protection of choice - it used to be F-Secure Anti-Virus but there were numerous feedback from users which found that it could not guard against some viruses in time for those newly propagating viruses. By subscribing to McAfee, staff home machines are also covered so that means I have 2 anti-virus programs installed on my home computer. As my learned IT friend said, "you won't get one anti-virus that will protect you from all known viruses, so you might as well have a couple!"

He also recommended the following free programs to keep PCs secure:

1. SpywareBlaster - http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html

2. Windows Defender - http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=435bfce7-da2b-4a6a-afa4-f7f14e605a0d&displaylang=en

3. Ad-Aware - http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

All the anti-virus programs I use are updated as soon as there are updates available.

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Activity 3.6

Hi all

It's very interesting to read about all the wonderful ICT integration and technology plans implementation happening in different schools around the world.

Unfortunately, the article ‘Making good change happen’ refers only to schools but I work in a further education environment, which in a lot of ways I can generally assume to be easier than working in a school, in terms of being networked, deployment of resources and professional development.

The students (adults) who come here are generally IT savvy but I don't think the same can be said of some of the teachers/lecturers! As stated in previous posts, it's amazing how IT illiterate some of the higher echelons are!

I can only speak about my particular department (TEFL), which is a very small fish in a huge ocean (meaning we don’t have much say in anything), but ICT integration is certainly viewed as “an optional ingredient to the meat and potatoes of instruction”. We don’t have a formal technology plan per se but the uni as a whole probably does, although I know nothing about it. We only have a few full-time staff members but over 20 part-time teachers and it’s very difficult to involve these teachers in any kind of ICT initiative, never mind their “enthusiastic endorsement” – after all, they are just part-time and work at various places to make ends meet so why should they invest their precious little time in this? The article states that 30-60 hours per year must be provided for teachers to “meet, to learn and to invent classroom units” but I can’t ever see that happening here. The uni has plenty of IT training and seminars ranging from Photoshop and Dreamweaver to Linux, Access and Visual Basic, but this is restricted to full-time staff and students.

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Activity 3.5

Hi all

It’s been very interesting to read the range of classroom arrangements that currently exist and what people actually wish for.

I think I can safely assume that in general, universities will be better equipped than schools. I’m lucky enough to have mostly what I would like in a ‘perfect’ classroom as most of the university networked classrooms are equipped with the following:

- PA system
- Wireless microphone
- Visual presenter
- OHP
- VCR
- DVD player
- LCD monitor
- LCD projector
- PC
- Audio recorder

In addition to the above, notebooks can be borrowed for classroom presentations, business trips, exhibitions, etc. If the classroom doesn’t have what you want, there’s an ‘equipment loan service’ whereby you can check out a full-range of AV items such as a visualizer, cassette player, slide projector, etc.

Although I have more than enough at my disposal and since we’re in dreamland here, my setup would be to have all of the above as well as the following:

- Hexagonal tables with 2 in-built computers for 4-6 students
- Promethean interactive whiteboard (http://www.prometheanworld.com/)

Although some people like to have computers along the wall, I have never been a great fan. Developing communicative activities for the classroom becomes problematic if the students are seated facing the wall away from the rest of the class. I prefer to have students placed in small groups around hexagonal tables evenly spread around the room so that they find it easier to negotiate and collaborate on tasks. The teacher can manoeuvre quite easily between the tables in order to respond to the learners’ needs. The students also have plenty of room to write and also have a clear view of their computer screen, the teacher and the board. The monitors can be placed under the table at an angle and this helps to improve screen visibility and keep the monitors from obstructing students’ line of vision as well as reducing reflected glare from the lights.

I included an interactive whiteboard because as I mentioned elsewhere, I have had experience using these interactive whiteboards (IWBs) when I worked at the British Council (BC) Hong Kong (from 1998) where it was one of the first BC teaching centres (TC) to use this relatively new technology. Since then, as far as I am aware, all BC TC worldwide have started using or are planning to use these Promethean IWBs in ALL their classrooms and that’s a lot of TC as they operate in over 100 countries!

Wednesday 6 June 2007 - Busy bee...

Well, well, well... who's been a busy bee then? No prizes for guessing who?!

It's been a few weeks since I've updated this blog and since this is also supposed to be a 'digital reflective artefact' to represent the major themes or key concepts that I have reflected on during this term, I guess I'd better update it with those thoughts.

The first assignment 1 has come and gone and I'm very happy to have survived that one! Now onto assignment 2 which is due in less than 2 weeks! I'm ashamed to say that I didn't participate in the online debate which has been going on for the last few weeks and seems to be finished now. Not only did I miss contributing to the opening statement but I also missed the closing statement as well. Reasons will be discussed in assignment 2 - oh well, c'est la vie...

Sometimes I wonder why I keep this blog going since I don't seem to have any visitors (that I'm aware of anyway) but I am reminded of the reason why in the article “Educational Blogging” by Stephen Downes which has a quote from educational blogging guru, Will Richardson, describing blogging as “great value in terms of developing all sorts of critical thinking, writing skills and information literacy among other things”. But hopefully, I won’t have “committed the ultimate blogging sin of losing interest in myself”. I can certainly see the educational value of blogs which is basically "writing down what you think when you read others” and "about reading what is of interest to you: your culture, your community, your ideas. And it is about engaging with the content and with the authors of what you have read-reflecting, criticizing, questioning, reacting.” (Downes, S 2004)

So what have I read recently? The article by Komoski PK & Plotnick, E (2000) pinpointed what most educators (I know) think of English Language software, which is essentially "drill and practice electronic worksheets". Sad but true! Perhaps a reason why these types of software are popular is they are "the easiest to install and maintain" and "require little from regular teachers" (McKenzie, J 1998). It was interesting to note that "software selection should be taken as seriously as the selection of text books" but I just wonder how many people/schools/universities actually follow all the steps listed, especially the final one which is getting feedback from users after the software has been purchased.

Another article of note was the one by McKenzie, J (1998) which really highlighted many of the problems that we, as educators, encounter when trying to incorporate ICT/IT into our teaching/curriculum. The reference to "keeping up with the Joneses" struck a chord with me as I remember when we were given a start-up grant by a local company to equip our Multimedia Centre. Had I read this article before receiving the grant, we would have been in a better position to evaluate all the major factors such as "quality vs quantity, hardware vs human infrastructure, short term vs long term", etc. Now we are in a position where our computers will be outmoded in a couple of years time...

Anyway, better trundle off but before I do, I'll just paste below my last few activities. Enjoy!

Michael

References

1. Komoski PK & Plotnick, E 2000, Seven Steps to Responsible Software Selection
2. McKenzie, J 1998, ‘Networking schools: managing quandaries, dilemmas and conundrums’

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Activity 2.5 - Educational Software

Hi all

I wish I could follow Randy’s example and post some unique and less known software that I use for English Language teaching but I can’t and I don’t know of much. If anyone knows of any, I’d be happy to hear about it!

Word processing - Student and teacher - Probably the most used software by teachers for preparing handouts/worksheets for students, writing reports, etc. Students use it for homework, letters, reports, etc.

English Language - Student - Used in the Multimedia Centre by students to practice their English outside classroom hours. Some examples of skills and software used are: Grammar – Tensebuster, Reward, etc. Writing - Business Letter Writer, Letters, faxes and e-mails, etc. Pronunciation – Connected Speech, Pronunciation Power, etc.

Presentation - Student and teacher - Teachers and students use it as a tool in giving presentations. Students use it to tell/build a story by inserting images (as well as text of course!) and I like the sound of Microsoft Photo Story (mentioned above)…

Web authoring - Teacher - Teachers use software such as “Hot Potatoes” to create online exercises (gap-fills, crosswords, cloze tests, etc.) Create online courses but the potential for this should be explored further.

Spreadsheet - Teacher - Used mainly as an admin tool for class registers, recording grades, etc.

Michael

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Activity 2.7 - Spreadsheets

Hi all

Personally, I don’t use spreadsheets much these days (since majoring in Mathematics at uni) when teaching English and see it as mainly a Maths tool. Administratively, it’s essential with numerous examples mentioned in previous posts!

I found this really useful website about Excel usage:

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/on-line_excel.htm

Michael

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Activity 2.8 - Databases

Hi all

As with Excel, I see it more as an administrative tool and don’t use databases much in teaching. Frankly speaking, I don’t know even know how to create a database but will attempt to do so to see if there are any uses I could find!

I have tried on a couple of occasions to ‘check out’ MS Access but like a few people said on this forum, I find it totally inaccessible (pardon the pun!) Then again, I don’t think I would have any real uses for databases, except for my own personal use? I could put a list of all my CDs and DVDs in a database ‘cause it’s grown to the point when I go shopping that I forget whether I have that particular CD or DVD! Then again, I could use a spreadsheet for this…

Naturally, databases are used extensively in the business world and I agree with Petrea when she says that you don’t need to understand the inner workings of a car in order to drive it. As long as the interface is user-friendly enough and people can use one, is it that important to know how to create one? Nowadays, I can create webpages and even my own blog - http://medtech-ml.blogspot.com/ (umpteenth shameless plug!) without any prior programming knowledge.

Here’s a website which will help me to master Access but I usually use the “Help” function or ask a friend/colleague to teach/show me – I find the latter method the most effective…

http://www.functionx.com/access/

Michael

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Activity 3.2 - Software on my computer

Hi all

All the software installed on my Dell laptop is fully licenced and paid for, but not by me! Fortunately for me, the laptop is from work and came fully installed with the university's range of software (Microsoft, Adobe, Novell, etc.)

I've installed a couple of shareware/freeware programs such as "Spybot - Search & Destroy" and "SpywareBlaster" as I contracted a really nasty zlob trojan a while back. It took me ages to get rid of it but thanks to the wonder of the internet and various forums, I found the solution and was able to manually remove it. If you're willing to look hard enough, you can pretty much get anything from the internet for free but some people do come from the school of thought, "you pay for what you get".

It hasn't always been the case that I have been able to get free software. In the past, I used to buy Microsoft Office (educational discount of course) as well as the upgrades and anti-virus software for my desktop. I figured that these were essential pieces of software and it was worth getting the original one simply for the customer service/support and piece of mind. All other software was illegally copied/pirated, as most places in Asia is pirate heaven (welcome Captain Jack Sparrow), but it got to the point where I had installed so much it slowed the computer down to a snail’s pace. I realised after a while there's only so much software you really need so wiped the slate clean and re-installed Windows.

Michael

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Activity 3.3 - Comparing two computers

Hi all

In general, clones can be up to 50% cheaper than a comparative 'name brand' computer in Hong Kong.

There are quite a few computer shopping malls selling clones in HK (situated in areas such as Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po, Wan Chai, etc.) and going into these centres can be daunting as they have loads of leaflets/flyers with any combination of computer specifications. You really need to know what you want in terms of brand, performance and components as any permutation and combination seems possible in these places!

I compared a HP Pavilion a5000 PC series with a similar clone. Prices for the HP started from HK$7,999 (AU$1,250) and a similar clone from HK$4,000 (AU$625) depending on the different component brands chosen.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/hk/en/ho/WF25a/1090261-1111625-1116609-1116609-1116609-13039350.html

Name brands with identical configurations are more expensive due to issues such as warranty, quality of product, design, fully tested system configuration, customization of software, support, etc.

Michael

Saturday 19 May 2007 - Devotional...

Hellooo there

It's me again and it's another weekend poring over this Masters - better be worth it at the end!

Had a surprise mid-week when I found out about the online debate (see closed group discussion) but having fun now trying to get involved.

Anyway, better get back to it but I'll just leave you with my activity regarding ergonomics...

Michael

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Activity 2.4

• Compare the ergonomics of your usual computer work environment with the points made in the elected readings. How well does it rate? Post your response to the discussion board.

After reading all the ergonomics articles and posts on the forums, I was surprised at the range of importance that this is taken into account at various schools and universities.

As far as I’m concerned, the idea of ergonomics has never explicitly been taken into account in my particular department and that’s most probably because there is a department responsible for purchasing IT equipment and furniture (and it’s taken for granted).

Looking at the article “Ergonomics Guide and Tips for Computer Users”, I was amazed to find the different workstation layouts for varying tasks. What if your job involves an equal combination of data entry, data retrieval, word processing and graphic design? Does that mean we keep on configuring our workstations to suit each task? I’m sure my boss would have something to say to that…

My office workstation is as follows:

• An L-shaped desk with a huge 19” widescreen LCD monitor right at the centre of the L-junction. It’s a great ‘little’ monitor (Samsung SyncMaster) because you can swivel the monitor to have widescreen (landscape) or portrait views!

• The monitor directly faces the window but that’s okay because I’m too far away from it to cause glare and the lone window is fitted with blinds. Even with the blinds open, there wouldn’t be enough natural light to light up the room.

• The actual desktop computer is situated to the left of the monitor. Before I had it on the floor to give me more desk space but I moved it to the desk because it was a pain to keep on crouching down just to plug in external devices.

• To the left of the computer is the telephone followed by a laser printer and flatbed scanner.

• To the right of the monitor is my writing space and general accumulated ‘junk’ area!

• I have use of an adjustable keyboard tray (situated at the 90 degrees corner) and attached mouse platform (which is slightly lower than the keyboard tray) but I don’t use it because it’s just too low even though it’s height and length adjustable. When I did use it before, I kept on having to look down (at an angle of more than 45 degrees) at the keyboard and I’m sure that can’t be too good for my neck – maybe I should learn how to touch type but I’m happy with my typing speed! So the keyboard and mouse is placed in front of the monitor with the adjustable swivel chair set at the highest height with a little bit of room to write and place documents.

• The chair is of the highest quality with “adjustable seat height, back rest, back tilt, ability to swivel, arm rests” and “upholstered with non-slip, moisture-absorbing material”.

• We have document holders available but I don’t make use of it – to me they’re more used for data entry/retrieval jobs.

• There are no task lights as the overhead lights are ample.

• The monitor contrast is set at default, ie. I have never touched it but will probably do so now to reduce future eye and vision problems!

• I have thought of using a wrist rest because after extended periods of keying, I do get some niggling pain around the wrist area but when I’ve tried it in the shops, it feels unnatural and uncomfortable. Guess it’s like medicine – tastes bad but it’s good for ya!

Rating my computer workstation against the checklist in “Ergonomics Guide and Tips for Computer Users”, I would say it rates more than 90% in favour!

• Compare the workstations available for your students with the readings and comment on the long term effects and possible litigation issues. Post your response to the discussion board, and respond to other student comments.

The workstations available for students in the Multimedia Centre would also rate very favourably with the checklist in “Ergonomics Guide and Tips for Computer Users” although there are no keyboard trays and the computer is placed on a sliding tray at floor level.

Perhaps we could have a list of DOs and DON’Ts for students using computers, eg. get up and move your body every 30 to 60 minutes (I should do that myself!)
I can’t see any long term effects or possible litigation issues as all our students are adults and the ones we deal with are working professionals taking part-time English courses.

• In your context groups (Early childhood, primary etc), create a proposal regarding the ergonomic issues for your staff. Use information in your reading and the additional web resources provided for assistance. Use the context forum for your small group discussion and send a summary to the general discussion board identifying your group in the subject. Consider the similarities and differences between the groups and suggest reasons for them.

I think after reading my account of the ergonomics of my work environment, a proposal is not really required or would anyone beg to differ? HK is a society of rules and regulations and they have certainly followed the large majority of the guidelines related to computer ergonomics.

Michael

Tuesday 15 May 2007 - Bloggin'...

Hey there

Been busy over the weekend and the last few days catching up (still) - think I'm building up a head of steam now so feeling a lot more comfortable about this particular module.

The personal problems, which I may have mentioned before, seem to have resolved itself so that side of life is hunky dory now!

I've been checking out some of my fellow students' blogs and posting the odd comment here and there. If you are one of the lucky few, I'd appreciate a return favour (hint hint)! It's good to finally put pictures and details to names from the USQ discussion forums - you're all real people!! :-)

Anyway, must dash now and do more but before I go, I'll just copy and paste some of what I've posted on the discussion forums...

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Activity 1.5

Make up a URL or web address which tells us a little about you and post it to the discussion board. For example mine might be www.teachtech.edu.au, indicating I teach technology in an educational facility in Australia.

Mine would be www.tefler.edu.hk as I’m a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) teacher in Hong Kong. Simply really!

Make sure that you understand how your computer connects to the Internet. If you arranged your connection yourself, you probably already know but if someone else assisted, you may need to check some details. You should know who is your ISP (USQ or another) and the telephone number you dial for connection. Do you have broadband?

Tell us how you connect to the net and what type of $$ you pay. Let's see who got a bargain :-)

After reading a few of the discussion threads, I’m kinda surprised that people are still using dial-up. The last time I used that was well before 2000 – I guess it depends on where you live. If you mention “dial-up” in HK, I think you’d get a few puzzled stares!

In HK, it’s broadband all the way. When I moved into my own brand new flat in 2004, it was broadband ready as this is included as part of the management fee so basically I get it free! (In HK, you need to pay management fees pretty much anywhere you live and how much you pay depends on the size of your flat.) A lot of new property developments in HK make deals with telecommunications companies so that these new properties can be already installed with the necessary wiring for telephone and internet.

Broadband in my building is provided by Hutchinson and is certainly one of the best broadband providers in HK:

http://www.hgc.com.hk/eng/res_net_bb_hgcbb.html

I’ve been with quite a few ISPs in my time in HK and although they are a bit on the expensive side (if you have to pay for it), it’s one of the best in terms of customer service, bandwidth, etc.

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Activity 1.10

Find the AUP for the staff and students in your educational institution. Check when it was last updated. What implications does this have for your site?

The “User Policies and Regulations” for staff and students at out uni can be found here:

http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~itsc/ (User Services > User Policies and Regulations)

It was last modified on 12 Jan 2007 so that’s recent!

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Activity 1.11

• Obtain a copy of your institution’s release form and share it’s contents on the discussion board.

• Do you see any long term implications for showing of student work?

I don’t think we have a release form as we’re a university and all our students are over 18 so I don’t think it applies in my case.

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Activity 1.12

What is your institutions policy for teachers and students if they come across inappropriate sites? Send your comments to the discussion board.

Again, I don’t think we really have a problem regarding this issue as we’re dealing with adult learners rather than school children so I couldn’t find any policies for this. What I could find was the following which is taken from the university’s “User Policies and Regulations” for staff and students:

“Computer facilities are allocated to user on the strict understanding that they are to be used solely for the University or for academic purposes.”

If not, the following results:

“In case of serious offense and repeated cases of minor infractions against these regulations, it may be brought to the Senate for appropriate disciplinary action by the University.”

So the onus seems to be on staff and students to be responsible for their own actions. Not sure what they mean by “appropriate disciplinary action” but I’m sure we can hazard a guess!

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Activity 1.13

• It's time to do some research for item 2 assignment 1. What tool will you select: wiki, blog, flickr, podcasting ........

• Remember to share good resources.

At the moment, I’ll select blogs as that’s the one I feel most comfortable using and I could see myself using this in my lessons. Or it could be podcasting as there seems to be a lot of potential there…

Michael

PS. Shameless plug – check out my blog at: http://medtech-ml.blogspot.com/

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Activity 2.1

• Try at least one input device and one output device with which you are not familiar, that is, that you have not used before or do not use frequently.

Before my current Dell notebook, I used to have an IBM Thinkpad and it had one of those distinctive red ‘TrackPoint’ pointing device in the middle of the keyboard. One of my friends jokingly called it a ‘nipple’ and since that day I too have referred to it as that! This pointing stick, trademarked by IBM, has even migrated to my latest notebook as a blue nipple.

At first, I wasn’t sure what it was used for but after playing around with it, I noticed that it was just used for moving the cursor around by applying pressure on it. Maybe there are some other uses but I have no idea what. Apparently, this pointing device was advantageous for touch typists as they didn’t need to take their hands off the keyboard to use a mouse, touchpad, etc. but I wasn’t impressed. When I was typing, I would often hit it by accident and it would cause me to end up typing elsewhere – that was quite irritating. Since then, I’ve become accustomed to avoiding it like the plague!

I recently purchased a HP Photosmart All-in-One product (that’s a printer, scanner and copier) to replace my 10-year old Canon flatbed scanner and what a revelation it is!

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/hk/en/ho/WF05a/1090037-1090149-7369137-7369137-12430860-12430892.html

Although, I don’t use it as often as I had hoped, it’s still useful to have at home for emergencies and it certainly saves a lot of space to have an all-in-one. If you’ve ever visited or lived in HK, you’ll know flat/apartment space is at a premium…

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Activity 2.2

Try some more checks on your own computer system or the one you use most often.

• What type of floppy disk (physical size, density, storage capacity) does your system use?

I have a desktop computer and a Dell Latitude D620 notebook (used most often) and it didn’t come with a floppy disk drive, although it’s optional. I don’t know of anyone who uses floppy these days, especially considering the size of it and how much you can store on it.

• What size is the hard drive in your system?

• Of the total storage space available on your hard drive, how much is unused?

There’s a 80GB hard drive (HD) and it’s split into 2 drives, C (20 GB) and D (60 GB). Although, it’s 20 and 60 GB respectively, the actual usable space is always a few GB less. The C drive is used for all the system files, etc. and the D drive is for documents, etc. At the moment, I have 11.3 GB left on the C drive and 11.7 GB on the D drive. Not much as a lot of storage space is taken up by photos and music!

• Do you have access to a high capacity removable drive for backup purposes (Zip, CD writer)? What is its storage capacity?

• How many disks or cartridges would be required for a full back up of your hard drive?

There’s a 8X DVD+/-RW8 floppy disk drive and it would take (D drive: 48 / 4.7 = 10.21) just over 10 DVDs to back it up.

• What is your back up plan. Backing up is having another copy of data available in case something happens to the original files. Some people save to floppy disk, CD, memory disk or email it to themselves. If your computer crashes 2 days before your assignment is due how will you ensure you can hand your assignment in on time?

To be honest, I don’t really have a back up plan but I keep meaning to! I guess I haven’t got round to having a back up plan because I think everything is expendable, as life is! On my desktop computer, when my HD gets full, I just get another and now I have a total of 2 HDs, 300 GB and 250GB as well as an external 80 GB one which used to be the original HD on the desktop! You wouldn’t believe how much the last HD cost me in HK. 300 GB only cost me HK$700 (about 516 Australian dollars). That’s the great thing about living in HK – it’s very technologically advanced and relatively cheap, ok dirt cheap in my opinion!

My computer crashes now and then but not to the point where important files and assignments would be irrecoverable. In films (Mission: Impossible III), they seem to be able to recover data from charred computer remains – I wonder if that’s really possible? Anyone?

If I’m currently working on something important, I usually have a copy on my computer and another on my portable memory stick so that I can work on it at work and at home! I have at least 4 memory sticks ranging from 256 MB to 2 GB!

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Activity 2.3

• Make a list of friends or work colleagues who own and/or regularly use handheld computing devices. Next compare that to those who have laptop access. Include a note about what they primarily use this equipment for.

Actually, as far as I know, I only have one colleague who has a handheld computing device (one of those HP Ipaq Pocket PCs) and she only got it for her birthday from her husband. When she first got it, she wasn’t sure how she was going to use it so I told that I have had a Palm for at least 10 years and don’t think I could survive without one! I use it to keep me organized, remember appointments, read offline Web pages, play games, etc. Since then, I haven’t seen her mention her PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) or use it!

Everyone in my (small) department has been given a laptop to use and we have access to a notebook in the office. The individual notebooks are used for general computing purposes, ie. work since it’s a work computer such as emails, projects, etc. and is usually kept at home. The communal notebook is used in the office when we’re away from our desks, when we need to visit corporate clients and need to give presentations, etc.

• How do students currently access ICTs in your environment? Are there any plans to move to portable or wireless computing? Share your answers on the discussion board.

We have a Multimedia Centre (http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~caep/mmc/main.html) which is used by students to practice their English outside the classroom by using English language software, etc.We certainly don’t have plans to move portable or wireless computing as the Multimedia Centre is underused as it is already!

Michael

12 May 2007 - Fast and furious!

Yo there reader!

Long time no update but here's one!

Been furiously trying to catch up on this first module, living, breathing and dreaming "Computer Based Resources in Education"!

Got back last week from that wonderful paradise (albeit overcast) Krabi - the massages and spas more than made up for it though as well as zipping round on a souped up moped and raving on the beach all on my lonesome (see above pictures)...

Although late, I’ve been contributing (see below) to various discussion topics as well as at “ElearnEnable” which is just a fantastic website – just perfect for this Masters! I also like the “Coffee Shop” but think it’s rather underused – I wonder what I can do about that…

Sayonara for now!

Michael

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Subject: Re: Activity 1.1

Hi all

I love the Wile E Coyote 'twist' about a historical figure we identify with so I'm gonna do the same. I've thought long and hard about this but can't think of a real historical figure I can identify with so I'll go into the realms of fantasy with mine and simply introduce him as Bond, James Bond!

Why? As a young boy growing up (anywhere in the world), who hasn't wished he could be this suave secret agent who gets the job done in the most exotic locales with the fanciest/latest gadgets and the women! Some of this still do!

Would this gentleman British spy like the internet? Oh come on, the guy practically relies on it for a living! As an agent of the British Secret Intelligence Service (aka M16), he's up-to-date with the latest ways of communicating digitally, be it tracking down his latest suspect or using it to gather information for his missions.

Make mine a vodka martini, shaken not stirred...

Michael


Re: Blogs

Hey everyone

Just thought I'd add my thoughts on Matt's "what's with blogs anyway?" and initially I have to agree with the guy!

I started my own blog (http://medtech-ml.blogspot.com/ - please drop by with some comments!) while doing this module and I have to admit I kinda enjoy it. It's a mix of business and pleasure - I like to mix!

With me, I was reluctant to use blogs as it just seemed to me to be an "electronic diary". Why would anyone wanna read the daily/weekly/monthly events of an everyman like myself (way to sell yourself) but when you come across some really good blogs, you realise how useful and dare I say, entertaining some of it is, especially when their life sounds so much more interesting than yours (in comparison) and the way it has been expressed so eloquently just drags you into their world and you just can't stop reading and checking out the latest updates. Of course, there are blogs out there that are used by people who wanna express their views in freedom of speech restricted countries so it can be a good outlet - they just gotta be a bit careful, that's all...!

In my English lessons, I used to use journals with my students as a way of informal written communication practice. In these journals, students could tell me anything they wanted (as long as they used English) and the kind of things they talked about was stuff like what they did during the week, what they learnt in the last lesson, what they like/dislike about school, what they think about my lessons, personal stuff, etc. I would collect it in, read it and write a few comments sneakily repeating and correcting some of the things they wrote (‘sublimal’ teaching!) I can now see myself using blogs instead of these journals...

Anyway, that's my tuppence's worth...

Blogging out

Michael


Re: Promethean Boards

Hi all

I have had experience using these interactive whiteboards (IWBs) when I worked at the British Council (BC) Hong Kong (from 1998) where it was one of the first BC teaching centres (TC) to use this relatively new technology. Since then, as far as I am aware, all BC TC worldwide have started using or are planning to use these Promethean IWBs and that’s a lot of TC as they operate in over 100 countries (http://www.britishcouncil.org/home-contact-worldwide.htm)!

When it was first introduced, there was a lot of trepidation (as with any new technology, especially for teachers who were not that IT-literate) but there was plenty of training for staff to learn this new technology and add it to their box of teaching tools. Now they have regular training sessions for new (induction) and experienced teachers (share and tell) as well as professionally certified courses such as the Promethean Accreditation Level courses.

It was commendable of the British Council Hong Kong to go all the way and install ALL their classrooms with these IWBs so it turned into a kind of 'sink or swim' situation. Of course, there was a safety net of portable whiteboards in case of breakdown or lack of inexperience, etc.!

Although I’m a bit of a ‘tech freak’, staff’s general consensus was that these IWBs were adding extra pressure/stress and load to their already burgeoning workloads. Not only was the training taking up a lot of time but more time was needed to prepare flipcharts, etc. As with any new technology, once familiarity kicks in it becomes second nature.

From the students’ point of view, it has been very positive, especially with young learners as IWBs have so many useful amazing functions and features, eg. accessing the internet, interactive software, etc. and has proven a huge success – see for yourself: http://www.prometheanworld.com/uk/server/show/nav.618

Michael

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Wed 25 April 2007 - Oh well...

Well, it's been 2 weeks since I've added to this blog and there I was planning on updating it as often as possible. Oh well, so much for that then!

Two weeks have flown past and I have been inundated with projects at work, friends in town from the UK (see above picture) and planning my holiday for the end of this month. We're going to Krabi in Thailand this Saturday for about a week!

Since the last time I posted, I've spent a bit of time looking for some "live" discussion lists and even emailed someone from Knowledge Garden for a password but so far no reply and no luck. If anyone knows of any, I'd appreciate being pointed in the right direction!

Anyway, I'll do a bit more searching before I go on holiday.

Adios for now!

Wed 11 April 2007 - Part 5

Wow, wow, wow - triple wow for emphasis! Just been reading some of the discussions that's been going on in "Experimenting with electronic communication" and there's loads of interesting stuff happening.

The Knowledge Garden, other people's blogs, discussion lists, etc. I need to put aside some time (or should that be a LOT of time) checking all this out!

Things to do:

• Compile a list of everyone's blogs so that I can systematically go through each one (I saw a list in one of the earlier posts)
  
• Find a few "live" discussion lists

Chow for now!

Michael

Wed 11 April 2007 - Part 4

Helloo there!

These are my postings for "Course Intro and Computer systems" which can also be found on the discussion forum but I’m putting it here ‘cause it’s nice to have it all in one place!

Activity B

In what ways have you used to web to enhance your teaching and learning?

I use the web in much the same way as most people Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) use the web to enhance their teaching and learning.

Since I’m the website coordinator for our department, I’m responsible for updating the website (http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~caep/ - comments welcome!)

If you look in the "Useful Links” section, you’ll find a list of websites that I have gathered together for our English Language students.

I used to have a “Lesson of the week” section also using the “Hot potatoes” software to create various online exercises (grammar, reading, etc.) but that was disbanded because it was all too time consuming.

We have purchased some software (Author Plus) from Clarity (a locally based software company - http://www.clarity.com.hk/) and I’m looking at how we can use this in conjunction with our website.

Part of the reason why I’m doing this course is to find out how I can better make use of the website to enhance our students’ English Language learning.

For my own individual classes, I’ve used the web as an information resource to do internet treasure hunts/trails, etc.

For my own use and learning, it’s mainly searching for information and teaching material using a variety of search engines (usually ‘Google’).

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Activity C

Make a list of six friends or neighbours who own and/or regularly use computers. Include a note about the type of equipment they use and their relative levels of expertise.

1. Cammy – Windows XP based IBM laptop / proficient with MS Office software as she mainly uses this in her job
   
2. Matthew – Windows XP generic clone desktop computer / employed as a network administrator, ie. expert
   
3. John – Windows XP generic clone desktop computer / proficient user as he has some IT qualifications
   
4. Jo – Apple Mac laptop / proficient Mac user as she has a background in design and publishing
   
5. Karen - Windows XP based Dell desktop computer / typical user of Office software
   
6. Tom – Windows XP based HP laptop / advanced home user

Find the contact details for at least one local computer user group and share in this weeks online space.

I have done a search for local computer user groups but all it came up with were some Mac, Pocket PCs, etc.

Record the contact details for any support services offered by your employer.

The university’s ITSC (Information Technology Services Centre) is responsible for five major fields of service:

1. Provision of telephone, television, video and data networking services throughout the University.
   
2. Provision of basic information technology training and user consultation services.
   
3. Provision of teaching support and multimedia services.
   
4. Provision of hardware and software installation and maintenance services for PC's and related equipment.
   
5. Provision of computer operation services for all the main and distributed machine rooms across the campuses.

Additionally, the ITSC also serves as the Webmaster of the University Web Site and develops departmental applications for administrative offices.

Consider applying for membership of QSITE, ASET or ACCE either as an individual or on behalf of your school or other organization.

I have subscribed to ACCE.

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Activity D

What type of computer system do you have access to at home, how does it compare to your access at work?

I have a Dell Latitude D620 laptop at home which connects to a wireless network. At work, I have a Dell desktop computer which is networked to the university campus. This is a series of networks and shared drives amongst the university staff used mainly for collaboration.

I can do pretty much the same things at home as I can do at work, except for accessing the shared resources.

Michael