Keyboard kids losing art of handwriting - by Gerard Noonan Social Issues Editor
I found this article particularly relevant moving forward, as a younger person who is no longer required to produce large amounts of writing by hand for work or for uni, I feel its particularly important that Educational Insititutions look for alternatives when it comes to exams.
Turning off Spelling, Grammar options as well as access to the internet shouldn't be something that is too hard to do for exams. Most schools have PCs and it makes sense that their should be restrictions on these PCs.
For exams that involve Essay writing or Multiple Choice PC's should become an option for those who prefer not to handwrite!
You would think having to mark thousands of exam papers would be easier if it was done electronically!
I'm not of the belief that writing is linked to thought for all people, personally I believe I have longer to think when typing than handwriting as it does not take me as long to put "pen to paper" so to speak, and thus it allows my output to match my thoughts!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Keyboard kids losing art of handwriting
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
E-portfolios signal new digital dawn for universities
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24061467-12332,00.html Andrew Trounson | July 23, 2008
Following on from my previous post comes a report from Andrew Trounson, highlighting the need for a greater focus towards e-portfolios.
E-portfolios, which combine narrative digital and multimedia work with a student's wider experiences, are so far being used in a patchwork way across the sector, as a way to bring a greater focus on individual learning in an age of mass education. They are seen as a way of feeding off the popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook.
Education management services provider Blackboard has produced an e-portfolio product specifically to link with the Facebook site.
Although this article is specifically targeted towards university education, I'm interested in how this could possibly be used in a corporate environment, the option to store previous work experience and reflective journals relating to projects and tasks would certainly make for a fascinating more accurate Resume than your standard 3-4 page hard copy CV!
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Cut and paste 'not plagiarism'
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24025610-12332,00.html by Andrew Trounson
I have to say that I found this article absolutely fascinating, the most interesting being the quote below.
"I don't really care if there are bits and pieces in their initial information that is downloaded from different points. What I care about is: do they understand it and did they use that information to come up with a solution to solve a problem?" she said.
Certainly the nature of computing, in particular the internet means that information is more accessible and that research has become a matter of copy and pasting information for assessment tasks. I agree with Dale Spender that perhaps there does need to be a review of citation requirements and assessments. As suggested, students do have a responsibility to ensure that work from others is recognized in their own, but at the same time by copying and pasting information into their own work, students are still required to filter what information fits in order to complete the assessment tasks.
I have to agree as a future adult educator, that
"We still have this responsibility to maintain integrity, we still have a responsibility to ensure that our students are actually learning something, but in the process perhaps we do need to rethink our assessment practices. I don't think citation practices are going to go out the window."
Could the future of academic writing include a new citation technique or recognition system that allows for the mish mash of different bits of unrecognised literature? Or will academic writing continue to be heavily focused on peer reviewed literature and existing citation techniques?
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Interesting interview with Steve Wozniak co-founder of Apple Computer
Interesting interview with Steve Wozniak co-founder of Apple Computer.
July 14, 2008
By Susan Kuchinskas
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3758731/Steve+Wozniak+on+Social+Networks+Great+Design.htm"
If you have a committee designing something, that's where it breaks down. Then, putting it out there will get the excellence. You have to give users the respect of listening to what they have to say. Maybe what you've done isn't the best way. You have to have openness and clear your mind out.
You might have someone who builds a chair in a different way, but you need to come up with overriding principles. What's a good chair concept? That can be hard to spot. Steve Jobs is very good at looking at specific things and putting a category around them.
Interesting that he notes that maths is only taught because we can teach it, however its hard to beleive that a former computer engineer would think this as maths is the base of many programming languages!
Who would of thought the Scots would be ahead of the times?
The force is with Scotland's schools intranet, says George Lucas by Melanie Reid
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article4339834.ece
This is an absolutely fascinating article, about director George Lucas and a modest Scots initiative to improve e-communication within schools.
What Glow brings to Scottish education are collaborative social tools which people in education are unwilling to use because of the dangers. By putting it in the closed and safe environment of Glow, where the teacher monitors it, you can use them with confidence. It means you can bring in things you would have never dared to before - discussion, chats, web conferencing, input from outside.
Similar to the idea of texting/emailing the Teachers prior to class, this article shows just how beneficial online environments can be for enhancing discussion.
Educators and government officials from China to Singapore to Australia have been visiting LTS to see how Glow is going to be used to enhance learning and teaching in Scotland.
Let's hope that other big name movie directors and stars can assist with the quest towards “edutopia”!
YouTube research shows picture is changing rapidly
http://business.theage.com.au/business/youtube-research-shows-picture-is-changing-rapidly-20080716-3fn1.html?page=2
I found this article interesting, even with its heavy positive bias towards YouTube. It's interesting to note how many "How-To" videos that users are posting on YouTube, could this possibly have an effect on formal short courses at TAFE/ACE Providers or will it always be used for Comedic and Entertainment purposes?
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Mobile web reaches critical mass
Following on from my previous posts, m&e (mobile and online or electronic) learning is something that I have an interest in.
The following article on the BBC website explores recent research data that shows that browsing via mobiles is increasing, particularly in the US. Could Universities and other adult learning educational institutions swing towards mobile phone based discussion forums/information pages?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7499340.stm
