I was pretty apprehensive whether I could complete the whole training online as this is my first time experiencing blended learning. The fact that 99% of the training is online actually frightened me as I was not confident of completing the training. However, on the other hand, my own objective was that I wanted to complete the training as it would help me overcome my fear of technology tools and familiarise myself with new technology tools.
Indeed, I felt that I have achieved more than I set out to do. Firstly, most of the websites that we need to go to is rather user friendly. We just need to register ourselves and come up with a username and password and off we go. I keep a notebook of the websites that I registered myself with and all the usernames and passwords, for easy reference.
Secondly, technology changes all the time, and we always and definitely have to learn, unlearn and relearn new tools.
Thirdly, I've learnt that some of the technology tools are useful, while some are not. For example, personally, I did not find the RSS feeds very useful, unless I check it daily for updates. I prefer to just go directly to my favourite news websites and read all the news and updates. I found De.li.cious very useful as it is like a "Favourites" tab, except that you can access your "favourites" anywhere and on any computer since it is a webbased bookmark. Youtube is something which is commonly known, however, I would have to think deeper on how I want to use it with my students. I enjoyed playing with the image generators and I found Paul's recommendation (the newspaper clipping generator - FODEY.COM) very useful indeed. I could straightaway think of a way to use it for my module - insert a title like "BUDGET 2009" to catch the student's attention, and add in some content.
Overall, the training has at least help me to learn some of the new technology tools currently in use. However, it takes deeper thinking to evaluate how I can use some of the tools in my module. The 23 Things is just the beginning. But it has taught me that self-learning is always ocurring and it should never end....
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Week #9: Thing #20, 21 and 22 (RSS feeds)
I am currently subscribed to news articles from channelnewsasia as I do not subscribe to any hardcopy papers. News relating to Singapore attracts me and here are two which I have picked up:
SIA says to reduce all business flights
The global economy downturn has affected most businesses, as demand for consumer products and services has reduced. This reduction in demand has caused some businesses to cut back on expenditure and business trips, which in turn affected business flights to NY and LA. The shows how a reduction in demand from consumers affects the whole economy and unless a stimulus package is in place, consumer demand would continue to fall and cause a downward spiral in the economy. Hopefully, the recent Singapore Budget 2009 will go a long way to increase consumer spending again and also help businesses, especially SMEs, to survive the downturn by reducing the business expenses.
S$4.5b to be spent in next 10 years to revamp primary school system
This is radical news. In a few years time, primary school kids may not need to take exams anymore. They will be assessed on project work and oral presentations. Doesn't this sounds like a system for the older kids. As a parent of a 4 year old child, I am keenly following the developments of the revamp of the pirmary school education as this would have a direct impact on my son's future. I am not too sure how this would affect him, but am of the view that yes, exams are ultimately not the best way to assess a child. However, it is too early to tell if scraping primary school exams are the way to go.
Thing#21: Podcasts
I know what podcasts are since we all do surf the internet and get audio files once in a while. I am interested in creating my own podcasts because i think it should be fun. A search on the internet reveals many websites that teach you how to create your own podcasts and even youtube videos are available to show you how to. I think I may be able to use it as an elearning tool, or maybe I could use it to record my lectures for students to playback?? Here's one of the websites:
http://radio.about.com/od/podcastin1/a/aa030805a.htm
Thing #22 Ebooks
Our very own National Library site has lots of ebooks!http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/browse.aspx?browse_by=Type&filter1=11
Some of the ebooks are available for free downloads and for the rest, you have to pay a fee to read the ebooks. It's so convenient to download and read an ebook. However, my preference is still for the traditional old way - a hardcopy book for me to read on the bus or train. It beats staring at the computer screen isn't it? ebooks will never completely replace hardcopy books but it has some advantages, like you cut down on paper and svaes more trees? You also get instant access to information anywhere.
I personally think that eBible is good too. I can go directly to the verse that I am looking for by searching for a key word.
SIA says to reduce all business flights
The global economy downturn has affected most businesses, as demand for consumer products and services has reduced. This reduction in demand has caused some businesses to cut back on expenditure and business trips, which in turn affected business flights to NY and LA. The shows how a reduction in demand from consumers affects the whole economy and unless a stimulus package is in place, consumer demand would continue to fall and cause a downward spiral in the economy. Hopefully, the recent Singapore Budget 2009 will go a long way to increase consumer spending again and also help businesses, especially SMEs, to survive the downturn by reducing the business expenses.
S$4.5b to be spent in next 10 years to revamp primary school system
This is radical news. In a few years time, primary school kids may not need to take exams anymore. They will be assessed on project work and oral presentations. Doesn't this sounds like a system for the older kids. As a parent of a 4 year old child, I am keenly following the developments of the revamp of the pirmary school education as this would have a direct impact on my son's future. I am not too sure how this would affect him, but am of the view that yes, exams are ultimately not the best way to assess a child. However, it is too early to tell if scraping primary school exams are the way to go.
Thing#21: Podcasts
I know what podcasts are since we all do surf the internet and get audio files once in a while. I am interested in creating my own podcasts because i think it should be fun. A search on the internet reveals many websites that teach you how to create your own podcasts and even youtube videos are available to show you how to. I think I may be able to use it as an elearning tool, or maybe I could use it to record my lectures for students to playback?? Here's one of the websites:
http://radio.about.com/od/podcastin1/a/aa030805a.htm
Thing #22 Ebooks
Our very own National Library site has lots of ebooks!http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/browse.aspx?browse_by=Type&filter1=11
Some of the ebooks are available for free downloads and for the rest, you have to pay a fee to read the ebooks. It's so convenient to download and read an ebook. However, my preference is still for the traditional old way - a hardcopy book for me to read on the bus or train. It beats staring at the computer screen isn't it? ebooks will never completely replace hardcopy books but it has some advantages, like you cut down on paper and svaes more trees? You also get instant access to information anywhere.
I personally think that eBible is good too. I can go directly to the verse that I am looking for by searching for a key word.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Week 8: Thing #19
I have joined the LbraryThing and catalogued these books.
When I became a new mother 4 years ago, I was clueless about looking after babies, hence I relied heavily on these two books to tide me through my maternity leave. I found them really helpful, providing solutions to baby crying problems etc.
I like baking and would like to read BakeWise...if I have the time.
With LibraryThing, again, it's about connection with people around you. You can check out what books others have catalogued, read reviews, provide reviews. At least, you can get feedback before purchasing the book.
Week 8: Thing #18
I took a look at Google Docs (word, spreadsheets, presentation tools) as this was often mentioned in my training sessions. I think there are a few advantages of online tools such as word documents and spreadsheets.
Firstly, I could edit it on any computer, even on computers without Microsoft office.
Secondly, I can share the documents with my students or friends and invite them to collaborate and add input to my original document, without saving different versions of the same document each time someone edits it and sends the document back to me.
The only thing is that I may not be able to control what is being edited. However, compared to perhaps wikis, you have a lot of control about who will edit the document.
I have not really used these tools in my own classes but this is something worth exploring.
Firstly, I could edit it on any computer, even on computers without Microsoft office.
Secondly, I can share the documents with my students or friends and invite them to collaborate and add input to my original document, without saving different versions of the same document each time someone edits it and sends the document back to me.
The only thing is that I may not be able to control what is being edited. However, compared to perhaps wikis, you have a lot of control about who will edit the document.
I have not really used these tools in my own classes but this is something worth exploring.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Week 7: Thing #17
Why are wikis useful?
Wikis encourage collaborative learning and information sharing.
They increase student engagement and participation.
I can use wikis for any project. It helps the students to collaborate, add/share information almost simultaneously.
Without wikis in the past, we often had to email many drafts to one another to edit information for any school project. This resulted in many drafts and many emails to delete as well. Of course, it adds confusion. In the end, we often wondered which is the final draft. So having a wiki would eliminate all of these problems, and enables students to work more effectively.
Wikis encourage collaborative learning and information sharing.
They increase student engagement and participation.
I can use wikis for any project. It helps the students to collaborate, add/share information almost simultaneously.
Without wikis in the past, we often had to email many drafts to one another to edit information for any school project. This resulted in many drafts and many emails to delete as well. Of course, it adds confusion. In the end, we often wondered which is the final draft. So having a wiki would eliminate all of these problems, and enables students to work more effectively.
Week 7: Thing #16 Wikis
I have always thought (even until now) that wikis = wikipedia. That is because wikipedia is The most famous wiki, I guess. I now realise that wikipedia is actually an encyclopedia that anyone can edit and what about wikis? The definition of wiki (from wikipedia of course):
A wiki is a page or collection of Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content, using a simplified markup language.Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power community websites.
So wikipedia is not the only wiki of course, but it is definitely one of the best known ones. It is also very useful as any google search usually list Wikipedia as one of the top searches.
A wiki is a page or collection of Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content, using a simplified markup language.Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power community websites.
So wikipedia is not the only wiki of course, but it is definitely one of the best known ones. It is also very useful as any google search usually list Wikipedia as one of the top searches.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Week 6: Thing #15 Creative Commons and Copyrights
http://creativecommons.org/about/licenses/
I obtained most of the information on Creative Commons in the website above.
I would summarise the difference between copyright and creative summons by saying that copyright equates "All Rights Reserved", whereas Creative Commons is "Some or No Rights Reserved".
Creative Commons licensing provides an avenue for the copyright owner to allow sharing of his copyrighted works to the public through standardized forms of permission, attached to the work itself so as to release the copyright owner from individually granting licenses to those who would request permissions, if he/she desires so.
There are six different licenses under Creative Commons depending on how one wants to share his work. The website above shows the six different licenses. The licensee can share, remix, adapt the work of the owner as long as the owner is credited. Some of the licenses only allows the work to be shared but do not allow commercial use or change to the original work.
I obtained most of the information on Creative Commons in the website above.
I would summarise the difference between copyright and creative summons by saying that copyright equates "All Rights Reserved", whereas Creative Commons is "Some or No Rights Reserved".
Creative Commons licensing provides an avenue for the copyright owner to allow sharing of his copyrighted works to the public through standardized forms of permission, attached to the work itself so as to release the copyright owner from individually granting licenses to those who would request permissions, if he/she desires so.
There are six different licenses under Creative Commons depending on how one wants to share his work. The website above shows the six different licenses. The licensee can share, remix, adapt the work of the owner as long as the owner is credited. Some of the licenses only allows the work to be shared but do not allow commercial use or change to the original work.
Week 6: Thing #14 Technorati
I have signed up for an account on Technorati - gosh, I would have so many accounts by the time I finish this Web 2.0 thingy...I have kept a notebook to record these accounts.
I played around with the Technorati website and concluded that it was not too useful for me. When I searched for tags like babies, I get mainly sites from like celebrity sites (like Ashlee Simpson has turned blond aain) which aint too useful if I had wanted to get some information about erm, babies. I guess when you tag your blog with a particular description, it means that it is easier for one to search the blog.
I played around with the Technorati website and concluded that it was not too useful for me. When I searched for tags like babies, I get mainly sites from like celebrity sites (like Ashlee Simpson has turned blond aain) which aint too useful if I had wanted to get some information about erm, babies. I guess when you tag your blog with a particular description, it means that it is easier for one to search the blog.
Week 6: Thing #13 - Delicious
Now I find this very useful indeed. I uses to have to "add to favourites" in the internet explorer if I frequent a website. I would have to do this for every internet explorer on every computer that I use: one at work, one at school and more if I were to access other computers as well. This website allows you to bookmark frequently accessed websites which you can access anywhere since the bookmarks are web based. Really cool and I find it very useful and time saving indeed.
Thing #12: Rollyo
Here is the link to my Rollyo search bar. Played around and managed to get the link.
http://rollyo.com/leestarr/baking
It's interesting to use, but normally I prefer to just search the whole web. It's good if you are familiar with a particular website and only want to narrow your search to that website.
http://rollyo.com/leestarr/baking
It's interesting to use, but normally I prefer to just search the whole web. It's good if you are familiar with a particular website and only want to narrow your search to that website.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Things #8 and #9
Now, I have found out that this Web 2.0 thingy is tougher than I thought. I have actually spent a total on two hours for four things. Maybe I am just slow... , my eyes are getting blurry now. Anyway, I have signed up for Google reader and subscribed to a few news sites and classroom learning sites and of course, my passion - baking and recipe sites.
One of the articles related to classroom learning is the use of internet in the classroom. According to a project in America, the internet is now a major resource for helping people make big decisions. Individuals are consulting the internet for advice on a variety of issues including "helping others cope with a major illness, make major investments or financial decision, looking for a school, a new place to live in etc.
What are the implications to us, educators? We must first acknowledge that the internet is indeed a powerful tool with 24/7 accessibility, immediate responses and anonymity. It is also a low cost alternative to professional consultants.
We should not only equip students with essential technology skills (which most students have here since they are all required to buy a laptop) but teach them how they can decipher fact from fiction on the internet to prevent them from making flawed decisions based on misleading or inaccurate information.
Lastly, one statement that strikes me from this article: "Seeking advice on the internet is like eating at a cheap buffet - although there is endless supply, only some are good and even fewer are good for you."
News article
Credit Suisse Posts Loss, Cuts 5,300 Jobs
Not again!! Yet another major bank cuts jobs in this economic downturn. This one is from the investment banking arm. Albeit in Zurich, some employees in the Singapore office may also be affected by the cuts...Gloom and doom.
One of the articles related to classroom learning is the use of internet in the classroom. According to a project in America, the internet is now a major resource for helping people make big decisions. Individuals are consulting the internet for advice on a variety of issues including "helping others cope with a major illness, make major investments or financial decision, looking for a school, a new place to live in etc.
What are the implications to us, educators? We must first acknowledge that the internet is indeed a powerful tool with 24/7 accessibility, immediate responses and anonymity. It is also a low cost alternative to professional consultants.
We should not only equip students with essential technology skills (which most students have here since they are all required to buy a laptop) but teach them how they can decipher fact from fiction on the internet to prevent them from making flawed decisions based on misleading or inaccurate information.
Lastly, one statement that strikes me from this article: "Seeking advice on the internet is like eating at a cheap buffet - although there is endless supply, only some are good and even fewer are good for you."
News article
Credit Suisse Posts Loss, Cuts 5,300 Jobs
Not again!! Yet another major bank cuts jobs in this economic downturn. This one is from the investment banking arm. Albeit in Zurich, some employees in the Singapore office may also be affected by the cuts...Gloom and doom.
Things #10 and #11
Jumping the gun! I find it more interesting to do Things #10 and #11 first.
I created a fun image using an image generator at http://www.customsigngenerator.com/. Only problem I faced was that when I wanted to change the photo, I can't seem to upload a new photo cos' the previous one was automatically saved. So here's the pic....!
He's cute, so I wanted to do something cuter for him. I played around with the image generator and decided on this frame: his photo in a TV. I think it fits nicely into the TV screen.
Web 2.0 awards
I picked out this site from the list of Web 2.0 awards 2008 - http://www.imcooked.com/. Interesting receipes there. Here's one really interesting video which teaches you how to toast a ham and cheese sandwich WITHOUT an oven in the hotel room - with an IRON!. The sandwich looks really delicious...not sure if I would try this process out myself though. Go to this website to check out the interesting video.
Ning network
I have also joined a ning network - Baking Tips is the name of the network.Thursday, November 20, 2008
Week 3: Thing #7 My obsession with Canon IXUS 80
I love my camera. It's small and handy, useful for ANY occasions. My kids are spontaneous beings. I am able to take a photo of them quickly with this camera if I catch them in cute actions. The video function is cool too! It's value for money!
Week 3: Thing #5 Fun images
Here is a cute image that I love. These two boys love and hate each other. It's a love-hate relationship. They can be fun and yet irritating at the same time. They are boys of irony. Without them, it is peaceful yet eerily quiet. With them, it's fun but noisy. Disciplining and correcting them is a time of love and heartache at the same time. Boys....
Week 2: Thing #3 My Feelings about Blogs
I confess. I love reading blogs. I love knowing about other people's lives. It is as if some are sharing their intimate details about their lives for all to read. Blogs were like public diaries when it first started. A few years ago, I started my own blog and shared my photos, and documented my day to day life. Due to lack of time, I stopped updating it.
Now people use blogs for everything: documenting their lives, sharing photos, selling things, for sprees, sharing information....it is indeed a really powerful tool of communication and information.
Now that we are taking classroom learning 2.0, blogs also have another function: tracking our progress through the course!
Now people use blogs for everything: documenting their lives, sharing photos, selling things, for sprees, sharing information....it is indeed a really powerful tool of communication and information.
Now that we are taking classroom learning 2.0, blogs also have another function: tracking our progress through the course!
Week 1: Thing #1 and #2
Finally, I had time to read through the pages of classroom learning 2.0 and 7 habits of lifelong learners. I took this course, knowing it's an online course, but was indeed surprised that we had like 23 things to do over 9 weeks! Wow!
First habit, begin with a goal in mind: Being quite a web idiot, as you can see from the title of this blog, I am not quite tech savvy. I wanted to take this course to be more aware of the online tools that I can use before I can even use it for my classes. I think I would achieve this objective here.
Anyone who is still willing to learn, would have some habits of lifelong learning in them. Of course, I would like to have all the habits, it's definitely never too late to learn anything!
First habit, begin with a goal in mind: Being quite a web idiot, as you can see from the title of this blog, I am not quite tech savvy. I wanted to take this course to be more aware of the online tools that I can use before I can even use it for my classes. I think I would achieve this objective here.
Anyone who is still willing to learn, would have some habits of lifelong learning in them. Of course, I would like to have all the habits, it's definitely never too late to learn anything!
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