Smartboard

Fun & interactive! That is the best words to describe smartboard. I never know learning could be such interesting. I wish I could be young again so that I can experience using smartboard in either primary or secondary school, and gets a lot of benefits from it. From my opinion, learning second language, usually treated as boring, could be fun and effective through this medium. If to recall modern tools during my primary and secondary period, I could hardly find one. Wait...maybe one - computer, seldom.

Again, it is for sure fun for the learners. How about teachers? Technology-makes your life easier, and the other way too. The given task is quite tough, not about the content but the process. I have difficult time to explore all the functions. Whether like it or not, I still have to bare with it. I will always remember, that is what teachers for-sacrifice. However, after sometime, I started to feel comfortable with it, and like it too! I cannot deny that this latest tool in technology is very useful and amazing. We can do almost everything with the board-which seems to be just usual whiteboard. It is touchable and pleasurable. Dont you like it?

Teachers, open your eyes, start thinking and work on it!

Blogging

I am 'technophobia'! I am actually not interested about exploring technology. Only heard about it could makes me anxious. It would be a major problem to me if I have to deal with assignments or tasks which involved the usage of technology tools. And because of that, I am lack of technology as well as internet skills.

Since I am already in higher level of learning, assignments and tasks are mostly expected to be done by using the technology tools or sources from the internet. It quite tough for me at the first place to cope with this new trend in learning. Even though it is tough for me, I still have to learn cuddling with this new medium of modern learning. The first few semester is just 'OK' for me as it only required basic skills of using the technology. Furthermore, the institution have not enough equipment as to allow us to explore more about the technology.

My 5th semester in UM quite shocking for me as we have to deal with almost everything via online. The worst part is we have to acquire lots of new internet skills as to complete lots of tasks and assignments. It is just like a nightmare for me since I do not like technology; not because I am against the modernization, because I am not confident if I could make it through. One of the significant task is to make our own blog to reflect about our journey in this course.

Unconsciously, I begin to like blogging. It is the space for me to express my feelings (in this case, guided) and share my thoughts with others. It is the medium where I could broaden others knowledge as well as my own. Sometimes, our life is just hectic with lots of routine and personal tasks where we do not have so much time to talk to peoples in our surrounding as to gain more information and knowledge about any issues. Blogging is one easy way of gaining knowledge about almost any issues in education, specifically and life generally. We can link with peoples from all around the world and get their views of certain issue. It will broaden the way we thought about education and life. Besides that, personally, I get the opportunity to enhance my writing skills as well as language skills by reading others' blog and writing my own blog. I learned a lot of creative ways of delivering message through correct written form. Other than that, blogging improve my critical thinking skills as I have to analyze and judge a few issues regarding this course and things that related to it. However, peoples always said that, 'good things always come with the disadvantage'. I believe so. But at the mean time, I cannot see the bad side of this mission yet. Maybe after a period of time and lots of experienced, a could tell the disadvantages of sharing information in a blog.

Anyone out there likes to gain and share? Let's have fun guys! Let's blogging!

How technology enhance language literacy

Constructivists believe that "children need to have the opportunity to construct their own knowledge through play and exploration, so they can create, reflect upon and work out their own understanding."(Vygotsky, 1978). Offering young children the opportunity to explore technology, allows them to acquire knowledge and allows for a variety of learning styles. When students gather information on the Internet, they can be self directed and independent. They can choose what sources they want to examine and what connections to look at more carefully. Technology provides the students with more opportunity to work at their own pace, in the learning style that they prefer. Technology applications provide ways for a variety of minds to gain access to knowledge.

Various technologies offers different kinds of content and can serve different purposes in the classroom. E-mail and word processing promote communication skills, database and spreadsheet programs promote organizational skills, modeling software promotes understanding of math and science concepts. Children who used computers had an increase in cognitive abilities, such as the memory, spatial and logical problem solving. Through this medium, children also have the opportunity to enhance their self-learning, self-organization, memory, and concentration. Children often taught each other how to use the menu items and prompts on a new piece of software. Properly used, computer software can provide a catalyst for social interaction and conversations. Children who wrote with word processors were motivated to write more than when they used a pencil and paper. Children tended to write longer and tell longer and more elaborate stories when composing on the computer with the use of computer graphics. When children are writing for a real audience, like posting on the web, or answering e-mail, they tend to enjoy writing more, they are more willing to write, proofread, revise, and edit their work. They are also more careful about spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

The use of real world tools, relevant experiences and having a meaningful learning experience help children to acquire knowledge. Children who use technology in meaningful, relevant experiences, have an increased level of self-confidence as they rely less on their teacher and more on themselves for knowledge. Technology allows students to increase their understanding and utilize their higher level thinking skills. Students tend to understand the more complex concepts like Math and Science when they can use technology to help them visualize hard to understand concepts. Technology is a tool, just like a journal, book, or pencil. Technology can be used in developmentally appropriate ways that are beneficial to children. Technology when used in conjunction to other tools, like blocks, art, sand, water, books, exploration, etc., assists in the development of literacy, cognitive and social skills.

An over sheltered child
Is not able to be independent
"Trust thyself. . . "
Do not let the right to exercise your freedom,
Slip away as quickly as electricity travels today.

Technology.
Encouraged reliance on a machine.
Individualism is lost.
The connection with nature is lost.
The connection with thyself is lost.

Self reliance.

While one is polluting one's mind with science,
I will be with the forest,
Watching and talking with the stars.

I would help you find truth,
But that's what your electronic friends are for.

Besides,
I would be denying you of your freedom as an individual.
To be self reliant
And look at the stars thyself.

Taken from : (http://members.aol.com/cammy1234/tech.html)

Does technology brings more harm than good to us? Or is it the other way round? Or we just have to ignore as we need the technology more than before? Are we being againts the modernization if we refuse to accept technology in our life? There are lots of questions to be ponder when technology is concerned.

What is Internet?

The Internet rage has hit the mainstream. Unfortunately, nobody seems to know what it is. The following customer comments are attributed to students at a university campus computer store in the US....

• Customer: "I'd like to buy the Internet. Do you know how much it is?"
• Customer: "Can you copy the Internet for me on this diskette?"
• Customer: "I would like an Internet please."
• Customer: "I just got your Internet in the mail today..."
• Customer: "I just downloaded the Internet. How do I use it?"
• Customer: "I don't have a computer at home. Is the Internet available in book form?"
• Customer: "Will the Internet be open on Memorial Day tomorrow?"
• Customer: "We're getting an Internet from you. Are you guys having any problems sending out your Internets?"
• Customer: "The Internet is running too slow. Could you reboot it please?"
• Customer: "We're going on holiday for three months, can you suspend the Internet for us please?"
• Customer: "I have a problem with my Internet. Anyone know how to get the screens smaller?"
• Customer: "What do you mean I have to pay for Internet access??"
• Customer: "I lost my Internet. I switched it off last night and turned on this morning, and it's gone. I just paid $19.95 a month, and I have lost it already. Can you send me another one?"
• Customer: "The Internet site's giving me a busy signal!"
• Customer: "Every time I call you I get disconnected from the Internet!"

This situation happened in US. Can you imagine what is it like in Malaysia? I believe there are still hundreds or even thousands of Malaysian who does not have correct idea about internet.

Producer

We had given an assignment on producing our own education video. I decided not to record, but to download few videos and combine parts of it into one. It involved a few processes in order to make it real - omitting, adding, picture editing, audio editing, etc. Even though it is quite complicated, especially for the technophobia like me, I take it as a challenge and opportunity for me to learn those skills. Honestly, it really makes me sick but on the other side, it had given me bunch of knowledge on the internet as well as technology skills.

Actually, I am not really satisfied with my work. But it is the first video I had ever produce. I already try my best working on it. I believe that I could make something better in future. In general, I think video is useful and interactive which could benefits in language learning but it mat not be very practical for teachers in terms of preparing it.

The Good and Bad Side of Technology

You are sitting at your computer, listening to a renowned expert lecturer on a topic of educational importance. As you listen, you are viewing diagrams, charts, Web sites, presentations, and spreadsheets that support and enhance the lecture. While the lecture continues your mind start wondering; thinking of how things used to be. How was the technology that existed back then and you make a comparison with what we currently have in learning.

Since the beginning, men always wanted to create something to facilitate his tasks, something to improve the quality of their lives and his ability to learn. In today’s world, there is hardly anybody who can say that their lives have not been influenced by technology, whether they like it or not. There are lots of routine in our life which involved technology such as on-line banking, e-commerce, organization, writing, international interaction and so on. We could say that we are so much depends on technology in our life nowadays.

From my point of view, technology is a multi-tools which could stimulates different learning channel (auditory, visual and etc) and facilitates different learning style. It is an easy ways of combining texts, graphics, sound, videos and animation. Besides integrating the technology in the classroom, the existence of this new trend of learning could be explore by students outside the classroom around the clock.

In contrast, the hardware, software and infrastructure requirements may be steep. Technology skills and software require time and effort to master. This could be a major obstruction for teachers in designing teaching aids for the lesson with little time. Students might also affected as they need to spend time mastering the skills and software in addition to the content of the lesson.

However, I believe as time goes by, the obstacles will be overcome by teachers as well as students through continuous learning. We need to keep updated with latest trend of technology as it could reduces the number of things which we need to acquire and master.

Technology vs Children

I would prefer technology as computer technology including telecommunications, multimedia and others which integrated with the computer technology. As we all aware, technology becoming one of the significant role in Malaysia today and we cannot deny that this role will increase time to time.

Computers are intrinsically compelling for young children. Children who observed adults working on computers will have the curiosity to explore it too. As what I know and observed, children get interested because they can make things happen with computer. It could enhance their self-esteem. As for that, why not teachers manipulate this innate characteristic to enhance teaching and learning in the language classroom.

Children have very short attention span which could be one of the barrier in learning. This technology could be used to avoid this barrier. Teacher might come out with fun yet effective teaching aids in language classroom. It is not only enjoyable, but it can higher the potential for them to acquire the second language.