finishing touch

1. What do you like about blogging?

I like blogging since it is a way to express what I feel. I can reflect what I have learned and experienced. By blogging I can put my thoughts into words and organized them. I can also keep track of what I have learned and see whether there is improvement that I have made compared to what I have done before.

2. What do you dislike about blogging?

Blogging is like a diary or a journal to me and I don’t write journals/ diaries/ personal blog very often. So, I find it quite tiresome to keep updating it once a week especially since I have other tasks to complete. Other than that, I love to blog

3. What have they gained from blogging?

Not much on language skills because blogging is like my rambling thoughts. Often I write it in casual style, not too academically but it does improve my organization of thoughts. It makes me think in an organized manner.

4. How?

Simply by putting thoughts in words. I can’t jumble them up. Everything must be organized so that it is readable.

5. What do you like about the course?

Technological stuff definitely. Without the course, I will still wondering how to download stuff on the internet. And I won’t be bothered to try out many software applications like I did during the course. It is a wonderful journey of technological discoveries.

6. What do you dislike about the course?

I find there are too many tasks to be completed every week. It leaves me breathless, and I have to say that this is the most costly course I ever took. I need to print every single thing every week so I need to buy ink for my printer, and A4 papers. I need to have internet connection at home or else I have to go to cyber café (RM3 per hour) and spend hours doing tutorials

7. What do you have learnt from the course?

Various software applications for me to explore and download from the internet. I can photo, audio, and video edit either for fun to use them for classroom teaching. I learn how to print screen (yep! Remember I’m not techno savvy person) and paste them on microsoft word for tutorials. I learned to make e-book using powerpoint and it’s not that hard as I imagined


8. What do you not expect but have learnt from the course?

How to make tutorials and all the editing works on video, photo and audio

9. What do you expect but have not learnt from the course?

None. What I have learned is more than what I expected

10. If you could change anything about the course, what is it?

Relevant amount of tasks. This course has too many of them! And I think it would be better if the instruction is clearer. It is sure to help me completing the tasks and assignmnets

software for children

There are various software applications to be used by children nowadays and they are readily available in the market. I can say that most of them are interactive by providing immediate feedback that is crucial for reinforcement of input and desired behariour (remember behaviourist theory?). Besides that, the software is colourfully design and has moving images that can definitely attract children’s attention, thus, increase its effectiveness as a teaching aid in the classroom. This software also allows children to discover many things own their own. This is quite true since I have saw my youngest sister was already able to know many things through such software at the age of three, when she was first introduced to computer (and she’s already have her own email by that time. Children nowadays….sigh). If so, I am sure older children can discover more with it since they are cognitively more mature.

However, each software application to be used for classroom activity should be evaluated first so that it is suitable for the pupils’ level of proficiency, topic and others to guarantee that the learning objectives can be achieved by the end of the lesson.

As teacher, I should also bear in mind that no matter how wonderful the software is, it cannot replace the importance of having teachers to teach. It is the teacher who guides and provokes the young minds to discover and to think deeper of a particular topic. In fact, the pupils also need the teacher to help them in using the computers. Therefore, the software should be used as a tool to assist teaching and learning, not a replacement for a teacher

lesson plans for four language skills

Lesson planning is not a new thing (and for the rest of our coursemates). We have been dealing with it for years since maktab.

However, it becomes stressful since we have to complete four lesson plans for each language skill including the teaching aids along with their tutorials and task sheets. As I was completing the one lesson plan after another, I find I’m running out of ideas (as well as the ink on my printer), and I have to rethink the activities and made adjustment to them so that it can match the learning outcomes and learning objectives and at the same time, able to teach the pupils the language focus and the language skills.

I can breathe easy now that all obstacles are handled well and the lesson plans are all completed. Now, is the time to reflect on this assignment. Okay, basically, now is the ‘comnplete’ practice of what is learned throughout the semester. Unlike the task given before this (reading skill), I have only able to use e-book and photo editing for my lesson plan, but this assignment has given me more opportunity to mingle with various tehnological skills to make teaching aids for every lesson plan. Very useful practice indeed

in touch with microsoft publisher

One of the software that already available in my computer for a long time but is ignored. I just use it once when I was in maktab during Science class where my group has to make a brochure. It was neglected ever since.

So, this is my opportunity to get myself in touch with Microsoft publisher. And, what’s more, it’s not just doing a brochure, my partner and I have to come with our name cards and I have to join another group to make a news letter. Both of them are new things and I have fun doing it. Maybe, it is about creativity rather than the content, so it is less stressful for me.

video exploited

Yes, exploited to the very piece. Haha. Not in bad way though. This is my second assignment in which I have to extract audio and pictures from the video. Since I have to do it in pairs, there are two videos that are needed to be extracted to get all kind of things to be used in the teaching and learning process.

Let’s talk about the difficult part of this assignment. For me, it’s to I was thinking of how on earth I am going to extract all those things from a video. After cornering all the techno savvy people that I can get hold on to, I discover that, all I have to do is to discover the complete software that can convert the video into all the little things that I want. This is where I found the wonder of TOTAL VIDEO CONVERTOR. Just a few clicks and all are converted to things that I need to use for classroom teaching and learning.

Reflecting on this task, the most important part that I learned is converting videos to audio and images. It gives me the idea that if I used a video for my lesson, I can convert it to other format (JPEG, MP3) to be used for other stages in the lesson plan. Therefore, the content is related and less time consuming rather than searching for new material that is related to the video for use in other activities through out the lesson

4 skills

Reading. Listening. Speaking. Writing.

There are four main components of language skills. Here, I find that it is a practice to be used all the skills (photo edit, audio edit and video edit) as resources to develop teaching and learning materials. However, as I have only gotten the chance to do a lesson plan that emphasized on reading skills, the usage of these technological skills is quite limited.

As mentioned, I have to develop a lesson plan on reading skills. Therefore, I have chosen to use the latest skill that I have acquired – making an e-book. Again, I have to deal with photo selection in the internet so that they are relevant for my topic. Some of the pictures are relevant but there minor distracting ‘stuff’ in the photo so I have to make simple editing to erase them. Thinking back to what I have learned before, if I was not expose to photo editing task earlier on, I wouldn’t be able to edit the photos for my e-book. So, learning to do so in the task given is not a waste after all

e- book alert!

When I first I heard about it, it does sound familiar even though I never be able to get the chance to read one, since I prefer the good ol’ papery book. But to come up with one is simply out of question. The first question that came to mind is how am I going to do it since I have never seen one?

But the worry doesn’t last long as the lecturer shown to us few examples of how an e-book should look like. It is done using Microsoft powerpoint. Having to deal with powerpoint presentations many times even in maktab days, I can consider myself already familiar with some of the basic tools in Microsoft powerpoint. However, to search for the storyline to match with the topic can be challenging. We (forgot to mention that I’m doing this with a partner) have to search relevant material in the internet so that we can put it in the e-book. At last, we have decided to take pictures so that we can control the position of the subjects in each photo. Timing the slides transition is a little bit difficult too, we are trying to make it at reasonable speed so that it can match with the audience’s (targeted for children) level of proficiency. In the end, the e-book came out just fine

E-book mission accomplished!

V.I.D.E.O editing

I’m quite frustrated while completing this task since I wanted to use other softwares instead of Windows Movie Maker but something wrong with my computer and I can’t upload the softwares in it. This is also a reason why I hate techno especially when dealing with computers. They are so prone to various sickness especially as they get older. (Hurmmm, do I make them sound like humans?)

The most important part is the message and generating a message to be conveyed is quite difficult. Next, is to send the message to the audience. However, after careful consideration, we made the video. I don’t call it as creative but we have put all of our effort in it.

Personally, I think enable to edit video for classroom purpose is pretty useful. It has pictures, video, audio and teacher can put in text to assist pupils in their learning as well as to focus them to the content. I’m sure the children will love it. However, video can be abused as well. Few teachers may use the video to just get away from teaching. In the end, the video will take over the role of the teacher in the classroom, especially if the video is made to be interactive (imagine Dora, the explorer, taking over the classroom). Too much video can be boring too. The children will get use to it.

my P.O.V on topic 2

Language is complex yet unique. It requires various skills in order to become fluent in communicating through it.

There are two types of goals which are the attitude goal and content goal. As a teacher, it is important to ensure that these two goals are achieved in everyday lesson. In my opinion, both goals are equally important. The lesson will be useless if its only motivate pupils’ to learn but fail to deliver the content. The same goes to lesson that give pupils’ content but doesn’t increase their motivation to learn.

Activity in the classroom should introduce the pupils with language that can be used in real-world context. This includes how to use the language to communicate with one another effectively either verbal or non verbal (letters). Therefore, the pupils will see the advantage of learning the language since they know how to apply it outside the classroom context.

How to check the pupils in order to know the extend to which they are to understand the language. I agree that some teachers do require their pupils to translate a text, for example, word-by-word. I believed that even though the pupils cannot translate every word, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t able to understand what a particular text all about. Therefore, I agree to various ways given to check pupils’ understanding

Even though it is agreeable that it is good to teach the language lesson in the target language rather than the mother tongue, it is quite difficult to be done. Most children will start using their mother tongue among themselves. Therefore, the teacher will have to ensure that the lesson will encourage them to use the target language as much as possible.

Teacher should also now the ‘techniques’ of correcting the pupils so that it doesn’t kill the pupils’ self esteem, or else, they will isolate themselves and stop participating in the lesson.

A.U.D.I.O editing

Photo editing is important to be learned since it is a skill that can be used to develop own materials for the purpose of teaching and learning in the classroom. For example, a particular teacher can edit various photos and pictures to suit the topic that she is going to teach in the lesson. He or she can add text, make the photo larger, combines one photo with the others, etc to make it as interesting as possible for the pupils.

However, as I’m completing the task I realized that to edit photo is not as simple as I think particularly in terms of using the photo editing software itself. There are lots of softwares readily available on the internet that I can choose from but the main problem is having to familiarize myself with them. It can take times to learn the basic tools and it can be quite frustrating as well- a single mistake and I have to redo it all over again. There’s no wonder why teachers refuse to use all the magnificent softwares to make their teaching aids. Their workload doesn’t permit them to mingle too much in the techno thingy.

Therefore, this task is actually a practice for me to get in touch with the photo editing software before I go teaching in schools. I can learn all that I want and by the time I’m in school, I can apply the skills without much problem

P.H.O.T.O editing

Photo editing is important to be learned since it is a skill that can be used to develop own materials for the purpose of teaching and learning in the classroom. For example, a particular teacher can edit various photos and pictures to suit the topic that she is going to teach in the lesson. He or she can add text, make the photo larger, combines one photo with the others, etc to make it as interesting as possible for the pupils.

However, as I’m completing the task I realized that to edit photo is not as simple as I think particularly in terms of using the photo editing software itself. There are lots of softwares readily available on the internet that I can choose from but the main problem is having to familiarize myself with them. It can take times to learn the basic tools and it can be quite frustrating as well- a single mistake and I have to redo it all over again. There’s no wonder why teachers refuse to use all the magnificent softwares to make their teaching aids. Their workload doesn’t permit them to mingle too much in the techno thingy.

Therefore, this task is actually a practice for me to get in touch with the photo editing software before I go teaching in schools. I can learn all that I want and by the time I’m in school, I can apply the skills without much problem

Working with young learners

Based on what is presented in the class, it is proven that the children do not come to class with nothing in their mind. In fact, they bring lots of things which are related to their previous knowledge and cultural value that can be used for language learning.
There are six abilities and capacities as well as characteristics of the children that can be the basis for teacher to teach language:
• Children’s ability to grasp meaning
• Children’s creative use of limited language resources
• Children’s capacity for indirect learning
• Children’s instinct for play and fun
• The role of imagination.
• The instinct for interaction and talk
Based on these characteristics, the teacher can focus on various activities in the classroom so that the pupils’ progress in learning the second language can be boosted

B.A.B.Y steps

Finally, I’ve tried the downloading stuff. Yeah, I’ve downloaded realplayer11 (I don’t fancy using keepvid), riva encoder and imesh into my computer and I was like so thrilled that I was able to do it. It’s not that complicated after all (but waiting for it to finish can give you backache!). For others, who have been downloading things for ages, this may not be considered as an achievement, but for me, it was the beginning of my techno adventure. Trust me, self-teaching is the key word. You have to get your hand into this stuff or you’ll never learn. Now, I’m trying to download a new antivirus but still not much success. The file I downloaded always end up corrupted so the installation part can’t be done. Well, maybe I have to try it again and again. Patience is virtue right?

Well, for those first timers like me, you can download various things on download.com. I’ve been using this site for quite some time and it’s reliable. Happy downloading people!

this the first vid i downloaded from youtube using realplayer
all my life by mc magic

F.I.R.S.T class

Basically we were briefed about what this course was all about. I have to admit that I was quite anxious of taking this course because there are lots of stuff and terms that I never heard or done before. I never downloaded a single thing in my life, let alone to photo and video edit and stuff like that. So throughout the class, all that I did was copying all the names of this and that, all kinds of softwares that I can probably download on my computer later on to help me on this course. Yup, there are lots who can be considered as techno savvy in this class and I don’t want to be left behind (or at least not FAR behind.)

I never knew that my email address was that important until I went into this class. We were told that our email actually reflect who we are and if it is used for, let’s say, academic purpose, it represents who you are. So, what I did (and the rest of the class as well) was creating a new email address. Of course, I still keep the old one, but for the purpose of connecting with my friends only.

blog A.D.D.I.C.T-ed

This is my first post for this blog. I have to admit that I’m now slightly addicted to this bloggy thingy. Well, maybe a lot. It’s kind of nice having a blog and tries to put all kind of fancy stuff in it to make it look pretty. Haha.

Well, welcome to my blog and don’t hesitate to leave a comment or two wherever and whenever you like. Happy blogging!