Thursday, February 28, 2008

E-learning Day on 3rd March

A day without the teacher's physical presence.

Instructions

1) Log in to MI Link

2) Go to Discussion Forums
> Teacher-student Discussion Forum
> General Paper Discussion Forum
> Your class's thread (e. 07S1 - OMY e-learning)

3)
Read the article designated for your class
07S1" Damn if we do, damn if we don't"
07A2 "Preservation for preservation's sake"
07B4 "Lewis Hamilton in an electric car?"

4) Click on the 'reply' button and post your response to the particular article.

Write your name & class.
Write 1 argument &
1 counter-argument
Your response should contain no less than 2 FULL paragraphs consisting of 2 opposing views - 1 for, 1 against. You can write more if you are contentious. I also encourage you to read and respond to other articles on Mr Samuel Wong's blog. :)

5) Complete your response before 12pm, 3rd March 2008. Thank you and enjoy learning online.

Friday, February 1, 2008

[Pre U Sem] Post interview notes

Was reading Mr Wong's blog post about child geniuses and decided to reflect on the issue which some students claimed that the Pre-U Sem interview was traumatic.

Being one of the interviewers, I would like to apologise for any misunderstanding that occurred and any trauma inflicted was unintended. I applaud your effort in turning up for the interviews and was impressed that many prepared for it. In fact, those who put in effort to research and willing to take the challenge, voicing their (justified) opinions are selected. Maturity does not occur overnight so I do not expect an 18 year old spouting philosophical quotes. Neither can I. If you ask me, what was I looking for in a candidate? A confident team player who is willing to go the mile. Knowledge is a bonus but not a necessity as it can be acquired.

I could not agree more with Mr Wong's observation and at the same time, be reminded of the times I felt such peer pressure when some of my JC classmates laughed at me when I was reading (not notes or textbook) during break time. I stopped reading. Hey, I was 17! At least not reading in front of such 'friends'. However, I managed to make friends who like to read and discuss issues with me. These friends are the few who passed GP and still keep in contact.
Although friends should not be categorised, instinctively one knows who are the true friends and who are not. A true friend will not laugh at your efforts or put you down. In fact, he/she will help to become a better person.

In spite of my job, my friends still call me a bimbo which I do not take offense because I am an airhead. I feel that I have too little time and want to learn/do too many things. Therefore, I am quite upset that some students have too much time and have no idea what to do (anything but study), decided to vandalise school property. Even during my rebellious days, the idea of destroying things was never on my agenda. When I asked ex-vandals the rationale behind their actions, they replied, 'Fun what!' This joy they achieved from destruction is barbaric and obviously, they do not respect or value others' property. To quote my colleague, 'Stupid is relative' so vandalism is the lowest, morally decadent form of catharsis yet some take pride in it. Anyway, that was a random note on vandalism.

Back on the issue of learning, I appreciate the time and effort given by my students, friends, colleagues who are willing to share their knowledge and experience with me. Thank you for 'dumbing down' for me and listening to my superficial comments. @_@