Non-green IT products 'marketing suicide': At the same time, it seems vendors see green technology as a very high ... http://bit.ly/aCqko4
10 minutes ago by greentreats on topsyZDNet is available in the following editions:
Educator backs use of social media in classes, where students' familiarity with such tools will enable them to be knowledge workers in future.
student, wiki, social media, asia, online collaboration, tool, twitter, e-mail, teacher, blog
A Singapore-based university lecturer believes educators should harness the potential of social media as it is not only practical, this is in the interest of students who will go into the workforce as "efficient knowledge workers".
Toward this end, he encourages tweeting in class.
While some balk at the idea of introducing Twitter into classrooms, Michael Netzley, assistant professor of Corporate Communication Practice at Singapore Management University, told ZDNet Asia in an e-mail interview that educators can help students and prepare them for life outside the university.
With students using channels such as Twitter or discussion forums in their normal life, it "only makes sense" for educators to speak to them through channels they are familiar with and proficient at using, said Netzley.
"Sometimes, as educators, we make the assumption that ideas must come first from us, the faculty member. We dislike anything that draws attention away from us as we deliver what we think students need to know," he said. "Frankly, I feel we sometimes over-elevate the importance of faculty in the complex process of student learning."
"Learning happens everywhere," he said. He added that the use of Twitter or discussion forums such as FriendFeed in the class opens up opportunities for students to participate and play an active role in their learning.
"In a classroom where I am discussing a case study with 50 students, not everyone can participate at the same time. A back channel such as Twitter allows everyone to comment, clarify, and share their thought even if they cannot speak out loud," he said, adding that Twitter acts as a log for students to review conversations as each message is saved.
His own use of Twitter as an instructor allows Netzley to review class conversations and see what students have understood from the lessons and where they were confused.
He added that business professionals can join in the class conversations and give feedback as well.
While the use of Twitter has its benefits, Netzley noted that it has a few downsides. For example, some class time is lost as the teacher has to show students how to use the channels professionally and spend time to establish the norms of online participation. The instructor also loses some time as he will have an additional channel to follow and pay attention to.
He added that educators need to set firm expectations of turning off e-mail and instant messaging as they can lose the attention of some students who are not disciplined enough to avoid excessive multitasking. "When I spot this, I question them directly in class as a sign that they need to focus a bit more and join the conversation," he said.
Twitter has also found its way into education through other uses. At the National University of Singapore, Ravi Chandran, director of the Centre for Instructional Technologies, said his department uses a Twitter account to provide system updates to the university community.
He added that many departments in the university use Twitter as an informal broadcast medium for announcements, while some use the microblogging service to engage students.
Online collaboration tools
Although the use of newer social media channels have not been widespread, Web 2.0 online collaboration tools such as wikis and blogs are already in place at schools.
In an e-mail to ZDNet Asia, a spokesperson from the Ministry of Education Singapore said local schools are already employing a variety of of online collaboration tools to facilitate the sharing of resources and ideas among staff and students, both within a school and across schools.
The Ministry of Education has rolled out a Google Apps suite for school staff in phases since November 2009. The spokesperson said that the suite includes e-mail and collaboration tools such as instant messaging, blogs, wikis and Google Docs that facilitate sharing of teaching practices and resources among teachers.
She added that some schools are working with the National Institute of Education's Learning Sciences Lab to experiment with the use of other collaboration tools such as Group Scribbles
"Online collaboration tools enable students to learn from peers and experts, as well as augment the guidance provided by their teachers," she said. "It allows them to co-create knowledge and sharpen each other's thinking through environments like wiki."
According to the spokesperson, students will be able to think critically based on available information and develop the ability to communicate their thoughts in impactful and succinct ways in wikis.
She added that students often take pride in producing quality pieces of work as these can be published online, reaching a wider audience.
SMU's Netzley concurred that the ability "for the world to watch and give feedback" is a positive motivator for students to produce quality work. He cited a project in his "Digital Media Across Asia" class where students maintain a Wikipedia-style wiki on social media in different Asian countries.
According to Netzely, the wiki has 800 to 1,000 visitors each week on average from more than 65 countries. He deems this a success as there is no other authoritative online source on digital media in Asia.
"Students are responsible for creating this public resource knowing full well the world is watching, and that sort of full transparency has been a great motivator to maintain a quality wiki," he said. He added that students also get to see feedback--both positive and critical--from people around the world, making learning happen on a global stage.
Apart from wikis, blogs are used in teaching. NUS' Chandran noted that blogs were one of the earliest social media tools used in NUS and were implemented as early as 2003. The school launched the NUS Module Blogs in mid-2006 and Blog.nus in 2008 to help the faculty and students set up their own blogs for learning.
Chandran added that the university has its own YouTube channel where public lectures and other videos are shared with a worldwide audience. In addition, videos on the services provided by NUS Libraries and NUS Career Centre are also hosted on the video-sharing Web site.
Non-green IT products 'marketing suicide': At the same time, it seems vendors see green technology as a very high ... http://bit.ly/aCqko4
10 minutes ago by greentreats on topsyOh really? RT @scoopsg: (zdnetasia) S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://scoo.ps/dpkySs
23 minutes ago by danielgoh on twitter(zdnetasia) S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://scoo.ps/dpkySs
25 minutes ago by newsSG on twitter@mrcolinlim but of course for more tech updates you can always visit zdnetasia.com
49 minutes ago by t_phuck on twitterRT @zdnetasia: Searchable Facebook user data posted to Pirate Bay http://bit.ly/ciJQxY
1 hour 7 minutes ago by phyllis777loves on topsyRT @HazelHassan: Facebook led police to Philippine serial killer -- http://ow.ly/2iGnh
1 hour 16 minutes ago by mnajem on twitterRT @zdnetasia: 10 questions to ask when http://www.zdnetasia.c...
1 hour 17 minutes ago by Zoomicon on twitterRT @zdnetasia: S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://bit.ly/bF2aoa
1 hour 22 minutes ago by ellsetan on twitterFacebook led police to Philippine serial killer -- http://ow.ly/2iGnh
1 hour 23 minutes ago by hazelhassan on topsyIsn't IT ironic?: It's the analogy security firms like to narrate, about a cautious homeowner who pays thousands o... http://bit.ly/9DZIGw
1 hour 29 minutes ago by secureduah on twitterWhat the iPhone-jailbreaking ruling means http://bit.ly/aXyEf9
1 hour 43 minutes ago by mobilephone2u on twitterS'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://bit.ly/dqTRZC
1 hour 56 minutes ago by GaryLambertJr on twitterS'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune: Microblog site takes "backseat" in marketing campaigns, say Sing... http://bit.ly/axFgVh
2 hours 6 minutes ago by jeffsharonmtg on twitterS'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://bit.ly/dgUuGq
2 hours 15 minutes ago by mattbnr on twitterS'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune - Internet - News http://tinyurl.com/2bs...
2 hours 16 minutes ago by HotAboutTV on twitterS'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune: Marketing via Twitter has not picked up in Singapore, where it s... http://bit.ly/9GEDJS
2 hours 16 minutes ago by OurAwesomeWorld on twittergreat! S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://bit.ly/dotZES Good day!
2 hours 16 minutes ago by bestwinnernet on twitterhttp://bit.ly/8v7Ov3 S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune - ZDNet Asia http://is.gd/dSngs
3 hours 16 minutes ago by easytweeting on topsyin the mean time, if you need to find PDF eBooks, you may use http://www.findpdf.us/
3 hours 47 minutes ago by findpdf on Researchers find workaround for Adobe PDF fixJust want to say what a great blog you got here! My appreciation of your work, cause i am an IT student also. Try this one too, http://w...
3 hours 54 minutes ago by winsource on Making the case for Filipino IT entrepreneurshipHi, We have ton of HP empty cartridges. Could you collect them in our office??
Thanks
Thanks Kenneth, for your insights. Good to know people out there can see the issue for what it is, and to do so impassively, that is. ...
2 days 53 minutes ago by yedwin on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationWhile I agree that the issues with the device have raised many an eyebrow, I think it's unwise to forget that many phone reviews have...
2 days 4 minutes ago by kennethkoh on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationThe online apple store http://store.apple.com/ is not available now. Maybe it's updating the pricing ;)
2 days 3 minutes ago by mingnow on iPhone 4 to ring in Singapore on FridayAfter an awful silence, finally the prices are out..
2 days 58 minutes ago by melvinchia on iPhone 4 to ring in Singapore on FridayGlad you discovered the Xfce 4.6 magic. Its other endearing feature is its phenomenal configurability. You can make the desktop look and ...
3 days 5 minutes ago by gnome_refugee on Smitten with Xfce 4yep, tried them all and xfce with compiz/emerald instead of fvwm is by far the best experience I've had. If you didn't know ther...
3 days 3 minutes ago by ggolemg on Smitten with Xfce 4@mingnow: why do you think so? How do you think the FOSS community could tackle this issue? I'm involved in a lot of efforts to get t...
3 days 9 minutes ago by fredericmuller on Taobao initiates Chinese open source revolutionGeez. I would think giving free books and getting kids to school would be a better place to start.
3 days 16 minutes ago by mingnow on India's US$35 tablet--how low can it go?I think it's great the that country with the biggest internet population is finally contributing back to the open-source world. I thi...
4 days 3 minutes ago by mingnow on Taobao initiates Chinese open source revolutionhey.there Im Wendy from a PR Agency.I find your blog interesting and well written.In days to come,we would hold an event. Therefore We ...
4 days 33 minutes ago by wendy on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationIt could be done without all these. Just use the opacity addon of Compiz.
4 days 57 minutes ago by hariks0 on How to get RGBA support in UbuntuStop Waiting Start Switching to Juniper
Free Gartner Report shows it reduces costs and increases efficiency
What makes a hospital a smart hospital?
Download your copy of 'The Smart Hospital' Resource Kit to learn more
2010 IT Salary & Skills Report
Find out the salary range of IT professionals. Join activeTechPros for free access to the report.