Podcasting

This was my first attempt at creating a podcast. Dr. Izaham instructed us to select and record one of the items he had on his blog. Yaya, Zaza and myself chose to record "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music. We recorded and converted the audio file using Audacity, the free audio recorder and editor.

Didn't get a good night's sleep, which would explain why I sound like hungover retard :P

Enjoy :D


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WWW Lesson Plan

LEVEL: Form 3 (Intermediate)

TIME: 70 minutes

AIMS: At the end of the lesson, students should be able to focus on problem solving and writing notes while playing a game and completing the given worksheet

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS:

1. One (1) computer set per pair of students with a system that allows for web browser game access
2. Broadband internet connection

PREPARATION:

1. Go to the Samorost 2 website
2. Play the game to make sure that students will be able to finish it with minimal assistance
3. Prepare a worksheet based on how to progress in the game

PROCEDURE:

Set induction (5 Minutes)

1. Teacher recaps previous lesson on process writing and verbs
2. Teacher introduces web browser games by giving a few examples of web browser games
3. Teacher distributes worksheets to students

Activity 1 (55 Minutes)

1. Teacher tells students to sit in pairs
2. Teacher instructs students to complete the worksheets while playing the game
3. Teacher instructs students to locate the game website and begin playing the game

Conclusion (10 Minutes)

1. Teacher discusses answers with students
2. Teacher recaps the lesson by discussing the use of verbs and process writing

Follow-up Activity

Students are to write an essay describing what their web game would be if they were given the opportunity to construct their own game, practicing the use of verbs and process writing

An Exercise in Hyperlinking

NELSON MANDELA


Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa on July 18, 1918. His father was Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand and qualified in law in 1942. He joined the African National Congress in 1944 and was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after 1948. He went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was acquitted in 1961.

After the banning of the ANC in 1960, Nelson Mandela argued for the setting up of a military wing within the ANC. In June 1961, the ANC executive considered his proposal on the use of violent tactics and agreed that those members who wished to involve themselves in Mandela's campaign would not be stopped from doing so by the ANC. This led to the formation of Umkhonto we Sizwe. Mandela was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to five years' imprisonment with hard labour. In 1963, when many fellow leaders of the ANC and the Umkhonto we Sizwe were arrested, Mandela was brought to stand trial with them for plotting to overthrow the government by violence. His statement from the dock received considerable international publicity. On June 12, 1964, eight of the accused, including Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. From 1964 to 1982, he was incarcerated at Robben Island Prison, off Cape Town; thereafter, he was at Pollsmoor Prison, nearby on the mainland.

During his years in prison, Nelson Mandela's reputation grew steadily. He was widely accepted as the most significant black leader in South Africa and became a potent symbol of resistance as the anti-apartheid movement gathered strength. He consistently refused to compromise his political position to obtain his freedom.


Nelson Mandela was released on February 11, 1990. After his release, he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work, striving to attain the goals he and others had set out almost four decades earlier. In 1991, at the first national conference of the ANC held inside South Africa after the organization had been banned in 1960, Mandela was elected President of the ANC while his lifelong friend and colleague, Oliver Tambo, became the organisation's National Chairperson.

ARTICLE REVIEW

Title: Language Learners & Computer Games: From Space Invaders to Second Life

Journal: TESL-EJ Volume 11, Number 4

Authors: Graham Stanley is the product development manager for the British Council 'Learn English Second Life for Teens' project and works as senior teacher at the British Council Barcelona Young Learner Centre.

Kyle Mawer is project officer of the British Council 'Learn English Second Life for Teens' project and teacher at the British Council Barcelona Young Learner Centre.

Article Summary:

The authors explain that there is a fine line between serious concentration and play. Meaning that when we play, we are actually concentrating on the task at hand rather than having what is usually assumed as “mindless fun”. Here, the authors propose to break the isolation that has existed between education and genuine fun by introducing computer games in the language learning environment. And by computer games, the authors don’t mean educational games per se (CALL specific games, which go under the banner “Serious Games”) but “real” computer games that have no obvious link to language learning. The authors explain that teachers should be interested in using games with learners because we have reached a generation of students who have mostly grew up playing computer games, and that by using computer games as a teaching aid in class, we appeal to their interests and actually make language learning relevant to their world (Johnson, 2006). This can be done from simply mentioning or relating a few computer games during a lesson to actually implementing computer games as teaching aids for lessons. The types of games include computer games for Windows, console games (Playstation 1, 2 , and 3, Playstation Portable, Xbox, Xbox360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, etc), free online games (Escape from the Bar, Samorost2, Grow Cube, Mystery of Time and Space [MOTAS], Nesquik, Quest for the Rest), Massively Multiplayer online role-playing games or MMORPGs (World of Warcraft, etc), and virtual worlds (Second Life, etc). Language learning components revolve around the game walkthrough, activities include Cloze Passage (students fill in the blanks to parts of the walkthrough with a list of words provided by the teacher), Relay Reading (Students work in pairs and one student relays parts of the walkthrough by reading and memorising the walkthrough which is placed at a distance), Jigsaw Reading (Each group has different information from a different part of the text and they must ask the other student questions about the part of the text they need. In this way students work collectively to gain understanding and complete the task), Game Dictogloss (Students watch the teacher play the game and write the main words and short phrases that a particular task within the game needs), etc. In Second Life, there are over 120 universities operating virtually where users can access and learn from them via Sim Teach, Virtual Language Academies, and even the British Council have opened a self-access centre island for teen language learners in the teen section of Second Life.

My Reaction:

As a gamer myself, I understand the relationship between gaming pleasure and brain activity, since every computer game has an objective and it is the gamer’s role to figure out how to achieve these objectives. This interaction can involve our problem-solving skills which can range from simply moving a virtual object from one point to another, to puzzle solving skills, to even complicated think-outside-the-box skills where not only our knowledge is tested, but even our imagination. As a teacher, I have referred to computer games during my lessons, and I am proud to inform that I was repeatedly successful in capturing my students’ interest and providing something that they can relate to. I highly regard the activities suggested by the authors as they provide language learning activities to students as they try to figure out how to complete a game, which in my opinion keeps students’ interests high and makes learning meaningful to them. This makes for highly effective learner centered language learning. I believe that by combining computer games and language learning, the need to find different ways to capture a student’s interest is eliminated by the involvement of the computer game itself. And by making the learning activity part of the task in completing the game’s objective(s), learning is made meaningful to the student as it has allowed him/her to achieve the pleasure of succeeding in the computer game. Although in the Malaysian context it is highly unlikely that this method of language learning would be implemented anytime soon due to the lack of ICT equipment in many schools and homes, I believe that our country is heading towards a future where almost every house and school will have easy access to computers and the Internet, and this makes the near future fertile grounds for computer games to be used as teaching aids in ESL.

2nd Task, Finally Up

Sorry this one's late. I've recently reformatted my PC, but for some reason, it hangs whenever I insert a DVD/CD. This = Can't install MS Office >_>

But I solved the problem: I had to download the latest chipset drivers for my mobo.

So, here's my assignment: A MS Word based English exercise. Mine's titled "Does This Belong in the Kitchen?". It's an exercise where students are shown pictures of objects and decide if they should be in the kitchen or not and type their answers into the boxes provided.

Tippmann U.S. Army Paintball "Project Salvo" aka "Sierra One"

The second and latest Tippmann marker under the U.S. Army Paintball banner. I believe that the Sierra One is Tippmann's answer to the many woes expressed over their previous marker, the Alpha Black aka Bravo One, with greater customization options, and not to mention the fact that it already comes looking like the picture above. With the Bravo One, you had to actually buy the M4 Tactical Kit were you unfortunate enough to buy the basic kit:

+

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Me and my beloved Bravo One

The Name

The Project Salvo is its product name for the U.S. market, just like how Alpha Black was the product name of its predecessor in the U.S.. This is due to the products' association with the U.S. Army. For the international market, the Project Salvo and Alpha Black have been respectively named the Sierra One and Bravo One.


The Marker

The Sierra One (as I shall call it since that would be the product name here) has an AR 15 style stock that can slide up to 6 positions and is foldable and collapsible.

It also has and AR 15 style shroud with FOUR Picatinny rails for extensive customization. This means you can add pretty much anything from a foregrip to a tactical flashlight to even a laser sight.

It comes with an 11" quick thread barrel and adjustable front and rear sights (flashy but near useless features).

Just like the Bravo One, the Sierra One has its internals based on the Tippmann 98 Custom, which means it's reliable and durable.

The Sierra One probably comes with an option for a factory-installed E-Trigger. If not, you can upgrade it with the Bravo One E-Trigger Kit. It can also be upgraded with the 98 Custom Response Trigger.


Strengths

• It comes out-of-the-box with its own shroud and stock, which eliminates the need to purchase any after-market kits
• Much higher customization options due to the number of Picatinny rails: Four on the shroud and a long rail on top of the marker itself
• Upgradeable with an E-Trigger or a Response Trigger
• Can be upgraded with all 98 Custom parts, kits and barrels as it has 98 Custom barrel threads
• Has 98 Custom internals, which means it is highly rugged and durable, maintaining performance after numerous skirmishes

Weaknesses

• Having 98 Custom internals means that in order to service it, the marker has to be taken apart, contrary to Tippman models such as the A5 and X7 which have field-strip capabilities
• Although it is a new product, the only improvment Tippmann has made is the increased external customizeability, with no internal upgrades such as Anti-Chop Technology (A.C.T.) which is now available on current 98 Custom models.

As a conclusion, I think that this marker is still a pretty good buy. Based on my experience with Tippmann markers' price range, I would say that when the Sierra One does arrive in Malaysia, it would have a pretty decent price tag. Probably somewhere within RM1000.

As a Bravo One owner myself, I'm pretty satisfied with the performance of my current marker and I think it would be fair to say that the Sierra One can maintain that level of satisfaction.

Apam_Savior

They Call Me Apam

My name is Faeroz Bin Kamil. I am an avid paintballer.
Recball/woodsball to be exact.

My first post blog-setup task is to list down my skills and knowledge in relation to computers. so this is what I'll do:

Computer Software

• I am familiar with Microsoft Word and Powerpoint, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, and Windows Movie Maker

Computer Hardware

• I know how to assemble, disassemble and reassemble a PC, perform hardware upgrades such as adding Hard Disk Drives, Optical Drives, Video Cards, RAM, etc.

Computer/Internet Acivities I Often Engage In

• Graphic design
• Downloading media: Audio/Video files
• Playing Audio/Video files: Music, Movies, TV Series
• Web Surfing
• Academic resourcing
• Computer gaming
• Social networking: Facebook, etc
• Various forum networking: lowyat.net, mbtcentral.net, xhydroforum.net, etc

I did not have the opportunity to use a computer in my teaching during my practicum because of the lack of IT facilities at the school I was assigned to.

I have and still am participating in online learning. It is a website that contains user-posted tutorials on various tasks involved in graphic design for a range of applications such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, as well as other applications such as Flash, Java, etc.

You can find that site here

Apam_Savior