It is really hard for me to have an opinion about open-source software, because before my first computer class, I did not know anything about it. Since my usage of computers limits itself to university researches, emails, and some music downloading, I am not that aware of what is out there. Although, since I know what open-source software is, I can say that before that computer class I never used any, well I do not think I did. However, now I have some that we had to download to figure out what it is and how it works. What I have realized about that kind of software is that it is said to be as good, if not better than the software we can buy in the stores, because it is always updated my the community.
After reading the articles provided, I must say, that I agree with the idea that those software are great tools. They are as effective as the other software I had on my computer and so far, I did not have problems with it. However, it’s only been two weeks, so time will tell.
What I am thinking about regarding those tools is the money that schools put into computer software, and what money they could save by using the free ones. It’s obvious that a lot of money could be saved and put somewhere else.
What amazes me as well is that people are having fun repairing the bugs that the software encounter and from what I get, they are not all paid to do so. I guess it’s seen as practice just like any other field of study where you practice to get better without necessarily being paid.
So far, I do not see a reason not to be for that kind of computer tools, in particular, if the bugs are repaired more effectively than on the tools that we pay for.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Shared
In reaction to my ESL Computer Application teacher blog and the movies he presented in class, I must say I am shared (see Mark Miller’s blog). I believe that technology is important, but I am not a 100% fine with swearing by it as a way to teach.
The Internet is a really interesting source when it comes to researches and teaching. I believe nowadays, you can find everything on there, and it makes human kind in general so much more aware of what is out there, even if, as I go to my computer classes, I find out I don’t know that much about technology and especially the Internet. It is true to say that students spend an incredible amount of time reading “stuff” on there, my problem with it, and the video, is that emails or SMS are not perfect. What I mean is SMS and emails, or blog pages all contain errors and when students read those errors every day, it goes into their head as being okay to write or speak that way. That is one of the reason why, when studying to become a teacher, we spend so much time on grammar, analysing and writing texts, and even after all that practice, most of us still make mistakes once in a while. Now, if what they read is a teacher blog, where errors should not appear, using it to teach is totally fine with me. However, I am convinced that their friends’ blogs are not error free. They contain lots and lots of slang and errors and that is where I start being concerned about what is said in the video.
The part where I agree with the video and my teacher’s view is where it says teachers should use it more when they teach. I agree that instead of having my students do oral communications in front of the class, I could ask them to do a podcast every two weeks or so about the subject they want, they might be more interested in doing my assignment. It could also be used in the way that I produce a podcast and ask them to answer questions according to what they heard in the news and what I say on it. What I mean is that using that kind of technology to involve my students is interesting and is accessible to almost every body nowadays. Not to forget that technology is something that seems to interest boys a lot more, than sit in class and listen to the teacher, which could be a great way to get them involved a little more.
So as I said I am shared in that whole technology situation, although it is hard not to see what it does when your teacher teaches in the PROTIC school program.
Here is the address of one of the videos that we saw in class: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opjnLmwzV-E
The Internet is a really interesting source when it comes to researches and teaching. I believe nowadays, you can find everything on there, and it makes human kind in general so much more aware of what is out there, even if, as I go to my computer classes, I find out I don’t know that much about technology and especially the Internet. It is true to say that students spend an incredible amount of time reading “stuff” on there, my problem with it, and the video, is that emails or SMS are not perfect. What I mean is SMS and emails, or blog pages all contain errors and when students read those errors every day, it goes into their head as being okay to write or speak that way. That is one of the reason why, when studying to become a teacher, we spend so much time on grammar, analysing and writing texts, and even after all that practice, most of us still make mistakes once in a while. Now, if what they read is a teacher blog, where errors should not appear, using it to teach is totally fine with me. However, I am convinced that their friends’ blogs are not error free. They contain lots and lots of slang and errors and that is where I start being concerned about what is said in the video.
The part where I agree with the video and my teacher’s view is where it says teachers should use it more when they teach. I agree that instead of having my students do oral communications in front of the class, I could ask them to do a podcast every two weeks or so about the subject they want, they might be more interested in doing my assignment. It could also be used in the way that I produce a podcast and ask them to answer questions according to what they heard in the news and what I say on it. What I mean is that using that kind of technology to involve my students is interesting and is accessible to almost every body nowadays. Not to forget that technology is something that seems to interest boys a lot more, than sit in class and listen to the teacher, which could be a great way to get them involved a little more.
So as I said I am shared in that whole technology situation, although it is hard not to see what it does when your teacher teaches in the PROTIC school program.
Here is the address of one of the videos that we saw in class: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opjnLmwzV-E
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