Some good stuff - and some bad
Went to the keynote presentation by Microsoft Research today. They are doing some very interesting stuff on how computers are used. We saw some neat graphics stuff, followed by a very interesting presentation about how the computer can manage your relationships and information about each other.
And then we saw a video about the use of Tablet PCs in education. The video starts with a black and white sequence of a lecturer giving a class about Public Key Encryption of messages (this is how information can transferred secretly moved around networks). The material was being presented in a very boring way and the students were doing the usual student type things in this situation, reading, fidgeting, digging tunnels etc. Then, with a burst of colour, we are in a new Tablet PC enabled world. Same teacher, same material (but with Powerpoint slides rather than a squeaky overhead projector) and every student messaging and discussing as the class goes on.
The thing which irritated me beyond belief was that the content and presentation of the information being conveyed was still boring as far as I could tell. With all the interactivity, pretty colours, and bouncy music the subject matter was still as dull as dishwater. Perhaps I was missing the point (I'm famous for doing this) but the message I took away from the video was that a whole bunch of Tablet PCs, network connectivity and messaging can compensate slightly for boring stuff.
I've been teaching for a while and pride myself on being quite good at it. I'd back myself and a chalkboard against anybody working with all that that machinery. However, and this is the interesting bit - if you added a bit of teaching imagination and that technology the things you could achieve would be truly amazing. The only snag is that I've no idea how you'd do it and it would probably take me five years to figure it out. Best to let our kids tell us how to use the technology - as usual.
There was some other neat stuff with Tablet PCs to follow, including one demonstration where handwritten diagrams came alive according to equations that had been sketched down next to them. Again, impressive, but I'm not sure how you would make it useful in a teaching context as described.
Then we went for a mooch round the exhibition floor. Had some interesting chats with some of the people behind the Longhorn filing system (which looks rather nice) and the Longhorn positioning system (which looks very nice and treads heavily on the toes of one of my Final Year Projects - but Microsoft weren't to know...)
In the evening we went on to a party at Universal Studios Theme Park which was very nice. Free food and beer, no queues, wonderful stuff. Went on the Terminator ride and the Shrek 4D one. Both great fun.
Where do you want to go today?
And then we saw a video about the use of Tablet PCs in education. The video starts with a black and white sequence of a lecturer giving a class about Public Key Encryption of messages (this is how information can transferred secretly moved around networks). The material was being presented in a very boring way and the students were doing the usual student type things in this situation, reading, fidgeting, digging tunnels etc. Then, with a burst of colour, we are in a new Tablet PC enabled world. Same teacher, same material (but with Powerpoint slides rather than a squeaky overhead projector) and every student messaging and discussing as the class goes on.
The thing which irritated me beyond belief was that the content and presentation of the information being conveyed was still boring as far as I could tell. With all the interactivity, pretty colours, and bouncy music the subject matter was still as dull as dishwater. Perhaps I was missing the point (I'm famous for doing this) but the message I took away from the video was that a whole bunch of Tablet PCs, network connectivity and messaging can compensate slightly for boring stuff.
I've been teaching for a while and pride myself on being quite good at it. I'd back myself and a chalkboard against anybody working with all that that machinery. However, and this is the interesting bit - if you added a bit of teaching imagination and that technology the things you could achieve would be truly amazing. The only snag is that I've no idea how you'd do it and it would probably take me five years to figure it out. Best to let our kids tell us how to use the technology - as usual.
There was some other neat stuff with Tablet PCs to follow, including one demonstration where handwritten diagrams came alive according to equations that had been sketched down next to them. Again, impressive, but I'm not sure how you would make it useful in a teaching context as described.
Then we went for a mooch round the exhibition floor. Had some interesting chats with some of the people behind the Longhorn filing system (which looks rather nice) and the Longhorn positioning system (which looks very nice and treads heavily on the toes of one of my Final Year Projects - but Microsoft weren't to know...)
In the evening we went on to a party at Universal Studios Theme Park which was very nice. Free food and beer, no queues, wonderful stuff. Went on the Terminator ride and the Shrek 4D one. Both great fun.
Where do you want to go today?
posted by Rob Miles at
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
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