Research Development Programme
October 2nd, 2008I have finished another block of Research Training which covered the following topics:
‘Introduction to Project Management’
‘Productive Academic Writing’
‘Building your Career Skills’
‘Knowledge Ownership 1&2′
‘Getting Published’
Obviously each speaker had a unique delivery but overall they were very interesting and informative although some were more entertaining than others. Academia doesn’t necessarily have to take itself too seriously to communicate successfully.
Surprisingly the most invaluable of the training sessions was the Productive Academic Writing. The writing exercises which were incorporated into this practical class provided me with a new set of skills for my PhD. One of the joys of attending these training programmes is the opportunity to meet up with friends and colleagues who are in the same position, it is reassuring t know that we are all in the same boat!
Confirmation of Status Viva
July 1st, 2008Hurrah! My Confirmation of Status Viva came and went on the 26th of July. The format of this milestone was a fifteen minute presentation by yours truly, followed by an oral examination, all of which passed without any major faux pas. In retrospect it was an enjoyable, insightful experience and I got positive feedback from the internal and external examiners.
I have been advised to develop more practice driven material which will be used to create a digital archive of test elements. This doesn’t seem to daunting but I can’t afford to be complacent, there is still a long way to go and sustaining the momentum is perhaps one of the most onerous tasks of the PhD.
One Laptop Per Child
June 7th, 2008“Why would a kid in the developing world need a laptop…take the word laptop and substitute the word education…eliminate poverty create peace and work on the environment”
Nicholas Negroponte
This is the sentiment which drives Professor Nicholas Negroponte’s OLPC initiative, Negroponte, co-founder of the MIT Media Lab first launched his non-profit making enterprise in January 2005 with the aim of supplying laptops for children in the developing world. The first phase of the program delivered hundreds of thousands of XO’s but many countries were apprehensive about buying machines which did not run Microsoft’s Windows operating system.
Following a deal with Microsoft Negroponte has now launched revamped XO2 machine which operates dual Microsoft Linux system. The new device incorporates laptop, e-book and electronic board capacities within a neat book like format. This appliance can be used by more than one child simultaneously, is more energy efficient and more than 500 e-books can be stored.
Some people have been critical of the OLPC initiative, questioning the provision of laptops as opposed to uniforms, desks etc. However the web was originally intended as a global gift to aid education by giving people free access to knowledge. Sadly not everyone has been in a position to access this privilege but hopefully initiatives like OLPC will help balance the equation.
Net Neutrality
June 6th, 2008The ethos that shaped the internet and made it the success it is today is under threat. Tim Berners-Lee’s gift of a free democratic World Wide Web provided a facility for personal and corporate interaction which promoted creativity, commercial enterprise and freedom of speech but all that could change in the not too distant future. The US Congress has been put under increasing pressure by the telephone and cable companies to change the telecommunications laws regarding net neutrality. If the internet providers get their way it will elevate them to the position of internet gatekeepers, a powerful position whereby they could dictate/sensor content and speed of content creating a hierarchical system where money talks.
Over the last decade free access to knowledge has enlightened, informed and inspired a generation.
How will the proposed changes impact on education?
