Comments on: Using Technology in Classrooms

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 04:23:21 +0000

Yeah, I would never get one sans keyboard. I just like that you can fold it out of the way. (And,importantly, rotate the view for reading PDFs by the full page by holding the computer sideways, in rotated form of course.)

But the roll-up keyboards, I don’t know. I have tried one and didn’t like it much. I’d prefer something a little more solid, but which, say, folds in half.

By: EFL Geek

EFL Geek — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:37:50 +0000

Charles,
there is a keyboard, when using in tablet mode the screen folds over the keyboard and if you really wanted to you could get an exteral rubber roll-up keyboard as well. That’s what I plan to do when I can afford to get an 8″ laptop.

By: Charles

Charles — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:20:52 +0000

Tablet PCs look… dangerous. Dangerous as in, “dangerously tempting.” Although I don’t know about the lack of a keyboard. My handwriting sucks, and I’m a big typer.

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 18:08:36 +0000

I can understand that. I’m currently more into getting an HP one, but, like, the prices….

By: EFL Geek

EFL Geek — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:56:37 +0000

I'm probably getting this ripple tablet. I wanted 10" but can't find one for less than 1.5mill so I'll settle for 12" even though I think it's still a little on the large size.

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:46:30 +0000

Yeah, for some reason my ISP’s server doesn’t really catch trackback links all that well, though I see the blips on the dashboard from Technorati. Should try sort that out, really.

Oooh, tablet computer. Oooh. How much is it setting you back? I’ll be considering one if I end up doing much research in the next few years. PDFs are readable on a sideways screen, and it beats buying a(nother) dedicated ebook reader.

By: EFL Geek

EFL Geek — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:42:04 +0000

I posted on my blog, but can't find your trackback link - anyhow my post is: Tech in the Classroom.

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:34:26 +0000

Charles,

Ah. Yeah, there are Tablet PCs too, I get all dreamy-eyed when I see one. The screen has a touchscreen function and you can draw on it like with a tablet.

Though I too don’t draw well (anymore — I was pretty good in middle school, though) I would love to have a tool to noodle on. Wouldn’t mind redeveloping my sketching ability, really.

I’m sure it would world with Linux. Lots of stuff just doesn’t mention it. (All my hardware is like that.)

EFL Geek,

I’d prefer you link it, as I’m not into guest blogging, really. Go ahead and excerpt a chunk if you like. Not all of it, but a chunk.

By: EFL Geek

EFL Geek — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:27:05 +0000

Charles,
I’m actually going to be buying a tablet computer where you can draw right on the screen, which folds over the keyboard so you can carry it around like a tablet.

By: EFL Geek

EFL Geek — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:42:41 +0000

Gord,
would you care to repost this on my blog as a guest author?

By: Charles

Charles — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:21:59 +0000

Tablet as in… um, a tablet? You know, a Wacom drawing tablet. I wasn’t aware that they called them anything else, but what do I know? Anyway, I just hook it up to the computer via USB and I’m good to go.

OK, let’s see if I can be more helpful… the exact model I have is here:

http://www.wacom-asia.com/products/graphire4/spec640.html

I’m pretty happy with it. When I’m not using it for class, it’s fun to play around with it as a drawing tool, despite the fact that I can’t draw to save my soul.

(Looking at the specs, it doesn’t seem that it works with the rebellion… I mean Linux.)

By: brent

brent — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 06:39:53 +0000

Mark, Kim Campbell was briefly Prime Minister in 1993. The native population makes up about 3.3% of the population. There have been five prime ministers in Canada since 1984 (which includes two who briefly held the position). I assume it will take quite awhile for a Native American to be elected. OTOH, Canada has a territory for the Inuit to pretty much run things themselves.

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:56:45 +0000

Heh, shall I delete the erroneous post and the first line of the correction one for you?

Yeah, this is why I’m so excited to be teaching “drama” next semester — they’re planning, scripting, and shooting their own WebTV miniseries in that class, and we’ll show the highlights, or a trailer for a screening, at the department variety night. Should be loads of fun, especially since it all has to be completely public domain stuff they use. (They can do anything from their own story, to a Korean fairy tale retold in English and the modern day, to one of those “traditional drama” shows set during some dynasty in the past, with costumes and all, but all in English — it’s up to each group to do their thing, but they have to do it weekly.)

And I have a class that will be producing a graphic novel in English, too. I’m really pushing for having them do creative things, using the English to make stuff and then put it out into the world.

And the dividends… when one of my students got a comment on a trailer remix she uploaded to Youtube, she was so proud and happy. Rightly so, her trailer was brilliant.

(And I’ve ordered “This American Life’s” DVD set, season 1, for use in my Listening & Speaking Class next semester. Why not have them hear how real people talk, especially when they’re talking about real things? I think one homework unit will be everyone making an “episode” of their own for a webseries titled, “This Korean Life.”)

Lots of cool stuff going on, anyway. And of course it’s probably my last semester at this uni. Ah well.

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:09:44 +0000

Sorry, wrong section, but I did like your technology in the classroom post. I never got much more sophisticated than a DVD player and photocopies myself. I think you are on the right track – using The New York Times and This American Life as resources. If you don’t enjoy reading, listening, or watching the material that you use in the classroom, your students won’t enjoy it either.

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:06:14 +0000

Move to the USA! After years of listening to smug, self-satisfied Canuckistani poseurs blather on about how progressive they are, I’m actually living in a country where a woman and a person of color are mounting serious bids to become the leader of the free world. How many years do you think it will take for a First Nations person or a woman to accomplish the same thing in Canada? I’m not going to hold my breath waiting;)

By: gordsellar

gordsellar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 03:34:56 +0000

Tablet as in Tablet PC? I’ve been thinking how useful one of those would have been in some of my classes. Instead of having to deal with the crappy Windows system installed in all the PCS on campus, I could just plug my own tablet into the ovehead projector fo all kinds of purposes, from movies to editing, modeling proofreading, and so on.

Manybooks is indeed great. Especially if you are in the habit of using .prc format, which is what my ebook reader handles best. (I’m kind of thinking I should have gone with a different, bigger reader that has a touchscreen, so I could take notes on PDFs and so on, but that’s another post.)

By: Charles

Charles — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:36:37 +0000

Boy do I hear you about the OHP thing. When I started teaching translation this semester, I was faced with the question of how exactly to go about doing this. Every classroom is equipped with a computer and a projector screen, so what most of the profs do is pull up files of student translations and then correct them on screen. One of my colleagues didn’t like this because it only allows one possibility at a time (once you correct something, it’s corrected), so he uses an OHP and markers. I liked the idea of an OHP, but didn’t want to deal with the hassle. So I went out and bought a tablet to, in effect, reinvent the wheel–just flashier.

Manythanks for the Manybooks link, too! That looks great!