Why Wiki? pt1 (Education)

You might probably know by now that I have a weakness for Wikis. I've been surfing on the Wiki waves for the last 3 years now with no sign of boredom - quite surprising for someone like me who usually dumps already-conquered areas away, looking for new adventures. But Wiki is such a  powerful magnet that  keeps pulling me towards it. Wiki is a major component of Web 2.0 and has numerous applications in various fields. My like for Wikis is however justified and I will walk you through three fields where Wikis can be used.

1. Wiki as a learning/teaching tool.


In this connected world, our students have change radically. Bearing an open mind towards technology, they embrace it and never miss an opportunity to venture with new online tools. Introducing a Wiki in an educational environment is undoubtedly a brilliant way to engage students thus enhancing the learning process.

• Very often when asked to create a website for a class project students freak out and have to rely on others with knowledge of  HTML and web editors tools. Using a Wiki brings this task to as easy as pie. The Wiki syntax is simple to learn and students can spend more time on the contents rather than learning how to code webpages.
• Imagine an assignment when you have to collaborate on a single topic and having to push the same word document to everyone in the group one by one waiting for each to append with new elements. With a Wiki group work has never been so straightforward. Through a simple 'edit' button, anyone can change the content via a simple web browser. Thus, the webpage keeps everyone updated at all times without waiting for the latest version of the document to come back.  This is a time saving factor in the sense that duplicate ideas are quickly dealt with.
• Teachers find it a great way to track the progress of their students in given assignments. The history page gives more than just an overview of the participation of the students in a given group work. It helps track down the contribution of everyone in the paper. Wiki also allows the teacher to see if a student is going off track and help him by editing and/or suggesting new ideas or other resources.

Next >>>  2. A great collaborative and communication tool.

Linking Memory Method - Never forget a shopping list

I finally decided to finish and post this article - which stayed way to long in my drafts. Lemme present you a really cool technique to improve your memory, as well as to impress your friends by remembering ANY list for a whole lifetime. Yes this is possible and am gonna prove it to you right now ;)

How would you do if I gave you a list of 25 objects and 5 minutes to remember them? And write them back in the same sequential order presented? I will illustrate the technique by showing you I would proceed with the following list of 6 objects: Ball, Monitor, Table, Motocycle, Pizza, Lightbulb.
The Linking Memory Method first consists of finding visual metaphors for the items to remember. Easy, we all know what these look like, don't we? So, converting the words into images in our minds should be give us something like that:

Secondly, we have to make association with the above images. We'll  take the first image and associate it with second one, the second one to the third one.. until we reach the end of the list. Here you have to let your imagination run free. Let the images sing, dance, swim, fly, grow out of proportion or become as small as ants.

Lets associate the ball to the monitor. We can imagine a football flying at full speed crashing into a monitor. The images in our head should be real like, as if we were seeing it in front of us.

Next is the table which we have to associate with the monitor. We can think of a VERY VERY big screen which is too big for the table on which it is laid on. And as a result, one of the table's foot breaks.

You should not spend a lot of time thinking about the scene. Usually the first which comes in your mind is the best one.
We continue on with the motorcycle and the table. We can visualize a top sport motorcycle but as small as an  ant trying to pull a table down. Next is the motorcycle and the Pizza where we can think of a disgusting pizza being delivered or a motorcycle sliding because of a pizza lying on the screens. Lastly we can imagine hundreds of bulbs as ingredients dancing in a large pizza.

Be creative as much as possible. It is proven that the more ridiculous and funny things are, the easier it becomes for remembering them. So, do not hesitate to be illogical. Compared to Rote Method of Memorization (which is the process of memorizing by repetition), Linking Memory is most effective.

Using this technique frequently will help you develop a new type of out of the box thinking and above all recall things in a new manner.

Easy? What did I tell you :) Trust me, you only have to practice this method a few times to enjoy a great memory. It can also be applied to memorizing many more stuffs and above all its fun! As for me, if ever we meet in a supermarket with my shopping cart full, it doesn't mean I am buying anything. I got my shopping list memorized already at home.

Who wants to learn creole?

We are in the middle of some major torments in our local educational sector. One of the big buzz of the moment is the introduction of  the Mauritian 'Creole' as a subject in our school curriculum. We can hear/read debates almost everyday on our radio stations and newspapers.

The first part of the debate, which finally was not debated as almost everybody agreed on the matter, consisted of the making use of Creole as a medium to teach in schools. Though officially it should not be the case, both primary and secondary teachers have been using creole as a medium to instruct in their classrooms since always. I wonder why the FCM (Federation Creoles Mauriciens) claimed that the introduction of creole could reduce rate of failures.

As a witness of that system I think there's nothing more logical than to teach a learner in his own mother tongue. Mathematics and Science subjects cannot be taught in a languages that a learner hasn't properly grasped we all agree.

"If the Chinese spoke English they would have conquered the world already by now."

But what is totally irrational in my opinion (and of many others too) is having Creole as taught subject in schools.

If someone could be tell me how this is going to benefit someone or the country please don't hesitate! Last week I read from somewhere that Mauritius is the only country where English is losing ground. Needless to stress on the ways English language breaks down economic barriers within countries. If the Chinese spoke English they would have conquered the world already by now.

Lets say we have accepted Creole  in our curriculum. Creole and French being highly linked we will be confused when writing in both languages. This will result in higher failure rates in both subjects. Writing the following sentence in French: "Il faut BWAR beaucoup d'eau" is definitely wrong. But writing in Creole: " Bizin boire de lo" can be wrong too because here the word 'boire' is French-written. Poor student.

Creole being an ever-mutating language, I find it hard to standardize words, grammar an expressions. Different populations from different regions and backgrounds speak differently.

Consider the following essay of this guy from the suburbs: 

"En zourner bord la mer.

Moi ek en de melar decide pou dessan bord la plaz pou kass en yen. Sa zour la soleil p crass difer mover kaliter. Mo pass bazar mo tap en dipain ek so gato pima pou nu manzer la zourner. La boisson mo camouad Zorz pou amener. Dresser partou."

I stop here. FCM please correct this.

If the country needs to move forward we should instead accentuate on other languages which will permit us to communicate more efficiently with foreign countries. It has been brought to my attention that mandarin is gaining popularity in schools. Do you know why? Well learning mandarin will enable us to do business with China and this will prove profitable to the country of course. Learn Hindi, learn Mandarin, learn Italian.

Being a small island in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius's dependency on developed countries is very high and we should double our efforts to commerce with those countries.

Where will Creole lead us? Which job are we gonna get with Creole at A-level? What further studies can we expect after that?
I asked my friends from the Creole community about their views. Well most of them speak French with their children at home. Some send their kids to private English-medium or French schools.

This minority who are fighting an absurd battle in reality haven't even identified at all the root problem.