1. The Scene…

Daniel is studying taxonomy and plant identification as part of the Landscape Design & Horticulture diploma.  He and his team mates have spent time in the wooded ambience of Clementi Woods Park, gathering data and information relating to the  identification, use, origin and scultural requirements of trees and shrubs.  Daniel scans the park environment and sights a Tembusu tree.  Excited, he whips out his iPhone, launches the Plants@NP app, takes photos of the tree from various angles, takes some observational notes, geo-tags the entry and uploads to the Plants@NP database. Nifty.  Back in campus, another team accesses Daniel’s micro-blog entry, peer reviews the content and contributes additional information relating to the Tembusu’s optimal growing conditions based on their observations and research.  

Sue is a nursing student: passionate about advocating healthy eating and healthy lifestyles; passionate about providing patients with knowledge so they can make informed and realistic choices; passionate about helping people make sustainable behavioral changes; and passionate about mobile technologies meeting nursing practice needs.  As part of Clinical Attachment, Sue frequently needs to apply mathematical formulae, mainly when administering drugs.  Sue launches the medical calculator app on her iPod Touch to accurately compute the dosage, volume and rates of drug administration.  To unwind after a tough shift at the hospital, she indulges in a session of the wacky Hospital Havoc time management sim game whereby she assumes the role of a budding doctor by admitting, diagnosing, and treating some of the most whacky patients ever encountered.

2. Ubiquitous Mobility

Mobile learning has become a ubiquitous and integral element of campus life at Ngee Ann Polytehcnic (NP), whereby our students are living increasingly media-saturated, digital and co-located lives.  Embracing handheld technologies and apps is thus a natural extension for the polytechnic given the proliferation of converged mobile media devices and tech savvy students demanding access to info and instantaneous communication on portable devices such as smartphones and media tablets.  When considering mobile learning, it is important to frame our approach with handheld devices and apps, not as the ‘next big thing’ but as ubiquitous learning tools meaningfully integrated into teaching and learning.  

3. Replacement, Augment or Part of the Blend?

At a broad level, mobile learning could be defined as any educational interaction delivered via mobile technology and accessed anytime, anywhere, on location. Here at Ngee Ann polytechnic, definitions of mobile learning are evolving, as we come to grasp the rapid emergence of new mobile technologies and begin to gain a deeper understanding of mobility.  So, the transition from desktop to laptop was in itself a significant move toward mobile learning.  However, a key area of focus for the Future MeL section in the Teaching and Leaning Centre, going forward, will be on the transformative capabilities of mobile learning with highly mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets to augment the laptop.

It is important not to think of smartphones and tablets as a replacement for the notebook (which has been a mainstay of NP’s MeL since the year 2000), but rather, as a new form factor that augments what our students are doing with their notebooks, opening up new areas where computing-based learning was just impractical before.  

As mobile and tablet touch-points proliferate and smartphone ownership continues to rise amongst our student population, it is highly conceivable that students at NP could be owning and bringing multiple devices (say a tablet and a laptop) to campus and leveraging each device for its unique learning affordance.  The degree of a specific device’s mobility will largely determine the ways it is best used in learning.  

So, in a ‘device-plus’ scenario, students such as Daniel and Sue will still use their laptops for extensive data entry such as report writing and spreadsheet creation, whilst tablets such as the iPad and Motorola Xoom could be used for consuming, interacting and exploring information, allowing navigation with taps, finger swipes and pinch zooms, not feasible on a typical laptop, and finally, using smartphones for geo-locative experiences (e.g. check-ins) and live blogging during field trips, given its great on- the-move portability, unobtrusiveness, and sheer instant usability.  

4. It’s All About Learning with the App

Beyond snazzy hardware, it’s also about the mobile applications (or apps for short) designed specifically for learning purposes.  Mobile technology will no doubt continue to follow Moore’s law, but the real innovation, the stuff that will change students’ lives in the future, now lies with app software and interfaces.

In the age of the app, a quick browse of Apple’s iTunes AppStore as well as Google’s Android Market will reveal a host of education-related apps, ranging from study aids, reference guides, calculators, translators to immersive game-based learning apps.  

So, whilst apps are undoubtedly cool, it is imperative to peel back the covers on the hype and take a serious look at why, when and how we should approach the mobile app strategy here in Ngee Ann Polytechnic.  Our primary focus has been on developing a cohesive app development strategy that clearly identifies the case and role for apps for teaching and learning, whereby hyper mobility is pitched as a new platform for learning.  

It is this very platform that will help bring learning to life by enabling our students to go to various kinds of places and do the kinds of things that weren’t even imaginable with the laptop, transcending the boundaries of structured lecture and tutorial-style learning environments and associated confined modes of communication.

Case Study 1

SkelePracti App: Immersive, Interactive Learning via Multi-Touch & Motion Sensing

Sue browses the reference section to learn about the bone groups (learning by exploring), having hands-on practice by assembling each bone group from constituent bones using the iPod Touch’s multitouch capability, then naming them and testing herself on correct joint movements using the 3-axis accelerometer and gyroscope (learning by doing).  As an added impetus for learning, Sue gains bragging rights amongst her peers on the leaderboard for correctly joining the bones to form a bone group as well as executing the correct movement of the various joints.  

SkelePracti is an app conceived and developed for use by students in the Diploma in Health Sciences (Nursing) program.  It is an educational tool that helps students refresh knowledge on the human anatomy and the skeletal system – serving as both a reference and a self-assessment tool for skeletal bones and joint movements.  In terms of learning experience and change value, through allowing students to manipulate and ‘touch’ the various elements of the skeletal system in a fun, engaging way, the app has helped students to more intuitively grasp and understand the skeletal system, including the classification of bone types and divisions of the skeletal system, how they function and, how they are linked.   With this app as the first gesture-based learning app prototype in NP, there is rich potential for NP’s future app development projects to incorporate similarly intuitive gestural interactions for students to tangibly interact with content via mobile devices. It’s early days for SkelePracti and we are looking forward to further testing to determine the effectiveness for learning.

Case Study 2

Plants@NP App: Bringing Learning to Life

Daniel comes across an Acacia tree at Clementi Woods Park and needs further information on its care and propagation methods.  He launches the Plants@NP app,  scrolls through the plant categories and queries the networked plant database and learns that the tree requires full sun and moderate watering.  Real-time performance support, in-context, just-in-time learning in Clementi Woods Park! Beyond just passive acquisition of information, Daniel is also an active constructor of knowledge whereby he records and shares his personal reflections on the Acacia’s propagation methods of seed and stem cutting, participating within a community of practice.  

One of the key custom iOS apps developed by the iMedia CEntre is Plants@NP – a plant directory-cum-micro blogging app that combines a desktop wiki environment with a companion mobile app.  

Ngee Ann Polytechnic previously piloted the use of PDAs for location-based content delivery via HP’s MediaScape Authoring Toolkit in 2008, following the adoption of Clementi Woods Park as a learning park. Going beyond mere content delivery and access, this latest iteration of the project incorporates features that empower students to collect, organise, and curate plant data in authentic learning contexts. Through using the app, the field work experience of students from the Diploma in Landscape Design & Horticulture are enhanced and enriched, whereby they can refer to, contribute to, and update the plant directory, while on the go, on location in a park or nature environment.  

In terms of pedagogical value, the hyper-mobility afforded by the iPhone/iPod Touch offers rich potential to embed context in learning, whereby students don’t just merely consume, but are engaged as co-creators of plant info in authentic contexts, collectively building and peer-reviewing contributions.   

As part of a project, students were engaged to work in groups to gather data on plant species from an allocated zone in Clementi Woods Park.  Each group was tasked to gather information and data for a minimum of 20 plant species, encompassing a combination of flowering plants, palms and other categories.  All entries were to be submitted to the Plants@NP database, peer reviewed and fine-tuned by group members.  

Through this learner-centred activity of learning by exploring, collaborating and reflecting, students engage with plant taxonomy and identification in a way that transforms their interactions and modes of exploration, thus deriving a richer learning experience overall.  Above all, students have developed a deeper understanding of the basis of classification of plant groups and the association of species in natural vegetation based on features of flowers, fruits and leaves used for taxonomic purposes.   

Cheng Yingwei, a second year student from the Diploma in Landscape Design & Horticulture shares how the Plants@NP app has enhanced her field-based learning experience

“… the app has helped me a lot by letting me know what kinds of plants are suitable to grow at particular areas, and also, where the plants are exactly located.  This info can be used for almost all our course modules, thus if we had an iPhone/iPod Touch and did not bring our laptops, we can use the mobile platform to research on plant species that we would like to know.   Going one step further, I hope useful apps such as this will benefit students from our very own junior  batch from Dip Landscape Design & Horticulture as well as supporting students from other courses to explore the flora in our parks.”

5. Developing App-titude for Future Work, Learning and Life

As part of Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s efforts to hone students’ mobile media literacies for future work, learning and life, we have been actively engaging and mentoring students in various app development projects.  Through this initiative, students are transformed from mere consumers to creators of apps designed to meet their campus needs.  

To support the burgeoning interest, app development workshops are regularly organised, focusing on both the business perspectives (app idea research, IP protection, app marketing, understanding the AppStore etc.) as well as the basics of objective C programming (XCode).

Following completion of these introductory workshops, students then embark on implementing their app ideas.  Through app projects, students not only get the opportunity to hone their app development skills, but, more significantly, are empowered to participate in and shape their campus experience – developing apps that benefit their peers and the wider campus community.  

To date, there are over 25 student-initiated and developed apps on the iTunes App Store.  Apps developed include a campus food review app (Hungry@NP) and an app to check out the latest schedules and pickup points of the polytechnic’s shuttle bus service (NP Shuttle Service). The apps are all free and available for download on iTunes at www.itunes.com/apps/ngeeannpolytechnic. (You need to have a Ngee Ann Polytechnic name and password to access most of the apps.)

The QR code on the right will take you there.

One of the student-developed apps is ‘NP Courses’, developed by Alson Toh, a 2nd year BIT student in collaboration with the Corporate Communications Office.  The personality quiz app enables prospective students to check out the many diploma courses that NP has to offer. It is targeted at students who have multiple interests and are still not sure which diploma they should pick. Through the quiz, users are able to find out which courses are likely to suit his/her interests.

6. What’s Next?

So, as the mobile learning revolution gathers pace, what’s next? From the utility of learning the human skeletal system to the geo-locative experiences of gathering and sharing plant information on-the-go, it seems as time goes on there will be an app for just about everything. But in the minds of the most students, this is merely the first generation of handheld technologies that we will wonder how we ever lived without. So what do apps of the future look like?

Could an app advise if you should avoid the bag of chips or that chocolate bar?  

Sue envisions that the future of mobile technology in healthcare will somehow combine a person’s DNA and genomics information coupled with his/her personal health record within an app, whereby the smartphone is then used to scan against ‘barcode’ labels of food products to determine which foods are best or detrimental to one’s nutritional needs.

Could there be an app that will help in the promotion of eco-efficiency and environmental awareness? Are random park visitors capable of forming a network of ‘automatic intelligent mobile sensors?  Daniel envisions the use of a smart, location-aware, ambient mobile app that integrates dynamic real-time environmental data automatically collected by park visitors with central environmental databases to help develop innovative eco-solutions.    

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge the subject matter contribution and assistance given by  our colleagues, Dr Myat Maw Tun (Dip HSN) together with the HS next-gen mobile learning  team and Mr Gregory Chow (Dip LDH) and Mr Phang Chee Boon in the design and  development of the SkelePracti and Plants@NP apps respectively.

Author

Lim Ee-Lon, Manager, T&L Infrastructure Teaching and Learning Centre, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

A recent research report indicates that Singapore is the third in the world when it comes to per-capita smartphone ownership. This trend is also reflected in the the student community where smartphone use continues to increase by leaps and bounds. The popularity of apps, internet access, social media platforms combined with competitive data plans from telcos (and not to mention – peer pressure) are encouraging students to upgrade to smart phones.

This provides educators with many new opportunities for enhancing learning.

Smart phone popularity has increased dramatically

Let us look at some of the many ways educators can create and distribute media for their students.

E-books

The larger and sharper screens of smartphones makes reading on mobile devices more comfortable. The most popular ebook format on the current breed of smartphones is the epub format. (See more on epub.)

These are popular epub reading apps

• IPhone, iPod Touch and iPad – Apple’s own iBook app and Stanza app
• Android Phones and Tablets – Aldiko app

Converting your notes (in Word/PDF) to epub format

The simplest way to convert your notes to epub format is to use the Stanza application from Lexcycle. Stanza allows you to import your materials from popular document formats such as Microsoft Word and convert it to epub.

• Download Stanza for Mac
• Download Stanza for Windows

Video

Smartphones are able to shoot decent video

Smartphones allow you to create learning videos on the go. More importantly, you can get your students involved too.

If privacy of the content is not an issue, the best way to publish videos is direct publishing to YouTube, which is possible with most current smartphones. YouTube will take care of the conversion and storage and gives you limitless storage. The students can also watch these videos on the go on their smartphones.

Presentations

To provide presentations for your students to consume on their smartphones, just create an account on slideshare.net and post your presentation. Send the link to your students and they can view them on their smartphones. Your presentation would become public and can be viewed by anyone on the web. (Before doing this, you may need to consider who owns the copyright on the presentation.)

See:

• Slideshare on mobile devices

Audio

Set up a free account on SoundCloud and get your students to do the same. The students can download the free iPhone or Android app and use the app to record and publish their audio. Using the app (or SoundCloud’s site), they can comment on each other’s audio clips.

• SoundCloud Website
• SoundCloud apps for iPhone and Android

Other interesting learning activities with smartphones

Digital archiving with Evernote

Evernote is an online archiving solution that gives you generous storage even on a free account. Evernote’s app is available on most smartphone platforms. Using Evernote, you can get your students to collect text, audio and images for a project. Evernote’s app can then sync this date from the student’s phone to a common private storage folder on the web. (The teacher will need to have a paid Evernote account to create this common folder but the students can use free accounts.)

• Desktop and mobile download for Evernote

Mobile discovery tours with QR codes

QR or “quick response” codes are becoming more popular with people using smartphones.

QR codes are rectangular codes that anyone can generate using URL shortening services such as Goo.gl or Bit.ly. We can find a good web resource (an YouTube video or a Wikipedia page) for a physical object – a tree, a machine etc. and generate a QR code for it. Print this code out and attach it to the object. When the students snap a picture of the code using a free QR code reading app, they will be directed to the web resource.

• QR code for education and training

Real-time Q&A in conferences – and in class

Here’s an interesting possibility for engaging students in class, especially in large lectures. Pigeonhole live (currently under development in Singapore) could help to make lectures more interactive.

Participants enter a PigeonHole “live” session and can post their questions – or vote on existing ones so the “best” questions rise to the top – using their smartphone.

Author

Preetam Rai, Educational technologist, Teaching and Learning Centre, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

Background

Students taking Law modules offered at the School of Business & Accountancy are required to prepare and present answers to various legal problems during their 2-hour tutorial classes. The answers are discussed and amended during the class, and are archived for shared access for revision purposes.

The students bring their notebook computers to class and use them throughout the lesson.

Before Google Docs…

Before I started using Google Docs, the students developed and  presented their answers using Microsoft Office (mostly Word and Powerpoint).

I faced the following challenges, each of which reduced opportunities for learning:

1. I wanted everyone to see the student’s answer plus other resources at the same time

When a particular student’s answer was being discussed by the class, I needed all students to be able to view that student’s answer, and they also needed to see helpful resources (such as online legislation and case law, videos, news, corporate and other websites).

It was impossible to allow all students in a class to view both the student answer and a resource such as Statutes Online at the same time, since the only shared viewing space (the screen) was occupied by the projection from one computer.

Students could access other resources on their own laptop computers, but could not quickly and easily share what they were reading or watching with others in the class.

The tutor or students leading the discussion could not direct the entire class to other resources without first switching away from the student answer, thereby disrupting the focus of the discussion.

This caused some confusion and it was hard for students to follow.

2. I wanted all students to be able to conveniently make immediate amendments to, and comments on, the answer in discussion.

With Microsoft Office, amendments to the student answer could only be made from one computer, since that answer was usually only stored on that computer. Files could be sent from computer to computer, but not shared simultaneously.

This situation reduced the opportunities for collaboration between students.

3. I wanted to enable easy reversal of any unwanted changes.

"Versioning" (or the saving of multiple versions of a document for easy reversal of unwanted changes) all the way back to inception, was not available in Microsoft Office. Changes could be tracked, and the Undo function allows the reversal of unwanted changes before saving, but once changes are accepted or rejected, and once the file is saved and closed, only that latest saved version is subsequently available to the user.

4. Allow all students quick and easy access to the final version of the answer after the class.

This was accomplished by uploading the Microsoft Office file to a common password-protected repository (File Exchange in Blackboard). It was necessary for students to log in to Blackboard, download and then open the file to view its contents.

I felt these challenges reduced the learning outcomes, since what we were doing was neither efficient nor convenient.

A Revolutionary Idea? “Wiki-fy” the process

Google Docs is essentially a Wiki. Access to a Google Document is available via the Internet to any user with appropriate access privileges. A Google Doc is stored “in the cloud” (that is, on a networked server, not solely on one computer) and access is therefore available to more people than the one author. Wikis are almost as old as the World Wide Web but have only recently become popular.

The following features of Google Docs proved helpful in solving my challenges.

1. Google Docs was designed as a wiki…

Students in the class can all view the same Google Doc on their laptops as long as they have access to the Internet. This enables a "double-whiteboard" learning approach – one resource (e.g. the tutorial answer guide) can be viewed by the whole class as a projected image from one computer, while another resource, typically the student’s Google Doc answer under consideration, is available for viewing at all times on students’ laptops. Essentially, two shared viewing spaces are available. The entire class can view other resources, without first having to remove the student answer from their field of vision.

This has proven to be very effective from a learning point of view, since there is less distraction because of logistics.

Students use Google Docs in class

2. … and a wiki has simultaneous edit power

Up to 10 users can concurrently edit the same page on Google Docs. Changes are effected nearly simultaneously. Google auto-saves and almost immediately updates all changes in a Google document for viewing by all users.

Concurrent edit power makes Google Docs a practical solution for collaborative work where students must complete their work together in a physical classroom within a tight time-frame. Most other wikis, by contrast, are designed for asynchronous collaboration where users are expected to take turns and edits must be saved for updating one at a time. Such wikis are not suitable for a classroom scenario such as mine.

3. Changes can be reversed…

Like other Wikis, Google Docs implements versioning, or saving older versions of documents for later retrieval. Changes can be reversed even after saving, all the way back to inception. The ability to "rewind" a document may be helpful not just to erase errors but also to trace the chain of reasoning leading to the final answer. It can also be beneficial for assessment purposes, to ascertain what individual students contributed.

4. … and everything is always available, right after the class.

Students can view the final and all preceding versions of every tutorial answer, on the Web at any time, via any computer with internet access. Students do not even need to remember to save the document before the end of the class as Google Docs auto-saves changes. No uploading to an online repository is necessary since the document was already available online to all in the class at inception.

With these advantages, learning was enhanced since the technology became less intrusive.

Apart from learning their law lessons, my students also developed the ability to synchronously collaborate online, a skill that will become more important during the 21st century.

Slideshare explanation

This Slideshare presentation may give you a better idea of how the Google Docs lessons worked.

Student Feedback: Survey Results

I conducted a survey of the 8 tutorial classes who experienced law discussions using Google Docs. Over 90% responded positively when asked how they felt about using Google Docs for collaboration. When asked what they liked most about using Google Docs, the factors students cited most were:

1. Anybody can edit the answer and share the results quickly (74%)
2. Can access the document from any computer (66%)
3. Can share one document on screen and another on the laptop at the same time (60%)

(Students could respond to more than one answer.)

Qualitative feedback from the survey was generally positive, although some students had valid reservations over network lag and the limit of 10 concurrent editors. Some of the student comments included:

• "Helps in discussion better"
• "Need not be in front of the class to present (I’m shy )
• "Good to have for reference as sometimes the teacher may go too fast in class"

Conclusion

Google Docs is an example of a tool intended primarily for remote collaboration, and it has been successfully applied to enable collaboration in a physical, face-to-face classroom setting. The tool adds value to in-class instruction primarily because of its "view same document anywhere" and real-time "concurrent edits" features. Google Docs is an ideal tool to achieve the aim of a 21st century education to inculcate skills in communication and collaboration.

Two years after Google Docs was introduced in the School of Business and Accountancy, I find that students still consider the entire concept of working collaboratively on Wikis to be novel, especially when any change made by one student is viewed immediately by the rest of the class. Some students continue to express amazement at not having to share documents by emailing them back and forth. This insight is vital preparation for future online collaboration.

Moving forward, the introduction of competing web-based collaborative work tools by various vendors such as Microsoft’s Office Live and Sharepoint (both of which allow users to easily work collaboratively by saving documents in the cloud) opens up many interesting possibilities. Security of document contents is often cited as a reason to avoid cloud-based systems, but as long as the service provider is reliable, and files are encrypted during transfer and kept behind passwords, they are as secure as files kept within intranets.

My students found the experience of synchronous virtual teamwork to be quite valuable. Good synchronous virtual teamwork skills will be beneficial to our students when they enter the cost-saving, time-efficient and environmentally-conscious 21st-century professional or business workplace.

Author

Paul Ng Jin Meng, Lecturer, School of Business and Accountancy, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

The project simulates a real working environment by exposing students to technologies and experiences of a real work place. The project also leverages on Web 2.0 technologies so that students can share and review information posted by other team members, co-author documents that explain the concepts of cell layout methodologies, evaluate and critique the product of other members, and collaboratively build on each others’ work to present the final product.

These experiences have increased the level of students’ engagement in learning. The students tend to show greater interest in the topics and have demonstrated a deeper understanding of the concepts and theories related to this module.

“During this project, we discussed the problems together, helped each other and stayed back at school until it was finished. This was very inspirational and I learnt how to communicate with the others.” – Student feedback

Read the complete paper:

» Holistic Development through Project-based Learning in Engineering Modules [PDF, 11 pages, 129 kB]

Copyright © CDIO™. Used with permission.

Author

Linus Low Koon Teck is a lecturer in the School of Engineering, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

What is CDIO?

CDIO stands for Conceiving — Designing — Implementing — Operating.

According to CDIO.org,

The CDIO™ INITIATIVE is an innovative educational framework for producing the next generation of engineers. The framework provides students with an education stressing engineering fundamentals set in the context of Conceiving — Designing — Implementing — Operating real-world systems and products. Throughout the world, CDIO Initiative collaborators have adopted CDIO as the framework of their curricular planning and outcome-based assessment.

The 5th International CDIO Conference was held at Singapore Polytechnic, Singapore, June 7 – 10, 2009.

[Circuit image: source.]

The topic of stock-taking is best taught by allowing students the actual experience of participating in a real world stock-take. This provides opportunities for students to make authentic decisions (such as selecting samples of stocks to be test counted) and allows them to experience the detection and investigation of exceptions encountered during the stock take.

However, as you can imagine, it is difficult to find multiple companies that would welcome hundreds of students participating in and observing the real year-end stock take. Hence the topic had been taught in the past using lectures and tutorial discussion.

We began to consider other more effective ways of teaching this topic after a recent forum organized by the Teaching and Learning Centre, where we observed an open source virtual world platform called Project Wonderland. We realized this may be the solution we needed.

Project Wonderland is a Java-based toolkit for creating collaborative three dimensional virtual worlds. Within these worlds, users can move around, communicate using audio, and share live desktop applications and documents. They can even conduct real business transactions.

We crafted the following scenario as a graded assignment in “Auditing 2” (a 3rd-year module within the Diploma of Accountancy at Ngee Ann Polytechnic).

Our Virtual Scenario

Students firstly need to customize avatars that represent themselves in the virtual world. The main task is to navigate around 3 virtual rooms and complete various activities.

In the first room (briefing room), students access resources to learn the concepts and techniques behind carrying out a stock take observation. They need to access the stock list, from which they have to draw up their stock take samples for conducting test counts.

Learning concepts in the briefing room

In the second room (warehouse room), students work collaboratively in groups of 5 to 6 members to conduct their stock take of (virtual) DVD and Hi-fi players, and television sets. They interact with graphical representations of stock and are able to determine the quantity of stocks by clicking on relevant pallets.

Students conduct the stock count by comparing the details on the stock list received in the briefing room with details on the pallets of stocks selected for the sample counts. They are able to interact with their peers while conducting the stock take using either the chat function within the room or the audio and speaker functions which allow students to talk to each other.

Counting stock in the warehouse room

In the final room (audit room), students complete the audit work papers in groups after completing the stock take and note any exceptions or discrepancies in quantities between stock list and count.

Discussing and reflecting in the audit room

The completed audit work papers, together with an individual reflection of the virtual world experience and their suggestions for improvement are submitted via our learning management system for grading.

Findings

After running the assignment for the past 3 semesters, we noted from the working papers submitted by the students that on the whole they have grasped stock take concepts and techniques. The majority of students could perform the appropriate procedures in carrying out a stock take and most could document the findings and observations arising from their stock count.

A review of students’ reflections revealed that almost all of them appreciated the new learning approach and felt that the experience was interesting and fun and it allowed them to learn about stock taking techniques in a hands-on manner. They appreciated our efforts to introduce a new learning approach and felt that they were better able to learn the stock taking concepts using a virtual world approach rather than a traditional lecture and tutorial approach. Many had not encountered a virtual world before this experience and were also excited to learn a new e-competency.

The following are excerpts from students’ reflections:

• “Overall I think the whole virtual world experience is insightful and beneficial. I am able to try out how a stock take is conducted and (it) has allowed me to gain a better understanding of inventory auditing. It is quite an interesting experience”;
• “Through this assignment, I have benefited and this is an enriching experience for me as it allows me to explore and feel what is like to do a stock take for a client. It positively enhanced my learning experience for this chapter”; and
• “I believe that through this experience I learnt more than what I have through notes and textbooks”

Conclusion

The implications for practice are both encouraging and challenging. We are happy to note that students appreciated learning stock taking concepts and techniques in the virtual world platform which they have found to be more hands-on and practical than the usual lecture and tutorial style of learning. It was also nice they acknowledged the efforts of staff!

As the virtual world assignment required students to work collaboratively and to reflect on their learning experience, students have taken more ownership and were more engaged in their learning, which are features of learner centered learning.

However, we acknowledge that students are constantly exposed to rich interactive media platforms, and they have high expectations in terms of graphics and features in any online courseware or virtual world platform used for education. Since funding is limited we need to balance students’ high expectations with budgetary constraints.

Action Research

We conducted action research to improve this virtual world stock take project. Our paper was accepted and presented at the ICT2010 Conference organized by UniSim.

In this paper, we shared our experience of using a virtual world to inject a more practical slant in the teaching of audit of inventories to enable students to get a real-life feel of what doing a stock-take is all about, especially from an external auditor’s point of view.

Read the complete paper:

» Virtual Stock-taking: An Experience of Co-presence for Accountancy Students [PDF, 15 pages, 804 kB]

Copyright © 2010, ICT2010 Singapore Conference. Presented at the ICT2010 Singapore Conference. Reproduced by permission.

Authors

Mr. Lee Koon Yew is a lecturer in the School of Business and Accountancy, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

Mrs. Tiew-Teo Hui Leng is a deputy director in the School of Film & Media Studies, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

The following learner-centred e-learning activities were an important part of the success in engaging students in the module.

Ship Simulation Game

In order to generate interest at the onset of the module, ShipSim 2008 (a computer simulation) provides an exciting approach for the students to gain insights into the marine and offshore environment. The students are engaged by the visual, audio, and kinesthetic impact of this software. This greatly enhances their experiential learning as it allows them to explore the characteristics of various marine vehicles in a simulated marine environment.

3-D Modelling Software

Collaborative learning in practical sessions was achieved through computational methods (using 3-D modeling Delftship, and Google SketchUp) followed by discussions in the Blackboard environment. This required team work as students created the physical model of the hull form.

Mindmap Software

CMap (mindmapping freeware) and other variants (e.g. FreeMind) aid the students in developing and reflecting on various aspects of ship construction through a constructivist approach. In this project students are required to do simple research and reflect upon their learning in the form of a mindmap. The student mindmaps are shared with other users online.

Read the complete paper:

» Active Learning in Naval Architecture [PDF, 12 pages, 398 kB]

Copyright © CDIO™. Used with permission.

Author

David Seow Chih Wei is a lecturer in the School of Engineering, Ngee Ann Polytechnic

What is CDIO?

CDIO stands for Conceiving — Designing — Implementing — Operating.

According to CDIO.org,

The CDIO™ INITIATIVE is an innovative educational framework for producing the next generation of engineers. The framework provides students with an education stressing engineering fundamentals set in the context of Conceiving — Designing — Implementing — Operating real-world systems and products. Throughout the world, CDIO Initiative collaborators have adopted CDIO as the framework of their curricular planning and outcome-based assessment.

The 5th International CDIO Conference was held at Singapore Polytechnic, Singapore, June 7 – 10, 2009.

The Diploma in Product Design & Innovation (PDI) is a course offered by the School of Engineering at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

The PDI curriculum was designed on the principle that a good product is one that looks good, works well and sells well. A good product (e.g. mobile phone, printer, kettle, chair, vacuum cleaner or car) must be attractive, functional and marketable. This concept forms the foundation of the PDI curriculum.

The curriculum thus integrates the three important disciplines of product design: Arts, Engineering and Business. It focuses on the design process and methodology, from the conceptualization of creative ideas to the realization of innovative designs with quality design folios, mock-ups & models; computer models & presentations; and drawings & documentation for mass production.

The principal approach of PDI

Students graduate from the diploma with a design portfolio, complete with working prototype and business plan. They participate in overseas and local internships and immersion programmes at product design companies and institutions, and have access to facilities such as rapid prototyping, laser cutting and computer numerical controlled machines

2.  Learning how to design

We believe that learning to design is something like learning to play a sport such as badminton, soccer or volleyball. The students are the players and the lecturer is the coach. The students need to practice designing, repeatedly, to hone their skills, knowledge and attitude; and the coach’s main role is to observe, evaluate and guide the students in order to continuously improve their design abilities.

Learning to design is about understanding the design process and the associated factors. There must not be too much emphasis on the results at the end of the design process.  “Exploration” and “experimentation” are the key words. The lecturer’s role is to encourage the students to generate new and creative design ideas, instead of designs that have already proved to be working.

Are all designs successful? Inventor Thomas Edison once said:

"I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps."

Therefore, in design and innovation, mistakes are okay, except the designer must learn from them and pursue a better solution.

3.  Teaching design: Variety! Variety! Variety!

One of the key success factors in teaching design is to use a variety of teaching and learning approaches. That is, besides the traditional modes of lectures, tutorials, laboratory sessions, projects and assignments, there should be other appropriate ways to engage the students in learning. These include talks and seminars by practising designers, visits to design companies and design exhibitions, participation in design competitions, exchange programmes with other institutions, and so on. 

Variety in teaching and learning approaches helps to avoid boredom and provide freshness in learning among the learners. More importantly, as different students have different preferred modes of learning, variety in learning approaches will satisfy every student in some ways.

The following sections outline some of the approaches we have used, and the outcomes.

4.  Involve the students and make it real

a. Experiential Learning

“Tell me, I will forget. Show me, I may remember. Involve me, I will understand.”

This proverb speaks of the power of involvement in the experience of learning. In PDI, learning via involvement is a key feature in the programme.

Wheelchair exercise in the Ergonomics and User-Centred Design module

For instance, an exercise in the Ergonomics and User-Centred Design (EUCD) module required the students to design a wheelchair.

In order for the students to fully understand user needs and subsequently write the design specifications for the wheelchair design assignment, they were required to first sit and move around on a wheelchair and carry out some given tasks just like a real wheelchair user.

The tasks included getting to a meeting room and borrowing a book from the library.

Visually-impaired exercise in the Ergonomics and User-Centred Design module

In another similar exercise, the students were asked to write the design specifications for a product designed for the visually impaired. In this case, the students were grouped in teams of two.

Each student took turns being blind-folded and they experienced the problems faced by the visually-impaired. The students needed to carry out some given tasks such as buying a cup of coffee from the canteen, or delivering a letter to an office.  

At the end of the exercises, the students had a more comprehensive understanding of the needs of the target users of the products (i.e. wheelchair users and visually-impaired), and a more deep knowledge of the principles of user-centred design.

b. Field Trips: In the Product Form and Aesthetics (PFA) module, in order for the students to understand the contemporary design styling and trend in product designs, they were taken on a field trip to  Orchard Road. As they visited various shops, the students were required to study and sketch various products that were on sale. They then had to propose their own improvements to these products and present their findings.   

Field trip exercise presentation in the Product Form and Aesthetics module

c. Workshops by Experts: Another way to involve students in learning was to engage practising designers to give guest lectures or conduct design workshops for the students. Such sessions provided opportunities for the students to learn from the experiences of different designers. Following are pictures of a design workshop conducted by designers from the James Dyson Foundation.

Design workshop by James Dyson Foundation

d. Design Competitions: Another practice-oriented learning experience for PDI students was their involvement in various design competitions, In such competitions, a local sponsoring company provides some prizes for the best three to five designs. The advantage for the company is they see many new design concepts for their product range.

3D CAD images in the Singapore Mint souvenir design assignment

For instance, in the Product Form & Aesthetics module, the Singapore Mint sponsored the souvenir design competition assignment.

Design poster in the CyberInc mini computer design assignment

In the Ergonomics and User-Centred Design module, CyberInc sponsored the mini computer mouse design competition assignment.

In these design competition assignments, students work according to the company’s real-life design requirements, and the students had the chance to interact and learn from the company’s designers or engineers. In general, students are very motivated in such design competition assignments.

In addition, the compulsory three-month internship allows each PDI student the opportunity to understand the design process and factors in real-life design projects.

e. Other approaches: Other learning designs that have been used in the PDI curriculum include critique sessions and off-campus project exhibitions.

5.  What have the students designed?

With the help of the many practice-oriented ways to engage the students in learning as described in earlier sections, the students have produced many innovative designs, and some are shown in the following figures.

Water Skate – enablesthe user to walk or skate on water

Ice Stirrer – to cool drink without diluting it

Money Cleaner – preventing infection by killing germs on coins and notes

6.  How did the students respond?

Feedback from the students on the various innovative applied learning approaches in PFA, EUCD and PDAI modules is very positive.

Surveys and focus group discussions were conducted at the end of each semseter to assess the effectiveness of the teaching strategies employed, and students’ receptiveness to these approaches. The feedback provides good input from students, enabling us to work towards continuous improvement of the curriculum and to gauge the effectiveness of the various modes of teaching and learning.

Appendix A gives a summary of the survey results conducted for PFA and EUCD for the past semesters. Response to Question 2 in the survey clearly shows that the students have found the off-campus exercises to be extremely useful. In general, the module lectures, exercises, assignments and projects are appropriately structured to meet students’ expectations. Through the modules, they are able to understand more about consumers’ expectations and needs.

Focus group discussions have also been conducted to get students’ feedback on the innovative teaching and learning approaches adopted for the course.

Appendix B shows the positive outcome of these discussions.

7. Conclusion

Involving the students in every possible way in a variety of different learning approaches is key to the teaching of the Product Design and Innovation modules. Learning to design is like learning to play a new sport game – one has to actually play the game and practice constantly in addition to knowing the principles of designing. The favourable feedback of the students and their innovative design work indicates the approach used in the course has proved to be on the right track. The PDI course team believes in, and carries out continuous improvement and constant refinement to the approach in order to engage the new batch of students in learning every year.

Authors

Dr Tan Ah Kat

Richard Lim

Tan Ah Kat is Deputy Director and Richard Lim Chiok Ngee is senior lecturer in Mechanical Engineering Division, School of Engineering, Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

Introduction

The School of InfoComm Technology (ICT) has sought to ensure that our programmes are relevant and reflect the ever-changing IT industry. In response to industry needs we made changes to our modules so that we are better able to support our students.

While we may have prepared our students sufficiently with IT knowledge in the past, we realized that we may not have provided sufficient support to help the students understand the overall role of an IT professional.

In response to this need, we have refined our teaching approaches, modules and courses to introduce a more active student buddy system and to better our efforts in performance improvement programmes. To support the needs of our students, we also introduced new mechanisms for active tracking, early intervention with remedial classes, one-to-one mentoring and counseling.

Key Innovations

The School of ICT developed a new module “Fundamentals for IT Professionals (FP)” to support the new vision. This module provides ICT Year 1 students with exposure to various soft skills, positive thinking habits and mental paradigms to reflect on their attitudes, motivation and sense of purpose.

Goals of the Fundamentals for IT Professionals module

The aim of the Fundamentals for IT Professionals module is to inspire the students to succeed in their present studies while providing the skills to position themselves for their future career in the IT industry; or for further studies.

The module is designed to provide students with a broad introduction to the field of IT. It will provide students with an introduction to the soft skills in problem solving, interpersonal relationships, and team working for developing an effective IT professional.

While the content-based materials taught in this module are important, the emphasis and significance lies in the creative integration of conceptual skills and learner-centered activities that take learning beyond the content to self-discovery, insight and experiential learning.

Components of the module

Activities in the FIP module are designed to ensure that the information is well assimilated through a learner-centred experience that engages the students. The activities include:

1. Workshops on notebook computer preparation (on how to access the school’s network and facilities) and computer troubleshooting (which helps them to understand the possible problems that may occur).
2. Experiential learning workshop in basic IT skills reduce the IT skills gap among the students;
3. Interactive games and bonding activities among the students and mentors.
4. Cross-disciplinary projects help to hone work competencies such as presentation, research and evaluation skills. The projects also help the students to see the relevance of the module to their future careers. Students are required to complete an assignment that allows them to demonstrate their understanding of being an IT professional. This assignment involves topics such as ethical & professional expectations of an IT professional.
5. Industrial visits that ensure a better understanding of the roles, professional practice, ethical expectations and development paths of IT professionals. The visits to organizations such as Microsoft, Singtel and higher tertiary institutes like NUS and SMU also expose students to the soft skills required. The students conduct independent research on the industry, and they need to self-reflect on their talents, strengths and limitations.
6. Following the industrial visit, students need to create a career road map. As a result of their experiences, participants need to profile the requisite set of knowledge, skills, attitude, professional habits and tools that will help them pursue their career objectives.

Close Mentor Involvement

The students’ mentors are assigned to teach the FIP module so that mentors will have opportunities to foster bonding and rapport with their students. Mentors give academic counseling and advice as well as formative and developmental feedback on the student’s attitudes and motivation throughout the semester.

Outcomes and Conclusion

Through this module, students become more aware of their role as an IT professional and are clearer about their own expectations of the ICT course. They acquire soft skills such as team work and a more positive attitude towards a career in IT. This has made the students more motivated in their learning.

The FP module has also fulfilled student learning needs since feedback indicates that students have more clarity with regards to what to expect in their ICT course and as an ICT professional.

Furthermore, the student activities for this module have provided opportunities for interaction with ICT faculty. Another positive outcome is the acquisition of soft skills that enhance student attitudes and mindset with regards to their future in the IT industry.

Author

Sharon Goh is a lecturer in the School of InfoComm Technology, Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

We first introduced Second Life to Ngee Ann Polytechnic in 2007.

At first, students were given simple tasks so that they could learn how to build items in the virtual space. They needed to go to common areas (called sandboxes) to carry out their activities but a problem we faced was the sandbox would get cleared from time to time and the students’ work would be lost. We subsequently bought our own island with the aim of providing an opportunity for staff and students to investigate the potential of 3-D virtual spaces for learning.

The first activities in Second Life were undertaken by students from the Building and Mechanical Engineering diplomas. The objective was for them to learn how to communicate, collaborate and construct buildings and other objects in a virtual space.

1. Activity by Aerospace Technology Students

The Aerospace Technology students created models of aircraft and hangars as illustrated below.

As the facilitator for this activity, it was an interesting experience for me as it was the first time I needed to meet students in a virtual space to help them with their tasks. In this image, I am discussing the requirements for the activity with the students.

As virtual worlds become more commonplace, I think “in-world” facilitation skills will become more important in the educational context. As companies will make more use of virtual worlds to meet with clients and to hold in-company meetings, our students need to be prepared by having experiences in such spaces.

Self-Directed Learning

The students were required to research how to build objects in Second Life, since no formal training was provided. I also encouraged them to look for help online both “in-world” where they would hop on to other islands and consult builders and on YouTube which has hundreds of videos on building and scripting on Second Life.

For example, in this video an avatar is seen using a set of architectural plans to create a building in Second Life.

2. Second Life Activity by Real Estate Business Students

Our second project was with Mr. Keow Yeong Ming and his 3rd-year Real Estate Business students, who were enrolled in the Business Information Technology module. We could only work with 3rd-year students as Second Life does not allow people younger than 18 on the main islands. (There is a separate section in Second Life for those younger than 18).

The objective for this activity were to expose the students to the experience of collaborating in an online space to design and create a building of their own choosing.

The students were divided into about a dozen teams of three each.

The first task the students needed to complete was to create their avatar and then visit certain islands to learn more about what Second Life has to offer.

The students needed to build something of their own choice in Second Life. It could have been an apartment block, a bungalow, or perhaps a restaurant or shopping centre. They needed to build it from scratch or they could explore Second Life to find components that they could use (like staircases, furniture, cars, and even helicopters). The students had access to a building fund of 1000 Linden dollars per team. (Linden dollars is the virtual currency that is used in Second Life. It can be exchanged for real currency.)

The students were given broad guidelines to encourage creativity. One of the choices that the students had was to build their “dream home”.

We were quite impressed by what the students were able to build in such a short period of time.

Assessment in Second Life Projects
The assessment for this project was quite interesting. The lecturer visited each group’s Second Life site at a pre-determined time and the students were required to be there to show him around. He asked them questions on what they had done, why they did it the way they did and what had they learned. The aesthetics of the construction and the use of space were also considered as part of the assessment.

Student Feedback
We surveyed the students after this experience. Most of the students were positive about the experience in Second Life, while around 15% were ‘neutral’ and only a small number did not believe it was a useful experience. They reported that Second Life was “fun and easy to use” and that they “were now more comfortable to communicate with people in Second Life”.

One student reflected on how it had changed his view about the module:

It’s fun and an innovative way to make our module more interesting.

Several students indicated their disappointment with the “lagginess” of Second Life, presumably because of wireless bandwidth issues:

I feel that it is a rather fun and unique way by using Second Life in doing part of our assignments. It is like students can have fun learning and playing at the same time. However, it can take up a lot of time too as i get logged out rather often and slows down everything. Can’t really multi-task using my laptop.

Another reported on student engagement:

I feel that it is a good way to engage students to have a feel of how to build digitally. Even though it was lagging, the project interested me and I enjoyed doing it.

When asked about the future potential of Second Life, we were encouraged when one student responded:

Perhaps there should be a project whereby students are required to hold meetings with their individual groups in Second Life.

Unexpected Lessons Learned

The lecturer in charge of this project reported that after allowing the students to build whatever they liked, wherever they liked, the virtual “town” became very messy. For future runs, there will be more town planning on the island. This was also a good learning point for the real estate students who were involved.

Future Directions for 3-D Worlds at Ngee Ann Polytechnic

1. Next semester we will get a larger group of students to participate in a more involved exercise where the Second Life activity will be more focused on the learning objectives of the students’ core subjects.
2. We are now using a virtual 3D environment originally developed by Sun Microsystems. In this 3D world, employees can “accomplish their real work, share documents, and meet with colleagues using natural voice communication.” In the educational arena, students can use MPK20 to share computer applications with each other and with their lecturers; collaborate on projects; and communicate with each other in the 3-D space. See Using a Virtual World to Teach Stock-Taking Concepts and Techniques

and

When I leave
I told myself that I can’t wait to leave
But it seems
My heart is saying I will be missing it.
Composer: CHIFFON, Lyricist: Stephanie

Are these the lyrics of a new pop song? No, it’s actually a song composed by our very own 3rd year Accountancy students, creatively showcasing their Accountancy Practical Training experience using multimedia presentations.

The students had to present what they learned during their 6 months’ internship through innovative use of multimedia. They also had to learn by themselves how to create and edit their production using multimedia tools. Through the Multimedia Presentation Project, students realized what they did not know and were motivated to work together as a team drawing strengths from each member. They collaborated and brain-stormed to develop interesting and relevant themes for their presentations.

Students were excited and inspired to form an e-portfolio of themselves as well as to demonstrate how they have grown and benefited through the internship experience.

A group of our students attached to PwC, one of the Big Four public accounting firms.

Overview

The Accountancy Practical Training Program is a six months internship program pioneered by the Accountancy Department of Ngee Ann Polytechnic. The module is an integral part of the Diploma in Accountancy curriculum, providing students with opportunities to experience the real working world before graduation.

This module calls upon students to learn and use various knowledge and skills in a practical way. The latest innovation in the module was the introduction of the Multimedia Presentation Project. This project gives students the opportunity to reflect on their learning experiences as well as develop their information technology skills. Considering the proliferation of IT in business, we believe that the IT communication skills that students learn as part of this project will stand them in good stead in the future.

This multimedia presentation mode of assessment improves the range of assessments for which students are evaluated for Accountancy Practical Training Program. It also gives students the opportunity to showcase their abilities in an electronic form and this can be added to their e-portfolio to benefit them in future job seeking.

Our students work hard and play hard. The picture above shows our students taking part in their company’s Christmas Dinner party.

Description of the Multimedia Presentation Project

Group Project

The Multimedia Presentation Project is a group project. Students collectively develop the theme of their project and plan how they want to present it using a suitable mode of presentation.

Themes

Students are encouraged to imagine themselves as the director of a short film/video and they develop their own theme and story. They are encouraged to think out of the box. Anything goes as long as the final multimedia presentation has relevance to the Accountancy Practical Training Program.

Modes of Presentation

The students were allowed to choose whatever mode of presentation they wished. Following are some of the types of presentation submitted:

1. Slideshow/ Montage of Photos
2. Podcast
3. Short Video made using Movie Maker etc.
4. Song composed by student
5. Skit
6. Flash animation
7. Quotations weaved into the videos
8. Cartoons / animation to depict APT Learning.

Some students created their own props and acted out a skit to illustrate the dilemmas they faced during their internship.

Learning outcomes

The Multimedia Presentation Project serves as an overall consolidation of what students have learnt in the Accountancy Practical Training Program and as a grand finale to mark the end of their attachment. Students are empowered to choose their own theme and mode of delivery through innovative use of IT.

Students also reflected that the project work has fostered learner interaction and collaborative learning as they picked up new skills on multimedia tools and they have learnt to resolve conflicts amongst themselves.

Example Student Video

This video illustrates one of the final submitted projects. It demonstrates how the students have matured and grown through their internship experience. They have learned many life skills, including how to resolve problems faced at work.

Learner-centred Learning

The students have gained a great deal from the learner-centred approach taken in the design of the Multimedia Presentation Project.

Learning by doing: The students learned many skills by being actively involved in this project. They have learned to plan and execute their project and they have learned multimedia skills like video making and editing. By taking on the role of a director, they learn teamwork and leadership skills.

Learning by collaborating: Being a group project, students needed to collaborate on the theme, story line, scripting, creating and editing their project.

Learning by researching: The multimedia skills were not taught by the tutors and so the students needed to pick up the skills through their own research. As such, they became aware of what they already knew and what they needed to find out.

They also needed to research further on the companies that they were attached to as part of the story-telling process. Another area of research that students completed was on accountancy as a profession.

Learning by reflecting: The students needed to reflect on what they had learned during their 6-month working attachment. This was a valuable activity and it helped to consolidate the experience.

Student Reactions

Based on a student survey, 81% of those who responded strongly agree or agree that the multimedia presentation project has enabled them to consolidate and express what they have learnt in Accountancy Practical Training Program in a creative and interesting manner.

One of the students wrote:

[This was] a new refreshing experience I had never tried in school. We see and experience the changes in us, before and after this APT. This is just a wrap up of our 6 months life story.
Venus Chua, previously attached to Baker Tilly TFWLCL.

Another student wrote:

I’ve grown and matured with [the team], and I have rediscovered the joy of doing something well.
Lim Jian Ming, previously attached to Baker Tilly TFWLCL.

FAQs

Here are some of the concerns raised by colleagues about this project.

1. Won’t the students be distracted from the main purpose of Accountancy Practical Training Program by movie making?
The Accountancy Practical Training Program provides the opportunity for students to put into practice what they have studied in school. It is a learning journey for students to see and experience how knowledge comes to life in the industry. The multimedia is just a tool for students to document what they have learnt.

We do not restrict the project to just movie making, though many students chose this mode as it is more interesting. Students nowadays are already quite IT savvy and they are very comfortable with blogs, etc. Hence movie making is just simply another form for them to reflect on their learning journey. Indirectly, because they need to produce a multimedia product, they have to set certain goals and targets that they want to learn and achieve out of Accountancy Practical Training Program, and this spurs them to achieve these objectives, so that there is something of substance they can put in their multimedia.

2. What if the students don’t know the movie-making tools?
The students are directed to online resources that demonstrate how to use Windows Movie Maker. In fact, many of the students already know how to use the tool. For those who have problems, they are very resourceful and this project encourages them to collaborate and learn from friends who know how to use the tool. It also encourages students to do further research on their own on how to use these editing tools.

3. How much does creativity, sound quality and lighting quality of the movie affect the grade for Accountancy Practical Training Program?
Quality accounts for 20% of the project marks. Hence we want students to pay attention to content as well as the quality of the final product. The project should be something that they can be proud of and something that the school can showcase.

4. Accountants don’t need movie-making skills. How is this project valid?
Through the movie-making process, students learn to collaborate, learn to research, learn how to tap on each other’s strengths. This is a fun way for students to work in teams, resolve conflicts and learn how to manage teams. The content of the project is related to Accounting, hence students need to have a good understanding of Accounting related job scope before they are able to produce a short video.

Conclusion

As a result of their involvement in the Multimedia Presentation Project, students were enthusiastic in their learning process and they took the initiative to learn new tools and discover new information about accounting as a profession.

It is also a process of self-discovery for students where they learn to work independently, work as a team, and learn to interact with individuals from different walks of life.

At the end of the project, students gained greater confidence in themselves. They felt they can better confront the challenges in the next phase of their life after graduation. They have developed self-learning skills (vital for lifelong learning) and they are more competent in using IT tools for communication.

And in the process, they have proved that accountants are not boring!

Authors

Anna Yap

Simon Tan

From School of Business and Accountancy, Ngee Ann Polytechnic.