Task 1

1)Introduction

Hello dear reader! My name is Zairrienoor Zairrin binti Zainudin. I know that my name is hard to pronunce and please do not ask me what is the meaning because I also do not know. I was born and raised in Selangor. I am currently staying in Rantau Panjang, Klang. I am a TESL student. And I'm 23 years old.

2)How would you rate yourself in terms of your computer skills and why? (e.g. expert, novice, savvy, geek, illiterate etc)

In terms of computer skills, I would rate myself as savvy because I never had any proper training in learning computer skills. I started to learn about computer when I was 17 years old and the first skill that I learned was on how to save date from the internet to Microsoft Office. My house never had any computer but since I was interested in learning more about computer and computer skills so I spent almost an hour of my everyday time in cyber cafe. Other than asking from others I also learn by trial and error. I find learning about computer is very interesting and fun.

3) What computer software and hardware knowledge do you have?

Among of the software that I am familiar with are Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop, different types of Windows, Internet Explorer, Photoscape, Limewire, and etc. I know more about software as comparison to hardware. I do not have very much of hardware knowledge. I know I am able to understand the basic feature of computer and laptop but I also aware that I can't fix a broken motherboard.

4)Have you experienced learning via the computer (online, etc)?

Yes, I think I have. I learn from several different websites. The one that I like the most is Google Translate. I learn different sorts of skills such as typing skills and playing keyboard lesson from several different websites.

5)Did you try to incorporate technology in your some of your lessons during your practicum? Was it a success or a failure? If you did not what was/were the reason(s)?

I did tried to cooperate technology in my previous practicum time and there was a failure and success as well. During my practicum period, I did use my laptop and speakers and teaching aid. It was a success when I did it with my Form 1 students because they were not familiar with videos and the song that I played. In contrast, it was a bit turndown with my Form 2 students. They told me that the song I played was old-fashioned and that they want to listen to the latest one.

6)What is your opinion on the use of computer/technology in language teaching?

From my opinion, I like and support the use of computer/technology in language teaching. It is because, teachnology makes learning easier. With the usage of computer, students will be able to do the task given faster. Other than that, the usage of technology will help to cover different learning types. The visual learner and audio learner will be able to gain benefit if technology be incorperated in language teaching. Furthermore, learning a language through the usage of technology (e.g. use songs and videos) can make language learning more interesting and fun.

7)What are your expectations from this course?

From this course, I expect to learn more about designing a website, ways in incorporating between computer/technology and language teaching and also, I expect to gain knowledge on CAI and CALLT.