Who needs to attend workshop?

The new year has begun... and our 'businesses' resumed... oh, what I mean is workshops.

Yes, it's an exciting business, as we see different people in different workshops... indeed, for someone who's very socialable and good at networking (unfortunately I still lack that), it provides good opportunities!

A colleauge once put it across in a reserved manner... look out for the behaviour of participants, where they are from - Primary or Secondary Schools... that's a difference... Oh yes, there is!Observations somehow made us wonder... is it the environment the participants immersed in shaped their behaviour? Some are more nurturing ones while there are also the more independent ones...

On the other hand, in a recent workshop, another 'breed' caught my attention. The more aloof ones! I'm not referring to the participants from the elite schools or JCs... but some of the fresh graduates from NIE! Of course, I'm also weary that it never applies to all, but only a handful.

It's similar to the classroom scenario - where in a class of 40, that 2 to 3 are enough to make a difference to the learning environment, the teacher's perception to the class, and of course, the shot to the teachers' blood pressure!

Back to the workshop... this could be avoided, isn't it? Since participants sign up the workshop because they see the need to attend! Of course, there are only occasions when they are arrowed to attend... however, as an adult, as a professional, one should be know how to conduct onself in a professional manner even if one gets bored or is bogged down by other things such as markings.

Hm... of course, a question to myself is, am I 'treating' the participants as 'pupils in the class' where I hope to see complicance - ie. when a teacher is talking or teaching, one should display the most basic courtesy - to listen.

This happened in one of the workshops when my co-presenter was presenting some kind of teaching approach while a couple of participants (from the same school), fresh from NIE were engaged in 'NT' behaviours - changing the wallpaper of the PC to their personal photographs, going to online albums, marking assignments... and required a 'deterrant' to park behind them before they stop these businesses. It was obvious that they could not deliver the learning activity using the new approach discussed in the workshop as they did not pay attention to it. I guess, up to the point they left the workshop, they still had not realise what has gone wrong... probably will go back to share that there's nothing new to the approach taught in the workshop...

No doubt the teachers are equipped with the necessary ICT skills, that complements when designing tasks, it was a pity that they failed to see the key is the pedagogy behind the learning task...

So, what's the point of attending a workshop when one think is good enough and need not to pay attention? ...

My Fair Lady

The first thing in the musical that caught my eyes was "Prof Henry Higgins"... Why? The Englishman! A 'typical' middle-age Englishman that has a notable waistline and sharp face features. That immediately reminded me of Keith Blake, the gentleman who hosted us for 5 days while in London last year. It's just so similar, the kind of 'look', the pitch of the voice, and how he talked... well, all these simply replayed before my eyes... I guess Keith has left such a deep impression because of the close interaction that few days... and yes, will not forget his thoughtfulness, when he would gently asked if things were fine and clear... and being so helpful... ok, took the opportunity to show us around 'theatre land' and some 'key interest places' on the way to our very first destination - DfES. Oh yes, there's where I learnt about the 'London Plains'.

In this musical, I was more captured by the storyline and the occasional funny lines rather than the singing. It's the first time that I chuckled and so amused by the lines in the musical. Have never read the famous story... but heard the songs from the CD. The interesting thing is about the transformation of 'speech' - it tells one that how one talks can be transformed. Is it real? Or it's trying to illustrate the fact that nothing is impossible. That reminded me of days when we attended the English course while in NUS and NIE. Oh yes, our lecturer will randomly pick on us to read the paragraphs, in the English lab and corrected us along the way. Nothing left a deeper impression that I was made to repeat the word "Children" for so many times when I was in Primary 2. Yes, Mrs Hum was the English teacher and the passage was on "King Solomon and the Children" - how he identifed the girls from the boys with his sharp observation and logical deduction. Those were the days...

Guess one of its winning formula was the songs presented - they are so popular and familiar to the ears. The singing, on the other hand... I had heard better voices, especially the soprano and solid voices like those in Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera!

Afterall, though there isn't very grand props around... it's a good one that worth the time :D

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As we slowly walked out of the theatre, through the corridor, to the steps... realised an 'added feature' which was absent in my past visits - someone thanking us for patroning... and noticed he actually shone the torch at the steep of stairs and repeatedly remind the patrons to walk carefully... That reminded me of an accident reported on the paper - that a woman fell and died as she tried making her way to the restroom. So, it's a 'reaction' measure?

Side Dishes~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Talking about Service...

It was near 6 pm. Remembered there are several eateries that lined up along the way to Suntec City (in the citylink)... Have always wanted to try the food there...though knowing that it's priced more steeply... oh yes, normally it's the 'no-no' place when out there with YL and GC... So, the opportunity arises today!

Talking about Food...

Was attracted by this "Suan-la noodle"at the Asian Kitchen... always have a crave of sour and hot stuff... so went in... Ordered the "Milk Tea with Red Bean" and the "suan-la noodle", of course.

As it was still early 'dining hours' and there were very few patrons around, the waiters & waitresses were pretty free. I guess they have been advised not to hang around at the counter. So, they started to pace up and down the paths... I presume is to make themselves easily available to customers... However, what caught my attention was how they walked - with 2 hands placed at back and walked up and down the narrow path... Hm... like a teacher doing invigilation in the classroom. So, one learning point - how one walks matters.

Thought that with so many of them pacing up and down, they are meant to be attentive to customers' needs. However, that's not true. My Milk Tea with red bean was served with crushed ice - the red beans were mixed with the crushed ice... the cup comes with one straw... I was trying to pick up the red beans with the straw amongst the crushed ice... but none of these active waiters/waitresses noticed that and I have to put up my hand to request a spoon!

This is definitely a great contrast to Tony Roma where the family dined last night. The waiters/waitresses shown their attentiveness in small ways that left good impressions with the patrons. Bro and me were the ones who placed the orders, but along the way, the waitress noticed that my parents were non-English speakers... as we left the restaurant, they did the normal 'Thank you' at the door, but in particular, to my parents - in Mandarin! So???? See the difference?

Recollections: 2006

1. Blogging
2. Out of my Comfort Zone
3. Wearing a Different Hat
4. Smell the Flowers
5. By Default???
6. The Withered Trees
7. No rush, no rush...
8. 22 March
9. Wind Rain No Change
10. SQ: Smile Quotient
11. Charges for Water
12. Points of View: 2 Stories
13. Spastic Children
14. When I see the airplanes land...
15. The musical - Grease
16. It's Monday... It's Midweek... It's Friday!
17. My Mood (I)
18. 1st September... Teachers' Day
19. The Newspapers Distributor
20. "Thank You" for giving up the seat
21. Technology has created an impact on the way we teach and learn
22. The GAP
23. "Gracious Act" in #29
24. "Gracious" Teachers
25. Notre Dame de Paris (12 Nov 2006)
26. 执著， 是为了。。。。
27. Isn't that troublesome?
28. The flowers bloom again ^.^
29. 周處除三害
30. Christmas... what it means to me
31. Is "Queuing-Up" in Singaporean's DNA?
32. There's a difference

Other Blogs:

• My Travelogue
• Learning Journey at ETD begins

There's a difference

Advertisement - is a channel to market a product, to bring across an idea. It appears in different medium, too.

More often than not, it will carry a picture of the product... and of course, the specifications, and sometimes, the cost, too... oh yes, pictures of satisfied users. Hardware - how's the product 'sold' in the advertisement? With the picture and its specs, right? All of us are so familiar with those of the telcos as well as PCs.

How about camera? Well, it has the advantage to 'tap' on this old saying "A picture speaks a thousand words"! However, the most interesting and tastefully advertisements that I see so far, is from the National Geographic. The duration spent on reading its advertisements (of similar or even the same product when printed in other places like the newspapers) is very much longer. There are more than 5 advertisements on the different brands of cameras in the December issue of the magazine, however, it's not tiring or one does not get bored when reading them all... Also realised something, all these advertisements are tied to the theme of the magazine - Nature, at least, that many used. It's not just advertisements, but it talks about the facts and information that one can draw from the pictures.

Another interesting one (in the same magazine) was that of the airlines. It brings out the 'socio-conscious' thinking that it promotes within its organisation. It does not just 'sell' the product - the flying service, but the value, the thinking, the culture that it hopes (or already) to achieve within its organisation. Though the advertisement, it offers the readers different perspectives. Or it's urging readers to see that they are different? Simple words, but powerful :D

Is "Queuing-Up" in Singaporean's DNA?

This strikes me when recently, it somehow becomes a 'pattern' I see while at public places here, in Singapore... or perhaps this aspect has drawn my attention as see more of the positive practice (behaviour) when I was overseas.

Within 6 months, have been to Taiwan, London and Japan - so, it's not just in particular to Asian society! As a traveller, though such local behaviour normally does not draw my attention, but probably because in these trips, I have the opportunity to move around in public transport, hence creating a closer encounter with the local people.

One thing common in all cities, where I draw comparison, is the public transport. Yes, the train - be it MRT, Underground, etc. Well, there are 'lines' on the ground to guide people. Indeed, in Tokyo, it's really just a line, without any arrows or regions, as we have here in Singapore. And mind you, the cities I am comparing are much more populated than Singapore. Certainly, the crowd in the stations are far worse. However, no matter how hurried they are, they queue! More importantly, they don't plant themselves right in front of the door, which is what we always see in Singapore! It looks like Singaporeans have no sense of 'directions'. We don't understand that fact that if there's 'outflow', there's no space for external entities to flow in! Such a simple logic yet we don't seem to understand. How embarassing!

Of course, another very different observation was keeping to the 'left/right' rule. It's so automatic... that the locals by default will make an immediate decision which side to take... what happens in Singapore? Well, just go to the MRT station and take a look... It seems like we've yet figure out where's our left or right! Another embarassing thing to sigh...

Christmas... what it means to me

Christmas... what it means to me??? What it means to one who has no religious connection to the day?

I guess, it's a time to catch up with friends, to say 'hi' to someone whom we often 'claim' no time to talk to or have nothing much to update... It's also time to renew our friendship, to let our friends know that we remember them... and we bother...

I guess it's this little touch that sometimes warm each other's hearts, that makes the day of our friends... yes, something that is free, but powerful enough to brighten one's day :D

eCard has been a popular option to 'send' cards to friends... yes, still remember the year when the hallmark website was 'jammed'... yes, I like hallmark... I guess it's the design... and also its long-known name on the hardcopies - it's known to be a class by itself! But after a while, I realise, I find more through sending hardcopy cards... yes, sounds funny...

It's always very heartwarming to receive news, be it long or short, it could be just a couple of words, it could be long stories... from friends... no matter what, it simply tells, they remember me... and they bother :D

This was especially so in days when I was at Paro, where both email and snail-mail were not very accessible... a mail simply gave me a strange feeling that, at the moment, I was connected to the real world! I like snail mail because it's something I could touch and feel and keep... and yes, it's the personalised handwriting... I think it makes a difference!

周處除三害

放这个话题，是突然有感而发的。 仔细想想，其实，亦有点滑稽。但，再想想，其实，并非，那是的的确确的， 是真实的，时实在的。

周处，可是个响铛铛的名字。无人不知，无人不晓啊！
根据故事，他，就是三害中的最厉害的那个。但，故事也说，他，要改过自新，所以自告奋勇，要去为村民除害。他，做梦也没想到，自己居然就是三害之一。那， 刹那间，成了最残酷的事实！

其实，仔细想想，我们，何曾又无周处的影子呢？我们的周围，何妨又不是被好些周处围绕着呢？

当自己是周处时，当自己在找机会来改善时，总是希望别人会给机会，让自己有翻身的机会吧？

然而，当身边的周处尽力去改善时，我们却带着怀疑的眼光，处处猜疑。。。 是否过分了些呢？或许，我们应该用较宽容的心去对“周处”吧！给予 “周处”一个机会吧！

The flowers bloom again ^.^

The hazy days are over? I guess... there's no more 3-hourly report on the PSI anymore.
There were occasional showers, rains, storms... these couple of weeks. OK, I'm talking about the real thing... apart from the metaphoric ones.

It's the day-in-day-out route... from Buona Vista MRT station, out to the overhead bridge... along the bridge, head down the stairs and the path leading to the office building...

Around the corner of the bridge is a tree that bears pink flowers. Just a couple of days ago, notice that the flowers were fully bloom! Wah! It looked so refreshing... and brightened the morning walk. Look further, other trees were also tainted with whites and pink! It's the blooming season again?

It's nice to slow down the pace once in a while, to enjoy the little joy of nature...

Isn't that troublesome?

Just an observation... at one of the bus berths at Tampines bus interchange in a weekday evening...

A woman in her mid-30s was carrying her little baby. 2 young girls - one who's about the age of 10, was trying to manage 2 bagfuls of groceries, another like a lower secondary girl was packing the baby trolly. Seated beside her was an old lady in her early 70s... (her hair was all white).

They were waiting for the bus... because of 'logistics', they did not queue up...

The bus came... everybody in the queue as usual boarded the bus... while the "troop" waited patiently at the side, until the queue of people boarded... they did not jump queue though one of the passengers signaled them to go up first... hm... considerate Singaporean...

When it was the turn for the 'troop' to board the bus, it's quite obvious that the young girls were very 'well-trained' in managing the props when they board the bus, and the old grandmother also very quickly found a strategic place to 'park' herself, and of course, the mother with the baby also got a seat very quickly...

On the other hand, I was thinking, why bother to bring the 'troop' out and having to go through all the hassle to manage them (the young children, the old lady and the bags of groceries)? Also, during such peak hours, it's common sense that one has to squeeze among the crowd and it's unlikely to get a seat on the bus... aren't these very troublesome?

执著， 是为了。。。。

执著。。。 是绊脚石。。。
是执著， 还是固执？ 只是一线之差。

是的，有人因为自己的执著，忘了身边的人，忘了别人的感受， 忘了顾及其他事物接下来所受到的影响吗？当然，也忘了无形中，对自己产生的负面影响，无形中的伤害。。。

是认为，那是最好地包复？是最好地发泄吗？
包复什么？发泄什么？也要有个究竟。。。 无缘无故的, 算是损人又不利己，何必呢。。。
就是要闹得不欢而散。。。天啊！这是个什么世界呢？

究竟， 最后的胜利者是谁呢？决对不是自己。。。
究竟， 最后的失败者是谁呢？决对是自己。。。 很肯定的。

当然， 受损的，不单自己，身边的人（被挟在中间的），受气的人，当然，还有因这一份执著而影响工作的进度。反过来看， 是谁不合作呢？相反的事，幼稚罢了。

吾并非那么所谓地宽洪大量， 但，永远得记得，要沉得住气。。。
没有人喜欢身边的人不顾及全局而一天搞得全军覆没。
要记得，在这个世界上，没有人有权给脸色别人看！
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后记。。。
觉得，用BLOG来‘发泄’也未必不是件好事。。。 至少， 不会伤害到别人，又能让心情好些。。。还记得有篇散文曾说：
Once there was a boy who had a very bad temper. One day, his dad told him. Each time he was anger, add a nail to the fence... on the first day, he nailed many. Gradually as the months passed... there were fewer and fewer nails being added to the fence... eventually, it came a day when he has nothing to nail. Daddy told him to remove the nail from the fence... eventually, the fence had no more nails... however, the holes left by the nails were unremovable... it reminds the boy how times he had hurt people around him... these holes were like the wounds created each time the person is 'knived'.