Task 1: Self introduction

Please answer the following questions for your first entry:

1. Please introduce yourself.
My name is Siti Hasmah M.Zainuddin. I am originally from Kuala Lumpur. However in 2001, we moved to Muar, Johor. I was born on 4th September 1987. I was the only child in my family. Therefore, I would consider myself lucky because I receive complete love and attention by both of my parents. I did my Pre-degree in Uitm Lendu for an about one and a half years there. That was the best moment in my life because the learning atmosphere and vibes there was full of positiveness ^ ^

2. How would you rate yourself in terms of your computer skills and why? (e.g. expert, novice, savvy, geek, illiterate etc)
I would consider myself as savvy as I'm able to operate some of the software successfully.

3. What computer software and hardware knowledge do you have?
Microsoft office, a little bit of Photoshop and Microsoft picture manager and Adobe.

4. Have you experienced learning via the computer (online, etc)?
Yes, in part 5 for Curriculum and Instruction (CNI) subject and in part 6 for Research Writing which we had to make use of the i-Learn/i-Class Portal which based on the Uitm website.

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)?
Yes, I did incorporate the usage of technology in most of my lessons during my practicum especially when I'm teaching grammar and literature. Nowadays, we can easily search for websites that contains pictures/images,audio visual and video clips of certain topics which are closely related to our lesson. For examples, for a beginner class I will try to find pictures/images or video clips which contain appropriate example or explanation that will give the students a better view and understanding towards the lesson and indirectly attract students' attention. In my opinion, technology is the best way to provide the students with the knowledge they need as their attention span becomes limited and the traditional teaching method of chalk and talk is not suitable anymore. However, there is disadvantage of using technology in the lesson is the teacher will have to deal with the viruses or the software that is not suitable to the computer programmes.

6. What is your opinion on the use of computer/technology in language teaching?
As I have mentioned before, based on my experience as a trainee teacher in Chung Hwa School,Klang. The students were quite amazed with me when I incorporated power point and video clips in my lesson. The students seemed thrill and excited, they couldn't wait for the next lesson. Therefore, the usage of computer and technology in language teaching were a big helped for teachers to get the students' attention. Furthermore, various activities can be done by using the technology such as the teacher can assigned the students to find the meaning of words via goggle search, ask the students to search for extra information based on title given by the teacher etc. Therefore, the students will try to complete the task and indirectly learn the language while searching for the information and indirectly expand their knowledge and skill in using the technology.

7. What are your expectations from this course?
My expectations towards this course are that I will be able to expand my knowledge, skill and creativity incorporating with the World Wide Web.