A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

As I'm currently in the PELD computer lab with my students, I do not have access to the document in which I keep many details about my life. I know that my first class at BCIT was during the fall of 1997. I know that I surpassed the ten-year mark last fall. Yet, I do not know how many times I've taught this COMM 0004 course. The length of the course can vary because of the schedule. For example, this intensive one is 84 hours spread out over twenty-one afternoons.

Whatever the total count, I am happy in this current one. The happiness may be due to the fact our midterms are over and we will finish up completely a week from today. Each group of students brings a different dynamic to the classroom. The materials which are taught change over time, but the individuals change in every single class.

In each class, the students' motivation, sense of humour, and academic skills differ. Consequently, these differences affect my own motivation, sense of humour, and teaching performance.

Labels: BCIT, students

Today, I had my COMM 0004 students work on a new task.

I have scheduled our entire four-hour class in our department's special computer lab on Thursdays. The flat-screen monitors fold out of the way and the students are able to work in groups during the majority of the afternoon. We work on the computers for the last hour or so.



Many of their special online assignments found on our course homepage can be completed from home. So, I decided to have the students make voice recordings. They hand them in, so to speak, by copying to an Institute share-in network drive. The first assignment was simply to speak for 90 seconds. They were to describe a particular holiday in their culture. Then, they were to share the special ways they celebrate it. I have copied the files to a different share-out drive, so they may listen to each other's recordings.

I have been teaching the same level for many years at BCIT. However, I amaze even myself by how different the class is each time. I vary the materials but even if I didn't, each group of students has a unique character. I am enjoying the present one a lot.

Labels: BCIT, computer lab, students, technology

It's nearly in the can.

This statement alone must represent some of my thoughts about being an educator. I am one of those instructors who love the process much more than the subject. Teaching communication skills is really a blessing for those like me. I am a true believer learning should be a show, sometimes a dog and pony one. I'd be bored silly if it weren't for the wide berth given to instructors in my department. I'm able to treat a majority of classes as small productions. Nowadays, teaching must complete with diversions in a media-heavy universe.

The days I love the best are when the whole afternoon has felt like something suitable for stage or screen. My current players are getting ready for tomorrow's final examination which is quite traditional and paper-based.

My group this term is composed of just fourteen. They are small and close-knit. This is the type of class which are planning a dinner out after their final exam. Only a small percentage of my classes choose to voluntarily hang out together after it's all officially over!

Labels: BCIT, students

I always feel a little sad at the end of a class. There's a natural bond created during these short, intensive PELD (Professional English Lanugage Development) courses. We're obligated to spend a lot of time together in a relatively short period of time.



Today, we completed the weekend course I've been with since the end of October. I will miss this group. They were clever and memorable. I should be accustomed to these feelings by now but they still catch me by surprise. It shouldn't happen though. I've taught seven intensive courses as well as a few different classes in 2007.

Remind me to take on a bit less next year.

Labels: BCIT, students

Of course, the title may be a little untrue. I always say that about the class I'm currently with. However, I should add that I usually believe it too. Today, my afternoon group met in the library for a one-hour assignment. On the way back to the classroom, we stopped in order to take this class photo.

Labels: BCIT, students

It continues. Last Monday was a holiday, but I worked Tuesday through Friday. I spent the entire day today with another group of students and will do the same tomorrow. Then, it'll be back to the afternoon group on Monday through Thursday and so much correcting! Phew! Thirty contact hours per week is nearly a double load. It's okay, as most all the work wraps up during the first week of December. At that glorious point, I'll be off for more than a month.



I always have my camera with me and I have taken pictures of my current students for use our on courses' web pages. I do remember quite often posting photos of various students I've taught here in the blog. Through the magic of tags though, I realized I never included any of the guys from Dubai Men's College on these pages. These were some students in the Higher Colleges of Technology more than a dozen years ago.

Labels: Dubai, students

My class this afternoon seemed especially long. There was a general lethargy in the room that I tried, fairly unsuccessfully, to alleviate. I joked with the students that perhaps it was time I change careers. I said that my mother had suggested I not be an ESL instructor. I always say she suggested that medicine was better paying and less stressful. Actually, she never said anything of the kind.

In a teacher's repertoire, if I'm any example, there are a number of little lies told so often they've become fact. At least, some have become reality in my own mind. I am fairly positive that I never had a student who was sitting on the back legs of his chair and accidentally fell backwards. Although this may have never really happened, I've become very familiar and fond of the tale. I can almost swear that this poor, imaginary fellow had to be rushed to the hospital for three stitches to the back of his scalp. At minimum, it's a good story to ensure people sit safely in their chairs.

In response to the fanciful thought of doing something else for a living, an especially keen and mature student asked me how long I'd been teaching. I quickly responded that I started in 1981. Quicker yet, he exclaimed, "Twenty six years! I think it's a little too late to change careers." I guess he's right, but there's not much else that I'd really want to do with the possible exception of nothing.

I wonder what this student looks like 26 years after I taught him. I taught him in pre-war Kuwait, so I even wonder where he is.

Labels: Kuwait, students

Jaques:
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages.

As You Like It Act 2, scene 7, 139–143

---

Today I met Dennis the teacher again.

He's been on vacation for three months and overseas for three weeks of that. Furthermore, he hasn't taken on a weekend course for quite a few years. Teaching a seven hour class is really tiring for him and he realizes he's going to do a repeat of the show tomorrow. He enjoyed getting back in front of a classroom though.

It's really funny as I'd forgotten the skills Dennis has and the exciting environment he creates.

Labels: BCIT, students

As well as thinking about our travel plans which start a week from today, we've been interested in following others' exploits. Jay has spent a great deal of phone time catching up on the travel of some family members. His sister, sister-in-law, and nieces visited Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore. It was their first time away from Sri Lanka and therefore exciting for them. Jay's brother is working in NYC. His wife and girls have very recently completed a new house near the family's present house. So all the gals went to meet up with a friend of Jay's brother who now lives and works in Malaysia. He travelled with them for much of the time. It is quite a journey between Bangkok and Singapore on buses. They enjoyed the time and chance to see how other people live.

Cell phones and land lines between NY, New Westminster, and those countries were buzzing following and reporting their progress. In contrast, when I first went to Sri Lanka, in the mid-1980's, phone lines hadn't even yet come to their neighbourhood. Things do change.



This picture was taken last year in Sri Lanka and shows Jay with a neighbour boy, his neices, sister-in-law, and younger sister.

---

On another note, related a bit to communication, I got this email from a student yesterday:

This is Dalyn from one of your previous Comm 0004 courses. I just wanted to thank you for everything, I have been accepted into full time day school for Broadcasting/Televison. I am so exited that I am finally pursuing my dream. The skills I have learned in the two Comm courses have given me great confidence. Keep up the good work, Mr. Hurd!

Dalyn

I immediately sent a reply which thanked him for taking the time. A little gesture, such as this, can make it all seem worthwhile!

Labels: students, telephone, world

I went to the campus today in order to give placement exams. We were in the testing room from 9:30 to noon. First, a colleague and I checked in the potential, new students. We then administered the grammar and writing components. We were able to correct the multiple-choice grammar answers during the testing. It was about noon when the students had finished.

After that, my colleague and I packed all the materials and took them back to the office. Next, I spent about three hours going through 64 writings alone. They will be marked by other staff tomorrow. We use these tests for identifying proper placement into one of the four course levels. Our program used to be known as Pre-Entry Communication but is now called Professional English Language Development.



I am very proud of the fact we are able to be honest in our assessments. One advantage of working in a public institution is that we have no pressure to accept students who aren't ready for our program. In fact, there are times when a quarter, or even one third, of those we test are advised to return after they've had some additional language experience and exposure.

Turning away such large numbers of students is not possible in privately-owned, for-profit, ESL schools. Many of these institutions must accept students, even if those learners do not have the necessary skills for a course. This is one reason I have little faith in private, language schools. In addition, the teachers salaries may be substandard due to the need for strong company earnings. Although students might not be aware that the instructors are not well-paid, everybody easily understands one truly gets what one pays for.

Labels: BCIT, opinions, students

Today, I've got to go into BCIT a little bit earlier than usual. I have to meet with a colleague in order to learn about marking the BCIT Test of Spoken English. It's funny how ideas about a career can often change throughout one's life.

I would venture a guess that the peak years of an employee's productivity are between 28 and 38. Well, I think I'm using myself as an example for this statement. Anything much before that initial age denotes a time where an employee is still finding himself. Anything past the latter indicates a time when an employee should have had the chance to begin straightening out his priorities. By his forties, if all is on track, he should be attempting to have a more balanced existence. Remember, that peak decade doesn't really mean one's work is constructive or will necessarily lead to important results; it simply means one is willing to work too long and hard. Again, I guess I'm talking about myself.

My most basic belief still holds true though. If a person, irrespective of age, is defining himself though his work, he should have his head examined.

Labels: BCIT, feelings, students

For decades, I've been doing school work on my home computer, but only recently have I been doing the reverse. I am logged onto the BCIT network now.

I first bought a $300 Radio Shack TRS-80 in 1980. I don't think that I would've even dreamed there'd be so much hardware on the planet in just two and a half decades. Bill talked about having one of these suckers on every desk, but it's obvious we surpassed that goal. How many personal computers are there per capita in North America? (That's a question I can probably answer in a matter of minutes after I exit www.blogger.com and get to a search engine.)

It is time again for my library exercise. I'm down in the COMPUTER COMMONS. I take every class for an hour-long project in the library on the Burnaby campus. As I generally teach 5-week, intensive courses, I find myself here nearly every month. I do like the atmosphere in libraries.

A few of my Communications students would never set foot in this building were it not for this assignment. At this point in my course, we hit materials that emphasize the use of comparative structures. They are here to observe a location that meets some criteria for successful studying. In this week's assignment, they will compare their notes written here with those from another studying location.

Labels: BCIT, library, students

I really enjoy the additional, new course I teach on Monday and Wednesday evenings. Rather than focusing on writing skills, it emphasises listening and speaking. We get to interact via computers a lot. The time just flies by during the activities. The students seem to have a variety of backgrounds which can always make things interesting too.

If there is a problem, it'd have to be the fact it doesn't get over till 9 pm. Teaching the number of hours isn't hard; it's just diffucult for me to wind down for bedtime. I kept teaching in the dreams of my shallow sleep for most of last night.

When did I lose my take-it-easy, easy-going attitude towards life?

Labels: BCIT, computer lab, students

I'm nearly cross-eyed right now. I've been correcting assignments while my class is taking the final examination. I've also checked and marked the listening comprehension part of today's test. This means I've stared at a lot of paper this afternoon.

Now there's just 25 minutes of class left, so I finally have a chance to look around the room. I will probably not see many of these people again. That seems strange as they have been such a big part of my life for the past five weeks. These intensive courses really do cause a sort of instant bonding. Sixteen hours per week is a lot of time for a college-level course.



What I'm thinking of now has more to do with the combination of personalities in the room rather than the length of time we've had together. Each group takes on its own unique characteristics. The sum really is greater than the whole. As a student, one never really thinks about how much luck is involved in the selection of people who are classmates. I suppose it's basically the same phenomenon in the workplace or, for that matter, life in general.

Labels: BCIT, opinions, students

I rather looked forward to writing something here today. It's now Thursday afternoon. I'm sitting at the teachers' workstation and my students are making use of the comfortable environment in our computer lab. Nevertheless, they are writing midterm examinations with pen and paper.

For at least a decade, I've been waiting for the day when a larger portion of my classes will be via a network. I started teaching Communication classes for ESL students at BCIT ten years ago. From those first classes, I received occasional student work in electronic form. I can remember using class sets of floppy discs. When was the last time I handled one of those? Nowadays, a much larger portion of classroom management occurs online because of myBCIT. They do assignments in specialized message board areas, write email, and share files.

Yet on those dreaded days of midterm and final exams, it all goes back to an exam booklet and a pencil. Will we still be stuck in their weird anachronism in 2017?


This fuzzy scan is one decade old and shows some students
from one of my first classes at BCIT in the autumn of 1997.

Labels: myBCIT, software, students

From my first class at BCIT, I've used MS Excel spreadsheets to track marks. Right from the onset, I knew that making a few cell formulas would be easier than sitting with a calculator at the end of the term. This is because there are a number of marks to calculate. For example, here are the COMM 0004 components:

Weekly Writing Assignments 45%

Midterm Examination 15%

Oral Presentation 10%

Quizzes and myBCIT Message Board 5%

Final Examination 25%.

Although I started at the BC Institute of Technology in the autumn of 1997, the first .xls file I could quickly put my hands on is from September of 1998.

Chang, Chiao-Yun (Joey)
Chiang, Tai Hsien (Lisa)
Cho, Kyung Hoon (Kelvin)
Kang, Hyun Joo (Jeannie)
Kim, Tayleen
Kunitate, Ricaco (Rica)
Lai, Hung-Jui (Jim)
Lau, Pui (Elizabeth)
Lin Jiao (Vivian)
Lin, Yu-Wen (Tina)
Song, Hong Jin (Jin)
Tai, Fang Chi (Debbie)
Wan, Han Tsung (John)
Won, Sat Ching (Carol)
Wong, Tze Ming (Jasmine)
Wu, Yueh His (Brian)
Yen, Tsung Heng (Louis)

I could still check each of their grade components. I wonder where those students are today? I'll include them so if they Google themselves, they can drop me a line!

Labels: lists, myBCIT, software, students

While I was away, I got a very interesting email. This sort of thing simply wouldn't have ever happened in the days before the Internet. We can easily take these changes for granted but they really are extrordinary. Everyday folks are now easily able to influence large numbers of others on the opposite side of the earth.

I dashed off a quick reply thanking the sender for the message. Here's the photo that prompted it.

Dear Mr. Dennis,

I was so excited to see the photos you published on flicker the ones on Kuwait, particularly those of Al-Bayan school.

I am in the second class photo (1981/82 Second Graders 2/3), that's me with short hair wearing pink and white sitting in the center.

The photos have been circulating in Kuwait by email over the past couple of months and everyone who recognizes anyone in the photos gets all excited. Most of my classmates are living successful lives with great careers. Many of them have MBAs from the US or UK. I myself am a journalist working with the Kuwait News Agency.

Seeing those pictures gave me goose bumps and some mixed feelings especially after noticing that three of my classmates have died. Two of them are with you in the picture. One has died in a car accident. One in a diving accident and the other I'm not really sure I think it was health problems. That kind of frightened me.

I remember that corner in the gym so vividly it's as if it was yesterday.

Al-Bayan has grown into a bigger establishment with another school for special needs. Thank you again for bringing back such wonderful memories.

Besma

Labels: Kuwait, students

Although my class ends today, I completed the teaching aspects of the course yesterday. Today, we have a short review, the students complete the course evaluation, and the final examination is written.

I do enjoying seeing the progress possible in a mere 5 weeks. Students can quickly get a real grasp of technical paragraph structures, when the material is well-designed and presented. (I'm patting myself on the back now.)

This week, the oral presentations have been stunning. These students sort of put me to shame with how they deftly utilized PowerPoint. Of the MS Office products it's the app in which I spend the least amount of time. Maybe next term, I will start converting some of my classroom materials.

I enjoy most classes but it'll be bitter sweet saying goodbye to this present crew. As a juxtaposition to yesterday's blog photo, I thought I'd include a picture from a recent time in a BCIT computer lab. Unlike the prior scan, you'll note no human-sized flower paintings on these walls!

Labels: BCIT, students

It's over. Again, all the sweat and hard work has been reduced to a few numbers on a spreadsheet. The final examination was yesterday, and I started crunching the numbers immediately. All the calculations were pretty much completed last night. Still, it must've been on my mind as I awoke very early this morning. I've emailed the results and entered the numbers into the online gradebook.

Now, I've got a whole week before it starts all over again.

Labels: BCIT, students

I think it's important for me to have a presence on the Internet. As well as letting me maintain some resume information, I can express thoughts that I'd never do if it weren't for a blog. One other important benefit of being online is that it allows long-lost acquaintances to find me.

I got a nice message from a former BCIT student yesterday. It included these paragraphs and went on to express personal information and more about the recent difficulties in Indonesia.

---

Hi Dennis, how are you doin? It's been almost 3 years since you taught me.. My name is Guntur Herianto, hopefully you can still remember me.. well if not then maybe you should check your 2003 summer student pics...

I already went back to Indonesia 2 years ago.. here nobody speaks in English, very little people write in English.. That is so sad, in fact I've lost 80% of my capability in speaking and writing skills. I'm working as a Radio DJ at my home town now. The radio called ISTARA FM. You could check the website though if you feel interested.

Well, the reason why I contacted you is simply I miss Canada, I miss Vancouver, I miss Burnaby, I miss BCIT and most of all I miss friends and you...

---

I feel extremely lucky to have my teaching job. Often it's easy to merely focus on one's current situation. I need to remember the big picture. Being able to positively affect people is a frighteningly-powerful gift.

Labels: BCIT, Internet, students

THIS ENTRY WAS WRITTEN YESTERDAY AFTERNOON.

There is no wireless connection available on this side of the campus. That's okay in this case for I will be able to see if MS Word actually works on this Gateway. My time spent in Microsoft Office has been decreasing substantially since my time spent in net applications began increasing. That paradigm shift doesn't bold well for the guys in Richmond, does it?

I have corrected all papers, filled in the Excel grading form, and corrected the listening part of the exam. So, now I can type silently while keeping one eye on the group to check for those who need assistance. I still have enough time to write a paragraph to include as tomorrow's blog entry. I've got my camera in my pocket, so I'll also grab a quick shot to create a lasting impression of this event.



At this particular moment, my students are into the third hour of their exam. As I look around the room, I can see they are intensely focused on their tasks. It is simply amazing how much energy can be consumed when working on a written exam. I have been able to produce something that occupies the complete attention of twenty-two students over this extended period of time. I have often thought about how my position as an instructor allows me to grab a commanding mind-slice of the students.

This idea meshes well with a previously-held theory I had. In an attempt to justify the salaries of actors or sports celebrities, I reckoned the substantial amount of money they get is due to the fact they're getting a mind-slice of a majority of the culture. I reasoned that the astronomical pay was related to the sheer number of skulls these people invade when doing 'their thing'. After that, due to the activities of self-serving politicians, I broadened my concept to include power as well as money. The ability to mess-up other people's lives is, perhaps, the truest indication of power.

I may have the near total mind-slice of the group sitting in front of me, but there are a fairly small number of them. (Although I will wish there were fewer when having to correct these exams.) I'd say that although nearly total, I'm only cashing in on the mind-slice of a few. This must be what leads to my less-than-stellar paycheck and lack of tangible power.

Labels: opinions, students

Yesterday, I corrected final examinations. I also looked over the confidential message board area. This helped me to gage the students' ability in writing short answers. After my Excel spreadsheet was completely filled in, I entered the data in the BCIT online gradebook. The students will be able to see their own marks and then will read my email sent to their BCIT email account. I was thinking how quickly technology has been adapted for use in higher education. Only a few years ago everything was done on paper.

I can contrast this to the situation I encountered at my doctor's office yesterday. I needed to renew a prescription. Surprisingly, my doctor had moved to a new office. Somehow, I wasn't informed until I tried to make an appointment at the old number. The nurses did find my paper file in the mountain of them on the shelves. Certainly my medical practitioner hasn't got my email address. How archaic the office seems. Everything is still done on forms. The doctor's scribbling exists only in a file folder whereas, I'd like to see my complete medical file via the Internet. Hell, I don't see why the whole process of getting a prescription couldn't have taken place via the Internet.

In this age of increasing electronic efficiency, why are medical practices so out of date? Or is it just that my particular doctor is behind the times?

Labels: BCIT, Internet, students

I begin teaching again on Monday, so I have been looking through directories on my PC for student handouts. Amazingly, I now find documents that I have used at BCIT for over eight years! Where does the time go? I'll take some blog space, by highlighting and pasting something under the photo below.



BRAINSTORMING PRACTICE
At your table you will be brainstorming today. Brainstorming is a process where the individuals in the group contribute ideas to a specific goal. The responses are quick and wide-ranging. There are neither ‘right’ nor ‘wrong’ ideas when brainstorming. The idea is to create as large a list as possible with a variety of contributions.

In a box in your notebook, as a group write down words related to your airport visit the first time you arrived in Vancouver. Write down feelings, things, colours, and actions. Do you try to organise your words at first. Be quick and try to create a very big list.

After your group has created its list, try to organize the words into three separate categories. Circle one category, draw a triangle around the next set, and place a rectangular box around the final group. Some words won’t fit anywhere but that’s okay.

Do you see how this practice would help to make writing about your initial arrival at YVR very easy? A major part of our course is learning pre-writing strategies. These can help you write in an organized, easy-to-follow manner.

Labels: BCIT, students

Just like yesterday, I get an opportunity to hear 8-10 minute oral presentations today. When I teach COMM 0004, I have my class research a real business in the Vancouver area and present their findings. They must use primary research by creating questions and arranging for an interview. They`re encouraged to pick up brochures and other written materials too.

The preparation includes formulating an introduction, organizing the speech, producing useful transparencies, and pulling all the discussed points together with a meaningful summary. The usefulness of this work crosses all language skills and proves useful when planning good technical writing.

I am seldom disappointed with the results. There are always many new and interesting presentations. I'm lucky to have a job where I get paid to learn new things!

Labels: BCIT, students

I've been teaching at BCIT since 1997. I guess that makes this the longest time that I've taught at a single institution. I stay because of the quality of the students who come into our program. I am always amazed by their hard work. I'm equally surprised by how much progress they are able to make in the short, intensive classes.


We always work in groups.

Labels: BCIT, students

I've been away long enough, so I'm ready to get back in the classroom. I am not exactly sure when I'll hear about the class loading. There is a special meeting this Thursday, and I should have a better idea then. It's possible that I might do an Intensive course. This type of class meets for five weekends on Saturdays and Sundays from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. It would begin this weekend! These classes are generally a struggle as a majority of the students work full-time; however, there is a great deal of satisfaction when we successfully cover the materials.

I have never considered getting into educational management. Unfortunately that's the expected path for the brave and the brightest. I understand, however, that my strengths are best utilized in the classroom. That is really where I enjoy staying put. I absolutely detest office politics and everything that goes along with it. I would take no delight in shuffling papers nor the stress of dealing with those of my ilk.

Labels: feelings, students

I like to create tasks for myself. I've been madly uploading photo files. As I'll be away for a majority of the month, I wanted to get a good number online. I'm pleased to have over 500 available at present. As well as making available lots of digital photos from the past three and a half years, I have even been leisurely scanning some older images.



I went to Kuwait for my very first teaching job. The Al-Bayan School was in temporary facilities in the years 1981 to 1983. Here are some students at recess time. The kids in this picture would be around 30 years old nowadays but were only half that age during the 1990 Gulf War.

Labels: Kuwait, students

We are finally nearing the end of our course.



Today, each student will give a 8 to 10 minute oral presentation. They've been researching a Vancouver business where they have personally spent money. Then, the course summary and final examinations will take place tomorrow!

Labels: BCIT, students

It's been a long time in coming. My class has been studying 7 hours each Saturday and Sunday for the last six weeks! Today, it will all come to an end. We have a bit of review, course evaluations, and our final examinations. We'll finish up in the computer lab. It is hard day for them but easy for me. After they hand in all the papers, then MY hard work begins.


This was during a break in the SE 41 courtyard.
It was taken a bit earlier in the BCIT term.

Labels: BCIT, students

Showcasing a class photo on my eJournal and images has become quite standard fare by now.



This one was taken at about 4:00 pm yesterday afternoon. We waited for the sun to come out then went outside to the common area near the buildings at the south-east corner of the Burnaby Campus. We smiled patiently while an onlooker snapped our photo. This was the very first time I`ve been involved in BCIT picture taking on a Sunday though. An eighty-four hour course over six consecutive weekends is surely a demonstration of fortitude!

Here are other pages with photos of previous Intensive COMM 0003 courses: December 2003 - February 2004 - March 2004 - November 2004 .

Labels: BCIT, students

Another 14-hour weekend has ended. I teach nineteen, hard-working students on Saturdays and Sundays. They are taking COMM 0003 as means to eventually gain the English prerequisite for entry into regular, BCIT programs. I have a lot of respect for these people many of whom work full-time and have family obligations as well.

Labels: BCIT, students

This picture contained a bit too much information to fit on this page, but you can click the thumbnail version to open up a larger one.

I worked in Kuwait right out of college. After finishing, I went to Seattle to do some graduate work. I took TESL and Linguistic courses which would have led to a Masters Degree. I never did complete my program as I left for overseas work in Taif, Saudi Arabia.

While at the University of Washington, I also taught part-time at an Islamic School. So, this is a 20-year old, scanned, class photograph. I wonder what they're doing nowadays.

Labels: Seattle, students

Except for tomorrows's final examination, we've completed the course.

Labels: BCIT, students

A Saturday eJournal entry ends up at the top of a page in the weekly archives. So, this is a good place to put another photo with previous students.



These guys were in the Bahrain Defense Force. I taught as part of a package deal for kickback training funds when Bahrain bought F16 fighters from General Dynamics. The photo was in a classroom at the Muharraq Air Force Base. It was taken in 1990.

Labels: Bahrain, file archives, students

I had not intended to plug in the scanner two evenings in a row. If you scroll down a bit, you'll discover that in Wednesday's entry, I included a rather stuffy image of a class I taught at the Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) School in Dammam.

In that previous blog entry, I stated that I'd selected a class from 1988 rather than my first year of teaching in 1981/82. That was as good as a self-challenge! Saying something like that, virtually ensured I would need to run back to my photo suitcase.



It was with great pleasure that I found this. It was taken at the Al-Bayan Bilingual School in a temporary set of buildings in Safat, Kuwait. The kids were Grade 2 pupils when the shutter clicked in 1982. This would make them a bit more than 30 years old today!

So much has gone on in that country that I have absolutely no idea about any of them. Their whereabouts and current situations are completely unknown to me. Yet, I do get lots of world-wide visitors from search engines. It's possible that someone connected with that place and time will email to fill me in on a few details. That'd be nice.

Labels: Kuwait, students

Today, I'll administer a midterm exam to my current ESL class. As close as I can calculate, this is the twenty-fourth time I've done this at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. I taught my first Burnaby course in the autumn of 1997.

That seems like a lot but it's more frightening for me to think how many students I've taught over the past two-dozen years!

I ran to find a photo of a past class. Rather than going all the way back to 1981, I found one that was taken toward the other end of that decade. The class picture below was taken in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. The group of thirteen students were in the Royal Saudi Naval Forces in 1988.

I spent a year there before heading for a job across the causeway in Bahrain.

Labels: Saudi Arabia, students

Yesterday was an unusual Wednesday. Normally, our morning schedule includes computer lab during the first hour of the 3-hour class. That's when this picture was taken.



This image, however, does not show that we studied for three hours in the afternoon too. I sent an email thanking them for their good work. We met twice in order to make up for time when the BCIT campus was closed. Last week, the support staff were on strike. Actually, the same situation exists today, but my class doesn't meet. Things are due to return to normal on Friday.

Labels: BCIT, students

A student assignment which will reside on the Internet is worthy of extra attention. At least that is the idea which I tried to stress. You are invited to see the results of my theory by clicking on the copy of the screenshot to the right. The instructions are also provided below to give you a better idea of the required work.

BACKGROUND

The Internet and the World Wide Web offer the opportunity to publish information for a global audience. Whatever text is on your final word processing file will be directly entered on the site. I will not fix any errors, so be sure that the writing is fit for the world to see!

ASSIGNMENT

We will take individual student photos. You are to write personal text to accompany the photographs. It must be written in a style which demonstrates appropriate skills taught during COMM 004 and should be representative of best quality work for each student. This term you must include a graphic which is appropriate and informational. This assignment is due on Monday, August 9, 2004.

1) You may write your rough draft on regular paper or print it and bring it in to be checked during our class breaks in prior weeks.

2) This final copy of this assignment is to be handed in on a removable, computer diskette. If you need to borrow a spare diskette, then please contact me in advance.

MARKING FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT

Is approximately 250 to 400 words

Includes linking words, and ‘fluent’ sentence constructions.

Contains clear introductory sentences and paragraph structures.

Has easy-to-see, overall organization

Presents personal views and interesting ideas.

Includes a type of graphic learned in COMM 004.

Labels: Internet, students

Posted by: Dennis S Hurd / 7:14 AM 0 comments

Did you notice in the title that there's LIGHT at the end of the tunnel?

Oral presentations are over. Eleven of twelve writing assignments have been passed in. Thirteen weeks of class are behind us. The week that's coming will be the final one for our COMM 0004 class at BCIT. I think everybody involved will be happy after the final examination is written on Friday, August 13th.

Labels: BCIT, students

This is the fifth and final week of our class. We met on Mondays through Thursdays. This is an intensive, 84-hour course, so we need to meet on one Friday. That is today and it's the final examination!

Labels: students

I have taken students into computer labs since the days when PC's had just 640K of RAM. I still schedule an hour of lab time every week. I tend to encourage students to use computers as more of a research and work tool than for computer-assisted instruction.

Doing useful things in the lab is easy because of the Internet and a tool offered at BCIT. I frequently make use of myBCIT, a web portal for the Institute. As soon as a student registers in class, he / she is provided with access to the portal and an accompanying email address. Most school paperwork and documentation can be provided though an electronic pipeline. When logging on, students are presented with their class lists and an accompanying work area for each class.

I have easy means to add links, supervise a class message board, initiate an online chat, add to our course calendar, or email the entire group in one step. That is a whole lot easier than when I needed to collect email addresses during the first scheduled class! Computers greatly impact our private lives, so it should not be considered unusual that they affect how we teach and learn.

Labels: computer lab, Internet, myBCIT, software, students

Today, at the Burnaby Campus, we'll write the final examination
for our COMM 0003 Course.

Labels: BCIT, students

I taught this summer, so vacation time came a bit late for me this year. I'll include a picture of the class that finished in August. I start with brand-new students this afternoon.

Labels: BCIT, students