Review on course

I found this course very intensive but useful. I have picked up points on writing, interviewing and presentation skills, as expected of me :), as well as enjoyed the lesson activities. As a language module, I think the intensity was to be expected, no matter what others might think of it, and it definitely was too much for me this semester. I am taking 6 modules, 26mc, and when there are 3-4 lab reports every week to do, I found I did not have time for the required readings towards the middle of the semester. Fortunately, it turned out to be not as bad.

In parallel to classroom work, I also went for an interview for the TIP, and that real experience actually enlightened me much on what "preparing" for the interview should be - immersing yourself into the industry, learning about the latest developments, and gathering your thoughts about these developments, as well as why you want to be in the (teaching) industry. I was sure I could have performed better at the interview if I had prepared. Still, I got the internship :) somehow. I'm not sure if it was because of my niche teaching subject (Home Economics); the interviewer expressed great interest in my FST major. That might be another take-away: having a niche gives you an advantage over others. This was the same for another interviewee - he was interested in teaching Japanese language, and the interviewer was super-enthusiastic about it, because third-language interns are super-rare. She offered to arrange for him to intern at the MOE language centre if it was permissible there.

Outside of classroom work, there was the blogging we need to do. I definitely did not like the idea of blogging as part of the module, although this module is not the only one who uses blogging as a tool for learning (whatever the module planners think we can really learn from blogging). Perhaps for people who are already bloggers (a subcommunity among internet users, mind you), this means of learning would come across more naturally to them, because they would find it fun and all, but not for me. Or maybe I'm just taking this too seriously. In case you wonder, while I have facebook, I don't use it :). And of course, you can say it is just another platform, similar to writing on paper (but the feel is different).

It was fun nonetheless. I would definitely recommend this course to my friends :).