Farah's Entry on Reflection for Nov 12, 2010

Demo group: G+H for session 9 by Art student teachers

Angela, Arfah, Cheryl and Miin does art using comic life: http://comiclife.com/

Comic Life is a software for windows and Mac platforms. It incorporates images in frames and writing in speech bubbles: allows creating realistic comic strips. This encourages self-expression good for teenagers who are generally known to have identity crisis.
This software is like paint software.
Needs a considerable amount of requirements: Students need to have an account in Comic Life, Students need to be expressive as well as creative in making a story, Teacher needs to demonstrate the software on how to use the features although it is quite similar to the Paint software and teachers should keep on the look-out for the content which the students have inserted.
This software promotes self-directed learning because the exploration of Comic Life is mainly done by the students. Tapping prior knowledge is also done here where students are able to take photos and possibly be a moderate IT-savvy. For real-world context, students are able to have experiences in being a comic artist.


Weiqiang, Fifah, Jessica and Joseph does art using secondlife as an immerse learning environment http://secondlife.com/

They create lessons: problem based learning through making virtual trips to museums in Second Life. The activity will be based on groups and each group will go round the virtual museum together. This allows collaboration between members in a group. They could exchange ideas, correct each other’s opinions and share experiences during the tour. Second life helps to encourage learning dimension of real life context. As visiting to each museums located globally required more time, costs and the assurance of students safety is maintained, second life helps to secure these three issues.


Lecture on Second Life: Students gets to travel and play different roles. For second life, it is required to have an account, needs considerable time to learn how to walk/fly/ teleporting in the second life. When teachers used second life, they could create a global classroom and safe environment for role-playing: adult and teen. For adults to enter the teen world, necessary interrogation will be done 1st before permitted. Behind every avatar is created by somebody. Second Life is a simulation of real life. There are no levels, quests or goals which could not practice the students to be competitive or discipline. Second Life allows experience for the students. What one can do in real life, it can be done in second life. But, it is not vice-versa. So, in second life students are allowed to expand their creativity where the real world could not. There is also business transaction going on in second life. Currency for second life is Linden dollar. This would mean money wastage when unnecessary things are bought in second world. For students using second life, it needs to be monitored.