When you are developing some sort of slideshows such as Articulate or Captivate presentations with voice-over and you want it to be more formal but you still want to keep it conversational and easy listening, there are some ways to prepare the scripts that like. For example, you can:

• have an instructional design to work with the subject matter expert to draft out the scripts according to the learning objectives and the actual information on the slide;
• let other people to review the scripts;
• or even hire a professional writer to revise the scripts…

But I find a way to improve the scripts even faster: let the subject matter experts read out loud and document the changes they make naturally! Here are some real life examples:

Original written version: … common complex genetic disorders are common disorders occurring in the population that tend to “run in families” which is the first  line of evidence that these disorders may have genetic factors contributing to their etiology. Despite an increased risk of disease in the relatives of those affected, there is no clear pattern of inheritance implying that these disorders are not controlled by single gene or oligogenic (few genes) disorders…

Read out loud version:… common complex genetic disorders are common disorders occurring in the population that tend to “run in families” which is the first  line of evidence that these disorders may have genetic factors contributing to their etiology. Despite the fact that these disorders run in families, there is no clear pattern of inheritance implying that these disorders are not controlled by single gene…

Original written version:… it is more difficult to think about heritability of a binary – yes affected, no not affected – disease trait. To estimate heritability we assume that there is an unobserved liability to disease…

Read out loud version:… it is more difficult to think about heritability of a binary disease trait. By binary, I mean that we classify as being yes affected or no not affected. To estimate heritability we assume that there is an unobserved liability to disease…

Original written version:… to estimate heritability we assume that there is an unobserved liability to disease. For example, the medical condition hypertension is given to people with high blood pressure…

Read out loud version:… to estimate heritability we assume that there is an unobserved liability to disease. Let me try to explain what I mean by liability. For example, the medical condition hypertension is given to people with high blood pressure…

Original written version:… it seems reasonable to assume a normal distribution, because experience tells us that most things we measure have a normal distribution, and a normal distribution – with key features of being uni-modal and symmetric – is consistent with multiple underlying risk factors…

Read out loud version: … it seems reasonable to assume a normal distribution, because experience tells us that most things we measure do have a normal distribution, and a normal distribution. And the key feature of this distribution is uni-modal and symmetric. And this is consistent with many underlying risk factors…

Original written version: … just to be clear the analogy isn’t saying that schizophrenia and height have genetic risk variants in common…

Read out loud version: … just to be clear the analogy isn’t saying that schizophrenia and height have the same genetic risk factors…

You may have noticed that the text in red in the original written version has been naturally changed to be of a more conversational style when it is spoken out by the subject matter experts. They tend to modify the text when they are trying to convey the meaning of the content. They are different from voice-over artists because they know more about the subject matter and can easily pick up the right language to articulate in the natural way.

So do you think the text in blue is more learner friendly than that in red? I’d like to hear your opinion.

If you are designing a training program and the assessment is an essential part of it, here are 10 questions to help you develop a clear idea about best possible assessment solution:

1. How much time have you got to deliver the training and assessment?
2. Are there special requirements needed in the assessment venue to assess the learners?
3. Do you need to keep accurate records of the training and assessment?
4. Does the client have specific requirements?
5. Does the assessment need to meet legislative requirements?
6. Does the assessment need to reflect specific industry or workplace culture?
7. Are any of the learners shift works which can impact on their ability to attend the assessment component of the training program?
8. Does the training program need to fit into an existing schedule for employees?
9. Do you need access to other staff members?
10. Do any of the learners have special needs? For example, learners from non-English speaking backgrounds, learners with a disability, learners in a wheelchair, learners with a Guide Dog, learners with medical conditions etc.

Based on the above considerations, we then can choose one or a combination of the following assessment methods:

1. Simulated or work based activities: learners can be observed while they complete tasks in a work based or simulated working environment
2. Structured activities: this includes demonstration of competence and activity sheets or comprehensive exams
3. Questioning techniques: verbal or written assessments
4. Portfolios: collections of evidence or third party reports collated and presented by the candidate
5. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) or Recognition of Current Competencies (RCC): historical evidence, transcripts, proof of demonstrated experience that demonstrates proof of prior learning

I will be presenting a self-paced online CPD program I recently developed in the MEDFAC E-Learning Showcase 2011. In my ten minute presentation, I will talk about:

• The background of the CCRE Anxiety Education Project
• The design methods, including how to work with a large SME team of 23 members to design peer-reviewed course content under the same framework
• The development process, using Articulate Studio, Text Aloud, Moodle, Adobe CS5, etc.
• The main features of the e-learning program including screenshots and a quick live pre-view of the actual program
• The future directions, including how to improve the process of CPD program development on a continuing basis

If you are interested in medical-related e-learning projects, you are welcome to attend this free event at New Law 026, University of Sydney, Camperdown Campus, at 12:30 on the 23rd of November 2011. This free event will be showcasing e-learning (broadly defined to include LMSs, multimedia, use of social media etc.) within Sydney Medical School – not just innovations but also work in progress, planned etc. The topics will include:

• Introducing LMS skills: a staged approach
• Using Adobe Connect for research consultations and troubleshooting
• Compass: Sydney Medical Program LMS
• Integrating e-portfolios, Blackboard and Compass
• E-learning modules for physiotherapists and junior clinicians for international (resource-poor) and local settings
• Internationalising your online course
• Using the i-pad to create dynamic lecture materials
• E-learning in Opthalmology using Ocean Browser
• Online OSCARS in Dentistry
• A self-paced program in psychiatry using Moodle and Articulate
• Using social media and webinars in student recruitment
• Computer‐based support for psychiatry
• Teaching/Learning Evidence Based Practice WITHOUT – PowerPoint, Quarbon, ‘Clickers’ and Blackboard
• E-learning strategic projects
• Mobile learning
• Researching e-learning in the Faculty

The full program can be downloaded here.

When we design a new training program, we should always conduct a learner analysis. A trainer should always ask the following questions in order to be able to understand their learner group:

1. What is the current skill level of the group?
2. Are the target group of learners currently working in paid employment or voluntary employment?
3. Are they graduates?
4. What is their level and previous experience in formal education?
5. Are there any similarities between the learners?
6. What is their socio-economic background?
7. hat is their motivation for being on the training program?
8. What are their language, literacy and numeracy needs?
9. Are they highly specialised (i.e., will they get bored if the training provided to them is too basic?)
10. What are their learning preferences?

Why is it important to ask the above ten questions? That is because target learners can vary significantly. They can be school leavers or learners new to training, international students, unemployed learners, learners who want to upgrade their skills, learners who want to change jobs, apprentices, trainees, learners who need to meet licensing requirements, learners with a disability, learners from Indigenous backgrounds, existing employees, and so on. The more a trainer can learn about their learner groups, the easier it will be to develop and source training and assessment applications specific to the group.

On the other hand, if you are looking for someone who provides tailored training service, do ask them if they do this kind of analysis and how they make use of the information coming out of the answers to the above questions. This would help you predict the training quality.

很多游客来到悉尼，会选择到高达300多米的悉尼塔上，观看悉尼的全景。你可以选择支付二十多澳币的门票直接到观光台站着看风景，或者选择五十多到九十多澳币不等的自助餐或者西式套餐（免电梯费），坐下来慢慢欣赏美景，同时享受美食。我刚到悉尼的时候，试过到观光台去。观光台是拥挤的，是站着看的，是不舒服的，也拍不了好照片。因此，后来当我爸妈第一次来悉尼的时候，那是2010年初，我选择了到悉尼塔上去吃自助餐，并且有意选择了傍晚6点到8点这个时段（自助餐有两小时限制）。为什么呢？因为这样可以看到白天的景色，又可以看到晚上的景色。

悉尼塔自助餐（6:00pm）

悉尼塔自助餐（6:30pm）

悉尼塔自助餐（7:30pm）

悉尼塔自助餐（8:00pm）

2010年8月，我们到上海去观世博，也吸取之前的经验，到了东方明珠塔的时候，就直接买了200元一位的自助午餐门票直接沿着一个VIP通道（不需要排队）乘坐食客专用电梯，达到最高层的旋转餐厅。不过，与悉尼塔的旋转餐厅相比，东方明珠塔的显得稍逊一筹。

首先，东方明珠塔的餐厅的玻璃，是带有颜色的。我不知道这是不是为了营造一个更好的用餐氛围（不怕太阳晒），但这明显削弱了其让人慢慢欣赏美景的功能。

东方明珠塔自助餐（透过紫红色玻璃看窗外）

其次，自助餐的食物也没有达到高档自助餐的水准，菜式比较一般，其官方网站也没有列出详细菜单；而悉尼塔的自助餐官方网站则列出了详细的菜单，其中包括鱼、虾、蚝、羊等品种，以不同的风味做出来。最要命的是，我问东方明珠塔自助餐的服务员要一把餐刀时，她说他们不提供刀，勺子和叉子已经足够了。因此，面对眼前的大块大块的肉、蔬菜、包子，你只能用叉子把它挑起来，塞到嘴里去，用牙齿把它们“切”成小块…… 口渴了？对不起，那里也不提供茶水，只能买瓶20元的矿泉水。而悉尼塔自助餐则提供免费的冰水，当然，其他的饮料是另算的，有价目表。但那里的饮料的价格，是和外面普通的咖啡厅和酒吧的差不多的，并没有刻意对游客提价。

东方明珠塔自助餐（紫红色玻璃、无餐刀、无茶水）

因此，那次我们在东方明珠塔里的自助餐经历，并不十分愉快，除上塔速度较快以外。我们是因为吃饭而得到优待的；如果你不吃饭，在下面排队等一小时吧！

饭后，我们到楼下的观光台去看看，其玻璃是很长时间没有擦过了，或者说外面确实灰尘太大了，因此看到的景色不是十分清晰。我妈看到有个望远镜，好奇地往里面一看，咦？怎么看到一堵墙？哦！原来是对面的环球金融中心！后来我们才知道，原来东方明珠塔不是上海最高的建筑物，环球金融中心才是，它在2008年已经落成。环球金融中心也有观光台和餐厅。它还有目前世界上最高的酒店——上海柏悦酒店，它坐落于环球金融中心的79-93楼。

东方明珠塔主观光层

东方明珠塔主观光层的望远镜

从东方明珠塔上看上海环球金融中心

于是，我明白了一个道理——与其到旅游景点那里匆匆忙忙地观光和吃饭，倒不如到位于高层建筑物上的酒店去住一晚，以更好地欣赏大城市的美景。当然，这种选择，是不可能360度旋转的了。

那么，上个月，几位亲戚来悉尼玩的时候，我就推荐一起住在悉尼市中心的世界塔上的五星级公寓式酒店——Meriton Serviced Apartments World Tower, Sydney。我们当时选择了两房一厅的户型，三百左右澳币，平均下来每人约75澳币；住客在悉尼塔内停车则30澳币一晚。这个价格是绝对的超值，性价比非常高。要知道，在悉尼市中心里的普通四星级酒店的一个房，也得两百澳币左右一晚（我们四个人要两间房的话就要四百澳币左右，平均每人100澳币左右）；而且，在悉尼市中心里的带遮盖的停车场里停车，一般来说怎么也得二三十澳元一小时。

悉尼世界塔上的酒店从62层起，我们当时住在七十多层，窗外可以看到达令港。黄昏和晚上的景色最美，还能看到远处的飞机在房间的落地玻璃中央飞过，感觉房间就处在与那些飞机飞行的高度一样。美景需要配美食。由于该酒店公寓配备了一个设施齐全的厨房，包括烤箱、微波炉、洗碗机、各种刀具和餐具等，于是我们那天晚上在悉尼歌剧院看完一场交响乐回来之后，就在世界塔楼下的Coles超市买了一些材料回来做夜宵，边品尝美食，边欣赏悉尼的城市夜景。

悉尼世界塔Meriton服务公寓窗外景色（白天）

悉尼世界塔Meriton服务公寓（黄昏）

悉尼世界塔Meriton服务公寓窗外景色（晚上）

总的来说，到了一个大城市，与其到作为旅游景点的观光塔去，倒不如到它附近的高层建筑物上的酒店去住一晚，那样就可以非常舒服地休闲地欣赏不同时段的城市美景了。若有机会再到上海的话，也许可以尝试上海柏悦酒店。

从悉尼市南部沿着Lawrence Hargrave Drive往卧龙岗市方向走，会经过一段非常壮观的海上悬崖大桥。该大桥位于新州的伊拉瓦拉区域的北部，连接Coalcliff 和Clifton两个小镇，拥有双向机动车道、单车道、以及人行道。不少人经过这里，都有感于如此浩瀚的海景而停车观赏，我也不例外。就在桥的旁边就有一个小的停车场，徒步走在大桥上，感觉自己是多么的渺小。但这里的景致并不仅仅如此，这桥还是一条浪漫之桥。多少情侣和夫妇在周年纪念日当天，来到这里，往桥上的栏杆扣上一把锁，把它锁上，再把钥匙扔到海里去。锁上刻着他们的名字、周年、以及日期，表示他们的爱情又达到一个里程碑，并继续延续下去！走在桥上，阅读着众多的锁上的文字，想象着当时前来上锁的人们，就好像读着一段段感人的故事一样……

上个月，我拿了2周的年假，与家人一起去渡假。临放假之前，我交代一位日常负责行政管理的同事帮忙给我办公室里的花草浇水，因为她有每个人的办公室的钥匙。她问具体要求是什么，我就说大概两天浇一次就可以了。 渡假完毕回来上班的那天早上，我在办公室里发现一张小纸片。它让我十分感动，也让我对那位同事留下了非常良好的印象。帮忙浇花的这么一件小事，她可以管得非常妥当。 在那纸片上，她预先列出了每一次浇花的具体日期，每次她进我办公室浇花完毕后，就在相应的日期上打个勾。其中有一天本来是需要浇花的，是星期四（9月8日），但那天她请病假了，于是当她星期五（9月9日）回来的时候就把日期改了，马上补浇。 就是这么一件小事，它能透露出行政管理中的三个重要事项：

第一，有任务，但没有具体要求，就要把具体要求搞清楚，再行动；

第二，执行任务时，要有计划，有安排，有提醒，有监控，有记录；

第三，出现问题时，要灵活处理，尽可能作补救，努力继续按原计划执行任务。

做到这三点，进一步来说，还能意味着什么呢？——假如虽然按照要求浇花了，但是花死了，那么责任就不在于执行者身上，而在于决策者。这果然是拥有多年行政管理经验的人员的行事作风！与这样的同事一起工作，办事起来，我会感到很放心。 我们在日常的工作上和生活上做的各种小事都在给别人一种什么印象呢？这个小故事，值得大家借鉴！在此附上那张小纸片：

My relatives visited me last month and we had a 7 day self-drive tour to various tourist attractions in Sydney and surroundings. The itinerary covers a range of themes such as Sydney CBD, art, farm stay, beach, lake, dolphin watching, kayaking, culture and history, forest, falls, mountains, local animals, spring festival, markets, lavender farm, etc. We went through Sydney, to Wollongong and Illawarra area, to Blue Mountains, and headed north to Central Coast, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, and Port Stephen. In terms of accommodation, we had a combination of 4 and 5 star hotels and resorts as well as farm houses. We used some group buying vouchers so we saved a lot of money with the deals. These included 2 nights at Wollongong Surf Leisure Resort and 2 nights at Mercure Lake Macquarie Raffertys Resort. Now I would like to share with you the itinerary. It should be suitable for those who visit Sydney the first time and would like a tour to see and experience different things within a short time. You can adapt it and make it suit your needs.

I have been enjoying a group buying lifestyle for a while. It is not just about the discount I got from the deals; it is also an opportunity for me to explore what good things life has to offer, which I would not have discovered if those group buying sites did not exist, especially in a new city that I just settled in.

However, as this new business model is booming, you need to be careful. Like when you walk into a shopping mall, you find a lot of signs indicating a sales in store. You may not believe it until you work out the actual price and estimate whether the price is below the amount the product is normally sold for. Similarly, don’t just look at how much the deal claims that you are going to save. Go back to the original website of the product/service, and compare the prices. If you are worrying they can even change the “original price” on their website, do a search of have a look at the similar products/services and find out their prices. Then you will have a better idea whether you will buy the advertised product/service at the advertised price, no matter it is a discounted price or a normal price. It is the price you are going to pay!

Have a look at the following example:

LivingSocial is advertising a getaway deal where they claim the original price is $414 and they are offering a deal for $195 only.

However, when I went to the official website of La Maison Boutique Hotel and navigated to the tariff, I found that the original price for a two night mid week stay in a Deluxe Queen room is not $414. Instead, it should be $220 ($110 per night).

OK, with LivingSocial, you pay $195 instead of $220 for the same services. Is there any discount? Yes, it sounds good. But, you will not think this is a great deal with a huge discount.

If you think you are getting a great deal because the original price is $414 and you have got 53% savings, then YOU ARE GETTING RIPPED OFF!

So, what is the strategy you should consider to use? Look at the advertised price but don’t look at the so-called original price, read the details of the deal, close your eyes, and think if you should buy the service/produce for the advertised price. If you decide to buy it, go ahead; if not, close the website, but don’t look at the original price and try to convince yourself you should buy it because you are getting a great discount! Otherwise, you are actually getting ripped off! Good luck!

由于在海外生活，我对于国内正在发生的事情了解得也不是十分多，比如我很晚才知道《建党伟业》这部电影。

前段时间，在Quickflix上租了备受争议的《色戒》DVD看。看后感觉汤唯演王佳芝这角色非常成功，也很欣赏这位演员，于是在网上搜索一下汤唯的名字，后发现她在《建党伟业》的戏份被删了，于是才知道了有《建党伟业》这部电影。

最近到悉尼的电影院里看3D功夫熊猫，购票的时候看到液晶显示屏上有一个电影名为“Jian Dang Wei Y”，感觉有点莫名其妙。我相信应该是一部中国电影，并且其名字过长，液晶屏上显示不全，但没反应过来那就是《建党伟业》。在电影院里环视一周，也没有看到Jian Dang Wei Y的宣传海报。后来上了电影院的网站一查，才知道那就是《建党伟业》，英文名为Beginning of the Great Revival。 我在高中的时候已经入党，在中国念本科的时候，我也算是一名比较活跃的党员，参与了党组织里的一些工作。后来出国多年，就没有继续参与任何政治活动了。而现在在海外突然看到有关于中国共产党题材的电影，我是很兴奋的，一定要看。

上周末，到了电影院，买两张”Jian Dang Wei Ye”的成人票，工作人员跟我确认说”It’s a Chinese movie. Alright?” 那电影是讲中文的，带英文字幕。 进到指定的播放厅，看到有许多中国人面孔的观众，同时也有一些“鬼佬”。戏剧性的一幕即将发生，那是台上闹革命，台下也“闹革命”……

当时，电影屏幕两边的幕布左右各盖住了大约10%的屏幕面积，电影显示不全。大约10过后，左边的幕布开始往中间移动，把左半边的屏幕完全遮住了。观众开始有点不耐烦了，纷纷喊起：Hello? Hello?~~ 可是没有工作人员理会我们，电影继续播下去。这持续了大约5分钟，台下的观众纷纷喊起：I need a refund! Stop the movie!… 然后我看到一鬼佬冲到台上去，试图把幕布拉开，可是拉不动。不少观众站起来，到门外去找工作人员，我也加入了他们。工作人员站在那个演播厅门口，用对讲机跟他的经理联系。可是又过了5分钟，仍然没有人来解决问题，我们就要求那位工作人员直接去找相关技术人员来解决问题，不要站在那里等经理的指示。现场的灯亮起了，电影停了，最后经理终于来了。经理向大家道歉，让我们到外面排队退款。我看到一部分观众已经开始乖乖地排队领退款了，但另一部分观众，包括我在内，并不满意这样的处理方式，认为我们来电影院的目的是要看那电影的，我们希望尽快把幕布弄好，或者安排我们到另外一个厅观看；如果由于当天电影播放时间已经固定，实在无法安排过来，那么我们除了获得退款之外，还应得到额外的补偿，因为我们在周末安排了时间就为了这电影，我们来电影院需要交通费用，还有在附近停车也有停车费用。于是，一位鬼佬和我为代表，走到前面打断退款，跟经理说，我们需要额外的补偿。经理说：”If you want a compensation, please wait. I’ll talk to you after I process the refund. I don’t think all the customers need a compensation.” 她这样说，显然会令我们更加不满意。我转身问大家，”Do you guys want a compensation? I don’t think the refund is enough.” 另一鬼佬也向大家说，我们需要争取我们的权益。那鬼佬显然有些激动，说打算到电影院外protest，并且打电话给媒体。我们的主张得到了大家的支持，于是我回去跟经理说：”Look! We are on the same boat. We all need a compensation. If you can’t make the decision, please report to your boss.” 于是她走去跟另外一位电影院工作人员交换了意见，然后回来说我们每人除了获得退款以外，还会获得一张通用的免费电影票，可以下次用。

我想，这，就是政治！政治就是需要有主张，有支持者，有代表，有武器，有行动。我们主张需要补偿，我鼓动一批与我存在共同利益基础却素未谋面的其他观众，我代表他们的声音，利用武器（即如果经理不答应我们的要求，我们可能会打电话给电视报纸等媒体，或向消费者委员会投诉等），要求电影院对我们作出补偿……

两天后，终于能正常地观看这部电影了。 这部电影确实拍得十分不错，群星齐集，两小时的电影，重现了辛亥革命、北洋军阀、五四运动、中国共产党成立等那段时期的重要历史事件，让我迅速回想起以前在高中时学到的历史知识。感觉是，这么看一遍电影，胜过读十遍干燥无味的纯文字历史书啊！而且，这电影也带有娱乐性质，每每冯巩和赵本山露面，不用他们说一句话，在场观众都爆出阵阵笑声。毛泽东与杨开慧的爱情，给观众带来清新的感觉。

但是，我在这里想讨论的，并不是这部电影的本身。我希望讨论的，是这部电影带给我的启发。我不知道这电影是否能100%反应真实的历史，但我猜想应该八九不离十。在电影里看到中国共产党成立之前所发生的一些列事件以及其艰巨地成立的过程，是有助于我们分析当今社会的种种问题的。在这里，我提出3个问题。这3个问题，是值得当今中国共产党核心成员以及每一位党员所思考的。是否能很好地解答这3个问题，关乎到中国共产党能否在新的社会环境下继续保持其领导和执政地位。

第一，从电影里看到，当需求存在，凡是有用的理论和人物，那些革命先驱都可以利用起来，不管他们是否曾经与那些理论和人物有何种关系。利用马克思主义，利用工人农民阶级的力量，以一种信念，争取支持，以实现他们的政治愿望。那么，当这种需求已经被满足，这些理论和人物该如何处置？

我们看到，当年李大钊和陈独秀并不是一开始就宣传马克思主义的，也并不是一开始就想到工人农民阶级的。在推动民族解放和新文化运动的过程中，不断有新的事情，不断有新的麻烦，不断有新的灵感，不断都有新的信息的注入，革命先驱们终于发现，马克思主义是一个很好的思想武器，广大工人农民是除了学生以外值得动员的群体。在这个基础上，在共产国际的帮助下，中国共产党得以成立。 有人说，《建党伟业》作为一部电影，最后1分钟是败笔。我想，最后一分钟正是启发我提出第1个问题的重要因素。当时，马克思主义是有效的，广大工人农民被捧为一股新兴的政治力量，成就了一个政党，成就了那些革命先驱们的政治愿望。我还记得，毛泽东和他的战友讨论“共和”的概念，一位战友把它解读为“以前皇帝说了算，现在我们说了算！”，这就是一个很典型的例子。当时受到这些新的政治思想的影响多人民群众，是抱有一种良好的愿望的，希望他们今天做的事情（例如支持一个政党），可以换来明天更美好的生活，以及对他们来说有更多好处的社会。当然，他们的良好愿望算是实现了。但是，我们需要思考的是，当时所使用的思想武器，当时所鼓动广大群众的方法，在今天这个时代里，是否应该继续使用呢？如果继续使用，那么其目的又是什么呢？当时的政治愿望早已实现了！如果不继续使用，那该如何处理？

第二，发动群众对抗“反动政府”，在危险的处境下成立政党，最终取得胜利，这是中国共产党的先驱们的成功之道。但是，世上最大的敌人是自己，我们最害怕的，莫过于有另一个自己用着自己的成功之道反过来打倒自己。“以史为镜”的道理是很多人都知道的，而这个道理，在今天是否正在被正确地应用？

“以史为镜”的意义永远不是单一的，它具有多重性：（1）自己学习前人经验，（2）防止敌人学习自己，以及（3）预测敌人的行动并采取相应的对策。在电影里，我们看到革命先驱们做的事情，一定是当时的政府所不喜欢的。成立政党，培育一个新兴的政治力量，是需要付出生命代价的。今天，革命已经成功，我们也许不需要太看重上述第（1）点意义，并且即使你想学习前人经验，也没有太多好的榜样，前苏联的结局只能当作反面例子。那么，我们来看看第（2）点，防止敌人学习自己当时的做法的最有效的途径就是防患于未然。今天，我们能看到这样做的迹象包括，对媒体的控制，对社会的监控，对新生政治力量的打压…… 这些统统都是为了防止另一个“建党伟业”的出现，保护先驱们的革命成果，巩固来之不易的江山。再看第（3）点，历史事实是摆在眼前的，成功的经验总被人模仿，而这种“规律”则有可能被用于预测敌人的行动。或者说，我们不需要预测，你就看海外的唐人街上，是什么人在企图走着中国共产党的成功之道，到处做宣传，鼓动大众，争取支持，培养新生政治力量；不同的是，他们缺乏在中国本土生存的土壤，因为中国共产党已先知先觉，采取了相应的行动，防止对自己不利的政治势力的成长，把不利的火种打死在它刚刚燃起之时。

可是，应用了“以史为镜”并不等于把它用得好，用得正确。实际上，“以史为镜”还有第（4）点意义，并且那才是最重要的——审视自己的过去，总结自己的成功经验，吸取自己的经验教训。第（4）点与前三点的最大不同之处，就是它聚焦于“自己”，而不是以前、现在和将来的“他人”。在电影里，我们可以清楚地看到，人民群众深受当时革命先驱们的鼓动，一个新生的政治力量的诞生和成长，伴随着千千万万的支持者、参与者和牺牲者。没有人强迫他们加入到革命的行列，也没有人用钱用物质来诱惑他们，这个新生的政治力量，在最初阶段里，靠的是革命先驱们对他们的政治理念所作的“市场推广”。而接受这种政治理念的人们，是自愿，甚至是志愿，用脚投出在他们人生里的重要一票的！返顾今天，我们是否已经抛弃这条成功经验了？我们的每一项新政策，是否都在靠强迫执行，还是以一种明智的手段，让民众看到一个新事物即将给他们带来的好处，而心甘情愿地去接受，去支持，去拥护它？

第三，每个人都是有私心的，这是我们与生俱来的人性的弱点。无论是个人，还是一个政党，在“成功”之时，自然而然是会希望利用手上所拥有的新资源，顺着私心的膨胀，而有进一步的行动。这种弱点是无法克服的，但需要把它管理起来。在今天，已取得革命成功并获得领导地位的中国共产党需要如何正确认识和对待这个弱点？

在电影里，在我们看到袁世凯在辛亥革命期间的政治力量逐渐膨胀，在当上中华民国第1任大总统后，不顾历史发展的趋势，逆流而称帝。周润发把袁世凯的皇帝梦演绎得淋漓尽致。我印象最深刻的，是袁世凯称帝后，在反对的声音中闷闷不乐，摸着那心爱的龙袍，苦苦思索着…… 袁世凯称帝的过程中，是否有私心，是否有其他力量的推动？这不重要。重要的是，人性的弱点能让人不顾许多其他因素，而去努力实现自然生成的欲望。我们也看到刘烨和李沁演绎的毛泽东与杨开慧之间的爱情，从初次见面的“哥哥你好高”，到后来的唯美的雪中看烟花，到最后成亲时的“你跟了我以后都不得安生”—— “我愿意”，充分地把革命先驱作为一个活生生的真实的个人来进行演绎。一旦他是一个真实的人，就一定有人的本性的存在，也有人性的弱点。当我们在电影里看到毛泽东到了北京后，说很想见见杨昌济老师，我们内心里就会自然想到——“你是想见杨老师，还是杨老师的女儿杨开慧呀？” 当我们看到毛泽东放弃赴法留学，表示要留下来研究“中国的问题”，我们自然也会想到——“你是不舍得离开杨开慧吧？” 我们能够这样想，是因为我们把剧中的人物看作是一个真实的人，而不是一个“概念”。

每股政治力量都是由个人所组成的，只是这些个人里面，或多或少有些共同的理念罢了；而每股政治力量，又是由人来领导的，人性的弱点自然而然是会转化为组织的弱点的。当一个政党取得执政地位，其主要领导力量及其后代，还有他们的关系网络，一定会期待这个社会给他们以回报，因为他们以及他们的前辈们为此付出了很多。他们自然而然所产生的的权力与物质上的欲望，是应该予以理解和支持的，并且应得到妥善的管理的。在今天，这种欲望是否得到党内和党外人士的公正对待？这种欲望是否能在一个透明的体制下予以满足？这种欲望的满足，是否能为社会带来正面的效应，如激励相关领导创造更好的人们真正认可的政绩？

要回答上述三个问题，是不容易的，我心中也没有明确的答案。但我相信，走过90个年头之后的中国共产党，要继续很好地运营下去，更好地领导这个社会，一定要思考这三个问题，并且一定要努力探索和验证它们的答案。

很多人感到焦虑是因为他们遇到一件和一些事情之后，他们的思想告诉他们，一些值得担心的事情需要得到他们的注意和重视。适度的焦虑确实能让人保持警觉和集中精神，以提高工作效率。但如果你发现你的焦虑影响了你的工作表现，或者让你无法正常地生活，那么这就是时候重新审视你的焦虑了。

实际上，你只需要问自己5个问题，即可理清思路：

第一，是否有证据显示，让你感到焦虑的事情确实存在？

有些人在社交场合里感到自卑，感到别人任何一个笑容其实都是在嘲笑自己，感到别人看不起自己。那么，究竟有没有确切的证据证明这些猜测呢？又例如有人害怕自己身处的地方不够干净，经常洗手，并且非常害怕在公共场所里感染病菌。 那么，究竟有没有确切的证据证明你是如此地容易感染到这些病菌呢？我们很容易产生各种各样的猜测和顾虑，但是，请再进一步想一想，证据，是否存在？如果自己担心的事情确实发生了，那么它早就发生了；如果没有证据证明它已经发生了的话，也许它还没有发生。

第二，你的焦虑是否有用，对你有帮助？

有些时候，你为你所担心的事情找到了证据，证明你担心的事情确实存在。那么，现在请你再想一想，你的焦虑，是否对你有用？换句话说，你的担心是否会使事情变得更好，还是变得更坏？比如在社交场合里，确实存在一些人对你是有偏见的，或者明摆着就是讨厌你了。那么，你对社交的恐惧，是让跟多人喜欢你，还是让更多人讨厌你呢？

第三，如果你的亲朋好友发生类似事件，你会对他们说什么？

当局者迷，旁观者清，你需要跳出来看问题。假如你周围的人发生了类似事件，他们跟你的想法一样，你作为旁观者会怎么看待他们的表现呢？

第四，你担心的事情，是否在你的能力控制范围呢？

有些事情，你可以控制；有些事情，你无法控制。如果一件事情已经发生了，你永远无法改变；如果一件事情尚未发生，但它很可能在将来发生，并且你无办法改变它将来会发生的这个事实，你的担心是否徒劳？有人担心世界末日，无论你如何担心，该发生的事情，还是会发生的。有人考试后十分担心考试成绩，这种担心，是否有办法改变考试的结果呢？

第五，如果你担心的事情确实存在，它是否有你想象中那么糟糕？

如果你在社交场合里确实表现得不佳，被别人嘲笑，那又如何呢？你也可以看不起别人。如果你确实在公共场所里感染病菌，那又如何呢？有病治病不就行了吗？如果你考试不及格，那又怎样呢？那对你的打击是致命性的吗？如果你担心的事情确实存在了，就想想它带来的严重的后果是什么，把那个后果分析清楚，看看它是不是你最初想象中的那么糟糕！

以上这个五个问题并不是要说服你让你不要担心和焦虑，而是让你审视清楚，你的这些情绪，是否真的有它存在的必要。通过五个问题，你可以从不同的角度来看待自己正在经历的事情，并且为下一步做出更恰当的行动方案。

一个让人触目惊心的标题突然浮现在人们眼前——“中国统计局宣布：中国城市人均月收入已突破9000人民币大关”，于是人们开始疯狂地传播、议论和埋怨；“被平均”、“拖后腿”、“祖国，对不起”等字眼也相随地被无限制地复制…… 我一开始看到有人转载和评论这个标题，我也是半信半疑，觉得这个数字确实很大，但有可能贫富差距太大，富人收入把平均数拉得很高。 出于好奇，我想找到官方公布该统计结果的原文。于是我就上了中国国家统计局网站（http://www.stats.gov.cn）查找，结果经过一番查找和搜索，怎么也没找到。于是，我的想法是，国家统计局的网站设计确实有待改进，整体布局太凌乱，实在不知道点击哪里查找想要的信息；笼统地搜索嘛，出来很多看似相关又不太相关的结果。实在没办法，于是我就尝试搜索媒体上的新闻报道，其结果真的很惊人： 我之所以说它惊人，是因为该标题几乎都出现在论坛、社区上，而没有出现在新闻媒体网站上。我的第一感觉是，那些论坛做的SEO也厉害了吧？ 为了看到真正的原文，我尝试给国家统计局公布的办公邮箱发一封邮件：info@gj.stats.cn。我主要问三个问题：

第一、以下两篇文章的数据是否是最新的？

http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjgb/ndtjgb/qgndtjgb/t20110228_402705692.htm

http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjfx/fxbg/t20110310_402710031.htm

第二、居民收入的数据，是否包含除了工资收入以外的其他个人投资收益（例如炒股、银行存款利息、收房租等）？

第三、“中国统计局宣布：中国城市人均月收入已突破9000人民币大关”这消息是否真实？

邮件发出去后三小时，我便收到这样的回复： 虽然政府部门的邮件模版中使用“你”而不是“您”这一点让我有一点点的惊讶，但让我感到满意的地方是：

第一、回复邮件速度超过我的期望（我的期望起码是隔天）。

第二、对我提问的三个问题用简单明了的语言全部都给回答了（有些时候有些人你问三个问题，他们只回答第一个问题）。

第三、还给了我最新的季度统计的链接。

根据最新的数据，从2011年第1季度来看（http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjsj/jdsj/t20110506_402724176.htm），上海人均月收入3343元，浙江3325元，北京2812元，江苏2596元，广东2565元……全国则为为1987元（当然，这里的“全国”数据不包括香港、澳门、台湾地区）。 那么，讲到这里，我又好奇了，那么香港、澳门、台湾的数据又是怎样的呢？不经意间，我发现了这样一个标题：“澳门居民就业人口月收入中位数为9000元”。这个标题出现在各大新闻媒体网站上（例如：http://news.ifeng.com/hongkong/detail_2011_04/19/5832647_0.shtml）。 就这样，我基本可以得出一个结论：也许这个澳门一个地方的数据被误传为全中国的数据了——9000元，而且大家必须清楚地看到， 这个9000元是就业人口，而非家庭人均（家庭人均中孩子们的零收入可以把数字一下子拉下去）。 我们的眼睛是让什么给蒙蔽的？是信息传播的失真？是有人在造谣？还是有人在起哄？其实，蒙蔽我们的眼睛的，是我们自己的双手。一方面，有人太多手，“创造”了一些东西；另一方面，有人不够“多手”，懒得亲自动手寻找真相，但真相、真理往往就是在你轻轻地动动手之后，就可以基本地呈现在你眼前的！我们的眼睛可以被蒙蔽，但我们的眼睛，也可以在被蒙蔽之后，用我们自己的双手，把蒙蔽我们的事物去除。关键，看你是否有兴趣这样做，愿意这样做，并敢于这样做！

I was invited to give a presentation at the Informa E-Learning Summit in Melbourne last week. My talk covered the best practices for managing e-learning projects across multiple institutions, the instructional rationale behind the e-learning development, and the implications for enterprise architecture design. Below are the on-site voice recording and the PowerPoint slides. I look forward to a further discussion with those who are interested in this topic.

Click here if you prefer a full page view version

E-Learning Weekly近日发表了一篇文章，讲述适应2011年E-Learning发展趋势的E-Learning从业者所必需具备的5大技能。这5大技能分别是：

• 视频制作：使用基本的录制设备和视频编缉软件制作视频文件。
• 社交媒体：灵活运用各种社交网络媒体。
• 移动开发：开发适合移动设备（如手机、平板电脑）使用的版本，并进一步发展到移动学习活动的设计。
• 平面设计：搜索并购买恰当的图片（或使用带共同创作授权的图片），并使用平面设计软件作修改处理。
• 快速开发：使用快速快速开发工具，开发E-Learning课程；但这并不意味着“快速设计”可以被省略，快速开发需要体现教学理论和学习规律。

此外，还有4项高级技能，能进一步提升你在这个行业里的价值：

• 项目管理：一个E-Learning项目从最初的构思，到设计，到开发，到测试、到市场推广，再到升级换代…… 你需要控制和优化真个流程，降低成本，提高效率！
• 写作能力：一个E-Learning项目里设计的各种文字性材料的书写能力——项目报告、课程文本、多媒体制作的脚本等。
• 分镜脚本：使用分镜脚本规划整个E-Learning课程，帮助开发人员与内容专家的沟通，以它为蓝图开发整个E-Learning课件。
• 快速样品：把一个构思或初始计划快速地转化为样品，及时与内容专家以及客户沟通确认，使产品与整个团队不同角色的人员之间的期望和理解保持一致。

总而言之，E-Learning这个行业，需要其从业人员掌握多项跨领域、跨层次的职业技能。仅仅有教学设计的技能已经远远不足以应付E-Learning的发展，教学设计不等于E-Learning设计。E-Learning产业仍在高速发展，它对从业人员的要求也在不断变化。紧跟时代步伐，提升自我，是成功的关键！

I will be presenting in the E-Learning Summit: A strategic look at the continuing development in the e-learning industry on the 22nd of March 2011 at Hilton on the Park, Melbourne, Australia. You are WELCOME to participate in!

My topic will be:

Managing e-learning projects across multiple institutions

• Best practice of coordinating a large group of content experts for an e-learning project
• The implications for enterprise architecture design in higher education for distance online learning development
• The instructional design rationale behind the e-learning development

The full brochure PDF is available for download:

CONFERENCE INTRODUCTION:

The E-Learning Summit will showcase the e-learning programmes of Australia’s premier distance education providers, with honest and insightful presentations from a cross section of public and private organisations.

No longer a lonely pursuit of silent readings and monthly packages, fast internet has produced a flourish of highly interactive, rich media learning solutions which have empowered universities, TAFEs, private institutions and corporations to tailor and develop complex and effective learning solutions, delivering anything from a single unit of learning to an MBA degree.

Join us at E-Learning Summit in Melbourne in March 2011, to ensure that your organisation is equipped with the latest ideas, technologies and strategies, to provide education for a wider range of students, and to give them the unique option of e-learning.

SUMMIT HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:

• Case studies from Australia’s top universities
• Digital marketing campaign analysis – an Australian first for reaching virgin target markets
• Presentation of the latest in learning technology
• A discussion about the importance of branding in e-learning
• Analysis of distance education as a tool for furthering social inclusion
• Effective student support, at a distance

and many more…

AGENDA:

Day One: Monday 21st March 2011

8.00

Registration and coffee

8.45

Welcome and speed networking session
Get to know your peers right from the start in this relaxed and informal speed networking session. Bring your business cards!

9.00

Opening remarks from the Chair

9:10

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

E-Learning in Australian tertiary education

* A snapshot of the current market: myths and realities
* Characteristics and aspirations of online students
* Key providers
o Domestic
o International
* Prospects for growth of the industry
* Which institutions have been most successful at providing online education, and why?
* Case Study: e-learning success at Navitas Ltd

Prof James Dalziel, Director, Macquarie e-Learning Centre of Excellence (MELCOE), Macquarie University

10:00

INTERNATIONAL CASE STUDY

The Open University, UK

* Maintaining an internationally respected degree program in the online space
* Finding the right balance in course materials
* Building strategic partnerships that work

Dominic Newbould, Director of External Relations, Open University Worldwide

10:45

Morning tea

ADVERTISING & MARKETING

11:00

Managing people and products: Finding the balance and blend in e-learning

* Segmenting target markets for online learning
* Digital communication for digital students
* Case study: Gradschool.com.au

Professor Kevin McConkey, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, (Academic and Global Relations), The University of Newcastle

11:45

Using social media strategy to acquire new students

* Setting realistic budgets
* In-house vs agency identifying the appropriate amount of in-house expertise necessary
* Effective seeding strategy

Marc Niems, VP, Export Markets and Mobile Learning, E-learning Industry Association

12:30

Legal issues for online education providers

* Considering copyright when developing coursework
* Understanding safe-harbor protections
* Strategies for developing rich, multimedia content without breaching copyright

Belinda Muir, Associate IP Lawyer and Trade Mark Attorney, Griffith Hack

1:15

Lunch

CASE STUDIES

2:15

University of New England

* Academic strategy with a new toolkit: pushing the limits of e-learning
* An examination of government policy relating to e-learning
* Working with international agencies

Belind Tynan, Academic Director, University of New England

3:00

It’s not easy being ‘e’: a behind the scenes look at what it really takes to succeed as an e-learning e-business

* Adopting an all inclusive e-business model
* The importance of digital administration
* Creating a student community online

OTEN – TAFE NSW

3:45

Afternoon tea

4:00

Facilitating online learning and teaching

* Transitioning academics to online learning and teaching
* Pedagogy and the online techno abyss
* Supporting academics in their online learning and teaching endeavours

Cath Moore, Academic Manager (Open Universities Australia) Programs, Swinburne University of Technology

4:45

Managing an Online MBA: University of South Australia

* Creating legitimacy in an online MBA program
* Innovative approaches to content
* Appropriating traditional assessment tasks for the online space

Bob Gilliver, MBA Course Director, University of South Australia

5:20

Closing remarks from Chair

5:30

Networking drinks

Day Two: Tuesday 22nd March 2011

8.40

Welcome and speed networking session

8.45

Opening remarks from the Chair

9:00

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Key factors that contribute to a great online education experience

* Are we really delivering a product that meets the needs of our customers?
* Catering for an increasingly diverse target market
* An examination of the challenges faced and solutions found in delivering a successful online education service

Malcolm Kinns, Director, Think Education Group

9:45

INTERNATIONAL KEYNOTE

Using evaluation evidence at a course level to both improve students’ learning experiences and optimize institutional planning for e-learning

* Developing an evaluation culture in universities
* Improving students’ learning experiences and outcomes
* Ensuring effective horizontal and vertical communication strategies within universities
* Optimising planning for e-learning infrastructure and support

Professor Carmel McNaught, Director/ Professor of Learning Enhancement, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

10:30

Morning tea

LEARNING AND TEACHING

10:45

Change Management in e-learning

* Innovations in real time video: new directions in virtual classrooms
* Effective online assessment tools
* Online education as a social media: developing content with student syndication in mind
* Cloud computing development
* Mobile streaming

Clint Smith, Director, Learnworks, President, E-Learning Network of Australiasia

11:30

Pedagogy and the impact evolving e-learning technology

* Identifying the best e-learning solution for the campus/ student
* Conflicts between traditional teaching knowledge and e-learning sensabilities
* Developing an all inclusive approach to e-learning implamentation

Steve Linquist, Senior Educator, E-Learning at University of Ballarat

12:15

Lunch

TECHNOLOGY AND DESIGN

1:15

Managing e-learning projects across multiple institutions

* Best practice of coordinating a large group of content experts for an e-learning project
* The implications for enterprise architecture design in higher education for distance online learning development
* The instructional design rationale behind the e-learning development

Richard Wenchao He, Education and Multimedia Design Coordinator, Westmead Hospital (University of Sydney)

2:00

UTS/ Acid Green – Successful university – agency partnerships in developing learning technology

* The importance of educational research as an underpinning for e-assessment software ReView
* Recognition of academic research as an important feature of educational software for the Higher Ed market
* Importance of developing e-assessment software from the basis of sound research and live incremental pilot studies as a basis for commercial viability

Darral Thompson, Senior Lecturer and Director of Teaching and Learning University of Technology, Sydney (UTS)
Sam Marciano, General Manager, AcidGreen

2:45

Afternoon tea

3:00

CASE STUDY

The Australian Wind Energy Institute

* How to produce a top shelf e-learning program
* Developing e-learning projects which meet commercial realties and social responsibilities
* Sourcing private funding for e-learning initiatives

Sigfried Roy, Director, The Australian Wind Energy Institute

3:45

Designing for e-Learning: Promises and pitfalls

* Supporting the student learning experience
* Enabling connectivity, communication and collaboration
* Maximising participation and social inclusion

Som Naidu, Associate Professor and Director of Teaching and Learning Quality Enhancement and Evaluation Services, Division of Learning and Teaching Services, Charles Sturt University

4:30

Closing remarks from the Chair

4:45

Conference close

In a recent trip to Tasmania, I took a fancy to a set of dried flower collage which was made of the Tasmanian native plant varieties, in a low-end antique shop located in a small town called Ross. It was priced at 10 Australian dollars, but a place on the collage had been damaged – there was a gap. I was a bit hesitant at that time: to buy or not to? This “antique” was the only one displayed there, and there was no second stock; if I missed this, maybe I would not get a better buy than this one which got my heart at the first sight. So I bargained with the boss, with an ultimate deal at 5 Australian dollars. In the remaining time of the trip, I collected some cones falling from the trees on the ground along the way, and intended to “fix” this collage when I went back to Sydney.

The collage was like this:

I used a strong glue to stick new dried cones to the collage in order to fill in the gap, and reinforced the other parts, which were a little bit loose. Then, the collage became better:

I think there is no perfect thing in the world; even if there is something perfect, you may not have the opportunity to obtain; even though you have the opportunity to obtain, you may have to pay a heavy price that you are reluctant to pay. Therefore, if you find something that is not perfect but can make yourself content and get easily and immediately, you’d better accept it gladly and repair it a bit. Consequently, you will possess a new treasure in your life. If you are a little careful, you may notice that even if this collage has been fixed, the added cones and the original ones beneath are a duplicate, which is contrary to the original idea of the artist – use different plant varieties as much as possible. However, this is the best I can do. I feel satisfied that I can have the opportunity to collect back the similar cones in the picturesque island of Tasmania to repair this collage!

Believe it or not, China’s president Hu Jintao just started his Web 2.0 campaign by opening his micro blog on People.com.cn. The account has been certified, and the message has been confirmed as genuine. As you can expect, such breaking news would generate a huge amount of traffic in the website, and therefore, his account had to be closed. According to most reporters, this account attracted more than 15,000 followers on the first day of its opening.

Source: Chinainternetwatch.com

Upon this news, I would like to make 3 points:

1. This should not be an official launch of Hu’s Web 2.0 campaign.

My impression about the political campaign in China is that the politics pay a lot of attention on media. Most of the “important news” has to be approved by the officials before they can go live. If the government would like to promote something, all the media channels should be well-planned and arranged. I can not believe that there was a plan in place for Hu’s Web 2.0 campaign for the following reasons:

• I don’t see any preparation done by the government. Unlike other formal political campaigns, Hu’s micro blog just appeared in a sudden. I would expect a series of marketing activities before the formal launch of Hu’s micro blog account, such as inviting people to participate. Look back in the history, when Hu held an interaction session with the netizen on the forum of people.com.cn in 2008, the arrangement was like this:
  

  Soure: People.com.cn

• It was people.com.cn that created the account. According to a staff member of people.com.cn, the Hu registered a forum account in 2008 just for the interaction session, and now people.com.cn gives a micro blog account to every forum user. Based on the nature of the creation of the micro blog account, you can’t tell if it was Hu’s intention to open it. The micro blog account appears to be a verified account. However, the verification was just based on the ground that Hu’s forum account, opened in 2008, was genuine.
• The account has been closed. I can not believe that it was the huge traffic that made people.com.cn close the account. They need that traffic. They should have prepared for the increased traffic. If the traffic was the real reason, they must have already announced the anticipated time when the account can be re-opened. Was people.com.cn ordered to take the account off and fix the “mistake”? I don’t know.

2. Political leaders’ participation in Web 2.0 would have a significant impact on China’s policy over the Internet.

Experienced Chinese Internet users would know that a series of “sensitive” words are blocked by most of the forums and social networking sites. These words include the name of top political leaders in China. Some websites just simply refuse their users to publish the posts which contain the blocked key words so the users have to modify the keywords in a way that can bypass the system’s detection. Other websites use real human staff to check the sensitive posts. For example, if I post this message in Qzone, I would be advised that the post has to be approved by the admin. They may or may not approve it.

If the political leaders in China start to use Web 2.0 tools, it implicates that their names can be mentioned. A conversation between the citizens and the leaders can be carried out publicly and even instantly. I can’t imagine that there is still a moderator checking and approving the micro blog messages in the middle.

In fact, local governments in China have already started microblogging for a while. Just recently, it has been reported that more than four hundrads government officials have their own micro blog account. Local governments’ micro blog acounts have also exceeded two hundrads. Micro blogging is much different from the traditional way, such as via CCTV and state-owned newspaper, that the Chinese governemnt promotes their latest policy where the audiance can only receive the message without means to react. Instead, micro blogs allow their followers to “retweet” and comment. The comment could be possible or negative. Further more, when the citizens publicly request the government to explain and help with something, the government has to respond. I suppose this will speed up the communication between the citizen and the government. As this trend keeps going, I guess the Internent in China would become more open in the future.

3. The Web 2.0 Strategy should be taken seriously.

It is not just a trend. It is the strategy. If there is no a well-documented procedure to operate the Web 2.0 activities, the government and the leaders are actually putting themselve in high risk. What if the person who’s in charge of the account gets emotional at some other users’ “tweets” and says something silly? What if the micro blog accounts are compromised and unauthorised messages are delivered to the public? What if the some message that is supposed to be release later has been published earlier than it should?

On the other hand, if a micro blog account belongs to a particular person instead of an organisation, e.g., Hu Jintao’s account, how the account holder behaves so that the benefits of micro blogging can be maximised? On social web, everyone knows you are a dog, if you are a dog! If one person accidentally or always delivers inappropriate messages or uses less welcomed languages, it is recorded, and it does decrease the credibility of the account holder and the organisation that they belong to. The old saying of “On the Internet, nobody knows you are a dog” has definitely not reflected the real situation anymore. Online image and marketing counsultance should be hired to provide advice if the government does want to launch the Web 2.0 campaign. Good care should be taken!

Good luck, China, my motherland!

As many others do, I usually keep pressing the save button or Ctrl + S while editing a document, just in case the application suddenly crashes down and then I lose the changes I made in the document. However, sometimes I found it annoying when I save the document too fast and can’t undo something silly because the “Undo” menu has become gray after I save the document, or at most the “undo” can only allow me to undo a limited number of actions, but not enough for getting back to the point that I want. I have been experiencing this issue for years.

Now, I’m using SugarSync to backup my important documents. While I’m editing the documents, SugarSync will automatically sync them to the cloud and keep different versions of the files. For example, every time I press  Ctrl + S, SugarSync keeps a new version of the file. If I have done something silly on the document and saved the file, I can go to my SugarSync account and download an earlier version of that file and replace the “newer” one. That is another form of undoing.

I have been using SugarSync to sync files around my Mac, PC and iPhone, and I find it pretty useful. I highly recommended it. I used to stick to Dropbox, SugarSync‘s competitor, but I couldn’t access to my Dropbox account when I travelled to China, which was very very frustrating! After that incidence, I switched to SugarSync.

I cooked two fried eggs and two peices of toast for breakfast this morning. I didn’t mean to make a heart shape but when the egg white appeared solid, I simply flipped the eggs over onto the yolk side. Then, here it is. A heart shape came out. I ran to grab my phone, took a photo and sent it to my girlfriend Jane who is currently overseas -

Me: Heart

Jane: You made it?

Me: Yes, this morning.

Jane: You are such a romantic person.

Me: I didn’t make the heart shape by purpose. I was thinking of you when cooking the breakfast and didn’t concentrate, so you can tell from the picture that the eggs were a little bit overcooked, but they still tasted good.

Jane: You are really funny, hahaha

I usually buy books on Fishpond.com.au for their low prices (lower than Amazon.com considering the price plus shipping), but recently I was looking for books about property investment for the Australian context and I found that PropertyBooks.com.au offers even cheaper prices. I gave it a try and it turned out that they dispatched the books on the same day when I placed the order and I received them the next day. I’m impressed and I highly recommend this website to others.

I joined a tour group to travel to Tasmania from Sydney during the 2010 Christmas and new year holiday. We visited two major cities such as Hobart and Launceston, as well as some small old towns like Richmond, Ross, Port Arthur and Sheffield. I think three words can summarise all our destinations in Tasmania: natural, historic and organic. We enjoyed the breathtaking and beautiful scenery on Mt Wellington and Cradle Mountain, walked through Mt Field and Cataract Gorge surrounded with rain forest, dropped in Richmond, Ross and Sheffield with a strong historic sense, visited the former convict settlement Port Arthur which was just been listed as one of the World Heritage Properties in 2010, and went to farms and factories, which offer organic Tasmanian products such as cherry, raspberry, honey, lavender and abalone. We stayed at Mecure Hobart and Hotel Grand Chancellor Launceston. They are both four star hotels, but I highly recommend the latter to you if you are considering hotels in Tasmania. During the trips, I made some friends. It was glad to learn about the stories of other people’s life in Australia. The tour group was pretty diverse, where there were retired couples, business men, professionals, recent graduates, and current students. Some of them have immigrated to and been living in Australia for a very long time while some others (e.g., parents) just came from overseas to visit their children for the first time. I can’t wait to share my photos with you. Here they are:

Richmond

Richmond Bridge: the oldest bridge still in use in Australia

Richmond Bakery (I highly recommend their scollap pies - $6.5 each)

Hobart

Rural area near Hobart

Mount Field National Park, Hobart

Mount Field National Park, Hobart

Royal Botanic Gardens Hobart

Royal Botanic Gardens Hobart

Royal Botanic Gardens Hobart - the bee and the lavender

Residential area in Hobart

On the peak of Mount Wellington overlooking Hobart

Mount Wellington

The CBD of Hobart

Constitution Dock, Hobart

a Lobster Havesting Ship parked at Constitution Dock, Hobart (The cages are for the lobster to fall in from the hole in the middle and get trapped.)

On a dinner cruise in Hobart (In the background is the Hobart Bridge.)

On a dinner cruise in Hobart

Waiting for the first yacht arriving at Hobart in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2010 (Check it out here: http://rolexsydneyhobart.com)

Welcoming the first yacht arriving at Hobart in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2010 (Check it out here: http://rolexsydneyhobart.com)

Port Arthur

Port Arthur Historic Site - the penitentiary originally built as a flour mill, across the water

Port Arthur Historic Site - Convict-built church, representing the important role of religion in convict reform at Port Arthur

Port Arthur Historic Site - Isle of the Dead (Between 1833 and 1877 around 1100 people were buried at the settlement's cemetery. The Isle of the Dead is the final resting places for military and civil officers, their wives and children, and convicts.)

Tessellated Pavement Created by Ancient Cracks, Port Arthur

This is the so-called Devils Kitchen (from a humble cave to a great gulch), Port Arthur

Tasman Arch, Port Arthur

Tasman National Park, Port Arthur

Ross

Ross: a historic town in the Midlands of Tasmania

Launceston

Rural area near Launceston

Grindelwald Swiss Village

Grindelwald Swiss Village

Cataract Gorge

Cataract Gorge

Seaport Boulevard in Lounceston where we had a seafood dinner with the view of North Esk River

Seaport Boulevard in Lounceston where we had a seafood dinner with the view of North Esk River

My very first breakfast of 2011 at Hotel Grand Chancellor Launceston, impressive!

Rowella

Lavender House (There are a range of lavender products offered by this factory, such as essential oil, body lotion, hand cream, soap, lavender sachets, etc. Check this out: http://www.lavender-lady.com)

Raspberry farm (PYO price: $16 per kilogram)

East Devonport

a cherry farm where we tasted a range of cherries (from darker to lighter, from sweater to sourer, from bigger to smaller, from harder to softer, etc.) priced from $8 to $16 per kilogram

The processing sector of a cheery farm

Chudleigh

The Honey Farm, sampling a range of honey and honey-related products (go to http://www.thehoneyfarm.com.au for more info)

Sheffield

Sheffield: Town of Murals

Sheffield: Town of Murals (I purchased an oil painting of a mountain in the shop in the photo. When I came back to the bus, everyone envied of me for the painting's good value for money. I said all the paintings in the shop were around $20 but they didn't have time to go there as we were only allocated 45 minutes in the town for a quick lunch.)

An alpaca and her owner at Sheffield (I came across a man having a coffee on the street with his alpaca and I chatted with him about the strange-looking animal. He said I could take a photo if I donated some money... And I did so. In China, this kind of animals were recently given another name by the Internet users - Grass Mud Horse. The name is derived from a Chinese profanity which translates to "fuck your mother". It is widely used for bypassing the government's "inappropriate content" filtering system on the Internet. So, I found it interesting and funny to see a real "grass mud horse" in person in Tasmania!)

Cradle Mountain

Cradle Mountain and Dove Lake

Flowrs at the foot of Cradle Mountain (Anyone knows the name of the flower?)

Flowrs at the foot of Cradle Mountain (Anyone knows the name of the flower?)

Beauty Point

Beauty Point, the last stop before heading back to Sydney

a Seafood factory

Fresh blacklip abalones (Do you know that Tasmania provides approximately 25% of the yearly world abalone harvest?)

People picking frozen greenlip abalones ( It was the last day of the tour. We bought some abalones, placed them in foam boxes, and then directly headed back to Launceston to catch the flight back to Sydney.)

The processing sector of a cheery farm

在澳洲，无论是使用公共的还是私人的交通工具，人们都有个习惯——提前通过各种信息工具做好计划（包括选择何种工具、具体什么时间在什么地点花多少时间到达目的地），然后按照那个计划去出行。下面介绍一些我使用过后觉得不错的工具：

1、http://www.131500.info

通过这个网站，你可以通过输入起始地点和出行时间，获得乘坐巴士、火车和渡轮的准确时间方案以及步行路径。有了这个工具，你就可以前往任何一个在公 共交通网络内的陌生地方，并做好相应的时间安排。如果你不方便上网，你也可以打他们的服务热线131500，告诉接线员你的具体位置以及你想去的地方，接 线员会给你一个最优的方案；如果你附近有巴士站，你可以把巴士站站牌上的代码报给接线员，以便确认你的具体位置。

2、http://www.parkopedia.com及其iPhone App——Parkopedia Parking

通过这个网站，你可以查找到非常详细的收费和免费停车信息。我通常使用这个工具提前确定去某个陌生地方的提车位置。由于这个工具提供了具体的停车价 格和时间信息，这样你就可以选择一个最优的方案，甚至提前用电话预约停车车位或者咨询有关事宜。如果你发现一个新的不错的停车点而这个工具上尚未列出的 话，你还可以快捷地把停车说明标志拍下来然后把照片上传到Parkopedia的服务器，以便他们的编辑人员添加该信息。

3、Link Express (iPhone App)

这个app的数据应该是基于131500.info的，但它简单易用的界面使行程计划变得更加便捷（例如你只需要按一个here的键就可以算出你目前所在的位置）。它还有一个车上睡觉闹钟功能，你可以设定快到站前多少分钟提醒你准备下车。

4、收费版TripView Sydney或免费版 TripView Sydney Lite (iPhone App)

这个app需要经常手动下载最新的时间表。它的界面主要显示时间表，让你在一个时间段范围灵活安排你的乘车时间。当你拿着它赶火车或汽车时，它上面 的时刻表会提示还有多少分钟就开车。收费版可以自己记录你的历史查询数据，那么你下次打开这个app的时候就不用再重新输入你经常查询的地点。

5、Sydney Airport Transport Calculator

点进这个网页后，在左边输入你到机场的形成安排，然后在下面的Transport Calculator里输入邮编和乘客数量并点击Compare Now，那么系统就会算出并推荐一种最省钱的达到机场的方法——究竟是火车、的士、还是自己开车然后把车停在机场。

6、一系列的的士公司预约系统

进入这些系统以后，你可以输入你的行程预约的士在指定时间前往指定地点，很方便的：

https://www.taxiscombined.com.au/booking/pickupdetails.aspx

https://www.limetaxisbooking.com.au/booking/pickupdetails.aspx

https://www.abctaxis.com.au/booking/Pickupdetails.aspx

https://www.silverservice.com.au/booking/Pickupdetails.aspx

7、Taxi Pro (iPhone App)

通过这个app，你可以输入你的预约信息，并获得实时的预约确认。它还提供了预约历史纪录，那么你可以轻松地查询你已经预约了的的士的具体时间和地点。

8、World Taximeter

通过这个网站，你可以估算你的的士费用。它还可以通过Google Map显示其用于计费的具体的路线，你就记住其路线的主要道路的名称，那么你上了的士之后就可以叫司机走那条路，以防司机绕路。

那么，这方面的工具，在中国的大城市的商机有多大呢？IT公司是否可以跟政府合作开发类似的服务呢？我曾经考虑过巴士和地铁的app在中国的适应程 度，但我想，中国的巴士和地铁的班次非常频密，人们也许没有必要做这方面的计划。在Apple App Store里也查到类似的app，如中国公交、地铁上海等。这个市场应该有待开发的，国内的朋友不妨考虑考虑。

【中澳比较系列文章旨在总结比较一些中国和澳大利亚之间存在差异的我感兴趣的领域，以促使我们思考如何在这些领域里作出符合中国国情的创新。】

If you are using Articulate Studio to develop your interactive e-learning course and using an LMS to host the courseware, you may want to do a poll and survey on relevant topics within the course in order to promote the students’ participation and interests. If you would like to embed a poll or a survey within an Articulate presentation, you may firstly think of using Articulate Quizmaker to develop the survey questions.

However, many people are concerned about the reporting function of Articulate Quizmaker. With Articulate Quizmaker, you can develop graded quizzes or non-graded surveys. If you set the questions types as survey, you would find it difficult to deal with the reporting process. Firstly, you will not able to track the survey report unless you have an Articulate Online subscription; secondly, you are not able to let the students view the status immediately after they submit their answers; and thirdly, your mail box will be bombed if you set to receive e-mails of individual survey submission and you will find it time-consuming to transfer the data from the e-mails to the spreadsheet.

After several tries, my conclusion is that Articulate Quizmaker 09 is not suitable for developing survey or poll. if you are using an LMS to host your Articulate courseware, why not embed the poll and survey function of the LMS into your presentations? Here is any example:

I’m using Moodle to host the Articulate presentations that I’m developing. In Moodle, there is an activity called “Choice” which enable the students to select one item from a list and to view the report showing the ratio of choices of the whole class. There is also a plugin called “Feedback” which has more question types for you to choose from. On the other hand, Articulate Presenter 09 can embed “Web Object” into presentations. I’m using this function to embed the Choice and Feedback in the presentations. It works well! Here is the procedure:

1. You will need to set up the Choice or Feedback first in the course.
2. Once the poll or survey is set up, you should have a link of the poll or survey page within your Moodle system.
3. Copy the link.
4. Switch to your Articulate presentation, click “Web Object”.
5. Paste the link on the Web Object dialogue, and click “OK”.
6. Publish your Articulate presentation and upload to Moodle as a SCORM package.

The above example is an introduction to a unit of 4 modules. We asked the students to watch a video clip and do a poll to make them think whether a person’s anxiety can be judged by his/her appearance. Once the students make their choice, they will be prompted the poll result.  Then the lecturer will continue to give further explanation afterward.

刚刚第一次在网上购买了上海大剧院的歌剧的门票，现在想把刚才的体验与我以前在悉尼歌剧院网站上购票的体验进行一次比较。

1. 市场营销

观众如何得知表演呢？这是成功在网上把门票售出的关键。上海大剧院与多个专业售票网站（如上海文化信息网、上海票务等）合作，观众可以直接在合作的票务网站上直接购票，也可以选择到上海大剧院官方网站购买。但从其官方网站和其他票务网站的设计风格来看，可以明显看出其市场营销的主要场所是在票务网站上，让票务网站通过各种营销手段（如赠品、会员优惠、邮件订阅）来进行推广和促销，而官网上则只有表演的普通介绍，以及关于剧院本身的一些基本信息，没看到特别的营销内容——例如没有邮件订阅、打折促销等。甚至，官网上的演出介绍，还有链接把观众引到另外一个门户网站上的（如东方娱乐）。因此，可以看出，他们的市场营销重点，放在外部，而非官网上。上海大剧院没有把太多功夫花在其官网上，就会导致一些小错误的发生。例如我要看到那场演出是19点30分开场，而网站上点击场次准备进入购票流程的时候，系统则显示是21点30分开场；再看网站首页标题是“上海大剧院 Shanghai Grand Theater”，而它下面的Logo则是“上海大剧院 Shanghai Grand Theatre”。如果有更多资源投入到网站的运营上，我相信这些明显的错误，是可以避免的。

悉尼歌剧院的表演，虽然也有刊登在TicketMaster和Ticketek等票务网站上，但一般无法在票务网站上直接购买，观众只能点击一个链接，回到悉尼歌剧院官方网站上去购买。也即是说，悉尼歌剧院只在其他网站上做广告，但不在其他网站上直接销售。这样做的结果，就是不用给票务网站提成，同时给观众一个明确信息——下次直接去悉尼歌剧院官网即可。在推广方面，悉尼歌剧院使用自己的邮件订阅系统给观众发邮件，同时也在其他门户网站上打广告。但是给潜在观众传递重要市场信息的地方，仍然是他们自己的官网。你可以看到，几乎每一个演出，都有非常详尽的介绍，你还可以在上面观看视频、演员照片等。其网站还使用了其他Web 2.0工具进行推广，包括Facebook、Twitter等。这样，他们网站就产生了比较大的流量，于是他们就可以用那个平台招募赞助商。在一些比较出名的表演的介绍页面上，你可以看到一些知名品牌的Logo和网站链接，这样就可以获得门票以外的广告赞助收入了。此外，悉尼歌剧院的门票销售，还有promotional code，如果你从某个渠道获得这个代码，就可以输入，然后打折。价格方面，举办多场的表演一般采用差异化的价格策略，即开头那几场便宜些，越到后面越贵。还有他们还与手机网络品牌Optus合作，对30岁以下的观众进行5折以上的优惠，他们对外称这个选项叫做“Optus Under 30”。这样一方面培养年轻观众，一方面又可以获得一笔广告收入。

2. 购票流程

在表演介绍页面上的左边，点击场次后和购买按钮后，可以选择在剧场平面图上一个的区域，系统自动按照你的价位、数量、靠前还是靠后等要求算出最佳座位，然后你再确认是否要那个座位。你不能自己选择座位，必须让系统给你算。你也不能看到哪些座位已经占了，哪些还能购买。接受系统给出的座位后，就付款。只接收国内特定银行的信用卡支付，不接受其他信用卡。可以选择下载电子票打印出来，或者到现场领票，进场需要身份证。有一点我比较喜欢的是，官网提供一个座位预览，你可以大概看看系统按照价位给你的座位的效果，如下图：

在悉尼歌剧院的网站的演出介绍页面上点击场次和购买按钮后，你可以清楚地在平面图上看到哪个座位已经卖出，哪个还能买。这也许跟他们设定官网为唯一售票点有关，可以实时获得座位信息，如下图。但悉尼歌剧院则不提供座位效果预览。选定座位后和支付完毕后，各种主流信用卡都可以进行支付，门票免费平邮到你指定的澳洲地址，或者凭信用卡现场取票。如果购买了对30岁以下观众的优惠票，则只能选择现场凭信用卡取票。

结论：各有特色！但我感觉悉尼歌剧院更善于做marketing，就关于悉尼歌剧院的这条新闻和这组图片足以深度吸引全国甚至全球的眼球的关注！

一中邮协能 给我带来什么？

江门一中集 邮协会第11届理事会秘书长兼网管    何文超

一中邮协能给我带来什么？相信这个问题，是很多同学初次接触邮协正想加入的时候会问的问题。有一些好处，是比较明显的，比如可以丰富课余生活、增长 见识、培养集邮兴趣、与志趣相投的会员们交朋友等等。然而，在我离开江门一中七年后的今天再回想当时我参加邮协工作的事情的时候，我就忽然想到，邮协给我 带来的，岂止这些？邮协还给我带来许许多多具有深远意义的能受用一生东西！而这些东西，却恰恰只留给想着“我能给邮协带来什么？”的人。我相信一中邮协这 个大家庭里，有许许多多这样的人。正因为有了这么多得力的会员、理事干部和校友的支持，邮协才得以不断地成长和壮大。值江门一中集邮协会成立二十周年之 际，我想对我至今所领悟到和体会到的我参与邮协工作的经历所带给我的受用一生的东西进行一次总结：

1、责任感

一般来说，每个人的责任感应该是随着年龄的增长而越发明显的，这是因为年龄的增长意味着我们从校园走到社会，从被父母呵护走到对父母照料，从被社会 教育走到被社会洗礼。然而，当你还是学生的时候，就在一个与社会有紧密联系的学生社团里，承担责任，完成任务，你的责任感会比同龄人提前地提升。

七年前我曾经尝试回避一个问题，就是参与学生社团是否会影响学习。当时的我会说，社团活动可以促进学习，因为我们得到了休息，从而提高学习效率；或 者说，知识面的增大，有利于学习的某些方面。但是，如果现在要我再次回答这个问题，我可以负责任地说，参加社团活动，至少从时间占用上，一定会影响学习。 在中学阶段，只要参与课外活动，都必须占用你的时间和精力，这一定会与正常的学习有冲突的。然而，一个人的责任感，就是在这种冲突里慢慢培养而成的，如果 错过了，就很难再找回在中学阶段培养责任感的环境。

诚然，责任感可以通过语文课、政治课、历史课渗透，但这始终不及自己的亲身经历深刻。当我成为邮协理事会成员并需要承担特定工作任务时，我知道我要 对这个协会负责；当我意识到我正在占用学习时间来参加邮协工作的时候，我知道我需要对我的学业负责；当班主任找我谈话说担心社团工作影响学习时，我知道我 要对班级和学校的升学率负责；当我在周末和假期出外参加邮协会议和活动而父母却担心我的人身安全和交友状况时，我知道我要对家庭负责；当我组织邮协出外到广州中大进行交流活动时，我知道我要对会员们的安全负责；当我在现场主持活动时，我知道我 要对整个场面的控制负责；当我设计和维护邮协网站时，我知道我要对网站的内容、声誉、安全等方面负责；甚至当我安排邮协换届并提出从我们第十一届开始，换届要签合同时，我知道我正在做的事情，是对邮协的未来负 责！一中邮协是一个具有比较完整的体系的中学生社团组织，在中学时代的大背景下，你在其中参与的程度越高，你的责任感就被提升得越多。一旦离开了这个土 壤，哪怕是到了大学，你也很难再找到这种天时地利人和来配合你的责任感的提升。

2、意志力

我们的意志力不是与生俱来的，它是需要在社会实践活动中逐渐培养锻炼出来的。意志力对于一个人的一生的成功，起到非常重要的作用！我们的中学教育， 为我们设下许许多多的学习和升学目标，我们的意志力可以在这种情况下得到锻炼。当我们为了实现一个又一个目标而克服困难和排除干扰，并最终获得成功的时 候，我们会相信，我们的付出没有白费。你下次会继续以强大的意志力作为后盾，实现你的短期、中期和长期的目标。

那么，我为什么说一中邮协磨练了我的意志力呢？我们要知道，在中学阶段里，我们有很多目标是一个大环境给定下来的，比如我们需要尽一切努力完成学习 任务，考取好成绩。这些目标，不一定完全是我们作为学生从心底处愿意去为之奋斗的，但是我们必须把它作为主要目标去奋斗。而参与社团活动，则是完全自愿 的，并且是根据个人兴趣而决定参与的程度。在一中邮协里，我们可以自主决定是作为普通会员参加，还是竞选成为理事会成员并为会员服务。可以说，在中学环境 里，社团活动里的目标，永远是属于次要的目标。当我们为了发自内心的兴趣，权衡利弊，采取行动，我们需要有强大的意志力去支撑这个次要目标。特别是当我们 成为邮协理事会成员，要承担这个江门一中最大的学生社团的管理工作时，我们需要迫使自己提高学习效率，在为主要目标奋斗之余，安排时间完成社团工作。次要 目标的生存，需要我们承受和抵挡来自班主任、来自家长、来自同学（特别是成绩超过自己的同学）、以及来自自身的压力，坚持自己的兴趣爱好。当时我也看到， 有些同学曾经接触过和参与过邮协的活动，但后来权衡了利弊，最终还是选择放弃了很多进一步参与的机会；我同时也看到，有些会员，积极地投身到协会事务上， 并争取加入理事会。无论最终结果如何，作为学生，我们的意志力都在这个过程中，得到进一步的磨练，因为我们在思想斗争之下，认清自己该走的路，并继续走下 去了。

3、团队精神

中学教育的整体格局，是培养拔尖人才的。每一个学生，都只对其自己的成绩负责。中学的评价体系里，不存在为了共同的成绩，而开展小组的合作。到了最 后，是千军万马过独木桥，每个学生都在为自己争取获得更好的升学机会。在这种环境下，能培养团队精神的机会，非常少。不可否认，我们的大学教育，已经通过 在正式课程里利用各种小组合作项目，来为我们补课，希望我们能够在经过中学教育的洗礼之后，还能重新把团队精神培养起来。但是，如果有一种情况，使我们在 中学里，就把这种对我们将来的事业发展非常重要的品质培养起来，我们一定可以赢在起跑线上！

一中邮协是一个非常讲究团队精神的组织。我们当时之所以能够有条不紊地把多个活动办下来，例如2008申奥之夜守望晚会、中大邮协交流活动、在美国罗夫高中访问期间举办的“江山如此多娇”邮展并出售加盖纪念戳的邮品活动、江门集邮会员之星大赛等，从构思策划、任务分配、任务执行、现场管理、事后总结宣传，一环扣一环，都离不开同 学们和老师们的通力合作，我们还得到前任理事会成员的顾问支持。可以说，一中邮协不是一个小打小闹的临时聚在一起的人群，它是能够让你切身感受到，只有团 队精神才能支撑起来的一个具有强大生命力的系统。当我们能够在中学阶段里就已经培养了团队精神，或者至少已经有了这方面的启蒙，这对我们将来整个人生，特 别是事业的发展，都具有非常重要的意义！

除了责任感、意志力和团队精神，邮协还给我带来了经营意识——如何为邮协创收，保障收支平衡；风险意识——如何保证活动的顺利进行，防止不利因素的 发生；市场意识——如何让邮协成为学生社团里的佼佼者，吸引更多同学的参与……可以说，这些素质，对我中学以后的学习、工作和生活都非常有利。我也相信， 这也是邮协可以给用心参与和真诚投入到邮协工作中的每一位成员，带来的受用一生的财富！在这里，值江门一中集邮协会成立二十周年之际，我衷心祝愿邮协蒸蒸 日上，继续为江门一中的学生，提供一个发展个人兴趣爱好、培养和调高自身素质的大好舞台！

Since the concept of “Web 2.0” was brought forward in 2004 for the first time, the technologies and their applications of Web 2.0 have been rapidly developed under the help of international venture capitals. At the present, Web 2.0 has deeply infiltrated most parts of internet applications, which has stimulated the grassroot revolution of internet. Meanwhile, the training industry in China has shown vast progress, the potential market scale of which may rocket to 300 billion Yuan in the next 5 to 10 years. These two domains have attracted high attentions from the society.

This paper, based on the analysis of Web 2.0 and its derived culture, defines the concept of 2.0 Culture, and points out that 2.0 Culture is likely to have far-reaching influence on training industry, which may cause the grassroot revolution of training industry and the comprehensive upgrade of the whole educational field. Then, whether the leaders of training schools and firms modify their operating stratagems and strategies, determines whether they can achieve the new impetus by seizing opportunities and well-dealing with challenges during this process of culture evolution. Thus, to explore the pedagogical significance of Web 2.0 and 2.0 Culture, the influences for training industry and the countermeasures, has become an important task for training industry in the era of the grassroot revolution of internet.

This paper has 6 chapters. Chapter 1 is an introduction to the research which contains the reason for choosing this research topic, the previsions research, and the aim, significance, method and structure of the research. Chapter 2 introduces the origin and definitions of Web 2.0, summarizes the main performances and theoretical foundations and points out that Web 2.0 will have significant influence on the development of the society. Chapter 3 explains what 2.0 Culture is and analyzes its 4 pieces of pedagogical significance. Chapter 4 analyzes the virtual problems that training schools and firms are facing to. Chapter 5 analyzes the influences that Web 2.0 and 2.0 Culture have on training industry from the perspectives of products, teachers and students. Chapter 6, based on the discussion of the former 5 chapters, brings forward that the grass root revolution of education and training industry is coming, and then defines that revolution and provides 9 pieces of relative operating strategies.

I recently travelled to China for a short stay. I purchased a prepaid China Mobile Sim card and used it on my iPhone 3GS. However, I had trouble in accessing the Internet via GPRS. I called China Mobile for help. But they said their standard GPRS settings for iPhone 3GS were not available. So I had to go to a local Apple store for help.

Here were the settings that worked:

(1) tap “General” – “Network” – “Cellular Data Network”

(2) input the following settings:

• Cellular Data – APN: cmnet
• MMS – APN: cmwap
• MMS – MMSC: mmsc.monternet.com
• MMS – Max message size: 10240

Please note that if you are using other Sim cards (e.g., an Australian one), these setting options may not appear on your iPhone. Of course, I don’t need to do any settings to use 3G/2G data network in Australia. If you have activated data roaming, you don’t need to do anything on your iPhone while you are in China. You can just access your data as usual via the local operators in China: China Mobile or China UniCom.

If you want to send SMS overseas, I would suggest you send e-mails instead if you know the receivers can also access e-mails on their smart phones. That would save you a lot.

巴沙鱼原产于越南，但沙鱼扒在澳洲很常见，基本上是鱼店里最便宜的一种冰鲜鱼。我也很喜欢吃。其中一种比较简便的做法，就是把买回来的整块鱼片放到 一个烤盘上，拌上油、酱油、料酒、黑椒末、胡椒粉、香草末、鸡粉、盐等，然后放到烤箱里烤。烤鱼能最大限度地保持鱼片的完整性，而且比较美观，也很方便。 拌上土豆泥和芦笋，算是一份家常西餐。

Kiama, New South Wales, Australia, 18 April 2010.

Evaluation Proposal for an Online

IELTS Writing Tutoring System

Wenchao He

Faculty of Education, University of Wollongong, Australia

1    Introduction

This plan describes the background, purposes, limitations, stakeholders, decisions, questions, methods, participants, instruments, procedures, logistics, and timeline for the evaluation of Chao Yue IELTS Online Tutoring System, which is an e-learning program for IELTS candidates who have purchased IELTS preparation books on www.cyielts.com.au. The methodology, procedures, and instrumentation included in this plan are based on several meetings between members of the development team and the evaluation team, as well as a review of several draft design documents. The primary objective of this evaluation is to provide timely and accurate information to support decisions regarding the enhancement and marketing of the e-learning program. The evaluation project will involve students and teachers who are to go through the standard instructional process and complete tests and/or questionnaire and/or interview. The system log will also be used for data analysis. The evaluation project will start on 1 June 2009 and finish by the end of the month. The estimated cost will be $27,200. This plan is to be reviewed, revised and approved in the first week of June.

2    Background

Chao Yue IELTS Online Tutoring System (http://e-learning.cyielts.com.au) is a Moodle-based learning management system providing IELTS candidates with tutoring service for their IELTS preparation. IELTS stands for International English Language Testing System. People from non-English speaking countries should take IELTS test and use the test result to apply for courses and/or jobs offered in English speaking countries (e.g., Australia). IELTS result is also a requirement for applying for a permanent visa and/or immigration to English speaking countries. Chao Yue IELTS sells IELTS preparation books online and provides the customers with tutoring services. The operation is that the students firstly purchase IELTS preparation books online, then receive and use the books for self-study. Once they have any difficulties in studying the materials, they can ask the online tutors for help on the e-learning system. When they complete an IELTS writing task, they are to submit the essays to the e-learning system and the tutors will provide them with feedback and a web-based customised small course with various learning activities. The tutoring service for the first essay that the student submits is free of charge. After the first round, the student can decide to pay for extra writing tutoring service. So basically, Chao Yue IELTS’s e-learning system offers two kinds of services – general questions answering and IELTS writing tutoring. This evaluation will focus on the IELTS writing tutoring part of the system. A detailed tutoring process is illustrated in Figure 1.

Besides the one-on-one tutoring mode in the IELTS Writing Tutoring Section, once the tutors identify the students’ common problems in IELTS writing, they will organise some instructional materials and make them available to the students. The tutors also moderate an online learning community where students discuss about their learning and help each other.

•    Figure 1    Chao Yue IELTS Writing Tutoring Process

3    Purposes

The overall purpose of this evaluation is to provide the directors and tutors at Chao Yue IELTS with the timely, accurate information required to support decisions regarding the enhancement and marketing of the IELTS Writing Tutoring program. This evaluation is primarily an effectiveness evaluation in the sense that the information collected will be used as the basis for determining whether the program accomplishes its objectives within the immediate or short-term context of its implementation. As a result of this evaluation and the decisions and actions stemming from it, the e-learning program should be ready for being further promoted in the IELTS preparation education market, or should be enhanced before being further promoted.

Specific sub-purposes of this evaluation are:

*    to collect information for promoting the e-learning program,

*    to investigate the reasons why the students subscribe to or not subscribe to extra tutoring service after they receive the first round of service for free,

*    to measure to what extent the program helps the students improve their English writing skills for IELTS, and

*    to decide if the program needs to be modified for students’ better learning outcome.

4    Stakeholders

The clients for this evaluation are the managers of Chao Yue IELTS. Important primary stakeholders include the tutors and marketing personnel involved in the development effort and the students of the e-learning system. The technical staff who is in charge of maintaining the e-learning system and the customer service staff may also be viewed as secondary stakeholders in this evaluation, but dissemination of the evaluation plans and results will be controlled by the clients.

5    Decisions

To empower this evaluation to provide timely and accurate information to support decision making, we have identified a set of anticipated decisions that will be made about the e-learning program. Most of these decisions must be made regardless of the quantity and quality of information available to the decision makers, but the evaluation will ensure that the decisions are informed by the best possible information. The following decisions are anticipated:

*    Advertising and marketing decisions will be made about the e-learning program by the managers of Chao Yue IELTS.

*    Modifications will be made in the e-learning program to improve its effectiveness and appeal.

*    Strategies will be made for persuading students subscribe to extra IELTS Writing tutoring service after the free-trial.

6    Questions

The following questions will be addressed during this effectiveness evaluation:

*    How are the knowledge and skills of the students changed by the program?

*    What are the students’ reactions to free trial of the program?

*    What are the factors in students’ decision to subscribe or not to subscribe to the program after free trial?

*    What are the fee-paying students’ reactions to the program?

*    What corrections must be made to the program?

*    What enhancements can be made to the program?

7    Methods

7.1    Data Collection Matrix

No single evaluation design can encompass the six major questions specified for the evaluation of the IELTS Writing Tutoring e-learning program. Therefore, a mixed methods evaluation design and multiple data collection strategies will be utilised to collect the information required to address these questions. The data collection strategies include questionnaire, interview, automatic data collection and tests. Table 1 specifies the data collection methods and their corresponding evaluation questions.

•    Table 1    Data Collection Matrix

7.2    Learner Questionnaire

7.2.1    Questionnaire Design

Questionnaires are one of the most frequently used methods of collecting data for effectiveness evaluation (Reeves and Hedberg 2008). The Learner Questionnaire for this evaluation will be addressing all the six research questions. The current enrolled and past non-paying and fee-paying students will be invited to complete the questionnaire. Although the questionnaire may be anonymous, the two groups of students will be labelled so that we can differentiate their responses. The objectives of the questionnaire are as followed:

*    to clarify what kinds of benefit in terms of knowledge and skills, if any, the students have got from the program,

*    to let the students recall and specify their reactions to the free trial,

*    to know about the subscribers and non-subscribers’ decision making process in terms of subscription,

*    to let the fee-paying students recall and specify their reactions to the program, and

*    to obtain the data about the weakness and strengths of the program from the students’ perspective.

Generally, the questionnaire will predefine a series of variables represented as a list of 5-point Likert scaling questions. The questionnaire will be web-based so it can be completed on the Internet. The respondents will be given an option to address if they are willing to be contacted for a follow up e-mail or telephone interview.

7.2.2    Rationale of the Questionnaire

A questionnaire is an effective tool to gathered responses in a standardised and objective way. It does not require too much time and effort for evaluators to prepare and analyse, and for students to complete (see Table 2). So this method is relatively quick to collect information. In this evaluation context, a web-based questionnaire is easy to develop in Moodle because this is an existing function built in the system.

•    Table 2    Requirement of Questionnaire (Harvey 1998)

However, it is believed that questionnaire’s response rate could be low, specially the questionnaire can not be delivered and responded to in face-to-face class time (e.g., in an e-learning context). This is because students may not be willing to answer the questions. They might not wish to reveal the information or they might think that they will not benefit from responding. Furthermore, the students may answer superficially especially if the questionnaire takes a long time to complete (Harvey 1998). Thus, we should simplify the questionnaire and most of the questions designed are of 5-point Likert scaling type. Where possible, every respondent should have an opportunity to enter a draw to prizes.

7.3    Teacher Interview

7.3.1    Interview Design

In the teacher interview session, the teachers who are offering IELTS writing tutoring service at Chao Yue IELTS will be asked semi-structured questions regarding the students’ progress and the quality of the program. The objectives of the interview are:

*    to obtain the information about the teachers’ impression and observation of the students’ progress, and

*    to let the teachers address their concerns about the design of the program including the instructional process detailed in Figure 1, the current configuration of the Moodle system, and the instructional materials they are using for developing customised small courses for the students.

The semi-structured interview will start with broad questions and then the teachers are free to add extra information to help achieve the objectives of the interview.

7.3.2    Rationale of the Interview

Generally, there are three types of interview design: (1) standardised interview, where questions are asked in the same way across a sample population by different interviewers, (2) semi-structured interview, where the interaction is kept focused on the same ground while allowing individual experience to emerge, and (3) conversational interview, where the evaluator responds quickly to individual differences and situational changes. According to Harvey (1998), all the three types of interview require much time and effort for preparation, conducting the interview and analysis afterwards (see Table 3). However, as the sample for the interview is not large – less than 5, this part of the evaluation would not be extremely time-consuming. Amongst the three types of interviews, the semi-structured one is adopted because the anticipated information from the interview is based on the teachers’ tacit impression, if we choose standardised interview, some important information may be missed; if we choose conversational interview, the teachers may provide too much information which is irrelevant to the predefined evaluation questions.

•    Table 3    Requirement of Interview (Harvey 1998)

7.4    Automated Data Collection

7.4.1    Automated Data Collection Design

In the Moodle system, users’ every single activity will be logged. The e-learning program includes a number of discrete modules, with each module containing several different types of instructional options, e.g., tutorials, quizzes, practice exercises, and mastery tests. The students’ paths through the modules, their choices among the instructional options, and their quiz and test scores, will all be recorded. However, not all the logged data will be used for the evaluation. Our focus is on the following aspects:

*    the frequency of usage,

*    the time spent on each activity and/or resource,

*    exit page (on which page the users are likely to exit the system), and

*    the comparison between expected activity paths and actual activity paths.

The primary objective of collecting the information about the above aspects is to presume the users’ attitude towards the program (e.g., high frequency and moderate time of usage may imply positive attitude while unexpected and sudden exit could be a sign of dislikes). Another objective is to identify any technical problems within the program which may be indicated by unexpected exit and/or unexpected activity paths.

7.4.2    Rationale of Automated Data Collection

Automated data collection is a step-by-step recording of user interaction with an e-learning program. The level of detail recorded is determined by a purpose-built program and can include mouse clicks, menu calls, and all operations on objects. Modelled on a “record” facility, log data is a useful way of tracking user preferences and navigational choices. This approach does not require any attention from the students and administration because once the logging function is turned on, everything is done automatically. However, the preparation time could be long because not all the data is useful for evaluation purpose (see Table 4). Evaluators need to determine what data needs to be logged, how it should be recorded and summarised and what level of detail of activities should be logged (Harvey 1998).

•    Table 4    Requirement of Automated Data Collection (Harvey 1998)

In the current evaluation context, the logged data is a useful resource for presuming users’ reaction and help refine the questionnaire and interview protocol. The reason that the logged data should be linked to the questionnaire and the interview protocol is that the data does not answer “why” questions and further evaluation is necessary to find explanations for occurring phenomena (Harvey 1998). We acknowledge that this approach has such nature so the logged data will not form a strong evidence for the evaluation result.

7.5    Pre- and Post-Testing

7.5.1    Pre- and Post-Testing Design

As the e-learning program being evaluated is an exam preparation program, to determine its effectiveness, a pre- and post-testing approach should be applied and the result can demonstrate if students are making progress or not. The tests are to solely answer the first evaluation question – “How are the knowledge and skills of the students changed by the program?” The subject of the tests will be the fee-paying students who have paid for extra five rounds of IELTS writing tutoring process (see Figure 1). The objective of the tests is to measure to what extent the five rounds of IELTS writing tutoring service has helped the students raise their IELTS writing scores.

7.5.2    Rationale of the Testing

Tests are widely accepted as an effectiveness evaluation strategy, but we should be wary of tests unless you have evidence of their reliability and validity (Reeves and Hedberg 2008). Pre- and post-testing’s result could be easily affected by external factors which influence student learning. It would be very wrong to assume that we can discount a variety of external factors which will affect student performance when considering the reasons for variation between pre and post test responses (Harvey 1998). The reason why this approach requires long time on preparation (see Table 5) is not only about the test questions preparation but also about organising the students (e.g., trying every effort to exclude external factors, recruiting at least 60 students in order to allow us to make reliable statistical conclusions from the data, etc.).

•    Table 5    Requirement of Pre- and Post-Testing (Harvey 1998)

Despite that, we still need to include this approach in the evaluation because this is the only method that can objectively and quantitatively demonstrate the effectiveness of the e-learning program. One of the evaluation purposes is to collect information for promoting the e-learning program. The result of the tests will become an important resource to response to this predefined purpose.

7.6    Procedure of the Evaluation

The evaluation process can be divided into the following phrases:

*    The evaluators recruit students and teachers for the evaluation. The students should include non-paying students and fee-paying students.

*    The administrator turns on automatic logging function in the Moodle system.

*    The evaluators conduct pre-test for fee-paying students who have paid for five rounds of IELTS writing tutoring process.

*    The students go through their study process.

*    The evaluators analyse the logged data of the students’ activities in the learning system.

*    Based on the analysis of the logged data, the evaluators revise the questionnaire and the interview protocol.

*    When the non-paying students finish their first round free trial, they are given the questionnaire to complete.

*    When the fee-paying students finish their five rounds of study process, they are to take the post test and complete the questionnaire.

*    The evaluators conduct the interview with the teachers.

*    The evaluators analyse all the data.

*    The evaluators conduct follow-up interview with students and teachers, where necessary.

*    The evaluators compose the evaluation report.

8    Participants

The participants in this effectiveness evaluation will be:

*    2 evaluators

*    60 fee-paying students

*    60 non-paying students

*    4 teachers

9    Sample Instruments
9.1    Student Questionnaire

Appendix A includes the Student Questionnaire that the students participating in this evaluation will complete after they finish the free trial (for non-paying students) or after they finish the five rounds of tutoring process (for fee-paying students).

9.2    Teacher Interview Protocol

Appendix B includes the protocol for teacher interview that will complete with the four teachers who are currently offer the tutoring service in the e-learning program.

9.3    Automatic Data Collection

Appendix C includes a list of all the data to be collected by the computer while users are studying within the e-learning program. This data includes both navigation paths and response choices.

9.4    Pre-Test and Post-Test

Appendix D includes a sample of pre-test. All the recruited students should take the pre-test before they enrol in the e-learning program. The pre-test will take one hour to complete. It includes two writing tasks which are standard IELTS Writing tasks.

Appendix E includes a sample of post-test. It is also a standard IELTS Writing test. The difficulty of the pre- and post-tests are the same.

10    Data Analysis

10.1    Student Questionnaire

As for the Likert Scale questions, the evaluators are to check the answers for values out with expected ranges and inconsistencies. The results will be presented in bar charts, histograms, and/or scatterplots.

As for the open ended questions, the evaluators are to check the answers to see if they have common responses that can be coded up in some way. The coding technique will be used to transfer the qualitative data into quantitative data.

10.2    Teacher Interview

The evaluators are to check the interview transcripts to see if different teachers have common responses that can be coded up. As for their differences, the evaluators are to summarise them and present the result in a concise format.

10.3    Automatically Collected Data

The automatically collected data will be analysed and will form the basis for the evaluators to presume the users’ thoughts as they were going through the tutoring process. The assumption will be reflected on the revision of the questionnaire and the interview protocol.

10.4    Pre-Test and Post-Test

The test scores will be input into an SPSS database and will be calculated out whether there is significant difference between the pre-test and post-test.

11    Deliverables

Below is an outline of how the evaluation findings will be reported:

11.1    Progress of Students

11.1.1    Self-Rated Progress

11.1.2    Pre- and Post-Tests

11.1.3    Teachers’ Observation

11.2    Free Trial

11.2.1    Students’ Reaction to the Free Trial

11.2.2    Factors that Influence Students’ Decision to Subscribe to Extra Tutoring Service after Free Trial

11.2.3    Students’ Performance Described by Teachers

11.3    Paid Tutoring Service

11.3.1    Students’ Reaction to the Program

11.2.2    Students’ Performance Described by Teachers

11.4    Corrections to Be Made

11.4.1    Instructional Process

11.4.2    Instructional Materials

11.5    Enhancements to Be Made

11.5.1    Instructional Process

11.5.2     Instructional Materials

12    Limitations

12.1    Individual Learners’ Learning Experiences Vary

Although the trained teachers are to provide the service in a standard process using the same instructional strategy, individual learners’ learning experience will not be the same. This is because the writing tasks each student does are not the same, either as the teachers’ comments and the customised small courses. This may influence the reliability of the evaluation, especially for the student questionnaire part.

12.2    Difficulty in Controlling the Pre- and Post-Tests

The pre- and post-tests require the students complete the writing tasks online individually in one hour. The students are supposed not to look up words in dictionary or have any reference materials. However, this is not controllable because the evaluators can not monitor the testing process directly (e.g., seeing the students doing the tasks without any form of assistance). If any students do not follow the instruction, the reliability of the tests could be doubtful.

13    Logistics

Two evaluators will coordinate the implementation of this evaluation plan, including scheduling, data collection, and data transmission, with the course manager for this project. All data will be processed, analysed, interpreted, and reported by the two evaluators. All reports will be provided to managers and the teachers at Chao Yue IELTS. Further dissemination of the evaluation findings will be determined by the managers. Additional details about the logistics are found in the timeline section of this plan. The due dates for various deliverables are also specified in the timeline.

14    Timeline

15    Budget

–>

16    References

Harvey, J 1998, Evaluation Cookbook, Learning Technology Dissemination Initiative, Edinburgh.

Reeves, T C & Hedberg, J G 2008, Evaluating e-Learning: a user-friendly guide (in press).

Appendix A    Student Questionnaire

Dear Student,

We are currently running an evaluation project for our e-learning program. We need your feedback to help us improve the IELTS writing tutoring service. Your responses are anonymous. Once you have finished the questionnaire, you will be entered into a draw to win one of the five $100 Coles Gift Cards. It will approximately take you 10 minutes to complete the questionnaire. Thank you for your time!

1. Please circle your responses to the following statements using the scale below.

1 = Strongly Disagree    2 = Disagree        3 = Neither Agree or Disagree

4 = Agree            5 = Strongly Agree

a. The program helped you identify your weakness in IELTS writing. 1 2 3 4 5

b. The program helped you identify your strengths in IELTS writing. 1 2 3 4 5

c. The tutor’s comment helped you understand how IELTS writing is scored. 1 2 3 4 5

d. The customised small course helps you overcome your weakness in IELTS writing. 1 2 3 4 5

e. Your IELTS writing skills have been improved at the completion of the program. 1 2 3 4 5

d. You satisfied with the free trial. 1 2 3 4 5

e. You decided whether to subscribe to extra tutoring service based on money for value. 1 2 3 4 5

f. You decided whether to subscribe to extra tutoring service based on your experience in the free trial. 1 2 3 4 5

g. You decided whether to subscribe to extra tutoring service based on your availability. 1 2 3 4 5

For Fee-Paying Students:

h. You think your decision to subscribe to extra tutoring service was correct. 1 2 3 4 5

i. You satisfied with the quality of the extra tutoring service. 1 2 3 4 5

j. You actively involved in the learning activities in the paid tutoring process. 1 2 3 4 5

2. What is the best aspect of the e-learning program?

3. How would you improve the e-learning program?

4. Please write any other comments about this e-learning program.

Appendix B    Teacher Interview Protocol

*    From your impression and observation, what progress did the students make during the studying this e-learning program?

*    What do you think of the current instructional process?

*    What do you think of the current configuration of the Moodle system?

*    Do you find it difficult or easy to organise relevant instructional materials for developing customised small course for the students?

Appendix C    Automated Data Collection