Well it has been a while since my last post...
Exams have finished and the semester is now over, so what did I learn this year? Well basically things went to plan and I have been happy with the results this semester, where as semester 1 was a bit of a mixed bag. Semester 1 I was teaching the new Algorithmic Problem Solving and the old Enterprise .NET, while I took the new Object Oriented Programming and the old Advanced .NET in semester 2.
Algorithmic Problem Solving was really great, I used approaches from the Beyond Bullet Points to plan the subject and to develop the lectures. I feel that this helped manage the amount of material covered in each presentation. The results for APS were really good, not just from a numeric point of view but also from the learning outcomes. Enterprise .NET on the other hand was a bit of a mess, and as a result will not run next year as I develop new material for it.
Object Oriented programming took off where APS finished. This was also a great success, but probably not as much as APS. With some more planning and re-work the results should be better still next year. Advanced .NET was really great to deliver, but still needs some rework for next year. The focus on concurrency is really now starting to concentrate on the unique issues in .NET, which is much better now.
The new approaches to assessment also went well though I think I may have over done it a little. I like the idea of pass, distinction, and high distinction assessment items, though I would like to know what the students thought of it...
Since the end of exams I have been creating the new Database Programming material. So far the development is going slowly, but I have been distracted by so many things. I hope to really get into it soon.
Coming up for me is the PSD Summer Scholarship, I will be supervising six students who will work on developing some software and tutorial like material or four weeks. The guys start next week so I better get something organised for them :)
Monday, November 20, 2006
I am still alive
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Forgot to mention. I am playing a really interesting online role playing game called Werewolf. Come and join in the fun at http://www.bluestoneit.com/wolves
I'm sure you already very well know my thoughts on the assessment which was used in Advanced .NET, as I was very vocal about it throughout the semester.
In my mind a student who comes into a subject who is already an absolute professional should be able to get through a subject with a HD with little trouble - something they would have no chance of with the marking scheme the way it was. Only a student with plenty of time available would benefit from it. That aside, I found the subject was severely geared towards full-time students, and could be a real problem for part-time students.
I think I already provided some hopefully useful suggestions on the feedback form at the end of the semester, which I would hope to see implemented - even though it's not going to benefit me.
So, regarding the interns - any plans on torturing them and giving them Adv.NET style/multithreaded problems? :)
Shame about Enterprise .NET as it was the best subject that I have ever done. I hope it is back, new and improved as it really is a subject which equips you for the outside world.
I disagree with Tim's comments. No one should get a HD with little trouble. A High Distinction should mean something in every subject. It should be hard to obtain, you need to learn a lot and do a lot to achieve this.
Andrew,
The problem with the education system these days is that it relies too much on how much effort a person puts in, and not their ability to get things done.
Giving high marks to students who can only get a HD by putting in 200 hours of work, and giving a lower mark to someone with more knowledge who only needs 10 to get it done is not only stupid, but incredibly bad for the reputation of a university. If I have to choose between two people to hire, one with each of those two properties, I can tell you I won't be hiring the one who can't get thier head around things. A system which gives no ability for a person to shine despite having a large amount of available time should be highly sought out.
A system whereby students are rewarded for putting in lots of time can be compared to the pathetic VCE system we've had for the past seven years (longer even), and it's very easy to spot the private school students far less deserving of university spots who are hugely benefitted as a result of this.
A university subject mark isn't supposed to tell someone how much work you put in. It's supposed to tell a person how well that person did, and explain their knowledge of the subject matter - nothing more. Rewarding someone and saying they're better than an industry professional because they put in 200 hours to understand something someone takes only a few to get done and already knows thoroughly is utter lunacy, and give a bad reputation to anyone who is to be even assoiciated with that system due to the bias it will cause against any future student who comes through that system, regardless of how good they are.
To say a HD is only to be given for someone who learns is also ridiculous, especially if there is nothing examinable in the subject which they are not already familiar. Should a person who has learnt nothing in a subject due to already being well versed in that area score 0 for that subject? That seems to be what you are implying.
I tend to agree with some of both Tim's and Andrew's comments. I agree that a high mark should be awarded based upon demonstration of knowledge (Tim), but also that these marks need to be awarded only for advanced understanding (Andrew). I also think that this was shown in Advanced .NET this semester. For example, I know of at least one student (works full time) who achieved a D result with little effort. He had most of the D assignment working, then in the week before it was due scrapped it and started again! His exam and assignment were both very good, and he said he should have done the HD assignment if he had managed his time better. Another student showed me a completed D and HD assignment the weeks they were released! There were a few mistakes but they did manage to get the work completed in just a few days. Basically if you understood how to do this the implementation was not as complicated as it appeared.
Then there are the other D and HD students that are all very capable and have been able to find the time to complete the assignment work. They worked harder then the two I mentioned above and learned significantly over the semester. There assignments still demonstrated this advanced understanding of the material.
In general I think the assessment was very close to what I want. I think next time around the P assignment will be more focused with more emphasis on the core concurrency controls. The D and HD assignments will remain basically the same.
I would love to hear more from other students from this semester.
Higher ed in particular, is, and has to be, about learning. It isn't what you know. It's how good you are at learning new stuff.
If that wasn't the case, we wouldn't need to run courses at all. We could simply offer an assessment task at the start of the semester, grade it on the spot and start handing out degrees based on what people already knew.
It's one of the funny things about eduction: it involves learning.
There are plenty of places on line that offer cheap mail order degrees. If you want one of these, send me an email and I'll forward some of my spam.
If somebody is competent enough at the course content, then why should they waste their time going to unviversity at all? And I do think that for some people, uni *is* a waste of time and money.
If going to uni is simply about getting a piece of paper, then like I said, get a mail order one. It saves *everyone* time, effort and money.
If we want to talk about an employers point of view, a university degree says "this person is capable of two things: Learning, and sticking something out". Both are desirable traits in an employee. Especially in the tech arena, stuff changes too fast to give jobs to people who are stuck in their ways an unwilling to learn new skills ans techniques. And you also want somebody who isn't going to quit as soon as the going gets tough.
So the role of uni is in some small part to put students through the ringer. What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, right?
If people believe having a degree makes you more employable, or worth more, it can only be true as long as universities maintain the value of the degree. That can only be done by setting high standards and failing people. What makes a degree worth something is the blood, sweat and tears you put into it. It's also all the people who *fail* to get a degree which make it worth something.
Andrew, I really enjoyed your subjects (Enterprise & Advanced.NET) this semester, teaching style was really good. There was one lesson that really stood out where you ditched the slides and did the whole lesson, interactively.
Having worked a whole day then having 3-4 hours of uni at night, a lecturer really has to complete with my dodoling, for my attention. This semester I must say that I dont have many pictures to show for all my time in class. :)
I thought the HD/D/C/P assignments was a great idea. I don't think the work load was that hard, I do think the assignments should have got harder not longer.
But the assignments probally looked like they we're more work than they were, because after writing my tools for the 2nd assignment I was able to implement the GUI/Model functionatily in 1 day! I was kicking myself for not doing the 3rd assignment, because I would have kicked those guys and I would have been named Champion!!!!
Keen to see how you punish your students next semester... How about you give them the Airport Simulator as a hurdle!!!
This is a question from a part time MIT student who will be doing Advanced .Net as his final subject in semester 2, 2007.
In short, what is the best way to prepare for the subject?
Should I be concentrating on developing skills in:
1 - OOA & D?
2 - Design Patterns?
3 - Multi Threaded Development?
4 - GDI+ development with C#?
5 - Custom Control Development?
I find that the 13 weeks of the typical semester is never long enough to go into as much detail as I would like. So if I can learn the basic before I start then I can spend the semester concentrating on the more advanced content.
Any pointers would be appreciated.
Cheers, Richard.
4 -
I am impressed with the way Adv .NET was delivered.
In regards to the HD/D/... assignment, I think it is an excellent idea to assess student as they get through the semester. So that when it comes to the exam, most students don't stressed out too much (except those who failed the assignments. =P)
It is true that if you want to get good marks, you need to put extra effort into it, which means those students learn a whole lot more about the subject. The more time you put into the subject, the better understanding you will have at the end of semester. Hmm.... this reminds me of my C++. I bludge the whole semester and just did the revision at the end. Luckily, I manage to (hopefully) get a good mark. =)
I can't wait to do the Database Programming. =)
Personally, I love the P,C,D,HD break up. You know exactly what is required and it IS much easier to plan your time accordingly. I think it makes the overall experience more focused for those that want to get a basic understanding and to some degree easier, as the exam is then weighted for this pass. There are no tricky questions on the exam. This means for those that just want to get a basic understanding, they can. And there is nothing to trick them.
This then means that to get the higher marks you have to do the extra assignments/projects. This ensures that HD's aren't handed out willy nilly to somebody that might have cramed for the exam for a few days but doesn't *really* understand it because they haven't really ever written it.
I like the structure and wish more of my subjects had it, but I guess its not for everyone.
Tim, in regards to some of your comments....If somebody really did understand it all and was a *professional* as you put it then they would breeze through it in a short period of time. When does something take time? When it has to be *learnt*.
I'm not denying the amount of time argument. As I had to drop a lot of time into it (struggled to juggle with final year project and agile project).
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