Hi Everyone,
Excited to be getting started in the MET program here, this is my first term in the program, so I’m looking forward to both getting oriented and diving right in. My background is in Computer Science, but I’ve spent the last 12 years working in education here in Hong Kong, both as an Early Childhood Educator and now serving as Educational Technology Coordinator at an international school here in Hong Kong. My wife and I have a lovely daughter who keeps us smiling (and ever present!). I love cycling and hiking (Hong Kong has some fantastic hiking, but cycling not so much!) and have done a few cycling trips through the Rocky Mountains and the prairies, can’t wait for the next chance for a long cycling trip.
It’s been a wild year here but especially the past three months, guiding a K-12 school through a transition to Online School as a result of the pandemic and trying to remind people that new isn’t always better and ensure our community remains connected and supported (also entirely remotely!).
Mobile devices have become ubiquitous in the past decade, to the point where your mobile device, coupled with access to the internet could easily be considered an augmentation and enhancement, especially considering so many of us now wouldn’t leave home without it and the anxiety so many people feel when the battery level drops below 10%. We spend so much time on these devices, and yet I still feel we’re limited by the interface, typing with our thumbs, and reading text on a screen. In the past few year’s we’re starting to see much more video/audio interaction, but the interface with the device is in itself still a huge limitation, as is the time spent learning the intricacies of each new tool (in education especially). I’m keen to see greater adoption/access to augmented/virtual reality and language processing while being quite concerned at the level of information and profiling that happens as we further integrate this technology into our lives. In education I see technology as most effective when it’s integrated so seamlessly that the focus remains off the technology itself and instead directly on the learning intention. With mobile devices that is even more crucial, technology is a powerful tool so it’s so important we start with the why.
Quite keen also to explore and learn more about open models for learning, and specifically what frameworks/guidelines we can put in place to support learners in adjusting to this style of learning (something many teachers are currently struggling with in their classrooms as they transition from more “traditional” models of instructions to more student-driven models).
Look forward to learning from and with you all!
~Matt
Hi Matt;
Greetings from your neighbour! I have been in HK for 10 years! It’s good to see another HKer around. 🙂
Suzzie
Hi Matt,
Nice meeting you! Welcome to MET 🙂 I’ve been to Hong Kong once only and fell in love with the city right away. Really enjoyed the food there… Looking forward to learning together.
Ceci
Hi Matt,
Great to meet you – I’m curious what Hong Kong is like. I was meant to be in China for 2 years, but left earlier due to not being utterly in love with it. I hear Hong Kong is very different though. With you having been there almost 12 years, it must feel like home by now. Was the adjustment quick?
Really looking forward to seeing you in and around the forums here. Enjoy the course 🙂
Hi Jamie,
Both China and Hong Kong have been going through some rather rapid change in the past decade. Hong Kong is a fascinating place that doesn’t sleep and depending on where you live you can either be immersed in “western” culture speaking English every day like many large cosmopolitan cities in the world or so immersed in Cantonese and local culture that it’s a struggle just to get out and eat. I took the latter course and am glad for it, having to learn Cantonese and read some basic Traditional Chinese to eat was quite worth it. Like many expats here, I came for 2 years, then 3, then 7, and as you say it’s now a place I will always consider one of my homes. It’s great to be able to hike out of the city and in a couple of hours look down on it all and realize just how small it is.
~Matt