Reflection on Mode-Changing

The task 1, “What’s in my bag,” first asked me to list the things I carry every day. The goal was to show why these items are important in my daily life. I redesigned the task as a short audio    story for task 7. This fits the New London Group’s idea that learning should use many modes, not just writing (New London Group, 1996). For redesigning, I followed these steps: think about the purpose, change from text to audio, add a story voice, and reflect on the meaning of the items. This matches the multiliteracies idea that we should design and redesign meaning (Leander & Boldt, 2012).

Benefits. Audio is more exciting than writing a list. When you hear my voice, you notice tone, pauses, and rhythm. These make the story more alive. Lunsford (2006) explains that modern writing is often multimodal, so it can mix sound, image, and text. By telling my bag story with sound, I try to show that my objects are not just things, they are symbols of how I live, learn, and travel.

Challenges. But audio has problems too. It is harder to go back and find exact sentences or words. In this mode, highlighting or underlining key content is not possible. Some people prefer to read quickly instead of listening. Also, recordings need some complicated tools and skills, like microphones or editing software.

In the end, changing the mode from text to audio showed me something new: literacy is about more than reading and writing on paper. It can be about using other forms, such as sound and images, to tell my stories.

References:

The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies- Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review 66(1), 60-92.

Leander, K., & Boldt, G. (2013). Rereading” a pedagogy of multiliteracies”: bodies, texts, and emergence. Journal of Literacy Research, 45(1), 22-46.

Lunsford, A. A. (2006).  Writing, technologies, and the fifth canon. Computers and composition, 23(2), 169-177.

Witness.html

When I created “The Witness Story” in Twine, I wanted readers to explore the truth from different sides, just like real investigators. Twine lets writers build hypertext stories¹, where each part connects to others through links. Readers don’t need to move in a straight line; they can choose what to read next.

This idea comes from Nelson’s work on hypertext. He explained that digital writing connects information “like a web of ideas,” not like the one-way flow of a printed book (Nelson, 1999). When I linked different witness scenes together, I was following that same idea. I let readers jump between voices and form their own understanding.

In this story, each witness talks in a natural and conversational way, so readers feel as if they are hearing people speak rather than reading formal text. (Ong, 2002). This program and the others help me reorganize my thoughts. (Heim, 1999). During revising my Twine story, I realized that this program didn’t just help me write, it helped me think. It showed me how stories and memories can change depending on the path we take.

References
Heim, M. (1999). Electric language: A philosophical study of word processing. Yale University Press.

Nelson, T. (1999). Xanalogical Structure, Needed Now More Than Ever. ACM Computing Surveys, 31(4).

Ong, W. J. (2002). Orality and Literacy:The technology of the words. Routledge

Here are two samples of my handwriting in English and Persian.

I usually, or perhaps I should say most of the time now, type instead of writing by hand. Especially after immigrating, my habit of using a pen has become very rare. I notice this most clearly in my personal diary. Nowadays, handwriting has become difficult for me. Holding a pen and moving it across the paper feels strange and tiring. I also find that I can no longer form letters as beautifully as before. If you look at a page from my diary (Persian one), you will see how my handwriting has lost its neatness and flow. Even though I do not type with the full ten finger method, I still rely on typing almost every day. My typing is not professional, but it works. I am forced to depend on typing because almost everything I need to prepare for assignments, proposals, or documents to be sent, must be submitted in Word or PDF format. Because of this, typing has become the natural and mandatory choice for me, while handwriting has become more of a rare, nostalgic practice.

When I write my diary, if I make a small mistake, I usually just ignore it and continue writing. But if the mistake changes the meaning of sentence, I have no choice but to correct it. I cannot erase the word. Instead, I cross it out with a line and write the correct word above or below it. Editing by hand is therefore more manual and visible, and the corrections themselves become part of the page (Clement, 1997).

When I type, the process is very different. I use Word software that has autocorrect and spell-check features. This can be very helpful. However, it can sometimes create new mistakes. For example, if I am not careful, the autocorrect feature may change a word into something completely different, with a different meaning (Lekamge & Smith, 2025).

Because of this, I think the medium plays a very important role in how I edit my work. With handwriting, I am responsible for finding and correcting every mistake myself, and my corrections stay visible on the page. With typing, the computer helps me, but it also sometimes makes errors that I must fix. In both cases, editing affects the overall beauty and clarity of the text, but in different ways (Lamb & McCormick, 2020, May 26).

From my perspective, the most important difference between handwriting and mechanized writing is the way the flow of thought is affected. When I type, the presence of autocorrect sometimes interrupts my idea rhythm. The software may change or suggest something that alters the structure of the sentence. This can break the natural stream of my thinking and shift my focus from meaning to correction. When I write by hand, even though it feels harder for me now, my thoughts and my hand move together. I do not worry too much in the moment about whether the word is perfectly correct; instead, the fluency of the sentence and the clarity of the idea show themselves more naturally. With practice, handwriting can also be very enjoyable because of the beauty of the script itself (Kiefer et al., 2015).

I also feel that handwriting leaves a kind of trace of my learning. The small corrections and crossed-out words remain visible on the page, like a memory of my past mistakes. When I look back, I can see where I wrote a wrong word or made a grammatical error, and it reminds me that I am improving. With typing, this does not happen. Because of this, I personally prefer handwriting, since it carries both aesthetic value and a visible record of growth, even though typing is more practical in my daily work.

References:

Clement, R. W. (1997). Medieval and Renaissance Book Production. Utah State University.

Kiefer, M., Schuler, S., Mayer, C., Trumpp, N. M., Hille, K., & Sachse, S. (2015). Handwriting or Typewriting? The Influence of Pen- or Keyboard-Based Writing Training on Reading and Writing Performance in Preschool Children. Adv Cogn Psychol, 11(4), 136-146. https://doi.org/10.5709/acp-0178-7

Lamb, R., & McCormick, J. (2020, May 26). From the vault: Invention of the book, part 1 & 2.

Lekamge, R., & Smith, C. (2025). Impact of Auto-Correction Features in Text-Processing Software on the Academic Writing of ESL Learners. English Language Overseas Perspectives and Enquiries, 22(1), 69-91.

My Journey with a Voice-to-Text Story (Task 3)

This week, for maybe the second or third time, I tried using apps that change voice to text (https://speechnotes.co/). Because of this, I decided to share a memory about the first book I prepared and published about thirty years ago. I read the story in simple English into the app. Of course, English is my second language, so some of my pronunciations may not have been clear. The result was very surprising for me. Below, you can see the text that the app created. After that, I will share my thoughts about the text and how the app changed my words. At the end of my post, I will also include the edited version so you can compare and see the differences.

The voice-to-text story feels different from normal written English. It sounds more like someone talking than like something written down. The sentences are long and run together without punctuation, so it’s hard to tell where one idea ends and another begins. Sometimes small words like “the” are missing. There are also grammar mistakes and odd word choices. For example, “library well very strict with big box light Britannica” or “many of their Ray sources” don’t make sense. These are mistakes from the speech-to-text program. In proper writing, sentences would be shorter, the verb tense would stay the same, and the words would be clearer.

Still, the text is not all wrong. There are problems like run-on sentences, wrong verb forms, misheard words, missing punctuation, and confusing sections. It doesn’t show the tone of voice or body language you’d expect when someone is speaking. But the story itself makes sense. It flows in a way that feels natural. It shows feelings of nostalgia, effort, and pride. The voice feels personal and conversational, which makes it sound like a real person telling their own story. Most importantly, the main ideas still come through. We can see how hard research was before the internet and how much patience and passion it took.

The most common mistakes are easy to spot. The sentences run on because I don’t talk in neat, written chunks. Misheard words happen because the app guesses at sounds and sometimes gets them wrong. Missing words show up because the app often skip little words like “the” or “to” when they talk. Verb tense changes appear because I jump between past and present without noticing. These are considered mistakes because they don’t follow the rules of written English. That makes the text harder to read and less exact.

If the story had been scripted, it would look very different. I made it shorter and easier to read, with correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling. I try to stick the main points like the libraries, the copying rules, the translations, and the handwritten drafts. Also, there wouldn’t be as much repetition or side-tracking. But something would also be lost. The natural emotion of the spoken version might disappear. Oral storytelling has a kind of life and feeling that a scripted version can’t always capture.

This shows how oral storytelling is not the same as written storytelling. Oral stories feel alive because they use tone, pauses, and even body language to make them real. They can wander a little, repeat things, or change tense, and that’s okay in speech. Written stories are different. They need structure, spelling, punctuation, and grammar to make sense. They aim to be clear because the reader can’t hear the voice or see the gestures. Oral storytelling connects with people in the moment. Written storytelling is built to last.

Short review on design and development of Meet the MET

At the outset of the MET program, an online session was convened to introduce and acquaint participants with the program’s objectives, and to gain insights from the perspectives of faculty and alumni. It became apparent that despite the presence of various UBC MET social media, there was a necessity for a interactive platform where they could share their questions and opinions among themselves, as well as with alumni and instructors. The primary challenge identified was the lack of interactivity. Consequently, we decided to address this need by launching a website. Throughout numerous online sessions and the formulation of performance standards and policies, my responsibility encompassed evaluating the usability and sustainability of this tool, along with designing two “Collaborative Virtual Study Hub” and “Showcase” webpages.

My own role in Meet the MET

1. Usability and Sustainability of Meet the MET

In addressing usability concerns, I endeavored to adapt our approach based on course materials and the needs of our target audience, prioritizing accessibility, and user-friendliness. Our design aimed to meet key usability criteria (Issa & Isaias, 2015), including flexibility, efficiency, satisfaction, and learnability, while also resolving program issues as they arose during execution. The preference for website design over an application was due to usability and accessibility, as applications face limitations in installation and execution on some androids devices (Apple, 2022).

Sustainability was a crucial consideration in our decision-making process, as websites require fewer updates compared to applications, reducing maintenance efforts and costs. However, sustaining our educational tool in the digital realm requires collaboration and support, particularly in areas where our team lacks IT expertise. Additionally, further refinement is needed in the activation method for icons and links to course units, requiring additional time for completion. To enhance efficiency, I propose streamlining our website by reducing the number of pages and integrating content to improve user-friendliness.

2. Webpages (Collaborative Virtual Study Hub and Showcase of MET Projects)

In my opinion, the “Collaborative Virtual Study Hub” webpage serves as a summary of the overall design of this educational tool because on this page, by clicking on each course icon, the user is directly taken to the relevant course. There, they can share their opinions, needs, and questions about that course with other students and alumni. Briefly, the MET Students Virtual Study hub is designed to facilitate collaborative learning and academic support for MET students. Through shared resources, study sessions, and peer interaction, it promotes success within the MET curriculum.

In the Showcase of MET Projects webpage, which could be considered as an extension of the Virtual Study Hub webpage, users not only have access to links and blogs of other MET students and alumni but also become familiar with their projects that they were done during their study period. Additionally, this page provides access to other educational institutions and job centers, thus enabling students to gain a proper understanding of available job opportunities. Furthermore, we hope that this website serve as a reference for recruiting companies to engage in discussions with students based on their projects and work experiences for potential employment within their companies.

In the end, this teamwork was a new experience for me because it was a practice in coordinating tasks virtually, with its challenges and unique joys.

References:

Apple. (2022). Can any apple apps work for android phones to? https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253785573?sortBy=best

Issa, T., & Isaias, P. (2015). Usability and Human Computer Interaction (HCI). In T. Issa & P. Isaias (Eds.), Sustainable Design: HCI, Usability and Environmental Concerns (pp. 19-36). Springer London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-6753-2_2

Udemy is a platform where people can learn from experts in diverse subjects such as data science, business, lifestyle, and teaching. Udemy like other online platforms spends both direct and indirect expenses to sustain and grow its educational products. These costs cover various aspects such as content creation, platform maintenance, marketing, and technological enhancements. Moreover, some expenses outside of this platform are paid by major IT companies to update systems for increasing data storage capacity, data processing speed, and expanding coverage of internet services. While there are several articles and editorial columns across journals and social media, discussing the benefits of these educational platforms, here we are exploring the obstacles to the sustainability of such tools. If not addressed, these challenges could not only disrupt the growth and efficiency of these platforms but also inflict irreversible damages on societies and ecosystems. It must be noted that discussing the tangible and intangible costs of this platform or similar ones does not imply neglecting the benefits of these educational methods and reverting to traditional teaching approaches. The traditional learning systems are gradually moving away due to the high costs for ecosystem.

In a review of clear costs of this platform, Udemy pays for production costs like the expenses of making and delivering course content. This includes investing in video production and integrating various multimedia elements into the courses. Platform development and marketing costs constitute an important aspect of Udemy’s expenditure. Udemy should pay to other media for advertising and promotional activities to attract instructors and learners to the platform. Administrative, operational, and office-related costs are essential for the day-to-day functioning of Udemy. For enhancing the platform’s content, Udemy might form partnership with other organizations, institutions, and content creators. However, determining the real resource costs of Udemy’s program is challenging due to several factors like private company status, confidentiality, and unique cost models that are not easily comparable to traditional industries. Well, I have tried to clarify that contrary to common belief, online education is not necessarily entirely free or low-cost, and on a production and infrastructure level, tens of thousands of people are involved. Now, I would like to address into the non-measurable costs of these platforms. So, before the rush to expand such platforms, we need to minimize the imposed costs on societies and ecosystems. We can discuss this in two domains: the human domain and the environmental domain.

In the context of human domain, although these platforms try to enhance individuals’ capabilities and knowledge, their long-term effects on human behavior will not be without consequences. Unlike physical classrooms, these platforms do not encourage discussion and questioning of course material, and the transfer of information is predominantly one-sided from the instructor to the learner. Therefore, the space for raising questions and subsequently sharing classmates’ opinions is limited. In the long time, users become a massive data storage source (like a hard drive). Additionally, the practice of actively listening to others’ opinions, and accepting or refuting them is neglected. In the future, capable individuals with high self-confidence may experience a reduction in their creative power, lose the ability to exchange ideas in a group, and perhaps even witness the emergence of a new common phobia known as “group learning phobia or anxiety of learning”(Downing et al., 2020). The mechanisms and standards for monitoring the scientific content of productions on these platforms are not feasible. Additionally, the assessment of the effectiveness of their materials in enhancing users’ capabilities requires reconsideration and study. Also, Educational institutions are generally considered places for educating sciences and upbringing human qualities (Bayanov, 2020). The daily presence at specific hours in a place called the classroom demonstrates the practical importance of having order in social life. Presence in class with other students provides another practical lesson in respecting values and opinions of others, forming friendships, and emotional growth. With the increasing popularity of online platforms like Udemy, the emphasis on teaching skills may surpass the focus on behavioral development and socialize.

In the context of environmental domain, Sustainable IT practices refer to environment-friendly approaches to design, implementation, manufacturing, and disposing-off of their products. Educational platforms should try utilizing energy-efficient systems for visual elements of their programs to reduce energy consumption during downloading and running the program. Now, let me ask a question; how many laptops or smartphones are made each year? 300 million computers and 1 billion cellphones (TheWorldCounts, February 25, 2024). Approximately 40 million tons of electronic waste is produced annually on a global scale. Only 12.5% of E-Waste is recycled (TheWorldCounts, February 25, 2024).The reason for raising this question and providing the answer here is that the primary tools for utilizing online platforms are smartphones and laptops. Therefore, for evaluating the sustainability of the online educational platforms, we must undoubtedly consider the sustainability of their infrastructure. The high volume of e-waste production is significant for two reasons. Firstly, due to the inability to recycle it, the accumulation of waste and its chemical components in the soil and water lead to the extinction of various vital species and posing a threat to human health. Secondly, the growing need to replace these tools implies an increased production by relevant companies. More production generate various toxic gases and consum more energy. Moreover, companies need more extraction of raw materials from mines. Mining for additional raw materials not only produces polluting gases from machinery but also creates significant changes in the ecosystem, possibly causing more damage than deforestation for paper production.

In coclusion, securing sustainability for online learning platforms is vital to advance their programs. These platforms must take care in both human and environmental fields to demonstrate their values ​​to the users and stockholders by reducing environmental impacts and emphasizing social behavior alongside individual training.

Reference:

Bayanov, K. R. (2020). The Function of The System “Education Plus Upbringing” In the Context of The Purpose of a Person. SHS Web of Conferences: Theory and Practice of Project Management in Education: Horizons and Risks, 70(03001). https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/20207903001

Downing, V. R., Cooper, K. M., Cala, J. M., Gin, L. E., & Brownell, S. E. (2020). Fear of Negative Evaluation and Student Anxiety in Community College Active-Learning Science Courses. CBE Life Sci Educ, 19(2), ar20. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.19-09-0186

TheWorldCounts. (February 25, 2024). Electronic Waste Facts. https://www.theworldcounts.com/stories/electronic-waste-facts

Global Health, Education, and Educational Technology

Even though we have managed to get the COVID-19 pandemic under control, it is time to consider the global health impact on education and educational technology. In this discussion, I will explore two global health dilemmas – the COVID pandemic and climate changes- and their impacts on educational systems.

COVID

During COVID pandemic, the lockdown forced schools worldwide to adapt rapidly and showed the advancements and weaknesses of traditional educational systems. The shift from in-person classrooms to remote learning brought about the use of online platforms, replacing traditional lessons. Interactive learning was further enriched through the integration of advanced applications. Collaboration among institutions resulted in the development of open educational resources. Notably, digital technology elevated the role of teachers, transforming them into co-creators of knowledge, coaches, sand mentors (Janssen, Feb. 11, 2024).

While online course delivery has seen significant improvements, certain challenges have surfaced, requiring a reevaluation and redesign of systems. Some challenges arose in how exams were done, classrooms accessibility, and keeping students safe. Education institutions faced difficulties figuring out ways to prevent cheating and plagiarism in online exams (Salmi, 2020). Another major challenge for remote learning was the limited availability of computers and the internet in developing countries (Janssen, Feb. 11, 2024). To tackle this issue, worldwide cooperation made sure that innovative resources became affordable and available, ensuring education for everyone even after the pandemic.

Distance learning has lessened the connection between parents and educators in guiding students’ learning. Yet, the growing use of technology to connect teachers with parents provides more opportunities for parents to engage in their children’s education (Huck, 2021). Moreover, the pandemic led to worries about mental health, obesity, and students leaving school (“How COVID-19 caused a global learning crisis,” April 4, 2022).

Throughout and following COVID, the primary focus of educational technologies was on improving students’ education. However, it’s crucial to recognize that schools serve purposes beyond academics. They contribute diverse social interactions, encourage relationship-building, facilitate extracurricular activities, and promote a balance in physical and mental health (“How COVID-19 caused a global learning crisis,” April 4, 2022). School hours not only offer a pleasant experience but also play a role in developing social skills and awareness (Burgess, 2020). In the future, educational technologies should focus on and incorporate these aspects more prominently into their products.

The Canadian Commission for UNESCO holds the view that online learning can never replace the role of teachers and schools (“COVID-19 Is Creating a World Crisis in Education,” 20 APRIL 2020). While online learning can protect the health of students and faculty, it has been found to be less effective than traditional learning. The success of online learning depends on factors such as the amount of interaction between students and teachers, technical proficiency, and the suitability of learning content for online courses and group activities (Xia Y, 2022).

Some researchers argue that COVID-19 has created an opportunity for private technology companies like Google or Microsoft to advocate for more involvement in public schools. They believe that corporations are using this health crisis to promote policies and technological infrastructure that will be used to rationalize ongoing online learning (Moore, 2021). Further studies in the future may confirm or rule out this perspective.

Climate change

Global health isn’t just about COVID-19. It’s also about climate change, tobacco control, micronutrient deficiencies, obesity, injury prevention, and work safety. Many articles and seminars have been published on the impact of COVID on education and educational technologies. While COVID-19 is an immediate crisis, climate change has long-term effects on ecosystems, weather patterns, and health challenges, and worsens socioeconomic disparities.

 Most studies highlight notable progress in educational technology during the COVID era. While these advancements cannot be overlooked, it might be said that they are not necessarily new innovations but rather the widespread use of existing discoveries. Online courses and educational apps were present before COVID, and software programs for remote meetings, like Facebook or Zoom, already existed.

Let’s consider another global health dilemma, such as climate change, for instance. Climate change is a global issue that affects everyone. While the immediate effects may not be severe, in the long run, changes in ecosystems can cause irreversible damages to life on Earth, affecting not only humans but also other beings. It may even be impossible to compensate for these damages through the application of a vaccine or lockdown. Despite researchers and policymakers being aware of the seriousness of the situation, practical actions to prevent the destruction of natural resources and address this problem seem limited. Educational technology industries can play a significant role in addressing this issue. For example, many schools worldwide still use paper for assignments, and teaching often involves chalkboards. While industries generally consider laptops as alternatives, they come with high costs and require high-speed internet. However, if educational aid industries design devices like ‘eBook readers’ to function as ‘eNotebook writers,’ allowing writing, highlighting, and saving results, these devices could operate offline. These devices can be somewhat connected to a mobile network, allowing for the exchange of information among students and even with the teacher without the need for the internet. As of the end of 2021, a mobile broadband network covers 95% of the world’s population (Bahia, Oct 2022). Additionally, designing large monitors for classrooms that enable writing and drawing could be a more economical option than laptops and computers. These measures could reduce the need to destroy forests for paper production and decrease the consumption of materials like chalk and markers. So, digital technologies are valuable tools that can help protect the environment by reducing paper usage, air pollution, and water pollution associated with the production of paper.

In conclusion, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused advances and challenges in educational technology, emphasizing its impact on education. Furthermore, the climate change issue, emphasizing the need for sustainable solutions in educational technology.

References

Bahia, K. (Oct 2022). The State of Mobile Internet Connectivity 2022. GSMA Intelligence.https://data.gsmaintelligence.com/research/research/research-2022/the-state-of-mobile-internet-connectivity-2022

How COVID-19 caused a global learning crisis. (April 4, 2022). McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/education/our-insights/how-covid-19-caused-a-global-learning-crisis#

Janssen, L. (Feb. 11, 2024). How COVID-19 exposed challenges for technology in education. G.STIC. https://www.gstic.org/expert-story/how-covid-19-has-exposed-the-challenges-for-technology-in-education/

Moore, S. D. M., De Oliveira Jayme, B. & Black, J. . (2021). Disaster capitalism, rampant edtech opportunism, and the advancement of online learning in the era of COVID19. Critical Education,12(2), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.14288/ce.v12i2.186587

Xia Y, H. Y., Wu C, Yang L and Lei M. (2022). Challenges of online learning amid the COVID-19: College students’ perspective. . Front. Psychol. , 13, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1037311