A question that comes up from students from time to time is why we discourage secondary references in literature reviews, and it struck me that this is not just a one-dimensional question with a simple answer, but it actually leads… Read More
Time Capsule of the Future
Technology has transformed how we live our lives. Instead of calling distant family and friends on the phone, you can now video message them, for free, on your touch screen mobile device. A phone call from the airplane no longer costs… Read More
What Is Agile Architecture?
I was recently asked to deliver a training course on agile architecture. Although the materials were provided for the course by a third party, it soon became clear to me that they did not meet the client’s specific needs around… Read More
The Lean Educator
What, then, can educators learn from a book that focuses so much on reducing inventory and shortening the supply chain, when our ‘product’ is such stuff as intellectual property and graduating students? The challenge is to look at our systems through new eyes, to truly understand what we mean by the value of education.
OECD Study Validates The Mind Lab by Unitec’s Postgrad Programme
Recently the OECD published a study called Students, Computers and Learning: Making the Connection. Unfortunately the media did the usual thing the media does and made a superficial (mis)reading of the document to come up with the headline Computers ‘do not improve’ pupil… Read More
(dis)connectivism: a learning theory for the ghost in the machine
One of the most recent attempts at a learning theory is connectivism, which attempts to address the relationship between knowledge and technology. At the same time there is an increasing disconnect between our physical bodies and our digital souls. In… Read More
Ragile software development – a longitudinal reflection on post-agile methodology
Ok, so there is no such thing as a ‘ragile’ software development method. Nevertheless, for a number of converging reasons, I have recently been given cause to reflect on the history of rapid, lightweight and agile approaches to software development,… Read More
ICANN.sucks
There’s been quite a bit of debate in the press about the new .sucks top level Internet domain, including this article in the New Zealand Herald. It does have its proponents, of course. The nic.sucks website claims that it can be used… Read More
Kinross Flat and the Amazon Jungle – An Indie Publishing Experience with CreateSpace and Kindle
I recently self-published my first novel, Kinross Flat, via Amazon CreateSpace and Kindle. This post is about my experience of the whole process, which was quite complex but well supported by Amazon’s various self-publishing tools. Amazon is not the only independent… Read More
Refactoring Coderetreats: In Search of Simple Design
A while ago I posted a blog about the Global Day of Coderetreat. Since then I’ve been gathering and analysing data about coderetreats to see what their benefits are, and how they might be made even more effective. I’ve just… Read More