6.2 A different way of writing A word processor allows you to type text directly into your computer. You can then edit the content using functions such as delete, cut, copy and paste, and undo.
Because this is possible, you may begin to work in a different way. Instead of planning and drafting your work by hand, you can type in notes and ideas, develop them into paragraphs, and then move the paragraphs around to form a coherent essay or report. When you're checking whether your work is in a sensi
6.1 Introduction As a student, you're likely to engage in a variety of writing tasks. You'll almost certainly handle significant amounts of text and, depending on your course, perhaps also numbers or diagrams. This section looks at the different way that you write using a computer, and also provides some referencing advice.
Introduction One of the most fascinating and productive ways of using your computer for study is connecting to the internet to access the extensive amount of information available on the web. Such a diverse range of material brings its own challenges. It's therefore useful to know how to search effectively. Have a look at our Web Guide (accessed 8 November 2006). The BBC's Webwise online course (accessed 8 November 2006) will also help you become a confident web user. This
The benefits of conferencing There are a number of reasons why you should put time and effort into conferencing: You get support when you need it (in exchange for giving support to others). You have a richer vein of experience to draw on, because you can pool examples, references and ideas. A group can often produce better work than an individual. One person might put forward a thought or idea, often not completely formed or finished. Someone els
4.2 Why online conferencing is useful Online conferencing can make a big difference by making you feel part of the learning community, connecting to other students and keeping you motivated. It's a help to know that other people are struggling with the same issues as you, and that you can share problems and ideas at any time of day or night. It's also a good way for students to work together, rather than individually. Group working is becoming an important element of many courses, partly because it is increasingly the way t
Introduction As a student, you may have access to online conferencing. What can you do to help conferencing work well? This section discusses the reasons why online conferencing is useful, its benefits, how to make online conferencing work for you, and some of the typical problems and solutions relating to it. “Conferencing gives me the chance to think about what I'm going to say – so I find it much easier to make a w 3.4 Managing your time online One of the greatest challenges of using your computer for study is fitting in your online activities around the rest of your life. Online time isn't timetabled or contained in the way classroom learning is. So it can sometimes be difficult to avoid being interrupted by what is happening around you. Below are some suggestions for managing your time online. There is more detailed information about online conferencing in the next section. Log on to 3.2.1 How might you use it? Chat has its limitations for serious discussion, but you may find it helpful to keep in touch with other students. You might ‘meet’ with other students in your group by arranging a time once a week when you can all be online. It can really help to know that there are others out there with problems similar to your own. 3.2 Email Email involves sending an electronic message from your private mailbox to one or more named individuals. You can do this from any computer, whether you're at home or elsewhere. While it's quick and easy to send an email, don't expect an immediate reply. Although some people have constant access to their email, many others log in occasionally. Email is often a convenient way to contact your tutor, so be sure to add their address to your electronic address book! 3.1 Introduction One of the most useful and rewarding things you can do with your computer is use it to communicate with your tutor, other students, and course staff. If you like exchanging ideas and information, sharing support with other students, asking questions and getting feedback from your tutor, then online communication can add a whole new dimension to your learning: “Email from another student really kept me going 2.6 Back it up It's a good idea to get into the habit of regularly backing up your work files – things like your notes and assignments. This involves making a copy onto another storage device such as a floppy disk, CD-ROM or memory stick. If anything goes wrong with the hard disk on your computer and you lose all your data, it's some compensation to find that you have a recent copy of your files. To avoid losing important system files that run your computer, back them up using a data storage system 2.5 Find out how computers work The BBC offers an Absolute Beginners' Guide to Using Your Computer (accessed 8 November 2006). This guide is ideal for anyone really new to computers. If you're interested in the more technical aspects of how computers work and how they've developed over time, have a look at the BBC/Open University Information Communication Technology portal (accessed 8 November 2006). 3.2 Using diagrams of your own choice and design This option is the most challenging and most rewarding, as it clearly shows that you have explored and analysed the source material and reworked it for yourself. In many cases, the source material may not contain any diagrams, simply text or numbers, perhaps expressed as a table. Alternatively, you may have had to make some specific observations or undertake an experiment to produce your own data. In this case, you may be expected to produce a diagram to enhance or improve your assignment. If 3.1.2 Option 2: Copying out diagrams I am trying to encourage you to use diagrams, but there is a pitfall associated with this option. This option is one that many students do use, so it's worth exploring why it is not a particularly good idea. The following is a slight parody of the sort of written assignment I have in mind. The text reads something like this: ‘There are many ways in which diseases can be spread, see Figure 1.’ There then follows ‘Figure 1’ which is a direct copy of the diagram from the sour 3.1.1 Option 1: Don't use the diagram at all It is quite possible to write a good answer to the question without using the diagram. What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of not using the diagram? 3.1 Using diagrams from course materials or other sources So far in this course we have been looking at how you can improve your understanding of other people's texts and diagrams. I have shown you some study techniques that you can use to ‘translate’ text into diagrams and diagrams into meaningful text. However, this discussion has been focused on what you can do for yourself. At some point, you'll have to produce assignments that require, or will be enhanced by, the use of diagrams. One of the first decisions you'll face is whether to use an e 2.2.4 Reading graphs and charts: extracting information When you are sure that you know what a chart or graph is all about, start to look for any main trends. Jot down for yourself a few conclusions that you think can be drawn. It often takes a little time before you can interpret the chart or graph properly. It is worth the effort, however, because information held in the form of a graph is highly patterned; and as our memories work by finding patterns in information and storing them, the information in graphs is easier to remember than informati 2.2 Reading diagrams When you're studying, following the sense of a piece of text may not be straightforward. Often, you'll need to rewrite the text as notes or a diagram. Equally, some diagrams will need careful reading, and you'll have to make notes or draw other diagrams. So, how can we read different types of diagrams? 2.1.1 Rewriting text as relationship diagrams A spray diagram can help with note-making. In this section, I want to go a little further and show how you can use diagrams to help you understand what someone else has written. Here, it doesn't matter how well you can draw, as long as the finished diagram makes sense to you. As you become more confident at drawing diagrams for yourself, you will be able to move on to drawing diagrams for others. At this stage, you may still have doubts about the value of diagrams for understandi 1.2 Types of diagrams As there is this variety in the types of diagrams we use, we need to think more broadly about what pictures and diagrams are trying to represent. You will encounter three main types of diagrams when studying MST subjects.
Pictures or pictorial diagrams that attempt to represent the essential features of a part of reality – for example, diagrams of equipment, molecules or parts of a plant. Diagrams that try to describe
Activity 9
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