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State of the Media: The Social Media Report 2012
Social media and social networking are no longer in their infancy. Social media continues to grow rapidly, offering global consumers new and meaningful ways to engage with the people, events and brands that matter to them. According to Nielsen and NM Incite’s latest Social Media Report, consumers continue to spend more time on social networks than on any other category of sites—roughly 20 percent of their total time online via personal computer (PC), and 30 percent of total time online via mobile. Additionally, total time spent on social media in the U.S. across PCs and mobile devices increased 37 percent to 121 billion minutes in July 2012, compared to 88 billion in July 2011.
(via notational)
How we read, not what we read, may be contributing to our information overload
[Researchers] asked about the use of 15 different technology platforms and checked for correlation with feeling overloaded with information. Three showed a positive correlation as predictors of overload: computers, e-readers, and Facebook. Two showed a negative correlation: television and the iPhone. The rest — which included print newspapers, Twitter, iPads, netbooks, and news magazines, among others — showed no statistically significant correlations.
What the findings suggest, Holton said, is that the news platforms a person is using can play a bigger role in making them feel overwhelmed than the sheer number of news sources being consumed. So even if you read The Huffington Post, BuzzFeed, The New York Times, and ESPN in a day, you may not feel as inundated with news if you read on your phone instead of on your desktop (with 40 tabs open, no doubt). The more contained, or even constrained, a platform feels, the more it can contribute to people feeling less overwhelmed, Holton said. A news app or mobile site, for instance, is an isolated experience that emphasizes reading with minimal links or other distractions. Compared with reading on the web at your computer, your options seem smaller.
(via emergentfutures)
Jeremy Bailenson shares his research on virtual reality, avatars, transformed social interaction, and related communication and psychological theories, as well as implications for citizens living in the digital age.
Positive Feedback! A Langugelab.com student posting on Facebook about his experience in English City.
English Language Training for People Who Communicate Across Cultures
Languagelab.com Community Director Laura Jeffcoat talking about why Languagelab.com is so effective.
Me meeting long-term Languagelab.com colleagues Ling & Jason. Having worked together on-line for years, we met in person for the first time this month at 王府井小吃街 – View on Path.
At Work and Play in English City
Key to the success of our courses is the high level of student engagement we achieve. A key factor in this is the strong social element. The two videos below illustrate how powerful this can be.
Both Videos are of an Arabic speaking student from Saudi Arabia. He arrived at Langaugelab at A2 (Pre-intermediate level).
Video 1 is an Aviation English class where the student is describing his job as an Aircraft Engineer. Those working in Aviation have to use English to communicate with people from all over the world. The ability to understand a range of accents and effectively communicate with people with a much lower level of English is essential. Languagelab.com courses are designed to ensure student get lots of practice of both.
Video 2 shows the same student at a social event singing a song in Portuguese. He learned this song from his Portuguese speaking friends in English city. The only common language a Portuguese and Arabic student have is English. As in MMORPGS far more is learned informally than we could ever have anticipated.
Malvern House and Languagelab.com
The above picture illustrates the Student Journey for all this year’s student’s at Malvern House. With every course purchased from Malvern House students receive a pre-enrolment course to prepare them for their time in London. On completion of their course in London students receive a post sessional course from Languagelab to help maintain and further improve the English Level.
Benefits of the pre-enrolment course
- Improve the students English level and confidence before they arrive in London.
This not only helps them get more form their time at Malvern house but can also help them attain the necessary English level to get a UK visa.
- Increased cultural awareness.
London is one the most culturally diverse cities in the world. Students that visit will be studying alongside students from dozens of other countries. This can be a new experience for those from less culturally diverse parts of the world. Spending time online at Languagelab students will have the experience of studying alongside students from a great many so it is not such a culture shock when they arrive in London.
- Contact with Malvern House Teachers and staff before they come to London.
Student can meet Malvern house teachers online before coming to London. Allowing them to
- Contact with peers.
A big part of coming to London is the friends you meet - students who form friendships are more likely to feel comfortable in class and make the most of their time in London
Benefits of the post departure course
- Students can continue to maintain and develop their English level long after they have left the school
- Students can continue to engage with Malvern House long after they have left London.
- Potential for networking internationally for businesses and social reasons
Re-Imagine Classroom Experience for Higher Education
Facing funding cuts on top of an economic slowdown, universities have been forced to look for ways to cope with higher costs, often by increasing student enrollment and retention. Many are turning to technology to help them improve teaching and learning experiences. I’ll review products from Language Lab and Top Hot Monocle with Shiv Rajendran and Andrew D’Souza, to understand how their interactive platforms are transforming classroom experiences and improving student performances. They’ll share insights about their business strategies and how they leverage the capabilities of virtual words and mobile polling systems.
Shiv Rajendran, Dyslexic entrepreneur and Co-Founder of LanguageLab.com, talks about his early experience with dyslexia, going through the UK education system and how he got started in business.
More at http://dyslexicpower.com/
