New PC, Frustrations and PPE :)

by Matthew

I’ve had troubles with my blog recently. Being defaced and then losing data thanks to stupid technicians. I’m back and will remain back! Hackers can go screw themselves.

Anyway, I finally got a new PC. So, I won’t be needing to be doing any upgrading in a very long time! Good news 😀

Here are a few pictures for your viewing. I haven’t got the specs with me at the moment but I will put them up soon. It’s very meaty. I’m liking it a lot. I haven’t made full use out of it yet or pushed it to it’s limits (which is gonna be hard) but all great so far. Its a custom build from pcspecialist.co.uk.

One of the frustrations these past two months has come from my business. The MonkeyPC has a extremely strong selling point in Monkey Care. However its got a weakness in the fact it’s too near its limits so to speak. It can’t meet clients demands fast enough in this division. I’ve lost clients already because of it. Moving back to this server has cost a lot. The old one was meant to be stable and give a improvement but instead it was the opposite. Now our billing system (WHMCS) is sending out overdue notices to clients who shouldn’t be receiving them. It’s been a nightmare these few months 🙁

Moving on from that my first few weeks with the open university have been good. I’m now getting into the meaty part. I’ve submitted my first assignment and I’m not sure how thats going to go. Got to wait a while for the results. The next few weeks are a lot tougher. More work and the fact I fell a bit behind after completing the first assignment. However, it’s more interesting. Looking into consumption, rubbish and how we shop in society. I’ve not made many notes so far and the notes I do make I’m trying to digitise them to make them neat and organised.

Catching up is very difficult considering the volume of work and other things I do. So, I’m making it my mission to catch up by tomorrow. A large part has been done today. I also had a tutorial today. I really enjoy them its great seeing tutors that actually engage with their students and don’t tell them off when they come in late like little kids. Today we had a good debate and discussion. However, much like question time there wasn’t enough time!

I have questions to raise about the second assignment it looks challenging to say the least. First I just want to catch up with the weeks study. Almost done all my online activities. Gonna go now. Hope to post tomorrow after I finished my work. Love all my readers 😉

PPE: Getting stuck in!

by Matthew
Book I'm reading at the moment!

The book I'm reading at the moment!

I’ve been reading both my purchased book (Social Sciences: the big issues by Kath Woodward) and the preparation material by the open university. My study materials are due to be posted on January 6th. Not long! I feel its so soon so got to press on!

I’m really feeling confident and ready to start. I’m not 100% ready but will be once I get my desk set-up and my PC built. I been working for ages to get enough money, so nearly there. It’s likely that I’ll not get it built until I start unfortunately but I have access to the home PC.

The next few weeks will just be about preparation really and making sure I’m ready to go. I want to finish all my preparation texts that I didn’t read over Christmas and new year.

I also recently bought a book called the good essay guide. I want to skim read this if I can because its been years since I wrote a essay 🙁

Hopefully my course materials are mailed tomorrow and I receive them not long after. I’m going into study mode now!

Education in the UK (Part 1)

by Matthew

This post has been a long time coming. I’ve wrote so much about how the education system is a failure before in my blog I’m sure. Something I’ll have to search through I think! This time I wanna go into depth.

Real change is needed in our education system. I’m not just talking about university fees which I’ve spoke about before and the Open University tried to make clear in a letter the sent me below 🙂

Open University explains tuition Fees!

Open University explains tuition Fees!

Eric Schmidt criticised the UK education system back in August and I agree with him (and the pirate party appeared to as well). He said the UK had a strong, proud past of scientist and technological pioneers. As someone who left the school system in 2005, I will try and list what I believe is missing to create future pioneers in this country without being boring 😛

A simple IT lesson today isn’t good enough. The children know more and if they don’t in many cases they adapt faster to technology then the person teaching them. Teaching a child or teen how to work with Microsoft Excel or fill entries in Microsoft Access will (mostly) set them up for a lifetime of work. In addition to this even in workplaces other software systems are being used and embraced. A wider range of IT knowledge needs to be added on the curriculum. I can’t speak for the current curriculum though, but I would hope it’s been updated from my recollections. I think in terms of teaching IT in UK schools there should be two separate subject matters one being the traditional information technology and the other being computer science.

Many other subjects particularly at secondary level are stagnant statics. I mean the curriculum doesn’t change year after year. How can the best be provided and given when it isn’t current or broad enough? This is especially true of subjects like history. The history of the Atlantic slave trade or WW2 are both very important components in their own right these are drawn out and analysed far too deeply. International history should also be on the curriculum.

Lets take a look at the very broad (IB course) approved by the UN. It doesn’t just focus on academics. It teaches life skills. It teaches for real life rather then just programming people for work or jobs in a system. Life skills need to be taught that are broad. Enabling students to think about creativity. Not just another robot, so to speak.

A random secondary school 🙂

Teachers in UK schools are often focused on meeting targets and achieving grades. To which most are very misleading and confusing. The problem is the curriculum in schools it just doesn’t allow students to achieve the best. Often students are put in groups in English, Maths and Science. Where they generally perform to the level of the group they are in. Allowing mixed ability students to work together would work best allowing student matching. The aim being that the weaker student can learn with how the strong student does. If lessons are tailored correctly.

We really need to improve our schools. If we don’t, we will need to rely on foreign countries to supply us with brains. We already have problems producing a workforce!

It’s like most of our country at the moment we really need to self sustain more and improve what we have.

I personally feel that I’ve learnt more in the six years out of school, then I ever learnt at school! That cannot be the way no longer. Students need to come out of school ready for the world. I’ve got more to say in part 2 on this series. I actually meant to post this a few months back but didn’t finish it! 🙂

They still don’t understand the cause of the riots…

by Matthew

Kit Malthouse - Deputy Mayor of London

Instead of addressing the cause of the August riots. The deputy mayor is still focusing on what he calls “the large majority of criminals” who took part in the unrest. Can nobody see that unrest just doesn’t happen? It’s a issue with society.

The fact it took our own prime minister three nights to cut his holiday short in Tuscany and return home, just shows what a mess everything was.

People have felt marginalized. Whether through race (ignore what the media feeds you people do get treated differently in this country!), poverty, bailing out bankers, university fees, price increases (due to the global crisis), unemployment or a whole host of issues.

It’s too easy to sit back and say what a bunch of thugs and vermin these people were and not get to the root cause of the situation. I don’t condone this behavior but this is what happens when there is a mismatch in society.

The investigations into what happened do seem to be continuing here.

However, they garner little media exposure. We just hear crap about everyone who took part being hardened criminals to put the population down in their rightful place. The media can influence so many things and bend the truth. Reporters don’t know much of Tottenham and yet much of the reporting was inaccurate at the time. Media can just evoke problems with the masses at sensitive times.

During the riots, We had one reporter(BBC) saying there is a Jewish community in Tottenham. The Jewish community he is referring to is in Stamford Hill a mile and a half up the road. Meaning they had come down (for some unknown reason) when the unrest took place. Inaccurate reporting such as this lead people to believe only a people of one race, or religion is causing the trouble in a particular area. The media really is a lethal thing 🙁

Pah…. I’ve got so much to say on this issue it’d bring my blog database down and render it unusable 😛

PPE: Just the beginning

by Matthew

Preparing to study book received from the OU

I’m beginning my PPE degree at the Open University with my first module an introduction to the social sciences soon. I’ve begun to slowly unlock resources on site and an estimated date of despatch for my printed materials is in December. I’ve also bought a book (Social Sciences: the big issues) and begun reading that to get used to the content I will come across.

I’ve received some preparation materials already. A book called “preparing for study” from the open university and a audio cd contained within. I’ve listened to the cd and glanced at the material. I’m going to digest it more thoroughly soon as it contains very useful study tips. Some I’ve never run across. What was more impressive was that the book seemed written especially for DD101, my course!

So the tips are tailored to my course it would seem.

I’ve read the first chapter of the social sciences book by Kath Woodward which was just introducing me to what the social sciences are all about really, and explains what the rest of the chapters in the book will be discussing.

I’m about to start the first real chapter about identity. I will report back in more detail when I read this chapter and my open university book 🙂

Marco Simoncelli death and funeral

by Matthew

Marco Simoncelli

After a terrible few weeks in Motorsport. The death of Marco Simoncelli on 28th October was a big shock. It’s something I meant to post sooner but really couldn’t. I don’t really know what to say. Its a terrible loss to Moto GP and from what I saw he really brought some flair to everything.

Rest in peace Marco.