Download The VTM archive would support knowledge

VMT “Knowledge Deposit Box” for VMT sessions Knowledge management and the use
of Voice and language recognitions to bring user into the VMT-KDB environment.
Brian Umstead
05/08/2007
Introduction:
This conceptual design paper started as a single idea of an extension of the VMT
and grew into two. Surprisingly, the Knowledge Deposit Box (KDB) and Voice
recognition ideas came together rather nicely. One idea explores knowledge management
and its value contributed to VMT contributors of the past, present and future. And the
other explores audio and a voice recognition tool, which support multi-languages e.g.
international group interaction and collaboration, as well as disabled users of the VMT
for mathematic learn.
Collaborative learning, one of the focus areas of the VMT project for students
wanting to learn math, seems to promote social cognition and the many strengths of
teamwork (Stalh, 2007). I have been told many times that “experience is the best teacher”
or “a man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with a opinion”, however
mathematic leaning does not always lend itself to real life experiences. Likewise, neither
do the standard classroom and teaching strategies/curriculums provide an environment
for using math. Mathematic curriculums generally revolve around individuals working on
problem sets independently, after a brief “how to” or “theory lecture or lesson” from a
teacher. My ideas of adding an extension to the current design of the VMT revolves
around knowledge management and records management of VTM collaboration and
communication. Then, I explore the use voice recognition as a tool to support
international group communication as well as the user/disability problems associated with
human computer interactions.
VMT-KDB
The VTM archive support knowledge management in several ways. A electronic
record management tool (ERMT), such as an archive, supports the building of knowledge
through saving chats, graphics, and final versions of group collaborations Then this
knowledge theoretically is passes on, through search and retrieval by new students or
researcher. Groups gather, evaluate or analyze resources, material (articles and
documents) and references (URL’s links or reference) into a central location, also
supporting the knowledge building/gain. Third, the information search and retrieval
processes would lead to relevant information for analysis by the next generation. This I
call the support for generational knowledge exchange and a dimensions of social
networking. On an individual level the VMT archive serves as a personal reminder tool
for mathematic theory, functions, and principles, which may have been temporarily
forgotten because of the lack of use. Finally, the VMT archive will allow math students
to be supportive of individual groups that have came before them and others who will
come after their participation period.
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The VMT archive serves as an electronic record storage unit (database) for VMT
participants from around the world. Now I would like to name the VMT archive; the
“Knowledge Deposit Box” or VMT-KDB or just KDB. I chose this name because our
book talk about the importance of applying human characteristics in computer design to
help user understand something about the purpose or use of the virtual thing. My VMTKDB will be accessible via the “Save”,” Basis Search or Advanced Search” button on the
current VMT interface. The archiving of materials can take place once a group has decide
that they have learned something through there group collaborative actions using the
VMT or when instructed by a mentor or instructor.
A record management or archival process requires group of documents to have
metadata apply to them at the point of saving, via Window with required field to be select
via drop menus or free text entry. The VMT collaboration groups will apply metadata to
there weekly creations as part of the learning experience and knowledge gain each week.
For consistency in applying metadata that describes the groups product, the terms and
phases will be select from drop down menus or from the Math Forum or from other
reliable resources supporting mathematical expertise and terminologies. A data and time
stamps along with individual’s names or screen names and with other pertinent subject
terms will be part of the metadata entered. As with all databases, each record saved in
the VMT-KDB will have a unique primary key. This is automatically created when the
item is finally saved.
The next aspect of the archiving that supports knowledge management revolves
around the group depositing a complete list of information resources in the VMT-KDB.
Moreover, saving any articles or documents obtained in electronic format by members
should be done according to copyright law. These information resources will receive the
same metadata as the final product of the group collaboration session; if this is not
achievable then for sure they needs to be reference lists as part of the documentation.
The “saving” or archive function of group collaborative interactions and research
is very important because it support the retrieval or “knowledge withdraw” process from
the “deposit” and support social networking. Retrieval could benefit a VMT participant
of the present, past, and in the future. Active current users/groups would be supporting in
future and learning in the present and from the past. A user that started participating in
the early years of their lives would be able to use the VMT-KDB as a resource through
their grade school, middle school and high school years. Books should play this role,
however after they are used in learning different math classes books are generally shelved
when the class is over and all the note and most of the assignment are soon forgot. The
VMT experience is somewhat different when used, it first require individual to be
participants in learning with others, the VMT-KDV serves to very easily jar the ones
memory, so something they learn in collaboration with other at a earlier point time would
be remembers. Math skills and knowledge seems to disappear off the horizon and mind,
when not practiced and/or use. The VMT-KDB can serve as the reservoir for an
individual or group’s knowledge gained in various areas of math.
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Newer users and groups may first understand the VMT-KDB as a source of
information for various math principles, theory and problem samples. This will happen,
because these users and/or groups use effective searching and retrieval techniques. They
may initially do more reviewing and previewing of previous users collaborations sessions
while creating a single session of their own. And later after personal growth of individual
math learning and advancement of the field they may be more proactive. Alone these
same lines, each individual group deposit should prove enriching to others as well as
themselves, because of interactive functionality of being able to do archive searches that
will alert VMT users that something changed in their current mathematic area of interest.
There is a learning curve associate with the VMT-KDB, but with an effective
interactive. Training as demonstrated in the “Sandbox”, this should not lend itself to
discouraging groups from learning and adding to the learning of others.
One may ask, well how or why will this idea supports social networking. I first
would say that social networking should not, only be described in or on a horizontal time
dimension, but also a vertical dimension. For example, I may collaborate with others
about a math principle at my age at the present time, through the VMT and obtain
knowledge. Conversely, I could retrieve an read and evaluate an archived session, which
a VMT group completed ten years ago and see their mental struggles and gains
identifying with one or more in the VMT group and their cognition. Therefore, because
of the archived session via the VMT-KDB the collaboration and group cognition support
gain through a archive social network occurrence. And this really occurred through the
meeting of the minds; mind in the present and there understand and mind at there point in
history. Thus, VMT archive will create a cash or deposit box of Math understanding,
knowledge and principles, that will draw individuals to this web based resource for social
learning activities and knowledge building.
Lastly, the VMT-KDB supports retrieval of pertinent information and browsing
for all information supporting group projects. These activities alone are supportive of
information learning and gathering on a personal visual level, where group participants
supply additional brain power in solving a search-problem or building a search strategy.
A group search of an archive of other groups’ materials may even provoke discovery or
stimulate the mind, so much so that individuals gain confidence and positive experience
from their VMT math learning. Individuals are not left to themselves to fail with the new
VMT-KDB, because they have their predecessors to learn form in the archive and there
current group members to help each other along.
Voice Reconciliation and Audio tool
The second area that will extend the VMT into the world is voice recognition,
word identification, and reading software function with-in the VTM and VTM-KDB.
This functionality will speed the chatting sessions along by promote more vocabulary,
then manual typing the current VTM uses. This will also allow users to listen and watch
chat/collaboration sessions. This will support a larger user base and encourage
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collaboration across cultures and support various computer literacy level. This
technology will support archiving that will cross language barriers, so one may retrieval
input for a larger audience or number of groups.
I have used Dragon Naturally Speaking in the past to chat and communicate when
my typing skill was not over 20 words an minute. This is and example of voice
recognitions software that supports 160 words a minute at a 99% accuracy rate
(www.Nuance.com). This technology would support the none-typing communities, such
as the children doing math in grades one through five. This extension to the VTM
technology would support the handy-caped individuals: both physical and mentally.
Some learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, limber dismemberment restricts an
individual’s ability to type efficiently. Moreover, why should a very intelligent math
student be held back, because the typewriter was developed before voice recognitions
technologies.
Likewise, reading is often a factor that inhibits a person during the learning
process, I have experience this first hand. However, a technology such as Dragon
Naturally Speaking actually reads to the individual, if asks to do so. It also comes in 10
languages (www.Nuance.com), which would support my first extension to the VMT, in
that the KDB by would archive single voice recognition chat and dialog create with the
same software. Likewise, listening is often a learning method used by individuals and this
technology would support that as well. When being restrict to reading one is restrict
because the speaker and listener cannot exchange non-verbal communication to get an
idea or point across in a natural way, which restrict the meaning of the message, voice
recognitions support this because a user can quick define meaning using a multitude of
words meaning the same thing. Typing is slower
A voice recognition function/option can help the group/individuals have more
interactive conversations using words and diversity of vocabulary to support social
interaction. This functionality will also eliminate the waiting for a message or reply. It
may have to be slowed down to support productive turn-taking in communications
exchanges between individuals, as describe in our text book for this class, but would
support a productive exchange, because communication become more expository. There
is something about just letting it fly about a topic or idea through voice that is very
liberating, when it come to knowledge exchange between different individual have
diverse back grounds and interest. All the babbling could be review, reheard, and
analyzed by group members on there own or as a group when drawing conclusions about
there math theory, problems or principles.
Gerry Stahl in his paper title Social practices of group cognition of VMT
discussing and gives detailed explaining of how a group session of chat and collaboration
could be analyzed providing productive insight into what was happen in a group
interacting and in individuals of a group. This same learning technique could be use by
group participants, who could watch and/or listen to their or other group interactions
archived session retrieved from the VMT-KDB. It is a well know fact that the more
human senses being used by an individual the more they can learn from an experience.
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The afore mentions functional capabilities explores bringing together visual and auditory
sense in a very interesting way, which would pass on knowledge or group cognition. This
allows onlookers or observers to grasp some the experience from the recording, so to
speak.
Finally the use voice recognition software probably is already being considered in
this arena, as I write this paper. Moreover, this software has been around a long time.
However, why is this conceptual idea good, because I have yet to see voice recognition
software that supports web based tools and knowledge archiving taking place within the
same tool. This comes very close to producing a stage for social exchange as the
television does, however it goes a step further and promotes social networking from a
distances through the VTM, which the TV does not support. This conceptual design idea
is good for the reason for that lone. And this idea assists in leveling the play field for user
of different human computer interaction abilities. Last this idea should be further
explored because it has made a step toward international collaboration groups developing
in the VTM without a language barrier and not having to know the English language.
In conclusions, I never planed that these two extensions to the VMT would come
together so nicely; the Knowledge Deposit Box and the Audio or Voice recognition
enhancements. And maybe they have, but not to my knowledge. Additionally, I am now
convinced that the Knowledge Deposit Box will revolutionize the social interactions
individuals have with historic users of the VMT as well as the current users. Likewise,
the Voice recognition uses for reading and dictation and recording of collaboration will
create a avenue for language translation, which may breaking the language barrier that
restrict free communication and knowledge sharing not just in VMT world but around the
world. Finally, social networking should be thought of and studied in a multi-dimensional
way in order for human computer interaction tools to be designed to support learning in
the multi-dimension world of technology and the natural environments.
References:
Stahl, Gerry. 2007. Social practices of group cognition in virtual math teams
Sharp, Helen; Rogers, Yvonne, and Jerry Preece. 2007.Interaction Design: beyond
human-computer interaction 2nd editon
Nuance – Dragon Naturally Speaking -9 Language Version. Retrieved on May 8 from
http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking/international/
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