Every little step counts...

For Want of a Nail

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.For want of a shoe the horse was lost.For want of a horse the rider was lost.For want of a rider the message was lost.For want of a message the battle was lost.For want of a battle the kingdom was lost

Just this morning during my reflection, I came across this piece tagged "For want of a Nail". It became so spectacular to me that I began to imagine in the following line:

photo credit: tvtropes.org

* If we had known the cycle the little nail will go through, perhaps we would have saved the kingdom! Many atimes, we consider those things that matters to be little un-noticed acts that may not lead anywhere, however every random act of kindness will go a long way to influence positively an entire cycle.

Have you ever imagined why I must learn the ethics before I start strumming the barre strings? Why must I learn the Traffic Rules before steering the wheels? Many of the mistakes are attributed to lack of enough preparedness in any chosen field.

Do you have a mission to accomplish this year?
Do you have a relationship to fix?
Do you have a craft to learn?

Take the bold step of starting small...

It is well

New Year Resolutions

I sincerely must say I am very happy to be back again on this blog after series of occurrences which warranted that the page had to go offline for quite sometimes.

It is more friendly to say "that is inconsistency in the part of the administrators" and others will simply say the blog wasn't set to face the trying moments which is why the page went inactive.

From any perspective, its been recorded that the page was inactive for quite sometimes and now it has decided to come back live and this time, active more than ever.

I tagged this post, new year resolutions pointing inadvertently to the fact that the page is now convinced to a more dedicated feed following its anchor "learning by acting".

For those who mailed and tried to contact in one or the other, we appreciate your concerns and pledge a better commitments in this next academic session!
 

School Drop outs

When the word "drop-out" comes around, what comes to your head.

Please take your time and read through the biography of these great men.

You will be amazed on how they turned the problems around to opportunities.

1. Bill Gates
The world’s most recognizable college dropout turned successful billionaire, Bill Gates is a resonant name on the business and entrepreneurship stage, a great inventor and computer programmer, investor, and philanthropist. With a net worth of over $80 billion, he was the world’s wealthiest person in 2013, and seems to be maintaining his position in 2014 as well. He enrolled in Harvard in 1973 and attended the university for two years before dropping out to build the world’s biggest software business, Microsoft, together with childhood friend Paul Allen. The two began by developing software for Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry System. In 1975, the guys named their partnership Micro-Soft. In 1987, he became the youngest self-made billionaire.

2. Mark Zuckerberg
The youngest billionaire in history, Mark Zuckerberg became even more famous in 2010 when the acclaimed movie The Social Network revealed the story behind the world’s most visited website today. He launched Facebook in February 2004 from his dormitory room at Harvard. By the end of the year, the platform already counted over 1 million users. There was no reason left for him to stay, so Mark left Harvard in his sophomore year and moved to Silicon Valley to work on Facebook full-time. Yet we have to agree that if it wasn’t for his Harvard years, he probably would have never launched Facebook at all. The business model and target audience had Harvard written all over them. Also, if he had stayed in school, it probably wouldn’t be what it is today either.

3. Larry Ellison
Co-founder and CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison has quite the life story to tell. As he himself stated, “I have had all the disadvantages required for success.” He was born in Bronx as the son of a single 19-year- old mother, and was adopted by his aunt and uncle from Chicago. In 1962, he enrolled at the University of Illinois, and was named Science Student of the Year. In his second year, after his adoptive mother died, he dropped out. Next fall, he signed up for the University of Chicago, but quit and moved to North California where he began working as a programmer for Amdahl Corporation. In 1977, he and two of his coworkers founded Software Development Labs, with Ellison as CEO. The company went on to develop a system for commercial applications, Oracle. Larry Ellison is America’s third richest man and the sixth wealthiest in the world.

4. Michael Dell
Founder, chairman, and CEO of Dell Computers, Michael Dell is currently worth $15.9 billion. While he was attending the University of Texas in Austin, he began making his own computers. He was selling directly to customers and business was flourishing. Before dropping out of college at the age of 19, he had already made $80,000 from selling computer kits. He left university without getting his degree to focus on his business, which he started with only $1,000 capital. During his first year on the market, he made $6 million in sales, becoming the world’s greatest PC maker in 2001.

5. Ralph Lauren
Another successful billionaire who dropped out of college to pursue his dream, but the dream had to wait a few years before materializing, Ralph Lauren entered the fashion industry from a tender age. He left Baruch College to join the army, and afterward began designing neckties for Beau Brummel. In 1976, he launched Polo with $50,000 capital. The company continued to grow over the years, turning into a full menswear line that includes clothing, shoes, fragrances, and jewelry, renowned throughout the Globe as Ralph Lauren Clothing.

6. Steve Jobs
The late Apple Inc. & Pixar founder Steve Jobs left Reed College in Portland, Oregon, after only six months. Yet, he admitted that it was a calligraphy class he took in college that inspired the typography used in the first Mac. In 1974, he became a video game designer for Atari, but it didn’t last long as he left the job to travel to India. At 21, he founded Apple Computers together with Steve Wozniak in his garage. Innovation was their trademark, and they struggled to make computers smaller and more accessible to the general public. In 1985, Jobs resigned as CEO of Apple, but he returned in 1997, reviving the company after a dark age of fallouts. The famous entrepreneur and inventor died of respiratory arrest caused by a pancreatic tumor in 2011.

7. Ted Turner
With a net worth $2 billion, Ted Turner is known as the founder of CNN, the world’s first 24-hour news network. He didn’t exactly drop out of college, he was expelled from Brown University after being caught with a girl in his dorm room, but he never returned to college to get his degree, instead he joined his father’s advertising company, Turner Advertising. After his father’s suicide, he took over the company and made it bigger, stronger, and more successful than ever, renaming it Turner Broadcasting. He was only 24 at the time. Turner himself once said “All my life people said that I wasn’t going to make it.”

8. Paul Allen
Microsoft’s other half, Paul Allenis a relentless investor and computer programmer who, like many other successful business magnates of his time, had a vision and left college to pursue his dream. After earning a perfect score on the SAT, he enrolled at the Washington State University, but dropped out after two years and moved to work as a programmer for Honeywell in Boston. It was there that he met with.childhood friend Bill Gates, and convinced him to leave Harvard and start Microsoft.
The renowned philanthropist and business tycoon is the founder and chairman of Vulcan Inc. and the owner of the Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers.

9. Sheldon Adelson
American business tycoon Sheldon Adelson is the CEO and chairman of the Las Vegas Sands casino empire. With a net worth of $37 billion, he is the eighth richest person in the world. Business runs through his veins. At 12, he borrowed $200 from his uncle to start selling newspapers. At 16, he entered a candy-vending machine business. Later, he attended the City College of New York to become a court reporter, but dropped out after two years to join the army. Then, he began selling toiletry kits and after several jobs as a salesman, consultant, and tour- business operator, he started a charter-tour business that brought him his first millions. In his 30′s, he made and lost his fortune twice. After a series of failed investments, he founded a trade show for the computer industry, named Comdex, and cashed in millions leasing exhibition space. In the late 1980′s, he and his business partners bought Sands Casino.

10. David Geffen
Unlike most self-made billionaires who left college to start a successful business right away, David Geffen's road was a bit rockier. He graduated from high school barely passing with a 66 percent average. After attending three semesters at the University of Texas in Austin and enrolling in the Brooklyn College only to drop out again, he went on to work for ten years in the entertainment business before founding Asylum Records in the 1970′s. In 1980 he started Geffen Records, and in 1990 DGC Records. With a current net worth of $5.5 billion, David Geffen is now one of the three co-founders of DreamWorks SKG.

Think and Act. You are a Hero

MOTIVATIONALS: PERSISTENCE PAYS OFF

Have you ever heard of Sylvester Stallone? You may say No! But if I ask, "have you ever heard the name 'Rambo'?" You probably will say "YES"

Please take your time and read a short story culled from his biography.

The actor, Sylvester Stallone was once so broke and homeless. He slept on the streets of NYC and bus stations with his dear dog. Unable to feed the dog and to survive, he had to sell the dog at a liquor store, to a stranger. Sadly, with tears, he sold it for $25 only.

One day, after watching relentless Chuk Weppner's fight against Muhammed Ali, he was inspired to write the script "Rocky". Hungry and tired, he sat up for a combined 24hrs or more writing same script.

After the write-up, he tried to "sell" the script and got an offer of $125,000. Syl had just "One Request" - He wanted to be the star actor in the movie. The Main Actor - Rocky! What a dream?

All producers turned down that request with comments like,
"He look scraggy"
"He look hungry and poor"
"This guy can't be a Star"

Syl wasn't backing down. He wanna be the Main Actor - Rocky!

The producer having studied the script understood its potentials but wants it there own way while Syl is never ready to let go of what he has laboured for.....

Seeing this passion in him, Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff offered him after a considerable budget cut, to star in the movie.

You know the rest of the story..... Winning countless awards, shook the movie industry for more than a decade... And stallone is living his dream today.

PS: He bought back his dog for $1500 and an option for the guy to feature in his movie....

Moral:
From this short story, it shows that you have all the resources you need to overcome any obstacle and achieve any aim you have in life, no matter what your age is, background, color or gender.
True persistence pays off every time in every circumstances, persistence will fight off failure faster than skills or luck ever could.

As you journey through the turf of May, remember "there's a HERO in you... Never ever give up"

74F715EB
@Godwin_Kachi

Integrating Learning Act

This is what I stumbled on this evening and I chose to make it open.

Despite the imperatives of policy and rhetoric about their integration in formal education, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are often used as an "add-on" in many classrooms and in many lesson plans. Nevertheless, many teachers find that interesting and well-planned tasks, projects, and resources provide a key to harnessing the educational potential of digital resources, Internet communications, and interactive multimedia to engage the interest, interaction, and knowledge construction of young learners. To the extent that such approaches go beyond and transform traditional "transmission" models of teaching and formal lesson planning, this paper investigates the changing requirements and new possibilities represented by the challenge of integrating ICTs in education in a way which at the same time connects more effectively with both the specific contents of the curriculum and the various stages and elements of the learning process. Case studies from teacher education foundation courses provide an exemplary focus of inquiry in order to better link relevant new theories or models of learning with practice, to build upon related learner-centered strategies for integrating ICT resources and tools, and to incorporate interdependent functions of learning as information access, communication, and applied interactions. As one possible strategy in this direction, the concept of an "ICT-supported learning activity" suggests the need for teachers to approach this increasing challenge more as "designers" of effective and integrated learning rather than mere "transmitters" of skills or information through an add-on use of ICTs.

cf MSU Archives

Find an Act best for Learning

We need to develop the constant attitude of reading and studying  everything we tends to lay our hands on.

Today I bent on disclosing something I think will be beneficial to all that will read this post. Basically for instructors and students.

Do you know that conventionally in this part of the world, many people chose to go for “computer Training” because of various reasons:

Some are students based on Influence: In a class, there would be an average number of students who appears not to bother, they are in school not because they want to be in the school but because they see that they might not be able to stand the peers challenge when they (friends) are through from there course, so they chose to go to (sometimes same school) for a chance to share in the story; but the truth remains that they might not realize the time spent until few weeks before the close of the session.

Still based on influence are those who are in school because of the pressure from parents and guardian as the case may be: This set of people are pushed to a certain school because this is what mama wants for them, you see them always find avenue to miss class and sneak out(though statistics proves that not all this category ends up acting same). The same problem of influence also affects this category of people.

Some goes to school out of frustration: This is one of the most critical category, as frustrations cant be resolved with external factors. You have to solve the problem from within. They always becomes moody, angered and keeps things to themselves. This pins them down that they tends to age while they are still very young.

Some ultimately goes to school because they want to learn. The best moment shared is when it is shared learning. You observe that those who goes to school with the sole aim to learn actually ends up being the best they can be, this is because a good percent of their time is dedicated to not just learning from the teachers or using the syllabus but also from learning what the various categories in the class does.

Bottom Line: To learn, you need to open up yourself and choose what you wish to learn. Many are still bent on the fact that for you to become someone in life, you must possess a degree and all that, but the truth is that “the degree you have doesn’t actually make you grow, it is the experiences you have gathered” You need the ability to defend your degree.

Start by learning “Yourself.” What are the things you like doing?

Where do you like spending most of your times? I am a kind of indoor person glued to my phone or laptop, then I choose to always read articles online and sometimes share them on social media. Are you depressed because you do not have that degree yet? It is never too late to start if you really want to.

Go back to the drawing board and re-strategize using the flaws you have encountered in the present quarters.

There are windows of opportunities everywhere, but sometimes when it opens, and you look from afar, there is this illusion of problems on the surface, don’t be scared and turn it down, Ben Carson will say “Take that Risk” Explore and learn, you will be surprised at what you will get.

Using Ms Word

Using Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word is an office Package (word processor) which makes it one of the essential application we need in our day to day usage of the Personal Computer. The term ‘Word Processor” refers to application the has the ability to process textual files on the go.

Though, there are various word processors available in the market today for sale but many of this applications are not from the Microsoft Company which makes them less popular internationally.

THINGS YOU CAN ACHIEVE USING Ms Word

Textual Documents: This includes your journals, letters, memo articles or write up etc

Tables: This could be any form of tabulation e.g. Statements of Account, Cash Flow, Complex forms etc

Drawings: This could vary from callouts to low dpi cards (Though this is not the original app meant for it)

Task for today.

Pick up any article of choice and re-type. At our own end here, we are typing this documents 

From the attachment you downloaded, you will see the following features:

Numbering

Line Spacing

Alignment.

These shall the three basic features of Microsoft Word we shall be treating today.

Don’t forget to ask your questions through the comments box.

First Load Microsoft Word.

Click on Start, Move to All Programs.

Choose Microsoft Office and then click on Microsoft Office Word 2003 or 2007.

This gets you to the Microsoft Office Word Environment with a preset paper ready for your input. Please observe the blinking cursor – this is where your text shall be displayed as soon as you start typing.

Typing the texts

To type the texts (inputs) you make use of your keyboard, press the corresponding keys on the keyboard and they shall be displayed on the screen.

PS: You can choose to apply the following features before or after typing the text or even simultaneously as the texts are typed. In this post, I shall apply the Numbering simultaneously

                                1.            SCOPE

Following the example above, you should have same on your screen.

Procedure

While the cursor is blinking (that tells you the location of the beginning of your text when you choose to type) type 1. Then, press tab and type scope. After typing the scope, you press the Enter Key to initiate the next line.

PS. When you press this <newline> Enter Command, you observe that the indent increases; there are two things you can do at this time: Press the Enter Key again or simply press the Back Space twice. This removes the Indent character that is added.

Lets use this procedure to type the rest of the documents and please note your observations.