enews8september2014

STOU

e-NEWSLETTER 08/14 Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University

CONT E NT ST OU TO D A Y

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IN T HE SP OTL IG H T: 4 C e le br at in g 36 ye ar s of S TO U INT’L AFFAIRS NEWS ST OU T IPS

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an online newsletter to feature stories, events and interesting information from Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University in hope to open another window for all readers to understand more about the university and open and distance education society.

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STOU NEWSLETTER |No. 07 June 2014

Khon Performance and other activities On Wednesday, 3 September 2014, Associate Professor Dr. Chailerd Pichitpornchai, President of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University, presided over a “Khon” performance, performed by the Office of Performing Arts, the Fine Art Department of Thailand. This Thai classical masked performance, involved traditional singing, dancing, acting and music, was one of the events on the occasion of the 36th Anniversary of the Founding of STOU at Prapokklao Hall, Aneknithat Building, Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University in Nonthaburi Province.

It included dance of benediction, shadow play, martial arts demonstration and spectacular “Khon” performance entitled “the Hermit Presents Hanuman” and “Battle between Rama and Thotsakan”.

The event was attended by university administrators and personnel, representatives from international organizations, governmental agencies, private sector and general public. Some honored guests included H.E. Mr. Nguyen Tat Thanh, Vietnam Ambassador to Thailand and Madam Nguyen Tu Huyen, Assoc.

Prof. Dr. Ninnat Olanvoravuth, Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning, Dr. Somsok Teerapijit, SecretaryGeneral of the Council of University Presidents of Thailand

STOU Today

and Ms. Wallapa Phokawat, Assistant Managing Director of Ratchada Niramit Co., Ltd. Apart from Khon performance, the university arranged various activities to celebrate its 36th anniversary under the theme “Building strong communities, towards the ASEAN Community� during 1-5 September 2014. The activities included STOU Book Fair, professional trainings, market fairs, research exhibitions, Luk Thung (Thai folk music) concert.

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STOU NEWSLETTER |No. 07 June 2014

Celebrating 36 yea Building strong communities,

S

ars of STOU

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

towards the ASEAN Community

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STOU NEWSLETTER |No. 07 June 2014

The first workshop on “Android App Development Using Visual Programming” was held at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU), Thailand on the 14th and 15th of August 2014. The objectives of the workshop were to (i) familiarize STOU staff with the AI2 platform; (ii) use the Designer and Blocks Editor; (iii) implement various components in applications; (iv) design rich user experiences (UX); and (v) practice packaging and distribution of applications.

Traditionally, Android App development is a highly specialized field reserved only for software engineers and programmers. However, the massive demand for customized apps has lead to the democratization of Android app development through the concept of ‘Visual programming’. Visual Programming is a concept which allows both programmers and non-programmers to build powerful application using logical building blocks. It can best be explained as constructing a jigsaw puzzle using fitting virtual puzzle pieces. Each of these puzzle pieces are blocks of code which form complete programs when assembled logically. The leading visual app development platform, at present, is the App Inventor (AI2) platform developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) of the US. It has joined forces with Google to provide a robust solution for customized app development for the Android OS. The two day hands-on workshop, organized by the International Affairs Unit and the

International Affairs News

Office of Computer Services of STOU, was tailored to two different groups.

The first group consisted of experience programmers and the second group of non-programmers.

The experienced programmers’ group underwent intermediate training on the AI2 platform whereas the nonprogrammers were introduced to the basic concepts. Among the topics covered were introduction to AI2 platform; device setup; debugging apps using physical phones and Android emulator; building apps using components such as text-to-speech, accelerometer, speech recognition, canvas, sprite, camera, camcorder, video player, audio player etc.; packaging and distributing apps; and publishing apps on Google Play.

The participants developed approximately 13 apps which provided them a wide range of skills in user experience (UX) design and programming logic.

The workshop also had three full length tutorial exercises where participants built three fully functional apps which concentrated on (i) designing user interfaces; (ii) designing user experiences; and (iii) fundamentals of animation and game design. Ishan Abeywardena, the trainer, further demonstrated how a storyboard is created prior to designing and developing a functional Android App. The two groups consisted of around 35 participants each with varied professional backgrounds ranging from academic faculty, instructional designers to software engineers.

The next workshop will be held on the 31st of October and 1st of November in Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR as a post-conference workshop of the 28th Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU) annual conference. This workshop is organized by the Open University of Hong Kong (OUHK). More details about the workshop can be found at http://aaou2014.ouhk.edu.hk/e-postcon.html . Ishan Abeywardena is currently exploring the possibility of conducting the workshop in the Sinhalese language in Sri Lanka to benefit the local community.

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STOU NEWSLETTER |No. 07 June 2014

2014 Shanghai Open University

International Students Exchange Program

Shanghai Open University grants a group of students and young staff of open universities around the world the best experience of their lives!

During 17-29 August 2014, 41 international students and young staff participated in the 2014 Shanghai Open University International Student Exchange in Shanghai, China. The participants were from Austria, Brazil, Germany, Hungary, Nepal, Netherlands, Romania, Spain, South-Africa, and Thailand. They were exposed to Chinese language and culture through the 2-week programs arranged by the Institute of International Exchange.

Chatchawan Chawansirichot, an STOU student who joined the immersion hub told us that the program gave him the most valuable experience in his life.

Apart from Chinese, Chatchawan got to learn about different cultures as he made new friends from around the world. He enjoyed learning Chinese language and

culture, dancing, table tennis, taichi and calligraphy. He also had opportunities to visit important sites in Shanghai such as Yuyuan garden, Zhujiajiao ancient town and Oriental Pearl TV Tower.

Thanks to Shanghai Open University, international students and staff of open universities had the chance to explore new experience and gain knowledge in a very open manner.

International Affairs News

On 8 July 2014, STOU warmly welcomed a visiting scholar, Professor Dr. Makiko Miwa of Open University Japan under the AAOU Inter-University Staff Exchange Fellowships.

The AAOU Inter-University Staff Exchange Fellowships are offered by participating institutional members of the Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU).

The objective of STOU’s fellowships this year was to solicit advice on digital and information literacy. During this exchange program, Dr. Miwa worked with STOU faculty members from the School of Liberal Arts on informatics program and teaching digital literacy in the future. Moreover, she had opportunities to learn and experience Thai cultures and traditions and ways of life during 8-26 July 2014.

On 16 July 2014, Mrs. Rattip Phukkeson, Acting Head of International Affairs, Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University welcomed the 6 delegates from universities in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar led by Dr. Tin Maung Hla, Acting Rector of Mandalay University of Distance Education, together with Dr. Myo Han, VicePresident of Yangon University of Foreign Languages, Dr. Khin Maung Cho, Vice-President of Myeik University, Dr. Zaw Win, Vice-President of Mawlamyine University, Dr. Myat Nyunt, Vice-President of Hpa-an University, Mr. Thein Naing, Assistant Director of Education Planning and Training Department of Ministry of Education, and reporters from Skynet Channel, on the occasion of their visit to Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.

At the beginning, Professor Dr. Sumalee Sungsri, a faculty member of STOU School of Educational Studies, gave an overview of “STOU Distance Education System” to the delegation and Associate Professor Dr. Walaiwad Rodchompoo from the Office of Educational Technology, gave a special lecture on “Distance Teaching and Learning via Satellite and E-Learning”. The delegation later visited the Educational Broadcasting Production Center, the Office of Educational Services and One Stop Service Centre, where they exchanged information and experiences with STOU staff.

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STOU NEWSLETTER |No. 07 June 2014

STOU TIPS Packing before a trip can be a hectic task. It’s hard to know what to bring, what to leave, and finally how to fit it all inside your bag. If you’re going to travel by air, make sure you know the security rules and airline regulations. If you carry on any liquids (including toiletries), remember that each bottle can only be a maximum of 100 ml., and all bottles have to fit together in a 20 cm. by 20 cm. re-sealable plastic bag. For clothes, some people say that rolling is the best

way to avoid wrinkles, while others prefer to fold their clothes. Whatever you choose, don’t pack things too tightly. This guideline might also help you prevent your suitcase from being too heavy. Whether it’s a vacation or business travel, it will be much harder if you’re weighed down by heavy bags. If you have a wheeled suitcase, pack heavier items on the bottom, just above the wheels. This will keep the center of gravity lower and make the case easier to maneuver.

STOU e-NEWSLETTER

BY I N T E R N A T I O N A L A F F A I R S U N I T , S U K H O T H A I T H A M M A T H I R A T O P E N U N I V E R S I T Y 9 / 9 THANON CHAENG WATTANA | BANGPOOD | PAKKRET | NONTHABURI | 11120 | THAILAND TEL: 662 504 7171 - 7176, 662 982 9710 FAX: 662 503 3556 EMAIL: if.proffice@stou.ac.th Advisor

: Asst. Prof. Orasa Pankhao

Chief Editor

: Ms. Rattip Phukkeson

Editorial Staff

: Ms. Alisa Meesmat, Ms. Chidchanok Bangsen, Ms. Siraprapha Ratanaruamkarn, Mr. Joel Akins

Photograph

: PR STOU, STOU Photography Unit, Ms. Nongluck Matvangsaeng, STOU International Affairs Unit