Posts by Geoff Lealand
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kia ora Russell (and the rest of you) : you went to BDO and didn't stroll down to the Orange Stage to see Arcade Fire? They were magnificent and after their hour-long set I left (for the delights of the Penrose rail station) because I considered nothing could surpass the brilliance and intelligence of these Canadians.
I am about to do a piece on My BDO for Paul Smith's kiwiboomers.com site, so I will send a link when it appears.
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Such cruel and unusual punishment! I was born on January 9...which makes me a ?...but I usually say that I was born under a motel sign (a cheap motel, somewhere in Taranaki I suspect)
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A touching and elegant piece of writing, Graham. Like others I suspect, I have already come a little jaundiced by the excessive print media coverage of Ed Hillary's death but, nevertheless, there is a sense that one important touchstone in New Zealand life has gone--mitigated by the personal realisation that if he lived to 88, I might well have a few more decades to enjoy!
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Sounds a bit like the life of yer average academic!!
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It is not an original notion but I usually resolve that the best NY's resolution is to make no resolutions. Resolutions have more chance of success--more resolve--if you make them on your birthday (coincidentally for me, next week), or April 23 or any other arbitary date...
In defence of cyclists, keep in mind that we are always more vulnerable that car drivers. I have been road-biking for a year or more and spend much of my time avoiding broken glass--which may explain the swerves and meanders we make, on busy roads..
To follow up the offer of Q magazine, I have a considerable collection of Uncut sampler CDs which I am willing to parcel up and post. Such samplers can lead to discoveries--I first heard a track by Arcade Fire on one, and fell in love (I have bought a ticket to BDO, just to hear their one hour set!) I tend to put these samplers straight on to my iPod, so I am willing to pass them on--just email me at <lealand@waikato.ac.nz>
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What about "going forward', which business/management twits seems to use constantly? Don't know whether it has any variations ("going backwards"? "going sideways"??) but it is stunningly empty phrase..
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I am not sure whether these revelations leaves us less confused or more confused but I think the news footage on ONE News this evening probably did much to inflame passions--all those posturing, headscarf-wrapped males acting out as if they were in the Gaza Strip!
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kia ora tatou: Russell mentioning my name (but not in vain!) prompted me to join the discussion. I have sent a message to Russell (we bump into each other at events such as the Unitec meeting) just to clarify what I was suggesting when I said that Media Studies has 'no curriculum'. This is not to suggest that Media Studies teachers make it up on the spot, for NCEA Media Studies AS serve as a proxy (and perfectly adequate) curriculum framework for what can be taught, and how learning can be assessed.
Indeed, in my travels around media teaching circles overseas, there is envy of the advances we have made in finding a legitimate place for Media Studies in NZ schools. I would argue that all the best kind of teaching happens in media classes--integrating theory and practice, engaging with new media, asking the really tough questions about life and culture...as the technological horizon ever expands..
I could go on but instead recommend that you'll take a look at some of the stuff that featured at the "Who Let the Blogs Out?" media teachers conference in Auckland last July, at <www.teachmedianz.blogspot.com>, or check out the Media Studies community on TKI
Thanks