Technology in international business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Technology in international business - Essay Example If one tries to find out the huge impact of Web 2.0 on the social sphere, the search should start from the 2008 US presidential election. The election witnessed the use of social networking and YouTube for passing information and videos. In fact, President Obama even announced the vice presidential selection via text message. However, the question here is to analyse how the tool can be used to enhance cross-cultural team performance, for example, that of a virtual team. At this stage, it is easy to proceed if one knows the ‘Container Model of Learning (Knowledge Transfer) and Communication. As Jin, Mason & Yim (n.d.) point out, according to the model, if A and B are two entities, and if A communicates its knowledge to B, both A and B get the knowledge that initially resided only with A. 1. One can undoubtedly say that Web 2.0 technologies can greatly enhance team work, especially when they are virtual teams, by enhancing collaboration and sharing of information. In fact, Web 2. 0 helps teams to bring their core project management process online. At that stage, using social networking like Facebook makes the project process visible to all members of the team, irrespective of geographical area and time. Additionally, there is Wiki where all team members can update the status of tasks as required. In addition, there is blogging to mention. It seems that Web 2.0 offers much more than what is required to have proper communication and collaboration in teams. Also, the benefit of using Social networking platforms like MySpace for interaction cannot be neglected. Such networks allow invisible human networks. If properly used, these networks can function as sources of expertise that can be made available whenever and wherever required. As experts observe, communication is the main hurdle that hinders cross cultural communication most of the time. However, computer environments have offered a much greater possibility of communication, though there still are problems . Email, instant messenger, and chatting communication allow constant communication that was impossible earlier. In fact, many Web 2.0 tools can be used as communication tools. The list is long and vibrant, ranging from Blogs, Wikis, Flickr, podcasts, and videos. In addition are social networking sites like MySpace, and Facebook. There are tools that facilitate person-to-person and group-to-group communication. Some of them are email, IM, text messaging, Google Groups, and Web conferencing (Thing 7. Web 2.0 communication tools). It seems that Web 2.0 opens up a whole new arena of interaction and cooperation in international organizations. For example, webcam enabled video conferencing allows instant face to face communication, though this will not be so interesting for non-English speaking countries. However, one cannot deny if it is claimed that collaborative blogs can help members communicate effectively, share views, and thus result in better team performance. In addition, everyo ne knows how a wiki can be used to analyse controversial issues. It is very evident that it will be interesting to see how staff from various cultural backgrounds interact and reach better rapport. In addition, Google documents can be used to promote writing on the development of intercultural competencies, and this will help

Power Point Presentation in Lectures Research Paper

Power Point Presentation in Lectures - Research Paper Example From the practical perspective, the utilization of Power Point presentations in classroom enhances students' learning, facilitates their participation and engagement, reduces boredom from educational process and improves student-teacher interaction. Students normally feel comfortable to direct questions to specific parts of the Power Point presentation, which evidently indicates they are engaged with the lesson and the presentation tool used in the classroom. The power point presentation also benefits the students who are absent. Teacher can print a copy of the Power Point lesson and give this to students upon their return to class. Power Point presentations can be used on a teacher's web site. Parents and students can access the site and get key information that has been discussed in class. This technology can even be integrated with a web based programs like Blackboard, and assessments can be given over the material presented in the Power Point lesson. Stein, Silbert, and Carnine in their book Designing Effective Mathematics Instruction: A Direct Instruction Approach, made the point that the organization of the learning environment was critical to the success of learners: "The way in which teachers organize the learning environment determines how successful learners will be in constructing the meaning that teachers intend to convey" (Stein et al., 1997, p2). Following this line of thought, it is evident that careful preparation of the learning environment (such as through the development of power point) contributes to student learning. This idea is supported by Stein and his colleagues who note: "The use of power point is the perfect tool to allow for the teacher to follow their scripted lesson while engaging with the students and also provides that visual guide for the student to follow and help stay connected with the lesson being taught" (Stein et al., 1997, p.123). The process of establishing a well-structured classroom enviro nment that incorporates new technologies can help model the expectations mentioned above that are expected outside of the classroom while also creating a very constructive and effective learning environment within the classroom. The constructivist approach of actively constructing knowledge through personal experience contrasts with the traditional approach to learning which states that students are empty containers who store knowledge in the same form they receive it. From the perspective of using Power Point presentation in the classroom, constructivists rely on teaching practices that are rich in student-teacher interactions that help the student come to the understanding of what they need to learn. These interactions help the student construct meaning and understanding. The role of the constructivist teacher is to assist students as they create constructions or frameworks of their understandings. It has been stated that there are six ways in which teachers can assist their students' performance: modeling, contingency, managing, feedback, instructing, questioning, and cognitive feedback (Goos, Galbraith, Renshaw, Geiger, 2003).