Universiti Sains Malaysia: USE TECHNOLOGY TO SEEK KNOWLEDGE

Penang, 31 May: Developments in communications and information technology have brought about changes to society and university students, specifically those in distance education. This group of people should use technology in seeking knowledge.

According to the Acting Vice-Chancellor of USM, Assoc. Prof. Omar bin Osman, technological developments have created societies that are information-based that will enable them to compete globally.

“However, all knowledge available at the finger tips will not be of use if students do not strive to master the technology. The ability to master technology such as the Internet will give students the competitive edge and ensure that they are not left behind in their pursuit of knowledge,” he said at the Distance Education Students Welcoming Ceremony in conjunction with the Distance Education Orientation Week from 28 May to 1 June 2007.



He said that USM has taken the initiative to enhance the e-Learning portal of the School of Education, USM, hence, students are able to attend video conferencing sessions anywhere.

“Commencing this Academic Session, students who face difficulty in attending lectures at the district centres of the School of Distance Education can follow the video conference and download lecture videos if they have Internet lines.”


“Based on the study related to the initiative and feedback from students, we believe that this will greatly benefit students. We are also looking into the technology that will enable students to interact with their lecturers during video sessions which we hope to implement in the near future,” he said.




Through the School of Distance Education e-Learning portal, students can access additional notes, assignment questions, sel-access learning modules and others available at http://el.usm.my/pppjj/.

For the 2007/2008 Academic Session, 1,732 students from all over the country will pursue their Bachelor of Arts [Humanities], Bachelor of Social Sciences, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Management degrees.

From this total, 53 students will undergo the orientation programme at Maktab Sabah, Kota Kinabalu from 5 June and 74 students will undergo this progmme at the Kolej Datu Patinggi Abang Hj. Abdillah, Petra Jaya, Sarawak.

USM also accepted 26 senior citizens and 32 students with different abilities.