CyberFair Project ID: 3938

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International Schools CyberFair Project Narrative
Title: Taiwan Star-Neihu Technology Park
Category: 3. Business and Community Organizations
URL: http://gsh.taiwanschoolnet.org/gsh2005/3938/
Bibliography: http://gsh.taiwanschoolnet.org/gsh2005/3938/main104.htm

School: Sihu School
    Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan

7 students, ages 10-12 worked together to complete this CyberFair project on March 16, 2005. They have participated in CyberFair in the following year(s): 2005

Classes and Teachers: Chou Fan-Chi

E-Mail contact:

Our School's Web Site: http://

Project Overview

1. Description of Our Community

In 1885, Taipei became the capital of Taiwan as well as its political, economic and cultural center. Through 121 years of development, Taipei city has developed into a very technologically advanced city. Not only does Taipei have over 100 ancient monuments, but it is also a city that features high technology and widespread use of the Internet. This city that never sleeps continuously creates lofty ideals and ideas. Taipei 101, the world’s highest building, is a symbol of the city’s spirit.

2. Summary of Our Project

Over the past few years, the area adjacent to the school has seen the development of many tall and modern buildings. After a period of time, these collections of buildings have formed what is today known as, “Neihu Technology Park”. Having observed these dramatic changes, we are eager to know: 1.Why did these companies choose to settle in Neihu Technology Park? 2.How many firms are there in Neihu Technology Park and how many employment opportunities have been created? 3.What kind of effect will Neifu Technology Park have on nearby communities? 4.What is the typical lifestyle for an employee in Technology Park?

3. Our Computer and Internet Access

A. Percentage of students using the Internet at home:more than 50%

B. Number of workstations with Internet access in the classroom:2-3

C. Connection speed used in the classroom:dedicated connection

D. Number of years our classroom has been connected to the Internet:2-3

E. Additional comments concerning your computer and/or Internet access (Optional):

We completed most of our research at school, but worked on a few parts at home as well. Our computer system at school allows us to download 1.5 Mb, and upload 384K and also enables us to search for data and information on the web. Through ADSL and CABLE, we also had the option of working from home, which was very convenient.

4. Problems We Had To Overcome

Someone once said that, “it is always difficult to start.” Recalling how confused we were at the beginning and comparing it to our research findings now, we truly feel proud and satisfied. The difficulty of finding historic photos:There weren’t very many people living in the Neihu area in years past. The people who did live in the area tended to be aborigines and most didn’t own or have cameras at that time. The difficulty of collecting the data and information of Neihu Technology Park:Neihu Technology Park only has a three-year history. Although its name is often in newspapers and magazines, no organization or publication had ever done probing research on it, except for some official reports and school projects. The lack of interview experiences:The most embarrassing thing that we encountered during our interviews was a lack of conversation. It happened a lot at the beginning when we just began conducting interviews. Fortunately, our teachers always helped us out. Our interviewing technique has gotten better and better, but we still have room for improvement.

5. Our Project Sound Bite

“Make dreams come true.” “Hard-work and determination will help you succeed.”

6. How did your activities and research for this CyberFair Project support standards, required coursework and curriculum standards?

In la and language, we learned how to conduct interviews.st semester’s field courses on comprehensive The social science field class taught us to love our country and community.Although we had learned a lot about theories, it was not easy to put into practice. Not only was our research at this time a cross-field study, but it was also a practice of what we had learned in every study field. Interview Skill:Prior to this endeavour, our teacher had frequently invited professionals to our class in order for us to interview them. This time, we were in charge of the whole interview process--- from making phone calls to coming up with interview questions and integrating the data into our questioning. It was very different. The Love for This Land:We had learned a lot of theories about Taiwan and our community in our Social Science Field class. However, this time was very different. Through making efforts to improve the environment of our community, we fell deeply in love with this land. Not only do we want to understand it more, but we also want to record its history. The ability to solve problems:From the beginning to the end, from making phone calls to doing interviews, we were the main characters and our parents and teachers played supporting roles during the entire research process. Therefore, the helps and directions from our parents and teachers helped us to learn how to plan and solve problems. We all learned a lot. The importance of cooperation:This project research process included colleting data, doing interviews, organizing data, composing insight reports, composing the website, etc. We only have a few people. Thus, how to cooperate effectively during the limited time was very important. We all learned the importance of cooperation. We recorded our learning process through the Internet. Not only do we have clear and well-organized study results with abundant pictures and literal reports, but other people can also use them as reference sources. This way, more and more people will be able to understand our research topic more clearly and also love our land more. Taiwan computers are world famous. Neihu Technology Park is the cradle of Taiwan information-technology miracles. In order to fully understand this technology center and make the research record more convenient and authentic, besides a brave heart for challenges and endless energy, we also used the information facilities at home and in the school appropriately.

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Project Elements

1) What information tools & technologies did you used to complete your CyberFair project?

Hardware DV:Submit the practice process to the internet Telephone, cell phone:Contact interviewees and confirm schedules Computer:Compose websites and adjust pictures and data The Internet:Search for the information, compose process reports, and view other compositions on the internet Recording Pen:Record interviews Digital Camera:Take pictures and record the process Printer:Print questionnaires and data out Software Interview:Ask for answers and become closer to interviewees Software(Word?Namo?PhotoImpact?Flash, etc) :Adjust pictures and compose websites and animations

2) In what ways did you act as "ambassadors" and spokespersons for your CyberFair project both on-line and in person.

From phone invitations to thank you cards, from making questionnaires to fieldwork, everyone was very passionate and helpful. Maybe it was because we are children but everyone was very friendly and receptive to us and always gave us sweet smiles and detailed directions. While doing interviews, people often asked us, “why do elementary students need to do research?” However, after listening to our explanation, they always said, “You guys are great!” Especially when we interviewed local seniors, they were always touched by the fact that we wanted to record the local history. One time, our teacher, Jin-Jhan Chen, suggested that we put our website on the Internet to share with the community college. Director Jian from Neihu Technology Park also asked if we could help compose their official website. We felt honored. We promise to keep working hard so that we will not let anybody down.

3) What has been the impact of your project on your community?

We conducted this research with great curiosity and through everyone’s efforts, all the questions were answered. We often found the answer to a question as we were busy solving another one. Thus, we needed more determined effort and energy to solve it. When we finally completed the project, not only did everyone learn a lot, but we also learned a lot about the spirit of pursuing knowledge. We especially learned to always keep working hard until the very end. Before we composed the website, we had gotten a lot of sources from the Internet. However, it was still difficult to find information on Neihu Technology Park. The government website only had a brief introduction about it. In our website, we looked at Neihu Technology Park from different points of view. We even added a section on the history of Neihu Technology Park, so that people who were interested in it, could find it easily and instantaneously. Furthermore, we might be the first team to ever do research on Neihu Technology Park. In the future, other people could use our research results as reference materials. In fact, there have already been several people who have told us that they would like to use our sources for their thesis research.

4) How did your project involve other members of your community as helpers and volunteers?

In our computer and social science classes, we were always taught to respect other people’s intellectual property rights. If everyone just copied what he or she wanted from the Internet, no one would want to do research anymore. Thus, interviews, introductions from Neihu Technology Park Business Alliance and newspaper articles made up the majority of our website’s content. Director Jian from Neihu Technology Park and Mr. Liao gave us significant advice. Teacher Jin-Jhan Chen from the History Workshop offered us old pictures of the area, which was the key point in the completion of our composition. All the pictures that we used in our website are properly attributed.

5) Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises (Optional)

Surprises:Although Neihu Technology Park is in our neighborhood and in fact, only one street away, for us, it had been like the principal’s office at our school- intimidating and mysterious. Thus, discovering and understanding Neihu Technology Park was the biggest surprise and reward for us. Lessons:Someone once said, “Technology is changing every moment. It never stops.” It is very true. Wilderness has suddenly turned into beautiful buildings. It has changed so fast that when people finally noticed it and wanted to save a part of it, the culture and landscape soon became a thing of the past. Just like Teacher Jin-Jhan Chen said, people should respect and learn from their spirit of the past.

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View our CyberFair Project (Project ID: 3938)

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