Project Components
◎How would participating in the Taiwan Cyberfair Project support the 9-year Curriculum and school syllabus?
1. Relevant subjects
Language
*Students would learn to read, compile and analyze large amounts of information and materials, and present them using their own means.
*Learn how to convert oral information into text.
*Improve oral communications and confidence during interviews and conferences.
Mathematics
*Learn how to use online statistical software and draw graphs.
*Learn how to distribute spending and budget management during food and material purchases.
Social studies
*Understand the origins and development of regional industries.
*Understand the need for corporations to choose more efficient and environmentally friendly manufacturing processes.
Science and Technology
*Learn about the classification of mushrooms.
*Learn about fungal growth and reproduction through growing mushrooms.
*Learn about the ecology and processes of mushroom farming.
*Understand and try out recipes for cooking mushrooms.
*Investigate the importance of environmental protection and corporate responsibility.
Integrated Activities
*Learn about sharing job responsibilities and cooperation, and to come up with creative and innovative ideas when working together towards the same goal.
*Learn how to cooperate and share information with each other during group activities.
2. Major topics relevant to the project
Environmental education
*Investigate whether it is possible to minimize the degree of environmental damage caused by economic development.
*Learn about the importance of environmental protection in the practice of organic farming.
*Understand regional development during visits and field trips.
IT Education
*Learn to use cloud technologies like Google Docs, Picasa, and Weebly, and help reduce paper consumption.
*Create mind-map diagrams to formulate the preliminary framework of our website after discussions and instructor guidance.
Career development
*Learn about different jobs and work responsibilities during visits and interviews.
*Investigate personal interests and preferences during practical activities.
*Learn about good work ethics by observing employee behavior.
◎What types of information technologies were used to complete the project?
Hardware:
Computers in the computer labs - For file organization, discussions, typing and playback of video and audio recordings.
Digital camera - For recording activities
Digital video camera - For recording interviews and activities.
Color digital printer - For printing relevant information and posters (we used this as little as possible)
Projector and screen - For presentations
Software:
Microsoft Word 2007 -- For creating our project proposal (for a more professional finish)
Microsoft power point 2007 -- For creating and presenting our project.
Google Chrome -- To search for information, to establish our websites and write student feedbacks, etc.
Online tools: (very important!!)
Weebly - For writing our website and creating our presentations.
Google docs - For writing documents, feedbacks, questionnaires, carrying out online surveys and delegating jobs to team members.
Picasa web - For uploading, editing and sharing of photographs.
Google map - For navigation.
Awesome Screenshot - For taking and sharing screenshots from websites.
Facebook - For online communication (and games every once in a while)
Mindomo - For creating our website navigation map
Office 2010 - For creating small things.
◎ Which methods were used to implement online, personal or group communication in your role as cultural ambassadors?
The target of our investigation was Qyo Biotech. Company. Is there advanced technology on our dinner table? We could see heaps after heaps of wood shavings when driving along the No. 76 East-West Expressway next to our school. There were also a large number of factory houses that seemed to be completely sealed. These were then followed by a colorful leisure farm. We searched for their information online before taking the final bold move of asking them for interviews, sincerely hoping that they could cooperate with us. We made a direct visit to the Mushroom Tribe and hoped to gain their authorization. We succeeded in getting total support from the company.
Every communication after our initial contact was carried out by phone or Facebook.
◎ What were the regional influences and impacts caused by this project?
Through on-site interviews and practical experiences, we learned many things about mushroom farming and acquired first-hand information about the transformation of agricultural management from traditional mushroom sheds to factory houses with modern technology capable of controlling temperature, humidity and lighting to provide the most conducive growing environment for the cultivated mushrooms. Regional corporations in Puxin Village attempted to mitigate the effects of climatic change by adopting novel methods in mushroom farming. They insisted upon organic cultivation and would not use any agricultural chemicals in order to minimize environmental impact. This would seem impossible in traditional mushroom farming, but they repeatedly ferment their substrate packs to maximize their potential. Other agricultural materials were used to create the substrate packs in order to reduce deforestation. The company also established their own research labs and collaborates with academia to constantly improve and innovate themselves. New species were introduced and they succeeded in growing silver ear fungus to provide our people with healthy diet options (especially since that silver ear fungus imported from mainland China was found out to contain agricultural chemicals). Their commitment to environmental values won them recognition from local food service industries and dealers of organic produce, both of which often make their purchases directly from the company.
This company also provided a diversity of employment opportunities and management methods. Vendors not only sell produce of their own company, they would also exhibit other produce of Changhua County that received the Shennong Awards to expand sales channels. The company also participated extensively in various national and international exhibits to promote the new concept of healthy diets. It is hoped that Puxin, an agricultural village with small family industries, would slowly transform into a service-based recreational industry. We also organized visits and presentations by industrial representatives in our school so that students would have a better understanding and most up-to-date picture of the industry.
◎Intellectual Property Disclaimer of our Project
This topic is very important to us. Most of the photographs, audio recordings and videos were made by our teachers and students. Only a small number was derived from the internet. We would prefer not to use any online materials unless it was part of the Creative Commons. Online tools were used to carry out simultaneous editing and uploading of photographs, write student feedbacks and compose our webpages. We also made use of the internet and books to compile numerous information about fungi. Our teachers also wanted us to express ourselves using our own words, and we're successful in obtaining authorization and other types of support such as mushroom cultivation cans from Mushroom Tribe. They gave us recipes, pamphlets, publications and other materials for our reference.
◎Discoveries, lessons and surprises
Discoveries:
When collecting information online, we found that several environmental organizations had raised concerns over deforestation by mushroom farmers when making substrate packs. Deforestation would affect soil and water conservation along mountain slopes. Some people also believed that growing mushrooms in air conditioned rooms would consume way too much electricity. We thus raised these issues to Manager Fang who provided strong evidences to refute these accusations. For example, although it was true making substrate packs require a significant quantity of wood, not every type of wood is suitable for mushroom farming. Some trees such as cypress and camphor would produce aromatic oils that mushroom dislike, making these types of wood unsuitable materials for substrate packs. The main material used by the company for making the substrate packs would be Formosa Acacia. This tree was originally used to create charcoal in the past, and is grown in tree farms and not obtained by chopping down forests. At the same time, used substrate packs would be refermented. Other agricultural detritus would be added during the recycling process. This helped the company to reduce tree consumption by nearly 50%. For electricity usage, Manager Fang believed that their high production per acre more than compensated for their energy consumption.
Lessons:
The computer labs were opened for our use during afternoon nap time. The lack of teacher supervision made it very enticing for us to "abuse this opportunity" and play computer games. In the end, students were threatened that they would be disqualified from the team if they play games again. Sigh...
Surprises:
The sight of a rosy pink mushroom growing out from a can was such a wonderful experience! We saw pizzas piled with various kinds of first class, delicious and yummy toppings!! These pizzas certainly looked way better than any of those sold outside! This is shockingly splendid! We were very surprised with our 'childish' talents!
1. Relevant subjects
Language
*Students would learn to read, compile and analyze large amounts of information and materials, and present them using their own means.
*Learn how to convert oral information into text.
*Improve oral communications and confidence during interviews and conferences.
Mathematics
*Learn how to use online statistical software and draw graphs.
*Learn how to distribute spending and budget management during food and material purchases.
Social studies
*Understand the origins and development of regional industries.
*Understand the need for corporations to choose more efficient and environmentally friendly manufacturing processes.
Science and Technology
*Learn about the classification of mushrooms.
*Learn about fungal growth and reproduction through growing mushrooms.
*Learn about the ecology and processes of mushroom farming.
*Understand and try out recipes for cooking mushrooms.
*Investigate the importance of environmental protection and corporate responsibility.
Integrated Activities
*Learn about sharing job responsibilities and cooperation, and to come up with creative and innovative ideas when working together towards the same goal.
*Learn how to cooperate and share information with each other during group activities.
2. Major topics relevant to the project
Environmental education
*Investigate whether it is possible to minimize the degree of environmental damage caused by economic development.
*Learn about the importance of environmental protection in the practice of organic farming.
*Understand regional development during visits and field trips.
IT Education
*Learn to use cloud technologies like Google Docs, Picasa, and Weebly, and help reduce paper consumption.
*Create mind-map diagrams to formulate the preliminary framework of our website after discussions and instructor guidance.
Career development
*Learn about different jobs and work responsibilities during visits and interviews.
*Investigate personal interests and preferences during practical activities.
*Learn about good work ethics by observing employee behavior.
◎What types of information technologies were used to complete the project?
Hardware:
Computers in the computer labs - For file organization, discussions, typing and playback of video and audio recordings.
Digital camera - For recording activities
Digital video camera - For recording interviews and activities.
Color digital printer - For printing relevant information and posters (we used this as little as possible)
Projector and screen - For presentations
Software:
Microsoft Word 2007 -- For creating our project proposal (for a more professional finish)
Microsoft power point 2007 -- For creating and presenting our project.
Google Chrome -- To search for information, to establish our websites and write student feedbacks, etc.
Online tools: (very important!!)
Weebly - For writing our website and creating our presentations.
Google docs - For writing documents, feedbacks, questionnaires, carrying out online surveys and delegating jobs to team members.
Picasa web - For uploading, editing and sharing of photographs.
Google map - For navigation.
Awesome Screenshot - For taking and sharing screenshots from websites.
Facebook - For online communication (and games every once in a while)
Mindomo - For creating our website navigation map
Office 2010 - For creating small things.
◎ Which methods were used to implement online, personal or group communication in your role as cultural ambassadors?
The target of our investigation was Qyo Biotech. Company. Is there advanced technology on our dinner table? We could see heaps after heaps of wood shavings when driving along the No. 76 East-West Expressway next to our school. There were also a large number of factory houses that seemed to be completely sealed. These were then followed by a colorful leisure farm. We searched for their information online before taking the final bold move of asking them for interviews, sincerely hoping that they could cooperate with us. We made a direct visit to the Mushroom Tribe and hoped to gain their authorization. We succeeded in getting total support from the company.
Every communication after our initial contact was carried out by phone or Facebook.
◎ What were the regional influences and impacts caused by this project?
Through on-site interviews and practical experiences, we learned many things about mushroom farming and acquired first-hand information about the transformation of agricultural management from traditional mushroom sheds to factory houses with modern technology capable of controlling temperature, humidity and lighting to provide the most conducive growing environment for the cultivated mushrooms. Regional corporations in Puxin Village attempted to mitigate the effects of climatic change by adopting novel methods in mushroom farming. They insisted upon organic cultivation and would not use any agricultural chemicals in order to minimize environmental impact. This would seem impossible in traditional mushroom farming, but they repeatedly ferment their substrate packs to maximize their potential. Other agricultural materials were used to create the substrate packs in order to reduce deforestation. The company also established their own research labs and collaborates with academia to constantly improve and innovate themselves. New species were introduced and they succeeded in growing silver ear fungus to provide our people with healthy diet options (especially since that silver ear fungus imported from mainland China was found out to contain agricultural chemicals). Their commitment to environmental values won them recognition from local food service industries and dealers of organic produce, both of which often make their purchases directly from the company.
This company also provided a diversity of employment opportunities and management methods. Vendors not only sell produce of their own company, they would also exhibit other produce of Changhua County that received the Shennong Awards to expand sales channels. The company also participated extensively in various national and international exhibits to promote the new concept of healthy diets. It is hoped that Puxin, an agricultural village with small family industries, would slowly transform into a service-based recreational industry. We also organized visits and presentations by industrial representatives in our school so that students would have a better understanding and most up-to-date picture of the industry.
◎Intellectual Property Disclaimer of our Project
This topic is very important to us. Most of the photographs, audio recordings and videos were made by our teachers and students. Only a small number was derived from the internet. We would prefer not to use any online materials unless it was part of the Creative Commons. Online tools were used to carry out simultaneous editing and uploading of photographs, write student feedbacks and compose our webpages. We also made use of the internet and books to compile numerous information about fungi. Our teachers also wanted us to express ourselves using our own words, and we're successful in obtaining authorization and other types of support such as mushroom cultivation cans from Mushroom Tribe. They gave us recipes, pamphlets, publications and other materials for our reference.
◎Discoveries, lessons and surprises
Discoveries:
When collecting information online, we found that several environmental organizations had raised concerns over deforestation by mushroom farmers when making substrate packs. Deforestation would affect soil and water conservation along mountain slopes. Some people also believed that growing mushrooms in air conditioned rooms would consume way too much electricity. We thus raised these issues to Manager Fang who provided strong evidences to refute these accusations. For example, although it was true making substrate packs require a significant quantity of wood, not every type of wood is suitable for mushroom farming. Some trees such as cypress and camphor would produce aromatic oils that mushroom dislike, making these types of wood unsuitable materials for substrate packs. The main material used by the company for making the substrate packs would be Formosa Acacia. This tree was originally used to create charcoal in the past, and is grown in tree farms and not obtained by chopping down forests. At the same time, used substrate packs would be refermented. Other agricultural detritus would be added during the recycling process. This helped the company to reduce tree consumption by nearly 50%. For electricity usage, Manager Fang believed that their high production per acre more than compensated for their energy consumption.
Lessons:
The computer labs were opened for our use during afternoon nap time. The lack of teacher supervision made it very enticing for us to "abuse this opportunity" and play computer games. In the end, students were threatened that they would be disqualified from the team if they play games again. Sigh...
Surprises:
The sight of a rosy pink mushroom growing out from a can was such a wonderful experience! We saw pizzas piled with various kinds of first class, delicious and yummy toppings!! These pizzas certainly looked way better than any of those sold outside! This is shockingly splendid! We were very surprised with our 'childish' talents!