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14 August 2001
The Success Story of PurpleTrain's First Class Honours UOP Graduate
 Yasser Abbasi is one of the 42 proud graduates of PurpleTrain.com who has
successfully graduated with a First Class Degree Honours, BSc (Hons) in
Computing from the University of Portsmouth, UK. His success has once again
affirming the belief that excellent academic standard can be achieved through
e-learning.
Yasser is currently in United Kingdom. He has attended his graduation ceremony
at Portsmouth on 12th July 2001, and will be starting his Master of Science in
Internet Systems Development by the University of Portsmouth in October 2001.
Upon completion of the programme, Yasser plans to return to his home country in
Pakistan and contribute towards in the field of Computing.
PurpleTrain.com recently interviewed him on a variety of topics encircling
e-learning and most importantly, in sharing his success story and his e-learning
experience with PurpleTrain.com
PT: What makes you take e-learning with PurpleTrain.com?
Yasser: As I was enrolled with Informatics, the final year (degree programme)
was being offered as an e-learning course. I had to make a choice between BBIT
from Curtin University and BSc. (Hons) in Computing from University of
Portsmouth (UOP). I chose to take the UOP programme as I always have a keen
interest in a more practical and problem-solving approach in Computing. After
studying the courses offered, I opted for the UOP programme.
E-learning is a new wave in the field of Computer Science. Just like others, I
was unaware of its advantages at its infant stage. However, after going through
the PurpleTrain.com website (formerly known as ivlu.com), I decided to take the
e-learning programme without any hesitations. It is a new and positive approach
to learning while having the convenience of studying from home, at your own time
and space. I'm especially comfortable with the flexibility of the timetable
that PurpleTrain.com provide.
PT: What do you like most about e-learning?
Yasser: The best thing about e-learning is the flexibility it offers to the students. For example, students only have to attend the virtual classes in a
given time and you can do the rest of the work any time you like. For instance,
you can check the discussion room, the chat logs, immediate posting of questions
on the discussion board and get immediate responses on the queries posted, etc.
PT: What are the difficulties you faced during course period?
How do you solve the problems?
Do you manage to get assistance from facilitators, course-mates or
PurpleTrain's staff?
Yasser: The difficulties that I faced during my e-learning experience was that some courses required diagrammatic explanation of some issues and there was no
way the facilitator could communicate those diagrammatic conventions to the
students during the virtual class. The only way was to post a diagram in the
discussion room so that the students can download it and then study it. This
problem can be rectified by providing tools for the facilitators to paste
diagrams in the chat room during the virtual class sessions, I know it would be
difficult to paste the entire scenario diagram on the chat window but at I think
it is possible to provide some means through which the facilitator and the
students could at least paste the conventions (shapes) used in a certain
diagram.
One way of doing this is to provide a small window next to the chat window that
displays all the conventions (shapes) used in the currently studied diagramming
tool where the facilitator and students could click and drag those diagrams in
the chat window's text-writing area*.
The facilitators and the staff at PurpleTrain.com have been very prompt in
replying to my queries.
PT: How would you grade the usefulness of the chat sessions/discussion
rooms/emails?
Yasser: By considering the problems that I stated in Answer 3, I would grade the usefulness of the chat sessions as 8 out of 10. The discussion rooms and emails
as 9 out of 10.
PT: How do you juggle your life as a student and working adult?
Yasser: I was able to manage my working life along with my studies easily. All I need to do is to attend the classes on PurpleTrain.com at a given time and do
the rest of my studying and assignments whenever I'm free.
PT: How e-learning through PurpleTrain.com has affected your life?
Yasser: E-learning through PurpleTrain.com has made me realize that it is
possible to manage one's time with his/her responsibilities as a student, a
working professional, a father/mother, a housewife, etc at the same time. All
these should not intermingle with each other if managed properly.
PT: How do you benefited from e-learning?
Yasser: E-learning offers great flexibility and I think that is the best benefit that it offers. I surely benefited from it as I have been able to study properly
and clear the exams with good grades and I have also been able to excel in other
things in life which would have not been possible through the conventional
learning system.
Last but not the least, when asked on his tips for success, the 23 year-old UOP
graduate said: "Well, there is no secret as such, for my success. I worked hard
and was able to manage my studies efficiently. I make sure that I follow the
course closely and stay in touch with my course-mates and facilitators since the
beginning of the course rather than getting worried about studies by the end of
the term and messing up my schedule. I attend the chat sessions. Even if I
missed one, I can still review the chat logs. The discussion rooms were also a
great help. It helps to improve my level of understanding on certain topics as
it allows me to read the views and postings by my fellow course-mates."
PurpleTrain.com would like to take this opportunity to send its heartiest
congratulations to Mr Yasser Abbasi for his excellent achievement in e-learning.
We wish him the very best in his future endeavours.
*Note: PurpleTrain.com takes our students comments seriously. To address the
problem stated above, PurpleTrain.com will come up with a "Virtual White Board"
to facilitate the entire learning process soon. Watch out for more new and
exciting developments in the pipeline at PurpleTrain.com!
For the UOP B.Sc. (Hons) Computing degree programme by PurpleTrain.com, please
log on to http://www.purpletrain.com now!
About PurpleTrain.com
PurpleTrain.com is the e-learning service provider which offers a one-stop
service for business and IT education programmes, corporate training courses and
education-related services.
By combining innovative technology with world-class training content,
PurpleTrain.com offers companies and individuals a high value, quality and
effective online training solution. Over 300 online courses are available,
offering masters, degrees, diplomas and certificates in business and IT
programmes. Our online learning community now stands at over 40,000 users.
PurpleTrain.com is a 100%-owned venture of Informatics Holdings Limited, a
leading training and education provider listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
For more information, please contact :
Cheryl Lee
Marketing & PR Manager
PurpleTrain.com
DID : (65) 568 0810
Fax : (65) 569 7060
Email : cheryll@purpletrain.com
Website : www.purpletrain.com
www.informaticsgroup.com
All trademarks and registered trademarks are property of
their respective owners. Certain of the statements in this press release
are forward-looking in nature and, accordingly, are subject to risks and
uncertainties. The actual results may differ from those described or contemplated.
Copyright © 2002. All Rights Reserved. PurpleTrain.com Pte Ltd.
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