Taipei101

Briefing on Taipei 101 Project

(1) General Information of Our Project
1. Link to our Website: http://librarywork.taiwanschoolnet.org/gsh2006/gsh4506/index.htm
Our backup website: http://student.japs.tp.edu.tw/~taipei101/
2. Link to our school: http://www.japs.tp.edu.tw/english_japs/
3. Completion date of project: Jan 30, 2006
4. School: Ren-Ai Elementary School, Taipei City
5. District of city: Ta-An District, Taipei City
6. Instructors: Wang, May-Lan; Xiao, Jia-Ru
7. Number of participants: 9 students
8. Age of participants: 9-10 years old
9. Contact us: maywang@mail2000.com.tw

2. Our community: Taipei City
Taipei City is where we grow up and Taipei 101 building is a new landmark of Taipei. Though we were not used to having it in the first place, it starts to play an important role in Taipei City. When there is a celebration event now, we can see the hallmark building on TV or advertisements. We hope to introduce Taipei 101 to the whole world through this project.

3. Summary of project:
Many people think of Taipei 101 as a sightseeing spot; however, Taipei 101, which is officially called “Taipei Finance Center”, is a business building where many people work. It’s especially famous for Taipei 101 Mall which has a department, a supermarket, a book store, boutiques and restaurants inside. Instructed by our teachers, we work together, learn through designed activities, and explore the tallest building in the world.

Taipei 101 is the tallest building in the world as well as the highest “mountain” in Taipei. My dad and mom often take us to Taipei 101 for sightseeing, shopping and dining. Taipei 101 is the favorite photo spot for tourists and Taipei locals. They photograph the exterior of the high-rise building from different angles, and enjoy the beautiful views of Taipei metropolitan areas from the observation deck.

We put emphasis on study process, so we had to learn to use some technological tools, computer software, and the Internet. During the learning process, we tried to finish or decorate our worksheets by computer. The teachers assisted us to input our works into computers, and then presented them as web pages.

Our English language skills are fairly decent. Our teachers assisted us in translating the questionnaires into English. We then took the questionnaires ourselves to the streets near Taipei 101. We surveyed foreign tourists and other visiting children and adults to ask them what their favorite stores and spots were. We also polled the people for the most popular store. During the long summer vacation, we divided into groups to survey different businesses in Taipei 101. We often got together first to discuss the types of questions to ask.

Other than the webpage design and translating work assisted by the teachers, this project was completed with emphasis on the originality and viewpoints of children. We wanted to learn during the research process. The learning includes writing, drawing, making animation, receiving and sending emails, net-meeting, file-sending, etiquettes, interviewing skills, photographing, photo-processing, file-management, etc.

4. Our internet environment:
Teachers and students used ADSL and CABLE MODEM surfing the Internet for information. We also used Net meeting via Microsoft MSN Messenger 7.5, so that we could keep in touch and sent files to each other when part of us were traveling and studying in the States and France. For the digital picture part, we used Adobe Photoshop.

5. Problems encountered：
A. Other than the actual interviewing, surveying and writing, the student and teachers must communicate face to face on all aspects of this project. However, it is difficult to organize a meeting with all the students and teachers since our team has 9 members from 7 different families and 7 different classes. Therefore we communicated through telephone conversations, instant messaging and emails.

B. For most research projects, English is not a requirement. Since our topic, Taipei 101, is an international tour destination, English is required for interviewing and surveying. In our project, we have interviewed 230 foreigners. Although students only knew limited English, the students were able to communicate with foreigners with the simple survey questionnaires we had designed and translated into English. Many foreigners and locals praised our students for the English skills.

C. In addition to being a well-known tourist spot, Taipei 101 is also a commercial and business center. Many businesses in Taipei 101 are major retail chain stores and boutiques which have strict regulations on accepting interview or survey. However, we were able to overcome many difficulties.

D. The preparation work started in May 2005. The children of Taipei usually attend after-school tutoring, even on holidays. At one point, we were worried that the completion may not be done on time. Nonetheless, without taking up the member’s class time, they were able to complete most of the work during their summer vacation, on the October National Holiday, and during the 3 brain-storming sessions that took place after the School Sports Day in November.

E. Everyone is different. The five 4th graders and the four 3rd graders were all capable of different things. Therefore, the teachers asked each student to select topics that allow them to self-improve.

F. We have always wanted to interview the Mayor, Ying-Jeou Ma. Through Mayor’s email box, we were able to receive a reply from corresponding department. Luckily, in December, we got to meet the mayor in person and received his signature during a Microsoft convention.

G. Looking back at the project, we were amazed at the amount of work that was completed. Translating all the work to English is an enormous task. Luckily, Ms. Sunny Ho, Mr. Cliff Hua, Mr. Lucas Sheen, and Ms. Ling-Yuan Chang agreed to assist in the translation works.

6. Afterthoughts: “Where there is a will, there is a way.” As long as we’re willing to give it a try, we’ll learn something and be more courageous and confident. Age is never a problem

(3) Project Study Factors
1. Please explain how your project meets the objective of the "Taiwan Schools Cyber Fair":
Although Taipei 101 is the landmark in Taipei and the tallest building in the world, not many locals and tourist know the building in depth. In the past six months, we used after-school time to gain further knowledge from Chairwoman Chen and President Lin of the Taipei 101. They both had very tight schedules in recruiting businesses. We introduced the building to the locals and foreign visitors and listened to their views on Taipei 101. We not only learned many operation aspects of different stores and shops, but also shared our experiences of the delicious cuisines and products available in Taipei 101 to more people.

2. Please explain what IT you use and how you use it for the project?
Computers are a convenient tool for research. The Internet expands the horizon of this research project. Students can gather a great amount of information on the web. Most amazingly, the students and teachers no longer have to meet in person to discuss project contents. Through MSN messenger, the students were able to complete their homework while traveling out of the country. It is unimaginable in the past that a group of nine students can complete a research of this size.

Digital cameras and camcorders are modern inventions that instantly allow students to see the quality of theirs photos or video. This allowed the students to retake a shot on the spot if the quality is not desired. Comparing to film cameras, modern inventions save time and money. With the multi-function scanner, drawings or photos can be transferred into digital documents. Digital documents can be easily edited, and push the students to learn to use computers. The files of many digital photos were too big, thus we used photo editing software to reduce the size while not losing image qualities.

By turning our work into a webpage, we not only reduced paper consumption but also provided a sound multimedia presentation. The web pages allow us to share our research results and experiences with Chinese-speaking students and teachers through audios and images. Our work is then translated into English with the help of our teachers so that we can share our work and results with audiences all over the world.

3. Each participant represents a different community and plays the role of an ambassador of their county. Please explain how each participant fulfilled this role？
The 9 members interviewed foreign tourists and recorded their experiences, then compiled meaningful statistics. Before the publishing of English version on the website, 4 members traveled to Los Angeles and Paris, and surveyed over 100 people to ask them about the tallest building in the world, Taipei 101. In the process, they were also spreading the words for this proud landmark of Taiwan.

4. What influence and impact did the project bring to your life?
It is an unforgettable adventure to all of us.
Looking back to those 200 days, this group of 3rd and 4th graders had transcended their daily routines to care about world events. The Taipei 101 research project opened up their perspectives as they started to care about their surroundings. Some initially had difficulty in writing, but they worked really hard to overcome this problem by reading many news articles and reports about Taipei 101. During the interviews with foreigners, the children also improved their English skills.

During the time participating in the Cyber Fair, the kids not only improved their tacit collaboration skills but also interviewed Mayor Ma. They also joined the Microsoft Online Trivia Competition, where they learned the importance of teamwork. Many former Ren-Ai participants came to cheer for them. Although they did not win the challenge, it was an unforgettable experience.

5. About Intelligence Property Right:
This research involves a lot of new topics. W e would like to give special thanks to the Taipei 101 and the Taipei government. Also we want to thank C.Y.Lee & partners Architects/ Planners, “Fu-Guo Engineer Consulting Firm, and United Daily News Group for providing background information. Taipei 101 also provided a clip of the movement of TMD when Typhoon Maring hit Taipei. Most pictures on the website have been taken by group members or their parents.

6. Discovery, Lessons and Afterthoughts:
No pains, no gains. “Taipei 101 Project” is not only a case study but also a miniature research for elementary teachers and students who try to do their best to introduce the tallest building to the whole world. It is a sacred mission indeed.

TITLE	NAME	To-Do List
Leader	Lee, Jun-Cheng	Information-collecting and arranging; poem-writing; photographing
Assistant- Leader	Wen, Yi-En	Essay-writing; web-page animation
Member	Hsu, Si-Ning	Poem-writing; questionnaire-design; decorating; photographing
Member	Chen, Chi-Heng	Questionnaire-design; interview; decorating
Member	Lai, Hsuan-Wei	Interview; decorating; website kit-design; web-page animation
Member	Wang, Wen-Han	Interview; photographing; interview-arranging; poem-writing
Member	Chen, Yu-Ting	Interview; survey; poem-writing; CG
Member	Lai, Hsuan-Chung	Interview; decorating; website kit-design; web-page animation
Member	Cheng, Yu-Tong	Survey; photographing; poem-writing

The Chronicles of Fantastic 9
Time	Big Events	Done
2005.05-2005.06	Recruiting; Organizing “Fantastic 9”	◎
2005.06-2005.07	“Summer camp 101” for intensive trainings; Collecting information; Contacting architect, Mr. Lee	◎
2005.07-2005.08	Doing survey in middle and southern Taiwan, L.A., and Paris	◎
2005.09-2005.10	“National Day Camp 101” for intensive trainings; Interviewing GM of Taipei 101 and managers of stores and restaurants	◎
2005.10-2005.11	“Brain-storming Camp”; Interviewing President of TP101, Ms. Chen and consultant company; Arranging information	◎
2005.11-2006.01	Interviewing Mayor, Mr. Ma; Constructing website in Chinese version; Translating Chinese articles	◎
2006.01-2006.03	Checking translation; Constructing website in English version	○

Taipei 101 Project Contribution Analysis
Participants	Contribution	Percentage
Students	1. Interviewing related people 2. Photographing 3. Recording interview 4. Editing information 5. Designing interview topics 6. Reporting progress 7. Collecting information 8. Sketching TP101 9. Making animation of TP101	65%
Instructors	1. Initiating meetings 2. Arranging and analyzing research information 3. Instructing and reviewing web-page 4. Planning project 5. Providing computer and software assistance 6. Final-checking students’ worksheets	10%
Volunteer Instructors	1. Directing animation-making 2. Supporting interpreting of website 3. Instructing website-design	10%
Parents	1. Contacting interviewees 2. Supporting related activities	10%
Others(shop managers, community residents, tourists, foreign interviewees)	1. Receiving interviews 2. Finishing questionnaire	5%