Developing An Improved Heart Rate Monitor With Work-Out Training Android Application And Real Time Audio Coaching

TechnoHeart is a digital way of monitoring heart rate using a Heart Rate Monitor device and an android phone. Moreover, this is made more special through its work-out training which is designed to help users set and achieve their target heart rate and monitor at what training intensity they are during a strenuous exercise. The training is made more interactive as the application has its real-time audio coaching. The need for this application comes from three sources; First, some athletes, non-athletes and even doctors are still using the traditional way of getting the heart rate; Second, training intensity is not monitored and target heart rate is not achieved; Third, most mobile developments do not tailor the need of users who undergo work-out training. With the following needs, objectives were set; First, to connect an HRM (Heart Rate Monitoring) device to an android mobile device and display individual’s heart rate in digital form through mobile; Second, to create a work-out training program using the Karvonen Formula; Third, to enable users know one’s target heart rate by using a Karvonen calculator; Fourth, to notify users in real time with every sudden change and the needed action in order to keep an effective training exercise. The project is to explore this and other similar concepts to develop a design that optimally satisfies all of these objectives. The project addresses all of these objectives while meeting the constraints given. The project was deployed in three different sets of users: The University of Mindanao Athletes, The elderly users aging from 50-80 years old and the other users aging from 12-49 years old. The researchers recommend the use of TechnoHeart for athletes and non-athletes who are aiming for an effective cardiovascular training. And for the next researchers, they can focus on the compatibility of the said application to other mobile platforms like iOS, Blackberry, Windows and etc. And also, they may upload application in the internet such as in social networking sites or any features that would make this project more usable.

Influence of Eclectic Approach on English Language Teaching to Improve Students Writing Skill at Tertiary Level

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of teacher pedagogy in improving tertiary level students’ English writing skill and self-perceptions. The purpose was to determine how far an eclectic approach to teaching English writing skill can be of assistance in developing the writing skill and confidence of bilingual speakers of English at tertiary level. This study employed pre/post-test and quasi experimental research design. The sample consisted of 66 students of English at Bachelor’s level and two teachers in a government college of Lahore, Punjab. The students were placed into two groups. The experimental group was taught by a TESL trained teacher and the control group was taught by a regular teacher. Both groups wrote an essay and completed questionnaires at the beginning and end of the study. After nine months of teaching writing skill, the pretest and posttest essay and questionnaire scores of the groups were compared using independent and paired sample T-tests and Hedges’ g to calculate the effect size of the change. Both teachers’ classroom lessons were analyzed through observation. Evidentially, eclectic approach had significant positive effect on students’ overall performance in essay writing and self-perception. Keywords: Eclectic Approach - Product Approach - Process Approach - English Writing Skill, Self-perception, Teaching English as Second Language (TESL)