Life outside the blog

Written By: - Date published: 12:53 pm, July 18th, 2012 - 27 comments
Categories: notices, The Standard - Tags:

One of the characteristics of this blog is that we really don’t emphasize the ego of the authors that much. We’re here to provide our opinions and the argument that supports them and to let everyone have a good go at arguing about them robustly. We’re uninterested in bolstering our own egos,  forming a personality cult, or developing a marketing brand in the way that some bloggers and media commentators appear to view as being their reason for writing.

So regardless if the person authoring the post real or pseudonymous, there usually isn’t too much of the person and their experience poking beyond through the opinions and detail of the posts. We’re not here to be an authority in the manner favoured by many of the bloggers on of the right or some of the bloated ego’s in the media.

But it is a very talented crew of authors here in their various way. We all have rather extensive and productive lives beyond the blog and even politics, even if we don’t care to share many of the details of this with our readers. I have to share more than most because of my roasting moderating role.

Most of the site’s readers will be aware of r0b / Anthony Robins as one of the more pleasant and talented authors in the local political blogosphere with his always interesting posts. What you probably don’t know is how well he is regarded by people in his actual job as professor of computer science. But Lyn sent this through to me and I’m going to embarrass him by posting it with a hearty congratulations…

Anthony Robins – citation for Tertiary Teaching Excellence Awards 2012

And they got what he does just right.

Anthony Robins has made a significant impact in the field of computer science nationally and internationally, and is considered by his peers to be one of the leading researchers in computer science education. His unique contributions range from his involvement in developing the national curriculum in Digital Technology for secondary schools to groundbreaking research in the development of the Learning Edge Momentum model of student learning that is influencing how programming is taught.

Testimony to Anthony’s sustained excellence in teaching are his high student satisfaction ratings, his exceptional skills in programme design and continuing reflection and critical evaluation of his teaching performance. His teaching has been described by students as powerful and transformational; his exemplary leadership has inspired colleagues.

They missed out that he is a great blogger, nice even when moderating (unlike me) and has been a stalwart of this site since we managed to entice him into writing here.

27 comments on “Life outside the blog ”

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  1. Bunji 1
    18 July 2012 at 1:05 pm

    Great stuff Anthony! Congratulations!

  2. Akldnut 2
    18 July 2012 at 1:16 pm

    Awesome Anthony – Well done!

  3. Newt 3
    18 July 2012 at 1:21 pm

    Congrats Anthony/r0b 🙂

  4. r0b 4
    18 July 2012 at 1:32 pm

    I’ve been outed. I’m going to have to kick Lynn in the shins next time we meet!

    Thanks all, and greetings from Te Papa courtesy of the free wireless hotspot. Lovely weather you have up here in Wellington (after two solid days of gales that is).

    Back to Dunedin soon…

  5. vto 5
    18 July 2012 at 2:51 pm

    Good on ya r0b. I have said on a couple of occasions that the arguments posted up here and the facts and the research and the reasoning etc has impacted my own thinking in certain parts of politics and r0b you are one of the leading authors in that regard. Don’t know if that’s a good thing or not, or whether the changes in thinking will last he distance, but there you go. Well done and keep it up.

  6. ak 6
    18 July 2012 at 5:48 pm

    Hearty congrats r0b, long been in awe of your dedication, organisation and especially your unflappable equanimity even in the face of relentless moronity. As my dear old gran used to say, this one’s good enough to breed from.

  7. marty mars 7
    18 July 2012 at 6:11 pm

    Well done r0b – I always enjoy your posts – you are a very good blogger.

  8. Jim Nald 8
    18 July 2012 at 6:39 pm

    Well deserved. You are an inspiration. Delighted for you.

    Keep up the great work on all fronts. Especially being the conscience and critic of society 😉

  9. felix 9
    18 July 2012 at 6:42 pm

    Nice one r0b! Good to know you’re just as respected offline as you are on.

  10. rosy 10
    18 July 2012 at 6:58 pm

    “powerful and transformational” High praise indeed. And brilliant measure of teaching success. Congratulations.

  11. Ad 11
    18 July 2012 at 7:26 pm

    We are exceeding lucky with you.
    Go academic freedom!

  12. Jenny 12
    18 July 2012 at 7:27 pm

    I never expected anything less.

  13. captain hook 13
    18 July 2012 at 7:39 pm

    I bet kweewee wont be rushing to give any of you the Order of New Zealand.
    hahahahahahahaha.
    anyway you are doing a wonderful job and its only going to get better.
    the whole country owes you a vote of thanks for asking the hard questions and giving the mm a goal to aspire to. (larfs).

  14. deuto 14
    18 July 2012 at 7:41 pm

    R0b, what can I say – you are one of the main reasons when I found TS that I stayed. First as a reader for years and now occasionally I make a comment. Congratulations! Totally deserved – AND please do not ever disappear from here.

    Same goes for lprent, Eddie and all to others who make TS the number 1 blogsite IMO.

  15. Puddleglum 15
    18 July 2012 at 8:42 pm

    Somehow this seems appropriate:

    “Good teachers in our lives are not characterized by the grade level at which you encounter them but by the learning environment they foster. The teachers that made a difference in my life, and helped me empower myself to blaze a trail, had something in common. They recognized that it was MY journey, and they were there to help guide the way. Through a love of teaching, and a passion for exploration, they did not impose their authority, or credentials, or ego. They gently, patiently guided my interactions with a brave new world, whether it was the world of reading or an understanding of the very laws of nature that govern the universe.”

    Extremely well done Anthony. Teaching is an art and, like all arts, it’s not formulaic. It’s an expression of the person. 

  16. mickysavage 16
    18 July 2012 at 10:42 pm

    Congrats r0b.  I am amazed that you are such an accomplished teacher of computer science yet at the same time are such an accomplished commentator on political issues.

  17. Campbell Larsen 17
    18 July 2012 at 11:09 pm

    Congrats Anthony, keep up the good work (on both fronts)

  18. r0b 18
    18 July 2012 at 11:29 pm

    Thanks everyone. I’m overwhelmed, really I am.

    I’m also feeling “oversold” as both a teacher and a blogger right now. People write such generous things. I can’t possibly live up to all of it and I won’t try, I’ll just plod on one day at a time same as ever.

    But – thank you all.

  19. Frank Macskasy 19
    19 July 2012 at 2:09 am

    Well done, Rob! I always enjoy reading your stuff – well thought out!

    May you continue with your writings for many years to come…

  20. fnjckg 20
    19 July 2012 at 8:32 am

    Excellence;reflection helpful

  21. joe90 21
    19 July 2012 at 12:19 pm

    Congratulation on the award rOb and thanks for your always bloody excellent contributions to The Standard.

  22. the pink postman 22
    21 July 2012 at 3:26 pm

    Ii agree with all the above .,Keep up the good work.

  23. Falafulu Fisi 23
    15 August 2012 at 9:53 am

    Anthony Robins has made a significant impact in the field of computer science nationally and internationally

    I’ve seen some of Dr. Robin’s publications listed on his website, which I say, they are good quality. My domain of interest is overlapped with the stuff that’s he is doing (ie, soft-computing, expert-system & machine-learning), but I haven’t seen many New Zealand academics in the field of computer science as well recognized (internationally) as Prof. Nik Kasabov of AUT. The number of papers that he has submitted & published in international computing journals over the years is unbelievable. I believe that Prof. Kasabov is a former colleague of Dr. Robbins from Kasabov’s days at Otago.

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