a school librarian's tech musings...

How to Create a Custom Navigation Bar

2009-12-30T10:07:00.002-05:00

In Blogger, click on layout, navbar, edit to change the color of your navigation bar. For example, I changed the navigation bar for this blog to the beige color you see above. A new transparent option is also available, if the color choices do not match your blog template to your liking.

You may want to beware of making any other changes to your navbar, however; Some claim that Blogger considers it a violation of terms of use and may cancel your service for doing so. Others claim that if Blogger allows you to edit the page html, than you may edit all parts, including the navbar. If you decide to proceed, there are some published steps to creating your own nav bar in Blogger:

http://www.blogsbyheather.com/2009/07/blogger-adding-a-simple-navigation-barlinks-under-your-banner.html

Here is another: http://www.technobuffalo.com.lg1x1z.simplecdn.net/techspot/2009/11/how-to-remove-navbar-in-blogger-blogs/

Creating Custom Buttons for your Blog

2009-12-30T09:14:00.000-05:00

Want to create some custom buttons for navigating your blog? Ever wonder how they are made? It is easy to do:
• Create the image you want to use for your button. Make sure you are not using a copyrighted © photo without permission! You can use images from Microsoft clip art that are royalty-free, or do a search in google images for royalty-free photos to use.

• Upload your image into word or powerpoint. If in Word 2007, you can use your draw tools to bevel the edges, add a border, etc. If in Word 2003 you can add a border.

• When you finish editing your image, copy and paste into Paint. Click on image-attributes and select approx 100 pixels by 50 pixels or you can choose approx 2” x 1” or something similar to fit your blog page. You can always adjust the size of your button later if you need to.

• Upload your image to your blog file or media library and/or insert into place in under your header or in the sidebar of your blog.

• Then, right click on the image, click the html link at the top of the page and edit as follows:

Editing the html as directed above will make your buttons interactive so that they link an image with a website that you can click on.

How to Embed Custom HTML into Your Blog

2009-12-24T15:19:00.000-05:00

Ever see some custom banners, mindmaps, posters, wordsplashes or other items embedded into an educational blog? Check out these cool Web 2.0 tools:

glogster.com wordle.net/create

xtranormal.com mywebspiration.com

What do they have in common? Each one allows for the creation of a unique Web 2.0 product that can be embedded into your blog or wiki. After you have created your project, save it and look for the word “embed” somewhere on the saved/published project page. Click on the link to retrieve the html code for the finished project. Copy the code by clicking and holding the control key while pressing “c.”

Navigate to your blog site. In the design mode, click on “edit html”, and insert the custom code for your product. Click save and preview your work. It may take a moment before your product is visible in your blog. If it doesn’t appear, undo the changes you made and go back to the original site to copy the code again.

What if you have a text document, pdf file, ppt, or other that you would like to embed in your blog? There are a number of ways to do this. First, you can upload your document to a site such as google docs, scribd, embedit.in, or other document host site. Then, find the embed code for your doc, copy and paste as above. The trick is finding a host site for your original. That’s it!

5 steps to a custom blog header

2009-12-24T14:34:00.003-05:00

• In powerpoint 07, click on design, page setup, custom; (in earlier versions, find page setup and select slides sized for custom); then choose the width and height appropriate for your blog. (In your blog design area, you may be able to locate the dimensions of your header, or you may need to preview your header in your blog to determine the correct size. Another means of determining the dimensions is to make a screen shot, paste it into word and use the tools ruler to get the dimensions. Blogger headers may be 800 x140 pixels). Try an experiment with a setting such as 7.5” x 3.5” to see how it fits.

• Add your photo, drawing, or custom letters from google images or flickr to the ppt slide. (Big huge labs also has a blog header tool that creates a custom header for you from a flickr image.) Be sure to insert only a royalty-free image or clip-art for your header. I used the letters you see above from flickr and google images to create the "libratekkie" custom header, specifically searching for orange and earth tones to match the blog theme and even reversing the "k" on purpose for interest.

• Add a border or effect to your image, if desired. Borders give a crisp edge to the header, while effects, such as transparent background or reflection make a lasting impression.

• Click “save as” and navigate through the choices to find “jpg.” Select “this slide only” and then “save.” You now have a custom header saved as an image that can be uploaded to your blog.

• Upload your photo to your blog site to see if it fits your blog. If not, tweak the dimensions in ppt a bit to fit. Another option is to upload your image into paint for more precise image alterations. You can adjust the image size in both percentages and in pixels until you get the right fit.

Too Big a Deal or Beyond Question?

2009-11-04T19:43:00.000-05:00

I have been struggling at my school in getting teachers to use the document cameras, the Airliner tablets, and the CPS student response systems we already have. There is a high learning curve for the Airliners and the CPS systems. (We do have a Beyond Question student response system that is easy to use and meets with less resistance.) The document cameras are not too difficult, but there is a bit of time required to install the software and set up the equipment. Generally, I hear there is not enough time to implement the technologies, but sometimes I hear that they are not user friendly, or I see people avoiding them altogether. Some even say they are interested, and then avoid it or “forget” to pick up the system.

I do understand! Right now, most teachers are overwhelmed with the new Promethean boards and ActivInspire software they must learn; some are still struggling with the ceiling mounted projector systems and don’t use them on a regular basis because it requires them to change the way they teach and it takes time to connect and set up.

I think that Keller’s (2006) ARCS model is useful in helping to change motivation to adopt innovations, but I also think that support of the administration and a sound reason to comply with the change is also needed. Keller proposes that motivation consists of attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction. I believe that in the situation above I could improve teacher motivation to use the technologies I described if I could show the teachers specific ways to use the tools to improve student learning and assure them that they would not be too difficult to learn. I could also create relevance by tying a specific technology into a situation in which the teacher is highly interested, such as a high-priority standard. I could increase confidence in the technology by allowing the teachers hands-on time in a safe, low-stake environment, and provide satisfaction with incentives and rewards for integrating the technology.

References

Keller, J. (2006). What is motivational design? Retrieved from http://www.arcsmodel.com/home.htm

Personal Learning Networks

2009-10-24T15:56:00.006-04:00

I rejoice that I can stay in touch with family and friends in a highly connected virtual world today. I can email my husband that I might be late getting home from work, or text my children to meet us for dinner. I can check my children's Facebook pages and post photos for my aunt in California to view. Even though my sister lives in town, she travels a lot, so sharing news online works well for us! It is especially helpful for in-laws who live in other states, too, but it has been hard for my older sister-in-law to adapt, too, as she insists on calling every phone number she has for us, rather than emailing. This system generally works so well that we recently decided to make a big change--to get rid of our land line phone and use only a cell phone.

In my work world, I can stay in touch with all my patrons—staff, students, and parents—through my blog. Blogging has changed the way we communicate with parents and community. In fact, with the new school website, which is actually a Typepad blog, all of us are more connected with videos, photos, newsletters, standards, student work and documents posted regularly. Our parents are finally responding to this format, too. We are experimenting with some new ideas to keep them involved virtually as we develop our blog.

24/7 connections also allow me to work on my Ph.D. program from home while I also update our school website or post to my personal blog. At the same time, I can attend virtual conferences, catch up with professional learning blog posts and journal articles, and attend webinars and videoconferences all from my home computer. Of course, tweeting and ninging keeps me up to date with everyone's porch time and dinner menus as well as professional learning.

All of the professional organizations I belong to are ones in which my face to face connections occur once a year at a conference while the rest of the year, I deal with vendors, conduct business, solicit committee members, hold meetings, and make purchases online. This enables me to belong to international as well as local professional organizations! I also find out about activities before they are ever published in a professional journal, especially one that comes out quarterly.

It seems that even our friends are going virtual. I recently scheduled our annual girls' weekend virtually. Since all four of us are in different areas and work at different jobs, we had to make all of our arrangements without meeting face to face! I suppose it makes the face time we spend together more precious.
What is even more astounding to me is that I schedule most of my services online these days, too. Making an appointment for a haircut has never been easier. And even getting in touch with my doctor is done through their website! While I have been tracking my packages online for a while, I only recently tried printing out my own postage stamps and found you can customize them, too! Good for my daughter's upcoming wedding.

The interesting thing about all of these connections is how I manage to stay informed from them all. My husband finally discontinued our subscription to the local paper. We found that we already knew the headlines before we got the paper delivered, and we weren't being green by continuing home delivery. Now we receive a text with breaking news that concerns us or have it aggregated to our personal readers. I keep track of it all on my personal start page--igoogle. I use it at home and at school and have my reader, my email, favorite blog headlines, the weather, and more all organized in one place. One click and I have the world on my desktop.

New Wave of Collaboration

2009-10-10T16:04:00.004-04:00

Howard Rheingold (2008) proposed that the new wave of cooperative and collective social action will revolutionize business operations. In a videotaped presentation of his ideas on the new collaborative way of doing business, Rheingold gave examples of NGOs posting problems that students have solved, of ebay’s feedback mechanism that solved the “prisoner’s dilemma,” of Wikipedia being created free with the contributions of volunteers, and other mass collaborative efforts. This sort of collaboration has replaced the old survival of the fittest mentality where the idea of success was to “defeat, destroy, and dominate the competition” (Rheingold, 2008).

Collaboration, as Rheingold (2008) described, is based on social constructivist principles that value collaborative input in constructing knowledge. Social constructivism proposes that reality is devised by the course of daily human life, that knowledge is co-constructed by humans working together, and that learning occurs in groups. I do tend to agree that humans have a natural inclination to gather together. The old adages, “There is strength in numbers,” and “No man is an island,” show support for this observation.

New technologies that support constructivism continue to emerge. The move to open source software applications is an example of ways technology can facilitate collaboration based on constructivist principles. Cloud computing, one of the new technologies to watch, as mentioned in the 2009 Horizon Report (Johnson, Levine, & Smith, 2009), allows massive databases to be accessed online anytime, anywhere, further facilitating collaborative knowledge construction. An example of cloud computing from my own field is our new library catalog, which is available online for all staff and students to access 24/7. Those who login are able to search for resources, renew items on loan, place items on hold, and make requests for materials. They can also communicate with me and others from within their accounts. Another new technology mentioned in the Horizon Report is mobile technology. Smartphones and Internet-accessible devices such as PDAs, allow users online access and communication any time, any place.

There can be no doubt that technology will continue to expand the ways in which we can work together to collaborate and communicate via the world wide web. The Horizon Report mentions a number of technologies to watch over the next few years. Possibly there are some technologies which are in the development stages that have yet to be explored as collaborative tools. The emergence of Web 3.0 and higher speeds of access will certainly create new opportunities for collaboration, as well. We live in an exciting age when the opportunity to work together is limited only by our collective imaginations.

References

Johnson, L., Levine, A., & Smith, R. (2009). The 2009 Horizon Report. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

Rheingold, H. (2008). Way-new collaboration. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/howard_rheingold_on_collaboration.html

Musings on learning theories

2009-09-24T18:59:00.007-04:00

There can be little doubt that as the number of learning theories increase so does the confusion about which one is best to apply. Kerr (2007) noted that each theory adds its own twist to our concepts of how humans learn, but that none are complete. Perhaps this is why so many theories exist. Or, perhaps it is because so many different learners require different theories to explain their learning differences!

Behaviorism, once the premier theory of learning, is now outdated, and has been replaced by other theories such as cognitivism and constructivism (Mergel, 1998). More recently, another theory has emerged--connectivism. When will the proliferation of learning theories come to an end? Kapp (2007) proposed that what we need to do is to take portions of each learning theory and apply those to our concept of how humans learn.

My take on the debate is that each theory has its strengths and weaknesses, much as human learners do. Some learners exhibit strengths in visual learning, some in auditory learning, some in kinesthetic learning. Some learners exhibit weaknesses in one or more of these areas. The human brain is too complex for a theory to explain all of its processing powers. A theory, simply put, is a widely accepted explanation for an observed phenomenon. What explains the unobserved processing powers of the brain? What explains the regeneration of a damaged brain? Can all brain processes be explained? Perhaps not.

Instead, I adhere to Noddings' (2009) philosophy. She said, "by reading and thinking--modifying, trying out, analyzing--you can begin to create your own great ideas on how to teach. Continue to learn from others, but think for yourself."

References
Kapp, K. (2007). Out and about. [Blog post.] Retrieved from http://karlkapp.blogspot.com/search?q=cognitivism

Kerr, B. (2007). _isms as filter, not blinker. [Blog post.] Retrieved from http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2007/01/isms-as-filter-not-blinker.html

Mengel, B. (1998). Instructional design and learning theory. Retrieved from http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mengel/brenda.html

Noddings, N. (2009). What can teachers learn from research? Kappa Delta Pi Record, 46(1), 22-25.

Critique of Instructional Metaphors

2009-09-11T17:03:00.003-04:00

Siemens’s (2008) metaphor of education is that educators are curators who work more as docents, leading learners to interesting and intriguing information, rather than acting as concierge (Bonk, 2007), a master artist (Brown & Adler, 2008), or network administrator (Fisher, n.d.). Much like a “guide on the side,” Siemens believes educators should be experts who “foster and encourage learner exploration” (p. 17). Bonk’s concierge metaphor seems appropriate in fields such as nursing, dental assistant, child care worker, and the like, where learning is physical as well as mental. Brown’s metaphor of master artist, where students learn in a studio environment, observing and critiquing each other’s work (and artwork), seems most appropriate for learning in fields of creative expression such as the arts, music, drama, architecture, literary arts, and related fields. Fisher’s (n.d.) metaphor of network administrator seems more appropriate for the more technical fields such as computer repair, network and security installation, wiring, lighting, sound, and so forth. The common ground among the metaphors Siemens discussed is the expertise of the instructor combined with the learner’s construction of their own knowledge.
I tend to disagree with Siemens’ (2008) curator metaphor of instruction. Students need more than being led to an array of resources and information; they need someone to model and explain concepts, and to provide a sequence and order to the presentation of it. Similarly, students need more than a master artist (Brown & Adler, 2008) who gathers promising talent together to work and critique each other’s work. Likewise, students need more than a network administrator (Fisher, n.d.) to set up equipment and trouble-shoot problems, and much more than a concierge who oversees and supervises (Bonk, 2007).
I believe that instructors take on the role of master quilt maker at a quilt camp (Chiaverini, 2004): they gather assorted scraps of information and stitch them together into a cohesive quilt that blankets a subject with an artistic topical masterpiece as both a model and a repository of knowledge from which the students can learn to master their own craft.

References

Bonk, C. (2007). USA today leads to tomorrow: Teachers as online concierges and can Facebook pioneer save face? [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://travelinedman.blogspot.com/2007/10/usa‐today‐leads‐to‐tomorrow‐teachers‐as.html

Brown, J. & Adler, R. (2008, January). Minds on fire: Open education, the long tail, and learning 2.0. Educause Review.

Chiaverini, J. (2004). Master Quilter. NY: Simon & Schuster.

Fisher, C. (n.d.). Teacher as network administrator. [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://remoteaccess.typepad.com/remote_access/files/teacher_as_network_admin.pdf
Siemens, G. (2008, January). Learning and knowing in networks: Changing roles for educators and designers. Paper presented to IT Forum.

Class Video Project

2009-08-08T19:05:00.004-04:00

Here is my class video project. I really enjoyed the opportunity to be creative with research! I look forward to your comments!

Moving Toward Dynamic Technologies

2009-07-29T15:12:00.002-04:00

According to Moller (2008), dynamic technologies are those which allow multiple users to be involved in the creation of new content. Static technologies are those where the users cannot synchronously alter the content. For example, a web page or a text document is static. A video is static, even though streaming is hi-tech. An ebook is static. Such technologies certainly have a place in e-learning. In order for all users to receive the same information, static technologies work best, regardless of the media used to deliver the content.

On the other hand, dynamic technologies offer extended engagement and the potential for user creativity. An example of a dynamic technology is a virtual world, or MUVE. Other examples are games and simulations, live chats, web conferencing, VoIP, and live chats. These types of technologies allow multiple users to contribute synchronously to the product.

I visualize some overlap and definite distinctions in these categories. For example, while a podcast may be static, when posted to the web, users can tag and comment on it. This is different from a web page or a text document that is simply a download or a link. Similarly, a chat allows users to contribute to the discussion asynchronously or synchronously, but it quite somewhat different from a virtual world or a simulation where the outcome is fluid and everchanging.

My mindmap is depicted as a Venn diagram where the content, communication, and collaboration tools may intersect and overlap, but are depicted on the continuum from static to dynamic as well. I have used logos to identify popular technology tools within each dimension.

On the continuum of static to dynamic technologies, I would consider myself to be closer to the dynamic end. I certainly use text, video, ebooks, and such, but also use VoIP, web conferencing, comics, avatars, and live chat tools. I am not into games and virtual worlds. I do see the potential for gaming in education, but would love to see more user-friendly virtual worlds that are free and safe become available before I am convinced they are a must-have for instruction.

References

Moller, L. (2008). Static and dynamic technological tools. [Unpublished Paper].

Technology Tools for Online Learning

2009-07-14T17:48:00.003-04:00

With the proliferation of free online tools to facilitate communication and collaboration, today’s instructors and students can capitalize on these to organize, present, reflect on, and share their knowledge with others.
In terms of course content, a number of tools can engage learners:
• Video hosting sites such as YouTube allow for instructors and learners to create unique and engaging content and freely post it.
• Podcasting sites such a iTunes allow instructors and learners to add a personal touch with voice and sound effects that capture a human quality without physically being in the same location.
• Document sharing sites allow for users to share documents such as text, spreadsheets and even add comments.
• Union catalogs of resources such as OAISTER and Scientific Commons and Repositories such as MERLOT allow for instructors to link to scholarly resources that extend learning.
In terms of communication so many tools are available, many of which have unrealized potential:
• Microblogs such as Twitter allow for brief and frequent posts to share thoughts, ideas, links to information, and more.
• Discussion boards and list-servs allow for threaded communications which can be searched and sorted by topic, date, author, and so on.
• IM/chat such as Google chat allows for now and nearly now communication.
• Email allows for private discussions as well as for whole-group requests and communiqués
• VoIP such as Skype and Vonage allows for voice to voice (and sometimes video) communications with students in other locations. An advantage of VoIP in distance education is that it seems more real than text messaging or text-based posts.
• Videoconferencing such as Elluminate allow for sharing of information that simulates a physical presentation or discussion.
In terms of collaboration, we have just tapped the surface of the potential for these to impact education:
• Blogs such as Word Press, TypePad and Blogger allow for students to have a voice that extends beyond the short discussion posts and builds reflection and deep understanding.
• Wikis such as Wikispaces and PBWorks allow for team-based projects to be completed between individuals who are in different locations.
• Social bookmarking such as Del.icio.us and Diigo offers a means of sharing web-based resources on a particular topic and tagging them so that others can find them easily
• Mind mapping tools such as My Personal Brain and Webspiration allow for individuals to create graphic organizers of content in a colorful visual format that can be posted on a web site for others to peruse
• Presentation media such as Slide share and Animoto allow for others to share presentations easily
As more tools become freely available, it is conceivable that 21st century learners will use any and all of these to accommodate their needs at a given time. Certainly content is key—but with a twist. In a 21st world, content must be engaging and stimulating. It must make learners want to learn more. Text documents will still have a place, but in combination with a variety of other formats. Perhaps interactive text documents will soon become common with links to video, audio, images, and references. Social media will continue to impact learning as it becomes more a collaborative and interactive endeavor. Communications tools will continue to become more mobile and include more features, linking the world in a realtime network. Students can find more tools to help them learn than ever before. While not all are designed for education, repurposing them to fit a need is key to successful integration into teaching and learning in the 21st century.

Course video project

2009-07-03T12:10:00.003-04:00

For our course video project, I am imagining that I am introducing a famous speaker at a Distance Education Conference for School Librarians. The theme of the conference is using new and emerging web-based tools to foster teacher-librarian collaboration. David Loertscher, prolific author, theorist, and researcher in the field of library media is to be the keynote speaker.
In order to build a storyboard of my video project, I created a presentation that I hosted on scribd. This presentation will morph into a video with sound and animations as it progresses. At this point, the slideshow outlines the major points I will make in my introduction.
I look forward to your comments!!
Creighton 8842 Video Project

When a team member is not a team player

2009-07-02T18:29:00.001-04:00

Being a team player means having a mentality that values the contributions of others above one’s own. It means being willing and open to working with others, even if that work is accomplished in ways different from your own.
Assessment of collaboration can be difficult. It requires evidence that each member of the group has not simply cooperated, but rather has made meaningful contributions to the outcome of the group’s work. A discussion trail such as is found on a wiki is helpful in assessing how groups have collaborated. Reflections from members of the learning community on the contributions of team members are also helpful.
A rubric is an equitable way of evaluating all team members as fairly as possible, particularly when the rubric takes into account peer assessment, the participation and contributions of each member, and data from the course management system on time spent in group work, responding to others, and otherwise engaged in learning activities.
Siemens, in his vodcast entitled, "Assessment of Collaborative Learning,” speaks of a “participative pedagogy” where students work as teams or in small collaborative groups and practice peer assessment and reflection, giving each other feedback in addition to that of the instructor. Such a model can also take into account the history of participation on a wiki, for example, or the number and quality of postings made.
A student who does not want to collaborate with others can make matters difficult. If someone in a group is unwilling to cooperate, the other group members should try to work it out with that member first; in the event that the uncooperative member continues to cause trouble, the group should contact the instructor for advice, knowing that this may reflect somewhat negatively on the group as a whole.
The instructor should reiterate the expectation that all will work together for the good of the whole and that sometimes that requires being willing to give everyone a chance to contribute for the benefit of the group. If still unwilling, certainly that student should see that negative aspect reflected in his or her feedback from both the group and the instructor. Perhaps an effective strategy would be to pose such a scenario to the group and ask them how to handle it.
References
Siemens, G. (2009). Assessment of collaborative learning. [vodcast]. Retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com.

Online Tools for Distance Education

2009-06-17T13:28:00.001-04:00

Distance education has grown in acceptance in recent years, and the number of students enrolled in online programs has bumped online learning into the mainstream. Siemens (2009) reported that the growing acceptance of distance education “is largely due to more and more of us…having experiences communicating online” (n.p.). One of the reasons I believe that more and more of us are communicating online and why distance education has become mainstream is due to the preponderance of free online tools available to support learning on the web.

In a discussion of tools that facilitate online learning, Repman, Zinskie, and Carlson (2005) differentiated between Type I tools, which are mostly asynchronous, and synchronous Type II tools, “which deeply engage students in critical interactions” (p. 58). The authors recommend CMS (course management systems, such as Moodle, WebCT, Blackboard, and others), which incorporate both types of technology tools, including such functions as email, blogs, list-servs, and discussion boards (Type I) and chat, instant messaging, and audio and video capabilities (Type II).

I believe there is a place for both synchronous and asynchronous tools in online learning. One of the strengths of asynchronous tools such as email, list-servs, discussion boards, and blogs is that they allow for users to read, research, write and edit prior to posting, resulting in more critical thinking and reflection. A strength of synchronous tools such as Skype (and clones), chat, and instant messaging is that they allow for more collaborative and face to face interaction. Both types of tools are necessary in a web-based learning environment and facilitate different types of skills. One of the weaknesses of asynchronous tools is the time delay in responding to others, which can impact the effectiveness of collaborative activity. A weakness of synchronous tools is the instantaneous nature of them can inhibit reflection and critical thinking skills.

Synchronous and asynchronous tools, while offering multiple benefits for online learning, may also pose problems to faculty and students alike. In a discussion of the challenges of teaching online, authors Baylen and Zhu (2009) pointed out that some new technologies are considered fads (p. 244), and that faculty need time to master new technologies before they are incorporated into instruction. In addition, the authors noted that new technologies need to be considered as to their appropriateness for the learning task as well as being in line with the mission and vision of the institution before being implemented. Finally, the level of support offered is also crucial, particularly for students who are logging on with different types of operating systems and Internet connections.

What sorts of online tools are considered fads? One of the most interesting (and possibly fad-like) tools is suprglu.com. It is a “microcontent aggregator” tool that allows users to gather all of their social networking and communications tools in one location. Patrons who use services such as flickr, del.icio.us, blogs, wikis, and more can post all of these on one site. This sort of tool might be very useful for students who want to keep all of their web-based communications together to avoid clicking to multiple locations simply to stay connected.

Another interesting (and also fad-like) tool is glogster.com. Glogster allows users to post multiple types of content, such as photos, audio files, video files, text, and graphics into one project. This sort of service might be useful for students creating a multimedia presentation on a single theme.

In spite of the fact that Wood (n.d.) billed blogger.com as a fad, I believe blogs have a place in online learning. Blogs allow for deep reflection on a topic, purposive and frequent writing, and reader feedback. Blogs promote a free online presence where students can asynchronously interact with each other and provide critique and support to each other. The nature of the blog also allows for users from any location to share thoughts and ideas, making a global learning community with multiple perspectives a reality.

Wikis are another very useful tool for students in distance learning. Wikis allow for students to collaborate on a project and to post a variety of multimedia for sharing and critiquing. The only problem I see with a wiki is that users who are less tech-savvy may inadvertently cause problems for others by deleting or posting over files. This has happened to me in almost every course where I have shared a wiki with other students! While I am highly in favor of collaborating, I regret that doing so in a wiki can result in lost work.

The Horizon Report (Johnson, Levine, & Smith, 2009) proposes that cloud computing and mobile computing are two trends to watch in the future (p. 3). Cloud computing offers web-based storage and web-based applications to users so that smaller, less memory intensive computing devices can operate much like their memory-intensive forerunners. Cloud computing allows for mobile devices such as handhelds and even smartphones to operate word processing, spreadsheet, and other applications. This is great as long as there is a 3g network available. I have found that outside of Atlanta, a number of “dead” spaces still exist for wireless and 3g computing.
Kim and Bonk (2006) reported that “advances in Internet technology (for example, greatly extended bandwidth and wireless Internet connections) are likely to increase the use of interactive simulations or games in online learning” (p. 25). Even though my husband enjoys his PSP and computer games, I still see games as a more juvenile activity, and associate educational gaming with the younger set. Games and simulations have been used to provide practice for activities requiring great skill and concentration, though. One of the most familiar is the flight simulator game. Similar simulated games have been devised for medical students, and others. I have yet to see a simulated classroom game that provides pre-service teachers with a realistic classroom experience. This might be interesting!

My favorite online learning tool is Skype. Skype allows for free, high-quality communication with others that can be synchronous or asynchronous, chat or face to face, as the users desire. I recently read an article (Signorelli, 2008) that suggested Skype could also allow for virtual conferencing. The author detailed the setup required to involve a conference room with physical participants with virtual participants who joined in at a distance. I am looking forward to testing this out!

References
Baylen, D. & Zhu, K. (2009). Challenges and issues of teaching online. In Rogers, P., Berg, G., Boettcher, J., Howard, C., Justice, L, & Schenk, K. (Eds.). Encyclopedia of Distance Learning, (241-244). Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.

Johnson, L. F., Levine, A., and Smith, R. S. 2009 Horizon Report. Austin, TX: The New Media Consortium, 2009.

Kim, K., and Bonk, C. (2006). The future of online teaching and learning in higher education: The survey says…Educause Quarterly, (4), 22-30.

Repman, J., Zinskie, C., & Carlson, R. (2005). Effective use of CMS tools in interactive online learning. In Maddux, C. and Johnson, D. (Eds.) Internet Applications of Type II Uses of Technology in Education, (57-70). London, Eng: Haworth Press.

Siemens, G. (2009). The future of distance education. [Vodcast]. Retrieved June 15, 2009 from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=3476918&Survey=1&47=4154777&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

Signorelli, P. (2008). Skype as a conference tool. American Libraries, 39(5), 32.

Wood, M. (n.d.). Top ten web fads. Retrieved June 16, 2009 from http://www.cnet.com/1990-11136_1-6268155-1.html

My Group

2009-06-10T10:16:00.001-04:00

My collaborative group for EDUC 8842 will include Willetta Jackson, Erin Mitchell, and myself, Peggy Creighton. Since collaboration is the topic I am pursuing for my project, I look forward to collaborating with everyone!

Evolution of Distance Education

2009-06-05T11:03:00.005-04:00

My eyes are changing—for the first time in my life, I need to wear reading glasses! At the same time, I find that my learning style is changing. No longer do I find reading text the best way for me to obtain information. Am I alone? Definitely not! Twenty-first century learners expect to obtain information from a variety of media: textbooks, zines, websites, blogs, online databases, podcasts, vodcasts, group discussions, and more.

What does this imply for distance education? Moller, Forshay &Huett (2008) posit “…it stands to reason that as web-based instruction evolves and learners become more adept at maneuvering within the environment, they will come to demand greater customization of the learning process to cater to their individual interaction needs…” (p. 75). Is greater customization possible? If I choose to have all content delivered via vodcasts, for example, would my learning be equally as effective as that of a fellow student who prefers all text?

Simonson (2000) believes that instructors are obliged to use a “smorgasbord of learning experiences” (p. 29) for providing what he terms “equivalency” (p. 29) as opposed to equality of learning experiences. Preparation for Simonson’s smorgasbord includes examining technologies (p. 30), identifying outcomes (p. 31), pairing outcomes with technologies (p. 32), and preparing for web-based delivery (p. 33).

Preparing course content for web-based delivery in a variety of media takes a significant amount of time. Some distance education instructors have already expressed complaints regarding the amount of time required to teach online. “…The most common complaint is that the environment can be too personally consuming” reported Moller, Foshay, and Huett (2008, p. 68). Should faculty, then, be responsible for developing course content in multiple formats?

I am not of the opinion that the onus for creation of course content should fall on the proverbial shoulders of the faculty alone. Many issues arise in terms of ownership of instructor-created course materials, compensation for creation, and number of simultaneous users. Suppose that course content were developed in a collaborative effort between department heads, instructors, deans and other faculty, and the students themselves? In this way, no one would have the sole responsibility or ownership of course content and all would have a vested interest in its effective development. Perhaps all universities will need to create a digital media center like the one at Rice University.

Suppose faculty are not able to create digital media for instruction. Does the delivery mode affect student achievement? The answer to this question is yes…and no. In their meta-analysis of student achievement, Jahng, Krug, and Zhang (2007) reported that student achievement is not significantly different in online education programs versus face to face programs at the secondary level. Ladyshewsky (2004), however, reported that “students, on average, did better in the OL mode, although, at the individual level there was minimal if any significant differences” (p. 1). Does any responsibility for learning rest with the student? Interestingly, Hsu and Shiue (2005) did place responsibility with the learner; they found that achievement in online and face to face modes was a direct result of “self-directed learning readiness” (p. 151) and background in education.

References
Hsu, Y., & Shiue, Y. (2005). The effect of self-directed learning readiness on achievement comparing face-to-face and two-way distance learning instruction. International Journal of Instructional Media, 32(2), 143-155.
Jhang, N., Krug, D., & Zhang, Z. (2007). Student achievement in online distance education compared to face-to-face education. European Journal of Open, Distance, and E-learning, 51(1), 109-128.
Ladyshewsky, R. (2004). Online learning versus face to face learning: What is the difference? Teaching and Learning Forum, 2004. Retrieved June 1, 2009 from http://otl.curtin.edu.au/tlf/tlf2004/ladyshewsky.html
Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the web. TechTrends, 52(3), 70-75.
Simonson, M. (2000, Winter). Making decisions: The use of electronic technology in online classrooms. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 84, 29-34.

Que Sera

2009-05-17T08:26:00.000-04:00

Que Sera was a hit song in the 50s popularized by Doris Day. My mother used to play that hit single (then it was a 45 rpm record) over and over. According to the refrain, “ Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be. The future’s not ours to see, que sera sera.”

But I think the future is ours to see. At least for now. The future is wifi. More and more aps will be available on the web and all transactions are moving to a webbased interface; storage and retrieval, teaching and learning, buying and selling, creativity and productivity, entertainment and edutainment are all web-based.

Our schools are all hard wired but also have wifi. This summer the system is installing fiber in all the schools to upgrade our LANs. We have student and teacher laptops, but they are slower than the desktops for security reasons. The fiber should speed up the boot process and allow more flexibility for printing and document sharing. Speaking of document sharing, our many home networks will need beefing up in the future to be able to accommodate all the users—desktop computers, printers, laptop computers, handhelds, and smartphones—not to mention web tv.
My husband and I debated about getting a satellite dish installed in place of cable tv. When we finally got the fastest internet, we also learned about web tv. We installed a home network with wifi and now we use the web for watching our fav television shows which we project on the wall with a multimedia projector. It is not a home theater, but it works well. Our next purchase will be a wireless home printer.

I wouldn’t have thought of tv on the web if it were not for my on line courses. Now I look online for everything—and generally find it. One of the key issues with wifi is security. Who can access the data and how? Are passwords effective? Should they be changed often? How do you keep track of so many passwords? What about cookies and emailing a password if you forget it? Are firewalls effective? What about security on handhelds and smartphones? Can kids with wifi on their psps hack into aps such as SIF at school? All of these and more must be answered for wifi to continue to grow. In the meantime, I am considering tossing out my blackberry phone in favor of an iphone. I think everything is moving in that direction now.

Issues related to Student Use of Gaming and Simulation Sites

2009-05-11T17:53:00.001-04:00

My school system specifically discourages students from participating in online games, but several schools have successfully promoted the use of good game sites such as FunBrain.com. Recently, we came across a popular site, Educationcity.com, which maintains memberships in Curriculum online, BESA, NAACE, and has won BETT and ERA awards for quality. Education City allows for activities to be filtered and individualized; it also contains a standards map so that teachers can identify specific standards they want activities to address. It works well with an interactive whiteboard and provides support for special education needs. This is a good example of a gaming site, although I wondered how I could use it with my students if I had to maintain a file of student logins and monitor what they were doing.
Scholastic Maggie’s Learning Adventures (http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/adventure/) has the advantage of not requiring a login and password to play. The games on this site are all related to learning activities and are colorful and noisy, a big attraction to kids. Games included science, math, grammar, and Spanish. The only modifications that might be needed for the games to work is the installation of flash player. I wondered what would happen at school if I tried to take students online to this site and it didn’t work because flash player needed to be downloaded. It would require an individual install on each machine. If the flash player download was not a problem, I would recommend this site for schools, since many elementary kids do not have email accounts, which can be a requirement for accessing some password protected sites. The site provides information for parents and teachers and offers a related booklist for reading enrichment.
Simulation sites bring up other problems. Disney’s Club Penguin is a free, bright and kid-friendly interactive simulation site, but it requires a login and password. Webkinz is another free, interactive virtual world simulation site that requires a login and password to enter. The Webkinz is related to the sales of Webkinz toys, which brought up another issue. Would promoting the use of the Webkinz virtual world inadvertently marginalize those kids who didn’t own or couldn’t purchase Webkinz toys?
Simulation games are among the most interesting sites to kids, but, again, have issues related to their use in schools. Is promoting the use of a specific site also inadvertently promoting the contents? I am neutral on Harry Potter books, but they have been repeatedly challenged at schools in my area. One site offered a variety of simulation games, http://www.surfnetkids.com/games/Simulation_Games/ and seemed interesting, but had a heavy focus on Harry Potter. I wondered about the copyright infringements of such games, also.
Such issues need to be carefully considered before schools endorse the use of such sites.
If considering the use of games and simulations in education, blogger Terry Freedman (http://terry-freedman.org.uk/artman/publish/article_1488.php) had some good advice:
"Aim for little victories (what I usually refer to as "quick wins").
Let the children lead the way.
Be prepared to take risks.
Be optimistic." (2009, ¶ 5).
This is some of the best advice I have encountered!

References

Freeman, T. (2009). Games in education. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://terry-freedman.org.uk/artman/publish/article_1488.php

Learning Objects Repositories

2009-05-04T18:42:00.000-04:00

A number of online learning objects are available to support education at all levels. This week’s research led me to the following repositories:
Apple learning interchange @ http://edcommunity.apple.com/ali/
This is a collaborative site that encourages community sharing, connectivity, and even has a Walden connection—the 2008 Walden University Presidential Youth Debate. This site contains lesson plans, podcasts, videos, images, and more, but requires a login to explore.
Lola @http://www.lolaexchange.org/#
Billed as Learning Objects, Learning Activities Exchange, LOLA is a site sponsored by Wesleyan University for the sharing of learning objects. It offers a variety of learning objects, and has an emphasis on information literacy, which is what attracted me to it immediately. A great deal of material seems to have been created by librarians to help students with research.
NMC new media consortium has created a learning repository index@ http://archive.nmc.org/projects/lo/repositories.shtm.
From their website, NMC is reported as a “community of hundreds of leading universities, colleges, museums, and research centers. The NMC stimulates and furthers the exploration and use of new media and technologies for learning and creative expression.” All materials and resources are created under t he creative commons license which is designed for sharing as long as credit is given to the source.
Wisconsin Online Learning @http://www.wisc-online.com/
Billed as an online learning object repository, this site included a number of interactive components, a web-based training, videos, and gaming templates for creating your own learning games. It also included an award-winning interactive learning object on the construction of a cell membrane. I explored a bit with the game templates and looked at the web based training. The home page states that this repository includes 2291 learning objects and new ones are being developed and added all the time. What interested me the most about this site was that it was a joint project of the Wisconsin Technical College System and its partners, Modumath and Worldwide Instructional Design System. Registration is required but free.
I found many other great repositories—too many to mention here, but I am interested in some that others have found, too. Please comment and share!

The Impact of LMS, LCMS and Learning Objects on Education

2009-04-29T17:12:00.000-04:00

Of all the educational technologies out there right now, I believe that LMS, LCMS and Learning objects stand to be among those with the greatest potential for change. What do these acronyms stand for? How can they turn education around?
LMS stands for Learning Management System. A learning management system (LMS) has been defined by Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_management_system)as “software for delivering, tracking and managing training” (n.p.).
A content management system (CMS) is a component of the LMS. According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_management_system), a CMS or LCMS is “An LCMS is a multi-user environment where developers may create, store, reuse, manage, and deliver digital learning content from a central object repository” (n.p.).
A related component is the Learning Object, which Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_object) says is “a resource, usually digital and web-based, that can be used and re-used to support learning” (n.p.) and may include such chunks of information as instructional content including images, videos, and sounds, glossaries, quizzes and other assessments, prerequisite materials.
Commercial models for LMS and CMS or LCMS include Blackboard (www.blackboard.com), WebCT (www.webct.com/products), Desire2Learn (http://www.desire2learn.com/), Angellearning (www.angellearning.com), eleap (www.eleapsoftware.com), and Intralearn (www.intralearn.com). A very popular open-source model is Moodle (http://moodle.org). Such tools offer an array of features including rosters, archives, chats, and more, however, a recent survey of college professors indicated that the more technological features a product has does not necessarily equate to more functionality or use by staff . Yueh and Hsu (2008) reported that “The survey results confirmed previous studies that showed the most frequently used functions are not necessarily the technically advanced ones” (p. 63).

Current Benefits to Education
For online and distance education systems, a content management system offers a safe online location for students to download and upload course materials, check on grades, email instructors and students, and otherwise manage their education programs. For schools and teachers, the online systems offers a means of monitoring student activity in addition to assignments; it offers a network of students who can work collaboratively on projects as well as critique and reflect on each others’work. Schools can also house a library of databases and collections of work such as dissertations for students to search and download for further study. Yueh and Hsu (2008) noted that the leap to online course management means “Traditional instructional activities such as presenting information, managing course materials, and collecting and evaluating student work can be completed online using an LMS” (p. 59).

Future Benefits to Education
The models currently in existence are just the tip of the iceberg as far as online learning. As more tools become available, wikis, blogs, social networking, multimedia content such as podcasts and video, searchable databases, and more will be incorporated into the design of LMS and LCMS. A function of LMS is that they keep control of the content outside of the users; control is generally at the hands of the district, school, or university that employs the system to manage learning content. While grades and student work need to be securely posted and free from hackers, some management of content by end users is very reasonable in this age of social networking.
Here is the clincher: these tools need to be available now. LMS and LCMS need to incorporate the features of MySpace and Twitter and offer them to staff, students, and parents. The potential benefits are huge!
Imagine a parent at work getting a tweet that a child is misbehaving in class. He checks the site for a webcam of the class and sees his child goofing off in the back row. The parent immediately IMs the child to shapeup or lose car privileges for the weekend. The student sees an IM on his smartphone and knows his parents are in the know about that class. The result is instant. There are no games of phone tag and no unanswered emails. The curious parent then goes immediately into the LMS and checks on the child’s grades in said class. Again, the parent sees a decline and is onto the student to pull up his grades. The student logs in to his LMS and finds an extra credit assignment he can do. He emails the instructor that he wants to earn extra credit and gets his project approved. He goes to the learning object for his school where libraries of student projects and subscription research databases are maintained and begins to search for material he can use in his project.
Take the same student, a week later. He has worked hard and has submitted extra credit work. His behavior has improved in class. He goes online to check his grades and finds a pleasant rise in his grade point average. His car privileges are restored for the weekend, so he asks his girlfriend out for a date. The results are, once again, immediate. There are no surprises at mid-term or the end of the quarter. Teachers are not spending their planning periods in a fruitless attempt to contact parents. Parents can respond immediately and deal with a problem before it gets out of hand. Students can keep track of grades and contact teachers for extra help. The LMS is a one-stop shop for online learning that benefits all stakeholders.
Take the same student who was acting up in class and time travel with him to the summer before his junior or senior year in high school. He volunteers for a curriculum committee where he and a group of his friends explore the content and assigned readings for a senior English class and rate and tag them in a social networking format. He is immediately more interested in the content of the course as he has a vested interest in it and he helped to choose materials that are relevant and motivating to study. Such social networking features can improve course content and curriculum and motivate students to have buy-in to the material they are studying. No longer do we see professors selecting outdated and uninteresting materials to support student learning. Students are more happily engaged and student achievement benefits.
References
Yueh, H., and Hsu, S. (2008). Designing a learning management system to support instruction. Communications of the Associations for Computing Management. Retrieved April 25, 2008 from Ebsco database.

Potential Wireless Applications in 21st Century Schools

2009-04-21T18:56:00.001-04:00

Wireless technologies are exploding all around us. One of the hottest new wireless technologies is a wireless printer for the home. Wireless printers are not new, but have been around for the workplace for some time. Now with many homes having wireless networking, wireless printers are becoming quite popular. HP printers will receive and print documents, photos, and more from any computer on a home network. I wonder how many schools will take advantage of this great technology for labs, media centers, and classroom networks? Imagine the possibilities of creating a research paper in the media center and printing it in the lab, in full color? Or how about that class book publishing project that goes wirelessly to the office for multiple copies? For more info: http://www.hp.com/united-states/campaigns/wireless/?jumpid=ex_r602_google_search_hho_hpwireless
Of course the Nintendo Wii is at the top of most lists for wireless innovations for the home. Wii offers wireless remote controlled gaming with avatars and simulations that excite all ages. Some schools have caught on the wave and are purchasing Wii for exercise programs, After School Programs and student motivation programs. Multiple games appeal to a wide variety of ages. More information: http://www.nintendo.com/wii
Linksys offers a cool new wireless Internet camera for around $100. It can wirelessly send photos and video to the Internet without being hooked up to a computer! What a great way to keep watch over the kids while away. Hmm, I wonder if this could be used for face to face instruction delivered remotely? This could also be a plus for combining the best features of synchronous and asynchronous learning models! Check it out at: http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/reviews/article.php/3621476
I enjoy the wireless convenience of my Kindle ebook reader. While I don’t have much time for pleasure reading these days, if I do get a chance to finish a book, Kindle can download another anywhere there is a wifi hotspot, even at the airport or a resort. Cool, huh? Suppose school libraries were to check out Kindle and other ebook readers and students could load ebooks to read for a period of a couple of weeks or so? This might be a hot item in school libraries---one reader could hold dozens of books at once and save trees! Schools might even offer them to students to replace textbooks. Another great ecofriendly application of technology. Find out more at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00154JDAI/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=&ref=pd_sl_18mqco62ua_b
Do all these sound exciting? They should. But do schools capitalize on this excitement? One contemporary problem is that too many schools are rejecting the potential of such technologies to impact education without giving them a try. In a recent blog post, Mike Egan (2009) of Computerworld wrote that America’s schools are failing students by not capitalizing on some of the free technologies available, especially wireless. He wrote, “The mobile Web, and many Web 2.0 sites, should be seen by educators as a Godsend. Those iPhones teachers find so distracting can call up 1.5 million books for free on just one site alone (Google Book Search). And there are thousands of other sites with incredibly valuable educational resources. Nearly every student is carrying dozens of Libraries of Congress in their pockets” (¶ 9).
Are you teachers listening? Mike continued that “Every instructor should at minimum maintain a Twitter feed where every trivial detail of classwork (assignments, quiz dates — everything) is posted. Questions asked by students should be reflected back by the teacher to the students. This Twitter feed would be a standing record of everything every student needs to know in order to succeed. (¶16).
Like my district, many others probably block Facebook and similar social networking sites. Mike added, “Students are already on Facebook. Why not let them experience the power of Facebook for working toward a goal or cause, or learning in a collaborative environment in class-specific Facebook Groups or Causes?” (¶ 23)
Will your students be prepared to work in the 21st century workplace? Or will they have an education that was better suited for the industrial age? To read more of Mike’s ideas see How Schools Fail Students at http://blogs.computerworld.com/how_schools_fail_students_on_technology

Synchronous and Asynchronous Learning—Advantages and Disadvantages

2009-04-15T19:31:00.000-04:00

Educators continue to debate synchronous vs. asynchronous learning and delivery tools. Each has advantages and disadvantages. In terms of 21st century learning goals, here are some points to consider:
1. In order to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s job market, it is our obligation to learn and use new and emerging technology tools for instruction.
New and emerging tools can offer what is commonly called 3D instruction; this is where students are engaged not only face to face, but also with an online community, synchronously, or all at the same time. Face to face is an example of a synchronous learning model. It is current, interactive, and always up to date. Synchronous online learning offers the same advantages and allows for individuals in other locations to join in. New and emerging technologies allow for such synchronous learning online:
Some of the most popular tools are designed for synchronous online connections: Skype and Lingo offer voice over internet protocol for real-time connections, particularly with foreign countries. The advantage of such tools is that they are free for long-distance calling and the voice quality is good as long as you have a microphone and a high-speed internet connection. The disadvantage of using such tools is the time barrier, especially when connecting to countries in Asia and the South Pacific.
A second popular synchronous learning tool is the interactive webinar. Interactive webinars are great ways to conduct meetings or hold classes, with a sense of being present and a part of the group. A popular webinar tool is Elluminate http://www.elluminate.com/. The features of Elluminate make it very appealing for educators; however, the cost may be prohibitive for some schools. In which case, free tools exist, such as Yugma https://www.yugma.com/ Yugma offers many of the features of Elluminate, with upgrades available for a price, and it works with Skype. But for a novice, it is a great, cost-free tool. And not to be left out of the market, Google is in on the action with Google moderator http://www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/viewListing?productListingId=5143210+6088191711778981644
No discussion of synchronous learning would be complete without a mention of the MUVE—the multiuser virtual environment. A well-known MUVE is Second Life www.secondlife.com. Similar virtual worlds exist for multiple users, including the River City Research Project http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject/ , and for children, Whyville http://www.whyville.net/smmk/nice and Quest Atlantis http://atlantis.crlt.indiana.edu/ are other examples. The big advantage to such virtual tools is the opportunity to interact with others (or their avatars) in real-time. The disadvantage is being able to reach others in different time zones, which doesn’t allow for much flexibility in a global economy.
2. In a global economy, we must consider how to bridge the time barrier. One answer to this issue might simply be asynchronous use of the same types of tools mentioned above.
3. Collaboration will be one of the most important skills for students entering the work force in a few years. Without the opportunity to practice collaborating both in face to face situations, and online, our students will be handicapped in the future work world where collaboration is key.
One key point to consider is that collaboration may not always be in real time, nor will it always need to be. Collaboration may occur, as it does with online learning, in bits and pieces gathered at different times and assembled as one like layers of a sandwich. The many different layers add spice and flavor, without which the sandwich would be flat. Online collaboration, even over time, adds the spice and flavor to a work, and it follows having the time to think things through. As blogger cjsOMDE603 wrote in her post on synchronous and asynchronous tools, “The opportunity to think through what I want to write is a luxury not offered during synchronous communication. This is truly my preferred method of education communications. I need this flexibility.” Visit her blog to read more of her thoughts @ http://cjsomde603.blogspot.com/2009/03/synchronous-and-asynchronous-technology.html Her post leads to my next point:
4. Reflection is a significant skill to deepen comprehension. Twenty-first century learners need to be able to reflect in order to comprehend. Synchronous learning, as mentioned by the blogger above, may not allow enough time for reflection, although asynchronous learning can and does allow time for reflection and comprehension, as well as revisiting content for further understanding and review.
In my research, I located the following report about the advantages of real-time, synchronous learning. You may wish to download it from: http://www.elearningguild.com/content.cfm?selection=doc.37

Podcasting and Multi-tasking

2009-04-12T16:02:00.000-04:00

I am a fan of podcasts and podcasting and love the concept of the portability of audio data. It took some time to finagle it, but once we were able to install audacity for recording audio files, I thought we were set to begin podcasting at my school. However, my students were not quite as excited about it as I was. Many had ipods. Most, whether they had ipods or not, knew how an MP3 player worked. So, why were they not inspired by podcasting, I wondered?

I began to find out some interesting information. First of all, recent brain research indicates that even though some have called today’s students multi-taskers, the brain is simply not hardwired for multi-tasking (Wolpert, 2006). In a post for the University of California, Wolpert quotes Poldrack, a UCLA psychology professor, who recently reported the results of a study on multi-tasking that had interesting results. It seems that Poldrack has recently determined that the things on which the brain needs to particularly attend to are the most adversely affected by distractions; for example, learning Shakespeare is not well suited to multi-tasking, and neither is studying calculus (¶ 4).

What are the implications of this? According to Poldrack, “Even if you learn while multi-tasking, that learning is less flexible and more specialized, so you cannot retrieve the information as easily. Our study shows that to the degree you can learn while multi-tasking, you will use different brain systems.”

So how does this relate to podcasts? It seems that the old expression of my mother’s “Look at me while I’m talking to you!” holds true—focus on the message, and don’t try to jog, drive, check email, surf the net, and so on, while listening to a podcast. Avoiding multi-tasking appears critical to processing the message in the podcasts. Otherwise the medium is more entertaining than functional for learning and our brains don’t retrieve the message later.

Perhaps my students had realized this before I did… while the podcast is an emerging technology with lots of potential for educational uses, it also comes with cautions. It is very tempting to plug in earphones and make the appearance of listening and learning, but how much learning goes on when the body is involved in other activities at the same time? It is much harder to look away from a video broadcast or vodcast, and perhaps there is greater retention, too.

References
Wolpert, S. (2006). Multi-tasking adversely affects brain's learning, UCLA psychologists report. Retrieved April 12, 2009 from http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-07/uoc--maa072506.php

Tried Screencasting?

2009-04-08T16:28:00.000-04:00

Screencasting is defined in Wikipedia as the “digital recording of computer screen output” with audio narration. The audio narration part is important because without it, a viewer cannot decipher what is actually happening as the mouse moves around. The narration makes the movement into a demonstration for teaching purposes, and it is awesome!

Screencasting has not seen as much hype as some of the other Web 2.0 tools, but it certainly deserves it. The concept of screencasting saves a lot of time and it does not have a high learning curve. Consider all the little demonstrations you are constantly doing for staff and students who have questions, and you can see how valuable screencasting can be!

For library media specialists, screencasting is the perfect tool to demonstrate how to find a book from the automated catalog, how to put an item on hold, how to use an online database, how to conduct a search, how to save a search, and so on.

I recently read an article entitled, “the 2.0 tech I can’t live without” by Anna Koval in the March/April issue of Knowledge Quest. Her #7 tool is screencasting, and she recommends some excellent screencasting tools:

Jing (www.jingproject.com)
Screencast-o-matic (www.screencast-o-matic.com)
I did a search of my own and found these:
Aviscreen (http://www.bobyte.com/)
Camstudio (www.camstudio.org)
Wink (http://www.debugmode.com/wink/ )

Online Learning vs Face to Face

2009-03-29T09:28:00.001-04:00

The Digital Media Academy sounds like an interesting example of online learning. In her blog post, How Three Days Made a Difference, Online Learning vs DMA, blogger Margaret Lim, an elementary educator from San Diego, CA, described how she is on sabbatical from her position to earn a masters’ degree online from San Diego State University. When the opportunity arose for her to attend the three-day CUE Conference in Palm Springs, she took it. A number of sessions were offered by Digital Media Academy. One of the sessions she attended was on and introduction to Dreamweaver. She had recently created a web site as part of her coursework, but didn’t know some of the basics, like how to update it. The DMA session answered many of her questions and gave her some hands-on practice. Margaret noted, “I walked away from their trainings feeling like I learned more there than I ever did in that college semester” (¶ 4).
Margaret enjoyed the face to face contact. “Even though online learning may be the hot thing nowadays, there is something to be said about learning in a physical classroom. The teachers at DMA used their classrooms for just that: personal learning. They didn’t come across like tech geeks in teacher’s clothing. They didn’t talk down to you if you didn’t understand. Most of all, they were patient.”
Perhaps her online experience has not been a positive one for her. Online learning has many advantages, such as self-pacing, and 24/7 availability to course materials and resources. There can be fewer problems with discipline and perhaps attendance. Students who do not login can be dropped. However, one of the big disadvantages is the personal interaction. Even with online collaboration, facial expressions and body language are missing. Sometimes written messages can be misconstrued. Questions may not be answered as quickly as when in a face to face teaching situation.
Margaret plans to use what she learned at the conference with elementary students. “Down the road, I one day plan to open an after-school technology center for elementary school students” (¶ 5). Perhaps she will use a combination of online and face to face instruction in her center. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

References

Hughes, M. (2009). How three days made a difference: Online learning vs. DMA. Retrieved March 29, 2009 from http://www.digitalmediaacademy.org/blog/success-stories/how-three-days-made-a-difference-on-line-learning-vs-dma

Blogging and School Library Media Centers

2009-03-23T19:40:00.000-04:00

Why should school library programs promote blogging? Is it reason enough because blogging is a constructivist activity? Because blogging promotes critical thinking and deep reflection? Because blogging is a collaborative activity? Because blogging promotes instantaneous communication and generates an audience for student work?

If none of these ideas are compelling reasons, should school libraries promote blogging because it archives ideas, projects, and growth in a digital portfolio? Because blogging is an effective course management tool? Because blogging is easy to do and available to everyone?

What about a newbie who doesn’t know whether to begin with a blog or not? Christopher Harris, who authors the Informancy Blog, writes for School Library Journal, and is director of a New York School Library System, advised on Michael Stephens Digitally Re-shifted Library Blog “We know that the big thing facing schools right now is the whole issue of standardized testing and accountability under No Child Left Behind (NCLB). So, one of the things we worked on was the creation of a testing-information blog, which is being used to disseminate information about testing, through librarians (as information experts), to our member school districts.”

You might create a blog that becomes as popular as Sarah Chauncey’s Grandview Elementary Library Blog. Sarah has successfully promoted student blogging as an authoring tool and has the rules for student blogging posted right on her page. She also links to some exemplary blogs from other schools and to sources of free blogs for students.
You might also consider Margaret Lincoln’s Night blog project, created for students to comment on the Elie Wiesel’s book, Night, as they read. The blog became a course management tool, where vocabulary, reading assignments, and reflections as well as links to sites with additional information were accumulated.
How many other school libraries blog? For a start, check the list at The Blogging Libraries Wiki.

WBT Development

2009-03-19T16:05:00.001-04:00

In speaking of a web-based training he developed for Intel, “The Making of a Web-Based Training,” Aaron Robbins (2009) wrote that writing the training course required “lot of work, by many people” (¶ 2). He added that, although he had published before, “doing an e-learning was a new experience for me” (¶ 3).

I thought he made some great suggestions, especially since we must create our own training project. I plan to apply his suggestions:
“We started by simply “story boarding” the training in PowerPoint, using bulleted lists of what we wanted to cover. Over time we filled the material in, reorganized it, reworded it, argued over it, and sat in (many) meetings weighing the phrasing of practically each and every sentence that went into the final material. Once the basic coverage and outline were settled, our training specialist went to work producing the animations used in the training. These too underwent evolution; the final version is much different (and better!) than the initial animations” (¶ 4).

The idea of storyboarding in Powerpoint works well, even though the Powerpoint product cannot be used for the final project. It does work for a progressive storyboard. Or course the multiple edits can be expected. He mentioned using animations, so I want to study how it was done, to see if it will work for my project.

The final suggestion he made was that he was looking for feedback. Feedback is not only important for WBT, but it is also important for graduate students to hear! I look forward to feedback as well, so please comment on your thoughts about this blog post. If you have any other suggestions for the storyboard process, I would love to hear those, too.

References

Robbins, A. (2009). The making of a web-based training. Retrieved March 19, 2009 from http://software.intel.com/en-us/blogs/2009/03/15/the-making-of-a-web-based-training/

Constructivism and Web 2.0

2009-03-11T17:26:00.000-04:00

What is constructivism? How does it relate to Web 2.0? Why should educators care?

Constructivists believe that learning occurs as a process where individuals are creating knowledge as they explore, discover, experience, collaborate, reflect, and are actively thinking about these processes. The constructivist approach emphasizes “discovery learning,” where knowledge is revealed as students interact with each other or various resources and materials. Constructivist teachers guide students into learning experiences rather than stand and deliver curriculum content. Constructivism, according to Alessi and Trollip (2001) is now “challenging the currently dominant cognitive approach” (p. 31) to instruction.

Social constructivism is the view that learning of all kinds occurs in a social setting. Knowledge is constructed by groups of people, cooperating, collaborating, communicating with each other and reflecting on each other’s work. Work is completed through individuals helping each other and sharing responsibilities. This concept of social constructivism is the basis for the Web 2.0 revolution.

Web 2.0 has been defined as the read-write web (Richardson, 2006); it is a place that is no longer static content, but, rather is interactive. One user creates a blog post and another reads and comments on it. The comments drive the blogger to post a new line of thought, which another reader inserts into a collaborative wiki that a group of users dissect and reflect upon. The collaborative comments of the group are posted to yet another blog that becomes a chapter in an e-book, which is used as for instruction in an online class, and so on.

Educators should become familiar with this concept, because, as Richardson (2006) proposes, “although a considerable number of colleges and universities have begun to explore the potential, K-12 educators are just now beginning to contemplate in significant numbers the ways in which his new Internet can enhance their own practice and their students’ learning” (p 5).

References

Alessi, S. and Trollip, S. (2001). Multimedia for learning: Methods and development (3rd ed). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Richardson, W. (2006). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Skype Hype

2009-03-07T09:06:00.000-05:00

Some time ago, my sister-in-law’s son was talking about Vonage and how they had stopped using a “land line” in favor of the internet-based phone service. While we both had smartphones, my husband and I still had an old-fashioned land line, too. We began discussing whether or not we should eliminate the land line. We talked about the 911 service and how it is tricky when calling from a cell phone, we discussed contacting relatives (his mother is 86 and doesn’t use a cell phone well). We discussed doing away with our high-speed DSL line (unavailable without a land line connection), and finally decided to keep the land line for now.

Shortly after that, we heard that Matt didn’t like Vonage and was doing away with it. I thought that was the end of the problem until I heard friends discussing Skype! I immediately went online and downloaded Skype. One thing I didn’t like was the “swooshing” sound it made when the computer booted up and the fact that for a short time other applications would not open when Skype was a start-up application. I kept it for a while and then uninstalled it.

Now I am faced with Skype again, as a course requirement for Walden 8823, and am finding that I do like the features and convenience, but I have another problem. I cannot make my voice sound normal when conducting the voice tests. I hear a high-pitched, cartoon-character voice rather than my own. I would love to hear if any others have had this problem and how it was resolved.

ISTE's NECC Conference

2009-03-02T18:54:00.000-05:00

Are you planning to attend the NECC Conference this summer in Washington, DC? If not, you should make every effort to attend this fantastic event!
The conference will be from June 28-July 1 at the Washington Conference Center, and will feature presenters and attendees from around the world sharing ideas and promoting the best applications of technology in education.
Be sure to attend the keynotes, the opening and closing ceremonies, and take a tour of the Library of Congress!
For the best ideas, scan the program and create your customized conference planner online.
For those sessions that you can't attend in person, download handouts and check for podcasts and vodcasts on the necc site.
Be sure to visit the NECC ning for social networking with other educational technologists.
Visit the iste.org/necc website for more information.