I've been reading the World is Open: How Web Technology is Revolutionizing Education by Curtis Bonk (aka TravelinEdMan) in preparation for our upcoming event at SCoPE. Well, I would have read it in any case because I've been a Bonk fan for awhile. If you have ever listened to Curt speak, or read some of his work, you'll know that he has a knack for organizing complex ideas into a simple framework, often using lists like this 2009 article: The World is Open for Reason: Make that 30 Reasons! Or the WE-ALL-LEARN model outlined in the book:
Digital Identity: December 1-18, 2009
Facilitators:Trish Rosseel &
Cindy Underhill
From Wikipedia: Digital identity refers to the aspect of digital technology that is concerned with the mediation of people's experience of their own identity and the identity of other people and things.
How do you manage and make informed choices about your digital identity? What does all of this mean in an educational context? What are the questions YOU need to ask of your learners to educate them about their digital identities? Join two of the developers behind University of British Columbia's Digital Tattoo project for a discussion about digital identities and what we all need to know.
Using the resources on the Digital Identity Wiki as fodder for discussion, we'll focus on a different themes for each of the three weeks:Each week, we'll highlight a few of the questions we think are important and (hopefully) draw out some of the themes that are important to you. On Friday, December 11th at 11:00 a.m. we'll host a synchronous session in Elluminate - focusing on the Digital Tattoo project that we're involved with.
- Us
- Our Learners
- Our Institutions
We look forward to the discussion in the coming weeks!
Digital Identity: December 1-18, 2009
Facilitators:
From Wikipedia: Digital identity refers to the aspect of digital technology that is concerned with the mediation of people's experience of their own identity and the identity of other people and things.
How do you manage and make informed choices about your digital identity? What does all of this mean in an educational context? What are the questions YOU need to ask of your learners to educate them about their digital identities? Join two of the developers behind University of British Columbia's Digital Tattoo project for a discussion about digital identities and what we all need to know.
Using the resources on the Digital Identity Wiki as fodder for discussion, we'll focus on a different themes for each of the three weeks:
Each week, we'll highlight a few of the questions we think are important and (hopefully) draw out some of the themes that are important to you. On Friday, December 11th at 11:00 a.m. we'll host a synchronous session in Elluminate - focusing on the Digital Tattoo project that we're involved with.
- Us
- Our Learners
- Our Institutions
We look forward to the discussion in the coming weeks!
Ever dream of running hundreds of thousands of blogs with a single install of WordPress? WordPress MU, or multi-user, is designed to do exactly that.Several post-secondary institutions in British Columbia are using WordPress MU -- UBC, UNBC, Langara, Camosun... (I've missed some, I'm sure.) What's interesting is to see WordPress MU being used for for variety of purposes. We think of it as blogging software, but in fact it is a very flexible content management system (CMS) and is being used at these institutions for developing professional e-portfolios (see UBC's Faculty of Education e-portfolios for teacher candidates), maintaining department websites (see Langara's iweb), and managing course content and discussions. In fact Clint Lalonde from Camusun has begun to document the process of piloting WordPress MU at Camosun College, and he offers this advice about referring to WordPress MU as a blogging tool:
I’ve avoided using the word blog when I refer to these sites. I’ve found that the term blog carries with it preconceived notions, both good and bad. So, in order to avoid the whole “I don’t want a blog, I want a website” circular logic wheel that I have witnessed when people talk about WP as a CMS, I have been using the term website when talking about our pilot sites.
From BCIT's Update Newsletter: http://www.bcit.ca/update/node/635
It’s not what it is, it’s what it does. The CUBE transforms the way instructors teach and the way students learn at BCIT. It will bring the workplace into the classroom and enrich curriculum – virtually.
Unique to BCIT, the CUBE initiative places 3D simulations of expensive, rare, and leading edge equipment into the hands of BCIT students, anytime, anywhere allowing learners to explore complex components and systems in a 3D virtual world before they touch the real thing.
Students will manipulate virtual objects from jet engines to knee joints and even disassemble, assemble, and cross-section them using computers.
With a US $1million grant from Lockheed Martin and $380,000 in software contributions from NGRAIN (Canada) Corporation, the CUBE transforms learning through the development of interactive 3D simulations which enhance the learner's experience. Watch the video to see the CUBE in action, and check out the BCIT news release for more info.
At Gliffy, we believe that communicating with visuals gets people to the same space a lot faster because a picture takes the thoughts in your head and makes them tangible.
With a tool that makes it easy to create, share, and collaborate on a wide range of diagrams, Gliffy users can communicate more clearly, boost innovation, improve decisions, and work more effectively.
How do YOU connect online?More information about the project and how to submit your contribution is available on the Connect Project site.
I've been following the work of Gráinne Conole from UK's Open University for some time. I believe the first time I corresponded with her was during the Shaping Our Future conference in May, 2008 at SCoPE where we invited her to provide an international perspective on e-learning research, policy, and practice. Then later that year I participated in her remote presentation on Cloudworks at the 2008 Tech It Up conference at Thomposon Rivers University in Kamloops.The appeal of Cloudworks is that the focus shifts away from sharing course resources (repositories) to representing teaching designs, practices, and resources in a way that is context rich and reusable by others. Moreover, members' contributions are open and available for others to build on in a number of interesting ways.Cloudworks is a site for finding, sharing and discussing learning and teaching ideas, experiences and issues. The aims are to:
- enable people to find, share and discuss learning and teaching ideas
- connect people with similar educational interests through social networking
- provide inspiration on designing learning activities and developing resources
- showcase the work of individuals and communities who want to reach existing but also new audiences
- provide a place for different communities to discuss, collaborate and aggregate relevant materials, ideas and designs
- encourage sharing, especially among people who have not shared learning and teaching ideas and experiences before.
Unlike many existing educational repositories, the emphasis is on building a dynamic collection of ideas and experiences; via a variety of educational content (learning designs, case studies, resources and tools) plus active discussions about the use and effectiveness of this content in different contexts. The voice of users of the site, their experience, reviews and reflections on the content of the site is a central feature.Last month I had the pleasure of spending some time with Gráinne at the ETUG Fall 2009 workshop in Vancouver, on an unexpected road trip to Kamloops because our flight was cancelled, then briefly at the TechItUp conference where we live-blogged John Seely Brown's keynote together. I was able to get immersed in Cloudworks and also experience Gráinne's enthusiasm. It was a great combination.
Selective Twitter Status on Facebook: "Selective Twitter Status lets you update your Facebook status from Twitter - BUT you can choose which tweets you want - just end a tweet with #fb when you want to post it as your Facebook status - simple!"
At the ETUG Fall 2009 workshop in Vancouver this month, Grainne Conole from UK's Open University treated participants to a full-day workshop and plenary talk on learning design. She was also an extremely active participant in the 2-day event overall, first by helping the planning committee by creating a workshop 'cloudscape' at Cloudworks ahead of time, then by continuing to populate the various clouds with links, live blogs of sessions, comments, and keeping workshop the #etugdesign twitter stream active.Cloudworks is a site for finding, sharing and discussing learning and teaching ideas, experiences and issues. The aims are to:
- enable people to find, share and discuss learning and teaching ideas
- connect people with similar educational interests through social networking
- provide inspiration on designing learning activities and developing resources
- showcase the work of individuals and communities who want to reach existing but also new audiences
- provide a place for different communities to discuss, collaborate and aggregate relevant materials, ideas and designs
- encourage sharing, especially among people who have not shared learning and teaching ideas and experiences before.
This is a professional development opportunity at SCoPE for EVERYONE interested in teaching. It is free and open to the public. This event is organized as part of the Professional Learning Series, a collaborative partnership with eCampus Alberta, Alberta-North, and BCcampus. Invite your colleagues!"Jan Herrington, Anthony Herrington, Jessica Mantei, Ian Olney and Brian Ferry (editors), (2009) New technologies, new pedagogies: Mobile learning in higher education, Wollongong, Australia: Faculty of Education, University of Wollongong, 138pThanks to Tony Bates for bringing this book to our attention, who in turn thanks Richard Elliot. :-)
This book is fully downloadable from here.
The purpose of this e-book is to explore the use of mobile devices in learning in higher education, and to provide examples of good pedagogy."
Open Access is a growing international movement that uses the Internet to throw open the locked doors that once hid knowledge. It encourages the unrestricted sharing of research results with everyone, everywhere, for the advancement and enjoyment of science and society.Plan to participate in Open Access Week, October 19-23, 2009. Activities are planned for that week by organizations all over the world. Of particular interest is a series of noon hour webcasts organized by Athabasca University.
The objective of AU’s Open Access Week is to promote understanding, adoption, use and production of open access resources for formal and informal teaching and learning.Monday, October 19 - The Open Access ScholarAthabasca University will present a series of five noon-hour webcasts exploring major issues and opportunities presented by open access. Each session will feature an internationally known promoter and developer of open access resources, research or ideas.
Each session will be offered via Elluminate web conference from noon to 1 p.m. Mountain Time (11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Pacific)
The review, publication and interaction associated with open access dissemination of research is the focus of this presentation, featuring Dr. Terry Anderson, editor of the open access journal The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning.
http://tinyurl.com/obwmka
Tuesday, October 20 - Open Access Research Opportunities and Strategies
Much remains to be discovered in relation to the technology, economy, politics and psychology of effectively producing and using open access content. Patrick McAndrew and Candice Thiele are co-directing OLnet, an international research network designed to assist with and co-ordinate research into the most effective use of these opportunities and to gain both basic and applied knowledge relating to open access content. In this session, they will highlight research opportunities, methodologies and results of current projects.
http://tinyurl.com/npuhh7
Wednesday, October 21 - Open Access Publication
Publication models for scholarly monographs, featuring the pioneering work of Athabasca University Press, Canada’s first open access press. Dr. Frits Pannekoek, president of Athabasca University, will discuss the vision and the challenges of editing, producing and distributing paper books, while licensing the free download of the full text.
http://tinyurl.com/qne9b4
Thursday, October 22 - Open Access Archives and Repositories
Governments and research funding organizations are increasingly reluctant to fund research that is not widely distributed and affordable, creating the need for repositories through which scholars can legally distribute their research results and data. Steve Schafer, director of Athabasca University Library, will discuss how open access relates to and enhances library services. Tony Tin, founder of Athabasca University's repository, AU Space, will talk about and demonstrate AU’s growing collection and discuss the challenges and opportunities of self-archiving.
http://tinyurl.com/ogwgcj
Friday, October 23 - Open Educational Resources
The production, licensing, use and re-use of learning objects accessible through open access distribution will be the focus of this presentation. Noted author and scholar Dr. Rory McGreal will share his knowledge of the increasing opportunities and challenges associated with the open access publication of learning materials.
http://tinyurl.com/kv87un
16 Apps That Make Sharing Large Files A Snap: "In this post, I compare 16 file-sharing services. I took three main issues under consideration when creating the comprehensive app list below: Free, Fast, and Useful . . .
Most of the services suggested require no registration. None of them will ask you to download anything to your computer, and all of them are easy to use, and worth using."
EtherPad is the only web-based word processor that allows people to work together in really real-time.
When multiple people edit the same document simultaneously, any changes are instantly reflected on everyone's screen. The result is a new and productive way to collaborate on text documents, useful for meeting notes, drafting sessions, education, team programming, and more.
Have you ever wanted to create a form that changes which questions to show next based on an answer received earlier in the form? The two features we launched today make that easy. First, we've added one of the most requested features for forms: page breaks. Now it is easy to create a form with multiple pages by going to 'Add item' and selecting 'Page break.'
We've also added another highly requested feature, logic branching. Once you've created a form with multiple pages, you can select 'Go to page based on answer' to control the flow of your form based on the user's answers. For example, you can create a form asking the person to select their language and then direct them to a form in the correct language.
The CU Online Handbook is a free publication that is available for download (PDF). The book is edited by Patrick R. Lowenthal, David Thomas, Anna Thai, and Brian Yuhnke. Here is a preview of the Table of Contents:Trends and Issues with Online Learning
1. From Reluctant and Reticent to Engaged and Enthusiastic: The Passage to Online Teaching
Susan Giullian
2. Preparing Special Education Teachers Through Online Instruction
Donna Sobel
3. Using eCollege to Facilitate Learning, Provide for Program Coherence, Manage Accountability Innovations, and Ensure the Evolution of a Principal Licensure
Program
Connie Fulmer
4. Make, Share, Find: Web 2.0 and Informal Learning
Phil Antonelli
Technology in Action
5. The Advantages of a Ning Social Network Within a Higher Education Program
Laura Summers
6. Fresh and Forward-thinking: Using Blogs for Educational Purposes
Joanna C. Dunlap & Ellen Stevens
7. Hanging on by a Thread
Dorothy F. Garrison-Wade
8. Instructional Uses of Twitter
Joanna C. Dunlap & Patrick R. Lowenthal
9. Using Audio for Giving Feedback to Project Teams: A Useful Complement to Track Changes
Brent G. Wilson
10. Wordle… Just for Phluff?
Joanna C. Dunlap
11. A Teaching Video Project Brought to Closure
Farah A. Ibrahim
12. Improving the Design of PowerPoint Presentations
Patrick R. Lowenthal
Peter Grimmett, one of my top 10 most memorable professors, said to a group of graduate students in 1996:YOU can make a difference, just maybe not in your life time.The course was Developing Educational Programs and Practices for Diverse Educational Settings and we were talking about educational reform. After spending some time sharing stories about our own experiences in school, we were feeling that change was quite urgent. I remember scanning my grade 1 report card and watching the looks of horror when everyone saw the talks too much comment made by my teacher. They were also amused that the need for improvement was consistently checked for most of the school year. Unfortunately, I finally did "improve" by the 4th quarter. The report card didn't seem quite as alarming as I went on to share stories about Anthony, the unhappy, large, black boy who only occasionally showed up for school, getting hit over the head with a yard stick for not answering the teacher's question about what he ate for breakfast. I had my wrists tapped with that same yardstick for not singing the national anthem. I didn't know the words to the U.S. national anthem. My family moved to Kentucky from Quebec. Why would I know the national anthem?
I just ordered my copy of the long awaited book Digital Habitats. I have various draft versions of chapters on my hard drive which were made available for participants in the CPSquare Connected Futures workshop. It was exciting to be involved in conversations back in April, 2008 about the content and ideas in this book, and trying them out first hand during the workshop. Just another fabulous CPSquare experience! I was also fortunate to have a preview of the book and the opportunity to snap this photo this past week while traveling with Nancy White on the FLNW tour.
Last week my friend and colleague, Frances Long, delivered the sad news that our dear 'knowmate', Helen Kershaw, had lost her battle with cancer. I've spent a good part of my days since then trying to process this news.may I suggest that you use an underscore with the specific title 'scope_' followed by the particular discussion or topic 'informal'
if each type of tag begins with scope, then all tags no matter the discussion will be presented
thus scope_informal and scope_community would bring different results but scope itself would bring both
I am a life-long learner who enjoys helping others discover how technology can enhance their lives.I keep reading this simple sentence, thinking how her life-long learning was cut so short, how her entire life was devoted to thinking about others, and how her concern was for how technology can enhance lives when it couldn't even assist in allowing her to live.
Kershaw, Helen Marie
Friday, 24 Jul 2009
Helen Marie Kershaw passed away on July 24, 2009 after a lengthy illness.
Helen was born on April 27, 1948 in Rossland, B.C.
She is survived by her husband of 40 years, Alan, children Alana (Bob) Kuehn, Lori (Ken) Wawryk, Steven (Michelle) Kershaw, sister, Kim and brothers Allan, Rick and Doug, grandsons, Trevor, Matthew, Leon and Zachary and granddaughters Katie and Sarah.
Helen was predeceased by her parents Joe and Effie Rausch.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Terry Fox Foundation (www.terryfoxrun.org) or CIBC Run for the Cure (www.cibcrunforthecure.com) in Helen’s memory.
Special thank you to the doctors and nurses of Royal Columbian Hospital.
Helen was a dedicated instructor at Continuing and Adult Education at the Helen Dixon Center. The true joy of her life was spending time with her grandchildren. She will be forever loved and missed by her family.
There is no funeral at her request. A memorial tea will be held at the Senior’s Center on Wednesday, August 5, 3 pm to 5 pm.
DiscoverEd is an experimental project from ccLearn which attempts to provide scalable search and discovery for educational resources on the web.
I love Readability, esp for longer texts. Anything that strips away distraction is good for helping me tame my monkey mind.
Let's hear from you! In preparation for the Open Education conference in Vancouver, August 2009, Alan Levine (aka CogDog) is seeking amazing stories from YOU. They don't have to be huge multimedia projects -- just say a few words about something from your own experiences. Alan will even work with your to figure out the best way to share your story. Do it!Social media and emerging technologies are gaining increased attention for use in education. The list of tools grows daily.
Examples: blogs, wikis, Ning, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, Second Life, cloud computing, surface computing, mobile learning, and so on.
"Social Media: Trends and Implications for Learning" will explore the impact of new technologies, research, and related projects.
What does it all mean? Do long term trends and change cycles exist in the constant change? What patterns are emerging?
And, perhaps most importantly, should academics and education leaders respond?
"Social Media" will explore emerging technological and related research trends from a perspective of social and networked learning theory.
Finding coherence in the midst of rapid changes is increasingly difficult. This monthly session will create a forum for educators to gather, present, and discuss the future impact of today's trends.
The July seminar discussion at SCoPE is one of my favourite topics, and facilitated by some of my favourite people! Exploring Networks of Communities runs July 6 - 24 with each week focusing on specific questions and issues and illustrated through case studies. The seminar is facilitated by Diego Leal, Project Manager for the Colombia National Program for ICT Use on Education in Higher Education, and John Smith, leader of CPsquare, the community of practice on communities of practice.When does it make sense to have a network of communities? How do you go about supporting a network of communities? These are questions many of us are grappling with and we are finding there are many issues and challenges to consider! This 3-week seminar will be combined with weekly live "case study" sessions where we will hear from community leaders in higher education. Together we will explore the aspects and issues that can lead to a need for a network of communities based on these study cases and the practices of the participants. This is an initial exploration around this topic and we will identify new tasks, opportunities, and actions that emerge from the seminar.All SCoPE events are facilitated by volunteers in the community and are free and open to the public. Registration is not required and you are welcome to participate according to your own your time and interest. Latecomers, newcomers, and passersby are always welcomed. All discussions and presentations are archived for future reference.
Effective Practices in a Digital Age was published this week by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) in the UK. This guide is intended for those in higher education seeking to understand how to better integrate technology into their teaching. The 60-page document is available for download at no cost. There is also an option to order a print version and accompanying videos and podcasts. It contains several useful case studies as well as practical learning design guidelines.
Lynda Williams from University of Northern British Columbia has treated us to 2 excellent Learn Together sessions on TiddlyWiki:
