September 2004
September 30, 2004
Lessons Learned Teaching Online
Teaching online is a unique experience in a unique medium. Many of the skills and attributes of effective instruction in a classroom translate well to effective instruction online. At the risk of sounding fairly absurd - teaching online is very much like, and very much unlike, classroom teaching.
elearnspace. everything elearning.
Tips and Tricks on Using Chat in WebCT
Recently, a WebCT user wrote to the WebCT Users List to ask for tips/tricks/best practices on using the chat tool in WebCT. Ken Masters of the University of Cape Town sent an excellent response and has kindly allowed us to re-print his tips and tricks in our newsletter.
10 usability principles of web design.
It is always nice to have a few tips.
Human Factors International--10 Web design tips
September 29, 2004
The Best of Eyetrack III: What We Saw When We Looked Through Their Eyes
News websites have been with us for about a decade, and editors and designers still struggle with many unanswered questions: Is homepage layout effective? ... What effect do blurbs on the homepage have compared to headlines? ... When is multimedia appropriate? ... Are ads placed where they will be seen by the audience?
Eyetrack III - What You Most Need to Know
Is Distance Education a chance for us to right our wrongs or just repeat them.
I sit here with my cyber glasses on looking at Distance Education.
Is it a chance for us to make education better?
Is it a chance for us to just repeat the things we have already done?
Does the almighty dollar dictate the answers to these question?
Are we fooling ourselves into thinking it is so new and different?
Is it just us repeating the right and wrongs of the last couple hundred years of education?
Holy crow lots of questions, my cyber glasses are fogging up.
I shall clean them and try to explain what these questions mean as seen through these slightly tinted fogged-up cyber glasses.
I find it interesting that people tend to compare the success of a Distance Education programs by how close it mirrors the F2F model used in High Schools or University. This just means the faults and successes of said models are now done at a distance. Perhaps distance education should reinvent the wheel? The standard F2F university lecture model of education was not the most compatible approach for my maturity, learning style or attention span. So, a distance education model that matched the University PowerPoint lecture model, I would consider to be a weak system and by no means a successful one for me. For hundreds of years this cost effective cookie cutter approach to education has been attracting a single type of person who represent a narrow part of society. The rest of society has not been welcome in the ivory towers because the teaching approach did not meet their learning style. Many have expressed the opinion that everyone can succeed at university, they just need to learn the system. They have to adapt to the university method of teaching, would it not be cool if a university tried to adapt to its clients. If it offered variety and allowed the consumers of education to choose the approach that best match them. Distance education programs have the chance to attract a totally different type of student, yet most universities by mirror their f2f approach are just giving the present university type student another albeit a different option. Would it not be neat if the option widened the range of students it attracted. If it offered variety and attracted those from society who would not excel at the F2F University model?
My cyber glasses have cleared, my thoughts have not.
September 28, 2004
Causes for Cheating: Unclear Expectations in the Classroom.
A survey was submitted to faculty, teaching assistants and student as part of a larger study on undergraduate cheating in an introduction to computing course at Georgia Tech. The goal of this survey was to emulate earier work done at M.I.T. and determine whether these groups held similar beliefs about what actions constitute cheating.
Cybercheats Plagiarism and the Internet
International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning
A previous report in this series discussed the classification of online course delivery systems according to the Advanced Distributed Learning Partnerships (ADL), and the international standards accepted by the ADL. The standardisation of courseware in this manner is necessary for the development of inter-institutional course sharing and quality control. The present report gives further definitions of the criteria applied by international standards organisations, and lists the principal specifications/ standards bodies now in operation.
IRRODL: XI: International E-learning Specifications
Learning Objects Resources page
Creating quality learning objects demands a team approach coupled with instructional design and planning. Contact us today to learn more about designing and developing learning objects for your e-learning environment.
AliveTek, Inc. [Learning Objects]
Learning Objects: Resources for Distance Education Worldwide
This article discusses the topic of learning objects in three parts. First, it identifies a need for learning objects and describes their essential components based on this need. Second, drawing on concepts from recent developments in computer science, it describes learning objects from a theoretical perspective. Finally, it describes learning objects in practice, first as they are created or generated by content authors, and second, as they are displayed or used by students and other client groups.
IRRODL: Learning Objects:
Resources For Distance Education Worldwide
The Instructional Use of Learning Objects (Online book)
This is the online version of The Instructional Use of Learning Objects, a new book that tries to go beyond the technological hype and connect learning objects to instruction and learning. You can read the full text of the book here for free.
The Instructional Use of Learning Objects -- Online Version
September 27, 2004
At what cost pervasive? A social computing view of mobile computing systems
With the advent of pervasive systems, computers are becoming a larger part of our social lives than ever before. Depending on the design of these systems, they may either promote or inhibit social relationships. We consider four kinds of social relationships: a relationship with the system, system-mediated collaborative relationships, relationships with a community, and interpersonal relationships among co-located persons. In laboratory studies, the design of pervasive computers is shown to affect responses to social partners. We propose a model of how pervasive systems can influence human behavior, social attributions, and interaction outcomes. We also discuss some implications for system design.
At what cost pervasive? A social computing view of mobile computing systems
Communication tools as seen through my Cyber Glasses
I have decided to once again place upon my eyes my cyber glasses and express my opinion about communication tools. Here goes:
I am a fan of chat and other synchronous group communication tools; however I do find them to be very limiting in an educational setting. For communication and group building they are some of the best way to communicate. The popularity of MSN and ICQ will attest to that. I think they have their place but after teaching high school for twenty year I feel for the student who has thirty others looking at him/her when put on the spot with a question. A discussion board allows them the time to research and formulate their thoughts while many synchronous (F2F class room) communication settings do not. I think lurking is a pretty good indication of students desire to be part of a community but not their willingness to participate. Try to run a chat without any marks assigned and you will be amazed at the number of lurkers who will attend. The same happens in many F2F classrooms, the majority of the chat happens between a select few while the rest lurk. What I like about discussion boards is that when they are sophisticated enough, an instructor can compile a student's responses and use them as an indication of a student's knowledge of the subject. In a sense, use it as an assessment tool. In the purest form education is not done for marks it is done by an individual for intrinsic reasons. If we can ever get formal education to the stage where it is flexible enough that students want to partake in it for personal reasons, we will have a system which meets student's personal educational goals without the instructor even knowing what they are. Too often assessment tools are used to test the instructor's ideas of what is important for a student to know, rather than allowing the student to choose their education goals and fulfill them.
The information age contains too much information for instructors to choose a small portion of it and test the student's knowledge of it. It would be much more exciting to recognize that the abundance of information is at the student's finger tips and now we need to design a method of allowing the student to choose what they are interested in. Let them formulate their own personal question and then solve them. Instructors follow, assist, guide and get out of their way.
Getting out of the way is a difficult action for the instructors of old who are use to being the "Sage on the Stage
September 26, 2004
Individualization
The following four resources were on the reading list for a course on Instructional Design and Program Evaluation that I am taking at Athabasca University. They make for a good read. Thanks to Rick Kenny for the list and for his guidance during the course.
This term denotes a process, the product of which is to be the individual. It might be easier to think about phenomena of De-individualization first in oder to find the concept of an emerging individual with all the traits to be thought about.
We can witness such phenomena of de-individualization e.g. in the field of the military - where the number of the unit etc. and then the "individual number" is printed in metal to easier identify a corpse after casualties. Such numbers we also know of big systems like social security systems, telephone or fax numbers and the like.
An Updated and Theoretical Rationale for Interaction
No topic raises more contentious debate among educators than the role of interaction as a crucial component of the education process. This debate is fueled by surface problems of definition and vested interests of professional educators but is more deeply marked by epistemological assumptions relative to the role of humans and human interaction in education and learning. Daniel and Marquis (1979) seminal article challenged distance educators to get the mixture right between independent study and interactive learning strategies and activities. They quite rightly pointed out that these two primary forms of education have differing economic, pedagogical and social characteristics and that we are unlikely to find a "perfect" mix that meets all learner and institutional needs across all curriculum and content. Nonetheless hard decisions have to be made.
Resources for Flexible Learning
NCODE - Flexible Learning Australasia is the peak Australian organisation for institutions engaged in or interested in open, distance and flexible education.
The Learning Style Inventory:
The current study evaluated the relationship of the LSI learning types, of 66 employees selected for a federal Public Service executive development program, with supervisors' ratings of observed on-the-job learning behaviours and global evaluations of learning potential.
The Learning Style Inventory: Convergent validity Study in an Applied Career Setting
September 24, 2004
Copyright proposal threatens future Internet use in classrooms
Changes to copyright law recommended by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage would seriously hinder the use of the Internet for teaching and learning purposes, warn six national education groups representing the K-12 and postsecondary sectors.
AUCC media release: Copyright proposal threatens future Internet use in classrooms
Web tool may banish broken links
Peridot, developed by UK intern students at IBM, scans company weblinks and replaces outdated information with other relevant documents and links.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Web tool may banish broken links
Campus Life comes to Second Life.
It's not unusual for teachers and students to use an online environment like a chat room to meet. But Delwiche and a few other college professors are taking advantage of Second Life's fully three-dimensional virtual world and are the first to teach classes in a world where the students can fly, change body types at will and build fantastical structures that can float in the sky.
Wired News: Campus Life Comes to Second Life
Text in the City
Drop that Lonely Planet guide! For a true indie tour of the Big Apple, grab your cell phone and follow the yellow arrows now littering the city.
September 23, 2004
Rumours surround Google browser
Online journals, or weblogs, have put together a series of developments which suggest that the search engine is developing new web tools.
A US newspaper has also reported that Google has poached former Microsoft workers who created early versions of the Internet Explorer browser.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Rumours surround Google browser
September 22, 2004
Web savvy helps foil bomb plot
A 16-year-old girl from Idaho who police credit with speaking up and preventing a teenager from carrying out violent threats against his Detroit-area high school learned about the importance of detecting and reporting internet threats from her father, who heads the cyber crime unit for the Washington State University police.
Curriculum Resource Links
A good list of resources that will assist most teachers in their course development.
techLEARNING.com | Technology & Learning - The Resource for Education Technology Leaders
Save a Picture for Web Use.
Get the photo quality you want by making changes to a whole image or to some of its parts.
techLEARNING.com | Technology & Learning - The Resource for Education Technology Leaders
The Learning Web
Welcome! The Learning Web, part of the USGS Website, is dedicated to k-12 education and lifelong learning. Explore things on, in, around, and about the Earth, such as land, water, plant, animals and maps.
September 21, 2004
Prepared to Teach Online? Perspectives of Faculty in the University of North Carolina System
The prevalence of online distance education courses requires university faculty to face new challenges and make new decisions in the areas of course management and design, delivery method, student communication media, creation of an engaging learning environment, assessment , and use of new technologies. The purpose of this study was to ascertain if university faculty in the University of North Carolina System are receiving sufficient training and support in developing an online distance education curriculum. There was also an interest in the types and amount of training the faculty received at various institutions as well as their attitudes toward developing curriculum for online learning. An online survey was employed to solicit data from faculty of the schools and departments of education (SCDEs) within the University of North Carolina System who have previously taught online courses. The survey addressed the experience of respondents, types of on and off-campus training offered, topics offered in training, relevancy of offerings, whether or not training was required prior to course delivery, and requested ideas for staff development that were desired but unavailable. The majority of respondents indicated that there was sufficient training for faculty to support the change to online learning. Respondents also indicated that most training was offered on-campus, was predominately related to pedagogical and technical areas, was viewed as relevant and accessible, and participation was voluntary or not required. Faculty attitudes, according to results, were overall positive about the quality and quantity of training for course development and maintenance for online learning environments.
Prepared to Teach Online? Perspectives of Faculty in the University of North Carolina System
E-learning products of the future will operate in an interconnected world
E-learning products of the future will operate in a world that is interconnected through information and communication technology (ICT) that will be used by all teachers, trainers and managers, not just IT 'geeks'.
Australian Flexible Learning Framework -
September 20, 2004
Alice chatbot wins for third time
A computer chat program called Alice has won a prestigious prize for human-like conversation for the third time.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Alice chatbot wins for third time
Mobile Phones Cleared for Takeoff
European plane maker Airbus SAS has successfully completed the first in-flight trial of mobile phones and infrastructure equipment based on Global System for Mobile Communications technology, the company says.
Advertisement
The trial, which took place aboard an Airbus A320 flight-test plane, culminated a two-year European Commission-supported research project aimed at testing wireless technology for in-flight mobile phone and computing services.
PCWorld.com - Mobile Phones Cleared for Takeoff
Back to School and Gaming Kids
LOS ANGELES -- Back to school for many kids means "back to internet access" in classes where the best of filtering software is not foolproof, particularly against seemingly harmless websites used for invasive marketing.
Wired News: Back to School and Gaming Kids
Textbooks dumped in favor of laptops
No textbooks? No problem. A revolutionary new high school outside Tucson, Ariz., plans to do away with the bulky, hardcover tomes in favor of laptop computers, making it one of the first schools in the nation to abandon the use of traditional textbooks for the educational value of the internet.
September 19, 2004
Windows XP Service Pack 2 FAQ
I am still receiving many questions about the Service Pack 2 update to Windows XP. Many of these questions already have been addressed, so rather than repeat myself, I have established this FAQ. I'll update it as more information becomes available
Komando.com, Website for The Kim Komando Radio Show®, Tip of the Day
September 18, 2004
More students log on to learn
With a point and a click of her computer mouse, Hudson High School senior Roxanne Mutti hands in a poetry assignment to a teacher 3,000 miles away, then scrolls through messages from 19 classmates at schools that span four time zones.
Boston.com / News / Local / Mass. / More students log on to learn
Best Practices for Administrative Evaluation of Online Faculty
This introductory-level presentation demonstrates how to evaluate the materials and teaching in online courses. Topics covered include similarities with evaluation of on-ground teaching, factors unique to online courses, technological considerations, helping administrators unfamiliar with online courses, and national standards, rubrics, and benchmarks.
Best Practices for Administrative Evaluation of Online Faculty
Student Feedback on Distance Learning with the Use of WebCT
This paper argues that pedagogical improvement can be successfully achieved by using technology. The use of WebCT-based instruction in an Economics undergraduate distance-learning programme is one vivid demonstration of the potential for using technology in instruction. Here, a satellite Economics course is taught using the WebCT as a complementary teaching instrument. This paper shows that using WebCT strongly contributed to the effectiveness of distance learning by improving the quality of students' comprehension in areas of critical thinking, problem solving, decision-making ability, aptitude for detail, written communication, knowledge of information, and ability to organise and analyse.
Student Feedback on Distance Learning with the Use of WebCT (CHEER v16 2004)
September 17, 2004
Another course evaluation survey.
An example of an online course survey.OL Summer 04
The Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Graduate Level Course for Teaching Web-Based Instruction
This paper will discuss the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of a graduate level course aimed at teaching the concepts and principles underlying Web-Based Instruction (WBI). The overall course goal was to provide an introduction to the principles of WBI and its role in creating learning environments that utilize the attributes and resources of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Particular emphasis was placed on pedagogical, technological, organizational, institutional, and ethical issues related to the design, development, and delivery of WBI.
HERE'S YOUR CHANCE TO IMPROVE COURSE QUALITY!
A course evaluation survey...neat to see another's approach to this challenge.
Survey
HERE'S YOUR CHANCE
TO
IMPROVE COURSE QUALITY!
evaluation of the course -- survey?
I would like to set up our evaluation of courses on-line. Can I do it
on webCT? Here's the considerations in setting up the evaluation:
1. we are evaluating many courses
2. some courses are on-line others are in-class
3. the evaluations must go to the college, NOT to the instructor
4. we would like WebCT to compile all the responses
Any ideas? Which tool should I use? Could I set up a separate WebCT
site for this purpose? Would the students need new passwords, etc.?
The Comparative Evaluation of Classroom and Distance Sections of a Industrial Software Engineering Graduate Course
September 16, 2004
Teaching and Learning in a Hybrid World:
EDUCAUSE REVIEW | July/August 2004, Volume 39, Number 4
Blended Learning and Sense of Community: A Comparative Analysis with Traditional and Fully Online Graduate Courses
Blended learning is a hybrid of classroom and online learning that includes some of the conveniences of online courses without the complete loss of face-to-face contact. The present study used a causal-comparative design to examine the relationship of sense of community between traditional classroom, blended, and fully online higher education learning environments. Evidence is provided to suggest that blended courses produce a stronger sense of community among students than either traditional or fully online courses.
Teacher2Teacher
The Teacher2Teacher service grew out of the Ask Dr. Math service at the Math Forum in March of 1998. Teacher2Teacher can be characterized as a peer-mentored question-and-answer service. We focus on answering questions from teachers and parents about math teaching and math learning.
Math Forum: Teacher2Teacher (T2T)
Best Practices for Connecting with Students Online
Creating a child-centered culture and environment is the main guiding principle of the Florida Virtual School. It is within this special "virtual" world that students have the resources to embrace a different style of learning, free from the conditions of a traditional school. It does not replace it but offers another style in which students learn and meet their individuality. Connecting with such students on line is a multi-faceted endeavor. Our model for best practices is designated by excellent communication skills that involve the entire student as a person and acknowledging who they are.
Techlearning > > Best Practices for Connecting with Students Online > September 1, 2004
Math and Reading Help Site
I came across this interesting web site while reading through an assignment given to a grade 7/8 class. The students were asked to find a user friendly, interesting, educational and useful web site. They then went through the site and listed why I should add their chosen site to our student web site list
This site is great for student, teachers and parents.
Here is a small exerpt from the page:
Math and Reading Help for Kids is a directory of hundreds of original articles, tips, and resources centered on the topic of children's learning. Although the articles in this site are primarily written to help parents make informed decisions about their child's education, there is also a comprehensive Just for Kids section containing dozens of articles written for a younger audience.
http://math-and-reading-help-for-kids.org/index.html
Games blur news and entertainment
Some game developers are trying to get players to expand their horizons by reflecting on news events in computer games.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Games blur news and entertainment
They're Robots? Those Beasts!
I think it would be very cool to work towards a working robot. Frustrating but cool.
The New York Times They're Robots? Those Beasts!
The Council of Europe and Cybercrime
Cybercrime is one of the major challenges facing modern society. The Council of Europe believes the Convention is an ideal way for governments to anticipate problems and resolve them, working together to create security for the citizens of Europe and beyond.
September 15, 2004
Controlling 'The Sims'
The game industry can be forgiven for originally doubting the prospects for "The Sims."
Controlling 'The Sims' | Newsmakers | CNET News.com
Amazon to Take Searches on Web to a New Depth
The New York Times > Technology > Amazon to Take Searches on Web to a New Depth
September 14, 2004
Online applications for schools
Parents across Devon are being offered the chance to apply for a secondary school place for their children online for the first time.
BBC NEWS | England | Devon | Online applications for schools
Chat Guide
This guide contains everything you need to run lessons on chat safety for 8-10 and 11-16 year olds, in two separate Teachers Packs. The lessons have been created by teachers and Internet safety experts.
BBC - ChatGuide - Teacher's Guide - Teachers Pack
Microsoft's spam plan rejected!!
Attempts to fight spam by identifying e-mails have hit problems over Microsoft's involvement in the process
BBC NEWS | Technology | Microsoft's spam plan rejected
Youngscot.org
Welcome to Young Scot's new multi-cultural/anti-racism site. The reason we have introduced this new site is to let you know about the One Scotland. Many Cultures Campaign organised by the Scottish Executive to tackle and stamp out racism in Scotland and to celebrate Scotland's multi-cultural society.
September 11, 2004
HotKeyz
This time saver free key stoke program is so useful at this busy time of year.
Open programs and files with a few strokes on the keyboard. HotKeyz allows you to add parameter controls, such as launching your e-mail program and automatically composing a new e-mail. Shortcuts are created by using the Ctrl, Alt, Shift and Start keys with another key.
Skynergy - HotKeyz
Abracadabra
Abracadabra! With this magic word you can amaze all your friends! You can find a whole bunch of magic tricks
Funology.com -- Abracadabra -- Magic tricks
September 7, 2004
I knew it...floppies rule...cd are bad.
Ever wonder what makes a disc bad? Here's why they vary in quality, and why you should worry about the discs you've entrusted with your data.
PCWorld.com - Burning Questions: When Good Discs Go Bad
Wait... they are not dead yet...
Could this be so....get the paddles....clear...bam...there is a heart rate.
Floppy has not flatlined, an era has not ended...Praise those Matsushita engineers.
PCWorld.com - Will the Floppy Disk Find New Life?
Is the Floppy disk going away???
I will not like to see the day when the 3 1/2 inch floppy disk is no more. It will end an era, it will make it harder to know who the nerds are...it was easy when the person has a floppy in his shirt pocket. Now, what will be the tell tale signs???
PCWorld.com - What Has Your Floppy Drive Done for You Lately?
September 6, 2004
'Knowledge sharing' should be avoided
One of the goals of many knowledge management (KM) projects is to 'support and/or increase knowledge sharing'. While on the surface this is both a sensible and desirable goal, in practice it is often ineffective.
'Knowledge sharing' should be avoided
Australian Flexible Learning Framework
The Australian Flexible Learning Framework is a five year national program to create and share knowledge about flexible learning and to support its take-up in vocational education and training.
Australian Flexible Learning Framework
September 3, 2004
Discovery School's Puzzlemaker
This is a puzzle generation tool for teachers, students and parents. Create and print customized word searches, crossword and math puzzles using your word lists. Choose from 11 different types of puzzles and follow step-by-step instructions for adding in your content. You can also save time by using one of their ready-made vocabulary word lists.
DiscoverySchool's Puzzlemaker allows kids to make crossword puzzles online.
Teacher Site on Scholastic.com
Thanks to Judy Byers for bringing this site to our attention in the OLC 2004-2005 newsletter-Issue 1
Check out the free tools and resources for your classroom. This site offers online activities, "Writing with Writers" workshops, lesson plans, teaching strategies and teaching themes & holidays ideas.
Teacher Site on Scholastic.com
September 1, 2004
Has it really changed?
As the smoke clears and we examine the landscape, the picture from a user's perspective looks bright. While there was plenty of turmoil and contention in the year (spam disputes, e-mail bombs, censorship battles, outages, etc), the internet grew in leaps and bounds and was greatly enriched in technology and content.
Many of us are so caught up in the Net-- pulled along by the currents of its evolution and technology-- that we fail to realize how far we've come. Three years ago I was dialing in to a shell account, and Unix was still a required skill. At the time we gave readers tips about Z-modem transfers, writing Archie strings, and choosing between nn, rn, trn and tin newsreaders.
The above two paragraphs were taken from an "Internet World" magazine that I had laying around since December 1996. This "from the editor" article could be re-run in any magazine today and the only aspects of it that might be dated would to be the dailing into and a few other statements other than those it still rings fairly true.
I write this commentary because I can remember teaching my grade 7 computer class on Vic 20s. We wrote code to make our names scroll down the screen and were amazed at how exciting this was both for myself as well as my students. Now, I run a cyber school, education via the web a long way from the Vic 20 cassette tape back up system. I am sitting here typing this up while watching my baby drink his bottle on a laptop machine that most likely has more computing power than the machines that were used to put a man on the moon. Yet, I still complain about how slow it is, yet I am still, so caught up in technology that I have problems thinking back to the time I wrote an essay using a bic. I wonder how my child will look back on the laptop I am using when he is half my age. Will he laugh, the same as I do about the Vic 20 or marvel at just how far we've come. Will he look back at these comments and be shocked at how the internet is still plagued with the same short comings and how the article written by Michael Neubarth in 1996 still describes the internet world.
My brother often states: "Ya know this Internet thing just may not be a phase, it might stick around a few years." So far it is still pulling us along by the currents of its evolution and technology as it did in 1996, will it still ten years from now...time will tell.
The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
As seen through the new parent cyber glasses.
Noodle Tools
This is a great site if you need help with citing and referencing both print and online material. This site will actually prepare the reference for you so that you can copy and paste directly into your document.
http://www.noodletools.com/noodlebib/starter.php
