Social Networking and Instructional Design Defined (EDT-5410, Week 4)

Social Bookmarking – What’s It All About?

The idea of having all of my bookmarks organized and in one location is enough for me to jump on the social bookmarking bandwagon! Between two work computers, a laptop, a tablet, and a PC in my home office, I’ve got bookmarks (and duplicates) everywhere! (Oh, on my USB flash drives too…ugh!)

But the other benefits of social bookmarking, as I see it, are: sharing our interests and knowledge with others; learning from others with like interests; building relationships around the world (or next door); having others assist in my research efforts; and, the ability to apply as many tags as I think are relevant to one source.

“Learning is a continuous conversation among many participants”, (p90) Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms by Will Richardson, really expresses the fundamental purpose of social bookmarking tools; many participants learning from each other. Why not tap into the expertise and time that others have already spent researching? And, why not add to the cycle to assist others? Social bookmarking is a means to this end.

Some features of the del.icio.us site that I like are the podcasting feature; linklog allows addition of notes to web links (in case you forget why you added this favorite/bookmark); the ability to include del.icio.us links to my blog (to get the important stuff in one place); I love to cook, so I love the cookbook feature; the wish list and “for:username” tag are great for relocating cool items and/or book titles; the ability to keep certain items private. The collaboration feature which allows groups to use and build links under a common sign-on could be a very powerful tool in the educational setting…here again, eliminates duplication of effort through collaboration.

A comparison of social bookmarking sites can be found at http://www.webmonkey.com/webmonkey/06/23/stuff/filters_table.html. There are many social bookmarking sites out there, all with similar and unique features. Some notable features that I found are:
Furl – saves a copy of the actual page you are looking at, not just the link; unlimited text description allowed for each URL; you can follow common tag words to individuals and scope out their other material; you can export all your resources into MLA, APA, Chicago or CBE citation formats; you can export your stuff for backup.
Jots – has a clean, blog-like look; personal tags easily available; RSS feed subscription; unlimited annotation; captures a copy of the page, not just the URL; allows for private groups (i.e., a class of students);.
Del.icio.us – unlimited tags per URL; RSS feeds for tags; quick and easy to setup.

Instructional Design Technology Defined

The definitions in this chapter seemed to merely put words to the process that I’ve used over and over when preparing and delivering training sessions (I am not a classroom teacher). I think the term(s) for instructional design is used more prevalently in the business world than the school environment…at least I’ve never heard anyone in my district talk about “instructional design” or its process. Sure, I hear about curriculum writing and lesson planning, but regardless of the term I feel that the processes and outcomes are the same…what are you going to teach; how will you teach it; did the students (young or adult) learn what you intended them to learn. These definitions clarified the obscurity of what instructional design truly is.

What seems to be missing is the element of collaboration and teamwork; many times instructional design is accomplished by a team, rather than an individual. Specifically, what would be the point of several grade level teachers all preparing-separately-to teach the same subject/unit? Teamwork eliminates duplication of effort and ensures maintenance of standards and consistency across the grade level.

Ending note:

Since it was referenced several times, I investigated the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT) at its website: http://www.aect.org/default.asp. While browsing, I found this eBook on the publications tab of the AECT website and thought it looked like a relevant resource for this course: Emerging Perspectives on Learning, Teaching, and Technology. Orey, M.(Ed.). (2001); you can find it at http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt.

My First Wiki Authoring Experience (EDT-5410, Week 3)

While this was my first experience as a wiki author/contributor; I have often looked to the Wikipedia for research material, answers to questions, etc.

Since I have no experience with HTML code, I felt deceived by the simplistic appearance of the edit window. I expected it to act like a word processor, not a code writing window.
In some aspects, the edit window did function much like a word processor, but I had pre-typed my material using Microsoft Word expecting to be able to cut and paste. Alas, when I pasted my text, everything became a hyperlink…not what I intended. I fished around a bit trying to eliminate the hyperlink but gave up and retyped the text. I will admit that I did not spend much time trying to figure out how to successfully cut and paste, but I will.

On the other hand, I deleted the “back” command when I first began editing. I had saved my edits before I realized it, but was pleased when I figured out how to put it back simply by looking closely at that same command on other pages. I’m actually looking forward to researching the functions and becoming more proficient.

I must mention a book that I am reading along with this class: Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms by Will Richardson. Regardless of your technology role in an educational setting, if you do not have this book…get it! I have more post-it notes sticking off the pages than I have pages…seriously! After reading the chapter on wikis and experimenting with the PBWiki for class, I have some really great ideas for using wikis at work.

I lead a group of 23 front-line technology troubleshooters (called the TAG team) and we have PD about every six weeks. I think a wiki would be an excellent source of material for them in between meetings. Often changes occur in hardware, software, or network features between meetings and we rely on email and/or newsletter to notify them…why not a wiki that is dynamic and updated as changes in our environment occur? We could have pages for training, project status, FAQ, question and answer...and probably several more that I cannot think of right now.

Additionally, we are struggling with a very kludgy Intranet that is difficult to add to or update; I wonder if a wiki might be an easier solution…I’m open for input!

-Barb Smalla

Reflections on Blogs and RSS (EDT-5410, Week 2)

Reflections on Blogs and RSS; EDT-5410, Week 2

-----------------------------------

I think Blogs are a great way to communicate, especially across a great distance. Yes, this can be done via email, but with email, you must know the individuals address, and eventually you have to fish the email trail out of a pile of general email, or locate the appropriate file in which you’ve stashed the email. A Blog seems to be a more permanent, effective form of conversing over time; the fact that they are searchable is beneficial as well, especially after a length of time has passed.

At this stage of my limited experience with Blogging, however, I find the process a bit kludgy…nothing that time and practice won’t remedy, I’m sure.

Setting up the RSS feeds was very simple, and there are a multitude of them available covering every imaginable topic. I subscribed to a few related to educational technology, and am amassing reads rapidly; currently 56. The quantity of article “hits” could feasibly result in a large amount of time reading articles and jumping to other sites for “related” articles as my interest is peaked.

-----------------------------------

The correlation of Blogs to Dale’s Cone – I think Blogs are similar to dramatization as the writer and reader experience the retelling of life experiences. The imagination of the reader is engaged as s/he develops abstract visualizations of the writer’s words. In some instances, the reader and writer may have similar life experiences, making their exchange even more meaningful.

The correlation of RSS feeds to Dale’s Cone – since RSS feeds are available in a variety of formats, they may correlate to Dale’s Cone in several categories, i.e., readings, video/television, or audio recordings.

Blogs and RSS feeds are yet another medium to help educators reach the individual learning styles of their students. As with all instructional tools, some students will benefit from a specific instrument more than others, thus validating the argument for utilizing a variety of mediums to ensure concept development and mastery by each student.

------------------------------------

As I was reading Dale’s Cone, I made the following note: The “two…major hazards in all teaching” (p134) as stated in the summation of this reading prompted the following thoughts/correlations for me: 1) on-line learning/instructional design must include varied activities – self-directed field trips, if you will, experiments, research, etc. – to ensure mastery of the subject. This is exactly what Siegel is referring to; engaging the learning on many levels to get their attention, keep their interest, and truly provide a rich learning experience.

Blogs allow students to connect with others in a variety of geographical regions allowing for insight from vastly different cultures, which enhances imagination and understanding of a topic from varying viewpoints.

RSS feeds allow for quick access to resources of information that might otherwise consume large amounts of time discovering. Additionally, RSS feeds are selected based on their direct relevance to a specific topic, inherently weeding out irrelevant information.

Making Memories With Digital Photography

So, you have a digital camera and pictures on your computer's hard drive...now what?

You must first dig into the treasures contained in your digital camera's manual...yes, you must read the manual in order to familiarize yourself with all of your camera's features. Taking quality photos depends on your understanding and proper use of your camera's file size settings, flash modes, and zoom modes. Once you've mastered these settings, you'll be on your way to taking beautiful pictures.

The next step is organizing and enhancing them, and while there are many expensive softwares available, why not start with a free one? I recommend Picasa by Google (www.picasa.google.com) for beginners; it has all the features you need to organize, edit, share, print, backup and create digital memories.

Join me as I strive to enhance my own skills in the realm of digital photography and photo editing.

Technology in Education: Yea? or Nay? (EDT-5410, Week 1, Task 7)

Technology in Education: Yea? or Nay? (EDT-5410, Week 1, Task 7)

Articles:
Beyond Technology Integration: The Case for Technology Transformation
Of Luddites, Learning, and Life

While these articles present differing view points, they do have somewhat of a common theme: simply putting technology into classrooms does not enhance learning. Without innovative lesson planning and guidance from the teacher, technology is just one more thing in the classroom. Additionally, both include learning to work in teams, problem solve, and take initiative as key outcomes of schooling.

Transformation of our educational system and instructional methods is needed with, or without technology implementation. Too many of our students (and I’m speaking broadly here) graduate from high school without the necessary skills to become contributing citizens, minimally at the local level, let alone in our global economy. We (school employees in every category) cannot continue to “do business the way we always have”; our world is evolving around us, and our educational systems must evolve also.

I feel that the benefits of technology in education can be significant, but only with proper planning and on-going, progressive training (how to use the item) and professional development (how to integrate it into the teaching method and curriculum) for the teachers. Additionally, quality is crucial; in a previous on-line course through a different university, the lessons were poorly constructed; were little more than a summary of the reading; and contained typographical, if not factual errors.

Difficult as it would be to manage, I am all for a system that is based on mastery and not time; we all learn at different speeds. However, I can only begin to imagine the difficulty in successfully running this type of environment.

So, my stance is for technology and school transformation.

Barb

School Start-up Woes

To all of my fellow colleagues in education, I know you can relate to this topic!

School start-up is a hectic, stressful time for all of us—whether teacher, counselor, administrator, or support staff—luckily, it is cyclical and those of us with a few years under our belt know to simply “ride the wave”.

I am in Technology Services, and am either the villain (when the network is not cooperating), or the hero when I change the millionth forgotten password resulting in successful login…I prefer to be the hero!

I welcome your anecdotes related to school start-up.

Barb