Even though I am familiar with blogging and my wife does so on a regular basis, it was not until I entered this class that I have started a blog of my own. During the last four weeks my eyes have been opened to a new way to spread the word, connect with people, and share knowledge I have have recently learned. This class being about Web2.0, I would like to reflect and highlight the tool I have found most useful thus far.
The Web2.0 service I am most impressed with most so far is zoho.com. I have always tried to get google docs to work for me, but have run into to many issues to invest any substantial amount of time to make it work. So far I have never had any trouble getting Zoho to work properly and other than the learning curve for the collaboration process the transition has been quick and hassle free.
In my classes I use zoho to share the class documents with all of my students, and I also use zoho sheet to include the class contact information. The opportunity to collaborate on specific documents and projects and create material directly from the site has given me and my classes more productivity and time to be more creative.
Zoho almost seems more like an operating system than is does a Web2.0 service, and my students appreciate being able to have access to the documents from anywhere to work on, and zoho.com will continue to be one of the main sites I use to share and collaborate on documents and projects with my classes.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Blog #7 - Second Life
As my Master's degree program at Full Sail University has progressed my views of Second Life (SL) have transitioned. The start of my SL journey was a little rocky as I learned how to create my avatar and change my appearance. It seemed as though every time I looked into a store for clothes or appearance changes there was questionable material. Once I had completed my appearance and understood the areas to avoid the potential of SL started to shine through.
Many universities are starting to create virtual campuses, and it is evident SL is starting to transform many online degree programs and offer flexibility and creativity to those seeking to change the old format of lecture space. With online virtual classrooms students can meet together from almost anywhere there is internet access. Classes can visit places of interest together without the expense of travel, and more landmarks are being built.
One such university is Ohio University, the promotional video below shows some of the ways universities are using SL.
San Jose State also uses SL in their School of Library & Information Science. The following video shows how SJSU is using SL.
At this point I am not yet ready to require my students to meet online in SL, but with the development of a virtual classroom, or leasing of one, my mind may change to help deliver the content in a more valuable way in online education. As networking technology improves and lag is reduced, as teleportation is solidified, and as people continue to join the future of SL seems bright.
Many universities are starting to create virtual campuses, and it is evident SL is starting to transform many online degree programs and offer flexibility and creativity to those seeking to change the old format of lecture space. With online virtual classrooms students can meet together from almost anywhere there is internet access. Classes can visit places of interest together without the expense of travel, and more landmarks are being built.
One such university is Ohio University, the promotional video below shows some of the ways universities are using SL.
San Jose State also uses SL in their School of Library & Information Science. The following video shows how SJSU is using SL.
At this point I am not yet ready to require my students to meet online in SL, but with the development of a virtual classroom, or leasing of one, my mind may change to help deliver the content in a more valuable way in online education. As networking technology improves and lag is reduced, as teleportation is solidified, and as people continue to join the future of SL seems bright.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Blog #6 - Community of Practice
Communities of practice offer broad assistance to those seeking to connect and learn from others in areas specific to their business or interests. These solutions range from linkedin.com, which offers networking with a broad base of individuals and businesses, to facebook.com or myspace.com, which are made up personal profile webpages. Though these are primarily personal services many corporations and businesses are noticing the positive impacts of changing the atmosphere or culture of their environments so the employees are encouraged and empowered to cooperate on project.
Caterpillar has found that engineers working on projects can find solutions to issues through cooperation with other engineers who might have faced similar problems on earlier projects. Not only does this improve the time spent solving issues, but can also improve build quality and raise the standard for the engineering. In the following video the former president of Caterpillar discusses the environment of their company and how it has impacted their employees.
A piece of the implementation of a community of practice in an organization is the question, "How can we make sure the community of practice actually improves the atmosphere of information sharing?" Or, "What principles does the organization need to adopt in order to foster healthy sharing and how do you implement the forthcoming solutions?"
The following video provides a few important principles and offers a few examples of companies using these innovations of sharing practice.
Learning from these corporate solutions can aid any person in understanding how joining and investing in a community of practice can give them a boost in the competitive job market, improve their understanding of their chosen field and assist in the projects. Educators, engineers, practitioners, business owners, nearly any area can benefit from the experience of others, and the more connected a person can become the more knowledge they can gather and offer to their employers.
Caterpillar has found that engineers working on projects can find solutions to issues through cooperation with other engineers who might have faced similar problems on earlier projects. Not only does this improve the time spent solving issues, but can also improve build quality and raise the standard for the engineering. In the following video the former president of Caterpillar discusses the environment of their company and how it has impacted their employees.
A piece of the implementation of a community of practice in an organization is the question, "How can we make sure the community of practice actually improves the atmosphere of information sharing?" Or, "What principles does the organization need to adopt in order to foster healthy sharing and how do you implement the forthcoming solutions?"
The following video provides a few important principles and offers a few examples of companies using these innovations of sharing practice.
Learning from these corporate solutions can aid any person in understanding how joining and investing in a community of practice can give them a boost in the competitive job market, improve their understanding of their chosen field and assist in the projects. Educators, engineers, practitioners, business owners, nearly any area can benefit from the experience of others, and the more connected a person can become the more knowledge they can gather and offer to their employers.
Blog #5 - Social Media
Social media is the sharing of media with others through the internet. Internet sharing solutions are in constant change, reform and improvement and it seems as though solutions to media sharing are going public on a daily basis. One of the first places to start research on Social Media solutions is mashable.com. Mashable is a site offering a collection of blogs on social media and offering options to various media solutions.
A few of the more major social media sites being talked about these days are twitter.com, youtube.com and flickr.com. As these sites have gained popularity other sites have been designed to offer the ability to use other options. Now with the use of these new sites you are able to tweet status updates, pictures, videos, personal files, share documents, and much more.
Reasons to share media is to create and encourage connections between people on a one-to-one, one-to-many or many-to-many relationships. Depending on what you are looking to share solutions are available.
1. Photos: Flickr.com, Webshots.com, and smugmug.com.
2. Videos: YouTube.com, vimeo.com, and metacafe.com.
3. Files: docs.google.com, zoho.com, 4shared.com.
As social media solutions continue to become available and people and organizations continue to see the possibilities offered by sharing sites relationships will be formed and strengthened. This improvement will transform the way people interact and how businesses are run.
A few of the more major social media sites being talked about these days are twitter.com, youtube.com and flickr.com. As these sites have gained popularity other sites have been designed to offer the ability to use other options. Now with the use of these new sites you are able to tweet status updates, pictures, videos, personal files, share documents, and much more.
Reasons to share media is to create and encourage connections between people on a one-to-one, one-to-many or many-to-many relationships. Depending on what you are looking to share solutions are available.
1. Photos: Flickr.com, Webshots.com, and smugmug.com.
2. Videos: YouTube.com, vimeo.com, and metacafe.com.
3. Files: docs.google.com, zoho.com, 4shared.com.
As social media solutions continue to become available and people and organizations continue to see the possibilities offered by sharing sites relationships will be formed and strengthened. This improvement will transform the way people interact and how businesses are run.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Blog #4 - 21st Century Skills & Lifelong Learning
The question today is, "What skills do we need to thrive in the 21st century and how do we go about honing those skills?
An organization asking, and hopefully solving, these questions is Thinkfinity (thinkfinity.org). Their website includes tools and resources for today's educators, students, parents and anyone else interested in training this new generation. The following video gives a brief overview of Thinkfinity's vision and purpose:
The desire to train and equip students drives all quality educators to seek the methods and tools that are most effective. With the assistance of organizations such as Thinkfinity and Edutopia (edutopia.org) educators now have tools and resources to conquer nearly every obstacle. If educators are able to reach this generation and motivate them to succeed in all their life has to offer students must grasp that learning the skills needed does not end with a college degree, it will take a lifetime of flexibility, personal growth, and acceptance of change.
Jeffrey Gitomer, in the following video, talks about lifelong learning from the perspective of a sales person, but the steps given can be related to almost any field you may be in.
The success of these students is not dependent on passing a test to move on to the next grade level, it is whether or not they can master the art of learning.
An organization asking, and hopefully solving, these questions is Thinkfinity (thinkfinity.org). Their website includes tools and resources for today's educators, students, parents and anyone else interested in training this new generation. The following video gives a brief overview of Thinkfinity's vision and purpose:
The desire to train and equip students drives all quality educators to seek the methods and tools that are most effective. With the assistance of organizations such as Thinkfinity and Edutopia (edutopia.org) educators now have tools and resources to conquer nearly every obstacle. If educators are able to reach this generation and motivate them to succeed in all their life has to offer students must grasp that learning the skills needed does not end with a college degree, it will take a lifetime of flexibility, personal growth, and acceptance of change.
Jeffrey Gitomer, in the following video, talks about lifelong learning from the perspective of a sales person, but the steps given can be related to almost any field you may be in.
The success of these students is not dependent on passing a test to move on to the next grade level, it is whether or not they can master the art of learning.
Blog #3 - Media Literacy
So, what is literacy? Is it being able to combine letters to create words, being able to decipher the connecting of letters to read a written language, or is it being able to understand the meaning behind the collection of words? If the meaning of literacy combines these three, can it be said there are other areas of literacy?
Today's American culture is saturated with sources of media. Media was at one time print on paper, then it moved to words and pictures, after pictures came motion, then the motion became interactive. Now websites include articles, polls, blogs, videos, forums, chatting, and more. Are our students still able to decipher the messages? Media Literacy is the term that refers to this skill, and is defined by David Considine in the Journal of Media Literacy (1995) as "The Ability to Access, Analyze, Evaluate, and Communicate information in a variety of format including print and nonprint."
This video talks about media literacy as well:
Now not only do you have to be able to read the information and understand what is in print, but you must be able to access the information to begin with, analyze the content and evaluate whether is it pertinent and reliable, then communicate with others the meaning of what is being researched from a multitude of sources and mediums.
It seems to me students and professionals of today must recognize the difference in our current atmosphere and put in the effort to minimize false or erroneous sources and information. Until then the work of being literate is still before them.
References:
Considine, D. (1995). An introduction to media literacy: The what, why and how to's. Telemedium, Volume 41, Number 2. Retrieved from http://www.ced.appstate.edu/departments/ci/programs/edmedia/medialit/article.html/
Today's American culture is saturated with sources of media. Media was at one time print on paper, then it moved to words and pictures, after pictures came motion, then the motion became interactive. Now websites include articles, polls, blogs, videos, forums, chatting, and more. Are our students still able to decipher the messages? Media Literacy is the term that refers to this skill, and is defined by David Considine in the Journal of Media Literacy (1995) as "The Ability to Access, Analyze, Evaluate, and Communicate information in a variety of format including print and nonprint."
This video talks about media literacy as well:
Now not only do you have to be able to read the information and understand what is in print, but you must be able to access the information to begin with, analyze the content and evaluate whether is it pertinent and reliable, then communicate with others the meaning of what is being researched from a multitude of sources and mediums.
It seems to me students and professionals of today must recognize the difference in our current atmosphere and put in the effort to minimize false or erroneous sources and information. Until then the work of being literate is still before them.
References:
Considine, D. (1995). An introduction to media literacy: The what, why and how to's. Telemedium, Volume 41, Number 2. Retrieved from http://www.ced.appstate.edu/departments/ci/programs/edmedia/medialit/article.html/
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Blog #2 - Learning 2.0
Is there a new paradigm in learning. There is a phrase making its way through education known as 'Learning 2.0.' The basis behind this phrase is a change in what is effective in educating the students of today. With the exponential growth of computers and information technology, students are now immersed in a world of technology on a daily basis. Because of this, they process information in a different way and are motivated by things their parents do not understand.
If you Google search the term 'learning 2.0' you will find many blogs about what this term refers to, but there is still a nebulous around it that to many does not make sense. A video I recently viewed put a little light to the term, and I want to share it with you.
In this video Jay Cross shares an analogy that represents Learning 2.0 in a very practical way, he tells of a university who builds a new campus and instead of putting in sidewalks that may not be used, they plant grass and wait a year to find the areas of grass that are worn down, so they will know the most effective places to put them. In the vain of this analogy, Learning 2.0 follows the idea of how do the target audience (students, employees, viewers, etc.) learn best? What motivates them to continue the course? Or, what technologies, tools, or philosophical and theoretical frameworks produce, or exceed, the desired outcomes in training and education?
These questions bring about knowledge of how people need to be educated in out modern environment. Students who are motivated by games will not learn properly from a 10 year old textbook, or possibly any textbook. The idea behind 'Learning 2.0' is taking the restraints from paper and pen, the forever and supreme end, and allowing further questioning and comments to answer the original question.
Case Western Reserve University has welcomed this shift and now focuses it educational practice with the idea of student first. One of their promotional videos describes their philosophy.
What will our leaning society be when our students are allowed to teach the rest of their class the facts they recently learned through a blog or social networking post? What would happen if this was the way their class was facilitated? Our students need to understand the culture they are in, but our education culture also needs to understand the students they now seek to educate. If we can harness the creativity and productivity of the motivated students around us the possibilities of what might be discovered or invented is limitless.
If you Google search the term 'learning 2.0' you will find many blogs about what this term refers to, but there is still a nebulous around it that to many does not make sense. A video I recently viewed put a little light to the term, and I want to share it with you.
In this video Jay Cross shares an analogy that represents Learning 2.0 in a very practical way, he tells of a university who builds a new campus and instead of putting in sidewalks that may not be used, they plant grass and wait a year to find the areas of grass that are worn down, so they will know the most effective places to put them. In the vain of this analogy, Learning 2.0 follows the idea of how do the target audience (students, employees, viewers, etc.) learn best? What motivates them to continue the course? Or, what technologies, tools, or philosophical and theoretical frameworks produce, or exceed, the desired outcomes in training and education?
These questions bring about knowledge of how people need to be educated in out modern environment. Students who are motivated by games will not learn properly from a 10 year old textbook, or possibly any textbook. The idea behind 'Learning 2.0' is taking the restraints from paper and pen, the forever and supreme end, and allowing further questioning and comments to answer the original question.
Case Western Reserve University has welcomed this shift and now focuses it educational practice with the idea of student first. One of their promotional videos describes their philosophy.
What will our leaning society be when our students are allowed to teach the rest of their class the facts they recently learned through a blog or social networking post? What would happen if this was the way their class was facilitated? Our students need to understand the culture they are in, but our education culture also needs to understand the students they now seek to educate. If we can harness the creativity and productivity of the motivated students around us the possibilities of what might be discovered or invented is limitless.
Blog #1 - Web 2.0
In the world of online collaboration a shift has come. Opportunities opened by Web 2.o offer solutions to individuals, teams and corporations only dreamed about 10 years ago. As connections continue to be formed and these teams seek to be more effective in their planning and collaboration, there are several sites available to streamline their efforts and add to their productivity.
One service now offered, www.planningcenteronline.com, allows churches (pastors, worship leaders, volunteers, teachers, etc.) to centralize their planning, scheduling, and calendars, and make resources available from a site available through any internet connection. Churches are often run with the efforts of volunteers or part-time paid staff, and this constraint often limits planning and collaboration due to inexperienced workers, time available, and individual schedules. Take the example of a simple Sunday morning service:
Before Web 2.0:
Another site changing collaborative efforts is Zoho.com. Solutions have been available for some time for corporations to collaborate on projects, but they cost large amounts of money and required expensive infrastructure. Zoho has brought a free service to individuals, small teams, businesses and classrooms to collaborate and cooperate on documents similar to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Other major contributions are a calendar, wiki's, tasks, notebooks, links and contacts. With the availability to share important contacts with the rest of the team, every person has access to the tools needed to accomplish the team tasks. Perhaps the greatest tool available is real-time online voice and text chats, opening the availability to collaborate on a document in real time while communicating about the changes being made and what still needs to be changed.
These are only two of the many tools available online. Web 2.0 is opening doors to effective cooperation and providing tools that will change the way teams and businesses accomplish day to day tasks.
One service now offered, www.planningcenteronline.com, allows churches (pastors, worship leaders, volunteers, teachers, etc.) to centralize their planning, scheduling, and calendars, and make resources available from a site available through any internet connection. Churches are often run with the efforts of volunteers or part-time paid staff, and this constraint often limits planning and collaboration due to inexperienced workers, time available, and individual schedules. Take the example of a simple Sunday morning service:
Before Web 2.0:
- The Pastor decides the topic for a given Sunday.
- The Pastor meets with the Worship Leader to share the topic and direction for worship.
- The Worship Leader plans the songs, the order, and prepare the sheet music.
- The Worship Leader contacts the musicians, singers, and media crew about the service details and schedule of practices and service times.
- The Pastor decides the topic for a given Sunday.
- The Pastor meets with the Worship Leader to share the topic and direction for worship.
- The Worship Leader selects the songs, enters the order, and selects the sheet music in planning center.(Planning Center has a over 2500 songs online)
- The Worship Leader invites the musicians, singers, and media workers by sending out one email through Planning Center. (Every person involved in the church becomes a user on planning center and their information saved)
- Those involved have access to the schedule, order, and media assets included in the service and either accept the invitation or decline it.
- An email confirming whether each person invited accepts or declines is returned automatically to the Worship Leader through Planning Center.
Another site changing collaborative efforts is Zoho.com. Solutions have been available for some time for corporations to collaborate on projects, but they cost large amounts of money and required expensive infrastructure. Zoho has brought a free service to individuals, small teams, businesses and classrooms to collaborate and cooperate on documents similar to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Other major contributions are a calendar, wiki's, tasks, notebooks, links and contacts. With the availability to share important contacts with the rest of the team, every person has access to the tools needed to accomplish the team tasks. Perhaps the greatest tool available is real-time online voice and text chats, opening the availability to collaborate on a document in real time while communicating about the changes being made and what still needs to be changed.
These are only two of the many tools available online. Web 2.0 is opening doors to effective cooperation and providing tools that will change the way teams and businesses accomplish day to day tasks.
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