Test of Softchalk Connect Rating and Polling Activities

SoftChalk Connect now allows you to create an activity to rate a web site or component. It generates code to be pasted into the html of your page and then embeds the rating system. So, let's experiment: what to you think about this capability?

Before you use this, read my

Full disclosure: my wife works for SoftChalk, but I am experimenting with this feature on my own to see how it works. I'm testing features to see how I might want to employ them and to assist facutly/educators. Of course, I share my experience with my wife and the SoftChalk team, so I want you to be comfortable with that.

Using Digital Story to Explore Effective Online Teaching

I have found that the creation of digital stories can be a powerful reflective tool to explore personal meaning. In this post, I'm providing a preview of a work in progress. This is a draft digital story about the transition from face-to-face classes to online teaching and learning. It explores at least 7 hallmarks of effective online teaching, as supported by research. The audio will be re-edited and credits will be developed to recognize those who have provided resources and constructive criticism in the development process. I encourage discussion about the use of digital story as a reflective, narrative process which might be used as an educational tool by both faculty and students. I also welcome comments about the content.

Working title: Transitioning: Effective Online Teaching

Technology in the Classroom is a Given

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

This blog post is being dictated into my iPhone using an application
for Dragon Naturally Speaking. There's a reason for stating this
production method, which will become clear as I expand on my thinking
in this blog post.

Earlier this morning I read a tweet by @timbuckteeth. This tweet
contains a link to a video which portrayed a class that purportedly
was on the use of technology in the classroom. http://tinyurl.com/yc6x3ro However, the instructor had no knowledge of how to actually use
technology in the classroom. As the camera panned around the
classroom it was painfully obvious that the students were in most
cases bored and in the worst cases, asleep. Subsequently, student
interviews stated that they were thoroughly dissatisfied with the
class and had expected to be using technology in their learning
experience.

This video prompts me to share my recent thinking. Their should no
longer be a debate about the use of technology in the classroom. The
debate should be about how we incorporate appropriate use of
technologies, which in fact exist in our classrooms.

I think the classroom portrayed in this video is rather typical of
classrooms in 2010. I propose a challenge. With the technologies that
can be rounded up within a classroom, I would like to see exactly what
might be able to be accomplished either individually or
collaboratively by the students in the classroom. Between the use of
laptops and smart phones alone, students have the power to do
research, communicate invarious ways, collaborate, write, record
audio, record video, edit and stream video, manipulate images, use
Google maps, geotagging, and yes even dictate to their iPhone to
convert voice to text. This list is surely the tip of the iceberg.

Technology is in the classroom. Let's embrace it wisely and use it to
enhance our teaching and learning.




Note: tools used were my iPhone, Dragon App, iPhone Notes, e-mail and Blogger. My goal is to produce in a more direct manner, so stay tuned.

Digital Storytelling Program - week 4 - Editing

This week was the introduction to the editing process. Transitioning from script and storyboard to the production environment. It can be a scary business...

Digital Storytelling - A Labor of Love

During the past 3 weeks, I have been guiding faculty participation the VCU CTE Digital Storytelling Program. This has been a labor of love. Interest in the program is high and the participants are fully engaged, with a second contingency tentatively scheduled in a few weeks. Little did I know that I would be inspired to transform my own reflections on our sessions into a serial production of digital stories, but the feeling has been so strong, that I had to create these stories. I hope that my response and actions might serve as a model for the participants and others who are interested in exploring the creation and use of digital storytelling in education.

Thanks to Terry Carter for providing initial feedback to the program and stories on her blog, Comming About: Learning About Digital Storytelling.

Guiding You is the title of the first story, which is my reflection on week 1, and that is exactly what I hope I am doing. Guiding is the act of leading, sharing information and learning with others as we correct our own course and make new discoveries.

Guiding You (week 1)

Story Circle (week 2)

Storyboard (week 3)

Tribes, News, Technology, Social Media and Education: First Reflections on Speeches During Blackboard World ‘09

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Watching a thing unfold and reflecting on the elements as they construct a larger picture are two different activities and experiences.

Reflecting on the Blackboard World '09 conference, I can begin to make connections between the opening keynote presentation, in which Seth Godin (author of Tribes) discussed the concept of tribes and the power of connectivity, to the closing session by Lester Holt of NBC News, who shared his background and passion for journalism and search for understanding. Given the conference announcement of the partnership between Blackboard and NBC News Archives on Demand, it is not surprising that Lester Holt would promote this new resource. However, the power of his message was above and beyond any promotional pitch.

Seth Godin started with exploration of who we are and how we identify ourselves, and others by the clothing (uniforms), hairstyles, the products we buy, and other actions or items, which become the symbols and banners of our “tribe”. He concluded by illustrating the power of connectivity and how individuals with passion to accomplish a goal can network and form a tribe, which can and will contribute their skills and various resources to implement the changes necessary to succeed. His message also conveyed that the technologies and tools of the day are powerful agents in the process.

Lester Holt reflected on nearly a century of journalism and how media has and can impact our awareness and understanding of events. He stated that news organizations record events and have been the “first documenters of history”. He also addressed the challenges which traditional news organizations face with the advent of the Internet, cell phones, digital cameras, and what some refer to as “citizen journalism”. When asked about information coming from these nontraditional sources, he acknowledged that many times, the professionals have been “scooped” by the amateurs. But he was quick to stress the importance of considering how we gather and verify information to document historical moments. Some of the remaining strengths of professional journalism are archival resources, professional research capabilities, including the ability to ask good questions and verify answers. Who and where did this report come from? When and where did the creation of this image, video, recording, etc. take place? He stressed the importance of a verified timeline, in order to establish that a story has not been fabricated to promote a particular agenda.

So what do the messages of both of these speakers convey to me? What are the links, which connect their stories with education and with my work as I consult with faculty about their teaching objectives and use of technologies in teaching and learning?

Seth Godin reinforced the power of group work and the impact which social media is having and can increasingly have on the formation of "tribes' and world events. He confirmed that the exploration of social media to expand learning both within and outside of the classroom is valuable work, which can benefit our faculty and students as they pursue both formal and informal learning.

Lester clarified, that as learners, we must all ask good questions & that good teaching is about enabling others to do the same. He reinforced the notion that the use of stories, particularly those, which are created and delivered with digital technology, can be a powerful tool in conveying understanding and/or provoking thoughtful discussion. To me, his message is consistent with Constructivist Learning Theory, which holds that humans generate knowledge and meaning from their experiences.

My time listening to these men was well spent. I am re-energized to continue my own learning and gain new understanding about the world in which I live, as it transforms at an ever increasing speed.

The 3 G's of Mobile Computing in July of 2009.

Image via CrunchBase

I include the date in this title because I believe the "promise" of mobile computing will be fulfilled in the near future, but the current reality is that:

Gee, I have an iPhone

Gee, it has neat features & available APPs

But, Gee it's problematic to get connected!

As I started this note, I was participating in the Blackboard Conference at the Gaylord National Hotel, National Harbor, Washington, D.C. The comments below have been written upon reflection.

I’ll start by confirming that I love my iPhone. Falling in the category of a cell “phone”, I really do not think of this as a telephone; it is a computing and communications device. My expectations are to be able to make phone calls as desired, but equally, if not more importantly, I expect full Internet connectivity and the ability to access and share information from any location, at any time. However, the experience of getting connected and being able to access resources or participate in activities such as Twittering, online polling was widely variable and frustrating. Making a telephone call was the most successful. Within the hotel, I had 5 bars most of the time. However, 3G connectivity ran hot and cold. Just as I started to gain confidence that I could expect service, it would fail. Switching to the wireless network provided by the conference organizers was just as problematic. I did find moments of joy, but all in all it was frustrating. Because I’m on a quest to learn about mobile computing, I kept fighting the good fight. But, all the time, I thought about my dream to leverage this technology in the classroom or in association with learning experiences in any location. Sadly, we are not ready for prime time.

Attempting to use this technology in education should be encouraged and it must be supported. Educators must work with technicians and providers to communicate the issues and solve the problems. We have the world at our fingertips and we need to be able to grasp it and hold on. If we could put a man on the moon, forty years ago this week, we surely can step up to this challenge and open the doors to a new world of communication, collaboration, learning, creating and sharing.

Someone let me know how I can help.