By Richard Anderson
FromCampus Technology
http://www.campus-technology.com/print.asp?ID=9537
Presentation technology has long had an influence on how we teach. In the wonderful quote above, the abolitionist Samuel J. May described his introduction to the blackboard and its impact on teaching. The quote illustrates a couple of key points: That technology has an important role in supporting classroom instruction, and that technologies perceived as beneficial to instruction will become widely adopted. The blackboard is a very powerful tool for instruction—it allows information to be displayed in a persistent manner, and can give the audience a consistent view of far more information than can be held in short-term memory. The blackboard becomes a mediating artifact that maintains a shared view between the instructor and students to provide context for lecture and discussion.
The UC Teaching, Learning and technology Center (TLtC) was established in July 2000 as a virtual center-without-walls for two primary purposes: (1) to provide systemwide visibility to campus and faculty efforts in the development and use of teaching and learning technologies and (2) to provide complementary support to leverage those efforts for the benefit of the entire University.
http://www.uctltc.org/index.html
Written by Joram Borenstein - Unicorn Solutions
Published in TDAN.com July 2004
Problems with metadata management plague organizations of all sizes, industries, and geographical locations. Information-rich industries are especially prone to experiencing metadata-related pain and would therefore be wise to consider the relevant technological and process solutions.
"
http://www.tdan.com/i029fe03.htm
Open Source Repository Search
posted by Matt Pasiewicz on Thursday, November 11, 2004 8:56:11 AM MST to EduCause Blog
A really interesting new search engine has emerged on the web scene. www.koders.com indexes known open source repositories allow users to search for code (125,112,016 lines of code!) written in any number of lanugages and licences. Also interesting is their aggregate views of projects. They analyze the number of files, lines of code, the number of languages used, and attempt to provide a mechanism for estimating what the cost was to develop the project. Very interesting. Compare the Apache HTTP-D-2.0 project with XML-COCOON2 and MONO. It would be fasinating to view comparions like these for academia's many open source initatives.
http://www.educause.edu/Blog/1511&blog_id=277&select_case=permalink
This was originally published in the Pakistani English language newspaper, Dawn, on January 9, 2005.
Keeping an education-related online diary
By Hafsa Ahsan
Blogs, or weblogs, have caught on fast with computer users all over the world. Alongside email, instant messengers and forums, blogs are the next best thing to communicate thoughts and feelings. Those who don’t know what a blog stands for, it is actually short for ‘web log’ - a diary written online for anyone with a computer and an Internet connection to see and comment on.
http://incsub.org/blog/index.php?p=171
LibraryLaw Blog: How does California's new anti-spyware law affect libraries?
"How does California's new anti-spyware law affect libraries?
The Consumer Protection Against Computer Spyware Act went into effect in California on January 1st. Although this is already being proclaimed as a model for the country, it was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger in spite of objections raised by privacy advocates. Beth Givens (Director, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse -- and former librarian) and Pam Dixon (Exec. Director, World Privacy Forum) say that the law sets such high standards regarding actual knowledge that it could actually undermine existing statutes that protect privacy and prohibit deceptive practices.
Does the bill apply to library computers? It applies to computers "of a consumer in this state." It doesn't say the consumer needs to own the computer, so far as I read the law. It defines "consumer" as "an individual who resides in this state and who uses the computer in question primarily for personal, family, or household purposes." Calif. & Bus. Prof. 22947.1(e). I believe this should include public library computers (perhaps not other types of libraries), since they are commonly used by consumers for personal, family or household purposes."
http://blog.librarylaw.com/librarylaw/2005/01/the_consumer_pr.html
Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in Networked E-Learning
A Beginners Guide for Content Developers
This guide aims to provide a user-friendly introduction to IPR issues for e-learning content developers and managers. It is intended to act as a point of entry to the field of IPR in e-learning that will provide a good foundation for building expertise in the e-learning developer community. It deals with the basic aspects of IPR, especially copyright, in e-learning content development, with an emphasis on reusing third party materials to create new resources. The guide has been written by an e-learning content developer who has had to deal with these issues in practice. The style of the guide is practical and approachable with many useful tips and observations but it also provides a sketch of the wider issues. It also provides flow diagrams, templates, case studies and further sources of information and guidance.
http://www.jisclegal.ac.uk/publications/johncasey_1.htm
- Robin Good
As I wanted to make my small contribution to the Global Learn Day event which is taking place online at this very time (PC Windows users log in here), I just thought of making my own little presentation (with no slides ::: just my talking head) to simplify the logistic of contributing to the live event easier.
There are lots of individuals who want to rightly contribute to this live event, and I see hardly an opportunity to come up and take the podium for my little rap. So, I am taking permission to use some of these truly accessible tools to contribute to the event in my own little way. I really wanted to share a bit of my thoughts wihtout getting too technical with this, and I thought that a few of you may have liked to hear my thoughts, as an academic outsider, about what I see as being the key ten technologies that will change the way we learn in the future.
http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2004/11/21/ten_technologies_that_are_going.htm
October 18, 2004
George Siemens
Introduction
One of the biggest challenges in discussing elearning arises from different understandings of the field. Most often, we attach our experiences and career to our conversations, presenting an image of elearning that reflects what we have encountered. For an instructional designer, elearning often means courses or learning materials directed at meeting an objective within the larger scope of program development. A corporate trainer may view elearning as a combination of courses and knowledge management. No one perspective is symbolic of the whole industry."
http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/elearningcategories.htm
"Design Checklists for Online Help
By Michelle Corbin
Online help systems have evolved over the past 20 years to meet the needs of our users. Designers must consider the content, format, presentation, navigation, and access methods of online help systems. A series of design checklists based on the past 20 years of research are presented in this paper, which summarizes a journal article currently being considered for publication. The latest trend in online help system design is embedded user assistance, which includes integrating information into the interface and including an embedded help pane within that interface to display a context-sensitive online help system."
http://www.winwriters.com/articles/checklist/index.html
December 16, 2004
George Siemens
Introduction
Electronic portfolios (also referred to as eportfolios or webfolios) are gaining recognition as a valuable tool for learners, instructors, and academic organizations. Bold proclamations laud webfolios as “higher education’s new “got to have it” tool – the show-and-tell platform of the millennium” (Cohen and Hibbitts, 2004), and as a tool that “may have the most significant effect on education since the introduction of formal schooling” (Love, McKean, and Gathercoal, 2004). Laying aside new-technology hype and enthusiasm, eportfolios can best be viewed as a reactionary response to fundamental shifts in learning, teaching, technology, and learner needs in a climate where learning is no longer perceived as confined to formal education."
http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/eportfolios.htm
Robert Farmer, Mount Saint Vincent University, Canada
Robert.Farmer@msvu.ca
University of New Brunswick
Abstract
Today’s students have grown up with the computer; in fact many, if not most, are younger than the first microcomputer. Students are more technology literate and Internet savvy than ever, and they use technology in ways that weren’t even thought of a decade ago. What impact does this have on educators today and for the future?
This paper begins by highlighting select current literature in the area of students’ knowledge of communication technology with a focus on instant messaging. Instant messaging usages today and proposed future usages are looked at. While today’s younger generation has adopted it with a frenzy, it appears that the corporate enterprise will be the next big player in the instant messaging arena. Corporate enterprise level (secure) instant messaging usages are discussed and several enterprise level software packages are identified. The advantages and disadvantages of both public and secure instant messaging are discussed.
A review of results from a student survey on technology usage and an in-class instant messaging trial are presented. In the student survey on technology usage, students rated their use of four technologies; email, browser, discussion forums, and instant messaging. The in-class instant messaging trail usage statistics were captured using an enterprise level (secure) instant messaging software.
In conclusion, this paper reviews some of the good, the bad, and the ugly about instant messaging and some of the benefits and drawbacks of instant messaging in educational settings.
http://naweb.unb.ca/proceedings/2003/PaperFarmer.html
By Ruth Reynard
The use of Internet technology to facilitate interaction, communication, and collaboration is well documented but its use in establishing and developing "personal voice" as part of learning is also now being addressed through the use of blogs. Finding personal voice as a pedagogical method is important to establish learner identity and focus, and journaling has long been recognized as an effective way to provide space for this to occur. The blog, however, provides a context in which personal voice can be "published" by the student, which means that attention is given to content, relevancy, and connection with learning outcomes to a higher degree than a traditional journal submission. The idea that more than one person will view the work is quite powerful in promoting a sense of ownership from the student. Teachers can also benefit from "hearing" the personal voice of their students to begin to really understand the learning path of each student through a course.
In our initial studies we have been interested specifically in asking:
* Is blogging perceived as a good way to establish personal voice by both students and instructors?
* Is there a tension created by the published nature of the blog?
* What do instructors need to do to contextualize blogging in a course?
http://www.campus-technology.com/news_article.asp?id=10473&typeid=156
By Joseph W. Madaus
Joan M. McGuire
Sally S. Scott
With increasing numbers of students with "hidden disabilities" (e.g., learning disabilities) and other diverse learning needs accessing higher education, institutions are challenged to assure access to programs and courses while maintaining academic and technical standards. Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) offers an innovative means to promote academic access for a broad range of diverse learners. UDI represents a paradigm shift from a retroactive accommodation model of access to a proactive inclusive approach that anticipates and values human diversity.
http://www.campus-technology.com/news_article.asp?id=10472&typeid=155