By Virgil E. Varvel Jr., CAI Specialist and Instructor
University of Illinois Department of Outreach and Public Service
In an era where our privacy seems to be slowly dwindling—when our email can be viewed by our employers and cameras sit perched on street corners—some strongholds of privacy do remain. And, perhaps surprisingly, one such stronghold carries over to the online realm. While your face may be on camera and your words in print, your identity remains protected and privileged information. Of interest then is the special situation when an individual enrolls in an online course. For some, it is the very nature of online anonymity that prompts an educational move to online courses.
http://elearnmag.org/subpage.cfm?section=articles&article=28-1
]]>By Martha Wicker,
Director of the Center for Instructional Development,
Clayton State University
Clayton State University's core mission is to provide superior career-oriented studies that will prepare its students to succeed in the world of work in the 21st century. A member of the Georgia University system with an enrollment of approximately 5,700, Clayton (www.clayton.edu) required its students to bring a laptop to campus as early as 1998. Now Clayton is introducing ePortfolios to campus, adding additional value to the students' use of their computers and providing a mechanism to document the outcomes of their education. Currently, we are using the portfolios in our department of Dental Hygiene and In the Department of Teacher Education."
http://www.campus-technology.com/news_article.asp?id=11801&typeid=156
]]>Submitted by Richard Lanham
Note: This essay began life as a talk delivered at several American campuses during my 2001-02 year as a Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar. I have revised and expanded it for publication here.
I ought to warn you up front that this essay is a one-trick pony: I make only one point. It is not hard to understand but has not been widely understood.
The One Trick
The transfer of information from the printed page to the digital screen has changed the meaning of ownership and authorship in perplexing ways. Our students face these perplexities every day of their learning and working lives—and not only if they use Napster or its epigones to download pop songs. I suggest that we should prepare them, in some formal way, for the intellectual property questions which are now an ordinary part of their lives. A course in copyright—we can call it “Copyright 101” —would be a good place to begin. I offer some suggestions about how such a course might develop."
http://www.academiccommons.org/commons/essay/lanham-copyright-101
]]>"Teens and Technology: Youth are Leading the Transition to a Fully Wired and Mobile Nation
Amanda Lenhart, Mary Madden, Paul Hitlin
Today’s American teens live in a world enveloped by communications technologies; the internet and cell phones have become a central force that fuels the rhythm of daily life.
The number of teenagers using the internet has grown 24% in the past four years and 87% of those between the ages of 12 and 17 are online. Compared to four years ago, teens’ use of the internet has intensified and broadened as they log on more often and do more things when they are online. "
Full report available at
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/162/report_display.asp
Distance learning and life-long studying have become popular in Hong Kong. To better balance the time allocation between job and study, students have to plan their study carefully. They need a full picture of the course material, the course schedule, course interactions and guidelines for such planning. We adopt practical advice, methodologies and techniques to develop a web-based mind learning system with mind scheduling and mind mapping. Mind scheduling provides the administrator, instructor and student with the scheduling methods underlying the principles of the mind and schedule paradigms, which offers a good way of time management in a semester. Mind mapping consists of a map tile, which holds the subject the map by filling in the thoughts the user may have about the subject, describing that thought in more detail. Thus, course leaders, lecturers, administrators and students can collaboratively use this system anytime and anywhere to supplement classroom learning for better coherence between students and lecturers.
]]>So we had our last tablet PC pilot training group today, and I'm incredibly happy to say it was every bit as good as the one last week, if not better. The 15 teachers in the room were really doing serious brainwork, thinking about how the tablet can change their practice, and they shared all sorts of great ideas. And like last week, I learned a great deal and saw even more potential in the tool. Makes me really yearn for the classroom, I must say."
Read More at:
http://www.weblogg-ed.com/2005/08/25#a3913
Abstract
Since early 2001 several institutions and many individual teachers have incorporated blogging into their online pedagogical strategies. During this time, weblog (blog) publishing technologies have evolved towards accessibility and ease of use and the technological barriers preventing adoption have dissolved. Blogs and their associated technologies are arguably heralding the most significant technological development in online teaching and learning since the introduction of enterprise level Learning Management Systems (LMS).
This development is all the more significant as a result of the communication dynamics inherent within blog technologies. Whereas an LMS stores and presents all information on a centralised and hierarchical basis, bound within the subject and the organisation, blogs are distributed, aggregated, open and independent. Through the use of blogs, it is suggested that teachers and learners are becoming empowered, motivated, reflective and connected practitioners in new knowledge environments. The balance between individualised and centralised technologies is restored.
The application of weblogs in an education setting will, at best, have a limited impact if due consideration of these developing communication dynamics are ignored. This paper includes a brief review of some of the institutional and individual blog projects that are taking place in higher education. In doing so it examines the different types of blog environments that are being used in terms of their communication dynamics and subsequent impact upon teachers, learners and pedagogy. Further, a more detailed examination is made of the use of blogs in teaching and learning in courses at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). In light of these studies and examination, possible approaches to implementing blogs in institutional settings are outlined in the form of an alternative Online Learning Environment. In addition, a study to be undertaken in 2006 examining the impact of blogs on teaching and learning at Deakin University will be described.
http://incsub.org/blog/2005/blogs-anywhere-high-fidelity-online-communication
]]>"Skinner, Ben. Handheld computers in health care: resources to get you started
Quality in Primary Care 2005; 13:113-117"
p ubMed offers RSS 2.0 (Really Simple Syndication) feeds. RSS is a Web standard for the delivery of news and other frequently updated content provided by Web sites. An RSS reader is required to use this service on your computer and retrieve new items from PubMed. There are numerous RSS readers from which to choose and many are available to download free from the Web. Different RSS readers behave and display data differently. The following is an example of the process for setting up an RSS feed. Not all readers will behave the same way."
]]>This web site provides you with a comprehensive resource on issues relating to multimedia, e-learning and accessibility. Whether you're new to e-learning, want to know more about specific accessibility issues, or are an expert multimedia developer, we believe you'll find information relevant to your needs."
http://www.skillsforaccess.org.uk/