HipChat as a Team Tool

We use Hipchat at my workplace for team communication and team building. Generally, we leave the app open on all devices during the day and it is probably the most frequently used mode for communication.

Hipchat is interesting in a few ways – 1) It allows for both channel and private messaging, 2) has settings that allows for less or more frequent “alerts” for a specific channel, and 3) allows for synchronous video.  Some of the ways it has benefited my worklife, and that I also feel are best practices for using this kind of tool, are exampled here:

• Used for onboarding new team members -use it to meet team members traveling or remote through the video function. It is much more personal than email.
• Different channels serve different needs – for example, there is an “announcement” channel for major announcements, a “lounge” channel for personal commentary, resources, and sharing (great for team building and getting to know each other – for example, sharing photos of a new baby or other event), there is a channel for a specific part of the team to discuss issues (such as an ID channel).

So across the whole department, Hipchat has been used to bring the group together as a whole (global), create spaces for smaller groups to bond and discuss, and allow for shared resources and training with input from a variety of perspectives.

Facebook isn’t the same as other SN’s

We have had quite a bit of discussion in EME 6414 about using social media for education and training.

As mentioned in one of our readings this week, Identity, context collapse, and Facebook use in higher education: putting presence and privacy at odds (Dennen & Burner), one big issue with using FB in educational or training settings is the single-sign on account policy.  A major concern is  the disclosure of personal information on the site. Can we ask learners to use something for a class that puts their personal information on the Web? Because FB doesn’t allow for anonymous accounts that can be utilized for education, a personal account then becomes blended with educational activities.

I think this is an issue. Personally, I wouldn’t use my FB account for educational activities. In fact, it is the only social media platform that I use for any personal posts and/or connections. The limitations in privacy make the tool less desirable for multiple uses that cross a users networks and communities.

 

Reference

Dennen, V. P., & Burner, K. J. (2017). Identity, context collapse, and Facebook use in higher education: putting presence and privacy at odds. Distance Education, 1-20.

 

Open Educational Resources: Creative Commons

Open educational resources (OER) resources that that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others.  These resource might include images, music, textbooks, software, and many other types of materials that can be used for teaching and learning. One such resource is Creative Commons.

Creative Commons is a global, non-profit organization that provides copy-right free materials at varying levels of use. It is great for educators and trainers for both finding materials to use and/or to share their own work. It allows for educational resources to be adaptable and widely available supporting the exchange of knowledge.

Before you click on the link above and start sharing…keep in mind that you still must provide appropriate attribution.

Using VoiceThread to Narrate Your Lecture

I recently delivered a workshop on using VoiceThread to narrate lectures. We use it extensively in our EME 6414 course and is a great Web 2.0 tool. We also use it with an enterprise license at my place of work,  so I thought to share the basics of the info that I share with my faculty.

VoiceThread is a  “collaboration-optional” tool for communication that can convey images, videos, and documents along with text, audio/visual comments, and stylus-driven annotations. Specifically for lecture, you are able to collaborate or solo edit, share by links or export to an mp3, and you can also invite feedback (comments) to bolster interaction.

Recommended best practices for using it for lecture are to avoid fancy fonts and animations. You also want to be sure to compress all images in your PPT or PDF file to make it easier to process and load.

There are many other uses for  VoiceThread, including:

• Storytelling
• Digital Portfolio
• Instructions or Tutorials
• Problem Solving
• Visual Representation of Concepts
• Language Practice
• Debate
• Social Commentary on Issues
• Summarize Research or Class Discussion
• Show the steps in a process
• Collaborate on a project
• Showcase and evaluate work

Using the LMS to Its Full Potential

This week I ran a workshop for faculty and TA’s about using the full potential of an LMS for courses, no matter if they are online, blended, or on campus. I thought it would make a nice post this week as much of what was discussed relates to our studies in our course.

Technology-enabled learning is increasingly important and pervasive in higher education. Web-based systems such as  Learning Management Systems (LMS) allow instructors and students to share instructional materials, make class announcements, submit and return course assignments, and communicate with each other online. 

Today students need more than a typical “LMS” – they need user-centered environments and opportunities for interaction. A study done by the Gates Foundation and experts in the field found learning environments will be increasingly less instructor-centric and more student-centered. They will continue to develop the following “core functional dimensions”: 1. interoperability and integration; 2. personalization; 3. analytics and learning assessment; 4. collaboration; 5. accessibility and universal design (Brown, Dahoney, & Millichap, 2015).

Some best practices explored in this workshop ranged from administrative efficiency to new methods of learning engagement to unique reporting insights identifying student progress and interaction.

 

Reference

Brown, M., Dahoney, J., & Millihap, N. (2015).The next generation digital learning environment. Educause Learning Initiative. Retrieved from https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eli3035.pdf

Web 2.0 and Authentic Learning

It is important to devise meaningful learning experiences for students when crafting instruction. With the advent of Web 2.0 participatory tools, students have easy access to a myriad of collaborative tools. Collaborative learning allows for activities geared towards authentic tasks. For example, collaborative construction of knowledge can lead to deeper understanding of topics and more critical thinking.

Students can gain a lot from the variety of perspectives that comes out of group work. There are many Web 2.0 tools that can be utilized for collaboration, a few examples are Google Slides or Documents, wikis, project management software such as Basecamp or Slack, and mindmapping tools such as Bubble.us or Mind Meister.

Authentic tasks can also take the form of web-quests or simulations. Web quests can offer a learning experience that uses links to essential resources on the Web and an authentic task to motivate students’ investigation, such as open-ended question or participation in a group goal. An example of a free simulation tool is Inner Body, an Anatomy tool for basic knowledge or you can use tools that create “branched simulations”  which are interactive recreations of actual situations.  By interacting with them, a learner is given the opportunity to make realistic choices.

With the participatory nature of Web 2.0 tools and growth in mobile technologies, users are more able to collaborate and engage in authentic learning that brings a more applicable understanding and experience.

 

Lesson Plans

I thought since many of you are working on the Instructional Design Produsage Project, that I would offer some excellent resources for developing a lesson plan.

1. My first suggestion is the Harvard Teacher Education Program’s iSite Lesson Plan Templates. These are fantastic templates with examples from different subject areas.
2. A great resource from Montgomery University, a lesson plan that includes a checklist.
3. My favorite is this one from Brandeis University that offers a variety of templates for topic and type: Sample Lesson Plans

 

Produsage Project

This week I spent quite a lot of time working on my produsage project. I decided to work on a mock instructional design lesson meant to be a part of a TA training online course.

I chose to host the lesson on Google Slides. Slides will provide the platform for pre-work, instructions and placeholders for links to student work. The pre-work consists of YouTube instructional video, a mini-quiz on Quiz Generator, and online articles. Students are asked to collaborate on Google Slides and use a VoiceThread to present their project.

It turned out to be a lot more work than I had anticipated. Connecting the various tools so that it makes sense and works smoothly for students is challenging. Moving across platforms can make an assignment complicated and it is important to provide specific steps and criteria for clarity.

I am a big Google Drive fan and think it makes for a terrific platform to connect other tools with. Is anyone else using Drive tools for their project?

Strategies for a Digital Presence

One of the articles we are reading this week targets the importance of having a professional web presence . The article by Lowenthal, Dunlap, & Stitson, Creating an Intentional Web Presence: Strategies for Every Educational Technology Professional offers strategies for creating a digital presence.

One such strategy is to create a “personally controlled website”.  The authors define a personally controlled website as “one that is under the full purview of the individual whose work the site is showcasing.” There are advantages to this strategy to showcase professionally activity, ensure consistency and reliability, and allow for sharing of thoughts and ideas through integrated tools, such as blogs.

Another approach for developing a strong digital presence is to engage in social networking with tools such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Regardless of which tool/s is used it is important to participate in reputable organizations related to the field. It is also useful to contribute and network with the larger professional community.

Lowenthal, P. R., Dunlap, J. C., & Stitson, P. (2016). Creating an Intentional Web Presence: Strategies for Every Educational Technology Professional. TechTrends, 60(4), 320-329.

Web 2.0 Tools for Education: ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard

Although this app isn’t new, I wanted to highlight the great functionality of interactive whiteboards for student engagement, instructional strategy, and formative assessment. There are many options for interactive white boards. I am showcasing ShowMe because it is easy-to-use, free, and has collaborative opportunities.

ShowMe is an app that turns an iPad (and other mobile devices) into an interactive whiteboard that can be shared. This app is a great support for extended learning or for a flipped classroom model. It enables brainstorming and organization through a visual experience and is ideal for collaboration. 

Image from ShowMe. (2017). Retrieved from http://www.showme.com/

This tool can be used for instruction or as a strategy for formative assessment.  The software allows an instructor to write on a “white board” and speak about what is being shown on the screen.  Students can also create their own presentation as part of a class project or assessment.  It has terrific opportunities for interaction and personalizing the learning experience.

Some of the features include:

• Voice-record
•  Multiple brush colors
•  Enter text
•  Pause and erase
•  Import pictures from your photo library, built-in camera, or web image search
•  Import documents as pictures from dropbox, or google drive
•  Create video from any document
•  Unlimited lesson length
•  Free to upload and share your recordings with friends
•  Easy embedding for sharing anywhere
• Manage students with Groups