Seeing Moodle in action has been a pretty eye-opening experience. Having used Blackboard and similar products both as a student and instructor, I had developed a pretty poor opinion of most educational management systems. The chief issues were always: poor organization, non-intuitive interface, and the system never having the 'perfect' tool for the job at hand.
The standard Moodle interface using a weekly chronological format was the first major improvement. Far too often in other systems, items are thrown in as the class progresses, which leads to a confusing sea of links. Also, Moodle uses a very 'flat' design scheme, preventing many of the 'click-chains' that can develop in other systems in order to get things done.
I showed the Moodle site to several of my students, and the 'friendliness' of it was by far the most common item noted. Simplicity will almost always trump byzantine complexity, and none of the people I polled had any issues seeing where to go to accomplish their goal.
At first, Moodle seemed to be roughly equivalent in the tools capacity. Quite often, I found myself wishing for different or expanded functions to get my work done more efficiently. But my research showed me that the open-source community had already come up with quite a few of the tools I had wanted. Not every tool I envisioned was extant, but the extensible nature of the system suggests that nearly anything would be possible with the right know-how behind it.
In reference to media I would recommend with Moodle, it is really dependent on the situation. There are way too many variables to indicate whether a given media strategy would be effective or not. For my course, if I had been able to modify my instructor station's software, I would have loved to do screen recordings of my in-class lectures/demonstrations. Students would only lose the ability to get synchronous feedback, which would be mitigated by their ability to rewatch tricky sections.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Bloom's Digital Taxonomy
My Moodle course is designed to serve as an instructional archive for my live class. Given this perspective, the content is mainly limited to the 'Remembering' and 'Understanding' areas. The archives of my lesson plans would serve to provide refresher topics for student study.
Using the 'Assignments' option provides a smooth submission path for my students as well.
If I was to utilize this as a true online tool, I would use screen recordings to branch into the 'Applying' and 'Analyzing' areas. The amount of interaction and review that could occur at this point makes it a truly solid educative platform.
Using the 'Assignments' option provides a smooth submission path for my students as well.
If I was to utilize this as a true online tool, I would use screen recordings to branch into the 'Applying' and 'Analyzing' areas. The amount of interaction and review that could occur at this point makes it a truly solid educative platform.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
How to Steal Like an Artist
The things I agreed with the most in this article were a few of the subsidiary statements.
2. Don't wait until you know who you are to make things
I don't think this can be stressed enough. I have a writer's group where the main requirement for entry is that you create as much work as possible. The critiques can be absurdly brutal at times, but the 'pick-yourself-up' skills you learn are immensely valuable. And a big part of that is to just keep churning as you grow.
3. Write the book you want to read
Far too often when it comes to creation, people get hung up on what others want or expect your work to be. Does that mean that you shouldn't care about audience? Of course not. If you want your audience to like your work (and they often won't), it is vitally important that you like it first. Otherwise, you have almost no chance.
I'm not a fan of the embrace of lack of originality. While it may be true that most ideas/themes have been explored ad nauseum, a fresh perspective is not only possible but often a requirement. I've created things that had already been done a thousand times before, but in my act of creation I was certainly blazing new personal territory. Maybe it's a question of perspective. But I'll always want to look at it my way. ;)
2. Don't wait until you know who you are to make things
I don't think this can be stressed enough. I have a writer's group where the main requirement for entry is that you create as much work as possible. The critiques can be absurdly brutal at times, but the 'pick-yourself-up' skills you learn are immensely valuable. And a big part of that is to just keep churning as you grow.
3. Write the book you want to read
Far too often when it comes to creation, people get hung up on what others want or expect your work to be. Does that mean that you shouldn't care about audience? Of course not. If you want your audience to like your work (and they often won't), it is vitally important that you like it first. Otherwise, you have almost no chance.
I'm not a fan of the embrace of lack of originality. While it may be true that most ideas/themes have been explored ad nauseum, a fresh perspective is not only possible but often a requirement. I've created things that had already been done a thousand times before, but in my act of creation I was certainly blazing new personal territory. Maybe it's a question of perspective. But I'll always want to look at it my way. ;)
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Faculty Perspectives - Response
I am planning on using the Moodle I designed for this class to encourage the community college to explore making the switch from Blackboard. Right now, they are switching to Blackboard Learn, the newest version, and it has made quite a few improvements. It is still overly complex and confusing for non-technical users.
Moodle is far more intuitive from what we've seen, but the Blackboard setup has some significant advantages.
Moodle is far more intuitive from what we've seen, but the Blackboard setup has some significant advantages.
- Blackboard course shells are automatically created for each course section
- Each student registered to a course section is auto-enrolled in that shell
- Sign-in to Blackboard is automated as an option from the integrated college login area
- Template shells can be created and assigned to courses per department
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Creativity
I think that the educational system's treatment of creativity is one of our great downfalls. From dictionary.com:
Creativity: the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.
Creativity is treated as if it is a divine or inspirational quality rather than a learned, practicable skill. From that perspective, learners are either creative or not. A much stronger emphasis is put on learning the way things work than in re-envisioning our world.
I've lost track of the times people have used that old chestnut 'Don't reinvent the wheel'. If the guy who invented the wheel thought that, we'd all still be rolling around on square tires like a cartoon! I'd almost always rather build from scratch and make my own mistakes along the way than follow the herd.
Creativity: the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.
Creativity is treated as if it is a divine or inspirational quality rather than a learned, practicable skill. From that perspective, learners are either creative or not. A much stronger emphasis is put on learning the way things work than in re-envisioning our world.
I've lost track of the times people have used that old chestnut 'Don't reinvent the wheel'. If the guy who invented the wheel thought that, we'd all still be rolling around on square tires like a cartoon! I'd almost always rather build from scratch and make my own mistakes along the way than follow the herd.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Culturally Inappropriate Web
Keeping your content appropriate and (relatively) inoffensive is something that any educator needs to keep in mind. With e-learning served through the Internet, this requirement becomes an even stronger imperative. If people around the world can view what you have created, the amount of attention this can bring is staggering.
1. Despair.com - I personally love this site for the dark humor, but it would be very easy for someone to be offended.
2. The Onion - this seemingly eternal satire site often has pieces written specifically for the purpose of tweaking someone's sensibilities.
3. YouTube - every time I hear someone mention they had their class look something up on YouTube, I cringe inside. The amount of offensive content that could find it's way into your class is amazing, as there are seemingly hundreds of videos that could offend anyone.
1. Despair.com - I personally love this site for the dark humor, but it would be very easy for someone to be offended.
2. The Onion - this seemingly eternal satire site often has pieces written specifically for the purpose of tweaking someone's sensibilities.
3. YouTube - every time I hear someone mention they had their class look something up on YouTube, I cringe inside. The amount of offensive content that could find it's way into your class is amazing, as there are seemingly hundreds of videos that could offend anyone.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Online learning study
The biggest surprise for me was the thought of online courses for K-12 students. Not the wholly online schools, but just the usage of online courses in standard schools. I just hadn't considered that outside of the University environment.
The next thing that stood out for me was the sharp line drawn between courses using e-learning tech to enhance courses as opposed to e-learning that replaces traditional courses. Having taken both types of courses, the different foci almost make the two types completely disconnected from each other. It almost seems that different studies for the two types would yield a better analysis.
Other than that, the most striking finding was what I (and others) probably already thought: blending the technological with the traditional seems to be the most effective paradigm. While the quality of any education would seem to be based more around design and implementation rather than choice of medium, it is heartening to see that properly utilized technology can be a great additive to an educational plan.
The next thing that stood out for me was the sharp line drawn between courses using e-learning tech to enhance courses as opposed to e-learning that replaces traditional courses. Having taken both types of courses, the different foci almost make the two types completely disconnected from each other. It almost seems that different studies for the two types would yield a better analysis.
Other than that, the most striking finding was what I (and others) probably already thought: blending the technological with the traditional seems to be the most effective paradigm. While the quality of any education would seem to be based more around design and implementation rather than choice of medium, it is heartening to see that properly utilized technology can be a great additive to an educational plan.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Netsmartz
This site seems like a strong resource for anyone not experienced with the pitfalls of the Internet.
My students are all adults, but can often be only minimally experienced in technology usage and the possible negatives involved. The 'internet safety' presentations could be highly effective in an 'Intro to Computers' class to help students start off with good (and safe) habits. I may actually recommend that the college links to this site to help all of their students.
I have quite a few students who are also parents, so the 'for parents' section would be invaluable for them. I will most likely bring it up in my next class, as several have mentioned their kids' excessive Internet usage as a concern.
My students are all adults, but can often be only minimally experienced in technology usage and the possible negatives involved. The 'internet safety' presentations could be highly effective in an 'Intro to Computers' class to help students start off with good (and safe) habits. I may actually recommend that the college links to this site to help all of their students.
I have quite a few students who are also parents, so the 'for parents' section would be invaluable for them. I will most likely bring it up in my next class, as several have mentioned their kids' excessive Internet usage as a concern.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Review: Eval of online vs. campus-based teacher prep programs
The first major surprise to me was the stated gap in effectiveness of online learning programs by subject in the Zhao, Lei, Lai, and Tan (2005) study. Distance-learning being more effective for computer science students makes sense, if only for the predictably higher level of technology competence. But the gap between subjects like business and social studies would seem to have little background technology differential.
The second surprise, and a welcome one was the extreme level of organization employed by the studied online program. Online course I've taken in the past tended to have a disjointed feel to them, as if they were cobbled together or translated poorly from a blueprint of a face-to-face class. To see such a rigid structure in the online arena fills me with ideas!
The third surprise was the way in which the demographic information was treated in the conclusion. The drastically higher percentage of older students using the online option my certainly have skewed the numbers, given the performance improvement I would expect to see from more experienced candidates. While the conclusion still seems valid, I would like to see an adjusted/normalized analysis to help reinforce the point.
The second surprise, and a welcome one was the extreme level of organization employed by the studied online program. Online course I've taken in the past tended to have a disjointed feel to them, as if they were cobbled together or translated poorly from a blueprint of a face-to-face class. To see such a rigid structure in the online arena fills me with ideas!
The third surprise was the way in which the demographic information was treated in the conclusion. The drastically higher percentage of older students using the online option my certainly have skewed the numbers, given the performance improvement I would expect to see from more experienced candidates. While the conclusion still seems valid, I would like to see an adjusted/normalized analysis to help reinforce the point.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
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