https://deimos.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/BrowsePrivately/psu.edu.2923939450.02923939463.2946858513?i=1614854422
Many web 2.0 tools have a far reaching and deep educational value that can enhance the learning experience of many and give a richer and fuller quality to the ongoing intellectual process, this is not any of that.. it was just fun.
I used and explored, mostly through trial and error (a great learning experience) web 2.0 tools as a fun way to complete our assignment which was "how could you influence or plead with someone to check out your blog, wiki, niing or other web 2.0 site" and I choose a parody. Some of the challenges were technical, others dealt with time constraints and some were self imposed obsessions to do something that I liked and felt satisfied at the end.
So, first came the idea and that was germinated by Megan's direction of "what would it take to get someone to visit your site?" and for me it would have to be catchy and funny. I thought of a commercial and then out of the blue I thought of a parody of an infommercial (plus I am a fan of the genre, I first was going to do Ron Popeil the guy that brought us the oven where you just "Set It and Forget It!", Ron was the original TV pitchman going back to the '60's-my Dad owned a Ron Popeil Pocket Fisherman, one of the original TV pitched products.. enough of the back story) to explain a little about what the idea of web 2.0 is all about. I roughed out a script and started to flesh out some ideas.
I was able to find the original ShamWow script online and used it as a template for pacing and to capture some of the catch phrases used in the original. I needed some good background music, my first attempts in Audacity were failures.. bad tempo, wrong musical type. When I decided on what kind of music I wanted, I then had to find it. I went to a Torrent site and downloaded some music files but one of them was suspicious in how it acted etc., so I went elsewhere.
One of the songs I wanted to use I know I owned on a vinyl disc but a long torturous search revealed nothing except memeories attached to the old disks. I fianaly found a song I liked, but since I purchased it in iTunes, Audacity could not import it for some reason. Turning to the Audacity wiki I found a work around (record to a cd, play it in WMP and record it into Audacity) it worked.
But now the audio track I was laying down sounded terrible. The microphone from my web cam could not handle the sound. All of the track was clipped (too much digital information trying to get into a limited amount of bits on the track and you get static.. sounded bad). I tried almost every filter that Audacity offers but to no avail. I now know about almost every filter Audacity has and what it can do (another great learning experience).
Frustated with the end sounding result I went out and bought a microphone with the understanding of the salesman that if it did not record without clipping I was going to bring it back the next day, he agreed (gotta love seasonal help at Staples) and off I went.
The new microphone recorded beautifully. Full sound waves on the spectrogram scale in Audacity with plently of band width to manipulate with Audacity's tools. i was able to fade in, fade out, cut a piece from another take and splice it into another track, speed up a section to change my voice and in the end have fun with the whole process. When learning can be fun it's not learning at all, it is just joy.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Learning Experience
J.C. Halverson
Special Topics INSYS 497B
Megan Fritz PhD
Fall 2009
Penn State Great Valley
Overview of Project
The project that I implemented web 2.0 tools into involves training individuals to become trainers for their respective organizations. The groups of “Train the Trainer” participants are from different areas of the Dallas Region of the Department of Labor’s Job Corps program. The participants are spread over eleven states at twenty two different residential training centers. For the purposes of this project the participants will be divided into two groups, those in the northern tier of states and those in the southern tier of states which will be the targeted group for this beta stage of the project. The overall objective is to have all of these staff become competent trainers in the “Normative Culture” training techniques which my training company provides as an independent training sub contractor. The web 2.0 tool which will be the focal point of this project will be wiggio, a free site designed to help working with groups easier.
Besides the logistics of having a group that is spread out over a wide geographic area, one of the challenges is that most of the staff involved are adult learners and they present specific challenges as adult learners and complicating the variables is that the project has the objective of the addition of implementing a new technology into that learning process. The Educause Quarterly identifies that adult students often have little experience working online and need help navigating content and performing learning tasks. There are groups striving to bridge the divide, the national Council of Adult Experiential Learners sponsors tools and seminars to assist in addressing the needs and realities of the adult learner. The wiggio tool was chosen as part of this project because of the simplicity of its design, the features included and it is free.
Implementation
As with any change project it is imperative to have authorization and support from the top management or administration and this project initiated a preliminary request on November 10, 2009 with the Program Supervisor of the Dallas Regional Office of Job Corps. I presented the overall concept of the online tool, my connection to the project as a student and as a businessman and answered questions about cost, copyright and hosting responsibilities. It was agreed that a follow up meeting would be held in Albuquerque during an upcoming training session with the targeted group of adult learners. A meeting was held with the Department of Labor Regional Director of Job Corps and the concept of the project and web 2.0 tool was presented. It was determined that permission from the National Office would not be necessary if my company would be hosting the site and therefore it would not have to fall under the Department of Labor’s Internet Acceptable Use policy which would have put undue restrictions and the possibility of a lengthy review process on the use of the web 2.0 tool.
I spoke with the training participants and told them of my plans to put together a web site that would help them organize the training material, provide supplemental training aides and provide a forum to share with others the trials and tribulations they were going through in performing training sessions. Speck has identified that “adults will commit to learning when the goals and objectives are considered realistic and important to them. Application in the 'real world' is important and relevant to the adult learner’s personal and professional needs”.
On December 9, 2009 an email was sent to the Train the Trainer group announcing the launch of the wiggio web 2.0 web site and inviting them to log in and begin to interact with the features of the site. Follow up invitation emails were sent as well emails announcing the addition of new material as a way to pique interest in those that have not logged on yet.
Evaluation
In order to evaluate the success of this project will require a long term perspective and tangible evaluative criteria. The evaluation will be divided into four main categories; involvement, active usage, training and participant self assessment. A rudimentary rubric was developed to have an ongoing base line of evaluation. It is the intention to complete the rubric at the end of each month for the first four months of the project as a means to give the Regional Office of Job Corps and the participant’s feedback about where the group stands in the use of the web 2.0 wiggio tool. The first measurement area is to look at participant involvement as measured by how many of the group log into the site. This is a simple numerical standard used but could identify if some participants might have issues logging on because of a lack of computer skills or access to a computer.
The second area evaluated will be the amount of active usage participants do. This will measure the degree to which the group uses the materials in a collaborative way to edit, comment and produce training material. Leib has written how adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge that may include work-related activities, family responsibilities, and previous education. They need to connect learning to this knowledge/experience base. (Leib) The scale will be determined by the degree to which participants are able to “personalize” the training material with references from their own lives.
The third area to be evaluated will be trainings the participants actually perform at their respective centers. This is an important component in that it represents an overall objective irrespective of the use of the web 2.0 tool but still is indicative of the tools ability to influence the behavior of the group members. The function of the wiggio site allows individuals to post their scheduled and completed training sessions.
The final evaluation area to be examined is a poll distributed to participants asking about their assessment of their development as a trainer. A Leikert scale will be used to gauge the progress of individuals over the four month evaluation period. Questions will be developed to ascertain knowledge of the training content, confidence in presenting the material, support of management and feedback from the participants in their training sessions.
Works Cited
Cordes, S. (2009). How IT Can Help Support Adult Learners. Retrieved 12 12, 2009, from Educause Quaterly: http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/AdultLearnersHowITCanSupportNe/163869
Council of Adult Experiential Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved 12 10, 2009, from http://www.cael.org/
Leib. (n.d.). Principles of Adult Education. Retrieved 12 14, 2009, from Adults as Learners: http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/adults-2.htm
Appendix
#1 Email sent to Train the Trainer participants/ December 9, 2009
I hope everyone is doing well. As I had mentioned during our last session in
Albuquerque I have put together a web site for all of the Train the Trainer
participants. Feel free to explore and try out some of the features. I have put
the files from the trainer’s manual under the "folder" tab, have put some video
clips under the "links" tab and we can message under the "message" tab. When you
open a file under the "folder" tab, you can edit it and save it and the original
version will remain and a new version will be created. What we can do is have
people make changes and create a group version of some of the material.
For now just play around, send me a message (that will help me out know that you
were able to log on) add material; add a link of your center.... just have some
fun exploring the site and we will see if this is worthwhile for us.
Take care and I hope everyone had a great holiday and survives the upcoming
holidays!
ps- on the calendar tab you can put in the dates you have worked out to do
training at your center (hopefully!!!), so put your center's name and what
portion of training you are doing... good luck and as always I am open to
feedback... oh the "view" feature does not seem to work with the documents, use
the "edit" and the document will open.
----------------------------------------
Reply in the Messages section of Normative Culture:
http://www.wiggio.com/seek.html?type=message&gid=188929&id=935463&email=ngtgroup@aol.com
Thank you for using Wiggio!
#2 Evaluation Rubric
**(sorry, but the formatting for the following did not carrying over when I pasted thsi from my paper and I don't know how to correct it, thanks)
Participant
Involvement Evaluation # Date: Comments:
0-6 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 1
7-12 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 2
8-18 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 3
18-25 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 4
Total
Active Usage
Participants do not view or edit any documents
Score 1
Participants view documents but do no editing or downloading
Score 2
Participants do editing of documents and download
Score 3
Participants collaborate with others in creating documents, add new material
Score 4
Total
Training
Participants do not perform any training session
Score 1
Participants schedule training sessions but they are not completed
Score 2
Participants schedule and perform one to two days of training
Score 3
Participants schedule and perform three to five days of training
Score 4
Total
Self Assessment
Participants do not return poll distributed
Score 1
Participants return poll with no comments
Score 2
Participants return poll with comments
Score 3
Participants return poll with comments and suggestions
Score 4
Total
Grand Total
Special Topics INSYS 497B
Megan Fritz PhD
Fall 2009
Penn State Great Valley
Overview of Project
The project that I implemented web 2.0 tools into involves training individuals to become trainers for their respective organizations. The groups of “Train the Trainer” participants are from different areas of the Dallas Region of the Department of Labor’s Job Corps program. The participants are spread over eleven states at twenty two different residential training centers. For the purposes of this project the participants will be divided into two groups, those in the northern tier of states and those in the southern tier of states which will be the targeted group for this beta stage of the project. The overall objective is to have all of these staff become competent trainers in the “Normative Culture” training techniques which my training company provides as an independent training sub contractor. The web 2.0 tool which will be the focal point of this project will be wiggio, a free site designed to help working with groups easier.
Besides the logistics of having a group that is spread out over a wide geographic area, one of the challenges is that most of the staff involved are adult learners and they present specific challenges as adult learners and complicating the variables is that the project has the objective of the addition of implementing a new technology into that learning process. The Educause Quarterly identifies that adult students often have little experience working online and need help navigating content and performing learning tasks. There are groups striving to bridge the divide, the national Council of Adult Experiential Learners sponsors tools and seminars to assist in addressing the needs and realities of the adult learner. The wiggio tool was chosen as part of this project because of the simplicity of its design, the features included and it is free.
Implementation
As with any change project it is imperative to have authorization and support from the top management or administration and this project initiated a preliminary request on November 10, 2009 with the Program Supervisor of the Dallas Regional Office of Job Corps. I presented the overall concept of the online tool, my connection to the project as a student and as a businessman and answered questions about cost, copyright and hosting responsibilities. It was agreed that a follow up meeting would be held in Albuquerque during an upcoming training session with the targeted group of adult learners. A meeting was held with the Department of Labor Regional Director of Job Corps and the concept of the project and web 2.0 tool was presented. It was determined that permission from the National Office would not be necessary if my company would be hosting the site and therefore it would not have to fall under the Department of Labor’s Internet Acceptable Use policy which would have put undue restrictions and the possibility of a lengthy review process on the use of the web 2.0 tool.
I spoke with the training participants and told them of my plans to put together a web site that would help them organize the training material, provide supplemental training aides and provide a forum to share with others the trials and tribulations they were going through in performing training sessions. Speck has identified that “adults will commit to learning when the goals and objectives are considered realistic and important to them. Application in the 'real world' is important and relevant to the adult learner’s personal and professional needs”.
On December 9, 2009 an email was sent to the Train the Trainer group announcing the launch of the wiggio web 2.0 web site and inviting them to log in and begin to interact with the features of the site. Follow up invitation emails were sent as well emails announcing the addition of new material as a way to pique interest in those that have not logged on yet.
Evaluation
In order to evaluate the success of this project will require a long term perspective and tangible evaluative criteria. The evaluation will be divided into four main categories; involvement, active usage, training and participant self assessment. A rudimentary rubric was developed to have an ongoing base line of evaluation. It is the intention to complete the rubric at the end of each month for the first four months of the project as a means to give the Regional Office of Job Corps and the participant’s feedback about where the group stands in the use of the web 2.0 wiggio tool. The first measurement area is to look at participant involvement as measured by how many of the group log into the site. This is a simple numerical standard used but could identify if some participants might have issues logging on because of a lack of computer skills or access to a computer.
The second area evaluated will be the amount of active usage participants do. This will measure the degree to which the group uses the materials in a collaborative way to edit, comment and produce training material. Leib has written how adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge that may include work-related activities, family responsibilities, and previous education. They need to connect learning to this knowledge/experience base. (Leib) The scale will be determined by the degree to which participants are able to “personalize” the training material with references from their own lives.
The third area to be evaluated will be trainings the participants actually perform at their respective centers. This is an important component in that it represents an overall objective irrespective of the use of the web 2.0 tool but still is indicative of the tools ability to influence the behavior of the group members. The function of the wiggio site allows individuals to post their scheduled and completed training sessions.
The final evaluation area to be examined is a poll distributed to participants asking about their assessment of their development as a trainer. A Leikert scale will be used to gauge the progress of individuals over the four month evaluation period. Questions will be developed to ascertain knowledge of the training content, confidence in presenting the material, support of management and feedback from the participants in their training sessions.
Works Cited
Cordes, S. (2009). How IT Can Help Support Adult Learners. Retrieved 12 12, 2009, from Educause Quaterly: http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/AdultLearnersHowITCanSupportNe/163869
Council of Adult Experiential Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved 12 10, 2009, from http://www.cael.org/
Leib. (n.d.). Principles of Adult Education. Retrieved 12 14, 2009, from Adults as Learners: http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/adults-2.htm
Appendix
#1 Email sent to Train the Trainer participants/ December 9, 2009
I hope everyone is doing well. As I had mentioned during our last session in
Albuquerque I have put together a web site for all of the Train the Trainer
participants. Feel free to explore and try out some of the features. I have put
the files from the trainer’s manual under the "folder" tab, have put some video
clips under the "links" tab and we can message under the "message" tab. When you
open a file under the "folder" tab, you can edit it and save it and the original
version will remain and a new version will be created. What we can do is have
people make changes and create a group version of some of the material.
For now just play around, send me a message (that will help me out know that you
were able to log on) add material; add a link of your center.... just have some
fun exploring the site and we will see if this is worthwhile for us.
Take care and I hope everyone had a great holiday and survives the upcoming
holidays!
ps- on the calendar tab you can put in the dates you have worked out to do
training at your center (hopefully!!!), so put your center's name and what
portion of training you are doing... good luck and as always I am open to
feedback... oh the "view" feature does not seem to work with the documents, use
the "edit" and the document will open.
----------------------------------------
Reply in the Messages section of Normative Culture:
http://www.wiggio.com/seek.html?type=message&gid=188929&id=935463&email=ngtgroup@aol.com
Thank you for using Wiggio!
#2 Evaluation Rubric
**(sorry, but the formatting for the following did not carrying over when I pasted thsi from my paper and I don't know how to correct it, thanks)
Participant
Involvement Evaluation # Date: Comments:
0-6 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 1
7-12 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 2
8-18 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 3
18-25 participants log on to wiggio site within 30 days of invitation
Score 4
Total
Active Usage
Participants do not view or edit any documents
Score 1
Participants view documents but do no editing or downloading
Score 2
Participants do editing of documents and download
Score 3
Participants collaborate with others in creating documents, add new material
Score 4
Total
Training
Participants do not perform any training session
Score 1
Participants schedule training sessions but they are not completed
Score 2
Participants schedule and perform one to two days of training
Score 3
Participants schedule and perform three to five days of training
Score 4
Total
Self Assessment
Participants do not return poll distributed
Score 1
Participants return poll with no comments
Score 2
Participants return poll with comments
Score 3
Participants return poll with comments and suggestions
Score 4
Total
Grand Total
Monday, December 14, 2009
Blog #4 Planning and Implementation
Well I have to admit that for most of the semester I felt as though I was playing catch up and struggling to keep pace. No excuses, but I was working, running a business, traveling doing training, starting grad school, working on the car and bike, getting ready for the holdays and being part of a family. All satisfying and rewarding pursuits but it became a chocolate mess for a while trying to juggle and plan how I could manage all the important things in my life. Then came the learning curve of new technologies presented in class, I had moments of being overwhelmed and questioning of what was going to have to give. So, it had to come down to planning and dilligently multi-tasking or risk having to make some serious decisions.
Come to find out that some of those web 2.0 tools could actually organize some parts of my overflowing life pursuits, if I could just figure out how they work.
I focused on the interaction of school and the training business and how they could complement each other. I have always needed to have a practical application of something to keep my interest, never went for novels, had to be non-fiction to appreciate the reality of it all.
I was lucky to be at a point in my training business where a web 2.0 tool fit nicely into a new initiative we were doing. I presented the overall plan to the powers that be and to the particpants themselves and everything was very well received, so off we went! i spent some frustrating times preparing to launch the tool (wiggio.com) trying to get all of the parts to work and even with some shortcomings, loaded up the site with lots of my work (with a nod to the concept of creative commons)and sent out invitations to the participants. The response has been good, not great, but a very good start. Some people had issues (what do i click on?) which indicated the group is going to go through a similar experience I went through, how does this stuff work.. how do I fit this into my busy life.. they are no diferent than I was at the start of the semester.. sometimnes overwhelmed. Plus they may naot have the motivation I had I'm trying to get another grad degree and a good enough grade so I get reimbursed from my employer, so they may not share my enthusiasm or perspective.
So as I near the end of the semester I truely have to say that I have learned alot, what more can a teacher or student hope for than that declartation? I look forward to where I can take this, I am committed to following through because I have made it part of my training company, hopefully that was a wise decision. I think ti is the right direction, it is not the destination but the direction.. I could always find another web 2.0 application and intetgrate that without degrading the overall direction. best luck to everyone and I hope you have a peaceful holiday with your loved ones, because we all know that they are the most important social network there is.
Come to find out that some of those web 2.0 tools could actually organize some parts of my overflowing life pursuits, if I could just figure out how they work.
I focused on the interaction of school and the training business and how they could complement each other. I have always needed to have a practical application of something to keep my interest, never went for novels, had to be non-fiction to appreciate the reality of it all.
I was lucky to be at a point in my training business where a web 2.0 tool fit nicely into a new initiative we were doing. I presented the overall plan to the powers that be and to the particpants themselves and everything was very well received, so off we went! i spent some frustrating times preparing to launch the tool (wiggio.com) trying to get all of the parts to work and even with some shortcomings, loaded up the site with lots of my work (with a nod to the concept of creative commons)and sent out invitations to the participants. The response has been good, not great, but a very good start. Some people had issues (what do i click on?) which indicated the group is going to go through a similar experience I went through, how does this stuff work.. how do I fit this into my busy life.. they are no diferent than I was at the start of the semester.. sometimnes overwhelmed. Plus they may naot have the motivation I had I'm trying to get another grad degree and a good enough grade so I get reimbursed from my employer, so they may not share my enthusiasm or perspective.
So as I near the end of the semester I truely have to say that I have learned alot, what more can a teacher or student hope for than that declartation? I look forward to where I can take this, I am committed to following through because I have made it part of my training company, hopefully that was a wise decision. I think ti is the right direction, it is not the destination but the direction.. I could always find another web 2.0 application and intetgrate that without degrading the overall direction. best luck to everyone and I hope you have a peaceful holiday with your loved ones, because we all know that they are the most important social network there is.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Working With a Group
I recently started using a Web 2.0 tool called Wiggio,www.wiggio.com, which is designed to improve working with groups. Soem times working with a group or groups is like herding cats, it seems simple but there are so many going in different directions it hard to keep everyone together.
In my application of the tool I am working with three groups, spread over eleven states at twenty two different sites. The wiggio site is like a wiki, in that memebrs are invited to join and there are links for the group to use. Wiggio provides an areas for uploading files, videos, power point presentations and documents. This allows the memebrs of the site to edit, view or download the files to use. the editing feature allows group memeber to work colllectively on a document and retain previous versions to refer or revert ot.
A calendar feature allows all memebrs to the group to schedule or view events. A meeting tab gives the group the abiliity to have a virtual meeting, an ongoing discussion or a place to post comments. If you were interested in finding out how the group thinks about a specific issue or topic, a polling feature is avbailable that can be designed to send out questionaires to group memebers and tabulate the results.
I have found that using this tool has given my business a new and forward thinking look to those individuals and organizations I am working with. This also is a great "value added" benefit that only costs me my time, what a deal. If interested, check out wiggio, makes working with a group easier, although I don't think it will help with those cats.
In my application of the tool I am working with three groups, spread over eleven states at twenty two different sites. The wiggio site is like a wiki, in that memebrs are invited to join and there are links for the group to use. Wiggio provides an areas for uploading files, videos, power point presentations and documents. This allows the memebrs of the site to edit, view or download the files to use. the editing feature allows group memeber to work colllectively on a document and retain previous versions to refer or revert ot.
A calendar feature allows all memebrs to the group to schedule or view events. A meeting tab gives the group the abiliity to have a virtual meeting, an ongoing discussion or a place to post comments. If you were interested in finding out how the group thinks about a specific issue or topic, a polling feature is avbailable that can be designed to send out questionaires to group memebers and tabulate the results.
I have found that using this tool has given my business a new and forward thinking look to those individuals and organizations I am working with. This also is a great "value added" benefit that only costs me my time, what a deal. If interested, check out wiggio, makes working with a group easier, although I don't think it will help with those cats.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Blog #3 Safety and Security
The issue of safety and security is many times taken from the perspective of protecting students from online predators and adult web sites and this is how it should be but there is another perspective in terms of security from the position of the organization or school administration from itself and staff.
A recent NY Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/education/15plans.html brings up the issue of teachers selling their lesson plans online for their own gain and in some cases to purchase classroom material. The issue is a moral question but also a security issue that schools and organizations have to come to a decision on. "Can a teacher sell the material used in the school for their own financial gain"? It also has to be decided if using the web access and technology to create and ultimately sell the lesson plans is a security violation of the Internet use policy.
It seems this is where collaboration and the concept of "open" symbiotic development hits the entrepreneur spirit and the free market concept. The web blog site Edutopia is discussing this http://www.edutopia.org/poll-selling-lesson-plans-online?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Reader issue and some of the points brought up is the idea that teachers should own their work and should then be allowed to do what they want to do with it. The problem with this argument is that it has been a legal tenant that work created during work time is owned by the organization (does this apply to a school?). So following this, if teachers did projects on their own time they can sell them through their home computers at will. the moral issue their is for those buying them, is that an accepted method, why not, isn't it like buying a book as a reference.
So the line between collaboration and sharing ways to educate can become blurred when profit comes into the picture, but should it?
A recent NY Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/education/15plans.html brings up the issue of teachers selling their lesson plans online for their own gain and in some cases to purchase classroom material. The issue is a moral question but also a security issue that schools and organizations have to come to a decision on. "Can a teacher sell the material used in the school for their own financial gain"? It also has to be decided if using the web access and technology to create and ultimately sell the lesson plans is a security violation of the Internet use policy.
It seems this is where collaboration and the concept of "open" symbiotic development hits the entrepreneur spirit and the free market concept. The web blog site Edutopia is discussing this http://www.edutopia.org/poll-selling-lesson-plans-online?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Reader issue and some of the points brought up is the idea that teachers should own their work and should then be allowed to do what they want to do with it. The problem with this argument is that it has been a legal tenant that work created during work time is owned by the organization (does this apply to a school?). So following this, if teachers did projects on their own time they can sell them through their home computers at will. the moral issue their is for those buying them, is that an accepted method, why not, isn't it like buying a book as a reference.
So the line between collaboration and sharing ways to educate can become blurred when profit comes into the picture, but should it?
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Blog #2 Research and the Reflective Practitioner
This exploration of the world of web 2.0 possibilities and opportunities is an invaluable process that will have long term implications on how I view the programs and applications that are available. When you look below the surface and see what some people are doing with what may have been seen as a superficial use of technology, you can begin to understand the enormous potential that is there to really collaborate with a worldwide group of peers.
The research experience has motivated me to find how I can share the tools with others in the teaching and collaboration process. The challenge is, as always is the case, getting others to participate, explore and then evaluate it's effectiveness. Finding ways to motivate others to change the methods by which they have become accustomed to operating is a challenge in unto itself, but to add getting adult learners to adopt new technology is an added challenge. None the less, the value of what could be accomplished with the application of some of these tools is far greater than any adjustment period some may have to go through. What is also gained in the collaborative process is the power of the group, not only on the product being produced but on the members of the collaboration, it encourages others to participate because other members of the group are doing it. Anonymity is not possible in a group exercise even if the participants are not physically together.
The research experience has motivated me to find how I can share the tools with others in the teaching and collaboration process. The challenge is, as always is the case, getting others to participate, explore and then evaluate it's effectiveness. Finding ways to motivate others to change the methods by which they have become accustomed to operating is a challenge in unto itself, but to add getting adult learners to adopt new technology is an added challenge. None the less, the value of what could be accomplished with the application of some of these tools is far greater than any adjustment period some may have to go through. What is also gained in the collaborative process is the power of the group, not only on the product being produced but on the members of the collaboration, it encourages others to participate because other members of the group are doing it. Anonymity is not possible in a group exercise even if the participants are not physically together.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Has the Tipping Point Past?
This class has made me much more aware of all of the social networking and web 2.o opportunities available and I now notice them with a new perspective and appreciation. But I was not prepared for the sheer volume of those opportunities and the plethora of areas that are implementing those strategies. Is it that we are approaching the veritable "Tipping Point" when a phenomenon, through the influence of specific people and groups, becomes a much larger part of the culture?
Part of this thought is my new perspective but it seems that all sorts of areas are now using the web 2.0 that would never had in the past. NASA just announced a Twitter feed on the current space mission, singer John Mayer is releasing his next single song on Twitter, the web is loaded with new RSS feeds, and every time you watch a local news cast there is an opportunity to get live updates.
Many of these tools have been around for a while (Facebook, Twitter etc)but were relegated to a sub group and not quite mainstream. Maybe this is my new awareness but it seems that it is becoming pervasive and ready to explode into all aspects of our culture. It will be interesting to continue to explore the technology but also it's impact on our culture.
Part of this thought is my new perspective but it seems that all sorts of areas are now using the web 2.0 that would never had in the past. NASA just announced a Twitter feed on the current space mission, singer John Mayer is releasing his next single song on Twitter, the web is loaded with new RSS feeds, and every time you watch a local news cast there is an opportunity to get live updates.
Many of these tools have been around for a while (Facebook, Twitter etc)but were relegated to a sub group and not quite mainstream. Maybe this is my new awareness but it seems that it is becoming pervasive and ready to explode into all aspects of our culture. It will be interesting to continue to explore the technology but also it's impact on our culture.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Connecting Others
There is a lot of technology that makes our lives easier and efficient but sometimes might distract us from other important parts of life. Technology has become so ingrained in our lives that it can be taken for granted that we connect via email, use cell phones instead of the traditional land line and go weeks without using legal tender since the debit card is the choice of so many people. But sometimes we might take a step back and look at how what we take for granted, others have a different experience.
Last week I was helping an employee who wanted to find out about an old pension he might have from a previous employer. I had arranged for him to come and see me and bring in any information he might have. He showed up with a bundle of papers and envelopes and we started to try and make sense of it. I found a web address and brought it up which led me to readily available online information, account access and a menu of options. My colleague wanted to know how I did that, didn't we have to go and see someone? That was his world and personal perspective, for information and important life events you would go and see someone, the banker, the merchant or the insurance agent. I rarely have a need to actually go into a bank, many of my purchases are on line and I have never met my motorcycle insurance agent and to me it all seems normal. But to this employee it was amazing.
Not fully grasping his situation and perspective I said I would set him up with an account so he could view the information with his wife at home. As I set up the account I asked if he had an e-mail account, which he responded "How do you get one of those?" I now understood how far removed he was from the technology we take for granted. It was then that I felt so satisfied and honored to be able to show someone what the possibilities could be and how much of an effect the technology could have on an individual. I walked him through what was available and assured him we will continue working together to help him wade through all of the information that is out there and show him what he has available to plan for his and his wife's retirement. He was able to find out that he did indeed have another pension, albeit small, but real and tangible none the less to add to his retirement years and for that he was equally amazed.
Last week I was helping an employee who wanted to find out about an old pension he might have from a previous employer. I had arranged for him to come and see me and bring in any information he might have. He showed up with a bundle of papers and envelopes and we started to try and make sense of it. I found a web address and brought it up which led me to readily available online information, account access and a menu of options. My colleague wanted to know how I did that, didn't we have to go and see someone? That was his world and personal perspective, for information and important life events you would go and see someone, the banker, the merchant or the insurance agent. I rarely have a need to actually go into a bank, many of my purchases are on line and I have never met my motorcycle insurance agent and to me it all seems normal. But to this employee it was amazing.
Not fully grasping his situation and perspective I said I would set him up with an account so he could view the information with his wife at home. As I set up the account I asked if he had an e-mail account, which he responded "How do you get one of those?" I now understood how far removed he was from the technology we take for granted. It was then that I felt so satisfied and honored to be able to show someone what the possibilities could be and how much of an effect the technology could have on an individual. I walked him through what was available and assured him we will continue working together to help him wade through all of the information that is out there and show him what he has available to plan for his and his wife's retirement. He was able to find out that he did indeed have another pension, albeit small, but real and tangible none the less to add to his retirement years and for that he was equally amazed.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Try it, you might like it
Well, for my training company I needed to get some phones, just a few, but business phones since we had outgrown using the personal accounts.My personal phone was bare bones, make and receive calls, no texting, camera, I was lucky to have a few ring tone options. But it had worked just fine, I thought. Yeah, I had seen all of the "gadget" phones and didn't see any use of texting, 'Just call them!". But I got a new phone and figured I might as well get the available features and see if it can really help to grow the business and keep in touch with customers. So I was led to purchase the new Blackberry Tour, looked neat with a keyboard and a nice screen and was told it had so many features I should take a class on how to operate it. Take a class to learn how to use a phone! What had I gotten myself into but I figured I can figure this out on my own plus a had an advantage, a college aged daughter.
After some false starts, a quick search on the "Crackberry" site I was up and running with one tenth of the phones capabilites. What has now made me re-think "Do we need all of these features?" is the ease I now can respond to people from the business, personal and work email accounts and have found why people text, it's just a quick connection, but a connection just as well. I now relish a quick text from my daughter or wife in the middle of some business heavy discussion at work to learn that the "dog has bad breath today or running to the store, do you need anything", it is a nice respite.
After some false starts, a quick search on the "Crackberry" site I was up and running with one tenth of the phones capabilites. What has now made me re-think "Do we need all of these features?" is the ease I now can respond to people from the business, personal and work email accounts and have found why people text, it's just a quick connection, but a connection just as well. I now relish a quick text from my daughter or wife in the middle of some business heavy discussion at work to learn that the "dog has bad breath today or running to the store, do you need anything", it is a nice respite.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Eye Opening Application
I have been wondering how all of this Web 2.0 will apply to my situation and how others get real value out of it. I am cautious in following that all technology is good for our culture while it is obvious that technology has changed our culture in many ways.
On Friday, I saw a glimpse into how technology and specifically social networking can be a valuable and very human dynamic. I organized a blood drive for our school and was making my donation and chatting with the Red Cross technicians. While I was laying there one of the ladies asked another woman "Are you on facebook?", my ears perked up. The other woman said "No, my niece asked me to get on but I just don't get it." The woman said "You can get in touch with people and text them, I use it to talk with my son who is in Afghanistan. The Marines let them use the computers and he gets on every day and we talk, it makes it easier for both of us."
Well here was the valuable application of the social networking concept as a very real human interaction and not the frivolous inane texting that I had ascribed most of facebook to be. The woman went on to explain the fears her son was going through and his job responsibilities, it was fascinating to hear how they interacted via Facebook.
I was lucky to find an example that opened up the possibilities for this aspect of social networking because before I had not really been interested in becoming a member when asked by friends or acquaintances, I wasn't that interested in looking at someones pictures or their own impression of themselves. Now I could look with less of a jaded eye and find value.
On Friday, I saw a glimpse into how technology and specifically social networking can be a valuable and very human dynamic. I organized a blood drive for our school and was making my donation and chatting with the Red Cross technicians. While I was laying there one of the ladies asked another woman "Are you on facebook?", my ears perked up. The other woman said "No, my niece asked me to get on but I just don't get it." The woman said "You can get in touch with people and text them, I use it to talk with my son who is in Afghanistan. The Marines let them use the computers and he gets on every day and we talk, it makes it easier for both of us."
Well here was the valuable application of the social networking concept as a very real human interaction and not the frivolous inane texting that I had ascribed most of facebook to be. The woman went on to explain the fears her son was going through and his job responsibilities, it was fascinating to hear how they interacted via Facebook.
I was lucky to find an example that opened up the possibilities for this aspect of social networking because before I had not really been interested in becoming a member when asked by friends or acquaintances, I wasn't that interested in looking at someones pictures or their own impression of themselves. Now I could look with less of a jaded eye and find value.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Blog #1
Sometimes it seems a bit of outside looking in when it comes to the world of Web 2.0. My world is not overly tech loaded but centered in human to human interaction. So, while it's not like I am stuck on the sidewalk, not able to navigate the information super highway ( I think I am at least driving along but maybe just in the right hand lane)I need to see how this technology can supplement but not supplant the interaction part of my training world. I am, at times, excited and also apprehensive about finding a balance between connecting with the newfound tools while maintaining the human connection.
As new tools and opportunities are presented I am looking from my own perspective while trying to appreciate and learn how others apply the new methods to their situations so I might also benefit. One of the areas that I can really see benefits would be using a wiki as a way to teach and share with people who are spread out over an expansive area. I would like to jump in and transfer a group of people I am working with onto a wiki as the central repository and see if it works for that group. Some of the obstacles will be the age of the participants, socio-economic constraints, time restrictions, technology competance and resistance to change.All are obstacles but nothing that can stop the opportunity.
As new tools and opportunities are presented I am looking from my own perspective while trying to appreciate and learn how others apply the new methods to their situations so I might also benefit. One of the areas that I can really see benefits would be using a wiki as a way to teach and share with people who are spread out over an expansive area. I would like to jump in and transfer a group of people I am working with onto a wiki as the central repository and see if it works for that group. Some of the obstacles will be the age of the participants, socio-economic constraints, time restrictions, technology competance and resistance to change.All are obstacles but nothing that can stop the opportunity.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Fall/Winter Classic
So the Yanks have evened the World Series but it is now almost Halloween, is the Fall Classic set to become the set up for Thanksgiving? Will a player no longer be able to earn the moniker of "Mr October" but now it will be "Mr Novemeber"? There is a major storm about to hit Colorado, had they gotten into the series would we have to wait weeks before the series could resume? Playing on snow dusted fields has been reserved for the rough and tumble of football, not the sublime nuances of america's past time. Next year Minnesota is moving from a covered dome to an outdoor stadium. Both the Twins and the Rockies were contenders this year, if they got in to the series we could be having to wait for the weather to clear and see games after the turkey leftovers are long gone. All of this is because major league baseball has aquiesed to the desires of television to have the games played during tv's prime time slots. I think that the game, if it is truly America's past time and not the financial generator of a media conglomerate, needs to be given back to the fans in it's traditional format. That is, play the regular season, have playoffs and then the world series without extra days off so TV can garner a Sat night viewership. If we do not give the game back to the fans as it has been since Abner Doubleday started throwing the ball around, we will be left to have to move the World Series games from the home team stadiums and place them in a dome somewhere so the winter weather does not interfere with a television broadcast and the cities involved will lose the comradarie that envelopes a town when their team is playing for them. that would be a shame.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
The Blob or is it Blog?
Wow, the possibilites are both overwhelming and unlimited. While I definately feel the verge of being techo-overload, I can see the ability to open up endless possibilites. Because of the type of experiential training design I normally do with groups, the interaction between the individuals in the group is the focus of the teaching (it's group dynamics) the tech side will be interesting to see how it can supplement the human interaction componenet. While it could never replace, I hope it can compliment. I can really see how the social networking aspect can provide a platform for ongoing support and interaction of training participants after retruning to remote locations. Right now I am trying to do it via email (a new initiative) and already I am not sure the email method will give me what I want (the group learning from the group), so the social networking may be the way to go.
Blog On!
Well, time to jump in the pool and get wet... first experience with blogging, don't currently follow any or really understand how they operate but I look forward to finding out if it is something that might embellish what I do or be an activity but of little value (like aimlessly searching eBay for stuff you don't need or will never buy). For my first dip, I'll play around with the controls and try and figure out how to do a few basic things and then maybe start in earnest. Enjoy the Michael Franti and Spearhead clip from the Austin City Limits Festival below. Later.....
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