EDUC251

Interesting article. Rather similiar to the way lawyers are educated to question people in a court room, wth the exception of questioning to inspire well thought out answers of an academic nature.

I always like these condensed lists of pointers for making life easier: One of the biggest challenges for me is coming up with a decent topic of conversation for online discussions - which is usually posed as a single question or series of related questions. This list is very useful for thinking about types of questions to ask.

This is a great starting point for thinking about online discussions. It's not easy coming up with the right questions to stimulate discussion. Sometimes I tell myself that if there's a "right" answer to the question, it probably won't work for a discussion.

I loved this site! The home page is very concise, informative with good examples. And, "yes" we should do some additional sharing, research and practice regarding what types (structure) of questions illict good, reflective responses (let you know the learner has synthesized course material). In clicking around to other links on this site, I noticed Leslie Owen referred to educator/author H. Lynn Erickson as a man. Not that it's a big deal, but, HL Erickson is a woman and is a curriculum consultant who lives locally. Seems like we all struggle with this aspect of teaching - good questions for discussion. Perhaps we could come up with a simple exercise where we post questions we might use which address our course readings? What ya think?? Thank you Mary Ann for this great teaching resource.

Helen, I like your idea of creating some questions around our course readings that we could post and discuss. I also think some of the questions on the new collaborative doc Jennifer just posted would be excellent discussion points. There is so much to think about in that one!

I loved the Glogster! I truly enjoyed the presentation as well. I thought it was well thought out and professional.

Ann, the information contained in this article (digital presence sometimes even before birth) was a bit shocking. The lasting imprint you refer to is definitely a reason to instruct our children/grandchildren/students to carefully consider what they want broadcast to the world before they publish it! Thank you for this reference.

Articles like this are designed to be shocking. My children have had a digital footprint before they were born. They also both have their own domain names. But my grandparents and great grandparents also have digital footprints after they've passed on! In my opinion, it won't be long before there is so much content online, that the information about individuals will be of little interest to any of the people we currently worry are concerned about it. More importantly, I hope it brings awareness of what it means to be human. We all make mistakes. Most people aren't 100% good or bad. I would prefer more people to put more stuff online so it becomes irrelevant. The way I see it, only those with privilege and access even have the choice about what to put online. If we put too much value on it, the only people who will benefit are the people with privilege, access, and either the foresight to keep their online presence squeaky clean, or the money to clean it up afterward.

I used to think that my name was off the beaten path enough that there wasn't anyone else with the name Bruce Wolcott - but I was mistaken, and was glad that I laid claim to brucewolcott.com. Over the past few years, I've slowly been working to build an online presence. A few years ago, the my top reference on the Web was at ratemyprofessor.com , which I've found in the past to have favorable reviews, but also some student reviews I felt were retribution for getting poor grades. I wanted to build a presence that I thought was fair, represented my true interests, and a way to quickly let people know about my background. After developing my website and blog, it turns out that Google has put the information I'm most interested in having out there, at the top of the list. I see this as a long term project, and something that I will be building consistently and gradually over time. After Jennifer's comments regarding Facebook, I'm having second thoughts about what kind of presence to be projecting there.

I was thinking of the direct experience with the first grandchild in the family. Her facebook is limited to family (I have an alias email for this) and friends, but you never know when something is really forwarded. She recently had a some minor illness - ear ache, slight temperature. This has now been posted on facebook. We often think of medical things as private and yet this was easily shared as a way for us to know what was happening.

Ann, the medical thing is a good point. I had a Twitter conversation with Howard Rheingold the other day, about the kinds of things we put online. He felt he didn't put too much personal stuff. I thought it was pretty personal that he had a cancer blog and a separate Twitter account for his butt :) He explained a little about why he did that. Read from the bottom to the top. https://skitch.com/injenuity/rmqq1/twitter-your-favorites

Howard's cancer post exemplifies the uneasiness I feel. Having a blog for an illness is a wonderful way to stay connected, get advise, not feel isolated, etc. However, when we do that we are thinking of family, friends, and a community we want to connect to, but we have no control of where this information goes and what the consequences of that might be as happened in this case. We all know now that Howard had cancer. I have personal reaction to this information - what type of cancer, reminds me of personal experiences, current friends, the medical system, etc.

One thing to think about is the reality of community to an individual. An outside observer might analyze and decide there is no real community. But if a participant perceives it as community, do they then reap the benefits of community? Could there be health benefits in believing there are people who support you and are there to listen?

I agree that there is a benefit to on-line blogs and support groups. The question for me is how do I get that benefit from the people I am targetting it to? So, for instance, I have used online support groups for a medical challenge I went through. It was helpful and beneficial to both them and me. However, that is different from having a digital footprint of the interaction. Maybe an employer or someone who would use the information judgementally, for example. So to Howard's example, did he realize that people that only tangentially are even aware of him, now know something intimate about his life. He probably doesn't care on one level, but it is the "unconsciousness" of this footprint that I think about.

I think he cares and just wanted to have control of it himself, rather than let other people decide what's out there about him. The optimist in me hopes what will happen is we'll start to discover we have more in common with people that we ever thought possible. I blogged through the loss of my baby, and that's online forever. Years after the fact, at least 4 men in my online professional network have told me how much they appreciated being able to see that, because they went through the same thing, but didn't feel dads had the right to that kind of grief. It's very rewarding to go a thousand miles away to a conference and get the biggest hugs in the world, simply for being open about a personal experience. I drop off line all the time. I delete accounts. I stop blogging. Every time I do it, people contact me to tell me how much they miss my interaction, and how they've been touched by my sharing. When I feel like I'm not making a difference, people always tell me I don't know that, because it's not something I can see. A lot of times I've written blog posts that go against the wisdom of my colleagues, yet I receive many private messages from people thanking me for saying the things they've been afraid to say. I think it's all a matter of choice, and I want to encourage people to stand up for their right to change their minds. People thought I was nuts deleting my facebook account, but I've never regretted it. I do say, though, that when people tell me I never know who I might be helping, I have to consider whether I have a moral obligation or not, to continue to share. I certainly won't be bullied into it with that argument, but I do believe it's an important consideration.

My juices are flowing, Jennifer! This book is most intriguing and appears to be filled with questions and answers (?) that will nudge me in a new learning and teaching direction! I love the this phrase from the title: . . . world of constant change" because the most CONSTANT thing about life in this world IS CHANGE! It's a nice play on words. I am frustrated about not being able to view any of the videos as my network is slow today but I really appreciate your bringing this resource to my attention. Thank you, Jennifer, you are a grand facilitator!

I thought the questions were thought provoking and resonated with me. For example, the one on whether you should facebook with your students. I teach junior level high school students on-line and although, facebook participation does not come up, I often receive personal questions. Part of this dialog keeps the students interested in staying connected, but both in terms of privacy and needing to stay focused on the lesson, it is something I am conscious of. I find, though, that this type of document that has lots of questions, can be overwhelming. I don't really have the time to think through the issues.

I read this doc with great enthusiasm--so many excellent questions were posted--I want to refer to this one often so I can better wrap my head around the issues we face with on-line learning in the 21st century.

Here's a bit more about how they put it together. I'm sure there will be hundreds of collaborators, like he's had on other documents. http://educationaltechnology.ca/couros/1956 He just posted the link on Twitter and people jumped in.

The logistical work that goes into an on-line course is more complex that in-person classes. There are so many options and technology that needs to be lined up. My own experience over the past week or two, where I have been computer challenged and had a delay in class participation. I liked the method that Jennifer used by allowing extra time for the first assignment, so as to minimize her (the teacher's need) for interaction on the daily things that impact our lives.

Ann, what a wonderful video! The only problem I had was watching it as a complete stream--I think my network connection is slow this morning. My 250 class was introduced to this tool and as you know, I used it in my Course Framework posting, but another student used it similarly to you. She developed a video of herself when she is not teaching (activities with family and friends) and posted it as her "Course presence", Further, she said that all of the students in her Course would be making videos of this type and together, they would become the Course Roster! It's such a simple, cool idea!! Thanks for sharing!

Ann - what a great tool for introducing everyone and making the point that learning is a social activity and works best in an "intentional forming group." Perfect for creating a "Course Roster." Thanks for creating this demo!

Bandwidth is always a problem. I like the idea of "individualized" animotos that can be combined. The more advanced tool does allow for adding video. http://animoto.com/play/ye7XT0nzKSJvOWK8XGTh0A - this is an example of how I used in a personal way. My family and friends were more responsive to seeing this in this form and its an easy way for me to sort out pictures I want to focus on from all the hundreds I seem to take with the digital camera these days.

Ann, Nice to see your new baby Lilly wrapped up in this spiffy Animoto package!

Cool Tool! I loved it!

Joy, I really enjoyed the Instructure/Canvas review video, where the engineer describes Vista/Blackboard as remaining basically unchanged from the mid-1990's. He also mentioned that this CMS model has been adopted by other developers, and that Instructure is one of the few companies that is beginning to effectively implement new Web 2.0 technologies. Another plus - it's free for teachers!

Yes...that is a deal maker!

I think the model of offering the product to free for teacher's, with the objective of it becoming the standard in education. This "marketing" approach is similiar to how Facebook and even Google got their foothold. Its interesting to see how ecommerce works.

Ann, I just viewed your Jing project and want to applaud you for your work! In addition to Jennifer, you have inspired me to try this with my course framework, but to date, I have only installed Jing and made a copy of my desktop!!

Bruce, your website is marvelous--a very professional presence indeed! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The black background you chose for the profile page highlighted by the white and soft blue is exceptional. It adds "class" to your text. I will check in again to see what is new!

I agree with Mary Ann; it is very impresive. An Interesting read.

Mary and Joy, Many thanks for your comments. One of my current concerns about the site is being too wordy - an occupational hazard for instructors. Whitney Keyes has taught a web marketing course at Bellevue College. I think her Whitney Keyes website is just great - no excess words - just the facts, ma'am. Much of her content is hidden beneath the lean surface layer for those who want to find it.

Now that is an interesting concept! A bit backward isn't it?

So, now that you've discovered the big secret about assessment, what do you think of our responsibility as educators to assess our students? Is there a way we can satisfy the requirements of the education system, and also know whether/what our students have learned? And, give the challenges, how do you feel about your role in deciding what is important for students to learn? For example, if you learn none of the objectives stated in this course, but you learn something that transforms your life and makes you a better person, is the course a failure? The student? The teacher? You can spend a lifetime trying to puzzle together how people learn, and how to know they've learned. I think our role, is to find a place where we are comfortable in our ability to identify the subtle cues that signal progress and enlightenment. It's certainly not easy.

The part that hit me the most was 'bring the students inside the assessment process." This really makes sense to me...why should what we want them to study and know be a secret for exam questions only.

That is very sad and that is why, maybe, we are having such problems in this country. I think what hapened to this teacher is ghastly!

I have a friend who worked in high tech and made the transition to teaching because of her interest. In addition to what was echoed here, her major issue has to do with the administration component of the job. Over the past 15 years, the percentage of administrators to teachers has risen and there has been an increase in mandatory reports, meetings, etc. I am not a full-time classroom teacher, but have substituted and what is very markedly different than when I was in school is how much social issues impact the classroom. Parental availability is tight and students come to school without the basic. If you add on that teachers are now also social workers, one can see how a teacher becomes overloaded. In the video about the experiment in India with the computer, he prefaces the experiment with his observation that students that are in higher risk areas seem to benefit more from technology introduction, but in practice it is often the reverse, with computers going to more affluent schools.

I've always been somewhat skeptical of Marc Prensky, who made the original distinction between Digital Natives and Immigrants. The skepticism comes from my impression that he's built a financially successful career out of promoting this distinction. Not to say there isn't some level of truth to it, but I'm not ready to throw the baby out with the bath water. The written word, for example - which has been a cornerstone of stored knowledge and communication - is as important now as it ever was.

Some of the things I believe hurt the most, are when we make sweeping assumptions about access to technology. In many cases, it is the privileged who have the opportunity to be "digital natives." I also think the digital immigrant idea is completely false. I used to advertise to help senior citizens with technology. I found they were some of the most eager and enthusiastic learners, because we learned things that interested them. The digital immigrant idea has also allowed us to write off senior faculty, waiting for them to retire, rather than connecting them with technologies that suit their needs. We're at a point of convergence. You don't have to understand all the technologies in order to use them. One person can compose in email, and the material can be viewed on any kind of device. I just wish the damage hadn't already been done, to so many who now feel they don't have the ability to participate because of their age.

Okay I am depressed. If we have been wiped out after being the ones that created this knowledge and technology in the first place, there is no hope for me to ever teach on line!!!

Joy, what we need are people willing to stand up and say that whatever your level of skill with technology, we all need to be able to communicate. We will all need to compromise and sacrifice. That could mean knocking on doors or hanging out on front porches, or it could mean learning a new language, or reduction of a language :)

I still don't understand where the labels are coming from. It seems like these labels are simply a way of discriminating against seniors. Now, the truth is, we were using computers before these generations were a light in their parents eyes. Some of us were designing the technology they are using today. Ok, looks like I am going to be on a lot of porches like the neighborhood dog looking for a handout! As for knocking on doors, I might need to invest in a good battering ram! Anyone ever watch the Capital One commercials? Maybe those folks are for hire!

The Digital Native/Immigrant theory came from Mark Prensky in 2001, but there's debate about whether or not he was the first to use the terms. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_native