EDUC251

Thank you for sharing this. Our interrogation of "presence" has been interesting this week. I've been looking forward to seeing each of you make decisions about personal online presence.

Susan, In your second article on your blog you describe a PLE or 'personal learning environment' by saying: "The purpose of a PLE is to gather and process information, act on the learning that takes place, then showcase the results of what was learned to include how one arrived at those results." I'm curious to know how you set up a PLE, and maybe 1 or 2 examples if you could direct me there. Is this related to Microsoft's OneNote , or Evernote, which lets you copy, scan, and store web-based information? Also, could you explain how you have found this to be useful for you or your classes? Thanks!

Bruce: The blog is my ePortfolio. You can use different tools to establish your personal learning environment...I began with a blog. There is a nice example of a PLE by a 7th grader who used a different tool to showcase her science project. I think you will find it an excellent example of how web 2.0 tool are being used at the grade school level. Here's the link...it's a youtube video narrated by the student. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEls3tq5wIY Susan

Thanks, Susan For some reason, I thought a personal learning environment was a fish of a different color. I get the concept now, thanks to Wendy, the 7th grader who I found using your YouTube link. The personal learning environment can be a blog, a wiki, or note gathering app, that allows you to quickly organize, filter, and access the online information that makes up your personal knowledge universe. She was using a tool named SYMBALOO, which I'm definitely going to try out - as well as some other useful apps - Evernote for note-talking and Glogster, for building a collage of related information. I really liked Wendy's tutorial on the PLE - it covered a lot of information in a short span of time, while effectively communicating her ideas visually.

Here's a screencast I made about my PLE when I did a guest week in EDUC250 last quarter https://www.screencast.com/users/ccchit/folders/EDUC%20250/media/f974b78d-3c78-4a44-b231-b758bb54cdbd

Thanks, Jennifer This was very helpful. Also your strong endorsement of Twitter as a way to quickly connect with communities of common interest is giving me more motivation to become more engaged with that world. I've been a slow adopter of Twitter - but this week's events in Egypt organized by a younger generation on Facebook and Twitter are a strong testament to the transforming power of these media.

I've made the understandings entry to my blog.

This is my first Camtasia project. I realize that there is room for improvement. As I use it more, I'm sure I will begin to develop better skills. I can see where this is a good application for getting information up in an online course.

So glad you posted this! I'm in the middle of a similar process, and I appreciated seeing how you're comparing products.

Thanks for your comparison of Moodle, Joomla, and Blackboard. I was quite surprised to find out that Moodle leads the pack - since I assumed that Blackboard/Vista would have the majority following. It's been around since the mid-1990's. Great comparison chart, and use of Camtasia!

After looking at Joy's post about Canvas, I need to review this and compare to these three vendors. Will, then, have to update the comparison chart to include Canvas.

Here's the link to my ePortfolio with this module's assignment

Susan, I *really like* this list of reasons why stories work well for teaching that you posted on your blog. I've been teaching class sections on storytelling, and this gives me some well considered principles for how stories can be "put to work" for real world applications in education and information design. 1. A learning event is an unfolding story 2. People craft a story to make sense of what they are learning 3. Stories are at the intersection of people's synthesis of learning 4. Stories are tools for thinking 5. You can move through complex information more efficiently through story devices than through standard forms of discourse One of my favorite destinations for interactive stories is the Second Story website. It's jammed packed with terrific examples of interactive storytelling - on all sorts of interesting topics.

Thanks for your attention on storytelling! It's something that is applicable for so many different learning situations, and works particularly well online.

While the most story telling I have done is one blog post and a short story about "I love my new Grandma" which I posted in this site...I want to do more and will hopefully b eable to get to this later. Nothing sticks like a good story!

Bruce: Thanks for the link on more interactive storytelling. I think this will help me to develop using case studies as learning activities for our courses.

Susan, your activity on identifying sepsis in pediatric patients was clear, concise, and easy to navigate. I liked the fact that we were directed to a wiki page with the "case" facts presented in story form with a very clear picture of the "rash". if I were a trainee in your course, I would be excited by this lesson and the follow-up survey you posted.

Thanks for your comments Mary Ann. This is the first time I've used these tools for a case study...I'm hoping the wiki will allow the students to discuss the case and also allow them to pose thoughtful 'what-ifs'.

The thought the story telling definition you found to be a good guideline. Cases are great. One activity I might add would be What can you do to stop it? I know the student at this point is learning, but gives them a focus to think about their involvement.

In learning the Camtasia application, I found many good tips...I share them in my portfolio posting this week.

I left a comment on your blog. I had to carefully think about what you had stated and found myself differing slightly with what you suggested. I suppose that attests to our differences. Nevertheless I appreciated the blog post Susan.

Here's the link to my blog where my final project is located.

Your question - How do you represent ideas with images? - is a very powerful one. We are bambarded with images all day. I often think of these images as trying to sell me something - such as a commerical to buy something - or sometimes a quick reference to information - such as a symbol for a restroom. I realize now that technology has allowed for the production of images to be so accessible that they are now a part of our normal dialog. It is easy to make a video or take a picture. On Facebook, we see this all the time; people adding content to their story with images.

Just looked at your portfolio which is a learning course in itself! You've done a great job of summarizing what we've been working on. Our portfolios are a perfect place to store this. You've inspired me to take a few steps back before I move forward with Module #4. Thanks, Bruce.

Ann and Helen, Thanks much for your feedback on the website. It's much appreciated!

Bruce...I have a question. I wrote a story blog this week. Can you tell me if your course would help me create a video presentation of this blog? http://joystechtool.blogspot.com/ I don't have your email, except maybe the one you have at BC. I would have to take it as a senior. Which means space available. Can this be done?

Joy, Just to let you know... the visual storytelling class won't be offered again until Fall 2011. It sounds like your story would make an interesting educational online comic or presentation - explaining the idea of backwards design. One approach, is that you could use a virtual world environment like Second Life or BlueMars to engage virtual characters/actors, and set your camera positions to tell your visual narrative. You could synchronize narration and other audio, and then post it to the Web via YouTube, Google Presentations, or some other presentation application like SlideRocket. Just a thought...

Thanks Bruce. Fall would be perfect! That is if I could get in the class. I suspect it is very popular on campus. I would like to use second life; but have not tried. Is it free. My understanding is it is very expensive. While I would like a video of the story to put with the blog, it can be done at a later date. What I do not know how to do is synchronize the narration and other audio. My husband uses camcording to capture band performances. Could you maybe email me on this issue? jal8008cel@comcast.net. Unless I am taking advantage of your knowledge here. Please?

Thank you, Bruce, for sharing the objectives of your Course. It sounds so intriguing that I would love to be a part of it! Perhaps that will become a reality for me as time passes.

Joy, I could probably begin to answer your question here, and then if you have more questions we can connect via my other email address: bcweb20class@gmail.com. Probably the best online multimedia delivery application that I know of is SLIDEROCKET. I've been using it in my courses for about a year. You can upload Powerpoint slides, incorporate video directly from YouTube (or uploaded video), images, graphics, text, and integrate these all with a sound track. Everything is built online, and the interface works well. The catch is this - after the 30 day trial period, it costs $12 per month. I taught a very challenging online course this summer, and I didn't mind paying that fee because of the excellent results I got. SlideRocket saved the day by pulling me out of a jam. It also now integrates well with Google applications. Another (this one is free) cloud-based multimedia authoring application is EMPRESSR . Here's a quote from the website: Empressr is the first free online storytelling tool that allows you to create, manage and share rich media presentations online. Earlier in the quarter, Jennifer recommended another audio editing tool called AUDACITY , which is really terrific! It's simple to use and produces good results. I actually prefer Audacity for audio editing over some other commercial products that have a lot more bells and whistles. I hope that helps!

Here's my post for mapping an evidence for understanding to specific learning objectives.

Bruce, I especially liked the "evidence" requiring students to create their own business card. Each item you posted was very concrete and would definitely indicate understanding on the part of students.

I second that business card lesson. It will prepare them for job hunting in the future. I think creating ePortfolios are another good practice.

Wow! You're a week ahead. I can't keep up with you all!

I completed it! (fake answers, of course.) How was the process for you? Did you have any trouble with my directions? I was wondering if I should make a screencast, or instructions with screen shots. Your survey looks great.

Hi Joy (and fellow classmates) - we were out-of-town for a week. Internet was available, but for a price $.75 per minute. I had planned on using some of our vacation time to work on this course without the hassle of juggling work commitments. At a price per minute, this idea didn't pan out. To get caught up, I checked out our Diigo communications and visited your blog. I like the way you insert YouTube videos to add dimension to your ideas! The two I looked at addressed the LMS system - Canvas. I was particularly fascinated with the young techy who ended his presentation, asking his audience about how they might define the role for SOCIAL MEDIA in both course structure and as a learning tool. Interesting how our course materials (and we) have also been pondering this same issue! Thanks for finding and sharing a very relevant presentation. I also enjoyed your thoughts as well.

Today our senior population is aging at a rapid rate. Is it possible we, as a society, are sending them to an early end of life dead line because of our attitudes and out moded beliefs regarding aging in America? Can we not help keep their minds alive and well by changing some of our society's institutions...of higher education?

Joy, I just finished reading your blog posts and viewing the videos. I agree with Bruce. . . they are quite sobering. I am angered that there is so much age discrimination out there, excited that Japan has such a unique way of addressing the needs of its aging population, and frustrated that a college degree does not necessarily translate into a job. My own daughter is in that position--she has a teaching degree earned two years ago and no prospects of a job anytime soon. Her income is earned through subbing in the Sultan School District and managing a horse stable. All of this translates into 7 days of work per week, a very minimal income and burnout. She is 37 years old (not quite a senior, but in line with the unemployed GWU grads shown in the video you posted). Your passion definitely comes through in all of the blog postings, Joy. What you say about assessment aligns with my beliefs as well. I have never been a proponent of grades--to me, they are just part of a hoop that must be jumped through in order to achieve a goal. With that in mind, I was overJOYed when authentic assessment came onto the education scene as it offered a way to monitor and guide students in their learning, not just give them a letter or number that was supposed to signify that they had "learned" the course content. In my experience, most students who memorize course content for tests within a given course, will not retain it once the tests have been taken. There is simply too much competition for good grades at all levels of education and not enough desire for a true understanding of ideas and concepts.

Wow! The background of this course and what you taught is fascinating. I'll limit my comments to a few points, but definitely look forward to an interactive, in-person session. 1. Video Logistics. You sounded poised on the video, as opposed to me, where I felt self-conscious knowing I was being recorded. I was also interested in how clearly you transition from one screen to the next - I used multiple windows, but it felt you had a different technique. 2. Course logistics. As for the course, one thing was interesting is how - like Jennifer - you posted a new lesson each week. Our prior class in this series we were provided everything at the beginning. I like the pacing, however, for the most part, as it keeps you focused. As for feedback, which you indicated you would do more explicitly, my guess is that your weekly audio sessions where you went into the studio, provided feedback as part of the process of teaching the lesson. 3. Content. Very interesting. Thanks for including the second video which provided texture on what you were teaching. The metaphor of the Christmas tree, with students putting "decorations" on the wiki was a good one.

I agree with Ann...what a great resource for the rest of the class. Putting the presentation together, I can tell you followed all the best practices of this tool...very polished. Showing how elements of your online material relates to the best practices was thoughtful and student centered.

Ann and Susan, Many thanks for your comments! One of the great benefits of this class and the Conrad/Boettcher textbook is getting a solid framework for understanding how to build and run an online class. Up until now, my learning process for creating online classes has been 1) suggestions/advice from colleagues 2) experimentation (flying by the seat of my pants!) 3) feedback from students 4) online resources. I really enjoy the dense concentration of information provided in the class and our ongoing conversation. The University of Tasmania class gave me the opportunity to pull out all the stops, and integrate everything I'd learned up until that point. Thankfully I made it through that stretch of white water, with an approach that seemed to work pretty well for that teaching situation. The final project exercise gave me a chance to identify key areas of every course that need to be attended to.

Aside from the logistics, how did you get involved in doing this and how did the lab get started to begin with? It sounds fascinating for the locations to be so far away. Its a wonderful example of elearning in the "one" world concept we are developing into.

Ann, Tom Furness started up the Human Interface Technology Lab (HitLab) at the University of Washington around 1988 - he's been called the "godfather of virtual reality". At the HitLab, he was on the forefront of virtual reality technologies, working on immersive displays for medicine, engineering, architecture, education, etc. Before then, his background was in designing virtual cockpit simulations for pilots of high performance military jets. They needed to augment the pilot's cognitive field, in order to manage the complexity of 50 onboard computers, while flying the plane at supersonic speeds. He decided that he wanted to apply this technology to civilian, rather than military uses, which is how he ended up at the UW. About five years ago, New Zealand and Australia decided to set up their own HitLabs because of their remote locations. They see virtual world technologies as way to develop an exportable information-based industry for real-world applications. Video games and interactive simulations are currently leading the way in terms of artificial intelligence, information design, and sustained attention (entertainment) experiences. I've been teaching a class in game theory and interactive entertainment for the past five years at BC, which is how I got involved with this University of Tasmania course. You might be interested to know that one of the offshoots of the HitLab work in Seattle is the retinal scanner, which is pointing the way to portable immersive multisensory experiences. Microvision of Redmond is working on these wearable computing devices which may provide a new alternative to desktop/laptop/smartphone devices. And I agree, Ann - culturally and socially, the world is shrinking exponentially because of the Internet.

A small world. I was in technology development and management prior to a career transition to teaching. My first job out of college was working on out-the-window portion of cockpit simulators. I was the program manager for the B-52 simulator program at Singer-Link. We called the people that did the actual design of the scenes via computer softwre illustrators, which when I first heard the title always thought of someone drawing pictures on the code, rather than comments. Anyway, I checked out Tom's page, very interesting. Thanks.

Not only is this a good site to teach more about the art of presentation, but Mogi, the presenter is an amazing man! I was in love with his slides that spoke about the need to keep "the sense of wonder" alive and that "curiosity" is what has brought us to this point. These are the very same words that I always used with my science students in middle school and college! I even had them in my syllabus! I've always held that we all come into this world as scientists because we all share the one common characteristic that all practicing scientists have: CURIOSITY. Kids were pretty amazed that they were already scientists before they even embarked on the great science learning adventure! Rachel Carson, the famous environmental scientist of the '60's wrote a book titled, "The Sense of Wonder" in which she expounded on the idea that every child needs at least one person (adult) to nourish and share his/her innate sense of wonder in order to keep it alive. I resonated with this man and now plan to read/see more of his stuff! Moreover, the new learning module in my ED250 class is a collaborative presentation of a topic using Google Presenter. I think the Presentation Zen site I just looked at may have some implications for that assignment! Thanks once again, Jennifer! I find myself thoroughly enchanted!

The concept of maintaining curiosity as the catalyst for true education and joy in life resonates. The challenge for me is the line between enterntainment and education. One of the comments to this article restated the debate is education to train one for a profession or to be educated and think. Why can't it be both?

I believe it can be both, Ann! Sometimes the "Experts R Us" and not those folks out there engaging in philosophical debates!

Ann and Mary Ann, I think you've touched on one of the challenges we find so frequently in discussing these things. It's not black and white. There isn't necessarily a right or a wrong. It's like potato salad. (Holy cow! I just made that up.) How many recipes are there for potato salad? People will argue about what it "should" have in it, but what really matters is the experience. And the experience isn't just in the taste. There's context around making it. There's a different context around the environment where we eat it, and our emotional state. We're not just training someone for a profession or to be educated and think. And even if those are our goals, where is the agency? What is the student's responsibility for learning? These are all complex issues, and I'm glad to see you all opening your minds and expressing both your gut reactions, and your own values. (Please forgive me for the potato salad. I maybe leaned to far on the entertainment side this time...)

The potato salad metaphor is a good one. In reading the post, it got my attention in a way that dry message might not. There is so much information (noise) out there, that it is important, maybe even mandatory, that information has something to catch us. What is a challenge for me as an educator, also with limited time, is the how much effort I put in to this "rising above the noise".

Great now I am hungry for potato salad!! Actually, a little humor now and then would be nice! Even songs need a hook and that is what I hear you saying Ann. I argee with that concept. Set up a "hook!"

I like the idea proposed by the potato salad metaphor. However, I may not forgive you Jen...LOL! I still want it! I like mine bland, no vinegar!

I want it too, and the more you keep saying it, the more I want it! I want mine with bacon and spicy mustard! You may just have to take a diet break, while we develop a collaborative potato salad recipe. P.S. Will you hate me if I post the site I used when I learned to make croissants from scratch?

Wonderful! Now I want potato salad and croissants! Okay I am open to recipes. Now I hope this does not get us off our intellectual track of study. Slogging through recipes might side track the ladies in the group: and reduce me to a helpless food addicted, potato salad craving croissant vixen. ::::sigh::::I am suffering from brain overload!

My philosophy is that I'm happier when I'm chubby and doing things I want, then (than?) I would be if I were torturing myself and trying to resist temptation. It's a balance thing. Do I beat myself up more for breaking a goal, or for having to haul my bigger clothes out of the basement. (Just did that.) This isn't an intellectual track of study. It's play. People learn by playing. In fact, I'm going to inject some more fun in this course. (If I ever catch up on the grading.)

Looks like a good site to go back to for good techniques for our presentations.

Interesting comments. The postings in Diigo are very interesting as well. In a strange sort of way they do fit the course topics of the week. Each person is building on their own finds and thinking about the others perceptions and contributions. As for myself, I just want to know how to put a course together and make it the best possible learning experience. Sorting and read all the material is just loading my computer ( memory tapes) and eventually there will be a focus point to download what I am learning on to paper or a course in progress.

One of the main advantages I find in taking in course is that someone has organized the vast amount of data in a focused a way for me to expand my own knowledge in an area. So in response to the question on the blog, I prefer and would use in my course design the one-at-time posting approach. I find it to be focusing in an environment (the internet) that lets me be expansive.

I too am finding the organization of the course very helpful - and Diigo especially - in viewing and thinking about the material. I anticipate that the aggregate of the readings, responses, and activities will help in my understanding of how to construct an online course.

I left a comment at the bottom of your In post in Behind the Scenes.

Thanks for all your feedback. I'm glad you feel comfortable sharing so honestly. I'm very fortunate!

. . . and Jennifer, this isn't criticism of our course structure. I think I understand your reasoning for being introduced to diigo and using this "application" (is that the right word?) to respond to and communicate with our fellow students. I'm simply thinking about what kinds of course activities and applications really challenge students to read, research, analyze and CREATE some original thinking and student work products which can help change these types of findings, especially in higher-ed.

Someone observed once that when television first started, the people writing for tv came from a "reading book" age and we had shows like Twilight Zone, Perry Mason, etc. - shows with real stories. Now, although there are some of these, much of our tv is "reality" tv - where the focus is quick stories with emotions and that writers now grew-up watching television for entertainment. So, my connection here, is that perhaps education might need to de-emphasize some on-line usage tools and emphasize others, to balance students so they do get the critical thinking skills. I know with my math tutoring, that when the audio is not operational and they have to use a chat box, they learn more spelling and English. I purposely "chat" in full sentences and will often provide feedback on their chats. Hear and here, for example, is often incorrectly used.

Helen, it's important that you're recognizing that one tool or method won't work for all situations. For an online class, it's hard to predict what your students will do. There's a certain amount of control we have over design, but once things get rolling, there's a lot of improvisation. I didn't figure on Diigo playing such a prominent role so early on, but since several students felt comfortable writing here, I latched onto it for early community-building. We will definitely be creating more as we move forward. If we had a larger class, we'd do smaller group projects, as well. One of the big challenges in online teaching is the fact that so many of us are used to being motivated by grades. We've grown up in systems where we perform and receive a reward. Unless a student finds something to spark their interest and desire to learn, we risk a teaching and learning environment where learners only do the bare minimum. I think the short readings and conversation help learners discover what's in it for them. And, honestly, sometimes there might not be anything in it for them. I try to find something for everyone, but in a society that values certification/degree more than the learning experience, many students are forced to take classes that just don't interest them.

It would seem to me, given my comments on Bloom's Taxonomy, that creative and critical thinking can be stifled by Universites and colleges. If this is happening, maybe they need to re-assess the whole concept of teaching and learning. I think that process has begun in the US. Had my professors been able to guide my learning, as we are beginning to learn in our reading materials, I may have finished that Ph.d and written the theory I began to write or not. Who knows. It is a question yet to be examined.

I read this article too, Helen. It is indeed interesting to contemplate the reasons for very little forward progress in students' critical thinking skills, but you may be on to something with on-line socializing as a possible contributing factor. Since the wave of education today and into the future is focused on a combination of hybrid and on-line learning, I think it's very important that we as educators take the lead in changing our coursework to emphasize more critical and creative thinking as well as problem solving. After all, these are some of the 21st Century Learning skills that CAN be applied to digital technology and teaching. As for a series of short readings as proposed by Jennifer, I would be inclined to take part and enjoy discussions centered around them. Does anyone else have an opinion about this? Jennifer, I agree with your point that not all tools and ways of teaching things fit each learner in a given community, but considering learning styles and differentiated instruction, instructors (on-line) can create a community that is dynamic and viable. Have you ever thought of offering a "CHOICE of activities" focusing on different learning styles, all of which would meet a particular learning objective? Students could engage according to their own interests and preferred learning modes.

Mary Ann, all the portfolio activities will be your choice. You can get an idea of it if you skip ahead and skim the content for next week. I do as for a "cognitive presence" post, but you can use whatever medium you like. Next week we've got a collaborative document where we'll be adding potential activities. As far as learning styles are concerned, I'm not a big fan of how that theory is promoted and distorted. I'll share some resources about it, and you can tell me what you think.

I wanted to further Mary Ann's comment about this study making a case for the importance of elearning as tool for delivery of education. I understand elearning is in the early stages, but the internet lends itself to the written word and certainly has the flexibility to be molded to learning needs.

Helen: Very interesting article with compelling statistics. Statistics don't always tell us the true story, however. I say this after reading in our textbook about 'understanding' and 'misunderstanding' and learning how to determine how to express content so the student understands. Now, on the other hand, I agree that students spend more time with extra-curricular activities rather than their studies.

I enjoyed your presentation Bruce. Looks complicated!

Bruce, your work is amazing! Story Boards have long been a feature of teaching in the elementary and middle school grades with students creating original work or using the format for a book report, but to see this technique translated into an online format is thrilling. I can just imagine how much more engaged my former students would have been had I known how to use the digital tools you showcased. Will your course be offered during Spring Quarter? Please let me know.

P.S. to your post to me regarding my blog entry for Module 5--You referenced what I wrote about eLearning trends--that post was for my EDUC250 class. Did you have a chance to see the pictures I posted and read the entry for this week's module that referenced one of the activities on our class portfolio activities spreadsheet? What I spoke about is a very RUDIMENTARY story board (I realized this after viewing your post). Thanks, Bruce for YOUR "luminous presence" in EDUC251!!

This recording is an excellent example of what I'm looking for in your final project (only about half as long). I hope everyone gets a chance to view it. It's a great way to give a tour through a course and explain how to address the best practices. Great work! Would you be interested in taking over one of our office hours sessions to teach people how you used these tools?

I am interested in taking a independent study to write a whole course. I hope Jen or someone like her takes on the challenge!

Mary Ann, On your blog, you say: "Often, students don't live in proximity to the best teachers for their subject matter interests as in the case of language study--a school may offer only German and Spanish whereas the student might wish to become proficient in Swahili." I think that is possibly one of the great major benefits that will emerge from Web-based classes - that us in-the-trenches teachers may be able to bring some of the best knowledge experts in the world into our classes. One example of that happened just this past Thursday, when Jennifer had Howard Rheingold - the long term media commentator luminary stop by for a visit. I couldn't believe my eyeballs when I saw his name show up in Elluminate! I was even able to have short video conversation with him.

I loved seeing the photos. Thanks for sharing!

I found it very interesting and loved the pics, too. What a wonderful world we have. How sad we are destroying something so wonderful!

This lesson activity is the opener for my Course Framework, designed for middle school students. There is a link to a short video I made with Animoto that is posted as a "tour" for the research teams. Please note that if this was a real course, I would make a long video complete with narration and music containing most of the 500 pictures I took during my own trip to the Galapagos in 2004. Comments for improvement are very welcome.

I liked that blog. I would take that class...if I was that age or any for that matter.

Helen, this work is amazing! I felt like I was "in" the collage! Many questions came to mind about what was happening at the moment captured in each picture--I'm sure you have some wonderful stories to tell! I think I missed your voice over, but I will try again. It has been so helpful when other students post examples of work done with a tool new to me. Because my "play/exploration time" has been limited this quarter, I haven't found all of the cool things out there, so thanks for bringing this one to my attention!

Beautiful! Thank you for introducing me to a new tool. It looks like lots of fun. I love when I see tools used to tell a story.

Helen, I've never seen a presentation format like VUVOX before. It's really an interesting way to create a slide show - one that allows you to scroll back and forth through the entire experience - in this case, San Juan...

I loved that presentation!!! I felt like I was there Helen. How wonderful to preserve memories on that tool!

This was a long video (of a lecture) and although many interesting points were made, the crux of the lecture was out of focus for me. The model of copyrighting in an effort that relies on sharing information - as he points out, such as education and science - does not seem to fit. So many people violate it. Yet, I do believe people should benefit from their creativity.

After watching about 15 minutes of this video, I believe the main point of the lecture was to bring the listeners to the point that Copy Right Law needs to be revised and a hybrid created. After all, he is a law professor. Precedents set in a court case or at the US Supreme Court level, means the law is slowly corrected or changed to accommodate new evidence; that it needs guidance from the US Constitution precepts, as determined by the US Supreme Court Justices. Or Copy Right Law changed by Congress and the introduction of new legislation guiding the issue, which in this case would be Copy Right Law and the enforcers of this law, whomever they may be.

Jennifer, Thanks for posting this terrific presentation from Lawrence Lessig! He's one of my personal heroes for bringing up concerns over the growing privatization of information - looking at ideas and creative work as strictly property to be bought and sold. It's interesting that Walt Disney, whose company became one of the staunchest and most powerful advocates for expanding and enforcing copyright law, benefited mightily from public domain stories - Alice in Wonderland, Pinocchio, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella, to name a few. It's doubtful that Disney would've survived without his release of the first cartoon with sound - Steamboat Willie (with Mickey Mouse). This cartoon took its premise freely from a movie made in the same year with Buster Keaton, called Steamboat Bill. That kind of informal use of other people's idea was common at the beginning of the 20th Century. Now a documentary film maker can be sued for accidentally including a Wendy's or McDonald's logo within a frame. The incredible complexity of copyright law makes it difficult to know what's legal and what's not under Fair Use. Lessig advocates the use of the new Creative Commons copyright designation (CC) - where creators/inventors can designate how their works can be used (non-commercial, commercial, credit, etc.). A great description of how Creative Commons works can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io3BrAQl3so I think it's extremely important that folks in the education fields stand firm in their insistence on continuing non-commercial access and use of a variety of media and information resources - it's the lifeblood of our profession - the open exchange and evaluation of ideas. Lessig is looking to build a future that moves us in that direction, while providing Creative Commons copyright protections. He also wants us to actively advocate for changes in the existing (broken) copyright regime and has posted a http://bawolcott.brinkster.net/educ251

Bruce - I tried going to the link at the end of your last post and got an error - page not found.

Ann, Thanks for spotting this glitch! The last line of the post should read as follows: He also wants us to actively advocate for changes in the existing (broken) copyright regime, and has posted a "Certificate of Entitlement" that give us official (tongue in cheek) permission to question the current copyright legal framework. Here's a link to the certificate...