"This post is part of a series of 11 posts in which we're sharing the syllabi for all 11 courses in the Instructional Technology and Digital Media Literacy (IT&DML) program. Please keep in mind the materials we're sharing here are the documents and specifics as approved when we initially launched the program. The "real" implementation of these courses is a bit different as we embrace new digital texts and tools."
"One of the key components of the IT&DML program is that we're big believers in "open" and to that end as much of the content of our program is open, and available online for your use. The rationale for this is two-fold. I believe this helps us adapt and react to changes in the industry and classroom. I also believe that if our materials are open and online, then anyone can use them…but also they can be critiqued and reviewed by anyone. To that end, I have been, and will continue to reflect on the texts and tools, and the components of the program here on this blog."
"Open Badges enable you to connect different types of learning to each other. The whole point of connected learning by definition -- by the name itself -- is to find a way to connect things. To do that, we need something that will carry that information across sectors. In the connected learning vision, I see badges as the connectors between different spheres. Badges play the role of a currency where learning can be captured, recognized, and then communicated across those lines."
"For me, risk literacy is central to digital literacy. It is our ability to assess the drawbacks, dangers and limits of control in digital and digitally augmented environments. It is an acknowledgement that by using digital tools, no matter how open, if a learner is unable or not required to modify the code to create a learning experience, as much as we'd like them to stay learners, they occupy the role of an "end user.""
"My single strongest recommendation to you: if you want the best and latest evidence-based, authoritative, nuanced, critical knowledge about how digital media and networks are transforming not just learning but commercial media, citizen participation in democracy, and the everyday practices of young people, my advice is to obtain a copy of the new book, "Participatory Culture in A Networked Era," by Henry Jenkins, Mizuko Ito, and danah boyd."
"Teachers who have begun to challenge these assumptions engage in alternative practices that begin to help us articulate the commitments of connected teaching. These commitments and practices include:
COLLABORATION: Connected teachers work collaboratively.
CURIOSITY: Connected teachers bring an inquiry mindset to classroom practice.
COURAGE: Connected teachers give up some of their control over the learning experience.
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT: Connected teachers engage their students in public life.
CARE: Connected teachers share their interests and learning with their students."