Group items tagged

British Journal of Educational Technology Vol 37 No 5 2006 761-783 doi:10.1111/j.1467-8535.2006.00560.x Blackwell Publishing Ltd.Oxford, UKBJETBritish Journal of Educational Technology0007-1013British Educational Communications and Technology Agency, 20052005375761783Articles Developing a comprehensive metric British Journal of Educational Technology Developing a comprehensive metric for assessing discussion board effectiveness Robin H. Kay Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Email: Robin.Kay@uoit.ca Abstract The use of online discussion boards has grown extensively in the past 5 years, yet some researchers argue that our understanding of how to use this tool in an effective and meaningful way is minimal at best. Part of the problem in acquiring more cohesive and useful information rests in the absence of a comprehensive, theory-driven metric to assess quality and effectiveness. Based on an extensive review of the research, the following variables were used to assess traditional discussion board use: thread, location of message within thread, author (student vs. educator), subject line clarity, time of posting, response time from previous message, number of times message was read, number of words, primary purpose, message quality, difficulty level of topic, knowledge level, processing level and use of external resources. These variables proved to be effective in assessing 12 key areas of discussion board use. It is argued that this kind of metric is essential if we wish to advance our understanding of online discussion boards for both educators and researchers. Overview The use of online discussion boards has grown extensively in the past 5 years (Cooper, 2001). While this tool is viewed as revolutionary by some researchers (Hara, Bonk & Angeli, 1998; Li, 2003), others argue that our understanding of how to use online discussion in an effective and meaningful way is limited (Blignaut &

My Wordle for online Teaching module Robin Kay's Abstract 'Developing a comprehensive metric for assessing discussion board effectiveness'

Juxio [juhk-see-oh]: From juxtaposition, the placement of two or more elements together to create new meaning. Juxio is a new visual way to communicate. Individuals and businesses use Juxio to combine images, text and more into mashable, visual streams called Juxes to share across social media and in print. Juxes are created on both our Web and iPhone apps. In the future we will support additional mobile devices. By making Juxio available anywhere at any time, we hope you find more ways to create new meaning.

Students and academics looking for visual arts images now have online access to a stunning collection of over 100,000 images with the launch of www.vads.ac.uk. The website has been developed by VADS (the Visual Arts Data Service) which re-branded and re-launched itself earlier this month and contains collections as diverse as the National Inventory of Continental European Paintings, the Woolmark Company Archive and the Central Saint Martins Museum and Study Collection. VADS has been providing services to the academic community for some 11 years and has built up an impressive portfolio of visual art collections. The image resources are free and copyright cleared for use in UK Higher and Further Education, providing a valuable resource to students and academics which can be incorporated into lectures, seminar presentations and essays.

Collection of sites which guide and define the skills and abilities students need to demonstrate effective digital literacy anc digital communication.

Charts and graphs are a great tool because they communicate information visually.

The main sense is vision

via @cliotech