Hi, Jim Patterson here. This may be my final report for the 2004-2005 year. I say "maybe" because who knows? I might get the urge and report back on things as they develop.
I have but one topic this week. The Chronicle of Higher Education had an online discussion on "colloquy" area with a computer science professor at the University of Washing on "information overload." The discussion followed a (the Chronicle's words), somewhat-Luddite but interesting and relevant April 15 article in the Chronicle entitled "Knowing When to Log Off."
Although a technologist, I think it is important to step back now and then and THINK about what we are doing.
The transcript of the discussion is here on the Smog of Data. The article referenced is here called Knowing When to Log Off.
What do you think? Or are you so weary of these blogs and emails that you aren't listening and don't care?
Thanks!
Jim Patterson
ELT Report for the week of 18 April
Hello and welcome to Emerging Learning Technologies for the week of 18 April. I’m Jim Patterson of Paradise Valley Community College, ELT co-chair (along with Roger Yohe of Estrella Mountain Community College).
This is from the Chronicle of Higher Education and their glance at the April 13-19 issue of The Village Voice on Academic blogs. Blogging is slowly but surely catching on in academe, says Geeta Dayal, a freelance writer. For some in the academy, blogging offers an escape valve, a forum for free expression that's not bound to the constraints of their fields," she writes.
Some academic writers make their blogs anonymous, so they can gripe about their daily frustrations without fear of reprisal, Ms. Dayal says. Others see blogging as a way to exchange ideas more quickly than is possible through traditional routes. Legal scholars have been particularly quick to embrace the medium, she says.
The raging 'blawgosphere' -- blogs by law-school profs, students, and grads -- is one of the most organized and lively pockets of online academic discourse, she writes.
Some scholars are even making blogs their field of study, holding conferences and writing papers -- even dissertations -- on the subject, she says. But blogging is not for everyone. Ms. Dayal cites Jay Rosen, an associate professor of journalism at New York University and writer of a media blog called PressThink. She quotes him as saying: It's really for those who want to enter into public debate somehow, and despite all the blather you hear about 'public intellectuals,' there are very few academics who want to do that.
The article, "PH.Dotcom," is online at http://www.villagevoice.com/arts/0515,edsuppdayal,62903,12.html An accompanying article, "A Brief Guide to Blogodemia," is also available at http://www.villagevoice.com/arts/0515,edsuppblogside,62961,12.html
Also from the Chronicle, this is rich! Vanity, Thy Name Is Orlando. After creating a program that randomly churns out phony computer-science jargon, three Massachusetts Institute of Technology students submitted a nonsensical research paper to the organizers of a conference scheduled for July in Orlando, Fla. -- and the paper was accepted. Check out the story at http://chronicle.com/temp/email.php?id=z5dyv31tdr4c1yhf0ou0t9jler8f5fhq Although I am a computer faculty at PVCC, I have taught writing and journalism for many years. I’ve often had to write in bold letters BRAVO SIERRA on papers that made no sense.
Intentionally Misleading Web Sites – from Frank Westcott, techLearning.
There are many intentionally misleading Web sites. Your students need to know that they exist and how to recognize them. They also need to learn how to evaluate the trustworthiness and authenticity of what they read on the Internet. They have to understand that anyone with a computer and Internet access can publish a Web page and promote their point of view. Read the article at http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=159901583
From Fred Langa and his marvelous LangaList, As part of the article Test And Tune Your Online Connection, at http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160500660 here are a few of Fred’s best test and tuning sites he knows of for diagnosing and correcting problems--- even subtle ones--- with dial-up, cable, DSL, LAN or other connection types. Combined with a detailed step-by-step article showing how to refresh your entire online connection subsystem without having to tear down the entire operating system, the article has a ton of info you might find useful. With a little luck, you'll be on your way to a faster, better online experience!
Jim Patterson
Hello and welcome to Emerging Learning Technologies for the week of 11 April. I’m Jim Patterson of Paradise Valley Community College, ELT co-chair (along with Roger Yohe of Estrella Mountain Community College).
Last week, ELT covered the Visual Literacy Conference. Special thanks go to those who covered it and then posted to the wiki at http://zircon.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/emerging/wiki?VisLitConf - A tip ‘o the cap to Roger Yohe (Estrella Mountain), John Arle (Phoenix College), Jennifer Strickland (Paradise Valley), Linda Hicks (Scottsdale), Rick Effland (Mesa), Donna Rebadow (Paradise Valley), Nancy Siefer (Glendale), and of course Alan Levine (MCLI).
Have you seen the Wired Campus Blog from the Chronicle of Higher Education? If not, bookmark this page at http://wiredcampus.chronicle.com/ It is well worth the gander.
`Smart classrooms' gain favor - Janet M. Harp, San Bernadino County Sun
Esmeralda Guillen doesn't worry about straining to see a small television screen anymore or having to wait around for an instructor to hook up electronic equipment. Now that devices for ``smart classrooms'' are being installed at Crafton Hills College, Guillen, a freshman, and other students can learn from the latest technology appearing in college classes around the country. ``It's so much easier to see on a big projector screen,'' the Yucaipa resident said. ``And all the stuff being at one place saves time.'' This year the school's Technology Services Department started equipping classrooms with projection devices, multimedia computers, easy-access and high-speed Internet, connections for laptops, enhanced sound, DVD players and VCRs - all at one comprehensive station operated by the instructor. Go to http://www.sbsun.com/Stories/0,1413,208~12588~2785974,00.html for more information.
Free web site hosts digital works - eSchool News
A new web site backed by some of the internet's leading thinkers promises to make it easier--and cheaper--for artists, scholars, students, and other creative people to share their digital works. Ourmedia.org seeks to become a central repository for such items. But a quick perusal of the site before press time suggested some of the content might be inappropriate for K-12 students. Creative digital works are now "scattered ... on people's computers [or] hidden away on the web in faraway crevices," J.D. Lasica, a veteran journalist who co-founded the project, told the Associated Press. "We thought it was important to gather a lot of this stuff under one roof." See http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStory.cfm?ArticleID=5580 for more.
Trend Watch - techLearning
T&L editors made their annual sojourn to the Florida Educational Technology Conference in Orlando, where data-driven decision making, accessibility, and mobility were key themes. Following are some highlights: 1. "Teacher dashboard" wins the prize as the buzz word du conference. The basic premise: pulling together critical information such as assessment and test data and presenting it in one user-friendly place — a digital dashboard — so that educators can make more informed instructional decisions. Among the many companies talking up the technology were industry thought leader SchoolNet, Sagebrush, and STI. http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=60407688 to read more about it.
Oooo, look at this! Arizona Community College Completes Testing on New Student Information System from http://www.maricopa.edu/nss/
The Maricopa Community College system has recently finished testing what is considered the world’s largest implementation of PeopleSoft Enterprise Student Administration. The new system will enable the district to manage enrollment and financial services for the Maricopa Community College system, which enrolls over 250,000 students annually and supports over 11,500 employees. See Converge Online at http://www.centerdigitaled.com/converge/
Have a good week in technology!
Jim Patterson
This link is a short movie of about eight minutes on the future of journalism in America. It is worthy of discussion. It has a sinister tone to it all; frankly, as someone who is a trained journalist and has been a reporter, I like the fact that technology can tailor our information based on our interests. I like having competition for the "Old Media" and I like having more people have the capability of publishing. That is my opinion. What is yours?
Hi and welcome to the Emerging Learning Technologies report for the week of 4 April. I'm co-chair Jim Patterson.
This week, from the Technology in Higher Education (THE) website on new products - Librarians, teachers and other school staff can now get instant anytime, anywhere access to their library and textbook data with Follett Falcon, a new wireless scanning device from Follett Software. The company introduced and demonstrated the new handheld device at the 2005 Florida Educational Technology Conference earlier this year. Built exclusively for users of Follett's Destiny Resource Management Solution applications, the Follett Falcon combines the freedom of wireless access with high-performance barcode scanning and PDA technology. The Falcon gives librarians, teachers and textbook coordinators access to real-time library, patron and textbook information from anywhere within range of the school's wireless network. For more information, visit http://www.fsc.follett.com
CrystalGraphics Inc., a developer and publisher of add-on products for Microsoft Office, has announced the release of PowerPlugs: Video Backgrounds Player and Content. The PowerPlugs: Video Backgrounds Player is a unique software product that plugs directly into Microsoft PowerPoint, allowing users to select and insert full-screen moving backgrounds into their PowerPoint presentations quickly and effortlessly. Also, it is compatible with all of PowerPoint's animation tools and text-editing capabilities. For more information, visit http://www.crystalgraphics.com
Also from the THE Journal - a way to cut off cell phones in class! Hub schools aim to silence cellphones. Students banned under draft policy. — From The Boston Globe. No more text messaging or ring tones blaring the latest hip-hop beats in Boston's public schools. Not even during lunch.
http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2 005/03/09/hub_schools_aim_to_silence_cellphones/
One of the little known tools in Windows is a way to easily synch up your files from laptop to main computer and back again. Fred Langa, author of LangaList wrote a detailed article at http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=159905095
(it's free!) that gives you his own take on how best to use these tools and what they're suited for. He also included lots of links if you want to explore further on your own.
Find Educational Content on the Web - Jeffrey Branzburg, techLearning.
The Internet is a vast repository of information, including online activities and teacher resources. Look closely enough and you can find a wealth of educational content to use with your students. There are more and more Web-based software products available; frequently, they feature the same content that is available for purchase on CDs (for example, Achievement Technologies' CD-based SkillsBank and their Web-based SkillsTutor). There are also free software products you and your students can access and run directly on the Web. Many are Java or Shockwave based, requiring free add-ons to your browser. See http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=60407843
SECURITY ALERT! SECURITY: Step by Step - Eric Svetcov, techLearning.
It's time to begin planning for summer upgrades, and if information security isn't at the top of your list, it should be. Your students continue to learn more about the tools and technology that could be used to circumvent your current security infrastructure. What you need is a security architecture and approach that will continually evolve as the threat environment changes over time. We will start with methodology and then discuss the tools that will help you minimize the risks to your network. See http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=60407824
Yesterday, I got the latest PC World magazine. Look at this article on fixes for your email inbox at http://www.pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,119570,00.asp Go to http://www.pcworld.com/ and read about more space from Google Mail and Yahoo. There is also an article on how to speed up your high speed Internet connection.
Have a good week with technology!
Jim Patterson