New Media Consortium Names 10 Top 'Metatrends' Shaping Educational Technology - Wired Campus A group of education leaders gathered last week to discuss the most important technology innovations of the last decade, and their findings suggest the classroom of the future will be open, mobile, and flexible enough to reach individual students—while free online tools will challenge the authority of traditional institutions. The retreat celebrated the 10th anniversary of the New Media Consortium’s Horizon Project, whose annual report provides a road map of the education-technology landscape. One hundred experts from higher education, K-12, and museum education identified 28 “metatrends” that will influence education in the future. The 10 most important, according to a New Media Consortium announcement about the retreat, include global adoption of mobile devices, the rise of cloud computing, and transparency movements that call into question traditional notions of content ownership concerning digital materials. Of the top 10 trends the group flagged, Mr. 1. Return to Top
Designing Text-based Information Sharebar You might practice information design every day and not know it. Information design refers to transforming complex, unorganized or unstructured information into meaningful and easily-accessed content. Sound familiar? Information design is multi-disciplinary. It’s concerned with visual presentation, the structure and organization of content, the accessibility of information and how it is used. 1. Left-justifying paragraphs of text is good. A paragraph of centered text is difficult to read. 2. When the background is noisy, it provides extraneous visual cues that disrupt word perception. Text on a textured background detracts from readability Text on a quiet background is easier to read. 3. According to Robin Williams, author of The Non-Designers Type Book, the underline interferes with the letters it is emphasizing. Underline is old school, use bold or italics for emphasis 4. High contrast improves readability 5. Light on dark reduces readability for most people 6.
Educating the Net Generation The Net Generation has grown up with information technology. The aptitudes, attitudes, expectations, and learning styles of Net Gen students reflect the environment in which they were raised—one that is decidedly different from that which existed when faculty and administrators were growing up. This collection explores the Net Gen and the implications for institutions in areas such as teaching, service, learning space design, faculty development, and curriculum. Contributions by educators and students are included. The printed book is available through Amazon.com. Diana G. Please Note: This PDF contains the entire book with embedded hyperlinks of URLs, endnotes, and index terms, plus bookmarks to all chapters and sections. Table of Contents 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Index Copyright Information Authors retain the copyright to their intellectual content, with EDUCAUSE owning the copyright to the collected publication.
Building and Environment - A holistic, multi-level analysis identifying the impact of classroom design on pupils’ learning Abstract The aim of this study was to explore if there is any evidence for demonstrable impacts of school building design on the learning rates of pupils in primary schools. Hypotheses as to positive impacts on learning were developed for 10 design parameters within a neuroscience framework of three design principles. These were tested using data collected on 751 pupils from 34 varied classrooms in seven different schools in the UK. The multi-level model developed explained 51% of the variability in the learning improvements of the pupils, over the course of a year. However, within this a high level of explanation (73%) was identified at the “class” level, linked entirely to six built environment design parameters, namely: colour, choice, connection, complexity, flexibility and light. The model was used to predict the impact of the six design parameters on pupil’s learning progression. Highlights Keywords Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.
Ways to Organize Information The amount of information available to the average person in the workforce is exploding. With informal learning coming to the forefront, instructional designers may increasingly be responsible for designing information, rather than online courses.This could be for websites, interactive resources, references, support systems, mobile glossaries and things we haven’t even thought of yet. If you’re called upon to perform information design, you’ll want to make the information manageable, findable and easy to use. One approach to this is the LATCH system, created by Richard Saul Wurman. . He writes that there are mainly five ways to organize information and these are applicable to most situations. LOCATION Use this when organizing information around locales, from grand to small. ALPHABET Use this when organizing large quantities of information, such as specialized glossaries or the online resources on your company’s intranet. This sums up the LATCH approach to information design.
The Free eBook: How to become an eLearning Professional By Connie Malamed I never think of myself as an expert. Gaining expertise is an ongoing journey of continuous learning where there is no end in sight. Our field is particularly broad and deep. No one person can retain all of this information and no one person can be competent in all of the related skills. If you think of all the people in this domain as one giant mind, you can see how we gain expertise together. To become a “pro” in this career then, involves getting involved with people in our field and outside of it. Becoming a pro also means staying up-to-date and this is easily done through social media platforms. Becoming a pro also involves helping others learn by sharing your excellent finds and documenting your experiences in the public sphere. Even if you work alone, there’s no excuse for remaining isolated. Connie Malamed Position: Learning, information and visual design consultant Company: Connie Malamed Consulting Short Bio By Connie Malamed I never think of myself as an expert.
For Back to School, Reimagine Classroom Design Teaching Strategies Lenny Gonzales By Therese Jilek As the school year begins, most classrooms across the country will mirror traditional class design: rows of desks with passive children sitting quietly listening to a teacher in the front of the class. But not at Hartland-Lakeside. Across the Hartland-Lakeside school district in Hartland, Wisconsin, teachers have transformed their Industrial Age classrooms into innovative, state-of-the-art learning spaces. The innovative spaces were a product of teachers changing how they taught and viewed student learning. Teachers realized that they needed to do more than rearrange the room; they needed to start over. As teachers transformed their roles into facilitators of learning, they found that standing in front of the classroom or lecturing was no longer prudent. Students and teachers work together throughout the day in many different ways. This change also reflects the increased use of mobile technology to personalize learning. Therese Jilek
52 Tips on Best Practices for eLearning Development and Implementation August 21, 2012 Contributing Editor, Karen Forni How can you develop and deploy eLearning quickly, efficiently, and with positive results? Which eLearning development and implementation methods work best and which methods are unreliable or ineffective? From tips on popular authoring tools to ideas for generating team engagement, this complimentary eBook provides 52 ideas to help you create and deliver high-quality eLearning, drawing on the experience of 12 experts who are leading sessions in The eLearning Guild’s September 2012 Online Forum, “eLearning Development and Implementation: Best Practices.” Get valuable insights in areas including: Guidelines and ProtocolsMaking Tools Work for YouEngaging Your TeamReaching (and Teaching) Your Audience Complete the form below and download the report today! All fields are required