5 Tools for Building a Next-Generation 'Hybrid' Class Website [Nicholas C. Martin is a visiting professor at American University and the United Nations University for Peace. He is also co-founder and president of TechChange, an organization that trains leaders to leverage emerging technologies for sustainable social change. TechChange specializes in creating “next-generation” e-learning content, tools and communities. Last month, I co-taught a course at American University’s School of International Service entitled ”Applications of Technology for Peacebuilding.” Prior to the course, we created an online social learning community in Drupal with a number of innovative features. Once we got the Drupal site up and running we began creating and embedding various tools to support the learning process. This course was just the beginning of our attempt at TechChange to go beyond what industry leaders like Blackboard and others currently provide to find and implement the most effective technologies and platforms to support dynamic learning. Return to Top
How to Start Tweeting (and Why You Might Want To) We’ve written a lot about Twitter here at ProfHacker. George hosted a discussion of Twitter at MLA 09, Brian urged us to hack conferences using Twitter, Julie taught us how to use Twitter clients and handle Twitter spam, Ethan explained how to back up our social networks, and Jeffery even showed us how to post a Twitter feed on our office doors. A few weeks ago, however, I was visiting a friend and fellow teacher who asked a more basic question: “so how would I get started with this whole Twitter thing?” One of the most common dismissals of Twitter sounds something like this, “I don’t need to know what a bunch of people had for breakfast.” Fill Out Your Bio As you start to follow folks, some of them will follow you back. Be a Follower Unlike Facebook, on Twitter you can follow anyone you want. This will bring up a list of everyone that user follows—in other words, all the folks they consider interesting on Twitter. Make a List Pay Attention to #Hashtags Join the Conversation Return to Top
The Complete Educator’s Guide to Using Skype effectively in the classroom Increasingly, educators globally are transforming their classroom using Skype to create powerful, authentic, motivating learning experiences for their students. From connecting with classrooms in other locations to learning about each others’ culture to connecting with content experts – educators are extending learning beyond classroom walls. So how do you use Skype effectively with your class? Hopefully this will help! Here’s our educator’s guide on every thing you need to know about Skype from…… 1. A. 2. A. 3. A. Alternatively, here’s The Complete Educator’s Guide to Using Skype effectively in the classroom PDF version — for you to download and print off. About Skype Skype is a free application that allows you to call people from all over the world using the Internet. When you contact another person that uses Skype you talk or chat for free. Best of all you can tell when another user is online and what their status is so you know if they are available. Setting up your Skype account: A. 1. 4.
The Social Compass is the GPS for the Adaptive Business Brian Solis inShare286 Over the years, I’ve written extensively about the need to extend opportunities in social media beyond marketing and customer service to set the stage for the social business. I believe that the impact lies beyond the socialization of business; it introduces us to a genre of an adaptive business, an entity that can earn relevance now and over time by listening, engaging, and learning. In October 2009, I worked with JESS3 to visualize corporate transparency and authenticity for the release of Engage. In the process, I realized that those two words, transparent and authentic, didn’t carry tangible business value to leaders and decision makers. Please, before you think about engaging in social media, I need you to do two things…be transparent and authentic in all you do. Got it? While the words carry great importance, in all honesty, it’s our job to define the role of transparency and authenticity in business. Exploring The Social Compass Center: The Brand Halo 1: The Players - Poster
» Twitter is a Snark Valve SAMPLE REALITY Last week I described the intensive role of social networking in my teaching. Although I explained how I track and archive my students’ Twitter activity, I didn’t describe what they on Twitter. That’s because I wasn’t sure myself what they do. I mean, of course I’ve reading their tweets and sending my own, but I hadn’t considered in a systematic way how my students use Twitter. Now, six weeks into the semester, clear patterns are discernible and I can begin to analyze the value of Twitter as a pedagogical tool. My most surprising find? Let me step back and explain. I began with a Twitter Adoption Matrix, originally sketched out in late August by Rick Reo. Twitter Adoption Matrix (click image for full size) You can also find a downloadable version of my revised matrix on Scribd. Right now, I’m mostly thinking about the and matrices. Posting news and sharing resources relevant to the class Asking questions and responding with clarifications about the readings And that is a good, powerful thing.
How to Use Google Search More Effectively [INFOGRAPHIC] Among certain circles (my family, some of my coworkers, etc.) I'm known for my Googling skills. I can find anything, anywhere, in no time flat. Sadly, though web searches have become and integral part of the academic research landscape, the art of the Google search is an increasingly lost one. That search process also included determining when to rely on Google and when to utilize scholarly databases, but on a fundamental level, it appears that many people just don't understand how to best find the information they seek using Google. Thanks to the folks at HackCollege, a number of my "secrets" are out. Infographic via HackCollege Image courtesy of iStockphoto, LICreate
Rubrics for Assessment Online Professional Development - UW Stout, Wisconsin's Polytechnic University Learn more about our Online Courses, Online Certificate Programs, and Graduate Degree A collection of rubrics for assessing portfolios, group work/cooperative learning, concept map, research process/ report, PowerPoint, oral presentation, web page, blog, wiki, and other social media projects. Quick Links to Rubrics Social Media Project Rubrics Wiki RubricCriteria for assessing individual and group Wiki contributions. Blog RubricAssess individual blog entries, including comments on peers' blogs. Twitter RubricAssess learning during social networking instructional assignments. Discussion, Teamwork, and Group Work Rubrics Online Discussion Board RubricAssessing ability to share perspectives, refine thoughts through the writing process, and participate in meaningful discussionPrimary Grade Self-Evaluation Teamwork Rubric (PDF)Features of a sandwich to graphically show the criteria PowerPoint and Podcast Rubrics A+ PowerPoint Rubric Joan Vandervelde's rubric provides 10 performance categories
epic shit there Last week I introduced a pedagogical framework for using Twitter in your teaching, organized along two axes: monologic to dialogic and passive to active. These high-falutin terms are fine for a theoretical matrix, but what about the real life implementation of Twitter in and outside of your classroom? How do you actually do it? I’ll cover six aspects of Twitter integration where it pays to plan ahead of time (i.e. sometime last week): organization, access, frequency, substance, archiving, and assessment. Organization A question I often hear from colleagues interested in using Twitter is Do I have to follow all of my students in order to teach with Twitter? Creating a list requires you to manually add each student to the list (think of it as a Twitter Roster), whereas hashtags rely upon students themselves to tag their tweets. Access Social media isn’t social unless people know about it. Also encourage your students to use a free application like Seesmic or Tweetdeck. Frequency Substance
Using Social Networking to Build 21st Century Skills - Finding Common Ground "Good people know that high stakes testing has limited value and they keep operating anyway. They don't let testing get in the way of doing the good work they want to do to get kids prepared for life." Todd Whitaker In education we have a habit of using terms so often that we push staff to a place where they do not want to use them anymore, which means they are in jeopardy of not being engaged in the process. The tendency to dislike a term after it is used too often happens because many educators are concerned that it's merely a new twist on an old idea. The race to nowhere is paved in countless mandates and new ideas. However, are they really new ideas? In addition, one of the best 21st century skills that we can teach students is the art of reflection. Social Network Generation As adults, we grew up in a time when we had to work as a team, think critically and communicate with others, at the same time that we were all being creative. Great conversations force us to think deeper.