WYTECC Keynote Presentation – Alan November, Creating a New Culture of Teaching and Learning

Alan November

The group who puts together the WYTECC conference does a great job. This year, I had the pleasure to sit in on two great keynote presentations; one from David Warlick and another from Alan November. Yesterday, I reported on David Warlick presentation called Rebooting the Basics. Today, I will fill you in on Alan November‘s presentation, Creating a New Culture of Teaching and Learning. November is the senior partner and founder of November Learning.

During the 90 minute, humorous presentation, November hit on some key issues that needed to be addressed in today’s education. In addition, he peeled back another layer of the onion and taught us some really interesting things about search engines and data. Throughout his presentation, he focused on the theme that we could be doing a better job in the classroom simply by opening the doors to the rest of the world. One of the first things, November stressed was

Getting a college degree is not a guarantee to getting a job.

As November explained, he consults around the world focusing on learning and education. He teaches at the university level about change management. What he has found is that teachers outside of America are more creative and have less fear than those within our borders. Within the US, we are constantly trying to control the Internet and shield kids from “danger”. As a result students are suffering for it. Students really do not know a lot about technology. Colleges are not teaching students how to use technology tools other than what not to do. 

November then provided a great example of how students do not know how to use the Internet. According to PEW, students look at the top results of a search, do not change search engines,  and give up early on a search (I am probably just as guilty). He showed how to get a typical biased search out of Google; he typed in the phrase “Iranian Hostage Crisis”. As expected, it provided results from a local perspective. However, when he added “site:IR” to the search query, we were able to see Iranian articles. Naturally, he had to also change the search phrase because Iranians did not see the event as a hostage situation.

While looking at the term “ear mouse”, he asked if the Wikipedia article or BBC article was more accurate. In this case, the Wikipedia article was more accurate. He just stressed the point that teachers often tell students that Wikipedia is wrong, when it may be the best answer. We must teach students how to be able to determine the truth. We need to teach students how to get to primary source documents. November provided a number of examples on how to manipulate the Google “Site:” parameter to filter to primary source documents. We should be encouraging students to use mobile devices to hone into accurate information as they answer questions.

Librarians are key to helping teachers and students learn to be better explorers of the Internet.

November highlighted a video created by a sixth grader that now has 54,000 hits. This video shows how to factor a number to primes. Mathtrain.tv is a site where students teach other students about math concepts. Sometimes, kids prefer to ask a friend rather than a teacher. November’s lesson is convince kids they can change the world in six grade. We need to turn kids on by showing them what other kids around the world are doing.

November also gave a demonstration of Wolfram Alpha. I had not previously used this program, but it has great potential. In the search query, he entered “hotdog and hamburger” and it brought up nutritional information.  At the bottom of the screen, you are able to view the sources. The program also has other query capability.

Finally, November left us with this video; a great example of making instruction student-centered. I like how he develops instruction based on the needs of the students.

November left us with this challenge.

What can you change during the first five days of school to excite students about learning.

Another great presentation!

David Warlick – The Classroom Now Extends to the World

David Warlick

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to attend and present at the 2nd Annual WYTECC Conference in Rock Springs. One of the two keynote speakers that I had the pleasure to listen to was David Warlick. Warlick is an advocate for teaching differently, or more importantly, teaching for this day in age. His presentation was entitled, Rebooting the Basics. His emphasis was all about creating lifelong learners. He pointed out that receiving a basic education was not enough, we had to learn to learn for the rest of our lives. A core skill of the 21st Century is being a master learner. We need students to become lifelong learners… and we need to model this behavior.

Teachers who are not using technology are part of the problem.

When Warlick began his presentation, he introduced us to a variety of tools that I will share here:

• WYTECC Event Notes
  • Places where he has presented. I thought this was cool.
  • Co Learners site.
• Knitter Chats – Where the backchannel for the presentation is being stored.
  • Here is the transcript of the backchannel with Warlick’s comments.
  • Knitter Chat is Warlick personal experiment. However, he recommend the following
    • Backnoise — http://backnoise.com
    • Backchan – http://backchan.nl
    • Chatzy — http://chatzy.com
    • Today’s Meet — http://todaysmeet.com/ (my favorite)
• David Warlick on Twitter.
• Landmarks for School – Another site developed by Warlick to share educational resources.

In a quite humorous presentation, Warlick talked about how the world and education has changed from when he was in school. When he was a student, calculators costed $200 (the gift for a lifetime) and the traditional classroom had desks in straight rows.  Now the classroom can reach all corners of the world but we are not yet teaching with that in mind. He advocated that we need to prepare students for their future by allowing them to learn with the tools they normally carry on their person, e.g, smartphone, iPad, etc. Warlick also stressed that we need to teach students how to leverage digital data rather than paper artifacts.

In an interesting discussion, he asked teachers if they trusted Wikipedia. A majority indicated that they did not. He showed them the warnings that Wikipedia posted on their site when information was suspect. He then asked them if they trusted their textbooks. Textbooks are not necessarily accurate, and they do not post warnings. The lesson is that we need to teach students how to discern between accurate and reliable information and information that is presented as truth but is not.

One of the coolest demonstrations that I had seen in a long time was when Warlick took data from the Advanced National Seismic System site, and turned it into a map using a spreadsheet. Basically, he plotted the latitudes and longitudes from earthquakes for the month of December into a scatterplot, and the visual result was a map of the world. His lesson from this demonstration was that all information is digital and can tell a story.

A school that does not include music, art, and drama is not a school.

Finally, Warlick stressed that we need to change the 3 R’s to 3 E’s. Contemporary literacy should be about Exposing what is true, Employing information, and Expressing compelling ideas. He also added Ethics.

All in all, a nice keynote presentation.

What is on the Horizon… the 2013 report

2013 Horizon Report HE

I am pleased to report that the 2013 issue of the New Media Consortium (NMC) Horizon Report for Education is now available. Each year, NMC forecasts trends for the next five years. Again, I am in much agreement with what they have written, and slightly surprised how things changed from the 2012 report to this year’s report. Normally, the changes are not so sudden.

Each report has three major elements: key trends, significant challenges, and technologies to watch. Within each area of the report, six items are reported on. This report is no different. For the next 1 to 5 years, the NMC is seeing the following trends:

One year or less

• MOOCs
• Tablet Computing

Two to three years

• Game and gamification
• Learning Analytics

Four to five years

• 3D printing
• wearable technology

While I knew that MOOCs were trending, they were not even reported in last year’s report. Here are some other changes from the 2012 Horizon Report. Mobile apps are no longer being reported; MOOCs replaced them on the list. The two to three year forecast is roughly the same; however, 3D printing and wearable technology has replaced gesture-based computing and Internet of things for the four to five year forecast.

Before going into more depth on the technology trends, I would like to report on the key trends and significant challenges.

Key Trends

The NMC reported on six key trends:

1. Openness — concepts like open content, open data, and open resources, along with notions of transparency and easy access to data and information — is becoming a value.
2. Massively open online courses are being widely explored as alternatives and supplements to traditional university courses.
3. The workforce demands skills from college graduates that are more often acquired from informal learning experiences than in universities.
4. There is an increasing interest in using new sources of data for personalizing the learning experience and for performance measurement.
   
5. The role of educators continues to change due to the vast resources that are accessible to students via the Internet.
6. Education paradigms are shifting to include online learning, hybrid learning, and collaborative models.

For me, I found a number of these trends to be very important. I like the idea of open content; I believe information should be shared for the benefit of others. MOOCs are certainly a hot topic right now. They are opening up knowledge to the world. I also believe as educators we should be sharing knowledge and information with the world rather than controlling it behind a paywall such as the model for current journals. I feel we should be curating and sharing information we find in a meaningful way. We should also be building our own content.

I am also a strong advocate for informal learning and tailoring the learning experience to the individual. We should also be leveraging technology has hard as possible to help learning and disseminating information.

Significant Challenges

I found the significant challenges to be most attention getting. Here are the six significant challenges mentioned by NMC:

1. Faculty training still does not acknowledge the fact that digital media literacy continues its rise in importance as a key skill in every discipline and profession.
2. The emergence of new scholarly forms of authoring, publishing, and researching outpace sufficient and scalable modes of assessment.
3. Too often it is education’s own processes and practices that limit broader uptake of new technologies.
4. The demand for personalized learning is not adequately supported by current technology or practices.
5. New models of education are bringing unprecedented competition to the traditional models of higher education.
6. Most academics are not using new technologies for learning and teaching, nor for organizing their own research.

I personally believe this comes down to priorities. Is it about learning and teaching, or is it about a career as a professor. I believe most of the items listed are about being a professor rather than about helping others learn. As I have talked with professors, they are primarily focused on the “publish or perish” aspect of their job. This is directly related to education’s practices of writing for a journal rather than really writing to help spread knowledge. To get out of this rut, professors need to be encouraged to write and create content with different media and methods. The world is rapidly changing, and the coveted journal is not the only way to share research. I also believe that we need to do a better job of digital literacy for both students and faculty. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be a priority for either party. Establishing a priority must start at the top.

Here is what I found in the 2013 Horizon report that resonated with me.

Trending Technologies

MOOCs

MOOCs are massively open online courses. These are online course that cater to potentially thousands of students. Some course have had over 100,000 students enrolled. Very often, they use freely available cloud based technologies to display and share content. One of the key components of MOOCs, at least for now, is that they are free to anyone who wishes to participate. Learners can try out new things without a significant investment other than time.

In many current models, massively open online courses present opportunities for learners to freely experiment with a variety of subjects and acquire new skills that may not be associated with a degree plan at brick-and-mortar institutions.

MOOCs are cropping up across the global. Many are being developed by prominent institutions such as Purdue University, MIT, and California Institute of Technology. Even though MOOCs are currently being developed by higher ed, they will quickly challenge higher education.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• College Is Dead. Long Live College!
  
• How ‘Open’ Are MOOCs?
• Jump Off the Coursera Bandwagon
• MOOCs and Money

• The Single Most Important Experiment in Higher Education

• xED Book
• The Year of the MOOC

Tablet Computing

Tablets are rapidly growing in popularity across campuses because of their portability and versatility. Because of mobile applications, tablets can morph into the device that is necessary at the time from a book, to a camera, to a scientific measuring device. In the classroom, students are using tablets to share notes and resources, check email, and participated in interactive learning activities. Higher ed institutions are recognizing the power of tablets and are now sharing content through iTunes as well as lending or issuing tablets to students. As a device used for consuming content, tablet computing is quickly becoming a favorite.

Extremely portable, tablets have become significant distribution points for magazines and e-books, with major retailers including Amazon revealing that their e-books outperform their print books.

As a content creation tool, tablet computing is coming into its own. Programs like iBooks are allowing educators and learners alike to create books and compiled textbooks.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

•  Given Tablets but No Teachers, Ethiopian Children Teach Themselves
• Google Wages War with Apple and the Rest of the Tablet Industry, Unleashes Impressive Nexus 7+Mobile
• How a Classroom of iPads Changed My Approach to Learning
• Tablets are Changing the Tech You Use, Whether You Own One or Not
• Teaching with Tablets
• Why Tablets are the Future of Electronic Medical Records

Game and gamification

U.S. is split in almost equal thirds with people ages 18-35 representing 31% of gamers.

This is one of my favorite areas, and a research interest. I am interested in how games can help in the learning process from actually playing a game to overlaying game mechanics on routine tasks. Because of mobile technologies and Internet access, games can be played anywhere and anytime. In some cases, games can be played with thousands of other players, e.g., World of Warcraft. Gaming and gamification is proving to be a useful tool in education and business.

If you are in World of Warcraft, look me up. I am Tubarks of the Sisters of Elune realm and Wickedly Insane guild.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• Game Based vs. Traditional Learning — What’s the Difference?
• Gamification in Education: What, How, Why Bother? (PDF)
• Motivating Students and the Gamification of Learning
• Taking a Cue from Video Games, a New Idea for Therapy
• Where Does Gamification Fit in Higher Education?

Learning analytics

Learning analytics is essentially big data. How can we make sense of all the points of data we can collect? Can we make accurate decisions in real time based on the data we have collected? With big data and learning analytics, we should be able to tailor learning to students, find at risk students, and overall improve the learning experience for students.

The promise of learning analytics is actionable data relevant to every tier of the educational system.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• Best Practices for Big Data: Learning from the Past While Looking to the Future
• Big Data on Campus
• Expanding Evidence Approaches for Learning in a Digital World
• Learning and Knowledge Analytics (PDF)
• The State of Learning Analytics in 2012: A Review and Future Challenges
• Top Ed-Tech Trends of 2012: Education Data and Learning Analytics

3D Printing

Now, this is really cool. 3D printing allows learners to create something in a CAD program and have it printed out as a 3-dimensional model. The possibilities are endless. Printers have come down in price to make them affordable in most colleges. Some technologies have been built to scan in 3D to immediate 3D printing. This means that you can create 3-dimensional portraits. The ability to print in 3D does not only affect the sciences such as engineering, but also the arts. Some people have already printed clothing with 3D printers.

One of the most significant aspects of 3D printing for education is that it enables more authentic exploration of objects that may not be readily available to universities.

Tubarks

I have already had a positive experience with a 3D printer. Last Christmas I received as a present my World of Warcraft avatar as a 3D figurine.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 3D Printing: The Desktop Drugstore
• 7 Educational Uses for 3D Printing
• The Future of Higher Education: Reshaping Universities through 3D Printing
• Making It Real With 3D printing
• NASA Turns to 3D Printing for Self-Building Spacecraft
• The New MakerBot Replicator Might Just Change Your World
• Science in Three Dimensions: The Print Revolution
• What Can be Made with 3-D Printers?

Wearable Technology

The final area discussed is that of wearable technology. This is straight out of Dick Tracy.  The authors of the report pointed out that we started with wearable technologies when the first wristwatch calculator was created. It has rapidly increased since then. Currently technologies being touted include shirts that locate wifi signals or allow you to play drums on your chest, bluetooth necklaces for making calls, augmented reality glasses that overlay information on what you are seeing, game vests that let you feel the action of the game, and wearable cameras that record your life. I personally have a bracelet from Nike+ that records my runs.

The benefit of wearable technology is that it can conveniently integrate tools, devices, power needs, and connectivity within a user’s everyday life and movements.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 10 Wearable Health Tech Devices To Watch
• Here’s Proof That Wearable Tech Is The Next Big Thing
• One on One: Steve Mann, Wearable Computing Pioneer
• Study: Wearable Computing Will be a $1.5B Business by 2014
• Wearable Tech Pioneers Aim to Track and Augment our Lives
• Wearable Technology: A Vision of the Future?

Well that is the list. I think there are a lot of cool things on it. How do the list items relate to you? Is there anything on the list that excites or concerns you?

Kindle and Zotero, a great match

Zotero is one of those power tools; especially, if you are doing research. I started using Zotero a couple of years ago to support my doc program. It has been a great place to collect my notes for my dissertation, which I hope to have completed by June. But I also use Zotero to collect notes on everything I read. These notes have been useful when I need to support a position, write a blog post, or a number of other writing projects.

With Zotero, I am building a notes library that I can easily search. Naturally, the larger the library is, the more value it has. In a previous post, Build your own library: What we can learn from Jefferson and Franklin, I commented on the libraries that Jefferson and Franklin created. They were constantly researching and writing, and the world benefited from their knowledge. I see Zotero as a modern tool to support researching and writing.

I, like many other people, have started to do more reading on devices such as the Kindle or Nook. According to Pew Internet, “A fifth of American adults have read an e-book in the past year and the number of e-book readers grew after a major increase in ownership of e-book reading devices and tablet computers during the holiday gift-giving season.” I personally do a lot more reading, thanks to the Kindle application for my iPad. I currently have 49 books on my iPad with about 10 books waiting to be read. The biggest obstacle was getting notes from the ebook to Zotero.

I recently saw a video showing how to move notes from Kindle to Evernote, another great note taking program. Here is that video:

I am please to say that the same process works for moving notes from Kindle to Zotero. The key URL to keep in mind is https://kindle.amazon.com/your_highlights; it is your Kindle highlights, notes, and bookmarks.

When you bring your notes into Zotero, you may have to clean them up a bit, especially when the notes cross pages in the book. They will have to be merged.

Each note will have the location available  for the specific quote. You will also have to keep in mind that the highlights brought in are actual quotes from the book.

Discovering this process has made gathering notes and quotes so much faster allowing me to focus on writing, research, and creating instead of transcribing. I will certainly be purchasing more ebooks in the future.

Using Evernote Peek to improve your Aerospace knowledge

Throughout my Air Force career, I would use practice quizzes to prepare for my promotion exams. These practice exams were paper-based. Now there are a number of online and digital tools to help students prepare for exams . One tool that has caught my eye integrates with Evernote, one of my favorite tools. This tool is called Evernote Peek. More about this tool in a second, first I would like to point out some benefits of students using online quizzing tools.

Benefits of Online Quizzing

Students tend to find online quizzing more favorable than traditional in class quizzing (Alexander, Truell, & Bartlett, 2002; Nguyen & Kulm 2005; Peat & Franklin, 2002). They have more control of their time because they can choose when to take a quiz (Butler, 2003; Itoh & Hannon, 2002; Johnson, 2006). They often use online quizzing as a study method for the actual exam (Capus, Curvat, Leclair, & Tourigny, 2006; Cassady & Gridley, 2005; Itoh & Hannon, 2002). Because they can practice repeatedly (Brothen & Wambach, 2003), they have less stress while taking the actual exam (Butler, 2003; Cassady & Gridley, 2005; Itoh & Hannon, 2002; Ricketts & Wilks, 2002). The more frequently students use online quizzing to prepare for exams, the better they perform on the actual test (Capus, et al., 2006; Clariana & Wallace, 2002; DeSouza & Fleming, 2003; Grimstad & Grabe, 2004; Johnson, 2006). Students who took online quizzes yielded a ten percent score increase (Butler, 2003). Students using online quizzing practice more than those taking paper-based quizzes (Nguyen & Kulm 2005). Additionally, they have a lower dropout rate (Shimazu, 2005).

One of the greatest attributes of online quizzing is the immediate feedback delivered (Alexander, et al., 2002; Brothen & Wambach, 2003; Byers, 2002; DeSouza & Fleming, 2003; Johnson, 2006; Nguyen & Kulm 2005); students have actually come to expect it (Peat & Franklin, 2002). Many programs can randomize quizzes; students receive a unique quiz each time they take it. With randomized quizzing, students tend to practice more, at least, until they believe they have achieved full benefit (Grimstad & Grabe, 2004). Online quizzes can also incorporate multimedia (DeSouza & Fleming, 2003). There is also a reduction in staff and administrative overhead when administering an online quizzing program (DeSouza & Fleming, 2003; Pain & Le Heron, 2003).

Civil Air Patrol’s Aerospace Education Program

I am regularly looking for methods, strategies, and tools to help my Civil Air Patrol cadets pass their exams. There are a number of variables that affect progression in the program. Cadets can join CAP at any time. Cadets also have varying educational backgrounds: private schools, public schools, and home schools.  As a result, cadets can be anywhere in the program. It is very similar to a one room school house.

Cadets must progress through a leadership and aerospace education curriculum. In an ideal situation, each squadron would have experienced educators providing instruction to cadets; unfortunately, this is not always the case. Unsolicited feedback indicates that online practice quizzes have helped cadets pass their aerospace education exams.

Evernote Peek

Evernote Peek is a flash card quizzing program that uses the Evernote Smart Cover or a virtual smart cover to display questions and subsequent answers. Evernote Peek draws questions from Evernote notebooks containing notes. The question is the title of the note, and the answer is the body of the note. Notebooks can be shared with individuals or with the public. I plan to share my quiz notebooks with the public.

Creating Peek Questions

Here are the steps for creating peek questions.

1. Open Evernote

2. Create a notebook for questions. In this case, I have created two notebooks.

Shared Evernote notebooks

3. Create new notes for each question that you wish to create. Place the question in the title, and the answer in the subject.

Creating Questions in Evernote Peek

4. If you want others to benefit from your questions, share your notebook to individuals or create a public link.

Sharing Evernote Notebooks

Using Evernote Peek

To begin using Evernote Peek, first install it on your iPad.

1. Launch Evernote Peek, and tap the add button to add more notebooks.

Evernote Peek opening screen

2. Select either “My Notebooks” or “Shared Notebooks”. If you use shared notebooks, you first join a shared notebook in Evernote.

Evernote Peek Notebooks

3. Select the notebooks you wish to use, and click on the “Done” button.

Notebooks with questions

New Evernote Peek notebooks

4. Click on a notebook to begin using it.

Evernote Peek chosen notebook

5. Close the Smart Cover and peek to begin or close the virtual smart cover.

Closed Virtual Smart Cover

6. Expose the question by flipping up the lower part of the cover.

Showing a question

7. Expose the answer by opening the cover more.

Show the answer

8. Grade your attempt.

9. Close the cover to go to a new question.

If you want to go to a new notebook, open the cover all the way.

Final results

Shared notebooks

Here are the first two shared notebooks I have for Aerospace Education for Civil Air Patrol. I will be working on more. This particular questions come from Aerospace Dimensions modules.

• Aerospace Education Peek Questions 1
• Aerospace Education Peek Questions 2

If you are creating and sharing notebooks with questions, please send me the link and I will include it.

References

Alexander, M., Bartlett, J. & Truell, A. (2002). Students’ Perceptions of Online Testing. Delta Pi Epsilon Journal. 44(1), 59-69. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

Brothen, T. & Wambach, C. (2003). Using WebCT Quizzes in a High-Demand Environment. The Technology Source. May/June 2003. Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http://www.technologysource.org/article/using_webct_quizzes_in_a_highdemand_environment/.

Butler, D. (2003). The Impact of Computer-Based Testing on Student Attitudes and Behavior. The Technology Source. January/February 2003. Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http://www.technologysource.org/article/impact_of_computerbased_testing_on_student_attitudes_and_behavior/.

Byers C. (2002). Interactive Assessment and Course Transformation Using Web-Based Tools. The Technology Source. May/June 2002. Retrieved October 17, 2006, from http://www.technologysource.org/article/interactive_assessment_and_course_transformation_using_webbased_tools/.

Capus, L., Curvat, F., Leclair, O., & Tourigny, N. (2006). A Web environment to encourage students to do exercises outside the classroom: A case study. Educational Technology & Society. 9(3), 173-181. Retrieved October 17, 2006 from http://www.ifets.info/index.php?http://www.ifets.info/abstract.php?art_id=662

Cassady, J. & Gridley, B. (2005). The Effects of Online Formative and Summative Assessment on Text Anxiety and Performance. The Journal of Technology, Learning, and Assessment. 4(1), 4-30. Retrieved October 17, 2006 from http://www.bc.edu/research/intasc/jtla/journal/pdf/v4n1_jtla.pdf

Clariana, R. & Wallace, P. (2002). Paper-based versus computer-based assessment: key factors associated with the test mode effect. British Journal of Educational Technology. 33(5), 593-602. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

DeSouza, E. & Fleming, M. (2003). A Comparison of In-Class and Online Quizzes on Student Exam Performance. Journal of Computing in Higher Education. 14(2), 121-134. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from Eric.

Grimstad, K. & Grabe, M. (2004). Are Online Study Questions Beneficial? Teaching of Psychology. 31(2), 143-146. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

Itoh, R. & Hannon, C. (2002). The Effect of Online Quizzes on Learning Japanese. CALICO Journal. 19(3), 551-561.

Johnson, G. (2006). Optional online quizzes: College student use and relationship to achievement. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology. 32(1). Retrieved October 18, 2006, from http://www.cjlt.ca/content/vol32.1/johnson.html.

Nguyen, D. M., & Kulm, G. (2005).  Using web-based practice to enhance mathematics learning and achievement.   Journal of Interactive Online Learning (JIOL). 3(3), Winter 2005.  Retrieved October 17, 2006 from http://www.ncolr.net/jiol/issues/PDF/3.3.1.pdf.

Pain, D. & Le Heron, J. (2003). WebCT and Online Assessment: The best thing since SOAP? Educational Technology & Society. 6(2), 62-71. Retrieved October 17, 2006 from http://ifets.ieee.org/periodical/6-2/7.html

Peat, M. & Franklin, S. (2002). Supporting student learning: the use of computer-based formative assessment modules. Britich Journal of Educational Technology. 33(5), 515-523. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

Ricketts, C. & Wilks, S. (2002). Improving Student Performance Through Computer-based Assessment: insights from recent research. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 27(5), 475-479. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

Shimazu, Y. (2005). Language Course Taught with Online Supplement Material: Is it Effective? Education. 126(1), 26-36. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from EBSCO Host.

Transmedia time: synergy through digital storytelling, social technology, multimedia and gaming

Dr. Annette Lamb, a visiting professor who teaches online courses for Indiana University-Indianapolis, leads the day with a discussion on enhancing the classroom with technology. Lamb also runs Eduscapes.com, a site life-long learners of all ages. Her presentation was to cover the following, but it was a lot more.

Discover practical ways educators can build technology-rich, fluid environments for learning using existing online content, resources and tools. Annette will share many examples that can be used in the classroom.

In just over an hour, Lamb took us through a whirlwind journey of transmedia learning. Reflecting on what Lamb discussed during this presentation can be seen in many different forms. For example, you can read about it here, you can view her supporting Web site for much more detail, or you can watch it as a YouTube presentation delivered by the University of Wyoming Outreach (still rendering).

Lamb seems to be neither pro nor against the use of technology. It is a matter of choosing the best resource for the situation. Every technology is the right technology based on the situation. Lamb also seems to be in favor of open access, at least all of her courses are available for others to examine. I am a personal fan of this thought, I also encourage making information available for others. It is through our curation that we make it easier for others to learn.

Lamb points out that all technologies are coming together to help us learn. Presently, we are using different devices to from which to learn from books to televisions and computers to phones. However, these devices are rapidly merging. Our world is also merging through transmedia storytelling. Throughout her presentation, she highlights countless resources which exemplify this concept.

One of the first people she highlighted was Edward O. Wilson, a biologist and technologist who helped write the one of the first iBooks, Life on Earth. Lamb points out that this is a great example because of all the powerful interactive features. We are at a crossroads; presently, we are lacking effective content for the tools in use such as iPads and other mobile devices. The good news is that they are on their way. These new books help make learning interactive because there is an opportunity to explore. Learning can also be global because the textbook can be a jumping off point to an online activity.

Lamb continues by mentioning Pottermore, a place where readers can immerse themselves into the writings of J.K. Rowling. Pottermore allows readers to explore aspects of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts by assuming a character and participating with others around the world. Readers can gain unique information and perspectives not shared in other formats.

Transmedia environments

Lamb explains transmedia environments have been around for approximately ten years. As she continues, transmedia environments include key elements that by themselves are not unique but when weaved together, they become quite powerful. These elements include storytelling, interactivity, social, multimedia, and gaming. Lamb then goes on to explain each of these elements.

Storytelling

She points out that current publishers are enhancing their books with interactive technologies. For example, students can immerse themselves in the characters of the book by becoming one of the characters with an avatar creator. Using maps, they can explore various locations of a book by actually seeing the location in Google Maps or Google Earth. They can also draw pictures and share essays with others fans of the book.

Lamb shows countless examples of how interactivity tools have been woven into storytelling and then specifically addresses the different tools. Here are examples of interactive books that she mentioned.

March of the dinosaurs is an example of a book where readers can explore additional content associated with the story.  Readers can watch animations, and drill down for more information. Basically, readers, or experiencers as Lamb calls them, can participate in the stories they are reading. They are active in their learning rather than passive. Because learning  is how we apply what we know, and because each person is different in how they learn, we need to create different opportunities for how they interact with content. Some learners enjoy the social piece, others like the visual piece.

T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land. This interactive book provides additional content such as videos, audio recordings by different readers, explanations of passages, etc. This additional content can help motivate learners to read more. Different elements can be used as different entry points to learning.

At this point, Lamb provides a myriad of examples demonstrating storytelling differently in the classroom. For example, she describes a storytelling activity where Microsoft Word is not to be used. Or another exercise where the story is developed using Twitter.

Lamb advocates telling stories through maps, news, comics, artifacts, and other tools.

Maps

Lamb shows a number of great examples of telling stories using maps. She begins by describing her day while showing a map of her morning travels using Google Map. She describes how this can be an exercise for students such as taking a hike and telling short stories on Google Maps or Google Earth. She highlights a couple of books and authors who use maps within their books. The destinations included in the books are real destinations that can be viewed using Google maps. Here are some examples: NERDS and Holly Lisle books. She also introduced Google Map Maker to the group. Finally, Lamb included an article that sparked my interest at least, What would Proust do with Google Maps?

News

Next Lamb talked about using news for storytelling. The news could be what was happening in the moment, or what happened in history. She included a set of wonderful resources to be explored. She noted the importance of generations, explaining that people of different ages read different books, watched different movies.  When writing a story, you can note these differences and find artifacts to show realism. We can access and display these items thanks to online resources. We can incorporate these items into stories.

• The Times Machine from the New York Times will show you the front page of the New York Times paper for any date in its history.
• Newseum will allow you to examine the top stories for different newspapers across the nation on any given day.

Comics

Comics are another great way to teach storytelling. With comics, you can tell a short story very quickly. Comics can also be used to discuss a topic in the classroom. Simply do a search for your topic and include the word comics. Searching through Google Books is another place to look for ideas that you can later purchase if you find appropriate. Lamb also spoke about other books that were novels with many images and only sparse amounts of text. She concluded with one of her favorite comic design tools… Pixton.

Artifacts

Some books now include physical documents. These tangible items can be weaved into a class, or just appreciated by the reader. In the Personal Effects: Dark Art by J.C. Hutchins, readers can explore the physical documents that come with the book to solve the mystery as well as interact with the Web site and phone number associated with the book. As a reader, you can participate on the Web site and immerse yourself into the story. (Readers are reporting the Website is no longer functional).

With an iPad application called Skulls, users can interact with different types of skulls by rotating them on different axes. Another application called X is for X-rays, shows x-ray images of different items in an effort examine their inner workings.

Indiana is building Transmedia Indiana, an interactive look at Indiana’s history. Viewers will be able to examine artifacts, view videos, listen to audio recordings, and read about this rich history.

Generators

Generators are tools that allow learners to build newspapers, posters, word clouds, and other items as a way to tell a story. Big huge labs has the greatest variety of generators from creating movie posters to fortune cookies. Red kids is another generator worth checking out. Lamb recommends having students use generators to incorporate elements into their stories, or using word clouds to generate a new activity such as writing about the word that jump out at you when you see a word cloud.

Here are other tools Lamb mentioned:

• Speak image
• Tiltshiftmaker
• Story Plot Generator

With different curation tools students can pull together resources and write a story. Lamb mentioned these two resources: Only2clicks.com and Kerpoof.com.

One takeaway from this section was the importance of giving students choices for an assignment. Do not make all assignments written essays. One noteworthy example Lamb left with us was having physics students use Google Maps to tell a story where they had to identify and explain different items they saw on their journey which incorporated a physics principle they were using in class.

Social technologies

Lamb began by explain that social technologies are about posting, participating, profile building, and mash up building. She introduced a useful site for readers and writers called Figment.com. By using a site like this in the classroom, learners gain a positive view of technology. Figment is a place to find others for peer review for original content. A wiki can also be used to develop characters, and to flesh out a story with other students. Here are other examples:

• Aliens among us, a place where you can report invasive species.
• Earthquake hazards program, you can use this site to report earthquakes.
• Historypin.com, you can write about the history of your town.
• Facebook Like pages to write about lives of historical figures.
• Edmodo.com
• Conflict history, you can visual examine conflicts through out history. Note this site is being rewritten and will not be available until January 2013.
• Great examples of interactive multimedia storytelling. Chopsticks.
• Pinterest, this is about visual collecting resources.
• Booktrack.com, allows you to add a soundtrack to the book you are reading.
• Wikipedia for songs that talks about songs and literature.
• Archive.org - Fedflix, historical government films that you can link to in stories.

Gaming

Finally, Lamb discusses the inclusion of games into learning and storytelling. She believes there has to be a goal to the game in relation to learning not simply to be something to do. While discussing this topic she quickly talks about choose your own adventures, the MIT mystery hunt, games with QR codes, and Jewel of the Valleys, a serious game about a Civil War Alternate Reality Game. More and more publishers are creating games to support their books. Lamb also introduced a game she created called Google Cards: Creatures. Again, she introduced a number of other resources to include:

• Brain pop
• Arkive.org
• Engaging science
• Math warehouse
• Colonial Williamsburg
• Rides - Home: a ghost story

All I can say is that this was a great presentation on how to teach different. I am glad I had the opportunity to watch her speak. These ideas are in line with how I think about education and learning. I hope the resources provided give you a glimpse into the inspirational presentation given.

Lamb also has a new book out called Graphic Inquiry. It looks like one that I will be picking up soon.

Leveraging the university library’s RSS feeds

Throughout the summer, I will be giving Webinars to our Extension educators on strategies for improving their informal learning. This month, I am presenting on information collection strategies like RSS feeds and Twitter feeds. One of the ideas presented is on how to create a search query in the university’s digital journals, and save it as a RSS feed in Google Reader.

Rather than repeatedly search the university’s digital journals using the same search queries, you can set a search query and wait for updates to appear in your RSS aggregator. Here is a short video showing that process:

ASTD Keynote: Heidi Grant Halvorson

Heidi Grant Halvorson spoke during the very last session of the very last day of the 2012 ASTD conference in Denver, Colorado. Halvorson is an Associate Director of the Motivation Science Center at the Columbia University Business School. She blogs for Fast Company, The Huffington Post, and Psychology Today. I had not heard of Halvorson before, but I was interested in what she had to say. She spoke on motivation.

She began with a question, what do successful people do differently?

Halvorson started by explaining that we are storytellers. Our brains use stories to help us understand what is around us. We are always asking why. Stories let us know what to do. They help to guide our decisions. We need to understand ourselves to make the best decisions. We tell stories about ourselves to ourselves. She asked us to think about the stories we tell yourselves when we succeed and fail. Do we rationalize our success? Our stories may be wrong.

She explains she was a good student because she took the right actions rather than she possess a gene for smartness. We make bad choices because of our stories. We close doors because of the stories we tell ourselves. We are what we do, not what we are. Asking people why they are successful may not be accurate. The story may not be the right story. Success is based on taking the right strategies.

Halvorson expressed her frustrated by the amount of great content in journal articles that never gets to the public. As a result of her extensive research, she wrote a book, blogs, and an ebook on 9 things successful people do differently. She spoke on two of the nine items.

There are two phases of doing:

1. Strategies for getting ready
2. Actually doing it.

The problem is actually doing it

During the Phase 1  or getting ready strategy, we must adopt a mindset for success. We can either adopt a “Be Good” mindset or “Get Better” mindset.

In most cases, we take on the “Be good” mindset, where we are trying to prove ourselves to others, we are validating our skill, and trying to perform better than others. We are always validating ourselves with others.

Instead, we should adopt a “Get better” mindset. With a “Get better” mindset, we are working on improving, developing skills and performing better than last time.

Halvorson presented fascinating research comparing “Be good” mindset against the “Get better” mindset. Here are some of the results:

Handling challenges

People with a get better mindset handle challenges better.

When things go wrong

People with get better mindset did better even though things went wrong.

Distress and problem solving

People who have get better mindset did better when problem solving.

Leadership confidence

People with a get better mindset use a role model to gain confidence.

With a “Get better” mindset, people are more interested and enjoy their job more. They think deeper and more creative. They are more persistent. All this leads to superior performance over the “Do good” mindset.

We need to adopt a “get better” mindset, as well as encourage others to adopt this mindset. How do we change mindsets from “be good” to “getting better?”

Use framing and feedback words

• Training
• Develop
• Learning skills
• Challenging
• Gaining
• Learn
• Acquire over time
• Practice
• Mistakes
• Make progress
• Improve

Giving people permission to make mistakes is important because people with a get better mindset will make less mistakes. If have people compare themselves to themselves, performance will improve. When evaluating employees, encourage improvement rather than a comparison with others.

Halvorson pointed out when we don’t have intention, we will not carry out our intended activity. When we do intend to do something, we do it 50% of time.  We only succeed 50% of the time because of large execution mistakes:

• Not identifying exactly what we need to do (specific).
• We miss opportunities to act.

According to Halvorson, we can improve on execution if use “If-then planning”. If-then planning requires that we specify what we will do, and when and where we will do it, in advance. Here some examples:

• If it is 3 pm , I will make that phone call.
• If it is Monday morning, I will check in with all my direct reports.

Halvorson told a story about a research project involving a Christmas essay. A professor asked students to write an essay over Christmas break, and asked them when and where they will write the essays. Some students were asked the If-then plan and others were not. There were different results based on the whether or not a plan was created. Those without a plan turned in essays 32% of the time, and those with an if-then plan turned in essays 71% of the time.

Why did this occur?

Halvorson explains that a plan is linked in your mind. When a situation occurs then an action happens. Basically, in your mind, you are waiting for the situation to happen. Once situation is detected, action happens automatically. If-then planners have 91% success. If-then planning are great for breaking bad habits. If then planning good for distractions and self-doubt

Halvorson challenged us to write out some if-then plans to set focus, get rid of our bad stories, and visualize the steps we will take to makes success happen.

This was an interesting presentation in regards to the content. The challenge is putting it into action.

Session notes: The Yin and Yang of Formal and Informal Learning

The second afternoon session I attended The Yin and Yang of Formal and Informal Learning by Allison Rossett and Frank Nguygen. They started their session by explaining that formal training was the primary training method used by the enterprise; however, personal preference is informal learning. Rossetti cited Bozarth when reporting that 83% of companies saw value in informal learning, but only 36% employed it.

In the enterprise, courses are not dead and very much alive ,but there is an interest in employing informal learning strategies. Individual informal learning makes great sense, but for the enterprise there are more concerns. One of the challenges is that informal learning lacks certification, thus does not meet the promise of the enterprise. Enterprise or companies have a promise of service they must meet.

Here are some important questions to ask.
Is success defined?
Who chooses ends and means?
Must we prove that we can do what we say we do?
Are we in a position to go towards more choice and freedom? Is the culture forgiving?

Rossetti and Nguygen created a study to examine the disparity between what is wanted (informal learning) and what actually happens (formal learning). Their study resulted in a tool of 15 questions and two table of strategies. This tool is called the YinYang Tool, and it can be found at Http://yinyang.frankn.net. This tool helps to determine if a program or company is a good fit for informal learning strategies.

The Coast Guard used the YinYang tool to see if informal learning was good for them and new boat program. They stuck with a formal approach because of dangers of getting it wrong.

When you are talking about informal learning, you are talking about choice. The tool helps you determine the choices you have for delivering training. It will help you identify opportunities how to present training. Use the tool as a conversation starter to discuss training options and possibilities. Remember, you can evaluate a whole program or just sections of a program with the tool.

The goal is not to be informal or formal. The goal is to be better at what we do.

What is on the Horizon… the 2012 report

2012 Horizon Report HE

The latest issue of the Horizon Report for Higher Education is now available from the New Media Consortium (NMC) Horizon Project. As with each year, this report is packed with great information on projected trends forming over the next five years. As I look over the report, I would have to say they are again accurate with their predictions, at least from my vantage point.

Again, the report focuses on six trending topics that are expected to be adopted in the following time frames: one year or less, two to three years, and four to five years. Here is a run down of this report’s topics:

• One year or less
  • Mobile Apps
  • Tablet Computing
• Two to three years
  • Game-based learning
  • Learning Analytics
• Four to five years
  • Gesture-based computing
  • Internet of Things

As I compare this report with the 2011 Horizon Report, I am noticing a couple of things. First of all, electronic books are no longer being reported; ebooks seem to have become an adopted mainstay in our use of technology, and there are major efforts to develop etextbooks. Mobiles has morphed into Mobile Apps and Table Computing ,which have been added on a one year or less adoption rate.  Game-based learning is still being reported in the two to three year adoption plan, and Learning Analytics has moved up from the four to five year adoption horizon. Gesture-based computing remains in the four to five year adoption horizon and Internet of things has been added to that category.

I enjoyed reading this report simply because I wanted to know if I am on track with what I am learning about, as well as what I am recommending to others. I am pleased to say I have not been disappointed. Each year, starting in 2002, the Horizon Report has provided insight to trends expected to enter the mainstream within one to five years. In each example, the authors provide reasons and examples for their decisions. The New Media Consortium not only provides a report for higher education but also for primary and secondary education, and museum education. Each report highlights six trends and includes recommended readings where you can learn more. In addition to the report, the New Media Consortium provides a Horizon Project Navigator.

“The Horizon Project Navigator is a dynamic social media platform that allows users to fully exploit the Horizon Project’s extensive collection of relevant articles, research, and projects related to emerging technology and its applications worldwide. Users can contribute new information, add their own commentary and analysis, configure and save custom searches, and rate anything in the dataset.”

The work of the team can be viewed on the Horizon Report Wiki.

Before addressing each technology, I would like to speak to the key trends that New Media Consortium writes about. They listed six trends that they believe will influence education now and in the future. First of all, learners are increasingly able to access information on any subject when and where they want to. I certainly find myself in this type of learning mode. Regardless of where I am, if I am interested in a topic, I can use either my computer, iPad, or smartphone to find the answer I need. I am always connected. I am also quite dependent on cloud-based resources. I rely on Evernote, Dropbox, Zotero, Diigo, and Google Docs, as I carry out my work and play. I also find myself collaborating online more with others using tools such as Google Docs, MindMeister, Dropbox, and Skype. I also agree with the authors views that the ability to connect anytime and anywhere for anything is challenging the roles of educators but providing exciting ways to teach, e.g., flipped instruction and project based learning.

Here is what I found in the 2012 Horizon report that resonated with me.

Mobile Apps

Mobile apps have become indispensable to my work, study, and play. But I am not the only one, according to NMC 18 billion apps have been downloaded through Apple, and 10 billion apps downloaded for Android market.  Apps are unique programs typically designed to handle a specific range of tasks. On my iPad, I have 96 apps. Here is a set of installed apps that I use on a regular basis, my favorite iPad Apps. Here are my favorite apps for my smartphone. Many of these apps allow me to access data and resources that I need to do my work, others are simply for my entertainment. A couple of the applications leverage the GPS information to provide me with information that is relevant to me where I am located. Other programs allow me to function more efficiently by integrating with the cloud.  Evernote for example allows me to capture ideas when I am out of the office, but makes them immediately available once I return. I have this application loaded on all my devices from computers, to iPad, to smart phone. Other applications allow me to read my books, news, and social media feeds while on the road; this saves on lugging large books around. Mobile apps are extremely convenient. Higher education is increasingly investing more time, talent, and treasure into making mobile apps that are applicable to the institution, classes, and individuals.  The NMC Horizon Report highlights a number of these initiatives. While I am not aware of any initiatives on the University of Wyoming campus, there are a number of pages recommending mobile apps.

Since 2009, Abilene Christian University has provided each student with an iPhone or iPod Touch, in addition to offering professors mobile training and support.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 7 Things You Should Know About Mobile App Development
• Can the iPhone save higher education?
• How to build a university mobile application: best practice and insight
• Smartphones on Campus: the Search for ‘Killer’ Apps

Tablet Computing

I would like to begin by saying that I love my iPad! I use my iPad for, as the authors describe, “lean back” learning. My iPad is my number one tool for reading outside of work. In the evening and on the weekends, when I want to read the news, blogs, books, and magazines, I grab my iPad. As the authors point out, the screen is a convenient size and has the quality to be able to read easily, examine photos closely, and it can be manipulated with a touch of a finger. With my applications, I can easily access materials I have stored in Dropbox or Evernote. I have loaded my iPad with important documents that are accessible anywhere I am.  Everyone I work with and meet with now owns an iPad. I am confident they would agree that it is now a tool they would rather not be without. Because it is a not a “lean forward” technology, creating content does take a little more effort. I personally do not write blog posts on the iPad because it takes more effort. However, I use it to read extensively. Universities around the world are experimenting on how to incorporate tablets into the classroom. I personally believe that the key is tying into social learning and supporting informal learning.

When the iPad was introduced, it was described as a “lean back” experience as contrasted to the “lean forward” experience of typical computers.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 6 Reasons Tablets Are Ready for the Classroom
• The B-School Case Study Gets a Digital Makeover
• Educators Evaluate Learning Benefits of iPad
• Kindle Fire: Changing the game in higher education?

Game-based Learning

Again, this section is being highlighted by NMC, and again, I am glad to see it. My involvement with game-based learning has increased. This year, I wrote three book reviews on the subject: Game frame: Using games as strategy for success; The Multiplayer Classroom; and Are we too serious? Should we play more games? Each of these books provided guidance on how to incorporate games into the classroom, and basically make life more fun. Since the last Horizon Report, I have had the opportunity to collaborate on a gamification project for my committee chair; it was an interesting experiment trying to gamify a course. Christi Boggs, a fell instructional technology educational specialist, had an opportunityto gamify one of her classes, and she reported back similar findings that the authors of this report found “Students are engaged because they are motivated to do better, get to the next level, and succeed.” Also, during the past year, I had the opportunity to participate in 3D GameLab. This was a great opportunity to learn how to use the 3D GameLab program to develop a game system for a classroom. Naturally, my advancement in the game of World of Warcraft continues.

3D GameLab – Developed by Boise State University, 3D GameLab is a unique quest-based learning platform that can turn any classroom into a living game. 3D GameLab helps teachers tie innovative learning activities to standards, providing learners choice while they game their way through a competency-based curriculum.

This simulator/game stood out to me and I thought it was quite interesting. It is called simSchool. As simSchool states, “simSchool is like a ‘flight simulator’ for educators – a place where instructors can explore instructional strategies, examine classroom management techniques, and practice building relationships with students that will translate into increased learning.”

I am glad to see that games are here to stay.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 5 Teaching Tips for Professors—From Video Games
• Games and Learning: Teaching as Designing
• A Neurologist Makes the Case for the Video Game Model as a Learning Tool
• What Does Game-based Learning Offer Higher Education?

Learning Analytics

Does anyone else find it surprising that we can find out the smallest minutia about a football player or team, stock traders know the tiniest details about a company and its stock, yet, we cannot drill down effectively to predict the success of a student? According to NMC, efforts are on-going to be able to develop dashboards to alert advisers on the status of their students in real time. By integrating the data from learning management systems (LMS), student information systems, and other course data systems, real time data can be pooled, analyzed, and alerts posted when students start to develop issues. I believe it will be important to capture even the smallest course details to make this a truly responsive system. Instead of relying on end of course grades, each assignment, quiz, and project would need to be captured. By keeping the data current, an ongoing picture could be developed on each student. You would not only be able to see the struggle performers, but also the high achievers.  LMSs provide great reports when queried; however, I believe you need to build a dashboard with an alerting system to develop the level of responsiveness desired in a student support environment.

The larger promise of learning analytics, however, is that when correctly applied and interpreted, it will enable faculty to more precisely understand students’ learning needs and to tailor instruction appropriately far more accurately and far sooner than is possible today.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• Data Mining and Online Learning
• How data and analytics can improve education
• Learning Analytics: The Coming Third Wave
• Social Learning Analytics

Gesture-based Computing

Gesture-based computing allows users to engage in virtual activities with motions and movements similar to what they would use in the real world, manipulating content intuitively.

My only experience with gesture-based computing is with the Kinect for the Xbox; it does take a little time to learn how to use it. I am excited about the possibilities; however, I think four to five years is an optimistic prediction for mainstream educational use.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• 7 areas beyond gaming where Kinect could play a role
• Gesture Recognition Moves Beyond Gaming
• SoftKinetic Corporate Video
• To Win Over Users, Gadgets Have to Be Touchable

Internet of Things

I have to be honest, this topic is taking me a little longer to wrap my head around. According to NMC, Internet of Things are “network-aware smart objects that connect the physical world with the world of information.” These devices can be radio-based identification tags, electronic payment tags, or even electronic appliances. Basically, these smart devices communicate with the environment and subsequently change the environment. In Bill Gates book, The Road Ahead, he gave an example of a person wearing an identification name plate. When the person entered a room, the music and electronic pictures would change to suit the individual’s interests. It is another example of the physical world meshing with the virtual world.

Here are recommended NMC reading resources:

• How the “Internet of Things” Is Turning Cities Into Living Organisms
• The Internet Gets Physical
• Internetting every thing, everywhere, all the time
• Launching Google Wallet on Sprint and Working with Visa, American Express and Discover
• NFC Technology: 6 Ways It Could Change Our Daily Lives

I hope you are as pleased with the list as I am. I told you a little bit about how these topics relate to me. How do they relate to you? Is there anything on the list that excites you?