Weavings, musings, mash ups

ETEC 540, originally uploaded by livingkatstone.

Peggy French’s confession: This is a carry-over from my vacation quest to find everyday objects in the shapes of letters so I may spell words and frame for Christmas gifts. But really, I did also relax during my vacation!

I used a mashup where you spell and Flickr photos are nabbed represent your word. I went with curiosity and knowledge for their integrated power and interdependence. It’s also something I see missing from the majority of the student population at my institution. There seems to be a lack of curiosity and a preference for information over knowledge (a.k.a. the answer the instructor wants vs. creative interpretation and/or the path to more questions). It may be a tactic to harness the information overload they feel or a reaction to the often superficial ways in which we dip into information these days through multi-tasking or using the first half screen of a Google results list.
I admit, I also appreciate the symmetry of equally-lettered words!

Now that you know I’m a tad anal and perhaps believe me unable to relax, I’ll add another very telling piece to the puzzle – I’m a librarian. I made the switch from elementary school teacher to librarian about 7 years ago and currently coordinate the research skills instruction program at Mohawk College in Hamilton, ON. I work with other faculty on assignment and assessment design as well as provide 40 minute sessions to students on evaluating sources, super searching, academic integrity, and other issues not immediately scintillating to the average 20 year old. (I should have added humour to my collage as that’s something required to disseminate properly topics a tad on the dry side. But alas, humour has only 6 letters.)
Most recently, I’ve become heavily involved in our organization’s new learning management system, Desire2Learn. Therefore, developing a greater understanding of educational technology is imperative as my organization moves more from web-facilitated to blended or online courses.
I plan to pick all brains especially those with more experience designing and delivering content in an online environment.
Here’s to a successful semester!