1. What might be three important questions Raj could ask himself when deciding which multimedia to include?
As this course has taught me, I think Raj should consider Bates and Poole’s (2003) SECTIONS framework when deciding which multimedia to include. Fortunately, I am allowed to suggest ‘three’ questions Raj could ask himself, as opposed to the ‘one’ that we were allowed to come up for Benoit earlier in the course. =)

The three questions are based on the following framework:

1. Access – how accessible is the technology for Raj’s learners?
Raj needs to ensure that the majority of his students would have access to his module and that the technology would be appropriate for his grade 5 students.

2. Teaching and learning – what are the best technologies for supporting the kind of learning that Raj hopes to accomplish?
Raj needs to make sure know he knows what kind of lessons and projects he wants to do in his module. Then he should do enough research to figure out if the technology has the appropriate features.

3. Interactivity and user-friendliness – what kind of interaction and ease does this technology enable?
Similar to the first two questions, Raj needs to think about the kind of interaction that he would have his students do and then do some research on the technology. Is it easy for his students to use as well as for him to create?

2. Do you think Raj can deliver this in a month? Explain your answer and either: * Suggest how Raj approach developing his website? * Offer an alternative to the website, one that will use some of Multimedia already collected.
Based on my experience creating two modules in Moodle, I know that it can take a long time to create a well made online learning module. Ten hours a week for four weeks would give Raj 40 hours to do this. This may actually be enough time to do it since it is only one module.

After being exposed to Alan Levine’s (2007) “50 Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story” I now know of many wonderful web 2.0 applications that do a wonderful job of presenting information in a effective way. Since Raj has over 100 photos, I would suggest that Raj create a slide show using something like Animoto. It is easy to use and would engage his students.

References

Bates A. W. & Poole, G. (2003) A Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In A. W. Bates & G. Poole, Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Eduaction (pp. 75-108). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 4.

Alan Levine.  (2007). “50 Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story.”  Accessed 25 July 2011. http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryTools

My first experience with web design came with ETEC 565A, and the software of choice for me was Amaya. I watched some tutorials on YouTube for Amaya and for NVU and I felt that Amaya would suite my needs the best. I downloaded the software and played around a bit with creating pages and then linking them. It didn’t take long to realize that I needed some structure. It was like I had a bobcat and was just moving dirt around, from pile to pile, without any plan. That is ok as I was just learning but a storyline was needed to make any real progress. So, I mapped up a basic storyline for what I wanted to accomplish in Moodle and began to build some pages. First I referred to the “Web Pages that Suck” checklist and checked out a number of web pages so that I knew what NOT to do. I put in some content and images with links to other pages. Things were working quite well. I then zipped all my files to a zip file and uploaded it into Moodle. Then I unzipped and placed the pages into Moodle.

The process was fairly straight forward and I didn’t really run into problems. That is until I wanted to make changes on a created page. I went back to Amaya to make changes and then reloaded it into Moodle. Moodle, however, had problems with the new page, so I had to rename the page with a number (2, then 3, then 4, etc…). Then a fellow student suggested that I just edit the page in Moodle with HTML code. I am a rookie at HTML but I thought I would give it a try. I managed to do a pretty good job and my edits worked. However, I still had problems with Moodle accepting my changes. I had to do the same thing with saving as a new name. This was all very frustrating. I tested out my Moodle site with Firefox, Explorer, and Safari and I did not notice any noticeable difference in each.

Believe it or not, this was the first time I used a hand held device to browse the internet. So, I can thank this course for giving me motivation to do this, as well as my brother-in-law for lending his Blackberry.

End user experience

• Try accessing both the ETEC 565 WebCT Vista course site and your own Moodle course site via a hand-held device via its browser.
• Try: accessing a learning module and replying to a discussion forum
• Analyze performance, including load times, page rendering, tool access
• Is there an app for it? Could you find any apps for either LMS? If so, did having an app affect the end user experience? How?
• Reflect on your experience as an end user: to what extent are these sites accessible via your hand-held?

I loaded my Moodle page and Webct Vista. Since I am not used to a hand held device, the first thing I noticed was the difficulty in typing. I am sure that once done many times, typing would become easier. The other thing I noticed was the small screen size. I was wondering how my Moodle page would appear on such a small screen. The images were pretty much the same size so scrolling down and down was the only way to see the whole page. It did not allow me to scroll left and right. Loading times were slower than I am used to. I did not notice an app, but that could be my inexperience. I had the same experience with Webct Vista.

Course designer experience

• Using your hand-held device, capture some photos, audio or video
• Try adding some of this content to your Moodle site via the device
• Analyze performance, including load times, page rendering, tool access
• Is there an app for it? Could you find any apps for either LMS? If so, how easy was it to create/modify a course site (in this instance, Moodle)?
• Reflect on your experience as a course designer: how successful were you in creating LMS content via your hand-held?

Similar to my experience as a user, I noticed that typing and screen viewing are not as easily done as on my laptop. I was, however, able to modify my Moodle site in much the same way as on my laptop. I could turn editing on and upload images quite easily. Being able to add content to the Moodle page would make life easy in that I could work on my project when and where I wanted. It is much more portable than a laptop. Once again, I am not sure if there is an app for this.

I don’t think I would want to construct pages this way because it is awkward. I would probably use it as a way to stay more connected and make small changes when needed. I should say that from a more philosophical point of view, I don’t really want the ability to stay connected so easily. I would rather not have the ability in my life, as I think it is healthier to focus on other things in life. Being offline is very important too.

Kevin Wilnechenko’s Digital Story

For my digital story I created a dialogue between a young student and a teacher about the places where we see physics in the real world. As with most students, this character is struggling with seeing the relevance in learning physics and the teacher tries to find ways to convince him why physics is so useful. I chose to create the story as a Prezi with short Xtranormal clips scattered throughout.

Why did you choose these particular tools?
When sifting through Levine’s (2007) list of “The Fifty Tools”, I found myself drawn to the Prezi because it seemed like PowerPoint on steroids. PowerPoint is something that I am familiar with, but my students are even more familiar with it. It seems that every project that is assigned is done on PowerPoint, which is not a bad thing in itself. However, I wanted to stretch the creativity of my students and introduce them to a wonderful alternative to PowerPoint that would not be too foreign for them.

I was torn, however, because I had fallen in love with Xtranormal as well. I really like the ease and professionalism that Xtranormal affords, all the while being very effective at telling a story. I ended up using both web 2.0 applications and created a story where one character, a questioning young lad named Tommy, was my Xtranormal representative and the other character, a wise teacher, was my Prezi representative. The result was fairly effective and it was a lot of fun to make.

Finally, I also evaluated various tools by sifting them through a more pedagogical filter. To do this, I took into consideration the National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Teachers (NETS, 2008) and Bates and Poole’s (2003) SECTIONS framework. I focused on how I could Inspire Student Learning and Creativity and Model Digital-Age Work, as well as keeping in mind the Ease of Use and Cost.

How did the tool impact the manner in which you told your story (perhaps in a way that is different had you just used text or related the story using your voice)?
The way in which my digital story is told is very similar to how I would tell it myself if I were reading to the class or speaking spontaneously. The difference, I believe, is that it is much more entertaining and visually appealing than what I could do myself. The features of a Prezi and an Xtranormal video allow for seamless transitions that become part of a story. The visuals are like anchors for the story and reinforce the text. I would not likely hold up pictures while telling a story or pause periodically to show a short video of Tommy, the character in my story. These applications did a much better job than I could do.

How might students be given access to the same authoring tools?
For my Physics 11 course, I always begin the year with a “Kick-start Project” where students must research and present on a famous physicist. In recent years students have used PowerPoint or created a poster board, mainly because that is what I suggested. Since I began my MET journey, I have been exposed to various web 2.0 applications. Just this last year I suggested students consider making a Prezi and I was pleased to get three out of 12. Now that I have Levine’s (2007) “The Fifty Tools” I plan to expose my students to even more possibilities. I will direct them to Levine’s (2007) site and let them explore. I can’t wait to see what I get!

How might you use such tools in your own teaching to produce materials for students?
As I begin to get more and more examples of what a well done project looks like, I plan to use these as exemplars for my future students to aspire to. As time goes on, I know I will get better and better projects. I can also see how I could use a similar storytelling method at the beginning of each unit. It would be a great introduction that would grab attention. It could be a light and interesting snapshot of what is to come and only uses up a couple of minutes of class time. Perhaps the same could be done at the end of a unit; it could be used as a way to review before a unit test.

What kind of impact would you expect to see in your students in terms of motivation, creativity, or any other characteristics?
I would expect increased focus and attention when viewing creations from other people, which would help to get everyone involved in the community of learners. I would also expect to see more motivation and creativity in students as they use these Web 2.0 tools. I have already seen evidence of this in past projects that I have assigned, but as the students see more of what is possible, I know they will run with it.

References

Alan Levine. (2007). “50 Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story.” Accessed 10 July 2011. http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryTools

Bates & Poole. (2003). “A Framework for Selecting and Using Technology.” In Effective Teaching with Technology. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. Retrieved July 18, 2011 from:
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm

Now that I have been exposed to RSS and weblogs in a much deeper way I feel that I can stand back and ponder what I feel about everything. I really like the RSS as it finds me and that can save a lot of time in my day. Quite frankly, the time commitment was the reason I stayed away from blogs in the first place. Now I enjoy looking at our UBC RSS once a day just to see who has posted something new. It really is quick.

John said something in his last weblog post about feeling like a blog is just someone writing to themselves. What is the point of that. If a blog is not a community then I do think it is a waste of time. I tend to think that for me the best use of a blog is for my e-portfolio. It is a great way to organize artifacts. If someone comments on it then great, but that is not the primary point of it.

References

Fisch, K. (2007) Blogging: In Their Own Words. The Fischbowl.  Accessed online 26 March 2009.
http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/06/blogging-in-their-own-words.html

Tonight I played around with some synchronous communication tools and I reflected on my past experiences using some of these tools. One of my favorite synchronous tool is Skpye. I love the ability to have audio and video at the same time. I find that these features have been invaluable when working as groups in the MET program.

I have really appreciated the two live sessions that we have had in Wimba. Wimba is something that I have never used before and it affords all of the features of Skype, and so much more. The ability to see the presenters computer was extremely useful and having the audio turned off unless the control button was push really helped to eliminate chaos. I have had a similar experience using Elluminate Live in a different MET course.

At the end of the day, a good chat in Vista works quite nicely. Granted, the missing audio slows down the communication process a bit, but I feel that it does the job.

Advantages and Disadvantages of a Wiki

I found the wiki collaboration for this portion of the course to be an interesting one. I have used a wiki for other courses in the MET program and it was a very productive and meaningful experience. Though it was great for producing an end product made by all group members, my groups never used a our wiki for the purposes of asynchronous collaboration. Thus, this 565A activity was yet again a new experience for me.

I liked the way in which our cohort was able to add and change contributions to our wiki page. We each posted examples of times in our past when we observed social media being used in education. The wiki served a great purpose here as we were able to participate whenever we wanted. This would work very well in a high school setting as teenagers can be just as active as us professionals.

However, I would have to say that in comparison to our beloved WebCT Vista, our wiki did not work as well  – at least for the discussion portion. I did not like how new comments were not highlighted, as they are in WebCT Vista. This made it very difficult to follow the many conversations that evolved. It was not too difficult to follow at first but after a while it required a good memory or a certain amount of time reviewing the many posts. WebCT Vista also shows it has the upper hand by allowing individual posts to be collected and organized by date. This has been very useful in my MET journey have been able to copy all of my posts and save them to look through for my e-portfolio. As far as I know, there is no easy way to do with with a wiki.

References

Wesch, M. (2007). A vision of students today (& what teachers must do). Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2008/10/a-vision-of-students-today-what-teachers-must-do/

Wesch, M. (2007). YouTube video: A vision of students today. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o

Here is the entry into my e-portfolio for assignment #4: Assessment Tools. Click here to view my reflection. There you will also find a link to my unit test.

Using technology for student assessment has its pros and cons.  Other than using technology to track student progress, which we all do and how would we do it any other way, I have not used technology to assess student progress very much.  I have played around with Moodle a bit to see what is possible and it seems quite promising. I will try to point out some of the opportunities and challenges with using technology to support student assessment.

Opportunities:
Assessment that occurs online allows students to take quizzes and tests anywhere at any time, without the distractions of having people around them. However, there could be time restrictions put on by the instructor to ensure fairness.  I like that Moodle affords multiple attempts on a test. This is something that is very difficult to do in a f2f class due to time restraints.  As educators we know that every student is different, so many students could benefit by re-taking a test.  Things like electronic submission and auto-marking can help instructors with efficiency.  Feedback becomes more prompt and useful, which directly speaks to one of Chickering’s seven principles (Chickering, 1996).  Gibbs & Simpson (2005) say that when students receive feedback too late, “the feedback is irrelevant to their ongoing studies and is extremely unlikely to result in additional appropriate learning.”  This feedback can help diagnose student’s strengths and weaknesses, and isn’t this the point of assessment and education in general? Technology can also help to motivate students, which will directly impact outcomes.

Challenges:
There are many problems that can arise when technology is used to support assessment.  The first thing I think of is that the methods of assessment themselves can impact the outcome.  Some students may not be comfortable and/or familiar with the features used in Moodle and other LMS.  More than ever, I think that a balance needs to be found that gives students choices in how they are assessed.  Another problem is the reliability of the the technology that is used.  Glitches and power issues always find a way to creep in when least expected.  I think of how some provincial exams are taken online now and I know first hand of instances where the technology was not being cooperative.  One must always have a plan B in place.  Although online feedback can be instantaneous, it is missing a human element.  The comments can be very general resulting, which erases any benefits of increased speed.

As with anything, a healthy balance needs to be found.  Teachers must consider the pros and cons and determine what course of action would be best for their classes.  The methods used may even differ from class to class and year to year.  I look forward to incorporating more technology in the assessment that I use in my classes.

References:
Chickering, A.W. & Ehrmann, S.C. (1996). Implementing the seven principles: Technology as lever. American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 49(2), 3-6. Retrieved from
http://www.aahea.org/bulletins/articles/sevenprinciples.htm

Gibbs, G. and Simpson, C. (2005). Conditions under which assessment supports students’ learning. Learning and Teaching in Higher Education. Retrieved on June 27 from
http://www.open.ac.uk/fast/pdfs/Gibbs%20and%20Simpson%202004-05.pdf