Archive for March, 2008
Synchronous communication happens when all the participants are present at the same time, communicating instantly.
Some examples of Synchronous communication are:
- MSN messenger (IM)
- Skype
- Video conference
- Chatrooms
- Virtual space (i.e. 2nd life)
Some of the benefits of Synchronous communication are: Efficiency, immediacy, social connection etc
I would use synchronous communication when I need direct, immediate answers (or want to give those answers myself) give support to participants (so they are not coping alone, waiting for support), give a sense of immediacy to the event/ class. Some examples can be a brainstorming session, decision making, online lectures and more.
Asynchronous communication happens when each participant uses the communication line at his own time. With Asynchronous communication there are time gaps between sending the communication and receiving replays and vice versa.
Some examples of this communication are:
- Email
- Forums / Discussion Boards
- Social networking (i.e Facebook)
- Blogs
Some of the benefits of Asynchronous communication are: Participants communicate at their own time, allowing them time to formulate and articulate their posts / responses, save costs (requires less bandwidths, infrastructure etc), the teacher can manage large numbers of users / learners and the learners themselves can return to the posts later on to review them.
Gilly Salmon’s Model of Asynchronous learning shows the different stages that give structure to an Asynchronous e-learning experience:
First stage: Access and motivation - The students are required to set-up their log-ons and they are shown how to access the system for the first time. It is important to motivate the students at this stage, since they might be apprehensiv, especially if this stage takes awhile and no learning is occurring.
Second stage: Online socialization - Once the students enter the system and are ready with the system, they become more familiar and comfortable with the system and each other. Since no real learning occurs at this stage, it provides support and bridges for cultural, learning environments in an increasingly comfortable environment.
Third stage: Info exchange - After overheads are taken care of (1+2 stage) you can engage in the actual learning / discussion. Interactivity starts to be prominent. Students start engaging in tasks while the actual framework (the communication mode) becomes second nature and just a tool for learning (rather then the actual focus).
Forth stage: Knowledge construction - In this stage, the knowledge transfer is primary.
Fifth stage: Development stage - Here is when the students come out of the limits of the infrastructure and the one-way learning and start experimenting confidently and responding to each other.
March 26th, 2008
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a web format that allows the publishing of blogs, news, podcasts etc, easily and quickly. It allows the subscribers of the RSS to get updated when new content is posted and read it through a Reader or an “aggregator”.
Aggregation refers to the concept of brining all the information (read: websites, blogs, news etc) to the user in one convenient place, rather then requiring the user to visit each of the above individually.
In this subject we can use RSS to receive updates on new e-learning developments and aggregate e-learning publications and even other edublogs of people from class.
March 26th, 2008
A web-based application is refereed to as an application that can be accessed by the actual internet browser rather then through an API such as Windows or Mac-OS. This allows the user to access it without installing anything (other then maybe a Java or Flash plug-in, which is usually a very small file) from anywhere with internet access.
Instead of the old, text based, one sided internet experience of the 90’s. Web 2.0 sites offer an interactive, creative experience aimed at creating a ‘two way’ street of content production and exposure and “facilitate creativity, information sharing and collaboration among users” ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0 ).
The above has a major if not revolutionary relevance to learning. As learning is a process that thrives on creation, interactivity and flexibility as well as information gathering and processing, the new uses of the web and web-based application is limitless. Without even conjuring specific examples, web-based applications allows facilitators to create learning experiences that can be accessed from anywhere and at anytime, especially now that some sites allow the creation of such content with no coding or HTML knowledge (i.e Tutorom ). Web 2.0, while also overlaps this, also adds a dimension of social interactivity and learner created content that can greatly enhance learning in ways that are only still being explored.
March 24th, 2008
This is my submission to the collective work of our group Wiki for assignment 1:
‘Out and About – Learning about tree and plant disorders in the field’
The most obvious and powerful use of wireless, mobile devices such as Hand-held PC’s and PDA’s is their ability to take learning out of the classroom and into the field or workplace, enabling learners to experience the learning from a ‘real life’ perspective.
One examples of such use is a joint project between the ‘Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens’ and ‘TAFE Tasmania’ to use a hand-held pocket PC to teach TAFE Students and even current employees of the gardens about different tree and plant disorders, how to identify and even treat them.
For this purpose the learners were given PDA (Personal Digital Assistance) devices loaded with a tutorial program which allowed them to interactively explore the different disorders while walking around the gardens, inspecting real trees in the field and comparing them to what was being taught (using written and pictorial details) through the PDA. The students do not need to follow any particular path (although the tutorial quiz, also loaded into the PDA, insures that they must cover the whole curriculum) and can refer to any of the different disorders, symptoms, plants and even parts of trees at any given time or place.
This approach creates a more hands on, engaging experience then sitting in class and memorizing the different conditions. Moreover, the ability to use what is being taught in the actual work context allows for better cognitive and memory connections which will enhance learning.
The challenges with this kind of learning are either technical such as making sure the battery life sustains the entire length of the session (although this particular problem is rare in new devices) or logistical such as lack of learner tech-savvy (easier with younger students) or how to assist and guide learners when they are “out and about”. The latter can be solved by having wireless connection with the students; where they can ask questions, receive guidance and even be monitored by the facilitator to make sure the course is completed properly.
March 24th, 2008
The Horizons Report, which comes out once a year, helps identify developing technologies that can be adapted for e-learning. The report seperates those technologies into 3 catagories:
- Two entries that will be used within the next year.
- Two entries that are expected to be used within two to three years.
- Two entries that are expected to be used within four to five years.
The six new technologies the Horizon Report 2008 identified are as followed:
Grassroot Video – The use of special hosting services for video content allows users to embed video unto their site (and in this case, e-learning project) without worrying about code, infrastructure and other obstacles that may prevent the simple presentation of video content.
* I am very familiar with this technology as it is used regularly in every major blog. I have used grassroot video for some posts I’ve made in the past.
Collaboration Web – This technology allows the web to leave the domains of HTML and WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get) that were quite restricted with the developer editing the file offline and uploading it onto the server in order to change the content of the site. Collaboration Web allows multiple users to work together (without the need to even know coding) to create content, work on projects, edit documents and more. The uses of this technology went further then just a collaborative creation of web content as the web is now being used to collaborate on ‘real life’ projects that do not touch the web at all. Examples of this kind of technology are: Wiki’s, Google Docs and Calender and more.
* I have used wikis extensively (one of those times in the e-learning experiences class) and have collaborated on other projects using various web technologies as well.
Mobile Broadband – Mobile devices (such as mobile phones, PDA’s and tablet PCs) now typically contain broadband internet capabilities. This means that they can be used for learning truly anywhere, anytime.
* I use mobile broadband with my PSP (PlayStation Portable) to access the net. Although I haven’t used mobile devices for learning yet.
Data Mushups – An amazing new way to use existing APIs (Application Programing Interface) by ‘mushing’ them, or combining them, together to create new content. This technology can not only be used to create new learning tools (i.e create a GoogleEarth+Wikipedia tool where you can click on a country and learn about it’s history) but also allows for a new learning experience by asking students to create their own tools, that interests them.
* I haven’t had a chance to experiment with mushup (such as Yaho Pipes) but I think this technology is one of the biggest to emerge since the internet boom.
Collective Intelligence - Collective intelligence might be mistaken for the above collaboration web and in some points they do overlap; such in the case of wiki’s and social networking. However, while collaboration web stops where the ability to create content, work on the same project and so on, collective intelligence picks up and uses technology to use this gathering of minds and generate something that is greater then the sum of its parts. The basic research question of the ‘MIT center for Collective Intelligence’ sums it best: “How can people and computers be connected so that—collectively—they act more intelligently than any individuals, groups, or computers have ever done before?’” (http://cci.mit.edu/).
* The only instances of collective intelligence I’ve encountered so are examples such as Wikipedia and Google Trends, non of which come close to the potential this technology represents.
Social operating systems – The next step in the evolution of social networks, Social Operating Systems would extrapolate data and usage and make our social networking another experience all together.
* Like everyone else, I’ve used social networks before but I have yet to use or hear of Social Operating Systems.
In regards to the 2007 report, I have encountered most of the technologies reported. It is interesting to see technologies stamped as ‘emerging’ in the past have major presence in the present.
March 23rd, 2008
This is the first post for ‘E-Learning Design’, a subject which is a continuation of ‘E-Learning Experience’.
‘E-Learning Experience’ exposed us to different technologies and how they are used in educational context. E-Learning Design will expand on this, allowing us to experience the use of the above technologies from the point of view of an educator instead of a learner. Moreover, what we encountered in ‘E-Learning Experience’ will be used to determine the best possible approach (including best possible technology and framework) to design a E-Learning course for specific training needs.
March 9th, 2008
First week of E-learning Design we received our subject for our group Wiki project: Mobile Learning (or M-Learning).
In short, M-Learning is a specific kind of e-learning which “takes advantage of learning opportunities offered by portable technologies” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_learning) such as mobile phones, portable assistant devices (PDA) and more.
In my opinion this approach to e-learning embodies the very essence of e-learning which is using technology to mobilize, simplify and enhance learning experiences. The idea of taking a small Tablet PC around a museum and having it display a multimedia learning experience on the spot along with real exhibits would surely increase both the effectiveness and enjoyment of learning.
I’m excited to work on and present this kind of technology; exploring what applications and contexts it is being used for already.
March 8th, 2008
