Article about CMS and the reinvention of Instruction
16 years ago
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Course Management Systems
After numerous searches on the internet for a clear definition of what a CMS is, I came to this conclusion:
"A CMS is a web based platform that is simple to use in terms of IT knowledge, and one which can facilitate online learning.
The platform can utilize teaching notes, video tutorials, podcasts, links to other sites, quizzes and exams. A CMS can also receive postings from students, including homework assignments, polls and quizzes, and track individual and group performance."
All of the above features I feel we have covered in our class, including testing via quizzes, the CMS is a home a central location for this information and data. The major difference is that Blackboard and other systems can track individual performance as well as groups and that is a plus.
Please read below for the information I gathered and its origin:
According to the unknown author at http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/DEC0302.pdf “At it’s simplest a course management system is a tool that allows an instructor to post information on the web without that instructor having to know or understand HTML or other computer languages… it provides an instructor with a set of tools and a framework that allows the relatively easy creation of online course content and the subsequently teaching and management of that course…”
Moodle is a Course Management System (CMS), also known as a Learning Management System (LMS) or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It is a Free web application that educators can use to create effective online learning sites.
Wikipedia returned my google search with “A virtual learning environment (VLE) is a software system designed to support teaching and learning in an educational setting, as distinct from a Managed Learning Environment, (MLE) where the focus is on management. A VLE will normally work over the Internet and provide a collection of tools such as those for assessment (particularly of types that can be marked automatically, such as multiple choice), communication, uploading of content, return of students' work, peer assessment, administration of student groups, collecting and organizing student grades, questionnaires, tracking tools, etc. New features in these systems include wikis, blogs, RSS and 3D virtual learning spaces.”
"A CMS is a web based platform that is simple to use in terms of IT knowledge, and one which can facilitate online learning.
The platform can utilize teaching notes, video tutorials, podcasts, links to other sites, quizzes and exams. A CMS can also receive postings from students, including homework assignments, polls and quizzes, and track individual and group performance."
All of the above features I feel we have covered in our class, including testing via quizzes, the CMS is a home a central location for this information and data. The major difference is that Blackboard and other systems can track individual performance as well as groups and that is a plus.
Please read below for the information I gathered and its origin:
According to the unknown author at http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/DEC0302.pdf “At it’s simplest a course management system is a tool that allows an instructor to post information on the web without that instructor having to know or understand HTML or other computer languages… it provides an instructor with a set of tools and a framework that allows the relatively easy creation of online course content and the subsequently teaching and management of that course…”
Moodle is a Course Management System (CMS), also known as a Learning Management System (LMS) or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It is a Free web application that educators can use to create effective online learning sites.
Wikipedia returned my google search with “A virtual learning environment (VLE) is a software system designed to support teaching and learning in an educational setting, as distinct from a Managed Learning Environment, (MLE) where the focus is on management. A VLE will normally work over the Internet and provide a collection of tools such as those for assessment (particularly of types that can be marked automatically, such as multiple choice), communication, uploading of content, return of students' work, peer assessment, administration of student groups, collecting and organizing student grades, questionnaires, tracking tools, etc. New features in these systems include wikis, blogs, RSS and 3D virtual learning spaces.”
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Powerpoint attempt
I tried this with Zoho It looks pretty straight forward, maybe a little slow, but it's probably the laptop (getting tired lately).
This powerpoint goes with the calculator posted earlier - for manualy manloading projects.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Manloading Calculator - Construction
Update: I tried "Google Docs" and "EditGrid" and couldn't get either to allow me to lock the cells off. To clarify, I want to have sheets that are protected with just a few cells open for data entry. This way I can have the sheet calculate the input in an adjacent cell without the option of erasing the formula by accident (its locked off in another cell).
I saw the Mr. Rogers had a page that looked like a view only page, what I want is in between. It is possible in regular excel - I use it all the time. Still good technology, just hope it improves a little more.
Click on the link to view: http://www.editgrid.com/user/slockie/Man_Loading_Calculator_IBEW_7th_District
I used "EditGrid" to post a manloading calculator to my blog. I am going to play around with this some more. What i really want is a spreadsheet (or part of one) that is locked except for the cells for data entry. That would be like the excel sheet this came from.
Click on the down arrow to select full view of this sheet. It is a calaculator (part of one) in use right now and part of the new Foremen Development Series for the IBEW Seventh District.
The cool uses for this technology (especially if lockable) are for posting to a blog or linking to a site a calculator that helps guys plan their man power- without a lot of math on their part.
I like it.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Survey's and Polls (next four posts) Survey - Zoomerang.com
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB229GUH9K43M
This website charges a $199 a year fee to utilize all of its services, but the layout is easy to use. I couldn't insert it into the blog as easily as surveymonkey.com but it was still fairly easy to use overall.
The posted survey is a standard survey for course evaluation - one of the templates - which re open to standard free accounts (some sites didn't offer that, you had to design your own from scratch).
Negative: I couldn't get the HTML to take so a link or button would come up, just the link itself (no hyper).
This website charges a $199 a year fee to utilize all of its services, but the layout is easy to use. I couldn't insert it into the blog as easily as surveymonkey.com but it was still fairly easy to use overall.
The posted survey is a standard survey for course evaluation - one of the templates - which re open to standard free accounts (some sites didn't offer that, you had to design your own from scratch).
Negative: I couldn't get the HTML to take so a link or button would come up, just the link itself (no hyper).
survey
Click Here to take survey
This is the www.surveymonkey.com survey which was really easy to use and embedd. I think a lot of features are disabled unless you purchase a premium account but this was my favorite experience of the few I tried. Survey monkey may have a poll feature but i didn't try it out.
I have wondered how to do this for awhile...
This is the www.surveymonkey.com survey which was really easy to use and embedd. I think a lot of features are disabled unless you purchase a premium account but this was my favorite experience of the few I tried. Survey monkey may have a poll feature but i didn't try it out.
I have wondered how to do this for awhile...
Poll - Freepolls.com (Style 1)
The freepolls.com site was the easiest to use for polling. This particular style (compared to next post) is the same exact poll but with a different look.
I thought I could use this to ask a code question of the week or some opinion on a video clip etc...
This is powerful stuff, now team mates or coworkers can respond instead of experiencing a one way communication....
I thought I could use this to ask a code question of the week or some opinion on a video clip etc...
This is powerful stuff, now team mates or coworkers can respond instead of experiencing a one way communication....
Poll - Freepolls.com (Style 2)
This is the format I liked the most. We could post some information and maybe do a weekly opinion poll - say on code - and the viewers could respind with their idea of the correct answer and then we could post the right solution later (maybe email it to a list of viewers). It could also be used to get feedback for needs and how something is received in to improve training.
The only concern with polls is that these ones are viewable in terms of results, immediately.
The only concern with polls is that these ones are viewable in terms of results, immediately.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Video Sharing
Video Sharing Assignment
I used Animoto to post a video of still pictures as I have already posted videos previously using screencast. Animoto is a very user friendly system that gives a basic user a free account. To create the video you just select to upload pictures to a basic picture board. From there you can move, rotate, or add text to them.
It is very easy to them select music (your own or free from file) and add it to the clip. Clips are only 30 seconds in length for the free version. you may also post longer videos that you have created elsewhere, but you may need a premium account.
It is simple to then copy the HTML code and drop it into the blog page.
the transitions look great but i'm not sure how to customize them or otherwise edit the completed clip- it seems a lot is reserved for premium accounts.
This technology could be used to post a nice simple clip on how to do something (e.g tool use) and its nice and quick. The video function looked great too. I could see this on a webpage with a longer tutorial clip or this quick clip set up embedded into the page. Super easy to use and post, students could take clips themselves and post them - best known methods, code help etc - fast and easy.
I would stick with camtasia studio and screencast for more formal, longer clips as it gives me more options.
Screencast video:(click on link below)
intranet
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Week Six: Photo Sharing
Week Six: Photo Sharing
Sorry for the late post. I am recovering from being smacked in the head with a flying golf ball a few several days ago.
I chose to use the photosharing service Flickr, which turns out to be fairly easy to use. I set up a Flickr account just by signing in with my yahoo mail account (it prompted me to do so); I then followed the steps (3 in all) to set up the account with a username and profile. My account is listed below:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/slockie/
I chose to just pick some work demo photos for pulling wire with specialty tools, in this case "Wiresnagger pulling fingers." This service prompted me to think that I could easily use this for work as foremen are always asking if I can send them pictures of how processes should look. Now they could go online and get their own. The foremen want to print them to pass around at a meeting or drop into their own PPT presentation or handout. This is a good platform for this.
The service also allowed my to create groups of photos and make them public or private as well as give them tags. Perfect.
Sorry for the late post. I am recovering from being smacked in the head with a flying golf ball a few several days ago.
I chose to use the photosharing service Flickr, which turns out to be fairly easy to use. I set up a Flickr account just by signing in with my yahoo mail account (it prompted me to do so); I then followed the steps (3 in all) to set up the account with a username and profile. My account is listed below:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/slockie/
I chose to just pick some work demo photos for pulling wire with specialty tools, in this case "Wiresnagger pulling fingers." This service prompted me to think that I could easily use this for work as foremen are always asking if I can send them pictures of how processes should look. Now they could go online and get their own. The foremen want to print them to pass around at a meeting or drop into their own PPT presentation or handout. This is a good platform for this.
The service also allowed my to create groups of photos and make them public or private as well as give them tags. Perfect.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Podcasting Assignment- from Los Angeles International Airport!
Or go to http://slockie.podOmatic.com to see podcast.
http://slockie.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
Podcasting Assignment
http://slockie.podOmatic.com
This week I went to Kimberley's podcast and listened to it. It was very clear and concise, nice job. I wanted to create something similar so I also went to www.podcast.com, but my computer had a really hard time with the site. Every link I clicked on was a broken link. I believe it is not the website but more likely the computer itself. I have a new Dell minibook - which runs RED HOT. I was using it on a cradle and the machine got to the point where it may burn your hand when picking it up. Something is wrong with the situation.
Once I got around the issues, I listened to some podcasts on PodOmatic and they were great. I created an account and posted one myself from LAX. Please let me know if you hear background noise. I used "WavePad Sound Editor" software as the Audacity site wanted me to pay them for a subscription- maybe something new?. Wavepad is free.
I then went to CCmixter.org and downloaded some music from a reggae artist from Malawi, Africa. He is quite the guitarist. The nice thing about CCMixter.org is the have individual teracks from multitrack recordings (you can seperate out drums, guitar, voice etc- I'm a big fan of that as I love guitar and drums).
Once back on www.podOmatic.com the account has a lot of great info - how big your audience is, what bandwidth you've used, how many subscriptions etc. Best of all, you get a home page much like a blog page - complete with all your posts, calendar, profile pic etc.
I think I will tie into into training by having it a clip embedded on a webpage to give a quick description of what process is being shown. Could be great for remote site guys (that I work with) where connectivity is an issue.
I also tried Gcast - hopefully it embeds here....very straight forward and easy to use!
Subscribe Free Add to my Page
This week I went to Kimberley's podcast and listened to it. It was very clear and concise, nice job. I wanted to create something similar so I also went to www.podcast.com, but my computer had a really hard time with the site. Every link I clicked on was a broken link. I believe it is not the website but more likely the computer itself. I have a new Dell minibook - which runs RED HOT. I was using it on a cradle and the machine got to the point where it may burn your hand when picking it up. Something is wrong with the situation.
Once I got around the issues, I listened to some podcasts on PodOmatic and they were great. I created an account and posted one myself from LAX. Please let me know if you hear background noise. I used "WavePad Sound Editor" software as the Audacity site wanted me to pay them for a subscription- maybe something new?. Wavepad is free.
I then went to CCmixter.org and downloaded some music from a reggae artist from Malawi, Africa. He is quite the guitarist. The nice thing about CCMixter.org is the have individual teracks from multitrack recordings (you can seperate out drums, guitar, voice etc- I'm a big fan of that as I love guitar and drums).
Once back on www.podOmatic.com the account has a lot of great info - how big your audience is, what bandwidth you've used, how many subscriptions etc. Best of all, you get a home page much like a blog page - complete with all your posts, calendar, profile pic etc.
I think I will tie into into training by having it a clip embedded on a webpage to give a quick description of what process is being shown. Could be great for remote site guys (that I work with) where connectivity is an issue.
I also tried Gcast - hopefully it embeds here....very straight forward and easy to use!
Subscribe Free Add to my Page
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Web Conferencing
Week Four: Web Conferencing
Vyew.com
I chose to use Vyew.com for webconferencing and found that it was very similar to the software used at my company. We use I-Link which has many of the same features: Inviting people, raised hands, uploading content, shared workspaces etc. The thing that is noticeably different is the price! I believe it was around $10 a month for a decent amount of capacity. I believe we paid over $20k for a similar system, that has not worked like it was promoted. So I got a laugh out of that. In fact next Tuesday's meeting with the IBEW FM Development Team is being postponed due to not having enough licenses (moved to Thursday).
The system seemed fairly straight forward, you can set up a classroom format where you meet and present a topic (through your screen), also there is a development section where you can collaboratively work on material. Finally there's a teach and train section where participants can work together or seperately to work on material and you can go back and comment. Awesome stuff.
I uploaded a fairly hefty PPT presentation and it didn't take too long (a little slow). The nice thing was the tutorial for getting started in the beginning which answered a lot of my "how to" questions. I am looking forward to using this in the future to test it out a lot more than this one time. The other person I had log in found it easy to find once I invited them to attend.
I can see the uses for training over large geographical regions - as long as log in is easy - haven't received feedback yet. That's our issue with I-Link; log in can be a real pain and a major obstacle when setting up meetings. I have attended some where we spent 20 minutes of an hour meeting fiddling around, trying to get everyone logged on.
Skype:
The other software I looked into was Skype and my apologies to Ronnie. I said I would meet up with you online Thursday but my flight was delayed three hours, so I missed the meeting. Sorry about that.
Skype is a great tool, which I finally got to install on my work laptop (security block). This has enabled me to drop my work cell bill way down when I work in Canada (was $800+/month). I have been using it for a couple of years on my home computer.
To set up a group call (conference meeting):
1. Click on the new button inside of your Skype account (above contacts list)
2. Drag the contacts you want to group call into the box above "call group" button.
3. Click on call group button - it's that easy.
The features I like using on Skype:
-You can have an online phone number which is just like a regular landline number (say 408 area code which is a local call for San Jose, even if you're in Tokyo)
-My online number is 702.430.**** (Las Vegas area - it calls my computer at home)
-If I'm offline it leaves an email on my Blackberry with the number that called, or I can have the call forwarded to another number (say cell phone)
-Voice Mail is easy to set up (you can check it when you get online)
-There's tons of phone options (duel regular phone and skype)
-Some phones work in any WIFI zone that is not browser based
-You can call someone on Skype and have their caller ID show your personal cell number
-$12.95/month unlimited calling around the world
Items i'm not sure about:
-The online phone number can be any area code of your choosing - from 20 diferent countries
-That can be a little scary (where is the person really calling from?)
-Could be a blessing for those who have family in another country (kid studying overseas) they can call you toll free from any landline and it comes to your skype phone or computer
I really like the webcam feature but if one party has a slow connection it can make the call drop out. A regular call then usually works out fine. You definitely need high speed internet connectivity. Forget dial up.
Vyew.com
I chose to use Vyew.com for webconferencing and found that it was very similar to the software used at my company. We use I-Link which has many of the same features: Inviting people, raised hands, uploading content, shared workspaces etc. The thing that is noticeably different is the price! I believe it was around $10 a month for a decent amount of capacity. I believe we paid over $20k for a similar system, that has not worked like it was promoted. So I got a laugh out of that. In fact next Tuesday's meeting with the IBEW FM Development Team is being postponed due to not having enough licenses (moved to Thursday).
The system seemed fairly straight forward, you can set up a classroom format where you meet and present a topic (through your screen), also there is a development section where you can collaboratively work on material. Finally there's a teach and train section where participants can work together or seperately to work on material and you can go back and comment. Awesome stuff.
I uploaded a fairly hefty PPT presentation and it didn't take too long (a little slow). The nice thing was the tutorial for getting started in the beginning which answered a lot of my "how to" questions. I am looking forward to using this in the future to test it out a lot more than this one time. The other person I had log in found it easy to find once I invited them to attend.
I can see the uses for training over large geographical regions - as long as log in is easy - haven't received feedback yet. That's our issue with I-Link; log in can be a real pain and a major obstacle when setting up meetings. I have attended some where we spent 20 minutes of an hour meeting fiddling around, trying to get everyone logged on.
Skype:
The other software I looked into was Skype and my apologies to Ronnie. I said I would meet up with you online Thursday but my flight was delayed three hours, so I missed the meeting. Sorry about that.
Skype is a great tool, which I finally got to install on my work laptop (security block). This has enabled me to drop my work cell bill way down when I work in Canada (was $800+/month). I have been using it for a couple of years on my home computer.
To set up a group call (conference meeting):
1. Click on the new button inside of your Skype account (above contacts list)
2. Drag the contacts you want to group call into the box above "call group" button.
3. Click on call group button - it's that easy.
The features I like using on Skype:
-You can have an online phone number which is just like a regular landline number (say 408 area code which is a local call for San Jose, even if you're in Tokyo)
-My online number is 702.430.**** (Las Vegas area - it calls my computer at home)
-If I'm offline it leaves an email on my Blackberry with the number that called, or I can have the call forwarded to another number (say cell phone)
-Voice Mail is easy to set up (you can check it when you get online)
-There's tons of phone options (duel regular phone and skype)
-Some phones work in any WIFI zone that is not browser based
-You can call someone on Skype and have their caller ID show your personal cell number
-$12.95/month unlimited calling around the world
Items i'm not sure about:
-The online phone number can be any area code of your choosing - from 20 diferent countries
-That can be a little scary (where is the person really calling from?)
-Could be a blessing for those who have family in another country (kid studying overseas) they can call you toll free from any landline and it comes to your skype phone or computer
I really like the webcam feature but if one party has a slow connection it can make the call drop out. A regular call then usually works out fine. You definitely need high speed internet connectivity. Forget dial up.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Week Three: Social Bookmarking
First off: My apologies for the broken link. I did follow the text in the book but the format didn't seem to work. If you follow the changes below you should be fine.
This was a really interesting tool to discover through this class. I am surprised it's not being talked about like Twitter is these days, maybe in time.
I started by signing up for an account which was pain free, just a username and password. Then I started to fumble around the site. Only issue: my computer didn't recognize "del.icio.us" like in the text, but had no issue with http://delicious.com/
After signing in,the account took my bookmarks (existing) and put them into the account. I'm not sure if I like that now I reflect back. It may have created lots of work for me. All the links appear without tags. I then started clicking "edit" for each, trying to group them together and label with common tags. This is a handy feature.
Next I tried to make groups for the tags and this is fairly easy, just click on settings, and edit tag groups. Follow the steps and it does it all for you! I liked that - they are visible on the right hand side of my delicious.com/slockie screen.
After playing around with those functions I tried to search for a topic to see what would happen. I put in "Wind" and got a bunch of good hits. When I looked at who else had this page bookmarked I found a ton of other awesome DIY wind project pages. What an awesome tool to do research!
The best part is you can search for a single tag like wind by typing in your web browser "http://delicious.com/tag/wind" - that's it! the book was right on. Then I wanted the RSS feed, so you just add that to the web address "http://delicious.com/rss/tag/wind". I am now linked to the feed.
For classroom enhancement this tool will be a great aid. If you need some ideas for hands on projects to supplement difficult dry topics, this will help you find them. I think this will be great for apprenticeship training or other interactive sessions, as someone seems to have posted projects they have already tried and completed - the wind example even had instructions and a material list. This could cut down on some of the research end of planning some class activities.
Go to http://delicious.com/slockie to see what I came up with.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Screencast Link - Training Video For Wire Pulling
I still think a link to a third party video site is probably better - better quality and bigger picture.
This is the same clip but in a different format.
Copy and paste the link to view:
http://www.screencast.com/t/wEJef27JM2
This is the same clip but in a different format.
Copy and paste the link to view:
http://www.screencast.com/t/wEJef27JM2
Embed Video to Blog
I just found out that blogs have video settings at 400 by 300. So most videos are not that size. If you drop the clip into a program like Camtasia Studio you can save it as a blog video with a new name and try posting it again.
You learn something everyday - much more on the net...
You learn something everyday - much more on the net...
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Vacation is over
In the ParkWell that ends a nice week off on vacation. I got to go to Fundy National Park in New Brunswick, Canada just a short drive from Nova Scotia.
Awesome scenery. This is low tide - Fundy has the highest tides in the world.
I just wanted to try adding pictures to my blog- result: a difficult experience to get them to layout how you want them to.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Signing On
Well that was painless!
I did manage to stumble my way through the set up fairly easily... Signing on to set up an account with blogger.com, I never realized they were affiliated with Google.
Already having a google groups account, I was able to use my profile and jump straight in. (If you're thinking about forming a group for a project, use Yahoo. It's easier, more organized and cleaner. )
The whole experience of setting this up was super fast - probably less than ten minutes with video links thrown in. I still want to come back and customize it some more. I can't believe how easy some of this technology is and the effect it will have for training union members for their day to day jobs.
My initial thoughts about blogs were of computer type people discussing Star Trek episodes or something, but this has really awesome potential for training. For me, I could set up a blog for code problems that occur in the work I'm involved in (Wind, Solar, High Tech projects) and have the common solutions posted right here. It's just one more tool to make our lives easier....
I did manage to stumble my way through the set up fairly easily... Signing on to set up an account with blogger.com, I never realized they were affiliated with Google.
Already having a google groups account, I was able to use my profile and jump straight in. (If you're thinking about forming a group for a project, use Yahoo. It's easier, more organized and cleaner. )
The whole experience of setting this up was super fast - probably less than ten minutes with video links thrown in. I still want to come back and customize it some more. I can't believe how easy some of this technology is and the effect it will have for training union members for their day to day jobs.
My initial thoughts about blogs were of computer type people discussing Star Trek episodes or something, but this has really awesome potential for training. For me, I could set up a blog for code problems that occur in the work I'm involved in (Wind, Solar, High Tech projects) and have the common solutions posted right here. It's just one more tool to make our lives easier....
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