The Bunch family

The Bunch family

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Hashtags in a Learning Environment

Although I don't have very much experience with Twitter or using hashtags the more I learn about how they can help businesses spread information about their company and for educational institutions to increase the range of learning experiences for their students is astounding.  Couros stated that the shared learning stream adds value to the work that he is doing by being able to filter easier and that that he is not limited by the stream.  Many educators are utilizing Twitter to share their educational material as well as asking for help. When a hashtag is created to be used for educational purposes This is also helpful for companies to create a hashtag for their business conference so that the audience is able to learn more about their ideas and their presentation(s) and have the opportunity to meet other attendees with similar interests or jobs.  This class has already used the recommended steps for creating its own hashtag that makes sense with the subject by creating the #cmc11 tag which is simple and easier to remember, as well as being relevant to the course.  Hashtags bring the online learning community together by sharing lecture lines, relevant information to the subject, and even their own notes.  Starting conversations online is becoming a great way for others to think outside of their sources and explore creative new ideas to further everyone's learning (Couros, 2011).

Reference:
George Couros (2011).  Twitter Hashtags In The Classroom.  Referenced from http://georgecouros.ca/blog/archives/2609.

#cmc11

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Information literacy

I thought that article on the different types of literacy was interesting and brought forth information about it relates to digital learning online.  When the term information literacy was first coined in 1974 by Zurkowski libraries were still using the Dewey Decimal system in libraries, and books that were not available at a particular library then it could be ordered from one of the other local libraries in the same city.  I thought it was interesting that the author mentioned the Prague Declaration that considers a basic human right.  I think that perspective can be potentially dangerous if an unethical government forced this on its citizens.  This has the potential to be presented in a way to show only the information that they want presented to the end users.  Information literacy at its core concept is a great idea, but can be a good foundation for the work that needs to follow to equip the people with the ability to access information through a wide variety of media types including Web sites, newsgroups, blogs, videos, social media, and lectures (WILDMNTNHONEY, 2013).  Before people need this ability to access information I think that it is key for the desire to learn to be present and fueled by whatever interests them.  It is not enough to provide the tools, but to actually provide a solid educational foundation  to assist with their understanding of the information that they can access.

Reference:

WILDMNTNHONEY (2013).  Metaliteracy, Transliteracy, Transliteration, Transcription, Translation… What the Hell Are We Talkin’ About?  Referenced from http://utopianinternet.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/internet-ilteracy-definition/.

#cmc11

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Personal learning enviroments

I thought that the video about George Siemens' thoughts about the personal learning environment was interesting and caused me to reflect about how my kids learning currently takes place in school.  I agree with his point about most parents may not be familiar with the latest networking and communication tools, but they do want to see their children succeed in an ever-changing world.  Critical and creative thinking are among some of the most important things that parents like myself can impress upon their children.  With teachers creating a learning environment that has products including collaboration, democracy, innovation, and particularly communication they will be better prepared for what lies ahead in not only the rest of their formal educational experience, but with life itself (Siemens, 2009).  As online tools  continue to grow and change they should not be an issue if we are properly equipping our children with adequate self-tools that will cause them to learn and adapt to change versus sticking with what they already know.  What really needs to be impressed upon them is that communication in the world constantly changes and their ability to reach new people continues to become possible through educational technological progress.

Reference:
Siemens, George (2009).  It's Not About the Tools, It's About Change.  Referenced from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJ3F2_Q5iUE&feature=related.

#cmc11

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Connectivism

Reading the Week 2 articles and watching the videos about Connectivism has helped me to realize that MOOC is about interactivity between everyone that is connected via blogging, e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter.  Students are able to articulate their needs and reflect on their leanings with their peers, teachers, and others that participate just because they want to help others or continue to grow themselves.  Downes helps us understand what a good blog post should consist of and how it should be structured.  Using inductive and deductive arguments, explanations, and definitions help us to understand how the blog content should be presented.  Learning and mastering new skills is the most important part of the educational process.

The picture below helped me to better understand what this course/MOOC is really about.  While it is definitely different than the traditional Center for Distance Learning (CDL) classes I am used to taking at Empire State College, it offers a broader expression of creativity and brings the focus to sharing to and adding to existing content.  Stephen Downes from the National Research Council of Canada brings to light that as there are 400,000 educational blogs and that many teachers continue to use them as sources to show their students information.  These learning communities assist students by enabling them to share their opinion about a wide variety of topics in the educational world, which in turn spreads information to others (Downes, 2013). 
This MOOC is Something Else!
References:
Downes, Stephen (2013).   Access::Future - Practical Advice on How to Learn and What to Learn.  Referenced from http://www.cdlprojects.com/cmc11blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/AccessFuture.pdf.
Bogado, José  (2013).  Connection not Content.  Referenced from http://gbl55.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/cck11-man-this-mooc-is-something-else/.

#cmc11