TLT sMOOChers talk about #EDCMOOC

TLT March 8th Conversation with Amy Woodgate

Below are the questions that were raised during the March 8th conversation with Amy Woodgate. Amy will return on April 12th. The conversation will continue. You can join in. Register for the event here.

Why is synchronous important?
How important is the power of voice and presence? I found the Google Hangouts in the EDCMOOC particularly refreshing, too. Do you think it was because  it was one of the few times we , as students, were able to connect with the teachers? How many attendees participated in the edcmooc hangout?  How many participants typically participate in the synchronous components of a MOOC?

What is the teacher role in a MOOC?
Although the multiple data streams from discussion boards, forums, Twitters, etc showed a very
energetic environment, I think the role of the teachers' should be explored and looked into....

How did you co-create these MOOCs?
What kind of (organisational) culture/attitude within UniEdinburgh - bottom-up/top-down, had you jumped on it and approached Coursera/did they approach you? Were there any particular champions within U Edinburgh who had imagineered UE MOOCs and how long had preparations begun prior to June 2012 sign-up? Did Coursera provide any assistance developing the courses? Do you think you got lucky with the community that formed around edcmooc? I have not experienced this with other moocs... there seemed to be some very enthusiastic students taking part who took it upon themselves to create their own spaces and build communities? I heard the MOOC on eLearning and Digital Culture deviated from the standard video lecture as the main form of delivery. Can you elaborate on the decisions that led to this? what was the reasoning behind the deviation from Coursera's standard  method of video as the main content delivery?

Where/how were the MOOCs marketed?

I would like to discuss the financial aspects of course delivery, etc. Were the faculty compensated similarly to what their participation would have been for a traditional F2F course? How much did the course cost and did student income pay for it? What % of the students do you expect will pay in the future?

How do we to get other groups, pre-college educated feel comfortable to jump in? What are the MOOC naysayers saying? What are you seeing from the exit surveys? What is the overlap between those faculty threatened by MOOCs and those threatened by online education more generally?

What are your thoughts on best MOOC practices?

MOOCers: how much time did you spend on the MOOC each week?

What is your take on assessments in the MOOC?

Can online resources like TLT be a MOOC? Could you build a MOOC around an interactive ebook that people pay for?

Did any of the "traditional" courses that were run "simultaneously" on same topic as a MOOC, did anyone observe any notable changes?  improvements, deficits in the "traditional" version as a consequence of the MOOC happening? I would love to hear more about how the MOOC changed your experience Amy as a student?

#EDCMOOC - sMOOChers Debrief with Amy Woodgate

TLT FridayLive!
sMOOChers Debrief with Amy Woodgate
March 8, 2013  2:00-3:00 pm Eastern Time - free to all.

---

Amy Woodgate, University of Edinburgh MOOC project director, joins "sMOOChers" who participated in THE INTENTIONALLY EXPERIMENTAL #EDCMOOC "eLearning and Digital Cultures," https://www.coursera.org/course/edc.  They will discuss their experiences, lessons learned, recommendations, druthers, things to avoid.   This is one of six MOOCs being offered by the University of Edinburgh.  Edinburgh was offering this "course" both as a MOOC and as a more traditional course simultaneously, so Amy can also compare and contrast the two approaches and how they might fit together.  We will also explore ways in which faculty  can integrate MOOCs (entirely or by selecting modules)  hosted by other colleges and universities in their own undergraduate courses. For the last 15 minutes, participants will be invited to discuss emerging plans for the TLT Group to offer a MOOC-ish experience based on John Sener's recent book "Seven Futures of American Education:  Improving Teaching and Learningin a Screen Captured World."

The MOOC has concluded but the learning continues. I want to share some digital artifacts created by my VoiceThread friends.  If you explore these examples you will see amazing creative examples using different technologies

• Keeley Sorokti: EDMC MOOC: A Maiden Voyage
• Ligia Toutant: Transhuman Technologies and Disability
• Marianne  W. Preisler: Draft of Artifact
• Fran Monaghan: Final Assignment
• Felicia Sullivan: Connecting to a learning community through technology
• Rick Bartlett: Human Worth #EDCMOOC
• Virginia Travato: The informationocean

Some additional resources collected along the way:
#EDCMOOC "Invisible threads are the strongest ties." Check out this SlideRocket presentation!  I love it!!!!... Made by Ary Aranguiz @trending teacher. Ary ends the presentation with this quote "We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and those fibers as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects." Herman Melville

A great summary of the EDCMOOC experience by one of the instructors, Sian  Bayne. The VoiceThread that emerged organically that I have been participating in was featured. That's pretty cool. Sian's blog post Shoring the fragments of #EDCMOOC

#EDCMOOC, Being "real" in a cyberspace environment

SOME of what I am taking away from the e-Learning and Digital Cultures MOOC.

Sadly I missed the deadline for submitting. Rats! I so want the experience of critiquing to work of my fellow students.  I am happy that I can view their artifacts as I know there is much to be learned.

#EDCMOOC Using MOOC-like resources for undergrad education

TLT Group
tltgroup.org

Looking for examples of how colleges and universities are facilitating the most effective integration of MOOCs and similar new resources into undergraduate programs that are NOT producing or hosting the MOOCs. And thereby increase the variety, quality, and quantity of undergraduate instruction available to students and alumni.

Please share your ideas through this survey. tlt.gs/MOOCusage

#EDCMOOC Being Real and in Rhythm

The MOOC was referred to as "a happening" by Hamish Macleod, one of the instructors in the MOOC. "Make Your Own Kind of Music" by Mama Cass Elliott captures the spirit of my ideas around being MOOC real and in rhythm.

Created using iPad ap Paper 53 and Snagit

I have been thinking about two things in relation to a MOOC. One is the notion of being "real" or human.  The other has to do with being in rhythm.
I have been trying to understand the rhythm of a MOOC. After two MOOC experiences, I have come to the conclusion that the learner needs to create their own rhythm.  The MOOC truly is a container in which I can create the contents to be in rhythm with my needs.

Then there is the idea of being "real."
When thinking about being "real" my mind is drawn to The "Velveteen Rabbit" story by Margaret Williams.  Figuring out how to be "real" in other words, to develop a social presence and make connections with others in an online environment takes time.

Designated Learner - Lessons from Our Last Experiment

Created by Felcia Sullivan
https://voicethread.com/#q.b4104932.i21006791

On February 6th, Penny Kuckkahn taught Robert Voelker-Morris how to use VoiceThread (VT). Robert served as the designated learner. The event took place using web-conferencing, Adobe Connect. Below are my notes from the chat on lessons learned.

Two more roles emerged:

• Designated Follower (DF). Participants are given the choice to watch or to follow along. The Designated Follower helps a beginning learner stay with the training by asking questions from the follower perspective.
• Designated Kibitzer (DK) adds random informative comment during the training.

Again we discovered nuances that emerged during the training that were unanticipated. For example, Robert's (the DL) specific use for VoiceThread involved embedding the VT into a learning management system. This added another layer of complexity.

We need a pre-module on how to use mics in Adobe for those who might want to use mics during the training. Suggested that some sort of training may be needed for students, maybe record a demonstration.

Sequence used in this session:

1. Intro.context
2. TASK for instructor/DL
3. Others follow along AND add questions, comments, info
4. Encourage (if relevant) all participants to have access to what was built and test it briefly.
5. More reactions
6. 2nd demo/task?
7. Further comments?
8. Next steps

The group decided to continue the learning about VoiceThread on February 20th, 3:00 PM ET. This link will take you to the registration page. Please share a link to the VoiceThread that you create in preparation for the session on 2/20 by commenting to this blog post.

I've made additions and revisions to the Designated Learner slides. Your feedback is always appreciated.

#EDCMOOC, thoughts from week 1 and 2

I got a late start on the MOOC, E-learning and Digital Cultures,  My first activity was to listen to a recording of the February 1st Google+ hangout. This was a pretty good way to start as the 5 instructors provided perspectives on different aspects of the course and reacted to various posts and themes that have emerged from the course.  I loved Sian Boyne's use of the T.S. Eliot quote "In my end, is my beginning" (“Four Quartets” Part II: East Coker)  She used it to explain participant interest in the final assignment, even before getting started. This made me think about my goals for the course.  My primary goal is to figure out how to use social networking tools to build my own personal learning network.  Here's how I hope to do that:

• Utilize TweetDeck to follow participant conversations and to share my thoughts via Twitter as well.
• Join the Google+ EDC community to see how that works.
• Participate in the tlt sMOOCher study group.

I also want to:

• Gain new perspectives on e-Learning and then share and incorporate into my work.
• Experiment with joy and abandon without becoming adicted. 

I have learned a lot about creating social presence by observing others. The course is large in size but I just don't think that should be a negative.  The trick, I think, is to figure out how to make the largeness a positive. I stumbled upon a VoiceThread that Felecia Sullivan started, see below.  I so love hearing people's voices and listening to the conversation that is emerging. The idea of engaging in a smaller community within the larger MOOC has emerged from more people.  I concur with this sentiment and this VoiceThread is an example.



I need to dive into the content so I can engage in the conversation as well.  In other words, I need to catch-up.

Designated learner slides

Working to develop slides describing the designated learner approach. Would love your feedback.

Designated Learner Experiment Continues

The Designated Learner Experiment continues.  Irene Knohk taught me how to use JING to capture a screen and to create a video.

Below are Steve Gilbert's thoughts on our next steps:
This was a GREAT step forward.
Irene, would you be willing to do almost the same thing with Jing again?
I'd like to try it with 2 or 3 very small, very specific tasks/projects identified in advance and the goal of trying to get the learner to succeed on those 2 or 3 as quickly as possible... with enough time left at the end to discuss other features of Jing that people might find relevant and/or to respond to audience questions.  I think we should also continue to identify the list of tasks/features that we will NOT address during our session...
I also wonder if the model of TV cooking shows has some relevance...  some steps can be omitted or condensed because someone has taken  care of that in advance....
For example...

• We list the prep that we would help our designated learner do in advance.  We make  a bigger deal in advance about the "worksheet" Irene prepared
• Open Jing & Screencast accounts
• Download Jing
• Identify a location on the learner's computer where any Jing files will be saved and avail immediately
• Identify a location (folder?) on the learner's Screencast account where any Jing files uploaded will be saved and avail immediately

What else could be handled this way in advance  AND WE COULD TELL PEOPLE THAT WE WERE DOING SO AND THAT THEY WOULD BE EXPECTED TO TAKE CARE OF THESE IN ADVANCE THEMSELVES IF THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO FOLLOW ALONG IN REAL TIME...
What do you think?
Steve

I love Steve's cooking show analogy.  I am also thinking we may want a place for people to be able to go after the session for more information and to view the recording, in other words, "to get the recipe."

One other thing we could add, either ask the participants for what they plan to do next and or suggest some things that they may want to do next that will help support and reinforce what they have learned in the session.  For example:  I want to go the JING and create a screen capture on my own so I don't forget what I have learned. Below is my latest achievement in that regard.

Designated Learner

The TLT Group has been experimenting with real time learning using a designated learner. The context for our experimentation is Adobe Connect web conferencing. The content is an online application, in this case Google Forms.  A designated learner learns "in front" of others and serves as the voice of the learner for the other participants. 

These are the questions we are addressing through our experimentation in this area:

• How can we make these "TRAINING"  sessions more useful to YOU and your colleagues?
• For which conditions, context would this new approach be especially helpful?  Not helpful?
• What should we try in this way next?

Gloria Hofer, Instructional Technology Resource Specialist, Santa Clara University, needs to be recognized for her bravery. Her expertise, patience and positive persistence during the session was a model in and of itself.

Here are the lessons we've learned so far:

• PREREQUISITE INFORMATION - Include a link to the prerequisite information in the workshop announcement such as: background information or set-up information.  
• In the case of our topic on Google forms that would include: establishing a Google Account and accessing Google Drive. We also wanted participants to open a second window on their computer and then be able to size the Adobe Connect window and the new window so they could be viewed side by side.  This information could have been provided as a screen cast.
• Include a handout with the steps of the process.
• BRIEFEST POSSIBLE ORIENTATION:
• Very very brief recap from the pre-session info
• How to make the Adobe presentation window full-screen and back to normal view. Chat is in normal view.
• How to signal the presenter using emoticons: raise hand, slow down, etc.
• Give the participants some options on how they might want to participate:
• resize the Adobe window and a second browser so they can see the demonstration at the same time as they follow along
• Toggle between the Adobe room and their browser as they listen and follow the instructions.
• Use two computers or an iPad and a computer.
• Use two monitors.
• PART 2, DEMONSTRATION: Designated Learner is guided to RAPIDLY  produce something to completion - if very rudimentary
• PART 3: instructor goes through more features  and responds to questions
• Figure out how to manage the windows in Adobe in advance. This may vary based on the content and instructor preference.
• NOTE: The variations between how things look if you are using a Mac versus if you are using a PC need to be taken into consideration.
• How much should the designated learner and the expert communicate before the session.  Someone suggested that the questions from the designated learner be scripted to help move the content along.  On the other hand, the designated learner and expert would have no contact and the reactions and questions from the designated learner would be spontaneous.
• During the demonstration, when the instructor is sharing their screen,use full screen.  Need a way for presenter to be able to see chat or hear to monitor what's going on.  Check this out.
• Be careful about allowing unanticipated questions.

Our plan is to apply these lessons to a series of Member Exchange Workshops related to Social Media/Networking Tools/Resources. planned for January 9, 23 and Feb 13th. This link will take you to the registration page

Claire Dailey

Using a Back Channel - Life after TodaysMeet

Update July 2 2018. Sadly TodaysMeet has retired. Now to find a replacement. Newsletter "TodaysMeet is Shutting Down - Six Alternatives to Try"

Here are some options:

• Backchannel chat
  Check out the room I have created and leave a comment. http://backchannelchat.com/chat/kk8pv. It is sort of cool that you can add a video. It looks like you have be able to create up to 20 rooms for free with 30 concurrent students. For $15/year you can create unlimited rooms for 50 concurrent students. You also have access to the full transcript.
• Yo! Teach http://palms.polyu.edu.hk/educational-apps/yoteach/ I like that you can add a picture and draw as well as type. The room URL is very long.  It also seems to be very much in beta mode.
  The Yo! Teach room I created. https://palms.polyu.edu.hk:8448/chat-desktop/room/5b38f1afa6a0f308b54cbaf4
• 
  

I have been using a simple tool when teaching via webinar, TodaysMeet.com. It is being used in education for a variety of other purposes. Let me explain how I use the tool, I’ll  show you how it works and then share some other uses.

I use it as a back channel for participants to ask questions. The term back channel is used in politics and diplomacy to mean “a secret, unofficial, or informal channel of communication” (The Free Dictionary) It is also used to describe “ the practice of using networked computers to maintain a real-time online conversation alongside the primary group activity or live spoken remarks” (Wikipedia) The chat feature offered by most web conferencing tools is a type of of back channel. To get people accustomed to the tool I use it first as a warm up activity.  I ask people to share something new they have recently learned.  The activity helps me get to know the participants and they use the TodaysMeet application.  This way I know they can use it when and if they chose. I then invite participants to give me feedback or ask questions during the webinar training session.  It has worked well especially when working with larger groups when my ability to hear individuals is compromised.  Even in smaller groups, it gives participants another avenue to ask a question.

This link will take you to a demonstration on how to set up a meeting and how to contribute. This tool is free and easy to use.  No account needed.

Here are some examples of how others have used the tool.

• Penny Kuckkahn: The best example would be when a group 4-5 were interviewing some community members at the museum the students took notes using the tool.  Then they had all the notes in one place and created a presentation from those notes.  Rather than having to pull together their handwritten notes.
• Penny Kuckkahn: When several people go to the same conference together It is a great way to keep connected and know where each other are going and what is happening at the sessions. You also then have all resources right there for you after.
• Angie Rondello: A colleague of mine has used it while the class watched a movie. Students were able to comment and ask questions while the movie was going without interrupting the movie. (students used school laptops or their own device)
• Angie Rondello: I've been in a sectional workshop where they used it for the audience members to ask questions. The feed was displayed via LCD projector and there was a panel answering the questions and/or the main presenter would answer during the presentation.
• Deirdre Bonnycastle. Use by study groups or for meet ups - easier than Twitter.
• Gloria Hofer. This is a great way to aggregate student's thoughts, questions and reactions during a lecture and then capture it in the transcript!

#CFHE12 Wk #4 my favorite speakers

The focus of week four was on the impact  of data analytics on education: is it a fad? What are the consequences of data-driven education? How does (or should) this drive change in higher education? My favorite speakers this week were John Baker, Founder, President & CEO and Erik Duval, Professor at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

Erik Duval, spoke about Open Learning Analytics October 31 session with Erik Duval  (slides) His focus is on

using learning analytics to make the student and the teacher more powerful.  Dashboards are designed to help learners visualize their learning so they can be better drivers of their learning, thus more powerful.

I especially like how Eric likened the learning analytics movement to what is called quantified self.  Data is used to trigger self-reflection. The Quantified Self is “a movement to incorporate technology into data acquisition on aspects of a person's daily life in terms of inputs (e.g. food consumed, quality of surrounding air), states (e.g. mood, arousal, blood oxygen levels), and performance (mental and physical).[1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantified_Self)

Highlights from our Nov 2nd #CFHE12 sMOOCher “Meetup”

SMOOCHERS: Smart MOOCs Higher Education Research Subgroup Oct8-Nov18 Current/Future Hi Ed tlt.gs/SMOOCHERS tlt.gs/CFHE12
Process tips. WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE MOOC EXPERIENCES MORE USEFUL TO PARTICIPANTS?

• Clarify availability of resources before, during, esp. AFTER the scheduled time of the MOOC
• "One-Click" link to login, AND to get to recording after
• In order for learning to take place the learner needs DO something with the content. "Requirements" might be useful...  vs.  "recommendations"  vs.  laissez faire ??? When is a "requirement" not a "requirement"?   "Assignment"???? WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE "REQUIREMENTS" OR "ASSIGNMENTS" MORE EFFECTIVE?  CHANGE THE NATURE OF THE REQUIREMENTS?  CHANGE THE RELATIONSHIPS?  HAVE SYNCHRONOUS SESSIONS WHICH WOULD EMBARRASS THOSE WHO HAVE NOT KEPT UP? BE CAREFUL...  that "requirements" don't work as DISINCENTIVES to participation in sync sessions (for fear of being embarrassed by revealing non-compliance or non-preparation)
• Is attending a MOOC like auditing a course?
• Frank Parker suggested creating different layers of involvement.  The first layer may be one of exploration with the content, the next layer would consist of more involvement with the content. providing this framework may help people with different goals know how to navigate the course.
• Steve Kaufman suggested that we are in such a rush to put things online, that we don't think about how content is being delivered. Let alone, effectiveness
• Completing or surviving a MOOC. Frank Parker suggests that completing a MOOC may be complete nonsense. What participants may want to do is to take a taste and move on.
• Dale Parker would like to see the whole course and all material at the beginning so can pick and chose what to participate in and access.
• Finding a cohort with like interests may help promote dialogue and conversation.

#CFHE12 sMOOCher “Meetup” Friday, Nov2, 1:00 PM ET

The TLT sMOOCher (Smart MOOCs Higher Education Research Subgroup) group is what Paul Glader refers to as a MOOC “meetup” in his blog post How In-Person Meetups Are Fixing The Problem With MOOCs.  (reference via Penny Kuckkahn.) This is our time to add some love to what Nan Zingrone reminded us could be a loveless MOOC.  We will talk together about the content of #CFHE12 week 4 and the impact of data analytics on education:

• Is it a fad?
• What are the consequences of data-driven education?
• How does (or should) this drive change in higher education?

Let's also talk about our #CFHE MOOC experience.

Please put November 30th and Dec 7th on your calendar for our

final MOOC report out during FridayLive. The exact date will be determined soon.

This link will take you to a summary of insights from our October 26th FridayLive midterm report as well as some individual goals for the second half.  Please add your goals.

See you Friday!

#CFHE12 How do I leverage the "massive" part of the MOOC?

I am really enjoying the speakers each week and appreciate the content and resources.  One of my goals is to figure out how to leverage the "massive" part of the MOOC. I am open to suggestions.  Here are some of my strategies:

1. I think I have figured out how to connect my blog to the course and have started to post some blog messages of my own.
2. I want to respond to some blog posts of others that appear in the course newsletter.
3. I have downloaded TweetDeck at the suggestion of my colleague, Penny Kuckkahn. This has helped me view just the tweets from the course. 
4. I'd like to submit my own Tweets.

I listened to the informal discussion by the course facilitators last Friday.  It was interesting to understand the rational for offering some many different ways to access and interact.  The idea is to offer all these options so participants can chose the one(s) they are most comfortable in using.  Caroline Haythornthwaite will be speaking on Thursday. In her paper SOCIAL NETWORKS AND INTERNET CONNECTIVITY EFFECTS she explorers different characteristics of social networking ties and the impact on group interaction.

FridayLive! Second #CFHE12 MOOC follow up

FridayLive! Second #CFHE 12 MOOC follow up
My notes from the October 26th sMOOChers (Smart MOOCs Higher Education Research Subgroup) midterm conversation about #CFHE12.

Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University coined this phrase in the chat “ loveless Moocs (xMoocs) have no discussion in them.”  Nan credits Nellie Deutsch of Integrating-Technology For Active Online Learners (www.integrating-technology.org) for the term loveless in reference courses with lectures plus exams only. “ No chance for participants to build relationship in loveless Moocs.”

We had a good discussion about the synchronous and asynchronous elements of the MOOC, who was using which ones and why.  We also talked about building community and different ways to accomplish this.

Priscilla Stadler persistently asked about how best to characterize MOOC pedagogy.  I’m not sure we really answered this question.

A summary of some of the MOOC tips, observations, and recommendations to help others learned as shared in the text chat.

• Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University:i get turned off by the volume of the tweet feed; I have subscribed only to the introductions that I'm responded to, and otherwise it's using the Newsletter to remind me of what I'm interested in and where that can be found
• Ilene Frank - The presentations have been eye-opening for me! One that Ilene recommended, October 22 session with Debra Quazzo
• Andrea:Match content to learning outcomes that are stated on the Contents page.
• Dale Parker:I have found resources on there that are useful ie the blended learning toolkit and some sites like Open Culture that I will share with other faculty and students
• Steve Gilbert, TLT Group:IF: finding most recent webinars with $ focus "awakening!" - helpful.
• Molly Baker:Is the role of the leaders of a MOOC to facilitate process and content is created by the community? Or is content created and communicated as a structure for the course and the dialog is directed at that structure/content?
• Henry Merrill:Mooc concierge? If my purpose in participating in a MOOC is to get immersed in the content , then I need to dive in. If I'm wanting to skim it for best practices and new ideas, then a concierge would be helpful.
• Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University:sort of like categorizing stuff up in Scoop.it or Pinterest, that's curation. Perhaps when a MOOC is set up, at least the loaded materials can also have click-offs leading you there in a table of contents, or at the learning objectives spot for each of use
• Steve Gilbert, TLT Group:HOSTS for beginners
• Ilene Frank:Teaching undergrads to develop a personal learning network can be one of the purposes.
• Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University:that's what Moodle for Teachers in www.integrating-technology.org training courses have done for me: connected me to online educators all over the world, and then they become my PLN with a really rich cultural dimension to it (I've been taking these Moodle training courses on and off for several years, some of which were MOOCs)

Goals for the second half of the MOOC. Results to be shared During FridayLive on November 30th, 2:00 pm ET Third sMOOChers Cohort Follow UP Register for free here.

• Beth Dailey:I want to try to leverage the massive part of the course. This past week I tried expanding my social networking skills within the #CFHE12 MOOC by connecting my own blog, twitter account & Google Reader. Next week I plan to learn how to use TweetDeck.

• Dale Parker: I just see this as a cultural revolution and I just want to watch and learn about the changes.
• Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University:I love the MOOC, and I love the sMOOChers add on, but I'm building Moodle training for my faculty and students at our online grad school at the minute so can't be anything but verbal in the webinars I can get into; but I owe you guys and will try to help in the future. Maybe Nan would be willing to further elaborate on this comment: Nan Zingrone - Atlantic University:but if you read and respond to introductions or blog posts you can get a conversation going and that helps build community, so that's what I've been doing.
• moy@sepche.org: This is Beth again. Perhaps keep a running list of the roles that faculty would play in a MOOC and the skills they would need to play the roles effectively. Beth agreed to synthesize, summarize list of good/useful intermediate roles for faculty making MOOCs more useful to learners, colleague?
• Priscilla Stadler: I'm interested in the possible value of MOOCs for teaching and learning at an urban community college (LaGuardia /CUNY)
• Henry Merrill: I'm going to register for the Ed Future MOOC - a session to reflect on that experience after it closes might be be useful?

sMOOChers: Smart MOOCs Higher Education Research Subgroup [#CFHE12}

The TLT Group is offering an opportunity to explore a MOOC and talk together not only about the topic but about the MOOC experience. The MOOC we have chosen is the "Current/Future State of Higher Education" (#CFHE12).  This is the second MOOC that I have participated in and one of my goals is to better understand and leverage the social networking aspects of the course.
If you want to pop into the sMOOChers discussion please join us later today, 2:00 pm ET at tlt.gs/login.  It's midterm in CFHE12 and here is what we will be discussing.

Dale Parker will summarize and evaluate our 3 categories for reflection as we participate in CFHE12 and comment on implications for adult learners: Process:  Reflection about Experience (about our shared experience in a MOOC as it happens - focus on process) Content:  Adaptation and Application of Resources (to our own institutions and individual situations of the information and resources provided by the MOOC - focus on content) Support:  Develop New Roles (to help students learn from MOOCs) Nancy Smulsky will review and extend her comments about the quality and variety of resources within CFHE12, the effectiveness (or lack) of interactivities within CFHE12, and the significance of being unable to view/use MOOC resources prior to the week for which they are designated.   Jane Harris will be unable to join us live on Oct 26, but will share some of her notes and list of recommended readings based on her experience within CFHE12 (and elsewhere). Steve Gilbert will invite more discussion about the role of scheduled synchronous events within MOOCs and other online educational activities.  He will ask participants about their own experiences with synchronous online elements within larger courses, MOOCs, programs, including these and other questions: ·       In what ways are scheduled synchronous online sessions helpful to learners who prefer or need more external structure and guidance for their own learning, even when those learners are highly motivated to master the course content?  In what ways does it matter, if at all, if the synchronous sessions are required, recommended, or purely optional? ·        In what ways do scheduled synchronous online sessions deter learners who prefer or need flexible schedules from participating in online courses, MOOCs, et al. ? In what ways does it matter, if at all, if the synchronous sessions are required, recommended, or purely optional? ·       In what ways does it matter, if at all,  which media are used and which kinds of equipment are required for synchronous sessions?  Pure text?  Multi-way voice via telephone?  Webinar?  Two-way video?  Etc. We will also discuss additional plans and questions to enhance our participation in the last weeks of CFHE12 and guide our preparation of final comments during FridayLive!  November 30, 2012.  NOTE:  Jane Marcus offered to prepare some notes and comments - based on her recent observations of MOOC-like developments at Stanford and elsewhere -  in time for the final session.

My reflections from Week Two of the MOOC on how to address diversity and learning styles in an online course and the R2D2 model.

Vocaroo + Wordle + e-mail + LMS

I asked Penny Kuckkahn, Instructional Designer/Faculty Development Coordinator, for the easiest way to produce a voice recording and she referred me to Vocaroo. This is truly a simple application.  You don't need to sign up and you immediate get a URL and can even embed the recording. Below is the recording I made summarizing the work we had been doing in a blended learning course I am teaching, Academic Mgt. 101.

Voice Recorder >>

I sent the voice recording to my students via e-mail with a word cloud image created from the script.  I used Wordle to produce the word cloud. Developing the script was the hardest part of the process.



Thanks Penny!


Beth