Online College Rankings Expand, Encourage Transparency

OEDb's "Online College Rankings 2008" provides valuable information and insight into established and emerging online college programs. More importantly, OEDb (http://www.oedb.org) is causing a serious re-evaluation of the way that colleges are assessed for quality and ranked. Their methodology goes into the heart of the educational experience provided by online colleges in ways that the US News and World Report's college ranking system cannot.

This is not to say that people will stop trusting the US News and World Report's "America's Best Colleges" report. http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings mentioned the report's popularity and impact: "If you ever doubt the need or appetite for your mission, consider the U.S. News college rankings. It's been called the "swimsuit edition" of postsecondary reporting. Within 72 hours of its release, the U.S. News website was viewed 10 million times." http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2007/12/12182007.html



For many reasons, their rankings will continue to be a guideline for most people who are trying to compare colleges. The rankings are especially effective for colleges with large on-campus presences and a tradition of residential living, as well as active alumni.

However, the OEDb addresses a world that is largely overlooked by the US News and World Report's rankings OEDb focuses on he changing world of online colleges and online education masters, and the growing acceptance of, and even preference for, 100% online and/or hybrid (blended online and face-to-face) instruction. The OEDb Online College Rankings reflect today's realities, and they give a glimpse of a technology-enhanced future, in which computer-based distance programs (which includes wireless technologies, smartphones, digital devices, as well as internet functionality and new Web 2.0 applications).

OEDb also responds to many of the criteria used by important and influential sources of online college information.


In many ways, the criteria used by OEDb respond in a positive way to the remarks made by Secretary Spellings, on December 17, 2008, when she called for more transparency in assessing colleges and universities in address to the semiannual meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI).

Instead of focusing primarily on acceptance rates, endowments, graduation rates, and student satisfaction, the OEDb ratings use the following inclusion criteria:

1. The college must be accredited
2. The college must be listed in the College Navigator.
3. The college must offer more than one undergraduate degree-granting program online.
4. The college, if campus-based, must offer at least 50% of its undergraduate degree-granting programs online.

OEDb ranking metrics include:

Acceptance rate
Financial aid
Graduation rate
Peer web citations
Retention rate
Scholarly citations
Student-faculty ratio
Years accredited
(http://oedb.org/rankings/methology)

Obviously, in the rapidly evolving world of online education, any ranking metrics are a work in progress, since technology advances may undermine certain core assumptions about the validity of a particular metric. Further, the recent sub-prime mortgage crisis has reached into the credit market for student loans, which has had an impact on all student loan lending.

Neverthess, or because of this, OEDb is blazing an important and refreshing new path in the area of ranking colleges. It also responds to recent critiques of well-established ranking systems, including the U.S. News and World Report's "America's Best Colleges" reports.

A recent online debate, "Throw the Book at College Rankings" at businessweek.com (http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2007/04/throw_the_book.html) calls into question the U.S. News and World Report college rankings. At the heart of the debate is the perceived desirability of Ivy League schools and "Ivy Plus," and the fact that their perceived desirability encourages many more people to apply than for whom there are spaces. The resulting acceptance rate is, in essence, a distortion, and reflects public opinion and marketing efficacy as well as the number of highly qualified applicants and acceptances.

Further skewing the statistics are ones based on faculty productivity. In "The Dangerous Wealth of the Ivy League," Businessweek.com authors Anthony Bianco and Sonal Rupani point out that the "Ivy Plus" (Princeton, the seven other members of the Ivy League, plus Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology), have made an effort to dedicate funds to building a base of prestigious, high-recognition faculty members.

Accused of "stealing stars," Ivy Plus institutions have found ways to hire the brightest-shining stars away from budget-pressed public and private institutions. Budgets dedicated to "At Harvard, compensation and benefits accounted for 49% of its $3.2 billion in operating expenses in 2006-07. Although salary gains have consistently outpaced inflation, it is the addition of new teaching positions that is chiefly responsible for driving up the cost of instruction." (http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_50/b4062038784589_page_2.htm, 2007, p. 2)


Are the faculty members and the bearers of endowed chairs actually working now, or were most of their publications and their seminal research produced before they were hired? The authors of the article suggest that many of the most productive faculty members in Ivy League institutions published the bulk of their work while they were at other colleges. Later, when the professors gained the recognition they had earned through their hard work, the well-funded colleges were able to make them a very nice offer and to achieve their stated objectives of improving the quality of faculty. The productive scholars and researchers deserved to be rewarded for their efforts. So, where's the complaint?

The problem is that when such numbers are used in college rankings, it does not give any recognition to the colleges who supported the faculty members during their formative years, and even into their most successful phases. The rankings recognize the affiliation as it is now. According to the authors of "The Dangerous Wealth of the Ivy League," such a system influences public perception (and thus contributions). The rich and the powerful become more rich and powerful.

In this situation, the OEDb's Online College Rankings is a welcome change of pace. One could argue that their rubric could be applied to face-to-face colleges as well as online, since many resources are online and many courses are delivered in a hybrid format, which combines face to face and online.

References

Bianco, A, and Rupani, S. (2007). The dangerous wealth of the Ivy League. Businessweek.com November 29, 2007. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_50/b4062038784589.htm, accessed February 4, 2008.

Businessweek.com (2007). "Throw the Book at College Rankings" April 2007, http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2007/04/throw_the_book.html, accessed on February 4, 2008.

OEDb. (2008). Online College Rankings 2008. http://oedb.org/rankings accessed January 31, 2007.

Spellings, M. (2007). Secretary Spellings Encourages Greater Transparency and Accountability in Higher Education at the National Accreditation Meeting. December 17, 2007. http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2007/12/12182007.html accessed February 4, 2008.

USNews.com (2008). America's Best Colleges 2008. http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php, accessed February 5, 2008.

New Hires Role-Play as Action Heroes in Serious Game by Enspire

Austin-based Enspire has developed a series of training courses that incorporate alternative realities and serious games for companies requiring training for distributed populations. Enspire's recent serious game / simulation allows new employees to role-play as action heroes as they learn about the company, company policies, and other necessary procedures. While serious games have been used in corporate training, the way that Enspire used game technology in new hire orientation opens a number of new possibilities, and makes one ask fundamental questions about the nature of new hires, and the "boomer to gamer" transfers of knowledge and experience.
Created for Sun Microsystems, the action-hero serious game, or, "new hire portal," was for new hires. The new-hire portal recently won Best Synchronous Learning Course at the E-learning Guild's Demofest in San Jose. Through this portal, employees can participate in social networking, read and write blog entries, and play educational onboarding computer games.

Specifically, Enspire created "Rise of the Shadow Specters," a platform game and "Dawn of the Shadow Specters," an adventure game. Both games teach Sun's core businesses and corporate culture by navigating Ray (the hero) through Sol City.


A demo is available at http://learning.sun.com/sls/staff/display/NEWHIRE/Play . Enspire’s Interactive Content Experience™ (ICE) game engine powered the experience, which was honored at the DevLearn 2007 DemoFest and featured in the Austin Business Journal.

Onboarding is a great place to incorporate serious games and role-playing because it allows people to develop a sense of community. Better than Second Life or There.com because the environment is controlled, content is official.

There are other perhaps unanticipated results of using an action-hero video game for new-hire orientation:

1---Corporate culture. The simulation provides a wonderful opportunity to introduce individuals to the corporate culture.

2--- Developing community of learners. Having a sense of a community is absolutely vital for individuals who can learn from each other and ask questions in an environment that encourages questions, support, and answers.

3--- Instructing one in procedures. Role-playing and practice are effective ways to learn.

4--- Engaging the learner, maintaining interest. Using serious games and simulations is a great way to engage the learners and keep them interested and receptive to learning.

5--- Developing a belief in the corporation that is very positive. Perception is reality, they say, and if employees perceive their employer to be very forward-thinking, caring, and innovative, it helps develop a positive belief about the company and encourages vision and mission coherence.

6--- "Boomer" to "Gamer" Knowledge and Experience Transfer. The challenge of finding ways for employees with distinct learning styles and preferences can be overcome. Specifically, "digital immigrants" of the Baby Boomer generation have an opportunity to share knowledge with the "digital natives" who grew up playing video games.

Opportunities

Managing Expectations: There is always the downside of arousing expectations, and giving the impression that the company is a lot cooler than it really is. This can be a challenge which will need to be managed very carefully, with a great deal of coordination with the Human Resources department.

Assessment Tools: What are the learners really learning? Assessment tools need to correspond with the learning style used in the original training.

Program and Training Effectiveness Evaluation: It is important to have a non-interested independent third party take a look and make sure that learning styles are being accommodated and that ADA accommodation requirements are being met. This would not be expensive, but it is invaluable. A trained instructional designer / program evaluator would be ideal. Adjustments could be made quickly and easily.

Enspire White Papers

In addition to providing custom solutions, Enspire offers white papers on games and simulations used in training. They are available at the blog: http://blog.enspire.com/

The white papers also describe how Enspire's solutions for training and professional development can be best used. The fact that Enspire offers a full suite of services is comforting. It indicates that the individuals understand the real needs of the entity and are focused on learning, rather than simply repurposing game code.

It would be very exciting if Enspire devoted an entire series of pages to assessment via simulation. This is where most serious games and simulations fall short. In courses such as conflict resolution or training, it is important to understand the underlying principles (or, in the case of a new-hire orientation, the corporate policies). The problem with most simulations and serious games is that they do not test in the same manner in which they present the original material, nor do they offer practice tests.

There are huge opportunities for serious games and simulation programmers to show how they are accommodating multiple learning styles, not just in interacting with the interface (and other avatars), but also in assessment. This is most acutely the case when learners must perform in standardized tests (licensing boards and other exams). Enspire is doing groundbreaking work and I am looking forward to more examples of their innovative use of simulation and games for training and e-learning.

Links:

New Hire Portal

http://enspire.com/

Creating Mashups for Fun and Venture Capital

Although dynamic, integrated web applications (often called "mashups") are increasing in number and popularity, very few manuals or guides exist that take the user step-by-step through the process of creating them. PHP Web 2.0 Mashup Projects, by Shu-Wai Chow, and published by Packt Publishing (http://www.packtpub.com), provides valuable step-by-step instructions. With this book, uses will have strategies for using the customizable homepage platforms such as iGoogle and MyYahoo, which allow users to take advantage of the client-side Javascript scripting language and the always-growing list of "gadgets," which are applications that retrieve information from a database and then display them in the central site. It could also enable a user to build gadgets that could attract venture capital if they could form the basis of a viable business.



The term, "mashup" can be misleading. After all, ordinary web users who copy and paste code into their blog templates in order to add search tools, questionnaires, polls, maps, and links to products in order to provide functionality and entertainment for their visitors may not realize they are creating mashups. They may not have any idea that the functional chunks of code they're importing can be called "gadgets" or "widgets" and that the dynamic links to books and products illustrate a "long tail" approach to marketing.

What those web users would acknowledge is that they appreciate how exciting it is to be able to generate your own dynamic web applications and to put them on a single page. They would love to be able to do more. For those users, Mashup Projects is ideal.

PHP Web 2.0 Mashup Projects starts from the beginning and defines a mashup as an application that allows users to "remotely consume services like Google Maps, Flickr, Amazon, YouTube, MSN Search, Yahoo!, Last.fm, and the Internet UPC database, not to mention the California Highway Patrol Traffic data" (preface) and more. The author acknowledges that many users will not really want to have to write PHP code, nor will they necessarily have server-side privileges.

Typical dynamic, integrated web applications / mashups fall into a few well-established catagories:

Maps
Social Networks
Photographs
Demographics
Financial Information
E-Commerce
Ads
Calendar
Dictionaries
Language Translation

Mashup Projects explains which platforms enable users to bring together already written scripts in order to have the functionality of a mashup. Examples include iGoogle, MyYahoo, amazon, MySpace and others. This is a kind of mashup "lite" since the user will not actually be writing any scripts to create a unique gadget, or to modify an existing gadget.

There is money to be made in gadget-building, and Google realizes this. In fact, one can apply for funding to support building a gadget, if the idea is sound enough, and useful for Google. One can submit a proposal and receive $5,000 for funding the venture through Gadget Ventures (http://www.google.com/gadgetventures/). If a viable business can be built around the gadget, up to $100,000 is available as startup capital from Google.

Google provides a guide, but it is quite minimal. Mashup Projects could be a perfect book for those who wish to develop a Google Gadget, and then obtain funding for a startup venture. (Example: building an application for http://shoppingmallzombies.com/)

Mashup Projects begins with Amazon, one of the friendliest databases around, which actively encourages individuals to dynamically retrieve information in order to sell it. Chapter 2 shows the user how to work with an XML-RPC structure, which forms the core of the dynamic retrieval function of mashups. The request and retrieval functions are clearly details. In addition, the chapter discusses how to use other types of requests, including REST.

Readers will be able to practice projects in by following the Chow's step-by-step instructions. The user can make his or her own search engine using PHP SOAP, and then can build his or her own Video Jukebox. The process is clear and it moves from the simple to the complex, starting with writing the application and then "mashing up."

Chapter 5 shows the user how to create a mashup using public safety data and maps to predict traffic snarls and situations. Chow very responsibly discusses the ethical issues involved in a "screen scrape" and that one should always seek approval to pull data from that is displayed on one's website and importing it into one's own site.

Chapter 6 shows how to integrate maps and image repositories (Google maps and Flickr). Chow builds the mashup around data on the London Tube.

For the more sophisticated web user and web programmer with experience with servers, creating mashups can be one of the most satisfying activities around. It allows one to demonstrate very creative thinking by being able to bring together unrelated clusters of information -- unrelated databases, unrelated web applications - and to uncover really amazing and unique aspects. For example, shmapplets.com (http://www.shmapplets.com) brings together city maps, photographs, cultural information, and personal information to create virtual tours. As an example of a mashup that has been created by a user and made available for the public free of charge, schmapplet is pretty typical. It's a great application, but it has a number of rough edges and limitations, which I found when I started to create my own schmapplet of Oklahoma City: http://www.schmap.com/published/beyondutopia/1267/

However, very effective mashups exist, with and without glitches, and they provide the user with very valuable information. There are a few very important considerations, which should be mentioned.

First, there are ethical considerations in developing some mashups. Chow discusses issues involved in "screen scraping" and he touches on the questions one should ask oneself when putting together information that could be confidential or lead to security and/or privacy breaches.

Second, there are important data quality issues that must be addressed. The mashups are only as good as the information that is retrieved. How do you know that the information is valid? Are important business decisions being made on the basis of the information retrieved in a mashup? Some serious errors could be made if the maps are out of date, the customer reviews are biased (or completely inaccurate), and other information is flawed.

Caution should be used when creating mashups. Good planning is of paramount importance. Shu-Wai Chow's PHP Web 2.0 Mashup Projects (Packt Publishing 2007) is a valuable tool.

Neulio Does for Training What YouTube Did Simple Video Content

Neulio's new educational video platform makes it possible for individuals to easily create educational and training videos that follow sound instructional design and have a measure of quality assurance, which is, as we all know, quite rare in the wild-west, anything-goes world of user-generated content (UGC) and Web 2.0.

Anyone who has ever tried to create their own video-based course by using existing hosting services or by hosting it yourself is familiar with some of the obstacles. Google video and YouTube make it very easy to upload and share videos, and even restrict access to certain users, and, they make it possible to embed a video in your course website or download videos to your mobile devices. Sounds good? It is, to a degree. It's a great way to make your videos accessible across platforms, but the problem is that the platform itself is not pedagogically friendly. You have to do a lot of work. Further, you're never really sure if your students are experiencing the video content in the way you'd like them to. You can try to make sure that they see the videos in a certain sequence, but it is very difficult to link them.

Neulio (http://www.neulio.com/) - a new educational video platform, hosting service, and instructional template framework – could provide a solution.


Neulio is as easy to use as YouTube or Google video. The user can upload a video directly from his or her camera or phone. In the case of Neulio, user generated content -- all of it -- is free to view and free to post.

What is different about Neulio is that it is designed specifically for online training and learning via user-generated video content. It's a simple solution that allows individuals to create useable video training without having to have an extensive IT department or a team of instructional designers.

Neulio does for training, learning, and how-to content what YouTube did for simple video content.

---The ability to create multi-lesson courses without IT involvement
The coursebuilder tool is engaging, and its ease of use encourages the individual to create content and to use it in innovative ways. Changes are simple and do not require the involvement of IT teams, instructional designers, instructional technologists. In addition to time savings, cost savings can be significant.


---Support for multiple media types in a single course
It is not uncommon for individuals to have content in different formats. Neulio accommodates different types of video content, and further, it converts it to a flash format that is compatible with many other types of players (mobile devices, phones, laptops).

---User-configurable gates that control movement between lessons
Gates are user-configurable controls that allow the user to regulate a course consumer's movement between lessons. Types of gates include passwords and quizzes.

---An integrated, online quiz-builder
Neulio allows the course developer to create quizzes that are used by the student in the way they were intended, and at the point and in the sequence. This helps assure that learning is taking place.

However, one would be remiss if one did not mention that there are potential downsides. Like many new programs (especially those that emerged during the dot.com times), the service must achieve critical mass. That means that many users need to use it, and the UGC must be of sufficient quality and relevance to excite other uses.

Further, it will be necessary to find productive partnerships in order to assure large user groups and to test out the bugs. Needless to say, this requires the architecture to be massively scalable. That is not always the case.

Finally, one must avoid the pitfalls of getting a partner that is too large too soon. How many potentially useful products are still languishing in Google’s sandbox / beta-testing area and have never actually seen the light of day?

Those provisos notwithstanding, Neulio represents a breakthrough for e-learning. It allows user-generated instructional content to be used in a meaningful way. Further, it allows the user-generated content to be much higher quality than one would ordinarily expect. Neulio functions as a virtual instructional design team and it gives the guidance that users need to create video content that is pedagogically effective.




The Neulio concept is potentially revolutionary. In addition to being used in online courses, the "how-to" element can span many uses. Theoretically, it could be used in conjunction with textbooks and e-commerce as well.

IBM Predictions for the Future Spell Web 2.0 Business Opportunities Now

IBM has released their annual “Next Five In Five,” a set of predictions released at the end of each year, to predict where technology will take us in five years http://www.ibm.com/ibm/ideasfromibm/us/five_in_five/12312007/index.shtml

The December 2007 predictions, however, seem to have already come true, or, at least, be on the verge of coming true. Thus, as predictions, they are not as engaging as some of the futurist visions that discuss really radical new technologies and techniques. However, as indicators of where real business opportunities exist now and in the immediate future, IBM's predictions are pure old.

The “Five in Five” is not quite the same, but is similar to another set of predictions issued by IBM. "Five Innovations that Could Change Your Life Over the Next Five Years," http://www.ibm.com/ibm/ideasfromibm/us/five_in_five/010807/index.shtml which came from an IBM-sponsored distributed event, and virtual think tank.

Below are IBM's five predictions. I've added brief commentary as well as a list of possible opportunities that can be developed or expanded now.

1. Green Technologies for Everyday Life
"Smart technologies" will proliferate. According to IBM, the current trend to put timers and sensors on lights and electrical equipment will expand to the point that almost everything will have energy-saving elements, and many will utilize nanotechnology in the sensors and other design.

Business Opportunities Now:
---Sensors to control energy consumption
---Devices that have them (sellers and manufacturers)

2. Driving Patterns and Traffic Management

Yahoo Go! and Google Maps already provide information for handhelds. Numerous mashups can be downloaded that integrate traffic information with maps (such as Google maps). The opportunities exist to provide better coverage. They can also be helpful in reviewing real estate or driving conditions at a distance from one's handheld.

Business Opportunities Now:
---Info systems (web app that integrate with live information)
---Monitor that gather the information and feed them to a central database -- cell phones with GPS? OnStar nav systems?
---Companies that provide the services to install devices and monitoring systems / software

3. You Are What You Eat: Crop / Food tracking and reporting

According to IBM, all our food will be traceable, and we'll be able to find just where it was grown, processed, and warehoused. Honestly, there is nothing new in this -- all food has such information already. If it did not, how would we have been able to determine where the tainted spinach came from in the outbreak that occurred in 2006? However, according to IBM, the tracking information will extend to the types of soil, the nature of the farm environment, and the dates of transit.


Business Opportunities Now:
---Far beyond the barcode information // especially date
---Origin and provenance (soil, country, etc)
---Provenance and transport (processing and packaging)
---Agricultural industry can sell information to users
---Packaging manufacturers would design packaging to facilitate the new need
---Problem -- too much information for competitors?

4. Cell Phones Do Everything

According to the prediction, cell phones will be personal assistants that will do everything from find maps, deliver email, allow you to see ratings for a restaurant, share videos, and post directly to social networking sites.

As we all know, that prediction has come true. In fact, just yesterday, I used my Blackberry Curve (with service provided by T-Mobile) to find the street address of Kyoto's, a restaurant in Reno, Nevada, where I was to meet for lunch. I used Yahoo Go! to enter the name of the restaurant and the town. I obtained the street address, found a map, and also even found some ratings and customer comments regarding their sushi. I was able to avoid a traffic accident on one of the streets on the way to the restaurant, thanks to Based on that information, I found the restaurant, and then ordered the sushi sampler. The ahi sashimi looked good, so I will probably try that next time. I could have filmed a movie of it and posted it directly to my YouTube account or as a video comment on Yahoo Go!, but decided against it. I was afraid I would dribble soy sauce on my white blouse.

Business Opportunities Now:
---Marketing portals that are cell-phone / smartphone friendly
---Packages to help businesses meet the needs of their cell phone-based customers
---Packages to help vendors, businesses, and consumers input information in many fields (rating restaurants, providing maps, etc.)
---Packages to help consumers decode all the information and use it
---Effective ads etc for cell phone display

5. Doctors will use super-scans to analyze patients.

Needless to say, this is also a prediction that has already come true. It is useful to see, though, that IBM expects the trend to continue and the information to become more portable, more user-friendly, and -- well, potentially more dangerous.


Business Opportunities Now:
---Technologies that help enhance imaging
---Computer programs that help display more effective models
---Medical technology companies creating diagnostic tests
---Insurance and pharmaceutical companies (ways to use the info)
---Target market for certain treatments and medicines
---Privacy / encryption devices -- my personal feeling is that if it gets to the point that one can do a scan of a person without one's permission (remote scans at at distance, or even at places such as airports), it might be useful to have an internal device that scrambles the scan -- a kind of portable force-field. It would also be helpful to be able to encrypt the information once it is obtained.

In many ways, the predictions have already come true. The predictions are useful, nevertheless, because it is possible to gauge the nature and direction of trends, as well as their volume and impact. In addition, it's possible to identify where and how one might take advantage of opportunities to develop new products and services.

Interview with Jane Hart (Life in the E-Learning Organization Series)

Welcome to Life in the E-Learning Organization! This week's interview is with Jane Hart, director of the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies.

What is your name, and what is your involvement with e-learning?

I am Jane Hart. I run the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies – www.C4LPT.co.uk where I provide a free online information service about e-learning as well as consultancy and advice to businesses and education. Freely available resources at the Centre include: Directory of Tools for Learning, E-Learning Handbook, a Conference Calendar and the Top 100 Tools for Learning activity.

How did you get interested in distance education?

I have been working in the education and training world for nearly 25 years. I spent 14 years teaching in Further and Higher Education where I promoted online learning, but left in 1997 to offer professional e-learning services. This work has been focused on helping organisations understand the full potential of e-learning to address job and business performance problems.

What is your favorite new trend in distance education?

As part of my work at the Centre I keep track of new trends, technologies and tools. My favourite trend is informal learning, by which I mean realising that informational e-learning can be just as powerful and as effective as instructional e-learning – and much easier and less costly to create. The key, however, is understanding which is the most appropriate solution for any given learning or performance challenge or problem.

What is your favorite technology?

I have many favourites; but currently I very enthusiastic about the use of file sharing tools like Slideshare, YouTube, VoiceThread, Scribd, etc, which let authors embed resources into web pages to share them with others.

What kinds of instructional materials do you use in elearning?

I help my clients build a range of materials; and recently have been building screencasts, Flash-based narrated presentations, as well short tutorials.

How do you use textbooks in e-learning?

E-Book technology is a great way of making textbooks available. But more interesting is the ability to use the technology create course readers – and make these available to on-demand online or to print

What are your favorite social networks? How do you view them in e-learning?

Although I am a member of public networks like LinkedIn and Facebook, I prefer the smaller private networks that can be built with tools like Ning to invite members with common interests. For instance I am a member of Jay Cross’ Internet Time Group community where members can share their experiences of working in the e-learning profession.

Do you have a few favorite mashups or web applications that work together in innovative ways? Please describe them.

Following on from my previous response, I do like apps like Study Groups, which makes Facebook a useful tool for education. After all students are probably already members, it’s just about harnessing the technology for educational purposes!

What is your favorite quote? or, what's a book that caught your eye recently?

“Learning is not compulsory ... neither is survival” (W Edwards Denning)

Ruby On Rails: New Book Guides New Solutions (Review)

A new book, just released by Packt Publishing, can help make elearning solutions more efficient by using the Ruby on Rails web development framework. The book, which is intended for users who have a basic familiarity with the framework, and who wish to develop their own applications or enterprise solutions, contains valuable guidance and insight. It is not intended for users who want to develop exotic uses, nor does it require users to be familiar with more complex web-based applications. It is most valuable for the ways in which it instructs users in the planning, development, and deployment processes. The book is entitled Ruby on Rails Enterprise Application Development: Plan, Program, Extend.

Ruby on Rails (Rails for short) has become a very popular web development framework for business applications. It is ideal for training solutions because it can enable applications that do not communicate with each other to interface in a productive way. While such a statement may not seem to mean much at first glance, a closer look into the typical corporate training environment or elearning organization yields a situation where test results, certifications, instructional materials, assessments, registrations, records, and payments are just a few of the data repositories that must communicate with each other.

The problem with canned commercial solutions, or even customized solutions by a provider such as Oracle, is that the organization changes, objectives redefine themselves, and needs emerge -- all outside the capabilities of the "off the shelf" product.

Ruby on Rails is open source, and readily available for download. While there are a number of sites that provide help with installation and getting started with Rails, there are few resources for the mid-level user who would like to start using Ruby on Rails to help with both mundane tasks as well as more complex ones.

Rails is a very clear, easy-to-use framework that can be written in a text file (using notepad, for example, in Windows), which makes the creation and modification of templates a very simple task. Rails also lends itself to more complex tasks, such as data mining from several different databases that are housed in different servers and accessed using different protocols. So, in addition to making the elearning organization's life easier with respect to organizing and integrating elearning user and content information, Rails can also help make life easier with respect to marketing, tracking, and auditing information.

One of the main advantages of using Ruby on Rails Enterprise Application Development: Plan, Program, Extend is that it guides the user from installation, deployment, and development (and testing) of applications.

Chapter 2 begins with a typical day at the office, and a computing task which turns out to be much more complicated and time-consuming to do than the boss who wants it yesterday would dare to imagine. The programmer is panicked, until she realizes that Rails will allow her to easily do what the boss wants, which is to gather and organize client information from multiple sales rep accounts. The chapter describes the typical database problem, the nature of the challenges, and different strategies for organizing a solution.

Chapters 3 and 4 show the user how to build a foundation for Rails and then to start to work with the web framework, which includes setting up a new Rails application, connecting Rails to a database, and migrating records to complete a database. The chapters are very detailed and contain specific code and instruction.

Chapters 5, 6, 7, and 8 deal with the application experience. The Rails programmer must understand the user and how the user is going to need to use an interface in order to obtain the best results. For the daring developers, the chapters also discuss how to integrate AJAX libraries, which constitute ready-made scripts for integrating web applications. I would say that this is not for the faint of heart. AJAX scripts are notoriously finicky -- just look at all the mashups that limp along and do not play nicely with the various applications they are attempting to integrate. This is most definitely the case when it comes to formatting and display. The chapters continue to roll out the most useful and most-sought-out enterprise needs, which include authentication, task tracking, and catching missing records.

Chapters 9 and 10 help refine and improve deployment of the Rails applications, and guide the user in the best way to build on one's initial success in developing a Rails application. The tips and pointers are pragmatic. They urge the programmer to keep it simple, and to try to keep the applications as object-oriented as possible, as well as streamlined and granular.

In addition to encouraging the user of Rails to be pragmatic and to not attempt what is not feasible, the book guides the Rails application developer to a balanced philosophy -- develop what you need to, to it elegantly, and don't develop what you don't need.

While the Ruby on Rails application manual provides specific solutions which not meet the needs of all readers, the overall organization and the discussion of how to analyze a problem and to bring it into development are extremely helpful because the tips and pointers are universal.

Ruby on Rails: Enterprise Application Development is highly recommended for corporations and elearning organizations seeking to improve quality, efficiency, and marketing of their learning solutions.

Ruby on Rails Enterprise Application Development: Plan, Program, Extend

Reference

Smith, E. and Nicols, R. (2007) Ruby on Rails: Enterprise Application Development. Packt Publishing. http://www.packtpub.com/
508 p. $49.99 US

San Francisco Zoo Mauling and "Endangered" (1997)

What makes some stories catch on, while others do not? How and why do certain cultural narrative ring true? This post continues the contemplation of the San Francisco Zoo's escaped tiger and the 1997 play, "Endangered." Please see Part I of this story.

Please disregard the wind noise -- a storm was coming in at Wailea Beach in Maui.

SF Zoo Mauling and a 1997 Play: Life Imitating Art

I am always amazed at the way that certain issues resurface and renew themselves in the new times, circumstances, and contexts. At the same time, it's interesting to see how life imitates art -- not just in visions of the future (science fiction) or heinous crimes (action-adventure and crime drama), but in other areas as well. In 1996, I wrote a couple of plays featuring animals. The first, Let Dogs Lie, explored the parallels between using animals to test surgical procedures for humans and relationships between people. The second, Endangered, probed the nature of being not only captive, but having one's captivity be the subject of spectacle. It, too, explored parallels between animals in captivity and people in awkward situations (families, relationships, the past).

Because of the recent mauling death of a teenager who was visiting the San Francisco Zoo, and who was mauled to death by an escaped Siberian tiger, I thought I'd take this opportunity to provide links to the play (with podcasts), together with a few thoughts.

Endangered: A play about large cats in zoos and zoo patrons. First published by Potes and Poets Press in 1997, and performed at St. Gregory's University in the spring of 1998.

Endangered: Part I
http://fringejournal.blogspot.com/2005_09_28_archive.html

Endangered: Part II
http://fringejournal.blogspot.com/2005_09_29_archive.html

Endangered: Part III
http://fringejournal.blogspot.com/2005_09_30_archive.html

Please email me (Susan Smith Nash - http://www.beyondutopia.com) if you're interested in finding out how you can obtain copies of the other play, and also license a production. My email: beyondutopia at gmail dot com

Recommended experimental poetics sites:

Tinfish

Chaxblog

Swoonrocket

Light & Dust

Small Press Traffic

Avec Books

Viral Videos, Web 2.0, and Strategies for E-Learning

You're probably familiar with some of the most widely disseminated viral videos -- Chris Crocker, Diet Coke and Mentos, Apartment Guy, ... all » "Don't Taze Me!" -- the list goes on and on. Viral videos become a part of the social "conversation" and as such, they interplay with current events, news, and the types of mythos that make it into the collective unconscious.


Because of the way they are produced, distributed, and hosted, they are definitely a part of the great "Web 2.0" world.

Google Video of Web 2.0

E-learning that incorporates the file sharing, networking, and communication of Web 2.0 can use viral videos to great advantage. This video, guided by Susan Smith Nash, explores some ways to accomplish this.

Recent Great Posts -- check out the blogs below -

Golden Swamp: http://www.goldenswamp.com

EdTechPost: http://edtechpost.ca/wordpress/

The Learned Man!: http://www.learnedman.com

Random Walk in Learning: http://elearningrandomwalk.blogspot.com/



del.icio.us digg reddit

Learning Chinese and Other Languages with New Web 2.0 Strategies

New Web 2.0 applications such as ones like italki (http://www.italki.com) that encourage interactions in multiple languages in social communities, virtual worlds, and information sharing are perfect complements to traditional language courses as well as the new podcast and radio-based programs. For example, students who take courses through the new podcast and satellite broadcasts of Chinese language lessons by China Radio International (CRI) could find participating in the italki.com language-learning community to be very helpful.


A new endeavor, italki.com aims to incorporate the functionality of Web 2.0 to encourage language learners to participate in activities designed to motivate as well as providing practice in the target language. In doing so, italki.com is creating unique language learning communities.

Italki.com’s language learning communities are an excellent way to overcome a sense of isolation. Further, they provide learners a great way to practice speaking, writing, and listening to others. The sense of community can help the learners overcome the psychological blocks (anxiety, low self-concept) that often hamper the efforts of language learners.

In fact, language-learning anxiety can be reduced dramatically in the italki.com environment because there are a number of resources and tools at one’s disposal in the online arena. For example, pronunciation and vocabulary support are at one’s fingertips. In addition, the use of avatars and screen names can help one feel as though one is role-playing instead of actually jeopardizing one’s real identity or self.



Perhaps the most powerful way to use language-learning social communities is to develop a personal learning plan, and to clearly and systematically integrate the activities in the community with a more formal language program.

For example, the lessons offered by China Radio International (CRI) could be incorporated because they are standardized, and are being offered in more than 38 countries (http://enpf.chinabroadcast.cn/TalkChina/).


Uniform study materials have been compiled by the Office of Chinese Language Council International.

Confucius Institute Project:
http://english.hanban.edu.cn/market/HanBanE/412360.htm

Office of Chinese Language Council International: http://www.hanban.edu.cn/en_hanban/jgsz.php

Confucius Institute at Michigan State University:
http://confucius.msu.edu/

CRI Talk China:
http://enpf.chinabroadcast.cn/TalkChina/

italki.com
http://www.italki.com

Highly Recommended Web 2.0 Sites

Are you looking for ways to update your skills and your web presence, and to communicate and share information more effectively? The following websites and programs will help you get started.

Lifehacker: http://www.lifehacker.com
My favorite part of lifehacker is the fact that it is a great gateway to free programs. Who has time to conquer all that software? No one, but still it’s fun to windowshop. http://lifehacker.com/software/downloads/ If you’re overwhelmed, try narrowing the search by taking a look at lifehacker’s 2007 top choices: http://lifehacker.com/software/feature/lifehackers-2007-guide-to-free-software-and-webapps-334568.php
web 2.0
Also included is a "most improved" list of web-based software applications. Google's gmail makes the list.
http://www.gmail.com


There is an excellent Lifehacker article on how to host your own domain with your own URL using free web applications: http://lifehacker.com/software/feature/host-your-domain-with-free-apps-331865.php

Lifehacker recommends one of my personal favorites: Zoho web-based software.
http://www.zoho.com


Kottke.org: http://www.kottke.org
Home of fine hypertext products. And, this is nothing short of the truth! Wonderful short, pithy links and finds, with excellent tags. Today’s discovery: a youtube video about the Apple Lisa (my first computer, along with an Apple 2e)… love it!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj2A0LybwPA

Webware: http://www.webware.com
Webware allows you do download very useful and intriguing web applications that are ideally suited for integration and creating mashups. There are a large number of applications, and it may be useful to skip to Webware.com’s top 100. http://www.webware.com/html/ww/100.html

Ajaxian: http://www.ajaxian.com
All things Ajax. This blog provides a great overview and introduction to AJAX and combining web applications.
web 2.0


Programmable Web: http://www.programmableweb.com/
Very thorough program that focuses on Ajax applications and has a nice link to interesting mashups.

Yahoo directory: http://dir.yahoo.com
Amazingly, still relevant (after all these years).

Digg.com : http://www.digg.com
Digg is a place for people to discover and share content from anywhere on the web. From the biggest online destinations to the most obscure blog, Digg surfaces the best stuff as voted on by our users. You won’t find editors at Digg — we’re here to provide a place where people can collectively determine the value of content and we’re changing the way people consume information online.

digg facebook reddit del.icio.us

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

Top 12 Technologies Innovations by 2025: Implications for E-Learning and Oil and Gas Production

Futurists and analysts at the research and consulting firm, Social Technologies, listed what they project to be the top areas of technology innovation through 2025. The innovations are listed below, with speculations about potential implications for the future of oil and gas production in mature basins. Yearbook Experts at ExpertClick distributed the explanations, responses by E-Learning Queen and midcontinentoil.com.

(Note: Back by popular demand: link to Britney Spears "Construct Constantly Deconstructing" post)

1. Personalized medicine-
* the creation of an individual's genome map for a retail price of less than $1,000
* the correlation of specific genes and proteins with specific cancers, Alzheimer's, heart diseases, and diabetes, which will allow both physicians and patients to anticipate, plan for, and mitigate, if not cure, DNA-based health challenges
* the development of pharmaceuticals to treat gene-based diseases (medical treatments that replace surgeries and chemotherapy).

People with access to such breakthroughs can live longer, work longer. How much will these cost? We will have to see. Transfer of skills can be more long-lived. However, it also sets up possibilities of gamer vs. boomer generation tensions. If the studies are true, gamers really do think differently than boomers and the WWII generation. Gamers are said to be multi-taskers and independent thinkers; while boomers are said to be more linear in their approach to problem-solving. This is a gross generalization, but numerous books and articles have been published, so people are tending to perceive and believe that there is a difference. Perception is reality, so it will be good to pay attention.

2. Distributed energy
* hybrid vehicles
* advanced electricity storage devices and batteries
* design of new power systems with fuel-switching flexibility.

For all the people who are eager to exploit the undeveloped reserves of gas and oil in mature basins, it might not be a bad idea to diversify into some of the "green" energy sources. The oil in the ground is money in the bank. Save it.

E-Learning: Solar-powered devices (phones, laptops, cameras, mobile devices).

3. Pervasive computing-
* very simple and inexpensive computing devices with integrated wireless telephone and Internet capabilities (the worldwide $100 computer)
* the "semantic Web," enabled by Web data that automatically self-organizes, allowing search tools or software agents to actually identify the relevance of Web pages (not just find keywords on them)
* intelligent interfaces, in some cases enabled by virtual reality.

This means much better information in the field, and better monitoring devices at the wellhead or in pipelines. Corrosion control, gas compressors, scrubbers, gas conditioning, nitrogen or salt water injection, etc. will be affected. The key is to develop the appropriate chemical processes and technologies to piggyback on pervasive computing.

E-Learning: it may be hard to find a course that is strictly face-to-face.

4. Nanotechnologies for innovative materials and fibers-Although they have received much attention, the R&D of nanotechnogies is progressing very slowly. But the experts expect major breakthroughs to occur within the next two decades, including inexpensive ways to produce mass quantities of nano-fibers.

Nanotechnology in terms of catalytic agents and devices to enhance imaging (downhole logging tools) will probably be the first place for applications.

Improved performance in chips? This could expand computing capabilities. In terms of e-learning: there could be a boom in engineering, science and math programs.

5. Biomarkers for health-
* individualized, private, and self-administered diagnostics, as well as home diagnostic kits that detect early signs of diabetes, heart disease, and types of cancers
* individualized exercise equipment and regimens for individualized benefits (weight control, blood pressure, blood sugar, etc.)
* advanced CAT scans, MRIs, and brain scans to identify disorders earlier and more accurately at less cost.

How about biomarkers for oil? This could be a breakthrough in terms of developing a better sense of fluid flow through fractures and faults. What is the provenance of the oil? Where is it going? Where did it come from? (this is sounding like a Gauguin painting)...

Education online: It is important to provide access to all kinds of programs so that individuals are able to equip themselves to be able to participate in the new economies. Online programs in medicine, biomedical engineering will be in demand.

6. Bio-energy-
* high-energy (as measured in British thermal units, or Btu) blends of gasoline and diesel with biofuels (beyond the ethanol blends known today)
* biomass production of a methanol that can be used as a fuel for fuel cells
* new discoveries in plant genetics and biotechnologies specifically for energy content.

Genetically modified corn for ethanol is a good idea. However, it may continue to be true that it actually costs more fuel to raise the corn and process it into ethanol than to produce oil and refine it into gasoline. If government subsidies continue, it's probably a given that this will happen. If not -- perhaps more ways to fuel municipal turbines using locally generated methane would be the answer.

E-Learning: more online labs and simulations to test new products and procedures. The labs can be online or, onsite, but remotely accessed.

7. Micro-flexible manufacturing and processes-
* advanced computer-aided design and control
* multiple variable and inexpensive sensors linked with computers
* expert systems and advanced pattern-recognition software for very tight quality control.

The implications for the oil field are quite interesting. This could mean custom pumps, custom valves and gauges, and chemical applications for existing wells.

8. Universal water-
* ultra-fine filters (probably from nanotechnology)
* development of energy sources for desalination and purification, including hybrid systems, especially solar power.

This is good, but it does not solve the problem of inland water. In some parts of the MidContinent, the depletion of the Ogalalla is already posing real problems. Drilling requires drilling fluids. Secondary recovery requires injection. Would it be possible to desalinate the water produced with oil and then sell it at a reasonable price to cities and municipalities. Places like Dallas could obtain water from the Barnett Shale. Eventually, the water would be more valuable than the gas.

9. Carbon containment-
* affordable and effective carbon capture and storage technologies and systems for coal-burning power plants
* new emission controls for transportation vehicles
* containment systems for methane.

This will be very important in the production of natural gas. It will also be extremely important in gas-powered electricity generators and in refining.

10. Engineered agriculture-
* identification of specific genomes for desired growing and use qualities
* GMOs as the next generation of hybrid plants and crops
* crops designed specifically for energy content and conversion.

Animal husbandry is probably affected as well. There are undoubtedly consequences and impacts on MidContinent oil. Just how big will the hogs in the hog farms be? What will it do to us to eat this stuff? We have all heard the rumors of what eating growth-hormone laced dairy products does.

ELearning: new needs for ethics courses. Increased data sharing, information sharing, but also a heightened need for individuals to be able to create their own security systems.

11. Ambient surveillance-
* security cameras linked with computers with expert systems/pattern recognition
* multiple integrated sensors (including remote sensing)
* radio frequency (RF) tags for people and valuables.

There are enormous possibilities in monitoring production. Ethical issues abound in all the possibilities.

E-learning implications: no more cheating on tests! (J)
Personalize encryption and security, new kinds of firewalls and access monitors.

12. Intelligent transport-
* organized and coordinated personal transportation through wireless computer networks, information systems, and Internet access
* onboard sensors and computers for smart vehicles
* next generations of GPS, navigation, and "questmap".

This will help coordinate production on demand, and timely delivery of oil field chemicals.

E-Learning: more need to understand how to integrate web applications and to be able to easily create one's own set of mashups.

digg it! del.icio.us Newsvine Facebook

sphere

Useful Links:

Social Technologies: http://www.socialtechnologies.com/

Expert Click: http://expertclick.com/

Fayetteville Shale: http://www.fayettevilleshalegas.com

Barnett Shale: http://www.barnettshalegas.com

Interview with Karen Locke (New Series - Life in the E-Learning Organization)

Welcome to Life in the E-Learning Organization. Today's interview is with Karen Locke, who works with project-based e-learning.

What is your name, and what is your involvement with e-learning?

Karen Locke. I work at EdVisions Off-Campus High School in Minnesota. We are a project-based school associated with EdVisions, which is a nonprofit company helping to promote the use of project-based learning in different states around the country. The “parent school” was Minnesota New Country School, and we are kind of an online “offshoot”. We are a charter school and we also get money from a Gates grant from the Gates Foundation.

How did you get interested in distance education?

The opportunity to spread education based on projects (as opposed to education based on pre-written curriculum) to students at home was very exciting, so I joined the group that was designing the program.. Students in our school work at home and in the community, logging hours on projects in a variety of areas so they can get credits and graduate from high school. We help them design the projects, but they are truly self-initiated (as much as possible, since they also need to fulfill distribution requirements).

What is your favorite new trend in distance education?

I like to help students use video and/or audio presentations to show their learning. I’m also interested in the Ning network (our school has its own site) , Elluminate (our school meets there), and Classroom 2.0 (see http://classroom20.ning.com ) where teachers help introduce each other to different online resources.

What is your favorite technology?

Elluminate has been wonderful - we teach math, hold advisory meetings, see student presentations, and our students have meetings like Movie Madness (discussing current movies)

What kinds of instructional materials do you use in elearning?

Students tend to do internet research, interview experts, and we use Accelerated Math for most of our math. I also use themathworksheet.com site for designing math review sheets for special ed kids

How do you use textbooks in e-learning?

Occasionally individual kids use textbooks on something they’re interested in, but otherwise we don’t use texts.

What is your favorite quote? or, what’s a book that caught your eye recently?

Quote: “This life is a test- it is only a test. If it had been an actual life, you would have received further instructions on where to go and what to do”. (anonymous)

Book- “The Deep Democracy of Open Forums” by Arnold Mindell. The Deep Democracy of Open Forums: Practical Steps to Conflict Prevention and Resolution for the Family, Workplace, and World This isn’t about online education, but it’s about helping organizations (including schools) to become more aware of what is happening there, raising issues that need to be dealt with and showing how to deal with them.

Interviewed by Susan Smith Nash

Interview with Franklin King (Life in the E-Learning Organization Series)

This week's interview is with Franklin King, Associate Vice President for Distance Education at Jacksonville State University. His leadership has expanded educational opportunities for many individuals from diverse backgrounds and contexts. This interview is a part of Life in the E-Learning Organization, a series of interviews with e-learning and distance professionals.

What is your name, and what is your involvement with distance education and/or technology?

My name is Frank King. I am the Associate Vice President for Distance Education at Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama . I am also a Professor of Instructional Media.

How did you get interested in distance education?

Our regional university serves a rural area in the northeast section of Alabama . Many of our students are employed and are non-traditional. Some are involved in shift work and require flexibility in their scheduling.

On a personal level, in the early 90s a mother contacted me about her son that had been paralyzed in an accident. She desperately wanted him to continue his education and to feel that he was still a part of a learning community. At that time, there were fewer options. Her desperate cry for help completely changed my attitude towards technology and the need to search for new answers.

Similar requests have come from parents of young men and women who have been incarcerated. I believe that no one should be denied the right to learn and to belong within an educational community based solely upon an unfortunate event or bad decision.

What is your favorite new trend in distance education?

A willingness to explore new options to reach students in which the best use of a variety of technologies is utilized. I remain confident that there is no one best way to reach all students.

What is your favorite technology?

My favorite technology, on a personal level, remains interactive video-conferencing. I feel that it is underutilized and is an excellent augmentation to existing internet based courses that can result in a well balanced hybrid.

What kinds of instructional materials do you use in elearning or distance education?

Like the State of Alabama with its pioneering Alabama Connecting Classrooms and Educators Statewide (ACCESS) initiative, we make use of both the Internet and IVC. We utilize Blackboard as our course management system.

Do you have a favorite social network (LiveJournal, MySpace, FaceBook, etc.)?

FaceBook Its popularity among students ensures its vibrancy.

How do you view them in e-learning?

While not having a personal site on one of the social networks, I see the merit and the benefit of such utilization. It certainly augments the use of e-mail, cell phone usage and other personal formats in a very convenient way allowing for general postings and the sharing of information. In many ways, it is a social eportfolio that can be used effectively, or it can serve as a future detriment to the student when unwisely used.

Do you have a favorite web application (Google Scholar? MapQuest? iGoogle? Del.icio.us?).

I do use Google Scholar. For much work, however, Google is sufficient and the materials are more readily available.

What is your favorite quote? Or, what’s a book that caught your eye recently?

“A perfection of means, and confusion of aims, seems to be our main problem,” Albert Einstein

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

Please scroll all the way to the bottom and check out the blogroll.

Workplace-Focused Language Courses: Keys to Effective E-Learning

It is becoming extremely important for workplaces to offer courses that allow employees to communicate across languages and cultures. In addition, many companies are finding that offering bilingual or multi-lingual service allows them to expand markets. While few companies can afford the investment on an immersion experience or intensive face-to-face course, many are finding that using e-learning (both web-based and mobile learning) is extremely effective Here are keys to effective language e-learning.

1. Identify and articulate precisely what you want to accomplish in the course. Understand the background, contexts, and needs of the learners. Prioritize the presentation of content so that it aligns itself with urgent needs of the course.

2. Good materials. Identify good books, video, audio to supplement elearning (web-based and mobile).

3. Situated learning. Make sure that the activities are placed within a realistic context, and use simulations, graphics, diagrams, interaction, and life-like scenarios whenever possible. This will assure that the learning is "situated" and situational. For example, a course on Spanish for Health Professionals should provide conversations and vocabulary for what one is likely to find in a busy clinic or hospital.

4. Problem-solving approach. Engage the learners by making the learning as experiential as possible. Use a problem-solving approach, which encourages learners to move beyond memorization of terms and vocabulary and to accomplish deeper learning. For example, in a class, Spanish and English for Construction Sites, you may wish to ask students to identify hazardous situations in a workplace, and the find a way to communicate it to co-workers, in Spanish and English.

5. Logical sequence. Make sure that the lessons are placed in a logical order. For example, a course on Spanish and English for construction sites might be organized around the way that learners are likely to interact in the workplace and on the job, as well as the sequence of actions. You may wish to identify various jobs and roles, first, and then the actions of each, and the tools used in each.

6. Scaffolding. Be sure that the lessons build on each other, and that you provide proper cognitive scaffolding.

7. Repetition, Practice, Enactment: Incorporate active learning, which includes repetition, practice, and taking an active part with the content. Focus on student engagement with the material, but make sure it is meaningful engagement. For example, in a course on Construction Spanish for workers and supervisors primarily from Mexico and central America, avoid texts and materials that are idiomatically dissimilar. For example, Spanish from Spain is distinctly different from that of Mexico.

8. Assessments in Same Form as Practice. It is amazing how many times students will learn through video, conversation, and speech, but when it is time for assessment, they are forced to take a text-based multiple choice exam.

9. Clear, Straightforward Learning Platform. The ideal elearning experience for workplace-focused language courses will include a combination of simulations, interactive audio, text, and graphics, along with dynamic interaction among the learners (audio and video chat, informal webinars with multiple presentation capabilities). Although complex applications are attractive, it is important to keep in mind the abilities of the learners and their own situations (infrastructure, hardware, software, wifi or high-speed internet connection availability, mp3 players, etc.).

10. Redundancy of Content Presentation. Not all users will be able to be connected to the Internet. They may not have constant and consistent access to high-speed connections. At the same time, they should be able to use the devices, players, and equipment that they feel comfortable with. This includes the use of mp3 players, video players, even cell phones and handheld (pdas, etc.).

11. Cultural Considerations. Language is more than just words. It is communication that includes and incorporates values, beliefs, traditional behaviors, and codes (both verbal and non-verbal). Needless to say, one could spend a lifetime working on the cultural differences between different groups. In-depth http://www.italki.comcoverage is not necessary. Nevertheless, it is good to provide the learners with key cultural points in order to facilitate and enable mutual understanding. The coverage should include discussions of values and attitudes about family, community, religion, personal relationships, authority, and tradition. In many ways, the writings of Hofstede can be found to be useful.

Useful Resources:

Rosetta Stone. http://www.rosettastone.com/ Extremely effective CDs and blended solutions. Excellent breadth. Not many courses are industry-specific.

italki.com http://www.italki.com Excellent resource for finding language partners, and other resources for learning languages.

Berlitz. http://www.berlitz.com/ Berlitz is a well-known and trusted source of language instruction techniques and materials.

Free Online Language Coruses. http://www.word2word.com/coursead.html Adequate, perhaps, for vacation traveling. It's a good start. Pretty skimpy in terms of what is really needed in the average workplace or job site. Relying on the average Lonely Planet phrasebooks and such will just cause hardships and problems if you're trying to communicate with your construction crew, food service employees, or health professionals.

Blogs of Note: Corgi Catches December 4, 2007

Here are a few blogs that caught the Corgi's eye -- they address ethical, technological, access, and instructional strategy issues.

Ed Tech Lady: http://edtechlady.blogspot.com/
Useful and insightful discussion of some of the unexpected violations of privacy in Facebook. For my money, LinkedIn has some of the same challenges.

Golden Swamp: http://goldenswamp.com/
Golden Swamp addresses technology from a global perspective, and places concern with potential second and third generation digital divides.

Training Day: http://vnutravel.typepad.com/trainingday/
Interesting discussion about the gadgets that seem to be released in a flood just before the end of the year.

2Blowhards: http://2blowhards.com
http://www.2blowhards.com/archives/2007/11/more_on_ebooks_1.html
This blog is a lot of fun. Michael Blowhard's discussion on "Books are not Sacred!" has inspired some technorati back-and-forth. I hope someone downloads my books that are up on Kindle. My kindle-formatted books are cheap. Ophelia's Gold is a buck-ninety-five. I guess you get what you pay for... (gallows humor -- it's that time of the year).

Amazon.com: Kindle Blogs
I'm waiting for a Kindle reader. They are still back-ordered. Grrr. Blogs on Kindle are not free. (grrRRR). (official corgi growl)

Favorite FeedReaders

This list is not inclusive by any means. However, one of the keys to being able to take advantage of E-Learning 2.0 and Web 2.0 is to be able to process and evaluate significant amounts of information in a way that you can then use. While one might automatically I'm referring to web applications, the truth is, the integration of information is much more flexible than that, and the way that information can be used, particularly in an experimentation-friendly learning management system, such as haiku or moodle, is still an open book.

Google Reader: http://www.google.com/reader

Very nice, web-based reader / aggregator. The presentation is very clean. I like it a lot.

Bloglines: http://www.bloglines.com

I’ve been using bloglines for several years now, and it has never let me down. It’s great. Very simple to use, straightforward, and basically a huge stress-reliever. All your information is at your fingertips – RSS, RSS 2.0, Atom, etc. are all accommodated.

Netvibes: http://www.netvibes.com

Netvibes is a multi-lingual Ajax-based personalized start page. It is organized into tabs, with each tab containing user-defined modules.

Newshutch: http://newshutch.com/

Simple, clean design, with an easy-to-use interface. It integrates with other services as well. Guess it got killed, though. Figures. Just signed up, learned the interface, then read the following words: “we’re pulling the plug on Newshutch.” Grrr.

BlogBridge: http://www.blogbridge.com/

What? You have to download it? Perish the thought.

Feed Demon: http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/FeedDemon/Default.aspx

It’s $29.95 and you have to download and install it, too. What happened to “free” (even if the free version is limited)?

Feed Ghost: http://www.feedghost.com/

Free “lite” version, robust version is $20. This seems fair to me. Lots of features.

Juice: http://juicereceiver.sourceforge.net/index.php

Juice is free. Juice is good. Juice’s main function is to manage podcasts.