online learning

Seven online whiteboards for 2021 + other relevant tools/vendors for online-based collaboration

On 03/18/2021, in A/V -- audio/visual, active learning, adjunct faculty, art, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, creativity, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, distance education, education technology, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, faculty/staff, flipping -- inverted learning, Google, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, interactivity, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, lifelong learning, Microsoft, multimedia, new media literacies, online learning, online media, online tutoring, parents/guardians, platforms, presentations, productivity / tips and tricks, remote teaching and learning, student teaching/teacher education, tablets, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, tools, training / L&D, universities, vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, webinars, by Daniel Christian

The excerpt below is from The 7 best online whiteboards in 2021 — from zapier.com by Maria Myre

Miro for turning ideas into tasks
Stormboard for creating multiple whiteboards in a single brainstorming session
MURAL for remote, multi-member team meetings
Limnu for teaching students remotely
InVision Freehand for annotating design files with a team
Conceptboard for turning a brainstorming session into a formal presentation
Explain Everything for creating whiteboard videos

From DSC:
Other potentially-relevant tools/vendors here include:

Cisco Webex
- Cisco Webex Desk Series

- Cisco Webex Board Series
- Cisco Webex Room Series
Google JamBoard
Microsoft Surface Hub 2
Haworth’s Bluescape
…and others

New Opportunities in 2021: Improved Academic Mobility, Flexible Degree Attainment and Skills Verification — from campustechnology.com by Stan Novak
The pandemic has accelerated trends in alternative credentials that will be essential to student success in an evolving higher education landscape.

Excerpt:

Interoperable learning records (ILRs) are being studied as an achievable way to communicate skills between workers, employers, and education and training institutions with the goal of creating a single profile that represents all of an individual’s abilities. The value of an ILR is that it would allow efficient and consistent comparison of a person’s capabilities to fulfill specific job requirements.

These opportunities represent only a slice of what lies ahead for higher education as the world emerges from the pandemic. The dramatic shift in the learning landscape highlights the ways that higher education must adapt to make degree attainment more flexible, achievable and relevant for the future workforce.

From DSC:
I’ve often thought there could be real benefits in cloud-based learner profiles — which could store our learning preferences, our past learning experiences, certificates, programs, courses, etc.

4 Tips for Offering Online Exams [Ofgang]

On 03/12/2021, in assessment, Australia, colleges, community colleges, higher education, law schools, learning spaces, online learning, pedagogy, productivity / tips and tricks, teaching & learning, teaching online, universities, vendors, by Daniel Christian

4 Tips for Offering Online Exams — from techlearning.com by Erik Ofgang
The University of New England, Australia has given more than 40,000 online exams over the past year, here’s what they’ve learned

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

UNE administrators are considering doing away with an exam period because it initially was created for logistical purposes. “We needed to have all the exam venues booked, and the desks and chairs moved in, and the supervisors ready in the papers there,” Day says. “Now we are able to hold exams, anywhere, anytime, any day. So why do we need an exam period? It’s allowing structural changes to the academic calendar, it gives us a few weeks per teaching period back for teaching, perhaps.”

Day says you can also incorporate elements of video and website exploration into your exam, opening up both the type of questions you ask and the type of answers students can provide.

Rethink the Exam Structure
Switching from paper to online exams is an opportunity for instructors to reexamine the exams themselves, Day says. “It requires you to question why you hold exams, why you hold exams when you do, and how you hold exams.”

Below are two excerpts from the Lecture Breakers Weekly — by Dr. Barbi Honeycutt — re: teaching asynchronous online courses + podcast choice boards

Above choice board created by Greg Jung

In this example, the teachers in a professional development workshop could choose which of the podcasts they wanted to listen to and discuss. I love this strategy combined with the use of podcasts! It could easily be adapted to any course as a creative way to increase student engagement and motivation.

Episode 75: How to Create More Engaging Asynchronous Online Courses with Dr. Monica Burns — by Barbi Honeycutt, Ph.D.

DC: An interesting site, especially if you are trying to provide content in multiple formats/file types:https://t.co/SZ02AtyijZ pic.twitter.com/Za7XeXKmQc

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) March 8, 2021

Asynchronous Video Conversations: 11 Tips and Best Practices — from er.educause.edu by Rob Gibson

Excerpt (first 4 of 11):

1. Closely align video conversations with the stated module, course, and/or program learning objectives. Clearly indicate those alignments in the course outline.

2. Use the syllabus, an introductory course video, or a sample student video recording to prepare students in advance for this type of activity. Since many students will use their smartphones to record, provide information about best practices for creating quality video using a phone.

3. Some students are uncomfortable recording themselves. Depending on the product, consider offering alternatives such as an audio/mic-only mode, a text-only mode, or using a proxy image or avatar in the video.

4. Consider using threaded video conversations for course introductions to build a sense of humanizing the course. Michelle Pacansky-Brock supports the use of video conversations as an alternative to text. In her book How to Humanize Your Online Class with VoiceThread, she indicates that video tools maximize presence, a dimension of online connectivity to fellow students, the faculty, and the content. Research in her own courses found an increase from 25 percent to 75 percent in voluntary voice-video comments.^Footnote5 This also helps form common goals and dispositions among students—dispositions are affective learning dimensions, such as motivation, attitude, persistence, empathy, and problem solving.^Footnote6

DSC: For those who say MOOCs haven’t done anything…

On 03/05/2021, in Alternatives, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, collaboration, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, online learning, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

DC: For those who say MOOCs haven't done anything…hmmm…(and these are just NEW registered users).#MOOC #alternatives #highereducation #future #learningecosystem #learningexperiencedesign #learningfromthelivingclassroom https://t.co/Acsa55KmVf pic.twitter.com/3hYXSC4qnK

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) March 5, 2021

DC: This is what we’re up against –> “Reskilling 1 billion people by 2030” [Anderson]

On 03/02/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Africa, Asia, Australia, Canada, career development, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, culture, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, distance education, education, education reform, education technology, engagement / engaging students, Europe, experimentation, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, global / globalization, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, India, innovation, leadership, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, more voice more choice more control, new business models, online learning, organizational change, pace of change, personalized/customized learning, platforms, reinvent, social learning / networks, society, staying relevant, streams of content, surviving, training / L&D, trends, UK, United States, universities, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
This is what we’re up against –> Reskilling 1 billion people by 2030” — from saffroninteractive.com by Jessica Anderson

Excerpts:

According to the World Economic Forum, this statistic is a critical economic imperative.

Does this shock or scare you? Perhaps you’re completely unflappable? Whatever your reaction, this situation will undoubtedly impact your organisation and the way you tackle skills development.
…
What are the roadblocks?

So, we’ve laid down the gauntlet; an adaptable, agile, multi-skilled workforce. What stands in the way of achieving this? A recent survey of the top 5 challenges facing learning leaders sheds some light:

1. Building a learning culture
2. Learning in the flow of work
3. Digital transformation
4. Learner engagement and ownership
5. Keeping informed of best practices

From DSC:
The article mentions that nations could lose billions in potential GDP growth. And while that is likely very true, I think a far bigger concern is the very peace and fabric of our societies — the way of living that billions of people will either enjoy or have to endure. Civil unrest, increased inequality, warfare, mass incarcerations, etc. are huge concerns.

The need for a next-gen learning platform is now! The time for innovation and real change is now. It can’t come too soon. The private and public sectors need to collaborate to create “an Internet for learning” (in the sense that everyone can contribute items to the platform and that the platform is standards based). Governments, corporations, individuals, etc. need to come together. We’re all in the same boat here. It benefits everyone to come together.

2U, Guild Education Partner to Expand Online Education for Adult Workers — from edsurge.com by Tony Wan

Excerpt:

But the current crisis is anything but, and an increasingly remote workforce will only accelerate the need for new skills and habits to keep companies running.
…
2U, a publicly traded company, will make its degree programs, short courses and online coding “bootcamps” available to Guild Education’s network of employers. That’s over 500 programs, spanning more than 30 disciplines, that they will have access to. It’s largely up to the employer to choose which ones they want to subsidize for their workers, Freedman says.

“Businesses are eliminating some roles, yet are desperate to hire for others. But you cannot hire away to solve what is fundamentally a training problem.” In other words, it makes more sense to invest in training internal talent, rather than firing people and hiring replacements.

Putting Your Best Self Forward: 6 Keys For Filming Quality Videos — from er.educause.edu by Jered Borup
The difference between a video that students watch and one that is ignored often comes down to a few, easily addressed factors.

Excerpt:

Key #1: Convey Your Voice—Is the audio clear, or is there background noise or reverberations in the room that distract from your message?
Key #2: Find the Light—Are you well lit with a light source in front of you, or are you backlit and/or have shadows on your face?
Key #3: Frame and Maintain Eye Contact—Are you about at arm’s length and eye level with the camera, or are you looking down or up at the camera?
Key #4: Stage—Do you have personal and/or interesting things in the background, or are you recording in front of a blank wall?
Key #5: Be Prepared and Natural—Are you speaking naturally in a way that conveys your interest in the topic, or do you sound somewhat robotic and/or scattered?
Key #6: Keep it Short—Is the video under six minutes?

This article is part of a series about incorporating asynchronous video into educational activities:

Unbounded by Time: Understanding How Asynchronous Video Can Be Critical to Learning Success
Putting Your Best Self Forward: 6 Keys For Filming Quality Videos
Teacher, Are You There? Being “Present” in Online Learning
Let’s Discuss Discussions: Using Asynchronous Video to Improve Online Discussions
Improving Problem-Based Learning with Asynchronous Video
Back to Feedback Basics Using Video Recordings
The Handoff: Transitioning from Synchronous to Asynchronous Teaching

Never Going Back: What Online Teaching in the Times of COVID Can Add to Our Teaching Toolkits – Elisabeth Sandberg — from cft.vanderbilt.edu with thanks to Beckie Supiano at the Chronicle for this resource

Excerpt:

Teaching online has not been all challenges for Sandberg. From this period of teaching, she has gathered a set of experiences that, she expects, will benefit her in an in-person setting, too. For one thing, Sandberg has explored new ways of optimizing the element of time in students’ learning. Realizing that even the most entertaining presenters become soon-to-bore lecturers in online settings, she became more attentive to keeping her prerecorded video lectures brief and dividing them into pieces interwoven with online activities. The Explain Everything app (a collaborative virtual whiteboard platform with multi-media features) has been helpful for annotating these short pieces of recorded lectures. Sandberg’s renewed attention to student attention has also made her more mindful of things she assigns out of class, and what these might represent in terms of student efforts. “I learned over the summer,” she said, referring to the CFT’s Online Course Design Institute, “how to be more cognizant of how much time the things that I consider easy work really take the students. And that was really a revealing piece that I will carry with me when we return to in person.”

From DSC:
I agree…the teaching toolboxes have expanded. In the future, teachers, professors, trainers, (and now parents) will have a wider selection of options/tools/pedagogies to select from.

Whats in your teaching toolbox?

Teacher, Are You There? Being “Present” in Online Learning — from er.educause.edu by Richard West

Excerpt:

Video technologies are part of that shift in helping online learners feel connected to teachers and peers. This connection comes from people developing the sense that they are “present” in the class, even if they are not physically in the same room. How is it possible to be present when you are physically separated?

Teaching: Why the Term ‘Hybrid Class’ Continues to Confuse [McMurtrie]

On 02/18/2021, in blended learning, colleges, community colleges, digital learning, distance education, higher education, ideas, instructional design, law schools, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning preferences, liberal arts, online learning, teaching & learning, teaching online, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Teaching: Why the Term ‘Hybrid Class’ Continues to Confuse — from chronicle.com by Beth McMurtrie

Excerpt:

Hybrid Confusion
Why is it so hard to define a hybrid class? Or, rather, why is it so hard for colleges to describe it in a course catalog? That was the question that popped into my mind after seeing this chart, tweeted out recently by Kevin McClure, an associate professor of higher education at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

But is it really helping anyone to define every possible permutation of “hybrid”? More to the point, what should colleges take into account when trying to balance specificity with clarity in course descriptions?

The Great Contraction Cuts alone will not be enough to turn colleges’ fortunes around. — from chronicle.com by Lee Gardner

Excerpts:

With higher education facing average revenue losses of 14 percent or more due to Covid-19, the pandemic presents an existential challenge for the hundreds, maybe thousands, of colleges that entered last March with already precarious finances. Every week or so seems to bring new headlines about institutions making jaw-dropping cuts.
…
But slashing budgets alone, experts agree, isn’t enough to survive. Struggling colleges must cut strategically and adapt to a new way of operating, in order to find a way to eventually grow and thrive.

From DSC:
As I mentioned to a friend who wondered about those two words –“grow” and “thrive” in the last sentence above…

For too long many colleges and some universities have not been experimenting with other business models. They didn’t pay attention to the surrounding landscapes and economic realities of the masses. I think some of the institutions out there will grow and thrive — but it will be far fewer institutions who see such growth. SNHU, Arizona State, Western Governors University, and the like have done well. But then again, they thought big as well and did so years ago. They have a major leg up on other institutions.

She has served as a college president for nearly 20 years, and in that time, she has watched students’ view of higher education shift to be predominantly about “the outcome of being prepared for a job,” she says.

Funny how that corresponds directly to the increase in tuition, fees, books, room and board, etc. that took place during that same time.

Learning from the Living [Class] Room: Adobe — via Behance — is already doing several pieces of this vision.

On 02/15/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, active learning, Africa, animation, Asia, Australia, Bring your own device (BYOD), Canada, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, creativity, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, design, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, education, education technology, engagement / engaging students, Europe, experimentation, future, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, India, informal learning, innovation, instructional design, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, IT in HE, K-12 related, languages and translation, learner profiles, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, liberal arts, lifelong learning, love of learning, maker movement, marketplaces, media/film, microlearning, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, new business models, new media literacies, online learning, online media, passions, photography, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, reinvent, remote teaching and learning, second screen apps, simulations, social learning / networks, social media, STEAM-related, streams of content, tablets, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, training / L&D, transmedia, TVs, UK, United States, universities, user experience (UX), user interface design, vendors, vision/possibilities, visualizing information, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Talk about streams of content! Whew!

I received an email from Adobe that was entitled, “This week on Adobe Live: Graphic Design.” (I subscribe to their Adobe Creative Cloud.) Inside the email, I saw and clicked on the following:

Below are some of the screenshots I took of this incredible service! Wow!

From DSC:
So Abobe — via Behance — is already doing several pieces of the “Learning from the Living [Class] Room” vision. I knew of Behance…but I didn’t realize the magnitude of what they’ve been working on and what they’re currently delivering. Very sharp indeed!

Churches are doing this as well — one device has the presenter/preacher on it (such as a larger “TV”), while a second device is used to communicate with each other in real-time.

Learning Ecosystems

New Opportunities in 2021: Improved Academic Mobility, Flexible Degree Attainment and Skills Verification [Novak]

4 Tips for Offering Online Exams [Ofgang]

DSC: For those who say MOOCs haven’t done anything…

2U, Guild Education Partner to Expand Online Education for Adult Workers [Wan]

Putting Your Best Self Forward: 6 Keys For Filming Quality Videos [Borup]

Never Going Back: What Online Teaching in the Times of COVID Can Add to Our Teaching Toolkits [Sandberg]

Teaching: Why the Term ‘Hybrid Class’ Continues to Confuse [McMurtrie]

Reflections on “The Great Contraction: Cuts alone will not be enough to turn colleges’ fortunes around.’ [Gardner]

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