Intel predicts Smart TV is the device of the future — from nyxiotechnologies.com’s blog
Chipmaker Intel believes that the Smart TV is the electronic device of the future, in the living room anyway.

Excerpt:

The Smart TV is already upon us, in its various forms from various manufacturers. It has arrived with 3D capabilities, web browsing and social networking and applications. Currently Samsung and LG seem to be two of the big players pushing the Smart TV to consumers.

Also see:

 

Learning TRENDS by Elliott Masie – July 13, 2011.
#670 – Updates on Learning, Business & Technology.
http://www.masie.com – The MASIE Center

Excerpt:

Corporate Learning & Higher Ed: Learning from Each Other! Every year, I am struck by how similar some of the issues are that colleges and universities face with learning approaches to our own challenges in the corporate world. Yet, our 2 worlds rarely discuss or collaborate.  Well, I am very pleased and honored to announce that EDUCAUSE’s President, Diana Oblinger, will be a keynoter at Learning 2011, to be held in Orlando in November.  EDUCAUSE is the association, with 2,300 colleges and universities as members, whose mission is to advance higher education through the use of technology. Diana will present research and perspectives on how learners are evolving, learning systems need to change and ways in which workplace learning and higher education learning can learn from and with each other. I am excited about helping to build this connection. Diana will be meeting with the CLO’s and other learning leaders at Learning 2011 to discuss how collaborating between our two worlds.

Info at http://www.learning2011.com

 

From DSC:
Thanks Elliott! Thanks Diana! Great idea!

 

From DSC: It would be sharp (and somewhat James Bond-ish) if you could take the concepts within the iTable from Kyle Buckner Designs.com(esp. motorized parts and a customizable design)

 

Kyle Buckner Designs -- i table

 

…and combine those concepts with concepts found within a Microsoft Surface type of table: (esp. multi-touch capabilities for a group of people to work collaboratively on)

 

Microsoft Surface

 

…and combine those concepts with concepts found within Steelcase’s Media:Scape product (esp. the ability to bring your own device and instantly “connect” it and press a puck-like device to begin displaying it on the screen/table)

 

Steelcase's MediaScape

media:scape illustration

 

…kinda gives us a flavor for what may very well be part of the integration and continued convergence of devices…and it may be a device in your living room or study.

So many learning style tests, so little time… — from Lasagna and Chips by Joitske Hulsebosch

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

I’m amazed that there are so many different learning style theories and tests! The families definitely help to choose what you’d want to work with if you are looking for a learning style test. I’d prefer a style test that acknowledges the dynamic nature of preferences. It may depend on the situation and what you want to learn what your preferences are. And I don’t believe in the auditory/visual/kinesthetic learner difference.

I still think the tests are helpful for learners to become self-aware. You can use it as a starting point to reflect about yourself and think for instance about your pitfalls and strengths as facilitator. Or as a learner- what activities work for you? Do you thrive on certain ways of learning? How to strengthen this? The downside is of course that you fill in the tests yourself (rubbish in- rubbish out!), so some feedback from others may be needed too.

From DSC:
I like how Joitske mentioned the word preferences a lot. With all the disagreement whether learning styles exist or not, I do believe people prefer to absorb/learn the required materials in certain formats. Certain manners of taking information in are more enjoyable, easier, or to me, more efficient. I can learn the information most of the ways it might be presented, but I prefer visuals…not all text, as an example. This idea is closely related to developing a love of learning (or conversely, a hatred towards learning).

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Connected TV Summit: TV apps and second screen strategies — from tvgenious.net by Emma Wells

Excerpts (emphasis by DSC — especially as it relates to education & learning-based apps):

Connected TV has been around for a while, and 2010 has seen connected devices, especially smartphones, go mainstream.  One of the key highlights of today’s Summit was the fact that the second screen is becoming an important part of the TV environment.

New consumer behaviour patterns and the rapid pace of technology have given birth to TV everywhere strategies, companion apps, TV apps, and VoD adoption.

The TV App Experience

At the event, it was hypothesised that “consumers are starting to redefine what they see as television”. This is good news for TV app developers, as they seek to mould a new, modern, TV experience.

TV apps are seen as an ideal way to hand control over to the viewers.  Additionally, TV apps can be used as the gateway to personalised viewing, and social media-integrated content. According to BT’s Andy Heselwood, the connected TV winner will be “the company who makes the shared TV experience personal. How to do this effectively without cluttering the TV screen and ruining the “lean back” experience still remains to be seen.

The main benefit of TV apps is that they are lightfooted and require substantially less effort to update than the set top box (STB) or TV. This means that lifecycles can be accelerated, and there is more room for experimentation and development. During the summit, Siemens even went so far as to say that  TV apps on connected TVs can “throw the set top box out of your operations plan”.  If true, this prediction could spell trouble for STB manufacturers.

[Concept] The new “textbook”: A multi-layered approach — from Daniel S. Christian
I’ve been thinking recently about new approaches to relaying — and engaging with — content in a “textbook”.



For a physical textbook


When opening up a physical textbook to a particular page, QR-like codes would be printed on the physical pages of the textbook.  With the advent of augmented reality, such a mechanism would open up some new possibilities to interact with content for that page. For example, some overall characteristics about this new, layered approach:

  • Augmented reality could reveal multiple layers of information:
    • From the author/subject matter expert as well as the publisher’s instructional design team
      • Main points highlighted
      • Pointers that may help with metacognition, such as potential mnemonics that might be helpful in moving something into long-term memory
      • Studying strategies
    • A layer that the professor or teacher could edit
      • Main points highlighted
      • Pointers that may help with metacognition, such as potential mnemonics that might be helpful in moving something into long-term memory
      • Studying strategies
    • A layer for the students to comment on/annotate that page
    • A layer for other students’ comments

 

 


For an electronic-based textbook


  • The interface would allow for such layers to be visible or not — much like Google’s Body Browser application
  • For example, in this graphic, comments from the SME and/or ID are highlighted on top of the normal text:

 

 

 

 

Advantages of this concept/model:

  • Ties physical into virtual world
  • We could economically update information (i.e. opens up streams of content)
  • Integrates social learning
  • Allows SMEs, IDs, faculty members to further comment/add to content as new information becomes available
  • Instructors could highlight the key points they want to stress
  • Many of the layers could offer items that might help with students’ meta-cognitive processes (i.e. to help them learn the content and move the content into long-term memory)
  • One could envision the textbook being converted into something more akin to an app in an online-based store — with notifications of updates that could be constantly pushed out

 

Addendum (5/26):

 

John Hunter on the World Peace Game — TED March 2011 — my thanks to Mr. Joseph and Mrs. Kate Byerwalter for this great presentation

 

TED Talks -- John Hunter presents the World Peace Game -- March 2011

About this talk
John Hunter puts all the problems of the world on a 4’x5′ plywood board — and lets his 4th-graders solve them. At TED2011, he explains how his World Peace Game engages schoolkids, and why the complex lessons it teaches — spontaneous, and always surprising — go further than classroom lectures can.

About John Hunter
Teacher and musician John Hunter is the inventor of the World Peace Game (and the star of the new doc “World Peace and Other 4th-Grade Achievements”).

 

 

From DSC:
I realize that many in education don’t view Bill and Melinda Gates with a great deal of admiration or respect. However, they and their foundation are about to make a hugely positive difference in — and contribution to — education. I’m sure that these grants will help create solutions that will feature professionally-done, highly-engaging, interactive, multimedia-based, team-created educational content. I hope that many of the solutions will feature sophisticated back-end engines that will allow for highly personalized/customized learning.

This is huge because such solutions are highly scalable. Plus look at who is involved at this point:

  • Pearson
  • Educurious Partners
  • Florida Virtual School
  • Institute of Play
  • Reasoning Mind
  • Quest Atlantis
  • Digital Youth Network
  • EDUCAUSE

Also see:

Also see:

 

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