So this week we had the first group project due. My group was supposed to have three people, but only two of us seem to care. John and I decided to divide the 7 questions between the two of us. He took the last four and I did the first three. Our timing was not the best this week as we ran up against the deadline due to scheduling conflicts and being busy. We accomplished our mission and in the future I think we will try to schedule things further in advance since we know it is just the two of us.
The other issue to consider this week was:
Aside from learning styles and preferences, what else should we take into account regarding learners or our audience in designing instruction?
When I design instruction, I consider the skill or knowledge level of my audience first. I need to know whether to start with the basics or get right into the meat of the lesson. I also consider my ultimate goal. Am I teaching material for a future test? Is this just supplemental material? Is it just a "fun" lesson that relates to the theme? A good instructor has to ask themselves many questions when designing instruction. The best material is worthless when it is delivered in an ineffective manner.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Online Learning Myths
My blog post this week is to talk about my own beliefs regarding online learning courses. My views may be different that others in this regard. I have taken online courses for the last three and a half years with between 12-17 credits each semester. I love online courses and would not have been able to pursue my education without them.
I do find online courses much easier than traditional classroom courses. This is both due to the ability to schedule my own class time, as well as the fact that online courses tend to have less wasted time with interaction with classmates. One of my huge pet peeves with traditional classrooms is how much time is wasted by questions from people either not understanding material or simply asking questions to try to earn points with the teacher. I also read much faster than the average person so I do not find the need to devote the hours recommended for each course per week. I definitely do not spend 5-6 hours per class each week. Also many tests are effectively open book when taking online courses. Some profs try to greatly restrict the amount of time available to take the exams, but for somebody who reads quickly it is still possible to check almost every answer during a test.
One myth that I do not agree with is that the quality of online courses is less than a face to face course. I find the online courses allow for the instructor to provide a lot more material and supplemental material than in a traditional course. I would say a well designed online course is a better quality educational experience than in a regular classroom. I have seen a huge range of technologies used in my courses so far. Audio and video files, message boards, chat rooms, pictures, videos, links, etc.. Online courses enable you to go beyond what you get in a traditional classroom and really enhance your education if you so desire.
I do find online courses much easier than traditional classroom courses. This is both due to the ability to schedule my own class time, as well as the fact that online courses tend to have less wasted time with interaction with classmates. One of my huge pet peeves with traditional classrooms is how much time is wasted by questions from people either not understanding material or simply asking questions to try to earn points with the teacher. I also read much faster than the average person so I do not find the need to devote the hours recommended for each course per week. I definitely do not spend 5-6 hours per class each week. Also many tests are effectively open book when taking online courses. Some profs try to greatly restrict the amount of time available to take the exams, but for somebody who reads quickly it is still possible to check almost every answer during a test.
One myth that I do not agree with is that the quality of online courses is less than a face to face course. I find the online courses allow for the instructor to provide a lot more material and supplemental material than in a traditional course. I would say a well designed online course is a better quality educational experience than in a regular classroom. I have seen a huge range of technologies used in my courses so far. Audio and video files, message boards, chat rooms, pictures, videos, links, etc.. Online courses enable you to go beyond what you get in a traditional classroom and really enhance your education if you so desire.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Copyright Issues
This week we were to examine how copyright laws dealing with fair use relate to online resources. I have been curious about this issue myself. When writing papers nowadays it is not unusual to take many of your references from online sources. The internet has so much accessible information that it would be foolish not to look online when writing a paper or researching a project.
“For legal purposes, publishing something to the web is exactly like publishing it to print. Fair use guidelines are identical whether you are using a work on the web, in print, or in face-to-face public performance.” (LEARN NC, 2007) When the previous statement is examined, it seems obvious that copyright would work in this way. Many people do not stop and consider this however. They see the internet as a free for all no mans land, not considering that content is owned by the creator whether it was published in print or digitally.
Linking to another site is not a violation because you are directing your reader to the content and not claiming it as your own. Care should be taken when linking to pages that are not a destinations site’s home page as it may not be obvious who owns the page you linked to. In the same manner you must take care when using frames to display another site’s content. Displaying that content in a frame with your banner above it may be seen as claiming ownership of the content. (LEARN NC, 2007) When displaying any content that is not your own, be sure to attribute ownership properly to avoid a violation.
I examined a lawsuit on the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s website. In this case, Kelly vs Arriba Soft, an initial ruling which would have set a dangerous precedent for fair use laws was overturned. Les Kelly, a photographer, sued Arriba Soft when he discovered that his website and the images on it had been indexed and displayed by the Arriba Soft image search engine. This is a technique (known as in-line linking) that is commonly used by other online search engines. The Ninth Circuit Court originally found that this practice was an infringement of copyright laws.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed an amicus brief asking the court to reconsider it’s ruling. “The Ninth Circuit subsequently issued a revised ruling, in which it withdrew the portion of the opinion dealing with in-line linking and the public display right. The fair use ruling remained intact — in other words, the Ninth Circuit turned a potentially dangerous precedent for the Internet into a complete victory for fair use!” (EFF, 2003)
I thought this case was interesting because I use image searches online quite often. If the court had not changed its ruling, many search engines would have had to change how they display results. In-line linking allows the search to be completed much more quickly and effectively. I am glad organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation are out there fighting for the public interests in the confusing world of the internet.
References
EFF, (2003). Kelly v. Arriba Soft. Retrieved February 10, 2010, from Electronic Frontier Foundation Web site: http://www.eff.org/cases/kelly-v-arriba-soft
LEARN NC, (2007). Copyright a primer FROM LEARN NC. Retrieved February 10, 2010, from LEARN NC Web site: http://www.learnnc.org/lp/media/uploads/2007/11/copyright.pdf
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Typical Online Class Session
For my second blog of the week I am supposed to describe a typical online session for this course. I do not know if I have a "typical" session as I access the course both at work when I have spare time and also at home. I usually check to make sure I know when deadlines are so I can procrastinate to the fullest, then maybe do a bit of reading or knock out a quick assignment.
I take all online courses and have for the past 4 years while pursuing my Associates and Bachelors degrees. I was forced to take a couple classroom courses for things not offered online and it was extremely annoying. I prefer to work at my own pace and when and where I want to. After the freedom of online classes, sitting in a classroom was very difficult. I work full time, have a family, and maintain a number of hobbies. School is important to me, but it is not the main focus of my life. I look at it as a necessary evil to be able to accomplish other goals.
My session for this evening I guess could be a typical example. I finished looking at the different types of tests we were supposed to take and compared my results and blogged about them. I went down the weekly checklist and completed the rest of the assignments while taking breaks to check facebook, play some world of warcraft, and eat dinner. I even jumped over to another class and knocked out a discussion board post that was due this evening as well.
I guess my favorite thing about online courses is they give you the freedom to not have a typical class session. This fits my personality and schedule perfectly.
I take all online courses and have for the past 4 years while pursuing my Associates and Bachelors degrees. I was forced to take a couple classroom courses for things not offered online and it was extremely annoying. I prefer to work at my own pace and when and where I want to. After the freedom of online classes, sitting in a classroom was very difficult. I work full time, have a family, and maintain a number of hobbies. School is important to me, but it is not the main focus of my life. I look at it as a necessary evil to be able to accomplish other goals.
My session for this evening I guess could be a typical example. I finished looking at the different types of tests we were supposed to take and compared my results and blogged about them. I went down the weekly checklist and completed the rest of the assignments while taking breaks to check facebook, play some world of warcraft, and eat dinner. I even jumped over to another class and knocked out a discussion board post that was due this evening as well.
I guess my favorite thing about online courses is they give you the freedom to not have a typical class session. This fits my personality and schedule perfectly.
Tests, tests, and more tests!
This week we had to take a bunch of online tests to find out about our learning styles and personalities. These were all tests I have taken multiple times before in the past. I usually have issues with tests of this nature and this time was no different. I feel like many of the questions have answers that I could choose either or both of them.
First up was a learning styles test that measured learning style along 4 scales. I was very balanced on the active vs reflective dimensions as well as the visual and verbal dimensions. I moderately favored sensing over intuitive learning. I agreed with this as I like to focus on facts. I was also moderately sequential over global. This one I disagreed with as I feel I can learn either way. Sometimes I like step by step information and sometimes I like to just see the big picture and figure it out from there. Many of these questions I wanted to answer both ways.
Next I took a learning style inventory and based on the questions I scored 7 on visual, 6 on auditory, and 3 on kinesthetic. I agreed with these results and I am equally comfortable learning by reading or listening, but I do not feel the need to do hands on work to learn.
Next up was the Kolb inventory. I tested as Doing and Thinking which placed me in the analyzing category. I was reasonably happy with this broad categorization as the descriptions were all applicable.
Finally was the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator which everyone has probably taken by now. I came up as ESFJ which is Extraverted Sensing Feeling Judging. I was moderately expressed in all but judging where I was only slightly expressed. Apparently this classified me as a guardian. After reading the description I found some things I agreed with as well as some things I disagreed with. I guess the fact that I am not strongly expressed in the categories means I am harder to define.
First up was a learning styles test that measured learning style along 4 scales. I was very balanced on the active vs reflective dimensions as well as the visual and verbal dimensions. I moderately favored sensing over intuitive learning. I agreed with this as I like to focus on facts. I was also moderately sequential over global. This one I disagreed with as I feel I can learn either way. Sometimes I like step by step information and sometimes I like to just see the big picture and figure it out from there. Many of these questions I wanted to answer both ways.
Next I took a learning style inventory and based on the questions I scored 7 on visual, 6 on auditory, and 3 on kinesthetic. I agreed with these results and I am equally comfortable learning by reading or listening, but I do not feel the need to do hands on work to learn.
Next up was the Kolb inventory. I tested as Doing and Thinking which placed me in the analyzing category. I was reasonably happy with this broad categorization as the descriptions were all applicable.
Finally was the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator which everyone has probably taken by now. I came up as ESFJ which is Extraverted Sensing Feeling Judging. I was moderately expressed in all but judging where I was only slightly expressed. Apparently this classified me as a guardian. After reading the description I found some things I agreed with as well as some things I disagreed with. I guess the fact that I am not strongly expressed in the categories means I am harder to define.
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