922-Session 8--eReaders

This week we are focusing on eReaders. Our session is embedded below and broken up into three parts, but if you'd like to download the entire session to your computer then you can do that from this link.

The syllabus has recently been updated so be sure to view it and check out this week's new required readings.  In your comments this week on our blog, please share your thoughts and experiences about your e-book reader preferences, and also do your own research (try to visit a store and test a few out, sometimes you need a push like this to get you some hands-on experience) and include a nugget of info that I didn’t cover this week to share with your peers. Next week we’ll delve into the merits of using these devices for education.  There is a lot of info here comparing and contrasting.  Don't get too worried if you can't retain it all.  Just save these links and use them for future reference and take plenty of notes.

Additionally this week, I'd like you all to practice embedding forms into your digital books/chapters.  There are more details below.

Getting digital content for your chapter was only the first step in making an eBook.  Its strength is compounded when we add elements to help differentiate instruction.  Elements like videos, edugames, hyperlinks, images, and forms. That's right--'Forms.'

It's really one-dimensional unless we add interactivity, so this week I would like you to practice embedding a Google Form into your digital chapter.  You've all created an account with Google (either gmail, blogger...).

There are step by step screenshot images walking you through how to create a 'Form' using Google Docs here.  Just read pages 52-63.

If you'd also like to see a screencast of how to create, a Google Form and embed one on a wiki page, then you can see that below.  This a great video if you put your chapter on a wiki page, but don't stress if you put it somewhere else.  The concept is the same for other online platforms.  As always, feel free to contact me with any questions along the way.  

Lastly, once you've mastered the 'Google Form' embed and placed one or two into your digital chapter,  I'd like you to post a link to it, so that the rest of the class can go to it and fill in your 'form' as your 'test students.'

Once you've done that, and if you're ready for some additionally depth on using this tool to facilitate learning, then please read, "22 Useful Google Forms for Teachers and Principals"   and lastly, "A New Collaboration Option in Google Forms"


 As this session was posted late; work isn't due until 5/12.

Have fun exploring this week.
Dave
PS--Please find past participants' comments below:
Spring '13
Summer '12

922-Session 7--Creating an OER from Scratch and Midterm Project Screencasts

I thought that we'd start with an inspirational video of students that seem to 'get-it'.

Now let's start with a 'comment' from Angela, (a teacher who took a version of this class a few iterations back) :

Angela Tarr said...

... I feel the need to share. I just had an aha moment. To explain to my staff the basic idea of what OER is all about, I’ll give my own experience as a new teacher for an example. When I started teaching at 22, I had no clue what I was doing. I was assigned a mentor, who said, “I’m down at the end of the hall; holler if you need me.” That was my mentor program. (It’s now much more specific in the requirements of the mentor and mentee.) The only other teacher who taught the same courses I did would not share. A-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. He wouldn’t give me anything other than generic advice. (Don’t smile until Christmas. Don’t let them walk all over you.)
Somehow I managed to survive. I was not a very good teacher those first few years; I struggled. After ten years of teaching, I asked to switch to another grade level when a teacher in my department quit. (Not retired, quit.) The other teacher who taught this grade level in my department shared everything. E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. She said she had already done the work, why should I start from scratch? She and I had very different styles, so I wasn’t totally comfortable using her exact plans and assignments. (Since I was working on a master’s and had two young children at the time, she suggested that.) I adapted most of her materials to suit my teaching (and learning) style. Her gift of a place to start other than ground zero was huge for me. I could go to her and ask questions, observe her in the classroom, get help.
When I moved into the library five years ago, I handed fifteen years of materials over to my 22 year old replacement. I volunteered to do anything she needed me to do to get her off on the right foot. I answered questions, came to her classroom a couple of times to present introductions to units, anything she needed. In her first year she was better than I was at five or six years of experience in the classroom. I’m not taking the credit for her success; she works hard. I will pat myself on the back for giving her some tools to work with to get rolling. She’s the classroom teacher I wish I could have been.
Isn’t this what OER is all about? Sharing? Learning from the experience of others? Why should we start from scratch? (Unless we want to, or the learning situation is better served by doing so.) Granted, I didn’t have the internet when I started teaching. I could only share locally. Now we can share globally. We have amazing tools to work with. We need to use them. Our districts need to let us.

 You can read other past teachers' comments below:
Spring '13 here
Summer '12 here
Spring '12  here
Summer '11 here

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This week we'll be covering how to create an OER from scratch.  Once again we'll be accessing Curriki's "Open Educational Resources Integration" project.  For this session we'll be accessing the module created by Dr. Michael Searson, the Executive Director for the School for Global Education and Innovation.

Mike created a CC licensed module aimed at both pre-service and in-service teachers.  His module will be particularly useful to you b/c you may very easily use it to guide yourself when you are training, or educating, others on OER's.  I've just gone through his module again and updated any dead links that I could find, but please let me know if you can't access something.  You may find all of the links in our syllabus under the Session 7's details.

Good luck and have fun!
DF

PS--Below  you will find some of the details for last year's cohort.  You may also see some of their screen recordings from the link above.

• Each course participant will create a 5 minute screencast using a recording tool like Screenr.com or Screencast-o-matic.com  demonstrating to the class what eBook project you have completed so far.  Here is an example.
• The demonstration should walk us through how to find your project (url), what content you have included so far up to this date, which specific course or courses it will support, and your plans to expand and improve upon it over the next two months.

922-Session 6--Personalizing, Customizing, Remixing, and Localizing

Welcome to Session 6!  

This week we will be discussing a topic I'm sure you are all interested in.  "How do we really customize this content to serve our local educational community?"

Before we address that I thought that I'd take a moment to address some possible gaps.  A few of you have asked for some more examples of 'open' content for the humanities or health education.  OpenLearn  is a site of free, open courses all CC licensed, so the material can be copied and shared, and you can create derivative works from them as well.  For those of you looking for Health and PE material, there should be plenty there if you haven't found success yet.

I just did a quick search for Spanish lessons and material and received these results.  And these for French, so it may be worth exploring. (I use Chrome, as opposed to Internet Explorer or Safari, so it was nice when I was exploring the lessons in foreign languages b/c there was a button to translate the page.  Worked pretty well from my layman's perspective.)  For those of you teaching English, I found this  and many more resources when you scroll through the list here.

Another great site to access and borrow from is OpenTapestry.  Give them a quick skim. One of our topics for this session is the 'personalization' of Digital Content that you cull/borrow.  Read about OpenTapestry's personalization on their 'about us' page.

They have lots of CC licensed material to support all disciplines (This link takes you to just the courses available.)  They also have lots of great 'open content' for Literature and Health.  (They even give you directions about how to put it into your wiki or webpage). Just be aware that there is also some copyrighted material here as well, so in that case you'll have to just link to it directly from your eTextbook.

They also have plenty of resources for those of you teaching World Languages.  Here's a brief video introduction. It's a little dry, but gets good during the demo around the 30 minute mark. And here's just a cursory search for 'cooking'.
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Next we are going to continue with following along with the "Integrating Open Educational Resources in the Classroom" material created by my team of professors for a Curriki Fellowship.  This session will walk you through the personalization, customization, and remixing of OER's to suit your specific goal or curricula.  Let's start with Dr. Cynthia Gautreau's introduction video here. (I know she says it's the third module, but I thought that it would fit best in our S6.)

When you've finished with that I'd like you to then go through her module here.  You don't have to complete every assignment here, but I would like you to reflect on questions 4a, b, and c that you will find here.

Please go through the material diligently to ensure that you gain a comprehensive level of knowledge with this content.

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Now, I debated whether or not to add this one, but sometimes my material can get rather heavy.  This video is the polar opposite.  Once you get through the silliness, the content is actually accurate.  Who's hungry for some CC Cake?




Lastly, the dreaded mid-term.  As I've mentioned repeatedly throughout the semester, my motivation for teaching this course is to have educators gain the most practical information and resources available for their particular setting.  Additionally, you've all noticed that I've been keeping tabs on the workload each week b/c I realize that you all have 'day-jobs' so the last thing I want to do is overwhelm you.

So in the past I've given an in-depth mid-term assignment, but the workload was heavy.  In place of that this semester I'd like you to still focus on the goals of the original midterm, but strip it down and simplify it.  The over-riding goal of this assignment is to convey the power, influence, and benefits (for your particular setting) to your organization if they begin to embrace OER's and incorporate more Digital Content.  Chariho already seems to be moving in that direction, so instead just focus on developing as much of your eTextbook as you can before our next face-to-face meeting which will be in the CHS Library on 4/14 @3:15pm. 


Good luck this week and as always, have fun!
DF

PS--I've added a screencast below to help guide you through the process of adding multimedia to your eTextbook.

How to embed multimedia into a CK12 page

A few of you have asked for a little more detail on how to embed multimedia into your eTextbook, so I made a little screencast to walk you through the process.

If this doesn't work for you, or if you are still running into obstacles, I'd be happy to schedule a teleconference and we can go through some procedures together.