PDFs and PowerPoint
Many of the tools that are being used for e-learning have not been around all that long but there are two tools that have been around for awhile and are being use quite effectively in e-learning events, PDFs and PowerPoint.
The Internet is evolving from Web 1.0, a read only format to Web 2.0 a read/write format. Today people are doing more then just reading content on the web, they are also sharing their content with others by uploading it to the internet. In the past, sharing content with others was time consuming and expensive. The software used to create content on the web was expensive and hard to use, but today there are many tools, for creating content on the web, that are both free and easy to use.
PDF (Portable Document Format) has been around for awhile. Adobe Acrobat 1.0 came out in 1993. While the PDF reader was free, the software for creating PDFs was not. In 2008 the International Organization for Standards (ISO) established the ISO 32000-1:2008 PDF open standard. This has opened the door for the average computer user to create and share content through PDFs with little or not cost involved.
There are two unique aspects of PDFs. The first is that content can be created across software and platform. This means that one does not have to have the software or hardware that created the content to view the content; you do not have to have MS-Word to view PDFs that were created using MS-Ward. I use a desktop publish program call Page Plus. Many people do not have this software program let alone ever hear of it. But I like it and have been using it since version 1.0. Originally this software was designed to create content for hard copy print but has now evolved to include digital content. With PDFs I can digitally share content made using this program with people who do not have this software.
The Second unique aspect of PDFs is that formatting stays the same. This is because the PDFs file is basically an image of the original file. The person viewing the files see it exactly as is was created. The only requirement is that the person viewing the file has a PDF reader. Saving a PDF file is as easy as saving a regular file.
PDFs are becoming a powerful item in the toolbox of e-learning designers. Compatibility, portability and ease of use is making this old tool a valuable tool in e-learning application today. Next we will look at PowerPoint type programs and their use in e-learning.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
E-learning and the power of Wikis Pt. 4
Wikis on the Web
When asked about wikis many people say they do not use them much because they do not know if they can trust their content. But I really doubt that wikis that purposefully mislead people will be around for very long.
I also believe that some times unintentional mistakes happen but because of the editing feature of wikis, these mistakes are quickly fixed when they are discovered. The power of wiki does not lie in the changing of content as much as adding to content. Most of the "change" that takes place in wikis is due to people adding content to the wiki.
But enough talking about wikis. This last part will help you explore wikis on the web. The best way to learn about wikis is to use them; the second best way to learn about wikis is seeing how others use them. Even though this is the last part to this blog, it will not be the final because the web is constantly changing and therefore these tools are changing along with the web.
The best way to experience wiki-ing is by wiki-ing; that is starting your own wiki. The following is one of the better site for doing this but there are others; I this does not suit your needs find one that does. http://pbworks.com/. The basic version is free but can be upgraded but this is mainly geared toward organizations.
With out going any futher one of the best places to learn about wikis is from the "big wiki" its self http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki. This is by no means all there is on the subject but it is a great starting point. I use Wikipidia a lot as a jumping off point.
I used this website http://wiki.wsu.edu/wsuwiki/Using_Wikis_For_Learning to prove a point. Many institutions of higher learning are seriously looking at wikis for creating learning events and environments.
Here is another wiki service. http://wiki.wsu.edu/wsuwiki/Using_Wikis_For_Learning. I use this to point out an important feature you need to look for. You can make the wiki private but only if you upgrade. Be sure you understand the security features; compare with PBW.
If a picture is worth a 1000 words what is a video?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7BAU2XX5Ws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY&feature=player_embedded
http://www.bnet.com/2422-13731_23-187449.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fWDyUGlm_s&feature=channel
Here is a fun one http://www.wikihow.com/Main-Page. Jump on the wikihow wagon with your own how-to.
In closing wikis are not so much about "changing" content as much as it is about adding and sharing contents. The wiki will change as it grows but this change will be a natural shared process with the collaborators of the wiki.
Have fun and hope to see you wiki wiki.
When asked about wikis many people say they do not use them much because they do not know if they can trust their content. But I really doubt that wikis that purposefully mislead people will be around for very long.
I also believe that some times unintentional mistakes happen but because of the editing feature of wikis, these mistakes are quickly fixed when they are discovered. The power of wiki does not lie in the changing of content as much as adding to content. Most of the "change" that takes place in wikis is due to people adding content to the wiki.
But enough talking about wikis. This last part will help you explore wikis on the web. The best way to learn about wikis is to use them; the second best way to learn about wikis is seeing how others use them. Even though this is the last part to this blog, it will not be the final because the web is constantly changing and therefore these tools are changing along with the web.
The best way to experience wiki-ing is by wiki-ing; that is starting your own wiki. The following is one of the better site for doing this but there are others; I this does not suit your needs find one that does. http://pbworks.com/. The basic version is free but can be upgraded but this is mainly geared toward organizations.
With out going any futher one of the best places to learn about wikis is from the "big wiki" its self http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki. This is by no means all there is on the subject but it is a great starting point. I use Wikipidia a lot as a jumping off point.
I used this website http://wiki.wsu.edu/wsuwiki/Using_Wikis_For_Learning to prove a point. Many institutions of higher learning are seriously looking at wikis for creating learning events and environments.
Here is another wiki service. http://wiki.wsu.edu/wsuwiki/Using_Wikis_For_Learning. I use this to point out an important feature you need to look for. You can make the wiki private but only if you upgrade. Be sure you understand the security features; compare with PBW.
If a picture is worth a 1000 words what is a video?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7BAU2XX5Ws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY&feature=player_embedded
http://www.bnet.com/2422-13731_23-187449.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fWDyUGlm_s&feature=channel
Here is a fun one http://www.wikihow.com/Main-Page. Jump on the wikihow wagon with your own how-to.
In closing wikis are not so much about "changing" content as much as it is about adding and sharing contents. The wiki will change as it grows but this change will be a natural shared process with the collaborators of the wiki.
Have fun and hope to see you wiki wiki.
Monday, September 7, 2009
E-learning and the power of wikis. Pt 3
Wiki study groups
This is an interesting concept. I remember back in the late 70s during my brick and mortar college days that I actually participated in a few study groups. I did not go to many and I really do not know how much studying actually took place. Anyway study groups are a part of the learning process.
Usually a groups of students would decide to get together to study; collaboration is not a new concept but the way that we go about doing it has changed in some ways. The important things to decide when forming study groups is who will attend, what will be studied, what time it will take place and where it will be held. When using wikis the last will be omitted because it will be conducted online. The person organizing the study group will initiate the wiki and do the invites.Chances are the people and subject will have already been determined.
There are a number of ways to approach this but I will give what I believe to be two of the main ways. First would be an on going study group over the course of the class. After the first or the second week of the class a wiki could be set up. This wiki would run the length of the class. The other way of approaching this is to set up a "cram" session two weeks before the end of the class.
Some things to think about would be setting up a FAQ page for questions on the course material. In wikis that run the length of the class, there might be a separate page for each week that would be a review of that week’s material. There might also be a page to review and discuss class assignments. A page could also be set up to review and discuss study habits and other learning techniques. The possibilities are only limited by the imagination.
Wikis offer a new dimension to an old concept, collaborative studying. Often students can learn a great deal from other students. Also, even though many instructors make themselves available to students, sometimes the connection just cannot be made. An integral part of the learning process is students helping other students to review and understand the lessons. Wikis and other social networking tools will give this old concept a new depth.
This is an interesting concept. I remember back in the late 70s during my brick and mortar college days that I actually participated in a few study groups. I did not go to many and I really do not know how much studying actually took place. Anyway study groups are a part of the learning process.
Usually a groups of students would decide to get together to study; collaboration is not a new concept but the way that we go about doing it has changed in some ways. The important things to decide when forming study groups is who will attend, what will be studied, what time it will take place and where it will be held. When using wikis the last will be omitted because it will be conducted online. The person organizing the study group will initiate the wiki and do the invites.Chances are the people and subject will have already been determined.
There are a number of ways to approach this but I will give what I believe to be two of the main ways. First would be an on going study group over the course of the class. After the first or the second week of the class a wiki could be set up. This wiki would run the length of the class. The other way of approaching this is to set up a "cram" session two weeks before the end of the class.
Some things to think about would be setting up a FAQ page for questions on the course material. In wikis that run the length of the class, there might be a separate page for each week that would be a review of that week’s material. There might also be a page to review and discuss class assignments. A page could also be set up to review and discuss study habits and other learning techniques. The possibilities are only limited by the imagination.
Wikis offer a new dimension to an old concept, collaborative studying. Often students can learn a great deal from other students. Also, even though many instructors make themselves available to students, sometimes the connection just cannot be made. An integral part of the learning process is students helping other students to review and understand the lessons. Wikis and other social networking tools will give this old concept a new depth.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
E-learning and the power of wikis. Pt 2
Wikis are not for every one.
Most people’s encounters with wikis have been through public wikis like Wikipidia and other similar wikis. These wikis are open to the public netizens meaning that anybody can edit the content of the wiki. Being able to edit the content son freely by who ever has given wikis less then a favorable rating by many, fearing that the content might not be totally correct. But in recent years, this weakness has turn into being one of the wiki’s strongest point. But there is another facet of the wiki that has emerged in part because of the fear of erroneous editing of wiki content.
Access control is a powerful aspect of wikis that most people know nothing about. In simple terms wikis can be either public or private. "A public wiki is one that is visible to anyone on the Web, without their having to log in" (West & West, p. 12). Private wikis are by invite only; this is probably the main reason most people do not know this side of the wiki. Access control, or closing the wiki to the public means that the wiki is not for everyone.
Making the wiki closed makes it a very powerful and useful tool in collaboration both in educational and private use. The fear of content being corrupted by outsiders is removed; removing this factor removes this concern and allows the team to focus on the goal of the wiki. This security feature has opened up wikis to classroom application (West and West, p. 16). More teachers are rethinking the wiki and many are starting to apply wikis on a limited basis in the classroom.
Making a wiki private is easy, just make sure the wiki provider offers this feature though. No doubt before to long all wiki providers will offer this feature. In one way this has radically changed the way of wiki-ing. Inviting members to the wiki is even easier. This is accomplished through an e-mail invite, where the invitee has to create a login. Even "…if someone comes across your wiki’s URL, they will not be able to view the wiki…instead [they will] see a log-in page…" that requires a password (West & West p. 11).
In the end not all wikis are intended for everyone, but at the end of a wiki project the team may elect to make it public if they so desire.
West, J. A., West, M. L., (2009) Using Wikis for Online Collaboration. The Power of the
Read-Write Web. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Most people’s encounters with wikis have been through public wikis like Wikipidia and other similar wikis. These wikis are open to the public netizens meaning that anybody can edit the content of the wiki. Being able to edit the content son freely by who ever has given wikis less then a favorable rating by many, fearing that the content might not be totally correct. But in recent years, this weakness has turn into being one of the wiki’s strongest point. But there is another facet of the wiki that has emerged in part because of the fear of erroneous editing of wiki content.
Access control is a powerful aspect of wikis that most people know nothing about. In simple terms wikis can be either public or private. "A public wiki is one that is visible to anyone on the Web, without their having to log in" (West & West, p. 12). Private wikis are by invite only; this is probably the main reason most people do not know this side of the wiki. Access control, or closing the wiki to the public means that the wiki is not for everyone.
Making the wiki closed makes it a very powerful and useful tool in collaboration both in educational and private use. The fear of content being corrupted by outsiders is removed; removing this factor removes this concern and allows the team to focus on the goal of the wiki. This security feature has opened up wikis to classroom application (West and West, p. 16). More teachers are rethinking the wiki and many are starting to apply wikis on a limited basis in the classroom.
Making a wiki private is easy, just make sure the wiki provider offers this feature though. No doubt before to long all wiki providers will offer this feature. In one way this has radically changed the way of wiki-ing. Inviting members to the wiki is even easier. This is accomplished through an e-mail invite, where the invitee has to create a login. Even "…if someone comes across your wiki’s URL, they will not be able to view the wiki…instead [they will] see a log-in page…" that requires a password (West & West p. 11).
In the end not all wikis are intended for everyone, but at the end of a wiki project the team may elect to make it public if they so desire.
West, J. A., West, M. L., (2009) Using Wikis for Online Collaboration. The Power of the
Read-Write Web. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
E-learning and the power of wikis. Pt 1
When people hear the term wiki they generally think of Wikipidia. Wikipidia is a wealth of informational content on the web. But one of the drawbacks to Wikipidia and of all wikis is the accuracy of the content. This stems from the ability of anyone to edit the content. With this ability, there is the possibility that someone may place unreliable content in the wiki. Most of the time inaccuracy is due to oversight error but at time it may be intentional, but the latter is not very common. In either case the error can be easily and quickly fixed when detected. This editing feature weak-point is actually becoming the wikis strong point as collaborative editors take ownership of the wikis and watchdog for errors.
But wikis are developing into another online tool apart from just a collection of information. With more people online and the web becoming a dynamic read/write platform, wikis are evolving into a very powerful collaboration environment for learning. The following chart points out this wiki power.
But wikis are developing into another online tool apart from just a collection of information. With more people online and the web becoming a dynamic read/write platform, wikis are evolving into a very powerful collaboration environment for learning. The following chart points out this wiki power.
Comparison of Asynchronous Communication Tools
- Wikis: Collaborative Authorship; Dynamic; Nonlinear and Multiple Construction
- Blogs: Single Author; Static; Linear Construction
- Threaded Discussions: Multiple Authors; Static; Threaded Construction
West, J. A., West, M. L., (2009) Using Wikis for Online Collaboration. The Power of the
Read-Write Web. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass p. 5.
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