Week four : The Internet and the impact on education

I see a pattern in the reading as a new technology emerge, the great predictions in education, industry, etc. made for spectacular changes on the horizon. For example, Thomas Edison in 1913, predicted “Books will soon be obsolete in the schools…It is possible to teach each branch of human knowledge with the motion picture. Our school system will be completely changed in the next ten years.” This of course has not happened. I do believe there has been major advancements though in instruction design in recent years, and the profound uses we have for computers in education, industry, entertainment, to name a few, certainly there is a major shift in instructional materials and how they are delivered via the computer.
A good example is in higher education with the explosion of online classes available. The Internet has changed the way our education institutions can deliver a course. I can speak for myself when I say, it satisfies a nitch--giving students outside the standard college, university demographics, now have the opportunity and/or a choice to go back to school. Are we concerned the online education model will replace the traditional face-to-face classroom? I’m not worried. Although the growth is enormous right now, I’m not sure what online education will look like in ten years. Just as a “motion picture” can add to the education objective, online classes will continue to become more sophisticated in the ability to deliver course materials that are more interactive, interesting and hopefully a great learning experience.

I was able to apply a bit of the technology we’ve been learning in class to a real world application the other day. As we are exploring how to create, use, hyperlink a podcast into a course. I have begun to apply this technology particularly, how to embed an instructor introduction video in the course. I use a MAC at home and (PC at work) which has Garage Band installed -- learning this software to create podcasts, and learning how to edit has been a lot of fun. I look forward to working with instructors to help create high quality videos or audio podcasts, and learning more about the editing phase in the future. Very cool! As podcasting is a technology that can be downloaded and kept on your computer and this is unrelated to our lesson on Podcasting, this was an interesting site that I’ve found a website similar to YouTube called vimeo.com. Create a video and upload, just like YouTube, it has a create flair to it.

Human Performance Improvement
When I started my job as an instructional designer one of the technical requirements was I would eventually become an expert at using the course managements system called Blackboard Vista. On day one, I had no experience using Blackboard. A training program would have been fantastic to have in place. It took me 4-months to feel as if I could troubleshoot, and create online courses with relative ease. As talked about in the chapter, having a training program in place would help with the demand to produce a technically good course sooner. So that said, to have procedures in place and clear expectations, and regular feedback would have reduced my frustration level as well as my co-worker. These are great ideas, and with the right resources in place. I think there are companies that create practices and procedures that are relevant to their workers and maximizing an organization’s bottom line. My analysis, or to break down the need for ID training, I see it this way. There is the human factor, us that make up the department. We work toward a goal, the performance itself, and then the learned task or the end accomplishment, or end mission, through “systematic, systemic” approach to meeting the demand of supporting online courses.

This podcast discusses American Art Pottery, describing the finishing touches of an exhibit at the New American Wing, a collection of 45 years of work, is an educational experience to bring this exhibition to The Metropolitan Museum.
Audio Podcast example

Vicksburg Soccer 2009

My daughter is the goalie. She just finished her season this week.

Nürnberg, Germany (My Omi lived near the altstadt)

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What is Graphic Design?

The Bookmark Connection

The Blogger

To address the question, what are my impressions of using a blog? I’m not someone who has ever kept a diary in the past. Maybe because I’m an artist, I have stacks of art all the way back from high school… a record of of sorts. My opinion of a blog is a record, an electronic diary. I’ve not used a blog before; personally I don’t have a desire to make my personal writings public, my life just it’s that interesting. That was my perception of a blog, it was a personal diary. That said I can see many other useful mediums. As an artist, I could create a blog, although more on the visual side, to track my art. I can see marketing advantages to using one, maybe an online newsletter. What I did find interesting was that many blogs are syndicated and one could subscribe using RSS, a connection to both mediums. For example I like this website of woman photographers http://nymphoto.com/index.php, the site is simply organized which includes personal blogs. That does interest me to read blogs in this context. To change my tune, while writing this article, I was told of a blog of a woman going through cancer, with five small children. You know, I may not want to record my life, there are plenty of create writers that do and do a wonderful job of keeping a blog. It was touching, well written and I enjoyed reading it. So that said…

I’ve not used RSS “the Really Simple Syndication” before, cute acronym! I enjoyed setting it up my web feed, personalizing what feeds to include, what not. I’m not sure I will reference the page often though. The Daily Beast thedailybeast@e.thedailybeast.com isn't a RSS feed, although it's a "condensed" version of news of sorts. I kind of liked it, and it reminded me of the content of a feed. That said, I like the choices we have, overwhelming, but good.

Article evaluation

The amount of information we have access to these days is overwhelming, information overload. What is important and what isn’t? The Cone of Learning by Edgar Dale article, I think both blogs and RSS is a passive way of learning. You certainly are receiving visual information, although most of what you’re doing is reading. And didn’t the article say that we retain very little of the top of the cone? That higher on the cone, the less senses are used. The most abstract way of learning. To really learn we need to demonstrate, apply, practice, analyze, design, to create is very important in the learning process. That said I can't say I am convinced or know yet that blogs and RSS feeds is really relevant to actual learning. Maybe I’m missing the point of evaluating these mediums.

I certainly received direct, purposeful experience by the act of creating a blog and RSS, as stated in the Cone of Learning article. Both verbal and visual learning was happening, first hand doing. Also in the article, maybe all the snippets of information we are creating in blogs and RSS feeds are a “contrived” experience. With all this complex information flooding our brains, this is a way we can “edit” these mediums. Simplify what we get. It does seem to be the way streaming information is being presented these days with mediums like Facebook, twitter, etc. It seems the trend of the way we get information.

I did like the article Falling Asleep at Your Keyboard: The Case for Computer Imagination. With the continual evolution of technology we need people to think outside of the box. As a creative, I’d like to think I’m part of that process, certainly when it comes to graphic design. In the beginning of the article, billions of dollars have been spent to upgrade technology, although the use is still flat and limiting. The article doesn’t really address this, gave scenarios, good and bad. Flash for the sake of flash, there needs to be a purpose. As an instructional designer, Blackboard is limiting in some ways, you read, use discussion boards, maybe view a power point, and watch a movie, do an assignment, take a test. What could I do make the course better, more engaging, impact learning and thinking? I haven’t found it within the parameters given. I explore incrementally although it seems to be more organizational than technology. Personally I’ll keep working on that question though.

Like the conclusion in the Siegel article, “we need to focus more on how the new tools impact our ability to think and learn.” That I agree with. How would I consider Siegel’s concept “imagination,” in the current tools we explored this week in class, I think the blog is somewhat more “imaginative.” There are certainly more custom tools for unique looks, photos, video streams, etc. More is more of a creative edge as content is created a author. When you look at a person’s blog, the blog takes on a personality. The RSS reader is more static in that respect. I can see the advantage of the tool is a connector of ideas and thoughts. And by exploring new tools we certainly learn are something.

Grand Central Station in New York City.

Photo from Grand Central Station in New York City in April.

Technology

• Cool tool: http://tinyurl.com/btmdy6


• News: http://www.thedailybeast.com/


• Signup for free software: http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/


• My love of art and education: ARTstor userservices@artstor.org


• My design website: http://mlfojtikdesign.com/


Forgotten link to images for Shutterfly.

• One of my photo sharing sites hhttp://basketballjv2009.shutterfly.com//

Reading Analysis

I seem to have trouble focusing on a particular idea presented in both articles, although, after reading both articles, I seemed be drawn more to Roberto Joseph’s article “Beyond Technology Integration: The Case for Technology Transformation.” That “new technology is typically used to support existing methods in the filed, over time, investment and resources, the new methods frequently result in quantum improvements.” This seems to ring true for me. The author seemed to question, will technology methods change in the same way.

As part of my job as an instructional designer, and for that matter a graphic designer, technology is a very important part of my job. I spend time, as part of what I do, searching, looking for new technologies that might enhance the productively of my job. Specific to graphic design, the field has changed dramatically since the 1980’s. When I started in graphic design, I used a drafting table with straight edge to create my designs. Another example are typesetters who were very specialized at what they did, using phototypesetting machines, that’s all they did, plug in code, typed in text producing gally proofs. Technology completely changed the industry on all levels, design, to production as well as the rolls that people played, because of technology advancements, jobs became integrated. Has this happened in education, have jobs evolved, evaporated because of technology?

In education the idea of standardization in the Joseph’s article was an interesting concept. I certainly felt that when I was in school, being part of a large group, unsympathetic to different ways we all learn. I can see technology as very useful to utilizing better ways to individualize education. As in any industry though, new technology is a investment, as well as maintaining the quality and the future relevance. There needs to be people to develop and the money to do the job well. The wonderful possibilities although does the article address what kind of change, what are the tools? Maybe because of my design background, or the lack of classroom teaching, I tend to think in terms of the tools (technology) I work with.
• Improvement in my design, problem solving
• Productivity improvements
• Technology improvement, program upgrades – elimination of one technology replacing other.

On the other hand, Postman talked about “great problems of education are of a social and moral nature and have nothing to do with dazzling new technologies.” Are we experts because of our technology, what about the overflow of technology, the balance that needs to be there and lastly a consistency of human interaction. When computer’s came to be common place, anyone could consider themselves as an expert graphic design or a typesetter or a printer of sorts. Does technology make you an expert because you have it? I don’t believe so. They are just that, it enhances a core goal.

As someone who works with online classes, I don’t see the classroom becoming a thing of the past. My belief is it’s important to continue to teach our children in how to socialize with one another, teach children how to learn, the practice of going to school is important, as stated in the article. Technology can improve on what’ve there, or can change and evolve to meet the needs of modern society. As for the “Of Luddites, Learning, and Life” article, I can see the point of the author. Is there a limit, too much growth? Although technology is here to stay and is changing the way we function as a society.