OER Blogs
New prof rating system - Olivia Koester, Manitou Messenger
“[CATE is] a classy version of ratemyprofessors.com [that] would allow students to evaluate courses and view ratings via SIS,” Laven said, referring to the Student Information System.
Online Learning: Merrill schools to go virtual - Charles Menchaca, Wausau Daily Herald
Cathy Mincberg Speaks to Gates Foundation Panel About Online Learning as a Disruptive Innovation
The internet of things
The internet of things will likely have a greater impact on humanity than social media. The creation of a “central nervous system” for the earth or a “global data field” is well underway. As more devices connect to the internet – cars, home security systems, utility monitoring – and as more objects include RFID tags, the physical world begins to merge with the digital world. I can search for my car keys the same way I search for a research paper. Social media is an overlay of socialization on top of our physical worlds. The internet of things is an integration of physical and virtual worlds, permitting the most desirable elements of each to exist in the other. Here’s a short introduction to the concept of the internet of things. See also 8 better ways to understand the internet of things.
Games as model for grading
Grading is an attempt to offer a statement of competence/knowledge about an individual in relation to a particular subject area. Many other statements of competence exist: personal opinion from colleagues, portfolio of work completed, success/impact in a particular field, etc. In games, competence is expressed (represented) by activities completed or levels achieved. So why not use a game model as a replacement for grading?
Last year, Sheldon replaced the traditional grading system in two of his game design classes with a system that is based on experience points (XP), which were typically used to track progress in role-playing games.
Students commenced the program as avatars at level one, which corresponded to zero XP and a grade of ‘F’. They gained XP by completing ‘quests’, ‘fighting monsters’ and ‘crafting’– in other words, giving presentations, sitting quizzes and exams, and handing in projects.
Ontario universities to adopt e-learning
The Pad – Trends, drivers and a scenario from 1998
Browser-Based IDEs (programming environments)
Ages: Social Networks
Ages of social network users reviews how the various social networks (Bebo, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc) break down in terms of age categories. Of the 19 services covered, the 35-44 age group is tops in 11. While this fits into the “interesting” category. I’d like to see better data on the online activities of different age groups (Pew did a study of internet activities in general, not confined to social networks), which age groups show the fastest growth in participation, how online habits differ between novice and experienced users of the service, and perspectives of privacy/security by different age groups.
Steal It and Other Internal YouTube Emails from Viacom's Copyright Suit
You Have to Break Connections to Get Your Ideas to Spread
Our iPhone for Moodle web application aks for your feedback
The iPad and the LMS
College 2.0: More Professors Could Share Lectures Online to Extend Learning Opportunities. But Should They? - Jeffrey R. Young, chronicle of Higher Ed
New Web site offers career courses via online learning for Michigan's out-of-work baby boomers - AnnArbor.com
But how?
Online, non-credit courses with the LEARN program aim to help baby boomers laid off from manufacturing industry jobs answer that question, said University of Michigan professor Lynn Wooten, who helped to develop the program's curriculum.
High school summer school learning goes online - Tim Troglen, Hudson Hub Times
Students can sign up now for several online summer school class offerings, including health, U.S. government, geometry and algebra. The classes will be offered June 14 to July 23, with registration ending June 7. The price per class ranges from $170 to $300.