WiredPen

Reuters reports today on how computing technology is changing K-12 education, focusing on the Lilla G. Frederick Pilot Middle School in Boston. Comments from Michael Horn, co-author of Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns. (tip)

This is a plug for a new podcast, One Bottle At A Time, which is a Washington wine show launched by one of my students after taking my inaugural podcasting class. I realize now (oops) that I did not specifically explain to students how to get listed in iTunes or how to create an RSS feed specifically for the podcast (separate from the blog RSS feed) — although these things are in the books we used in the class. Give him a listen!

Just discovered One Day, One Job (and its sister site, One Day, One Internship) via Facebook (thanks, Alison!). Every day, the site features one firm on its home page (see the archive). Their 60-second promo (elevator speech!):

One Day, One Job is the insider’s guide to unique and exciting entry-level job and career opportunities for recent college graduates. Immerse yourself in our employer profiles and discover how you can become a smarter job searcher.

Check it out!

OK, it’s a phrase, not a word. But I’d not heard of it until Howard Rheingold mentioned it in a tweet. Flexknowlogy has a short essay describing various ways the phrase is used. Here’s one that is important for college professors (and the reason Howard was tweeting):

n. A situation in which an authority figure or an institutional power forces those below him/her into social or quasi-social situations.

With respect to education, Utah Valley University student Tyrel Kelsey describes, “creepy treehouse is what a professor can create by requiring his students to interact with him on a medium other than the class room tools. [E.g.] requiring students to follow him/her on peer networking sites such as Twitter or Facebook.”

Twitter is helping me rediscover the serendipity that is the web … I found Students 2.0 by reading someone I follow on Twitter, then following an @, following another @ (and its link), finding the related blog, and then checking out the author’s ClaimIDbadge. Whew!

Students around the globe who have mature thoughts on education are welcome to contribute a post to our blog. Submissions are unpaid, openly welcome, and on an ongoing basis.

And as a post-secondary educator, this YouTube video featuring the current authors warms my heart.

Institutions of higher education face many challenges; one is to provide a learning environment that acknowledges the unique skills and interests of the Net Generation. This paper explores these challenges within the context of computer-mediated communication (CMC) instruction. Specifically, the paper explores the use of social web technologies – blogs and podcasts – as methods of student learning and assessment.

Podcasting and blogs facilitate online communication in a community network; both combine old and new communication methods to rapidly and inexpensively deliver words, text and audio via the Internet. Most reports of the use of these technologies in an educational setting focus on teacher-centered communication, specifically, podcasts of lectures. However, these technologies can also be used as an alternative, experiential and innovative method for active student learning. The paper provides a framework to help others create similar learning opportunities; it identifies pitfalls and best practices; and it provides a set of recommended tools.

Paper as PDF; slides PPT.

My first two sessions this morning dealt with podcasting. The first, from the University of Illinois, focused on administration. They are using iTunesU (not a big surprise) but launched in June 2006 (a surprise: UW only launched in fall 2007). Some podcasts are “open” to the public. Podcasts are also used in marketing (send to donors and/or potential donors). About 26 faculty are podcasting each semester. Either they record the live lecture (video and audio) or they record a summary after the class.The second was a case study from the UK, with a focus on the lecturer. Their data suggests students have little desire to re-listen to an entire lecture, even one recorded as an enhanced podcast with chapters. And some students still prefer paper delivery. These podcasts are edited, supplemental material. Not sure if they have identified an optimal length. 

The XO computer arrived sometime Friday. We got home late from a birthday event … so I didn’t open the package until this morning, right before we left for a birthday breakfast. I took it along, because it was a geeky group.

The universal response (including mine when I opened the box) … “It’s so cute!”

Fortunately, there was a nine-year-old at the breakfast … he sat down and explored and announced “cool!” every now and then. He figured out the mike … and recorded a snippet of the dinner table conversation (Iowa caucuses) … then got my attention with an urgent “Listen!” We (the adults) were appropriately impressed.

First impressions: Very sturdy! Boot-up is fast (about 90 seconds to complete boot up, but clear indication something is happening from the get-go with a “clock-like” series of status dots). Well-designed icons for applications (very learnable if not immediately recognizable), well-designed hardware (the games guy at breakfast immediately “got” the thumb toggle on the left of the screen border).

We weren’t able to figure out how to connect it to the wireless network; that’s next. The XO people assume (correctly, given how these were ordered) that anyone receiving this has an internet connection and another computer, even if it’s at the office.

I knew that it wasn’t going to be here by Christmas but I was not expecting it because of this 21 December mail:

As soon as your order ships, you will receive another email from us with tracking information as well as information on how to take advantage of T-Mobile USA’s offer to provide one year of complimentary access to T-Mobile HotSpot.

That “it has shipped” mail never arrived! Or it went into spam and is “gone” because I regularly delete the gmail spam folder.More (including pix) later. But it’s really a giggle!

Added:
Safari doesn’t do WordPress in visual mode, I just discovered. No graphs!

All I can say is that we adults were stupid. To connect to a network, click “Neighborhood” and all available networks show up. Our home network is there — and so are two other mesh networks! Does this mean two other homes in our neighborhood have this computer?

Addition #2:
The “it’s shipped” email was sent Sunday! Still haven’t gotten it connected to the Internet; issues with Airport Extreme networks, according to OLPC website.

The One Laptop Per Child promo has been extended to the end of the year. I received my “welcome to the community” email earlier today. They have good copywriters!

One of the most ingenious features of the XO laptop is its ability to create a “mesh” network. The little green antennae “ears” serve to automatically connect the XO with other XO laptops in the vicinity. What this means is that if your child has friends nearby that also have XO laptops, the children can chat, play and share information freely and safely, with or without an internet connection. If you would like to let other parents know about the XO laptop and Give One Get One, you can not only greatly increase your child’s enjoyment of the XO laptop, but also help us further our mission.

Now I need to figure out how to jumpstart the one-year complimentary T-Mobile HotSpot service.

Does this help explain learning styles?

A US study of 20 non-musicians and 20 musical conductors found both groups diverted brain activity away from visual areas during listening tasks.