Tag: networks

Learning skills of the future

Michael ChalkLeave a commentprofessional development

Here’s an interesting video with a bunch of educators talking about how the future might work. Names i recognise include Daniel Pink and Greg Black (of education.au). i’ve taken some brief notes on what the educators are talking about, but haven’t really commented with my own response. Many people have been saying this kind of thing in recent years: Schools are like factories, following models of the industrial age; students have more enriched experience outside of schools than in; US schools rank lowest out of all industries surveyed for technology Read More …

Take charge of your learning (a talk by Stephen Downes)

Michael Chalk2 Commentsprofessional development

Stephen Downes is full of good ideas. i’ve followed his thoughts for many years now. A Canadian education researcher, Stephen is an incredibly articulate and rigorous thinker who is definitely worth listening to, and i believe he listens to others really well too. In his first Huffington Post article, he gives an overview of the PLENK massive online course, and his perspective on connected and networked learning. (PLENK = Personal Learning Environments, Networks and Knowledge.) “That is not to advocate throwing learners off the bus to fend for themselves. It Read More …

Psst.. knowledge-worker? You have mad skills?

Michael Chalk2 Commentse-learning, professional development

Nancy White was spurred into action by Tony Karrer’s “big question” of the month: what skills do knowledge-workers (or “learning professionals”) need (as we head into the teenies). But Tony was disappointed that Nancy listed only 4 “meta skills”: self-awareness, generosity, humility, and willingness to risk. .. because Tony was looking for the technical details, the actual “how do i learn” skills. So Nancy wrote a second version, this time elaborating on the abilities to: scan and filter (manage the “river of information”), connect with other people, synthesise the streams Read More …

e-mentors set to soar

Michael Chalk1 Commentace, e-learning, innovation, professional development

Amazing work from the network of Victorian ACE e-mentors. Each (ACE) region across Victoria has one (or 2) mentors to support teachers and organisations learning to develop their plans for e-learning at strategy and classroom levels. On Friday there were demonstrations of “all things google” – how to chat with gmail, how to synch your google calendar, use the reader for following student blog feeds .. set up groups and sites, use the gmail app for your domain. (Coach Carole, Michael Gwyther, Sarah Phillips) .. and a session on gadgets Read More …

Ways to publish "flip-style" magazines

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, e-learning

Ann H, one of the amazing ACE e-learning practitioners on the research circles adventure, wrote that she had had some progress with blogs and wikis in her classroom. But the learners weren’t so happy with the look of a wiki, they wanted something more like a print-style magazine. A couple of ideas emerged for someone wanting the “look and feel” of a magazine. 1) the visual book (“MyEbook“)that Dale looked at a few weeks back 2) a site called Issuu gets good reviews: example showing optical illusions. (That second review Read More …

Has twitter jumped the shark?

Michael ChalkLeave a commentprofessional development

The comical folk at current.com have done another twitter satire. It’s funny. Disclaimer: i admit, i have been following some celebrities. Yes i am a twit. (aka miczl) My big issue with Twitter is this: Get A Room. .. if you’re having a private conversation, get off the public airways. Use Skype or messenger. Have a proper conversation. Stop leaving notes in the middle of the road for everyone else to trip over. But that is not how twitter works, so i will just get off my high horse right Read More …

on becoming a twit (or a flap)

Michael ChalkLeave a commente-learning, professional development

i was recently reading Lankshear and Knobel’s piece on Facebook as an environment for multiliteracies (more on that over here). There is some disagreement around these social networking sites, that you must be self-centred to use them, or that they will damage your brain (eg this article).

Holographic, networked interfacing?

Michael ChalkLeave a commentinnovation

The POV wearable computers in my earlier post had me thinking about how technologies might be integrated more closely with human bodies in future. Not only portable, but wearable. i stumbled upon a TED talks video which demonstrates a new wearable computer-like device. Camera and projector work together with your phone to create touch screens anywhere, linked in with the “hive mind” (portable projection). .. or you can download it yourself from their site. Fantasy and technology continue to converge. In this charming “World Builder” video, a man builds a Read More …

POV camera .. meets Taser !

Michael ChalkLeave a commente-learning, innovation

Great initiative via Leigh Blackall over in Otago, NZ. He and Michael and Alex have been experimenting with a wild new concept known as the Point of View (POV) camera. Worn on glasses, or on a head torch, the gadget allows you to video exactly what you’re doing, hands-free. Not sure whether it has audio recording built in yet. (Check: yes it does.) What also caught my eye (and my similarity radar) was an article on Wired, where the law enforcement agencies are investigating similar options .. a wearable computer, Read More …

real-time collaboration

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, e-learning

Just had a great meeting with the one and only Lynne Gibb from Coonara House. We started out in the new Access ACE Victorian elluminate room .. moved across to a new wiki near the e-showcase ACFE wiki .. and then realised we couldn’t edit the same wiki page at the same time. So moved over to google docs, where it was easier to collaborate, because the system is set up to auto-save the work of all people editing. Really great to watch someone else typing as they talk you Read More …