Useful advice on importing Powerpoint slides into Prezi.
via Bex Ferriday
All posts by James Clay
Moodlemoot 2012
It’s been a while since I attended a Moodlemoot, however this year I am attending Moodlemoot 2012 which takes place in the fair city of Dublin, 2nd-4th April 2012.
Moodlemoots are an opportunity for the Moodle community to gather and share experiences, new things and learn from each other.
I am interested to see what I can learn from others at this Moodlemoot. The technical for us is less important since we decided to outsource our hosting (and maintenance) to ULCC. This doesn’t mean I am not interested in the roadmap of Moodle, I am and really would like to see where Moodle is going over the next few years. I am pleased to see Moodle making the move to mobile and I hope that continues.
The real challenge as far as I am concerned with Moodle, is not the technical nature of the software, but how do you get teachers to use it effectively with learners.
I always find it interesting that some people talk about how easy to use and intuitive Moodle is, whilst some people complain about how complicated and unintuitive Moodle is. You won’t find many of the latter group at a Moodlemoot, but I do think their viewpoint is noted and listened to.
One of the things I want to find out at this Moodlemoot is what strategies are people using to motivate teachers to use Moodle and what things work well and what things have broad appeal. How are people making Moodle more engaging and interactive and encouraging learners to make that move from a passive user of Moodle to a learner that engages and interacts with the platform.
Another aspect of the moot will be the networking and engagement with the community. It will be great to discuss the above with old friends and with new ones.
e-Book Reader, circa 1935
Still drinking coffee
Nearly four years ago I posted an image of my “tweetcloud” that creates a word cloud of what I am tweeting about… As some of you might expect coffee was quite large.
Having tried Tweetcloud again (well now called Tweetstats), quite surprised by how much coffee is still in there….
I am sure I don’t tweet about coffee that much (anymore).
GSMA Mobile Education at #lwf12
That first bloke on the video, seems very familiar….
ChromeVox
ChromeVox is a screen reader for Chrome which brings the speed, versatility, and security of Chrome to visually impaired users.
If you would prefer to watch the video with an audio description.
ALT-C 2012 – Pilot Mentality
I am currently putting together an abstract for a debate at ALT-C on the value of pilots and projects. This is something I blogged about before.
The essence of the debate is spread across two viewpoints.
Pilots and projects represent value for money and are a valuable tool in evaluating, experimenting and reflecting on the use of new pedagogies and learning technologies. They are a key part of embedding organisational change.
Or…
Pilots and projects are an inefficient method for the mainstream adoption and embedding of new pedagogies and learning technologies. They are of little value to organisations and are often used as part of a cycle of funding rather than organisational change.
After posting my initial idea on the Twitter I think that this would be an interesting debate and builds on discussions in this area at previous conferences.
So where next?
Well we need a chair and a panel. I am hoping to speak about the inefficiencies of every organisation undertaking pilots and projects and the need to learn from the research and pilots undertaken elsewhere. I would like a varied panel, so if you are interested in taking part (and will be attending ALT-C 2012) let me know, either in the comments or learningstuff@me.com Please note that you either need to be working in an FE or HE institution, or for one of the sector agencies such as JISC, CETIS, HEA, LSIS, etc…
So are you interested?
Emerging Technologies – Horizon Scanning
On Wednesday I attended and presented at an Emerging Technology event for LSIS. The focus of the event was on the technologies that are on the horizon, and how colleges need to be aware and plan for the use of those technologies.
My opening presentation was around the new technologies that are on the horizon, but also covered how learning is changing, often as a result of changes in technology.
As part of the session , in groups we discussed the resistance and scepticism that change (and not just changes in technology and practice) that we find in FE Colleges. The conclusion is quite simple and one that is often forgotten, most people don’t like change.
Traditional models of change and change management have not really served education well in the introduction of new technologies. We still have to answer why aren’t they working?
It’s not as though change hasn’t happened, think about the use of Powerpoint, the use of e-mail, use of the web. These are all new technologies that at some point were new and shiny, but are now generally part of what most practitioners use in colleges today.
Was that change managed? Or did it evolve over time?
We also discussed the following questions: How is practice changing within learning providers? How will learning and the delivery of learning change over the next five to ten years? How can technology facilitate changes in practice? How can colleges prepare for the challenges and opportunities new ways of learning bring to education?
Technology is changing and some would say that the rate of technological change is growing even faster.
Think about something like the iPad for example which isn’t even two years old, but has had a profound impact on the way that (some) people communicate, collaborate, read, share and learn.
There are many new technologies that are on the horizon and these technologies will have an impact on learning, the question is do we need to, and how can we ensure that we maximise the opportunities that they offer?
e-Learning Stuff Podcast #085: Bring it on…
BYOD, or Bring Your Own Devices. Is this the future of using technology for learning? What are the issues of using learner owned devices? What do institutions need to do to be able to ensure that learner owned devices can be used within the institution for learning? What about e-safety? Bring it on…
With James Clay, Lilian Soon, Dave Foord and Ron Mitchell.
This is the 85th e-Learning Stuff Podcast, Bring it on…
Buy your own laptop!
There was a recent interesting BBC News article on bringing your own device to work.
Do you dream of a world where you have your choice of laptop, smartphone or tablet at work; all of which connect seamlessly one to another, and are constantly updated?
Sitting at your desk, feeling the red mist descend as your ancient XP desktop computer tries and fails to open your inbox, this might seem like an impossible dream. But for some people that day is already here.
There is a lot of discussion around learners bringing their own devices to support their learning, I wonder where we are with staff in colleges using their own devices in the workplace.
Of course, working in a college, I am more than aware of how many staff use their own computers at home and lots of staff bring in their own smartphones and tablets to use in the classroom.
There are many issues with staff using their own devices, data protection and safeguarding probably at the top.
However using thin client technology, desktop virtualisation, and tools such as Citrix Receiver, it is very easy to deliver college systems securely to any device.
Strategically there is a need to build a robust infrastructure to support external devices, but there are a lot of potential benefits.
Downside is then there is an expectation that staff will be using their own devices and new equipment won’t be bought for existing staff to replace redundant kit. “You don’t need a new laptop, you use your Mac!” I suspect though that view is one that will often be the one of some managers.
I personally don’t see Bring Your Own Device as a replacement for providing equipment to staff, it’s a complementary strategy that allows staff to be more efficient and effective.
So what are your thoughts on staff bringing their own devices to work?