Are you interested in solving the problem of digital engagement? We are too. This website is designed for practitioners that want to develop online environments to build and sustain new audiences by using facilitation techniques that affect learning in these informal spaces. Below you'll find different tools that we believe can help you successfully facilitate an online environment.
With the advances in technology, it has never been easier to use or create films in classrooms - from elementary school to high school. And let’s face it, using film - whether watching them or actually making them - is often a heat motivator for students of all ages! There are teachers all over the world who are including YouTube or film clips in their lessons on a daily basis. Personally, I think there’s nothing better than starting off a lesson with a three minute video clip about the topic at hand. Flipped learning, too, relies heavily on the ability to make films and then post those films so that students can access them anywhere.
However, although the technical aspects have got easier, this doesn’t necessarily mean that films are being used as effectively as they could be. Let me give you an example of what I mean. In a history course that I was teaching a couple of years ago, there was a film that dealt with the topic at hand. One of my teachers thought that it would be advantageous to show a whole film loosely based on the topic - all three hours of it! The educational payoff in circumstances like this is limited - a much more successful approach would have been to use only short clips, interrogating the film as a secondary source for reliability and bias.
This year, I’m making a real commitment to using film better in class. To do that, I’ve come up with some tips - both for using films, and also for making films. Please, comment on my tips, and then share your own below.
Traditionally, college students have spent long nights in campus libraries thumbing through leatherbound volumes of academic journals and research reports. The importance of these publications has remained intact over the years, but most of today’s tech-savvy students opt to access this information using online databases.
These sites generally fall into two categories. Some databases require a paid subscription in order to access materials. In many cases, students who enroll at brick-and-mortar institutions are granted complimentary access to these sites while enrolled. Other sites, known as “open-access” databases, allow users to delve into journal entries free-of-charge. These sites are ideal for online students who would otherwise be required to foot the subscription bill themselves.
This guide looks at some of the most reputable open-access journal websites, as well as paid subscription databases that are still widely used by traditional college students.
Early last year I wrote about using Scholarpress Courseware + WordPress to manage classwebsites. While I’m still a big fan of WordPress Multisite for my class websites, I have in recent semesters moved away from using Courseware. For one, Courseware hasn’t been updated in awhile, and doesn’t seem to work as smoothly with recent versions of WordPress. More practically, however, I found myself getting frustrated when making changes to a class schedule in Courseware.
"Register now for Tackling the Challenges of Big Data, an online MIT course for engineering and business professionals offered by MIT Professional Education and CSAIL.
This Online X course will survey state-of-the-art topics in Big Data, looking at data collection (smartphones, sensors, the Web), data storage and processing (scalable relational databases, Hadoop, Spark, etc.), extracting structured data from unstructured data, systems issues (exploiting multicore, security), analytics (machine learning, data compression, efficient algorithms), visualization, and a range of applications.
Each module will introduce broad concepts as well as provide the most recent developments in research."
Somewhere between a PowerPoint presentation and a full-fledged video is the audio slideshow. Creating audio slideshows can be a good way to add meaning to slides that otherwise might not mean much without a presenter. Here are some ways that students can create audio slideshows.
This survey of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and Online Distance Learning (ODL) literature aims to capture the state of knowledge and opinion about MOOCs and ODL, how they are evolving, and to identify issues that are important, whether...
"Blended learning has taken off as one of the big trends in education over the past several years. Like flipped classrooms and 1:1 environments, it’s one of the top ways for teachers to leverage the power of technology in the classroom. It’s not a new concept, to be sure. However, there’s a new guide to understanding and implementing what’s being billed as blended learning 2.0.
"There are a few key stages of proper implementation that you should know if you’re looking to start climbing the blended learning tree. Starting from down at the roots is the planning process. It’s about a lot more than just ‘planning’ on buying some iPads. Planning involves creating appropriate blended learning spaces. That means you have a nice place for students to gather and collaborate while using technology. Scroll down to the bottom of the graphic below to get started."
Sharing your scoops to your social media accounts is a must to distribute your curated content. Not only will it drive traffic and leads through your content, but it will help show your expertise with your followers.
How to integrate my topics' content to my website?
Integrating your curated content to your website or blog will allow you to increase your website visitors’ engagement, boost SEO and acquire new visitors. By redirecting your social media traffic to your website, Scoop.it will also help you generate more qualified traffic and leads from your curation work.
Distributing your curated content through a newsletter is a great way to nurture and engage your email subscribers will developing your traffic and visibility.
Creating engaging newsletters with your curated content is really easy.