Excellent discussion on the blend-online listserv on :
Can anyone recommend a good social network platform, preferably Cloud-based, that could be used to facilitate substantive organic communication and collaboration among past, present and future students on a handful of online and blended learning programs?
From: The EDUCAUSE Blended and Online Learning Constituent Group Listserv [mailto:BLEND-ONLINE@LISTSERV.EDUCAUSE.EDU] On Behalf Of Robert Tousignant Sent: Wednesday, January 21, 2015 11:50 AM To:BLEND-ONLINE@LISTSERV.EDUCAUSE.EDU Subject: Re: [BLEND-ONLINE] Social network platforms for HigherEd
Also, as mentioned in my previous post, Schoology (http://www.schoology.com) offers an LMS with a modern social media interface and integrations with Facebook, Microsoft OneDrive, etc… you might want to add it to the list as well.
I added both thanks for the update and clarification.
Facebook Group
“Groups for Schools” feature today which will allow American colleges to create Group pages accessible only within the school community.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking service. Founded in December 2002 and launched on May 5, 2003, it is mainly used for professional networking.
K-12 Edmodo
Edmodo is a social networking site for teachers and students where over 46 million teachers, students, and parents are connecting to collaborate on assignments, discover new resources. Edmodo is a web 2.0 social networking tool for educators to use to communicate with students and parents.
Microsoft OneDrive
A file hosting service that allows users to upload and sync files to a cloud storage and then access them from a Web browser or their local device.
12manage.com
A free management education and business education platform for management and organization of business or education.
Yammer
Yammer a private social network collaboration software and business applications that allows the user to connect to the right people, share information across teams and organize around projects.
Celly
Celly is a platform for ad-hoc social networks that is accessible via iPhone, Android, Web, SMS text and even email. Networks connect individuals and communities for instant and easy communication.
Jive
Jive is a communication and collaboration platform solution for business. Jive enables employees, partners and customers to work together.
Twitter
Twitter is a powerhouse for marketing, communication, business, and even education, letting people from around the world work together, share ideas, and gain exposure to concepts.
Google+ Communities
Google+ is a place to connect with friends and family, and explore interests. Google+ allows the user to share photos, send messages, and stay in touch with the people globally.
Hive Social
Hive Social is a specialist Social Media consultancy, that helps businesses and brands find, connect, build and engage with their online audience through Social Media and Digital Marketing.
Enterprise Hive
HiveSocial for higher education is an enterprise social software, communication and collaboration platform with embedded game mechanics
Socialtext
Socialtext applies Web 2.0 technologies such as enterprise microblogging, enterprise social networking and wikis to the critical challenges facing businesses. Socialtext’s platform allows employees to share expertise, speed workflows, and get their jobs done faster.
Elgg
Elgg an open source social networking software that provides individuals and organizations with the components needed to create an online social environment. It offers blogging, microblogging, file sharing, networking, and groups
“Learning is finding out what you already know, Doing is demonstrating that you know it, Teaching is reminding others that they know it as well as you do. We are all learners, doers, and teachers.”
A Facebook group is probably the quickest, easiest, and will give you the best engagement. Data shows that in the under 25 age group, Facebook groups is still popular.
If you were trying to reach mainly current and future, I would shift to LinkedIn.
All of those other social networks and white label networks require people to remember another log in, site, and place to check and update. You might get good engagement up front, but it will deteriorate.
David Kampmann, M.S. in Ed, CFD | Southeast Technical Institute
Can anyone recommend a good social network platform, preferably Cloud-based, that could be used to facilitate substantive organic communication and collaboration among past, present and future students on a handful of online and blended learning programs?
I am familiar with Google+ Communities, Yammer, Jive and Socialtext, but I am wondering if there are other solutions worth investigating. Facebook at Work might be a possibility, but it is too early to tell. Elgg is also a viable option, especially, a hosted Elgg instance, but identifying a fully functional, customizable and super easy to use and administrate Cloud-first solution is most desirable.
GameMaker: Studio Grades: 5–12 Pricing: Free, paid Concepts: Digital creation, programming and coding, game design
GameMaker: Studio is a robust game-making tool that appeals to both entry-level novices and game-development pros alike.
The Orchestra Grades: 6–12 Pricing: $13.99 Concepts: Music theory, memorization, listening, part-whole relationships
The Orchestra is an interactive iPad app for exploring classical music, the orchestra and orchestral instruments.
WonderBox Grades: 2–8 Pricing: Free Concepts: Design, geography, curiosity, imagination, making new creations
As its name suggests, WonderBox is an app that piques kids’ natural curiosity through video, drawing, taking pictures, messaging with family and friends and engaging in multistep challenges.
A.D.A.M. Interactive Anatomy Online is a 3D visualization and curriculum-development tool all about the human body. Teachers can select and create assignments that allow students to manipulate 3D images of the human body.
Construct 2 Grades: 7–12 Pricing: Free, paid Concepts: Digital creation, programming and coding, game design
Construct 2 is a Web-based 2D game-creation tool for students and teachers who want to get into game design without the need to know programming languages.
Set in a tropical jungle full of brightly colored fruit and animated birds, Fruity Fractions teaches fractions concepts to kids in first through third grades.
Do you have a class in Canvas? Invite me. As a students, teacher, does not matter. I will be your guinea pig and will be giving you feedback. And vice versa.
I have not touched Canvas for good two years. Last semester, I put my egg in the Google “basket.”
I see that EdPuzzle will be adding video soon. I am fairly serious that they are competing with Zaption, which just released Zaption Presenter, which is practically a mashup of video by your choice, either uploaded by you or mashedup from YouTube and super-imposed quizzing feature such as Kahoot: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/11/19/zaption-presenter/
Google, with Google Hangouts and Google Classroom (Google Drive/Google Forms and bunch other stuff) might be exactly what you are looking in Canvas with badges and EddPuzzle?
Just a thought, I am more keen now to explore w you the combination Canvas/EddPuzzle/Badges
a recent PEW research study found that while educators find technology beneficial in teaching writing skills, they feel it has also led to a direct increase in rates of plagiarism and infringement of intellectual property rights.
We want students to do “group work,” to collaborate, and to discuss. However, we have very specific realms in which we want this to happen: the group assignment, the in-class discussion, studying for exams, etc. At the same time, many of us want to put up barriers and halt any collaboration at other times (during assessments, for example). When collaboration takes place during assessment, we deem it plagiarism or cheating, and technology is often identified as the instrument that tempts students into such behavior.
A student may produce an entirely wrong answer, but if how they got there was through logic, reasonable assumption, educated guessing (not just plain old “guessing”) – and they were effective in communicating that process – then there is evidence of learning that I can take into account.
More on plagiarism, academic integrity and academic dishonesty in this IMS blog:
from the available list of presentation tools and from your own research, list 3 of the most preferable presentation tools, you would like to use
create an account for each of those tools
use common sense and logic and/or YouTube and Internet tutorials to learn how to use the tools
second class session, 50 min
15 min Refresh the design principles learned in last class and during homework. Discuss and present to your peers your individual project using the lessons about presentation design:
Marcin ZaródWhile at the same time in their kung-fu schools they have been using models like “station rotation”, “peer-learning”, “immediate feedback”, mastery learning, even some elements of gamification (like badges-like colour belts showing the mastery on some level and unblocking access to higher-level routines available only for the more advanced students), etc for hundreds of years…. And I am not joking. Just ask anybody who does some kung-fu under the watchful eye of a good coach (sifu).
A great example of a “peer learning” session on the enclosed photo (taken at a kung-fu training in Poland, not in China smile emoticon
China has now reshaped its national exam to focus on a broader range of topics and cognitive skills and, in turn, move away from teacher-dominated lecturing. The new test requires that students employ complex analytical skills, mixed with broader knowledge across various subjects.
► Does the technology accommodate and differentiate for all learners’ needs?
► Are students provided both voice and choice with technology, thereby increasing ownership and engagement?
► Are there opportunities for students to engage in peer feedback and collaborative work?
Having students bring their own devices to school is not a panacea for all the challenges in the secondary classroom. Yet if it is planned with thoughtfulness and intention, we have seen BYOD increase student engagement and relevance while reducing costs for the school. The best part: Teachers and students can be creative and autonomous in how this looks in classrooms.
In this rapid succession of examples, one can experience a showcase how to enhance students’ engagement by modernizing D2L experience through connection with social media. Bring your own examples and participate in a discussion, which aims finding the right tools for your class and field of study.
Audience: beginners to advanced
Prerequisite:
come with your own social media accounts: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine
Outcomes:
By the end of this session, the participants will have an idea about peculiarity of each of the social media tools: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine
By the end of the session, the participants will be familiar with the integration of each of the social media tool into D2L
By the end of the session, the participants will be able to asses to what extent each particular tool fits their field of study
By the end of the session, the participants will be able to compare the pedagogical advantages and disadvantages of the social media tools compared to D2L
D2L and Twitter
microblogging of 140 characters is often viewed as limiting. However, it can be the ultimate test how well students understand the learning material: making someone sum up in 140 characters what they learned this particular week in their class can take a lot of rewriting.
D2L allows a widget on its main page, where students can view and tweet. Students also can view and tweet from their mobile devices.
Tweeting during class is becoming mainstream in K12, also called “backchanneling.” Harnessing peers help to understand a concept discussed in class can save both time and efforts on the instructors’ side
Twitter is “making your twitter.com timeline more immersive by uncropping photos, so you can experience and present them as they were meant to be viewed.” https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/12/13/improvements-in-social-media-tools/
D2L and Vine
Vine is a social media services, which provides the ability to share 7 sec videos. Vine is becoming more popular then Instagram (15 sec videos), with the simplicity to create short videos. Students can take sequence of short videos, which amount to 7 sec to reflect the main points of a project. E.g.: chemical reaction, biology dissection, progress of engineering planning, solving a math formula.
URL to the vine can be posted in the D2L discussion area for further collaborative effort or for peers’ and instructions evaluation
Vines are a click away from a FB group page or, with the right handle and hashtag, to a Twitter discussion
The bottom-line to evaluate if fitting your field of study is: can the content be narrated or is it much better if visualized. If the latter, Vine can be your salvation. How to Create Social Videos With Your Smartphonehttps://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/01/10/social-videos-with-your-smartphone/
Per SCSU IT disclaimer: MediaSpace (Kaltura) is a free, cloud-based video repository solution for campus that allows faculty and staff to upload and distribute video and audio content for academic or administrative purposes. Facilitators will discuss potential uses of MediaSpace for campus, demonst rate how to create Webcam and screen recordings, upload audio/video, and embed or link to MediaSpace content from D2L or a web site. YouTube is owned by Google and the integration, including statistics and analytics by Google are way beyond MediaSpace. The only selling point of MediaSpace is the FERPA requirement by MnSCU to host privacy data on a MnSCU owned server
I can cover this in 5-15 minutes, just let me know what you prefer
Integrating Facebook Groups
I will show a couple of groups that I have used
I can also come up with an “exercise” that participants can do, just let me know: (1) if you want me to and (2) if participants are suppose to have a Facebook account that they can log into during the session
Title
Engage your students: gaming and gamification in the learning process.
Outline
As part of the broader discussion, a short discussion segment to form and agree on definitions and terms regarding games and gamification. Another short segment to seek consensus if this SCSU campus is ready to departure on the path of gamifying education. After several examples, of how games are used in education and gamification techniques, a discussion on how gaming and gamification can be streamlined amidst shrinking budget and increasing workload. More details and information about gaming and gamification at: http://scsu.mn/1F008Re
Audience: beginners to advanced
Outcomes:
By the end of this session, the participants will have a working definitions on play, games, serious games, game-based learning, digital game-based learning, gaming, gamification and badges. (more at http://scsu.mn/1F008Re)
By the end of the session, the participants will be familiar with the possibilities for integration of games in the educational process and for gamification of the educational process.
By the end of the session, the participants will be able to asses to what extent games and gamification fit their field of study
Plan:
Introduce each other and share the reason and interest to attend this discussion; what are the expectations from this discussion
Your Brain on Video Game http://www.zaption.com/present/566b26d4cbda6b1c1c482aa6
(use presenter, ask for mobile devices)
Work on the definitions: play, games, serious games, game-based learning, gaming, gamification and badges
Title
Present and be presented: engage your students with modern ways to share information
Outline
Two trends plague education: the swamp of PowerPoint presentations and the lack of visual literacy. In this rapid succession of examples, one can experience a showcase of various cloud-based tools, which brings visual presentations way beyond PowerPoint and align with the Millennials demand for current social interaction. A discussion on how relevant these tools are to various disciplines and details on improving the interaction among instructors and students during the presentation. Ongoing discussion about design as part of visual literacy and the difference between blended learning and technology integration.
Audience: beginners to advanced
Outcomes:
By the end of this session, the participants will have understand the movement “Death by PowerPoint” and will understand the advantage of cloud-based presentation tools to MS PowerPoint
By the end of the session, the participants will be familiar with several tools, which successfully replace PowerPoint and well beyond.
By the end of the session, the participants will be able to asses to what extent games and gamification fit their field of study
By the end of the session, the participants will be able to discriminate between technology integration and blended learning.
Plan:
Introduce each other and share the reason and interest to attend this discussion; what are the expectations from this discussion
EdPuzzle https://edpuzzle.com/ https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/02/19/edpuzzle-flipped-lessons/
crops the video so one can watch only a segment. Does not make much sense, since YouTube gives an URL to the reference point, but it allows instructor’s audio feedback. It is still too much “instructor’s proprietary” and not so much students-engaging as Zaption Presenter and Kahoot.
VideoNotes allows you to load a video on the left side of your screen then on the right side of the screen VideoNotes gives you a notepad on which to type.