Her attempt at an apology just digs the hole deeper. Yes women do code. And I have found them all this week, for which I am grateful. Hardly (on both points I expect). I am on the board of a … Continue reading →

Too often we try to hold present and future technologie […]The post Knowing the Strength of Your eLearning Authoring Tool appeared first on eLearning Brothers.

What if Finland’s great teachers taught in U.S. schools? They’d likely quit in disgust. The US education crisis is not going to be solved by bringing in great teachers. A great many American systems are based on competition and measuring … Continue reading →

By Steve Lee,  Co- Founder/ Strategic Relationship Manager  Should we be building our e-learning solutions specifically to deal with all types of learning styles? This includes visual, auditory, kinesthetic, tactile, participatory, logical and even musical learners. Would it even matter if we did? 

Most people aren’t bad, merely weak. They will fall in behind anyone who is loud and claims to be righteous - even if they’re not.* We love to believe that the world is changed by heroes, and, since we aren’t … Continue reading →

Photo: Linda B. NilsonSelf-regulated learning (SRL), as the name might imply, is "the ability to plan, monitor, control, and evaluate one’s learning." according to Linda B. Nilson, Ph.D., founding director of the Office of Teaching Effectiveness and Innovation at Clemson University.Photo: Magna Publications In a recent online seminar, How to Integrate Self-Regulated Learning into Your Courses, Nilson gives actionable strategies to encourage students to learn this valuable skill, which will make them true participants in their own learning.SRL can range from strategic planning activities (such as goal setting for studying) to self-monitoring activities (such as examining physical environment and emotional state) to evaluating one’s own learning and achievement.The way an instructor designs activities for both inside and outside the class can assist the students in developing these skills. Some sample activities include:"How I earned an A in this course"Ask students at the beginning of the class to write an essay detailing how they plan to be successful in the course. They will repeat the exercise at the end of the class, enabling them to assess the effectiveness of their strategies.Read, recall, reviewAsk students to complete assigned reading and then, with the book closed, to write or recite what they remember from their reading. They then review anything they misunderstood or forgot.Minute papersAs a type of "lecture wrapper," have students to write for one minute at the end of class about what information they could put into practice now, what stands out in their mind from the class that day, and what is hindering their understanding.Post-test analysisThis analytical tool asks students to look at the questions they missed on the test and then decide whether they erred due to carelessness, unfamiliarity with the material, misinterpretation of the question, or failure to complete the question.Her experience in fostering excellence in teaching is evident as she discusses real-world techniques for involving students in planning, monitoring, and assessing their own learning. Strengthened by a selection of supplemental materials, this seminar is an excellent addition to any faculty development library. Source: Magna Publications

These are really good. Any company that balks at answering these questions seems like one to stay away from. LearnVest- 6 Interview Questions You Should Ask. What’s the difference between a good employee in this role and a fantastic one? … Continue reading →

Team Raptivity recently hosted a successful webinar on ‘The Art of Storyboarding’ by Desiree Pinder - Executive Director/Founder of Artisan E-Learning. Desiree answered some fundamental questions on storyboarding, through this webinar, such as: what is a storyboard, why create one, and how to build and show content in a storyboard.Here are some key takeaways from the session:·         Storyboard is crucial when working with others to create an eLearning course e.g. Subject Matter Experts (SME), Graphic Designers, or programmers.  ·         Storyboarding saves time and money as it’s easier to make early changes to a storyboard rather than to the actual course.·         A high level storyboard gives the overall vision of the course to your team.·         Microsoft Word is the easiest but least visual tool to create a storyboard. Use it when you are mostly going to include text in your storyboard. Use Microsoft PowerPoint if you want your storyboard to be visual.·         Create a storyboard directly in an eLearning/authoring tool for short courses and technical topics that need animations. But do it only if you know the tool very well and are the SME.·         The most important aspect of storyboarding is what goes in the storyboard, i.e. page numbers, text, audio, video, graphics/media, and programming instructions.·         Automating common functions can be a time-saver e.g. setting up macros and using the AutoCorrect option from Word.·         Use style guides for standardizing language, formatting, style, and design of your storyboard as well the course. Hereis one such style guide for your reference.·         Set up a proofing process and always have someone else proofread your storyboard.·         Most importantly, keep your storyboard succinct and it must map to what your learners are supposed to be learning or doing after the course. Hereis a sample storyboard template shared by Desiree.   Did you miss the webinar? No worries! You can watch the webinar recording here and have a look at the webinar presentation here. Happy storyboarding!

Progress on my book is proceeding, albeit slowly. The first few chapters are the hardest for me, as they involve a whole lot of background research to make sure the information is up to date. Interestingly, it is actually more … Continue reading →

In this article I will explore the explosion of for-profit eLearning courses on-line right now. There is no question that this market is booming, but course content is being generated as eLearning marketing materials instead of eLearning content. No one doubts that this market has huge potential, but many opportunities for learning are being squandered by a lack of coordination between Instructional Designers and course authors. This article unpacks why that coordination is not happening. This post was first published on eLearning Industry.

Everything You Need to Know to Get Started with Your CRM. A growing business needs a good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) application.Download Your Complete CRM Handbook (PDF)Is it time to invest in a CRM?The contents of this ebook will help you determine that. Over the next four chapters, we will examine the following topics:Signs your business needs a CRM How CRM can improve your sales and productivity Building your CRM strategy How to maximize your ROI With a CRM application, there's no secret formula. It simply manages most of your critical customer information so that you can see it all in one place. Without leaving the app, you can view contact info, follow up via email or social media, manage tasks, and track your performance, among other benefits. Implementing the right CRM can increase sales efficiency. You can close more deals, boost sales, and improve forecast accuracy.Download Your Complete CRM Handbook (PDF)Source: ITwhitepapers

Another sneak peek to my book. This one outlines learning theories relevant to GBL.    

Another sneak peek to my book. This one outlines instructional theories relevant to GBL. bookblog:dgbl_instructional_theories [Magic Bullet Games].

Follow on Twitter as @CHavergalTHEChris Havergal writes, "Tony Little points to ‘increasing gap’ between teaching standards at sixth form and university."Little voice: outgoing head spoke of a ‘gulf’ between schools and universities. Photo: Times Higher EducationThe outgoing headmaster of one of the UK’s most prestigious private schools has lamented university teaching standards, suggesting that lecturers would benefit from spending time in the secondary classroom.Tony Little, who steps down from Eton College this summer after 13 years, told Times Higher Education that there was a "gulf" between the experience of students in the final years of school and the first year of university "that should be bridged and we have failed to do it"."I have students coming back saying that, in some cases, the quality of teaching in the sixth form was better than anything at university," Mr Little said. "It is not right."The gap in teaching standards between sixth forms - in both the state and independent sectors - and university was increasing, Mr Little suggested, because of the "huge emphasis" on pedagogy at school level in recent years.Moves to make A-level exams "more accessible" by reducing the essay-based content had also widened the divide between secondary and higher education, Mr Little said, since this remained a primary method of assessment at university.He acknowledged that some institutions, such as the University of Reading and Brunel University London, had already invested heavily in first-year teaching standards.But he argued that there was a long way to go across the sector as a whole. "There is some outstanding stuff going on with the younger generation of teachers and I don’t see this replicated in any way at university level," Mr Little said.The intervention came after Jo Johnson, the universities minister, identified higher education teaching standards as his foremost priority. Plans for a teaching excellence framework will be announced later this year.Mr Little, a graduate of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, suggested that giving teaching greater recognition would help to drive up standards. "The business of developing a career within a university is predicated on your ability to produce good research," he said...An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Education   Mr Little was speaking ahead of the publication next week of his book, An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Education - Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (16 July 2015).Read more... Source: Times Higher Education

Putting everything that has to with learning and games under one name obscures the complexity of the field. We should use TWO terms: Game-Based Learning for the learner’s perspective, and Game Pedagogy for the teacher’s perspective. bookblog:game-based_learning_vs_game_pedagogy [Magic Bullet Games].

Edward Snowden: The World Says No to Surveillance - NYTimes.com. I know a lot of people seem to think that the kind of surveillance is necessary, that it somehow keeps us safer, and that if you have nothing to hide … Continue reading →

Follow on Twitter as @stephenoonooStephen Noonoo, current editor of eSchool News summarizes, "In an effort to discover just how much wired and wireless connectivity exists in classrooms across the nation, CDW-G has created a new crowdsourced heat map that shows exactly that. Find out how your state stacks up and add your school's information -- the project is still open to educators adding new data."How connected are your state’s classrooms? Check out this map.Photo: eSchool NewsAs efforts to increase bandwidth and internet connectivity in K-12 schools grow, a new report from CDW-G, based on a survey of 400 K-12 IT professionals, reveals just now connected — or not — the nation’s classrooms are today.The CDW-G K-12 Connected Heat Map outlines wired and wireless connectivity in a state-by-state display. The map is an ongoing project and CDW-G is asking schools to fill in their details to help make it more complete. Currently, there is not enough data to shade several states in the midwest and west. Data from the Federal Communications Commission reveals that the federal E-Rate program has connected nearly all U.S. K-12 schools to the internet, though not all classrooms are connected.And while statistics may show that the average school has roughly the same connectivity as the average U.S. school, it serves 100 times as many users.Read more... Additional news from eSchool News Follow these 10 one-to-one classroom tips for every educator. Wherever you are on the one-to-one spectrum we have some advice to help you move forward and make the most out of these new resources in your classroom.Read more... Read the full report online (PDF)A new paper by advocacy and policy org iNacol explores how blended learning is being used in practice and traces its history from 2008 to today. In particular, it takes a close look at the four major blended models and, through case studies, how specific schools have fared in implementing them. According to iNacol, the paper also delves into the evolution of blended learning, the use of digital content and curricula, and the engagement of students toward higher levels of academic success. The case studies profiled illustrate a variety of blended learning implementations, providing insights for increasing program effectiveness.Read more... Source: eSchool News

Education Week reports, "Now Online: Well Played gives you 25 field-tested math games and puzzles that go beyond computational fluency to engage students in grades 3-5 with key mathematical concepts. Step-by-step directions, materials, and reproducibles help you implement each game or puzzle, and examples illustrate how they play out in the classroom."Well Played Students love math games and puzzles, but how much are they really learning from the experience? Too often, math games are thought of as just a fun activity or enrichment opportunity. Well Played shows you how to make games and puzzles an integral learning component that provides teachers with unique access to student thinking. The twenty-five games and puzzles in Well Played, which have all been field-tested in diverse classrooms, contain:explanations of the mathematical importance of each game or puzzle and how it supports student learning;variations for each game or puzzle to address a range of learning levels and styles;clear step-by-step directions; and classroom vignettes that model how best to introduce the featured game or puzzle. Read more... Table of Contents AcknowledgmentsChapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: Supporting Learning Through Games and PuzzlesChapter 3: Base Ten Numeration  Chapter 4: Addition and SubtractionChapter 5: Multiplication and DivisionChapter 6: Mixed OperationsChapter 7: FractionsAppendixPuzzle Answer KeyReferencesPreview the entire book online (PDF)About the Authors  Linda Dacey, professor of mathematics and education at Lesley University, began her career teaching at the elementary level and early in her career, received an NSF grant to develop a model program for preparing middle school teachers. Read more... Karen Gartland is a mathematics coordinator and classroom teacher at Groton-Dunstable Middle School.Read more... Jayne Bamford Lynch is a district math instructional coach in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she spends most of her days in elementary classrooms supporting coaches, teachers, and students.Read more...Source: EdWeek Update and Stenhouse Publishers 

We are having a conversation on one of the lists I’m on about the use of technology in the classroom. A colleague of mine who is not really in favor of tech in schools said that tools do not make … Continue reading →

Instructional Strategies for Use with Games Interested in using games in the classroom but not quite sure how? My upcoming book will have an extensive set of supplementary materials, from summaries of the theories and models discussed in the book, to … Continue reading →

Our brains are wired to analyze patterns, make predicti […]The post Reduce the Weak Links in Your eLearning: Part 1 appeared first on eLearning Brothers.

Thought I should upload a few of my more recent talks. This one is from the CNIE conference in May 2014 that I did with Dana Ruggiero. [P] Presentation Ruggiero, D. & Becker, K. (2014) The Virtue of Failure: Designing … Continue reading →

by Anant Agarwal and Michael Crow, Quartz It might be difficult to believe that by 2020, the U.S. alone will be three million college graduates short of what projections say the economy will need. By 2025, that number could skyrocket to 16 million. Making college exclusive and expensive is not the answer the global economy needs, [...]

Here’s another fairly recent talk, also from CNIE 2014. [P] Presentation Becker, K. (2014) Walking the Talk : Signature Pedagogies and Metateaching in Graduate-Level Education Courses, CNIE 2014 Confluences: Spaces, Places & Cultures for Innovative Learning, Kamloops, BC, May 13-16, … Continue reading →