I have found the idea of being issued badges for completing different activities a highly motivating factor throughout this MOOC. I think it is something that I could also incorporate into the way I structure some […]

Obviously planning is an essential part of the project lifecycle, but it is amazing just how easy it can be to forget this, at least partly, when people decide to jump in feet first and get carried away by their […]

Ok, I’m not sure this is 100% on target for this week’s “if you only do one thing” but I’m sure there are people on the MOOC who might have some useful suggestions or insights for me. This year one of my short […]

Read Effective Assessment in a Digital Age (JISC, 2010). Choose either one of the case studies listed on pages 26-29 or an example of assessment design from your own experience and –

consider how the case study […]

So, after a week “off” here we go again on week 4 of the ocTEL MOOC.
The focus this week is to “look at how learners can be supported through assessment and feedback, and how technology can help.”
Here is the […]

This is an extension of the post about learning styles where I mentioned the idea of Universal Design for Learning. I wasn’t aware of this concept and so I thought it might be a good idea to cluster some resources […]

There are many theories about learning styles that define and describe the different ways learning occurs. Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory is based on experience and conceptualization. The learning modalities […]

This week we’re looking at materials, platforms, and technologies for enhancing learning. We will explore digital learning resources that ‘fit’ with your learners and their different needs, and some technologies […]

I have not really been able to take advantage of the “week off” in the way that I had hoped – my empty diary just seemd to fill up as it so often does and family visits because of the Bank Holiday also meant that […]

Resources and more to watch, read, and research
Sources on OER and re-use:

Jisc/HEA OER Infokit https://openeducationalresources.pbworks.com/w/page/24836480/Home
JISC Case Studies of OER use <a […]

Take the perspective of a learner and spend some time using:

one resource from Khan Academy’s YouTube videos
one resource from ElearningExamples e-learning games
the iEthiCS simulation

As usual, when I’m […]

Have a look at one of the following tools (choose one you are not already familiar with) and consider its application in your context.

Xerte
Glomaker
Cmap (click the small document and tool icons), Popplet (iPad/iOS) or Mindjet (web, iOS, Android)
Touchcast (iPad/iOS) mobile video production
Camtasia or Jing
Screencast-o-matic.

How easy was it to understand how this tool worked?
How quickly and easily would you find it to use?
How could you apply this tool in your own teaching?
What does this tool offer that has advantages over your current practice?

The choice here of a tool with which I was not familiar was very easy as I had never heard of, let alone, tried, any of them. So, having not much else to do on this rainy, grey Saturday morning, I threw myself with great gusto into trying them out.
The first deception came quite quickly. At first glance, Xerte looked like a really interesting option with a whole suite of tools and some very encouraging comments by happy users on the home page. So, without further ado, I set about downloading it. I figured that the smart thing to do would be to start with the most recent version. I downloaded that but didn’t get any invite at the end to execute the programme. After messing around looking for exec. File on my computer, I decided to try downloading the other programmes that were on offer. After doing that, I finally decided to take a look at some of the other pages and came across instructions of how to do this – already feeling quite peeved by the whole experience, being told that I had to install something else, reconfigure something or another and then move some files from one place to another… well, let’s just say it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. So, for the moment, and until I build up the courage and find the time to go back to this, Xerte is inert on my computer and I have no idea what I could potentially do with it.
I don’t expect to have to go through this kind of manipulation now to install software. I can do it, but I really don’t like to have to do it – especially for the sake of evaluatiing the potential usefulness of the thing 😉
So, I decided to have a look at another one and took a logical, linear approach moving straight to Glomaker. I checked out one of the samples about referencing work and, yes, I could see possibilities with this. Again there were technical glitches with the questions – most of them didn’t work on my computer. However, it already had an « old-fashioned » feel about it so I didn’t stay around too long.
Cmap, Popplet and Mindjet are not for me at the moment. I don’t seem to think in a way that fits into this kind of mapping and I quickly decided that I didn’t want to spend any time with these – I have played about with this kind of thing in the past and still have some software that I unstalled and which has remained untouched since my initial trials. Oh, yes, the other thing about these programmes that put me off was that they weren’t all  free.
Next came Touchcast and that had me REALLY excited. I wanted to get stuck into that immediately. By the time the preview video was finished I was already thinking about how, when and where I could use this. Then the fun and games started. It’s a beta version, no direct download etc. Anyway, I signed up received the email, created my account and got ready to start. I was able to watch one sample Touchcast and then clicked on the create button. The programme crashed and an error message was sent. I tried 3 times and 3 times the programme crashed. I rebooted the computer and tried again, it crashed. I gave up and moved to the next one on the list – Camtasia.
Camtasia – thanks, but no thanks. Same for Jing. Paying, free trials etc. I tjhink I’m becoming really addicted to the idea of « open ». Nothing like the buzz that I had when arriving on the Touchcast site. It already felt « old » – it’s starting to remind me of the last time I was in Berlin moving from the old eastern side to the western and vice versa.
Screencast-o-matic – Lots of things I didn’t like about some of the others, rolled into one ! Probably way too harsh, but I’m done with looking at these things for one day.
I was looking forward to this activity. It ended up eating up my whole Saturday morning (and now part of my Saturday evening) and I haven’t really been able to evaluate anything or answer all the questions posed. I will try and go back to Xerte as something tells me that it’s worth making the effort and I will definitely persevere with Touchcast as I think this has huge potential. Anyway, I think I deserve a badge today just for hanging in there 😉  Quite seriously, this activity – without really having produced anything tangible (activity, video etc.) has taken me more like 3-6 hours than 30-60 minutes 😉
Here are some cool things other participants have suggested:
A French tool – coccoricco, as they say over here – that I will check out. Thanks to Julie Tardy for pointing this one out on her blog.
http://scenari-platform.org/projects/scenari/fr/pres/co/
Thanks to Elizabeth E Charles for this one : http://www.scoop.it/t/everything-open
A nice example of how Screencast-o-matic can be used to change a Powerpoint presentation into a different format : http://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/c2hYDNnaW9
Thanks to Moira Sarsfield for sharing this.

Over recent decades, game-based learning has grown as a form of TEL. It encapsulates many principles of active learning, such as engagement in an authentic context, learning by mistake-making and reflection, […]

I like this model, which I hadn’t come across before. I can see straight away where many of my students are and how I apply different strategies at different times. I’m going to enjoy thinking about […]

Just when I thought I was going to be able to ease off a little and re-focus on some of my initial objectives (getting to grips with Twitter), the week 2 activities and resources have been published and this looks […]

I enjoyed watching the short video on “Teaching Machines” presented by B.F. Skinner (exact date is unverified but believed to be in the 1950s). It reminded me of many of the discussions I have taken part in (and […]