Career Forum Roundtables – The #EdTechCareer Line Up for #et4online

The Emerging Technologies for Online Learning (#et4online) Conference in Las Vegas NV is just around the corner (April 9-11, 2013). As mentioned in a previous post, I will be helping to support a new initiative at the conference – the Career Forum Roundtables.

We are very excited to offer the career roundtables as an opportunity for graduate students, junior scholars, and other interested #et4online participants who would like to chat about Ed Tech career planning and development. If you are interested, please feel free to join us for any of the scheduled sessions, and take advantage of meeting the career roundtable facilitators who have offered to share their  career insights and experiences. 

CAREER FORUM ROUNDTABLES (#EdTechCareers)

Please join us in the Westwood Boardroom for three Career Forum Roundtable sessions:

EdTech Career Tracks Tuesday, April 9 – 2:30pm-3:20pm	There are a number of career directions and opportunities to apply for with your graduate degree. Join this roundtable to ask career questions and gain advice on which path is right for you: ·     Higher Education Faculty/Instructor – teaching vs. research institutions ·     Industry Research & Development ·     Consulting/Other Facilitators: Whitney Kilgore from Academic Partnerships & Dr. Kevin Grazino from Nevada State College
Career Skills Wednesday, April 10 – 10:10am-11:00am	In developing career skills for the educational technology field, it is critical to get involved and connected to both professional affiliations and peers. Come learn about how to build your CV and also showcase your experiences, as we talk about: ·     Professional Networking ·     Getting Involved in Professional Organizations ·     Scholarship Development – teaching, publishing, service ·     Interview Advice Facilitators:Dr. George Veletsianos from the University of Texas & Dr. Rachel Salas-Didier from Nevada State College & Dr. Tanya Joosten from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee
Career Applications Thursday, April 11 – 10:10am-11:00am	Applying to your first faculty position? Looking for industry positions? Perhaps you should consider how you present yourself via your job application. Join us as we talk about things to consider when developing your career materials, including: ·     CV & Resume Writing ·     ePortfolio Development ·     References Facilitators: Dr. Amy Collier from Stanford University & Laura Pasquini from the University of North Texas

 

See you at #et4online!

Published: Learning and Performance Quarterly 1 (4)

The Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) Volume 1, Issue 4 is hot off the press!

Editorial Abstract: The Learning Spectrum 

Learning is critical for curriculum design, training development, and educational objectives. Both pedagogy and design inform learning practices for suggested practices and models. In the fourth and final issue for the Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) volume one houses a combination of manuscripts to span the learning spectrum.

INVITED ARTICLE

What is Action Learning? Components, Types, Process, Issues, and Research Agendas ~ Yonjoo Cho

CASE STUDY

Students perceptions of collaborative learning in intermedia and performance arts ~ Kate Sicchio, Grant Bridges

CONCEPT/THEORY PAPER

Web-based Learning Management System Considerations for Higher Education ~ Chih-Hung Chung, Laura A. Pasquini, Chang E. Koh

BOOK REVIEW

Book Review: Cases on Formal and Informal E-Learning Environments: Opportunities and Practices ~ Lindsay J. Ritenbaugh, Justin C. Shukas

Call for Submissions

The Learning and Performance Quarterly (ISSN 2166-3564) is a peer-reviewed, open access journal from the Center for Knowledge Solutions at the University of North Texas. The journal takes a broad look at current developments and research that involves innovative learning, training, human resource development, and performance management across academic and professional disciplines.

We are seeking manuscript submissions for the following categories:

• Research Articles – Qualitative/Quantitative
• Concept/Theory Papers
• Case Studies
• Book or Media Reviews
• Invited Articles

 

2013 call for submissions deadlines*:

LPQ 2(1): March 11, 2013 at 11:59 pm CDT

LPQ 2(2): May 20, 2013 at 11:59 pm CDT

LPQ 2(3): August, 2013 at 11:59 pm CDT

LPQ 2(4): October 21, 2013 at 11:59 pm CDT

*Submit your manuscripts ONLINE. Submission to publication turnaround time is 6-8 weeks. For detailed submission guidelines and instructions on how to make a submission please visit Author Guidelines. 

 

Thanks for reading,

 

Laura A. Pasquini & Dr. Jeff Allen, Founding Editors
Learning and Performance Quarterly
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Email: LPquarterly@gmail.com

Guiding Social Media at Our Institutions [ARTICLE]

Remember last fall when Tanya Joosten (@tjoosten), Lindsey Harness (@LindseyHarness) and I asked for your input on how your institution guides social media? No? Too long ago to remember?  Well regardless, we appreciated those who could respond as it helped us gather information on what we are (or are not) doing to direct social media use in higher education.

The results from the research are in, and published! Here is the recently published, peer-reviewed article for the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP).

Access the article in PDF form here.

This article expands on Chapter 6 from Social Media for Educators to understand HOW higher education is guiding social media use. Through our open-ended questions, we learned more about how instituions are supporting and guiding social media. Often we see social media used a broadcast medium and there has also been a shift to designate new roles or responsibilities to support its use on campus.

Thanks to the SCUP Change-Disruption Mojo for featuring some of the findings as this week’s topic, specifically to Alexandria Stankovich (@thinkstank) for sharing both sides of the issue:

• Concerns: monitoring online behavior, identity thief, privacy, FERPA/FIPPA, maintaining university image, control, ownership, required trainings

• Benefits: interaction and engagement beyond the formal learning environment

Want to learn more about the research and/or article findings? Take a gander at the SCUP Google+ Hangout interview with Dr. Tanya Joosten, who shares her own insights and research highlights from this study.

Key takeaways:

• Social media is often used as a “broadcast channel”
• We should engage and develop a culture through the use of social media tools
• Institutions need fluid access to information regardless of the technology
• Simplicity principle to build capacity for the social web
• We need to develop models of effective practice for LEARNING!
• Trust the faculty you hire – they have some great ideas
• Recognize that learners are MORE than sponges
• Match technology with task & building digital literacy opportunities
• Is social media in your strategic plan? Is social media or technologies part of your learning outcomes on campus? THIS is where your efforts need to be
• Institutional encouragement is needed for collaboration ON YOUR CAMPUS to identify how to best guide social media models & effective practices

“The pedagogical benefit of social media use beyond its application as a motivational technique continues to be unaddressed by many universities.”

This study was just the tip of the iceberg. There is definitely more research on learning, social media use, and higher education to be done. Time to get at it (says my faculty advisor @drjeffallen)! Back to the dissertation proposal grind…

Reference:

Joosten, T., Pasquini, L. A., & Harness, L. (2013). Guiding social media at our institutions. Society for College and University Planners – Integrated Planning for Higher Education, 41(2), 1-11.

Using Verbs for Specific Learning Outcomes

Student learning outcomes is a very common term in education. For many of my k-12 colleagues we have used this term from graduate course work, to teaching practicum, and for curriculum planning. The challenge in writing student learning outcomes happens when you have to find actionable items and SPECIFIC methods for learning assessment.

Last week I attended “Writing student learning outcomes and the GSTEP teaching template:  How they inform your teaching” for the G*STEP program presented by Shana Cole & Nancy Fire from CLEAR.

We talked about components of a teaching strategy, which included:

A. Context for your teaching strategy
B. Selecting learning challenges to address with your teaching strategy
C. Objectives for this experience
D. Foundational knowledge necessary for students to participate in teaching strategy
E. Step by step planning
F. Ground rules (if needed for you strategy)
G. Assessment: How do you plan to assess the effectiveness of your learning strategy?
H. Anticipated Challenges: Indicate how you plan to deal with any of these challenges that may apply. Describe.
I. Journal Reflection

The three level model for student learning outcome development, which included the following levels:

1. Goal
2. General Learning Outcomes (GLOs)
3. Specific Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

The last step – Specific Learning Outcomes (SLOs) – is where we focused our attention. Specific learning outcomes are highly measurable and possess detailed requirements. As an instructional designer who is often involved in program evaluation or course design, I appreciated the cross-disciplinary conversations on how to meet various subject matter content issues with the needs of the learner. A helpful resource to keep us on the same page and to guide our SLOs discussion was the Bloom’s Taxonomy verb wheel. This was a practical tool that helped to focus our planning and here were some of the key points I gleaned from the overall workshop:

• be clear, specific & measurable
• identify what the students should be able to do as a result of a learning experience
• display evidence that learning has occurred at a specified competency level
• focus shifts from what “I will teach” to “what students will learn”
• define content, expectations, assessments & creates constructive data i.e. data, percentage, and understanding of student learning

For student learning outcomes to work they have to connect to the learning. A great way to assess your expectations of your SLOs is to share these with other educators,  both inside and outside your discipline or subject matter expertise. Student learning outcomes need to be written at a general level to ensure clear communication, and limit subjective language. By using SLOs you are able to modify course objectives, assess curriculum design, and measure how your instruction impacts learners. By creating 3-7 overall goals in your course, you will want to consider at least 3-5 specific learning outcomes to measure each goal. These goals will help address your teaching strategy and how you assess your learner’s progress.

How do your specific learning outcomes (SLOs) fit into your entire course planning and content delivery?

Registered for #et4online yet?

The Emerging Technologies for Online Learning Symposium in Las Vegas now has the full program posted online and early bird registration ends on February 12, 2013 so Register NOW. If you are in the field of learning technologies, as a student, educator, entrepreneur, or researcher, then you not want to miss the joint #EdTech symposium hosted by the Sloan Consortium and MERLOT. Here are a few more updates and announcements from the #et4online conference planning committee:

6th Annual International Symposium for Emerging Technologies for Online Learning
April 9-11, 2013
Planet Hollywood Resort, Las Vegas, NV

There are some world-class presentations being offered at this conference – check out the FULL PROGRAM. This also includes a complimentary workshop, Creating Your Own MOOC with Udacity, by Sebastian Thrun, co-founder of Udacity, Vice President/Fellow at Google, and a Stanford University research professor. Workshops and the Unconference Session are included in the conference registration at no additional fee! Also, be sure to check out the newest additions – The Launch Pad &  Career Forum. 

Can’t travel to Las Vegas? Learn more about our virtual attendee option. Also, feel free to get a preview of the virtual #et4online attendee options during the FREE webinar on Wednesday, Feb. 27 @ 3 pm EST => Register HERE.

Are you planning to attend the #et4online conference? If so, I look forward to connecting soon. For now, feel free to find me online or join the conversation about the conference here:

Twitter hashtag: #et4online 
Follow us on Twitter @et4online

Happy Digital Learning Day! #DLDay – Top 10 Learning Web Tools of 2012

Happy Digital Learning Day (#DLDay)!

To celebrate digital learning day today, I thought it would be a good idea to share my belated Top 10 Learning Web Tools list from 2012. As I have read other lists (here and here), I have been meaning to share useful tools that have helped me learn this last year. You may have heard me say “it’s not the tool” but rather how you use the tool – so I thought I would share my top tools that I have put to use for my own productivity and learning.

1. Twitter - This is my active stream of information that allows me to track on conversations either via search, hashtags or through my Twitter lists. I value Twitter to find information, learn about news/trends, collect articles, read blog posts, and, most importantly, engage with peers on a daily basis. My evolving personal learning network (PLN) is definitely at the top of my learning list.
2. Google Docs/Drive I have found Google Drive EXTREMELY useful in 2012, as I am often seen with my Chromebook in tow. Daily I can be found using Google Drive, as I typically take notes during a lecture/meeting, brainstorm storm agenda items, crowdsource ideas, collect information (via a Google forms), or store resources i.e. PDFs, presentations, and database files.
3. Dropbox - Not all of my collaborators of research, work and writing use Google Docs, so I tend use Dropbox as my “go to” cloud storage and sharing with MS Word. I often move in between spaces and devices (mobile, PC, Chromebook, & Mac) both on campus and at home, so Dropbox is easy enough to save and return to any working projects or assignments. As a frequent flyer for with an edu account, I have accrued 23.22 GB of space through referrals, use, and a Dropbox quest. My Dropbox allows for easy work flow, specifically for storing conference presentations, collecting articles for a literature review, archiving tweets through IFTTT, downloading my mobile photos, holding my lesson plans, and editing manuscripts with co-authors.
4. Google Search - When in doubt…Let Me Google That For You. I would say that Google is typically used as my initial search for information, news, and quick finds probably because I am often working in Google Drive (see #2) and using Google Chrome (see #7). I have learned benefits of refining my power searching skills, and also not having this as my only outlet for knowledge acquisition.
5. Google Scholar Although I increasingly use the UNT Libraries – Find Online Articles Search more often these days, I can say that Google Scholar has been a helpful tool for finding data, collecting statistics, locating peer-reviewed journal articles, collecting my literature review materials, and retrieving other scholarly resources.
6. Google + Hangouts The reason I value Google Plus is for the Hangouts. Both for a meeting space or “On Air” live recording, this forum has proven well for meetings, conference calls, presentations, demonstrations, peer-review process, and general catch up with colleagues. I do still use Skype; I have a greater preference for using a video conference space that has live notes, free group (up to 10) calls, connection to my Google Drive, and, of course, the ability to infuse ridiculous Google Effects when meetings run on too long. Side note: I  am curious to see what happens with the Google Plus Communities. I have recently been invited to a few, and I can see some potential with this feature in Google Plus.
7. Google Chrome As a mobile learner and avid Chromebook-er, I would say that Google Chrome is a user-friendly web browser for productivity and workflow. I appreciate the streamline interface, search ability, extensions  and applications from the Chrome Web Store {which compliments my Android phone apps as well}. Also, it is quite compatible with Google Drive, Google + Hangouts, and easily transferable from my office to home computing life.
8. WordPress I may have been exhausted from reflecting during my Masters’ program; however I think that having my own space and place for reflection has helped me in 2012. For a fellow researcher, I candidly explained why I blog and more about my blogging history; however I used my blog more this year to document my doctoral progress and process my own educational experiences. Thanks for being an easy space to draft, publish, and share these thoughts, WordPress.
9. Delicious Although I use Scoopit, Storify, and Paper.li a great deal, I can say that Delicious is still my top curation tool. Since 2007, I have been collecting and organizing resource into my delicious account. When I share a URL on Twitter it automatically archive the link to my delicious account via packrati.us. This is great to return back to my tags and stacks to find notes, information, statistics, or articles that I can use for presentations and publications. Also I appreciate others in my Delicious network who stayed loyal to this tool (even after a few changes) and socially bookmark useful resources.
10. Flickr This social photo sharing site has provided me with a lot of inspiration and ideas. Whether I have used creative common-licensed images for presentations and blog posts, or just as a tool to document my own PhD adventures, I appreciate being a member of the Flickr community. I often capture a photo of a presentation slide, make a note from class, or document an image on the go to house them on Flickr for future reference and referral.

For 2013, I plan on taking Jane Hart’s (@C4LPT) 10 Tools Challenge to find out how to use new tools to help for my own professional learning, research, and development as an educator/trainer. For those of you who want to join in the fun, check out the Top 100 Tools for Learning 2012 for inspiration to explore. Happy learning!

CFP: Emerging Technologies for Online Learning Conference #et4online

The 6th Annual International Symposium for Emerging Technologies for Online Learning (#et4online) from April 9-11, 2013 (Planet Hollywood Resort – Las Vegas, Nevada) wants YOU to submit a conference proposal. Proposals are DUE by 11 pm CDT on December 10, 2012. 

The Emerging Technologies for Online Learning International Symposium, a joint Symposium of Sloan Consortium and MERLOT, is designed to bring together individuals interested in the review and evaluation of emerging technologies’ impact on online teaching and learning.

The 2013 Emerging Technologies Symposium chairs know technology for learning is shifting quickly:

“New discoveries in technology happen rapidly and far too frequently. It is difficult to keep up with every new release or innovation.  Advances in technology often become the vehicle for new ways to learn or enhance learner opportunities in our classrooms. As educators we progress forward, gaze back, and aim to bring the best of old and new to create an optimal environment to our students. However daunting this mission is, we tackle the problems and learn best from those who are already building the bridges and taking on the tasks we want to try. The field is advanced by those who share, scrutinize, and study. We invite you to contribute to the progress by presenting and attending this year’s symposium and encouraging your colleagues to join our efforts.” 

The #et4online steering committee is interested in interactive sessions that engage and inform participants for the following areas:

• Higher Education and K-12 Faculty
• Future professors and graduate students
• Educational technology leaders
• Students
• Instructional designers
• Instructional technologists
• Academic administrators

Sessions can be targeted to all attendees and or specified (novice, intermediate, or expert) levels of proficiency. The committee would like to see a wide range of involvement from various presenters/facilitators – this includes proposed sessions from graduate students TOO!

The #et4online symposium will accept presentations that offer attendees “real solutions,” pioneering practices, and future trends, specifically submissions which emphasize evidence-based practice and the impact of topic tracks on teaching practices and student learning outcomes using a range of research methodologies (e.g. case study, longitudinal comparisons, within group comparisons, quasi-experimental, etc.) and rigorous approaches to the analysis of supporting data, qualitative or quantitative. Here are the #et4online symposium tracks and research areas:

• Learning Spaces and Communities
• Open and Accessible Learning
• Evidence-based Learning
• Faculty and Student Development
• Innovative Media and Tools

Here is the presenter FAQs and Webinar Recording from 11/29  to help you with your proposal submission: 5 Tips on How to Submit a Successful Conference Proposal. 

There will be a wide range of emerging technologies for online learning trends, talks, sharing, and more! What happens at #et4online in Vegas will NOT stay in Vegas. And that’s a good thing! Follow @et4online for more updates as well!

Published: Learning and Performance Quarterly 1(3)

The third issue of the Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) speaks to the area of facilitation, teams and mobile support systems. This issue discusses theoretical building blocks for researchers that have a renewed interest in teams and their support. The reemergence of this area of study is important as we move further into the age of social media, personal learning networks and global information exchange. Thank you to our authors, editors, and peer reviewers for their contributions to the Learning and Performance Quarterly, Volume 1, Issue 3.

The Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) is an online, open access peer-review journal designed to make research available to the public and to support a greater exchange of global knowledge. The call for submissions for 2013 is now open - here are the deadlines for manuscripts for Volume 2:

Submission can be made online through the LP Quarterly website. For detailed submission guidelines and instructions on how to make a submission please visit Author Guidelines.

Happy reading,

Laura A. Pasquini & Dr. Jeff Allen, Founding Editors
Learning and Performance Quarterly
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter @LPQuarterly
Email: LPquarterly@gmail.com

The @BreakDrink Campus Tech Connection #CTCX No. 70: Ginkgotree

There are a number of conversations about challenges, changes and disruptions to higher education. Recently, Ginkgotree, the “Tumbler for textbooks,” got me thinking more about my curriculum content and sharing for my courses.

Teaching with a course pack just got a whole lot simpler with the new Ginkgotree app. http://www.ginkgotree.com/

Ginkgotree launched last week to allow instructors the ability to customize and develop their learning material using a wide variety of multimedia and curriculum content. On Monday’s (10/8/12) BreakDrink Campus Tech Connection (#CTCX) show, we were able to get a LIVE show and tell to preview the new instructional resource from Scott Hasbrouck (@scotthasbrouck), Ginkgotree CEO & “Everything Hacker.”

Here are a few of the interesting features that might appeal to educators in higher education (and possibly K-12 as well):

1. Teaching from your own curriculum – instructors have the ability and control of designing their own course curriculum that meets the needs of their learning objectives and materials. Through an easy licensing service provided by Ginkgotree, instructors have the ability to use content from all over the web including journal articles, YouTube videos, images, and other content on the web. One this course pack is developed, instructors have the ability to share a private link to students to start the learning.

2. Do you have an aged textbook to add?  Ginkgotree allows you to utilize some of your favorite text material, even the ones that have been highlighted, annotated and difficult to retrieve in the past by using high quality scanners to digitize your print text and share legally with learners.

3. Give your students the best opportunities to learn – Remember when you wondered if your students even bought or even opened the textbook for your course? SOON instructors will be able to track learner progress and engagement through course pack analytics. Ginkgotree also has the ability to offer public and private notes, ask questions, and tag your content with keywords to make it easier for both the instructor and student to navigate.

4. Reduce the cost for your learners - Students pay a flat rate of $10/month for unlimited courses, plus any applicable copyright fees (usually 15 cents per page) for their books. Rather than spending $250 per textbook, average costs of textbooks range from $45-55. For instructors it is “Free. Always. Forever.”

I think Ginkgotree has an interesting model and can definitely contribute to the evolution of higher education and learning as we know it. Perhaps it is time to consider how we compile and share learning content with our students. Go on. Sign up. Play around with it yourself. Let me know what you think.

This blog post is cross-posted at BreakDrink.com.

CFP: The @LPQuarterly Volume 1, Issue 4 EXTENDED: DUE November 5, 2012

The Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) is an online, open access peer-review journal designed to make research available to the public and to support a greater exchange of global knowledge. We have recently been invited to publish in the EBSCO research database, and our publication is growing both in author contributions and readership. Articles in support of innovative learning and performance across disciplines from developing and proven scholars are welcome for the last call for 2012 – here is the more information about the call for manuscripts.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS:

Learning and Performance Quarterly, Volume 1, Issue 4

The Learning and Performance Quarterly (LPQ) is currently accepting submissions for the second issue. Deadline for submissions is Friday, October 26 at 5 pm CDT. DEADLINE EXTENDED to Monday, November 5, 2012 at 11:59 CDT. Submission of manuscripts can be made online through the LP Quarterly website. For detailed submission guidelines and instructions on how to make a submission please visit Author Guidelines.

TYPES OF MANUSCRIPTS ACCEPTED
Research Articles :
Papers that are concerned with the various approaches to learning and performance impact. These papers should discuss the literature related to the approach employed and include a measure of the learning and performance impact of the approach employed.

Case Studies:
Case studies that highlight a particular learning, training, performance or instructional setting in which learning and performance resources were used to address a particular challenge. They present a discussion of the challenge from current literature, what was done to solve or explore it, and the results of the project. They often offer suggestions for others interested in addressing similar challenges.

Concept/Theory Papers:
Papers that present new concepts or contribute to existing theory for learning and performance. This should offer a discussion of the literature related to the concept/theory along with a discussion of the major issues for future research needed to validate the concept/theory.

Book Reviews:
Book reviews of publications 2011 or later will be accepted to highlight a issues and resources relevant for learning and performance and offer a suggested solution or direction. The position is supported with both a logical argument and a review of the pertinent literature. Preference will be given in the review process to book review essays that comment on two or more related books.  Book review essays should not exceed 3,800 words and should include city, state, publisher, and year of the book’s publication.  An abstract of 150 words or less and keywords are required for book review essays.  Reviews of single books should not exceed 1,900 words.  At the beginning of the text please include title, author, publisher, city, date, and page numbers of the book(s) under review.

CALL FOR LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE QUARTERLY REVIEWERS
Interested in reviewing articles for the LPQ Journal? The LPQ journal is looking for reviewers to conduct peer reviews and evaluations of submissions.
Please identify your reviewing interests, substantive areas of expertise, and preferred research methods when completing the LPQ journal registration online.

We look forward to receiving your submissions. Please pass this post onto other colleagues and researchers who might be interested in publishing, reviewing or editing for the Learning and Performance Quarterly journal.

Thank you,

Laura Pasquini & Dr. Jeff Allen, Founding Editors
Learning and Performance Quarterly
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Email: LPquarterly@gmail.com