Learning Experiences with Social Software

Authentic Learning in a Virtual World

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:26:00 -0500

Below is a link to the Authentic Learning in a Virtual World presentation.

Note: The flash file is nine mb and may take a while to download and play. Also, the videos in the original presentation are not available in this online version.

Click anywhere on the slide to advance to the next slide.

Presentation in Flash format

Also, here is a link to the video of Tom Morrell's virtual poster project that I showed during the presentation (QuickTime required).

-Carl

About ITSST...

Wed, 09 Apr 2008 08:32:00 -0500

Who we are and what we do...

Instructional Technology Support Services

The Instructional Technology Support Services Team (ITSST), works with faculty to design, develop, and support the use of technology as part of the teaching and learning process. Our support services are delivered in collaboration with the HILLgroup (Hamilton Information and Learning Liaisons) and OCC (Oral Communications Center) to provide comprehensive, seamless support to faculty and students before and during a course. These services are designed to provide faculty with feasible course design and appropriate technology integration options. The various technology options are outlined on the web pages linked below. Other technology options are possible – just contact us to discuss your needs and ideas: 859-4877 (ITSS) or ITSS@hamilton.edu.

-Carl

Second Life Evaluation at Hamilton College

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:26:00 -0500

With all the attention that the media has been giving Second Life lately, questions about use of Second Life at Hamilton College are coming up. Below is some information that may help answer some basic questions that people may have.

Second Life is being evaluated by ITSST, and is not currently officially supported by ITS. We are interested in exploring how Second Life can be used academically, but the faculty members and/or students should understand that any projects that we take on at this point in time are considered to be experimental, and that users could experience situations such as loss of data or Second Life suddenly not being accessible. Therefore, Second Life should not be considered for "mission-critical" communication or directly associated with grades. Any requests for use of Second Life should start with a conversation between ITSST.

Some potential uses of Second Life include communication (both text and audio), virtual poster and video exhibits, science simulations, and simple 3D design. Second Life has a virtually unlimited number of other potential uses. Some uses are much more resource-intensive than others.

Second Life can be a challenging environment for new users. It is therefore advisable that any faculty member or student who is interested in using Second Life consult with a technologist in ITSST prior to making any decisions about how appropriate it is for their intended project.

Second Life can be accessed on the Macs in the MPC using six available USB drives. More drives can be made available if necessary. Draft policies for use of Second Life at hamilton College are available here.

If using Second Life as a presentation tool or resource, it is very important to have backup media in case the Second Life grid goes down. It is possible to record Second Life to video using an third-party recording tool (FRAPS), but this process has only been tested on the Windows platform and requires additional cableing and considerable customization of sound settings.

Currently, the Macs in the MPC do not support voice chat. This may be due to the version of OSX being used on those computers, the hardware of the machines, or a combination of the two. initial testing with iMacs indicates that voice chat will work once the new computers are installed this Summer.

I would like to stress that though we are very interested in hearing from faculty regarding potential uses of Second Life for evaluation purposes, no teams in ITS should be expected to provide any official support at this point in time. Individuals requesting support for any use of Second Life should be referred to ITSST. Please email me at crosenfi@hamilton.edu with any questions.

Thanks,

-Carl

Second Life Presentation Ideas

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 10:52:00 -0500

Below are some initial ideas for our presentation at Colgate with links to videos demonstrating what I would show "in-world."

Note that the video are not web-optimized. If you are using a less than blazing connection, you may wish to right-click the links to download them before viewing. Also, I have not edited them, so there may be some odd viewing angles and other issues.

An introduction, showing Hamilton (and perhaps Colgate) land in Second Life, flying, the inventory, interacting with other avatars, rezzing and interacting with objects, using the inventory, searching, and teleporting.

SL Intro

Changing the Appearance of SL Avaters

Interacting with Objects

A brief overview of the building tools and a demonstration of building an object in Second Life (Krista would be better at this than me). Then we could show some virtual artwork that others have produced in Second Life.

Building in SL (Balloon)

Scripting in SL (Float)

The Evolutions Museum in Second Life

Some examples of how Second Life might be used to teach chemistry, including open-source molecule-builders and the scripted molecules that we are working on at Hamilton.

SL Molecules

A brief introduction to putting photos and other images and video into Second Life. The video below shows the manual way of adding video using parcels. I'm hoping to find a video player that allows more control.

Creating a Video Screen in SL

Subdividing Land into Parcels for Multiple Videos

Continuing on with a discussion of how the streaming video, text chat, voice chat, and avatars can be used to conduct real-time media critiques, even across great geographical distance.

Image Critique in SL

Media Critique in SL

Some discussion about use of voice chat, specifically for language instruction.

Teaching Tamil in SL

Possibly teleporting to another area of Second Life to show what has been done, such as virtual art exhibits. Perhaps we might even run into someone (as did I) who would be willing to chat for a few minutes.

The Van Gogh Museum in SL

Meeting New People in SL

SL Science Fair

These are just some initial ideas - we can add, subtract and modify as desired.

-Carl

Upcoming Events - Digital Gaming for Teaching and Learning: A professional development brown bag

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 08:44:00 -0500

I'm planning on attending this "virtual brown bag" on digital gaming for teaching and learning this Friday at 12:00. If you are interested in participating, please let me know and I will set up a room and computer for a small group to participate.

Thanks,

-Carl

Authentic Learning Using the Participatory Web Presentation

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 15:06:00 -0500

Thanks to everyone who attended the first Authentic Learning Using the Participatory Web Information session!

Below is a link to a Flash version of the presentation. Note that the links do not work; clicking on them will only advance to the next slide. If you would like a link to any of the resources mentioned in the presentation, please send me an email at crosenfi@hamilton.edu.

Authentic Learning Using the Participatory Web Presentation

-Carl

Authentic Learning using the Participatory Web Information Session

Mon, 07 Jan 2008 11:17:00 -0500

HILLgroup, a collaboration between the Library and Information Technology Services, is offering a new information session entitled Authentic Learning using the Participatory Web. The focus of this information session is to evaluate some ways that newer “Social Software” applications might be used to support teaching and learning.

Location:
Burke 001

Dates and Times:
Note that each time is a complete session – multiple times are provided for convenience

· 11:00am, Monday January 14th (sandwiches and refreshments provided)

· 2:00pm, Monday January 14th (refreshments provided)

· 9:30am, Wednesday January 16th (refreshments provided)

Sessions will include one hour of presentation and demonstration, and an optional hour for questions and discussion. Refreshments will be provided.

To RSVP or ask a question, please send an email to Carl Rosenfield at crosenfi@hamilton.edu.

Session Content Summary:

Marilyn Lombardi, director of the Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI) Center at Duke University, states in her Authentic Learning for the 21st Century whitepaper, "Thanks to the emergence of a new set of technological tools, we can offer students a more authentic learning experience based on experimentation and action. With the help of the Internet and a variety of communication, visualization, and simulation technologies, large numbers of undergraduates can begin to reconstruct the past, observe phenomena using remote instruments, and make valuable connections with mentors around the world."

Recently, Hamilton College students were asked to provide informal feedback about their use of technology and their preferred learning styles. This short video includes some of their most common responses, which reflect some of the ideas presented in Lombardi’s whitepaper.

For the purpose of exploring how newer "Participatory Web" applications can be used to support Authentic Learning at Hamilton College, HILLgroup would like to offer Authentic Learning Using the Participatory Web information sessions. These sessions will summarize the design elements that Lombardi attributes to Authentic Learning and evaluate the educational application of several technologies that foster student engagement and interaction.

Specific technologies will include online multimedia sharing and commenting using YouTube, GarageBand and iWeb, collaborative writing assignments using the new third-party wiki tool in Blackboard, and virtual experiments and experiences using virtual world software called Second Life. For those unfamiliar with Second Life, this short video, recorded on Hamilton College’s virtual Root Glen, shows what this digital world can look like.

Wikis in Plain English

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 08:39:00 -0500

Wikis in Plain English

-Carl

Wiki Becomes Textbook in Boston College Classroom

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 12:45:00 -0500

This article reveals how the wiki is gradually becoming more commonly found in higher education.

"My wiki is my textbook now," he said. "This platform is infinitely better and gets better information from a variety of sources. It takes a year and half for a textbook to get published, and by the time that happens it is outdated. [The use of] textbooks will begin to fade ... and these more collaborative-based, environment will probably rise to the surface."

Computers and Human Beings

Sat, 18 Aug 2007 06:59:00 -0500

Computers are incredibly fast, accurate and stupid. Human beings are incredibly slow, inaccurate and brilliant. Together they are powerful beyond imagination.

-Albert Eisntein

Interview with Professor William Salzillo

Thu, 28 Jun 2007 14:47:00 -0500

Below is a link to an interview with Professor of Art, William Salzillo, who describes the podcast course project for the Spring 2007 Sophomore Seminar, Art and Interpretation: The Genesis of an Exhibition. This course and associated podcast and website projects were collaboratively designed, taught and supported by Professor Salzillo, Gallery Curator Susanna White and the HILLgroup.

Interview with Professor Salzillo

You can also subscribe to this and all future podcasts by clicking on the RSS link next to the Podcasts archive (see right sidebar) and copying the URL in the address bar into iTunes as a podcast, under Advanced > Subscribe to Podcast.

Watch for an upcoming podcast which will include interview content with Gallery Curator, Susanna White!

-Carl

Web 3.0: The "Intelligent" and 'Semantic" Web

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 09:54:00 -0500

Just when we thought we understood Web 2.0...

Web 3.0: This Time It's Personal

Basically, Web 3.0 is (partly) about networks that are aware of the information they contain. The Semantic Web is an example of Web 3.0.

Social Software Presentation

Fri, 18 May 2007 16:07:00 -0500

On Monday, I'll be presenting on Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts at the Eastern New York Chapter of the Association of College & Research Libraries conference. Linked belowis a zipped archive of the presentation.

Update:

Thanks to everyone who attended my presentation! I've updated the link below to go to the updated zipped PowerPoint and associated files.

Presentation

-Carl

A Great Blog Called Compos(t)ing

Thu, 10 May 2007 11:44:00 -0500

A recent commenter posted a link to a fantastic blog, entitled "compos(t)ing, that has posts on topics ranging from wikis to privacy in the age of social software to neat apps like stu.dicio.us.

It's definitely worth taking some time to explore.

-Carl

Here's a novel idea for using a wiki

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 15:54:00 -0500

A collaborative novel via wiki:

http://www.amillionpenguins.com/wiki/index.php/Welcome

-Carl