Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Module 2 - Emerging Technologies Tetrad



If few years ago, blogs were only viewed as a journal on a cloud, now they are offering the option of rich site summary (RSS) feeds where readers can receive immediate feedback if there is a new post.  However, blog features are still carrying over many technical features of an email.  As cloud computing continues to expand, many features of blogging will start to change as well in order to accommodate new users.
An article in the New York Times  E-Mail Gets an Instant Makeover (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/technology/21email.html?_r=2 ) states that teenagers are preferring a faster and immediate response to their messages, which is lacking on Blogs. Therefore, I think Twitter is the cluster and chain to Blogs and WordPress, where users can post “on the go,” although, they can only post up to 140 characters. The chain is formed because the Twitters might eventually completely replace Blogs in the near future and it does bring to mind journal writing. As a cluster, Twitter shares the same laws with Blogs.

Reference:
Elon University/Pew Internet Project. (n.d.). Imagining the Internet: A history and forecast: Back 150 timeline. Retrieved July 22, 2009, from http://www.elon.edu/e-web/predictions/back150years.pdf


Pew Internet & American Life Project. (2010, June 11). The future of cloud computing. Retrieved from http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1623/future-cloud-computing-technology-experts

Thornburg, D. D. (2008b). Emerging technologies and McLuhan's Laws of Media. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Emerging and Future Technologies

SITTING ON A CLOUD
In the last few years, the idea of cloud computing has taken over individuals and organizations.
The way we save and backup our files is changing which is opening new doors to collaboration among professionals, students, and organizations. Our storage media has evolved from floppy disks, CDs, flash drives, external hard drives and other storage devices. With the cloud, there is no need to carry all of the files with the threat of the loss of a storage media which translates into lost work. Now, it all “sits” on a cloud in a centralized location which can easily be retrieved with an Internet connection. Cloud computing not only changes how we store and retrieve applications and files, but also how we communicate and share them with other members of our group, and how organizations restructure and modernize their IT infrastructure. An example is Dropbox.com, a free option to save files on the cloud and which also allows users to share particular files with others.
Furthermore, according to a report by Gartner: “By 2016, all Global 2000 companies will use public cloud services” (http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1465614). In cloud computing, there is also a cost advantage for organizations and for individual use. It is more cost effective to use cloud services than purchasing and maintaining additional computer processors and constructing large data centers on college campuses. Using the cloud helps with regards to short and long term projects that demand additional computer requirements and software applications. Also, learners do not have to rely on computer labs and to purchase expensive applications for particular classes, but instead, users have access on-demand to data.
Furthermore, cloud computing creates a real opportunity for collaboration among learners and administration within a classroom, campus, or even globally without any delay where they can share ideas, work on projects, and research in addition to minimizing additional operation costs.
However, one of the main concerns of using cloud computing is the security of the data and the continuation of the services. There are always cyber attacks occurring and it is important for the users to be aware of all the pitfalls of cloud computing. However, there is an increased danger of misplacing and losing USB drives which is more common, rather than incurring a cyber attack! Another issue is if there is no Internet connection, you cannot retrieve your document, although cell phones are creating another way to go around that problem.

The use of cloud computing in education should eliminate students’ need to carry homework assignment and projects on USB drives or in the form of papers. Educators will have the option to view students’ assignments online and post their assignments there as well. This will also help parents to have a better handle of what is covered in class and the students’ progress.

In order for the saving and retrieving of files from the cloud to be successful, educators have to be active participants in it! Rogers (2003) states that how the emerging idea is communicated can affect the rate of adaptation of the new technology (p.222); meaning, if the idea comes from the organization itself, this factor can influence its acceptance by the parties (p.356). According to Gardner 2010 forecast report of strategic planning assumptions (http://www.1105info.com/t.do?id=6589564:17617519): “by 2013, 75% of higher education institutions will incorporate social software in distance learning.” In this case, educators will be less hesitant to implement new technology, especially because there would be no need to purchase additional technology by the schools.
Therefore, I believe that social network integration in the classrooms will increase over time. http://www.dropbox.com/ and other similar options of a cloud computing, where learners can save their information on a cloud and share files with peers and educators, will be incorporated as part of a class curriculum and will help eliminate the carrying of school work in terms of paper and external files for students.
The question is what would make this technology even better. It can improve only if it will be used in education, as new ideas are generated by educators, it will continue to improve the product.

Reference:
Rogers, E. (2003). Diffusion of innovations. New York: Free Press.

Thornburg, D. (2009). Current trends in educational technology. Retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/Courses/14936/crs-wueduc8812-3526271/when_is_a_technology_emergent.pdf


http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/CollaborationinHigherEducation/199373

http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE%2BQuarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/CloudComputing/213724

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Keller's ARCS Model

We all want new technological tools to be used to enhance productivity and promote creativity at work and school. However, the tools themselves cannot do the job; students, employees, pedagogues have to be motivated to use these tools properly. Motivation is a main aspect to achieving a successful outcome at school and or work.  The best teaching methods will not succeed if the student is not motivated to learn, but if his only goal is to pass the test, and at work, the unmotivated employee will only do the job required without putting any additional thought into projects.
Keller’s ARCS model points out important points such as the need to grab a student’s attention, to develop relevance to matters with which the student is familiar, to help students build confidence through encouragement and setting attainable goals during the learning process. Moreover, satisfaction is achieved through positive feedback and rewards for students and employees.
An example is my class where students are currently working through the service learning program on developing a website for one of the local chapters for the TSA organization.  To achieve the desired outcome, students have to be wholly motivated and understand the importance of the project.  Following Keller's ARCS Model helps in generating interest by the students which inspires motivation.  For attention, curiosity was stimulated toward the project. Students work collaboratively and build on each other's strengths. Moreover, through brainstorming and generating ideas, their confidence in their abilities grow. Students understand the relevance of the project to their professional development. The project is relevant because the students build on their previous knowledge, use creativity, learn through researching and developing new skills which they share in their groups and outside their group with other class members. As the semester is coming to conclusion, so is the project. The confidence has been developed in the students through the project because they controlled the process and the final outcome is result of their work.  I know that students are motivated, because at the end of the each class, they continue to work and do not run out.

Reference:
Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Keller, J. M. (2006, June 20). Motivation Design. Retrieved January 26, 2010, from : http://www.arcsmodel.com/home.htm

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Connectivism



Through the use of social networks, my learning is not limited to one location or one group of people. Due to social networks, my circle from where my knowledge is generated has expanded. I learn not only from my close circle of co-workers or friends, but also from people I have never met, but with whom I share a common professional interest. We exchange knowledge through listserv or through other social networks such as YouTube and blogs. The exchange of innovative thinking is made easier through social networks since new ideas can be easily debated and discussed without any particular limitations or boundaries such as time and location.
Their is no one particular tool which has facilitated learning more than any other as I find the web to be is a vast resource of information. There are several options as to where to find immediate answers or to look for information as to where the best answers are. The first is to post the question on one of the social networks where there is an interest of the same topic and usually an instantaneous response will be generated. Another option is to use Open University such as http://oyc.yale.edu/; I don’t have to be enrolled in a particular class to listen to a lecture if I have a particular interest on a topic and wish to expand my knowledge.

Educause Learning Initiative Annual Meeting 2008

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Collaboration

Do you believe that humans have a basic instinct to “interact and work as a group,” as Rheingold proposed in his discussion of the evolution of Wikipedia as a collectively developed encyclopedia? How can technology facilitate collaboration among learners based on constructivist principles?

I believe that as humans we have a basic instinct to “interact and work as a group.” There are many examples throughout history, especially in the development of technological tools. A recent example is the development of Google's new “Wave” tool. Developed by group of people at Google, it encompasses the instantaneous of an Instant message chat and an email and can work as a motivating collaborative tool. Most computer games and softwares have all been developed by a combined effort of a group utilizing individual skills. We even create study groups in college to facilitate learning.
In his speech on collaboration, Howard Rheingold emphasizes important points, his first presumed cliché statement is that we “succeed by destroying and dominating competition.” However, he continues saying that we also succeed through collaborative effort and when we all work in concert. For example, large corporations merge for the purpose to extend and produce better products, rather than working against each other because it is in their mutual self interest. Another good example introduced by Rheingold is the Open Source products, such as Linux, Mozilla, Apache, Wikipedia, and the free Open University lectures posted by Berkley University and Yale. These free available resources are popular because they are good products in view of the fact that each programmer contributes his knowledge continuously improving these products.
Technology plays an important factor in education and Web2.0, and especially accolade constructivist principles. With Web1.0, the information was only communicated through technology to the public, with Web 2.0 it has became a discourse through the use of social networks. Web2.0 encourages dialog with teachers and with peers, asks questions and nurture a learner’s curiosity. Through the use of technology, it is important to let students analyze, create, classify and accept a learner’s independence and initiative.

Reference:
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/howard_rheingold_on_collaboration.html