A Digital Reflection

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After being introduced to Screenr, I've been capturing programs I'm demoing at work, such as Raptivity, to share with faculty developers. The screencast really has them excited in that engaging students in course content has never been easier. I believe these technologies, combined with gamified social learning platforms such as Curatr and collaborative sites such as Google Drive as well as LMS's that incorporate aspects of social networking, will drive learning to become more engaging and relevant to learners.




My Digital Reflection captured using Screenr. I ended up redoing my submission...just didn't like it much. I've decided not to review it so I would actually publish it! ;  )

Tool Used to Curate Learning

Twitter Use

Here are a number of stats from Twitter.com and TweetDeck supporting my use of this social networking tool:

Tweetdeck:

Posting replies to others on blogs

I've commented regularly in blog posts within NBC.com:

 I've also commented on educational technology blogs:

 

 

Posted by Jeffrey Simmons in AU - Instructional Design & Quality Teams on Sep 5, 2012 3:31:19 PM
Surprising results from Northwestern University: Contrary to commonly accepted notions of people feeling overwhelmed by a deluge of information, a Northwestern University study reveals that it may be an exaggeration, and that most Americans like it. It would be interesting to pursue this concept focussing on generation, affinity for technology etc. Maybe augmented reality will be the next "test" of our resilience! Here is the news post from Northwestern University's website:

August 30, 2012 | COMM
Information Overload?

 

Overwhelmed by instant access to news and information? Most Americans like it

By Erin White

Article followed.

Another recent post external to USD:

Jeffrey Simmons September 25, 2012 10:53 AM (in response to Thomas Ashbrook)

 

Great post and fascinating observations! The concept of exponentially accelerating technologies is providing leverage for change and direction impacting so many facets of our society, and now education is being disrupted in ways that are similar to the revolutions that impacted, and are continuing to impact, other industries: music, video, print etc.

Watson, the IBM computer that beat the combined scores of our human champions in Jeopardy, was brought up earlier by you Thomas. I 'm willing to bet that 10 years from now, students will be able to walk up to their computer version of a Semantic Web based Watson and request a 101 course in Astronomy. The very latest media-rich content, research and more will be pulled together on the fly WolframAlpha-like for access wherever one happens to be.

One question to throw out here concerns how augmented reality will tie-in with education. With Google Glass poised for release sometime late this year or early next, the processing power of smartphones begining to rival that of notebook computers, this topic will probably become a hot ticket item. There is some research that I've read that indicates that ease of access to information does not equate with knowledge acquisition. That easy access to information at times defeats thinking critically. What are your thoughts on how this technology may be used in education? (I like this topic enough that I'll begin a separate post on it!) Can humans handle that kind of constant data flow without being so deeply attached that we become addicted? Will that "thunk" we hear when we remove whatever augmented device we use for viewing be our IQ, or what we feel to be our awareness, hitting the floor causing us to snatch up the device to remain connected?

 

 

"Classroom Visit - A Distance Learning Exchange with Far

Far works at Cisco Systems has a corporate trainer.  Learners are spread across the globe and, according to regulations, and up to 40 at a time receive training on various topics of importance throughout the year.  They use WebEx, Cisco's meeting manager to deliver content as well as to record the sessions as she did here when we held our session together on Monday, December 10, 2012.

WebEx a synchronous delivery system which integrates the technology which allows video, audio and desktop sharing from one to many. The content delivery was basically using a feature of WebEx which shows PowerPoint presentations.  There were well over 100 slides to cover in her typical sessions, with breaks scattered throughout. I do feel that learning was promoted largely because Far integrates segments that require learners to complete review modules. The amount of learning probably depends substantially upon whether the topic lends itself to distance application, or whether it's a hands-on skill which can't be duplicated online.

The training environment is unique because there seems to be two sets of companies both making products that have similar capabilities, but is intended for very different learners. The corporate systems tend to be very expensive and able to handle large numbers of learners.  Systems destined for educational use tend, in my experience, to be a little less robust largely due to shared bandwidth.

 

I learned that the solution is on the low tech end for Cisco Systems. I recall that the company has virtual presence systems which are very sophisticated, where two corporate board rooms have the tables split in half and fitting together virtually on the screen giving the impression that everyone is sitting together at the same table. It's more sophisticated, but intended for small groups, not 40 at the time. The reason the technology is so effective is that the hardware is ubiquitous: a computer, a Cisco supplied networked Internet connection, a webcam and anyone can connect to this training.

One of the difficulties facing Far is that the training sessions are synchronous, forcing Far to be up at all hours to present in geographic areasthat are 12 hours and more in advance.  Perhaps combining synchronous and during off hours, asynchronous training, while adding useful software such as voice thread or others that would enhance users experience, give them a forum to discuss issues, and obtain feedback.

Business Insider's Top Predictions for 2013 supports Dan Pink's Creativity Trend

It's that time of year again in which we look back and take stock in all the changes that have occurred, both the good and the bad.  With the stock market, housing markets and consumer confidence on the gradual rise, most would probably say that its been a better year than the one before.  One thing we seem to be able to count on is that change is coming at us faster and faster. Business Insider magazine takes a look at the coming year and cites trendwatching.com's Web trend analysis of business trends.  It was amazing to see how many trends align very well with Dan Pink's assertion that people want more than just production line quality goods. 

They want more in-depth and creative control over the products they buy.  According to Dan Pink, consumers are looking at the underlying values of both their lives and the companies they support, and will increasingly vote in the marketplace by supporting those goods and services that support their vision.

In an article entitled The 10 Hottest Consumer trends for 2013, Business Insider magazine highlights the following trends and many more as you can see from the synopsis below:

1. Crowdfunding will become active, consumers will start to change and invest in new startups and products
2. Soon, average U.S. consumers will be able to own a piece of the startups they buy from (eg. Fundable.com)
3. There's going to be an explosion of products and services from emerging markets for emerging markets
4. Lenovo is offering smartphones outside of China for the first time
5. Brands are going to look to engage constantly on mobile devices
6. Jana users can get free airtime by participating in surveys
7. Products are out that literally grow when you plant them
8. This new chopstick grows into a plant
9. Healthcare apps are exploding, so actual healthcare professionals will get involved
10. Doctors are starting to 'prescribe' healthcare apps
11. Emerging markets will embrace their culture in consumer products sold worldwide
12. China's NE-Tiger is starting to export luxury fashion
13. Consumers will start demanding a share of the value of their data
14. Opower lets users see how much energy they're using and compete to save money
15. Local manufacturing is coming back to mature markets
16. Brands will have to start proving that they're transparent and socially responsible
17. This Chinese organic farm lets customers track their food the whole way
18. Brands will start to make demands of their customers
19. Vitoria is changing its uniform as its fans donate blood

MOOCs - The Face of Exponential Change in Higher Education

Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and other Open University concepts are beginning to take hold and provide a "disruptive" challenge to the traditional higher education face-to-face models.  They are free, well-organized and delivered online to students wherever they happen to be located. As a result, within a few years I believe colleges and universities will need to respond with low-cost distance education alternatives to attract students.

This expansion of digital online education aligns with the consumer patterns of production and consumption behavior in regards to other forms of digital media.  In the past, people didn't like having to buy entire music albums to listen to the few songs they liked, nor did they always relish the idea of travelling to a central store to purchase music.  Now consumers buy only the songs they want from wherever they happen to be located. This holds true with consumption of other media provided by MOOCs: video, news, library articles, journals etc. Clayton Christensen calls these trends disruptive innovations.

MOOCs and other online course technologies will push colleges and universities to drastically cut costs.reduce the number of physical buildings on a campus. Many of the physical buildings could be minimized or even eliminated with libraries going completely online. The library buildings and computer labs can be converted to low-cost study areas. So-called campus
bookstore storefront operations, which typically don’t sell many books anymore, can be minimized and placed largely online. Eventually physical facilities will be replaced with immersive simulation technologies.

The idea that colleges and universities are sole providers of higher learning and truth where access should be limited to those who are financially and academically able to succeed, is outmoded and needs to change to maintain relevance in this new era of lifelong learning. In times where information is readily available to anyone with an internet connection and a device with which to connect, it no longer makes sense that people are told who can or cannot receive a higher-ed experience.

By necessity, MOOC materials are web-based, or at least deliverable over an online connection. Textbook have the advantage of longevity, but today are relics of yesteryear.  The CIO of Google estimated that since
the birth of the world and 2003, some five exabytes of information were created. Since 2003, the world creates 5 exabytes every two days and knowledge by some estimates doubling every 2 years (Kurzweil, 2005),
not only are the contents of textbooks outdated by the time they are published, but the contents are static, unable to be corrected, updated or made interactive. E-books and web-based content are the future of information exchange because they precisely allow for those innovations. Flexible displays, flexible e-ink papers and display glasses are only a year or two away and will drive content quickly away from print to digital media to the frustration of publishers who are already trying hard to force digital rights managament measures  onto users. All in the attempt to control the flow of information.

Fortunately, there are disruptive elements that may yet break the stranglehold publishers exert on the marketplace. Open textbooks published electronically by the professors who write them and textbook republishers who take publicly available content, copy it and arrange it in the same chapter order as the dominant textbooks in any field of study and
distribute it free to students.

 

Ultimately, I believe MOOCs and other online technologies present an exponential threat to the higher education industry in the way Napster had to the music industry. Colleges and universities will be forced to respond with lower costs and greater availabiltity when faced with the efficiencies and increased recognition of MOOCs and online courses. As we've experienced in our course at USD, synchronous technologies can be more personalized than can large courses at state institutions.

Let the disruption begin!

Initial Impressions of Google Hangout

Two weeks ago, the Learning and Technology group at the University of San Diego held our very first Google Hangout session where students and the professor were able to enter the Hangout with connected webcams and mics.

Aside from some minor feedback caused by open mics, the session went very smoothly. After a while, the technology began to show its true potential as a personalized method of collaborating.

Similar to, but more effective than, conference mics which activate in front of speakers, this software also activates either the speaker's camera and mic or a shared desktop and mic. After a while, the technology itself began to fade into the background. The quick camera shifts to the different speakers as they contributed were very smooth and effective. In a way, more personalized than the exchanges in classroom settings because it gives all participants front and center perspectives, rather than the usual back-of-the-head experience. I'm looking forward to our next session this Monday and wonder how much more fluid we can make the experience!

MOOCs - A Comparison (Please wait for video to load)

I used screenr.com to create the following video:

Reflection on Learning and PLN Checklist

I was a little concerned at the beginning of the semester that this course was going to be one that consisted merely of demonstrating interesting online tools and that would be it. Fortunately, that was just setting the stage for the majority of the course:Our own personal exploration and documenting of how we learn, and hopefully, how we learn best. So far, I can say that the exploration has been fascinating, but it is far from over. I have tweeted sporadically, but haven't really immersed myself in the experience and watched Tweets as they pour across the interface. That's my next goal is to be online when edchat posts!

I've found that I'm pretty comfortable blogging. Never anticipated that would be a problem and it hasn't been. I enjoyed reading other people's posts and commenting when I have something I feel I can contribute. I have used most of the other tools that have been introduced including Storify, Pintrest and Symbaloo. Surprisingly, I haven't used Diigo yet. I'll begin doing that this week. The reason why I haven't until now, is that there have been many complaints about Diigo in some entry courses at Ashford University, mostly concerning users being hijacked and taken to other questionable locations on the Internet. Not sure why that should happen but I hesitated to use it if it was going to give me issues, since that categories been kind of full of my life lately! : )

I've collaborated with others outside of my course using my blog, as well having shared the class project on Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind website with people at work who are interested in Pinks book. I've also used some pretty powerful social networking software outside of the programs introduced during class. Jive, is a social network networking platform that can be easily integrated into most learning management systems. At Ashford University we have internally integrated Jive as a way for people to collaborate on the whole range of issues affecting online education. I'll provide some interesting back and forth with some members in this blog below! I started the class tweeting exclusively during my nonwork hours, but now I find myself tweeting often during the day when I find something new and interesting to share. Moving a little more towards resident, am I??

PLN Checklist:

1) Check my RSS Feeds daily: I received daily RSS feeds from Kurzweilai.net and Technology Review, MIT's online newsletter covering innovations in technology. I document these findings now through e-mail (Visitor I guess!) And increasingly through Twitter and Jive.

2) Check TweetDeck at least three times per week. I have caught onto some interesting conversations by classmates using TweetDeck. My next goal is to start responding more actively.

3) Use Storify: I like to use this software when there are multiple sources referenced within a particularly interesting online article. I've added one article to my blog, and one to Jive.

4) Aggregate notes and research using OneNote: I am a huge fan of OneNote! To me it's the poor stepchild of the Microsoft Office software suite (PC only unfortunately). Evernote sounds intriguing however and the fact that it can be used in the cloud may ultimately make it more useful when collaborating with others outside of the work environment. That said, within the work environment, OneNote rules. Offices can go paperless using the software. Similar to Evernote, you can capture and archive information while searching online, pull text from graphics etc. I create shared documents where people can collaborate synchronously on the same document and more. Great stuff.

5) Use Blogger for output: it's easy to use and just for that it's great for sharing. I can't say I've made in my own however, largely because it follows my assignments and is couched in those terms, us rather than becoming a smoothly flowing narrative that potentially others outside my class might be interested in visiting. There is some topic areas that I would like to explore: Information access versus Knowledge acquisition and discussing the dividing line between them. (There was a fascinating response to my post on this topic within Jive which I will contribute below tomorrow!)

Clayton Christensen's Disrupting Class and The Innovative University - Takeaways

A Visit to UC San Marcos

Knowing of my interest in pursuing topics related to disruptive technologies, Jeff was kind enough to invite me along to his Saturday doctoral class session at UC San Marcos today. The group was comprised of mostly educators from either K-12 or higher education.  It was a day devoted to presentations on Clayton Christiansen's books entitled: Disrupting Class and the other: The Innovative University.

Disrupting Class - Insights and Take-aways

In Disrupting Class, Christensen points out that many issues in American education can be traced back to the focus on mass education as a form of production.  A machinelike metaphor, where students heads are filled with information, and assessed in exactly the same way and, whether students score highly on standardized tests or score poorly, like quality assurance in a factory production line,  the "products" are moved along at the same pace to the next stage (or grade in this case). All students are taught in the same way, regardless of their preferred learning styles. 

• Disruptive technologies begin their life as expensive and unreliable, but address the shortcomings of the dominant system in place. Later they supplant the dominant system as they become inexpensive & reliable.
• While learning does take place in the standard model, content that is learned  should be recognized of course, but it's the content which isn't learned that should receive the focus of resources.
• Assessment should be measured by the breadth of knowledge, not just the uncritical relaying of facts.
• Really liked Jeff's observation that "If you can find it using Google, it isn't an assessment of learning."
• Short-term change: Upon incorrect answers, quizzes should do more than say "Incorrect." They should do more than point students to the same information that produced the mistake, they should instead provide alternative explanations using a variety of learning styles.

The Innovative University - Insights and Take-aways:

Everett Rogers' Technology Adoption Lifecycle was reconstituted and applied to organizational change. It traces the life cycle of an organization from inception, to growth to maturity to decline. If organizations wish to continue to perform well, they must be aware of threats of disruptive change to stave-off decline. With rising tuition, increasing demand and reduced class availability, institutions of higher education are ripe for disruption.

• Part of the reason for increased costs are the perceived need by institutions to match the facilities and class offerings provided by competitors. This concept includes athletics.

• My take on this is that a prudent step form many universities is to offer hybrid classes where students meet for face-to-face meetings twice or three times per semester, with the remainder of the classes being held online - to include faculty office hours. Universities could trim facilities, while using them more effectively by investing in desks that are easily moved to new configurations to encourage collaborations. Eventually facilities can be replicated within immersive reality (the quality will be like that of ultra-realistic video gaming environments) where students have avatars that can interact "live" with one another within educational environments that can be changed to fit the topic being discussed. To make this work there would need to be cooperation between the manufacturer of online gaming environments along with provider such as OnLive that streams environments to users computers/devices.
• One idea for distance learning: Increase collaboration between students by having students read and grade and another student's paper. The paper is also graded by the instructor and each reviewer receives a grade for his/her contribution to the paper. The result is a more in-depth and critically-based collaboration between students than what otherwise would be the case.

I'm glad I had this opportunity to learn more about disruptive technologies and have some time to consider how it might be applied to learning within higher education. As others have pointed out, mankind has solved most of the problems, the low hanging fruit, that can be solved by applying the some of the best minds available today. The other, more complex, problems seem to be just out of reach. By applying the critical thinking skills that we need to employ, combined with the creative use of exponentially improving technologies, we will have the leverage for us to reach higher and solve those seemly intractable problems that hover just beyond our reach.

Daniel Pink's Six Senses: Design

This is my Design contribution to a collaboration website featuring Daniel Pink's The Six Senses segment of his insightful book: A Whole New Mind.

Design is "utility enhanced by significance" - Daniel Pink The first of the six senses highlighted by Daniel Pink in his book A Whole New Mind, is Design. He maintains that we are moving from an era which stressed functionality, to an era which stresses creative design. Functional Design The creation of inexpensive mass production has resulted in cheap, functional goods available to the masses. It is also resulted in the movement and loss of jobs to overseas production. Daniel Pink states that creative design is part of what will propel us into a more creative age where products become more "beautiful, whimsical or emotionally engaging." The Democracy of Design "Today we must all be designers" - Daniel Pink Daniel Pink highlights a charter high school CHAD (Charter High School for Architecture) where all students apply architectural design to all subjects they study. If Daniel Pink were writing his book today, rather than in 2005, he may well be citing the ability of anyone to design, create and market objects from jewelry and art to tools and household items. These objects can be printed on one's own prototype machine, or at a facility such as Shapeways above. According to Ray Kurzweil, current efforts to incorporate electronics into designs will result in the ability to design and email a toaster, or other product to another who can then print it. Functionality + Personal Design! 3 Reasons for Design 1) Thanks to increased prosperity and advanced technologies, good designs are widely accessible by the public, and more people can take advantage of superior designs. 2) Abundance creates pressure on businesses to differentiate their products from purely functional products, by combining superior design with functionality. The Nest thermostat at right is one such product. It learns your temperature patterns over time and adjusts automatically. 3) As more people embrace a sense of design, we can use this to "change the world." Design Means Business / Business means Design Daniel Pink expands on the 2nd reason for design listed above by highlighting companies in traditional industries that view design as the one element that differentiates them from the competition. Although Pink highlights GM, Sony and BMW, Apple is clearly the star of this category.

The Design Portfolio Keep a Design Notebook Design Notebook Buy a small notebook and carry it with you everywhere. Note both good and poor designs. Channel Your Annoyance Recognize poor design by noting objects that annoy you. Redesign it and send the redesign in to the company or person who created it. Something good may come of it, like being hired by Bill Gates to redesign PowerPoint presentations! Read Design Magazines Sharpen your design instincts by reading magazines that highlight great design Suggested titles: Ambidextrous: A Stanford University Project exploring design principles Dwell: A magazine devoted to shelters. Public service and the environment themes. HOW: A business magazine with design as a central theme iD: Award-winning, with an Annual Design Review competition, this magazine is ideal for new and up-coming designers. Metropolis: Construction design magazine featuring sustainable design concepts. O Magazine: Oprah Windfrey produced magazine. One of Daniel Pink's favorite magazines for both design and content. Print: Large graphic design magazine Real Simple - Design with utility in mind. Be Like Karim Karim Rashid is one of the most prolific designers of his generation. His Karimanifesto is a document featuring his design philosophy. Become a Design Detective Look at home designs by dropping by open houses. Note what designs appeal and what turn you off. Evaluate the emotional and physical appeal of the designs. Consider which designs elements you would like to incorporate into your own home or workplace. Participate in the "Third Industrial Revolution" Design something yourself. To extend Daniel Pink's suggestions, consider designing a product using Makerbot's software and selling the design using the thingiverse online shop dedicated to the sale of 3-D object designs! Visit a Design Museum Many major cities have museums dedicated to Fine Art and Design. Here is a top 10 list provided by Pink: Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (New York City): Major works in the design field are featured, including Cooper-Hewitt's. Design Exchange (Toronto): Featuring the best of Canadian and international designs. Design Museum (London): Great designs from both the 20th and 21st centuries. Eames House (Los Angeles) - Featuring the famous furniture designs of Charles and Ray Eames. The museum is the home that they designed which contains many of their 20th century works. Herbert Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography (New York City): This center is devoted to preserving great works of graphic designs. Museum of Modern Art, Architecture and Design Department (New York City): Also known as MoMA. Permanent collections of a variety of designs: cars, furniture, posters, appliances and more. National Building Museum (Washington, D.C.): Exhibits on architecture and urban designs. Victoria and Albert Museum (London): Huge national museum of art and design covers two thousand years of design. Vitra Design Museum (Weil am Rhein, Germany): Features the top industrial designs of Europe. William F. Eisner Museum of Advertising and Design (Milwaukee, Wisconsin): Contemporary museum highlighting print design and some industrial design. CRAP-ify Your Graphic Design Robin Williams' book at shown here is a wonderful guide to simple design basics and examples. Put it on a Table First place objects with which you have a deep emotional bond on a table. Examine them to explore the following questions: 1) What does it make you think of? What are the feelings it conjures? 2) How does it affect your five senses? 3) Think of how you made the sensory connections to the object and the ways it made you feel. Do the same with objects you don't have an emotional pre-attachment. Be Choosy Choose classic designs or high-concept designs, but realize that they can never be as important as the interpersonal relationships you form with family, friends and yourself.

20% Project Status

Current Status as of Monday, December 2, 2012:

 

This week I've been using Curatr, the social networking game of five learning environment that was introduced to me at a recent local chapter gathering of the E-Learning Guild at National University about two months ago.  A bit of an interesting connection: the creators of Curatr are British and have a University of San Diego connection with a professor there named Dr. Croom.  They also used the University of San Diego as a testbed for this product.  Finally, there establishing an office in La Jolla and came out to Ashford University and presented to our team of instructional designers.  It's strange how connected things can become!

Back to my project, I've been learning the ins and outs of using the software, and have cultivated a first-hand belief that their point systems and badging really do work.  (I decided to add a full reply to a video, mostly because I wanted to get the extra point for the level.  The creator, Ben Betts calls those "nudges" and it just takes those minor nudges to do something that you otherwise wouldn't, and potentially at least adds the possibility of further interaction with fellow students or the instructor.
This week, I'll be integrating my 20% project into the Curatr program to see how well the program integrates the various media that is created.



Status as of November 19, 2012:

The Plan: Scan and load key pages from Daniel Pink's chapter on Design and supplement those pages with engaging external content.

The results so far: Layar, the augmented reality program I chose to begin using has proven to be a bit balky in regards to page recognition by the mobile device. I was able to load the software and scan pages and add trial content, but the camera on my fairly recent Google Nexus S was unable to recognize the page. I'm working on increasing the scans resolution, playing with lighting and working on updating software. If the issues is resolution or lighting, or page content (requiring pictures etc), then the product may still be too limiting, as we cannot expect perfect user imaging conditions to pull this off. If it's this user's error, which I'm hoping it is, then this could be solved.

In the meantime, I've applied with Aurasma, the creator of a competing product. Once approved, I will have access to their software as well. Their software requires images to trigger the software. This may be the issue with Layar as well.

While I have been sorting this out, I've become interested in a particular software package designed to make learning more personal and engaging. It is called Curatr and uses concepts from gamification and badging to provide "nudges" to learners to further interest them in extending their learning. I plan on using this software to "curate" my progress, learning and production of the augmented reality software I choose above. At the end of the day, this will be a two-part presentation.



Post From November 14, 2012:

I've decided to pursue a 20% augmented reality project.  I'm particularly interested in enhancing printed documents to the use of page recognition via a program named Layar. I thought I'd first try and augment the design section of Daniel Pink's book with interactive elements to help the concepts "come alive" for readers.

The basic idea is that increasing numbers of people are carrying the equivalent of 1970s supercomputers inside their cell phones.  Equally amazing is that they are carrying powerful still and video cameras and communication devices all integrated into that same cell phone.  Augmented reality places useful information over an image of reality, to enhance that reality.  In this case, it is my hope that the recognition software will recognize the shape of the text on the page and relay information that is superimposed over it.  The question to answer is whether the shape alone is sufficient to successfully recognize each page as distinct from all others.  If not, I may need to print out a target to be placed on each page - a far less useful use of the product.

Fingers are crossed…

Post From October 14, 2012:

Gaming technology is pushing computer and graphics technologies and creative minds have begun to put the processing power to use outside of traditional gaming. It’s called Immersive reality and it is firmly on it’s way. Trouble is it currently takes a boat load of technology to make it work. When it works well, it works convincingly! Check this jaw-dropping video out if you haven’t seen what can be done with a few well-placed PlayStations and projectors.

Trouble is, it’s difficult to pull off. Of far greater utility and easier to create, hence closer to becoming a reality, is Augmented Reality. I firmly believe that will constitute the “next big thing” from tech giants Google, Qualcomm, Intel and others. The overlaying of relevant information over what is being viewed through a smartphone or glasses will likely become social and learning tool as pitched here by Google in regards to their product Google Glass, due out next year.

In spite of some dangers that the technology may pose: addiction to being “jacked-in,” dependency on always-on information and a consequent loss of critical thinking skills and some possible social issues, this technology will take learning to the next level. For this 20% project, I’m interested in finding some easy-to-use augmented reality software (app) to create either a virtual science field trip, museum tour with augmented paintings or other information-based learning experience.

In a wildly different direction, another skill I’d like to personally learn is Chinese Calligraphy. I speak Mandarin Chinese fairly well, but my reading and writing is way below par. I’d like to take advantage of web-based learning to learn proper technique, benefit from the relaxation that it brings, and also provide a path towards learning more characters.
Of the two, calligraphy is probably more doable in the short term, unless I can find some really easy-to-implement augmented reality.

My Google search on Egypt for Alexis

Here's my search Alexis!

Clay Shirkey - Cognitive Surplus and Changing the World

What is a culture of generosity and how can it be used to improve education?

Ushahidi illustrates that the donation of free time and talents plus digital technology equals Cognitive Surplus which focuses on the ability of the public to volunteer time and effort on large projects to create civic value. Civic value of shared information is the value of designing for generosity.  There is 1 trillion hours per year of generosity available, and according to Clay, we need to tap into that resource.  How can this be applied to education?  One way possibly could be a method in which people could share insights into shared problems.  By insights, I mean knowledge that is obtained by attaining a clear and deep understanding of a complex problem. If this information could be mined, verified and shared by people, then this could be a type of educational civic value

According to Clay, the gap that we need to traverse is between doing anything and doing nothing.  At least those who produce pictures of cats are doing something.  Clay suggests that we design for generosity.  He cites a study of Deterrence Theory which states that if you want somebody to do less of something, punish that action.  Unfortunately, I don't entirely trust in his example of people who are fined for picking up their children late from schools is a disapproval of deterrence theory as much as it is how a minor fine results in people saying it's worth it to continue a bad action.  If the fine had been increased substantially, no doubt compliance would have followed suit.

What does it mean to say, "Free cultures get what they celebrate?"

Dean Kamen, one of my heroes of technology-the creator of the "Luke's arm", creator of the Segway, organizer of FIRST robotics competition stated that "free cultures get what they celebrate."  This idea is that if we celebrate entertainment and sports, then our youth will produce the very best of that genre.  Within the context of this class, if society supports science, technology and designing for generosity, then we get the best civic value that the world can offer.

Eli Pariser - A Web of One

Eli Pariser presents the flip-side of personalization.  On the surface, a personalized experience of the web has many positives: an individualized learning experience potentially tailored to an individual's preferred method of learning; targeted advertisements that are actually of potential value to an individual rather than the hodgepodge of semi-useless ads that until now have populated Internet searches; the ability to begin a search on a mobile device and complete it at a desktop computer etc.  The flipside is what Eli highlights: the loss of control over content.  Ever since I learned that people tend to be captive to sources of news that tend to agree with their political predilections, I purposely tried to seek out opposing points of view.  And failed miserably.  I find myself the very creature of habit that they describe in those studies.  I tend towards reading the Huffington Post as opposed to Fox news because I find myself not wanting to get irritated very much.  No doubt those choices feed the very Google and Facebook algorithms that are described by Eli.  But then, this isn't the first time a societal conversation similar to this has occurred. 

It wasn't that long ago that the fairness doctrine required that broadcasters provide a balanced view of issues by allowing equal time to those on both sides of an issue.  At that time broadcasters were considered to be keepers of a sacred trust whereby the public was to be presented news in a relatively objective manner, allowing them to make up their minds as to which side of an issue is more persuasive.  This was written into an official document known as the Telecommunications Act.  Unfortunately, at least to me, as a part of deregulation, the 80s and 90s saw a weakening of the Telecommunications Act and the enforcement of the Fairness Doctrine was eliminated.

As is the case with many things in life, extremes tend to amplify both good and bad aspects, whereas a balance can exist that offers benefits of both, minimizing the weaknesses.  I do want my Internet experience to be tailored to bring me news that aligns well with my interests, but not at complete exclusion of information that may provide an alternative point of view.  If Google becomes the sole arbitrator of information on the Internet, then we have a good deal to worry about.  Google's upcoming product Google Glass, they will be coming as close as possible using current technologies to pour information directly into our brains.  And that's the future that Eli is warning us about.

My 20% Project - Augmented Reality or Chinese Calligraphy?

Gaming technology is pushing computer and graphics technologies and creative minds have begun to put the processing power to use outside of traditional gaming. It’s called Immersive reality and it is firmly on it’s way. Trouble is it currently takes a boat load of technology to make it work. When it works well, it works convincingly! Check this jaw-dropping video out if you haven’t seen what can be done with a few well-placed PlayStations and projectors.
Trouble is, it’s difficult to pull off. Of far greater utility and easier to create, hence closer to becoming a reality, is Augmented Reality. I firmly believe that will constitute the “next big thing” from tech giants Google, Qualcomm, Intel and others. The overlaying of relevant information over what is being viewed through a smartphone or glasses will likely become social and learning tool as pitched here by Google in regards to their product Google Glass, due out next year.
In spite of some dangers that the technology may pose: addiction to being “jacked-in,” dependency on always-on information and a consequent loss of critical thinking skills and some possible social issues, this technology will take learning to the next level. For this 20% project, I’m interested in finding some easy-to-use augmented reality software (app) to create either a virtual science field trip, museum tour with augmented paintings or other information-based learning experience.
In a wildly different direction, another skill I’d like to personally learn is Chinese Calligraphy. I speak Mandarin Chinese fairly well, but my reading and writing is way below par. I’d like to take advantage of web-based learning to learn proper technique, benefit from the relaxation that it brings, and also provide a path towards learning more characters.
Of the two, calligraphy is probably more doable in the short term, unless I can find some really easy-to-implement augmented reality.

Daniel Pink - A Whole New Mind

Pink views a number of changes that are increasingly affecting how we work, play socialize and act as productive citizens. As children parents told us that to be sucessful in life we should become programmers, software engineers, accountants etc. What they didn't realize, and that manys still don't today, is that rapid technological advances in computer-based (Ray Kurzweil refers to these as Information technologies) the speed of computers, the sophistication of programming etc. are making aspects of those jobs obsolete. Whether change is caused directly by computer programs that now supplant the accountant, or telecommunication which allows accountants in India to do the same work for a fraction of the pay, the end result is that those professions which consist of repetitive tasks and within an area of computer science which has sufficiently modelled the requirements of the job, those are in jeopardy. Pink's message is twofold: society needs to wakeup and realize that those jobs which brought us through the Information age, are precisely those jobs that are vulnerable to technology and job loss. The second major point is to emphasize that it is the right-brained, creative endeavors that will pave the path towards a sucessful future period which he terms the Conceptual Age.

It is the creative side of people that will hold increasingly greater value as we enter the Conceptual Age. It's not that programmers, engineers, accountants, and factory workers are no longer valued. It's just that they will increasingly be marginalized as technology improves and jobs are either absorbed by computer programs directly, or the jobs will be shifted overseas as telecommunications continues to increase the labor market available to corporations. Pink lays out a convincing argument that creativity should share equal status with the emphasis the Information Age has placed on logic. He does so partly by sharing newfound discoveries into the importance of the right-hemispher of the brain which has largely been the poor stepchild of the left hemisphere. He cites research that shows that the right-hemisphere is responsible for creativity. It provides the "big picture" view which integrates the logical observations of the left into a whole where context plays an important role. It is this creative side where value is created and increasingly valued by society and corporations. It is this creativity that computers (so far) have difficulty in achieving, largely because creativity does not necessairly arise from logic and following linear steps. It is an intuitive leap forward in design and vision.

I do agree with Pink that we are moving from a largely left-brained world into one in which creative vision will be necessary for humans to keep ahead of the encroaching tide of automation technology. It isn't difficult to see examples of automation replacing the need for human workers. The automated check-out machines in supermarkets are a good example. It is a repetitive task where items are scanned and bagged and payment is made. The automated checkout machines don't need medical coverage, sick or vacation time, hourly pay or breaks. It is a more efficient means of dealing with high volume. Many jobs are potentially lost due to automation. The advantages to the consumer are large: it takes far less time for me to check out grocieres at the automated check-out than it is to wait in line for a human cashier. A potentially larger issue is facing warehouse workers, where companies have replaced workers with automated machines that move inventory from trucks into warehouses and then deliver the products automatically when inventories run low. The warehouses are run in low-light to no-light situations where heat and airconditioning are turned-off and warehouses run 24 hours/day 7 days per week. Sports and financial investments stories are being well written by algorithms that are posed to replace humans, driverless cars on the horizon, will threaten taxicab and trucker jobs in the near future and the examples go on and on. In order for us humans to be competitive we'll need to do things that computers (and overseas workers) find difficult to accomplish: apply previous and new technologies in creative ways to problems that face us. While prefab technologies may bring some manufacturing back to this country, it will be the creative designs that we can create or purchase that bring value to our creations.

Communities of Practice

Wegner and Lave have taken a concept that has ancient roots, modernized and named it in a way that is understandable and applicable for as long as humans socialize our knowledge. While I believe that individuals can learn effectively if the new information is properly scaffolded and presented, people are motivated in general by others who are interested in similar topics. In my experience in working at NASA, I learned that Engineers really prefer to listen to other Engineers on almost any topic. Since working in support of faculty within a Bay Area Middle School and within higher education institutions at USD and now at Ashford University, it is clear that teachers/professors prefer to "learn" from fellow teachers/professors. There are probably many reasons for the attitude, but one certainly is the sense that others (read "outsiders") just don't get understand matters as clearly as fellow practicioners. Setting aside the times in which it takes an outsider to make change, this thought permeates professions of all kinds where industry jargon supplants regularly understood speech. Not only does it communicate concepts clearly to those in the know, but it also acts as a barrier to outsiders.

Wegner highlights three key characteristics that must be present for there to be a community of practice: A shared domain of interest; the community and the practice. All three are necessary. Regarding organizatinos, I can attest that social networking programs can provide immense leverage to the concept of communities of practice. Ashford University has licensed a social collaboration platform called Jive. It gives employees unofficial time to enter into conversations on select topics such as Critical Thinking and Instructional Design, but also allow those with outside interests to start groups and share best practices and knowledge with others on subjects of their choosing.

Virtual social networking platforms such as Second Life can allow interesting interactions to take place in many fields and interests. The sky seems to be the limit, but I do agree with the Infed article that learning can occur in different ways. I think that there will be competing learning platforms that will come into existence shorty. Augmented reality systems may begin to replace the knowledgable, but fallible colleague with relevant information delivered immediately when needed and in context. For example, "best practices" could be shown in car maintainence. For example, a mechanic pops the hood of a given car, and the augmented system would recognize the make, model, engine-type and tap into databases that overlay schematics onto the mechanics glasses. It would then guide the mechanic through the steps. Other systems, similar to Watson, the IBM computer that beat the world's best Jeopardy contestants, would be available to construct knowedge-building courses. Not just adequate courses, but really great courses that use the most highly-rated materials on the web to create engaging learning experiences.

There are those who feel that Communities of Practice are too limited in scope. Scollon, a previous follower of Communities of Practice feels that a concept of Nexus of Practice is more in keeping with how people learn. That people will cross boundaries to interact with practitioners in other fields in order to learn. They are not constrained by continual connections, but link to "different practices in different sites of engagement and among different participants."

My Passion

Yesterday's big news was the price of gasoline in California. I read some comments on the news article and was amazed at the superficial nature of the comments. Beyond the usual name-calling and politically-charged comments, there was a reflection of a basic misunderstanding of the rate of technological change that we are living through right now. My exchange with a one such person follows:

jefs99-
Unfortunately we will be the victim every time there are Middle East conflicts, distribution problems, refinery problems or an industry that is quick to raise prices, and slow to lower them. Solar power electrics vehicles will always be "the future" unless we invest in technologies that improve batteries, capacitors and other solar technologies that are necessary to break this distribution monopoly where each step of the way, we are manipulated to fatten everyone else's wallets at the expense of our own. The solution? Solar panels that charge vehicles overnight for pennies from a virtually infinite free source of energy. We need to move away from old technologies and innovate our way using new innovative technologies where consumers become our own energy suppliers.
#261 - Sat Oct 6, 2012 10:32 PM EDT

calnomad-
Do you think the federal and state governments are going to give up the windfall gasoline tax when you go solar in 2050? Dream on, you will be taxed on the so called free solution to make up for any savings.
#261.1 - Sat Oct 6, 2012 10:36 PM EDT

jefs99-
Go solar in 2050? Hardly. 6-8 years should be enough time for current and near-future research innovations to bring down the price of solar to better than competitive levels, increase the driving radius of electric vehicles and increase reliability. Change is coming and it's for the better: cheaper for us, better for the environment in the long haul, worse for big oil and those who support a concept of dependence I suppose. Within the next two months, the city where I live, San Diego, will add 117 charging stations for electric vehicles at public facilities. That is now.
#261.2 - Sat Oct 6, 2012 11:21 PM EDT

It's not that I believe that my dates are rock solid, but based on everything I've read and the exponential nature of change affecting all technologies and recent studies have indicated that on a price/performance basis solar is no exception, that at least  I'm in the ballpark. 38 years of technological development required to bring solar to mass production is not.

Which brings me to my passion. In spite of our experience with technological change, people don't plan very well for it. I would like to look at change we do know of, and bring awareness and tools to better plan for change.  I've begun looking at the literature on how people anticipate change and it turns out we tend to plan in a linear fashion. We learn to plan for change in linear ways that are predicated on an underlying assumption that if it took x amount of time to accomplish y in the past, then it will take the same x period of time to accomplish y in the future (Ray Kurzweil, Roy & Christenfeld). While planning everyday tasks, people typically estimate the length of time required to accomplish the tasks by relying on memory to recall how long it took for them to complete the tasks in the past. 

Roy and Christenfeld  suggest, however, that people’s memory model of past task durations is faulty and creates situations where people regularly underestimate simple task of short duration while overestimating complex task of long duration. Fortunately we can use planning tools to aid our faulty memories, but still it's difficult to plan for accelerating change.

While we plan for ordinary events in linear ways, accelerating technological change does not fit well within linear planning models . Kurzweil, a pioneer in the field of technology trend analysis, observes that the rate of technological acceleration itself is accelerating exponentially, presenting an even greater challenge to the memory-model approach to planning.

Exponential increases in broadband communications, storage and computer processing speeds have rapidly changed the way we view and listen to entertainment, read books, communicate with one another, educate ourselves and build skills. It has permeated nearly every facet of how individuals conduct their lives whether as part of an organization or within their private lives.The acceleration of technology applies to an ever-widening range of disciplines as computation is applied to them - like solar technologies.

As of now I'm of two minds on how to proceed with my PhD studies: Consider applying strategic planning techniques with trend analysis to analyze how disruptive changes, such as online education or augmented reality will affect education in the short, medium or long-term. Another path may be to analyze how augmented reality apps that will begin to hit the market with Google's "Glass" technology, relate to the topic of learning. One topic is macro, the other more micro, but I am passionate about addressing both. This may be determined by the amount of information available to me, as well as the extent and practicallity of designing a research study to answer these questions!

Storifying Tweets

It turns out that Twitter searches no longer have hits after five days of being available. Learn something new everyday!

Googling Myself

When I initially googled myself I was shocked to see that I was five down from the top listing! It included information about my current role at Ashford University. I guess I'm more online than I thought. It cites slide share as the source of the listing, but I believe I only that service once. Kind of surprising. It may reveal more about slide share than it does about myself however.

I then googled myself again this time with the keyword NASA beside my name. This time the first two hits included educational products with which I had been involved in creating. Their involvement was over five years ago. It's good to see that some information still persists on the web. It also highlights the need to not make too many mistakes that would cause the mistake to be highlighted for years on the web.

I think this highlights the fact that being a resident on the web is not necessary to make results searchable on Google.  I'd say it was more done as a visitor at this point.  I wasn't involved at all with social networking at the time.  I think the trend seems to indicate a shifting from the visitor roll to the resident role.

Tribes

I was pretty impressed by Seth Godin's book Tribes. In fact, I see a lot of parallels between Daniel Pink's book A Whole New Mind and this one: both authors feel that the old order is passing in favor of a new one that emphasizes creativity and out-of-the-box thinking over that of the machine metaphor. Initially I was a little concerned that Seth Godin was pushing the leadership concept too hard. Can everyone be a leader at all times? Fortunately he addressed that concern part way through the book by knowledge Inc. said if one cannot be a leader, then it's best to get out of the way and be a follower. I would add to that, to be a good follower. When that is an active follower rather than a bystander.

I hope to have time to post an article that also lends credence to both authors' views that times are changing and being pushed by technology all along the way. One is a Ted talk by Andrew Mcafee who illustrates how jobs are slowly being absorbed by automation.

The other coincidently is an article featured on technology review, MIT's online magazine. It features a new type of robot that can work alongside humans and can be programmed easier than a TiVo.

Overall, I agree with Seth Godin that we hesitate largely due to fear and a lack of faith in ourselves, then we do from the lack of original or great ideas. The question I ask myself is, what do I feel strongly enough in to pursue as a leader? I have a few clues, but I need to define them more clearly.

Learning in New Media Environments

I heard Michael Wesch speak earlier this year at the Cengage Technology Conference in San Antonio.  It was basically a repeat of this Ted talk.  I'm really glad I had a chance to relisten to this, because it brought to focus a few more things which I've been paying attention to more and more professionally: the need for Critical Thought.

I really liked his segment where he bulleted the following observations of  current trends, stating that there will be:

 

• ubiquitous networks
• ubiquitous computing
• ubiquitous information
• at unlimited speed
• about everything
• everywhere
• from anywhere
• on all kinds of devices

Michael then went on to and the word "almost " to the beginning of each statement .

The word "almost" creates the need for for voracious learners.  I really think the terms that might even be more applicable here , are those capable of thinking critically.  With the upcoming release of Google's Glass next year and the augmented realities that it will herald, puts the point on Michael's concerns.  I'm worried that an entire populace will be spoon fed information without thinking critically about its contents.  Will be in such a rush to gain just-in-time information, that we won't pause to think about it, to consider whether we should use it or concern ourselves with the source or its accuracy or inaccuracy.  Will learning actually occur in this type of environment, or will there be stagnation in its place?

Visitors and Residents-The Video

Some news from the home front…literally! My family and I just moved into a new place and as a result lacked Internet connectivity for a while.  It took quite an effort, and I'm exhausted, but please to at least make this blog post prior to my evening class time! I have to say that Dr. White has really done a wonderful job putting a lens on an issue I've often suspected: that there is a sort of continuum between the people who are always online: the Residents and those who really see no point in using it unless they have to: the Visitors. I would be interested in exploring each of those categories more closely.  It would be interesting to see how Visitors break down into different member groups.  What common features are shared between groups and what are unique to each.  The same with the Residents.   I suspect that within both groups there are people more technically savvy, and those who are less technically savvy, but I also suspect that the Residents group will contain more of those who are less technically savvy of the two.  In fairly qualitative study I recently conducted for my Qualitative Research course, one common theme of those who would've fallen within the elderly visitor category , was the reluctance to try something new.   Part of it was due to a perception of lack of adequate return on time invested, and part of it was a frustration of expressed on their part of the large number of new software programs in existence on the web that may or may not ultimately be useful to them . Finally, it would be interesting to compare the location, type, scope (what does the software accomplish? ) and depth of the software programs in use by both groups.   Some of the residents may be highly accomplished within social networking programs, but feel out of their depth in others. 

With of reverse be true of Residents?Where do I fall? I'm more the Visitor, who sees the usefulness of blog posts and Twitter use, but never really saw the need in my life to actively use them, other than through searching for information I was interested in finding at a particular time. I'm hoping to shift more along the continuum towards  the Resident in this course. 

This is Easy!

Hi Nancy,

This blog took all of 2 minutes to set up. Of course I already had a google account which really sped up the process!

More later!