Final Projects

Welcome to the Final Projects' submission page.  I appreciate so many early submissions and by the end of this week  you should expect to see an email with your final grade.  I also appreciate the feedback from so many of you.  I'm happy to hear that you learned and experienced so much.

It has been a pleasure working and collaborating with you.  Even though this is the end of the semester, please feel free to contact me any time after this if you ever have any questions or need a refresher on anything.

Please submit a link to your Final Project in the comments below and include a few sentences of introduction to give your classmates a frame of reference for your audience.

525---Session 12--What the Future Has in Store for Education

Session 12--What the Future Has in Store for Education

Some believe the future will look like more of the same—more smartphones, tablets, screens embedded in every conceivable surface. David Rose has a different vision: technology that atomizes, combining itself with the objects that make up the very fabric of daily living. Such technology will be woven into the background of our environment, enhancing human relationships and channeling desires for omniscience, long life, and creative expression. The enchanted objects of fairy tales and science fiction will enter real life.

No one really has a crystal ball telling us what the future holds. Given that this course's mission was to revolve itself around, and expose you to, technology that can be used to teach the adult learner; and given the fact that the evolution of the tools and resources covered this semester are evolving at an exhausting pace I thought that we would end with 'possibilities...'

We normally would meet together for your Final Projects presentation, but we are all online now.  Please review your Final Project description  and expectations on the syllabus to make sure that you are aware of the criteria and guidelines. AND ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS HAVE A PLAN B in case the tech doesn't work right.

Until then dream...

PS-Some of you have already completed your Final Projects.  There will be another blog entry for you to post them soon, but if you would like to submit it early, then that would be great!  

Please also check to ensure that you have completed all of your blog postings, entries, and submissions, and let me know if you have any questions.  Remember there is an example of a FP in the margin.

Good Luck!
Professor Fontaine

525-Session 11--Open Education Resources--Continued

Session 11

This week's Session will be an extension of the content that we covered in Session 10.  In Part 1 we will build open our foundational knowledge of OER's and learn how to find and recognize open content on the web.

Part 1

This challenge will help you learn how to find and recognize open content, such as public domain and Creative Commons licensed videos, images, and websites, in the 'wild'. You'll get acquainted with valuable collections of open content and discover new ways to find them. 

There are three elements within Part 1 of S11. 

1. Choosing a topic or question to focus on, (Try to choose something 'pragmatic' for your present or future work-setting.)
2. Finding your resources for #1, and 
3. Posting links to the results of your search.

You may find the exercises and details for Part 1 "Teach Someone Something with Open Content"  here.  Please return to this blog and post your information in the comments (due by Midnight on 11/24) before moving on to Part 2 below.

525-Session 9 & 10 &--The Flipped Classroom--Part 2

Welcome to Session 9 where we will be delving more deeply into tools and resources that can be used for 'Flipping' your classroom.


As some of you mentioned in your comments and reflections under Session 8, flipping an entire course, or training program, may not be the ideal scenario. Video lectures should be brief and clearly focus on specific learning outcomes.  (and not all lessons are meant to be 'flipped')  What you really want to do is slowly transition your teaching style so that you can begin to take advantage of the 'flipping concept' without getting too overwhelmed.

Several of you commented on the 'up-front' workload involved.  This is a significant factor when you are taking all of the work on yourself, but as I've preached many times this semester--'no man is an island'.  You can, and should, take advantage of the vast trove of videos and interactive lessons that others have created and integrate them to reduce your workload. As I said in Session 8, 'Stand on the shoulders of giants'.

Also this semester, we have lightly touched upon the concept of 'Open Educational Resources' or OER's.  The concept of 'Openness' becomes extremely powerful when you begin to access videos, tools, and resources that have been created by others (and are freely licensed).  They allow you to not only use the work of others, but often allow you to modify, remix, and reuse material for your own purposes.  Once you begin to dive more deeply into these resources you'll begin to see how much easier it will become to educate others.

Just like when we spoke about using wikis as a knowledge base or as an eTextbook.  If you start off small, and slowly, then your momentum can build. Also, if you can find a partner or peer group to collaborate with, then your project can really pick up some speed.

Let's start off this session by looking at some teachers that have experience 'flipping' and working as trainers.  If you haven't joined the edWeb.net community yet, then please do so now.  Once you are there you have the option of choosing different communities that offer webinars perpetually to support the theme of that specific community.  For example:  https://www.edweb.net/flipped

is the first community I would like you to join.  Once logged in please view two archived webinars to support your evolution towards becoming a 'flipper'.

The first webinar is called, "Flipped Learning---There Must Be a Better Way Than This..."

Click here for the direct link, but you have to be logged into edWeb.net to see it.  If you get lost going through links then, once logged in, go to www.edweb.net/flipped

Now, take a break and when you are done with the video above come back here.
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The next webinar for this week is: "The Top 10 Reasons to Flip".   After watching this, take the CE Quiz and email me your certificate of completion.

Next we'll delve more deeply into Google Forms and their ability to streamline your teaching, instruction, and life.

Please go through these in order.  Let's start with,

1- "An Introduction to Google Forms"

2- "Google Forms Overview"

3- "Getting Started with Google Forms"

4- "Advanced Features with Forms" (OPTIONAL)

5- "Google Forms Challenge"  (The directions for this week's 'comments' are within #5.)

Deliverable #2

Please post your response to Deliverable #2 below.

To quote the description on the syllabus:

#2- Pick the Blogging service that you think might be the most pragmatic for your work and provide a description of how you will, or potentially could,  integrate this tool into a potential class or training session. The syllabus says that it is Due before Session 8 (Oct. 26th) but let's take until the weekend.

If you have already written your response and posted it under another entry, then please copy and paste it below for ease of organization.

If for some reason,  this assignment doesn't appear pragmatic for your setting or future then please 'pitch' an alternative 'communication avenue'  that would be more viable for you.

I will post Session 8 later to b/c I have heard from some of you that you need more time.  I will email you all when S8 is uploaded and ready to go.

525-Session 8--The Flipped Classroom!

Over the past few weeks we've been slowly transitioning towards learning how to use technology to aid in teaching and learning.  The next step in this evolution is to merge your face-to-face teaching with some of these 'blended learning' tools to create what is called, "The Flipped Classroom."  It's turning the traditional classroom on its head.





Created by Knewton





Many of you may have heard of this.  Here's a brief introduction:

The concept is really simplified here (obviously given the penguins). You don't have to always make your own videos or screencasts (which we still can cover more in-depth this semester).  You can always just borrow from others.  After all, why recreate the wheel, but let's learn a little more about this by joining a discussion group on Edweb.net that focuses specifically on the flipped classroom.  Not only do they have a group of like minded educators who want to learn about using technology to teach others, but they have discussion groups and a list of archived webinars for you to pick from and watch.

So now please take a break from this page and visit: http://www.edweb.net/flipped You'll need to create an account, and then join the group, then watch the recorded webinar,  "Flipped Learning Primer Part I: Basics of Flipped Learning"

After watching the webinar take the corresponding quiz to earn the CE.

Once you have taken the quiz and earned your CE, come back to this page and watch this more in-depth video:

Now I'd like you to think this week about the different ways you may 'flip' your own classroom and reflect on the concept this week, but before you do that you should know that there are always two sides to a new initiative, so let's end this week with some criticisms of flipping.

Good luck this week. Don't get too overwhelmed, and I look forward to hearing about the connections you may make to your future classroom environment.

And this week we have Billy, Ivory, Jessica and Nancy acting as our Facilitators.  Please support and engage with them.  Remember that 25% of your semester grade is based upon your participation in the discussion forums.  

If you are interested, here are some of the responses from previous year's class to this week's topics.

525--Session 7-Creating Online Tutorials

Hello again and welcome to Session 7!

This week we will be learning how to create our own online tutorials.  There will not be any session link.  All the assignments will be below.

Now, some of you have asked to have the content slowed down a bit, so I have dropped a gear or two for Sessions 7 & 8.  Now, over the next two days I'd like you to choose one of the four Google Classroom Certification steps (Creating w/G, Using G to Share Your Work, Building a Coll. Classroom w/G...) and discuss (in our blog comments) one (or more) of the resources within that step that you feel is the most practical for your particular 'future' occupational/adult education setting.  You'll have to sign up for a free account with Sophia, so when you get to that screen choose to log in using your Google 'personal' account, not the URI Google account.

For example, in Section 2 of the tutorial, one of the resources is, "Using Google to Share Your Work."  You'll notice that we sometimes use YouTube videos in our class.  Let's say you have a YouTube account (assigned this week on the syllabus) and you want your class to easily find videos that you have made and collected that would help with your class.  You could 'publish' your videos, then add them to a 'channel' aka 'playlist' and give your class access to this list.  This is just a small example.  We'll go into more details below.

I'd like you to think about these questions when writing your reflection for this week (focusing on a specific resource covered over week 7), post it to the blog comments below, and then revisit the blog over the next 7 days and 'reply' to your peers' reflections.

Also, we have some new Facilitators this week: Maegan, Jacquie, Lisa, and Zack.     Thank you Gayla, Tyron, and Tyler for your work contributing to the conversations during Week 6 and helping us move deeper with our understanding of the content and perspectives.

Questions to consider in our discussion threads this week:

1. How could you use a Google tool to promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness?
2. Reflect on how this tool will help you address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources.
3. How could you use a Google tool to promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative process and participate in local and global earning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning?
4. Additionally, Google products are not the 'be all--end all', so if you have another tool or resource that you think will work better, then please share it with the group when commenting on #'s 1-3 above or in your 'reply' to others.

Lastly, nearly all of you will be incorporating 'pre-created videos' from others within your future occupational setting, so it's important you know a little about the 'behind-the-scenes' details with the largest video storage site in the world.

 (Optional)Please go through these four lessons created by the "YouTube Creator Academy" about how YouTube really works.

Now I realize that the above assignments may take up a lot of your time over the next week, but if you want even more depth, then you may review these links to deepen your learning on these topics.  If you are too busy, then please make a note that these resources are here so you may access them some day in the future, even after our semester is over.

Good Luck this week!  Please pace yourself and try to have fun.  As always, I look forward to reading and engaging with you through our discussions.

Where to go for more information if you'd like more depth over the course of this week:

• Classroom in the Cloud
• Educators Technology and Mobile Learning
• Gone Google
• Google Gooru (you may need to open this in Internet Explorer)
• ​The Google Classroom.com

Good Luck this week!  Please pace yourself and try to have fun.  As always, I look forward to reading and engaging with you through our discussions.
PS-If anyone is interested in reading the comments from your peers last year about S7's content, then you may access them here.