Month: October 2014

365 vs Google Apps

I see today that ND EduTech has Office365 for K-12 working. Higher Ed in ND offers the same system. The release was described as offering students 21st Century Learning tools.

Just for the record, I regard Microsoft as lagging behind Google in developing cloud services (and Apple in developing hardware). Both Apple and  Microsoft have been pushed toward cloud applications by the success of Google.  Having used all of these systems, I would rank them Google, Microsoft, and then Apple.

It is interesting that Microsoft seems have to changed the company approach to pay attention to K-12. Apple used to have this focus with the logic that this emphasis might create future adult users. Apple seemed to back away from this focus as its hardware products became the industry leader is many categories. Microsoft may now be taking a similar approach. Note that the free/low cost to students is a way to get individuals invested in the platform. The “adult” version requires a purchase. Of course, Google apps are ad supported for adults. Will most adults purchase Microsoft products for themselves?

I find Google docs easier to use for peer collaborative writing and peer editing. Any system, Apple, Google,  Microsoft has a way to collaborate, but I find the Google approach easier to use. I also see the total “suite” offered by Google better suited to education. To my knowledge, there are no Microsoft or Apple equivalents to Sites, YouTube, Hangouts, Forms or Blogger. I see these products important to developing the multimedia authoring and collaboration skills of students. Contrary to the notion of 21st Century skills, learning, etc., the Microsoft offerings are both dated and limited in scope. I give Microsoft an advantage for OneNote.

Here are some additional links on this topic.

Information Week (this is a good overview not specific to ed)

Education users of both systems discuss

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Hosting social bookmarks

While I recognize the quality of the free or inexpensive social services I can access, I prefer when possible to host services from a server that I control. If you want to develop insights into how technology and specific services work, doing it yourself really gives you a closer look.

Some time ago, I operated a social bookmarking service using open source software called Scuttle. I modified the php code of Scuttle to provide some additional services – allowing users to promote sites they found useful, listing sites by total value to users. Hacking open code is certainly part of the way I learn.

I began to have difficulties with Scuttle and I never figured out if it was because of the code I added or limitations in the original code. There is a problem with MySQL called sql injection. Code included with invited input can cause problems that coder does not intend. This seems to be what happened and while I investigated how to clean up the problem I failed to prevent it completely. It seemed my site was on a list of vulnerable sites somewhere and problems became more frequent. I eventually removed Scuttle from the server.

I am trying it again. This time I am using open source bookmarking software named Shaarli (share links). The software does not use a database backend so this will eliminate the problem I encountered with Scuttle.

shaarli

My intent is to develop an online source of educational resources. I “seeded” the site using the links I have stored in my Diigo account and plan to add mostly content-specific links as I find them. Take a look at Grabe Bookmarks.

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How I Work

I see these blog posts in which recognizable individuals show their office or explain their work strategy. I make no claim to being recognizable nor will I provide images of my office (it is presently pretty cool – a three season porch looking out on birch, pines and a lake with a fire burning in the stove), but I thought I might explain how I write for online consumption (not the same as writing textbooks). The tools I use may be of interest to some.

My daily process involves the use of input tools that I use to surface content that I read. I would divide these tools into three categories – social tools (Twitter, Google+) for following specific individuals, an RSS feed I use to follow specific bloggers, and discovery tools that follow topics, but not individuals. As I go through this content, I annotate and move interesting content into Evernote. I mostly write in Evernote. I write when I have time and when something I have found seems interesting. I generate blog posts from individual or multiple inputs and draft these posts in Evernote before generating the final versions in WordPress (my three blogs). Of course, I also search for additional information related to topics I am writing about and sometimes write based my original ideas rather than in response to what I have read. I keep content in Evernote for future reference whether or not I write something. I use Diigo as a social bookmarking site mainly as a way to share resources related to our textbook. I pay for pro/premium Evernote and Diigo accounts to allow for expanded capacity.

workflow

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Where have all the web site tools gone?

If you have been interested in educational technology for some time, you probably remember the days before blogs and Twitter. Most of us started by creating web pages. We started by creating HTML pages by hand, but then for reasons of practicality moved on to specialized tools such as Claris Homepage, Adobe Pagemill, or Apple iWeb. I used them all. Companies sometimes had both basic and advanced tools. For example, Adobe offered Pagemill for the hobbyist and what became Dreamweaver for the more series site designer. It seems to me that with the advent of cloud services (e.g., Google Sites) and a focus on “short form” and continually changing content (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Google+) interest in the low end “site builders” declined. For educational settings, I think there is still potential in creating sites rather than posts and a need for less expensive tools for this purpose.

Web sites seem suited to authoring projects – a way to describe and teach with multimedia what has been learned from a project. There are simple ways to create multimedia online content, but it seems possible that students have grown to expect more sophisticated looking pages. Whether this “look” is of educational value or not is not the issue. What matters is the willingness of students investing in the production of the content.

This was perhaps a longer than necessary introduction to get to some comments regarding the potential of Weebly. I have been aware of Weebly for some time as an option made available through my Internet hosting service (Bluehost). I have invested time in developing content with Adobe Dreamweaver (don’t get me started on what I think of Adobe’s rental approach to software) and so I did not make personal use of the Weebly option. What got my attention was the recent release of the Weebly authoring app for iOS. I tried the app and liked it. I then backtracked to explore the web-based system available through a browser.

Both versions use a “drag and drop” approach. You select a page template you find appropriate and then drag “elements” onto this template to add types of media (image, text, video, maps) and structural elements to generate a desired layout of these elements. Ready-made options such as slide shows, image galleries and contact forms are also available.

Weebly is available as a free version and as more advanced paid versions. There is also an option for educators that is lower in cost (for the paid options). For example, the “pro account” is $40 per year and includes 40 student accounts. Weebly offers a way to password protect individual pages if desired and argues this is important when student security is a concern. If educators are interested in Weebly for the classroom, it is important that they understand the distinction between the opportunities offered to the public and for classroom use.

Here is an image captured from my iPad showing some of the elements available as I created a site. My sample site is available.

weebly

For information of greater depth try the Weebly help center

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Political ad bingo

This is the season for political ads. The frequency and approach of political ads drive me crazy. There seems so little meaningful information and so many obvious attempts to manipulate.

Anyway, I think an examination of political ads offers a great opportunity for developing critical thinking and/or media literacy. I have been trying to come up with a way to involve such skills without getting into the emotions that come with politics. I happen to think emotion in education is great and we should take on issues that raise enthusiasm whenever possible, but I also recognize that some would rather such issues be avoided.

Here is my basic idea – analyze political ads by creating and applying bingo cards. This seems a popular way to explore the “in terminology” during conference presentations I attend so why not apply in other contexts. Here is my first effort based on phrases and images (I). Obviously, some of the imagery or phrases would not apply in all areas of the country.

bingo

Consider that multiple students might create cards and apply to see who had done the best job of spotting trends. Popular images or phrases might also allow scrutiny of the messages ad creators think sell. Does the phrase “all politics is local” apply? Are there more negative or positive messages? Does the incumbent or challenger use more negative messages? Are voters being manipulated or informed based on phrases or images are emphasized?

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What happened to the dream?

I have wondered about this feeling I have had recently that not much was going on. That things in general were boring. I thought it might be the general political climate or various vague threats that we face. I thought it might even be me. Perhaps I had somehow become jaded or fatigued. I am getting older.

I happened on a blog post describing a new documentary that sounded interesting. The description was vague but there was mention of the OLPC and Peru. We donated an OLPC some years ago and purchased one for ourselves. I happened to find the device a week or so ago as we packed up our house to move. The combination of random events caught my attention. I wondered what had happened to the project. You no longer hear about the project online or at conferences.

I thought I might be able to watch the video using Amazon Prime, but it was not available. For a couple of bucks you can view the movie from Amazon or iTunes. I recommend it for education and tech people. The themes kind of take you back to a time when we hoped tech could change things.

It seems we have momentarily lost our fascination with the dreamers and their dreams. Maybe this is reality, but I think it is too bad.

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Why Twitter for edchats?

Why has the Twitter “edchat” become so popular? There are so many characteristics of the tool and the way it is used that are either limiting or annoying. This drives me crazy. I think online discussions are so valuable, but I am bewildered by the selection of Twitter for an opportunity that is being squandered.

140 characters is too limiting. I wish some grad student would analyze the responses in a Twitter chat? What % are “borrowed” platitudes? How many individuals actually participate in an hour session? I get the feeling many are multi-tasking and watching television or reading their email while “participating”.

The process moves too slowly. So many questions seem superficial and then there is the delay for the combination of response generation and reading. This issue in combination with the limited nature of the responses is deadly. A format based on a few general questions and a more free flowing approach would seem more productive. I just don’t think the tool is suited to a flexible approach.

The public nature of the process is self-centered and annoying to nonparticipants. Any Twitter user has been on the receiving end of a Twitter feed when one or two of their “follows” are participating in a chat. A3 – use it or lose it. It is very much like being trapped in close proximity to someone talking on a cell phone. It is inescapable spam.

Most educators have likely heard of the term affordance. It is the notion that the characteristics of a situation or tool make certain actions easier. This notion is seldom considered in the negative, but the opposite of an affordance also applies. Certain characteristics make things more difficult.

What is wrong with a Google hangout? If some members of a group are bandwidth deprived, you can still rely on text. The length of comments is not limited and the general public is protected by circles and invitations from numerous comments out of any meaningful context. Of course, the audio/video option would offer the opportunity for conversations of greater depth.

If not a hangout, there are so many other free or inexpensive options. I applaud the effort, but wish educators would show more creativity and/or independence and move to a more effective tool. It seems folks want to be part of a club based on a given approach rather than considering the purpose to which they have committed and being willing to recognize better options are available.

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