Sunday, 7 September 2008
ALT-C conference Edubloggers meet-up
I really should be blogging about the ALT-C conference...
I'll be attending the fourth (but my first) ALT-C Edublogger meetup next week, taking place at Leeds Student Union Mine Bar, Tuesday 9th September, 19.30 onwards.
Apparently: " We may be moving on somewhere else but we'll stay at the Mine Bar until at least 20.30. We've been lucky enough to have had some great special guests at previous meetups - including James Farmer, Stephen Downes, Barbara Dieu, Christopher D. Sessums and Barbara Ganley. This year's meeting promises to be as jam packed with world-class edubloggers as ever, including Scott Wilson and Graham Attwell. George Siemens will also be in town - he's speaking at ALT-C early Wednesday - and I'm looking forward to meeting up with him for the first time in 3D. As every - this is an informal, fun get together. You don't have to dress up and you don't have to be an old school edublogger to come along. Everyone who has an interest in edublogging is welcome. To co-inside with F-ALT, the first ever grass roots fringe event at ALT, which will be tackling a range of cutting edge topics in a fast, dynamic debate framework, we'll be holding the microblogging session on the night. Su White will be facilitating speakers Helen Whitehead, James Clay, Jay Cousins, Andy Powell & maybe Josie Fraser in a kung-fu style roundtable. Good quality heckling and any imaginative audience participation will be entirely welcome."
I have no idea what a kung-fu style round table is. But I'll find out on Tuesday!Labels: ALTC2008, blogging, conference, edubloggers
posted by Helen Whitehead 7:12 PM
Tuesday, 5 August 2008
Why I succumbed to Twitter....
I avoided it for a long time – who needs another obsession? – but after the NLab Social Networks Conference, I decided I had to have a part of this, and yes it’s become a regular practice. I follow and am followed by various other people interested in social networks and online communities and I’m already seeing some interesting insights, being pointed to useful resources elsewhere on the Web and being caught up in new discussions both on Twitter and elsewhere (e.g., on blogs and mailing lists.
After comments by Andy Roberts and others on emint, here are some suggested rules for effective use of Twitter:I can see a lot of positive uses for Twitter over and above the simple “What are you doing now application”.
- Only follow people you find interesting.
- Use the Twitter search to find people (not the “invite people” – I find that’s a red herring and not the way to find people!)
- Ask questions or throw out any problems you’re grappling with. Use it like a “garden fence” for the eliterati.
- Use additional services like following a news or sports feed - you can then get that feed to your mobile via Twitter.
- Beware of getting a large feed sent to your mobile – the thing will keep you awake!
- Distributed problem solving
- Finding out a bit more about your contacts and facilitating closer relationships
- Keeping attendees at a conference informed before and after
- A quick way to keep members of a community or network in touch
- Alerts to web content (using short URLs)
- Learning prompts and alerts for learners on a course.
Labels: blogging, internet policy, moblogging, twitter, Web 2.0, web applications
posted by Helen Whitehead 10:44 AM
Friday, 1 August 2008
How to Blog course starting 11th August
I'm just finalising the materials for my next blogging course - How to Blog. We call it "an online course with everything you need to know to start blogging - in just 2 hours a week (for 9 weeks)."
There are places on the next course still available and participants can start any time in the week 11-17 August.
Learn how to take control of your web strategy, drive traffic to your website, establish your expertise, take control of your online presence, and create conversations with clients. Alongside other course delegates you will spend around two hours a week online, at whatever time suits you, creating your blog, learning where to find and how to write topical posts, experimenting with marketing and monetising tactics, and learning from the others on your course as we build your own online blogging community and resources.
Still a few places left for course starting 11th August. Previous students are now established and successful bloggers.
More informationLabels: blogging, blogging course, How to Blog course, online course
posted by Helen Whitehead 10:56 AM
Thursday, 5 June 2008
Read the question!
My son is in the middle of GCSEs and I've been giving him the best piece of advice I know for success in exams - read the question!
It sounds basic, but it is surprising how easy it is, especially in a stressful situation such as an exam, to miss the obvious, to answer the question you wanted to answer or that you thought was being asked. Taking some time to really read and ponder on the question before starting to answer is an excellent tactic - and then halfway through, and at the end, reading through what you've written to see if it really answers the question.
It is a tip worth bearing in mind in many aspects of life, not just exams. In my workshops and courses supporting University and college lecturers in developing elearning, I emphasise again and again how important it is to be absolutely clear and explicit about the task the students should be doing, how they should do it and when they should do it. However, even my own students don't always read the questions I so carefully frame - they often leap in and give their opinion - even if it's not what was asked for!
To some extent, it doesn't worry me - especially with adults, who are in charge of their own learning. Sometimes it can be frustrating, yes, when you've carefully framed a question for discussion and the students go off and discuss something else entirely - but if that discussion furthers their learning, then it's perfectly valid. Yes, it's more work for me to reframe the questions that follow, or to moderate the discussion in a way that brings in my original learning points (because they can't just be abandoned), but that's my job as a tutor.
In the Best Practice Models community discussion on online communities yesterday, we were discussing whether a community of practice can be used for learning, and I made the point that a community of learners is something I aspire to, but that ultimately learning is planned and guided within that community. A community of practice is much more member-led, and the learning is more informal - though obviously it can still be facilitated, one example being that very discussion yesterday in a community of practice that was focused on communities of practice... I'll probably come back to the differences between learning communities and communities of practice in a later post.
There are deep challenges for the tutor in turning the learning over to the learner, but it's wonderful when it all comes together. One encouraging example for me was yesterday when one of my students on our How to Blog course posted exactly the material I had ready for that day's posting. And she hadn't even SEEN the question yet! A learner taking control of learning in a very real way. Wonderful.Labels: ACL, adult learning, BestPracticeModels080604, blogging, e-learning, e-moderating, elearning, emoderating, exams, How to Blog course, informal learning
posted by Helen Whitehead 9:40 AM
Monday, 19 May 2008
How to choose your blog name
If you are setting up a new blog, probably the next important task after choosing your blog niche is to the job of choosing a name for your blog. One of the first questions is whether to have a quirky name that no-one has already got, so that you can easily be found in Google - or choose a keyword carefully based on what people search on in Google and so that they can find your blog by subject.
Here are some key tips for choosing your blog name
- vital to get this right
- choose a descriptive name that is appropriate for your topic
- not too quirky (there are quirky blog names – Boing Boing! - but a new one with a quirky name won't be found as easily by search engines - this blog, for example had a much slower start than if I'd called it E-learning Insights or something!)
- using specific words in the title will give your blog more Google-juice!
- Make sure no-one is using your blog title/name already for a blog or a website
- Chose the name alongside a domain name and make make sure you buy it as soon as you've chosen!
- Don't let it get too long though
- Keep it permanent – you don't want to lose traffic by changing names and/or URLs
Labels: blogging, blogs, choosing name for blog, setting up a blog, starting a blog
posted by Helen Whitehead 9:30 AM
Sunday, 4 May 2008
Stay with Blogger or move to Wordpress?
I've been really busy, lately.
Reach Further have moved offices. We can now be found at
Reach Further Ltd.
Round Foundry Media Centre
Foundry Street
Leeds
LS11 5QP
I've also revamped the website and finally set up a decent Wordpress blog. I'm liking Wordpress, and it's maybe time I moved this blog over to it - or should I stay with Blogger? There are obviously advantages to both. Happy to hear others' opinions.
And one of the main reasons I dislike Blogger at the moment is the way it autocompletes my tags and there doesn't seem any way to stop it without carefully editing everything. Anyone else find it annoying?
http://reachfurther.com/Labels: Blogger, blogging, blogs, Reach Further, women bloggers, Wordpress
posted by Helen Whitehead 2:44 PM
Saturday, 16 February 2008
Putting a blog feed on Facebook
There are so many Facebook apps that I now turn down or ignore most of the Quizzes or role-playing invitations I get on Facebook. However here's FlogBlog - an application that's actually useful - it provides a feed to your existing blog via Facebook. A good way to integrate Blogger or Wordpress (or any other blog with a feed) and Facebook.Labels: blog facebook integration, blogging, blogs, Facebook
posted by Helen Whitehead 1:07 PM
Thursday, 24 January 2008
Women bloggers
Janet Clarey has blogged this month about Women in the edublogosphere 2007
She says "When I first started blogging early in ‘07 I felt there weren’t that many female bloggers."
Which is so sad - I've been blogging since 2003, and I know a lot of women, especially in the new media and education areas who've been blogging that long. Looks from Janet's list that she now knows plenty of women edubloggers too :) I'm looking forward to surfing through her list and adding to my feeds.
Meanwhile we are sorting out speakers for a conference of women bloggers in Leeds on 12th June, and there's no shortage of people to approach - though if you have a suggestion for a speaker I'd be delighted to hear it.Labels: blogging, conference, e-learning, edublogging, educational blogs, Leedswomenontheweb, women bloggers
posted by Helen Whitehead 5:46 PM
Tuesday, 18 December 2007
Issues regarding use of blogs with students
Some questions to think about when planning to use blogs with students:
- What is the purpose of the blog – make sure it is clear – is it linked to assessment? If it isn’t assessed will they bother to use it – probably not?
- Do you use a class group blog or individual blogs? Perhaps you only need one blog in wwhich you as tutor post the questions and assignments etc., and the students merely respond via comments.
- Will they have a choice which blog to use and whether or not to make it or bits of it public?
- What if they already have a blog and prefer to use the same blog, perhaps with a specific tag to make it easier for you and anyone else to read? otherwise they may end up with many blogs, e.g., for each class plus private ones – which is difficult to manage.
- If you specify what blog tool they use, will you use an internal blog provided by the institution or an external one, with all the disadvantages of hosting off-site?
- Do you insist they have a “professional” identity – do they need guidance in the tone and theme of the blog? Can they use a pseudonym or other less formal identity?
- Will the tutor be reading the blog or will everyone in the class be expected to read one another’s? Will students be expected to comment on one another’s posts?
Labels: academic blogs, blog network, blogging, blogs, collaborative working, reflective learning, writing
posted by Helen Whitehead 12:02 PM
Friday, 21 September 2007
Libraries and Librarians in the Blogosphere
Here are some of the most representative library blogs I've found. Some librarian blogs are among the best blogs I've read. Must be something about librarians and information... From the UK, USA and Australia.
Peter Scott’s Library Blog http://xrefer.blogspot.com/ Links
Cambridge University Medical Library http://cambridgemedicallibrary.blogspot.com/ Facts
Spineless (Heriot Watt) http://hwlibrary.wordpress.com/ Facts and Opinions
ILS Blog, University of Worcester http://www2.worc.ac.uk/wordpress/ Opinions
Library Suggestion Blog (Virginia Commonwealth) http://blog.vcu.edu/libsuggest/
Theoretical Librarian http://theoretical-librarian.blogspot.com/ Occasional
Eclectic Librarian opinions http://www.eclecticlibrarian.net/blog/archives/000851.html
Hey Jude (Winner of Best Library Blog in the EduBlog awards 2006) http://heyjude.wordpress.com/
The L Files http://bulibrary.blogspot.com/ Facts and Opinions
Plus some examples of types of blog
•Academic blog – the Adelie blog
•Group blog – Leeds University e-learning
•Personal blog – Stephen Downes
•Business blog – iQubed blog
•Conference blog – Women Business & BloggingLabels: academic blogs, blogging, blogosphere, blogs, librarian, librarian blogs, librarians, libraries, library, library blogs
posted by Helen Whitehead 8:40 AM
Monday, 17 September 2007
Links for week commencing 17th September
Creative Learning Activities with Moodle
Interesting set of slides from Paula de Waal at Padua University about being creative in using the tools available in Moodle. Ideas also applicable for other VLEs - we can all try to be more creative about the tools we've got.
A bit trivial - but an intriguing blog story:
An American "mommy blogger" gained notoriety from this listing on eBay http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=130144061675
You then need to read her blog (which is very funny infact) to see what the notoriety did to her blog hits. http://mom2my6pack.blogspot.com/
More blogs:
Bioethics Bites - a a collection of resources to assist in the teaching of bioethics. This project was established and is maintained by Chris Willmott at the University of Leicester, UK. There are presently three members of the BioethicsBytes team - Chris, Bonnie Green and David Willis. http://bioethicsbytes.wordpress.com/
And Microbiology Bytes http://microbiologybytes.wordpress.com/ "the latest news about microbiology, in a form that everyone can understand." This site is created by Alan Cann, also at the University of Leicester. He also has a blog entirely about frogs
And also (from Alan Cann's education blog) draft guidelines for using external web 2.0 services from the University of Edinburgh.Labels: blogging, blogs, links
posted by Helen Whitehead 11:45 AM
Thursday, 6 September 2007
ALT-C: bloggers on blogging
Blogging as-you-go isn't as easy as I thought. I was too tired last night to blog about yesterday so now I have two days' worth to try to encapsulate!
I've decided I don't like live blogging - I'm too chicken to blog directly into Blogger, and have been trying it by making notes (pen and paper) directly intended for my blog and then typing them up. I find I don't have time to reflect on what the speaker is saying, I just end up copying bits of Powerpoints or random quotes. As soon as you start to reflect and synthesise something, they've moved on and you've missed the last thing they said. And I make so many typing errors and break my concentration by correcting them... Yet if you blog afterwards, you've lost that immediacy and already forgotten things... I guess half an hour in a session followed by half an hour to think and blog is probably the best way, but that's not the way conferences are organised. And I'll always want to reflect, edit and edit again before my blog goes out to the world.
Lots of other ALT attendees are blogging about blogging about their blogging (and so on and so forth!) including David Bryson, James Clay and Steve Wheeler.Labels: ALT-C2007, altc2007, blogging
posted by Helen Whitehead 4:43 PM
Thursday, 19 July 2007
Blogs vs communities of practice
A community of practice defines itself along three dimensions:
- What it is about - its joint enterprise as understood and continually renegotiated by its members
- How it functions - mutual engagement that bind members together into a social entity
- What capability it has produced - the shared repertoire of communal resources (routines, sensibilities, artifacts, vocabulary, styles, etc.) that members have developed over time? (Wenger 1998)
I've been reading an interesting post from back in 2004 comparing blogs and online communities of practice.
In summary:
What blogs provide that other web-based collaboration tools do not:
- Blogs are more respectful of their authors and of their audience
- Blogs are better connecting tools.
What Communities of Practice provide that a network of bloggers cannot:
- Communities are better social structures for problem-solving, knowledge stewarding and innovation
- Communities of practice are better social structures for learning
How blogs and CoPs live together?
- Blogger networks generate communities of practice (and communities of practice generate projects)
- Communities of Practice can use blogs to communicate with the outside world.
I wonder how that discussion would be updated now? Certainly you wouldn't talk about "weblogs" now! I might have a think about this and post my thoughts at a later date.Labels: blog network, blogging, blogs, communities of practice, emoderating, online community
posted by Helen Whitehead 9:06 AM
Sunday, 10 June 2007
Meg Pickard at Women, Business and Blogging
The first speaker at the Women Business & Blogging conference at DMU on Friday (8th June) was Meg Pickard, Head of Communities and User Experience for Guardian Unlimited. She spoke about "Whose Web is it anyway".
Meg introduced us to the levels of a user's interactions with the internet starting with the easiest:
consumption: users now can consume content without even visiting the site it comes from
interaction: basic interaction involves comments & conversation hosted by the creator - when it comes to commenting and interaction it's "not always polite and genteel – can be rowdy but is still your turf, i.e. 'my gaff, my rules'." Then people start responding to your content in their own spaces can't control it - may not eve know about it! Invisible interaction includes - attention data - using a feed reader - user/view count
curation: a new way of people being creative by involvement in creation and aggregation like feed readers. New technologies make it easier to do this - e.g., folksonomy, delicious, recommendations like digg. Squidoo - people creating lenses about things - bring in sites etc. - adding metadata. Other people can be creative with your content! Examples : Mashups - eg Yahoo pipes, remixing feeds and open data sources across the web for new purposes
creation: Content creation - contribution - e.g., photos on BBC website, youtube, flickr - user-generated content: the user has the control.
Meg went on to look at what makes a community.
Communities are good for users because they:
- increase relevancy
- increase emotional connection to the online experience
- increase social connection to each other
- add depth to conversations
Communities are useful to publishers and businesses because they:
- make experiences more relevant and human
- improve the quality of content
- increase usage
- increase revenue
Meg's "Holy Trinity" of community management include:
- Human solutions - moderators, policies, processes, consistency of approach
- Technical solutions - moderation platform, profiles, user management tools, ratings, etc.
- Editorial solutions (the one people forget) - proposition, framing of debate, tone of voice, reward, interaction
Personally I'd put the human and editorial solutions in together as all those things in editorial solutions are, for me, part of moderating, but it's true that many who start communities think of the technical aspects, sometimes think of the human aspects but miss out on the editorial aspects and the resources that need to be put into it.
Meg pointed out that the user engagement cycle of
casual - > connected - > committed - > catalyst
visiting registering engaging identifying/evangelist
could be mapped on the user engagement cycle.
Labels: blogging, interaction, Meg Pickard, nlabwomen, nlabwomen07, online communities, Web 2.0
posted by Helen Whitehead 3:18 PM
Technorati
I can't believe I never joined Technorati before...
Technorati ProfileLabels: blogging, technorati
posted by Helen Whitehead 12:44 PM
