I found an interesting web assignment in the DS106 Assignment Bank for this week's assignment. There is a website called the Internet Archive Way Back Machine which keeps an archive of websites over time. It's really interesting. Go to the website and enter the url of a favorite website. You can see snapshots of the site from previous years and, therefore, see the evolution of the site over time. This DS106 assignment is exactly that.
My first thought was to look up my company's website to see the changes over time. But in keeping with my focal theme of corporate eLearning, I decided to look at a website that I've been visiting quite often since beginning my graduate education: www.elearningindustry.com. Here are some snapshots:
June 2012
January 2013
July 2013
December 2013
June 2014
December 2014
July 2015
The website, elearningindustry.com, started out as a blog in 2012. It's only 3 years old which is a bit of shortened timeframe. I'm sure if we were to look up some other companies that have been around a lot longer the contrast would be much more stark. However, what this does show me is how much the elearning industry (and this website being a representation of the industry) has evolved.
Content is not the only thing that changes. A website is not only a repository of information, it is also a map. Over time, the user experience will change in order to better orient the visitors to the information that is most applicable. As a blog, elearningindustry.com transformed from having a simple blog-like appearance to being more of a library of resources, of which blog posts are a major category.
One other factor that has changed over time is the inclusion of social media icons on the main page. As you can see, those did not appear until 2014. That gives us a clue of the industry is adapting to the demands of social media and creating a greater platform for collaboration. In 2012, which was only 3 years ago, I could submit a blog post.. Today, I can do that and so much more. I not only get to learn from the industry, I can also participate in it.
I now not only wonder what this website will look like 3 years from now, I wonder what the elearning industry will look like.
The final chapter of New Literacies, by Lankshear and
Knobel, beautifully ties together the discussions around social learning and
practice with the examination of two very interesting case studies in learning –
one with adult learners and the other with grade school students. As one trying
to enter a brand new field (eLearning) I find these studies eye-opening and
inspiring. I credit the authors for the way they organized the content of the
book with principles building on each other. I admit, in the beginning chapters
on “new literacies” and how they’ve become defined, I asked myself, “Who cares?”
I now see how important it is to understanding literacies, especially in today’s
learning culture. It’s through these literacies that the paradigm shift in
formal education can take place. These empirical examples in the text
illustrate this.
Within this last chapter I found a few sentences from the
authors that I feel highlights the message of this book:
The ideal for all learning at every
point in time - and which is especially significant when thinking about
learning within formal education institutions - is that it be efficacious. For
learning to be efficacious, 'what a child or adult does now [wherever they are
along their trajectory] must be connected in meaningful and motivating ways
with "mature" [insider] versions of related social practices'. (2011,
p. 252)
The words meaningful and motivating were written throughout
the description of the second learning study as attributes that aided the
students throughout their experience with such a new learning platform. What’s
interesting is how the platform incorporated games as part of that experience.
I’m sure some old school thinkers believe games to be trivial and distraction.
But games absolutely can bring meaning and motivation – so why not make it a
tool for learning?
The main question that came to mind from this week’s reading
was how I can establish a collaborative learning platform where I work today. I’ve
mentioned this in previous posts but I work for a large technology security
company - tied to the sales department. Our onboarding and training for newly
hired sales reps is atrocious. Learning modules are boring and outdated,
information is scattered everywhere, and there is no sign of an onboarding plan
anywhere. However, because of a lack of “push”, new hires today are already relying
on social collaboration and what resources they can find online. The problem
they face is the immediate expectation to hit sales quotas regardless of
product knowledge or other process aptitude.
This situation is a perfect example of “tribal learning”
which is really a form of social learning. It makes me believe that not only is
the shift to pulling a necessity, it is also a preference – especially when it
comes to corporate learning. The personalities of those working within a sales
organization are more adept to pulling information in order to meet their
personal desires and motivations. Sitting through a day-long training or
logging time in a classroom does not appeal to them (or their attention spans),
in my opinion.
There is a great opportunity within workplace learning to
create a platform where information can be pulled and shared through
collaboration and gaming. Yet where there is pulling and trajectory, there
needs to be guidance. I believe eLearning is the solution to providing that
guidance and making corporate learning, as the authors put it, more
efficacious.
Here is The Daily Create from a few days ago: casting a shadow. My brothers and I, growing up, used to try and do shadow puppets at night once the lights were turned out. This one was one of my best ones. Does it look like a dog?
For this week's interest-driven assignment bank, I wanted to find an assignment where I could create an infographic to illustrate corporate eLearning. I came across this assignment to create a maze and thought twice about it. Then I likened it to my own corporate situation and this is what I came up with:
I mentioned in previous blogs about the inadequacies surrounding my own company's training program. Essentially, newly hired sales reps are thrown in the deep and....like a maze...are expected to find their own way, often times through trial and error. I thought a maze would be a good representation.
Allowing students to learn on their own isn't necessarily a bad thing. A lot of the personality types that become sales reps are actually kinetic learners. However, going to one extreme can be ineffective. In today's paradigm shift to "pulling" information, enabling reps with eLearning can be the necessary guidance to get them through...well... the maze.
Throughout my degree I have spent a lot of time surfing elearningindustry.com. This site, which contains a wealth of content from industry professionals, posts a number of articles relating to various topics in eLearning. I found a recent article from May 2015 titled, "The Great eLearning Design Mashup - Scrolling In eLearning" by Li Whybrow decided to do a digital critique on one of the examples in the article.
In the article, Li discusses scrolling as a mashup technique for developing eLearning web content. Scrolling is how it sounds - creating a web page where the viewer scrolls down on the page to engage content in an ordered fashion. Parallax scrolling allows the background to change at a slower pace than the scrolling to create a 3D effect. The idea is to make navigation simple while providing an engaging experience.
I'm going to borrow one of Li Whybrow's example for a digital critique: http://nasaprospect.com/. This website was created by some students at the University of South Dakota in conjunction with NASA. The mashup combined music, voiceover, and content from NASA to create a unique learning experience.
I will evaluate this website mashup based on the following literacy dimensions:
1) Reuse/repurpose existing content for specific purposes As mentioned above, the whole idea for the website was to take content from NASA and combine it with music/audio and web applications to create a unique learning experience. Knowledge and facts were presented in a dialogue that helped engage the viewer and tell a story. The background music enhanced the experience and set a tone.
2) Be able to put together a user interface for the mashup The scrolling feature enabled navigation through the digital story keeping the user experience simple and less technical. The added audio features were implemented so as to keep the story ongoing and not require the user to have to do anything else but scroll. 3) Facilitate an activity, interest, or pursuit
This mashup was used for a learning experience which ties directly with course curriculum and focal theme. Viewers of this website can get a fun taste of science and space in a creative yet informative presentation that hopefully spurns interest in pursuing further education.
I liked this website and thought it was a great example of mashing up web applications (the scrolling feature) with audio and visual. I wouldn't change a thing to the site and would recommend it to educators wanting to introduce their students to science, space, and NASA.
I really enjoyed reading this chapter of New Literacies this
week because the authors hit on a number of themes that really hit home with me
and my motivation for studying instructional technology. I will start my
response by sharing a personal story.
When I started college, I attended the freshman orientation
which took place the weekend prior to the first week of classes. At one point
during the orientation, a student could attend a speech by of the professors of
the program they wanted to major in (science majors attended a science lecture,
engineer majors attended an engineering lecture, etc.). For those that did not
yet know what they wanted to study (this was me), they could hear a lecture
from one of the student development professors.
So I attended the lecture, and the professor speaking made
sure to make the point that it often did not matter what one studied in college
because one could find a job doing anything. For example, English majors have
become lawyers, Humanities majors have become HR representatives, math majors
have become doctors, and so on. I know the professor was trying to emphasize to
his audience that they should study what they love - which I think is a
justified message. The thing that has bugged me since about that speech is that
no one ever said HOW the humanities major became an HR representative. Becoming
an HR representative still requires learning so where did that learning take
place?
Throughout this chapter, Lankshear and Knoble often referred
to works published by Brown and Adler. One thing they shared from the book “Minds
on fire: Open education, the long tail and learning 2.0” was that populations in
the future “will increasingly depend on the availability of robust local
ecosystems of resources that support innovation and productiveness “(2008: 17).
I believe this is the answer to the question posed above. The paradigm shift
from “pushing” education onto students to having them “pull” information based
on their passions or needs is already in full swing.
Lankshear and Knoble note that societies have historically
depended on formal education to support such learning but that option seems to
be running out of time (2011: 215). The authors note that the type of learning
needed for future sustainability and viability cannot be obtained through
traditional teaching methods of pre-set courses and curriculum. In higher
education, decontextualized and abstract content absorption have proven to be
ineffective means of innovation and productivity (2011:215).
This appears to be a pretty hard knock on formal education.
There still is value in theoretical and abstract content because it enables
student to exercise their mind and develop critical and analytical thinking.
However, as for innovation and productivity, such a method of learning does us
no good. I go back to the example of the Humanities major turned HR
representative. This example happens to be my wife’s own story. She studied
something she loved which was Humanities. Upon graduation she found a job as an
executive assistant for a financial planner. The position did not require any
knowledge of finance just the ability to perform administrative duties. After
gaining experience performing those duties for a year or so, my wife sought out
another job as an executive assistant for another company. Her experience as an
executive assistant qualified her for the job – not her knowledge of classical
literature and art. Yet this time, she was the assistant to a vice president of
human resources. Now exposed, indirectly, to a new competency which she
personally found interesting, my wife began gleaning knowledge from co-workers
over time. This enable her to seek out a position and obtain a position as an
HR representative and begin her career in that field. Did it matter that she
studied Humanities in college? No.But
it did matter that she obtain some learning which she “pulled” from her social
network.
Such a practice takes place all the time. What we need to do
is utilize the technological literacies which we have to magnify social
learning. We can create the resources and give people access. In a way, it’s
offering on-the-job training without having the job.
I personally find this subject matter exciting and relevant
in my work life. Formal education can still expand our minds and teach us how
to think but social learning through organized platforms can enable us to glean
the knowledge that we need and/or want.
For this week's digital story critique I have selected two images from articles on www.elearningindustry.com
Beneath each picture I will list the title of the article along with the abstract:
From elearningindustry.com:
How to Use The 5 "Moments of Need" Model In Corporate eLearning In this article, I'll share how you can use the 5 “moments of need” to your advantage when designing eLearning courses and training events. Capitalizing on these “moments of need” when designing and developing your eLearning courses will help you to create deliverables that improve knowledge absorption and retention, which is the ultimate goal of any learning experience.
From elearningindustry.com:
Augmented Learning 102: Voice Activated eLearning - Listen Up! You’ve probably heard that the only silly question is the one that you didn’t ask. Well, technology has now taken that saying one step further. Voice recognition allows us to talk to, rather than through, our mobile devices. One of the best things about our mobile devices... they don’t judge. No question is too silly. The elearningindustry.com website is an online community of eLearning professionals which includes articles, research, resources, software, collaboration, and other useful tools related to eLearning. Professionals can post articles to the website for publication. Each article comes with a visual (which follows the title and abstract) that helps portray the message of the article. I've chosen two photoshopped images that I will evaluate based on the following dimensions:
- Knowing how to import an image into an image editor - Understanding how perspective, shadows and shading etc. work - Understanding how to create a recognizably meaningful juxtaposition of images
Knowing how to import an image into an image editor
This is a fairly simple dimension but its important to point at that both images (for the purposes of this critique I will call them the stairs image and desert image) show real people. Placing real people in a photoshopped image helps the viewer create a somewhat personal connection. "If there are real people doing that then it must be possible for me to do it". I think it was important for the author or editor to specifically use live images in order to drive the reader to internalizing the message of the article. Therefore, to use real people, importing images into Photoshop or any other photo editor is a key function. In the case of these two pictures where the people are placed against a different background, it is also important to be able to crop and alter those images to make them look like they belong in the new background.
The editor here does a good job of accomplishing this. At first glance, it appears the images are part of one snapshot.
Understanding how perspective, shadows and shading etc. work Perspective, shadows, and shading are important attributes to photoshopping in order to create a believable remix. This is actually how I know that the images were done with a photo editor. In the "stairs" image notice where the shadows are and then look at the man on the middle set of stairs.....no shadow. Likewise, the female in the "desert" picture is also missing a shadow where the others have them. The presence of shadowing on the correct perspective line help the image be believable. I really had to look closely at the "desert" picture to make sure it was edited. I was ultimately able to find small clues (such as the lack of a shadow and the feet of the man on the right) but at first gland it appeared to be a snapshot.
Realistic images are important because it draws the view into the picture. Upon looking at both of these images, I was immediately engaged and found my eyes wanting to explore the image further. Exploring the image further turned into telling a story in my mind.
Understanding how to create a recognizably meaningful juxtaposition of images
Yes, I did have to go to dictionary.com to look up the word "juxtaposition". But now that I know what it means, I can see the relevance and importance of this dimension to photoshopping. This is the component that is not immediately noticeable but is what makes the image appealing to the eye. Notice the balance of the people in each of the images. For the "stairs" image, each man is spaced apart equally creating a balance to the picture. However, the man at the top of the latter is all the way to the right. For most languages, reading takes place from left to right. This translates into visuals as well. By seeing the first two men with bigger stairs come to an obstacle, we understand more of the meaning of the third man and how he overcame the obstacle. We, as viewers, then once again tell our own story of how and why this image came to be.
The pictures are great examples of photoshopping especially within the context of digital storytelling. Picture books help children keep attention by providing some visuals to guide them during the story. These pictures follow the same principles. They are an invitation to read the article and understand the message the author is trying to convey. I feel these images appropriately represent the articles. A few photoshop touch-ups could be made to suspend disbelief completely but they certainly serve their purpose.
To begin my review of chapter 5 from Lankshear and Knobel’s New Literacies: Blogs and Wikis, I first
wanted to share the answer to a question that I’ve had for a long time – where did
the word blog come from?
Here is the brief history from Wikipedia (appropriate for
this chapter):
Some of you may have already known that tidbit. The origin
of the name isn’t as exciting as I had thought it would be. I assumed it was
perhaps a made-up term but I guess having weblog as the origin makes sense.
I remember the first time hearing the term blog. It was
during my undergrad in the early 2000’s when a friend of mine sent me a link to
her daily blog. As an english major and with a love for writing, keeping a blog
was something she enjoyed doing and looked forward to each day. I understood it
to be an online journal that anyone could see. But it was more than that. In
addition to keeping somewhat of a diary, my friend also provided commentary on
various topics. I didn’t get it. The journal writing aspect I understood but
just writing sort of a personal op-ed for the whole world to see? I thought
maybe it was just a way to get attention.
Fast forward ten years and blogging is not only a common
term but a social norm as well. It certainly belongs in the discussion for new
literacies because it exemplifies the desire of people to express themselves,
communicate, and interact. I agree with Lankshear and Knobel that blogging is
both a medium and a practice much like paint. Paint is a medium used for
accomplishing a number of different tasks from making art to covering a
drywall. The practice of painting can also take different forms with different
objectives. Therefore, blogging also acts as both a medium and a practice…a
thing and an action.
One thing the authors point out, in both chapters 5 and 6, is
that many people look to social networks for knowledge flows – ways to
continually acquire knowledge in certain areas of interest. We know that some blogs
and wikis also serve to provide knowledge flows today. The question I find
curious is how and why do people trust the information provided by the masses?
I look at the case of commercial enterprise. The last few
companies I have worked for have utilized blogging as part of their marketing
strategy. At one company I worked for, anyone was allowed to submit a blog post
for the corporate blog – which I happened to do on a couple occasions. I didn’t
understand then and I’m not sure I understand now the value of such a blog to a
reader. Is it to get a human component behind the flashiness of marketing?
I know in our sales organization (in the technology
industry) a common strategy is to not just sell products to a customer but be a
trusted advisor to the customer. I’m sure that publishing corporate blogs, with
contributions from industry experts, is way to gain that trusted advisor
status. Blogs provide a regular feed of industry and technological commentary
but is the information presented trustworthy? Afterall, the company is trying to sell products.
I guess what I’m trying to get at is – as society shifts to
blogs and even wikis for knowledge are we in danger of ingesting bad information?
How do we know who to trust?
Watching toys come to life seems like every kid's fantasy. Some people might call toys inanimate objects but to the imagination, toys have characters and personalities all their own. Pixar captured this brilliantly in their Toy Story series. The image above is one of the first scenes of the first Toy Story movie. In this scene, the character that is Woody is being introduced as the leader of the group of toys in Andy's room as he runs a meeting to discuss the upcoming move. Here we get to know how each toy comes to life and what kind of personality they have. All any of the toys wants is just to be played with! What these toys don't realize is that Andy is about to receive an exciting new birthday present that will introduce both a contender for Andy's time as well as a new friend, Buzz Lightyear.
Sneaking into this image is another toy from another great story who came to life and took us on an adventure into the death-defying world of Legos. His name is Emmett and, in The Lego Movie, he realizes his destiny as a master builder and must unite with other famous superheroes to ward off the evil plot of the enemy. Emmett is another commonly played-with toy brought to life in the digital make-believe story of a young man realizing his true potential.
For this assignment I wanted to combine two similar yet different stories into one image. In thinking about famous movie scenes combined with the overarching theme of digital storytelling, I figure there couldn't be better examples of bringing the inanimate to life. Who knows? Perhaps if Emmett's and Woody's worlds would combine they could become best of friends and have their own adventures together. You've heard the phrase, "the sky is the limit." But in this case, "the imagination is the limit."
As was this week's assignment, I sought out a digital remix for my critique and came across a short video created by the University of Florida. To keep in-line with my focal theme of corporate eLearning, I did a google search for "E-Learning movie trailers" to see if something like this existed. I was happy to see that the eLearning department at the University of Florida tried their hand at a new digital format in order to tell a story - a teaser trailer of new things to come!
I will evaluate the video using the Chapter 4 appendix from New Literacies under the Movie Trailer Remix. This video isn't a traditional movie trailer in that it was created from a movie. Instead, it is a video created to look like a movie trailer. Some of the dimension I will focus on are:
1) Knowing how to access original movie footage to use in the remixed trailer 2) Paying attention to original movie storylines and leveraging them where possible in creating a new movie storyline 3) Including written text in the remix video to help convey the new storyline
Accessing Original Footage
The video is a teaser trailer for a new look eLearning technology at the university. Original footage of the old software is portrayed in an old-fashioned format conveying an out-dated message. The coloring and blinking footage make the old system look like a thing of the past, similar to an old movie before full color was available.
Paying Attention To Original Storylines
The story is simple: old platform is being updated to a new platform. The video begins with the original interface as if the viewer is the one accessing the system. The new platform is introduced in the same manner but with greater appeal and visual so the viewer can make the simple comparison.
Including Written Text
Sakai appears to be the name of the platform or software being used for eLearning at the University of Florida. The teaser is explained through text - first the old system written in an old fashioned font. The transition to the new system involves common user text, almost like a chat room. The new system is then flashier and more modern bringing a sense of newness and excitement.
Overall, the video was pretty basic but I wanted to find an example of eLearning being portrayed using a new format. I think incorporating the principle of remixing into online learning is an exciting yet challenging proposition that needs to be explored fully.
Chapter 4: Lankshear and Knobel - Digital Remixing
Anime Music Videos?!! Who are you and where are you taking
me???
I had no idea, prior to now, that AMV even existed. I
suppose I shouldn’t be surprised at all of the new vantage points that the
internet is opening up to me. I did do a search for Maguma’s most notable AMV
video titled, The Konoha Memory Book, and thought I would post it for those
that might want to view:
The authors used Maguma’s personal story and achievements as
an example of digital remixing and how it shaped that particular. I respect the
example and even admire the work that Maguma did even in the video above,
despite the fact that Anime is not a genre that appeals to me.I was also unaware that fanfiction existed or
even some of the other examples provided such as modding, moshing, and
machinima. However, what all of these have in common is the availability of
technology that allows amateurs the ability to produce and share digital
content or remixes. After reading the text, I realized that I’ve seen digital
remixing manifested in other forms as well. Today, one can almost find an app
or a website that allows them to do homemade audio and video recordings. I even
have an app on my phone where my 3 year old can record his own voice and play
it back in a number of different tones or sound effects. A year ago, my work
had a sales conference and invited employees or departments to create a one
minute video that somehow promotes one of our products. These videos were to be
shown at the annual sales conference. Our team did a “remix” by recreating
Jimmy Fallon’s Thank You Notes sketch but wrote the jokes to pertain to our own
work environment. We were able to edit the video with a laugh track and
audience sound effects to mimic the popular night host’s famous routine. We
ended up winning first place!
One thing that has stood out to me from the text, however,
is, as the authors state, “the general principle of remix as a necessary
condition for a robust and democratic culture” (Lankshear and Knobel, p. 97). I
find this principle fascinating and can now see evidences of this throughout
daily life. It’s true the culture is full of remixing – from the jokes we tell,
to music, to even the type of fashion we adhere to.Today, the popular look for men is the slick
hairdo with the lumberjack beard. It’s like the 1950s and 1960s decided reunite
in the 2010s.
However, in pondering this principle two questions come to
mind:
1)If remix is a necessary condition for culture,
would the lack of remix lead to a lack of culture?
2)And somewhat related – to what extent can we use
remix to shape or enhance culture?
I’m not really sure how to begin with my first question or
if that question is even relevant. Therefore, I’m going to let it float out
into the cyberverse.
I’m very intrigued by the second question though. I would
like to provide some thought around it by addressing my focal theme and
personal work situation. As a quick background, I work in a sales organization
for a large network security company. I decided a few years ago that I wanted
to pursue a different career path in instructional design / eLearning. I chose
this path for a number of reasons (all
of which I won’t get into now) but mostly because I saw a need. In the fast
paced technology industry, sales reps average less than 2 years at a company.
Upon being hired, new reps are given a quota and a short timetable to hit that
quota with product or policy training as an afterthought. The phrase “jumping
in the deep end” is often used in this scenario.As one can see, there is a major opportunity
here for eLearning. Yet, there is another phrase that is also very common in my
industry and that is “death by powerpoint.” The practices that we have today
are ineffective or bland. I believe that remixing, in some form or another,
when applied to training (with an eLearning component) can help change the
culture that exists today. I’m not exactly sure how to do so but the hamster
wheel in my mind is starting to turn. How can “death by powerpoint” be remixed
into effective online learning?
It's been fun teaching my 3 year old all about what the 4th of July Holiday is all about. So while explaining, I drew this picture on a napkin for him.
Of course, I also had to explain to him who Garfield is....
This week's Assignment Bank called for a design focus and I was immediately drawn to the assignment of creating a sports team logo. As an avid sports fan, I've always relished the idea of creating a new sports team with colors, logo, mascot, etc. Plus, living in Utah where we only have a professional basketball team (Utah Jazz), I like to daydream of adding a pro football or pro baseball team and wonder what mascots we could incorporate that are a signature of Utah.
However, for this assignment, I decided to go a in a little different direction. In the town where I live, a new high school is currently under construction. It has already been decided that the school will be called Skyridge High School but the school colors and mascot have not yet been determined. I believe, the city will actually put those two things to a vote at some point. Therefore, as a local resident, I decided to create a design that could potentially be a candidate. Here is my design:
Logos often incorporate digital storytelling because they are designed to send a message to the viewer about the organization. It gives an impression in just few words or sometimes in just a visual. In thinking about a mascot for the new high school, I wanted to find something that represented Utah and more specifically the city I live in. At the same time, the mascot needs to be a symbol of strength and vigor and act as a rallying point for athletes, fans, and patrons. Combined with the those elements, I also wanted to incorporate a new idea and not turn back to common mascots like tigers, Spartans, or hawks. When it came to me, I knew it was the perfect fit: Wind.
The city I live in sits on hills leading up to the Wasatch Mountain Range. Here the wind blows strong, almost everyday. The city is a relatively young city without many mature trees to shelter from the wind. Basically, everyone here feels the wind and feels its strength. Because of the present wind, we also have new wind turbines to harness the power of the wind and turn it into energy. For this reason, I chose the turbine as the symbol that represents the strength of the wind. These turbines are also a new, forward thinking symbol of the future and represents an organization that is part of the future.
The text and colors are symbol and bold. The cool blue letters are laced with yellow almost as if emitting an energy. Wind is a natural phenomenon in nature and its strength is undeniable. I think any young athlete would like to be described in the same way. The wind is not just what we experience here in my city, it's who we are!
