tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339046712012-02-16T01:23:47.170-06:00Education, Courses, Moodle and Tech IntegrationMr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-87312465301430491952011-10-09T13:29:00.001-05:002011-10-11T10:48:05.525-05:002011-10-11T10:48:05.525-05:00

During/After the presentation by Jen Hegna today I have some thoughts to add to the discussion: I think having a reason to design a course like this is important. Not all courses would benefit from this type of layout. Here's why I do it: I have students enrolling all year long so it is necessary to leave an entire semester's course open. It cannot be used synchronously with an entire

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-43653460144687622522011-09-27T14:08:00.000-05:002011-09-27T14:13:29.469-05:002011-09-27T14:13:29.469-05:00

One of my favorite quotes by Frank Herbert is that, "The concept of progress acts as a protective mechanism to shield us from the terrors of the future." I think the very idea that no progress has been made on something really can terrify some people. I'm thinking of students who may be taking a course where they've traditionally not done well. Seeing a semester's worth of content spread out in

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-46399126485819627902011-03-24T18:34:00.005-05:002011-04-10T14:37:03.834-05:002011-04-10T14:37:03.834-05:00

I got my iPad a few hours ago and was bound and determined to be able to edit Moodle content on it with the HTML editor. After upgrading to 1.9.11 I thought this might just work automatically, since it now works with Chrome & Safari but it didn't.Now I can. 1. Download the Terra browser. It's free. It looks better than Safari (more like Chrome).2. Click on Settings, it looks like a cog just like

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-91529135692691409852011-03-22T14:27:00.001-05:002011-03-22T15:06:26.785-05:002011-03-22T15:06:26.785-05:00

I've been getting some great feedback on the English Composition course I posted and would love to hear what anyone else thinks about it. I've made some changes already and am planning some larger changes already.On a related note, I've received some questions about the course design/layout that I wanted to address in a little more detail.How long does developing a course like this take?It

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-56670529301503316082010-06-30T09:02:00.000-05:002010-06-30T09:02:20.901-05:002010-06-30T09:02:20.901-05:00

Many teachers who work with online tools mistake enthusiasm for motivation. They get off to a great start and then stop after putting a few assignments in Moodle. It seems like many Moodle classes I’ve seen have simply been abandoned after entering just a few resources or assignments. What motivated me were a few experiences with engaged learners who got excited about learning and sharing when

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-65731906207857843732010-06-22T17:23:00.001-05:002010-06-22T17:29:07.983-05:002010-06-22T17:29:07.983-05:00

It's a question that is often batted around at various conferences, staff meetings and conferences all over the country. I don’t like this question. The answer by the way is yes. What other format for learning allows for such differentiated instruction; pacing; engagement; communication? Where can a student turn his or her audience from the teacher, or class, into the entire world? Not just for

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-43840477773592032622010-03-01T13:29:00.001-06:002010-03-01T13:29:49.155-06:002010-03-01T13:29:49.155-06:00

I posted a couple of my courses (Frank Herbert's Dune & The Hobbit) on MoodleShare a few days ago. Since then I've seen mention of it spread like wildfire across the Moodle community.  The site traffic on my Moodle page has greatly increased with hits from all over the world from people viewing and downloading the courses that I have shared.  I've checked out available resources on the various

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-8690311648199415622010-02-25T14:13:00.001-06:002010-02-25T14:13:30.182-06:002010-02-25T14:13:30.182-06:00

I created this page to create, experiment and share Moodle content. I'm trying to make using Moodle as easy as possible for other teachers and I wanted to have a place for my students to communicate and gather resources/course content.I'm particularly interested in developing my Frank Herbert's Dune course further. I share what I can by opening it up to guests to view/download. Other courses

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-86334543993133501422010-02-01T18:19:00.000-06:002010-02-01T18:19:17.903-06:002010-02-01T18:19:17.903-06:00

Every quarter I seem to have some students who flat out refuse to turn in APA style papers.  And every quarter it's the one thing that I hear professors talk about the most.  It is out of that concern that I write the following: If I took a stack of papers on a given assignment and removed the student names I should not be able to tell the difference between documents based on the format of the

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02928142672137841146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-89180580986236728782010-01-13T12:23:00.001-06:002010-01-13T12:25:13.429-06:002010-01-13T12:25:13.429-06:00

There are constantly new things I'm learning as I use Moodle, most of them are things I wish I'd known when I first started that would've saved me hassle and time.  I'll keep adding new posts to this as I think of them. Most of what I'm thinking of now are ways to get around the endless scrolling that Moodle sometimes requires. Create a Navigation Panel with an HTML block in your course.  This

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-63761852294908281232010-01-11T11:10:00.001-06:002010-01-11T12:04:56.628-06:002010-01-11T12:04:56.628-06:00

I first heard about this awhile ago, but have always been a little intimidated by messing with this kind of stuff and then making my own light pens on top of it seemed like too much of a hassle. In an effort to keep learning new things I decided to give it a try yesterday.  It actually works.  I was able to get everything functioning properly and have some ideas about how I can make it even

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-52013773883772988732009-12-01T10:49:00.000-06:002009-12-01T10:49:34.850-06:002009-12-01T10:49:34.850-06:00

So some time passed and I was no longer running the most current version of Moodle; and then there were the security warnings that made me think I should update my site.  I've put it off for as long as I could.  It was time for me to figure it out anyway. Reading the directions online about how to update your version of Moodle kind of freaked me out.  I followed it along pretty well until it got

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-8898786460025539612009-10-07T14:11:00.001-05:002010-09-22T11:13:30.679-05:002010-09-22T11:13:30.679-05:00

I've had a website for a few years now that I wasn't doing anything with. I have used Moodle for at least 3 years now and I've been trying to become as proficient as possible with that course management system. I can create courses and use all of the administrator functions and thought it might be time to teach myself a few things about installing it. I made a webpage in 1999 for a college

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-59312228920148567782009-09-29T11:11:00.001-05:002009-09-29T11:28:50.313-05:002009-09-29T11:28:50.313-05:00

I'm still trying to find ways to make this blog a little more exciting so in addition to giving out opinions and information, I'll also be testing some new things out here. You may see something really cool, but just as likely, you'll see me mess something up or make things worse. Moodle ODIN My Classes

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-68823455864625232472009-09-15T09:30:00.000-05:002009-09-15T09:30:27.224-05:002009-09-15T09:30:27.224-05:00

Warning: Online classes are not necessarily easier, or less work! In fact, they may even be more difficult as there is a complete focus on course content. Fun things worth considering when choosing an online class: 1. No wasted time with attendance or silly classroom issues.  In an online course those things take care of themselves.  2. In a face-to-face class students might be able to get

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-26097214090967402142009-09-11T09:11:00.004-05:002009-09-11T14:05:00.361-05:002009-09-11T14:05:00.361-05:00

I've been interested in using online resources to help facilitate instruction in my classroom for about 10 years now. I started using web pages, Blackboard and about 4 years ago was forced into using Moodle. I hated it at first. It looked too plain/complicated/boring. I hear those same criticisms now from others who start using it. After using it for quite some time now I would say that if

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-65901171645299135822009-03-23T16:05:00.005-05:002009-03-23T16:34:18.624-05:002009-03-23T16:34:18.624-05:00

"What do you do when you find out a student is using other websites or your class notes to answer questions on an assignment or test?"This is a question that is asked of me regularly as other teachers know that I like to put all of my course content online. For some reason this really tends to get under teachers' skin. They feel like a student got away with something unethical, or that it is

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-74701435667690853132009-02-24T09:21:00.009-06:002009-02-25T09:31:24.710-06:002009-02-25T09:31:24.710-06:00

I don't have to write this. I don't have to put course content online. I don't have to post grades online. I don't have to give people extra time to work on assignments or take tests. I don't have to do a lot of things that make my job harder, more time consuming, or add multi-media sources to coursework.I'm writing this because I'm not sure everyone knows that. When you complain to me, or

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-61098307222037607192009-02-23T11:14:00.004-06:002009-02-25T09:14:52.344-06:002009-02-25T09:14:52.344-06:00

Now that I've had some time to get my files organized and learn some new applications I've ready to continue my Teacher Blog. As subjects/issues arise in any of my courses (ALC/Online/NAU), I will be posting about them here. I've updated links to my online course content. I'm not sure any students will be using this, if not, I'll ditch it. We'll see what develops.

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-36185662301750520562008-10-03T10:59:00.003-05:002009-02-25T09:15:09.755-06:002009-02-25T09:15:09.755-06:00

I know that for many years students are taught to use "I statements", I feel, I think that...Many times when you interact with others it is an appropriate way to voice your opinions. That doesn't hold for everything; especially when writing essays, research papers or speeches.Avoid referring to yourself in your essays. I know that it was something you were probably taught to do when you were

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-61021699818186037972008-09-16T13:46:00.003-05:002009-02-25T09:15:29.434-06:002009-02-25T09:15:29.434-06:00

After having a discussion with a student today, I thought that this would be a good topic for a quick blog entry at the beginning of the new school year. So many students have a hard time getting into the swing of a new year or course and many of the students we interact with don't like school; don't like assignments; and can't wait to get out.I'm not going to write a lot about what my opinion

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-88148940308796948032006-12-04T11:42:00.001-06:002009-02-25T09:27:25.494-06:002009-02-25T09:27:25.494-06:00

Every year I have a student who likes to ask me if I know that ain't is a word. Let me play it out for you...STUDENT: "Mr. Jon, did you know that ain't is a word?"MR. JON: "Not in here it isn't."STUDENT: "It is too. Look it up in the dictionary."Let us stop there. Now I like to question authority as much as anyone, but I have to say, these kinds of exchanges depress me.There is a distinction

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-48533900895193347402006-11-29T11:26:00.002-06:002009-02-25T09:28:04.684-06:002009-02-25T09:28:04.684-06:00

This is the most important aspect of writing. Unfortunately, people tend to focus on the errors rather than the information that is in your assignment. Errors can damage your credibility and take a reader out of the flow of your writing. Here are some hints to avoid making common mistakes:1. Spell/Grammar Check: Remember that this might not catch all of your mistakes as you may have used the

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-87463037951547140072006-11-12T16:50:00.001-06:002009-02-25T09:28:46.339-06:002009-02-25T09:28:46.339-06:00

Most of you did a fine job when answering how to test a website for reliability and validity. You wrote that a website is reliable if it is recent information; if it is from a reliable source; if it has been reviewed by other experts in the field; if it is a .edu, .org, or .gov site (though now it's possible that not even those sites are completely reliable); if an author and contact information

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33904671.post-79768327451897129852006-10-27T12:11:00.001-05:002009-02-25T09:29:15.614-06:002009-02-25T09:29:15.614-06:00

When looking for a topic there are a few things you'll want to consider. One of them is making certain it is a topic with which you won't get sick. You'll be spending a lot of time reading/researching your topic so if it's not something you're passionate about, then you'll probably get board/angry with it.When trying to decide on your topic consider these questions: What would be my purpose? Why

Mr. Jonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17632148692811621179noreply@blogger.com1