TravelinEdMan

CQR Pro or Con?: Should schools use as much digital technology as they can afford?

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 02:47:00 +0000

Sorry no blog postings for a while. Been a rough semester, first of travel, and now of trying to complete an NSF grant.

One shiny moment occurred today. A special issue of the Congressional Record Quarterly (CRQ) came out today (Note: You may need a subscription to view it...sorry about that). The issue is devoted to technology in the K-12 schools and higher education. It is titled "Digital Education." The issue looks great; in fact, many people and projects from the "Extreme Learning" arena that I am researching are mentioned in it. For example, Aaron Doering from the University of Minnesota who has helped found Earthducation and Polar Husky. There is Paul Kim from Stanford who founded Seeds for Empowerment (he is quoted on page 1008). My son, Alex Bonk, is currently working with Paul on his Seeds for Empowerment project.

Congressional Quarterly Researcher (CQR) homepage; Entire issue: CRQ,
Digital Education (Note: It will be listed at the homepage only until the night of December 8, 2011), December 2, 2011 • Volume 21, Issue 42, Can technology replace classroom teachers?, By Marcia Clemmitt

There are many other superstars in this issue. James Gee from Arizona State University of Arizona is asked about the skills learned from game-based learning on pages 1004 and 1005. Paul Resta from UT Austin is also interviewed on page 1005. He mentions the inadequate teacher training that often surrounds technology purchases in schools. Gee, Resta, Kim, Doering. Wow.

But wait, there is more! After Paul Kim (p. 1008) mentions how live teachers might support student technology needs when and where needed online, Chris Dede from Harvard is asked about the benefits of interactive games like "River City" which he helped develop. After that, my friend Barry Fishman from the U of Michigan comments on his goals in studying the motivational principles of games. A few pages later (p. 1014), Fishman is back to discuss the educational benefits of mobile apps. The following paragraph signals the return of Aaron Doering and his ideas about adventure learning and student-generated knowledge from these adventures. Also on page 1014, my friend Christine Greenhow from the University of Maryland discusses the benefits of social networking. And there are many more learning technology experts quoted in this issue.

It is great to see so many of my friends and colleagues whom I highly respect quoted in this issue. Their work is an inspiration to me. Therefore, it was an honor to be asked to author the Pro side of the op ed piece that CRQ people gave me on the technology spending debate in schools. The exact debate is: "Should schools incorporate as much digital technology as they can afford." My response and the entire issue is freely available for a week or until the night of December 8th, 2011.

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Pro and Con. Note: I wrote 538 words. My article, however, had to be reduced to 400 words. My original longer version is below. See what you think.

Congressional Quarterly Researcher (CQ) Researcher, op-ed on Computers in K-12 education.

Position of Advocate: Should schools incorporate as much digital technology as finances allow?, p. 1117

Curt Bonk, Indiana University (2011, December 2, p. 1017). Op Ed (Pro side--expanded version--a shorter 400 word version appeared in CQR) (Note: Paul Thomas from Furman University has the con side.)

We have entered a unique moment in history. Learning technologies have far outstripped learning theory. There is a ceaseless churning out of digital technologies for schools and teachers to consider. At the same time, budgets are being slashed. What to do? This is no time to ban, control, restrict, limit, or passively ignore possible uses of technology in teaching and learning. Instead, it should be an age filled with heavy doses of learning technology experimentation and creative initiatives.

School administrators, educational experts, teachers, and other stakeholders should map out reasonable scenarios on technology use and learning outcomes. With proper planning, foresight, discussion, and evaluation, there is much that technology dollars can afford, even for the smallest or most impoverished school or district.

A couple of years ago, I authored the book, “The World Is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education.” In it, I detailed many free and openly available resources for learning. With careful planning of one’s technology dollar, technologies such as laptops, tablet computers such as the iPad, or other hardware can be acquired with a wide range of free tools and applications for learning basic mathematics, spelling, grammar, or scientific concepts. Not content? Why, then, perhaps you might have students explore learning portals containing the great works of Shakespeare, Darwin, Einstein, Jane Austin, Jane Goodall, the Dalai Lama, and most major historical figures and leaders one can name from the past few millennia. And such contents are often created by NASA, the U.S. Federal Government, the Smithsonian, National Geographic, the United Nations, MIT, Berkeley, the British Library, UNESCO, and many other reputable and expert-reviewed sources.

Learners can collect data with online survey tools, manipulate and analyze it with spreadsheet and statistical applications, and report it with various presentation and communication tools. Critical thinking, problem solving, and synthesis are all skills that can be enhanced using digital technologies. Why not extend your budgets toward such ends? Thoughtful integration of technology necessitates that we push to the edges of all perceived limitations; this includes pedagogical limitations, access limitations, time limitations, complexity limitations, and cost limitations. Learners today can spend their entire middle and high school years learning with free resources. Now top it off with hardware, software, and administrative costs that situate students in authentic contexts analyzing real world data and interacting with their global peers about the results of their investigations. If this requires a cheap $20 membership in some service that fosters such expert advice or interaction, that is $20 well spent.

Digital technologies offer so much hope today. Students can be inspired by mentors and role models from all corners of the Earth. Feedback on one’s ideas can be received in the early morning hours or late at night. E-books can be loaded into mobile devices that can represent events through simulations, animations, videos, and hyperlinked text.

Effective learning requires an environment be designed for multiple paths to success. In the twenty-first century digital technologies—social networking, e-books, shared online video, mobile applications, virtual worlds, collaborative tools, etc.—enhance the learning opportunities for untold millions of learners. The maximization of technologies in the learning space, in effect, provides a distinct advantage for learning. Now is the time to move ahead, not retrench or retrace.

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Hope you enjoyed it. What is you opinion? Should schools use as much digital technology as they can afford? I think the operational word here is "use" not "afford." But that would need to be a longer argument.

Of course, I wish I had the space to write twice as much. With that, I could have embedded a few more specific examples. Reminder: the entire CQR special issue will only be listed on the homepage until December 8th, 2011 and may require a subscription by your university or organization to be able to view it. The Pro-Con debate I was in may end up available later on as there is a portal to all previous Pro-Con debates in CQR.

Enjoy the weekend and the football games; especially my alma mater Wisconsin Badgers vs. Mich State.

The “Explainer” Explains His Creative Process: A Close-Up Discussion with Michael Wesch

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 01:01:00 +0000

Visit to Kansas State and Interview of Michael Wesch:

I wrote about Michael Wesch from Kansas State University in my World is Open book. He became known for several YouTube videos on the digital generation that went viral during the past few years. And that has brought a ton of attention to the anthropology program at Kansas State as well as to Michael who is now an associate professor of Cultural Anthropology. Michael’s Digital Enthography blog is also high read and referenced and his channel in YouTube is watched by millions.

Several of his more popular videos are listed below.

1. Web 2.0…The Machine is Us/ing Us; 11,477,707 views, posted January 31, 2007.

2. A Vision of Students Today, 4,424,863 views, posted October 12, 2007.

3. The Visions of Students Today 2011 Remix One (Trailer), 19,713 views, posted January 26, 2011.

4. An anthropological introduction to YouTube, 1,715,085 views, posted July 26, 2008, the Library of Congress, recorded June 23rd, 2008.

5. Rethinking Education, 33,145 views, posted January 24, 2011 (Note: this is the one I perhaps like the most since there are many Web 2.0 stars in this one. Watch it and see who you recognize.).

Now Back to My Story...
Michael and I had a chance to sit down and reflect when I was at K-State back on October 4th to 6th. I was in town to keynote the 6th annual Axio Learning Community Conference at the K-State University Alumni Center. It was a lovely place in which to present. I had a great time at the conference as well as dinner afterward with David Young (my host) and several others.

As you can see from the pics below, K-State is a lovely place.

I was honored to have Michael Wesch attend my talks; especially since he is on sabbatical this year. Michael is a fantastic person. As a result, seems everyone in Manhattan knows him, from 4 year old kids we walk by on the streets to emeritous faculty members on campus.

After my talks were over on the 5th, Michael and I walked to the house he just purchased and is in the process of remodeling as well as building bike trails in the back. It certainly is a lovely place to live...both his house and Manhattan. Michael has some wonderful plans for that house and yard.

Shortly after I got back from Kansas, questions starting pouring into my head that I wanted to ask Michael. It was impossible to get back on a plane and pop over to Manhattan and ask him, so I sent him a few questions about living in Manhattan, Kansas State, but more importantly, I wanted to know about his creative process. Amazingly, Michael found a few spare moments of time as he was headed out the door for perhaps his top invited talk ever, the Future of State Universities Conference in Dallas. Other speakers included Tony Blair, Clayton Christenson, John Howard (the former prime minister of Australia), Salman Khan, Arne Duncan, Martha Kanter, etc., and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush was a moderator. Wow.

Nevertheless, he found some time. Thanks Michael! You are one excellent human being. As you will see, Michael Wesch's answers to my six interview questions provide a fascinating glimpse into the creative process of a perpetually innovative scholar and highly engaging and thoughtful individual. Read on.

The “Explainer” Explains His Creative Process: A Close-Up Discussion with Michael Wesch

Curt Question #1. Hey Mike. You are known for your unique videos that explain new media in education and how education might better address the youth culture. Seems every time I turn around you are producing something fascinating for me to watch, read, or listen to. Can you describe your creative process? What might be some takeaway principles, environmental conditions, or environment components of becoming such a highly creative person?

Michael responds: My creative process begins by trying to quiet all the "should" voices rattling through my head. We all have people (and perhaps more importantly, large and menacing social, bureaucratic, and economic structures) telling us that we Should do this or that, that this is the way things Should be done, that real professors Should do X, Y, and Z, etc. It is an ongoing battle to silence those Shoulds. The Shoulds hold most of the keys to traditional tenure & promotion. They put food on the table. And they have ways to make us feel good when we do as we Should.

But in an environment of constant change, the Shoulds are almost always wrong. This is where you might expect me to rehash that old cliche that we have to silence the Shoulds, listen to our own hearts, get in touch with our core and lead from within - but that's not how I work. I do almost completely the opposite. The only voice that is more distracting than the Shoulds is my Self - so it has to be silenced too. And so I'm left just trying to listen to the world as it is, and listen for what it needs. This is a long process that is really more like a life practice. I just spend hour after hour gathering information, thinking about it, processing it, thinking about it again, questioning my earlier ideas, looking for my taken-for-granted assumptions and trying to challenge those, and on and on for years until there is a breakthrough moment.

People often ask me how long it took me to create “The Machine is Us/ing Us,” which is probably my best-known work. It's hard to answer that question. The actual labor of putting the video together took about 3 days and no more than15 hours of actual work time, but the idea itself came to me even faster - in an immeasurable micro-second.

The entire vision was just there for me one morning and I immediately set out to turn that vision into a reality. But another way of answering that is to say it took over one year (actually, close to 2 years), because that's how long I had been thinking about (and desperately struggling to write about) the core ideas that are expressed in that video. My mom overheard me answering this question to somebody once and she interrupted saying, "Mike, you were working on that your whole life" - which is really more true than any answer I ever had. It is the culmination of decades of work. Things I was doing over 20 years ago when I was 12 are directly relevant to the work.

We're all that way, and that's the real beauty of the creative process. Whatever you create, will in some way, be the culmination of a lifetime of creativity and exploration, and therefore unique and something only you could say in the way in which you have said it.

Curt Question #2. How do you know when an idea might work or when one of your video ideas might go viral? Are there any key steps or aspects to a project that others can learn from?

Michael responds: A great academic video starts with a keen observation. From there it is a matter of relaying that observation by using a pacing that underlines the central emotion and feel you are trying to create, moving the story along with "economy," which is to say you must never tell too much or too little to tell the story. You have to master the subtle art of rhythm, in which every clip and transition matches the emotional & musical rhythm of the piece. The pacing and rhythm help to create a rich texture, and all of this must resonate with profound authenticity - as something more real than real because it reconnects us with the real that we are constantly letting slip right past us in our everyday lives. In this way, video does not really have to make a logical "point" in the manner of an academic paper. Instead it allows us to show the world to others in a new way. My most successful works go on to be used by others to make very different, often contradictory points, which is fine with me. My purpose is to create an artifact that focuses or refocuses important conversations.

Curt Question #3. Perhaps there is a link between exercise and creativity. Apparently, you love riding your bike. Do you jump on a bike to purposely reflect on a new idea or is it your chance to get away and veg out? Have any of your video ideas been designed in your head while riding your bike? By the way, how many bikes do you have? How long are your routes?

Michael responds: I love biking, but it is really just a small part of my larger interest in livable, engaged, participatory communities. The energy I apply in my classrooms trying to create inspiring authentic connections I carry over into my everyday life, and part of that is using a bike to get around town. The beauty of biking is not just that you get exercise, it is that you feel more connected to the world and people around you. You are not encapsulated in your car, so you save and say "hi" to people around you. You stop for more conversations. Ride your bike enough and you no longer just feel more connected, you *are* more connected. I live more-or-less car-free in my day-to-day life. I have a wide range of bikes to help me achieve this, including a snow bike, a basic commuter, and my favorite - a Dutch "long john" cargo bike. The cargo bike is a true car-replacement, with tons of storage space to carry 2 kids, groceries, and more. Our town is no more than 5 miles across at its widest point, and most destinations are within 2 miles, so there is really no reason to drive a car under most circumstances.

Curt Question #4. Your Library of Congress talk is a must see for those interested in new media and the potential impact of shared online video and other participatory learning technologies in higher education and other educational sectors. I find the data in it phenomenal and your presentation style highly engaging. How long did it take you to create that talk? Do such talks evolve or fade away after so much time?

Michael responds: There is about 2 years of research behind that talk, most of which took place in an upper-level Digital Ethnography class at K-State. We worked closely together as a class, and in the end each of the fifteen students submitted a 5 minute clip summarizing their piece of the overall research. I then took those 15 clips and edited them into the videos you see during that talk. Some of it is my own original material, and some of it is taken directly from student projects.

That process took me about 6 weeks to complete. I have been asked to give that same talk a few times since then, so I have kept it updated with new materials and a few new insights.

Curt Question #5. You mentioned to me earlier this week that you have always found computer programming interesting and fairly easy for you. When did you first begin to dabble with computers? How has this evolved?

Michael responds: My first computer was a Tandy PC-8 that I received for Christmas when I was 11 years old. It was really just a fancy calculator, but it understood BASIC. I started hacking away immediately. Like any programmer will tell you, there is a magical moment when you setup a list of commands for a machine and it miraculously performs those commands for you. I was hooked, but I was pretty limited by the little16 digit display. I eventually managed to create a little pixilated superman character that could fly across the screen and crash into a wall on the other side. That was enough to inspire my parents to buy me a much larger Tandy with a keyboard and 4-color screen the next year, and I was off and running. In graduate school I started playing around with HTML, JavaScript, and other web-authoring languages, always looking for new ways that we could present and share our ideas.

When I started the work and research on The Machine is Us/ing Us, I had in mind a simple paper explaining to other scholars why Web 2.0 matters. Writing about Web 2.0 was frustrating though. I knew I would have to *show* them, and the idea for that video was born.

Curt Question #6. In what ways does Kansas State support someone like you (i.e., an associate professor of cultural anthropology and digital ethnography) to get to this national stage related to teaching and learning with technology and the creation of active learning environments or "anti-teaching" as you call it?

Michael responds: While Kansas State has provided plenty of support for my work, I think it is more important to note what they have *not done,* which is get in the way. Nobody has ever said "you can't do that" to me, which has really surprised me considering some of the things I have done. For example, when I published "A Vision of Students Today," which shows some of the worst of K-State (large out-of-date classrooms and disengaged students trudging through an Intro class), I expected some reprimanding. But even after the Chronicle of Higher Education ran it with the headline, "K-State Students report reading less than half of what they are assigned," I still received nothing but praise and encouragement. I imagine some schools would have asked me to pull it off YouTube after that, but it stayed, and went viral. The video garnered over 4 million views, was featured on ABCnews.com, and we became the center of a national debate on college education. We benefited greatly throughout all of this, and have been able to generate some exciting positive momentum towards reforms that are already in place just a few years later.

[Note: here are some pics I took 2 weeks ago when visiting K-State and the classroom Michael taught in and used for his video]

[Note also that there are also new classroom spaces being built at K-State like this one.]

Michael Continues...Kansas State has a long record of big successes, with more national Professor of the Year award winners than any other research university in the US, and our students have received more of the big-name scholarships in the past 25 years (Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, etc.) than any other state university. Overall, we rank 6th, amidst the Ivy League schools. It is a remarkable accomplishment for an "out of the way" place like this, but I think it may be precisely because we are out of the way, we stay out of each others' way, and yet also provide a sense of community where people feel inspired to find their way.

Curt Question #7. (Note: All creative people need nurturance and support for their ideas. Having just visited Michael at Kansas State, I could see that K-State is a highly supportive environment and one that would be easy to settle into and work. KSU and Manhattan are a lot like IU and Bloomington here in Indiana. I heard Manhattan is expecting huge growth during the coming decade. I wanted to know what it was like to work there.)

So I asked him, “You have become an international celebrity in what previously might have been considered a remote part of the world. Why might someone getting their Ph.D. today place the Manhattan's and Bloomington's of the world high on their list instead of San Francisco and Boston?”

Michael responds: I like living in a smallish town because it gives me a constant sense of connection and significance. By "significance" I don't mean that I feel like "a big fish in a little pond." Rather, I feel like everybody's a big fish here. We all matter. I think of Manhattan, Kansas as a "heads up" town, a town where you walk with your head up and greet everybody you meet. You do this because there is a good chance you know the people you see, and if you don't, there's a good chance somebody you know knows them, and that you will meet them later. In contrast, there is that other Manhattan in New York, which tends to be a "head down" town - a place where people tend to keep their head down and dart off to their next appointment. I have some good friends in that other Manhattan, like Daniel Latorre, that are trying to change this through better public spaces, but there is nothing like the feel of a town like Manhattan, Kansas, where everybody matters.

Being a little bit off the map is also liberating. I feel a bit more free to do my own thing and explore the world in my own way.

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I hope you enjoyed the interview with Michael Wesch. During my brief stay in Manhattan, I saw many of the things Michael mentioned. I visited the classroom “A Vision of Students Today.” I also saw everyone in town greet Michael as a personal friend. He is fun, creative, unique, and inspiring. Now perhaps we know a bit more about the Explainer!

I hope to see some of you at E-Learn in Hawaii during the coming week.

Interview with Amy Burvall and Herb Mahelona: A bit of history of "History for Music Lovers"

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 02:26:00 +0000

An Interview with Amy Burvall and Herb Mahelona (History for Music Lovers):

Last month, Amy Burvall and Herb Mahelona were announced as invited speakers at the E-Learn 2011 conference in Hawaii next week. I was excited since I had read about them in the Washington Post and many other places. Yesterday I got even more excited when they agreed to keynote the conference next Wednesday morning (as a late replacement for someone else).

Who are Amy Burvall and Herb Mahelona you ask? They are some of the most innovative people I have ever encountered. And I will get to meet them in 6 days. Among his many skills, Herb is choir director choir at the Kamehameha Schools Hawaii Campus. Amy is known as a leader in educational technology professional development programs at both St. Andrew's Priory (where she taught for 8 years) and Le Jardin Academy International Baccalaureate School. Amy also teachers Theory of Knowledge and World History at Le Jardin Academy. There conference talk is titled "TechnoTroubadours and Teacherpreneurs" (see their bios). Their talk is very impressive as I got a glimpse and so can you. See their prezi presentation with embedded videos. It will be great to have K-12 teachers keynote E-Learn 2011. Fortunately, they are located in Hawaii, though Herb must fly in from the big island.

Amy and Herb are known from their musical creativity with their History for Music Lovers channel in YouTube. Superfantastic stuff. I am amazed by their historical song parodies. I really like their version of Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" as a way to remember the Trojan War. Another one I sing along with at least once a week is Mansa Musa (i.e., "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" by Culture Club). When you land on the History for Music Lovers homepage, you see highly creative song about the history of India, "The Mahabharata" (i.e., "Abracadabra" by the Steve Miller Band). Nearly 600,000 people have seen Amy sing about The French Revolution to "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga. I find it hard not to cry when listening to some of their oldie songs such as the Battle of Agincourt ("As Tears Go By" by Marianne Faithful).

Check their channel out; there are dozens of songs to listen to and learn world history. If someone ever asks you were e-learning can make an impact, well, this is a prime example--mashing up history and music and making it open source for kids all over the planet to listen to and learn from. How cool is that? Very cool! If only my high school such teachers. Perhaps we soon will be turning kids on to not only history but geography, biology, etc., with music.

The lyrics are highly inventive and catchy. I read somewhere that Amy has songs pop into her head when driving home from school and just has to write them down. I understand that since I sometimes experience that when on a plane or a train. Unfortunately, I cannot play music like they can. If Amy and Herb ever go on tour, I think I could listen to them all afternoon and evening at a summerfest stage in Milwaukee. They are highly talented and fun. I think we are going to get spoiled next week and want them at every e-learning conference.

Ok, I need to introduce them next week at the conference so I decided to interview them via email. With permission, below are their responses to this interview. I list Amy first since she was the one I corresponded with.

Curt Question #1. Do you see yourself in the e-learning field when you create a video?

Amy (and Herb): I think at first, not particularly. But certainly after we started posting to You-Tube and responding to fans (mostly teachers, students, and history buffs) and doing various interviews in the field, we did. There is definitely more pressure now as we work on new projects, but we still try to keep it fun and light-hearted, drawing from our own passions instead of catering to others. We’ve certainly learned a LOT about e-learning on our journey!

Curt Question #2. Did you expect to be celebrities in the e-learning space? What is this like?

Amy (and Herb): Haha no way! It’s surreal. I heard from a friend, for example, who was in a coffee shop in Oregon and heard some college kids singing our “Renaissance Man” song [i.e., "Blister in the Sun" by the Violent Femmes]. One fan wrote he was in a museum in Washington and they were playing some of our tunes in the gift shop! And when my students travel they always tell me they meet other kids who know about us. So bizarre. But what is most boggling is that it’s very rare that someone lets you know when they’ve written a blog post or article about you. We sort of have to google ourselves sometimes. And even more crazy was when I discovered one of our lyrics (fleas on rats) was an actual Twitter hashtag!

Curt Question #3. Which 2 music history videos that you created are your favorites and why?

Amy (and Herb): I really love the look and sound of “Elizabeth I”, to the Zombies’ “She’s not There”. And musically, my favorite is “Canterbury Tales”- plus nothing beats that Middle English rap segment. The way I envision “Guernica”, which is in production, might turn out to be my ultimate favorite. For Herb, I know he is most proud of “Joan of Arc”, because we also tried to parody the original White Stripes video…it took quite a lot of time and effort on his part to edit. As far as lyrics go, I think Herb’s lyrics were genius in “Chinese Dynasties” [i.e., "Mambo #5" by Lou Bega] and “Viva Roma #5” [i.e., "Vogue" by Madonna]…I prefer sticking to really specific topics, but he has a gift for synthesizing the broad topics.

Curt Question #4. What is the process like in creating a new video? Any interesting technology challenge that comes to mind?

Amy (and Herb): The biggest challenge for us is time…and now, geography, since we live on different islands. When either of us is inspired to pen lyrics, we do so, because that surge of creativity doesn’t happen all the time. I can go for months without writing a single line and then spew out 6 songs in weekend. Herb then creates the music, and we schedule a time to record. To me, recording is the most fun, and it really doesn’t take that long (maybe a half an hour for 1 song). He mixes/produces the tracks when he gets the time and then we brainstorm what the video should look like. I can never praise storyboarding enough! When we are ready to film I gather all the costume and make-up pieces and props and we head for a green screen. Herb uses a high def. camera and Adobe Premiere and After FX software. When my students make videos, they use Garageband and iMovie. The editing is the most time-consuming, but the more Herb uses the programs the better he gets. I always want to do crazy things that we probably need a Hollywood studio for, but Herb seems to make them happen. He is also a master at Flash animation, an some of our favorites (Henry VIII, Crete, Renaissance Man) are done completely in Flash.

Curt Question #5. What are your hobbies and interests?

Amy (and Herb): Herb is a classical musician at heart and plays for the Kamuela Philharmonic Orchestra, the University of Hawaii symphony, and the Kona Music Society. He teaches cello and piano privately, and is an experienced arranger and composer, who has even written 3 operas performed by the Hawaii Youth Opera Chorus. He enjoys hiking and has been involved in Boy Scout leadership.

Amy is obsessed with anything relating to design – graphic design, interior design, fashion design, etc. – and typically is involved in some related project. Her creative outlets are singing, writing, and photography, but more recently her attention has been on the use and implications of online curation, personal branding, and social media in education. She is often called to train peers in tech integration, and enjoys presenting on the topic. More recently, her interests have drawn her to the “Gutenberg Parenthesis” theory and the work of media philosophers Marshall McLuhan, Thomas Pettitt, and Alejandro Piscitelli, as well as the “EduPunk” movement.

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Hope you enjoyed the interview. I also hope to see many of you at the conference next week. If you see me, tap me on the shoulder and say hi. See also the blog post below for the E-learn Preconference Summit at the University of Hawaii next Monday afternoon. The program was just announced and it will be worth it.

The E-Learn Preconference Summit at the University of Hawaii at Manoa

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:41:00 +0000

The following is not an "unconference" but a "preconference"...more info below.

“The E-Learn Preconference Summit at the University of Hawaii at Manoa”
It is............Free!!!
Date: Monday October 17, 2011
Time: 1 to 5 pm
(with an optional lunch at 11:00 am and potluck pizza dinner at 5:30 pm )
RSVP (and sign up to present): http://tinyurl.com/Elearn-Summit

Are you attending the E-Learn 2011 conference in Honolulu next month? Those arriving early to E-Learn might be interested presenting their innovative research and development efforts in a highly interactive and informal environment (perhaps expanding on ideas or topics that they will later present at the conference). They might also present a totally different project or initiative (perhaps you have an experimental or pilot project that just got funded or a new technology tool that you have developed). Perhaps you have designed a new instructional model or online learning framework. There will be four sessions and four presenters per session. Each presentation will be 9-10 minutes long. A discussant will end each session.

You need not be a presenter to attend this preconference session, Many of you might want to simply listen to the ideas of others and engage in some intense discussions. Still others might want to bring their graduate students to a highly informative and more intimate preconference session. If so, welcome to the E-Learn Preconference Summit at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Your role: sit, observer, share, present, discuss, or whatever you would like.

If you would like to make a short 9-10 minute presentation of your research or development efforts or just plan to attend without presenting, please complete this form: http://tinyurl.com/Elearn-Summit by 5 pm EST on Friday October 7th. All you need is a paragraph or two and a title, of course. Accepted proposals and a final schedule will be announced on Tuesday October 11th.

See below for event coordinators, location, and schedule. Feel free to forward this to interested colleagues, students, and other guests coming to the conference. We hope to see you there. Taxis can be taken from the Sheraton Waikiki to the Willows or the University of Hawaii. Groups might meet in the hotel lobby 30 minutes prior to the event and share a ride.

Event Coordinators and Contact Info:
Curtis Ho, University of Hawaii at Manoa, curtis at hawaii.edu
Peter Leong, University of Hawaii at Manoa, peterleo at hawaii.edu
Tom Reynolds, National University, treynold at nu.edu
Curt Bonk, Indiana University, cjbonk at indiana.edu

Location:
University of Hawaii at Manoa
1776 University Avenue
College Collaboration Center, Wist Hall 135
Honolulu, HI 96822
(upper left corner on this map, http://manoa.hawaii.edu/campusmap/uhmmap.pdf)

Lunch:
The Willows
901 Hausten Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96826
http://willowshawaii.com/
Enticement: Pics of the restaurant

Note: Cost for buffet lunch is $19.95 plus tax and 15% gratuity (so about $24 should do it). Comes with coffee or tea but drinks are extra.

Tentative Program and Schedule:
11:00 Lunch at the Willows
12:45-1:00 Meet and greet and set up
1:00-1:05 Welcome from Curtis, Peter, Tom, and Curt
1:05-1:50 Session #1 (9-10 minutes for each presenter and brief 4-5 minute discussant at the end of each session)
1:50-1:55 Curt and Curtis lead in brief audience stretching and reflection/interaction activity
1:55-2:40 Session #2
2:40-2:50 Audience questions for first 2 session participants
2:50-3:05 Break and refreshments for 15 minutes (coffee and tea)
3:05-3:50 Session #3
3:50-3:55 Tom and Peter lead audience in brief reflection/interaction activity
3:55-4:40 Session #4 Most Innovative Paper/Idea/Topic Session
4:40-4:50 Audience questions and reflections for sessions #3 and #4
4:50-5:00 Quick comments and reflections from all the presenters, discussants, and hosts
5:30 Potluck Pizza ($5 contributions from those who stay for it)

Final Note: A presentation from Dr. Tom Reeves, University of Georgia, will take place after the potluck pizza. This is free to attend as well.

Second Final Note: Check out the keynote and invited speakers for E-Learn. Among them are Herb Mahelona and Amy Burvall who will give a talk, TechnoTroubadours and Teacherpreneurs, based on their "History for Music Lovers" channel. If you have not seen any of their fascinating history music videos, check them out. Want to hear about the Trojan War song to Soft Cell's "Tained Love" anyone? How about "The Canterbury Tales" to the Mamas and the Papas "California Dreamin?" Ok, then, how about "Elizabeth I" to the Zombies classic "She's Not There"? Seeking something more current, well then, there most viewed music video is "The French Revolution" sung to Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance." There are many more I can recommend. And many topics--Joan of Arc, Napolean, Martin Luther, the Vikings, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare, King Arthur, and so on.

Check em out. Or better yet, come to the E-Learn Conference October 18-21. Better yet, come to the preconference summit on October 17th at the University of Hawaii. It will be highly informative and engaging. The entire week will be a blast.

Third Final Note: By the way, the Sheraton Waikiki is most lovely. And that is where the conference is being held. When E-Learn was last there in October 2006, it was rocked by back-to-back earthquakes like 6.9 and 6.6. The entire building swayed. But it still was a fabulous venure. Some presentation rooms have a view of the ocean as you walk in and out. Gorgeous. I once gave an all-day workshop there (think it was 2003) and I had 100 people in the morning but only 50 for the afternoon. I wondered why. Then, when we took a break I stood at the doorway to my workshop and leaned over and saw 50 people from the morning session waving up from the hotel pool sipping Mai Tai's. This could be you!

The World is Open in "Simplified" China

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 22:50:00 +0000

The World is Open in China:
I am still recovering from jet lag from the Korea trip. This is especially apparent at the end of the week. Of course, it is doubly difficult to be gone at the start of the semester and there is much catching up to do now. However, yesterday, I got some excellent news that I have been waiting on for months. Here it is...announcing ta da da daaa...The simplified Chinese version of The World is Open book is out. It is already sold out on Amazon China. Cool. And sold out on other sites as well.

I like the cover a lot (more than the original here in the USA, in fact, though the USA one is improved in the paperback version which just came out with blue lettering). The Chinese publisher picked the book cover that I preferred. And they are using 6 Amazon-like sites to sell the book. You can check out their book cover selection at one of the first 3 links below. You can also order the book if you so choose. I guess it costs roughly $6 US dollars.

Online bookstore sites for World Is Open book in Chinese:
1. 300 buy

2. Dangdang

3. Amazon China

4. 99 Read

5. Beifa Book

6. China-Pub

Here's Johnny:
The translator was Dr. Jiao Jianli from South China Normal University in Guangzhou. Dr. Jiao (also known as "Johnny") is famous for his blog on educational technology. He is a Professor of Educational Technology and Director of Future Education Research Centre. In addition, he is Deputy Dean of School of Information Technology in Education at South China Normal University. Sounds like a great person to work for or with. Dr. Jiao had a team of graduate students help with the translation efforts. I spoke to them a couple of years ago from a Webcam in my basement office in mid July. It was quite fun. For a few months in the early part of this year and late last year I was responding to questions about the book on a daily basis. Some of my American humor and English terminology was apparently quite difficult to translate. But it is done now.

The publisher is East China Normal University which apparently is known in the field of educational technology. Apparently, it is more prestigious to have a university publisher in China than it is in the USA.

My former student, Dr. Subude at California State at Monterey Bay taught a course with Dr. Jiao this summer at Beijing Normal University (see pics of Subude teaching it and their students). Subude told me that “Dr. Jiao is a highly productive professor and his blog has many followers in China. He is certainly playing a leading role in Educational Technology in China. I highly appreciated the opportunity to work with him and learned a lot during our collaboration.”

The Godfather?
A number of my former students are sending me emails today telling me what the promotional materials are saying. Interesting...first, they say that my name translates well in Chinese. "Bonk" definitely does not translate well in the UK or Australia. Smile. But it does in China. They also menton that the book has already sold out in Amazon China. That is certainly wonderful news.

Next, I was also told that the promo materials refer to me as "The Godfather of Educational Technology." Or Godfather of Instructional Technology. I find this hard to believe since I doubt I could even pass the qualifying exam in my own department or any educational technology department or program for that matter. But if I am considered the Godfather, I want to meet the Godmother sometime. My students better watch out since Monday night I am coming to class dressed as Al Pacino or Marlon Brando. Back to listening to the Who on my iPod and the Quadrophenia song comes on: "The Punk And The Godfather." Ta da da daaa...ta da da daaa...ta da da da.

Anyway, I hope some people can explore the Chinese version of the World is Open book and let me know how well my jokes translate. Soon the Arabic version should be out; in fact, it might already be out. I am checking. More soon.

Finding Soul in Seoul...E-learning Week and Beyond

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 03:29:00 +0000

World is Open in Korea:
I am back from 10 wonderful days in Seoul. First I had to arrive and the wonderful Incheon airport is so relaxing compared to Atlanta, Newark, LAX, Riyadh, Chicago, and other airports I have flown through this year. Detroit was also fabulous. So quiet and peaceful there. I recommend it to everyone. My former student, Dr. KJ Kim, picked me up. She was the last one to see me (and for me to get a picture with) when I departed two years ago when she dropped me off at the airport. KJ is the top person I have published with. We have nearly 30 publications together if you count conference proceedings....it may be over 30. Not sure. She is an excellent writer and determined researcher. Later in the week she had to go to a conference in Taiwan so she volunteered to pick me up.

First Stop...Kyung Hee University:
As indicated in my previous post, during my time in Korea, I had a chance to speak at Hanyang University, Ewha Womens University, Kyung Hee University, and Sungkyunkwan (SKKU) University. First was Kyung Hee University...after fighting intense Friday afternoon traffic (and I mean intense), we arrived just a tad late. Kyung Hee is well worth the wait as it is one the most beautiful universities in Seoul and perhaps the world. Unfortunately, I usually speak in one of the first two buildings on campus and do not get to see much...especially, when we arrive late like that evening.

It was great to see so many former students and friends at Kyung Hee. Makes the 24 hours of traveling well worth it. And then come the gifts including a 600+ gig harddrive from one of Inae's students, Hyunmi Kim. She had come to my talk 2 years previously with a gift. And it is not just any harddrive; this one can fit in your shirt pocket. Cool. In addition, the cover is exquisite with an ancient Korean scene. The mother of pearl business card case from Inae and her Kyung Hee students is also most lovely.

Below are a few pictures from Kyung Hee University on Friday September 2nd. I gave a talk there just 2-3 hours after getting on my plane. Yikes! My former student, Dr. Inae Kang, is there. She is an expert in problem-based learning, constructivism, carnival pedagogy, and museum education. Always a delight to stop in there and see Inae and her students. Inae had a lovely dinner provided to all of us. I gave one short talk on wikis in elementary school and then we all sat down and ate. Next, I gave a longer talk on the use of shared online video to transform education. Inae brought up a good point about the examples that I used were not transformative enough. She is always pushing me to think and that is good, even when just arriving from a 14 hour flight.

Ewha Womens University:
Ewha has a fascinating new entrance built by an architect from France (see below...3rd picture includes many alumni of my program in Instructional Systems Technology at Indiana University--Munghee Ju Kang, Young-Soo Kim, Jaesam Chung, etc.). My IST department has a partnership with Ewha so I try to speak there every time that I visit Seoul. This was the third time I spoke there or so I think (2002, 2009, and 2011). The first time I went there, my driver from Sejong University (Mooyoung) thanked me profusely for allowing to drive me there. I asked why and he said that the women at Ewha were extremely pretty and males like him were normally not allowed on campus. I smiled and found out later that he was right.

SKKU...More than 6 Centuries Old:
On Thursday morning, it was on to Sungkyunkwan (SKKU) University. This university if the oldest in Seoul, dating back to 1398. It is a private university and used by Samsung. As the pictures indicate, centuries ago, it was for Korean royalty and the wealthy. I gave two talks at SKKU, both more on the pedagogy side of the fence. All my talks in Korea can be downloaded as color PDF files from my archived talks in TrainingShare.com.

Last Speaking Stop...Hanyang!
Hanyang and, its partner, Hanyang Cyber University was my final presentation (7th of the week). It was my 4th time presenting on that campus I think (twice in 2002, once in 2009, and now 2011). I guess they know my name pretty well by now at Hanyang and Hanyang Cyber U. My delightful friend, Dr. Yeonwook Im, arranged this. She has a chapter in my Handbook of Blended Learning back in 2006.

I was honored to have the Vice President of Hanyang Cyber university sitting in the front row for my talk. He even held up his hands during my talk to indicate that the world was open for learning in Korea.

The Conference:
I also spoke at E-Learning week at COEX in Seoul and was on a general panel related to the future of education and technology in the 2nd last session of the conference. Saw some good friends from the USA there like Barry Fishman and Elliot Soloway from the University of Michigan and Cathie Norris from the University of North Texas. Also there is Mohamed Alley from Athabasca University; a mobile learning expert.

I have been a fan of Elliot Soloway's work since reading about him in AI (Artifical Intelligence) Magazine back in the mid 1980s and then seeing him speak at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference a few years later. He is quite the presenter. He knows how to use facial gestures, tone, images, and new data to captivate his audiences. He used to do these solo, but now Cathie Norris joins him for a dynamic duo on most trips. They make a great presentation team. I sometimes wish I had a partner to present with.

During the 10 days in Seoul I also saw many former students and visiting scholars of mine as well as friends from graduate school long ago at the University of Wisconsin. I counted 26 people from Korea who I saw during the week who were friends, former students, or colleagues.

The conference was good. I met people not only from the USA and Korea but also from the Philippines, Russia, Finland, and Malaysia. There were many high ranking government people in attendance for the opening ceremony and ribbon cutting. I got there just as it started. The E-Learning Week conference people wanted to be sure I was there for it though I did not get to cut the ribbon (see below).

Picture with Barry Fishman (he got his master's from my department just before I started) and Kyungmee Lee (she got a fellowship last year from IU but went to the University of Toronto instead).

Picture after my invited (20 minute) talk:

From Soul to Seoul (the view):
I stayed on the 26th floor of the Intercontinental at COEX. There was artwork on display in front of COEX related to environmental awareness. I took a few pictures of it. After 10-15 minutes of this, I handed my camera to my student, Jeong-eun Oh, to take a picture of me and she accidentally dropped and broke my Canon Elph pocket camera. Ten minutes later, she bought me a new one inside COEX. How convenient...though I pleaded with her not to. It is very nice. Gone is my red one but now I have a black one. Same camera just a newer model. It was dying anyway and I told her so. I think every time I need a new camera from now on, I will go to Korea and give her my camera and accidently drop it before she can get reach out for it.

Lovely view of the Han River from my room. See view below. This picture does not do justice to it.

Each day I did a couple of early morning miles on the treadmill while listening to the best of the Who on my iPad. Then a quick shower and review of my presentation before a 5 minute breakfast with a wonderful view of a famous Buddhist temple (more pictures of this temple are provided later). Once again, see below (not my best picture of the trip...I have hundreds better. Scroll down for more).

I went to Catholic for grades 3 to 8 so I have been conditioned to eat fast and get out on the playground. Then I was typically wisked away for a talk somewhere north of the Han River. One day, however, I went to the demiliterized zone (DMZ) with Dr. Meeyong Kim and her family. Meeyong was supposed to be my visiting scholar this year but the Korean government would not approve her visa. She teaches elementary school in Daejeon which is about an hour by train south of Seoul.

The DMZ:
The DMZ was quite fascinating. Standing on the North Korea side of the bargaining table. Wow. Cool. We were told when we could take pictures and when we could not. At one observation stop, we could see a couple of North Korean towns and even make our people walking in town or riding bikes. The world seemed open in North Korea, if only for that brief moment. I did walk down to part of the 3rd tunnel which was uncovered a couple of decades back. Interesting and I managed to walk inside for a bit despite my claustrophia. The world was not open there.

Museums of Seoul:
I also got to three museums when in Seoul--The National Museum of Korea, the Kimchi Museum, and Ewha Womens University Museum. All were great explorations and informative. The Kimchi Museum took Barry Fishman and I about 15 or 20 minutes to tour. It is located inside of COEX--the area where the conference was held. So much kimchi!

The national musuem is always a delight. Okhwa Lee (an old friend from grad school days) and I saw some old scrolls (books) documenting kings and queens from Korea from the 18th century which the French government had recently returned.

A Floating Island?
We also visiting a place called the "floating island" that is being built on the Han River. It is akin to the Opera House in Sydney (to learn more, watch this video). We could get inside but there are no shops completed yet. Soon I envisioned many people gathered there to relax with a cup of coffee or tea. Looks like this will be a huge cultural draw and tourist meeting point in the very near future. My next trip to Seoul, I will certainly visit it.

Downtown Seoul...Nanta and the Cheonggyecheon Stream:
I did not just visit museums in my spare time. Last Thursday September 8th I saw a show called Nanta . Nanta is a show involving kitchen utensils and cooking akin to Blue Man Group but without the blue body paint. I guess, for me, it is best to describe it as an Asian spin-off of Blue Man Group. However, Nanta has its own spin offs throughout Asia including Bangkok, Thailand. There are many acts and performances throughout the 90 minute show.

Strolling the Cheonggyecheon:
After the Nanta show, I had a stroll down the Cheonggyecheon Stream. Cheonggyecheon used to be covered by a roadway system but the former mayor of Seoul, Myung-bak Lee (who now is President of Korea) decided to beautify Seoul. He uncovered about 8.4 kilometers of it at a cost of $900 million dollars. The funny thing is that it flows in the opposite direction of the original stream.

I walked down the Cheonggyecheon with my doctoral student, Jeong-eun Oh. Jeong-eun recently got married (June, 2011) and was starting to work on her dissertation proposal. I always like running down or walking that stream. When I was in Korea two years ago, my hotel (the President Hotel) was near very there.

Check out the pictures below. My camera sometimes takes great pictures at dusk. I think this was one of those times.

Octoberfest for Alumni Gathering:
Elliot Soloway and Cathie Norris joined a group of current and former students and visiting scholars of my department on Friday night September 9th. We met at Octoberfest near Gangnam station. Gangnam is a very happening part of Seoul and not too far from my hotel (just 2 stops on the subway). This is the 3rd time I have organized an IU alumni type of event in Seoul for my IST department and 2nd time at Octoberfest. This time it was a smaller group due to the fact that Korean Thanksgiving was starting that weekend.

The Bar Scene in Seoul:
Then it was time for another Korean ritual...going to another bar for shots and other assorted drinks. Just walking the streets at night with a group can be most fun in Seoul. There are so many pubs in Seoul and especially around places like Gangnam to choose from.

The Open Air Pubs of Seoul:
After Octoberfest, Daniel Craig (IST doc student working in Seoul), Hosang Cheon (former IU master's student in Telecom who designed all my Websites 10 years ago)), and I visited an open air pub and where we grilled and than eat some clams, muscles, scallops, and other assorted seafood. It was a very interesting late night ritual there in Seoul. The beer still tasted quite good at the time. By soon it got pretty late and it was time to head back to my hotel (3 am?).

Bongeunsa...a Zen Buddhist Temple:
Across from my hotel was a marvelous place called Bongeunsa. Bongeunsa is a Buddhist temple in the Gangnam-gu area of Seoul which is near Samseong station and COEX. According to Wikimapia, "Bongeunsa was founded in 794 and was reconstructed in 1498 becoming the main temple of the Korean Seon (Zen) sect of Buddhism from 1551 through 1936. A fire in 1939 destroyed most of the buildings, and other parts of the temple were destroyed during the Korean War." I love both religious sites and historical sites, so this was quite special to me.

My colleague from graduate school days, Dr. Okhwa Lee, lives near there. She stopped by the day before I left Seoul and I finally got a chance to meander through (though I had visited the place 2 years ago). Each day and night I would look at it but it took me 8 days to finally walk across the street. Okhwa and I had a relaxing stroll through the woods behind it and later found a chance to meditate inside it. The juxtaposion between the city-scape of Seoul and the calm and peacefulness of Bongeunsa is something one remembers for a lifetime.

The Final Night and Day...
One last view from my hotel room at night is below. It was so lovely that I often never closed the curtains. The hotel desk people told me I had one of the best rooms at the Intercontinental. That is saying a lot since it is a lovely hotel. Cost me a big extra but worth it I think.

Final Morning:

Yes, it is Sunday morning September 11th...Time to head back to Indiana. Oops, not yet. My student Jeong-eun Oh shows up with her new husband.

Korean people are so tall compared to us little Americans.

Who else might show up? Well, it is Dr. SuJin Son. SuJin is a former student of Inae Kang's who was assigned to me back in 2002 to be my driver when I first visited Seoul. Since that time, she has gotten her master's in educational technology at Kyung Hee and then her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois. We published 2-3 things on blended learning in corporate settings in Korea and knowledge management and intellectual capital stuff. She is still my driver...driving me back to the airport. But first a stop in Isadong for shopping.

Then it is on to Isadong. Another popular tourist as well as local destination on a Saturday morning. I get many small gifts there. Yes, they can all fit in my overstuffed suitcase. Thank goodness. Now I do not have to check any bags.

GPS comes in very handy in Seoul, though sometimes it sends you down streets that are quite narrow as I found out earlier in the week. Many of the main streets are 4 or 5 lanes wide. Amazing! SuJin relies on GPS a lot as do most of the people who drive me from place-to-place. The only time there is no GPS was when I had taxi drivers (all men). This time GPS takes us from Isadong (north of the Han River) to Building 63 (south of the Han River). Given it is Thanksgiving weekend in Korea, many people are out of town already and it is fairly clear sailing from one place to another. Everything is a relatively quick 20 or 30 minute drive. Of course, if you jump into a crazy taxicab driver in Seoul, like Okhwa Lee and I did the day before, everything is a 5 or 10 minute drive and you hold your breath the entire way. Smile.

GPS takes us to my final lunch in Korea for this trip. We take the elevator up to the 58th floor of Building 63; the tallest building in Seoul. This is a skyscraper. The restaurant was called something like "In the Clouds" and we were in the clouds for sure. A couple of pictures of the Han River.

Back to the Incheon airport for another flight home.

Boarding for home...Time to board the plane and who do I see but Santa Claus. No, it is Elliot Soloway from Michigan. Of course, he got business class all the way. I tried to sit with him, but was conveniently sent back to economy or should I say economy comfort.

Final Thoughts...So many old friends and former students and colleagues are in Korea. I count nearly 100 now. It was difficult to say goodbye to them all. But I will return. Just when is uncertain and that is why I stayed a tad longer than normal this time. I hope it is soon but you never know.

How often do you get to see two great friends from graduate school in a distant country? Not often enough! Below are Okhwa Lee and Miheon Jo who I met at the University of Wisconsin a quarter century ago. Hard to believe. We were all highly precocious elementary students when we started. Ha ha. I think it is appropriate that I end with that pic. Right? Right!

Anyway, Korea was grand! Too much fun I think. Wish my father who fought in the Korean War could have come with me as well as my son Alex who was adopted from Seoul when he was 21 months old. Alex is now 23 and approaching 24 next month. My father passed away back on July 27, 1995 when the Korean War Memorial just happened to be opened.

I still remember the pictures my dad brought home from the war (mostly from Busan). I have a few at home with me now thanks to my mother's insistence. It all looks so different now. And I remember a night while in graduate school back in 1988 I think for those of us wishing to adopt from Korea. The speaker had just returned from Seoul with some lovely slides in a slide projector. There was no PowerPoint, Blogger (or blogs), wikis, OER portals for sharing, Facebook, or Picasa back in the late 1980s and much less when my father returned from the war. Still they just as effective pictures.

Thanks everyone for the great time in Seoul. I found a piece of my soul that was missing.

E-Learning Week in Korea and New World is Open Syllabus Posted

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 11:39:00 +0000

Sitting in Terminal A in the Indianapolis airport on route to Detroit and then Seoul for E-Learning week. Will speak at 4 universities in Seoul when there. Will see many friends, IU alumni, and colleagues. Should be a great experience. To get ready, I had to teach 2 weeks of classes in 1 week. Prepping 7 talks for Korea, meeting new students, teaching intensively, packing, coordinating, etc. I will be happy to jump on the plane and sleep. Color PDFs of all my talks in Korea are posted (as are all my previous ones). The conference program is also up.

If you are in Korea and want to come to any of my university talks (Kyung Hee University Friday the 2nd of Sept; Ewha Womens University Monday the 5th; Sungkyunkwan University Thursday the 8th; or Hanyang Cyber/Hanyang University Friday the 9th), just send me a note. I have spoken at all these places before except for Sungkyunkwan University. Many great friends to see at each stop. My E-learning Week talk is Tuesday the 6th late in the day and I will be on a panel the following day. On Friday the 9th at 7 pm many Indiana University alums of my program in Instructional Systems Technology as well as other friends will meet at Octoberfest at 7 pm. Should be fun. I also plan a trip to the DMZ (demilitarized zone) on Saturday the 3rd. Given my son is from Korea and my father fought in the Korean War, I have been looking forward to the DMZ for some time now. My father took many pictures in 1952-53 when he was there.

I expect to learn about many new innovations and technology projects in Korea. There is always something going on there. Many interesting speakers coming to E-Learning week. Much is crammed into my time there....arrive September 2nd and return on September 11. Yes, I will fly on 9-11-11. Ug. I flew on the first 2 anniversaries of 911 and no one was in the airport. Not sure what will happen this time. And not sure when I will get back to Korea again.

In other news, my R685 World is Open with Web Technology course on Monday nights is now a 52 page syllabus. Everything is a hot link. The course has extensive resources for mobile learning, virtual worlds, collaborative technologies, open educational resources, online education, digital books, blogging, podcasting, etc. And it starts with an exploration of many strategic plans from the world if higher education, military training, K-12 education, and workplace learning. Then it moves into current ideas about the digital learning skills one needs today. Feel free to check out the syllabus and let me know what I am missing. The world is open for you now. Explore! Excite! Engage!

An Ed Tech Quickie: Jobs, Journals, and Academic Programs

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 23:07:00 +0000

An Ed Tech Quickie: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs... by Curt Bonk, Indiana University at Bloomington, August 18, 2011.

This is a brief post for me. A best of the best type of post. A quickie.

Jobs, jobs, jobs. That is the mantra emanating from government hallways in Ottawa, London, Paris, Madrid, Athens, and elsewhere. In the United States, states like Michigan, California, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Florida, Nevada, and Mississippi are dying for postive news with over 10 percent unemployment. And North Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama are right behind at 9.9 percent (see US Dept of Labor June 2011 report). Well, I am happy to report that there are jobs these days for people in the field of educational technology. Trust me on that. Some of my master's and educational specialist (Ed.S.) students have so many job offers that they are having trouble picking the right one to take. Doctoral students, well, that depends on what type of job they are willing to settle for. Tenure track faculty positions are more slim than positions in teaching and learning centers and instructional design departments.

Jobs (Portal #1): Need help finding such a job? Well, one of my most popular blog posts was my list of Websites to find jobs in the field of educational and instructional technology. I posted that one a few years back (April 4, 2008) in response to all the questions I get about locating a job in the field. Then I developed a portal for over 30 such sites including one really fantastic jobs portal from my Instructional Systems Technology department. This list or jobs portal was recently updated. Check it out.

Journals (Portal #2): In addition to questions about jobs, many want advice on where and how to publish in the field of educational and learning technology. So I created a list of journals and magazines that I thought were relevant. Many are open access, online, and free. Some are no longer in service.

Academic Programs (Portal #3): Most recently, I blogged about graduate programs in the United States in educational technology and instructional technology. This July 11, 2011 blog post was in response to all the students who ask me where they might apply for graduate school (not everyone can come to Indiana). I then created an online portal or list of programs one can get a master's or doctorate in educational technology and related disciplines. It is quite a list. There are a few undergraduate programs noted as well. I plan to update it from time-to-time.

So, if interested, you might check out these portals or lists I have created for educational technology and instructional technology related to:

1. Jobs.
2. Journals.
3. Academic programs.

I have continued to update these summary lists. If I am missing one or two, let me know. I have also written advice columns on how to get published as a graduate student or new faculty member (30+ writing tips) (January 31, 2007). In addition, I have blogged on issues related to interviewing for a faculty job (May 4, 2008). I have many other blog posts with writing advice, including a couple in August 2007 (3 p's of professional writing and the 3 p's of publishing). Hope these are helpful.

Caution: This might not be the order you should proceed. Typically, most people first find an academic program. As they proceed, they often start to publish and look for a job. Good luck. And keep Indiana University in mind.

This has been your ed tech quickie...on jobs, journals, and academic programs. Quick Curt out...

EduMOOC on the Loose: An Interview with Ray Schroeder

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 18:02:00 +0000

There's a gigantic EduMOOC on the loose. Have you seen it? No, I am not talking about the 140 pound mountain lion that traveled from the Black Hills of South Dakota all the way to Connecticut only to be run over by a car. That journey was over 1,500 miles! Earlier in the week, the USA Today reported that "The epic journey was the longest ever recorded for a mountain lion."

In contrast, the epic journey that I am talking about incubated over in my neighboring state of Illinois; also known at the "flatlands," instead of the Black Hills or the Badlands. But, like that mountain lion, it too is becoming quite enormous and a tad bit scary. And it has traveled around the world at a blistering pace. Not sure if scientists are measuring its' droppings like they did the mountain lion, but apparently "all" records are being saved, so who knows...?

What am I talking about? Well, back on June 7th, I got an email from an online learning superstar who always has all the data that I need and more. It was my good buddy Ray Schroeder from the University of Illinois at Springfield. Ray asked me to be involved as a panelist in his planned EduMOOC (MOOC = Massive Open Online Course) on "Online Learning Today...and Tomorrow." This is what he said: "I am putting together a MOOC - you know, massive open online course ... no credit, no budget, just to test the "open" water and see what this may be like. The topic is Online Learning Today, and .... Tomorrow."

"Is he crazy?"...I thought. No credits. No budget. And unlimited enrollments. Ok, I reminded myself that this is higher education in 2011. No budgets and masses of people. I know others have tried it...Stephen Downes and George Siemens up der in Oh Canada, for instance, and David Wiley at BYU as well as Tom Reeves at the University of Georgia. Both George and Stephen address issues related to MOOCs in their recent blog posts. George on research issues and Stephen provides a link to a MOOC from Australia on developing a professional e-portfolio.

But I digress. Back to my email exchange with Ray..."Sure" I told him, as long as I do not need to fly anywhere (see 12 reasons why not). Ray assured me that it would be online. And so I will be a panelist in the final week on the future of online learning (August 18th at 2 pm EST).

Since that time, I have been tracking aspects of his EduMOOC each day. Many well known people signed up as participants as well as panelists. The Google Groups discussions are being shared each day. A wiki for the MOOC has been created and maintained by the participants. On June 21, Marc Parry from the Chronicle of Higher Education even wrote an article about it, U. of Illinois at Springfield Offers New 'Massive Open Online Course.' Suffice to say, Ray's EduMOOC on "Online Learning Today...and Tomorrow" has definitely evolved and expanded. And it is linked to my interests in open education and open teaching. So today I have been sending Ray questions about it. There are now 16 of them. I asked if I could publish these in the form of an interview and he said sure. So here goes...

July 28, 2011 Interview with: Ray Schroeder, Professor Emeritus, Director of the Center for Online Learning, Research and Service (COLRS), University of Illinois Springfield

Curt Question #1: How many people have signed up? How many attend the weekly sync sessions?

Ray: We are keeping copius analytics on the streams and the Google group, wiki, Moodle, blogs, etc. But, there is too much to analyze on the fly... Two research teams - one led by Siemens/Downes and the other by Mackintosh at OERu in NZ are compiling these for case studies - as will we.

Short answer is a couple hundred live and it likes like more are bringing up the recorded versions. But we cannily count streams connected, in some cases groups or classes seem to be gathering to watch together. Much to study about MOOC.

So far 2,655 registered.

Curt Question #2: How many countries represented among the registered now?

Ray: We have 70 countries represented:

Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Laos, Malaysia, Mauritius, México, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Serbia, South Africa, Spain, St. Vincent/the Grenadines, Sudan, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad/Tobago, Turkey, UAE, Uganda, UK, Ukraine, Venezuela, USA, Vietnam, West Indies.

Curt Question #3: What spurred your decision to create the EduMOOC? Had you been contemplating doing it for long?

Ray: This really grew out of a keynote presentation I made earlier this year at e-Cornucopia at Oakland University. The topic was “The Open Future of Higher Ed.” In preparing for the presentation and in the interactions with those attending, it became clear to me that there is a key role for MOOCs in the future of online learning. I asked my staff if we might do a MOOC to find out more about this emerging approach. They generously agreed to help support this on top of their busy schedules.

Curt Question #4: Did you have any role models? Or mentors?

Ray: Not really. Certainly, I had read about the great work George Siemens and Stephen Downes had done with earlier MOOCs, but I had not attended any previous MOOC. I have high regard for both of them. I appreciated the YouTube videos posted by Dave Cormier. But, I entered with no direct experience with the MOOC. Some have remarked that eduMOOC is different in some ways than others, and I suppose that is why. I’ve taught at the University of Illinois for 40 years. I approached this much as I would a graduate seminar in which I create a framework, and the students take it from there.

Curt Question #5. What are the biggest challenges or hurdles you faced in creating and maintaining the EduMOOC?

Ray: The volume of users is daunting in the first week or so. Getting everyone registered and receiving the listserv is a challenge when there are more than 2,600 in the group. But, once it is running, the participants take over. We continue to populate each week’s webpage with dozens of resource links and conduct the panel discussion with knowledgeable people.

Curt Question #6: What are your observations about the EduMOOC so far?

Ray: eduMOOC has been an eye-opener for me! There are so many engaged in personal learning – mostly individuals, but also whole departments, academic cabinets, college leaders, etc. I like to say that it is “come-as-you-are and take-what-you-want.” So, they participate in the parts that make sense to them. They build networks to help them continue to develop in this field.

Curt Question #7: I am writing a book on online motivation and retention right now. Currently, I am writing a chapter about learner autonomy which includes information about the motivational aspects of choice, control, flexibility, and opportunities. How do you see an EduMOOC addressing any of these-- autonomy, choice, opportunity, control, flexibility, etc.?

Ray: Certainly, this addresses individual choice, access, and flexibility. In the end there is an awesome resource site with a rambling network of interested individuals, blogs, wikis, G+ circles, etc.

Curt Question #8: What makes such an environment (i.e., a MOOC) motivational?

Ray: The motivation mostly comes from the broad range of professional colleagues that are engaged. The enthusiasm, knowledge, interests of the individuals raises all who read/view/hear what they share on the topics.

Curt Question #9: Why might others try it?

Ray: This reaches a large number of people worldwide in a short time with “just-in-time” aspects that are not often found in traditional learning opportunities.

Curt Question #10: What is happening that you did not expect?

Ray: There is more networking. The magnitude of the response. I approach this as a massive graduate seminar – respecting the participants as I would advanced graduate students. So, in the larger sense, I set the framework, brought in some catalysts in the form of panelists such as yourself, seeded it with a couple hundred links to resources and let it go! The participants take it from there.

Curt Question #11: What types of courses does it fit best?

Ray: This would seem to be a great fit for courses and topics where there are new developments, new issues, new topics. Not that there are not new topics in “ancient Greece studies” but that one would be far different than this one.

Curt Question #12: Might it work outside of higher ed….for instance, in the world of K-12 or corporate or military training?

Ray: Yes. This is a natural for professional development/training. Our topic is of that sort – online learning today and tomorrow. A hybrid of for-credit enrollments for those who want the credit, continuing ed credit for the professions, and non-credit for the masses would seem to be a likely future for this.

Curt Question #13: What has been the reaction from your colleagues at the University of Illinois at Springfield and elsewhere around the globe?

Ray: The reaction is very positive. There has been quite a bit of positive press. It seems that most people take this as a natural evolution of presentations – from in-person to online; from small groups to massive online audiences. This is a wonderful way to reach large number of people in a field of study. In this case, it was also a bit of a meta-MOOC – that is the topic was about online learning. So, we were using online tools to conduct the MOOC. Much of the early discussion had a focus on the MOOC itself. Now, there is more of a focus on open resources and open learning opportunities. Most people realize the power of having a large group of people contributing new ideas and perspectives to the discussion.

Curt Question #14: What is next for Ray Schroeder? Any more EduMOOC activities on the horizon?

Ray: Absolutely! We are looking a launching several MOOCs that will be improved by our experiences here. One MOOC may be on the topic of an open textbook we are creating collectively among faculty members at the campuses of the University of Illinois. Combining an open online book with the MOOC should be fun. I have been asked by one of our distinguished scholars who holds the Political Science endowed Chair at UIS, Matthew Holden, to discuss the potential of doing a MOOC in his area of study. I think there are many possibilities for using MOOC to make a difference among a large group of learners worldwide.

Curt Question #15: Can you give me a link to a that video or definition explaining an EduMOOC again?

Ray: Well Wikipedia is just starting a page on MOOC.

Note: According to Wikipedia: "A Massive open online course (MOOC) is a course where the participants are distributed and course materials also are dispersed across the web. This is possible only if the course is open, and works significantly better if the course is large. The course is not a gathering, but rather a way of connecting distributed instructors and learners across a common topic or field of discourse."

But, the best resource, I think is this four-minute video by Dave Cormier

Curt Question #16: What are the main EduMOOC sites for your class Online Learning Today...and Tomorrow?

Ray: The wikispaces site that is pretty popular and was put together by participants. Here are the three main EduMOOC sites.
1. EduMOOC homepage

2. Google Groups discussions

3. Wikispaces site
the wikispaces site that is pretty popular and was put together by participants.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
(end of interview...)

I hope to see some of you there on the 18th! Here is a reminder to that final EduMOOC session (August 18 at 2 pm EST).

Wishing you well in creating your own MOOC and putting it on the loose. I love the concept of open teaching. The world is open, don't ya know. Wide open!

List of Ed Tech and Instructional Technology Related Programs in the United States

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:34:00 +0000

Educational Technology and Instructional Technology Related Programs in the United States

The Daily Email Grind...Same, Same, Same: Many people around the planet ask me about the program I teach in at Indiana University (IU). It is called "Instructional Systems Technology" (IST). The IST program has been around for like 7 decades, albeit under different names and configurations. Geez, it is nearly as old as members of the Rolling Stones. And, like the Stones, it is still playing a fine tune and a few of us go out on tour from time-to-time. Any other parallels we will leave for another blog post.

Lately, the email I get about the IST program is typically from mainland China. First, out of respect, I remind them that the Great Wall is still older than our program. Other email about the program tends to come from folks in Turkey, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea, Mongolia, Singapore, or some other place. Some of those emailing me plan to apply to my program and are seeking my advice. Others are too late and thinking about applying next year. Still others want me to recommend similar programs should they not get into the IST program at IU. A few simply want to know if I can get them tickets to an IU basketball game or Super Bowl tickets for next February.

That Little Man in my Head: I keep answering the same questions over and over and over. The little man in my head says enough is enough...do you want me to answer that question one more time? He is getting old and cranky. I feel sorry for him and so I am creating this blog post and associated Web site.

What do they ask me? Well, the first question typically incorporates many things such as procedures for applying to the program, the expectations of the entrance committee, the funding available, the research interests of the faculty, and so on. I tell them that, "everything counts when applying, not just test scores." I add that, "personally, I like reading the goal statements." Then I try to be honest and say that, "you should apply to more than one program since you might not get into your first choice. And you will have better chances for funding if you apply to several such programs." I use this line with anyone who cannot define what a "Hoosier" is.

Then many respond by asking about applying programs other than mine. They say, "well, which ones might I apply to." This is hard to answer since many are fishing--some are fishing for best climate for weather and others are fishing for best climate for funding. Some are fishing for extremely rare wild game--the best place for everything. Some "El Dorado" of educational and instructional technology programs. Such a place does not exist though I did see El Dorado, Kansas last month on my way from Emporia to the Wichita airport. So I created a list of programs. It is in alphabetic order, not in order of importance. And last week, I created a companion Website for Educational Technology and Instructional Technology programs. Check it out. These programs are also listed below. Quick, go to the link above and you and avoid reading my opening comments and stories.

Hitting the Road: There are dozens of programs to choose from. Many of my colleagues, friends, and students consider the top programs to be Florida State University, the University of Georgia, the University of Missouri, Penn State University, and several others. They are among the chief competitors to my program in IST here in Hoosierville; at least at the doctoral level. Those are excellent places to start, to be sure. I visited and spoke at every one of these campuses during the past year except for Penn State (did that one back in 1991). And I got to a bunch of other campuses as well this year; among them was Syracuse University which has been a rival of IU for decades. After speaking there a year ago as well, my brother Tom and I got a lovely campus tour from one of their faculty members.

During my 2010-2011 travels, I wanted to hear from the students and faculty on each campus what they thought were the best programs. And I wanted to experience each campus. Unfortunately, I will not provide my personal ratings in this public forum. Sorry. You will have to write to me or ask me when at a conference. I can say that I had an especially fun time at the University of Georgia (despite an ice storm on the way down) and the University of Missouri. So many wonderful students and faculty at each one. If someone is considering Ph.D. (permanent head damage...post hole digger) programs in ed tech and instructional technology and doesn't put these two on the list, they would be crazy. Florida State...well, should be on there too despite funding problems in the state of Florida lately. Faculty from FSU, Indiana, and Syracuse were among the founders of the field.

There are many more doctoral programs on the list than the 5 or 6 listed above. Some people often consider the University of Central Florida (no, not just because Disney is there...but it does not hurt; UCF has drawn many students from China during the past decade or two), Wayne State University (especially if they work at Ford or GM), the University of Texas at Austin (was there twice last year...love the music scene and food...excellent program as well..can't go wrong), Purdue University (our neighbor to the north with many K-12 and engineering education grant projects), BYU and Utah State (much interest in educational technology and technology in general in Utah), Michigan State University (which has many online programs as well), the University of Wisconsin (this is where I went...ah, Madison in the summer! Don't even think about wintertime), the University of Minnesota (which has cool people and cool projects and cold, cold bone chilling weather...I know since I gave 4 talks there in early February 2010. Adventure Learning!), the University of Hawaii (aloha to all my friends there--see you in October; many mobile learning, Web 2.0., e-portfolio, and e-learning programs at the UH), Virginia Tech (another excellent choice as long as you do not fly into Roanoke when there is low visability like I did), and Stanford University (not easy to get in but a lovely place with brilliant people. I had a nice visit there a year ago.). There are so many programs to choose from.

And there are more...many more, including NYU (if you love New York and can afford it), George Mason University (especially if you are in the DC area), the University of Oklahoma (I presented there last year--some great statues on that campus and not just of football players. Some top notch people there.), the University of Houston (I have presented there several times--great people and conversation and delicious food always...check it out!), Boise State (I hope to visit someday), and the University of North Texas (was there in late April--much happening at UNT..it is a mini-think tank). See links below for all of these programs and many more. Apologies for any that I did not specifically mention above.

Now back to my opening story...Last week, one of the email inquiries I got was from an undergraduate senior from China. She said that she could not find many programs in the field that were like the IST program at IU. The little man in my head was baffled. "How are people searching these days?," he quickly asked me. But I put him to work to get him to shut up. Soon he was exhausted retrieving all the program data for her. Of course, I felt bad for him. It was the weekend. Supposed to be his day off. We were out on my back deck listening to the birds sing. Unfortunately, it was a sultry hot July day. Soon he was totally exhausted and complained a bit. He told me to just put this info on the Web so he would not have to repeat these steps again. I promptly agreed, mainly to get him off my back (but not out of my head). I was amazed with what he found. In fact, after an hour or two, that little man in my head had found 50 doctoral programs related to educational and instructional technology! I give him a summer bonus. He is now off on a well deserved vacation.

But 50 programs? Yes, there are 50 doctoral programs listed below (and now more than 50 with suggestions for more). Over 50! Wow. And he gave me a list of 12 other master's only programs that he thought people might be interested in. These master's programs, not surprisingly, included San Francisco State University and San Diego State University, both with long running reputations as among the best in the world. Much to do in the Bay area at all times and in San Diego, every day is a chance to run and train. There is also Emporia State University which I visited a month ago--had a great time with everyone. It also has the Teacher Hall of Fame. If you are thinking of a master's, I recommend that you place all three of these places on your list to consider.

Many of these master's and doctoral programs offer online certificates and degrees as well. I do not include much about online master's and doctorates in this list yet. Perhaps later I will add those later on. For now, I do list 9 institutions that only offer online degrees--there are many more than that to pick from. Let me restate, keep in mind that dozens of the face-to-face programs also have online programs. For instance, Old Dominion University has an online Ph.D. and the IST program at IU has an online certificate and online master's...both of which are very popular. My colleagues and I are working to create an online Ed.D. at IU. Announcement to come soon, I hope. Very soon.

Also keep in mind that this area has many names: Educational Technology, Instructional Systems Technology, Instructional Psychology and Technology, Instructional Design and Technology, Learning Technologies and Design, Instructional Technology, Educational Communications and Technology, Human Performance Technology, etc. Some related areas include learning sciences and information science. Even my old field of educational psychology is highly linked and many times will house the ed tech or instructional technology program. Curriculum and instruction programs often do as well.

Prominent Residential Master’s Only Programs (many have online programs as well):

1. California State University at Monterey Bay, Information Technology and Communication Design
2. East Carolina University, Instructional Technology
3. Emporia State University, Instructional Design and Technology
4. Fort Hays State University, Instructional Technology
5. George Washington University, Educational Technology Leadership
6. San Diego State University, Educational Technology
7. San Francisco State University, Instructional Technology
8. St. Cloud State University, Information Media
9. University of Colorado at Denver, Info & Learning Tech (eLearning Design/Imp; ID & Adult Learning; and K-12 Teaching)
10. University of South Carolina, Educational Technology
11. University of Texas at El Paso, Educational Technology
12. University of Utah, Instructional Design & Educational Technology

Residential Doctoral Programs (most include a Master’s
program; many include online degree programs and certificates):

1. Arizona State University, Educational Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
2. Auburn University, Dept of Ed Foundations, Leadership & Tech, Master's Library/Media Tech, Ph.D.in Admin emph in Tech
3. Boise State University, Educational Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
4. Brigham Young University (BYU), Instructional Psychology and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
5. Florida State University, Instructional Systems (within the Ed Psych and Learning Department, certificate, Master’s, and Ph.D.)
6. George Mason University, Instructional Technology Program (Master’s and Ph.D.)
7. Georgia State University, Masters in Instructional Design & Tech; Ph.D. in Instructional Tech
8. Idaho State University, Educational Leadership and Instructional Design Masters; Doctor of Education
9. Indiana University, Instructional Systems Technology (Master’s, Ed.S., Ph.D.; IU IST Programs; Research Teams; IUconnectedEd (certificate and Master’s online)
10. Iowa State University, Curric & Instruc'l Tech, Master’s in Curric & Inst'l Tech Special; and Ph.D. in Curric & Instructional Tech
11. Kent State University, Instructional Tech (Master’s); Doctorate in Ed Psych with a Concentration in Instructional Tech
12. Michigan State Univ, Ed Tech Prog Overview; Master’s info; Overseas; Various Progs;Doc prog ed psych/ed tech; Hybrid doc prog
13. Mississippi State University, Instructional Systems & Workforce Development; B.S., Masters, Ed.D., and Ph.D.
14. NYU, Educational Communication and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
15. Old Dominion University, Instructional Design and Technology Program (Master’s and Ph.D.)
16. Penn State University, Instructional Systems (Master’s and Ph.D.)
17. Purdue University, Learning Design and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
18. Syracuse University, Instructional Design, Development and Evaluation (Master’s and Ph.D.)
19. Teachers College, Columbia University, Instructional Technology and Media (Master’s and Ph.D)
20. Texas A&M University, Ed Tech is offered in the Dept of Ed Psych in the Learning Sciences program (Master’s and Ph.D.)
21. Texas Tech University, Instructional Technology (Master’s and Ed.D.)
22. Utah State University, Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences (Master’s and Ph.D.)
23. Virginia Tech University, Instructional Design and Technology Program (Master’s, Ed.S., Ed.D., and Ph.D.)
24. Wayne State University, Instructional Technology (Master’s, Ed.D., and Ph.D.)
25. West Virginia University, Instructional Design and Technology (Master’s and Ed.D.); IDT homepage.
26. William & Mary, Curriculum and Educational Technology (Ed.D. and Ph.D.)
27. University of Alabama, Master’s in Instructional Tech; Ph.D. is in Instructional Leadership with an concentration in Inst'l Tech
28. University of Central Florida, Educational Communications and Technology (Master’s, Ed.D., and Ph.D.)
29. University of Florida, Instructional Technology (degrees granted in Instruction and Curric with emphasis in Educ Tech)
30. University of Georgia, Learning, Design, and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
31. University of Hawaii, Department of Educational Technology
32. University of Houston, Instructional Tech (Master’s); doctorate in Curric & Instruction with emphasis in Instructional Tech
33. University of Kansas, Ed Tech (Master’s); doctorate offered in Ed Leadership & Policy Studies with emphasis in Ed Tech
34. University of Minnesota, Learning Technologies (Master’s, M.Ed. and Ph.D.)
35. University of Missouri, School of Information Science and Learning Technologies or SISLT (Master’s, M.Ed., and Ph.D.)
36. University of New Mexico, Organizational Learning and Instructional Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
37. University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV), Ed Tech; doc in C&I with emph in Ed Tech; joint doc prog in Lrng Tech in Ed Psych
38. University of North Texas, Department of Learning Technologies (Master’s and Ph.D.)
39. University of Northern Colorado, Educational Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
40. University of Oklahoma, Instructional Psychology and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
41. University of South Florida, Instructional Technology (Master’s, Ed.D., and Ph.D.)
42. University of Southern Mississippi, Instructional Technology (BA, Master’s, and Ph.D.) BA; Master’s and Ph.D.
43. University of Tennessee, Instructional Technology and Learning Environments and Educational Studies
44. University of Texas at Austin, Instructional Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
45. University of Virginia, Instructional Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
46. University of Wisconsin, Educational Communications and Technology (Master’s and Ph.D.)
47. University of Wyoming, Adult Learning and Instructional Technology: Main and Instructional Technology

Note: These last five lean more to Learning Sciences than ed tech, but I include them anyway due to significant overlap.
48. Indiana University, Learning Sciences, Master's and Ph.D. in Learning and Developmental Sciences
49. Northwestern University, Sch of Education and Social Policy, Master's and Ph.D. in Learning Sciences
50. Stanford University, Master’s in Learning, Design, and Technology and Ph.D. in Learning Sciences and Technology Design
51. Vanderbilt University, Learning Sciences and Learning Environment Design Specialization (Master’s and Ph.D.)
52. University of Washington, Learning Sciences (Master’s, Ed.D., and Ph.D.)

Prominent Online Only Programs

1. Capella University, Instructional Design for Online Learning (Ph.D.) as well as Training and Performance Improvement
2. Jones International University, MEd in K-12 Instructional Technology (Master’s)
3. Nova Southeastern, Instructional Technology & Distance Education (online Ph.D.)
4. Pepperdine University, Learning Technologies (online Ed.D.)
5. University of Phoenix, Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership with a Specialization in Educational Technology
6. Univ of Maryland, Univ College, 4 Distance Ed Master's Programs, Instr'l Tech, DE/E-Lrng, DE Tchg/Trng, Tech Manage
7. Walden University, Educational Technology (online Ed.D.)
8. Western Governors University, Master of Education in Learning and Technology
9. Western Michigan University, Educational Technology, Certificate and Master’s

Remember: I created a Website for Educational Technology and Instructional Technology programs. You might want to bookmark it. You might also want to tell me about programs that I have forgotten to include. My email is cjbonk at indiana.edu and curt at worldisopen dot com.

During the past few years, I have indexed many such resources including Ed Tech job listing sites and Ed Tech journals and magazines.

In effect, these three portals can help get you in an educational technology programs, then help you find a job in the field, and later get published. Start with programs I guess. You have 52 face-to-face doctoral programs and 12 face-to-face master's programs or more than 60 places to visit in the United States for a degree. If you lack travel money or need to stay home and work, many of these programs have online degrees as well. Good luck to you.

I really do hope this helps. That little man in my head needs a break.

Who wants to fly with TravelinEdMan?: A dozen consecutive examples of why not…

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 03:56:00 +0000

Who wants to fly with TravelinEdMan?: A dozen consecutive examples of why not…

Note: Before I start, I should point out that this is my longest blog post ever. It is now well over 15,000 words. As such, this blog post could be divided into 13 or 14 blog postings or stories. I still might individually post each of the 12 stories listed below. Not sure. Instead of individual posts, I believe that they work best together. No one incident, other than perhaps the first and last ones, would stop me, the so-called “TravelinEdMan,” from traveling again. But, when combined, they should make you ponder the safety and convenience (or inconvenience) of air travel. Pick the story (or stories) that you want to read...or skip this post entirely and stay sane.

Introduction to the 12 Stories/Trips Taking Place during the Past Half Year:

So who wants to fly with me sometime on a trip? It often gets quite lonely. I would love to have some company. Many people tell me that I am lucky to travel to so many wondrous places. During the past 6 and one-half months, however, I have had my share of travel adventures when in route or on my way back. In the stories below, I recap a few details from the 12 trips that took place during that time or about 2 trips per month. These are professional ones and do not include a vacation in Freeport, Bahamas just before Christmas. Those seeking additional information related to the events I flew to, can find links to them in my news off my homepage. I am going to include minimal links here so as not to distract from the stories themselves.

Sometimes people ask why I turn down a chance to speak somewhere that I have not been; especially, the cool and exotic places. During the past few years, I have turned down Cairo, Moscow, Katmandu, Bali, Tripoli (yes, Libya), Tunisia, Kuwait, Qatar, KL, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Penang, São Paulo, Santiago, Mexico City, Hong Kong, Beijing, Toronto, Rio (actually, that one was delayed), Dubai, Bogata, various locations in Turkey, and dozens of other places. Many of these places I have been to before. Most I have not. When I debate over one of these invites, friends of mine will often tell me that I really need to visit them or attend a particular conference in order to meet and to catch up on life. And still others wonder why I often charge a fee for speaking given that I am typically promoting free and open education for all (i.e., "Curt, you have a book that says that the World is Open".

Well, there are many reasons for me not to travel. And they all add up. See a few of these below.

First, there is extensive prep time for my talk or multiple talks. There are usually 2 or 3 talks to prepare for each event…and every audience is special and unique (see example descriptions). When I travel overseas to places like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Australia, Finland, or Korea, I might do a dozen or more talks in a single week to various types of audiences. Many recent audiences are mainly K-12, some are military or corporate training ones, a few are composed of government officials, and the largest portion is from higher education settings. Naturally, all want specific examples and suggestions just for them. Of course, this takes time. Each talk must be loaded up on my laptop as well as the cloud (I use Mailbigfile) so I can always access it when and where needed if my laptop is stolen. I also place them on a couple of flash memory sticks. Color PDF handouts of my talk slides are typically generated and posted to the Web at TrainingShare.com archived talks as well. As a result, a one day event can actually take a day or 2 to prepare for and a day or 2 to recover from, if not more. If overseas, it can take a full week to recover. In a word, traveling can be tiring.

Second, the content I present on is constantly changing (again, it takes much time to keep it all up-to-date). Hence, much research, creative thinking, and reflection is required. And I want to be unique each time. Sometimes that creative spark is just not there. Some ideas take a year to form. Others just come to me in my head when I jog or fly.

Third, it seems everyone wants to send me paperwork with terms which must be read, negotiated and agreed to, and eventually signed (and I truly hate paperwork…left the world of accounting because of it). Unfortunately, the amount of paperwork seems to be growing at an alarming rate in recent years. Paperwork is particularly proliferating in higher education. Everything is moving to the Web to save trees. Little concern is placed for my eyes, however. Worst of all are online forms. When the forms are online, they are created by some young computer geek, often using 8 point font, and cannot be read. Migraines!

Fourth, I must do all my scheduling of the trip which includes booking flights and hotels. Try as I might to get a speaking agency or support, I have no assistant to help. And I am picky about which flight I take and the timing of it. It often takes much deliberation and schedule coordination.

Fifth, all trips require time away from home and work. I would rather be sitting on my back deck working on a book project and listening to the birds sing but my daughter is in college and my son just finished and there are bills to pay.

Sixth, there is the packing and unpacking and trying to cram as much as I can in my carryon bag. I rarely check a bag. There is no way that I will trust an airline with it if I do not have to.

Seventh, each time I fly, I must drive an hour each way to the airport. Yes, those who know me realize that I typically listen to an audiobook when in route and, therefore, always am learning something new. Nonetheless, there is commuting time and wear and tear on my car.

Eighth, Indianapolis airport personnel subject most travelers to the full body scans and checks when going through airport security (how fun…not). Just who is checking out my x-rayed images?

Ninth, once I arrive, I must check into a hotel room. And often the assigned hotel is so-so and with paper thin walls; and so when I say that “I hear things at night,” I am not fooling. On rare occasions, I will stay at a friend’s house or apartment. Not recommended.

Tenth…then there is the actual presentation or set of presentations as well as the set-up time and testing of each one. The sound system must be working. Mic, projector, and laptop computer checks. The technology can fail you in different ways, so you must have a back-up plan and a back-up plan to the back-up plan. Props must be in place. Etc. Even after one has completed the first nine steps or concerns, one must still perform. And this performance must be at a very high level. Passion, excitement, interest, humor, information, etc., are all packed in. People in the audience must be moved or pushed to think. Of course, giving the speech or talk or workshop is the temporary high in the whole process.

And Reason #11 for not traveling every time I am invited is that, when done, my travel expenses that must be summarized and submitted in the mail. This invoicing task requires sound analysis and organizational skills, an attention to detail, and the utmost patience. Not a fun task, though having a previous life as a CPA does come in handy at times. I must then get the invoice in the mail and this requires a trip to the post office.

Of course, the twelfth reason to say no is that the government takes about half of what I charge. Often it is better to just stay home. Suffice to say, given all the points above and that I speak on average over 100 times a year, it is an easy decision to say “no” to many of the requests that come in.

Let me add Reason #13 which is the actual flight. Most often, I am booked in economy. My body cannot take too much of that—knees get sore. And, as you will see in the stories below, many of these are quite scary adventures.

On top of that (Reason #14), when flying overseas you’re stuck with airplane food; which as a vegetarian, I typically refuse to eat. Domestically, you get peanuts and pretzels. Whoopee! I tend to pack an apple, an orange or two, and many dark chocolate bars. But that food runs out. And no matter where you are heading to, when you arrive at your destination, you often must eat what is brought before you or popular in that community. And yes I do experiment with many foods. However, I have many dietary restrictions.

Ok, that’s 14 reasons to say no. There are more. Many, many more. I should also admit, however, that there are numerous traveling benefits. For instance, it is often a sanity break. And I certainly have gotten to see some great places during the past six months—Oslo and Goh (Norway), Melbourne (Australia), Williamsburg (Virginia), and New Orleans. And during the past decade there have been hundreds more places. Among my favorites are Edinburgh, Montreal (in the summer), Helsinki, London, Sydney, Seoul, Vancouver, San Francisco, Dublin, anywhere in the Rocky Mountains or New Zealand, etc.).

Since March 2010, I have been purposefully visiting competing programs to my own program in Instructional Systems Technology (IST) at Indiana University (IU). I have spoken at competitor places like the University of Oklahoma, Auburn, Stanford, Florida State, Syracuse, the University of Missouri, the University of Georgia, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Houston, the University of North Texas, and San Jose State University (which recently disbanded its educational technology program). It has been fun to meet with people from all these places and discuss their programs and research interests.

But lately, riding on a plane has been sorta a drag. I detail my last 12 consecutive examples. Note that all these flights originated from the Indianapolis International Airport, which is a fantastic airport that is less than 3 years old. The Indy airport is so convenient and easy to get around in. Small wonder it has already won many awards. Yet, still there are problems. Also note that one of these dozen trips is actually a car trip and not a flight at all. Smile.

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12 Trips, 12 Nail-biting Events:

Story/Trip #1. “Where’s the bloody Roanoke runway?” (United trip to Roanoke, VA, November 30-December 1, 201 0). My first story is of a trip to Roanoke, Virginia for an educational technology leadership conference primarily for K-12 educators and few folks from higher education. I had a short layover in Dulles airport in DC to change planes. I called my sister in Falls Church from Dulles to say hello.

Then I boarded my plane on a rainy day and we head to Roanoke, Virginia. It was raining and foggy as we approached, and, hence, extremely low visibility. We start to descend. Kept descending….and, all-of-a-sudden, the pilot pulled up abruptly. And we banked and banked and banked some more. After circling the atmosphere above for about 15 minutes, the pilot makes an announcement that he and his co-pilot knew that they were close to the runway but they just could not find it. He makes a joke that he “did not want to hit a mountain” and so he pulled up.

I do not think anyone sitting near me found it funny in the least. Thoughts flew through my head. Would he find the runway this time? Were other planes around us doing the same thing? About 5-10 minutes later, he tried it again and, yes, this time found the runway. Had I known that this was the first of a dozen straight trips with problems, I would have taken an early sabbatical or shaved my head and become a Buddhist monk. Scary one? Yes. Most definitely.

Roanoke Trip Pluses: As my readings of Buddhism tells me, for each negative, there is a positive. And there were many positives to this trip. For instance, I got to stay at a lovely historic hotel (i.e., the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center). More importantly, I was finally able to meet Professor John Burton from Virginia Tech University. John was the advisor of Dr. W. Michael Reed. Mike was my first mentor and colleague when I arrived at West Virginia University in August 1989 as a newly minted Ph.D. from Wisconsin Madison. Mike passed away two years ago. John and I toasted to him that night; perhaps not enough times. Mike Reed was one of the best individuals I have ever met on this planet. I blogged about Mike when he passed away. I found out after he died that we have a book together on computers and writing that I never knew about. How is that possible? Well, a special journal issue we did was turned into a book. How cool is that? I said goodbye to Roanoke, but I had difficulty saying goodbye to Mike once again.

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Story/Trip #2. “You have half of seat 14A.” (United trip to Fresno, January 17-19, 2011). I got some time off after Roanoke. My next trip was not until the middle of January. I was headed to Fresno, California to speak at Cal State Fresno University. The event was called the TWISTERS Conference (Teaching With Innovative Solutions in Technology to Engage and Reach Students). Early 6 am departure. Tired. First leg sat next to a lady holding a young child. She spots 2 open seats across the aisle and thankfully decides to move over and take them. It really does not matter, however. Her baby screams the entire way to Denver. The storms and sudden bumps do not help any. Some huge jolts coming into Denver. Happy to arrive.

I await the next plane and board it. Seat 14A is assigned. Unfortunately, a gigantic mountain man has 14B. I actually get half a seat. So I carefully situate my face on the window with my lovely, red University of Houston airplane pillow underneath and attempt to sleep. The bumps are back. And they are quite chilling on a regional plane going over the Rocky Mountains. But it is stunning when you see all the mountains snow packed down below.

A hour or two later and it gets cloudy. A white blanket it seems. I can spot the mountain peaks of Yosemite area jotting through the clouds. A few moments later, the pilot dives through the clouds for the runway. I kept thinking back to Roanoke. I sure hope he knows where he is going. Please don’t hit a mountain. Ok. Made it.

Way home, I have seat 12A. I think I got the mountain man’s wife next to me. Squished with half a seat again to Denver. I make some attempts to sleep and ignore being crushed. And then there is the final leg…of course, I am seated next to a hippie grandfather holding his young grandson on his lap. I waited for the screaming but none came. Thank goodness. But I would like to get back to having a normal seat on a plane. Is this possible? Squished, ear drums pounding, and stomach churning through the bumps is not exactly what I had in mind.

Fresno Trip Pluses: I had a lovely dinner with my former student, Dr. Bosung Kim, who now works at Cal State Fresno. The stress of the travel and severe migraines, however, caused me to get sick that evening upon my return to my hotel to prepare my talks for the following day. Gone was that fabulous dinner that I had with Bosung. My head was pounding. Time for a shower? Yes. Felt fabulous the following morning and both my talks went well or so I think (see interview in their University Journal on my shared online video talk in the morning). Met some great people at Fresno State throughout the day.

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Story/Trip #3. “Sorry, folks, we need to de-ice the jet bridge from the plane.” (Delta trip to Atlanta and Athens, GA, February 2-4, 2011). Trip to Atlanta to speak at the University of Georgia (UGA) and DeVry University. Ice storm hits the mid-section of the United States. I think it is called the Ground Hog Day Blizzard of 2011 (January 31-Febraury 2, 2011; Ground Hog Day was February 2nd). After monitoring the weather all day Monday and Tuesday, I decide not to drive in the snow and ice that has hit the Midwest. I am told that my flight to Atlanta on Wednesday February 2nd is initially cancelled and then a few hours later, it is back on; someone made a mistake.

So, I order a limo pick-up at my house and make it to the Indianapolis airport on time. But the airport is deserted. The only people I spot in the main section of the airport are a Channel 13 cameraman and floor sweeper. All the planes I see outside are being de-iced. I spot mine—it gets a full 2 hours of de-icing while parked at the gate. Two bloody hours in preparation for departure. Some storm.

Other passengers show up. And we wait. Then there is an announcement. After two hours of de-icing, we will need to wait another 45 minutes to an hour as the engines have ice in them. They need to be inspected. After that inspection, there is another 30 minute wait. I am giving constant updates to my friends at the University of Georgia where I am supposed to speak late that afternoon. Finally, we board. I will perhaps make it in time. Nope. The plane is stuck to the jet bridge and the wheels are stuck to the ground. The grounds people could not de-ice that part since the smell (and perhaps the fluid) would get into the concourse. So we wait. Finally, we are unstuck. (Has this happened before to anyone reading this post?)

Now we must head to the de-icing area for one more bit of de-icing since flakes of snow had fallen in the meantime. It is also a final precaution. Few planes fly out that day but we are among them. I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing.

As noted below, I got to Atlanta too late to speak at UGA but in time for a tour of campus, dinner, and a few round of drinks with a group of faculty and graduate students from educational technology and learning sciences. Fantastic people at UGA. They even rescheduled my talk for the following morning with a blue screen background and streamed it across campus. What fun!

Georgia Trip Pluses: Got to see the University of Georgia (UGA) for the first time. I had heard much about it. It is indeed very picturesque. In addition, I had a nice long chat with my former master’s student, Eun-jung Oh. Eun-jung patiently waited to pick me up at the airport. As an aside, a few weeks after this, she defended her dissertation. She is now Dr. Oh.

Equally great, I had dinner Wednesday night with Eun-jung and her husband was paid by my good friend, Professor Tom Reeves. Tom had to leave for DC just before I got there. After dinner, I had a lovely moment to toast to the engagement of long-time friend Eunbae Lee. Eunbae is the sister-in-law of my student, Yeol Huh. Her sister, Dabae Lee, is Yeol’s wife. Both are students in my program back in Bloomington. She will be getting married on Saturday July 23rd in Seoul. It is coming up!

On Thursday, I was able to visit the famous Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development. Torrance Center director, Dr. Bonnie Cramond, was available for a great chat. My master’s thesis utilized the Torrance Tests for Creative Thinking and my former advisor at UW-Madison, Dr. Gary Davis, has book called “Creativity is Forever” which I still use in my classes. Gary always talked about the Paul Torrance and what his work meant for the field. Gary’s book covers all forms of creativity assessment, by the way. Suffice to say, this was a special pilgrimage.

Next up was lunch at a popular Athens restaurant with10-12 UGA people. After lunch, Eunbee took me back to Atlanta so I could speak on Friday at a special training event for DeVry University faculty. Another former student of mine, Dr. Jung Won Hur from Auburn University, took me to dinner when in Atlanta. It is great to have so many former students taking care of me when I travel.

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Story/Trip #4. Part A. “An hour with Sir Tim Berners-Lee, weather I like it or not.” (Continental and Lufthansa trip to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, February 20-25, 2011). After all the positive experiences of not driving to the airport last time, I once again decide to take a limo and arrive well before my intended flight. I have more than two hours before my flight is to leave. There are problems, however. Weather and other issues have my plane (incoming from Newark) behind schedule. There is an earlier flight about to leave. Can I get on it? No. Instead, I am told that there is plenty of time padded into the schedule. So I wait and wait and wait.

I keep reminding myself that if I am too late for my flight, I would miss getting a chance to hear Sir Tim Berners-Lee speak. He is scheduled to open the conference. Sir Tim was the Day One keynote speaker. Jimmy Wales from Wikipedia/the Wikimedia Foundation was Day Two. I was scheduled to be Day Three. My plane, which, as I stated, was coming from Newark, was delayed several times due to weather in the New York area. However, just as I was glancing again at my watch, an announcement was made that it was finally departing Newark airspace.

So much of a time delay had occurred, however, that the Continental flight scheduled to fly to Newark after my flight was now set to leave earlier. I tried to get on it but was told that it was fully booked. The agent tried and tried but to no avail. She then calculated the time remaining in flight, time to unboard that plane and reboard, and then fly back to Newark. After that, she said that I should make it. Well, my flight finally arrived and I took a mad dash to the bathroom and when I returned I could not find my glasses. My plane was boarding. Final call. Where were they? I shook all my bags and no glasses. I cannot be in Saudi Arabia for the next 4-5 days without my glasses. I ran back to the bathroom, and, as I was doing so, my glasses magically dropped from my leather coat to the floor. Back to boarding.

Our pilot flew in record time to Newark. It went extremely fast. Unfortunately, the ground crew for Continental who had to retrieve all the gate checked bags were not so swift. They took their time. And still more time. A full 15 minutes went by. Got my bags and ran with someone else also heading for an international flight. I had a first class ticket costing mucho dinero ($$$$) and was told that the plane would wait for me. I thought we still had over 30 minutes so I stopped for a bottle of water. All-of-a-sudden, I hear last call for my flight. So I ran to the gate.

The gate agent for Lufthansa needed my Visa information for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (or KSA as they call it). She had trouble finding the right page since it was my fifth such trip there in a little over 4 years. Many one-time visit Visas to Saudi Arabia in there. Frantic calls were made back and forth between her and flight attendants on board who told her that they were going to close the doors and not let me on if she could not find my Visa number and enter it into their system. Finally, she and I found it and I was the last one to board. Whew!

Saudi Trip Pluses: Of course, listening to Sir Tim Berners Lee speak at the conference was the highlight of the week for me and most likely for the year or even this decade. I took copious notes and have been meaning to blog on it. Better still, was getting to meet him personally and sit next to him on the bus for a full hour on the way to dinner for an authentic Saudi Arabian meal. It was marvelous. We chatted about the Web, our jogging routines, Saudi Arabia, academia, and other interests and hobbies. Well, it definitely was a delight. After getting off the bus, I got a couple of pictures with him.

The following day, I got to meet Jimmy Wales from Wikipedia/the Wikimedia Foundation during lunch. I feel most fortunate that I got a few pictures with him as well. During our brief chat, I shared information about my research on wikis and wikibooks (some of which the Wikimedia Foundation had sponsored). His talk that morning was fabulous just like Sir Tim’s the day before. I need to blog on it someday as well. I am slow. Jimmy had jumped in a plane to attend the conference a few hours after his wife gave birth to their new baby daughter. I am quite certain that he was quite tired but he did not show it when he presented nor when conversing with countless people after his talk and at lunch. I, for one, found him highly engaging and embedded with an optimistic spirit.

When in Riyadh, I also saw my old friends Daniel Tan from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, Ron Oliver from Edith Cowan University in Perth (Australia), Mauri Collins (now working in Saudi), and John Hedberg from Macquarie University in Sydney. And I finally met Mohamed Ally from Athabasca University in Canada, among others. Mohamed is known for his work on mobile learning. On the last day of the conference, John Hedberg and I were taken out for an original Saudi lunch meal. Exquisite…!

Additional Saudi Conference Pluses: This conference was the 2nd International Conference of e-Learning and Distance Learning (eLi 2011) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. As is the custom, females are in a separate room from the males. They had someone using sign language for the hundreds of hearing impaired or deaf women in the other room. In addition, graphic facilitators from Image Think were brought in to sketch out the keynote and invited talks. Andrew Federman was on the men’s side and Nora Herting on the women’s side. They were awesome. Three huge screens filled the men’s side so at times a person drawing your talk was shown above your head as you spoke while a signer was in another window and perhaps sections of the audience or yourself was shown in the third window. (You can see some of their drawings from the conference, in fact, including those they created from the talks of Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Jimmy Wales, Ron Oliver, John Hedberg, mine, etc..)

I was informed that there were over 2,700 people for Day One of the conference when Sir Tim spoke. Keep in mind that the conference planners had expected less than half of that (perhaps 1,000-1,200). While 400-500 chairs were available in the women’s room, there were actually twice that many females who showed up and many of them had to stand or sit on the floor that day. In addition, thousands more signed up to watch the live stream of the event on their computers or other mobile devices (perhaps some 10,000). In addition, countless others were tuning in throughout the Middle East to an educational TV station that was being piloted during the conference. During the conference, all of us speakers were interviewed for that TV station. Needless to say, it was great exposure for anyone presenting at the eLi conference.

While I could not see the women, I had them jumping during my talk (I had the men jumping too). It is part of one of my talks—I get people to jump. Though not typical, I did actually get 15-20 minutes to meet and chat with a few of the ladies in the exhibit hall, though most were veiled. Sorry I cannot share any photos here. Many pictures were also taken with the men on my side after my talk and throughout the conference. There were also a couple of newspaper interviews (see article in "the Saudi"). It was quite a spectacular experience. Until my return home. Read on…

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Story/Trip #4. Part B. “Am I being kidnapped, extorted money, or what? Time to crawl out the taxi window.” All great conferences come to an end and so did this one. After meeting with the father of one of my Saudi students, I packed and then went downstairs for a quick work out. Upon returning, I had a Skype discussion with a colleague back in the USA. And then I took off for a lovely dinner in one of the hotel restaurants. At that point, the excitement of the evening began to happen. At dinner, I was approached by a tall, strange looking, Saudi young man who asked if I needed a ride to the airport. He asked me this in sketchy English and wanted to charge me a fee. I said I did not need one since I was to be picked up. The waiter said he was a crazy man and showed him the door.

After waiting for more than an hour for my prearranged conference shuttle, I called the conference host and chatted with her. She said to wait patiently and so I did. I called her again 20 or 30 minutes later and she indicated that a ride was nearly there. And sure enough, there it was…actually 2 taxis, both bearing the conference initials so I felt ok about that. I was told to get into the 2nd taxi by the first driver. However, it was obvious that the 2nd driver could not speak English. The first one could. It later occurred to me, that is was the same deranged young man who approached me at the restaurant. Unfortunately, the guy who spoke English quickly drove off.

And so we are off. My driver calls someone on the phone and starts to yell. I tell him to take me to the airport and he replies “no English.” I have to flap my arms to indicate a bird flying for him to understand. Keep in mind, when I was picked up from the airport 4 days earlier, I had an English speaking escort. And that was a very calm ride to the hotel in a very comfortable black Mercedes.

In contrast, this car was so-so and the driver was in need of a psychological exam. He was on the phone constantly when driving. He drove with one hand (finger actually) barely touching the wheel. He glanced quickly (if that) when changing lanes. I am surprised he is alive. And then he started yelling on his phone again. This was all in the first few minutes. And in extremely heavy traffic. It was crazy. Making it worse, King Abdullah had just returned from an operation in the USA, so it was like a 4th of July celebration in the streets of Riyadh.

My crazed taxi driver eventually pulled off to the side on a busy Riyadh street and waved some keys at me and got out of the car and locked me inside, all while continuing to talk on his phone. I had no idea what was happening. Was I being kidnapped? I had no clue. Was he abandoning the car and leaving me on the streets of Riyadh to fend for myself? I was some 2 or 3 miles from my hotel and I knew nobody or how to get back. And again, the streets were alive with celebration. But I decided to roll down the window and crawl out. My suitcase was in the truck of the car but I had my technology in my computer bag and I was fine with just that. I was about to walk back to the hotel or go anywhere but stay in that car.

Before doing so, I was going to ask for my bag and try to get a different taxi. I wanted to be anywhere but locked in a car in a strange city with this very strange man. (As an aside, I should point out, that it was my 9th trip to the Middle East and I have had many poor drivers in the past.) At this point, the taxi driver then turned and said “sorry” (apparently he knew one usable English word).

He then got back in the taxi and motioned for me to come back in. I regrettably got back in and we drove off. His driving got increasingly worse, not better. I asked if we were going to the airport. He said he knew no English. Only Arabic. “You (know) Arabic?” he asked. So I am in a shuttle with a man who is yelling on his phone and who does not know how to communicate with his passenger and who apparently does not know where he is going. Since he knows no English, I decide to wave my arms again like a bird and he once again nodded that he understood.

Then he finds an alternative route to the expressway. Once on it, he speeds up and swerves around traffic. I say slow down and he says No English. Right on the tail of many cars and trucks and flashes his lights for them to pull over. I momentarily close my eyes. This type of driving continues. I try to close my eyes again and hope for no accident but I cannot. I must see what is going on and where we are going. I hang on, 120 kilometers per hour in heavy traffic or faster (130) (Note: I had experienced 180-190 kilometers per hour once in a taxi from Abu Dhabi to Dubai in the UAE but that was with limited traffic).

I say slow down over and over to myself. It is my mantra to calm me down. He turns on some Arabic music really loud. Then a police light and checkpoint is up ahead. “Thank goodness,” I say to myself. He finally slows down and turns off music and puts on his seat belt. Apparently, he knows the laws and that he is not abiding by them. We drive through the checkpoint with no one stopping us and he immediately takes off his seat belt and talks on phone once again. And the wild driving returns.

Can things get worse? Yes they can! He then asks me for money. “Money. Money. Money.” I say the name of the person bringing me to the conference and that it is paid for and he apparently does not understand (or pretends not to). He again asks for money. I feel he is going to drop me in the middle of this highway here in Riyadh. So I decide to pull out the email with the phone number of the conference coordinator. He looks at it and types something into his phone (as he drives at some frenetic speed, of course) and I think he will call her. But he does not.

During all this, an indicator light comes on that he is running out of gas. Oh great, I say to myself; instead of him sticking me on the highway, we are going to be trapped together. Scary to say the least! Fortunately, the airport is finally within reach. A sign indicates that a private airport to the right. He starts to go there but I catch him doing this and I point to the sign that says domestic and international flights to the left. He goes left at the last second. Whew. We get to the domestic sign and he pulls over. He must be glad to get rid of me. It is perhaps a third or half mile to the international terminal but I do not care. I will run and then walk and then run again and be rid of him as well.

As per usual, some of the lines at the international terminal are quite long with hundreds of workers from the Philippines and other places heading home. Fortunately, those are not my flights. Some parts of the Riyadh entry terminal remind me of cattle herding. I finally find Lufthansa and one of the conference escorts named “Ryan” luckily finds me (shaking). He asks me what’s wrong and I tell him the cliff notes summary of what just happened. He apologizes and takes me over to the special customs clearance for VIPs and we sail right through. First, however, we sip some dark and quite potent Saudi Arabian tea/coffee. It feels great to finally relax.

Side note: I do not think I was being kidnapped, but I definitely believe that this guy and the other taxi guy who showed up with him were jointly conspiring to scare me into giving them money. He was likely the same guy who approached me at dinner and asked me if I needed a ride (in broken English). Later, I think that the two of them sat across from me in the hotel lobby as I waited patiently for my taxi. They were sitting right there watching me get nervous and look at my watch as I waited for my ride (and they were my drivers playing games with me). I think for a long time they were watching me at the hotel and then they left and then he came back.

I do not know for sure. But, it was just so bizarre. If I am correct, they were trying to extort money from me. Moral: Be careful getting into a taxi in a strange city even if it seems they are paid and approved by the conference people bringing you there. Do not get into a taxi without a 2nd person sitting next to you who knows English AND Arabic.

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Story/Trip #5. “There’s a whole lot of shaking going on.” (Personal Car (2001 Nissan Pathfinder), Columbia, Missouri, March 6-9, 2011). Tired of flying, I decided to drive the 6-7 or so hours needed to get to the University of Missouri back in early March. Four other consultants and I were brought in by the MU College of Education Dean, Daniel Clay. We were there to review their areas of strengths and point to areas to build upon. Many meetings. All went well for those two days; after which I gave a keynote talk at their annual TeAchnology conference.

The following day, I had a final breakfast with some of the people I know there at MU. After that, a couple of them gave me a tour of some of the MU campus; including a brief look at some of their learning technology projects. Then my old friend Ta Boonseng dropped me off at my car, a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder, and I headed to the highway I-70 for the 6-7 hour journey home. Sidenote: As a graduate student, Ta had helped run a conference back in December 2006. I was one of the keynote speakers he brought in for it. Ta is now working on his dissertation.

At this point, my car stated knocking and shaking. The engine was misfiring. I had several engine coil problems in the past but this seemed more serious. The entire car was shaking worse than ever before. I slowed down and finally had to pull off the highway just east of Columbia. Needless to say, I knew no one (though Columbia was not far away). I let the car rest while getting gas. Got back in…same problem. Went inside the gas stop convenience store and let it rest a few minutes more. At this point, I was worried that I would be spending another day or two in Missouri and I had already been there 3 nights. After asking where the local auto repair shop was, I got back in the car and started it back up and to my surprise there were no problems. So I immediately headed home a happy, though cautious, man.

University of Missouri Trip Pluses : When at MU, I was able to learn about a graduate program in information science and learning technologies which was similar to the one I am in at Indiana University. I also had the good fortune to meet with several current and former doctoral students that I had been mentoring (Ta Boonseng (as was mentioned) as well as Vera Chen and Hui-Hsien Tsai (now Dr. Tsai). Vera came to a talk I gave at Beijing Normal University back in October 2004. However, she had to leave before I finished as she had a class, so we never met. Since then, we have published a paper on blogging on China. But this was the first time we met. It is always interesting collaboratively writing with someone you have never physically met. Also, at my talk was my former master's student, Pil-Won On is now working there in engineering education. It was great to see Pil-Won and everyone there doing so well.

With all the graduate students I help out with at different places, there are times I feel more like a faculty member at places like Missouri, Wisconsin, or Georgia than IU. But such is the way of the open educational world. We no longer are restricted to teaching and mentoring those within a few miles of your campus, school, or training department. Today, you can help anyone at any time and they, in turn, can help you. I met some really top notch graduate students when traveling during the past year when visiting MU, UGA, FSU, etc. For this I am thankful.

During my three days at MU, I also got to hang with faculty member friends like David Jonassen, Gail Fitzgerald, John Wedman, Joi Moore, Rose Marra, and others. They have assembled one of the top departments in the field of learning technologies in the country and the world. I think it was back in 1987 or 1988 back in grad school at Wisconsin when I first wrote to David about one of his papers in Educational Technology Magazine. I was extremely excited when I got a handwritten reply (few of us used email then; it was around that time when I started to, however). David was at the University of Colorado at Denver back then. I met Gail a year or 2 later when I was a new faculty member at West Virginia University (WVU). Gail and I (and Mike Reed--see Story #1) were assigned to every committee involving technology...and there were many. In addition to knowing David and Gail for some time now, I met Joi at the e-learning conference in Thailand, mentioned above, back in December 2006. And Rose, I got to know through the tenure review process. John Wedman is the department chair (I think of 2 departments now as he became interim head for the educational psychology people in addition to learning technologies and info sciences). He has done a marvelous job as chair. Will he soon become chair of 3 or 4 departments? I doubt he (or anyone) would welcome that.

The reception after my talk and then dinner were both fabulous. Many pictures taken. As with UGA the month before, these are really great people. From my involvement in the consulting project with the dean's office, I also learned a ton about how a college or school of education is run from. I am pretty sure that our final report was well received. still, I do not want to do many such things.

Final reflection...now I will be sure to get a different car soon so I can visit them again and not have to worry about it breaking down. It is really not that far away.

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Story/Trip #6. “Perfect timing no more.” (United, Melbourne, Australia, March 25-April 2, 2011). I had planned my trip to the Global Learn conference fairly well. Before I left, I was able to watch Butler University (where my daughter Nicki goes to school) beat my alma mater (Wisconsin) in the Sweet 16. The following day I would board a plane for the Global Learn conference in Melbourne. There were stops in Denver, LAX, and Sydney. Food at LAX was awful as was the airplane food. As a seafood vegetarian, I did not eat any of it. I thought that perhaps after I landed in Sydney to change planes, I could catch the score of Butler’s next game against Florida. I actually got rolling text of the game in the Sydney airport and saw that Butler was keeping it close. Halftime. Time to reboard.

When I arrived in Melbourne, my good buddy, Clint Smith, accessed the Web with his phone and told me that Butler had indeed won in overtime and were, once again, in the Final Four. Way to go Butler Bulldogs. I could not believe it. On my way home, I planned to watch their Final Four game in the Denver airport between flights. However, when I arrived back at LAX on my way home, my flight to Denver was delayed by 3-4 hours. Bugger. I went to the United help desk for premier customers and asked to be rerouted through Chicago or Houston. If I could be rebooked, I could watch the entire game at home perhaps or in Indy with my daughter.

Unfortunately, I was told that all flights were full. Every plane was crammed to the max that day. So I sat and sat in my least favorite airport—LAX. My flight was delayed so much that I got to see the half-time show of the Butler game in Denver and that was it. Fortunately, my son (Alex) and daughter (Nicki) texted me the scores as they happened while I was on the plane getting ready to depart for Indianapolis. And, just before landing, the pilot told us the final result--Butler beat VCU 70-62 and was in the NCAA finals for the second straight year. Amazing! I would have loved to see some of that game. Thanks United. Not!

Global Learn/Melbourne Trip Pluses: There are too many positive and fun events that week in Melbourne to list here in detail. I did get to see my first Formula One/Grand Prix race a few hours after arriving in Melbourne. I viewed parts of it from the rooftop of an apartment complex. Clint Smith took me to that party. The penthouse apartment of his friends had views of the racetrack, downtown Melbourne, the sun setting over the bay, and Pamela Anderson down below (a tiled mural of her on one of the homes below). What fun! Much wine and food as well.

The next evening, Clint and I joined 20 or so others and enjoyed a limo ride around Melbourne. It was a stretch Hummer filled with champagne. In fact, every night in Melbourne was grand. The conference went well too. Many old and new friends were met. Then it was on to the Global Learn conference where I would do an afternoon workshop the following afternoon. Before that, I would have breakfast with my friend Elaine Khoo from the University of Waikato in New Zealand. At breakfast, we would map out a book project which I am about to start writing once this blog post is done. The book will be about motivation and retention online based on my TEC-VARIETY model (i.e., Tone, Encouragement, Curiosity, Variety, Autonomy, Interactivity, Engagement, Tension, and Yielding Products). We will map out 10 activities for each of these 10 motivational principles. We will end up with another 100+ activities book just like my Empowering Online Learning (R2D2--Read, Reflect, Display, and Do) book with Dr. Ke Zhang. I will focus on the activities (practice) and she will focus on the theory side. Elaine's husband was also helpful at breakfast as we formed ideas. Elaine has time now since she recently finished her dissertation (a 550 or so page tome) and became Dr. Khoo. We are ready to push ahead now.

After breakfast at a quaint cafe in Melbourne, we took a tram ride back to the conference. I should point out that the success of Global Learn is important to me. A couple of years ago I helped found Global Learn, including drafting the mission statement, topics, and recruiting board members. Gary Marks from the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE) wanted to try some new type of event in Asia. And so we did. So at the e-Learn conference 2008 (sponsored by AACE), the co-program chairs for the conference, Mimi Lee (University of Houston), Tom Reynolds (National University), and I put together a preconference symposium on e-learning in Asia. Thanks to the hard work of my two colleagues, more than a dozen speakers came from China, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia, India, Australia, Taiwan, the Philippines, Singapore, Japan, etc. This evolved into a special issue of a journal and eventually a small, print-on-demand book called "A Special Passage Through Asia E-Learning." Tom, Mimi, Gary, myself, and many others worked extremely hard to see this conference come to fruition; Zoraini Wati Abas is another and she is the new board chair of the conference. Zoraini is a true leader and someone we needed badly...with her insights into how to run a conference in Asia. I am thankful to have such excellent colleagues to work with. As we worked on it over the past few years, Global Learn has evolved into an annual event in the spring (late March, April, May, or early June) in Asia or the Pacific Rim; at least for now.

For the 2011 conference that was held in Melbourne March 27 to April 1 (i.e., the 2nd Global Learn, the first one was held in Penang, Malaysia in May 2010), I helped organize a debate panel for the third day of Global Learn on our respective digital futures. The panel included all the keynote speakers and many of the invited ones as well. I once again met up with John Hedberg (from Sydney) and Daniel Tan and his assistant Shirlene Tang (from Singapore). I also got to see Grace Lin, Curtis Ho, and Betsy Fulford (all from the University of Hawaii Department of Educational Technology), Xun Ge (U of Oklahoma), Gilly Salmon (U of Southern Queensland in Brisbane, Australia—I bogged on her keynote talk), Tian Belawati (Open U of Indonesia—I also blogged on her keynote), Rick Bennett (my dear friend from the University of New South Wales in Sydney--I blogged a bit on his keynote at the end of my post on Gilly), Elaine Khoo (U of Waikato in Hamilton, New Zealand—Elaine and I are starting to work on a book project this summer related to motivating students online), Mark Curcher (Dubai Men’s College), Verily Tan (my new student from Singapore), Torsten Reiners (Germany…soon to be Australia), Siew-Mee and Greg Barton (Melbourne), Zoraini Wati Abas and Abtar Kaur (both from the Open U of Malaysia in KL), David Deeds (China), Christopher Devers (U of San Diego…soon to be Indiana), Ferial (Faye) Khaddage and Leanne Ngo (both from Deakin U in Melbourne and both fantastic people who will shake up the field in the near future), Josie Csete (Hong Kong Polytechnic), Carmel McNaught (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), Mona Masood (a former student of mine now in Penang, Malaysia), Mikhail Fominykh (from Russia but working in Norway on his Ph.D.), and so many others (Apologies to those that I did not list or mention). As you can see, Global Learn, as would be expected, is a very international conference.

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Story/Trip #7. “Sound the alarm.” (Continental, AERA Conference in New Orleans, April 8-12, 2011). I tend to go to the American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference each year. And I did so this year as it was in New Orleans. It was my 4th or 5th AERA in that wonderful, historic city. Other than overhead luggage containers that were far too small and overstuffed as well as the tiny bathrooms and waiting area in the Houston airport on the way home, this trip was my first in months with no problems or complaints. But I had a lunch scheduled in Indianapolis after my return with my long-time friend, Jim Middleton from Arizona State University.

Jim was in town for the annual National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) conference. Actually, he was there for the preconference as well as the main conference. So I placed my parking ticket in the meter to pay for it before going to find my car. That was supposed to be easy. However, the meter did not like the shape of my ticket and spit it out. So I turned it around and placed it in again and the dang ticket got stuck. I hit a green button to get it back and the several alarms went off in the airport parking area (right next to the doors to the concourse). These alarms were screechingly loud and would not end. I called for help and was told that a supervisor would be coming. After 10 full minutes of blaring sirens and everyone looking at me like I robbed a bank, a man appeared and helped me out.

New Orleans Trip Pluses: My session at AERA in New Orleans on wikis in elementary school classrooms went very well. I am particularly pleased since my colleague on the paper initially wanted to withdraw it due to a lack of time. But an all-nighter or two took care of that. So off to the conference I went.

As with every AERA conference, I got to see dozens of old friends, colleagues, and current as well as former students. And there was a free music festival going on in New Orleans at the time (i.e., the New Orleans French Quarter Festival). Many pictures taken. Much to enjoy in addition to the conference. Though I must say that Royal Street is much more pleasant than Bourbon Street.

On my way home, I also got to attend part of the NCTM preconference in Indianapolis and see not only my good buddy Jim but also I also sat in on a presentation from my friends from the University of Houston (UH). The UH talk was highly informative, comprehensive, and exciting. Much preparation went into it to be sure. Their iSMART (Integration of Science, Math and Reflective Teaching) project is quite novel and momentous. About 25 middle school teachers in the state of Texas enroll in it each year. As part of their efforts, iSMART teachers obtain a master’s degree when they complete the 2 year program and it is all paid for by a grant. A free master’s degree from a Research #1 university? Yes! Now that is something we can all smile about. iSMART, uSMART…we all smart! Way to go UH people. Sitting in that talk was a wonderful way to end that trip and more than makes up for my embarrassment in setting off the alarm at the airport a couple of hours earlier.

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Story/Trip #8. “Let’s go back and get 3 crew members.” (Delta/Pinnacle, Destination was Dallas/Denton, April 28-30, 2011). I boarded the plane on the afternoon of April 28th with my destination being Dallas. I would speak on shared online video later that day (early evening) at the University of North Texas (UNT) to a class taught by Dr. Scott Warren. Scott is a former student of mine. The following day, I would keynote the University Forum on Teaching & Learning (UFTL) held each year at UNT with invites to those working at surrounding universities in the Dallas-Denton area.

Everything looked great. All my flights were on time. The airplane door was shut. The jet bridge was motored back. And all seemed well as we were headed to the runway in Indianapolis. And then, the pilot informed us that we would be going back for 3 crew members. Nothing else was said. We went back and waited and waited and waited for more than 30 minutes. There were no “crew members” it seemed. They were fictional. Someone made them up. Was it April Fools’ day? No, that was 4 weeks earlier.

I voiced a complaint to the young flight attendant standing nervously at the front of our regional plane and asked a question or two. He heard me but clearly he had no clue what was going on. Finally, these three mysterious people we had heard about showed up. That led to another problem. We only had 2 seats open on our plane. Someone had to be bumped off. Fortunately for Delta, a guy behind me quickly jumped at the $400 voucher they offered to take a later flight.

I had to ask myself, what was going on? These were not even people needed to fly our plane. We were basically taking 3 people from Indianapolis to Memphis who were not registered for our flight. One guy was dressed quite nicely. Was he a pilot or was he a Delta VIP? We ended up leaving about 50 minutes late because of them and that was the exact amount of time that I had to make my connection in Memphis. Others were in the same boat or worse. Delta did not care about the 70-80 or more people who had already boarded this plane with me; just their 3 valuable employees. With Delta, the customer does NOT come first. With Delta, Delta comes first.

We were told that the gate agents in Memphis knew of our situation and would help us out. That was definitely not the case when we landed there, however. Lies! All lies! When we did arrive in the Memphis airport, many of us had to wait for our gate-checked bags to come up. As with my Newark trip the month before on Continental, the amount of time it took to retrieve those bags was much longer than expected. Making matters worse, the nearby gate agent from the concourse who peered in to see why so many of us were waiting for our bags for so long would not tell any of us if our flights were delayed. She said to “check the monitors” which we could not do until we got our bags. When she came back a second time, I asked about the gate and departure time of my plane and she said the same thing. But if I left to check the monitors, I could not come back and get my bag. Silly! Thanks again Delta. Not.

When I got finally got my “carry-on” bag, I looked at the screen and sure enough, my plane was in final boarding on the other end of the concourse; it was scheduled to depart in 5 minutes (which was 5 minutes later than the original time, thank goodness). To get to that gate, it was a 10 minute or so walk and 4-5 minute run. With some knee pain from a previous accident, I ran through the concourse at my top speed while rolling my bags behind me. As I got within shouting distance, I repeatedly yelled “One more passenger for Gate 39.” When I arrived, they were about to close the doors and had given away my seat. The gate agent issued me a new seat fortunately and asked me to quickly get on the plane. But then I had to inform her that others were coming behind me, including a family with a baby in a stroller and other children. She had no clue about our situation. As I said, Delta people lied. No one was informed of their snafu. Delta cares about their 3 passengers (i.e., “crew members”) but no one else. How sad.

So who were these 3 crew members really? I wrote to operations managers and customer support people at Delta as well as their regional Delta connection, Pinnacle, which was in charge of the fight in question. All I got was an apology from the operations manager at Pinnacle for the “rude behavior of the gate agent in Memphis” and a $100 voucher for my next Delta flight. He did not address the real complaint. They were hiding something. What might it be? Was it an infraction of prevailing laws or the rules of the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration)? I think it was unlawful (or at least unethical) for Delta to take a plane back to the gate to get people (especially those who clearly did not have a ticket for this flight) once we had headed for the runway. So, in effect, Delta is using their planes at their own convenience to carry around their employees; not to help their customers. I do not know how many people missed their connecting flights that day (undoubtedly some did), but I know that many were scrambling and all of us were inconvenienced at the very least. Delta should be royally embarrassed.

Dallas/Denton Trip Pluses: On the positive side, I did get to meet Scott Warren and his wonderful students as well as other UNT faculty in the Department of Learning Technologies like Gerald Knezek and Lin Lin. Really great people at UNT and they get to work in a lovely building former occupied by Texas Instruments. Making life pleasant for me after that ridiculous Delta flight, they put me in a lovely European-inspired boutique hotel—the Wildwood Inn—it was extraordinary. Finally, my talks at the conference ended just as the City of Denton kicked off its annual Denton Arts and Jazz Festival. It was a great way to end that trip. Thanks Scott and everyone who showed me a marvelous time!

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Story/Trip #9. “Is there anyone on board who can change a tire?” (Delta, Newport News, Virginia, May 10-12, 2011). It has been 8 years since I was a research fellow with the Army Research Institute and 6 years since I had such a role with the Department of Defense. Still, I was happy to speak at an Army Learning Summit in Newport News, Virginia last month. The program for the summit was quite interesting. I gave two different talks on blended learning to two different groups as well as a keynote talk the next day (if interested, see color PDF of talk slides). This took some prepping but I learned a lot while doing so.

I was on Delta again. Would we be going back for crew members like last time? No. After boarding my connecting flight in Atlanta on my way to Newport News, however, we were delayed a tad in Atlanta. After about 10 or 15 minutes, I started to wonder why. And then I overheard the flight attendants mention that a special and quite huge dog would be traveling with us from Atlanta to Newport News. And he would be in the seat just in front of me.

The woman who needed this guide dog came on the plane crying profusely. Apparently, Delta officials at the gate did not treat her or her dog too well. Perhaps to compensate, the flight attendants inside the plane did everything they could to calm her down and attend to her needs. That dog was extremely well behaved. And yes, he was very big. Some kid of oversized hound dog; perhaps it was a mix of some kind. Not sure what it was. I felt sorry for this lady. More troubling was the fact that her husband was seated 20 rows back. In retrospect, perhaps I should I have offered him my seat. But we made it.

On the way home, I had yet another Delta incident. This time as we approached the runway, there was a sudden stop. The pilot soon came on the air and said, “you may have felt something when we backed the plane up from the gate and attempted to stop.” Then he informed us that we had a flat tire and we were heading back to the gate. I am glad he did as I think we were very close to taking off. He also noted that Delta officials had been informed of the situation and that a maintenance crew was on the way. Once back, it was quickly determined that our plane would not be back in service anytime soon. It was mass madness on the small concourse at that point. Many angry people and I could not hear much that was being said.

So, I left the concourse and headed back to National Car Rental from whom I had rented a car 2 days earlier in order to see Colonial Williamsburg. I thought I might drive to DC and see my sister and her family and then fly home from there. Just prior to do so, I decided to call Delta and see if I could get on a later flight. The answer was yes. But I would have to wait 4-5 hours for that next flight. So I waited along with a few others who came to the conference. I have flown a lot but, as with most of the stories I am telling here, it was the first time anything like that had ever happened to me.

Newport News Trip Pluses: This was one of the best trips of the year. As indicated, I got to visit Colonial Williamsburg for the first time. And when there, I had an engaging and personally enriching conversation with George Washington; or, should I say, the actor in town who portrays him, Ron Carnegie. We mainly discussed my idol, Alexander Hamilton (the conniving accountant…as I once hoped to be…smile). Having read both Hamilton’s and Washington’s biographies as well as Founding Brothers and many other Revolutionary War era books the past few years (or I should say, listened to them in my car), I really appreciated his insights. His college background was in history and acting so it was a perfect fit. Officials there gave him one year to study and learn all that he could about George Washington. It was like a personal sabbatical. And he continues his study today though he has been performing for many years now. Suffice to say, Colonial Williamsburg is a must see.

After that, I got a tour of the campus of William and Mary from my good friend, Dr. Judi Harris who has an endowed chair position there. It is the second oldest campus in the United States dating back to 1693. Only Harvard (founded in 1636) is older (and that is perhaps contestable). Anyway, I love traversing college campuses; especially historic ones like William and Mary. Totally awesome! And it was a much larger campus than I expected (5,850 undergraduate, 1,414 graduate, and 628 professional students in 2008). Yet I saw building after building after building and there was much of the campus that we did not get to due to time. I was equally surprised that it was a public institution, not private like Harvard as I had always assumed.

I have known Judi for many years so it was wonderful to catch up. She had spoken in the School of Education at Indiana University about a dozen years ago. Back then, she a professor at UT-Austin and researched the ePals program and other K-12 collaborative sites. I remember taking her to dinner. I had just completed an edited book on electronic collaboration or it was about to come out, so we had much in common. Now we were reconnecting. It happens sometimes. You do not hear from someone for years and then wham, you see him or her at several conferences or events in a row.

I felt thankful that Judi had required her class to read my “World is Open” book this past spring. She even brought me in to speak to her students using Adobe Connect Pro several months back. That Webinar was in a question and answer format, so really no pressure on me to present anything. Judi and several of her students joined me for dinner after I explored Colonial Williamsburg. We had a great conversation and delicious food. After that, Judi showed me the new building for the School of Education. Hard to leave Williamsburg but leave I must. The conference people were waiting.

To my delight, the conference hotel back in Newport News was wonderful as well. During the conference, I met several inspiring people including John Register, an army veteran and Paralympian who lost his leg during the 1990s in a freak accident while training for the 1996 Olympics. John later recovered and won a silver medal in the long jump in the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney (see bio). He is now a motivational speaker and inspiration for all wounded veterans about their lifelong possibilities. John also played a huge role in the warrior games this past May at the U.S. Olympic Facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is meeting people like John and Judi that make my trips most enjoyable, despite the plane or traveling issues along the way.

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Story/Trip #10. “Customs and chaos in sweaty Newark.” (Continental, Oslo, Norway, May 22-27, 2011). One army conference leads to another; this time it was an international event called the Norwegian Defence ADL Conference 2011 (see the program). I had not been to Norway since August 1999 so I was intensely looking forward to this particular trip a month or so ago. The flight out to Newark (yes, Newark again) was fine despite a bit of a delay…there was cushion built into my flight schedule, so no sweating it out this time. Coming back was another story. My return from Oslo started out well with 3 seats in the middle of plane to sleep on (I was the only one ont he entire plane with such good fortune). Twice, there were passengers attempting to scam one of my 3 seats (i.e., my make-shift bed for the flight home) but the flight attendants made one move back to their original seats. So I slept most of the way home, waking up only for some of the scrumptious dark chocolate bars I bought in the Oslo airport.

When we got into Newark, however, the customs line was enormous. And it grew and they grew and then grew some more. All that the customs people near us would say is that we should write to our congress men and women who had approved the budget cuts. Funny. Very funny. It took over an hour to get through that line and nearly another hour to get through security (see next paragraph). Combine that with people cutting me on the air train between terminals and, in effect, bumping me off, and I was not too happy.

In customs, I had additional screening since I admitted to having an apple in my bag. It was an apple from my home refrigerator that I brought with me to Norway but never ate. But, apparently, on return, it was no longer an apple I could bring into the United States despite it coming from here. After customs, it was on to security. It was extremely hot and steamy that day in Newark. I was sweating in security after the cool temps in Norway. Sure I can go in the priority line. That made things worse. Then we were moved “up” which really was not up; just a longer line that was closer to the terminal. Come on up, this one is shorter, we heard. Not! Oh this one is shorter, but it wasn’t. Ditto next one. A scam! We keep moving up to, in effect, clear space for the people behind us but the lines were no shorter. Someone should demolish much of that airport (not the whole thing, but perhaps).

On to the concourse. It was the start of Memorial Day weekend and the terminal looked like it. What a mess. People sprawled everywhere. Suffice to say, I hate the Newark airport almost as much as LAX. Fortunately, my plane was delayed and so I did not miss the flight home.

Norway News Trip Pluses: Upon arriving in Norway, I got a chance to visit the Fortress in Oslo. It was where the people from the ADL (Advanced Distributed Learning) lab worked. ADL people like Geir Isaksen had organized the conference. Geir did a fantabulous job arranging the speakers, sessions, socials, schedules, etc. During my first day, I also got to see some of the sites of Oslo with my good friend Donald Clark. Donald always has interesting insights about the present and future state of e-learning. After an hour or two strolling around Oslo, we went back to the Fortress. Then we gathered our things and headed for the train station. We would then enjoy a 3 hour journey to the north with the destination being Pers Resort in the city of Gol. Lovely. Lovely. Lovely. Many pictures taken. Suffice to say, walking and jogging in Norway was beautiful. I wished I could spend more time there.

The 3 day conference in Gol was well attended and extremely fun. Each night there we could listen to a piano player at the pub who had a superb voice. In addition, a couple of the conference participants played electric guitar with him. There was also a “Tropicana” night wherein most people wore Hawaiian shirts and shorts to dinner. Among those in attendance who I got to know that week weew: Major Tom Lyck from Sweden, Mikhail Fominykh (from Russia working in Norway--Mikhail was the only one I knew previously as he ws in Melbourne with me a month or 2 earlier), Joe Camacho (Program Director, U.S. Joint Forces Command, Joint Warfighting Center, JKDDC, JMO), Dr. Bart Kessler (Dean of Distance Learning, Maxwell Airforce Base), Biljana Presnall (Jefferson Institute in DC), Linda Tropea (NATO, Supreme Allied Command Transformation (SACT)), Ramin Dasiro (Norwegian Armed Forces, Norwegian Defense University College), Geir Isaksen (Head of R&D/XO at the Norwegian Defense Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Partnership Lab), Dr. Gokay Sursal (NATO, Section Head, Education and Training Technologies), Marianne Dohl-Marchetti (Lieutenant Colonol/Senior Staff Norway, Norwegian Armed Forces--Marianne had recently returned from duty in Afghanistan), and many others. Great people!

The conference included many sessions on military simulations and games. There was also an informative talk on the second day from a futurist (Eirik Newth) as well as an opening presentation from the Rear Admiral (Louise Dedichen, CO NoD University College). Before her talk, I got to meet with her briefly and share a copy of my book. I was happy that my talk was shortly after hers and delighted that she stayed for much of it before heading to the train station to get back to Oslo. Conference participants also came from the UK, Romania, Serbia, Sweden, the USA, Korea, and other places. We got to spend one final night in Oslo before departing. Like Williamsburg the week before, it was difficult to say goodbye to Gol and Oslo.

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Story/Trip #11. “No plane…No plane!” (United, Emporia, Kansas, May 31-June 1, 2011). I was about to travel to Kansas by flying Chicago. I should have known better than to fly through Chicago. Smile. One of my students from the learning sciences program at IU, Maria Solomou, was heading to London but had to fly through Chicago that same day. She had just completed her coursework and qualifying exams and was taking part of the summer off to relax before moving to Arizona State University with her advisor, Dr. Sasha Barab, as she dissertated. I told her I could give her a ride to the Indy airport. I was going west to Kansas, while Maria was traveling east. First, as indicated, we would both have to travel on United to Chicago. Her flight was leaving shortly after mine.

However, when we got to the Indy airport, there was flashing news on the flight screen that my plane was canceled. Apparently, a storm whipped through Chicago for a short time and messed things up. So I went up to the United Airlines reservations area and found the line for rebooking my flight. It was extremely long due to the fact that the Indy 500 race had been run 2 days earlier. Many people were now heading home as they stayed an extra day in case of race rain delays. People were flying back to all points around the world (i.e., New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Canada, etc.). Each person in front of me seemed to require 10 to 15 minutes of customer support. There was only one line for all of us. Making things worse, the information kiosks for United were down. As with my recent flights on United, Continental, and Delta, it was mass confusion once again and there were many verbally angry people. From time-to-time, United personnel made announcements that no one around me could hear.

Eventually, I got on a flight leaving 6 hours later and going through Kansas City instead of Wichita. With that schedule, I would not get to my hotel until perhaps 2 am. I tried to get on Maria’s flight by going on standby. In fact, I ended up as the next one in line to get on that flight when it was pronounced full. Despite leaving close to on time (maybe 25-30 minutes late), her flight ended up arriving extremely late. Apparently, the pilot pulled up in the nick of time to miss a plane on the runway or something and had to try to land again 20 or 30 minutes later. And so Maria missed her connecting flight to London. Poor, poor Maria.

I ended up on standby on the next flight. The United agent gave me an open seat and I boarded, but someone was sitting in that seat. I went back to tell the United agent, who ended up bumping an unhappy United flight attendant off that flight who was trying to get to Chicago (I felt sorry for her). After arriving in Chicago concourse C, I briefly saw Maria and learned that she was catching a later flight to London. I got on an earlier flight to Wichita than they had rescheduled me for and I ended up at my hotel before midnight. During the early morning hours, I prepared for my talks for the following two days (Day One: An E-Learning Institute; and Day Two: An M-Learning Institute). Getting there before midnight definitely helped. Still it was 5 hours or so later then planned. Thanks United for canceling my plane.

Emporia, Kansas Trip Pluses: The big plus here was that I finally got to Kansas. I had visited every state around it but not Kansas. I still have seven more states to go: Maine, Vermont, South Carolina, South Dakota, Mississippi, Oregon (unless you count the Portland airport), and Alaska. Who wants to come along? Who wants to invite me?

I was treated very well by everyone there—among them were Dusti Howell (a fellow UW Madison Alum) as well as Marcus Childress, Harvey Foyle, and Zeni Colorado I want that name). Zeni was out of town on personal matters, but had arranged it all. During my two day visit, Dusti and I told many Madison (and Wisconsin) stories. It was great to talk about old times in Wisconsin as he drove me from the airport and then back again (a little over about 1.5 hours each way).

As mentioned, Day One was the E-Learning Institute (see program). In attendance on Day One of my talks was the university president at Emporia State, Dr. Michael Lane. Michael and his wife came to all my talks that day. It was a five part “masterclass,” including sections on shared online video, extreme learning, motivation and retention online, addressing diverse learners, and so on. Faculty members and instructional design staff came from across the Emporia State campus.

Day Two was a special session on mobile learning for the School of Education (i.e., an M-Learning Institute; see program). An Apple rep as well as Dusti, Marc, Janet Holland, and others were co-presenters in the morning. The dean of the School of Education came to my morning session on mobile learning as well as my afternoon one on podcasts, wikis, and blogs. The mobile talk was brand new. The other, “Podcasts, Wikis, and Blogs: Online Learning is Not in Kansas Anymore” was an oldie I totally overhauled and updated for the occasion (if interested, see color PDFs of my talks at ESU). Rarely do I see a dean or university president when I travel. So it was wonderful to have such high level administrators there for each day.

Finally I should note that between sessions, I got to see the National Teachers Hall of Fame which is housed in the School of Education at ESU. Great trip, despite United canceling my initial flight.

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Story/Trip #12. “Two attempts too many…the landing that never happened.” (Delta, Birmingham, Alabama, June 14-16, 2011). What do you think happened when I put a note in my Facebook status line Wednesday night this past week that it looked like I would finally have an uneventful trip? All was going smoothly, or was it?

I was headed home from Birmingham, Alabama to Atlanta and then on to Indianapolis. I had just finished speaking at the 16th annual Alabama Educational Technology Conference (AETC) in Birmingham (see AETC conference program). This would be my last flight for the next 2 months. My plane to Atlanta was boarding on time and I was happy to be in Zone 1 for boarding. “All those in Zone 1 can now board,” said the gate agent. So I collected my things and exited Facebook. Of course, less than three minutes later, Atlanta airport people grounded our plane in Birmingham due to weather problems in Atlanta. It was the first of at least two major storm cells going through Atlanta that evening and my night would be affected by both of them. So much for a smooth flight home!

Two minutes later, an announcement was made by our gate agent. He said that our pilot wanted to continue boarding our plane. And so we did. It seemed that there was a debate between our pilot and the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport personnel. Perhaps he was trying to get us in the arrival queue between storm systems. Perhaps our pilot had won the debate or was bluffing that we were all on board. So everyone quickly got on board and our bags were stowed. Just then, our pilot came on the speaker system and told us we need to deplane and collect our bags as we waited out this first storm in Atlanta. Apparently, he lost the battle.

I thought to myself, well, perhaps we will get to Atlanta later tonight but, when we do, I will likely miss my connection and have to sleep at an Atlanta airport hotel that night. The Renaissance is nice and close. I could watch planes take off and land all night just in front of my hotel room window. It turns out, I was only partially correct.

So we deplaned and sat on the concourse again as Atlanta people were smart in not letting us leave sunny Birmingham for stormy Atlanta which is just a 30 minute flight away. In the meantime, I called Delta and found out that my connecting flight would also be late getting into Atlanta so I might be ok. At that point, I decided to sit in the main pub at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport and regrettably drink a couple of nonalcoholic beers while we all waited. When resting there, I promised myself that I would blog on the previous six months of flight problems. And so I am. In one humongous blog post. And to all those who read this far, please forgive me for this moment of happy fingers. Almost done. Smile.

About an hour later things got particularly interesting. We boarded. In fact, two planes were boarding for Atlanta in gates right next to each other. One was a large plane and ours was a smaller regional jet. The larger one was leaving first as everyone had boarded. I thought about getting on that one as seats were available. I went back and forth between the two grates trying to decide what to do. A final call for that flight was made twice. Then I thought I should just get on the plane I was scheduled for and so I did. In retrospect, I think that it was a mistake not to take a ride on the larger plane, given the storms anyway, though I cannot be entirely sure. Naïve perhaps, or just plain stupid, I went back to the line I belonged in and got a pleasant surprise. I was bumped up to first class as the smart people who were in first class had decided to drive to Atlanta or find some other means to get home that evening. So off we went to Atlanta. Little did we know that our delays in boarding and stowing our bags would cause us to arrive in Atlanta just as storm system #2 made its presence felt at the airport…and not in a minor way, but in a huge way!

As our plane approached Atlanta, we were whipped around, left and right, up and down. This happened repeatedly. It was not much fun. I could see the downtown lights of Atlanta in the distance and then the rows of lights leading to the airport. All of a sudden, we pulled up and the pilot averted the landing. No announcement. No news from him. We just banked and shook. Banked and shook again. It was another quite scary flying event. Our entire plane was being jostled by the wind. And after 15 or 20 minutes of this, we were back trying to land again. This time we did not get as close to landing. The winds were even worse than before. And we went up.

I have never been part of back-to-back failed landings and so I started to pray. I do not pray often, but this time I was praying that we had enough gas. I was praying that I would have my feet firmly planted on the ground again. Were we making our third attempt to land now? I was not sure. Again, no word from our Delta pilot.

After 5 or 10 minutes of being in a sorta flying state of limbo, we soared above the clouds and the nasty weather. I said to the guys next to me that we are likely going back to Birmingham. And so we were. The pilot confirmed this about 5-10 minutes later. As we headed back, the flight attendant in our first class cabin said that she never experienced such a series of events in her 5 years working for Delta. The seasoned travelers near me all said the same thing. When we landed, there were 2-3 dozen other averted flights on the runways and tarmacs of the Birmingham airport. Many of them were in need of refueling. And many were ahead of us and there were only 1 or 2 fuel trucks from what I could see. No gates available. So we waiting for over an hour as grounds people with orange cone lights ran back and forth to make sure that we did not bump into each other. It was a scene out of 911—stacks of planes all vying for space in an open airport runway like a downtown parking lot for airplanes. First one to a spot gets it. Squatter’s rights were in effect.

We were at a standstill. “Can I turn on my computer,” I asked. “No” the flight attendant very softly and kindly replied. Everyone else seemed to have an iPod, iPhone, or a Blackberry and much craved for Internet access. They also were able to get in touch with Delta people to rebook them on a flight the following day. Many of them could look up possible flights online as we waited. Not me with my dumb LG phone and laptop that could not be used. So, instead I tried to contact Delta on my mobile and get rebooked. I would be waiting for more than an hour according to the Delta answering machine. More than 75 minutes later, I was still on hold. Yikes!

What happened? Our pilot took a bathroom break and, when he got out, he told the flight attendant that we faced winds of 35 knots in Atlanta that were gusting up to 47 knots. They are not supposed to be landing (or attempting to land) in such weather (I think it must be in the low 30s). I later did a Google search on 47 knot winds and airplane landings and the results made me happy that we turned around and went back to Birmingham. But I have heard that such windy weather is affecting many flights this spring (and now summer).

After about 90 minutes of waiting at or near the runway, we got a gate, or so we thought. The pilot headed for one gate and then abruptly he spun the airplane around and headed in a different direction. Did someone grab our gate? Were squatter’s rights in play once again? Or, were we headed back to the runway to try to fly to Atlanta a second time tonight? I certainly hoped not!

But eventually we did coast into a gate. And, since I had been bumped up to first class, I was third in line inside the terminal with the gate agent who was helping us all with our reticketing. He suggested that I take a 2-3 hour bus to Atlanta that they had waiting and catch an early morning flight home to Indy but I refused. If I did that, I would be getting into Atlanta at 4 am for a 6 am flight, which meant no sleep. After a long sequence of typing keys and entering codes, he finally got me a ticket for the morning (though it really was not official until I showed up the next day). I felt bad for those at or near the end of that line. Within a few minutes, I found a taxi and I rechecked back into the Birmingham Sheraton Hotel as did most of those sitting around me on the plane. We got a picture of 5 of us in the hotel lobby to remember the night.

Birmingham Trip Pluses: I was back in Birmingham for the first time since a brief one night stay in 2002. My brother, Tom, used to live there in the 1980s and I had spent a couple of days with him back in 1983 and 1984. I remember all the beautiful brick homes back then, many of which were still there. The small mountains and hills, lush wooded areas, and charming homes makes Birmingham a popular place to live.

This particular trip started off fine. My hotel was a happening place my first night as there was a special benefit concert next door for tornado victims. I also had a great meal and discussion with Dr. Steve Terrell and his wife, Dalia. Steve is from Nova Southeastern University and has been involved in the Internet and Higher Education journal for some years now. I am a board member and reviewer for that journal. I also have a piece that just went to press in that journal on blogging in Korea with my former student, the always engaging and witty, Dr. Inae Kang from Kyung Hee University. Inae is one the most brilliant and ambitious people I have ever met. And after 17 or so years of knowing each other, we finally have a paper that is about to be published. Life is grand. So happy to be alive and enjoying it.

Steve is now working on a special issue of that journal. Perhaps Inae and I will write another piece for it. Not sure just yet.

Steve knows heaps about the field of distance learning. Like me, he was one of the first ones researching and exploring online forms of instruction. As Steve pointed out to me, Nova Southeastern was the first to put its master’s in educational technology online. It also has an online doctorate. It was fun to compare notes about the future of distance learning with people such as Steve Terrell.

The following day, I met up with my former student, Jung Won Hur, who as was alluded to earlier, is an assistant professor at Auburn University. Jung Won arrived just after my keynote and attended my two breakout talks later in the day. Between these talks, she hoped to interview people for the E2T2 (or EETT) technology integration project sponsored by the state of Alabama. She is one of the project evaluators. After her conducting a teacher interview, Jung Won joined me for lunch at the Birmingham Museum of Art which was a short walk from the Sheraton and the adjacent convention center. After my sessions ended that afternoon, we went back to explore some of the wonderful art exhibits there including those from her native land of Korea as well as many magnificent ones from other cultures such as India, China, North America, etc. Needless to say, exploring an art museum is always a wonderful way to end a trip.

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So Who is Willing to Fly with Me Now?
So that makes 12 straight trips with problems or issues of some sort. There were many nerve wracking moments. Traveling is never easy, but it need not be this difficult either. I do not want to fly again for a while and so I am not. But when I do, who wants to fly with me? Any takers? And, as pointed out, driving is not likely to be any better. So who will fly with TravelinEdMan? Or better yet, take my place...?

Bonk's Last Principles of Instruction: A Baker's Dozen Plus One More...

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Tue, 17 May 2011 00:31:00 +0000

I have a colleague here at Indiana University (IU) who asked me for some of my teaching tips yesterday. We chatted on several of them over tea and a bagel at Panera. After reflecting on her question for a day, I just sent her the following 10 teaching tips. When combined they might help others...perhaps.

Keep in mind that these are off the top of my head. Also note that they are also more focused on higher education teaching and adult learning than K-12, though many principles can be directly used or at least adapted for younger learners.

Bonk's Last Principles of Teaching/Instruction (I just made these up…therefore, they might just be called “Bonk.” Why "last?" Well, since David Merrill has his "First Principles of Instruction," and I am a former accountant, I will go with the LIFO (Last In, First Out) method. Hence, I will call these "Bonk's Last Principles of Instruction"). Of course, there is much overlap with what Merrill and others have suggested (see one of Merrill's relevant papers).

And, before you start critiquing these, please keep in mind, I am just giving advice to a friend and colleague. I am not saying that there is research to back up any of these. These are simply things I do that I am suggesting others might consider or build upon. After spending some time writing these up, I thought I might post it.

1. The Principle of Flexibility. e.g.,
a. Have multiple due dates (have the papers due the week before you want them and the week you originally planned--2 due dates (they pick which to get it in by). This way you seem flexible and open but are in actually being tougher on them and they do not even know it).

b. Give students 2 days or 3 days to turn in papers (e.g., Monday May 30th or Tuesday May 31st; or Friday June 3rd or Saturday June 4th or Sunday June 5th). If you are not planning to grade them for a few days or will be at a conference later that week, who cares what the due date actually is? You seem flexible and open, when, in fact, you are just giving yourself a sanity break. Smile.

c. Have a 24 hour lateness policy or 48 hour (one class I use 24 hour and another one I use 48—no assignment is late if you turn it in within 24 hours of the assignment due date. This is a huge relief for students). Be less concerned about the consequences of being late and place more emphasis on the fact that the goal is to get their papers in on time and of a high quality. In effect, you are working with them. The goal is high quality work and you are going to help them where possible by being flexible. Sure you can and should take points off for lateness, but that is not the primary factor within your system.

d. Have a weekly or daily agenda with set items but allow students interests and concerns to determine the order in which you go through it. You might go in reverse order or skip many items and come back to them the following week.

2. The Principle of Convenience. e.g.,
a. Have multiple mechanisms for student communication and turning in of assignments. Allow students to turn in their papers through the course management system, via fax or email, dropping it off at your house, sliding it under your office door, or some other way.

b. Record your class for those who cannot make it (e.g., podcast, webstream, etc.).

c. Change the time of the class if more than a few students will be out of town or at a conference that week. Or if there is an outbreak of H1N1 or tornadoes or floods, your class might be rescheduled or put online for a week or two (i.e., try blended learning).

d. Before you schedule a face-to-face class, ask your students when you should teach the course and in what format(s).

3. The Principle of Collegiality. e.g.,
a. Go to sessions at conferences with your students. Introduce to colleagues. Bring colleagues and visiting scholars into your class for conversations. Introduce your students as your colleagues. Tell them some personal stories about your academic or professional life.

b. Ask your students to share articles with you and vice versa. Show them that you are learning along with them. If they cite an interesting article that you did not know about, ask them for a copy of it or a link to it.

c. Help turn student papers into publications.

d. Take the class to dinner, order pizza, etc. For online class, share coupons you might have found in Amazon perhaps.

4. The Principle of Cheerfulness and Optimism. e.g.,
a. Find the optimistic side of life. Students want positive feedback on papers before critique. Start with a positive, however minor it might be. Then move to ares of potential improvement.

b. Tell your students that they can do better and you know it and they know it. But smile at them when you do so. In effect, you are nudging them forward toward excellence...at times, without them knowing it. In part, it happens with your knowing smile, winks, and grins. They do not want anyone who smiles and winks at them down.

c. Be happy for their accomplishments. Celebrate them.

d. Laugh. Smile. Nod your head in agreement. Make jokes that relate to the class (of course, sometimes they might not totally relate but usually they will).

5. The Principle of High Expectations. e.g.,
a. Post high quality work from previous semesters. Or bring back prior students to discuss their products. Each time, set the bar higher.

b. Tell them it will be a lot of work but you will support them to reach for the stars. That is what good teachers do, challenge and support. Challenge students with high goals or difficult or complex projects and then find ways to help them succeed. Online job aids, support systems, peer mentoring, etc., are all useful.

c. Mention how students used their final projects last time for conference presentations or publications.

d. Say some people enrolled in this course have done this or that important thing in the past. And then you welcome them to do the same in your class.

6. The Principle of Choice and Options. e.g.,
a. Have 5-10 options for midterm or final assignments. And examples of prior accomplishments.

b. Might have 3 papers due during the course and give 6-10 options. Have them choose a different option each time.

c. Let them decide if they want to do a group final paper or product or a solo/individual one. If you want a group project, say that or emphasize that but leave the individual project as an option.

d. Let them sign up to be a cool resource provider or discussion moderator for the week that appeals to them. Their findings or shared resources can be used the next time you teach that course.

7. The Principle of Empowerment and Autonomy. e.g.,
a. Have them create something for a wider audience. Build products. Design something. Put in an online gallery.

b. Have them pick the class agenda from 2 or 3 optional ones. They might check off the option that they prefer as they walk into class.

c. Negotiate the syllabus or agenda in a wiki. My colleague, Dr. Ron Owston, at York University in Toronto does this sometimes.

d. Have students do final presentations of what they learned in the course. This might be a movie night of short 5-10 minute long YouTube or other shared online video presentations, Prezi presentations, role plays, etc., that summarize their learning in the course.

8. The Principle of Support and Feedback. e.g.,
a. Give extensive feedback on papers.

b. Send the feedback back as soon as possible. If you have distance students, you might scan the papers as a PDF and send back. (or mark right on them in Word.)

c. Build in critical friend or some type of peer feedback; especially in weekly writing such as blog postings.

d. If you are getting the same questions over and over, you might offer summary feedback in the course management system or via email.

9. The Principle of Spontaneity. e.g.,
a. Try stuff out. See what works. Do not just go through the motions. Lately, in my R546 class on instructional strategies class on Saturday mornings in the spring, I have tried to be like Robin Williams in the movie Dead Poets Society.

b. Ask your students at break time how the class is going (formative feedback) and change it based on their responses.

c. Combine ideas that you have tried before. Do them in reverse.

d. Debrief on anything new that you tried and ask for feedback.

10. The Principle of Organization. e.g.,
a. Have an agenda and share it ahead of time. You might send it directly to your students via email or bring copies to class. You do not need to go through it all. Post instructor notes, PowerPoint slides, and other resources to the course management system prior to meeting.

b. Have a syllabus prepared at least 1 or 2 months in advance, where possible. Or you might use a shell or skeleton of one. A just-in-time syllabus (JiTS) or just-in-time-teaching (JiTT) can break you out of the same old thing. But it also provides a base from which to build. This works great for courses with interesting articles, videos, or happenings in the news on a daily basis, such as psychology, economics, sociology, education, etc.

c. Call guest speakers well in advance of their date of appearance. Keep in contact with them. Arrange their appearance, share their bio, test the technology if they are to appear virtually. And thank them when done.

d. Arrange the order and topic of final project presentations weeks in advance. Such organization will reduce the tension surrounding these course tasks.

As I said, I hope these help others think about their teaching. I could give you 10 totally different ones if you want. Ok, below are 4 more.

11. The Principle of Sharing. e.g.,
a. Always share your notes, ideas, resources, etc. with students, colleagues, prospective students, those writing your email requests, etc. Share everything you can share. Two years ago, I wrote an article for eLearn Magazine recently on 30 reasons to share online contents. Also the upcoming prequel in the paperback version of my "The World is Open" book is entitled, "Sharing...the Journey." Suffice to say, anyone teaching today should believe in the power of sharing.

b. Place your syllabi and course materials online. You can then refer to them later and get feedback on them. I have done that with some of my classes (see syllabi, both old and new).

c. Share new ideas and resources that emerge in your course management system as they arise during the class.

d. Share student work in a project gallery or Website.

12. The Principle of Nontraditional Learning. e.g.,
a. Send your course to other sites using videoconferencing or Web conferencing.

b. Have students work on joint projects or products with those from other universities.

c. Move your class or activity to an outdoor classroom or the hallway. Be anywhere except in the classroom to which you were assigned. Break out!

d. Extend your class to online conferences, e-books and online articles, virtual mentoring, etc. Take your students to guest lectures on campus or at other locations.

13. The Principle of Passion and Inspiration. e.g.,
a. Relate the course content to personal interests and stories. Students can learn much from your experiences and insights.

b. Link the course to items that excite you in the news that week or day.

c. Bring in as guests and experts, people who inspire you and explain why that is.

d. If a topic or idea has you excited or motivated to learn more, let your students know.

14. The Principle of Relevance and Meaningfulness. e.g.,
a. Embed projects and tasks that students can immediately (or later) use in their job settings. They will likely get additional respect and responsibility from it; hence, you will have impacted the local or world community.

b. Brainstorm lists of possible projects or topic areas that interest your students. Post them online or on the wall and extend the discussion about each of them. Then allow students to select from them.

c. Create theme or interest areas and find out who is interested in a particular topic. Form group tasks or assignments around such interests.

d. Cycle back to previous topics or assignments. Recursively build on tasks from initial thought papers to full blown technical reports, book chapters, or even books.

Ok, those are the 14 Bonkian Last Principles of Instruction (at least for tonight; tomorrow they might be totally different). Alas, I think that is enough for now though I am sure that there are dozens more I could list if I had another hour or two. And I am also certain that most of those reading this post are doing most or all 14 principles. However, keep in mind that there are degrees or evolutionary stages, steps, or phases within each one. So Stage 1 meaningfulness might be totally different from Stages 2 or 3 or 4.

For instance, there is flexibility built into one’s schedule (i.e., Stage 1: Mechanical Flexibility) and then there is flexibility built into one’s persona (Stage 3 or 4: Human Personalization Flexibility...I just made up this example to exemplify the point). At upper stages of instructional evolution, every decision you make would exemplify that principle. You would be living and breathing it.

Suffice to say, the goal is not checking these off a teaching list and saying that one is successful since he or she is doing this or that principle. The goal is to evolve within a set of instructional stages or personal developmental levels within teaching. We should all be pushing toward the edges of the teaching spectrum. Effective instructors challenge and support students in those challenges...that is all we can do. And if teaching online, we are concierges as I have stated a few years ago in a blog post.

Again, the above list was created for a friend. They are based on my experience teaching face-to-face, blended, fully online, and via videoconferencing. There is no research behind these "Last Principles," unlike Merrill's First Principles. Start with those First Priniciples (like his 2002 article). Use my ideas LAST, if ever. Smile. If you are hitting the wall and all else is failing, ok use them. Then, you too can be Bonked.

Tian Belawati on Managing Quality Assurance in a Mega University...Final Global Learn 2011 Keynote

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 21:47:00 +0000

Professor Tian Belawati is the final keynote here at Global Learn. She is at a giant university--the Open University of Indonesia with over 650,000 students. We both keynoted a conference in the Philippines last year but it was from a distance, so this is the first time we have actually met. I have really enjoyed listening to her ideas yesterday at the keynote panel. (Note: As with my previous post on Gilly Salmon's keynote on Tuesday, I am typing this on the fly. Please excuse the typos.)

Tian's talk is "Managing Quality Assurance in a Mega University." Tian Belawati. As indicated in the bio posted at the Global Learn website, she is the Rector at Universitas Terbuka (UT), the Indonesia Open University. Universitas Terbuka.

She is so interesting and filled with data. Tian argues that there is much strength in open and distance universities in opening access to education in Asia and around the world. The opening of access is undeniable. It is not just online supplements but a way to expand access to education. The first open university was in the UK in 1969 and in Asia, the first one was in Pakistan in 1974. Now 12 of the largest universities are in Asia serving more than 8 million students. Amazing and a statistic we rarely hear about in North America. Her list of open universities and their size is impressive (wish I had a copy). She notes that open and distance universities are as much a political symbol as it is an educational tool.

As time goes by, it is no longer just a question of access. Tian tells us that now the focus is quality. It must be on quality or open universities will be looked as second class and lower. In the late 1980s or early 1990s, there was an increasing focus on quality--such as adding tutors or mentors and the communication between them and the students. So how can ICT help? Many open universities are designed to be flexible and open. They want access to the system. But translation of the idea of openness is complex. You do not want to limit the age of the student, the start time, the registration period, etc. No one can be denied unless he or she dies or graduates. The audience laughs. This is the only way to come off the database.

It is difficult. You must flag things. So governments set up reviews and accrediting agencies and organizations to give guidance as to the minimal standards and other quality factors. Tian then asks us, what is quality in face-to-face (FTF) instruction? She then notes that much lies in the professor. It is a fairly simple model. But it is much less simple in open and distance learning. For one, the designer of the content will likely not be the one who mediates the instruction or who assesses the learning. The mediated part is the challenge. The teaching and learning is mediated, both print and online.

We have to consider more factors and management. Need good course writers. Good curriculum materials. Good tutors. You need good across the board. Many parts to the system and each is critical. Need everything done in accordance with principles of learning as well as principles of open and distance learning, flexible learning, etc.

Terbuka (her place) was started in 1984--to be flexible, affordable, accessible, and open. She was there at the start. She says that today they must use technologies that the people have personally or can access in a local center. The mission is to provide services to those who do typically not have a chance to attend other universities. Head office is in Jakarta with 369 academic staff and 567 administrative staff. They manage all operations from there. There are 37 regional offices and 400 academic staff and 498 administrative staff. About 1,800-1,900 staff in total. Of their students, just 1,000 are outside of Indonesia.

Total students are 646,467 as of the fall 2010. About 82 percent of the 646,467 are practicing teachers and 65 percent are females. Wow. They can join in face-to-face (FTF) or online tutorials. Before the students can register, there are many considerations. Must invite experts from other universities for many things--writing test items, developing curriculum. The main operational activities are complex--there are needs analyses, rewriting course materials, rewriting of test items, etc.

So many activities. There are 974 courses written by 1,000 writers. Students can take any one of them at any time. Interesting, that 100 percent of the content must exist in printed form. This is to help those who do not have technology access. There are over 22,000 tutors every semester to help conduct the FTF tutorials. There are 575 online tutors for 552 online courses for over 13,000 students.

How do they prepare the tutors? This is a huge issue. This is instructor training. They also need exam rooms. There are 741 cities for 21,781 exam rooms each semester, simultaneously around the country. Also there are 12 cities in other parts of the world for 369 other students. There are over 40,400 exam supervisors or proctors. Over 2,100,000 course exams processed in a semester. And then there are floods, tsumanis, earthquakes, and bad weather. In fact, boat problems arise. For instance, a ferry once sunk carrying one-half million dollars of course materials. Wow. What did she do then, someone asks...? Tian says, they that they immediately resent them. So they must have prepare and create a lot of structure within their internal quality assurance (QA) system.

Starting in 2001, they made a commitment for a very strong QA system. They have 10 people on the committee. They found a AAOU draft of a QA framework and used it. It look much planning and thinking. So then they came up with a best practices statement. Need to take into account many things: policy and planning--there are 7 statements of best practices, human resources recruitment and development--9 statements of best practices; the learners--10 statements; learning supports, media for learning, assessment of student learning--15 students; course design and development; etc. Given all of these concerns, they have many manuals. For instance, manuals for academic administration, student services, promotion and partnerships, course and examination materials, development and distribution, general, etc. These are all manuals--there are more than 71 manuals for different things. Auditors must look for certain things.

QA is enforced in various ways. They have a certified audit (my interest is peeked now, since I am a former auditor and CPA). The Ministry of Education monitors this process. There are also external assessors--the International Council for Open and Distance Learning (ICDE) as well as the International Standardization Organization (ISO). They have had positive reviews but Tian realizes that they must keep focusing on quality issues. They cannot be content. There are many management aspects. There are many aspects to and processes within the system. And most of them are not electronic.

She stops now and takes questions. She has started with the Open University of Indonesia in 1984.

A question comes up about technology. She says that the Internet cafes are not the same in Indonesia as in Melbourne. They do use a suite of tools. But need the supplementary materials. This includes mobile learning tools. She warns her curriculum and course development staff and tutors not not be too heavy in the Websites or any technology resource or tool.

A question comes up about interesting stories (this is my question)--She talks about a 93 year old graduate. She also mentions a mother who graduated at the same time with her daughter and her primary school teacher. There are many many more. Students from different regions of the country--and one month after graduating get a new job that changes the lifes of many people. Many once in a lifetime experiences are shared with Tian over the years. Someone in the audience adds his own story. He mentions how students struggle to get an Internet signal. Interestingly, he is one of their tutors.

I also asked a question about her quality assurance components and the manuals which are in place. Theo Bastiaens from the Open University of the Netherlands mentioned a quality assurance in e-learning model that is often used--this instrument is based on the E-xcellence manual containing the benchmark statements, with the criteria and indicators. It is free online.

A question comes up about the types of course offerings. They do not have engineering or medical courses.

And then a question comes up about quality at the individual level. She discusses quality standards. There are contracts and evaluations. It is part of the QA system.

She started as an editor for course materials back in 1984. Was doing work in agriculture economics. After that, she headed a research institute. Research on the field of distance education.

We start discussing skills and competencies in today's world. People must be flexible and adaptive. People must be able to do many things.

I ask her what didn't she note during her keynote that are hot buttons. Tian notes that the QA system is being transformed now. They do not want people to feel it is all imposed from the top. She wants the stakeholders involved--the academic departments, for instance. Many instruments developed for evaluating quality. Give triggers so do not get lost. Topics like plagiarism arise. Exam supervisors and empathy with students arises so they must rotate exam supervisors.

In the end, Tian Belawati gave us another fascinating keynote and a good way to end the week. It was great to meet her and I hope you can too.

Gilly Salmon's Creating Learning Futures here in Australia...Live Blogging from Global Learn in Melbourne

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 21:49:00 +0000

In Melbourne, listening to a keynote at the Global Learn conference Gilly Salmon from the Univerity of Southern Queensland. I will take notes here and try to capture her key points so you can feel as though you are here with us (by the way, the date of this blog says Tuesday the 29th of March; but here in Melbourne it is Wednesday morning the 30th).

Ok, here it goes (sorry for any typos). Gilly has recently moved from the University of Leicester to create a Digital Futures Institute here in Australia (i.e., "Australian Digital Futures Institute"). It has been four years since I last saw her in Leicester. Always a fun person to listen to. She always gets me (and others) to think in a new way. Her books on moderating and facilitating online courses and activities are highly popular. John Hedberg from Macquarie University in Sydney just introduced her. John, Gilly, and I keynoted an e-learning summit in Hamilton, New Zealand nine years ago this week. Hard to believe that those 9 years have gone by so fast.

Ok, back to the keynote. Gilly is showing a visual of what she is calling "The Tree of Learning." Using it, she is attempting to show us the evolution of learning. She discussed people like John Locke bringing on empiricism, Raplh Taylor for structuring the school curriculum, Erasmus on the method of study (i.e., pedagogy), Charlemagne (the emperor) who surrounded himself with scholars who provided him with evidence and not just opinion, Raphael's School of Athens (and she alludes to learning through apprenticeship and groups), and also in there is the Ptolemaic Library and Research Institute of Alexandria.

Then Gilly goes on, "An interesting thing happens to our tree," we now have a wide diversity of learning. Many things happens. Ivy Bean, age 104 is the world's oldest tweeter. Gilly worked near her in the UK until recently. She kept in touch with new and old friends now with her tweets. I think to myself, "imagine the mentoring possible today from people in nursing homes and retirement communities around the planet."

I cannot think for too long...I must keep up with Gilly. Next, she points out that there are many exciting, new learning branches and new forms of growth. New things developed. Some species became extinct, she says. "As more variations occured, the Tree of Learning grew." Then she goes back and says that in many cases books were locked up in chains. Today, universities open up their knowledge. Journals are open. Open educational resources (OER) and opencourseware (OCW) enhance the university. They do not distract from it. She knows of no university which has placed OER and OCW on the Web that are extinct. What I think she is saying is that often, exactly the opposite happens--educational organizations that are more open and celebrate open educational avenues thrive and become ever better known. We need such experimentation.

In terms of the history of the world, open education is just the last milisecond of time. The first Wikipedia entry, the first cafe with the Internet, the first blog post, the first podcast, etc. These are all recent phenomena. She asks, so is online learning establishing itself as a significant part of the learning equation? Today, workplace and professional learning is more contributary, more on demand, more relevant, etc. The workplace branches for learning are now more fresher and greener, she contends. I think she is absolutely correct.

The guilds are gone. However, 70 universities in Europe are in the same place doing the same things that have existed for centuries, if not millennia. Of course, the British Library has over 150 million physical items and very good coffee. Audience laughs. It is worth a wonder into it. Technoshine (a word Gilly has coined) has digitized 25 million pages of newspapers dated since the 17th century including the UK Times as well as more trashy news sources. Gilly notes that this opens up scholarly work.

Now what about the up and coming generation. We need to educate things for massive challenges in front of us. Climate change, security, healthcare, etc. For instance, Sugata Mitra's Hole in the Wall ideas and other ideas for helping children in rural India can teach themselves skills. He calls the result "self-organized learning." Kid will learn to browse the Web n their own. We need to capture such stories. She thinks that this can be a new species of learner. Part of this new learner will be more mobile. It will transform education. Gilly provides a story of her 14 year-old granddaughter who texts friends, uses virtual learning environments, shares ideas for homework with friends, etc.

So what is next? She quotes from Eric Hoffer that in times of change the learners inherit the earth while learned people are prepared for a world that no longer exists. Do you want to let it happen, make it happen, or wonder what happened, she asks all of us. Our audience raises its hands and says it wants to make it happen.

She then has 3 main points. The first is that Differentiation = innovation (I missed the other two--ok, I asked her for more info after her session and she said one of the other ones is that natural selection allows for more learner's chose). She discusses ideas from the Young Foundation about social innovation. Most are extending and defending our core businesses, Gilly contends. Some universities are building emerging businesses. And a few are creating viable options. She argues that we need to do all three to survive. You can rarely do #2 and #3 on your own. In effect, she says, you need to "collaborate to compete" (I think that was the point).

What she is trying to do is reflect on ideas from Darwin to wish to evolve our learning and education spaces. Just as animals evolve, so must education and learning opportunities. It is difficult to change any aspect or part of education. But we are now in a very rapidly changing ecosystem. In such a system, you need to know where your specialness is and where it is going. Know where your differentiation is going to be rewarded in the future. We need to shift resources to new areas. Futurists design for the future. Education needs to respond to the variety of opportunities on the tree of learning.

She pauses for a moment and says, oh, but some will contend that teachers (and others) will be resistent to change. Yet, how can the most creative of the species known as human--teachers--be resistant to change? More and more ideas are tumbling from the tree. How can this dillemma happen? Some take on too many changes at once. A huge proliferation of projects, the majority of which no longer exist. The paradox is that the continuity of core activities is so deeply entwined that it is difficult--the longer you have been doing something, the much harder it is to extract resources from it for innovation (I asked her for this clarification in her meet the keynote session). We need to extract resources from one area to rethink and design new areas.

There are four things in a matrix that she is showing us:
1. University owned technologies and continuos adaptation is what is happening now.
2. Then consider new technologies and how they can be harnessed for the future.
3. Third, we need to think about universities owned technology and new opportunities with them.
4. And fourth, this quadrant is about riskier, new technologies and new types of learners.

Gilly then reflects back on the Media Zoo that she had at the University of Leicester in her "Beyond Distance Research Alliance." Otters, pelicans, tigers, etc. Animals were her metaphor there in Leicester. Here is Australia, she has a "space" metaphor.
1. Our Solar System,
2. Our Galaxy,
3. Our Galatic Partners, and
4. Deep Space.

She is still working on it. She does mention several principles and ideas including going back to Athens with dialogue. She is cautious in predicing the future. More learner voice, partnerships, and contributions. We will form relationships between 3D virtual world environments, and real world. More open educational resources. Thanks Gilly...you were wonderful as always! I look forward to Thursday morning when I join her and five others on a panel that will discuss our digital futures (see below for the link).

Yesterday, the keynote was Rick Bennett from the University of New South Wales. His paper (10 meg), Global Classrooms, Rural Benefits: creative outreach through computing in education, is downloadable from the Global Learn speaker Website. Rick is at the intersection of creativity, art and design, expert mentoring, online collaboration, learning technologies, humanitarian causes and social change. Do check out his Omnium project and Creative Waves outreach and research.

Rick's stuff is so cool. Many people were just amazed by his talk. He really gives a purpose and meaning to those of us in the learning technologies field. As Rick puts it, he just does stuff. He takes action to help people in developing and underdeveloped countries (the Philippines, Uganda, Kenya, Sri Lanka, etc.). Check it out. His work is exactly what the Global Learn conference mission and vision is all about.

What a fantabulous way to start the conference out. Write to him...read his papers...check out the Omnium project. And then find a way to make your own dent in the world. Gilly, John, and Rick have. You can too. At the start of his talk, Rick referred to reflecting on what happened "on your shift" and your role in it. It is something that Gilly has said to him once and it struck a chord with him (and me too now). I say make a dent. What will your dent be? What will you do on your shift? Go for it. Be bold. Do not be, same ol', same ol'. Please!

Check out our special keynote panel for tomorrow, Digital Futures: Now and When. If you get a chance, come to the Global Learn conference tomorrow here in Melbourne, Australia. Or come next year to Singapore for the 3rd annual Global Learn conference (assuming that is where we go).

Hope this was helpful. Again, apologies for typos...I was typing as she was speaking and my battery is running low and I need to post this now.

Purdue to Launch Online Master's Program...Reflections on Why...

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 01:54:00 +0000

News was passed around my department today that Purdue University will soon be announcing a new online master's degree focused on learning design and technology. Apparently, this program has been three years in the making. What I find interesting is the statement that there will be no fundamental difference between the residential and online courses.

No fundamental difference? How can they be so sure--the program has not even started. Humm...all programs say that. But as with any program (live in the classroom or online or blended or videoconferencing or correspondence or whatever), with each teacher, each module, each resource, etc., that is different, the program is, in fact, different. Hec, I have taught a course on instructional strategies for over 20 years and this spring I changed nearly 50 percent of the activities. It was vastly different.

I think such statements are made so as to reduce fears of those enrolling as well as those potentially hiring the graduates of such programs. But, in my mind, if you are really good as an instructor, your class cannot be replicated. Each iteration should be highly unique and special. Those who like vanilla bland, same-same programming (i.e., prepackaged content) will bore students and instructors endlessly.

Perhaps you should read the press release...
Purdue to Launch Online Master's Program, March 20, 2011, News Release, InsideINdianaBusiness.com Report.

I find it interesting that the Inside INdiana Business article is dated March 10, 2011 while the Purdue press release is dates 9 days from now or March 20, 2011. In effect, the news story got out 10 days early it seems. Perhaps they are concerned about the competition--there are many online master's programs in the field of instructional design and educational technology. There are also certificate programs. My program Instructional Systems Technology here at Indiana University in Bloomington has both online certificate as well as master's programs (and perhaps soon an online Ed.D.). Check out the IST Website for distance education courses, requirements, and forms.

As dozens of online master's in educational technology and learning technology spring up around the country and the world, there will be fewer needs for faculty members in my field to be place-based. But why are so many such online programs coming online today? Here are 14 reasons off the top of my head.

1. Keeping Up With the Joneses: To keep up with other programs. If IU does something, often you will see programs at Florida State or the University of Georgia or Missouri (where I was earlier this week), do the same or similar, and vice versa. Most of the prominent educational technology programs now have online master's degrees or at least are contemplating offering such degrees soon.

2. Faculty Interests and Skill Base: These are educatiional technology programs--certainly most faculty in such programs are interested in online learning or have technology skills in this area.

3. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs: As schools, colleges, and universities as well as businesses add online courses and programs, they most certainly need to hire more instructional designers and e-learning specialists. With the recent explosion of online and blended degrees, there are many jobs right now in this field (i.e., the demand). And, as a result, many people want to obtain the skills needed for such jobs (i.e., the supply). For those interested in educational technology job openings, see my ed tech jobs portal which has links to 34 job listing sites in the field.

4. Design, Development, and Deployment Costs: There is not a lot of capital needed to build such programs (compared to science and medical fields).

5. Demand: There is much demand from those working fulltime who are now seeking instructional design or new media skills in their spare time. Coming to campus for a face-to-face experience is not possible.

6. Branding, Recognition, and Recruitment: This is a means to advertise one's doctoral program--offer a certificate online and attract students to the master's...or offer a master's online and attract students to the doctorate. Successful online certificate programs and master's degrees help with the branding of the department or program.

7. Survival of the Fittest: For many programs in educational technology, they would not exist without the online master's or certificate program. Students do not have time for traditional, face-to-face classes. Courses and programs, and faculty within such courses and programs, must be nimble and flexible.

8. Tough Economic Times: Similarly...This is new money! Budgets are tight right now and administrators will take anything that provides a positive cash flow. And many online master's and certificate programs are doing just that today.

9. Campus or Organization Need, Niche, or Service: The online master's or certificate might be a service for other units on campus--i.e., training people who need skills in instructional design and development. It also might be part of a president's or dean's stated mission or state of the university address.

10. Expandable Faculty: With an online master's program, you can recruit clinical faculty from around the world (some famous and some former alumni). With that, you can potentially extend both the reach and reputation of the department.

11. Influence and Footprint: Purdue has great faculty (as do other programs like Michigan State which I reviewed in an earlier blog post) and so it is important to see how far the ideas, skills, and courses of such faculty can extend around this planet. Why not try to influence those thousands of miles away?

12. Template Exists: Once one program goes online, there is a template for how others can replicate and extend such a model.

13. Learner Expectations: At first, our online master's was unusual when it was first offered in the late 1990s. Now it has become the norm. Students simply expect educational technology programs to offer online master's degrees as well as certificates. And they can learn from those students who have successfully transversed through such online courses and programs.

14. Real-World Touch: Master's programs with those working fulltime provides a reality check for one's ideas, cases, and activities. With such students, there is a real world audience built into each course.

There are many types of people in the real world who might sign up. In fact, the INdiana Business article says: "Fields such as education, business, industry, and the military, have a need for effective training and instruction prepared by skilled professionals. Our program incorporates cutting-edge learning theory, educational technology and instructional development in a convenient online delivery method - taught by the same faculty as the on-campus classes."

This is true--there are many audiences for such online programs. I wish my colleagues at Purdue much success. They are great. One must also realize that they were not the first, nor will they be the last to offer such a program. By 2020, hundreds of such master's programs may exist. By 2030, most Ph.D.'s in my field will be online or blended (some FTF mentoring will still be needed at times). And by then, the field will have certainly morphed into something else. That morphing might be coming sooner than most people realize....it could be right around the corner in the next few years. But 20-30 years out is a pretty safe bet. Times will change and so will this field. Which people and places will recognize such and stay ahead of the field?

Those wanting more information can contact Purdue (see website for more details).

By George, he's Rich: From Connexions to Connectivism and Beyond

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 04:30:00 +0000

Ok, Packers have won the Super Bowl...Cool. Now time to move on to other things...but it takes a few weeks to move on from that huge feat.

Tonight I am sharing...Life is a Breeze (meeting) sometimes...(3-4 years ago Yun Jeong Park and I had an article, "Is Online Life is a Breeze?" The past two nights it was. The World was open and more so!)

You see, I had 2 world famous guest speakers in my online R685 World Is Open (Web 2.0) class this week in Breeze/Adobe Connect Pro:

1. Richard Baraniuk from Connexions at Rice University in Houston (Connexions is like MERLOT only it is a repository; not just a referatory or set of Web links) talk about Open Education (among best talks on Open Education I have seen—he addressed the Creative Commons issue—he takes a very liberal viewpoint and you can watch and understand why.

Note that this was his invited talk at the Educause Learning Initiatives (ELI) conference in DC this week. Good conference--I did it last year in Austin. The ELI conference connects the learning and technology people more tightly than the main annual conference from Educause. Educause, in fact, has many different wonderful conferences. And they stream and save the key talks. In addition, Educause Quarterly and Educause Review are free and open access journals. They also have a great annual report predicting the future of technologies called the Horizon Report which is freely available online (e.g., see the 2011 Horizon Report). So Educause is a key player in this open education world.

Back to Richard Baraniuk...Rich has a popular TED talk from a few years ago. He always has brilliant content and an engaging manner of presenting it. And he just popped into my class and had a go. How cool is that? Rich and I were both master's students at UW Madison in 1987--he in computer science and electrical engineering and me in educational psychology (Rich left for Illinois for his Ph.D. while I stayed on for mine). And both of us freezing our butts off. Henry Jenkins was also in grad school at Madison that at the same time but in yet another department as were my close colleagues, Tom Reynolds, Okhwa Lee, Veronica Acosta, Kim Foreman, and Miheon Jo and many others. It would have been fun for Rich, Henry, myself, and others to meet at the same time then. Some refer to it as the Golden Age at UW-Madison. Perhaps not like what has been happening the past few days in Madison.

Here is his talk from last night (just click and play):
Richard Baraniuk, Rice U, Breeze Meeting on Open Education, Feb 16, 2011: http://breeze.iu.edu/p83518404/

2. George Siemens of Athabasca U in Canada; George is a popular blogger. Famous for his theory called Connectivism which he discusses along with social networking and Learning Analytics. In fact, George has a new course on learning analytics. His Learning and Knowledge Analytics course is open access. See his syllabus. George is a firm believer in open teaching and open access to content. I am trying to do the same by sharing these two talks in my blog for my R685 World is Open/Web 2.0 course (a 51 page syllabus with every article as a hot link).

This was another fascinating talk from George. And with both audio and video. George has generated so much content in such a short period of time, it is difficult to tell you were to start reading all his stuff.

Like Rich, George has a TED talk. His was in New York on April 13, 2010.

Here is his talk tonight (again, just click and play):
George Siemens, Athabasca U, Breeze Meeting on Connectivism and Learning Analytics, Feb 17, 2011: http://breeze.iu.edu/p46919943/

Both Rich and George (tempted to call them Sir Richard and King George given their status in the field) were excellent. Each point made was spot-on brilliant as per usual. And each talk was a new one. We got the first dry run or second one. That is what this open world allows. Each day, each moment in fact, there are thousands, if not millions, of such global interactions with students and experts around the planet. That is one of the key benefits of the Web (or Web of Learning)--we can connect to mentors, tutors, and experts at any time. Each of us can play a major role in creating, facilitating, or simply participating in such global connections and collaborations. Yes, YOU!

I mean, this is what we are alive for--to help the people of this planet see new perspectives. To stand in each other's shoes; even if just for a few fast-fleeting moments or a few minutes. Elevating social cognition and perspective taking is why many of us are in the fields of learning technologies, educational technology, instructional systemes technology, e-learning and distance learning, learning sciences, and educational psychology. That is why I am here.

It was great to hear about Connexions, Collaborations, Creative Commons, Connectivism, and Learning Analytics the past two nights. It is not often that you can invite and bring in two well known people to your class. the past two nights have been such nights. What fun. Thanks Rich and George.

Memories of the Green Bay Packers at 92 (and in the Super Bowl); Jerry Bonk (dad) at 80; Richard Bonk (bro) at 46; and other cold January news...

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 05:01:00 +0000

Some January news (it is PACKED):

It is January 25th, 2011. I am about to post about news related to my Web course and videos for teaching online and then I remember that the clock has just pushed past midnight. And now it is my brother Richard's 46th birthday. More importantly, it would have been my father's birthday as well. He would have been 80. Dad (Jerry Bonk; also Jerome Anthony Bonk or JABO) died of pancreatic cancer back on July 27, 1995 (the same day that the Korean War Memorial was dedicated in DC....my father fought in the Korean War and my son Alex is from Korea and many of my closest friends are from Korea)...That was 1995, but it seems like just ysterday.

I did not cry much as his funeral as I had to give the eulogy. It was a poem about his life and his grandkids. But I am crying now as I did not realize that it was his 80th bday until a minute ago. A moment of sadness.

My father was a caring, brilliant, and funny person. He worked very hard to raise 5 children. More specifically, he worked for AT&T in Milwaukee his entire life as an engineer and later an accountant (my former profession). He went to night school at Marquette to get his degree. He was happy when I decided to leave West Virginia University in the summer of 1992 and come to Indiana University since the School of Education (where I now work) had significant funding from AT&T to be a demonstration site for technology in education. The building opened up (came on-line) when I arrived in late August 1992. It is still a rather fascinating place in which to work. Now more than 18 years later, it has had some remodeling during the past year to make it even better. It is a fun place to work.

Back to my father...What my dad (Jerry) really liked was football; and the Green Bay Packers were his team (and mine). I am sure he loved the outcome of the Packer-Bears game yesterday (21-14 Packers) from wherever vantagepoint he had. We watched the Pack win the first two Super Bowls in the front room of our house back when I was quite young. And a year or two later, he took me to a game at Milwaukee County Stadium (which was a few miles from our house) in the freezing cold; this was decades ago when they still played in Milwaukee and had Carole Dale at wide receiver, Ray Nitschke (#66) at middle linebacker, and the fantabulous Bart Starr at quarterback. There is no way I could go at such temperatures today--I shake in the cold too much.

Getting tickets was a rarity (it still is, by the way). When we could not get tickets and they were playing in town, my dad (i.e., Jerry) would take me to a pub a few miles west of our house in West Allis, Wisconsin (head down Cleveland Avenue a few blocks and then take a left on National Avenue a few miles over to neighboring New Berlin (where my great uncles once had farms side-by-side). This was way out actually and near the city of Waukesha. It was high up on a hill so that they would get reception). My best friend in the old neighborhood, Mark Perry, read this blog post and just sent me an email. He thinks it was Prospect Hill Tap or Pub and I think he is right (Google says it is at 19745 W National Ave; still there perhaps after all these years and a YouTube video I found has people playing acordians there just like my father would have). Not sure if that is from the pub but you will get a sense of the place. (Thanks Mark...at least your brain cells are still intact unlike mine!)

I remember one game sipping some 7-up or sprite at that pub and a rookie named Travis Williams from Arizona State returned the opening kick-off 87 yards for a touchdown. After three more scores by Green Bay, he repeated the feat again (after the Cleveland Browns had scored) wtih an 85 yard run for a TD. It was 35-7 at the end of the first quarter on way to a 55 to 7 Packer victory. I think that was the first time it ever happened and I was able to see it sitting there in the pub. This was November 12, 1967. Two months and 2 days later, the Packers would beat the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl II 33-14 (January 14, 1968). My father was extremely happy with each score.

A few years later, my dad would install his dream...a huge residential TV antenna tower (in cement) so that we could pick up Packer games from across Lake Michigan. This was well before cable TV and now Direct TV. I think my dad would spend a hour or so positioning the antenna in a certain direction to pick up the game. And when he did get it in, it was often quite fuzzy, but we did not mind and would watch it. No high-dev (HD) TV stations back then. To get these games, I think dad would try to get Muskegon, Michigan, though sometimes it was Traverse City (Note: back then the games in Milwaukee were blacked out...they were definitely not on Chicago TV unless it was Da Bears in town). This was such a super structure, my friends and I used to climb on it. I am surprised none of us ever fell off and died. But it was useful for avoiding getting tagged or tackled.

Well, nomatter that silly tower (which by the way, no longer exists), dad would definitely have watched the big game this past Sunday. And he would not have been alone despite the weather outside...my best friends, brothers-in-law, nephews, nieces, and I would have been there to watch it with him. Many of them looked up to him as their surrogate father. Undoubtedly, he would have had a smoke and a beer or two or three or four near the end of it. But he would have been happy and so would all of his kids. A game of pool after? Of course!

It was a quite memorable game. Let's hope that they can beat Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl in two weeks. Happy birthday Jerry Bonk. It is not everyday one turns 80 and your team is headed to the Super Bowl.

And my brother Richard (Bonk) has been texting me all day yesterday and today so I know he is happy too. Happy 46th bday Richard. Perhaps you can once again find some Super Bowl tickets, but this time take me richie Rich.

======================================

...now I should post what I intended to post tonight and go to bed. Ok...my online R685 course this spring on my World is Open book and the Web 2.0 is now 51 pages. My goodness. Everything is a hotlink. Check it out. I mean at 51 pages, can pretty much count on everything to be there. At the same time, in 15-20 months, it will be long past its prime.

There is a tad more news...my department (Instructional Systems Technology) published a news story on my 27 videos on teaching online (e.g., planning for an online coure, using blogging and wikis, giving feedback, handling plagiarism, creating community, etc.). Here it is: IST News, Announcing the V-PORTAL…”Video Primers in an Online Repository for e-Teaching and Learning." IST professor’s Book, School of Education, Indiana University, January 21, 2011.

In addition, my dean's office has decided on a farily liberal Creative Commons license for them…allowing corporate people or anyone to use pieces and remix them (and even sell them). These videos are available under a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0.

Remember you can find these videos in a portal from the Instructional Consulting office at IU. They also have links to additional resources, a color PDF copy of the PowerPoint slides used in each of the 27 shows. (Firefox preferred and will play faster).

For faster access, watch them in my TravelEdMan YouTube Channel (use any browser).

==========================
p.s. Happy bday dad and Richard. Despite the cold, it is a wonderful week in which to have a birthday. Go Pack. (Yes, that Brett Farve Vikings jersey is still here but I am not wearing it....not this month or the next one anyway.)

p.s.s. Great quote today from my Dalai Lama daily calendar, "We need to embrace the oneness of humanity and show concern for everyone--not just my family or my country or my continent." (so I guess that means I can like the Indy Colts as well as the Packers...and perhaps even the Vikings when Farve is playing.)

Global Learn Call for Papers Extended to Jan 31, Upcoming Global TIME (virtual in Feb), & E-Learn in October in Hawaii

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 01:02:00 +0000

Good news. Global Learn Call for Papers was just extended from today to January 31st. Global Learn: Global Conference on Learning and Technology will be held in Melbourne March 28-April 1, 2011. It will be in the Sebel Albert Park, Melbourne. Looks like a nice hotel with pretty good rates ($133/night + tax USD and $153/night + tax Aussie dollars).

The GL 2010 conference was in Penang, Malaysia last May. It was the best conference I have attended in many years...it did not hurt to be held along the beach and have luscious views at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and each evening. So many great friends and colleagues were there. And there were superb keynote and invited speakers each day. Unlike most conferences I go to, I attended sessions throughout the day...every day (despite sitting at the beach most nights till 3 am sipping beers and listening to music...often with the likes of Tom Reynolds (from National U in San Diego who was on Fulbright in Columbia), Paul Kim (Stanford), Grace Lin, Curtis Ho, and many others (from the U of Hawaii--the largest conference contingent), Ke Zhang (Wayne State who was on sabbatical in China), Okhwa Lee (from Chungbuk National in Korea), Siew-Mee and Greg Barton (from Deakin and Monash Uni's in Melbourne), Marc Curcher (Dubai Men's College), Dorit Maor (Murdock U in Perth...she was my former visiting scholar), Katsuaki Suzuki (Japan), Thanomporn (Toh) Laohajaratsang (from Chang Mai U in Thailand...another former visiting scholar of mine from this past fall here at IU), Daniel Tan (NTU in Singapore) as well as his assistant Shirlene Tang, Abtar Kaur and Zoraini Wati Abas (from the Open U of Malaysia in KL...Zoraini really was the force that enabled this conference to happen), Teh Chiew Lan (from Penang, Malaysia), Elaine Khoo (from the U of Waikato in New Zealand), John Hedberg (from Macquarie Uni in Sydney), Insung Jung (International Christian U in Tokyo) and her husband Illja Rha (from Seoul National University in Korea...and many of his students), Mona Masood (former student of mine now in Malaysia), Joe Luca (Edith Cowan in Perth), Yayoi Anzai (Japan), Jake Enfield (good ol' IU), and many others...apologies to those not mentioned here or that I forgot). You can see that people came from all over the world. My IST doctoral student, Jake Enfield, went and presented 3 times and was a major star.

As you can see, I highly recommend it. What an event! New conferences are places where you can make the most impact and extend your social network well beyond anything you might imagine. Of course, Dr. Gary Marks and his team from AACE also made Global Learn in Penang last year in May a great conference experience. They have much experience with running such conferences and it showed. Love the conference bag by the way! I still use it. I get 20-30 such bags a year and only keep 1 at most and this was the one for 2010. Lovely! I also picked up two tailored suits that were shipped home--one blue and one white. The white one I had made 1 hour before departing...best suit I have...now that was close. Greg and Siew-Mee Barton must have bought 2-3 each and took all their friends to the same shop.

So these are the reasons why I highly recommend Global Learn this year in Melbourne. Excellent presentations, great views, lovely conference bags, cheap shopping (at least in Penang), plenty of night life, wonderful breakfast and lunch conversations, constant interactions and rest when needed, etc. And you meet international experts (and stars) in e-learning and technology in training and education. The keynote and invited speakers for GL 2011 should be posted in the next few days (I know since I am on the organizing committee and help found the conference along with many others). Perhaps I will see a couple of you there! For future reference, this conference will be held each year in Asia or the Pacific Rim (from Turkey and the UAE in the west to Taiwan and Japan in the east and from India, Australia, and New Zealand in the south to Russia and Mongolia in north). If you live in that huge region of the world, perhaps you can nominate one of your countries in the future and then help out.

Part of the Mission statement is: "The mission of Global Learn Asia Pacific conferences and events is to further the advancement and innovation in learning and technology. As the educational world becomes increasingly global, new ways to explore, learn, and share knowledge are needed. Global Learn serves as a means to connect and engage creative educators, researchers, consultants, training managers, policy makers, curriculum developers, entrepreneurs, and others in the topics and fields in which they are passionate." Read more about the mission and audience as well as the extremely current and cool list of conference topics. Are you an educational entrepreneur, head of a government agency, filmographer, educational consultant, instructional design specialist, flexible learning consultant, educational philanthropist, training director, e-learning director or evaluator, etc.? If so, I hope to see you at Global Learn in Melbourne. Again see the mission statement for additional potential audiences for this special conference.

I should point out that Global Learn is an AACE (the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE) conference just like Ed Media (June 27-July 1, 2011 in Portugal), SITE (March 7-11, 2011 in Nashville), E-Learn, and now Global TIME (to be held next month for the first time—virtually). See all AACE conferences.

By the way, the International E-Learn Conference for 2011 is in Hawaii in October (Oct. 17-21) and the call for papers is due April 22. I am chair of the E-Learn exec committee one last year and happy to help you out in any way I can. The conference hotel is beautiful and looks over Waikiki beach (assuming it is the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel again). I have attended Ed Media twice there (2003 and 2009) and E-Learn once (2006) and loved each one. Though in 2006 we experienced 2 early morning monster earthquakes around 6.7 and 6.0 (7 minutes later) on the Richter scale and hotel swayed a bit and we had to present in the dark that day...but the food was very cheap and plentiful for the next 2 days. Smile.

Again, I hope to see many of you in Melbourne...and if you are going, drop me a note. My friends Dr. Siew-Mee Barton (from Deakin University) and Dr. Greg Barton (from Monash University) are helping with the conference and will try to arrange a wine tasting social before or after the conference. And the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Melbourne in late March 2011 will be next to the conference hotel just prior to the start of Global Learn, so get there early if you can (March 24-27th next to Albert Park). Vroom...vroom.

You have till January 31st, 2011 to get your papers in! Just do it. Here are the forms for the final call for papers!

Announcing the "V-PORTAL": Video Primers in an Online Repository for e-Teaching and Learning...

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 23:58:00 +0000

The V-PORTAL…“Video Primers in an Online Repository for e-Teaching and Learning”

...A month ago, I mentioned that I would have (what I think is...) a major announcement soon. Well, I finally found the time to post this. Are you primed for it? I hope so! Here it is...

During the past year, in collaboration with the Instructional Consulting office and the Instructional Systems Technology (IST) Department in the School of Education at Indiana University, I have designed and produced a series of 27 brief (7-10 minute) videos related to teaching online. This video (or video podcast) series, “Video Primers in an Online Repository for e-Teaching and Learning” (V-PORTAL), covers topics for both novice and more expert online instructors and educators. Those watching them can learn how to engage learners with Web 2.0 technologies, build instructor presence, prepare highly interactive and relevant online activities, access free and open course resources, plan for the future of e-learning, and much more. See below for links as well as show descriptions.

Links to the “V-PORTAL”:

1. Watch the Videos & Find Resources (Firefox preferred): IU School of Ed Instructional Consulting Office): http://www.indiana.edu/~icy/media/de_series.html

In addition to links to these 27 videos, the above link includes additional Web resources, color PDFs of Dr. Bonk PowerPoint slides, and a feedback form for each of the 27 shows. This is the main V-PORTAL site.

2. For faster access, watch in Bonk’s YouTube Channel (use any browser): http://www.youtube.com/user/TravelinEdMan

This second Website above was created for those wanting to quickly access the videos in YouTube and perhaps jump around between them. Try it out! Hundreds of people already have.

List of 27 videos:
1. Planning an Online Course
2. Managing an Online Course: General
3. Managing an Online Course: Discussion Forums
4. Providing Feedback
5. Reducing Plagiarism
6. Building Community
7. Building Instructor and Social Presence
8. Online Relationships: Student-Student, Student-Instructor, Student-Practitioner, Student-Self
9. Fostering Online Collaboration/Teaming
10. Finding Quality Supplemental Materials
11. Blended Learning: General
12. Blended Learning: Implementation
13. Blended Learning: The Future
14. Online Writing and Reflection Activities
15. Online Visual Learning
16. Using Existing Online Video Resources
17. Webinars and Webcasts
18. Podcasting Uses and Applications
19. Wiki Uses and Applications
20. Blog Uses and Applications
21. Collaborative Tool Uses and Applications
22. Hands-On/Experiential Learning
23. Coordinating Online Project, Problem, and Product-Based Learning
24. Global Connections and Collaborations
25. Assessing Student Online Learning
26. Ending, Archiving, Updating, and Reusing an Online Course
27. Trends on the Horizon

Production Note: These 27 video primers were designed and produced during the fall of 2009 and on into much of 2010. They were finalized and announced in October 2010.

3. Alternative Access Site:
My friends at Kind Khalid University (KKU) in Abha, Saudi Arabia are translating to Arabic. They already have a site in English. See link below.
King Khalid University (KKU), Abha, Saudi Arabia; E-Learning at KKU: http://elc.kku.edu.sa/en; see videos: http://elc.kku.edu.sa/en/27-videos-for-teaching-online

I hope that there will be more such alternative access sites (e.g., in Chinese, Malay, Korean, Spanish, German, Canadian, etc.) in the coming years. Sending a big smile to those I know in Alberta, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland.

Who might use? How might you use these videos?
There are many intended audiences for these videos as well as many possible uses. Whether you are interested in emerging technologies or innovative pedagogies, I hope that you find something of value in this video primer series. What's more, you can watch them on the Web for free from anywhere in the world. You can view them while sitting at home in your pajamas and fuzzy slippers while sipping some hot chocolate, eating lunch at your office desk, or relaxing at a mountain or lakeside retreat. Each lesson is delivered to you in 10 minutes or less.

Those seeking additional information or some personalization regarding the content of these videos can always send me a request--as the host and developer of all 27 shows--to give you and your staff a personal overview of any of these topics. Such a session might be live or online. In addition, I am always happy to send any articles I have written (see my open access publications) or recommend others you might read. You might find many free articles and other resources in my 43 page R685 course syllabus “World is Open with Web Technology” (i.e., a course on the Web 2.0) this fall; everything is a hot link. One might also explore the "Free Stuff" at my World is Open book Website.

Back to the videos…For those simply glancing at a few of these videos and then discussing some of the content within your respective institution or organization, I believe that your instructors, instructional designers, and administrators will be better prepared for the highly interesting and complex world of online teaching and learning. Enjoy these free video primers in the V-PORTAL. I know of no other set of such videos at this moment in time….though I could be wrong.

You might give certificates out to teachers or trainers who watch and reflect on how they might use ideas found in each one of them. Some other potential uses of these video primers are listed below.

Ten Ways to Use:
1. Instructor Training: present videos to online instructors for reflection.
2. Workshops: the 27 video primers might be embedded in brief or extended workshop.
3. Certification: design activities related to the videos as part of a larger training program.
4. Student Courses: videos could be used as supplements to course readings related to new or emerging technologies, online teaching and learning, and blended learning.
5. Personal Exploration: dig into an area of interest.
6. Discussion: present a video for 10 minutes followed by 5-10 minutes or more of discussion or reflection activities.
7. Debates: these resources might jump-start debates on new courses, programs, or initiatives.
8. Strategic Planning: these videos might be used to highlight new directions or potential areas related to online learning that a department, program, school, university, corporation, or organization might head.
9. Retreats: the contents of the V-PORTAL might find its way into faculty or administrator retreats.
10. Accomplishments/Strengths and Challenges/Weaknesses: organizations and institutions might compare the ideas in these videos to accomplishments or areas of strength as well as pending challenges or weaknesses that are in need of further development.

These possible uses are listed at my talk description site: http://www.trainingshare.com/keynotes.php#tasel.

Those wanting more ideas on how to use shared online video for instruction might read this paper that I wrote two years ago. This article details the theory from educational psychology behind the use of video anchors in instruction while also laying out 20 ways that they might be used from instructor-centered and learner-centered pedagogical approaches.

Bonk, C. J. (2008, March). YouTube anchors and enders: The use of shared online video content as a macrocontext for learning. Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) 2008 Annual Meeting, New York, NY.

Or this one from last year:
Bonk, C. J. (2009, October 5). Using Shared Online Video to Anchor Instruction: YouTube and Beyond, Faculty Focus, Magna Publications, Madison, WI.

If you are really enamored with shared online video like the V-PORTAL, I also have created a portal of more than 50 shared online video portals and resources. As you can see, I am quite excited by the use of online video in instruction.

Final side notes:
I hope that people find these video primers valuable. Each one begins with a commentary from me and then I fade into the right hand corner of the screen in a picture-in-picture presentation mode. I had a high definition camera in the room which utilized a Tandberg lecture capturing video system. Using file compression, the Tandberg system produced three different quality files--low, medium, and high resolution.

Each video pod was shot without direct editing, other than my assistant, Jake Enfield (a doctoral student in my program), adding the starting and ending screens and chopping off the extraneous beginnings and endings. For some videos, support people in the instructional consulting office at IU had to make adjustments to better sync my audio/voice with the videos. They also reviewed numerous takes of many of the video pods to help me select the right one. In effect, there were many people hours spent here for which I am highly appreciative. Still considering all the content, it was a fairly low budget, but highly effective. A great team! As noted below, there was some frustration at times, but we survived.

There is much content in the 27 shows. It took a long time to create them (1 year). It was like writing a book. So, yes, I am very glad to be done. Many days of filming…some with rolling brownouts and room temperatures of over 100 and others when I had the flu and a personal temperature of well over 100. Still other days I was losing my voice. But all-in-all, I think you will like the final product. As you will notice, I wear 27 different shirts and ties in these 27 different shoes; most of them are Jerry Garcia ties.

Ok, now, it's time to be primed...explore them, enjoy them, and perhaps expand on them.

Recap and Reminder: The V-PORTAL: Video Primers in an Online Repository for e-Teaching and Learning (Reminder of the 2 main sites): 1. more comprehensive site from IU Instructional Consulting Office with additional Web resources; or 2. the faster playing YouTube site that I created.

Important Acknowledgment: I want to acknowledge and publicly express thanks to the School of Education at Indiana University in Bloomington which funded this highly valuable and momentous production effort. In particular, the IU School of Education Instructional Consulting office and the Instructional Systems Technology (IST) Department played key roles in their planning, generation, and dissemination.

Permissions Note: You have permission to make a Web link to these videos, share information about these contents with others, or translate the contents to another language, as long as the contents (i.e., the movies) included here are used for non-profit educational purposes. As a courtesy to the Indiana University School of Education and myself (Dr. Curt Bonk, the host of the 27 video primers), please send me an e-mail at (cjbonk at indiana dot edu) or to the Instructional Consulting office in the IU School of Education at "ic@indiana.edu" to let us know how you are using these learning resources (i.e., the intended purpose). You might also state who is using them. Thank you.

November Rain?...This year, it is more of a flood of ed tech-related articles...some say 19; I say 20...you count.

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 05:23:00 +0000

Twenty Educational Technology-related Articles…from November 2010.

Introductory Statement for November Rain Blog Post: It's raining ed tech articles. Yes, once again, it is hard to keep up with all the news related to emerging technologies. Frustration kicks in. But will you kick back? I hope so. Now, for those 20 articles...

1. Want to know the state of online learning in K-12 education in the USA? Here is a brief summary of the highlights from this report.

Growth of online instruction continues, though unevenly, Staff Report, eSchool News, November 16, 2010.

2. Want more info? Here is the full K-12 online learning report filled with useful data and interesting charts. Long report at 150 pages but many useful visuals.

Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning: An Annual Review of Policy and Practice, Written by John Watson, Amy Murin, Lauren Vashaw, Butch Gemin, and Chris Rapp and colleagues at Evergreen Education Group, November 2010.

3. Want to know the state of online learning in higher education in the USA? Here is a brief summary of the findings.

Enrollment in Online Courses Increases at the Highest Rate Ever, Travis Kaya, Chronicle of Higher Education, November 16, 2010.

4. What more info from that report? Ok, here is the full report. It is not too long—30 pages. Good stuff in here. Many useful charts. I have been sharing them with my students and colleagues the past couple of days.

Class Differences: Online Education in the United States, 2010, I. Elaine Allen and Jeff Seaman, The Sloan Consortium, November 2010.

5. Are you interested in how the for-profit companies like Kaplan, ITT, and the University of Phoenix are responding to politicians and educators about things like student funding, quality, job placements and graduation rates, etc.? Well, not all that is in the next article. Sorry about that...but it is a start.

Kaplan's CEO Faces Tough Questions From Public-University Leaders, Paul Fain, Chronicle of Higher Education, November 16, 2010.

6. Here’s a recent article about an online learning research study at the University of Florida from the New York Times that I disagree with (and that had been reported earlier in eSchool News and the Chronicle of Higher Education) and wrote to the authors about. I think there was a one point difference between students who came to live lectures and those who only watched the videos. There were differences in the Hispanic population, however. But keep in mind that many of whom lacked quality access. It is difficult for me to get too excited about such individual studies like this when there are huge meta-analyses (albeit with problems) that show the opposite.

Live vs. Distance Learning: Measuring the Differences, Trip Gabriel, New York Times, November 5, 2010.

7. Interested in creativity coming from Korea like the new Galaxy Tab from Samsung? Or just interested in Korea like me? Read on.

Samsung cranks up creativity as it focuses on mobile Net, Roger Yu, USA Today, November 16, 2010.

8. Interested in the life of someone who writes papers for students so that they do not have to? Totally fascinating article. I loved reading this one and so too did my son Alex…a real eye opener! Much honesty in it--how professional writers help students cheat. The most popular article in the Chronicle of Higher Education this week. The author made $66,000 of income so far this year writing student term papers and master’s theses. True. And he is coming out of the closet with this article…well not quite…his true identity is not revealed.

The Shadow Scholar: The man who writes your students' papers tells his story, Ed Dante, Chronicle of Higher Education, November 12, 2010.

9. And interesting and spot on article is “Voodoo Education.” I think this article is nearly as important as the previous one--Trent Batson (whose work I have been reading for more than 2 decades—a technology and writing guru) discusses how teaching in higher education must begin to change and how the Web 2.0 can help. I appreciate that he refers to writing research from the 1980s (which is the stuff I was writing and reading about for my dissertation).

Voodoo Education: Why Are We Still in Its Spell, by Trent Batson, Campus Technology, November 17, 2010.

10. Not interested in Voodoo Education? Perhaps you are interested in Twitter use by age, gender, education, etc.? If so, this one’s for you.

Who are All of These Tweeple? By Brian Solis, November 10, 2010.

11. Or perhaps you are interested in how baby boomers are using social networking and other emerging technologies. CBS News and the USA Today have had a special this week on some of that.

Boomers Joining Social Media at Record Rate, Joshua Norman, CBS News, November 15, 2010.

12. Interested in the different ways the USA Today presents data on Baby Boomers—interactives, videos, pictures, articles, etc. See link below. Online news is no longer just text! Check this out.

Many articles and embedded videos in this special issue: Senior boom amid economic bust, Rick Hampson, USA TODAY, November 15, 2010.

13. How about the explosion of digital textbooks….is it a passing fad? Read this one.

As Textbooks Go DigitalCampus Bookstores May Go Bookless, Jeffrey R. Young, Chronicle of Higher Education, November 14, 2010.

14. Interested in color e-book readers that function a tad more like an iPhone than the Kindle? How about the new Nook from Barnes and Noble? Try this article from the USA Today earlier today…(which is yesterday by the time I actually post this).

New Nook Color is a page-turner with novel features, Edward C. Baig, USA Today, November 18, 2010.

15. Was FarmVille a pasing fad? Apparently, not. See this one also from the USA Today today. CityVille and FrontierVille are among us it seems…

Zynga sees new 'CityVille' building on 'FarmVille' success, Jon Swartz, USA Today, November 18, 2010.

16. Apparently, Facebook is adding features that add to functionality. The Empire called Facebook is now doing battle with the big boys…Microsoft, Google, Yahoo, etc.

Facebook Messages puts texts, chats, e-mails in one in-box, Edward C. Baig and Jon Swartz, USA Today, November 16, 2010.

Those wanting to hear from Zuckerberg himself might listen to this "Web 2.0 Summit 2010: Mark Zuckerberg, "A Conversation with Mark Zuckerberg"" that was posted to YouTube. Posted on November 17th (2 days ago), this video already has 133,000 viewers. It is 106 minutes long but it apparently has a redundant 10 minute part. A different version of this session is 56 minutes long and was just posted. The recent Web 2.0 Summit looks cool but I cannot afford ($4,000+ registration is a tad beyond my budget for conferences, but perhaps I should do it one time and see what it is like).

Participants in this video include:
1. Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook),
2. Tim O'Reilly; his bio (O'Reilly Media, Inc.),
3. John Battelle (Federated Media Publishing),
"A Conversation with Mark Zuckerberg"

17. So the secrets of Rosetta Stone are revealed. I had predicted its demise without Web premise (due to competition from resources like ChinesePod, LiveMocha, and Babbel). Just having airport kiosk and CD presence is no longer enough. But a bright CEO is leading to many useful changes and much growth at Rosetta Stone.

Rosetta Stone CEO wants to teach the world to talk, Charisse Jones, USA Today, November 8, 2010.

18. Then there are new applications for the iPad and iPhone for those who love music. First it was the flute and trombone, and now it is the fiddle.

Smule adds Magic Fiddle to its Ocarina and Magic Piano apps, Jefferson Graham, USA TODAY, November 10, 2010.

19. Ok, who is interested in Gesture-based learning? And what gesture are you making at me?

Gesture-Based Learning, Learning TRENDS by Elliott Masie - November 17, 2010.
#647 - Updates on Learning, Business & Technology. 55,195 Readers, The MASIE Center. Host: Video for Learning LAB & Seminar – January

20. For those who think that November is nuts with educational technology news, remember September and October were just as crazy. The Chronicle of Higher Education, in fact, ended October with a special report on the state of online learning. Many articles were in it including one filled with numbers.

Online Learning, Chronicle of Higher Education, Oct 31, 2010. (Online Learning: By the Numbers).

Recap: Well, that is 20 articles for you to peruse from November (ok, 19, with the 20th one from October 31st). Still, as you can see, it is a month with much happening. Much promise. Much excitement. And despite a criticism or controversy here or there, there can be no mistake that there is no turning back. No, none at all. Happy browsing and reading.

November Rain Blog Post Postscript....

Anita Vyas, a doc student from the Instructional Technology program at the University of Houston (one of my favorite stops), commented that I really only had 19 articles from November and one from the end of October. She is right. She recommended I add the following one to my list. This article discusses a new platform to make e-books more social--sharing snippets, ratings, comments, etc., with friends, perhaps in Facebook or Twitter.

21. Social Books Hopes to Make E-Reading Communa, Jenna Wortham, New York Times, November 11, 2010.

There is a company called "Rethink Books" that appears to be laying the groundwork for this area. Their "About" says: "We love books. And people. So we decided to bring the two together in new and engaging ways. We are passionate about the opportunity for new media technologies to provide a more dynamic reading experience. Books are as much about community as they are about content. So we develop software for consumers and tools for authors and publishers to build that community. By increasing the interaction between readers, authors, publishers, agents, and friends, more books get read and shared and we all win." This reminds me of LibraryThing for some reason.

Again, thanks to Anita for that "November Rain" Blog Post addition. Now let me add another short learning technology-related article, thereby getting me to 22 (or 21, depending on how you count, or if you are counting at all):

22. Interesting news…See below from the Wired Chronicle of HE today. Looks like USC is on the uptick--it plans to create an Open Lab on Future of Digital Media. How cool is that? Way cool I think! Henry Jenkins moved from MIT to USC last year and is bringing in some funding/monies (most likely for things like emerging media studies, social networking/digital media research, teen identity issues, interdisciplinary studies, participatory learning (Web 2.0), privacy issues, applications of existing media over technology development, etc.). Research that people like Mimi Ito and dana boyd do.

Southern Cal to Open Lab on Future of Digital Media, Wired Chronicle of Higher Education, Josh Keller, Chronicle of Higher Education, November 18, 2010.

Those wondering how I keep up with the educational technology, learning technology, new media, and online learning news, should read my blog post from last month. "Going Techno-Bonkers: 18+ (6-6-6) Ways Slightly Crazy People Keep Up With Online Learning and Technology Trends."

Any more rain coming? I hope not.

The Question of Convergence vs. Personalization and Other Recent Talks, Events, and Activities

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 19:15:00 +0000

Context: I get many emails each day asking my opinion on technology and learning trends. Such requests have come more often since my World is Open book came out last year.

This morning, Dr. Julie Giuliani, Dean of External Affairs, Technology Strategy and Innovation Open Campus, Florida State College at Jacksonville, asked me the following questions this morning:

Question: "I’ve been gathering trend prediction information from the Gartner Group. One of the predictable trends that you mentioned in your book was the idea of convergence of technology. According to the latest research, personalized technology is a more predominant theme. Any comments????"

(Note: I normally do not post my responses, but since I have not blogged in a month, it is time. I do plan for a much more major blog announcement in the next day or 2 so stay tuned.)

My response: Convergence makes sense since it allows us to more seamlessly enter and move back and forth between the world of education--professional life...and the world of entertainment/family/culture--personal life. And those 2 worlds, in effect, become one world called living.

Also less to tote around with convergence. Greater accessibility to learning content that one can manipulate.

The emphasis on personalized learning makes this both more important and more apparent. Are we there yet? No....not even close to personalized learning environments. Are we going to get there in 2 years? No. 5 years? Closer. 10 years? Closer still. I think we are at least 10 years from the idealized worlds of PLEs that we hear about with access to life portfolios and ones likes and dislikes and learning preferences and so on. perhaps 15 or 20. Why do I say this? PLEs was a theme in the UK 4 years ago when I was there. Have we made much progress since then? I think not.

So convergence (technology side) will happen quicker than personalization (pedagogy/learning side). Are you surprised by that? I am not. The money side is on technology today. Eventually, companies will see 7 or 8 billion people who need a personalized learning platform and then they will design one. I think governments and non profits might have a huge say in this as well. And then some teenage kid will design something that we all have been asking for.

Ok, enough predictions for now. Just thought I would share it. On to other things.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

New Conference Keynotes: Saw Thomas Friedman speak at Indiana University (IU) Auditorium on Thursday night November 4th. He was great. Both my son, Alex Bonk, and I enjoyed it a lot. Friedman got me thinking about new keynotes I might create as did Paul Kim from Stanford last month in Orlando at the E-learn conference. I got back from Kentucky Convergence 2010 keynote just in time for Friedman's talk. I was hoping to chat with him after but he was fully booked it seems.

Below are my three of most recent keynotes. The first one I gave back in September for students in the educational technology at Hanyang Cyber University in Seoul, Korea (high res, medium res, low res; and the color PDF of my slides. The second one I have last week in Kentucky Conference 2010 conference (click here for a color PDF of my keynote and my 2-part masterclass workshop on blended learning and shared online video immediately after). The third one I will give tonight to people at the Northern Territories E-Learning Event in Darwin, Australia (Click here for a color PDF of my slides for tonight). I will be coming in 3 hours from now via Elluminate from my home office. Cool.

1. "E-Learning Past, Present, and Future: The Players, the Projects, and the Untold Possibilities"

Abstract: E-learning has exploded in every aspect our lives during the past decade. This explosion, however, comes on the heels of decades of experimentations with learning technologies to deliver education to the masses. Radio, television, correspondence, audiotapes, computer-assisted instruction, and many other delivery formats have had their day. Many of those promoting such technologies had visions of teaching and learning in the twenty-first century. And many of their visions are now coming true. This talk will reveal some of the past of e-learning while positioning us in the present with dozens of interesting and exciting examples of what is possible today. Naturally, it will end with a discussion of the future and what technologies to be on the lookout for. Across the past, present, and future of e-learning, Dr. Bonk will capture your imaginations with stories of people who were the builders of this new age of learning. We may be members of the "Learning Century" now, but it took the monumental efforts of hundreds of key players in thousands of interesting projects to open the learning world that when convergence strikes will bring us millions of exciting learning possibilities across the globe. This talk will highlight dozens of the key players, including some household names and others you will now appreciate. What’s more, anyone in the audience has the chance to join their ranks and change the world.

2. “I am Not Content: The Future of Education Must Come Today”

Abstract. Look left, look right, look back, and then look dead-on straight ahead…what do you see? Of course, the air is filled with e-learning opportunities as well as talk of educational transformation. So much news. So much progress. Each second of the day, dozens of learners discover shiny learning nuggets previous unknown. Each week, thousands of schools, universities, corporations, and government offices announce strategic plans for e-learning. Every month, hundreds of new online courses, programs, and certificates are offered. Year after year, research reports and meta-analyses indicate that there are undeniable positive benefits of online teaching and learning. The world of technology-enhanced learning, is looking up, up, up. But wait a minute. It is no time to be content. It is not time to relax and just let the “inevitable” future unfold in front of our eyes. No! We must all jump in and help build the changes we want to see. Besides, there are hundreds of millions of people who cannot wait. They need access to a more free and open education today--one with high quality content, interactive and engaging tasks, and motivating technology use. This is a land of where nature (i.e., technology) meets nurture (i.e., pedagogy). It is time you joined in to build the future. Those attending this talk should be cautioned to check their hearts and credits cards at the door since this will be an emotionally-packed talk intended to make you act.

3. "Stretching the Edges of Technology-Enhanced Training: From Tinkering to Tottering to Totally Extreme Learning"

Abstract. Some insist. Some resist. Others persist. Such is state of online learning today. But what is highly resistible for some is often passionately irresistible for others. Many are content to tinker with blended forms of learning. They dip their toes into the technology change movement by embedding shared online videos, simulations, timelines, collaborative groups, and open access articles in their courses. Others enter deeper waters and push toward the edges of what is possible. Their classes are teeter-tottering on the brink of transformation. Such instructors hand over the keys to their learners and let them drive for a bit. These risk taking instructors might enjoy reading a learner-designed wikibook, listening to a student generated podcast show, or watching the results of an international video competition. And then there are those who find themselves at the extreme edges of this learning planet. They might tap into virtual explorers, artists, archeologists, and adventurers to excite their learners. It is in such courses that scientific discoveries appear live. Mobile, virtual, and telepresence technologies become the new norm. It is time to stretch toward the edges of learning from those of us tinkering on the shores to those whose learning approaches are tottering in new directions and even landing in totally extreme or alien lands. This talk will showcase examples from all three worlds—the world of the tinkerer, the totterer, and the totally extreme. Which world will you find yourself?

All my talk descriptions are posted online.

Recent Radio Interview: In addition to the new keynotes, I was recently on the radio. On November 1st, I was interviewed for the show, New Horizons with Bob Kustra, President, Boise State University. I had a blast. So much fun to be on Bob's show. He had recently mentioned my World is Open book in his state of the University address. So this was sorta like a follow-up. And, accordingly, the topic was “The World Is Open: How Web Technology is Revolutionizing Education,” Boise State Public Radio (KBSX 91.5).

The show aired on November 5 and 7, 2010. I think it sounded pretty darn good. Bob is a great interviewer and the show is thoughtfully arranged by his producer, Janelle Brown. That is a wondrous combination. Needless to say, I had a lot of fun as I tend to do on radio. Perhaps have a listen. It is a 30 minute show. I think it is 13-14 megs so it will not take too long to download.
Available: http://boisestatepublicradio.org/newhorizons/NH10.11.05.mp3

Hope you enjoy the radio show. And I hope the talk goes well tonight to Australia. More soon.

Going Techno-Bonkers: 18+ (6-6-6) Ways Slightly Crazy People Keep Up With Online Learning and Technology Trends

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 22:18:00 +0000

Going Techno-Bonkers. What’s going on? I am going “coo coo clock” trying to keep up with the daily press related to learning technologies. September was just a blur with specials on educational technology and e-learning in Education Week (on e-learning in K-12 schools), eCampus News (on digital books), the Chronicle of Higher Education (special reports on e-learning in Asia), and the New York Times. And then there were various STEM grants and projects announced from the federal government and others (see video in eSchool News and summary of STEM initiative). I am literally going more Bonkers than my name in seemingly futile attempts to record it all. Apparently, everyone around me is feeling it too.

On the one hand, it is comforting not being the only one. On the other hand, it is a sign that there is much happening today in Web-based learning that few people are aware of, let alone taking advantage of. We are fast becoming a race of people that is highly ignorant of the educational possibilities on or around the Web that can transform each and every one of us. I believe that Web-based learning technology can nudge, push, pull out, elevate, or rouse to life new learning skills and competencies and ultimately human development or growth levels which can position one for enhanced educational and workplace situations. I also believe that we have yet to discover the outer edges of human potential. The coming decades will include many inroads by human development researchers. But not unless we can make sense of all that is happening and make plans for the possible.

Sure I have some lofty goals and ideals. Most around me are content with technology subsistence goals. They just want to know what is currently happening…what is emerging….and what is new. During the past two weeks, I have become alarmed by the number of people asking me how I keep on top of all the technology trends. Am I the only one? Certainly not—George Siemens, Stephen Downes, Elliot Masie, Jay Cross (and his Internet Time Blog), Will Richardson, and countless others do an excellent job of gathering and distilling all the educational technology news you ever wanted to read about. Are they freaks of nature or should we expect all humans do likewise. I mean, if educational opportunities exist today that did not a decade ago, certainly we should want to find ways to track them and take advantage of them. Perhaps I am wrong. But perhaps too many people are mired in a reality of yesteryear.

The Question. I was speaking at Houston Community College on Friday October 1st for an E-Learning Colloquium Conference. Well, this was the exact topic that I asked about by several people after my morning and afternoon sessions ended. “Dr. Bonk, how do you keep up with it all?” asked one gentleman. And then another younger guy 2 rows from the front had the same general question. And yet another. And another. “Houston, we have a problem,” I thought to myself. But this is not simply a male question or a community college one or restricted to the friendly people of Houston, Texas.

Truth be told, females and those outside community college settings also want to know what is happening. Everyone has questions as they are being asked to do something different from before (e.g., teach blended or fully online courses). My highly inquisitive and always learning friend, Dr. Youmei Liu from the University of Houston, was an invited guest in the audience at the Houston Community College event and asked me a similar question after the day ended as we were exiting the building. I turned to her and smiled and said to her, "Youmei, you might want to read my TravelinEdMan blog in a week or so." And I have another sharp-minded colleague at the University of Houston who asked me this very question the week before my visit after I sent her some information on new STEM grant initiatives. When responding to her email, I had the initial inkling for a blog post like this one. So I must thank my highly valued friends at the University of Houston as well as the many fabulous people I met at Houston Community College who indirectly (i.e., without their knowledge) pushed me to make this blog post. A huge thank you to each one of you...smile if you were one of those people.

Seems everyone wants to keep up but has difficulty doing so. Time is a factor as is general knowledge of what online newsletters, newspapers, magazines, reports, blog posts, and journals to subscribe to. I guess that is why people read edited books and blog posts like this one, attend conferences, Webinars, summits, and institutes, and listen to podcasts or books in their cars--such events and resources enable one to catch up quickly.

Of course, this question I was asked of how I keep up is not restricted to the people of Houston or even of Texas at large (large as it is). I think many people want better ways to track and make sense of technology changes. In fact, the following morning at 8 am I was presenting via Webcam from the ZaZa hotel in Houston to people from Rondout Valley Central School District in Accord, New York and SUNY Ulster Community College people (they have a partnership). They also expressed concerns about keeping up. Four days later (i.e., this week Wedneesday), administrators attending the Compass Knowledge Summit on E-Learning Innovation asked me the same question after each of talk I gave, including my "Flat World Swung Open" keynote (based on my World is Open book) and various breakout talks. The day before (Tuesday October 5th), I had similar questions from doctoral students and faculty at Florida State University during a brief 4-5 hour visit to Tallahassee. Of course, I will likely get this question during the coming week when I visit St. John’s, Newfoundland for the Edge conference 2010 (e-Learning: The Horizon and Beyond) and the following week when back in Orlando for the E-Learn 2010 conference.

As I said, some people are swimming in shallow waters when it comes to online learning and others are going in much deeper. Just where are you? I realize that times are tough, not just economically but educationally...I mean, how does one attempt to keep up with each wave of announcements and reports designated as important to read? At the same time, this begs the question...Do we expect an educated citizenry to keep up with the plethora of educational opportunities in front of them? I do! Definitely, we must. So what do I do to keep up? In the paragraphs below I share some of my routine (if you can call it that) and after that I provide a series of links to K-12, higher education, and corporate resources.

My routine. Back up a second...During the early part of this decade, I used to wait for a weekly email from Judy Brown at the Academic Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Colab which was in partnership with the Department of Defense. At the time, my good friend, Dr. Robert (Bob) Wisher, headed up all the ADL initiatives in DC. Judy was housed in Madison, Wisconsin which is where I went to graduate school. I used to hate getting these emails and love them since I knew it would take an hour or 2 to digest the content links coming from each one. At the same time, they were rich with fascinating stories and important updates. Unfortunately, Judy retired. So now I must find my sources through other means. See below for some of it anyway.

Each morning I skim through the Wired Chronicle of Higher Education (5-10 minutes—it is a daily email with links), Inside Higher Education (1-2 minutes—another email with links), and the USA Today (10-15 minutes). Each afternoon, eSchool News comes out via email link and sometimes eCampus News (also email links). The others are intermittent. No set times. I often learn something from Elliott Masie and his Learning Trends e-newsletter which comes out 1-2 times a week. I sometimes skim through Wired Magazine, Fast Company, the New York Times, the Washington Post, etc. People like John Naisbitt (of Megatrends, Mind Set!, and Re-inventing the Corporation fame) scan through many more sources than I do. People like Naisbitt and Alvin Toffler are amazing in the amount of information that they can synthesize and the relevance of their results.

Eighteen Places to Look (yes 18, and I like it!). Listed below are 18 possible sources, about 15 of which I subscribe to. They include articles, magazines, and newsletters, K-12, higher education, and corporate training arenas. So as not to ignore anyone, I have listed 6 for K-12, 6 for higher education, and 6 for corporate training. Ok, that is “6-6-6”—hopefully this is a good Omen; well in a few hours, it will be 10-10-10. Perhaps I need to list 4 more of each below before the clock strikes midnight.

K-12 Resources (some news from these also relates to higher education):
1. eSchool News; Free subscription.

2. Edutopia; free weekly newsletter.

3. Education Week (Note: I do not use this one often; except for the annual online learning report); Free stuff.

4. GetIdeas.org login from Cisco; Get Ideas education; to register for a free account.

5. THE Journal; Subscribe to print format; subscribe to digital format.

6. EducationalNews.org (both K-12 and higher education news; claims to be #1).

Note: I have been interviewed several times by Michael Shaughnessy, for articles posted to this site. For example, this one on educational technology leadership, July 6, 2009. And also this article on e-learning in Asia (with my colleagues, Tom Reynolds and Mimi Lee), January 27, 2010, EducationNews. These are more higher education related articles than K-12.

Higher Education Resources (some news from these also relates to K-12 education):
7. Campus Technology; Subscribe to magazine for free; Other newsletter subscriptions.

8. Chronicle of Higher Education (Note: some articles are free and some are for subscribers only); Chronicle of Higher Education Wired Campus; Subscribe to Wired Campus (I think this is free to subscribe to but not sure since I am a paying member of the Chronicle of HE). Note that sometimes the afternoon email from the Chronicle is as interesting as the morning version.

9. eCampus News; Free subscription.

10. Faculty Focus from my friends at Magna Publications; Several free reports; Faculty Focus free e-newletter; Magna, which is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin (home of my alma mater--UW-Madison), also has tons of conference, Webinars, and other types of online professional development experiences (I know since I have done a few for them in the past...great people, great learning).

Note: For K-12 people, Magna Publications also has Inside the School and many free K-12 related reports.

11. Inside Higher Education (online and free); Daily email updates are free.

12. University Business Magazine; to subscribe. Note that you can subscribe to the digital or print edition or both. This is one that I only occastional read online but I subscribed to while writing this blog post.

Corporate Training Resources (much from these sources also relates to higher education):
13. eLearning Guild; Subscribe (Note: membership options from free to $$$; They offer various publications including free e-newsletter is called the eLearning Insider. They also offer some free Webinars, reports, and a job board.

14. Chief Learning Officer magazine; free subscription.

15. Learning TRENDS online newsletter from Elliott Masie and the Masie Center: Free to subscribe (Note: it is highly popular; in fact, there are more than 55,000 readers at the present time. Personally, I learn a few highly valuable things from it each month or so.). The Masie center also has many free research reports (such as this one from CLO in 2010), videos, podcasts (including a recent one with Daniel Pink, author of "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us"), and an annual conference called "Learning" which is held in Orlando in October. Learning 2010 is coming up.

16. Training Magazine (homepage and newsletters are free but not the magazine); Training Magazine Events; and free e-newsletters (includes Training Tech Talk, formerly Online Learning News & Reviews:

17. The International Society of Performance Improvement; and Performance Xpress Newsletter (which is free).

18. HR Magazine from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) which is not free; various free e-newsletters.

Final Thoughts. There are also organizational and non-profit publications, conferences, and e-newsletters in this space like those found at ASTD, AACE, Sloan Consortium (Sloan-C) Publications and Conferences (I love their annual survey reports), EDUCAUSE (e.g., their annual Horizons Report predicting future technology directions in education; e.g., Horizons 2010), Flat World Knowledge, Classroom 2.0 from Steve Hargadon (many interesting Webinars and guest interviews posted here), Mission to Learn, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, and Academic Impressions (subscribe to free newsletter). And there are open access journals and magazines that I often peruse like eLearn Magazine, EDUCAUSE Quarterly and EDUCAUSE Review, the Journal of Interactive Online Learning, the International Review of Research on Open and Distance Learning (IRRODL), and International Journal of Instructional Technology & Distance Learning. Those wanting more journal types of articles on educational technology and media should look at my mega-list of journals and magazines in this field at my TrainingShare.com site. Swimming yet?

Not had enough? Perhaps you are moving north to Canada...now what do you read? How about University Affairs from Canada (http://www.universityaffairs.ca/); they interviewed me earlier in the year about e-books. Not overwhelmed yet? Ok, there is also MindShare Learning Report from Canada which is more K-12. I did a Skype interview with Mitch Townsend from MindShare this morning, in fact, for their November 2010 e-publication. Of course, if you are in the UK, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Finland, Brazil, Korea, China, etc., you would have other sources. I will stay with North America sources for the purposes of this one blog post. Too much to document already.

So are you going Bonkers too? Why not? Too much. Too much. Too much! Perhaps the above list will help. I hope so. Perhaps some will focus on K-12 sources and others corporate or higher education ones. Of course, there are also non-profit, government, and military resources.

Want to keep up with learning technology changes? I have tried to get much of this into my fall 2010 doctoral seminar syllabus on the open learning world and the Web 2.0. You might explore this syllabus...but caution, it is 43 pages long. Everything is a hot link to open access articles and online resources (i.e., it is like one-stop shopping for those interested in the online world). Note that I am teaching this course live this fall but plan to teach it online in the spring of 2011. Suggestions always welcome.

As is clear, there is much choice for you now. As the Grail Knight said in the 1989 movie, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, “choose wisely.” If you do, WE-ALL-LEARN. The world is now open to you!

Tracking the Technology Trail of Jeffrey Young: Chronicling Korean Educational Technology Today and Tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:37:00 +0000

Educational Technology News from Korea and Jeffrey Young of the Chronicle of Higher Education:

As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I have been tracking the progress of Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer with the Chronicle of Higher Education as he makes his way across Asia this month. He started with Singapore at the start of the month and then China the following week and last week he was in Korea. He is now in India. I helped connect Jeffrey to some of my friends in each country so I have had a special interest in this trip. You can follow his trip and read his blog posts here:
http://chronicle.com/blog/College2inAsia/37/

The Korea portion is of particular interest to me since I have visited Korea several times including a two-week trip last year (12-13 talks in 5 cities I think). I also have a son from Korea and dozens and dozens of former students, colleagues, and friends there. Another factor in my curiosity is my recent research on blogging in Korea higher education with Professor Inae Kang from Kyung-hee University in Seoul as well as blended learning in corporate settings with several former students.

We all know that Korea is sorta of bellweather country in terms of technology in education. Let’s see what Jeffrey has found out in his trip to Korea. While there, my long-time friend, Dr. Okhwa Lee from Chungbuk National University took him to the E-Learning Week conference in Seoul. My friend Dr. Yeonwook Im from Hanyang Cyber University also helped out.

From his experience, Jeff has written 1 main article and 4 somewhat shorter blog posts (or mini-articles). Each has a little different slice of Korean culture and uses of technology in it. I expect to see the first one in the physical copy of the Chronicle of Higher Education that comes out next week. I review the five below. Note that this is not the order in which Jeffrey wrote them.

1. The first one below discusses the emergence of cyber universities in Korea. Jeffrey interviews people from Hanyang Cyber U which hopes to be the top e-learning university in the world someday. They are expanding from a Korean student base in an attempt to attract students from around the world. Interesting comments and perspectives online learning in Korea are shared. This is the longest and perhaps most informative of the five articles. My friend, Dr. Yeonwook Im, is interviewed in it. Hooray for Yeonwook!

Article #1. S. Korean Colleges Aim to Prosper in Worldwide Online Education (Sept 21, 2010), Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education.

2. The second article discusses Korean researchers like Mun Sang Kim, director of the Center for Intelligent Robotics at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, who are developing robots to help teach English there. These robots are expensive at first but will come down in price. Apparently, some robots will function as English training supplements, whereas in other cases they will be the primary teacher. I know many people teaching English in Korea who could lose their jobs if they are successful. But this will take time. Watch the video on this one if nothing else. The article also mentions that with the shortage of English teachers today, they will have teachers in Philippines providing support on demand like a call center.

Article #2. Another Benefit of Robot Teachers: No 'Moral Problems' (Sept 15, 2010), Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education.

3. The third article is a real interest area of mine. It concerns the digital book project in Korea which has been discussed widely. Originally, the Korean government wanted free digital textbooks in K-12 education by 2012. They started experimenting in like 100 schools in 2009. The digital books come embedded with hyperlinks, study aids, simulations, animations, practice or review questions, activities and exercises, online dictionaries and other resources materials, etc. Well, as this article points out, there are stability, cost, logistical, and performance issues that remain key problems. At the same time, there are many positive outcomes already being experiences. I believe that with this one project, Korea will become a world leader in global and online education. The entire world, in fact, will be rotating from physical textbooks to digital ones during the coming decades. This is one project and place which is going to help inform the world of where to go and what to do. Read this article. And then read other ones on this topic. Week 3 of my fall World is Open (i.e., Web 2.0) syllabus has dozens of such articles.

Article #3. What South Korean Schoolchildren Can Teach Colleges About E-Textbooks (Sept 21, 2010), Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education.

4. In the fourth article, Jeffrey Young discusses interesting whiteboard, projection, cleaning, and other technology from the Korean E-Learning Conference at Coex in Seoul last week (http://www.elearningasia.net/_eng/_main/main.php). While this is interesting, I was hoping to hear more from the scholars and researchers presenting at the conference since I could not attend. I also wanted to see some pictures of my friends and colleagues. Still, it was valuable to see a few of the emerging technologies showcased there.

Article #4. At South Korean E-Learning Conference, Interactivity Is Big (Very Big) (Sept 17, 2010), Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education.

5. The fifth and perhaps final one discusses the issue of cyber-addictions and how the Korean government is coping. Of course, many people are interested in this topic given the ubiquitous nature of Web technology in Korea. In fact, I heard the word “ubiquitous” at every stop I made in Korea back in May 2009—K-12, higher ed, corporate, and government settings. I also discuss this issue in the World is More Open e-book I am working on. Still, I think I would have targeted some other related topic like why everyone refers to Seoul as the “ubiquitous” city or how the pervasiveness of technology helps or hinders learning.

Article #5. South Korean Government May Ask Colleges to Help Fight Cyberaddiction (Sept 16, 2010), Jeffrey Young, Senior Technology Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education.

Jeffrey is in India now. So I am not sure if he will write another piece on Korea or not. I will let you know if I see one.

In other news: World is Open in Paperback and Indiana Public Radio:
World Is Open book being now translated to Chinese and Arabic. And, I just found out it will come out in paperback in June 2011. This is very cool news since I was told a couple of years ago by my publisher that coming out in paperback does not happen that often. First, the book must sell some copies. I guess I bought enough of my own books to justify it. Smile. On a high now! It already is available in hardcover as well as for the Kindle, as a PDF, on the iPhone and other mobile formats, e-book, and many other book formats (scroll down).

For the Chinese version, the publisher is East China Normal University. The translator is Dr. Jiao Jianli, Professor of Educational Technology, Director of Future Education Research Centre, Deputy Dean of School of Information Technology in Education; South China Normal University. He has created a book blog and Twitter-like feed on it. I wish him well in the translation process. We have been corresponding nearly every day lately, mostly so I can explain my sometimes limited attempts at humor and word play.

Finally, yesterday I was asked to be on Indiana Public radio (WFIU) at noon EST this Friday, September 24th with the Chancellor of the new Western Governors University Indiana (Allison Barber), the Chancellor of IU East (Dr. Nasser Paydar, and Danny Callison who is the IU Dean of IU Continuing Studies. This will be a call in on online learning. It should be quite fun and informative. I saw Dr. Paydar last month when presenting at IU East. It is our fastest growing campus, due mainly to online learning. He presented some fascinating data at lunch after my morning keynote. A very energetic and engaging man.

Listen in and perhaps ask us some questions.

Hope you found the update informative. I actually have about 40 new articles in the last week alone. In addition to the technology in Asia series from Jeffrey Young, there are special issues from Education Week on e-learning, The New York Times (read some of these!), Campus Technology articles on e-books, etc.. So much to share. I am just sharing the 5 articles on Korea for now.

Good luck to Jeffrey Young as he ends his trip in Delhi and Banglore during the coming week. And congrads to the Chronicle for sending him on such a venture.

Reporters, Reporters, Reporters: Wikipedia for Credit, Western Governors U in Indiana, Redesigning College for Collab, and The World is Open in Boise

noreply@blogger.com (Curt Bonk) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 23:11:00 +0000

Yes school has been starting up during the past few weeks. But for me, there has been lots going on with reporters lately. This stuff goes in streaks, of course. Sometimes a couple of reporters will call me the same day and then other times there may be months or more without.

For instance, during late July and much of August, I have been talking to Jeffrey Young from the Chronicle of Higher Education about places and people in Asia he might this month when he is there. Jeffrey is visiting Singapore, China, Korea, and India. Like my recent book, A Special Passage through Asia E-Learning (also found here), Jeff is making such a journey in a physical sense. It seems like a fun (and important) trip. He has already been posting some of his experiences in Singapore.

As a second example, this past Thursday I received an email from Steve Kolowich, a writer for Inside Higher Education. He was under a tight deadline for a story about a new initiative of the Wikimedia Foundation. It involves asking professors to agree to integrate the creation and editing of Wikipedia entries into the assigned tasks of their course syllabi. They started with the recruitment of roughly nine professors from fairly high profile institutions such as Harvard, Georgetown, GWU, Indiana, Syracuse. They hope to expand this in the spring semester. For mroe details, one can go to this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_United_States_Public_Policy

Steven Kolowich, Wikipedia for Credit, Inside Higher Education, September 7, 2010. Available: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/09/07/wikipedia

Here is the resulting quote from me in the article:
“This is exciting to be sure!” wrote Curtis J. Bonk, a professor of instructional systems technology at Indiana and author of The World Is Open: How Web Technology is Revolutionizing Education, in an e-mail to Inside Higher Ed. “That is a key part the mission of all of us in a higher education setting — to generate as well as disseminate knowledge in different disciplines,” Bonk wrote. “Given that Wikipedia is now central to the knowledge dissemination process as well as the linkages between content and fields, such partnerships make sense.”

-------------------------------------------------------------
As you can see, this has me excited about the student empowerment possibilities; especially given my research on wikibooks. My response to Steven was much much longer, however. For those who are curious, my full response is below.

Steven asked me 2 questions for his article:

Steven's First Question.
1. What do you make of this?

My Response:

There are several reasons for this:
1. Authenticity: It is an authentic class task. There is extensive discussion in higher education today for more authentic and engaging tasks. Millions of people use Wikipedia. Students know this. Professors know this. The professor does not have to design an assignment that has the “potential” to be used. Authentic and relevant tasks are motivating to students.

2. Value: As part of the authenticity of the task, there is value. In conducting Wikipedia page editing, they KNOW it will find use. Any work expanded will have huge payoffs. No doubt there. We all want others to find our work of value or use. Such a task—even a minor edit on a Wikipedia page—can give value and meaning to one’s life. And it is something a student or instructor can discuss with friends and family members (unlike most academic work). When that occurs, so, too, does enhanced self-efficacy, respect, and an appreciation for the work of others.

3. Collaboration: In the midst of all this, students are learning content that is current and doing so with others who have similar professional interests. This task is not just authentic and of high value, it often involves a team of people; most of whom one will never meet. The fact that they are collaborating on an online resource like a Wikipedia page is enough justification for professors to adopt this task in their classes. Students have to discuss and negotiate content, make decisions, share opinions and resources that they find to back up any changes in the content, contact other experts, engage in project management, etc.

4. Learning: In the midst of such tasks, they learn the material at a deeper and richer level. And they can reuse what they have created in other courses or projects. They can begin to realize the value of shared online content, knowledge management, collaborative problem solving, etc.

5. Creation, Refinement, and Changeability of Knowledge: Students who edit a Wikipedia page or wikibook will appreciate not just the refinement of knowledge, but also the fact that as research in an area expands and knowledge bases grow, what was held as truth one year or decade might not be in the next. In many ways, knowledge is socially constructed. Those who help in the quality assurance of Wikipedia pages will play a role in that social construction process as well as come to appreciate it. They will realize that there are always choices made in knowledge representation, organization, and dissemination.

Dr. Mimi Miyoung Lee at the University of Houston and I had students in our learning theory classes a few years ago critique chapters of a wikibook on learning theories created at the University of Georgia, then they edited one on learning theories that was initially created at Indiana Wesleyan University, and then they created their own wikibook on "The Practice of Learning Theories." Dr. Nari Kim, now assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh, did her dissertation on part of this project. What was important is that instead of reading and lecturing as a way to obtain knowledge, they were editors, reviewers, and creators of it. It was a unique process. As we note in a recent book chapter, this was not particularly easy to coordinate across institutions; see Bonk, C. J., Lee, M. M., Kim, N., & Lin, M.-F. (2009, December). The tensions of transformation in three cross-institutional wikibook projects. The Internet and Higher Education, 12(3-4), 126-135. In a recent book chapter, we offer much instructional advice to those attempting such tasks: Bonk, C. J., Lee, M. M., Kim, N., & Lin, M.-F. (2010). Wikibook transformations and disruptions: Looking back twenty years to today. In H. H. Yang & S. C-Y. Yuen (Eds.), Collective intelligence and e-learning 2.0: Implications of Web-Based Communities and Networking (pp. 127-146). Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.)

6. Content Creators: Such a project lies at the heart of the land of the Web 2.0. Students are no longer passive consumers of information, but, instead assume roles of content creators, editors, and remixers of it. Students participate in learning or contribute to a growing knowledge base. Such an approach springs to life a thirst of learning and motivates students to understand a discipline at a deeper level than previously possible. Clay Shirky from NYU discusses this in his new book Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. We are living in a unique times—this project from the Wikimedia Foundation is just one way in which it we know we entered a new age of learning; I call it “the learning century.”

7. Training of Future Instructors: This is a project that exemplifies problem-based learning. As such, students in public policy (or other) courses who engage in it, appreciate the empowering aspects of such a task. There should be extensive transfer to their own classrooms after they graduate. In effect, we need more such projects and partnerships with places like the Wikimedia Foundation. Hopefully, this is just a start.

8. International Service: Students as well as faculty members are providing an international service. Given that, this has the potential to explode. It might soon become as common to be a Wikipedia ambassador as one who presents at national and international conferences or reviews papers, agrees to be an external reviewer of dissertations, and writes recommendation letters. In fact, one might be justified in claiming that service on a few Wikipedia pages is more important than giving 2-3 papers at well known international conferences. Think about it!

9. Mentoring: A form of mentorship or cognitive apprenticeship is a stated goal of this project . My colleagues, Grace Lin from the University of Hawaii, Mimi Lee from the University of Houston, and Suthiporn Sajjapanrov, one of my doctoral students here at IU, and I have been researching the support structures in the sister project to Wikipedia; namely, Wikibooks (See: Sajjapanroj, S., Bonk, C. J., Lee, M, & Lin M.-F. (2008, Spring). A window on Wikibookians: Surveying their statuses, successes, satisfactions, and sociocultural experiences. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 7(1), 36-58. Available in HTML and (as a PDF). Despite numerous book project successes, there are many challenges and frustrations experienced at the Wikibooks website. Few book projects actually find completion. There is limited mentoring and support and few tools to help in the planning and completion of a wikibook. Of course, writing a wikibook is much more difficult than generating a page for Wikipedia. Expert mentoring and other forms of support that are promoted by this new initiative were highlighted. That is distinctive and definitely needed.

10. Expert Review: Millions of Wikipedia pages have been crafted in English alone but many call into question the review process of a Wikipedia page or any content generated on a wiki. This new initiative is a process for beginning peer review. It could start in public policy today and extend to tens of other disciplines by the spring of 2011 and more than 100 within a year or two. Imagine if there were thousands of professors teaching master’s and doctoral courses who attempted such a task. This is a key benefit for the Wikimedia Foundation but also for all users of its content.

11. Communities of Practice: When involved in creating or refining a corpus like Wikipedia, we enter into an established community. There already are people have “watch pages” over the content. This project will bring in more such experts to the review process. Students and new Wikipedians will be apprenticed into this community.

12. Time has Come: Given the millions of people who use Wikipedia, it makes sense to partner with those in higher education. That is a key part the mission of all of us in a higher education setting—to generate as well as disseminate knowledge in different disciplines. Given that Wikipedia is now central to the knowledge dissemination process as well as the linkages between content and fields, such partnerships are make sense. How many thousands or millions of K-12 teachers, college instructors, and corporate, government, and military trainers will find Wikipedia content more credible in a few years if this movement finds traction and grows.

Steven's Second Question.
Is it something that you think could actually gain traction, or do you think professors will decide that authoring and editing Wikipedia pages is not worth their or their students' time?

My Response:
Definitely! I mean, here is one of the most used information resources in the history of humankind. Why not elevate it? Why not play a role in it? Why not become authors and editors of knowledge, instead of just passive consumers of it? Some graduate level classes are already creating textbooks for those in the developing world as part of the Global Text Project which originated at the University of Georgia (http://globaltext.terry.uga.edu/). If book creation is catching on, certainly Wikipedia editing will too—it is much easier to perform a Wikipedia editing project in a 15 week course than write a complete book or book chapter.

Keep in mind that if this is already happening in public policy, it will soon extend beyond it. Such activities will also make sense in schools of education. And without a doubt, medical and business schools will also find such projects attractive. Students can review and extend their learning, engage in new forms of collaboration, appreciate the digital world as a source for information resources, learn mentoring and tutoring skills, have a voice in the knowledge promoted within one’s field of study, etc. Wow, this is exciting to be sure!

...Ok, what do you all think of my response to Steven Kolowich from Inside Higher Education? Do you agree or disagree? Take a look at his full article (Wikipedia for Credit) which has mostly highly positive quotes from those he contacted. Then read the comments--they tend to not be so positive. So what do you think now?

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In addition to the above, during the past weeks, I have been quoted in several otherr places (as I said, it goes in steaks):

First of all, I was interviewed by Jamal Eric Watson from Diverse Issues in Higher Education in the following article, “Indiana Launches Western Governors Program.” In Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, August 9, 2010. Available: http://diverseeducation.com/article/14023/indiana-launches-western-governors-university-program.html. Jamal wanted my take on this news as the state of Indiana adds a public university to its list of choices. Seems that many people are wondering what this means to the adults of Indiana who have perhaps completed some college courses but not a degree. I think it means a whole lot. Read the story. Jamal actually interviewed me back in July when I was in Sydney, Australia.

A few days before that, I was quoted by Bridget McCrea from Campus Technology Magazine for an article on how colleges and universities are building campus structures from a more student-centered and technology-rich perspective. This interview took place a few months ago (you never know when these things might appear). You are read the story here: “Remaking the College Campus.” In Campus Technology. August 5, 2010. Available: http://campustechnology.com/Articles/2010/08/05/Remaking-the-College-Campus.aspx?Page=1 (3 pages) or get the full (more printable) version

This is just one such article on how administrators in K-12 and higher education settings are now having to rethink the design of their buildings as learning becomes more active, continuous, nontraditional, online, and student-centered. Many other such pieces have been appearing lately. In fact, back in June Campus Technology had another highly interesting article that was more comprehensive. Some of the things I discussed with Bridget McCrea a few months earlier may have found their way in there.

Matt Villano (2010, June). “7 Tips for Building Collaborative Learning Spaces.” Campus Technology.

And another such article came out just last week. In it, my good friend, Les Watson from the UK, was interviewed. Les has led many interesting projects, including one on the Saltire Centre at Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland (see below for a link to a YouTube video on this very stunning learning environment; YouTube video #6 below). I got a tour from Les when the Saltire Centre was just being completed. What a place! Different types of learning taking place on every floor. If you need inspirational learning environments, Les is your man! Les is a God in this space. Perhaps someday he will push out a book that summarizing what is happening in this field.

By Bridget McCrea, September 1, 2010, Campus Technology, Remaking the College Library.

There are also some universities that offer YouTube videos of their cool new campus spaces:
1. Virtual Tour of New Grand Valley State University (GVSU) Library.

2. JISC - Designing Spaces: A campus for the 21st century: City Campus University of Wolverhampton.

3. tlc@bedford library - Royal Holloway, University of London, UK

4. The remodeled Ohio State Thompson Library (where I presented in early July). According to May 30, 2010 Chronicle of Higher Education, this was a $109 million dollar project that help renovate some 300,000 square feet of space in a library that was over 100 years old.

5. Yonsei University: The New Library (I visited this place in May of 2009. What a fabulous library. Yonsei is known as one of the most prestigious universities in Asia and perhaps the best in Korea. I saw different types of learning each place I walked, from social gaming to learn English to students hitting touch screens for events on campus to collaborative team labs to individual work stations to watch lectures or do work. An amazing place! This second YouTube video on the new library at Yonsei that I just found with less viewers is perhaps even more impressive. Watch this one and you will agree that the Koreans lead the learning technology world. It is a place unlike no other in the world.

6. JISC - Designing Spaces: A social and collaborative learning space: The Saltire Centre Glasgow Caledonian University. Now this one is another definite see. Such a unique place, the Saltire Centre at Glasgow Caledonian University. Wow. Wow. Wow.

Ok, that is enough YouTube videos for you to get a sense of the massive scale of these changes. Those wanting more information on building redesigns should read this report from the UK (in which Les had a hand or 2 in it), "Learning Landscape Report on Building redesign." Report. Or try out these tools.

In addition, those into K-12 spaces might check out the Sydney Centre for Innovation in Learning which my good friend Gary David told me about 2-3 days ago. I just visited Gary in Sydney back in July...wish I had gone there to visit it now. Cool place.

Pushing on to still more news...The president of Boise State University, Robert Kustra, offered some very kind words about my book (The World is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education) in his state of the University Address a few weeks ago. It is a very energetic, thoughtful, and timely speech. So much is happening at one institution. Boise State seems to be preparing for the future of academia, not just heading up the football rankings as they have done this past week. If I was a new faculty member or recent Ph.D. graduate, BSU would be circled on my map as a possible place to go. I wrote to President Kustra and he asked me to be on his radio show in early November. Cool. There is a chance that I will head to Boise sometime later this year for a talk or 2.

He is his entire talk in the form of a blog post, “Read President Kustra’s Remarks from State of the University Address,”
President Robert Kustra, Boise State University, August 18, 2010
http://news.boisestate.edu/update/2010/08/18/read-text-of-state-of-the-university-address/

His speech is also available as a PDF document and you can download some of his slides:
1. A PDF of Address

2. President Kustra's Slides from his talk.

And Just Yesterday:
Yesterday (September 7, 2010) was also adventurous since I had to fly to Houston and back (same day) and speak at the University of Houston to accountants, finance, and IT people from the Chinese National Petroleum Company (the largest company in the world apparently) about e-learning stuffs (see slides). Had a blast. This was the 2nd time I have done that for them in the past couple of years. All 30 or so execs were under 40…they get over age 40 and it is difficult (if not impossible) to be promoted in China. Strange for those of us in North America to consider. But fun time anyway especially since I am a former accountant. (Sidenote: My World is Open book is currently being translated into Chinese by people at South China Normal University while East China Normal University will publish it.)

Tomorrow I speak via videoconferencing to people from the IU medical school (mostly in Indianapolis) about blended learning. Color PDFs of my slides for this talk are already posted as are the ones I did yesterday. Just visit my archives of my talks in TrainingShare.com.

I also plan to watch the Vikings play New Orleans with my Brett Farve #4 Vikings jersey on. My friends and family up in Wisconsin may not like that too much. Smile.