Random Ideas

Random Nothings

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 18:32:00 +0000

It's been two long years, since I have last blogged about anything. I guess certain constraints prohibited me from blogging. Time flies...and we can do nothing about it.

But am back, back to the world of blogs, back with my experiences and knowledge that I have gained so far as an ID.

Thought, before this year end, let me get back to this platform. Why save all the resolutions for the coming new year. After all we can have year end resolutions too!

So, here I am, resolving to post at least one article every fortnight / month about my day-to-day experiences, knowledge that I acquire, challenges that I face and how I go about them.

Happy blogging to me!

Captivate 3-Patch Work

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 09:01:00 +0000

Currently am working on a WBT and for that am using Adobe Captivate 3 to capture demonstrations and for certain slides, I have to do patch work.

We all know that if the status of an application is WIP, one thing is clear that you can expect a lot of re-work. And that is precisely what is happening. My concern is that in certain slides where am doing patch work, once am merging it with the background, there's a slight shift which is noticeable if you closely look at it. One of my team mates suggested that I should lock that particular slide and the object to avoid making the shift of the patch work noticeable. Also once you merge an object with the background the quality deteriorates. Nevertheless, locking objects did work.

However, I wanted to know what one should do ideally while doing a patch should work on a slide. What is the best work around? Would be glad if people answer my query.

Exploring an Authoring Tool

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 13:24:00 +0000

How do you go about exploring an authoring tool? What methods do you employ to create an Instructor-Led training on an authoring tool?

Here is what I did to explore and create a training material on Adobe® Captivate®4. It is an elearning tool that enables you to create powerful and engaging elearning course.

I was asked to create a HDD for the training material in such a way that the training could be completed within2-3 days. Most of the people believe that Help files are of no use. I would say the Help file is of immense use if only you know how to utilize it in the best possible way. Since this is a tool, you need to try out each and everything that you want to include in the training material.

The video tutorials provide you a basic understanding of all the major usage of the tool. Apart from this, I read up as much as possible to gather information to create the training material. Creating a step list along with relevant screen grabs, coupled with relevant demos can go a long way in making an instructionally sound training material. The most challenging part was to create the demonstrations without any glitches.

Let me list down the latest features that Adobe® Captivate® 4 offers:

provides professional design templates that provide a consistent look
enables the reviewers to add comments directly to your SWF files
allows you to import demonstrations created in Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 in the PPTX format, as well as the PPT format
allows you to edit PowerPoint content in Adobe® Captivate® 4

You can visit www.adobe.com/products/captivate/faq/ more information.

Corporate Training....from a Learner's Perspective

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Sun, 31 May 2009 05:21:00 +0000

This post is not about my new found knowledge about some eLearning tool or a new learning theory that I have come across. This post is on behalf of all those people who have to undergo some kind of training to upgrade their skills. Please note that I've made use of the word "have” i.e. it is mandatory for them in order to get into projects.

Well at a personal level I feel training sessions are a must. People without the right kind of skills or domain knowledge will fail to handle tasks involved in a project. In such a situation training sessions (formal or OJT) help lay a foundation for any upcoming projects. So it is always better to gather as much knowledge as possible before one gets started.

Although training sessions aim to improve one’s skill set and knowledge, however few learners/resources feel that these training sessions are taking away the innovation out of them? The fact that when a certain resource is asked to undergo any type of training they feel that they are taking these kind of courses and assessment just to save their jobs or to get into projects.

Well I didn’t carry out a survey of any sort hence I cannot claim what these handful of people are saying is true or not; but I would definitely say that when a learner is not motivated enough to take a course or training session, no matter how many strategies one applies it simply doesn’t work.

My question is that as an instructional designer how we can help these people who hate to be a part of any training curriculum to take up such sessions wholeheartedly. What are the possible ways whereby training sessions can be made more interesting?

Assessments that aim to clarify the misconceptions of learners become a threat when it is scored. The moment an assessment is scored so as to enable a resource to become a certified professional in ABC isn’t the whole purpose of the training purpose defeated. If we are focussing on enhancing the skill set why do we need to score a course/training session? Why can’t we assess the resource on the job, while reviewing their work, so on and so forth?

I believe that few things like trimming down the seat time of a course, breaking vast lessons into smaller chunks, and/or making assessments a bit easier can help a long way to build confidence amongst the learners.

I leave it at that; because I don’t see an end to it. Nevertheless, I would like to know how to create curiosity and sustain it throughout a course without making learners/resources famished.

Is Code Mixing & Code Switching A Boon Or A Bane?

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 06:10:00 +0000

How many times have you felt that you are more comfortable in a certain language as compared to another? How many times have you used an English word to describe a certain thing, and you realized that that particular object does not have a word in your regional language, or more so you don't know whether that word exits or not? Well, I repeatedly code-switch using two or more languages. And at the same time I code mix all the time. Code is a language, a variety, or style of language.

Let me quote the definition of code switching and code mixing. Code-switching is a term in linguistics (the scientific study of natural language) referring to using more than one language or variety of language in a conversation. Bilinguals, who can speak at least two languages, have the ability to use elements of both languages when conversing with another bilingual.

Code-switching is the syntactically (syntax is the study of rules and principles to study the construction of sentences in natural languages)and phonologically (phonology is the use of sound to encode any spoken language) appropriate use of multiple varieties. Code-switching can occur between sentences (intersentential) or within a single sentence (intrasentential). On the other hand code-mixing is the use of two languages at the same time or rather change of language at the same time. Let me give you example of for both to make it more clearer.

Example of Code-switching:

Hey there how are you?
Am fine, long time no see, aur bolo kya haal chal?
Sab thik hai yaar, bas am a little busy these days.
Okay, how's your worklife?/
Cool yaar, sab thik hai, acha hai

If I need to translate it, it will read something like this.
Hey there, how are you?
Am fine, long time no see, so what's up?
Everything is fine, but am a little busy these days.
Okay, how's your work life?
Cool buddy, everything is fine.

Example of Code Mixing:

Yeh train ka time change ho gaya hai kya?

If you notice in this particular sentence there is mix of Hindi and English. And since it a single sentence it is an example of an intersentential code-mixing. The words used in Hindi are written in italics.

There are numerous examples that I can cite to explain this phenomenon. Code-mixing and code-switching may or may not be done intentionally. It depends on where and with whom are you interacting. Sometimes we use two different languages at the same time without realizing it. Sometimes we do it when we lack the particular vocabulary for a specific term or object. And sometimes we do it to show off that we know and can manage to talk fluently in two different languages. In advertisements, TV commercials, and day-to-day conversations we can get numerous examples of code-mixing. The growing use of English is making us to code-mix most of the time. In India, where every individual is bound to know at least two languages tend to code-mix and code-switch.

Code-switching depends a lot on how formal or informal you are with a certain person, whether it's appropriate to code-mix with a certain individual or not. Code-mixing has given rise to new languages like Hinglish (Hindi + English), Benglish (Bengali + English), Tanglish (Tamil + English) and so on. Let's look at some TV commercials where the growing use of Hinglish cannot be ignored. Hinglish is deliberately used to make these more catchy.

In an ad for a certain shampoo, Priyanka Chopra says:
C'mon girls, waqt hai shine karne ka!

Punch line for pepsi is:
Yehi hai right choice baby
Yeh dil maange more.

Coca Cola:
Thanda matlab coca cola.

Vicco Turmeric:
Vicco Turmeric, Nehi Cosmetic;
Vicco Turmeric Ayurvedic Cream.

There are innumerable examples to cite. Radio jockeys and TV anchors deliberately mix English words with stream of Hindi sentence to sound more hep and funky. Hinglish has become the lingua franca for most of the upper class Indians, teenagers,and people across India. But somewhere in this process we are forgetting our language. There are certain words that cannot be replaced with any regional language. Certain words like train, TV, computer, mobile, and so on do not have similar words in any other Indian language. And even if they exist we do not use them today. Only time can predict whether code-mixing will prove useful or harmful in the near future.

Is Idiot Box On The Verge Of Death?

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 11:46:00 +0000

Being a digital native (wikipedia describes a digital native as "a person who has grown up with digital technology such as computers, the Internet, mobile phones and MP3.") I prefer to stay connected 24x7. And with internet I don't feel the need to buy an idiot box. Videos, movies, chatting, online booking, shopping, gaming, live news channels, and daily soaps too are all up there. Out of a population of 1.2 billion, and one of the largest English speaking countries, around 13.5 million people are internet subscribers. India's internet population is growing at a fast pace.

According to the survey conducted by IAMA (Internet and Mobile Association of India), there are around 45.3 million active internet users and 62.5 million claimed internet users as in September 2008. It is predicted that the number of internet users will go up to 80 million by year 2010. People have realized that internet usage cannot be restricted to just chatting, emailing, or gaming. On the contrary it has tremendous potential in the field of education, learning, sharing views and opinions through various media like blogging, and one can create a virtual self (avatar) in the cyber space.

The point is that when we can access so many things at one place, why the need for a television. I realized that eve since I got internet broadband connection; I stopped reading newspaper for daily news scoops. In the same way I sometimes yearned, if only I could watch some soaps instead of movies all the time. And I came across a site tvdekho.com where the TV soaps are uploaded and I can jolly well view them anytime. I feel elated that internet has made our lives so much comfortable. I don't have to spend on too many durable goods to watch anything in particular.

However, there are few people who claim that radio is still a popular medium for listening to music, in the same way a laptop/desktop with internet connection can never replace a television. Out of 1.2 billion population 130 million people still read newspapers. I don't know nor can I claim that the death of the so called idiot box is nearing; only time will say what's in store. I may sound a little biased in my opinion, but as an active internet user I can say that though I may wish to own a television, I do not need it.

Informal Learning

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 08:09:00 +0000

Informal learning is the learning that is unstructured, unorganized, spontaneous, and in some ways accidental. There may not be any specific objective for this kind of learning but at the end the learner gains knowledge about whatever s/he was skimming through. Informal learning can happen anywhere at work, while interacting with peers, or being a part of real time discussion.

As opposed to formal learning which is structured and follows a particular curriculum and which has a specific objective; informal learning does not follow any curriculum. Informal learning need not necessarily be work related. It can be anything, attitude, any kind of language, day-to-day experience, skills that mat or may not cater to your immediate need.

But as it is claimed that learner movitivation is central to any kind of learning, I believe learners who are highly motivated take up a lot of informal learning on their own. Because a lot of learning happens in an informal situation.

Jay Cross describes "Informal learning is like riding a bicycle: the rider chooses the destination and the route. The cyclist can take a detour at a moment’s notice to admire the scenery or help a fellow rider." Where as "formal learning is like riding a bus: the driver decides where the bus is going; the passengers are along for the ride. People new to the territory often ride the bus before hopping on the bike."

In an informal learning environment the learner feels that s/he has more control of what they want. The content is not pushed or thrust on them as opposed to formal learning sessions. It is also cheap and inexpensive as compared to the amount of money that is spent on formal learning.

Hence organizations should encourage learning that happens at the workplace, without compelling them to take up training sessions. Because a lot of learning happens in an informal environment.

Are Social Networking Sites Making Us Unsocial In Real Life?

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 09:07:00 +0000

Most of us are already using web 2.0 tools. One of the most famous and commonest of all is social networking sites and IM. Am writing this post since I came across an article that says-that the growing use of internet has made people of all ages and the gen y in particular unsocial in real life. But there are many points that need to be factored in before jumping to such conclusions. Let's see what these points are:

First of all I would partly agree that using too much of internet is making people of all ages unsocial to some extent. I have hardly seen anybody not using some IM while at their work place (if it’s not blocked). I assume that people feel more comfortable while exchanging info over chat or mail. But at times it becomes mandatory to talk either in person or over phone to clarify things and to avoid misunderstanding and miscommunication.

Most of the users believe that these sites help them manage and keep in touch with their friends, stay in touch with friends who are geographically apart, make new friends, find old friends and for business network as well. I feel networking online gives people and teenagers in particular a safe environment to interact. You have the choice of limiting access to your IM to a selected few. Companies make use of social networking to market their products. People get job opportunities via these sites. Some users believe that social networking not only provides friends both old and new but provides you with communities to share similar interest and also a sense of belongingness. They also provide a space which gives you the freedom to voice out opinion on various issues.

Well so much for social networking sites, but I guess I have digressed from the topic a bit. So I believe that online social networking is not turning people unsocial in real life rather it has helped to widen the business and social network of people across the world. It has made possible to connect and stay in touch with people who are geographically far apart.

Getting The Right Kind Of Images

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 09:19:00 +0000

It is sad but true that there are not many sites where you can find good images for free. And in case you are looking for images of some Indian rural people, you are definitely going to have a tough time . In my attempt to look for images of Indian rural people I could only find the images of temple, forts, houses with thatched roofs,and starving children. But this made me think, what do we do when we require images to meet the requirements of a particular project? Wish if anybody could help me with the resources to find vector images of rural Indian people. Other than google images I tried the following URLs to look for images but to no avail.

http://www.corbis.com
http://www.gettyimages.com
http://www.istock.com
http://www.scx.com
http://www.shutterstock.com
http://office.microsoft.com

What Is Your Web 2.0 Quotient

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 08:58:00 +0000

Since the whole industry is talking about web 2.0 about and how can we use it to impart training. Let's check what is our invidividual web 2.0 quotient. I came across this in Manish's post, so to check your web 2.0 quotient use the following URL.
http://manishmo.blogspot.com/2008/10/web-20-quotient-version-11.html

My Web 2.0 score is 53, so am a newbie. Find out what's your quotient.

5 Things You Do Not Need To Know About Me

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 07:49:00 +0000

Manish Mohan has tagged me on this meme on 7 things you do not need to know about me. But I could come up with only 5 things so far.

Here is a list of 5 things you do not need to know about me:

1) I have planned to become a vegetarian for four days in a week. (Possibly not happening this year :-))

2) Of late am watching all romantic Korean movies. (Seems like I'm smitten by Korean movies)

3) I learnt to ride a scooty on my own. Have knocked down many a people in my first two attempts. :P They almost fell off their vehicles.

4) I once fell into a drain! Yuck it was long long back though.

5) I can watch 2-3 movies back to back on a single day.

So there you go guys.
I tag
Geeta, Archana, Smriti, Nishana, Vaishnavi, Ashim, Rashmi, Satya, Sneha, Sushant, Shipra, Ripul, Yatin, Meghna to continue this meme.

Difference between LMS and LCMS

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 04:51:00 +0000

Many a times I am confused with the terms Learning Management System (LMS) and Learning Content Management System (LCMS). So have decided to put down the difference between the two in as simple words as possible.

LCMS is a software that is used to create, maintain, reuse, and deliver learning material. On the other hand LMS is a software that allows delivering the learning material in the form of online modules; instructor led training modules within an organization. It also helps to track learner interaction with the content and the instructor, and helps in recording scores. LCMS provides just in time training. For example if say you are working in call center, and your company has launched a new application. You need not go through the entire training kit, instead you can just stick to the modules that you are required to go through and familiarize yourself.

The primary users of an LMS are the learners whereas LCMS is used by the course developers and SME. LMS is used to track student interaction and performance whereas LCMS is used by the content authors to collaborate. LMS is software for planning, delivering, and managing learning events within an organization, including online, virtual classroom, and instructor-led courses. In contrast, an LCMS is software for managing learning content for various training development programs across an organization. It provides developers, authors, instructional designers, and subject matter experts the means to create and re-use e-learning content and reduce duplicated development efforts.

Workshop on How to Use Web 2.0 Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 07:30:00 +0000

Are you interested to know more about Web 2.0 tools such as wikis, blogs, podcasts, and virtual world for learning and training purposes? Kern Communications is conducting a workshop on how to use Web 2.0 tools. This workshop is designed for HR Managers and training heads who implement training in their organization.

Let me give a brief overview of the workshop.

Understand Web 2.0 – the changing face of the Internet.
Discuss training using sharing, collaboration, co-creation, user generated content, social networking
Explore the use of tools such as wikis, blogs, virtual worlds, podcasts, videocasts, social networking to design effective training
Discuss case studies where trainers have effectively used these tools for training purposes
Experience learning and training in the Virtual World

You can log in to http://elearning.kern-comm.com/?p=322 for further details.

Zone of Proximal Development

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 08:46:00 +0000

Lev Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist and social constructivist came up with the Theory of Social Cognitive Development. The three major themes of this theory are:

Social interaction is necessary for learning and plays a vital role in the process of cognitive development.

MKO or the More Knowledgeable Other; A person who has a better understanding than the learner, it could be a teacher, a mentor, or even a peer who is more knowledgeable as compared to the learner.

Zone of Proximal Development or ZPD

In this theory he discussed about Zone of Proximal Development or ZPD. ZPD implies that a learner can do without as well as with the help of a teacher, or a competent peer, or a guide. ZPD was originally used for problem solving.

Vygotsky argued against examinations that are used as a standard means to test the intelligence and knowledge of the children. Rather he believed that children should be tested on problem solving independently and problem solving techniques with the help of a teacher or a guide. He also believed that students play an important role in the learning process.

By social interaction Vygotsky meant that culture has an enormous amount of impact on children. It is through one’s culture that children learn what to think and how to think. Vygotsky also emphasized that interaction between the teacher and the student facilitates learning; hence learners should be provided with a collaborative and interactive learning environment.

Vygotsky also highlighted the fact that children learn by imitating from their elders and adults; hence it is very important to provide the learners ample opportunity to solve problems under the guidance of a teacher/guide.

To conclude we can say that collaborative learning, discussions, interactivities definitely helps learners to achieve their goal. Also with proper guided learning learners can accomplish task that they cannot do on their own.

Advance Organizer

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 06:32:00 +0000

There are many advantages as well as disadvantages of using Advance Organizers.

It facilitates them make connections and/or the relationship between pieces of information. Also helps students to allocate time for a particular lesson.
We can use it interactive lessons in classroom lectures and for elearning courses.

For example you can ask a question about what is an amphitheatre before teaching about Greek or Roman architecture. Or for instance you need to teach about guidelines for a healthy diet. So you can start the topic by giving a build up like this:

Build up: “We all know that we should eat healthy food. For most of us, healthy food means no pizza, no fries, no colas, and no burgers. Healthy food is boring and tasteless. But no that’s not so. We can make food choices. Food can be healthy and tasty”.

Scholars and educational psychologists have divided opinion about the use of Advance Organizers.

Carol Story (1998), a research scholar concluded that “Instructional designers can feel confident that Advanced organizer are important part of their instructional designs, that the organizers are needed whatever the media of instruction, and that organizers themselves can be delivered by a variety of media.”
Some researchers believe that Advance Organizers helps students to recall information and make connection between already known concepts and the forthcoming learning materials.

However, researcher scholars like McEneany (1990) suggested that it serves no purpose or have limited effect in promoting learning or recall of learning.
Whereas Lawton and Johnson (1992) believe that Advance Organizers are effective.

According to Ausubel, the Advanced organizer provides the “hierarchical framework” for students so that they can move information into long-term memory efficiently and effectively and in a connected manner.

To conclude, we can say that:

• It is an educational strategy.

• Teachers have been using it for classroom lectures.

• It helps learners to build a cognitive structure.

• Instructional designers are using it for elearning courses.

• Depending on the content, the subject matter, on the pre-existing knowledge of the learners.

However, some questions like why this teaching strategy is called as Advance Organizer and not simply Organizer is still unknown.

References:
http://tip.psychology.org/ausubel.html
http://web.cortland.edu/frieda/ID/IDtheories/10.html

Advance Organizers

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 06:21:00 +0000

In this article we are going to look at what is an advance organizer. Where can we make use of it, its forms and phases?

Advance Organizer is a cognitive instructional strategy used to promote the learning and retention of new information (Ausubel, 1960).

According to Joyce et al. (2000), the Advance Organizer model has three phases of activity.

Let’s look at the three phases:

Phase-1

• includes presentation of the Advanced Organizer

• clarifies the aim of the lesson

• creates an awareness of the info

Phase- 2

• sequencing the content

• presenting the material

Phase- 3

• strengthening of the cognitive organization

• “integrative reconciliation” (ability to make interconnections between concepts)

For eg: teacher can ask students to summarize the info

Now let’s look at the four types of Advance Organizers.

Expository

• provides new content

• provide basic concepts of the material

• provides a background of unknown material

Comparative

• Highlight difference between old and new concepts.

• Helps to mark out the differences and similarity between old and new concepts.

Graphic

• A graphic organizer is a visual display.

• Helps depict the relationship between terms, ideas, or concepts.

• Uses pictographs, graphs, charts, or concept maps

Narrative

• oral presentation, stories, and handouts are used

• helps recall and retain info

Though you may find that we use the above advance organizer as instructional tools, they might have been derived from some educational theory.

To be continued......

How Fast is Your Internet?

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 04:55:00 +0000

Well few days back I got internet connection. I had applied for a plan that promised to provide around 440Kbps. Isn't that amazing? But lo! the internet connection was damn slow. I was reveling in the fact that at last I got hi-speed net connection. But when I came across this site http://us.mcafee.com/root/speedometer/default.asp, I was surprised to see the actual speed of the internet connection. The speed promised as per the plan was 440Kbps, but in reality it was actually some 43Kbps.

So if you want to check the internet speed, visit http://us.mcafee.com.

Should IDs Acquire the Knowledge of GDs

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:01:00 +0000

I have been thinking this for a long time whether instructional designers should learn to use software tools like captivate files and flash? I've come across many blogs where it has been debated that the role of instructional designers (ID) should not overlap the role of the graphic designers (GD).

But I strongly believe that if an ID has the knowledge of software programs like Flash, Captivate, SnagIT, Photoshop and such technical writing software tools, it can double the productivity of an ID.

But the question that arises here is that one needs to spend dedicated time in order to master these tools. If you are really keen on honing these skills then am sure you need to spend time, money, and energy and join an institute offering training on these tools.

Another way is to download the trial version and practice on your own. Recently, I had to edit some videos for a certain project, using captivate. And I really enjoyed doing it because that gave me an opportunity to learn something new. But I wonder whether training on these software tools should be made mandatory as part of OJT or whether one needs to take formal training for the same altogether?

Cell Phone - Synonym for Memory!

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 09:48:00 +0000

Have you ever realized what will happen if you forget your cell phone when you venture out? Well, it happened to me a couple of times. And I remember I felt so crippled. I didn't remember anybody's cell phone number. I not only feed phone numbers in my cell, but I store the dates that I need to remember. For instance, the date when I got my internet connection, the date when I filled in and submitted my passport form and numerous other dates.

Imagine if you are stuck somewhere and you need to call somebody urgently, how you will do that without your cell phone. Also the growing use of computers and cell phones has replaced the habit of putting down everything on a piece of paper. I think of the day when cell phone and laptops will completely take over the habit of using writing pads.

Day in and day out we keep on creating documents, and store them in our computer and laptops. We take back up so as to ensure that we don't lose any important data. But I think a time is not too far when we won't be able to remember anything else other than our names.

Human memory has three phases, working memory, short term memory (STM) and long term memory (LTM). It is theorized that things that we read, hear or come across is stored for a brief amount of time in our working memory, after a point of time we filter things and store the information that we require in out STM. And only after constant drilling it moves into our LTM. But if we don't attempt to remember even a 10 digit cell phone number, how on earth are we going to remember anything else. I am skeptical about the fact whether technological advancement is doing only good or it has a down side to it as well!

Comic Strips: Fun Way to Put your Message Across

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 08:41:00 +0000

I came across this interesting site http://www.bitstrips.com, where you can create comic characters, and comic strips of your own. I guess it gives you ample opportunity to even teach children through comic strips.

You can also use it to put your message across in an interesting and funny way. It need not be related to academics, but it can range from a variety of topics like humor, politics, drama, news, pop culture, and so on.

Take a look at the one I created!

ToonDoo- Creating Animation of Your Own

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:25:00 +0000

I came across this site http://www.toondoo.com in one of the blogs that I read. I found it quite interesting. This site gives us a platform to create, modify the existing animations to suit according to our needs. All you need to do is to create an account and go on adding images to your gallery. Just try it out, explore, and have fun.

History of Instructional Design

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 06:09:00 +0000

This article would look at the emergence of Instructional Design as a discipline. To know about this we need to go back to its history. Let’s look at the chronological events that happened in the field of education.

1905- The educators saw the importance of visual instruction.

1913- Thomas Edison proclaimed that “books will soon obsolete in schools. It is possible to teach every branch of human knowledge with the motion picture.”

1930- Educators proposed the importance of objectives for a curriculum according to student behavior. Also formative evaluation was used for the first time during this time.

1940- This was a period when the role of the instructional technologist emerged. This period was marked by military training needs. The idea for an instructional development team was conceived during this period.

1950- Programmed instruction was started.
Skinner propounded that human learning can be conditioned.
Benjamin Bloom (1956) came up with the taxonomy of educational objectives.
Behaviorism also emerged as a learning theory.

1960- Robert Gagne introduced the concept of task analysis and came up with nine events of instructions.
Norman Crowder developed intrinsic programming.
Cognitive theories of learning also emerged during this time.

1970- This period was marked by the emergence of instructional strategies and instructional theories in the full swing.

1980- During this period CBI (Computer Based Instruction) flourished. Also focus was on designing interactivity.

1990- This period marked a shift from cognitive theory to constructivist theories.
This article would look at the emergence of Instructional Design as a discipline. To know about this we need to go back to its history. Let’s look at the chronological events that happened in the field of education.

1905- The educators saw the importance of visual instruction.

1913- Thomas Edison proclaimed that “books will soon obsolete in schools. It is possible to teach every branch of human knowledge with the motion picture.”

1930- Educators proposed the importance of objectives for a curriculum according to student behavior. Also formative evaluation was used for the first time during this time.

1940- This was a period when the role of the instructional technologist emerged. This period was marked by military training needs. The idea for an instructional development team was conceived during this period.

1950- Programmed instruction was started.
Skinner propounded that human learning can be conditioned.
Benjamin Bloom (1956) came up with the taxonomy of educational objectives.
Behaviorism also emerged as a learning theory.

1960- Robert Gagne introduced the concept of task analysis and came up with nine events of instructions.
Norman Crowder developed intrinsic programming.
Cognitive theories of learning also emerged during this time.

1970- This period was marked by the emergence of instructional strategies and instructional theories in the full swing.

1980- During this period CBI (Computer Based Instruction) flourished. Also focus was on designing interactivity.

1990- This period marked a shift from cognitive theory to constructivist theories.

Virtual World

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 06:11:00 +0000

I came across this article in the newspaper where teenagers in America spend real money to get things done in the virtual world called Gaia. Now that's sounds a little weird. Now I would love to create an avatar and make a space for myself in the virtual world if it’s free of cost. But why would I spend money just to use virtual world as a platform for social networking.

Well I agree that online education and V-education have a long way to go. But some where I feel that it takes a lot of your time to get familiar with the whole interface. So if getting familiar with the interface is not included within the learning curve then it’s fine. But say I’m asked to spend not more than 3 hours on a certain section or course material, how am I to justify that I got stuck somewhere and I was lost. Well these are some of the issues that need to be highlighted or made clear before we actually join the bandwagon of V-education.

Blog Readability Test

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 08:56:00 +0000

I was reading a blog called the writer's gateway and I came across this interesting article where the author had mentioned that we can check the readability of our blog. Isn't that interesting?

If it serves the same purpose like the readability statistics in a word processor, then it is quite interesting to know the readability level of our blog articles. But as far as I know the grade level in the readability statistics should not exceed K-8 level. If the same holds good for blog readability test then I wonder whether being rated as a "genius" is a good thing or is it a disgrace in disguise. Well so much for it, if you guys want to try out and check the readability of your blog articles, just click http://www.criticsrant.com/bb/reading_level.aspx. Enter your blog's URL and see for your self. :-)

How to stay focused at your work?

noreply@blogger.com (Mousumi Ghosh) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 07:53:00 +0000

This article is devoted to staying focused at workplace. I came across an article on “18 ways to stay focused at work”. There are few things that I liked and there are a couple of things that I didn’t agree with. Let me list down what I liked and think it can prove useful for other people.

1) Write out a daily task list and plan your day- At Kern we have a status call called “Heads up”. It is good way to keep each other informed of what each of us are doing. It also helps us prioritize our tasks for the day.

2) Allocate time to various task on your to do list- Allotting time for task will not only make you productive but you can use the rest of the time in reading up articles or writing blogs.

3) Avoid checking personal mails first thing in the morning- You don’t realize but it takes a good amount of your time in the morning.

4) Change your status in the IM- Set the status in the IM as busy if your do not want to get disturbed. While working this is a major distraction that can hinder your work and can make you less productive.

5) Clean your desk- Keep your desk clean. Do not pile up too many things on your desk. A dirty desk might be irritating.

6) Close multiple windows-Avoid working in multiple windows. Close the one’s which you don’t require.

7) Avoid taking long and extended breaks- Taking break from work and sipping tea or coffee can energize you, but if you indulge in extended breaks it might break the flow of your work.