eLearning Blog Dont Waste Your Time » Blogging

Top 10 Education & Teaching Blogs

David Hopkins — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 19:43:04 +0000

Congratulations to the other 9 entrants to the “Top 10 UK Education and Teaching Blogs” alongside my blog Don’t Waste Your Time, at number 8.

As of 1/12/11

Described as the “fundamentals of working with bloggers are the same as with traditional journalists at traditional media outlets: respect their schedules; take time to read their material to learn their interests; and only contact them if/when they want to be contacted.”

It is also with pride that I share a place on the list of “Top 10 UK Education and Teaching Blogs on Twitter” at number 8.

As of 1/12/11

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Nomination(s) for the 2011 Edublog Awards #eddies11

David Hopkins — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 11:36:59 +0000

We are here again, that lovely time of year when we get to say something nice about each other and help us get the recognition that money can’t buy (?).

Nominations for the 2011 Edublog Awards are open, and here are mine.

Best individual blog: Steve Wheeler – Learning with ‘e’s.
Best individual tweeter: There are so many to choose from, but I’m going for Steve Wheeler / @timbuckteeth
Best ed tech/resource sharing blog: James Clay – e-Learning Stuff
Best twitter hashtag: #edtech
Best free web tool: Twitter
Best educational use of podcast: @Documentally
Lifetime achievement: Prof. Stephen Heppell

OK folks, let’s see what & who you like this year … click here for the Edublog 2011 nomination hashtag: #eddies11 and make you own nominations here: http://edublogawards.com/nominations/

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If I was to change my Avatar … ? #avatar #edchat #poll

David Hopkins — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:28:31 +0000

I’ve met a few people recently both locally in Bournemouth and at Conferences around the country and it’s been really great to put faces to names and avatars. But no one knows what I look like when we’re looking for each other in coffee shops or crowded conference rooms.

So, while I like my avatar it might be time I re-think my online ‘presence’ and not hide (?) behind an avatar any longer. What do you think? As I have some trusted friends and acquaintances on various Social Networks I thought I’d put a few suggestions out there and see what you think. There are a couple of variations on my existing avatar as well as a few new ‘photos’ to choose from. This is also an opportunity to bring my various profiles into line with each other.

Come on then, what do you think? If you like my current avatar then please choose the first image/option, this is effectively the ‘leave it alone, it’s fine’ answer.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

If you have another (polite) suggestion then please leave a comment.

PS. Yes, I must be mad to let you help me out, but why not, it is after all what you look at when you see my Twitter or Facebook updates!

PPS. If I don’t like your choice, will I still honour it … I don’t know, let’s see how we do eh?

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‘ePortfolios’ are out, ‘bPortfolios’ are in (apparently)

David Hopkins — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 08:34:46 +0000

Whilst waiting for my iOS5 update to proceed I did quite a bit of reading, and one item that caught my eye was this post called “At Last – Recognition for Blog-based Portfolios” by Jim Shimabukuru, which reported on an academic paper written by a group of 6 US professors – “bPortfolios: Blogging for Reflective Practice“.

The abstract for the academic paper is:

“Web 2.0 technology, such as blogging, allows for locally developed, cost effective, and holistic alternative portfolio assessment systems. By enhancing critical reflection and fostering social interaction, blogging portfolios are seen as an integral learning tool for all students enrolled in a university program.”

Quite what the difference is, for the student’s final portfolio, between the blog and portfolio edition is still not clear yet, but it is obviously an alternative solution, and one that ought to be considered.

Many will know that I’ve long been a champion of electronic-based portfolio systems, and have tested and used a few of them (PebblePad, Mahara, etc). While the process of getting them used more widely than as part of a reflective writing element in a single Unit/Course is still on-going, I am now thinking that we have the basis here, with blog-based portfolios,

The highlights of using a blogging system (like WordPress) as the portfolio system are:

WordPress.com hosted blogs are free.
Students can use the portfolios across their entire study for numerous on-campus and online courses experiences.
The portfolios promote and support ‘social interaction’, (i.e., ‘Students share their learning reflections in an open format’).
Students can ‘continue to maintain their site upon completion of the program as their individual accounts are not registered on a university server’.
The portfolio is ‘stored’ in the cloud (e.g. WordPress.com) if an Institutional system is not implemented.
The portfolios are ‘highly cost effective’ and sustainable: “The university can focus its time and efforts on improving instruction and student support for the bPortfolio rather than allocate funds and personnel to web-hosting, software upgrades, and software support, etc. in the bPortfolio project”.

Jim closes his piece by saying that the use …

“… of WordPress and Blogger for teacher and student publications and portfolios is a highly sustainable, cost-effective, and educative practice. It expands the students’ e-learning environment beyond the walls of the college to include the worldwide web. Sloan-C, and especially SPU, are to be congratulated for taking this bold step toward re-empowering teachers for the 21^st century classroom.”

While his use of a blogging system was not sanctioned or supported officially (something he is glad of, in fear of opposition to his implementation) he recognises that there are implications regarding student support, both pedagogically and from the technical viewpoint. Both Blogger and WordPress have extensive resources online for just about every eventuality, this is not always the ‘cleanest’ method of support.

So, the big question … are ePortfolios on their way out before they’ve really gained traction, or is the subect of bPortfolios just going to dilute the discussion about the engagement of students, faculty, and employers? I welcome your comments.

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What’s your “elevator pitch”? Do you even have one? #eLearning

David Hopkins — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 19:25:06 +0000

In business you will always hear about the value of having your ‘elevator pitch’ carefully planned and memorised. Whether it is about the product, the service, the company, or something else, it is an important weapon in your pocket.

So, what is the ‘elevator pitch’? Penny Loretto writing on the About.com Internship website describes the practice that is the ‘elevator pitch’ as coming:

“… from the time it takes to complete a normal elevator ride from the top to the bottom floor. An ‘elevator speech’ is an opportunity to get your point across in a timely manner; namely, who you are, what you’ve accomplished, and where you hope to go in the future.”

Aileen Pincus, writing for Bloomsberg BusinessWeek, defines the pitch, for a business, as:

“One of the most important things a businessperson can do—especially an owner or someone who is involved in sales—is learn how to speak about their business to others. Being able to sum up unique aspects of your service or product in a way that excites others should be a fundamental skill.”

So why are so few people in academia aware or prepared for this? I have only ever heard of this approach mentioned once at University when I overheard a supervisor talking to his student preparing to embark on her PhD. She was advised to have her ‘elevator pitch’ ready for meetings, conferences, chance encounters, etc so she could succinctly explain, in 30 seconds or under, everything her PhD will cover and accomplish.

Since I started attending conferences (and presenting at them too!) I have been aware that I ought to be a little more prepared for the chance meeting and the “so, who are you and what do you do?” question. I have also found approach the ‘elevator pitch’ takes is a good opportunity to explain what I do each day to someone who does not know or understand what a Learning Technologist is. With new staff joining the Business School all the time this approach is also used as we introduce ourselves around the table to each other.

So, here’s mine, based on an introduction to a new member of staff:

“Hi, I’m David Hopkins and I am a Learning Technologist in the Business School. I work closely with the academic and administrative teams in the School on all aspects of the VLE (myBU) as well as supplementary systems that include lecture capture, audience response handsets, use of video in the classroom, and other pedagogic applications for existing and developing technologies that encourage student engagement and enhance the student experience. I look forward to working with you.”

A bit of a mouthful I know, but each time I have to do this it changes depending on what I’ve been working on that morning, who I’m talking to, what mood I’m in, whether the conversation is based on work, training, research, etc. When I’m out and about at conferences the ‘pitch’ is tailored to the discipline and topic of the conference, as well as the person I’m talking to. ProtoScholar writes an excellent blog and his/her (?) post “The Academic Elevator Pitch” is worth a read, if for nothing other than the details on what the pitch should encapsulate.

Come on then dear reader(s), what is your ‘elevator pitch’? Do you have one? Do you want to leave a comment about mine? Please leave any and all comments below.

Image from Derek Key

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How important is the ‘About’ page on your blog? #blogging

David Hopkins — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 08:54:05 +0000

Over the past few years I have been running this blog I have made numerous updates to my about page, but just how important is this page and the information it contains?

According to Evelyn Parham:

“If I cannot learn more about your blog and about you (author of blog), then I usually do not make a return visit or add your blog to my reader. I understand that some people want to remain anonymous, but if you really want people to follow you and connect with you, you must give them a reason to connect with you.”

If you want to maintain some form of control over the details you provide then I agree with you and support your decision. As Evelyn notes above I still need a reason to connect with you and the details you provide on the about page is what gives me an indication on your authority on the subject you write about.

Evelyn continues saying:

“Blogging is more than just writing articles about those topics that you are most passionate. Blogging is about sharing and connecting with others. I am more likely to connect with you when I know more about you, your blog and can easily contact you. It is almost impossible for me to connect with you if you don’t make connecting possible.”

While I do not provide a direct link to my email address you can still find it if you read my about page – the reason I and many more do not give a direct clickable link is to prevent unwanted contact from vendors who are peddling something I have no need or interest in.

“Your about page and contact page is a lot like an online business card. If you are trying to remain anonymous or elusive, you are only hurting yourself and your blog’s potential.”

Even more than this, your about page can be seen by prospective employers as part of your online resume.

Brenda, writing on the workITgibraltar website, says that “statistics show that this is one of the most clicked on pages on a blog, so it is worth taking a little time to think about it and get it right. It is one of those pages which should be on your review list every few months so that it is kept up to date at all times.”

Darren Rowse, the highly respected ProBlogger, suggests you consider transparency, engagement, and using the about page to highlight key pages or topics on your about page, as well as the basic facts on who you are and why you are blogging.

There are many websites and bloggers offering tips on what to write on this page, but what you include on this page is entirely up to you, but you should consider (based on what I look for when I read one of these pages);

Photo (and/or avatar),
Background: why you speak/write on authority on the topic of your blog,
Links to where I can find out more about you, either posts on your own blog or to your other locations and websites on the web,
How to get in contact with you, either as an email link, comment or feedback form, or through a social network like Twitter or Linked In.

The below is from Six Revisions and is a good starting point until you develop your own style and figure out what you want to include or exclude:

Who are you?
What do you do?
When did you start doing what you’re doing?
Where are you?
How are you accomplishing what you claim to do?

What do you think? What do you include or exclude on your own about page, and why? Please leave your comment below.

Image from Anna Hirsch

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Video: Obvious to you, Amazing to others

David Hopkins — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 09:03:02 +0000

There are some good animated videos from Derek Sivers YouTube Channel that are worth watching (try a few out and enjoy the distraction for a few minutes) but this one I especially liked. This rang true with me and my blogging activity; what is run-of-the-mill or simple to me is special and innovative to others, in the same way as reading someone else’s blog post or research has inspired me may not be anything special to them … ??

So, who has inspired you, and who have you inspired … ?

This other one is a little sickly in the way it gets the message across, but essentially it’s about considering who is on the other end of your communication (personal, business, etc) and there is a need to consider how they will react to your rant, to your action, etc.

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What is a Learning Technologist? (part 3)

David Hopkins — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 10:38:01 +0000

David Hopkins, Learning Technologist

Those of you who follow my blog, or follow me on Twitter (@hopkinsdavid), Academia.edu or LinkedIn, will know I continue to explore the role of Learning Technologists, and the discipline that is learning technology. Below are two links to my previous efforts in defining some of my thoughts:

What is a Learning Technologist (Aug 2009)
What is a Learning Technologist (part 2)? (Oct 2010)

In October 2010 I started studying the PG Cert Education Practice at Bournemouth University with a view to gaining valuable insight into the world in which I inhabit, support, and advise. I will post on the first two assignments at some time, but the final assignment is an ePortfolio of work (at the time of writing, June 2011, the marks are not back yet) and supporting evidence over the past year or so that fits the three themes, which are:

Self-awareness and Self-evaluation: Evaluating Development Needs
Managing Change: Response to Context
Evidence-based Practice in Relation to Discipline Needs

It is not possible to replicate the whole ePortfolio here, nor do I want to (yet), but I wanted to share a few sections that reinforce my ‘journey’ as a Learning Technologist. These come from the final section of ‘evidence-based practice in relation to discipline needs’ (and associated references):

“The discipline of Learning Technology is changing and growing as new ideas for existing tools and systems are developed or as new systems are introduced – the advances in mobile computing and geo-location is introducing a new world of ‘tagging’ yourself and your ‘updates’ (Facebook), your ‘tweets’ (Twitter), and your photos (TwitPic, Flickr, Instagram, etc). Being a Learning Technologist also means we are not limited to just playing a supporting role, but we involved in the “broad range of communication, information and related technologies that can be used to support learning, teaching, and assessment” (Browne & Beetham, 2010, p6). This is our discipline and covers all aspects of subject areas from Health Care and Archaeology to Marketing or Computer Systems Designs.”

Browne, T. and Beetham, H. 2010. The positioning of educational technologists in enhancing the student experience. Project Report. Association of Learning Technology and The Higher Education Academy. Available from:http://repository.alt.ac.uk/id/eprint/831. [Accessed May 25, 2011].

“One aspect of my role that I have found invaluable is that I am able to bring my commercial background in web design and Internet technologies, as well as time as an employee and owner/manager of a small business, to the varied subject areas I support in the School; accounting, management, finance, law, contract, marketing, etc. It is this background that has given me the time to develop a professionalism that I pride myself with that has enabled invitations from different teams within the School, and other Schools, to be involved in teaching, research and projects. The concluding statements in the work by Neurmann et all (2002) state that a steady growth in staff development “has typically involved the central provision of short-courses … divorced from the specificities of the everyday academic context” but a “faculty-based [or] departmentally based provision could give promise of enhancing reflective practice, drawing on a recognition of specific cognitive and cultural factors rather than concentrating on generic teaching skills and presentational techniques.” I have found a School (departmentally)-based approach is able to factor a growth of a closer personal relationship with an academic or team and their subject area to be more valuable than a ‘point-and-click’ approach to the introduction of new tools and systems.”

Neumann, R., Parry, S., and Becher, T. 2002 Teaching and Learning in their Disciplinary Contexts: a conceptual analysis. Studies in Higher Education. 27(4). p405-417. Available from: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=7362300&site=eds-live&scope=site. [Accessed May 25, 2011].

“Work by Browne & Beetham (2010, p6) highlights the impact technology enhanced learning has as a “major driver for enhancing the student experience”, but they acknowledge that literature is “relatively silent” on the role and impact Learning Technologist’s have on such objectives. Through my own day-to-day experiences I have found myself being invited to be involved in research, projects, presentations, workshops, conferences, etc that I would not normally expect to be asked to; I attribute this to my open and willing attitude and cultural change within the Business School that has improved relationships between myself and framework teams, and the understanding of the role a Learning Technologist. Questions on where a Learning Technologist should be “positioned” is a difficult one, say Browne & Beetham (2010, p13) which received mixed responses when they asked, and one I can see both sides to the argument; are we positioned in the School so we can maximise the relationships and knowledge of the disciplines of those we support, or are we a central resource that are shared among many different subject disciplines and School, but get the benefit of being kept up to date with system changes/updates? In my view there are positives and negatives to both arguments, but a School-based Learning Technologist has the best of the ‘local’ knowledge and the best of the collaborative environment a central position can offer, if working in a collaborative environment. The discipline of learning technology and the individuals who are part of this growing professional ‘group’, according to Peacock et al (2009), can have a valuable influence on all aspects of, for example, eResearch as we can demonstrate the role of support to help researchers “make informed decisions about whether and how to use e-learning tools to conduct qualitative e-research” and that a “more inclusive model of the Learning Technologist’s role in academia could help address the potential polarisation of the profession into researchers and practitioners”.”

Peacock, S., Robertson, A., Williams, S, and Clausen, M. 2009. The Role of Learning Technologists in Supporting E-Research, ALT-J: Research in Learning Technology, 17(2). pp115-129. Available from: http://www.informaworld.com/openurl?genre=article&id=doi:10.1080/09687760903033041 [Accessed May 25, 2011].

I conclude the portfolio saying that:

“the opportunity to reflect on the past year(s) has given me greater insight into my role within the Business School and wider Bournemouth University community, but also how I am able to shape the discipline of learning technology from workshops, research, and conversations I am involved in, and by engaging with like-minded professionals through social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn. From this reflection I am able to concentrate my work and reading with a view to develop my professional practice.”

My journey
I have been on a journey during this PG Cert course,. Not all of it has been pleasant but I have enjoyed it and realised that I don’t like the ‘getting by’ mentality: when I do something I like to do it properly and see it through to the end. The struggle has been finding a balance between work and home life AND being a student again. There were times when one had to be sacrificed, and it was always my studies and assignments that suffered. I am not sorry for this, just disappointed that, at times, I wasn’t able to put the effort and dedication I know I am capable of into my studies.

What next?
Well, I don’t know where I am going to go now, assuming I get the grades to pass (finger’s crossed) but there are many avenues open to me: further studies, CMALT application and accreditation (definitely), etc. One thing is certain: I have started something here I want to see grow and to see where it can take me, my work, and my job/discipline. As they say “watch this space … !”

Please feel free to leave a comment about the above or about your experience as a Learning Technologist, or your experience of working with us.

WordPress Plugin #11: Poll

David Hopkins — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 09:15:50 +0000

Note: In this series I’ll delve into some of the better plugins available for WordPress that I am already using, or about to start using. I’m aiming to highlight 30 of the better plugins.

What better way than to get (almost) immediate feedback on something than with a question or poll? This is yet another easy thing to do with WordPress and the ‘WP-Polls‘ plugin can handle everything you need, including:

multiple polls
side-bar widget for latest and closed polls
choice of how your polls are dislpayed (default or CSS driven)
logging of responses
time-out / close polls after specificed time, or leave open

You can put the poll anywhere in a post, or have it all on it’s own, the choice is yours – all you need to do is click the image in the blog post tool bar and assign the poll ID, you can get this from the Admin panel (see image below).

Here are a few screenshots of the admin panel and how the polls are displayed (click to enlarge):

Admin Panel images:

Poll Admin Options

Add Poll and Poll answers

Active Poll and Poll Widget:

Active Poll (inc. results) in blog post

Active Poll (inc. results) in side-bar (Widget)

WordPress Plugin #18: Popular Posts

David Hopkins — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 13:02:17 +0000

Note: In this series I’ll delve into some of the better plugins available for WordPress that I am already using, or about to start using. I’m aiming to highlight 30 of the better plugins.

Some blogs get more traffic than most, and I am confident when I say I get a fair amount of page views and visitors (yes, I check my Google Analytics about twice a month). When was the last time you looked at your OWN blog with a fresh pair of eyes, and thought about how you would find more about the author and/or subjects?

One way is the About page, where you ought to have some background information about you and why you are an authority on the subject you blog about (for me it’s eLearning, blogging, Social Media, etc, etc). Another great way to direct visitors to content is through a ‘Related Links‘ list of posts – which I wrote about last year.

Another way is to publish a list of ‘popular posts’ in the sidebar and, yes you guessed it, there’s a plugin for that.

Installation of the ‘WordPress Popular Posts‘ plugin is, as always, simple and quick to do. once installed and activated you head on over to the Widget section of the’Appearance’ admin panels and drag the widget into your sidebar.

The settings are fairly self-explanatory (click on the image below to enlarge and see the full widget option list) like what details to show on the post (number of comments, views, excerpt, etc), how many posts to show and over what date/time scale, and may more:

Click to enlarge

Unfortunately the stats and numbers only start once you’ve installed the plugin, as you can see from the screenshot below, the posts have only had a couple of views each, but that’s not too bad since I only installed it about 10 minutes ago:

Click to enlarge

Watch this plugin grow!

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