#Moodle Tip - Mentoring Students with AutoCreate Groups and/or Learning Diary

Problem:

With a large influx of new teachers, I want to quickly setup a mentor/mentee environment using Moodle. This would enable me to assign 1 mentor to one or more teachers. Each mentor would only be able to see their mentee(s) content/comments but no one else's.  I'm not sure how to best setup Moodle to accomplish that.

At a recent MoodleMoot, I encouraged participants in my sessions to tap into their Twitter network for real time advice. I decided to follow my own advice again and sent out this tweet:

Solutions?

There are a variety of possible solutions, but the only one that seemed workable involved a LOT of work. Or at least, I thought it did. Thanks to feedback via Twitter from Gavin Henrick in Ireland--responding to my request in minutes--I had a possible solution illustrated by his tweets...you have to read them from the bottom up to get the full flavor of the conversation:

Here's a bit on Gavin:

http://ie.linkedin.com/in/gavinhenrick

Twitter: ghenrick

So, to break it down, Gavin offers two solutions--a) Student Diary Pro and b) Forums in Groups Size 1 Mode.

Before I discuss his suggestion, here is the one I considered first:

Possible Solution #1 - Learning Diary

Learning Diary - This module is used to combine the many Reflections into one ongoing diary, a much more efficient and appealing approach for adults. There are so many individual activities in each section that the list appeared exhaustive. It's a 3rd Party Mod not hosted on Moodle.org. 

Get it online at http://julmis.julmajanne.com/index.php/Learningdiary

This type of solution will work neatly to facilitate interactions. Of course, you can easily embed audio and/or video components to make it all the more interactive.

Here is one exchange between mentor and mentee:

Here's what it looks like from the mentor's perspective:

Of course, the mentor isn't limited to just this view...if they are mentoring more than one student, they can see even more students:

And, of course, either the Mentor of Mentee can embed outside content (e.g. video, audio, and more):

Now the only problem I see--and there may be more I don't--is that the Teacher/Mentor role enables the mentor to have access to ALL students. I would only want the Mentor to be associated with 1 or 2 students, if that. That means that each Teacher/Mentor would have their own Moodle course to manage the dialogue. WAY TOO MUCH work.

As such, I'm not sure the Learning Diary solution works unless I can allow Student/Mentee roles within the context of Separate (Force:Yes) Groups. The problem is, though, how do I assign different rights to Mentors vs Mentees? I suppose the only possibility would be to create new roles in Moodle that specifically allow mentors more rights...but I couldn't find how to do that for the Learning Diary module.

So, as I understand it, the Learning Diary would only solve my problem if the following were true:

• Each teacher/mentor had their own Moodle course that housed the mentees they were responsible for.

That's one possible solution, albeit cumbersome when dealing with hundreds of people.

Possible Solution #2 - Groups of 1 for Forum Creation

This is a solution Gavin suggested, although as I write this blog entry, I haven't tried it (I'm going to in a moment and we'll find out together if it works).

To follow Gavin's suggestion, within a course, I went to Administration, chose Groups, then Auto-Create Groups, as illustrated below:

The next step looks like this:

I went ahead and indicated that I wanted it to create the groups with one person in it:

And this ends up looking like this for my one Group member:

Unfortunately, I'm not altogether sure that this solution will work any better. For while I can have students separate in their own respective groups, I can't separate multiple teacher-mentors from each other. If you are a teacher-mentor, you will have access to ALL groups and be privy to all conversations between mentors and mentees.

Sigh.

So this solution has the same condition as the Learning Diary solution discussed earlier:

• Each teacher/mentor had their own Moodle course that housed the mentees they were responsible for.

Possible Solution #3 - Student Diary Pro

This is a solution I don't know anything about and will have to check with Gavin or others. 

Now that you see the challenge, is it possible to accomplish this in Moodle? (don't even mention Elgg or BuddyPress!!).

Possible Solution #4 - Mentee Block

I've read this one but I'm not sure I understand how to set it up. I'll have to watch this YouTube video to get a better feel for it:

YouTube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-49YrtjMTTo

The mentees block does not become visible until individual “mentors” have been assigned a role that enables them to mentor other users who become their "mentees" (e.g., a parent mentoring a child, or a tutor mentoring a student). To assign a mentor to a mentee, the mentor must first be assigned a role that allows that mentor permission to view relevant user information (moodle/user:viewdetails set to allow). After having been assigned a role that grants viewing permission, the mentor’s role must then be assigned to the mentee/user whose information they wish to view.

Mentor users logging on to the site will then be presented with a mentees block containing names and links to information about the individual users the mentor has been granted authorization to view. (Source)

More on the Mentee:

• Mentees Block
• Forum discussion
• Create a Parent of a Student Role
• A video on this in Spanish
• CSV User Relationships Block (a way to create the relationships by comma delimited file upload)

And here is a relevant excerpt from Packt Publishing by Alex Buchner on the subject of Mentees:

BEGIN QUOTE:

Parent or Mentor Role

One of the most popular and sought after custom roles in Moodle is the one of a parent, guardian, or mentor. The idea is to grant permission to users to view certain profile information, such as activity reports, grades, blog entries, and forum posts of their children, guardees, or mentees. This can be achieved with the creation of a new role. Furthermore, the specially-introduced Mentees block has to be placed on the front page to give users, who have been assigned the role, access the user context.

1. Create new role:
   
   1. Go to Users | Permissions | Define roles in the Site Administration block
   2. Add a new role and name it Parent or Mentor. Provide an appropriate short name and a description.
   3. Leave the Legacy role type set to None
   4. Change the capability moodle/user:viewdetails to Allow. This grants access to the user profile page.
   5. Change the following capabilities in the User section to Allow, which grants access to individual tabs on the user profile page:
      • moodle/user:readuserposts: To read the child's forum posts
      • moodle/user:readuserblogs: To read the child's blog entries
      • moodle/user:viewuseractivitiesreport: To view the child's activity reports and grades
2. Create user account for parent:
   Each parent requires a separate user account (Go to Users | Add a new user in the Site Administration and add details for the parent or use Moodle's bulk upload facility). In our example, the father is called Roy Harris and his children are called Frank Harris and Paul Harris:

3. Link parent to pupil:
   Each parent has to be linked to each child. Unlike the creation of users, this process cannot be automated via batch files and is a potentially time-consuming process
   1. Access the first child's profile page and click on the Roles tab (Frank Harris).
   2. Choose Parent as the role to assign
   3. Select the parent (Roy Harris) in the potential users list and add it to the existing users list.
   4. Repeat the steps (a) to (c) for the second child, Paul Harris
4. Add mentee block:
   
   1. Go to your front page and turn on editing.
   2. Add the Mentees block to the front page (it can also be added as a sticky block in My Moodle) and change its title via the configuration icon to Parent Access.
   3. Log in as Roy Harris and you should see the following block:
      
      
      
      
A special Mentees block has been introduced to facilitate access to user information.

When selecting a name, the respective user profile will be shown, which includes any posts sent to forums, blog entries and activity reports, including logs and grades

END QUOTE

Ah well, I'll have to reflect on Solution #3 some more and how it might work in my situation!

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DiigoNotes - Facilitated Round Table Discussions Protocol & Timing Guide

Thanks to Bud the Teacher for sharing these!

• Evernote shared notebook: Public

  • Facilitated Round Table Discussions Protocol & Timing Guide

    
    

    Total Time - 50 Minutes

    
    

    This guide is meant as a way to ensure a similar experience for all participants of the ISTE Leadership Bootcamp.  Please attempt to remain on time as that will ensure a consistent experience for all.  

    
    

    You will conduct, basically, the same session twice:

    
    

    Time to convene

    Time to process

    Time to discuss

    Time to process

    
    

    That session should look something like this:

    
    

    Time to Convene (10 minutes)

    
    

            (1st session only) 

    • Brief introduction of everyone in the group - name, affiliation, why you came to the Bootcamp and something useful that you’ve seen/heard/learned/discussed today in one sentence or less. (You’ll have to do this quickly to ensure that you have time for the protocol.)
    • Explanation of facilitator’s role as not the expert in the room, but the person who will guide the conversation and keep it on track. It is important to realize that the roundtable time is for two purposes:
    • Time for processing of the large volume of information in the Bootcamp day
    • Time for some cross-participant sharing of their insights, questions, and discoveries.
    • Quick reintroduction - names only should do it.  
    • Brief regrounding on the purposes of the facilitator and the session. 
    • Time for processing of the large volume of information in the Bootcamp day.
    • Time for some cross-participant sharing of their insights, questions, and discoveries.
    • Give participants a copy of the Reflection Guide if they need one.  (They’ll be provided at each breakout table as well as online via the Ning.)   
    • Allow no fewer than ten minutes for participants to do some writing about their previous sessions.  This is valuable both because it will help to ensure a good conversation, but, more important, it will allow folks to do some processing of a very busy day.
    • Please ask your table to honor the quiet writing time for participants.  Let them know that you will begin discussion at the end of the ten minutes, and will be using that time yourself to debrief and take notes.  
    • Please model that as writing time by taking notes and writing for yourself however/wherever you do so (notebook, computer, etc.) 
    • After time to write - please do not short participants on time for writing/processing - it's essential to have that processing time - you can and should walk the groups through sharing out from the prompts. Take about seven minutes for each big question - ask for volunteers to share their thinking, or read their writing if they prefer. Make time for each section and try to connect comments or probe further if you feel that a comment or question requires more from the sharer. You are a skilled facilitator - trust your judgment. Here are the questions that are on the reflection guide for your reference:  
    • Big Idea
    • What’s the most surprising or troubling thing you’ve seen/heard/experienced today?  Why?  As a leader in your organization, who needs to know about what you’ve seen?
    • Specific Insights
    • What’s good?  What did you see that you thought was particularly useful?  Why? As a leader in your organization, who needs to know about what you’ve seen?
    • Questions Raised
    • What do you need to know more about?  Who might be a resource within your organization to help you answer your questions?  Who in this room might be?
    • Implications for Action
    • What must you leave here remembering or willing to think further about?   How will what you saw this morning influence your future work? As a leader in your organization, how will you disseminate your learning from the Leadership Bootcamp?
    • At the end of the session, give folks five minutes more writing time so that they can record their insights or things they heard that they want to remember.  If time permits, you might ask for one take away from the group.  
    • Thanks your participants for their thoughts and comments and, if this is the first session, remind them that you'll see them later today. If this is the second, ask them to join you online for follow up in the
  • forum

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Aviary for Education Beta

http://www.aviaryeducation.com/

Some time ago, I was WOW'd by Aviary.com's Audio Editor. How neat that they just announced the launch of their beta Education site! Not so neat? It's going to cost. Sigh.

We would like to announce the launch of the "Aviary Education" beta site! http://techcrunch.com/2010/06/25/aviary-education/

We are developing "Aviary Education" specifically with educators in mind. We hope that websites, like yours, will help promote this new education technology initiative. If you will write a short piece or link to the article on a post, we would like to give your readers a special offering. Please let your readers know that if they put the code AroundCorner01 into their request for a beta, we will put them on the top of the list of setting up accounts!

If you (or anyone you know) are/is interested in the beta, please email us at Edu@Aviary.com (the amount of students or accounts) and we will gladly set you (or them) up. 

We look forward to hearing your feedback and perfecting the site in time for the start of school in September.

Thanks in advance for your help and participation. We couldn't be more excited about this new offering!

Check out these tools for your EDU! It's kinda funny they are using GoogleForms for the beta account request!

Thanks so much for your interest in the Aviary Education Free Beta Program. Someone will contact you within 24 hours and get you set up and ready to go. If you dont hear from us please contact edu@aviary.com

Is this something your school or district will pursue? Why or why not?

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Avoiding Complacency with UbuntuLinux

Last night while I was reading The Death of Chaos (3rd time because I love the way Modesitt's writes in his understated way), it occurred to me that I'd gotten a bit complacent with what I knew or didn't know about UbuntuLinux. It was the idea that I'd learned what I needed to learn and, as such, could just rest on my laurels, no need to learn anything more. So, I decided to ask myself, what else could I learn about UbuntuLinux that would make my use of it easier?

As such, to avoid complacency, I decided to do a search on "Ubuntu tips" and see what came up. Some interesting results:

Result #1 - Command Line Shortcuts
While I probably won't remember all of these at first, it would be pretty easy to remember 1 or 2, and over time, remember them all as I use them at the command line. The source for these is MakeUseOf.com's excellent post on 15 Great Ubuntu Tips.

Ctrl-a

Move to the start of the line.

Ctrl-e

Move to the end of the line.

Alt-] x

Moves the cursor forward to the next occurrence of x.

Alt-Ctrl-] x

Moves the cursor backwards to the previous occurrence of x.

Ctrl-u

Delete from the cursor to the beginning of the line.

Ctrl-k

Delete from the cursor to the end of the line.

Ctrl-w

Delete from the cursor to the start of the word.

Ctrl-y

Pastes text from the clipboard.

Ctrl-l

Clear the screen leaving the current line at the top of the screen.

Ctrl-x Ctrl-u

Undo the last changes. Ctrl-_

Alt-r

Undo all changes to the line.

Alt-Ctrl-e

Expand command line.

Ctrl-r

Incremental reverse search of history.

Alt-p

Non-incremental reverse search of history.

!!

Execute last command in history

!abc

Execute last command in history beginning with abc

!n

Execute nth command in history

^abc^xyz

Replace first occurrence of abc with xyz in last command and execute it

Result #2 - Installing New Fonts on Ubuntu

This command line tip appears in the comments of the MakeUseOf.com article and works:

sudo apt-get install ttf-larabie-deco ttf-larabie-straight ttf-larabie-uncommon

Result #3 - Using Linux Computer as Media Center
Another one from MakeUseOf.com on this.

Result #4 - Command Line Tips
This find was great, since it answered a few questions I've had. Those questions include:

How does one quickly find the executable file for a program, like say, Firefox browser? On Windows, the EXE file extension is a clue that the file I'm looking at is an executable. On Mac, all the executables are in the Applications folder or you can GET INFO to find out what it is. But on GNU/Linux, I'm not as sure.

which  :: find and displays the filename location, escp for executable file

How do you install RPM files on Debian systems? I've known about this one for awhile and hardly use it anymore, but it's nice to keep track of this tip:

alien <-rpm file> :: alien -i <-rpm file> :: will helps to unpack and install rpm based files in debian system

Result #5 - Shred Stuff
Although I seldom deal with confidential data on my computers, sometimes it does happen (or stuff I think is confidential). So, what I do is shred it. I've written a longer blog post on this, but this tip works for quick stuff:

Shred is included in many Linux distributions, thus you can use it immediately, without any further installation.

To shred a file,

shred -f -v -z -u file.txt

where

-f: change permissions to allow writing if necessary

-v: verbose, to display the progress

-z: add a final overwrite with zeros to hide shredding

-u: truncate and remove file after overwriting

Well, that's all I have time for...of course, this probably helped me run out of time.

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Finding Disk Space on UbuntuLinux

How do you measure disk space on your computer? Running UbuntuLinux (latest version), it should have been easy but I couldn't find the Disk Usage Analyzer that typically is installed at Applications->Accessories.

Fortunately, a short tutorial allowed me to type "df -h" (without quotes) at the command line that yielded these results:

For fun, I installed another program and it gave me slightly different results (probably because I installed a program, Discus):

I'm sure there are fancier programs to accomplish this, but often, I like the text only approach that tells me how much space is left. In this case, I uninstalled Discus in favor of df -h which is already installed and provides the info needed.

Of course, another way to check wouldn't have involved the command line at all. I simply had to go to the System Monitor (System->Administration->System Monitor) and then click on the appropriate tab (System) to see:

Lots of other nifty information there, too. Under the File Systems tab...one can see this:

So...command line is optional at this point.

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DiigoNotes - Virtual school is the latest home school option | www.beaumontenterprise.com - Local

• Virtual school is the latest home school option | www.beaumontenterprise.com - Local

  • Virtual schools' in Texas are part of the Electronic Course Program offered through the Texas Education Agency.

    They are state funded education programs that provide online learning for third through ninth graders who do not have to be physically present in the classroom. While some applaud the new option, others say the virtual school experience is not right for them or their children.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

DiigoNotes - Libraries fading as school budget crisis deepens

• Libraries fading as school budget crisis deepens - News Radio 590 KLBJ - The AP Wire

  • Libraries fading as school budget crisis deepens
    
    By DONNA GORDON BLANKINSHIP Associated Press Writer
  • As the school budget crisis deepens, administrators across the nation have started to view school libraries as luxuries that can be axed
  • the American Association of School Administrators projects 19 percent of the nation's school districts will have fewer librarians next year, based on a survey this spring. Ten percent said they cut library staff for the 2009-2010 school year.
  • Since few state or federal laws mandate school libraries or librarians, and their job losses are small compared with classroom teacher layoffs, library layoffs may seem minor to some observers. But librarians say few administrators or parents understand how involved they are in classroom learning and school technology.
     
  • Those who remain are doing the jobs done by two or three people a few years ago.
  • Gigi Lincoln, the librarian at Lakeview High School in Battle Creek, Mich., since 1973, was told she would have to leave the library and start teaching French
  • Lincoln,
  • hasn't taught French since 1972
  • Now she's working part-time at two school libraries and says she will do her best to do more than just check out books.
  • Bellevue School District eliminated all its high school librarians. Middle Schools on being cut next school year.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Draft - #Moodle Course Planner

Image Source: http://www.tarantulas.net/funny/graphics/demotivation/planning.jpg

"What if I had a simple Moodle course planner that would remind me what options were available to me?" I asked myself yesterday. "And, what if I added suggestions for OpenWeb tools--like the list of 48+ embed tools--that would help me remember just what was out there?"

This past Friday found me attending meetings and working on a partial course begun by a previous team member, Diana Benner (co-host of Moodle Mayhem and online learning specialist for Dallas ISD). I was intrigued by the course but wanted to make some adjustments, especially in light of our conversations at the TCEA MoodleMoot and my own appreciation for what makes an "Online Learning Workshop."

Although I didn't make it that far--meetings--I did get a chance to play around with a Moodle Course Planning tool. At this point, I'm not sure I have it exactly the way I want it but thought I'd share it with you and see what sparks might fly. I'm also not sure if I mean for it to be a 1-2 pager planning form where you check off items, or an online document you fill out. Either way, it may be too bulky or too much to consider for a newbie. However, *I* need it when I'm developing courses because it's too much to conceptualize a Moodle course and remember what I'm doing module by module (topic by topic).

I also had the stray thought that maybe I wasn't as learner-centered as I needed to be...my focus is on course goals and correlations to expectations. But I'm not sure how to begin with learner-centered interests. Well, enough disclaimers as to what it doesn't or can't do.

You can view the GoogleDoc online here, and I've tried to paste the table below:

Moodle Course Planner

Developed by Miguel Guhlin 06/25/2010; DRAFT

Shared under Creative Commons Copyright Sharealike-NonCommercial-Attribution

Course Goals		Grouping	Moodle Interactive	OpenWeb Interactive (suggested tools in parentheses)
Topic 0: Welcome	Desired Learning Activities TA:TEKS/ISTE (refer to list at the bottom of this doc)	__ Student to Student (External) __ Group to Group (External) __ Class to Class (External) __ Whole Class __ Small Group (4 or more) __ Triad (3) __ Dyad (2) __ Individual	Whole Class or Small Group: __ Choice __ Database __ Glossary __ Questionnaire __ Wiki Individual: __ Assignment __ Online Text __ Upload Single File __ Upload Multiple Files __ Forum:_________________ __ Quiz or JQuiz* __ CrossWord Puzzle* __ Matching* __ Mix* __ Cloze* *Hot Potatoes required	Collaborative Tool (2 or more students working together) __ Collaborative Word Processing      (iEtherpad.com, GoogleDocs) __ Graphic Organizer     (e.g. Bubbl.us) __ Interactive Slideshow      (Voicethread,ShowBeyond) __ Presentation __ Spreadsheet Embedded Content __ Animation (GoAnimate) __ Avatar (Voki) __ Audio (Podcast/Music) __ Cartoon (Bitstrips.com) __ Graph Creation (Graphjam) __ PDF Document (Scribd) __ Podcast (Vocaroo,Drop.io) __ Poster (EduGlogster) __ Slideshow (Slideshare) __ Survey (GoogleDoc) __ Video (Edublogs.tv) __ Webcam(s)
Topic 1:  Description: Duration:		__ Student to Student (External) __ Group to Group (External) __ Class to Class (External) __ Whole Class __ Small Group (4 or more) __ Triad (3) __ Dyad (2) __ Individual	Whole Class or Small Group: __ Choice __ Database __ Glossary __ Questionnaire __ Wiki Individual: __ Assignment __ Online Text __ Upload Single File __ Upload Multiple Files __ Forum:_________________ __ Quiz or JQuiz* __ CrossWord Puzzle* __ Matching* __ Mix* __ Cloze* *Hot Potatoes required	Collaborative Tool (2 or more students working together) __ Collaborative Word Processing      (iEtherpad.com, GoogleDocs) __ Graphic Organizer     (e.g. Bubbl.us) __ Interactive Slideshow      (Voicethread,ShowBeyond) __ Presentation __ Spreadsheet Embedded Content __ Animation (GoAnimate) __ Avatar (Voki) __ Audio (Podcast/Music) __ Cartoon (Bitstrips.com) __ Graph Creation (Graphjam) __ PDF Document (Scribd) __ Podcast (Vocaroo,Drop.io) __ Poster (EduGlogster) __ Slideshow (Slideshare) __ Survey (GoogleDoc) __ Video (Edublogs.tv) __ Webcam(s)
Topic 2:  Description: Duration:		__ Student to Student (External) __ Group to Group (External) __ Class to Class (External) __ Whole Class __ Small Group (4 or more) __ Triad (3) __ Dyad (2) __ Individual	Whole Class or Small Group: __ Choice __ Database __ Glossary __ Questionnaire __ Wiki Individual: __ Assignment __ Online Text __ Upload Single File __ Upload Multiple Files __ Forum:_________________ __ Quiz or JQuiz* __ CrossWord Puzzle* __ Matching* __ Mix* __ Cloze* *Hot Potatoes required	Collaborative Tool (2 or more students working together) __ Collaborative Word Processing      (iEtherpad.com, GoogleDocs) __ Graphic Organizer     (e.g. Bubbl.us) __ Interactive Slideshow      (Voicethread,ShowBeyond) __ Presentation __ Spreadsheet Embedded Content __ Animation (GoAnimate) __ Avatar (Voki) __ Audio (Podcast/Music) __ Cartoon (Bitstrips.com) __ Graph Creation (Graphjam) __ PDF Document (Scribd) __ Podcast (Vocaroo,Drop.io) __ Poster (EduGlogster) __ Slideshow (Slideshare) __ Survey (GoogleDoc) __ Video (Edublogs.tv) __ Webcam(s)
Topic 3:  Description: Duration:		__ Student to Student (External) __ Group to Group (External) __ Class to Class (External) __ Whole Class __ Small Group (4 or more) __ Triad (3) __ Dyad (2) __ Individual	Whole Class or Small Group: __ Choice __ Database __ Glossary __ Questionnaire __ Wiki Individual: __ Assignment __ Online Text __ Upload Single File __ Upload Multiple Files __ Forum:_________________ __ Quiz or JQuiz* __ CrossWord Puzzle* __ Matching* __ Mix* __ Cloze* *Hot Potatoes required	Collaborative Tool (2 or more students working together) __ Collaborative Word Processing      (iEtherpad.com, GoogleDocs) __ Graphic Organizer     (e.g. Bubbl.us) __ Interactive Slideshow      (Voicethread,ShowBeyond) __ Presentation __ Spreadsheet Embedded Content __ Animation (GoAnimate) __ Avatar (Voki) __ Audio (Podcast/Music) __ Cartoon (Bitstrips.com) __ Graph Creation (Graphjam) __ PDF Document (Scribd) __ Podcast (Vocaroo,Drop.io) __ Poster (EduGlogster) __ Slideshow (Slideshare) __ Survey (GoogleDoc) __ Video (Edublogs.tv) __ Webcam(s)
Topic 4:  Description: Duration:		__ Student to Student (External) __ Group to Group (External) __ Class to Class (External) __ Whole Class __ Small Group (4 or more) __ Triad (3) __ Dyad (2) __ Individual	Whole Class or Small Group: __ Choice __ Database __ Glossary __ Questionnaire __ Wiki Individual: __ Assignment __ Online Text __ Upload Single File __ Upload Multiple Files __ Forum:_________________ __ Quiz or JQuiz* __ CrossWord Puzzle* __ Matching* __ Mix* __ Cloze* *Hot Potatoes required	Collaborative Tool (2 or more students working together) __ Collaborative Word Processing      (iEtherpad.com, GoogleDocs) __ Graphic Organizer     (e.g. Bubbl.us) __ Interactive Slideshow      (Voicethread,ShowBeyond) __ Presentation __ Spreadsheet Embedded Content __ Animation (GoAnimate) __ Avatar (Voki) __ Audio (Podcast/Music) __ Cartoon (Bitstrips.com) __ Graph Creation (Graphjam) __ PDF Document (Scribd) __ Podcast (Vocaroo,Drop.io) __ Poster (EduGlogster) __ Slideshow (Slideshare) __ Survey (GoogleDoc) __ Video (Edublogs.tv) __ Webcam(s)

Technology Applications:TEKS Correlation

K-2 TA:TEKS
__ Learn of alphabetic & numeric concepts.
__ Use draw and paint programs. __ Create Multimedia Slideshows.

3-5 TA:TEKS
__ Input data into word processing tools
__ Synthesize information from various sources
__ Communicate information via multimedia slideshows, spreadsheets and charts, other productivity tools.

6-8 TA:TEKS
__ Create database
__ Disaggregate data
__ Higher-order thinking skill development
__ Collaborate via networks
__ Self-select appropriate productivity tools

ISTE NETS-Students
__ Generate new ideas, products, processses
__ Create original works for personal/group expression
__ Use models/simulations to explore complex systems and issues
__ Identify trends and forecast possibilities
__ Interact, collaborate, publish

__ Communicate information
__ Develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of other cultures.
__ Contribute to Project teams to produce original works or solve problems
__ Plan strategies to guide inquiry
__ Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media

__ Evaluate and select information sources and digital tools

__ Process data and report results
__ Identify/define authentic problems and questions for investigation
__ Plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project.
__ Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions.

__ Use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions
__ Exhibit digital citizenship
__ Understand and use technology systems
__ Select and use applications effectively and productively
__ Troubleshoot systems/applications

__ Transfer current knowledge to new technologies

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Embedding Stuff in #Moodle or Anywhere

Puppy Cam: An Example of How You Can Embed Media in Moodle

Puppy Cam Litter Bio

Breed: Goldador Born: April 22, 2010

Dam: Griffin Sire: Norm

Litter Size: 7 

Creating interactive web sites is all the rage. Why? Interaction pays off big for engagement, whether you're working with K-12 or adult learners. There are MANY tools available to embed content, and usually, I wouldn't even spend time on them. What is worth spending time on is WHERE you are going to embed them. As I prepare for a Moodle workshop focused on multimedia, it seems only natural to compile a list of places that have content.

One of my favorites is embedding webcams...like the puppies shown at the top of this blog entry. Simply highlight, copy and then paste it into your Moodle HTML page, block, forum post, whatever...it works!

For Moodle, you'll want to do two things:

1) Multimedia Filters - Turn them on

2) In SECURITY->SITE POLICIES, allow embedding:

WHAT CAN I EMBED?
Here are 48+ neat providers of content that you can embed--or place--on a web page. This is content that can easily be "embedded" in blogs, wikis, and/or Moodle. Some of it you can make yourself, while others comes from other sources.

Acknowledgements: Thanks to all who offered suggestions for what to list here, including the following: Joel Adkins, Andy Byerly, Matt Bucher, Carolyn Foote, Peggy George, Ginger Lewman, Danny Maas, Carol Nichols Mortensen, NedraI, Roswells Girl. 

Audio/Video

Presented by MathTV.com

1. Animoto.com
2. Archive.org
3. Blip.tv
4. Drop.io - Create audio content via phone or upload then embed it.
5. Edublogs.tv
6. Embedr.com - Allows you to embed videos from various sources in ONE play window.
7. FreeSound.org
8. Magnatune.com
9. MathTV.com
10. MusOpen.com - Embed free public domain classical music
11. Vimeo.com
12. Voicethread.com
13. YouTube.com

Cartoons and Animation/Avatars

1. BitStrip.com
2. GoAnimate.com
3. Strip Generator
4. Voki

Chat and Gadgets

1. ClockLink - Enables you to embed all sorts of clocks.
2. MeeboMe - Embed chat window
3. Wallwisher.com

Documents (PDF/Slideshows/Posters)
Voice Thread Tutorial

1. Edu.Glogster.com
2. Issuu.com - Embed PDF files
3. GoogleDocs
4. Zoho
5. Prezi.com
6. Scribd.com
7. Slide.com
8. Slideshare.net
9. ShowBeyond.com
10. Voicethread.com

Graphic Organizers

1. Bubbl.us
2. Cacoo.com

Images and Photos

1. Flickr.com
2. PicasaWeb
3. Wordle.com

Surveys and Graphs
Create your own poll and then embed the form and/or results. Or, create graphs with data.

1. BuzzDash.com 
2. Chartle.net
3. ChartGo
4. Create a Graph
5. Do It Yourself Chart
6. GoogleForms 
7. GraphJam.com (this is my favorite graph maker, even though you can't necessarily embed stuff with code...but you can copy-n-paste it once a grpah y
8. iCharts
9. Online Chart Generator
10. PollDaddy.com  
11. PollEverywhere.com  
12. Rich Chart Live

WebCams

1. AfriCam
   
2. EarthCam.com
3. National Zoological Park
4. PuppyCams

Online Lesson Activities

1. Literacy Center

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Google-Moodle Integration Question and Response (Updated)

Earlier this week, I received a question from someone in Arizona regarding Google-Moodle Integration. While I didn't know the answer, I did know who to ask the following question:

We are thinking of integrating Google Apps with Moodle for a charter school we are starting in Arizona.  We need to have logs of all communication taking place.  Are there accessible logs generated from the messages send through Gmail when it is integrated with Moodle?

Rusty Meyners (Eustace ISD, Tx) was kind enough to reply, along with one other response from the Google Certified Teachers (GCT) list:

Couldn't swear but almost certain that Moodle will have no logs of Google communications. There might be a little variation in exactly what Moodle-Google Integration means in your enterprise but as far as I'm aware, Moodle will only log the act of accessing the links in the Google Block and of course the authentication but even then I'm not sure you can tell if the login authentication was called by Google Access or not. Once you are actually into Google Docs, activity there is not logged by Moodle.

AND as far as I'm aware, there are no Admin accessible logs kept by Google Apps (or GMail) either.

HOWEVER; with Single Sign-On Moodle-Google Integration, it is possible for the Moodle Admin (or anyone with Login-As privilege) to "Login-As" a given user and access their Documents and (I assume) GMail (we don't use it).

YOUR SOLUTION, should you decide to go Google or Moodle-Google, is to purchase the Postini services that includes Archiving (they call it something else - Message Indexing?). There may be other archiving solutions besides their Postini but Archiving is required by law now anyway.

AS FOR CHAT LOGGING, not sure Google provides for this but you can keep it disabled and only allow Moodle Chat which has very good and searchable logging.

Another response came from GCT, Darren Murphy:

We have Google Apps integrated with Moodle. From my understanding you cannot access logs of Gmail messages in Google Apps and Moodle, but you could use a third party paid add on such as Gaggle net.

https://www.gaggle.net/archiving_google.html

Which makes me wonder, what if you had Postini's archiving feature turned on (listen to this podcast for info about cost for archiving; Postini is available at a flat rate of $11 per user, about a $60 discount from Enterprise costs))? Wouldn't that cover it?

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Podcast - #Moodle Moot 2010 - Informal Learning Experiences #tceamoot

Youtube video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_RDnqCGdgc

Today, I found myself driving to the TCEA MoodleMoot 2010 taking place in Ft. Worth. While you may not know it, I've found that I sometimes get apprehensive when going to such a focused conference. It's a funny feeling to have to overcome...you know, that feeling that what you know and do on a daily basis just doesn't measure up to what others are doing. This is a feeling I've had for some time in regards to Moodle...so much to learn, so many people who have been using it for years. I sometimes ask myself, "Wow, the potential applications are through the roof! Do I have the imagination to use it in novel ways?"

I share this feeling with you because I know that a lot of folks tell me the same thing about how what they're doing doesn't measure up to what *I* am doing. I laugh at that, knowing from experiences like the one I just shared with you that it's normal to feel inadequate...The truth is, you aren't...you're being true to what you are learning and there is nothing wrong with sharing that.

The greatest antidote to that feeling is to embrace the new learning that comes at you...or if you prefer a different analogy, allow it to sweep you off your feet. I had that feeling tonight in a conversation, a portion of which is captured in the video clip at the top of this blog entry.

Tonight, after having dinner with folks from El Paso ISD (Chris Sherman and Earl Yaeger), another large urban school district, and Kilgore College (no names, sorry), I continued a conversation with Chris and Earl. It was no surprise there since I'd driven the 3 of us back from dinner and these gentlemen are very reflective about their work (great!).

Wow, the resulting sharing may well be worth the conference. I'm amazed at the great work that Chris and his team of 10 folks do every day in El Paso ISD. The video that is cited at the top of this is only a small part of the conversation. You'll have to use your imagination to "see" what is shared, but it was clear to me that El Paso ISD is doing some AWESOME things. I console myself with the fact that they have 10 staff members, each an expert in something that can contribute to the whole product, but that they have DONE it--build a Moodle course on Technology Integration at Elementary School, as well as others--shows that it CAN be done and HAS been done.

The question for me is, Why am I not doing more of this? WOW!

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure