[ED-TECH] Urgency

I apologize for my last message; it was insensitive. I have been so busy with other things that I wasn't thinking of the trauma being felt by the lay offs at the medical campus. Obviously the urgency level there is at its highest level. This is not a quiet, restful time to reflect, for people affected either directly or indirectly. I am sorry for not recognizing that on my own. Thank you to those who kindly pointed it out.

I am working hard to align myself to the new reality, to me, that we are not a university with a medical school attached but a medical school with a university attached. I was told that 2/3 of our income and 2/3 of our expenses are based on our medical school, including our clinical services. I didn't know that.

Changing this mindset is important for me. I think of the story of President Kennedy and the janitor at NASA. See http://goo.gl/i8MQ9 to read the story, if you don't know it. I want to know that instead of just helping the faculty at UM use technology to enhance learning, _I_ am working to cure cancer and do all the other amazing things happening at this institution.

When people ask me how I am I always answer "Excellent!" with emphasis. It is just as easy as saying "Ok" or "Fine" or "Getting by". It reminds me that I am doing important things and it is an honor and a calling. When people ask me what I do, I sometimes falter. I need to work on that and have some things that make me proud(er) when I say what I do.

- I am changing our future generations.
- I am helping to cure cancer.
- I am increasing the well-being of Miami.
- I am discovering new knowledge.

I will work on this list and, in the process, hopefully be more sensitive to the many associated parts of this wonderful organization, as I reframe my role and join with them.

Bill Vilberg - bill.vilberg@miami.edu, 786-250-2255

http://vilberg.com - Spreading seeds of education, technology, and more

[ED-TECH] Starting with Creation

Ed-tech List Members,

What a different feel our institution has now that the semester has ended. A few summer classes are in session, but nothing like the bustle of the semester. New sod has been laid next to the walkway between the University Center and Richter Library, now that the Farmer's Market is over until next fall. The music/law parking lot is closed, while part of the new circulation(?) road is being built and the parking lot is being reconfigured. The Student Activity Center (SAC) has sprung up and work continues in earnest. (Want to watch the SAC construction? Go to http://129.171.166.15/appletvid.html for a live video feed.) 

For most of us, this is a time for important/not-urgent activities. (See http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_91.htm if you are not familiar with the important-urgent matrix.) I posted a lengthy (for me) post on http://vilberg.com this morning. I am including it below, so you don't even have to go to vilberg.com to read it. It certainly isn't urgent, but reflecting on our teaching mission is important, IMHO. If yu want to reply back to the group after reading the article and my comments, just send your thoughts to ed-tech@listserv.miami.edu. No need to include all of this message in your reply.

----- BEGIN INSERT -----

LINK TO SOURCE ARTICLE: http://goo.gl/oe1bs

If you have heard about flipping the classroom, read this article. If you have heard of Bloom's Taxonomy, read this article. If you haven't heard of either, read this article. (That covers everyone, right?)

I admit to a curious error when I first saw the image for this article. I saw "cheating" as the starting point. Of course creating and cheating only differ by one letter, and "r" does resemble "h", doesn't it? But now I am wondering, do some (many?) teachers/faculty see Google as cheating? 

We live in a Google world. With smart phones and iPads, the answer to most questions is available instantly, anywhere you are. They can use the facts before having to be told all of them. They can construct the rules, not perfectly or rigorously, but they can begin the construction of the scaffold of understanding, without all the practice and drudgery that we had to experience. Ask a question, and they have the answer immediately, if you let them use Google. How is that learning? They are cheating! 

We feel sort of cheated, too, since we had to memorize all the facts before we could start creating. Now our students can access the information and start creating immediately. Their creations are not the high-level research that we are doing, but the creation of the relationships of the facts, creation of the basic rules of our discipline, and creation of learning tools that can be communicated with others to help them learn all of this. 

How do we assess the attainment of the basic knowledge in our discipline? Normally we use low level testing. This article mentions having the students create an infographic. That sounds too much like fun. It isn't fair. Why couldn't I have learned that way. I feel cheated. 

So maybe I need to let go of my feeling that students can learn in this new way, that it isn't cheating, and that I was not cheated because I was born earlier and didn't have this opportunity. They are not mini-me and they will not learn the way I learned. Maybe starting with "create" makes sense.

This article was written by a high school teacher. I wonder, how will higher education react if/when more of our students come to us having "learned" in this way? How does our mission in higher education differ from the mission in high school, and does that difference affect this flipped Bloom's Taxonomy? This was a great article, for me. It generated far more questions than it answered. 

(via <a href="http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/05/flip-this-blooms-taxonomy-should-start-with-creating/">Flip This: Bloom's Taxonomy Should Start with Creating | MindShift</a>)

----- END INSERT -----

Bill Vilberg - bill.vilberg@miami.edu, 786-250-2255

http://vilberg.com - Spreading seeds of education, technology, and more

[ED-TECH] New content on vilberg.com

Ed-Tech list members,

UM is about to see some serious changes, for the better, in Academic Computing (or whatever it will be called). A Chief Academic Technology Officer is being hired to head things up and report directly to the CIO. New positions will be created to build up this important area. New programs will be designed to partner with faculty involved in technology enhanced learning. It is an exciting time.

I have been posting to Vilberg.com almost every day, rather than cluttering your mailboxes with all the stimulating articles and ideas I come across. If you are interested, please check out what is being posted there. If you would like to receive it via email, just enter your email address on the Vilberg.com web page.

Bill Vilberg - bill.vilberg@miami.edu, 786-250-2255

http://vilberg.com - Spreading seeds of education, technology, and more

Re: [ED-TECH] Why do we have an LMS?

Great discussion, Bill.

The comments posted thus far are very interesting, and I would add the following for consideration.

LMSs have become increasingly necessary beyond use for online courses. Traditional brick and mortar courses benefit from LMSs by using it as a repository for digital materials (e.g., syllabi, handouts, supplemental readings, etc.), computer scored quizzes, gradebook functionality, and more. As for costs associated with learning management systems, there are several "free" options available. Moodle, Sakai, and others are free to download and install, however, the "free" usage comes with a cost. That cost is associated with personnel necessary to provide tech support, security, software updates, etc. That said, several institutions have found a way to make free solutions work for them so perhaps it's worth pondering:

- Florida International University (Moodle)
- Johns Hopkins University (Sakai)
- Rutgers University (Sakai)
- University of Delaware (Sakai)
- University of Florida (Sakai)
- University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill (Sakai)
- University of Washington (Moodle)
- Wake Forest University (Sakai)
- and others

Moodle has been around since 1999, and Sakai since 2004. Therefore, the user base and available training/support/implementation resources have had a bit of time to grow and mature. Neither free LMS is perfect, but each could provide many of the same functions as LMSs that have a cost for entry. So if cost is the issue, these might find their way into the conversation.

As far as paid online learning solutions go, I think an LMS worth taking a look at is Canvas by Instructure (this company received seed money from Google's Executive Chairman, Eric Schmidt). Auburn University and Brown University recently switched to Canvas LMS. The jury is still out as to whether it holds up over time, but indications look promising.

At the Global Academy, UM's online college preparatory school for grades 6 through 12, we constantly look for ways to make the most of the technology within our grasp, while extending our reach to emerging technologies. Since we are a fully online school, the LMS is essential to our daily operations. And having one that is reliable, scalable, and easy to use is key. If cost is an issue, the previously mentioned solutions (e.g., Moodle, Sakai) could be implemented while saving money, at least in terms of software license costs.

Kind regards,

Craig

Dr. Craig Wilson | JD PhD
Executive Director
Collegiate, Online, and Pre-Collegiate Programs
Division of Continuing and International Education
University of Miami
Web: http://www.miami.edu/bgsdegree
Web: http://www.miami.edu/ssp
Web: http://www.umga.miami.edu
Email: cdw@miami.edu
Phone: (305) 284-2727


Dr. Craig Wilson | JD PhD
Head of School
University of Miami Global Academy
THE PREMIER ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL(r)
111 Allen Hall
5050 Brunson Drive
Coral Gables, FL 33124
Web: http://www.umga.miami.edu
Email: cdw@miami.edu
Phone: (305) 284-2980
Facebook: Like us on Facebook


Your life is larger than a classroom. Your education should be too.
The University of Miami Global Academy's mission is to vigorously prepare students
for college and life's journey, and provide service to our global community.
Learn. Live. Give.


-----Original Message-----
From: UM Educational Technology List [mailto:ED-TECH@LISTSERV.MIAMI.EDU] On Behalf Of Vilberg, William R.
Sent: Monday, April 30, 2012 8:12 AM
To: ED-TECH@LISTSERV.MIAMI.EDU
Subject: [ED-TECH] Why do we have an LMS?

Ed-Tech list members,

I just added a post on my vilberg.com blog that I wanted to share with you all: http://goo.gl/D7JqK

In my 14 years at UM I have brought in, set up, promoted, supported, and updated the Blackboard learning management system (LMS). An article, referring to another institution, suggests that the major functions of an LMS can be done on other systems for free, the minor functions are not being used, and an LMS costs a lot of money each year.

I don't agree with the conclusion that the LMS is a needless expense. I do agree that you, as a faculty member, should evaluate whether your teaching and student learning has been positively affected/changed by the use of an LMS. At the end of another academic year, this is a good chance to reflect on this question.

Please read my post at http://goo.gl/D7JqK and the original article referenced in that post. Then, if you would like, let me know what you think.

Bill Vilberg - bill.vilberg@miami.edu, 786-250-2255

http://vilberg.com - Spreading seeds of education, technology, and more

Re: [ED-TECH] Why do we have an LMS?

Bill,

The Blackboard LMS system or what ever the university chooses to use going
forward is a very important tool that is required as the university
adjusts to the increasing absorption of technology. Name me a university
that is about to pull the plug on it's LMS? I would think it would be the
reverse where educational institutions are increasing the use of
technology as they deliver content in more and more interesting formats.
Additionally the market in Masters, and other higher degrees requires
universities to complete not in traditional content delivery modalities
but in blended and online delivery formats. Online universities (yes
there are plenty of those and the traditional may turn up their noses...)
rely solely on an LMS to delver their instruction. Interestingly, they
would laugh at your question, wondering what you were talking about...

This leads to where UM is going with regard to content delivery. We know
that UM does not want to get into the "Online" business and we need say no
more about that! However, the move to the "Flip Classroom/Reverse
Classroom/blended model" will rely totally on the LMS. This model even in
the most sacred and hallowed institutions has gained ground and looks like
the way forward. Additionally with the surge of social media and the
improvements with technology in general, we will see that educational
institutions will be relying on an LMS to keep up with the changes in
content delivery styles.

All this being said... We need to make sure educational institutions have
the appropriate support mechanisms in place to empower faculty to use not
just the LMS but also all the other technology that is available. We
cannot go on thinking that faculty will just teach themselves to use
anything we put in front of them. Forward thinking institutions have
support personnel/units that work with faculty to design content delivery
that works and impacts student achievement. UM needs to make sure that
support for faculty is available in all schools and that we have a
consistency across the university.

In the School of Nursing and Health Studies, that support is made
available to all faculty and that has resulted in faculty winning awards
for course design using the LMS. We have investigated alternatives to the
traditional classroom lecture styles and this has been warmly received by
our students. We are currently moving all our orientations to an online
format and without an LMS we could not do that. If you implement the most
amazing technological products, you will need Instructional Technologists
to work alongside faculty to make them work. Research has indicated that
if you support faculty they will use the technology available.

So going back to your original question, I think it should read as the
following,

"Faculty should evaluate whether they have the appropriate support to
utilize the technology (for all technology not just the LMS) that is
available at the university so that it impacts their teaching and student
learning styles."

I think that would throw a whole new light on this discussion. What do
you think?


Lyndon Godsall Ed.D, Ed.S, M.Ed, B.Ed
Instructional Designer
305-284-2710 Office
954-647-4634 Cell
l.godsall@miami.edu






On 4/30/12 8:11 AM, "Vilberg, William R." <bill.vilberg@MIAMI.EDU> wrote:

>Ed-Tech list members,
>
>I just added a post on my vilberg.com blog that I wanted to share with
>you all: http://goo.gl/D7JqK
>
>In my 14 years at UM I have brought in, set up, promoted, supported, and
>updated the Blackboard learning management system (LMS). An article,
>referring to another institution, suggests that the major functions of an
>LMS can be done on other systems for free, the minor functions are not
>being used, and an LMS costs a lot of money each year.
>
>I don't agree with the conclusion that the LMS is a needless expense. I
>do agree that you, as a faculty member, should evaluate whether your
>teaching and student learning has been positively affected/changed by the
>use of an LMS. At the end of another academic year, this is a good chance
>to reflect on this question.
>
>Please read my post at http://goo.gl/D7JqK and the original article
>referenced in that post. Then, if you would like, let me know what you
>think.
>
>Bill Vilberg - bill.vilberg@miami.edu, 786-250-2255
>
>http://vilberg.com - Spreading seeds of education, technology, and more