dave goodrich – Page 10 – learn :: design

LearnDAT Farewell Post

Together, each member of the LearnDAT team makes up an amazing pool of talent, creativity, knowledge, skill and experience in the field of distance education.

LearnDAT Holloween Party 2012 — LearnDAT Halloween Party 2012

For over the past year, I have had the privilege of working with the incredibly talented instructional and educational media designers at LearnDAT (this is a picture of some of us at our 2012 halloween party). Together, each member of the LearnDAT team makes up an amazing pool of talent, creativity, knowledge, skill and experience in the field of distance education. I will miss them very much.

Friday is my last day in LearnDAT as I have accepted a new instructional design position at Jackson Community College. I look forward to venturing into this new role that is closer to home and plan to stay in touch with my colleagues here at Michigan State. Thank you, for everything!

The team assembled here is so innovative, creative, collaborative and effective. Since being here I have learned so much from each person. There is a rich history here and notoriety not only in the MSU community, but in the field of instructional design and instructional technology in general. It makes me incredibly proud to have been able to contribute to a handful of the ongoing great things going on here.

Web Equation

A tool I found for writing out equations and getting results.

$20, Math, Openofficeorg icon | Icon Search Engine | Iconfinder http://goo.gl/nI3mn$ I want to share this tool I came across the other day that allows you to write out your math equations, calculations, or chemical formulas and instantly get the MathML, LaTex, WolframAlpha, or SymbolTree goods translated.

I haven’t yet tried it to see how it works on an iPad, but it seems like it would really be a nice tool for STEM faculty who use tablets? Thoughts?

Here it is. It is the tool on the lower left called “Web Equation”.

Digital Research: The Double Edged Sword

Thanks, to Allison for passing along this interesting graphic for me to share here on the topic of online research practices. There are some interesting survey findings and helpful advice such as searching relevant terms, to not multitask and to consult with a librarian. I know my librarian friends continue to help me find sources available to me to tap into that I would have never found on my own (shout out to Robbie Bolton).

Attribution to OnlineEducation.net for this graphic

Google, are you losing me?

In the past couple weeks, I learned that Google Reader is going away and nearly cried.

After pulling myself together, I discovered that Feedly has been so much better all along and I have actually been missing out on an even better blog connection experience.

Today, I learned about Google Keep which really peaked my interest due to my near obsession with task lists. I am sorry to report that I am currently not impressed. No reordering? No connection to google calendar? Tasks don’t disappear when checked off? The search doesn’t seem to work? How was this even released without things like this addressed?

Google, are you losing me?

I hope not.

Reflections on “Measuring what makes life worthwhile” TED talk by Chip Conley

Recently, I watched this Measuring what makes life worthwhile TED Talk by Chip Conley for the second time.

Recently, I watched this TED Talk by Chip Conley for the second time. It was just that good.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QUF5QfnIbc]

In the talk, Conley challenges leaders to move beyond measuring for a 19th and 20th century industrial model for success which he suggests is being done with typical business metrics as well as larger GDP measurements.

Instead, he urges world leaders and business leaders alike to focus on a whole new happiness index derived from Buddhist philosophies. He supports this recommendation by providing a personal narrative that demonstrated the value of quantifying more meaningfully insightful data based on Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs for his Joie De Vivre company.

Although Conley is honest about how these measurements are comparatively elusive to gauge, the results are compelling for the loyalty his researched practices generated from both his employees and clients alike.

References

Conley, C. (2010, June 21). Chip Conley: Measuring what makes life worthwhile.YouTube. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UROCz70tlMY

Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-396. doi: 10.1037/h0054346

LearnDash – Could WordPress be a viable LMS?

So, I have always wondered about who might build a learning management component onto the existing WordPress platform.

About five years ago, I had some kind friends help me to see the benefits of using WordPress as a platform for blogging and web design. I continue to find the interface of WordPress to be intuitive compared to other content management systems. The powerful plugins are also robust with an active developer community.

So, I have always wondered about who might build a learning management component onto the existing WordPress platform. There are many faculty who use it in their courses as a way to provide content to their students outside of a learning management system. In doing so, they also sacrifice native tools geared for learning like quizzes, discussion forums, and gradebook functions. This is why I have been recently really interested to hear about what has been developing over at LearnDash.

Besides having a great name similar to another one that I know, the LearnDash plugin is soon to be launching an LMS solution within WordPress. I am really eager to explore the course creation process, quiz creation process, certificate completion options, course scheduling features, user management integration with existing LMSs, learning analytics package, and even media hosting options.

What about you? Would you be interested in using LearnDash with any of your courses? What interests you about LearnDash? I would love to hear your thoughts!

Interview of Carrie on Google Presentation Collaboration with Students

I had a great conversation today about using Google Presentations for collaborative learning with Carrie Heeter and Keesa Muhammad from LearnDAT.

I had a great conversation today about using Google Presentations for collaborative learning with Carrie Heeter and Keesa Muhammad from LearnDAT. Check it out:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0l14KQzwO50]

[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”document/pub” query=”id=18YYM0EB2TmYpkBL1fCfSrOhTADcS9QNsIAY38_rbVXM&embedded=true” width=”700″ height=”394″ /]

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Windownaut…

I absolutely love this tool on a daily basis. It helps me organize my application windows like a ninja organizes his evil enemies in a backstreet alley. Check it out:

I absolutely love this tool on a daily basis.

It helps me organize my application windows like a ninja organizes his evil enemies in a backstreet alley.

Check it out:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVJeAbISlKY&w=540&h=338]

“Why traditional publishers will be history five years from now.”

His rationale could be summed up by the inevitable convergence of dynamically embedded assessment within portable, editable, maneuverable, and digitally curated educational content.

Today, I learned from Gerg Kortemeyer’s take on “Why traditional publishers will be history five years from now.” Gerg is an Associate Professor of Physics Education and the Director of the LON-CAPA Project at Michigan State University.

His title is a bit misleading and I should clarify that he is really referring to educational publishers. His rationale could be summed up by the inevitable convergence of dynamically embedded assessment within portable, editable, maneuverable, and digitally curated educational content. He argues that the traditional textbook publisher will simply not be able to compete at the extrapolated adaptability projected.

Do you agree?

Field Trip to Menlo

Remember field trips? What ever happened to those?

Well, I am glad to report that yesterday, LearnDAT team members and some others from IT Services here at Michigan State University took part in one.

Sure, we didn’t ride in a big yellow bus and I am pretty sure none of us had to have permission forms filled out, but it sure felt like an authentic field trip none-the-less.

You see, we had the privilege of visiting our friends over at Menlo Innovations today. Richard Sheridan, CEO, founder, and chief story-teller at Menlo gave us a tour of their facilities, practices and philosophies. He began by explaining how the entire vision is premised upon building a culture of joy. Immediately, one of the attendants asked, “Did you say ‘joy’?”

Richard then went on to explain that he did, indeed, say “joy” despite Menlo being a software innovation company. The surprise at the word joy in the context of the software industry is not uncommon, but Menlo is simply not a common place. That is what makes Menlo a constant revolving door for tourists like us who have gotten wind of some amazing things happening there.

Not many places can claim that their primary tool for project management is 3×5 cards, and especially a place that builds software solutions.

Other notable culture shock experiences during the tour included the wide open floor plan, the 40 hour work-week (with no overtime or limits of when employees are “allowed” to take vacation), and seeing bikes, pets, and children all around the room. The culture of transparency and trust breeds some fascinating results that made for a very interesting tour, to say the least.

According to Sheridan, the issues and difficulties they experience as an organization are not much different than what any organization experiences except for the way in which they handle them. In fact, one of the quotes seen right on the wall stated, “make mistakes faster.” Menlo intentionally identifies managerial practices based upon fear-tactics and eradicates them so that trust is built with clients and the Menlo team alike.

As Sheridan and his team continue to demonstrate leadership and innovation, you might consider joining one of their tours. See what kinds of things you could learn and conversations that could be started as a result. I know that we are glad we did. In fact, they could take the whole field of design and technology for a trip if you ask me.

See photos from our field trip on our Facebook page