| Context | As Facilitator |
| Systems | Examples |
| As Learner | Summary |
My story begins at OISE/UT in the fall of 1994.
My first course for an EdD in Curriculum: Teaching and Learning
was called Educational Research and it was delivered online in a
sytem called parti. My most recent experience in conferencing is
with Web Knowledge Forum for an OISE/UT course called Computers
in Education.
In this paper, I will revisit the experiences of communicating
using online conferencing systems, through a variety of systems
both at OISE/UT and at Seneca College where I teach. For the past
year, I have been teaching online as well as in a computer lab and
this gives another perspective to my online conferencing profile.
I will briefly describe each system I have used, how it was used
and what my role was in the conference, either as learner or facilitator.
I will give selected examples of my messages posted online in those
conferencing systems. Finally, I will summarize my reflections on this
process.
1.parti - a text-based system where
various conferences were set up and
accessed by the learners. Typically, the learner was encouraged to
respond
to the topic for which the conference was named. One could read or
write
to the conferences. A scratchpad was available or one could go into
PICO,
an online editor to create messages and save them to the conferences.
Learners could also upload and download messages created as text files
in a word processing program. All course work was done online. In the
first
course, there were two drop-ins in Professor's office during the semester
for those in Toronto.
Course: 1692: Research in Education Fall 94 (two facilitators)
Course: 1300 Foundations of Curriculum Spring 97
2. E-mail reader system with major
domo set-up. All messages from everyone
in the class arrived in one's inbox on PINE mail reader. A Web page
version
with threading by date and author was also made available before the
course
was over. For small group work, e-mail lists were used. All work was
done online.
Special elective seminars with the professor were available on campus
during the term.
Course:1514 Internet Resources Summer 1995
3. HyperNews - this system allowed conferences as set by the instructor.
In this case, there was a Subject related conference, a Resource Conference,
a Café, and various work pages for small group work. HyperNews
was used as
a support for F2F meetings as was e-mail (primarily among the small
group participants).
Course: 1551 Distance Education Design Spring 1996
4. Virtual University - this system
allowed conferences as set by the instructor
with subconferences as suggested and/or set up by participants. This
was used
as support for a F2F course along with e-mail. Conferences included
Main Page,
Agenda, Questions and Answers, and Projects.
Course: 1551 Dynamic Web Summer 1996
5. Web Course in a Box - this system
allows Forums for posting and follow-up
messages. Forum topics are set by the instructor. This is used initially
as a
support for a Main Web Page and F2F labs and later, to supplement online
learning materials and browser situated Discussion Groups for an online
course.
For demo of this tool: http://www.madduck.com
Courses: MRK530 and SMS333 Computer Applications Summer, Fall, Spring
1997-98
CTC203 Web-Based Learning Spring, Summer 1998
6. Netscape Communicator Discussion Groups
- this system is a news reader
set up to be used with the Netscape Communicator 4 Browser. Three main
conferences are Teaching and Learning, Questions and Answers, Café.
There are Small Group Conferences for each team's projects.
Course: CTC203 Web-Based Learning Spring, Summer 98
7. E-mail reader on the web. This
is a threaded e-mail reader that organizes
messages posted by all participants. Supports F2F seminar sessions
held
twice a month.
Course 3522: Doctoral Seminar in Computer Applications Fall, Spring
98
8. Web Knowledge Forum - this system
is web-based with conferences set
by the instructor. Conferences include Help, Announcements, Tutor,
a Café,
and individual groups. WebKF is used in addition to a MOO system, e-mail
and F2F classes and lab sessions.
Course: 1602 Computers in Education Summer 98
I have travelled some distance from my first online conferencing in
the fall
of 1994 to now. There have been many hundreds of postings along the
way.
Now that I facilitate an online course for teachers, I find I want
to be a role
model in my postings. In the beginning, I simply wanted to be able
to communicate
- period.
I'm a life long letter writer and keeper of daily journals. The idea
of expressing
myself in words was not a foreign concept nor a particularly intimidating
prospect.
The first challenge was in mastering the tools by which to send my
messages.
I envy those who are starting their online communicating now with a
system
like Web Knowledge Forum. This system is a dream compared with parti,
my
first sytem for communcating online in a course.
I did keep a journal of my early days on that system - these are found at http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/~skarsten/1551/log.html
I had a manual. Like many manuals (to do with computers
at least) it was written
by someone who had forgotten what it is like to
be a total virgin or newbie to the
online experience. I must admit, I still do not
understand all of the arcane options
available in this system. To add to the confusion,
I was new to the PC as well.
That did not make the learning curve any more shallow.
I am a visual learner, so as systems developed
that allowed me to insert graphics,
I became much more comfortable in the online environment.
I find it extremely helpful
to be able to include links to other web materials
and to have those links become active
within the messages I am sending or receiving.
When I first began using conferencing with
my students, it became necessary to use
a system that would allow me to administer to all
the functions. I teach in a college that
places very high demands on the systems administrators.
I was not able to get timely
attention to my courseware (for example, inputting
the names and ids of my 125 plus
students each term in the First Class system). I
elected to use Web Course in a Box
- a
simpler system, but one where I could take care
of things on a day to day basis. Now I
began using my input as a model for my learners.
This became extremely important
when my learners were also teachers who were learning
how to use the system for their
own courses.
1. parti: The
conferences for the courses taken in parti have been eliminated
from the system. I no longer have any examples of
my contributions. What I do
still have are messages I sent to others (classmates,
professors) during the courses
through the parti system. I have included samples
of these.
PARTI 1 Message 1:
Messages to one of the two profs. In the good cop/bad
cop sense - he was the good cop
of the course for me. (with his permission)
Message 94.880 by SELIAKARSTEN on Sept. 27, 1994 at 16:25EST,
about .DELIVER
(323 characters).
What an adventure! Is this what it felt like to machete
through the bush to
seek exotic new lands? You wanted to know what my participate
name is - it's
SeliaKarsten. At this time, I'm not sure quite what else
to say except that I'm
pleased to have begun.
My participate name is SeliaKarsten. Here I am!
Message Two:
This is near the end of the course, I'm on feeling
much more comfortable in the medium.
(in response to the prof's message teling me about
a new computer bought for $9,000.)
Message 94.4126 by SELIAKARSTEN on Dec. 19, 1994 at 17:17EST (1054 characters).
Hi LAPO - Wow - nine big ones - I'm jealous! Sounds like
it can probably do everything
except imagine what to do. Thanks for the details. As
to the paper, I've decided to go with
Turabian's Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses
and Dissertations - last used for
my MFA thesis.
And a little Christmas gift to you - in case you don't
know them and are seeking a
sweet taste of Arizona in your armchair - checkout the
following, which you can order up from
your library on your computer - Joy Harjo and Stephen
Strom's "Secrets from the Center of the World"
- lovely prose poems and desert photography and Richard
Shelton's "Going Back to Bisbee" -
a marvelous journey with one who is a great writer and
lover of the desert life around him.
And as long as I have you on line - I just want to say
how much I have appreciated your
input in this course - I feel I've come a long way from
those first grumblings trying to read
the articles to one who can maneuver around the OISE
library and Indices at a respectable pace.
Big thank you.
PARTI 2 Message 1
To a classmate - behind the scenes look at my state
of mind regarding the postings
at an early stage of the course:
Message 97.544 by SELIAKARSTEN on Jan. 26, 1997 at 22:33EST (257 characters).
Hi - so when are you going to break the monotony of endless
blahness with one of your
scintillating messages - have you joined "source" yet?
My eyes are glazing over from
the length and frequency of submissions from the same
passionate few. Holy moly....
To a classmate regarding how I use parti
Message 97.306 by SELIAKARSTEN on Jan. 19, 1997 at 00:05EST (852 characters).
E, in answer to your questions: I tend to write online.
When it is Something that requires
a lot of thought - I'll write a draft first then rewrite
online. I have tried writing in Word, saving
as askii text, uploading, all that stuff but it's a lot
of work and I'm usually tired. I log all the notes -
putting one or two descriptive words so I know the jist
of what the note is about in case I want
to refer to it later. And by intuitive, I mean this conferencing
system does not seem very
intuitively constructed. That is - one cannot figure
out how to do things easily and logically
(in my humble opinion) I've taken a few online courses
at OISE and I prefer Hyper News or
Virtual University for example I hope this helps. I think
I'd better reread Wayne's last note to
see if I have anything intelligent to respond with. See
you later, Selia
To the Professor at the end of the course - feedback on the course. (with his permission)
Message 97.2041 by SELIAKARSTEN on April 22, 1997 at 11:15EST (2053
characters)
Greetings from Florida, W. I haven't forgotten your request
for feedback. Here I am at
a cybercafe, the conference done and time to tie up loose
ends.
1. What was useful or helpful with respect to how the course was presented?
- Receiving reading materials to augment the text.
- Introductions of participants
- Conferences related to specific topics
- Small group discussions
- Alternative conferences for additional topics - student
initiated
- Questions to guide thinking
2. Suggestions for improvement:
- An index to reading materials by author/title/subject
- An overview of possible course topics with approximate
breakdown as to dates,
ie: "hidden curriculum", weeks 11 and 12.
- An invitation for students to develop elective conferences
early in course ie - 1300cmc
- a brief reference sheet with nuts and bolts of parti
system included with package.
This might contain general directions for uploading and
downloading, basic commands ie
.edit, .send, profile myself
Perhaps these could be written by the tech person.
3. What instructor did to make experience better:
- Sent personal notes to give additional details
- Was flexible regarding term paper topic
- Did not insist on strict academic guidelines for term
paper - that gave a greater sense
of freedom for exploration
- Shared personal stories
4. What could instructor do to make the experience better?
- Might intervene where a participant tends to go on and
on - perhaps send (in package)
a brief guideline to effective conferencing ie: short
entries broken into short paragraphs
labeled for easier reading.
- Limit use of quotes (lengthy ones) from assigned reading
- Take a more active part in the informal conferences
like "chitchat" to enhance
student -instructor relationship
In General:
I believe this course might benefit from a more intuitive
conferencing system where messages
could be threaded by date, author and topic.
Thanks for a good experience that is proving helpful as
I prepare to do my research and dissertation.
Cheers, Selia
via HyperNews re: Red Project
to Red Group regarding Overall concept of Group Project
(NOTE: this is the only message that has survived from
the Hyper News page for the course)
It certainly is a relief to learn that C has a real grip
on using this technology. I'd like to upgrade
my skills yet for practical purposes, I think it is important
that we all identify where we think our strengths
lie at the momentum builds and we have to deliver. Who
in our group feels they have a sense of our design
criteria so far. I think a top ten list could be beneficial
at this point. -- from Selia for Overall.
Virtual University Conference:
"Agenda"
Subject:Re:Can we accomplish it all?
Number: 8 Author Selia Karsten
Date Wed, 17 Jul 1996 (16:23)
In-Reply-To: Re:Can we accomplish it all? (byDP)
If we're putting this to a vote I'd have to agree with
D in that I think I will be better able
to choose the best and most appropriate form if I have
seen the whole menu. That doesn't
mean it isn't painful - even in 12 weeks we'd be hard
pressed to grasp what ultimately
must take a great deal of time, energy and devoted concentration.
It seems to me that those of us who are new to all of
these choices will simply have
to use our projects to experiment with applications that
will help us make better, or at least
more informed decisions in future.
In my humble opinion....Selia
Conference: "Projects"
Subject: Re:MOOS and learning styles
Number: 33 Author: Selia Karsten
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 1996 (23:35)
In-Reply-To: MOOS and learning styles (by DP)
I'll just jump in here to say, yes - MOOOISE is
rather dazzling! And as you so wisely point out,
any graphics that serve to aide this MOO cannot be gratuitous
- the users, who, as you point out,
have grown up on visuals, will be quick to disdain graphics
which do not serve a purpose.
Perhaps you would elaborate of those other types of cognitive
processes you think might
be engaged..do you have any specific ideas re: the target
group? And not least, do you know
of any grants floating around? :-) Selia
Conference "Q&A"
Subject: A Murphy's (essentialbob's) law?
Number: 90 Author Selia Karsten
Date: Mon, 05 Aug 1996 (12:38)
In-Reply-To: Re:[Sol'n] breaking long JS lines (by J)
If, indeed, this law of certain uncertainties exists then
I might enter the bits of my final project
that need javascript glue only to discover the answers
myself minutes later....tempting thought
I can tell you!
Another law to consider: all weekends, long or short,
look more sunny and delightful when
viewed through a window while pouring over a hot keyboard
and modem.
Cheers, Selia
Conference "General"
Subject: New Conference?
Number: 58 Author Selia Karsten
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 1996 (05:28)
I'm delighted to find brilliant and provocative ideas
in our conferences. Occasionally however, I
sometimes find the thread stretched around corners to
the point of distraction. Considering the
complexities alreaqdy at work given this cornucopia of
information to absorb and comprehend,
I'd find it helpful, particularly in the Projects Conference,
if we kept more to the topic. If I stray too
far, I hope to be prompted accordingly.
In my humble opinion, a Salon Conference would be an excellent
addition to 1551s. Ones thoughts
could run freely to whatever passionate discourses invoked
by our discoveries. What say you all?
Selia
For 3522
NOTE: Mine was the only message every posted to that conference - the class used the e-mail reader
Subject:Greetings
Number:1 Author: Selia Karsten
Date:Wed, Sept. 19 (22:09)
Nothing like a nice clean slate to write on. I'm hoping
to be joined by others from the class.
I'd like to know if any of you have had a chance to take
up my invitation to visit the Web Course
in a Box web page created for Qualitative Research. Again
that URL is http://ilearn.senecac.on.ca/wcb/schools/INB/inb/skarsten/3/index.html
the login name is avisitor
and the password is research. There is a Forum under
Learning Links called Visitors Cafe where
you can leave a message. Cheers, Selia
E-MAIL THREADING from a WEB PAGE
Message 1 More Options for 3522
Selia Karsten (skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca)
Tue, 16 Sep 1997 21:17:15 -0400 (EDT)
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Next message: Selia Karsten: "electronic journals (fwd)"
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Next in thread: DV: "Re: More Options for 3522"
Reply: DV: "Re: More Options for 3522"
Hello class,
I'm eager to learn how we will decide to communicate with
one another. I'd like to throw
another option into the ring. I have created a course
page using the tool, Web Course in
a Box. I have entitled the course, Qualitative Research.
My team and I used it briefly this
summer when planning our project. I'd like for you to
take a visit to the page - I will create
a new Forum in Learning Links called Visitors Cafe where
you can post any messages.
http://ilearn.senecac.on.ca/wcb/schools/INB/inb/skarsten/3/index.html
When the IDbox comes up, in the top line put avisitor
in the next line put research
If you like the idea - I can easily add you all as students
(then you can create simple web
pages) to this course or you can help me design a special
course page for 3522.
To explore WCB (Web Course in a Box) go to http://www.madduck.com
you'll learn about the program and will get a password
to play around with it yourself. Let me know
what you think -either here or there. sk
Selia Karsten
skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca
http://learn.senecac.on.ca/~skarsten
NOTE: Only the professor ever visited the site mentioned in this note..
Message 2 Re: Research links
Selia Karsten (skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca)
Sat, 29 Nov 1997 20:40:47 -0500 (EST)
Messages sorted by: [ date ][ thread ][ subject ][ author
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Next message: CT: "C's Comp List"
Previous message: Selia Karsten: "Research links"
Next in thread: RC: "Re: Yesterday"
Reply: RC: "Re: Yesterday"
There's a very interesting website for those of us who
are interested in using technology
in teaching - http://node.on.ca/tfl
I've been taking part in the discussion groups and have
also found a number of the links and articles to be useful.
In particular, you may want to check out http://node.on.ca/tfl/integrated/details/
the links to integrated software. See you in class. sk
Selia Karsten
skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca
http://learn.senecac.on.ca/~skarsten
CTC203 Web Course in a Box FORUMS
Posted as facilitator Message 1
[ Read FollowUps ] [ Post Followup ] [ Message List ]
Forum: Using Stories in Teaching
Subject: Your stories
Posted by: Selia Karsten on 6/01/98:
I'm wondering if you are finding that reading these entries
triggers memories of other stories
in a kind of domino fashion. I'm prompted to think of
teachers I found challenging, of activities I
stumbled upon which became reliable activities to use
to stimulate students, of certain students
who were special challenges and the rewards I felt when
they reached their goals. Let me see how
brief I can be for sharing with these three examples:
1. One of several memorable teachers, a freshman English
teacher, challenged us by saying that
she'd already made up her mind about a lot of things
in life but if we could really make a difference
in changing her thinking, opening up a new ideas for
her - we had an automatic A in the course -
WOW - did I ever enjoy the excitement of that concept.
(Better yet, I made an A)
2. The mystery bag - I made a beautiful velvet drawstring
bag and filled it with a variety of little knick
knacks from around the house. The student reaches in
and (not looking) takes an object. They have
to tell a story the object brings to mind. Then I put
two or three students together and they have to use
their objects to make one story and the groups keep getting
larger (the objects can be refreshed with
new draws from the bag) until finally the whole class
has to make up one story using all of the objects.
Great for bonding, communication skills, leadership skills,
etc.
3. Recently I had a student join my Computer Apps class
who had a note from special needs saying
he might need lots of extra help. I noticed right away
that spelling was a big problem. I suggested that
he always use WORD for absolutely everything and run
spellcheck - he'd never thought of that. His confidence
level shot up and he became one of the outstanding students
in the class; all feelings of inadequacy seemed
to vanish with this new found strategy. It's not going
to "cure" LD but it at least, in this case, the idea was helpful.
Posted as facilitator Message 2
CTC Web Course in a Box, Forum re "Using Stories in Teaching"
Subject: Re: Story
Posted by: Selia Karsten on 7/16/98:
In Reply to: Story posted by AR on July 12 1998 at 10:13:04:
An excellent example of using story as metaphor for learning concepts. Thanks, A. sk
CTC203 Netscape Communicator
Submitted as Facilitator: Teaching and Learning Discussion
Group
Subject: Week One Update & Expectations
Date: Sun, 31 May 1998 01:03:15 -0400
From: Selia Karsten <skarsten@echo-on.net>
Reply-To: skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca
Newsgroups: seneca.pd.ctc.203w.teach
I am sending this message by e-mail also as I have only
had this discussio page visited by S so far.
Normally I put my messages and updates to you in the
Teaching Discussion area. All Discussion groups
are working fine now. And we are at the end of the first
week of the course. I will hope to see a great deal
of activity in days to come, now that you are getting
your CTC203 legs (or should I say fingers?)
So far, the most activity has been in Forum 1 at the WCB
site. I am hoping that G and B will be catching
up with us very soon.
I have created two web pages that will be refreshed at
the end of each week to reflect your accomplishments.
These are tables and I will check off your work as it
is posted. It is not up to date just at this moment of writing
but will be updated each Monday. Although I have dated
the weeks of the course (in the overview) as going from
Monday to Saturday, I will wait until after the weekend
to tally results. The charts will not reflect the points earned
(see subject outline for points breakdown) - these are
determined as objectively as possible by me based on the
content.
http://learn.senecac.on.ca/~skarsten/CTC/203gradeS98.html
is for the course assignments and projects.
Please note that evaluations are part of the 4 major
projects.
http://learn.senecac.on.ca/~skarsten/CTC/bonusptsS98.html
is for participation on WCB (there may not be
12 Forums and Discussion in the Teaching Discussion group
makes up the rest of the 20 points)
So far, I would expect to see the following items for
the first week.
1. an e-mail with contact info
2. an e-mail with A-student profile and your goals
3. a posting to the guest book on Home on the Info Range
page
4. a mind map
5. postings to Forums 1 and 2 on the WCB site
6. at least one message commenting on what we have covered
so far (posted in the Teaching Discussion area)
You may now rely on the Session materials assigned for
the week as found on the CTC203 page -
I am revising as we go - and will have completed revisions
through Session 4 by this evening. I will also
be revising my back-up pages to be consistent with this.
OK - If I have overlooked anything you may be wondering
about or if I can in any way clarify my
instructions - please, please let me know - preferably
in this discussion area so that all may benefit.
Hope to see you all here soon. sk
Subject: Message tips
Date: Mon, 08 Jun 1998 00:03:10 -0400
From: Selia Karsten <skarsten@echo-on.net>
Reply-To: skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca
Newsgroups: seneca.pd.ctc.203w.teach
Three tips that I think will be helpful for the messages in this Discussion group.
1. Please check to be sure you have the best subject line
for the content of your message.
2. Please break your message up into small bite size
chunks or paragraphs for easier reading.
3. Please delete all parts of the message you reply to
that are not needed to understand your response.
The server space is not infinite and this helps conserve
space and shortens message download time.
Any other tips? All are welcome.Thanks, sk
Subject: Re: Out of Town
Date: Sun, 31 May 1998 10:58:56 -0400
From: Selia Karsten <skarsten@echo-on.net>
Reply-To: skarsten@oise.utoronto.ca
To: SL
Newsgroups: seneca.pd.ctc.203w.teach
References: 1
Thanks for letting us know your schedule. This is always
appreciated. We are a small group and
every member's presence is cherished by me. sk
SLwrote:
> will be out of town for the rest of the week (Seneca's
Great Teaching Seminar -)
Web KF Tutor Conference
Message 1 Note #285
View: Tutors
Creation Date: Jul 15 1998 (13:45:27)
Last Modified: Jul 15 1998 (13:59:07)
Builds On: Tutor needed
Best times
The best time for me to help is after class on Tuesdays
and Thursdays hoping that we can get computers
in the commons. Here are things it would be helpful to
have on hand:
1.A diskette formatted for the PC.
2.A drawing of how you want your page to look.
3.Any links (the URLs) for sites you'd like to have on
your page.
4.Any photo you want to scan in and/or graphics files
you already have on diskette.
5.Any text that you want to put on your page word processed
in a WORD document and saved
as text only. You can also use wordpad for this, saved
as text only.
See you after class tomorrow? sk
PS - Have a look at my message to S that follows her
request for tutoring - it has info that you might find helpful too.
Message 2 Note #286
View: Tutors
Creation Date: Jul 15 1998 (13:55:47)
Builds On: Tutor Needed
Great Idea!
I think it is a wonderful idea to create a resource for
those with Disabilities, especially to think in
terms of breaking with old stereotypes and creating new
symbols and concepts that free us from
negative traditions. If you will refer to the reply I
sent to S, you'll see a list of things to assemble.
It would be great if you could join us after class.
An idea for locating helpful links for your page is to
put your search topic (for example disabilities)
in the request box on a meta search engine like Dogpile.
(http://www.dogpile.com). If you
want to
know about more specific sites, put your topic in quotes
or with a plus between words, ie -
Disabilities+Canada or "Disabilities Canada".
And you might want to take a look at a page I created
to help with assembling webpage portfolios
using Netscape's Page Wizard and Page Composer: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/~skarsten/WEB/webshop.html
I'll see you tomorrow to firm up plans. sk
Message 3 Note #384
View: Tutors
Creation Date: Jul 17 1998 ( 0:33:16)
Builds On: Web Page Tutor
Handy Resources
I have a couple of resources I built with my Computer
Applications students at Seneca in mind.
You might find them helpful too. Web
Page-Making Resources gives a variety of links to helpful
web sites as you begin the web page creation adventure.
Free Web
Sites This page has links to
sites which list free
e-mail and free web page sites in case you need such a
thing. Because we have limited server
space for our students at Seneca, many register at places
like GeoCities where you can have
11
MB of free space for your web site. GeoCities is worth
a visit at any rate to see all the wonderful
"homesteads" created by folks from all over the world.
Enjoy, Selia
Diamond Conference
Message 1: Note #118
View: Diamond
Creation Date: Jul 8 1998 (22:15:31)
Last Modified: Jul 8 1998 (22:18:34)
Builds On: Questions
Good start!
Thanks to MA for getting organized. I had been thinking
about the varied cultural practices we each
might be familiar with and thought we might be able to
use this knowledge to build something together.
Therefore - your ideas were welcome as a way to give
each of us an opportunity to use our expertise.
Target audience: I favour teaching adults - post secondary
but would be comfortable with any age.
An objective could be to guide the exploration of the
web using search engines to obtain resources
regarding various cultures. The primary activity might
be a treasure hunt or voyage of discovery - some
colourful metaphor we can make visual. Self and peer
evaluations would be key to evaluating in the
constructivist mode of teaching and learning.
A very good article on this subject is "Evaluating Constructivistic
Learning" by David H. Jonassen.
It is in the journal, Educational Technology, September
1991, pages 28-33 Another reference worth
mentioning is "Problem Based Learning: An Instructional
Model and Its Constructivist Framework" by
John R. Savery and Thomas M. Duffy. It's also in Educational
Technology, Sept-Oct.1995, pages 31-36.
I have copies of these I'll bring to class if you are
interested.
I look forward to meeting you face to face in class tomorrow.
I have already met M and H and we have
exchanged e-mail addresses. I think it is a good idea
if we have an e-mail mailing list to use in addition to this
work area in Knowledge KF. When we get into MOOkti, we
can also meet synchronously to discuss our ideas.
Cheers, Selia
Let's explore!
Message 2: Note #181
View: Diamond
Creation Date: Jul 11 1998 (23:21:00)
Last Modified: Jul 11 1998 (23:22:32)
A mini-brainstorm
What if we were to create a lesson that learners could
use to help travellers plan a trip to Toronto
or to welcome visitors to Toronto.The lesson could go
from general to specific. Coming to Canada,
to Ontario, to Toronto.
Here are a few sites that give maps: http://www.vtourist.com/webmap
http://www.mapquest.com
(this one has an interactive atlas with zoom features - if you know
an address, you can get a closeup view of your neighbourhood)
http://www.travelpage.com
(you would choose destination Ontario)
Once in Toronto, you have a variety of pages to choose
from, for example:
http://www.tourism-toronto.com
http://showmetoronto.com
Perhaps the learner could think of a place that a visitor
is coming from (ie Hong Kong).
How could you help that visitor plan a trip to Toronto?
If you wrote them an e-mail what questions
would you ask? If you wanted to help them plan for their
time here, what would you need to know?
What suggestions would you give for a visit to Toronto
for different lengths of time? for different times
of the year? For different aged travellers? For travellers
who don't speak much English?
Another approach might be to help someone plan a trip.
They could choose their destination and plan
from there. Here's a little planner that might give some
ideas.
http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/~skarsten/travel.cgi
Cheers, Selia
Message 3:Note #341
View: Diamond
Creation Date: Jul 16 1998 (12:26:37)
Last Modified: Jul 16 1998 (12:53:57)
Builds On: A summary of the lesson plan
Working together
M and I have been discussing what we might do between
now and next Tuesday - here's what
we are thinking of doing so let us know if that works
for you for us to cover these topics....This
will be a generic lesson for any level of TOURIST but
we could write up some suggestions for the
ways the lesson might be modified to work for these three
levels:
elementary
secondary
adult ESL
Find a planner (on the web?) that could be used for allowing
the learners to chart how they would plan
the day (for each of two families)
Create a list of options or suggestions for things anyone
could do in that day
Write a guideline for using a search engine although
I believe we agreed that it might be best if we give
them a list of URLs to start with.
Descriptions of the three choices of family units (the
student would choose two of the three to compare
and contrast how the day would go
Additionally, I'm planning to set up a work web page on
which to place these various elements and graphics.
I want to be sure we are all agreed that the lesson plan
will be presented on a web page - I think so but let
me know if you have reservations about this before I
get too far along with setting up the structure. All of
these component parts that we are building (constructing!)
can be links to the main page that explains
what we are presenting - OK???
And there was a suggestion of how students would present
their work - we need to clarify this to incude
with the lesson. So are we all on the same page so to
speak? Selia
Selia Karsten
August 9, 1998