Week 4 - Mobile Evironments for Learning

Flip video cameras

URL: http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2010/03/20-ways-to-use-flip-cameras-in.html#.UVOohGfT43g

Flip video cameras are mobile devices no bigger than a smartphone that have multiple uses to enhance learning in the classroom.

According to Patrick Black's blog, Flip cameras are cheap and easy to use in the classroom. Tom Barrett created a short slide show titled, "45 interesting ways to use your pocket video camera in the classroom"  that is a compilation of ideas from numerous educators from around the global. Suggestions include 1) recording and posting science experiments on a classroom blog, 2) filming a demonstration of a step-by-step procedure for student review, 3) recording students performing a procedure for self-evaluation, and 4) recording class activity or field trip events to share with parents. Rowell (2009) shares how biomedical engineering students at Duke University used Flip cameras to support their projects for a capstone course and how Bill Wolff used Flip technology in an upper-level writing and research class. Phillips (2012), in "Lights, Camera, Learn," offers five tips for using video in elearning classrooms. Flip cameras are mobile devices that offer a multitude of learning possibilities in the classroom.

References:

Phillips, V. (2012). Lights, Camera. Learn!: Five tips for using video in eLearning. eLearn Magazine. Retrieved from http://elearnmag.acm.org/featured.cfm?aid=2206721

                                                                                          

Rowell, L. (2009). How tiny camcorders are changing education. eLearn Magazine. Retrieved from http://elearnmag.acm.org/archive.cfm?aid=1631260

Poll Everywhere

URL: http://www.polleverywhere.com/

Poll Everywhere is a software program that allows students, or audience members, to answer questions using a variety of mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets like ipads, or any device that can access the web, Used as an assessment tool, educators can imbed questions within a presentation, for example a PowerPoint presentation, and students answer using their mobile devices. Responses immediately show on the screen, similar to clickers. Some authors refer to the technology as live audience polling. Maybe you have even used this technology to respond to an Awards Show or something like American Idol. Twitter can also be used to post audience comments. Poll Everywhere is one method to actively engage students in class by asking questions to assess their learning. No hardware is required or program installation is required since the technology is accessed through the web. This link will take you to a two minute video that demonstrate Poll Everywhere: http://www.polleverywhere.com/#video

 One drawback is cost. There is a fee for classes or audience size larger than 40. Audience size less than 40 participants are free. So, if you have a larger class, pose a question, have students "Think- Pair-Share," come up with an answer and then one student can texted in the answer. Businesses and educational institutions can purchase a plan based on the number of participants.

Week 3 Assignment

Collaboration is a vital principle in learning (Bonk, 2009).  Two technologies that promote collaboration through social networking are Delicious and the Flat Classroom. Below are examples of using these two technologies to enhance nursing education.

First URL and brief description of technology

URL: https://delicious.com/#about

Delicious is a social bookmarking site for storing, classifying, and sharing web links by tagging the link with key words (Richardson, 2010). Delicious organizes common tags together allowing users to connect to people with similar tags. Users can quickly find others with similar interests in order to create a community of people researching a topic of interest together. 

Rational for selecting technology

Bonk (2009) posits that collaboration is a necessity in preparing today's students to work in a globalized society.  The ability to work effectively in a team is an essential skill students must garner prior to graduation. Delicious is just one of many tools that foster collaborative learning.

Two examples to incorporate Delicious into nursing education.

Students researching an assignment can tag web links with key words to quickly expand their search possibilities and connect with other users interested in the student's research topic. Grosseck (2008) describes this type of collaborative research as collective intelligence. Students can create an RSS feed to easily follow what people are tagging and saving about their topic. Students can create their own collection of resources on a given topic (Grosseck).

Another example of using Delicious in education is for students working on a group project to create a delicious account to research and share material for the project. Students can add comments and/or critique group members tagged items until the group has a collaborative collection of information to create and complete their project. Faculty can access the groups site to offer feedback if needed (Grosseck).

Second URL and brief description of technology

URL: http://flatclassrooms.ning.com/

According to Bonk (2009), web technologies have flattened the world related to educational opportunities. The flat classroom is a tool that encourages learning through global collaborative practices. Educators and students can connect with other teachers and learners from around the world to share, learn and create new knowledge.

Rational for selecting the technology

The flat classroom concept offers the opportunity to unite and learn from diverse populations, bringing different ideas to the classroom. For nursing education, collaborating with nursing students from other countries would open the door to international nursing perspectives. Students learn how to use multiple web tools, such as blogs, wikis, or email to communicate asynchronously with fellow students in another time zone, and possibly another language.

Two examples to incorporate the Flat Classroom into nursing education

One flat classroom project might be to have nursing students share data and solutions about health disparities in their respective countries. Connecting with nursing students whose country has nationalized health care would offer great insight into the differences between national health care and private insurance.  

A second project might be to learn about the differences and commonalities of the nursing profession between the two countries.  Flat classroom projects can transform education through global collaboration (Bonk, 2009). 

References:

Bonk, C. J. (2009). Collaborate or Die. In The world is open: How web technology is revolutionizing education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Grosseck, G. (2008). Using delicious in education. The International Journal of Informatics and New media in education. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/doc/2413801/The-Role-of-Delicious-in-Education

Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Week 2 Application

There is an abundance of new, emerging technologies to actively engage 21^st century students in learning. Two technologies increasing used in higher education are Youtube videos and Second Life simulations. Below are examples of using these two technologies to enhance nursing education.

 

First URL and brief description of technology

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_djouz093Us

 

This video describes the human aspect of living with a ventricular assist device (VAD). VAD are used by patients with end-stage heart failure or cardiomyopathy waiting for a heart transplant.

 

Rational for selecting technology

Youtube videos can engage Net Generation students both visually and intellectually as they watch, reflect upon, and discuss video content (Educause, 2006). Additionally, Youtube videos can be used to demonstrate nursing skills, which can be viewed repeatedly so students can perfect psychomotor skills (Hansen & Eberly, 2009).

 

Two examples to incorporate Youtube into nursing education.

Fink’s (2003) taxonomy of significant learning includes both the human dimension and caring aspects of learning. Nursing students can learn the pathophysiology of disease process and nursing care of patients with a particular disease. However, truly understanding what it is like to live with a chronic health disorder is difficult to teach. Incorporating YouTube videos made by patients living with chronic illness can help students develop a better appreciation for the patients experience and therefore, promote caring.

 

According to Hansen and Eberly (2009), nurse educators are replacing out-dated nursing skills videos with Youtube videos or creating their own collection of videos to demonstrate how to properly perform a variety of nursing skills. For example, in this video a professional phlebotomist demonstrates how to draw blood. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJBrc15H2sw

Students viewing a video can also do some critiquing and comment on the positives and negatives of a demonstration.

 

Second URL and brief description of technology

http://secondlife.com/whatis/?lang=en-US

Second Life (SL) is a 3D world created by users to simulate real-world experiences.

 

Rational for selecting the technology

Higher education is using Second Life (SL) for a variety of reasons such as student recruitment, teaching course content, simulation, role-playing and collaboration. Used as a supplementary learning experience, SL is experiential learning, in which students are actively engaged in learning through a virtual environment (Skiba, 2009).

 

Two examples to incorporate SL into nursing education.

In nursing education, SL is used to simulate real-world experiences students may never have the opportunity to see or be involved in during clinical rotations. For example, at Tacoma Community College students role-play using avatars to select interventions for a patient suffering chest pain and cardiac dysrhythmia (McUsic, 2008). Students enhance their critical thinking and decision-making skills in a safe environment where “real” patients cannot be harmed.

 

SL can also be used to increase students’ awareness and empathy for those with health issues and allow students to experience virtual people with different cultures, nationalities, and languages (Skiba, 2009).

 

References:

Educause (2006). 7 things you should know about … Youtube. Retrieved from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7018.pdf

 

Fink, L. D. (2003). Creating significant learning experiences: An integrated approach to designing college courses. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

 

Hansen, M., & Erdley, S. (2009). YouTube and other Web 2.0 applications for nursing education. Online Journal Of Nursing Informatics, 13(3), 1-20.

 

McUsic, T. (2008, August). Second life. 3-D virtual simulator challenges Tacoma Community College nursing students. Retrieved from http://news.nurse.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080811/NW02/108110084

 

Skiba, D. J. (2009). Nursing education 2.0: A second look at Second Life. Nursing Education Perspectives, 30(2), 129-131.

 

Welcome Dr. D and EDUC 6177 Classmates

I am a novice blogger. This is my first attempt so bare with me. This blog will focus on information I am learning in a graduate course on emerging techologies in education. Stay tune for more as the course progresses.