injenuity

Posted by Jennifer on June 21st, 2008 in Uncategorized , Jaiku, Microblogging, Network, Seesmic, SocialMedia, Twitter, Utterz

If you are new to microblogging or have found yourself stumped by the tools and the process, this post could be your jump start to success. You may have attended workshops or conference sessions where presenters introduced their ‘network’ and demonstrated a hearty, global greeting from dozens of individuals who seemed poised on the edge of their virtual seats, waiting for a request from the presenter. Did you go home and try it yourself, just to discover that not only was there no one listening, you couldn’t think of a thing to say? Microblogging, while it may seem to be a network activity, is a highly individualized experience. It typically involves a Web-based service where members post brief text, audio, photo, or video messages and respond to people with whom they’ve established connections. These guidelines should help you get on the right track.

1. Define Your Own Success - Don’t just jump into it because someone else told you it’s cool. Consider your objectives. Do you want to make friends, professional connections, find a new job, explore hobbies, meet a companion, or promote a product? Maybe you want to distribute your personal learning or extend your office to include worldwide colleagues. Your objectives will probably change along the way, and that is okay. Just don’t try to mirror another’s experience, because it isn’t possible and will lead to disappointment.
2. Consider and Try Several Tools - There are many microblogging tools available for free or at a low cost to members. You probably don’t want to commit long term to a large number of tools, because it will become hard to manage. However, you will do yourself a disservice if you only try one. Take into account your publishing hardware. Will you be publishing primarily from the Web? If so, look for a tool with a clean, efficient and reliable (cough) Web interface. Will you be publishing through SMS on a cellular phone? Many microblogging tools do not yet offer this service, or there is extra expense from phone service providers. Will you be using a handheld mobile Web device? Make sure you try options with compatible applications.
3. Create a Complete User Profile - No one wants to network with a ghost. Fill out your user profile completely, including a link to your blog or Web site. Consider your target reading audience as you develop your profile. Use the same user ID on multiple accounts to create a personal branding strategy. Use real photographs instead of cartoon avatars.
4. Search for Contacts - Use key words to search for contacts with similar interests. You don’t have to just search within the microblogging platform. Use web searches and scour the blogs you read to find the tools used by the people you follow. Once you find someone with similar interests, begin to look at their contacts and add them as your own. If you have a complete, relevant and friendly user profile, most will accept you. Don’t be afraid of connecting with experts in your field, personal heroes and people you admire! If they’re microblogging, they are probably seeking connections!
5. Balance Your Content - I’m the biggest Twitter irritant on the planet. People joke about me tweeting that I just walked through a door. However, I didn’t start out this way. Well, I did, but it didn’t work and I had to try a new strategy! My early posts were about making coffee and changing diapers. I quickly learned that without an existing common tie, these posts did little to stimulate discussion or build relationships. There are two ways to get a great successful start, and both work equally well. The first is to post useful resources, especially new and undiscovered information that will interest your target audience. The second method is to scan other posts for people seeking help, and offer help as often as you can. If you make enough of these types of posts, you will soon get to know people better and will be able to pepper your stream with more casual and silly observations.  Try to give more than you take, and you will be rewarded.
6. Post to the Popular People - Reply to the people with hundreds of followers as often as you can. If you can get them to reply to you, their followers will visit your profile, and if you followed my advice in number 2 above, will add you as a contact.
7. Consider Who May be Watching - Always keep in mind the public nature of microblogging.  Consider you may be followed by your boss, spouse, mom, child, student, neighbor or just some creepy stalkers.  You may find you feel constrained with the medium at first.  It takes time to become comfortable with broadcast communications.  Some microblogging tools feature the option to delete posts.  I like these tools!
8. Don’t Take Advantage of Your Network - Conversations can quickly become casual and flow as they might at a dinner party.  Don’t take advantage of this comfort zone.  It is perfectly alright to communicate with these people on a platfrom where they have voluntarily offered connections and participation.  It is not alright to then seek out their personal contact information to reach them outside their published space.  Respect privacy.  Don’t ask for favors.
9. Take Advantage of Your Network - Once you’ve found someone with whom you feel a strong connection or an interest beyond the single network, follow the breadcrumbs they’ve left to see where else they are publishing.  It’s great to be able to track down blogs, presentations, publications and other media from people with whom you share multiple interests.  If you wish to connect directly, use their preferred communication medium to offer your personal contact information.  Don’t be discouraged if they do not extend the relationship.
10. Give it Time - While you can jump start the numbers, you can’t jump start true connectivity.  This is a social activity and it will take months of socialization before you are rewarded with success.  Don’t give up too soon!

I use Twitter more than any other microblogging platform, because I like the connections I’ve made, and their SMS service works well with my phone plan. I also use Utterz, because I can quickly use my phone to post audio, video or text messages to multiple accounts, including Twitter. Some other tools you may wish to try are Seesmic, Pownce, and Jaiku.  I would love to see comments sharing other tips, tricks and tools!

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Posted by Jennifer on June 20th, 2008 in Uncategorized

Jen and Z Playing with Rocks

Originally uploaded by kibaga

I saw @cogdog’s blog about no write/no read and it inspired me to test the Flickr direct blogging. I went through Mr. Injenuity’s photos to find one of me from a few months ago.

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Posted by Jennifer on June 19th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Learning, Network, Social, Students, Teachers

I realized, on my drive home, I never see anyone talk about disconnecting from networks.  We all talk about the importance of connecting and building networks, but what about letting go?  Sometimes people announce they are taking a break.  We react with compassion.  Sometimes we try to get them to change their minds.  Really, it’s a highly personal choice we should respect.

I know there are unwritten rules of etiquette for blogging, twitter, Facebook, etc., but maybe we should reconsider the structure of virtual social relationships.  I know some people refuse to follow people who don’t follow them.  I’ve seen others offended when they aren’t made a ‘friend’ on social applications.  When you make someone a friend, or you follow them on Twitter, or subscribe to their blog, it is a constant, visible connection.  This is counter to natural, face-to-face relationships, where you spend periods of time apart.  Maybe we need to think more about whether we need to reciprocate each virtual social connection.

This led me to think about what we’re doing with students when we place them in social networking scenarios where they are linked artificially, either to their own classmates or others selected by instructors.  Is there a better way to simulate natural social interaction where the students identify connections with people who are genuinely of interest to them?  Rather than teach the tool, can we teach them the dynamics of finding friends and colleagues who share similar interests?  What happens when we prescribe connections and they don’t work out?  Do we evaluate our students for not responding to each other’s blogs? Is there a better way to assess social learning?

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Posted by Jennifer on June 19th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Learning, Students, Teachers

Learning is the future of education. Students need to develop an awareness of how they learn. By student, I mean every human being with whom we come in contact. Students are not just the people we enroll in our classes. Parents, baby sisters, grandparents, neighbors, service workers and executives are students. All people deserve the right to understand how learning happens and the power they have to control their own lifelong learning journey.

Why are we hording these technology tools like some kind of magic trick that can only be performed for those worthy enough to earn our approval? We must embrace a more holistic approach to teaching and learning. The classroom is not some sacred place where learning occurs. Life is where learning occurs. It isn’t fair to limit opportunities and experiences to the classroom. We have got to reach beyond the walls and show these students how to learn when we’re not around.  I’m ashamed when I see colleagues shunning those who don’t embrace technology.  Why can’t we just let them go?  Do you really think they are suffering if they don’t try the latest social media tool?  Are their students neglected?

I use the term ‘Web 2.0′ here because that’s what others call it, but it isn’t something I would even acknowledge out of the context of other people’s definitions of it.  The thought of relying on Web 2.0 tools for the future of our children is downright scary.  We certainly can’t proliferate dependence upon these applications with uncertain longevity.  The use of Web 2.0 tools is not a ’skill’ that needs to be taught.  Some of what I see happening now is no better than the classrooms of 10 years ago where kids just learned to make PowerPoint presentations.

1. People deserve to understand how they learn so they can take control of their learning journey.
2. People need freedom to create, whether or not they use technology.  New technologies enable creativity, but can also stifle it when shared inappropriately.
3. People should be inspired to connect with others and be free to disconnect when the connection isn’t productive, uplifting or beneficial.  Technology is a great connector, but we can’t rely on individual tools and it is irresponsible to promote something as ‘critical’ to learners if it may be gone in a few years.
4. Learning, creating and connecting should continue after the classroom doors are closed.  If you are using new media technologies, the students should understand why, and how they should use them outside of class.

I met an instructor recently who told me the secret to teaching is control.  I told him I suspected we had different philosophies on teaching and learning, and he heartily agreed.  Do you have secret weapons and classroom tricks you don’t reveal to students?  Do your students understand how they learn when they are not with you?  Are they aware of how the media influences their choices?  When you begin class, do you reference what they experienced before they arrived in your classroom?  Do they share how their learning continued after class?  Do you encourage them to learn more than you know, or do you enjoy being the expert?  Who has the power over learning in your classroom?

I am not opposed to technology or web-based tools.  I encourage, promote and proliferate them for a living. But when I see these tools hyped out of control, I have to wonder if we’ve gone a little astray.  I realize this post is going to offend people, if anyone reads it, but I hope the spirit of my message comes across.  I really just want people to start to build their foundational values as educators, without ‘Web 2.0′ as part of those values.  The tools can enable engagement, transfer of learning and collaboration and can open the world to the student.  Please see the student before the tools and give them the power they need in order to be successful with them.

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Posted by Jennifer on June 18th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Learning

If you don’t keep your mind open to new experiences, you are in the way of learning. If you take more than you give, you are in the way of learning. If you use your voice to tear apart learning metaphors, destroy other people’s ideas, or make personal attacks, however passive aggressive, you are in the way of learning. If you spend a lot of time arguing semantics, you are in the way of learning.  If your students don’t have ownership of their creations, you are in the way of learning. If you promote conferences and require presenters to solidify topics more than three months in advance, you are in the way of learning. If you hate your job, you are in the way of learning. If you are hording valuable knowledge for the perfect publishing opportunity, you are in the way of learning. If you only consume and never produce, you are in the way of learning. If you withhold learning from students because you refuse to use the tools provided by your organization, you are in the way of learning. If you obey the letter of the law, you are in the way of learning. If you can’t admit when you’re wrong, you are in the way of learning. If you can’t start from scratch, you are in the way of learning. If your students can’t tell you what they’ve learned (using their preferred media) you are in the way of learning. If you never ask the students how they want to learn, you are in the way of learning. If you think teaching is about classroom control, you are in the way of learning. If you get more pleasure from testing a new tool than you do from seeing the spark in a student’s eye, you are in the way of learning. If the number of blog readers, Twitter followers and Facebook friends has more meaning to you than nurturing individual relationships, you are in the way of learning. If you rant and vent more than you uplift and inspire, you are in the way of learning. If you can’t laugh at yourself, you are in the way of learning. If padding your CV takes precedence over finding a position where you shine the most, you are in the way of learning. If you are in it for the money or fame, you are in the way of learning. If you can’t take five minutes out of your day to help someone outside your organization, you are in the way of learning. If you think you don’t need to connect with others, you are in the way of learning. If you think there’s only one best way to learn, you are in the way of learning. If you believe someone, just because of their reputation, and don’t test things yourself, you are in the way of learning. If you complain without offering solutions or seeking advice, you are in the way of learning. If you are in the way of learning, please move over, some of us want to get back to work.

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Posted by Jennifer on June 17th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Change

Are you ready for change?  Can you keep an open mind?  Are your core values strong enough that you can discard some of your beliefs in order to ride the next technology wave, up or down?  If you answered, “No,” to any of these questions, please take a deep breath, spend some time alone, and rethink what is really important to you.  Can you influence learning without using technology?  If not, why not?  What can you do to prepare for a dramatic shift in the way we teach and learn online?  Do you need more information, education, more personal contacts, financial resources?  Take inventory.  Change is coming.

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Posted by Jennifer on June 16th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Twitter

How 2.0: How to Make a Twittering Teddy Bear from My Home 2.0 DIY on Vimeo.

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Posted by Jennifer on June 16th, 2008 in VPD , VPD

A lot has happened since I composed my original VPD post, and it’s time for an overhaul! I have learned so much from my organization, blog comments and the SCoPE seminar, that I think it’s time to work on the basics again. This post will describe my current understanding of VPD according to my own observations, comments on my blog, email messages, other blogs, the SCoPE seminar and informal discussions with colleagues. Again, I invite you to participate in the discussion and help refine the concept so others can adopt it. I write from the perspective of someone working to change organizational culture, specifically around eLearning in higher education. This concept of VPD may or may not translate to other organizations.

Viral Professional Development (VPD) is a strategy to stimulate and nurture informal learning as it spreads through an organization. It isn’t a theory or a concept. It isn’t a new idea or a new way to phrase some form of social cognition. It is acknowledgment that learning is happening without organizational control and we should harness it and help build the momentum. It does not have to involve learning about technology, but it is a great strategy for those who are responsible for integrating technology.

Examples of VPD include:

• Hosting open lab sessions, Play to Learn, Show and Tell, Kick the Tires, or other scheduled, yet unstructured events where participants are free to explore, discuss, share and learn.
• Inviting people outside your organization to contribute to and participate in learning events.
• Encouraging members to share their learning with colleagues using social media tools, lunch and coffee meetings, phone calls, email and whatever makes them most comfortable!
• Opening lines of communication between staff, faculty and administrators so everyone can celebrate success.
• Stimulating learning through Object-centered Sociality by providing objects from which conversation can begin.

My concept of VPD describes an organizational strategy, rather than an individual personal learning environment or network. While the two can be related, I don’t directly correlate them here. While personal networks can have spontaneous learning events that lead to transfer of knowledge, my goal in working with VPD is to make a cultural change within a specific organization, rather than develop a personal learning network. For example, a few weeks ago, Corrie Bergeron posted on Twitter that he was testing video streaming tools and playing guitar. I pointed him to Stickam and several other people joined in. He began to give a guitar lesson and we all tested the tool. We learned, played, had fun and some kept using the tool and sharing the knowledge. While this was a great personal learning experience, I don’t believe it fits under the umbrella of VPD, because it did not affect members of an organization.

I’ve removed most of the technology components of my original VPD post as I’ve observed so much of the learning on my campus happening via face to face meetings, phone conversations, chat rooms, and low-tech forwarded email messages. My Ning site was a nice start to get the ball rolling, but I no longer see it as a permanent home for learning about eLearning on my campus. Today I received access to publish to our intranet, where I will host internal support documentation. Our IT department also registered a domain and will be setting up a WPMU server I hope to use for instructors to find their own place to publish.

I welcome all comments, feedback, suggestions, revisions, stories, etc.!

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Posted by Jennifer on June 16th, 2008 in Uncategorized

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Posted by Jennifer on June 14th, 2008 in Uncategorized , Dads, Teachers

For a little over a year, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know dozens of amazing dads who participate in various social networks throughout the “edublogosphere.”  I’ve watched families grow by first babies and new generations.  I’ve seen your photos of preschool graduations and college convocations. I’ve crossed my fingers with you through scary illness and injury, and sympathized with those of you who’ve had to travel away from your loved ones.  I have learned and I have grown by participating in this community, rich with family values, and diverse in culture and experience.

I am honored to be considered a friend to some of you, and privileged to be able to read the writing and wisdom of others.  You have helped me become a better educator, parent and human being.  I know it’s difficult to decide whether or not to discuss personal and family relationships online.  We weigh all the possible consequences and make educated decisions.  For those of you who have chosen to share, I give sincere appreciation for allowing me to learn from your life lessons.

I want to offer a special thanks for the men who have worked in education.  This is not an easy time to be an educator and a male.  Women receive most of the attention regarding harassment, discrimination and exclusion, and society burdens men with suspicion and altered perceptions of motive and intention.  I want you to know that I am aware of the enormous burden you face every day in deciding how much you can nurture and respond to your student needs.  It’s not fair.  It deserves attention, and I never see anyone talking about it.  So thank you, for putting up with these misguided judgments and continuing to prepare our youth for a better future.  I would be humbled to have you teach my children!

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