CTC Ed Tech News November 13, 2014

Hello all,

I am going to switch to a bi-weekly newsletter. The next edition will be Dec. 1, just after Thanksgiving.

Turn off all those beeps  

My phone chirped at 5 am last Sunday. It woke us up - and my husband was curious about what was going on. Later, I looked in the Settings > Notifications area of my iPhone and my Project Tracker tool had an item due at 5 am and was set to give an audible alert. This was a default setting and until this point hadn't been an issue. 5AM beeps, however, are an issue. I turned off the audible alerts for the tool and looked at what else was giving me alerts. More things got turned off. I am fussy about my attention and don't like phones or computers beeping at me. It takes me out of the task I'm on.

Each beep or chirp interrupts one's train of thought, causes a context switch in the brain, then a switch back to the task at hand. This produces inefficiencies - multi tasking is a fallacy after all. Our brains can only do one thing at a time. It also produces stress. 

So, I encourage you to look at the beeps and bouncing icons and other attention getters that your phone and computer provide. Turn them off unless you have a compelling reason to leave them on. Heck, some time management gurus recommend turning your email off and then just logging in to check it periodically. You may find that your mood and your efficiency improve.

eLearning Horrors

Not just for eLearning, these four tips are good teaching.

Still scary out there

Not only are we getting email phishing attempts to get personal information, now scammers are phoning us.  Check out this article from the UAA Green and Gold Daily on the topic. I admit, I was fooled for a moment last week when an apparent email from Linked In indicated someone was trying to reach me. It was a scam with an ugly link… luckily, I was on a Mac or it may not have been pretty. 

Reminder: Withdrawal Deadline Nov. 14

November 14 is the withdrawal deadline for students in regular full semester classes. If a student stops coming to class, you have these choices until November 14:

• Ask the student to withdraw (you may or may not get a response).
• Use the online form to withdraw him/her from the class.

Whether the student withdraws or you withdraw him/her, the student will receive a "W"as a grade for this class. If a student has stopped coming to class and has not withdrawn, you must give him/her a grade at the end of the semester:

• F for failing the class or
• NB (No Basis) for not having completed enough work to be graded.

Please note that a last date of attendance is required for F and NB grades.

Warm regards,

Lee

Lee Maria Henrikson

Instructional Designer

Community and Technical College

University of Alaska Anchorage

http://ak-lee.blogspot.com

907-786-4903

 

CTC Ed Tech News November 4, 2014

I'm back from my vacation – it was long enough so that it's great to be back.  Let's just say the Caribbean Ocean is very nice.

It's About the Learners 

In this 23-minute podcast titled "Brilliant: The Science of How We Get Smarter" Annie Murphy Paul outlines conditions in which we can access our maximum intelligence… that is, we are "smarter." My take is that the ability is there –and that there are many conditions when we are unable to access all of our intelligence. What can we do as instructors to help our students reach their maximum potential? One answer is in this short article on how to engage students: A 4-Step Recipe for Maximum eLearner Engagement by Karla Gutierrez. I encourage you to think about these concepts as you structure your classes.

Withdrawal Deadline Coming Up

November 14 is the withdrawal deadline for students in regular full semester classes. If a student stops coming to class, you have these choices until November 14:

• Ask the student to withdraw (you may or may not get a response).
• Use the online form to withdraw him/her from the class.

Whether the student withdraws or you withdraw him/her, the student will receive a "W"as a grade for this class. If a student has stopped coming to class and has not withdrawn, you must give him/her a grade at the end of the semester:

• F for failing the class or
• NB (No Basis) for not having completed enough work to be graded.

Please note that a last date of attendance is required for F and NB grades.

Cool Tool: Voicethread

Voicethread is an interactive tool that has been added to our Blackboard shell. It's like a PowerPoint on the web, with the addition that anyone can add comments to each slide – and the comments can be text, audio, or video. This video explains Voicethread. Here are the help pages for using Voicethread in Blackboard.

eTech Fair

The UAA eLearning Workgroup presents its annual eTech Fair during Distance Education Week, November 10-14, 2014. Check out the schedule. All sessions are online via Blackboard Collaborate and there is no pre-registration. Join a workshop by clicking the blue title in the schedule at the proper time. Scroll down or click the green presenter name to read the workshop description.