eLearning eVolution

Hey there, it’s me Amber,

I wanted to start this entry off talking about an article I read recently in The Harvard Crimson titled, “For CS Class, Office Hours Go Virtual.” The article discusses the very first program in Harvard’s history to provide online office hours for its students.

I can remember my favorite class in college clear as day. This was because my professor knew how to engage the students in the class. He would blare music before each and every class period. He didn’t just do it to drive the business classes crazy, (although I am positive it did). He did this to engage the class in discussion. He also provided the class with his IM screen name, right in the syllabus. At the time that was the only way students really communicated on campus, and having the ability to ask questions and send documents over to him quickly was great! If only he could have had the service of Elluminate to host his own virtual office hours.

I think if more and more virtual office hours are being offered, students will take advantage of the valuable resource they may be passing up, especially on large campuses. Students may no longer be reluctant to seek assistance from an instructor during their office hours simply because there isn’t enough time in the day to permit for travel. It could be a win-win situation because instructors will no longer feel like they are waisting time setting up office hours that no one attends. It is definitely some food for thought.

If your interested, you can set up your own FREE virtual office! Elluminate is giving away 3-User versions of Elluminate Live! with no restrictions, called vRooms. You can sign up for your free vRoom here and start taking your office hours into the virtual realm!

Until next time bloggers…keep on bloggin’

Amber Koskela, Elluminate’s Online Marketing Associate

Online learning is growing rapidly across the US at all levels of education. Why? One reason is that this generation is shopping for the learning experiences they want. And more and more often, they are turning to the virtual classroom for opportunities to develop 21st Century skills.

According to NACOL’s Susan Patrick, online learning expands options for all learners, is effective, and improves teaching. What’s more, statistics show that there is no significant difference in achievement between online and face-to-face learning. In fact, in some cases, online learners are out performing those in the traditional classroom

Today, Susan moderated a panel of virtual school administrators and teachers, including:

- Julie Young, Florida Virtual School
- Kristie Clements, Georgia Virtual School
- Roger Hanley, Insights Schools
- Dana Koch, Virtual High School Global Consortium

I think you’ll want to hear what they have to say. Here are the links for the webinar, part one (the panel discussion) and part two (some great examples of how Elluminate Live! and Elluminate vRoom are helping virtual schools change the education equation).

And if you have administrators, parents, students, and others who are just not sure what online learning is all about, here’s a great resource from the NACOL site, “A National Primer on K-12 Online Learning.”

- Beth, Elluminate Goddess of Communication

This is a very cool video that was broadcast on Teacher TV. This report shows the great potential for online learning through Second Life and online collaboration.

Here a 15 year old student named Kairen is one of 600 students enrolled in a virtual institution. In this instance Elluminate is used for students who can’t attend school for a number of reasons. This is a great tool to help students who have developed a desire or need to be home schooled.

Now, parents are no longer left with the stress of lesson plans, curriculum, and scheduling conflicts. Students can attend regularly scheduled classes and have the ability to rewatch the class over again from the class recording, if necessary. It’s too bad, but it seem as if the, “But you never said that” card just isn’t going to cut it anymore.

Hi Everyone, Amber here once again,

I am sure some of you are already aware, but for those of you who are not, the National American Council for Online Learning (NACOL) just endorsed as of September 12, 2007 the new National Standards of Quality for Online Learning. You can download the 10 page document on their website here. A big thank you goes out to the Southern Regional Educational Board (SREB) and their Standards for Quality Online Courses, which was adopted as the primary source for NACOL’s standards.

This is a necessary measuring tool to be used to ensure that everyone is on the same page and is implementing best practices when it comes to online learning. Online learning is yet another avenue to access education, but in my opinion, should be dealt with in a similar manner as traditional learning methods. By setting forth a guideline of standards it eliminates potential for gray area.

I think we will also begin to see an increase in online course participation due to this. No longer will students be limited to a so-so education based on their geographic location. Everyone will have an equal opportunity for a quality education with notable instructors.

While I have your attention, I wanted to make you aware that the president of NACOL, Susan Patrick will be hosting a webinar in Elluminate called Virtual Schools: Trends, Benefits And Elluminate from 10:00-11:30am EDT on September 21, 2007 (this Friday!). I strongly encourage everyone to attend the panel discussion with virtual school administrators and teachers that will examine the trends and issues facing everyone. Leading practitioners from virtual schools across North America will be available to provide insights and discuss their experiences. Issues and trends ranging from student retention rates, to the measurement of impacts, to best practices and current trends will be covered. You can register to attend this free webinar here.

Oh, and don’t forget to stay tuned for Part II from 12-2pm EDT. This segment will focus on the Elluminate solution and how Elluminate can be incorporated into virtual school programs.

Hope to see ya there! Until next time bloggers…keep on bloggin’

Amber Koskela, Elluminate’s Online Marketing Associate

Hi Everyone, Amber here,

Each morning I try as best I can to catch up on reading some of my favorite blog entries sprinkled with new ones that happen to catch my eye. One of the blogs I stumbled upon was the Online Learning Communities Blog. I decided that I wanted to read on to learn how Elluminate had helped in building an online community.

To my surprise this entry discussed some technical issues that had arisen for the group. I had to relate to the entry. As with any technology these days, there is always a possibility for a glitch in the system. Nothing goes exactly to plan. Here, this group tried to access their Ellumiante session and were having some difficulty. As a community they had to think on their feet to battle the problem facing them and develop an answer.

“It is almost as if we have to have ripples and bumps to get traction in a community,” Bron stated.

I think this is a valid point Bron makes. Sometimes the problem solving in an online community is what can bring everyone together. This shows the strength of a true community. When there is a group that meets online rather then face-to-face I would be wary about the commitment of each individual in the group, but this entry showed me another side. Just because there is a problem online, people didn’t stop trying. As a group they were able to brainstorm their way to an answer. Through this experience they built bonds within the community on a virtual level.

Needless to say, they group finally worked out all of the speed bumps and enjoyed their session once they were in the room, and I was glad to read that. This is something that I never could have envisioned seeing with online technology. I am thrilled when I see the magnitude of possibilities when it comes to online learning.

If you are interested in building your own online community. Elluminate vRoom is a good place to begin. Use your room for as much as you’d like for as long as you’d like and engage in a community that is all your own. You can sign up quick and painlessly at http://getvroom.com.

Until next time bloggers…keep on bloggin’

Amber Koskela, Elluminate’s Online Marketing Assocaite

Hi there, Amber here,

School field trips are a whole lot different now then they were in the past. I remember kids I grew up with, who looked at field trips as goof off days. They were right up there with the few days a year your class might be fortunate enough to have the “fun” substitute teacher. Seriously, a lot of the field trips I remember were never very engaging or relevant to the current lesson plan. More or less they were locations that were convenient for the class to travel to. Now, with the fusion of new technologies such as Elluminate students can have access to the best educational experience possible.

Charlene O’Hanlon brings home this point in her THE Journal article “A vRoom With a View“. In it she discusses how new distance learning technologies at North Carolina’s Central Academy of Technology and Arts are providing more educational opportunities for students.

It is through this program that medical science students are able to see live videos of laparoscopic procedures (I had to look it up) from certified surgeons. Other students are able to learn to appreciate the nauseating sensation of sitting in on their first surgical procedure. This is great! Why not bring the best possible experiences to your students, just don’t forget the pepto-bismol. You don’t have to bring them to the closest cooperating hospital. Bring your students across the globe to the most remote areas and provide them the best possible learning experience available.

This can easily be done though Elluminate. You may not have access to an academic version of Elluminate, but Elluminate does offer free 3-user vRooms. You can use these rooms at no cost for as much as you’d like, and as long as you’d like. This is a great opportunity to start making use of this wonderful technology advancement.

Until next time bloggers…keep on bloggin’

Amber Koskela

Hi there, Amber here.

Growing up I was never a huge football fan. I was always very involved in athletics, but never football. As I’ve grown older, I have learned to appreciate what an incredible sport this is. I now understand why year after year the Superbowl is listed in the World Almanac as the number one viewed television show for the year.

As some of you may already know, the Indianapolis Colts faced the New Orleans Saints recently in a head to head match up. Not only would this be a very exciting game to catch normally, but this was the very first game of the season! To give you a quick wrap up the Colts ended up crushing the competition 31-0.

The point to all the football talk is I was able to meet with some friends in my Elluminate vRoom during the game and talk about it! How cool is that! I wish I had thought of this in time for my fantasy football live draft. It always seems like a hassle trying to get everyone together to participate but with the help of Elluminate it was like most of my fantasy team was right there in the room with me!

I think this would be an excellent way to engage students in learning. No, not by encouraging fantasy football sessions, but rather participating in online presentations. My professors always used to say that everyone learns differently, and that’s the truth. Students need to be able to engage in their learning to be better prepared for the life that awaits them. What better time to do that then now. Start collaborating with your students with the help of Elluminate’s FREE vRooms! You can access your free vRoom by quickly signing up HERE. AND GO PATRIOTS!!!

Amber Koskela