Thursday, February 18, 2010
Microsoft Home: Save time with quick computer shortcuts!
As a new mom, Rachel Brown is always looking for ways to save time. "When I have the chance to sit down at my computer, I need to get at what I'm working on as quickly as possible," says Brown, who uses her computer to keep in touch with family and friends. Brown discovered the power of shortcuts and keystrokes while she was still working. "Before taking my maternity leave, I worked in a bilingual environment," she explains. "I learned the keystrokes for the French accents that were essential in all of my correspondence." She also learned a few other time-saving tricks such as highlighting text, using the Bold function, and creating new documents.
If you're looking to work more efficiently in Microsoft Word, Excel, or Internet Explorer, the key is using programmed shortcuts (see link).
A final piece of advice from Brown: Have the Help Line numbers for all the products you use nearby. "At work you rely on your IT person to solve problems that come up, but at home you need to fix these on your own and those phone numbers become extremely useful," she says.
The more you use these tools, the more time you will save. Have fun and explore the options available to you.
Article written by Liz Eustace and adapted from an original piece from Microsoft Home Magazine.
Tegrity Musings on Technology and Education - It's never too late to learn new tricks!
Posted by Ed Lane on Tue, Feb 09, 2010 @ 05:17 PM
Effective instruction today requires the application of new skills, methods and approaches than the traditional methods used in the past. Nearly every industry in the world relies on some form of technology to keep their business running smoothly, improve services, and attract new customers.
The vast majority of today's workers are required to have more than basic computer skills to keep them viable in today's fast paced job market - and higher education is no exception. Older Americans and tenured professors seem to be having the most trouble keeping up with technology, simply because hitherto it hasn't been as pervasive and they've not had to rely on it.
But we live in a new world. Technology has changed the way we interact on all levels and it's also changed our expectations. We want access (to just about anything) here, there, and now. Students today are comprised primarily of tech-savvy, multi-taskers. But even the multi-generational distance learners, who balance school with work and family, rely on technology to provide access to education and the flexibility to work it into their busy lives.
Instructors and institutions of higher learning, therefore, must be equipped to cater to a digital, disparate, and diverse student population. In other words, if you are an educator who shies away from technology, regardless of your excuse, you are doing a disservice to yourself and to your students.
The good news is that even if you are technology challenged or you have chosen to avoid it because you're close to retirement, there are plenty of computer training opportunities out there that can help you not only in your career life, but in your home life as well.
Computer career training is an excellent and convenient way to learn the computers skills you need to succeed at work, enhance your own curriculum and classroom experience, retain and attract more students. Compared to just a few years ago, most computers come with pre-installed applications and are basically plug-and-play. You can find interactive training via CDs, workshops, and webinars.
If your institution is using technology in an effort to serve the techno-based students of today, they should also provide FREE training on those applications and services.
Tegrity's training programs, for instance, are designed as interactive online workshops that deliver hands-on experiences customized to the challenges and goals of each instructor and institution. Tegrity offers training sessions free of charge as a convenience to Tegrity clients only.
EDUCAUSE: "7 Things You Should Know About Backchannel Communication"
The folks at Educause have put together another of their “7 Things” guides, this time it’s "7 Things You Should Know About Backchannel Communication". The backchannel is the informal communication that goes on during a conference or other event, most notably on Twitter and other real-time tools. As usual Educause tackles the following questions:
1. What is it?
2. How does it work?
3. Who’s doing it?
4. Why is it significant?
5. What are the downsides?
6. Where is it going?
7. What are the implications for teaching and learning?
EDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology. http://www.educause.edu/
January 2010: Top 20 Most Popular Books on WorldCat.org by Bob Schulz
Here's the Top 20 List for January in order of views. Items new to the list are emphasized in italics:
1. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
2. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
3. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
4. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks
5. Push by Sapphire
6. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
7. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
8. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling
9. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
10. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
11. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling
12. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
13. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
14. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
15. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
16. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
17. Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man by Steve Harvey
18. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
19. Going Rogue by Sarah Palin
20. Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle and Julia Child
Faculty Focus: 10 Ways to Re-energize Your Classes and Yourself!
By Jody Oomen-Early, PhD.
I’ve been teaching online since 2001. I’ve always felt a certain sense of excitement when discussing philosophies, pedagogy, or instructional strategies with others and creating active, energetic online classrooms. So it was disheartening when I “hit a wall” and things started to feel really monotonous.
Here are some tips that might help you re-energize your online classes and yourself:
1. Expand your horizons – Attend a conference, webinar, or workshop relating to e-learning. Delve into an e-learning journal or newsletter that can help you strengthen your online teaching skills, help you save time or better manage your workload, and spark ideas to apply to your own online classrooms.
2. Try using some Web 2.0 tools – If you want to reach a variety of learning styles, Web 2.0 technology is the way to go. There are a number of free and easy tools available at your fingertips that take less than five minutes to learn.
3. Create a more “affective,” diverse environment – As learning theory supports, the affective domain is just as important as the cognitive or psychomotor. Add in some “affective” type questions or assignments that allow for a range of answers and perspectives.
Try posting audio messages to the class as well as to individuals. This can be done by using a simple computer headset with microphone and your computer. Or try some asynchronous and synchronous forms of group audio discussion by visiting www.yackpack.com/ or www.voicethread.com/
4. Collaborate – Form a learning community with your fellow faculty and friends (even if it’s a small group), and meet at least once a month to dialogue about your experiences, best practices, and e-learning literature.
5. Establish boundaries, but keep your social presence – To reduce the 24/7 feeling some of us experience, inform your students of days and times that you will be available for office hours (live) in person, via online chat, or by phone. Also, consider asynchronous mechanisms of communication, such as a Q&A board that you check twice a week.
6. Include informal, nongraded assignments to stimulate discussion and increase learning comprehension – This can also reduce the amount of grading required of the instructor, but allows the students to stay connected to the content. Self-quizzes, online games, Web tutorials, online chats, wikis, online scavenger hunts, digital storytelling, and blogs are just a few tools used for informal application.
7. Take a break – Back away from your monitor and do something that does not require use of your computer. As hard as it may be, try to reserve your weekends for yourself and your family and/or friends.
8. Use the resources available to help you – More and more administrators are becoming aware of the time and effort it takes to produce a quality online course. If your plate is full and you just never seem to find the time to concentrate on course development or skill building, talk to your chair or department coordinator.
9. Simplify, simplify, simplify – Start by clarifying your job responsibilities and (if applicable) tenure requirements. Like all service-oriented professionals, we have a tendency to feel guilty about saying “no.” Because of this, we often have too much on our plates. Determining how much of those portions come from external demands and expectations and how much we put there ourselves is a critical step in reducing and eliminating burnout.
10. Don’t try to do everything at once – It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by technology because it evolves at lightning speed. Keeping abreast of what is going on in e-learning is important, but don’t try to do more than you can handle. Oftentimes, your students may not be ready either. So take it one step at a time. Try incorporating a new tool once per semester (or year) and/or focus on improving the quality of your design and instruction.
Jody Oomen-Early is an assistant professor in the Department of Health Studies at Texas Woman’s University.
Excerpted from Burnout and Online Instruction: 10 Tips to Revive Your E-Classroom and Yourself, Parts 1 & 2, December 2008 and January 2009, Online Classroom.
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