The Emotion-Charged Debate about Internet Safety

Dean Shareski linked today to an important article about Internet safety for kids. The article debunks the myths that the Internet is always an unsafe place.
In an environment that is so emotionally charged, it is important that data is presented and this research article does just that. However, there are many creditable [...]

The Female Edublogger

There has been some discussion on Twitter lately as to whether women are under-presented in the educational technology arena. As a woman who has spent her career in information technology, this does not come as a surprise to me. There is much literature and several communities engaged in this area, and a place [...]

Meme: Passion Quilt

Dean Shareski passed this my way.

Technology Enables the Democratization of Learning
……….Creative Commons License…………………………………………….
Here are the rules:
* Post a picture from a source like FlickrCC or Flickr Creative
Commons or make/take your own that captures what YOU are most
passionate about for kids to learn about…and give your picture a short
title.
* Title your blog [...]

Wikipedia Academia – again

The Wired Campus this week highlights an article by David Parry, an assistant professor of Emerging Media and Communications at the University of Texas at Dallas.
The discussion that follows each article reflects the polarization of views about Wikipedia. Parry argues that dismissing Wikipedia entirely from academic use is irresponsible. Rather than arguing about [...]

Identity 2.0

Identity management is a very important part of supporting our Web 2.0 experience. Thanks to a tweet from Matt I just watched Dick Hardt from Sxip Identity, a Canadian company, talk about Identity 2.0. Just as we describe learning with the learner at the centre, Identity 2.0 puts the user at the [...]

Open Source, Open Content, Open Access

Thanks to Glenn, Rob, Lisa, Rick, Dan, and Peter who offered great perspectives to my recent post about the polarization of open source and proprietary software. Not everyone sees open source as the only way to support technology-enabled learning. There is room to explore the range of options and still be advancing a [...]

Greening of the Internet

A recent article in Information Week reminds us that the Web is both “a crusader and a culprit” when it comes to energy use. Elearning, ecommerce, and all the other e’s have reduced energy hogs such as air travel. But on the flip side, data centres and personal computers devour energy. There [...]

Teachers and New Tools

In a recent podcast for Educause, George Siemens suggested the best way to get faculty to use new tools was to have them experience the tools. He contends that it’s not the competence with the tools that distinguishes teachers from students, it’s the willingness to try the tools. For the teacher it is [...]