Category Archives: Social Networking

Social Networks and Interactive Portfolios

ePortfolios, Social Networking

TEDx Talk. Dr. Helen Barrett on Social Networks and Interactive Portfolios: Blurring the Boundaries.

Electronic Portfolios have been with us for more almost two decades, used primarily in education to store documents and reflect on learning, provide feedback for improvement, and showcase achievement for accountability or employment. Social networks have emerged over the last five years, used by individuals and groups to store documents and share experiences, showcase accomplishments, communicate and collaborate with friends and family, and, in some cases, facilitate employment searches. The boundaries between these two processes are gradually blurring. As we consider the potential of lifelong e-portfolios, will they resemble the structured accountability systems that are currently being implemented in many higher education institutions? Or are we beginning to see lifelong interactive portfolios emerging as mash-ups in the cloud?

#ePortfolios #HelenBarrett #TED

New Common Craft video: Protecting Reputations Online

Online Security, Social Networking, , , ,

Another great explanatory movie from Common Craft;

Aimed at young or inexperienced Web users, this video explains the long term risks of sharing inappropriate information online.

A great new resource, watch it here.

Complements other videos, such as those from the AdCouncil’s “think before you post” campaign:

#online #identity #safety #commoncraft #digital

Social Media, Mobiles and Games

mLearning, Social Networking

Came across this Social Media/Mobile/Games counter though a colleague. It is “based on data culled from a range of social media sources & sites at the end of Sept 2009” but the data is constantly updated. More background information can be found here.

A great visualisation tool for for instigating a discussion on the changing face of technology, social media, gaming and the influence that has on the students we teach today and how education can’t ignore the impact.

By default it will show the Social Media data but just click on the tabs in the top right to display the Mobile and Games figures. Add a day, week, month or year to see to numbers jump forward. Fascinating stuff!

#Games #Mobiles #SocialMedia

We Think

eLearning, Internet, Social Networking, Web 2.0, , ,

Thanks to Greg, who posted this video.

We-think: mass innovation, not mass production. Certainly thought provoking.

Ideas take life when they are shared…How do we earn a living when everyone is freely sharing their ideas?In the past you were what you owned…. now you are what you share…

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiP79vYsfbo

We Think is a book written by Charles Leadbeater and the first 3 chapters can be downloaded here.

#information #innovation #production #sharing

Using utterli.com for eportfolio comments and feedback

ePortfolios, mLearning, Social Networking, Web 2.0, , , , , ,

Thanks to Toni, another of the 2008 eFellows, for prompting me to think about how utterli.com can potentially add an exciting dimension to our web based eportfolios.

Utterli is an online social networking site centered around creating and following discussions using a mobile phone or a computer. Utters can be audio, video, pictures or text.

By registering your mobile phone number, you can use your phone (NZ number 09 4427356) to access, initiate or participate in a discussion. Within a 10 minute time frame, you can also email in text, video or images to accompany your utter.

The really great thing is the ability to cross-post your utters to other web sites. For example, my utters will automatically be posted to this blog.

So here is how I can see this working in the context of a students’ eportfolio. For the age of the students we are working with, one of their parent’s mobile numbers would be registered.

The child would post learning and thoughts to their eportfolio as per usual, but now the ability to comment and feedback by the child or their parent is made more accessible. Learning can be shared and a quick phone call will enable a voice comment or feedback to automatically be posted into the child’s blog. Cool.

Not only that, but utters can be posted about the students even when there is no deliberate sharing of learning intended. If a student took home a reader to share with their parents, after reading and discussing the story the parents could just phone in a comment about how well the student read and what they needed help with. Doubly cool.

This would be especially great for those who prefer the ease of a quick spoken comment to that of sitting down and typing. It is also familiar technology, everybody knows how to make a phone call, whereas the blogging eportfolio software we use could in itself be a barrier to the technology reluctant parent.

So my next post will need to be an utter. Coming soon…

Photo courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulsynnott/

#mobilephone #voice #crossposting #utter #feedback #utterli #comment