Pathway to Pedagogy

Tracy Mendham, MFAKeene State CollegeCELT PresentationMarch 28, 2008

A Technology-Infused Curriculum

• Social computing as means of facilitating academic discourse and developing writing skills

• My top three picks of social computing for general use in different courses

• How to use them and why

So many websites, so little…dignity

By Stabilo Boss, on Flickr

Qualities I miss from my undergraduate daysAcademic culture “in my day”

−Academic discourse−Testing ideas in face-to-face discussions to develop critical thinking−“Face time” where when argues for an idea in a seminar or other semi-formal group discussion encourages identifying oneself with some−Writing as a multi-stage process and a social process

Academic culture today

−“Dancing bear” syndrome−Grades primary motivation—college as a hurdle−Classroom discussion either performance to meet requirements or to win a contest−Writing alone and for the teacher in one draft

Tools to extend the learning environment

• Top Three Picks−Blogs−Instant messaging−Online social networks

Blogs• Model continuous, ongoing discussions• Links to other blogs and comments

allow conversation and awareness of oneself as a member of a community of scholars

• Build audience awareness—the reader becomes a fact, not a theory

IM• Instant Messaging ss the new

phone… deal with it• Not as troublesome as you might

think• It shows that you to be the caring,

available, teacher that you are, and what long hours you work

Online Social Networks• Most students already understand them

better than you do• Discussion forums with assigned

questions encourage students to identify with what they say and compose thoughts before voicing them

• Helps you learn students names and faces

What software needs to be for me • Free (for me and the students, if not for

the school)• Something I can learn and teach without

more than two formal training sessions• Students and other users don’t have to

download anything• Cross-platform (Mac or PC)• Advances specific course goals

Keeneweb Pilot Program•Uses WordPress:

−Two hours or more to learn−Powerful

•Allows multiple pages•Feeds are easy•No ads•Choice of lots of template designs•Supported by KSC instructional technology folks

•How:−Go to http://keeneweb.org and click “Sign me up!”

Simple as pie with a keene.edu or ksc.mailcruiser.com address

Sign in and pick a new username

If you want a huge project you can have students create individual blogs

Or start out smaller: Have one blog, post questions for students to comment on

Or have use it for a project or to present your work

Meebo

Free, sign on to multiple accounts on one web page

Meebo Me Widgets

(Meebo-me widget in action)

Ning Online Social Network• Free (if you

can tolerate Google ads in sidebar)

• Not Facebook or MySpace--Less distracting, new environment

Keene-Ning

Students can ask questions of a member (like my gracious speaker Laura Clawson)

And they have assigned discussions to take part in

My Advice

• Stop worrying and learn to love the Web• Go to instructional technology brown-bag

luncheons and instruction sessions even for tools you don’t know about or need yet

• Have meetings with instructional technology liaisons and library liaisons (and listen to what they say)

• Make teaching a learning experience for yourself as well as your students

More Information• Web 2.0: The Machine is Us/ing Us , a short

video by cultural anthropologist Michael Wesch, and A Vision of Students Today

• Worker’s Playtime (Jenny Darrow’s blog)−http://keeneweb.org/workersplaytime/

• Mike Caulfield−http://mikecaulfield.com/

• Web 2.0 Teaching Tools−http://web20teach.blogspot.com/

You Know Where to Find Me−http://academics.keene.edu/tmendham

(academic website)−http://keeneweb.org/tmendham (T Blog)−tmendham@keene.edu−mendhamt on Meebo (instant messenger)−http://keenening.ning.com (Keene-Ning online

social network)−http://del.icio.us/mendhamt/socialnetworking

(explore my bookmarks on social computing)−http://del.icio.us/mendhamt/cool (explore my

bookmarks of all things cool)