My colleagues' research

 

My classmates are great resources.  One of the projects we had to work on was searching for and reporting on software, websites, and other digital media that handle digital citizenship and netiquette.  Two of the sites that I reviewed were offered by William Caruso and Steven Graves.

 

The first site,http://www.examguard.com/TestingEngine.asp is a site that allows users to set up online testing for students in an environment that will prevent them from accessing other sites while they are testing. There are additional services that are available with this site which provide feedback to students to help them improve in their knowledge of the content on which they had been tested.  This site is ideal for certification tests or testing centers and could easily be used in a situation in which students need to take proctored testing because they are making up an exam for a face-to-face class or online.

 

The next site, http://www.isafe.org is a haven of information to help any users, especially youth, expand their understanding of how to safely use the internet and all the different outlets that exist within it. Its primary focus is safety and responsibility relating to internet use. This site would help students who have little experience with the internet have a place to learn what is good and bad about the internet so they can feel more confident in their internet use.







There are so many different resources available. It is helpful to collaborate with others who have done some research to help have that many more credible sites refer to; thanks, fellas.

 

 

Digital Citizenship

What does it mean to be a digital citizen? It means the same thing as being a citizen of any other community.  There are certain standards of conduct, ethical behaviors and degrees of knowledge that are exhibited.  As a writer in a digital community, being able to use a computer and make expressions that have a positive, thought-provoking, or entertaining theme becomes a part of responsibility to the culture.  For those who may just be stepping into the electronic realm, it helps to have some guidance or a reference manual.  There are two such websites that would help anyone, writers included, to be better equipped for their place in the digital realm.

 

http://www.microsoft.com/about/corporatecitizenship/citizenship/giving/programs/up/digitalliteracy/default.mspx

Thinking of my students who may be coming to college for the first time after 20 years since they graduated from high school, or those who have not had access to technology other than possibly a cell phone, Microsoft’s website about digital literacy is a great place to start.  They have compiled three curricula ranging from basic to advance that will improve a user’s abilities with their office products, using the internet safely, and several other topics.  The modules are set up to be used online or downloaded for offline use.  This link could be given to students at the beginning of a course and specific subjects could be worked through during class time or assigned to be completed outside of class.  Either way, the learners have a guide to help them become more confident in their computer use.

 

http://digitalethics.org/

The Center for Digital Ethics website is another excellent source to educate learners with more in depth looks at anything digital and the ethical ramifications that surround it.  No part of the internet is left unnoticed.  The website shares essays on a multitude of topics, best practices for bloggers and social networking, and policy related ethical practices.  I could easily have students read and respond to any one of the essays that are available on the site to not only help them become more informed, but to also help them really think about the impact that rational and irrational internet behavior can have on a user.  Where Microsoft builds a basic digital literacy foundation, The Center for Digital Ethics adds more layers about ethical digital citizenship that may be complicated into more manageable pieces.

 

For both of these sites, information is definitely powerful.  A novice user can gain greater confidence in their computer use, or a seasoned veteran of technology can have another resource upon which they can rely.

Open education

http://www.oercommons.org/community/storytelling-cultures/view

Taking classes to learn or improve writing skills does not always have to be in the environment that people are traditionally accustomed to doing.  As much as I enjoy being in a classroom interacting with my students, not everyone is able to learn that way.  Open educational resources are available on virtually any subject that could be thought of and some that may not have even been considered.  www.oercommons.org is one such site that provides access to webinars and learning materials that have been archived for anyone to view at any time.  I took the time to view a class that was given regarding English language learning through the art of storytelling.  It was a great perspective for ESL students and native speakers alike.  The website was easy to navigate and comes with the option to search subjects based on educational level from k-12 to post-secondary.

 

http://oli.cmu.edu/learn-with-oli/see-our-free-open-courses/

The Open Learning Initiative is another site that has multiple courses available for free.  One in particular was a course centered on American English speech.  It focuses less on specifics in writing and grammar and more on the pronunciation of English language.  Anyone could enter the course directly from that point and begin working.   Again, the site was easy to navigate and there were several subjects from which to choose.  It is only a matter of what the interests are. 

 

Open courses are great for enhancing prior knowledge, or from an educator’s position, look at how learning material can be presented in a different, interactive way.  It is important to use some good internet savvy to determine if the sites are credible ultimately offering credible content.  Learning can occur anywhere and anytime and open education is simply another way to make that happen.