Do you think Moodle will meet your needs?

Prabhakar from AMCS and Joanne at Djerriwarrh are both considering using a "learning management system (LMS)" known as Moodle.

What is it, and how do you get it?

Fundamentally, moodle is an environment where you can set up discussion forums and course outlines. *

1) Talk to eWorks. They can set you up with a "TrainingVC" account, which gives you access to your choice of Blackboard or Moodle (both of these are learning management systems with forums, space for resources, student tracking etc). I think the initial outlay is $2000.

CAE uses this option (is that right, Ann?)

2) Find an alternative moodle host, such as:

• Education Services Australia (ESA, formerly EdNA) groups
• One of the recommended "Moodle hosting partners" listed on the support site.

** There's a huge help document in the moodle community - link here. 

3) Get the software and run it on your own web server. This is tricky, but some people do it, for example:

• Tim at Werribee Community Centre (?) explored a software called "BitNami" that lets you run moodle on your local windows network. (But then you may need to open your network to the wide world.)
• Stuart from Milang Old School House, South Australia, was one of the first to go down the moodle road in a community organisation [Here i wrote about an online forum where he presented in 2007.] 

4) Or find a web host who provides a "one click install" for popular free and open source software, such as moodle, wordpress, joomla. At PRACE, we use a Queensland-based crowd called "Fluccs" who offer free hosting for community & non-profit organisations. (And their paid options are reasonable too.)

Follow the stream from Converge conference

This could be too much information (TMI) for some of you, but there is some great activity at the Converge conference in Preston right now. I'm currently in a session on the moodle "learning management system" (LMS), where Michael Coghlan is presenting in the room, and co-presenting with Stephen Schmidt who is in Adelaide.

If you're interested in following some of the activity and links emerging from the conversation, you could follow this link, to the "twitter feed". Many of the people here at the conference are using twitter to communicate amongst each other.

Here's the link: http://twitter.com/#!/search/converge11

Otherwise, you could wait for a summary of some of the best stuff.. i'll try to post here next week.

kind regards, michael

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Photo credits: Thanks very much: Jason Cartwright from the workshop on Big Blue Button, an alternative to Blackboard Collaborate.

Best gadgets for audio recording?

Reel to Reel?

Meg and Frith over at Yarraville were asking, "What's the best audio recording gadget?" Here's what we know, but we're definitely on the hunt for more information.

A lot of people use the Easi-Speak (for example Sarah Phillips when she was at Continuing Education Bendigo). We  recommend getting the "professional" one, ie a level up from basic.

Josie and Ann at the CAE have been using "The Yeti". Ann says, "The Yeti has been a great tool for both our classes and meetings. Basically the Yeti runs through the USB port and uses Audacity. (I originally thought that this device would be the same as the easi speak microphones which convert straight to MP4 files but no you will need to use Audacity and convert using Lame)."

What's holding you back? [Please give your input here]

We'd like to hear your views about some of the constraints that may be inhibiting your progress at this (early) stage? Could you please fill out the survey below so that we can plan future opportunities to connect and progress the projects?

So what are the common constraints?

The most obvious ones are lack of physical resources (many sites still don't have ease of access to computing and data projector in their classrooms). Some of the sites visited need a general upgrade of computing resources OR just some IT assistance with loading programs such as Flash and Java so that videos will play and other programs like Blackboard Collaborate will run.

And lack of time and human resources - it's hard to estimate how much time it takes to master a skill or develop a resource.  What we do know is that you can pick up many tips and skills online through existing support networks. That's why we urge you to join this blog, the ACE NING and join the Blackboard Collaborate e-series available for free. These informal networks rely on the generosity of the participants so we encourage you to share your knowledge too, however modest you think that is.

Please fill out the Happiness survey below (after the break: "Read More")

Common threads across the North-West

Common strands of e-ndeavour

From our perspective, joining a mentor program to improve your understanding and implementation of e-learning (or "e-business") isn't just about what happens in house. It's also about the connections you're making with the people and networks around you. Many people have been saying in recent years that professional development these days is about strengthening and expanding your "Personal Learning Network" (PLN).

So what do you have in common with the other organisations in the North-West e-mentor projects?

There are some clear strands emerging from our discussions with the e-leaders and e-participants at each of the 11 sites we have visited in the last month. We thought we would summarise these with you and perhaps feature one or two sites as a case study to show similarities in scope, progress and constraints.

Develop a staff communication and networking hub

• AMCS: using a combination of Google sites. docs and possibly Moodle;
• CNLC: build on Staffroom wiki from 2010 by integrating Google docs and calendar;
• Carringbush: a staff wiki to build skills and eventually store teaching resources;
• Djerriwarrh: investigate capacity of Sharepoint to have a wiki interface for communication hub;

The Ten Step Wiki Plan

Now that we've nearly finished our round of initial site visits to the 11 centres involved in the E-mentor project in 2011, it seems that the Ten Step Wiki Plan originally developed for staff at Carlton Neighbourhood Learning Centre (CNLC) last year to identify component e-skills has universal and immediate application for a number of centres.

If you're thinking of starting and developing a wiki for students or for staff, or even generally building people's e-skills for producing internet-ready teaching resources, then this stepped plan will be useful to you.

I've uploaded it to Google docs now so that any changes will be 'live', that is, you can access them too. Also as I'm learning about the features of Google docs, you can now comment on the doc and I can incorporate any feedback or improvements suggested by you. I like the idea of an evolving document - a truly collaborative effort. So let me know what you think of it for application in your centre: either by replying here or in the doc itself (of course, if you haven't already got a 'google identity' you might not be able to comment in the doc - not sure about that...)

Just in! ***Wiki Training Camp*** 

I found this new resource at the wikispaces blog and it looks really easy to follow. Print Training Camp worksheet pdf as a 'takeaway' to study on the tram.