Sidestepping the LMS: a public-health education case study
The task To make an online version of a successful Rolling with ADHD course for parents of…
What happens when you use interactive video learning in your online courses?
Interactive video sounds complex, but with some simple tools and a small shift in approach it will significantly…
Going Full Width with Learndash on Social Learner Theme
By default, many Learndash-friendly themes chose a sidebar layout by default for course stages and lessons. We have…
Hypnotist in the classroom? The power of a teacher’s words (Part 1)
A couple of years back, we helped a hypnotherapy school take their course into an online format. What…
Community Legal Education Ontario
Great project just wrapping up a learning platform and course design project with CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario)…
Quicklist: Ten learning activities with Learnbase Video Workbooks
Today our morning challenge was to give ourselves 5 minutes to come up with creative learner activities using the…
Filming Q&A 9: Does it need to be scripted?
When we have a presenter who is not confident skilled in public speaking situations then a script and an…
Filming Q&A 8: How do we frame the head?
This is key. For talking head situations, we make sure the top of the presenter’s head is very…
Filming Q&A 7: So… shall we just use the camera’s mic?
For educational contexts especially, the audio is probably more key than the video. Good editing software can disguise…
Filming Q&A 6: Do we actually need lights?
Lights. Yes we need them. And these days LED lights don’t break the budget. But we’ve learned to…
Filming Q&A 5: Do we need a clapper board and everything?
We need the sound of the clap (or rather the spike on the wave form) for syncing external…
Filming Q&A 4: Will splicing together too many clips look bad?
Ok. Promise you won’t admit this to your filmmaker buddies. For most online educational videos, if we film…
Filming Q&A 3: How do you keep track of the production?
The Learning Designer / Director should keep brief detailed notes so that whoever needs to edit the all…
Filming Q&A 2: Just how small a crew can you get away with?
Once everything is set up, during the shoot, you’ll need to be juggling at least the following: 1.…
Filming Q&A 1: One or two cameras?
If we are filming a panel discussion, live workshop or some other event, we need two cameras to…
Making The Working Artist promo video for organizations
Our client Crista Cloutier of The Working Artist has had great success with her course among a fast-growing cohort of…
Valentines in the classroom: inclusive or intrusive?
Prior to Valentines Day, one of our kid’s teachers sent home this: “I have spoken to the students…
It ain’t the length, it’s the lecture
Some research out of the University of Rochester recently suggests that optimal video length to ensure engagement is…
Towards a litmus test for when to issue an open badge
Please note: This is an abridged version of a previous blog, focussing here purely on the issue of…
Using open badges to give focus and meaning to descriptor-based assessment
One thing that excites me about the Open Badges movement is how is can help to remedy, rather…
Weary of online learning ‘environments’? Who’s for dim sum?
I’m growing weary of traversing online-learning environments. I’ve built them. I’ve used them. I’ve explored them. I’ve got…
Avoid the confusion of generational cusps!
A little generational analysis goes a long way in managing teams of disparate ages. But the edges get…
How reliable are multiple intelligence ‘quick’ tests?
Note: This text is from a larger dissertation. Labeling of figures retains original system. One of the legacies…
Open badges – giving is as good as receiving.
One of the less mentioned but absolutely integral aspects of the Open Badges concept is not simply that…
Discourse analysis in the classroom?
Discourse analysis in the classroom? I think that, at best, discourse analysis in class will be fragmentary and…
10 simple suggestions for online instructional design
Simply, I feel that online learning should be: community anchored peer assessed and peer negotiated expert assessed and…
Natural online learning is just natural learning
Online Community Enthusiasts Vancouver Gathering June 14, 2012 I posed the question of what constitutes natural online learning…
A Permaculture of online learning
I’ve been trying to identify a ‘natural’ approach to the design and facilitation of online learning. That is,…
Dealing with difficult customers
I just facilitated a short communication strategies course for working professionals for a business training firm. The second…
The beauty and absurdity of duolingo
Fascinating talk by Luis von Ahn on TED. I had no idea about the scope of CAPTCHA, or…
Do teachers act on the findings of educational research?
Do teachers act on the findings of educational research? The divide between research and application was brought home…