James Moore

Intelligent Agents in D2L

2009-11-05T10:24:00.001-06:00

I have been teaching a class in Desire2Learn (MKT 595: Internet Marketing) as part of long-term study and comparison of Learning Management Systems (teaching in Blackboard, D2L and Moodle to explore the respective advantages and disadvantages of each system). My colleagues in SNL, SoE and SPS are doing the same. I had not posted about my experiments here, but have decided that I should.

This week I decided to see how well Intelligent Agents could be put to use. Intelligent Agents are scriptable events that send out e-mails based upon a set of criteria. You could use them to send a gentle nudge to students who had not logged into the course for several days, or who had not completed an assignment before the deadline.

This is a great feature, but I did not want to send students automated e-mails until I had tested things for myself. What I did instead was to create an intelligent agent that sent me e-mail as each of students completed milestone tasks. This highlighted some issues that I would have to work through:

I received some spurious messages with this text:

{term not found: IntelligentAgents.Shared.emailConfirmationBody}

I am assuming that this is a mis-configuration on my part. I will investigate further…..
My spam/junk filter quarantined some of the e-mail messages. This happened at two stages; externally from our Postini service, internally from Entourage/Outlook. I had to manually recover the messages.

Based upon this information, I would use this procedure with Intelligent Agents:

Create agents from a tested template.
Ask students to add the Intelligent Agent e-mail address to their whitelist or address book (so that the e-mails would not be stopped by spam filtering).
CC myself on the student e-mail.

Overall, I am impressed with the feature. I just need to experiment with it more.

Engaging International Students in the Classroom

2009-11-03T12:55:00.001-06:00

The Teaching Commons is offering an event that should be of interest to all faculty who teach internationally, or who have international students in their classes:

Engaging International Students in the Classroom

Garrett Grenz from the Office of International Students and Scholars is organizing a panel of faculty, staff, and students to discuss problems and strategies. This will be an interactive and informative session.

The event is free and food will be provided; you can register online here:

http://olmiisprd.is.depaul.edu:8080//DCS/mcp?p=8003RM803RM80000000

Day: Friday, November 13th
Time: 2:00PM - 4:00PM
Location: Lincoln Park Student Center 380

Now on Google Wave

2009-10-30T08:27:00.003-05:00

Have started using Google Wave this morning. Will be messing about with Blogger integration later properly later. In the meantime, here is an embedded wave (hoping this works): You will need to be logged into Google Wave to see the embedded wave.

IPhone and Outlook/Exchange

2009-10-09T09:53:00.002-05:00

Good news for iPhone (and iPod Touch) owners. DePaul University has instructions (and an automated configuration utility) that will setup Exchange/Outlook e-mail on your device.

Instructions and the configuration utility can be found at http://iphone.depaul.edu

I highly recommend that you backup your both your iPhone/iPod Touch beforehand along with your Address Book and iCal Calendar. The default settings assume that you want to synchronize Outlook with your address book and calendar – you may not want to do this.

Teaching Commons Workshops

2009-09-14T14:38:00.000-05:00

DePaul's Teaching Commons is offering a series of Workshops. I think several of these may be of interest to Commerce faculty. Notable workshops include Darsie Bowden on helping students read effectively, and Garrett Grenz on engaging international students in the classroom.

Workshops are free to DePaul faculty. More information and registration can be found on the website:

http://teachingcommons.depaul.edu/events.html

MKT 595 - Online Class Started Wednesday

2009-09-10T14:08:00.001-05:00

The online version of MKT 595 started on Wednesday. If you have been unable to login to the course, please get in touch with me immediately.

Twitter in Higher Education: Usage Habits and Trends of Today’s College Faculty

2009-08-28T12:34:00.001-05:00

Faculty Focus has published a free report that provides some perspective on Twitter use in Higher Education. The PDF can be downloaded here:

http://www.facultyfocus.com/free-report/twitter-in-higher-education-usage-habits-and-trends-of-todays-college-faculty/

The 20-page report used survey data conducted between July and August of this year. About 2,000 respondents completed they survey. The majority of the faculty who responded do not use Twitter in Higher Education (for varying reasons.). The report is well worth a look.

Technology Tuesday: Blackboard Makeover

2009-08-27T14:08:00.002-05:00

On Tuesday I gave a short presentation on how to spruce up your Blackboard site with a simple makeover.

A video and PDF handout is now available. You can watch the video in a streaming format, or download to iPods, iPhones and iTunes and watch at your leisure. The video is about 25 minutes long. The PDF handout has some quick Blackboard tips and suggestions.

Feel free to share with your colleagues.

Camtasia for the Mac

2009-08-22T16:27:00.001-05:00

The oft-promised OS X version of Camtasia will be released on Tuesday 25th August. Techsmith has a couple of sneak-peak videos to whet your appetite here. It will be interesting to see how well Mac Camtasia compares with Screenflow.

Sports and Interactive Media

2009-08-19T15:06:00.001-05:00

The CADM is holding the perfect event for the interactive marketer who is also a sports fan. On Wednesday, September 23, 2009 the CADM has an impressive panel of luminaries sharing their expertise.

Naturally enough the event will take place at Harry Caray’s Restaurant in Chicago.

The event kicks off at 5:30 p.m. and concludes with an open bar and hors d’oeuvres.

Moderator: Josh Grou, Business Development, Branded Entertainment Google/YouTube and Instructor, Sports Media and Broadcast Relations, Kellogg MSA program

Panelists:

Joseph A. Inzerillo
SVP, Multimedia & Distribution at Major League Baseball (MLB)
Ryan Huzjak
Director of Corporate Sales, Chicago Bears
Mike Maguire
Digital Sales Director, Midwest Region, ESPN Chicago
Elly Deutch
Marketing and New Media Manager, Chicago Red Stars
Valerie Waller
Director of Marketing & Communications, Chicago 2016

When: Wednesday, September 23, 2009 (5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.)
Where: Harry Caray’s Restaurant – 33 West Kinzie Street (State & Kinzie), Chicago

For more information visit the CADM's website.

Barefoot Vodcasting: Half-day Workshop

2009-08-11T10:46:00.003-05:00

Video, handouts and examples from the Barefoot Vodcasting Workshop have been posted to the site. You can find everything here….

Madison, WI: 25th Annual Conference on Distance Teaching & Learning

2009-08-05T09:50:00.002-05:00

I am in Madison for the 25th Annual Conference on Distance Teaching & Learning. It is a beautiful day and later this afternoon I will be presenting a blended workshop. Looking forward to meeting with as many people here as possible and filling my brain with information.

MyScript for Livescribe

2009-07-28T13:09:00.002-05:00

Mac users of the Livescribe Pulse pen rejoice (well, those of you using Intel). MyScript for Livescribe is now available for the OS X users. This third-party application converts your written text into digital text (OCR).

You may want to test the 30-day evaluation before purchasing the software – in my experience the conversion process is not as accurate as I would have hoped. However, it is a step in the right direction.

Google Online Marketing Challenge Results

2009-07-28T10:27:00.003-05:00

Google recently published the GOMC 2009 results. This year MKT 595 had four teams competing. Our teams did not rank as semi-finalists this year, but ranked extremely competitively with three “Good Campaigns” and one “Fair Campaign.” Well done to the MKT 595 teams! You were operating in less than ideal conditions with a highly compressed timeline. I hope the experience was both fun and worthwhile. I certainly enjoyed the experience.

The World is Open

2009-07-27T15:29:00.001-05:00

Last year I attended the CAP (Commission for Accelerated Programs) Accelerated Online and Blended Learning Workshop in Denver, and was lucky enough to see Curt Bonk’s presentations and then share these with my Livescribe Pulse Pen (the complete details and links are on my blog). Little did I know that the experience would turn up in Curt’s next book…

Curt kindly sent me a copy this past week. I appear on page 302. You can read the excerpt whilst listening to the recording.

The book ("The World Is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education") operates as a response to Thomas Friedman’s “The World Is Flat” - demonstrating how learning has been flattened in such a way that "anyone can now learn anything from anyone at anytime." This is both revolutionary and evolutionary. The concepts of traditional education are challenged, as is the role of the university.

Curt positions his argument with ten openers (WE-ALL-LEARN):

Web Searching in the World of e-Books
E-Learning and Blended Learning
Availability of Open Source and Free Software
Leveraged Resources and OpenCourseWare
Learning Object Repositories and Portals
Learner Participation in Open Information Communities
Electronic Collaboration
Alternate Reality Learning
Real-Time Mobility and Portability
Networks of Personalized Learning

There are two versions of the book: currently available is a dead tree version, available soon will be the ebook. The ebook will have same chapter sequence and same size, but different content (including a prequel and postscript). The ebook will be available from http://worldisopen.com in two months (or less).

Here is what Curt has to say on the ebook: “With the firm belief of open education and open access, there will actually be a 2nd free e-book extension (same chapters, same size, different content) since I wrote too much as well as a prequel and postscript. http://worldisopen.com/. This will be out in 1-2 months.”

I highly suggest you take a look at the book, ebook and blog.

Barefoot Vodcasting: Half-day Workshop

2009-07-14T11:42:00.001-05:00

I will be presenting a half-day workshop at the 25^th Annual Conference on Distance Teaching & Learning on Wednesday 5^th August, 2009 (1:00-4:00 p.m.).

I will assemble and distribute additional materials for the workshop on my website here.

The conference is held at the Monona Terrace Convention Center along Lake Monona in Madison, Wisconsin. You can register for the conference here.

About the Workshop

Learn how to vodcast ‘barefoot’—recording face-to-face lectures, workshops, and presentations without IS/IT support. Using simple tools and techniques, classes can be recorded and then broadcast from any location in the world. The equipment is low-cost and easily carried in a laptop bag. Vodcasting can transform the effectiveness of blended classes and enhance the learning experience.

MKT 595: Internet Marketing – Updated Syllabus

2009-07-14T10:49:00.001-05:00

I have updated the syllabus for the next iteration of MKT 595: Internet Marketing. The syllabus PDF can be downloaded here.

The next course will be taught entirely online from September 9 - November 24, 2009.

More information on the course can be found here:

http://www.depaul.edu/~jmoore/mkt595/

Twitter will be used in the course:

http://twitter.com/mkt595

I won a teaching award!

2009-07-09T13:35:00.002-05:00

This happened a couple of weeks ago…. And came as a complete shock. At a Commerce function I was presented with “The Kellstadt Marketing Center Distinguished Professional Educator Award” for excellence in teaching.

I was presented with a snazzy certificate and a rather nice award (which is now safely ensconced in the office). I was not expecting this, I don’t feel as if I really deserve this, but I was very happy to receive it.

MKT 595 Updates / Free

2009-07-07T16:17:00.003-05:00

I will be teaching MKT 595 again in Autumn (in a fun, totally online fashion). I am in the process of reviewing material and assembling new research. I anticipate that Free (the new book by Chris Anderson) will be part of the mix.

The book and an audio file are available for free (naturally enough) in a limited format:

Social Media: Trends and Implications for Learning

2009-07-07T16:00:00.005-05:00

I was able to tune into the AACE Global U Social Media: Trends and Implications for Learning webinar today. Some excellent links were shared, which I would like to repeat here. Participants were also frantically Twittering - you can search for appropriate tweets with the #SMTI hashtag as well. Notable links (for me) were:

Educating the Net Generation: Free eBook
Networking in Everyday Life: Bernard J. Hogan's dissertation
ooVoo: Free video calling (similar to Skype)
Teens and Social Media: Pew Internet & American Life Project
UAA e-Learning Wiki / Collaboration Tools

IDD's Interactive Whiteboard

2009-06-09T13:13:00.000-05:00

If you are looking for new ways to film instructional videos and presentations for your online and blended classes then you would so well to watch this short video from Rick Salisbury (IDD).

Rick now has an interactive whiteboard in IDD's greenscreen room. The tool is a great way to record demonstrations and tutorials.

Using Blackboard in a Management Course

2009-06-08T20:16:00.002-05:00

Patrick J. Murphy has created an excellent video in which he explains how he uses our Blackboard Learning Management system to move learning beyond the classroom. The video is about eight minutes in length. Well worth watching. You can also download the video from DePaul's iTunes U site.

DePaul Goes Social Media

2009-05-20T13:40:00.001-05:00

Justin Gillmar sent me a link to the "This is DePaul" student video contest. as Justin says...

"Laugh at the ones you love. Quietly scoff at the ones you don't. Then let your voting do the talking. Your votes will be used to determine the Audience Choice Award (aka'The Academy Might Have Overlooked It, But the People Couldn't Get Enough Of It' Award). Still reading this? What are you waiting for, go check out the videos! Voting ends May 25th."

The complete list of videos can be found here.

Jason Freid / 37Signals Discussion

2009-05-20T10:07:00.003-05:00

As part of his Entrepreneurship Strategy class, Patrick J. Murphy, Assistant Professor of Management at DePaul, invites you to join his students for a discussion with Jason Fried, president and founder of 37Signals, a private Chicago-based company that launched in 1999.

Thursday, May 21, 10:00 am
DPC Room 8005
No registration required.

37signals has 12 employees, thousands of business clients, millions of users of their products, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos as a minority stakeholder. Jason and his company have been featured widely in the business press and major media outlets. He is a Web 2.0 pioneer and frequent keynote speaker at industry meetings and conferences.

Jason will share his personal views on entrepreneurship and management and take questions from the audience.

DePaul Teaching Commons on Facebook

2009-05-04T11:32:00.003-05:00

DePaul Teaching Commons is happy to announce their brand new page on Facebook. The fan page collates information on the latest teaching and learning resources and events. You can check out the site here