After looking over the top 100 online tools for 2012 I was surprised that I used 28 of the 100 mentioned. Some of them I use them on such a regular basis(ipad apps, google scholar, Evernote, etc.) that I never stopped to actually think of the tools and devices. Another thing that surprised me was that Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest were considered top learning tools for 2012. I can see the argument made for Twitter, based off recent articles read through our class, maybe even Facebook but I have a hard time seeing Pinterest as a learning tool. others like Word/Pages, Numbers and Powerpoint were obvious picks.
The biggest difference from web 1.0 to web 2.0 is that now consumers can skip providers and can connect with other consumers one on one. This helps and facilitates us when looking at buying products and getting reviews on the things that we are interested in. It helps us get a better idea on the products out there and choose the items that best suit our needs and interests. I think this is a great way for people to get a good idea on what they need or are looking for. The satisfaction of the consumers as well as the providers should both improve. For obvious reasons the consumers will be happier but the consumers will be happy to hear reviews as well. This will help them see what consumers like and dislike about their products and what they can improve on. Also this could potentially cut down on returned products due to dissatisfaction which tends to lead to losses for the provider.
As for online classes, I see the good and potentially some bad as well. Online classes help people who have issues with time, unpredictable schedules and location troubles. I personally enjoy online classes because you dictate your own schedule and pace as well as when you wanna do certain assignments. However I have some concern with statements like "online classes are the future of education". Perhaps I'm not to polished on this subject and I probably need to read more on this subject but I'm concerned for the quality of the education. For example, a friend of mine took an online class on anatomy, prior to it he had taken a traditional class on it and had gotten a low grade so he wanted to improve it. On the online class he got an A however he didn't feel challenged and due to the nature of the course (online) he didn't partake in any labs or dissections. Also after reading the article on edtechtimes.com it seems like education will become subjective to the consumers preference, meaning they'll choose the classes they deem important. Also online learning may prove to be challenging when taking difficult classes that say, take longer to understand than just half an hour. I've been on khan academy before for chemistry and the videos at times left much to be desired in terms of help. How will the student get the help he needs and how long will it take to get that help? Based on these concerns I'm a little skeptical of the effectiveness of certain, completely online programs and the complete autonomy of students to choose their courses perhaps without the help of an advisor.
I find these tools pretty helpful and neat. Granted, most of these tools I have not heard of and this has been my first exposure to them so all of these are pretty new to me. However one that I have used before is Evernote. I mainly use it to take notes and be able to use and see the notes that I have taken across multiple devices I use. I was surprised to see it on this list since I had stumbled upon it on the app store for free and thought it was just a simple application. Another tool that would seem helpful for me is google calendar. Organization is something that I seek in my weekly schedule and a tool like that seems like it would make it much easier.
So far, out of the technologly tools we have explored, I have seen some uses for a Facebook page, pearl tree (PLN), podcasts and possibly twitter. I plan to work within cardiac rehabilitation so podcasts in technology and medicine would have obvious merits in staying up to date in these respective areas. Pearl tree would help me stay organized both in my leisure interests as well as my career connections and resources. Depending where I worked and who I would know twitter would be of some use hypothetically, although more for me to obtain information rather than to be used as a platform to get my view points across. I just don't see myself using twitter in that form within the profession. Lastly Facebook would help me stay in touch with my colleagues as well as possibly making a fan page for a community event that would take place. Hopefully I get a little more aquainted with all these technology tools first because I'm not used to using some of them yet, however they can be of great use.
Join the discussion! I chose to make a fan page about a book I read recently titled "The Fifth Wave". Some of my friends, along with me, enjoyed the book and thought it would be nice to share it with others. I think that making my first fan page on a topic like this will help me in the future when I decide to make one for my professional career.
The article, "Always On" discusses the potential problems and upsides to those who have grown around using the emerging technology and social media Portals and websites. I can see arguements to both sides because I personally have seen both sides of the argument in my own life. I have become very well aquianted in the technology world we live in and I can see the point made when people say that this generation is quicker in thought and information processing. However I can also see how people, including myself, become much more impatient in terms with how fast things take place or how we become flustered when things take longer than we want. We have become more willing take anything on the Internet for truth while we do little research into what we read. We also have become a little impersonal in our face to face interactions due to the fact a big portion of our conversations take place on the web, Where we can be emotionally and socially lazy with our dialogue.
The article, "Social Networking in Undergraduate Education" reviews how technology has affected undergraduate learning. Does it make it easier, better more interactive or completely the contrary? After reading the article and looking over the results, I can only partially agree with the results of the questionnaires submitted. Three distinct results and conclusions really caught my attention. One was that Facebook helped people strengthen relationships. I disagree, although it is easier to maintain connections the relationships don't become stronger in my opinion. The relationships' depth and quality are restricted by social media itself. Conversations are impersonal, never face to face, they lack emotion and give you a distant feeling to a relationship. Another conclusion that caught my eye was that the majority of students say that social media bring a community together. I think that statement is very ironic. Yes social media keeps you up to date on What may be happening in your community but you only see what has been chosen to be posted, thus your connection is limited. Also the more time you may spend on social media the less time you actually get to interact with these people face to face and really actually get to know the meaning of having a relationship wit h those who live around in your community. Lastly there was a conclusion which said that certain tools like Blackboard help the learning experience and I do agree. Social media can help with education but it needs to be channeled for that purpose. I think that Facebook, due to its social and entertainment commercials, apps and constant feeds can distract from learning so something like Blackboad can be used for education and it would yield great results for members to interact on the topic or class at hand.
I made this picture on funphotobox.com. I made this with the picture that I embedded on my home page. I decided to use this background from the movie Tangled because I've seen it and I thought it would be fun, and at first glance, I thought it was a bit funny (especially within the context of the scene from the movie). I think that this picture sums up the intended purpose of the website, as well as my intention which is to have some fun while learning how to use technology with your photos.
For a personal learning network (PLN) I decided to use Pearl Trees. I found this PLN helpful because it allows you to add websites that you deem important to one place saving you time. You can create "branches" to your tree very easily for different topics and areas of your life. When you are ready to add a website you can search for it, once you have it in front you just click add and it becomes part of that respective branch. It is a great way to store and order not only websites but also documents and pictures so that they are easily found when you need them. It's like having everything you need on one site or one "tree," if you will.
B.A. In exercise science, I have participated in numerous sports including soccer and track and field (1500m) at the collegiate level. I have worked with young athletes for years and seek to keep helping athletes and people interested in athletics in the clinical setting.