Troy Patterson

Educator, Thinker, Consultant

Page 23 of 41

Video Conference Options

March 29, 2020 / / 1 Comment

Lots of people are currently doing video conferencing right now. We are once again in the “wild west” of tools. On the plus side, our “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order would be very different without being able to video conference.

The ability to connect easily with loved ones and friends is powerful. To do so with “cost” (you still need an internet connection) is wonderful. It is far easier to accomplish than in the early days of video conferencing.

The ability to connect with students and work mates is similarly powerful. However, this is new territory for lots of people.

General Tips

  • Do not post the link to the video session on social media. Generally, anyone with that link can join. There are examples of people with bad intent joining video sessions.
  • Remember (and remind your participants) to carefully review what is in the video window. Sometimes things in the background reveal too much information.
  • Mute your mic when not actively talking.
  • Let others in the area know that you video conferencing. (There can be embarrassing comments made about friends or family).

Major Players

  • Hangouts Meet
  • Zoom
  • BigBlueButton
  • Jitsi
  • Facetime

Hangouts Meet

This is officially supported by many districts now. FERPA agreements are probably in place with Google. Hangouts Meet allows up to 250 participants. The teacher has control and can remove participants (other participants no longer have that ability). We can verify which students were part of calls.

  • Allows for recording by the teacher only. Recordings will be saved in Google Drive.
  • Only teachers can create a Meet.
  • Only the Meet creator can Mute or Remove participants.
  • Logging for FOIA is in place.

Hangouts Meet is available until July 1st for all school GAFE domains. The additional features may roll-back after that.

Zoom

Zoom is probably the most popular right now. Many districts not have a contract with them to ensure FERPA compliance. The free version of Zoom does not include account management. Teachers really don’t have a way to confirm who is really on the video session. * We have had an issue of students posting inappropriate comments in a chat.

There are some additional features that Zoom has made available for now. Those will end at some point.

“For Districts just now utilizing Zoom in their distance learning facilitation, please be aware that Zoom is asking educational customers to manage their own COPPA compliance via parental consent.”

Zoom sends user data to Facebook.

Popular right now is Zoombombing. Zoombombing is joining a Zoom session and interjecting inappropriate content.

Suddenly, dozens of attendees were bombarded with disturbing imagery.

Please make sure that you check and set appropriate settings.

Skype

Skpe is being replaced. It is one of the older options. Skype is being replaced by Microsoft Teams.

BigBlueButton (BBB)

BigBlueButton is open source option that can be run by a district. Obviously, the district would need to have the hardward and personnel to install and maintain it. However, this set up has many advantages. Information is held within the district and not shared with an outside organization.

Furthermore, BBB can be integrated within Moodle. This provides for a seamless, accountable experience for all involved.

BigBlueButton is web conferencing designed for online learning. BBB includes the following features:

  • Participants limited to school Accounts
  • Live whiteboard that is multi-user
  • Webcam sharing (no time limit, no number limit)
  • Chat
  • Audio
  • Breakout rooms
  • Polling
  • Screen sharing
  • BBB overview for moderators

BBB has the ability to record if your organization supports it. For some districts, they may NOT have that turned on due to disk space.

Jitsi

Jitsi is an open source video conferencing option. It requires absolutely no sign-in and is completely free. You can add a password to the conference. You can also use a phone to access. There are lots of options (Share YouTube videos, shared document creation, tiled video, raise your hand, remove users, mute everyone, etc). There are apps for iOS and Android as well. Jitsi is based on webRTC, which is a current standard.

Here is a nice overview.

This is a really good option for adults. The one thing that is missing in this option is the creator/moderator role. Basically, all participants can mute or remove other participants. Thus, this is probably a great choice for adult teams, but should be used with caution with students.

The data doesn’t really seem to go anywhere. They are not collecting email addresses or other information. You can enter an email address if you want. You can also give them permission to connect to your calendar if you want to schedule meetings.

If you do use this option, make sure to create a complex, random meet name (or let them create the name). Otherwise, the meet may exist and you’ll be joining someone else’s meet.

Facetime

Facetime is great. This is especially the case for family members. Facetime requires that all of the users be using an iOS (or Mac) device. It is really great for one-to-one communication. Facetime can be used with groups as well, but that is less intuitive.

OER Materials based on H5P

OER Materials based on H5P

March 8, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Thanks to the wonderful Geoff Cain, I found this little tidbit sharing some new OER materials based on H5P. The eCampusOntario H5P Studio is a site for sharing H5P materials. (H5P is an open source project that provides a variety of rich, mostly interactive experiences. It is well integrated with another open source project (Moodle) that I like and support). The materials on the eCampusOntario H5P Studio are mostly Creative Commons licensed.

I need to learn more about H5P. This site may one way of finding some practical examples. The set up of the site is also interesting. It is a simple catalog presentation. There are search fields on the side. This is simple and effective. There are only a few entries currently, but I’m hoping that this will continue to grow. Even if it is focused at the college level, examples could be useful. Since the resources are Creative Commons (many are CC-BY-NC-SA), they can be remixed.

Here is their “About Us” page text:

eCampusOntario H5P Studio is your one stop shop to create, share, and discover interactive learning objects. This site uses H5P, an open source plugin, to allow content authors to easily create interactive content for their courses or other instructional projects. For more information about H5P, please refer to their website: h5p.org.

eCampusOntario H5P Studio is provided as part of our set of Open Publishing tools. This platform was developed by the innovative team at Wilfrid Laurier University Library. Special thanks to Yasin Dahi, Joanne Oud, Dillon Moore, and Gohar Ashoughian for their participation in this project. 

From their About page

Check it out.

Learning is Messy

Learning is Messy

March 4, 2020 / / 0 Comments

CDC Recommendation

The CDC has recommended “remote learning” be put in place in the event that schools close to contain the spread of COVID-19. While this may sound reasonable, (after all, kids are “on their phones” all the time), this is fantasy filled with Science Fiction surrounded by dreams. The reality, as one of my professors once told me, is that learning is messy.

Remote Learning

Let’s start with “remote learning.” What does this really mean? Students “video conferencing”? Fully utilizing a Learning Management System (LMS)? Students completing “worksheets” digitally instead of paper copies?

Technology in Education

If “remote learning” were the best option, we would have fully deployed it already. Technology certainly has a role in education. Technology takes years to fully develop and vet. Teachers need skills in utilizing technology.

Technology is not the saving force that many propose. Ask Mark Zuckerberg about the $100 million that he spent on education. Ask the many Silicon Valley parents who eschew technology for their kids.

Students

Students are real people. Not widgets. Not statistics. Not plots on a number line. They are real. They are messy. They are different. They have emotions. They have needs. Some of the them have broadband access and powerful computers at home. Some of them have rate-limited cell phone plans. Some access the internet on a four-inch, broken phone screen. Students may know how to access TikTok. They may be Instagram proficient. However, they may not know how to leverage technology to learn.

Teachers

Teachers are really all over the map in terms of technology skills. Elementary teachers may not understand how to teach their students how to use email proficiently. I have heard of a teacher call a Helpdesk because they didn’t know how to bookmark their Daily Agenda (which was done in Google Slides); this same teacher teaches Computer Applications to High School students. There is a perception that “new” (read younger, freshly graduated from college) teachers are “good” with technology. The problem is that they are frequenty “good” like kids; they aren’t afraid to push buttons on a phone or computer, but they don’t really understand how to leverage the tools for learning. This is not all that surprising. These new teachers are really just learning how to truly teach.

Tools

If the guidance on “remote learning” really means effective use of technology to teach, we’ve got a long way to go. There are some schools that are already touting Google Classroom as their “remote learning” tool. There is nothing wrong with Google Classroom. It is a fine tool. Generally, it is liked by teachers because it is easy to understand. Google Classroom largely replicates what schooling has done for the last 100 years. It is really good at “handing out” worksheets and collecting and organizing those. (Full disclosure, Google Classroom has tried to implement some other limited capablities. It can provide teachers with opportunities to provide more accurate and useful feedback. Most of those features are rarely used.) Again, there is nothing wrong with Google Classroom. It has some nice features. In the case of closing schools, it is certainly better than nothing.

We do, however, have much more powerful tools (like Moodle) that could provide students with more online learning opportunities. This takes training though. Online learning requires professional staff to develop new skills, new ways of thinking. That is not easy or quick.

Summary

One of my favorite professors told me “learning is messy”. The longer I taught, the more I realized just how right he was/is. Learning is messy. That is not a bad thing. It just is. Learning is messy. Online learning can’t replace a good teacher. Technology can help good teachers reach and push students to heights that were previously unreachable. Learning is messy. A simple suggestion to utilize “remote learning” isn’t going to change that. That call could be a futile political positioning. That call could be a wake-up call for education to start preparing for the future. Learning is messy. Not just for kids. Learning is messy for all of us.

Weekly Review

March 3, 2020 / / 0 Comments

COVID-19

Obviously, the corona virus is in the news. One of the latest features is that some are proposing that schools switch to “online learning”. I’ve long been a big proponent of online learning. However, this is not something that happens overnight. It takes time and talent to effectively provide online learning.

I do wish that the State of Michigan would have invested in providing a great Moodle experience for all teachers. More importantly, I really wish that there had been consistent, high quality professional development over the past few years. Michigan is a “GoOpen” state.

I fear that we’ll see school districts turn on Google Classroom and state that they are providing “online learning”. Now, this is certainly better than nothing at all, but we have the capability to do so much more. We have the capability to be so much better.

Online learning should be about much more than providing a “back-up” in a crisis. However, teachers need support. Online learning will not replace good teachers. Online learning can help leverage good teachers. It can help reach students and provide opportunities that would otherwise be missed.

Moodle Training

We also participated in some Moodle training this week. The training focused on the Assignment and Quiz modules. The training was well done. It really is a challenge though when teacher skill is heavily varied. I keep hoping that every step forward is, well, a step forward.

Moodle Multi-State Group

Our Moodle Multi-State Group also met this week. This is a great group of wonderful humans. The group includes representation from Montana, Rhode Island, North Dakota, and Michigan. We discuss our challenges and our successes. We’ve shared some great ideas. I find these discussions very beneficial. The long-term hope is to collaborate on creating and sharing resources. However, if before getting to that stage, I find these discussions incredibly useful.

SYNC Update

I had an update to the Ford Sync System. I ran through the download, extracting the files and putting them at the root level of the flashdrive. I took the flashdrive out to the car and, nope. No update. I was about to get mad at Ford when I stopped and explictily followed the directions. There was one step when you needed to extract the files using Stuffit Expander (who knew that was still being developed) instead of the built in file expander. Funny thing about actually following the directions is that things frequently work better. Stuffit expander did expand different files. Sync is still not working correctly, but at least it is updated. Oh, and when in doubt, try actually following the directions.

Baseball

Baseball is back. I still enjoy watching a good baseball game. Sunday was the first broadcast Tigers game training game. I allowed myself a bit of time to just kind of chill and watch the game. There is a long way to go until the start of the season, but it’s nice to start enjoying the game again.

Flashcards

Flashcards

March 1, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Flashcards can be a powerfully learning tool. These are really good for learning material. Popularly, these are used learning languages. But, these can be very useful in many, many other situations as well. Science teachers frequently need students to learn concepts and names. Social Studies teachers need students to learn dates and connections. Language Arts teachers can use flashcards to teach sight words, meanings of words, synonyms, antonyms, etc. Mathematic teachers can benefit from concepts, memorizing multiplication tables, and much more.

Flashcards can be useful for all students in a variety of ways. There are a couple of tips that make flashcards even more powerful:

  • students should make them
  • cards should be able to be practiced “both” ways
  • cards should be randomized
  • distributed (spaced) practice concepts should be available

Physical Cards

Flashcards orginally come from, well, cards. Index cards can be used. These are easy for students to understand and create. Lots of colors can be used. Students should be encouraged to use pictures and colors. Cards are easy to study either front to back or back to front. On the downside, portability isn’t always the highest. These can be tough to manage as well. These can be shuffled, but it isn’t difficult to manage distributed learning.

Moodle Database

Naturally, you can create flashcards in Moodle. There are actually a few different ways to create flashcards in Moodle. I’ll start with the Database activity. I have instructions on importing a flashcard database preset available for you. The preset -(see an example) is a Database activity that was designed by some friends. This activity allows the students to create their own flashcards. The flashcards can be multimedia as well.

These have several advantages. Cards are created by students. Cards can be shared within a class. At times, this can be useful. Students studying cards other students created can be useful as well. With the preset, there is the ability to randomize the cards. On the downside, there is no managed, distributed (spaced) practice.

H5P

I need to spend time working with H5P. I’m not as proficient with H5P as I’d like to be. So what follows is from their documentation.
From H5P:

The Flashcards content type is a set of cards containing a picture on one side of the card and a corresponding text on the other side. The learner is asked to type a word or expression corresponding to the picture, before turning the card over and revealing the correct answer.

The H5P Flashcards are interesting. You can create a spot for the students to answer the question right on the card.

I’m not sure that the students can create their own flashcards.

I don’t believe that distributed (spaced) practice is available either. Flashcards seem to be structured in one direction (i.e. it isn’t easy to study “back to front” as well as “front to back”).

Remember that H5P can be available within Moodle as well.

Anki

This is actually my favorite. Anki is open source. There are applications available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android and the web. Like Moodle, Anki allows for multimedia options. Anki seems to have all your bases covered in terms of access. This means that students can have access at any time. There are also Shared Decks that can be downloaded and used (but remember that there is power in creating the cards.)

Anki is completely designed for distributed (spaced) practice. Cards are moved into different time patterns based on how well the student knows the material.

Anki is also very powerful. It can easily be used quickly. But, if students want more control, it is very customizable as well. Anki is template based and those templates can be adjusted and modified. There is a ton of documentation available.

Suggestion

I would strongly suggest that you introduce your students to the power of flashcards. As different learners have different preferences, some of them may really be effective with flashcards. Naturally, I would suggest that you experiment with flashcards as well. This will help you help your students.

Even though I believe that Anki is the absolute gold standard, using Flashcards in Moodle can be a good introduction to the students. Plus, the more times students deal with information the better chance they have for remembering and learning that information.

Why This is Hard

Why This is Hard

February 24, 2020 / / 0 Comments

I love the flexibility of Moodle. It is powerful and can have complexity. Let me give you an example of why.

Gapfill

I’m a big fan of the excellent Gapfill plugin by Marcus Greene. I’ve found this plugin extremely useful in a variety of use cases.

A quick overview:

Essentially, the plugin allows you to add a question within a quiz that creates, well, a gapfill question. The teacher writes a question and surrounds the correct answers with brackets. Thus, the [correct] answer in this sentence would be “correct”. Then the teacher adds some distractors (notice that the correct answer is NOT included in the distractors).

The student is presented with the question text (with the “correct” answers represented by a box). The student can drag and drop from the possible answers. The correct answer and the distractors are always shuffled.

I then took this concept to a different use case. Since spelling is a place where we could free up teacher time, I created a question where the teacher creates 13 empty boxes. The teacher then types in the correct spelling word by adding the appropriate letter. Thus, the question looks like this:

[s][p][e][l][l][i][n][g][][][][[][]

The teacher records the word (in this case: spelling), uses it in a sentence, and maybe says the word again. (The blanks function to not give the number of letters in the word away.)

Then, the teacher adds every letter to the distractors.

a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i,j,k,l,m,o,n,p,q,r,s,t,u,v,w,x,y,z

Here is an example that I’ve completed. Notice the recorded section that tells the students which word to spell. There are more boxes than the student would need. The distractors are all there, but not in any order. This adds complexity that doesn’t help me know what the student knows, just adds frustration.

The teacher could add capitals, but let’s not complicate this any further than I already have. 😉

Since this is to be used with elementary students, I don’t want the distractors shuffled. I want them in, well, alphabetical order.

I would want the “correct” answers (in this case, letters) to be selected from the “distractors”. I’m creating spots for answers that are intentionally left blank.

Note that I can also see some other use cases where I would want the distractors in a set order. When working with elementary students (and a wide variety of other students), it can be useful to provide a set structure.

Hard

This is why Moodle can be complex. A slightly different point of view (hey, I can create a great spelling experience that would free up teachers and let students be in control of their learning) can lead to a wide variety of complexity.

In my example, the answer is included (provided that I don’t add a space when typing), but how does the gapfill plugin know that? What happens if I don’t type exactly the same thing as the answer in the question and in the distractor? What happens if I forget to include the answer in the distractors?

Remember, the plugin was designed to add the distractors to the correct answer and shuffle those options. My use case if fundamentally different. I don’t want to provide just distractors, but all of the possible answers. While this is easy to understand as a teacher, it is more difficult to “explain” to a computer.

Marcus Greene

I huge shout out to Marcus Greene for even considering my request. I keep finding this willingness to collaborate and do what is best for students throughout the Moodle community. Mr. Greene is a terrific example of this community. I’ve never met Mr. Greene in the real world, but he is a hero of mine. His work has helped lots of kids learn.

You should also check out his WordSelect plugin. (And, yes, I use that one in a way that he didn’t intend too. See the part about identifying topic sentences, which is NOT a word.)

Baseball

February 21, 2020 / / 0 Comments

For, lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of the singing of birds is come,
And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

Ernie Harwell started every Tiger’s season with the above poem.

It’s time for baseball again!

Weekly Review

February 20, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Music

I’ve been listening to Josh Ritter quite a bit lately. Great music, great lyrics. I’ve really had “Joy to You Baby”, “Hopeful”, “All Some Kind of Dream”, “Showboat” and more playing on a regular rotation. Josh Ritter’s music brings me true joy.

Josh manages to remain ever hopeful and positive even when life seems tough. He has largely avoided a political stance until recently. The events, the mood of what is going on, has called him to action. Was It All Some Kind of Dream is his response to being human in our current environment. A few of the powerful lyrics from that song:

There was a time when we were them
Just as now they all are we
Was there an hour when we took them in?

There was a time when we held them close
And weren’t so cruel, low, and mean
And we did good unto the least of those

There was a time when we chose our sides
And we refused to live between
We rose to fight for what we knew was right

Generally, though Josh Ritter speaks on a more mundane, personal level. He has certainly seen his share of strife (a well publicized marriage and divorce), but remains a positive force in the world. Give his music a listen.

I’ll be heading off to see his “A Book of Gold Thrown Open” tour in a month, I really wish it was coming to a venue closer to me, but it will be worth the trip.

Big Brother is Watching…

I had the opportunity to go to a presentation on “Big Brother is Watching, But Should He”. This was focused on schools and camera surveillance. Interesting times that we live in. The jist of the presentation was that we don’t really have a choice. Cameras are here to stay, but we should be wise and in control of where and when those cameras are available.

Update Frustrations

Mac

I updated a Mac. The process took while. Then, then, then, a problem. The update wouldn’t complete. A bit of digging let me know that a memory module was bad. Ah, but which one. The notice seemed to indicate slot 2 was bad ( I have 4 memory slots in that computer). So, I pull the memory module from slot 2. Restart. Run update. Nope. Replace memory in slot 2. Remove memory from slot 3. Run update. Nope. Replace memory in slot 3. Remove memory from slot 4. Run update. Nope. Replace memory in slot 4. Remove memory from slot 1. Run update. Success. Now, remember each of these steps take several minutes to accomplish. I’m doing this in between meetings and other responsibilities. This turns into a two day process.

PC

Naturally, I couldn’t just update my Mac. I also had to update my PC. Oh, and also my Virtual Machine PC as well. (I find it most efficient to generally use my Mac and a PC on a Virtual Machine within the Mac, but I have a separate boxed PC to use as well). I ran into several issues with the PC update as well. However, I mostly just deleted the PC and reinstalled from FOG.

The 1930’s

I’ve been reading lots of articles relating to comparisons between today and the 1930’s. If you aren’t familar with the history of the United States and the world in the 1930’s, please take some time to review. The 1930’s led to the growth of fascism. This also led to the literal destruction of a vast number of real human beings. People died by the millions. It wasn’t a singular event that led to that result, but a slow drip of decisions. Obviously, today is not a perfect corrolary to the 30’s. Times are different. The economy of the United States is in a different place (though there is concern about the amount of debt). But many attitudes are scarily similar.

Spelling

I’m working on a write up for spelling within Moodle. I hope to have this done soon. The key here is to free up teachers and empower students to take control of their learning.

Oscar Shorts Nominations

I went to see the Oscar Nominated Shorts. Much easier on they pyschice than last year. I already wrote that up as a separate post.Oscar Nominated Shorts

Oscar Nominated Shorts

February 5, 2020 / / 1 Comment

I had the opportunity to check out the Oscar Nominated Shorts for Animation and Live Action. Warning, spoilers follow. Unlike last year, this year was not all “gut punches”. Some of this year’s nominated films are funny. Naturally, there are some emotional ones as well.

Animation Nominees

Official Oscar Animation Nominee Page

  • Hair Love – Cute opening movie. A young girl and her Dad struggle with doing her hair. It ends with a bit of an emotional heart tug.
  • DCERA (Daughter) – Really powerful animation. This one was able to communicate so much with visuals. The story is definitely not a “Hallmark” story but powerfully told. The story is of a young girl (now grown) and her relationship with her Dad. This is my choice for Best Animated Short.
  • Sister – The story of a child from China and the sister that he never had due to China’s “one-child law”.
  • Mémorable – The story of a painter who experiences the world mutating to unrealistic objects. A powerful story that hit home for me. Well done, well told. A close runner up to DCERA, I wouldn’t be upset if this wins.
  • Kitbull – A pretty traditional PIXAR short. Well done. The story well told, but no new ground is broken. A very satisfying story.

Live Action Nominees

Official Oscar Live Action Nominee Page

  • A Sister – In a car at night, Alie is in trouble. She makes a crucial call for help. An interesting story that is nicely told. Somehow this one missed out on emotion for me.
  • Brotherhood – A hardened shepherd’s son returns home. This is not the prodigal son returning. The returning son brings a pregnant wife and obvious tension with the shepherd. The other brothers welcome the eldest home. The eldest is revealed to have some different intents than the Dad thought. The Dad realizes this too late. In a short, every moment is critical. I thought that this short didn’t take advantage of that.
  • The Neighbors’ Window – A young couple with children discover that the new neighbors across the street have no curtains and a lot of passion. The couple deals with the reality of getting older and the idealism of others/ the past. Their frustrations develop as they keep an eye (or two) on the passionate couple across the way. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side though. Based on a true story (left me wondering how much, which parts were true). My runner up.
  • Saria – two orphaned sisters fight against abuse at the orphanage. They participate in a revolt and escape. However, the powers that be recover them and return them to the orphanage. Disaster strikes as one of those returned miscalculate just how uncaring the workers at the orphanage are. My choice for Best Live Action.
  • Nefta Football Club – Two brothers come across a donkey wearing headphones in the desert (in this case, the difference between Adele and Handel is crucial). The oldest realizes the donkey has a valuable cargo but shares a slightly different story with the younger brother (telling him that it is laundry detergent). One little misunderstanding leads to a comical end.
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