Throwback: AOL Dial-up

So this week both classes had no f2f meeting and therefore I made good use of my time getting together with my partners for group assignments.  Both assignments have a good bit of research involved and naturally I used the Internet.  Whether I was "googling" or using the Stockton library resources- which offers a plethora of online access, everything was right at my fingertips in a matter of seconds.  So often we forget how advanced technology is today and how easily accessible the Internet is. And so, I'd like to dedicate this weekly post to reflect to the not-so-far-back 90's, and the breakthrough of AOL dial-up internet.


It's amazing how fresh that awesome AOL sound still plays in my head; the magical connection to the world wide web.  I came across this article (a.must.read.) which encompasses so many of the reminiscent emotions toward AOL that I am sure you too feel about that phenomenom.  I was laughing out loud at how accurate the article is, I assure you will enjoy.

Fun fact:  I also found out that AOL is still racking up subscribers for dial-up!  This amazed me even more, here, take a look.

Virtual Learning and Group Work

So on Monday I took the plunge and attended my Adult Learning class online or synchronously.  I was a bit anxious about trying to get out of work and home with enough time to spare for the anticipated technical difficulties I was sure to experience.  Thankfully I had a good 20 minutes before the 6pm start and I was sure glad to have it as it really did take about that long to make sure Collaborate was working properly.  For some reason every time I would try to "launch the room" it would revert to Adobe which of course was not the compatible program to run it.  After a few panic attacks I got in and was able to breath a sigh of relief!

I'd say my overall experience attending remotely was positive and quite convenient.  Amy engages all of us by name and with interactive tasks (we did a few quizzes) so it is less easy to get distracted.  There was a malfunction of Amy's headset- the mic wasn't working, which is definitely a disadvantage of not being in the classroom.  I was thankful for the chat feature and my kind classmates who utilized it to keep me updated.

Other than class, this week I met with my group project partners for both classes.  Which reminds me, I need to get going to do some research.  Have a great week everyone! 

 

Week Two

This week I got to experience my first Adult Learning class on Monday night which takes place in Stockton's satellite campus in Hammonton, Kramer Hall.  Two of my classmates were attending virtually which made for my first full experience with Blackboard Collaborate.  It was neat  communicating through our headsets but a little weird working on group tasks as I am so accustomed to f2f settings.  At any rate, it was a good first experience and I will only get more used to it, as I too will attend synchronously at times during the semester.

In IT 21st Century last night, we also had some more hands on practice with Collaborate.  Both worksheet assignments- the checklist, and practice sheet were very useful in learning the parts of Collaborate and navigating through each area.  Here's a link for best practices.

Classmate Monica stepped up to the plate by giving the first presentation for Tool Time using Kahoot, a game-based educational platform.  I enjoyed the simplicity of the tool, which allows you to create quizzes and have your audience answer with a mobile device, which we got to do- very cool.

Well that's all for now, till next week!

The Start of Grad School

I made it through the first week of my first grad school classes! woohoo! hey- gotta celebrate the small stuff right?

I am starting my journey in the Fall 2014 semester with two courses: Instructional Technology & 21st Century Learning and Adult Learning both instructed by thee Dr. Amy Ackerman.  I am also working full-time so I am hoping to discover the right balance to be successful!

I must say my first class- 21st Century Learning flew by- for a 3 hour class!  I had no idea what to expect but was pleasantly surprised.  It was nice that the whole class showed up so that we could interact f2f and I could sense Amy's enthusiasm and expertise in the field right away!  The icebreaker assignments and working together was an interactive, hands on experience and was much more entertaining than majority of my undergrad classes- with the prof reading out of a text book the whole time :-)

Looking forward to what's in store!! Here are some great inspirational quotes for grad students to motivate us along the way.

Wordle created with my classmates during first class