Want some guidance around writing learning outcomes? Try the learning outcomes authoring tool

Many thanks to Conor Bolton who recently shared these online learning outcome authoring tools. The first is the ‘Co-generative Toolkit’ - CegentT the development of which was funded by JISC. The tool has four main parts - the vocabulary, outcome, task and design builders (read more about them here). I found the tool, even though it has a focus on the UK qualification system, really easy to use. It has enough depth to be a real help in the development of learning outcomes, especially if you are involved in the tertiary or VET sector.

For more or a school-relevant tool, Conor also linked to the Learning Outcomes Authoring Tool. It has a very simple interface. You start by expanding the 'Setting the stage' and/or 'Learning skills taxonomies' headings. You are then provided with example stems that help kick start the learning outcome writing process. Each of the items has a handy explanation pop up that you can access by clicking the magnifying glass icon.

An example of one such explanation and set of guidelines about learning outcomes in general is: "What do you want your students to learn as a result of the lesson? Follow the three-step process below for creating learning objectives. 1. Create a stem 2. After you create the stem, (first, Select a Taxonomy, second, a Learning Domain, third, a Skill) and then a verb to add 3. One you have a stem and a verb, determine the actual product, process, or outcome Identify behaviors, conditions, and criteria needed for performing and assessing to write expected outcomes and performance objectives".

Really worth taking a look if you are involved in any form of teaching ... or learning - can be a real eye opener! :-)

Image source: Styleful by photosteve101

Voicethread for general education and second language learning: Examples, ideas and how to

Voicethread has been around for a while now, and what this means is that there are a lot of examples of innovative use in education to be had. One area in particular where it has been used a lot in learner-centered activities - often with a collaborative, social focus - is in second language learning, although there are plenty more from others from a variety of disciplines and education sectors.

One of the great things about Voicethreads is that they can be embedded in blogs, Learning Management Systems (e.g. Moodle), and in ePortfolios if you wanted students to showcase their work. The combination of media can be a great way of encouraging students who prefer an oral/aural and/or visual approach to learning too.

The first question you might want to ask is what is Voicethread? This Voicethread answers just that question:




The links below are to a few key examples and ideas, as well as to some Voicethread communities, along with some to "how to..." resources around the nuts and bolts of using Voicethread.

Examples and ideas for using Voicethread

• The first few examples focus on learning Spanish, and some of the interesting ways in which Voicethread has been used. At Mount Vernon High School, the Spanish teacher there uses Voicethreads to help students practice their vocabulary and pronunciation, to make presentations, and as part of assessments.
• Eve Millard explains that Voicethread helps her students of Spanish with listening, reading, writing and speaking practice, as well as increading opportunities to work on pronunciation, and other specific themes or skills. The featured Voicethread covers using adjectives.
• Two examples of a specific topic being covered using Voicethread can be found here: La Familia Rivera, and here: La nia de los tres maridos.
• For literacy skills for fourth grade classes from around the world, Voicethreads are being used to record students' book reviews on the Books Go Global wiki space.
• Three examples of how 8th grade students are using VoiceThread for oral interpretation of literature
  
  
  • Performing William Wordsworth
  • Performing Maya Angelou
  • Performing Robert Frost
• An example from the world of Geography, where students in Katikati use Voicethread to analyse and practice a past exam question on natural landscapes. The idea was to collect and share a wide range of interpretations of the exam and responses to learn from.
• From a higher education/tertiary sector background, this example looks at using Voicethread for digital storytelling and the enhancement of reflective practice. The featured example illustrates how Voicethread has been used to help medical professionals learn Spanish. At the University of Albany, Voicethreads are being used to create a sense of community.
• A comprehensive collection of Voicethread examples from students and teachers of all ages and groups can be located at the Voicethread 4 Education wiki, where you can also find a page with Classroom Partners should you be interested in collaborating with other classrooms on a Voicethread project. Other examples of Voicethreads in use can be found at the CARLA Technology wiki site.
• For a general collection of Voicethread resources, the My Web 2.0 Adventures wiki is worth a visit, as is the Educational Software wiki put together by Suzie Vesper.

How to use Voicethread...
There are a lot of tutorials available about how to create Voicethreads, not surprisingly with many made in Voicethread. Some of the key ones are:

• A thorough, well designed tutorial in Scribd (can be downloaded).
• Mini-tutorial on VoiceThread
• You can read a Voicethread tutorial from Jennifer Wagner's EggRoll site by downloading this .pdf file: VoiceThreadtutorial.pdf.
• If you need help with how to create a free account for teachers, and student spaces within that account the VoiceThread Help is really useful.

Related articles about Voicethread

• Voicethread (slideshare.net)
• Voicethread Intro (slideshare.net)

Bookmarking and sharing with Twine

Over the last few days I have been using a new tool - Twine -designed for bookmarking, describing, tagging, sharing, finding and commenting on resources and tools on the Internet. I've found it really easy to use, and it has performed seamlessly on both my Mac and my PC. There are also a wide range of people using Twine, especially around the subject of eLearning, Web 2.0, and collaborative creation of knowledge. So far, I have found no down sides!