I'm one of those people who find it is really relevant to consider carefully which aspects of learning can be enhanced by specific online technologies.

I have been reflecting on whether we think the same or something different when talking about working within acontext such as a Virtual learning Environment than when we're just systematically managing learning content

The developers of the tools should really know the realistic needs and concerns that teachers and learners may have when moving part of our everyday work online. I find there may be a difference in the approach when we're talking about LMS (apparently current in the North American context) - as we in Europe more often seem to talk about VLEs.

Learning Management system - systematic management of learning, sonds to me like a structured container of ready made information to fill into the heads of learners (I know - I'm not being fair!)

VLE - the Virtual Learning environment, this brings more images to me about the learner as an individual who need a space for thinking, for experimenting and for collaboration - as in a kitchen or wood workshop. When the hands on, face to face experience is absent, then how can we somehow simulate what happens between people as social beings?

When I consider the constructivist approach that Moodle developers and end users are trying to promote and practise creatively from experiments and knowledge sharing about how to use the tools that exist, or ask for more details in development, I find it pretty much different from just "putting" your (perhaps already existing) course material and a given structured procedure online. I feel strongly that Moodle provides a potential environment for those who are able to change their ideas according to what is possible; not that this is always what is actually happening. But there exists the opportunity to allow "students" to create and edit material, for example, as part of the interactivtiy.

After all, it does take quite a while before your fumbling laboratory experiments are ready to become published and reproduced by others.

What do others think about this?

I've started to tag my blog postings again with a few relevant keywords, and this actually connects me more easily with people whose blogs I would like to follow, because we are apparently having some shared interests in common.

I know some people that may object to the idea that you could just add someone as your "friend" - without even knowing this person, and even without asking if this person want to be connected with you in a friend-like relationship. And, perhaps this procedure is a little tricky too, the way I am actually practising it as I am not asked to seek for permission fo add someone - I like much of what I read, or I want to be challenged intellectually, so my Friends portrait collage is slowly growing, all the while I have no idea who is connecting to ME. http://elgg.net/_friends/index.php?friends_name=netopny


Of course, the bonus thing about having more friends added is when you can read across their blogs as a collage of shared minds!

Mini moodle meeting

Ah! Elgg developer Ben W. now encourages embedded elgg podcast. I was not aware I could archive mp3 files right here, and now there will be an easier way round to use them in blog "entries" (which I find is a fun term to use, but never mind, I'm not a native).

Just what we needed for making elgg even more useful and recommendable also for language related purposes; listen to Ben W. here and see if you get the procedure - or do you prefer a text version to really get the steps on your inner whiteboard:

http://elgg.net/bwerdmuller/weblog/4795.html

Guess I'll have to wait until I get back from my examiner travel at the end of this week, as I do not have a ready made voice recording to test this with, formatted in mp3. Must work with Audacity on this, and then - what was that I would have to use to transform it to mp3. Uh oh, practice, practice!

In the meantime, check how this is done over at Clickcaster that I found some days ago - they elegantly give access to a recorder, cannot be simpler.

http://www.clickcaster.com/clickcast/list/516