by Lauren Krznaric
In honor of the recent launch of our new MOOC powered by the CourseSites Open Course Series on Designing an Exemplary Course, we are excited to invite you to join us for a Tweet Chat to discuss best practices of building a dynamic course on Oct 11th at 1pm EDT. We are fortunate to have Dr. Torria Bond, a leader in Instructional Design for California Baptist University, an instructor in the CourseSites MOOC and last year’s Exemplary Course Winner, as our special guest.
by Sarah Tomczyk
More and more news articles continue to be written about the flipped classroom. Its popularity stems from more teacher-student interaction and more differentiation of instruction. Districts either are intrigued and researching the topic or beginning to implement it. The goal of this teaching model is to be able to encourage students to be active learners. Lectures are recorded and students can watch them at home at their own pace. Class time is then dedicated to discussion questions which students can answer individually or in groups. Teachers are then able to help students when they have questions about a math problem or a science lab because all work is done in class.
by Susanne Roelle
… Blackboard and Ruhr University Bochum in the category Education Management for their project titled ‘RUB mobile – mobil, vernetzt und “always on” mit der App der Ruhr-Universität Bochum’ (RUB mobile – mobile, connected and always-on with the app of Ruhr University Bochum).
The eLearning Awards were initiated for the first time in 2011 by the eLearning Journal, the largest German-speaking print medium on the topic of learning using digital media. The eLearning Awards acknowledge the best project consortia and the most innovative projects in 26 categories, ranging from Adventure Based Learning and Workplace Learning to Blended Learning and Learning Management Systems. This year’s awards ceremony will take place at “didacta – die Bildungsmesse” – the largest trade fair for teachers from across all education sectors in Europe, which will take place in Cologne, Germany in February of 2013.
The winning projects in 2013 are characterized by cutting edge innovation, sustainability and their viability in meeting future educational challenges. It was therefore important that the project demonstrated how it could meet the latest trends in various educational sectors as well as technology trends. In addition, the successful cooperation of the project partners played a key role in assessing the best eLearning projects 2012.
The total number of downloads of the RUB app, the user feedback, the rapid implementation of upgrades desired by end users and the success of the chosen implementation and marketing strategies underpin the successful progress of the project and allow a positive result. Overall, it showed that an exceptional product, which represents significant added value especially for the target groups but also for both project partners, can be created when a reputable company and a renowned university are dedicated to working together and purposefully follow a common goal.
Click here to download the English version of the report and click here to download the German version of the report.
by Lee Perlis
Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with Dana Aldis, LivingSocial’s, Director of Sales Training and Development, to discuss how her company uses Blackboard’s Salesforce integration throughout the sales training process. If you’re not familiar with LivingSocial, it is the local marketplace to buy and share the best things in your city (and their headquarters is just across the street from Blackboard’s here in D.C.!). Since LivingSocial relies heavily on developing relationships with small businesses to create unique offers for its members, having an informed, agile sales force is critical to the company’s success.
Q: Why did you decide to incorporate your training programs within Salesforce?
Aldis: Salesforce is one of the main ways we communicate with our sales team, so having this integration is key. Through Blackboard’s integration with Salesforce, for example, our users can access training directly from Salesforce so training courses are easy to access and are more directly aligned with company goals. The powerful reporting tools have also been a huge asset allowing us to see what training is most useful to individual sales reps while analyzing the relationship between a rep’s training and performance metrics.
by Lauren Krznaric
Guest Blog Post from Kimberly Seeber. Kimberly lives in Bloomington, Indiana, US. She is a licensed elementary teacher and a graduate student in the Instructional Systems Technology residential master’s program at Indiana University. Her interests include technology integration in the K-12 environment and online learning.
In response to the video, The Voice of the Active Learner, instructors considered what it means to be an active student and an active instructor. The discussion focused the following themes: digital natives, digital divide, technology effectiveness, lack of technology support, challenges of learning new technology, novice and expert technology users, surface learning versus deep learning, and the transition from “sage on the stage” to “guide on the side.”
