Netvibes Dashboarding - LMS/CMS integration

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFg08tggiVA]
posted by myNetvibes
Dashboarding is the term for this inernet information aggregator.  I would consider this in the early stages of innovation for education.  Moodle and other LMSs have really taken a hold of the educational market.  There is no problem in that by any means and I have been using Moodle for years.  I love the LMS format; it's easy, logical and more reliable for education than having an uncontrolled fleet of faculty webpages.  The standardless universe abounds with faculty HTML...   I am really digging on the dashboarding idea!  In conjunction with a LMS this has real potential!
I built a little netvibes page and put some HTML widgets in there.  This allows you to put the URL of any page you want displayed.  Right away this is appealing to me as an instructor since I have several pages that I would love to have loaded in plain sight within a single page.  I added in my Moodle page along with a link to the online textbook which has homework activities for the students and an Explorelearning link which hosts a variety of flash-based science simulations.  All my daily basics, awesome!  I will add email a little later and I am a bit worried about the chaos that might cause on the page.  I threw in a YouTube widget so I can type in the subject matter and bam!  I am ready to roll!
I just read a netvibes blog that talked about the ability to drag n' drop facebook and twitter feeds into the Netvibes Dashboard:
http://blog.netvibes.com/drag-and-follow-facebook-myspace-and-twitter-widget/
This just adds another capability to the dashboarding idea being the integration mechanism between CMS and LMS.
The more I dig, the better and better this looks for educational uses!

Original Post: April 14, 2010

eyeOS: netvibes contender?

eyeOS: basically an online Operating System.  This Open Source software can be tailored for various uses: education, business etc.  Administrators can tailor the programs and tools that users have access to on their virtual desktop.  Saving files and organization happens on a server so the desktop is available online from any computer!  In education, teachers or even the school could decide what programs need to be available and create the OS for students to access from their laptops or other computer stations for classes.
eyeOS Education applications:

• Word processor that enables simultaneous editing by several users.
• Spreadsheet that enables simultaneous editing by several users.
• EyeShow presentation creator.
• User administration, easy management, modification of information, and group changes.
• Blog (personal blog for each student and for the teacher).
• Integrated wiki for each class.
• Integrated forum for each class.
• Resource manager that enables you to create educational content with exercises for students to complete online.
• ‘Petit escriptor’. Interactive application for creating stories.
• Painter (licensed Java application).
• eye Tweet (application and tweets).
• Concept map creator.
• Calendar (personal and shared).
• Internal messaging.
• Contacts.
• Chat.

Now, does this really compete with Netvibes?  I don't think so.  Netvibes is a dashboard application which allows the user to tailor their mainpage to include feeds from all kinds of internet sources.  EyeOS does not give the user a whole lot of options, it is the administrator that decides what is available on the desktop.
I see an integration opportunity here!  EyeOS provides the application support, Netvibes allows the individuality to shine through on the dashboard.  Give the user control of the visual aspects, let the administrator control the available applications.
EyeOS could be the answer to a lot of educational institution licensing headaches...  Buy a bulk license and have apps available on the virtualOS.  Students don't need to be dealing with version issues or funds for purchasing software anymore!

Original post:  April 15, 2010

Mobile Learning and the 21st Century Student

Photo by: Scott Kley Contini

I was recently on a school Field Trip and saw one of my students with an iPad.  My curiosity got the best of me and I asked if I could check it out?  Reluctantly, the student parted with their beloved iPad and let me peruse their much touted piece of technology.  I started to look for some really cool apps, something educational, something intellectual....  Nothing but games.  Air Hockey, Pac-Man, Car driving action games, three full pages of game apps, 1 movie and not a single educational item anywhere, not even an iBook.  I couldn't help but be a little disappointed and couldn't help thinking what a waste of money this was since it was simply being used as a large PSP or Nintendo DS which could have been purchased 4 times over for the same price as the iPad.  I am not sure if the parents were really thinking that they were buying a supercharged game-pad or if they honestly thought their child would use it for more intellectual pursuits?

I took a step back and asked, "Am I really surprised by this?"   The answer, "No."

What have I done to highlight 'cool' educational apps for my students?  What have I incorporated into my teaching and instruction that would be useful on a mobile device like an iPad, smart-phone, etc?  The answer of course is that I have done nothing to highlight the educational value of such devices and so today's digital junkies with all the latest gadgets and tools are left on their own to discover the possibilities of their devices.  It is also an unrealistic expectation that any educational institution could adopt every piece of technology available to demonstrate its educational usefulness.  Our school recently adopted a 1:1 laptop program which has had its own challenges and now after 4 years is really showing how amazing this tool can be in and out of the classroom.  Smart-phones, iPhones, iPads and electronic readers of all sorts are next.  The 21st Century Learner is already there and waiting for the 21st Teachers to show them how to use this technology! 

Photo by: Scott Kley Contini