Learning is Change

SpeedGeek Learning Version .1

I am pleased to announce the following features within the first prototype at http://speedgeeklearning.com:
I would love it if you would test out all of them and see what there is to see. I would also love any feedback that you can provide this prototype, either by simply e-mailing it to me or by leaving comments on the Planning site (if you don’t have access to that yet, let me know).

The other two things you can do to help the project at this point are as follows:
  1. Think of any way that you could use the SpeedGeek Learning platform within your own work. If there are any videos that you use and would like to collaborate upon, let’s set you up with an instance of your own. If there are certain big questions you would like to answer, let’s answer them with video and collaborative documents. Start to think about pushing the platform to be what you would like it to be. I am up any ideas you have. Just let me know.

  2. Spread the word that the prototype is available. I would love to get as many people answering these questions in the collaborative document and passing the link around as possible. If you feel the need to blog about it, do so. If you feel the urge to tweet, please do so. I pushed out the initial idea, but this is the first version that I can actually show off.

Thank you so much for your continued interest. I can’t wait to get to phase two, which will include:
  1. Recording your own videos within the interface.
  2. Analytics about individual video views
  3. Greater collaboration with the presenters of the sessions
  4. More ways to organize the sessions
  5. Further design work to flesh out the platform

SpeedGeek Learning Update #2

I sent this out to all of the interested parties via e-mail today, but I know that a lot more people are following along, so here is the update on SpeedGeek Learning:

We have new logo choices:
logo_options.jpg?height=250
So far, the consensus has been that the first one is the right choice. But, if you believe otherwise, please go to the design page and leave a comment. (Or if you have some extra time this week, make your own logo…)
The Development Plan got an upgrade:
Our development plan got a big boost this week. We now have a firm date for prototype launch of November 1st with testing going on the two weeks prior to that. If you would like to see what the initial outline of the prototype is, please go over to the development plan page.
We will be using Tom Metz and his http://www.bocumastdesign.com

This is only for the prototype which will likely garner more interest than the sketches and introductory video. If there is anything in this prototype phase that you would like to offer, please either edit the site or send me an e-mail.
Brainstorms, Conversations and Feedback:
Over the last two weeks I have had the pleasure of receiving a lot of feedback on the project, all of which I have chronicled on the corresponding page on the site. I am particularly encouraged by the feedback we received on the Drop.io site, which I have collected here. I have also set up a Get Satisfaction group for SpeedGeek Learning, but until the prototype goes up, I don’t anticipate using it too much.
Design Mockup:
We have our first design of the Session page, which is being used to develop the prototype. Please go and check it out and let us know what you think by commenting on the page. The logo and design are thanks to Jenna Thompson. She is wonderful.
Speedgeek Learning Sessions starting to shape up:
I have watched some really amazing presentations from Ignite and I am getting really close to closing out a few SpeedGeekLearning Sessions. I do need some more help adding more videos to make 10 full SpeedGeek Learning Sessions ready to go for the Prototype phase. Please come and watch some of the videos to get a feel for the direction we are heading and suggest your own in the comments or by editing the site itself.
Other things:
If you don’t have access to the site yet, let me know what your gmail address is. And, if you still haven’t contacted that one person (or more likely, many) you know who would be interested in the project, please do so. The more people we have thinking about this, the better it will be. Thanks so much for all you have done. Talk to you all soon.
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Easy vs. Hard

Sharing content has become easy.

Video has become easy.

Networking has become easy.

Meaning is still hard.

Context is still hard.

Perspective is still hard.

I don’t want to do the easy things. They do not have value and aren’t interesting.

Now that I have outlined the three things that I would like to do with SpeedGeek Learning, I just have to do them. Stay tuned.

Focus on the Geek in SpeedGeek Learning

I have it on some very good authority that geeks are very passionate people. We seem to take much more upon ourselves just so that we can get something to work. We dial down into the minutae. We play around with things that other people seemingly have no time for. And yet, when we are passionate enough to make what we do paletable to the rest of humanity, others seem to value us.

Yes, I put myself among the geeks. I get overly excited when I place my fingers on an incredibly comfortable keyboard and start to type away. I have felt upgrade envy. I have gotten an overwhelming sense of satisfaction that I am the only one who has ever manually edited our Moodle database to allow for integration with our information management system.

So, what does this have to do with my new project, SpeedGeek Learning. Well, in short, I want to Geek out about things with others. I would like a space that makes it okay to know something so in-depth that you can win over even the most reluctant onlookers. I want other geeks to show off their geekdom and get credit for having done something for the first time.

Or, as Maya Bisineer puts it: Geeks are into figuring out Really Cool Stuff, or RCS. I believe that we must embrace the RCS that all of us have the capactity for. For, if our interactions and learning every day leaves out the passion of RCS, what the heck are we doing? Needless to say, Maya’s presentation will be one of the most important SpeedGeek Videos initially available on the site:

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SpeedGeek Learning: My call to Action

SpeedGeek Learning
I have helped to build many things that I am proud of:

I am proud of them because they added something to the conversation. They have created learning experiences and connections for many people, and I am content to have a hand in each one.

They are, however, not originals.

They may each have their own sets of contexts, but they are not unique in their purpose. They do not create a sense of wonder at how we ever lived without them before in the way Youtube, Classroom 2.0, or Google Docs does now.

The Academy of Discovery tried so hard to be The Science Leadership Academy, eDCSD is built on the existing technology of Moodle, Google Apps, Blackboard, and edMastery. Discovery Utopia and -Isms are pencil and paper projects brought into the world of wikis and even this blog is modeled after the blogs of Will Richardson, Chris Lehman, Bud Hunt and Clarence Fisher.

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to find something to throw myself into that has the potential to transform the way that people learn. I have wanted to be a part of something that grew from a single idea and blossomed into the forum that I want to spend all of my waking life within. I need to create something that isn’t just a collection of tools and pedagogy that anyone with enough time and interest would be able to figure out.

In short, I believe that I am called to create something new.

Not repackaged or relabeled, not collected and aggregated, not open sourced and hacked; I need to create something new.

And, I believe that I have found that thing. I believe that my call to action comes in the form of SpeedGeek Learning.

I have seen a gathering storm of people who are looking to gain knowledge from inspiring presentations, building upon the passion of others. I have seen a growing movement of Pecha Kucha learning, Ignite illumination, and Micro-Lecture authorship. The one thing that I have not seen is any platform to really bring these things together. There is currently no place to go and see a continuum of videos that give all sides to a given topic. We have the ability only to search, but not really find related and contextual materials. We have no ability to collaborate and connect around the impromptu communities that are demanded by our inspired words.

Enter SpeedGeek Learning.

Here is what I believe that SpeedGeek Learning is:

SpeedGeek Learning is people presenting ideas.

This is as simple as it gets. The passion that people have for their own ideas knows no bounds. Speedgeek Learning is about giving that passion to others. It is about putting in front of everyone a well organized argument, a creative solution, or just a powerful story. SpeedGeek Learning is about giving people the platform to voice something into being; A platform robust enough to allow people to debate their ideas and make them better.


Speedgeek Learning is “the network” made real.

A network is made of people. But, the infinite status updates that go out to everyone devalues each individual contribution. The obscure connections of friends 14 times removed eliminates the true connection possible. When entities can engage as “contacts”, the word becomes meaningless. SpeedGeek Learning is about making the network tangible, about showing the connections between ideas and allowing for true interaction between consumer and producer. It is about collecting value and adding to it, constantly.

Speedgeek Learning is everyone’s story

We learn through stories and without access to everyone’s story, we are missing out on lots of learning. SpeedGeek Learning is about taking full advantage of stories no matter where they exist, whether that is Youtube, Vimeo or on Speedgeek Learning itself. We want conversation to happen in a single place, but not for the stories to be all the same. That is why the most engaging learning happens when differences come to the forefront and the true drama of discourse can begin.

In a nutshell, though, SpeedGeek Learning is the only platform that will allow you to learn in context. It will allow you to organize the most engaging content on a subject and then have a conversation about it anywhere and any time without ever being taken away from that content for a moment. SpeedGeek Learning is the way in which I want to learn, and I hope that you feel the same way.

So, if you would like to know more about SpeedGeek Learning, here is the video I made to introduce it:

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Here is the planning site that will give you insight into how the project is progressing.

And, here is the form that you can fill out if you are interested in helping bring this vision to life:
Loading…

Please, come help me build something new, if you believe that you are called to do so as well.

Oh, and here are the initial videos that will be a part of SpeedGeek Learning. What is missing?

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As things come together

As we meet to talk about bringing all tools under one roof, as we
start to work toward a single solution, as we start to use the same
language to discuss learning, as we get on the same page with
professional development models, as we create in the same formats, as
we pull from the same information and databases, as we get into the
same ganntt chart and project plan, as we start to realize the same
vision…
 
As we begin to all of these things more and more, I feel as though we
may lose some of what makes pushing boundaries seem so right.
 
 I believe that there is value in scope creep, so long as it is
reflective of the needs of learners.
 
I believe in not choosing a final solution.
 
I believe that disruptive innovation comes when fast moving ideas are
allowed to move fast.
 
I believe in knowing whose shoulders we are standing on and whose feet
we will support.

Posted via email from olco5’s posterous

Staying away

This is the first time in a few years that I did not attend NECC
virtually. I have never attended physically, but I have anticipated
all of the thinking and writing that happens during this conference.
This year, however, I am on vacation. I have not taken a vacation from
thinking or pushing myself in all things ed tech. Rather, a vacation
from the competition for attention. A vacation from large halls with
standing room only (for even virtual attendees). A vacation from
second-hand commentary standing for research.
 
Really though, this vacation isn’t about escaping NECC. It is about
sleeping on a hammock with my daughter and waiting for the warm Austin
wind to take us away from everything that plugs in.

Posted via email from olco5’s posterous

LiC Podcast: The On-Button at TIE 2009 Archive

I was really excited about revising my session from Educon 2.1 for TIE 2009. This is how it went (Including the presentation, the screencasts, the podcast for planning, and the twitter archive):

The On-Button Theory of Collaboration:

All of the best collaborations I have been a part of have started off with a lot of questions. Not “how do we get it done” questions, but rather questions that yearn for something more, questions that require you to truly envision something that has never existed before and then breathing it into being. Perhaps that is a little bit high minded for the type of collaboration I would like to do today, but I don’t think so.

I think that we can start with questioning the very nature of collaboration, the ways in which we communicate and come together. I believe that we can challenge the format and flow of our information. And in the process, I believe that we can create an instant and always-on type of collaboration that has never existed, until we all decide that it is worth building.

So, what are the questions that we would like to answer today? Well, I have a few to start:

  1. What types of collaboration would you like to have at your fingertips by simply clicking once with your mouse (without first having to build a personal learning network for a few months)? (Instant)
  2. What types of collaboration do you miss out on because they are not in your workflow (or you simply don’t have time)? (Instant and Always-on)
  3. How do you create long lasting collaborations (or at least ones that outlast your involvement with them)? (Always-on)
  4. How does the format and timeliness of information change the possibilities of collaboration? (Instant)
  5. How do you get information, people, and resources to come to you? (Always-on)

In answering these questions and many others that you have come up with, I think we will come to an understanding of the nature of instant and always-on collaboration. In the hopes that we have something to grab ahold of in this discussion, I have outlined what I believe are the tenants of getting collaboration to be as simple as an on-button:

(All of these tenants assume one thing: All collaboration is made up of single acts that are held within a single space and a single time. Together these acts of collaboration make up the process of connecting with others, discussing ideas, and creating something new.)

  1. All Logins that can be eliminated, should be.

  2. Everything that can be aggregated, should be.

  3. Everything that can be archived and tagged, should be.

  4. No new online space (blog, wiki, portal, etc.) should be created that cannot leverage existing spaces.

  5. Workflow is king. Any space that doesn’t play well with the tools that people already use, is worthless.

  6. Quiet the incessant chatter of the web. Focus only on conversation and voices that matter.

  7. All spaces must include specific information for specific stakeholders. (and other stakeholders, and other stakeholders, etc.)

  8. All spaces must be able to accommodate a nearly infinite number of stakeholders.

  9. Action should be inevitable, and membership should be optional.

  10. You should be obsolete in your space immediately.

Discuss.

Extra resources:

Ben Wilkoff Links:

  1. Learning is Change Blog and Podcast>
  2. Twitter Page
  3. Other Presentation from Tuesday (Design with forever in Mind)

Ustream Archive:

Twitter Archive:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

LiC Podcast: Design with Forever in Mind Archive

Although I was thrown a whole bunch by not having wifi for the first 45 minutes, I think that the session was worthwhile. Here is the archive of all that we have done. I am also including my planning podcast from my drive up to copper mountain.

Presentation:

 

Drop Box:

 

drop.io: simple private sharing

 

Important Links:

Ben Wilkoff Links:

  1. Learning is Change Blog and Podcast>
  2. Twitter Page
  3. Other Presentation on Thursday (The On Button: Instant and Always-on Collaboration)

Presentation Links:

  1. Foreverism
  2. Math Casts
  3. Web 2.0 Game Over

Exit Plan for Vocaroo:

  • Wav files backed up to a hard drive/server

Exit Plan for Drop.io:

  • Everyone who downloads the podcast will have a copy.

Exit Plan for JamGlue:

  • Mp3 files of mixes

Exit Plan for Screencastle:

  • Download Direct Link to File and store on hard drive/server

Exit Plan for Screentoaster:

  • Mov Downloads before uploading to screencastle site

Exit Plan for DimDim:

  • Download and build own DimDim server and store recordings there.

Exit Plan for Twitter:

Exit Plan for Google Docs:

Ustream Archive:

Twitter Archive:

Jun 23, 2009 05:54 AM GMT ·
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Conflict of interest

I accidentally posted this too soon, but here is the official version
of this idea (which is bound to change at some point).
 
What does it mean when you are faced with the following challenge:
 
The place that you work has given you the freedom to explore different
learning platforms, work with creative people, collaborate on process,
policy, and pedagogy, and the means to not have to say no too often.
 
The future you see for education is different than what is being planned.
 
The opportunities to branch out and create your own learning spaces
have never been more numerous or more engaging.
 
The community you actively engage in advocates for open communication
and documentation of every move forward that you make with your own
learning.
 
The boundaries on that communication have never been more clear: “Some
meetings are secret.”
 
The platforms for learning and support that you use are at odds with
“having someone on the other end of the line” when something goes
wrong.
 
So, what here is a conflict of interest. Can all of this coexist and
not create chaos, unrest or animosity between my job, my network, my
living, and my passion?
 
(Too vague? Give me a few months, and perhaps specifics will surface.)

Posted via email from olco5’s posterous