Rheinard’s UB Blog

This post is just a result of a short conversation that I had with a fellow worker. We were looking at our E-Learning requirements for 2008, it seems that the general feel pretty much anywhere is - “we do not have the content”. This is a very real consideration, but by no means the end of getting a course on-line.

In the last 10 years we’ve never had such an ocean of opportunity before us as we do now. Collaboration technology, communication technology, social networks and of course mobile devices. We’re slowly starting to reprogram our engrained way of thinking. If there is anything that we can learn from these trends, it is this - We are no longer in control. Don’t fight it, Embrace it!

What does this have to do with content? What if we were to rethink the way we assess our students, in such a way that their assessments wont just be a bit of paper that gets marked, handed back and thrown away? What if we can harness the work that they’re expected to be assessed on, grade it and contribute it back to the class. Giving them a much greater sense of ownership of the content they generated. Content that will now benefit them, but also benefit other students in the years to come. RE-USABLE content.

This is an early thought that requires much more planning and formation, but utilizing the true potential of constructivist tools, such as a wiki, we can build content that is not only unique, but easy to manage and always current!

I know right now copyright of the work is a thought that comes to mind (if it doesnt, it should!). How would we manage all this student generated content, would they give us the rights to do so, how would they do it? Enter Creative Commons, finding a CC license that suits the needs of the students are easy. They can restrict the way in which we use the content, but still with the freedom that future students will benefit. (Forget about selling their content!)

Lets find a way to work with our students and fill up all those empty BlackBoard sections!