Using technology in learning - a beginners' guide

Welcome to MediaBlog once again. Before I start posting information on e-learning, I think it is important that I mention my reasons for creating this blog.

I have only held the post of Information Officer at RSCe for about 2 months now (at the date of this post) and as part of my role, I am exploring ways of improving communications between us and our clients, and so using a blog is one. However, the main reason for wanting to create this MediaBlog is to share my experiences with you. As a newcomer to e-learning, I am day-by-day getting to grips with the use of modern technology in teaching, such as online resources (moodle, wikis, studentblogs, social networks, Second Life) and equipment (interactive whiteboards, collborative tools, mobile learning etc etc)..... The list is endless.

As a so called 'digital native', many would have thought I would have a full grasp of these technologies, but I hate to admit I don't. Yes, I have a fair idea of what they are and what they do, but I'm still on a learning curve of understanding how they can be used as solutions in learning.

So, MediaBlog is intended for those who are new to or have a strong interest in e-learning solutions. Its aim; to bust as much jargon as possible and break the information I have gathered into bitesize, manageable chunks.

So you are probably thinking... 'what's with the name?'

It is called MediaBlog because it is just that. I will be posting a variety of media including podcasts and vidcasts of my experiences, visits and events as they happen so that you get a better idea of what I am talking about.

I hope you all find this helpful. If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact me via:

b.hutchens@rsc-eastern.ac.uk

One last thing.... If you are new to e-learning and would like to be kept in the loop about our news and upcoming events, then I would suggest subscribing to our fortnightly e-newletter, 'e-bytes'. You subscribe via:

http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?SUBED1=e-bytes&A=1

or you can access our e-bytes (word format) archive here:
http://www.rsc-eastern.ac.uk/RSC_files/news/ebytesarchive.htm

Also, if you have an RSS reader or Internet Explorer 7 you can subscribe to our news feed:
http://info.rsc-eastern.ac.uk/news/