New Research on Maximum Recommended Instructional Video Length

New Research on Maximum Recommended Instructional Video Length (2013-11-26)

I don't normally re-blog - this is the first time actually.  However, this new research from EdX and University of Rochester should just be presented in its original.  In a nutshell, rather than the "10 to 12, and not longer than 15, minutes", instructional video length that I have recommended in workshops, this research implies a much shorter length: 6 minutes.  In fact, while the average viewing time for a 6 minute video was 6 minutes, after that, the longer the video, the shorter the time that students watched.  12 - 15 minute videos were watched for less time than a 3 minute video!

https://www.edx.org/blog/optimal-video-length-student-engagement

Google Drops Support for Internet Explorer 9

Google Drops Support for Internet Explorer 9 (2013-11-11)

Google attempts to be browser agnostic in all of its standard Apps offerings so that all browsers, Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox, on Windows and MocOS, work equally well¹.   In order to make this task manageable for these other browsers, Google limits the supported versions of those browsers to the current version and the next one previous².  

Google Maps as a Multi-Discipline Instruction Tool

Google Maps as a Multi-Discipline Instruction Tool (2013-10-04)

View The Amistad Slave Route & Revolt in a larger map
The ability to create your own content tied to a Google Map has always been ripe with promise for instruction in fields beyond Geography and Geology.  Tying the activity in novels, historically important events, political movements, migration patterns of animals and humans, changing climate data or anything else "mappable" to an interactive Google Map (or Google Earth) lets your students explore the topic in a way that a simple narrative restricts.

Circuits On The Web

Circuits On The Web (2013-09-30)

For electronics classes or Makers in general, a new (to me anyway) website, 123dCircuits, lets you create a circuit and share it online.  It even has an Arduino simulator so you can fully design your shield program and breadboard circuit before risking any sensitive components.  

The Evolution of BYOD

The Evolution of BYOD (2013-09-26)

There was a time when bringing your own computer to campus meant that a student was bringing it for their dorm room - and connectivity wasn't a question.  Today, most students have at least two, a phone and a laptop, and some add to this a tablet, an ebook reader, a WiFi connected music player, etc.   Most of those grab a WiFi signal as soon as it comes into range.  Will this trend continue?  Will there soon come a day when our students will look like carnival rides, emitting multi-hued radio if we could see it?

Email Etiquette

Email Etiquette (2013-09-20)

As we enter the new semester I would like to offer this from TED Curator Chris Anderson.  Much of the advice surrounding email, as well as all other online correspondence, concerns maintaining a civil tone.  This is one is different, it deals with making your readers' lives a bit easier.


10 Rules to Reverse the Email Spiral

Wireless, Blackboard, Email and the Portal

From the Office of Information Services  (2013-09-03)

The Office of Information Services (OIS) has issued a new technology update today.  The big news is the activation of a new campus wide WiFi system called "Elmhurst College".  You will find it in all of the academic buildings south of Alexander.  This eliminates the need to switch between building-named WiFi systems as you move around campus.

For more details on this and other items, including information on the new version of Blackboard, more tips on email consolidation, and the advantages of the portal, please see this document on Google Drive:  OIS Announcement of September 3, 2013.