Final Day Reflections

Today was fun! We started class a half hour early in order that Steve could fulfill a teaching commitment.

Sandie showed us the features of 'Captivate'-- a screen capturing software program. It seemed mind boggling to me. However, not so long ago, 'Word' scared the socks off me as I had been accustomed to using 'Word Perfect'. Therefore, it is just a matter of familiarizing myself with yet another tool to survive in the world of interactive communication.

Our first activity consisted of pairing up in teams of two. Steve and Jen were given a picture puzzle with no picture of its contents. Ben and I were given a picture puzzle with the picture but we were not allowed to communicate with each other and we could only work on it alternately in thirty second segments. Steve and Jen finished their puzzle before ours was halfway completed. After we had lost the competition, Ben and I started to communicate and work on the puzzle in tandem and Steve and Jen also gave us assistance. The outcome of this exercise could apply in Distance Education. When you do not have the whole picture or when you have the picture but have restrictions, sometimes you must step beyond the rules to get a satisfactory conclusion.

Next, Sandie reviewed in depth the requirements for our final paper which is due July 9, 2007 and what will be expected for the fall semester.

Mashups, remixes, and YouTube were explored. These various entities combine several different sources into one artifact. Some of them were very entertaining.

Creating a bumper sticker promoting Distance Education was the last activity of the day. We decided to use a logo with two people positioned on the top of the world globe with a bridge separating them with the inscription -- "Brigding the Gap -- Distance Education".

For me, the workshop has been most beneficial. It was a pleasant experience to work with the other members of the cohort who were friendly and considerate. I may never use many of the tools we explored, but it has given me a better understanding of what is available and I can converse with the younger generation on their terms!

Thank you all !!!

P.S. I wrote a much better reflection earlier, but just before I posted it, AOL knocked me off the internet. I loathe working at home because this happens all too often.